My Funny Valentine

This year for Valentine's Day Dan & I decided to keep it low key & just go out to dinner - it did fall on a Tuesday after all. We both sent a little delivery to our places of employment; Dan sent me a dozen red roses & I sent him a box of chocolate covered apple slices & strawberries from Edible Arrangements - they were a big hit, not only for Dan but for the guys that he shared them with.
Dan made an early reservation for us at Paolo's at the Reston Town Center which is an italian restaurant (my favorite food). They had a nice V-Day menu & also had an acapella group that made their way around the restaurant serenading different tables. During our dinner we exchanged gifts. This year I went with more of a work out theme with Dan's gifts such as a new DriFit Nike shirt, an insulated Polar water bottle & a "cord buddy" that holds your headphone wire in place while you're running/walking, etc.: I bought Dan this black one at Dick's, but they have a ton of options when I decided to Google it: I absolutely love the giraffe...I think I'm going to order one for myself (& it comes in pink!).
It was then my turn to open my gift; I pretty much knew what it was when Dan carried in a large Victoria's Secret bag & box: It seems to me that this is more of a joint gift rather than a gift just for me, but I must say that they are extremely comfortable. The Hubster has good taste.

I hope everyone enjoyed their Valentine's Day & got to spend some quality time with their significant other. =]

 

"Run Your Heart Out"

On February 12th, Dan & I ran in the "Run Your Heart Out" 5k Race in Reston, VA with 2 of our friends; all of the proceeds went to benefit heart disease. We were excited on the days leading up to the race, but on actual race day it was miserable. When we left our house, it was 18 degrees outside & the wind was absolutely freezing; it was one of those winds that if you didn't have a scarf, hat or anything somewhat covering your face it actually hurt when it hit you. When we rolled up to the race destination, the temp had only increased 2 degrees. The trail that they had mapped out was slightly covered in snow & they were reminding us every few minutes to be extremely careful of ice patches. Doesn't this sound fun?!?!

After the race started, I did get a tiny bit warmer but my toes were completely frozen & I had no feeling in them. Dan actually ran without gloves because he couldn't find his - I still don't know how he did that.

On the straight stretch just before the finish line, there were photographers snapping action shots. Here are Dan & I's: The guy just in front of Dan is absolutely hilarious with that face.
In my sprint mode.

Dan & I's stats were as follows:
Dan: 7:40 (average pace); 24:10 (completed time)
Me: 8:46 (average pace; 27:14 (completed time)

We were thinking that had the conditions been better & we didn't have to worry about ice patches, our times may have been better - you just never know. I was pretty happy with my time though. For running in the race, we each got a nice Nike DriFit, long sleeve, workout shirt; I wore mine the week after during one of my runs. =]

Once the race was over we ran back to our car & drove to get some breakfast. I was so excited to get home & take a hot shower; Dan & I did absolutely nothing for the rest of the day & it was wonderful.

 

Little Princess

A few weekends ago I stopped at Petco & found that they now sell “dog dazzlers” which are ribbons, bows & bling for your pets collars. Since Lexi is missing 2 rhinestone from her collar, I’ve been trying to either replace them or find something to cover it up – these were perfect! I bought the pink & plaid bow just to see how it fit & to make sure she didn’t try to rip it off. I've always thought that Petco has cuter apparel, collars, beds & toys then PetSmart does, but they are a little more pricey. I think she looks super cute!

I plan on going back to get a few more just so she has some variety. Princesses always need variety. =]

 

Half Marathon Training

Dan & I's half marathon is now 4 weeks away, so I thought I would give you all an update on how it's going. I'm averaging about 20 miles per week & increasing. Dan can already run 13 miles, but he's been working on his time - hoping to narrow it down & be able to finish strong. I've crossed over into the competetive training where I get mad at myself if my time or pace is less than what I usually do. I understand that everyone has good runs & bad runs, but I still get disappointed in myself. I've come to enjoy my long runs & don't actually get comfortable & "in my zone" until after the 2 to 2.5 mile marker. Once I reach that point I say to myself, "alright - lets go!" I've come to hate the treadmill & find myself running outside even when it's freezing, snowing or sometimes even misting. I would rather face the bad weather then have to run 4 to 5 miles on a treadmill at the gym while staring only at the TV.

Some things that I've noticed during this training process:

1. I've started to get chaffing on a regular basis under my armpits & have to treat it with ointment after my runs;
2. I spit & farmer blow my nose on a regular basis during my runs (so attractive);
3. I have to cut out my ingrown toenails weekly;
4. I've grown to love my high cut running shorts & I never thought I would; and
5. I've crossed over to dreaming at night about running & mapping out my runs in my head during my commute in to work.

I was reading my Runner's magazine this weekend & found a website that sells chrome emblems for vehicles. I always see stickers on cars that say "26.2" or "13.1." I've already picked our the one that I want to buy for Phoebe: By Elektroplate. It's the little things that make me happy. =]

Last week Dan & I booked our hotel room for the race & we decided that we would stay Saturday night & Sunday night so we could enjoy ourselves a bit instead of trying to rush on home. My sweet sister-in-law, Kelly, is going to take care of Lexi while we're gone.

I'm getting excited for race day & the fact that I'm getting to participate & complete this half marathon with my best friend is just another wonderful highlight. We're on our way out the door right now to run an 8 miler. Happy running!

 

Scentsy?

Now I like to consider myself with the times, but when I went up to PA to surprise my parents a few weekends ago with a visit my Mom introduced me to the Scentsy collection. I had heard of it in the past, but really didn't understand what they sold. Well, now I'm hooked. After being surrounded by a wonderful smell when I walked into my parents guest room, I wanted some for our house. During my stay in PA, I ordered 2 warmers (1 for our living room & 1 for our hallway on the second floor). I decided to purchase the mid-size warmers not only because they were on sale, but also because I wasn't too sure how much I'd like them once I got them. Here are the 2 that I chose: (Canary Mid-Size Warmer)
(Soho Mid-Size Warmer)

I absolutely love them & every night/weekend when I'm home I turn them on & let the wonderful smell fill our entire house. The 2 fragrances that I purchased were Sugar Cookie & Hazelnut Latte; right now we're enjoying Sugar Cookie which Dan commented on the first night that he came home & I had them turned on, "babe, are you baking cookies?!?" (insert huge smile on his face). Unfortunately, I had to break the bad news that I was not baking cookies. :-/

A special thanks goes out to my Mom for introducing me to the wonderful world of Scentsy. =]

 

An 80's New Year's Eve

Dan & I rang in the new with his sister, Aurie, & her husband, Glenn, at the Lansdowne Resort listening to the 80's cover band The Reflex. Since we live so close to Lansdowne & we had Lexi, we decided not to rent a room & just grab a taxi home. Here's us killing some time while we wait for our ride to pick us up for a night of fun! The first thing on our to do list was to eat at the buffet in one of the dining areas at the resort. Dan was super excited about this & when I saw what they were serving, I got pretty excited too. The food was fantastic! I was in love with their salad & fine cheese tray, I couldn't stop eating them. Once we were done stuffing our faces, we made our way to the ball room. We stopped to take a few pics in front of their many decorated trees:

Aurie, Lover & Me

Anxiously waiting for the band to start: Aurie & Me

Glenn & Aurie (just cheesin')

When the band took the stage, they were all decked out in 80's attire. The music was amazing & we would recommend this band to anyone. If they come to your area, buy tickets - you won't regret it.

Dan & I danced most of the night, except for drink refills & potty breaks: (Yes, I forgot to cut the tag out of my sweater).
No idea what we're doing, but we were having a blast!
The ball room was decorated in 80's colors & on each table were noise makers, hats & little snacks.
Having a great time:



Happy 2012!!!

 

2011 End of Year Dinner

On December 29th, my office celebrated our end of the year with a trip to National Harbor to see the Merry Madagascar ice show. I had never heard of this before, but apparently it is a big hit with the kiddos, teenagers & adults. I did see the movie Madagascar & thought it was really cute, so I figured I would enjoy myself.

We closed our office at 2:00 p.m. that day & went downstairs to meet our limo which was taking all 12 of us to National Harbor. We did our usual popping of champagne & toasting to a good year once we were all settled inside. We arrived at the tent that was putting on the ice show & after some long lines we put our bright blue parkas on that they provide to everyone because the temperature inside the tent is zero degrees. Sandra Lue wasn't too excited to put on the "germ infested parkas," but quickly warmed up to them once she realized how cold it was inside the ice tent.

Now for some pretty cool pics:







During our walk through all of the beautiful ice sculptures, we reached an ice slide so of course we had to try it: Sandra Lue & I taking our turn.
"That was fun!"

The ice show was such an amazing experience & I’m so glad that David & Nancy came up with the idea of taking us all there; I would’ve never thought of something like that!

We then made our way over to the Gaylord National Hotel for dinner. Since we were a little early, we walked around the shops that they have inside & of course stopped for a pre-dinner drink at a sports bar. We then made our way up to The Old Hickory Steakhouse which was absolutely gorgeous. The food & my margaritas were amazing!

We all had such a wonderful time & I'm glad that we have the opportunity to do fun things like this each year. =]

 

Shoe of the Month - February

OMG – I can’t believe it’s already February! Where did January go? Time sure does fly when you’re having so much fun. =]

This month's shoe is probably more practical for the work day, but would still look great dressed down with a pair of jeans. I realized, after sifting through my shoes & organizing them in their nice boxes, that I have a considerable amount of peep toe pumps; that's definitely not a bad thing because they are all super cute, but maybe I need to start "investing" in some close toed shoes as well.

So....here's February: Metallic Peep Toe Pump by Vince Camuto. Click here for further information. A plus - they're on sale!!!

I'm leaning more towards the metallic gold pump, they really are catching my eye. I feel like my taste has improved since I've let gold into my wardrobe. I used to hate gold jewelry/clothing, etc. & now it's one of the first things I'm drawn to. I'm glad that I've broken out of my little shell because there are so many more options now.

Happy February everyone &, of course, happy shoe shopping!