So I have officially completed my first two 5K races. I have been working for a few months to build up my endurance and to feel comfortable with running outside. I have done one other race before, but honestly I was not prepared for it and ended up walking way more of the race than I wanted to. Being honest I probably spent 75% of that race walking. My goal was to be able to complete an entire race without walking. For some people this might come easy (just ask my husband who hasn't ran in years), but for me it was definitely a challenge.

The first race was in Kansas City at Rock the Parkway.  I was initially just going up to cheer on my sister in law as she completed her half marathon. Did I mention that she is the one that inspired this little challenge? Somehow she convinced me that I was ready for this race and that it would give me a starting point for the real race I was training for in May. My nerves were unreal as we were standing there that morning, but I tried so hard to act like I had it together. As I started off I remembered her words, "don't run too fast in the beginning, just keep your pace." I truly think this is what helped me have the endurance to make it through. After I made the turn and knew I was on the downhill slope, I allowed myself to think about what I was actually accomplishing. Towards the end of the race there were families standing on the side with signs, children cheering on their mothers, and friends encouraging their runner and strangers alike. Crossing the finish line was hard! Yes my legs were sore, I was starting to tire, but the feeling that came over me was so intense. It was a good thing I remembered there was going to be pictures....because I had been running with tears streaming for the last mile. I did it, and not only did I meet my goal of not walking, I finished almost 5 minutes under what I thought I would.

It has finally hit me that my sweet little boy is going to be 6 in a very short time. Not really sure why this age has been so much harder to handle than 5, but wow am I a mess! Riley is such a funny, sweet, and bright boy that it is sometimes hard for me to realize that he is quickly becoming a little man. I can remember holding him in my arms at night rocking him to sleep.  It was our special time to just be the two of us. There were plenty of nights that he would fall asleep in my arms and I would choose to hold him just a little bit longer. I never realized that it would go by so fast.

1. Our first dance song at our wedding was "I Wanna Know" by Joe
Danny and I met in college, so it is no surprise to anyone that our tastes in music were a little different back in the day compared to now. When we met there was no other song that could express our love better than the smooth tunes of Joe. It may not be the standard wedding song but it was definitely our song.

2. Feet
I seriously hate feet....they just look silly and the thought of them touching any part of me sends chills up my spine. Danny on the other hand seems to think that rubbing his feet on mine is the best thing ever. Ugh!

3. Homebody vs Social Butterfly
We could not be more different in how and where we want to spend our time if we tried. I think Danny would be more than happy to spend all of our time sitting at home together. On the other hand I would much rather be out and about surrounded by friends and family. Now, that doesn't mean that I don't enjoy spending time at home watching a movie and doing nothing at all sometimes.

4. Hannah's name
We came up with our daughters name before we were married one evening during a totally random conversation. It was one of those conversations that seems so funny at the time. When we were listing off possible names of our future children we were also stating what the appropriate nicknames could be. With Hannah we somehow came to the conclusion that it would be fun to be cheering for her from the stands yelling, "Hannah get a woot woot!" Like I said, way more funny at the time. =) Since that conversation there was never another name that came close to Hannah.

5. Pet lover
Our family owns two dogs and a fish. I can honestly say that before getting married I was not really a pet person. After spending time with Danny and seeing how much he cared for the pets he grew up with, it was easy to see how having pets would complete our family. Our puppies were definitely our furbabies until our kids came along.

6. Friday the 13th
The movie, the day, and spooky Halloween fun describe our special days. For some time we had a fun tradition to have a movie night on any Friday the 13th to watch those movies.  It usually included food, fun, my sister and cousin, as well as many of our favorite memories. It just so happened that we became on engaged on one of these Friday the 13th evenings.  Now whenever the date comes up it holds even more of a memory for us.

I keep seeing celebrities and everyday ladies rocking the wedge sneaker.  They range in colors from black and tan to fuchsia and teal. The thing is, I just don't understand it. I have not been able to get on this bandwagon for many reasons.

1. How can these really be comfortable?
2. They look like a throwback to Back To The Future...."Hello, McFly!"
3. The cost!
4. There is literally no way I could wear a pair of these and not look completely stupid.

Over the past few months there have been many attempts at finding what routine works best for working out. Working out primarily in the afternoon is hard because my energy is so low and it is really easy to have conflicts that come up.  I don't have the availability to workout over the lunch hour, but I do think this would be a nice option to get in a little cardio when the weather is nice out. The magic time for me has been to get up bright and early and start my day off with a 4:45 am workout.  My runs have slowly progressed to about 35 minutes each day.  When I couple my run with lifting weights, I can easily put in a little over an hour.  

Each year it is easy to start off with a list of resolutions and ways to be better in the coming year.  The problem I usually have is that I feel like the list just hangs there over my head.  Taunting me if I haven't quite succeeded in each area.

This time of year always does two things to me....makes me crave being inside with a fire next to the Christmas tree snuggling up with my family OR it drives me crazy with all of the parties/events that we have to do in such a short amount of time.  Don't get me wrong I love all of these fun plans that the holidays bring, but wow is it a struggle to make it all work.

Since doing the Whole 30 a while back I have tried to incorporate the Paleo diet more and more in our daily life.  The area that I struggle with is when it comes to packing the school lunch. If I am being honest I struggle with that even without trying to follow a Paleo diet.  There are so many great foods but the kids only have 20 minutes for lunch.  So what I pack needs to be quick and easy and doesn't make a huge mess.  Because let's face it that messy lunches and a white school uniform shirt do not mix well.

image credit: Everyday Paleo

Since Thanksgiving is officially past us I think it is only fair that we start sharing our holiday wish lists. My birthday and Christmas are fairly close together so luckily I only have to come up with this list once a year. I don't know about you but I hate the question, "What do you want for your birthday/Christmas?" When I was younger this wasn't nearly as hard to come up with....but the older you get the harder it becomes.

So, for my husband who is hopefully reading here is the coveted list you are always asking for
(wink! wink!)

It is so easy to get caught up in all the little things that are going on in life.  The daily tasks of just getting the kids where they need to be, attending about a gazillion meetings (yes that is a real number), and just keeping up with life. I love Thanksgiving because it forces us to take a moment and be thankful for what really matters in life.

This week I thought I would share the top 5 beauty products I am loving. If you want to join in on the fun grab the link and post with us.

If money was no object I would gladly spend all of my time traveling around the world.  There is nothing better than just getting away and seeing how the other parts of the world live.  Granted most of my travels have been here in the US and I have only been out of the country once....that doesn't stop a girl from dreaming. 

Greece

Hawaii

Today is the day!  I am joining Amber and Holly and their 30 Day Shred Challenge.  I have to be honest here....I have started this video multiple times before but never completed all 30 days.  I have every intention to do it, but something always comes up!

It's baby time and time to start planning a certain someone's baby shower.  I don't know about you but since the invention of pinterest I can easily get myself in over my head.  If only I had enough time to do EVERYTHING that I find on that site! There are definitely many nights that you can find me pinning away planning the next party, decorating my dream house, or looking at all the DIY projects.

Pinterest love.....I could spend hours on there and come up with so many ideas for the holidays.  The issue is finding the time to actually implement all of them.  I did come across one this year that I knew I just had to put my spin on.  We have a space on our porch that just calls for something festive and I always struggle with just the perfect thing.  So, I spent a few minutes hours on Pinterest and found a super cute welcome sign that was made using chalkboard paint.  I love the look of writing on chalkboard, but I do not really have the most consistent handwriting.