Five Things Friday

Five things Friday is back!! And it’s basically my excuse to not write a “real” post and just ramble on and on about some pretty awesome things going on in my life right now. Or products I love. Or whatever.

It’s also an excuse to get on the #backthatazzup Friday train. No shame in my game.

(SN–> I’m so obsessed with this song!)

1. INSANITY!!! I’m not sure if I’ve really talked about my experience with Insanity but let me put it this way–I LOVE it. And I’m kind of obsessed with Shaun T.

My boss and I have been doing Insanity for about 6 weeks now and it’s awesome! Seriously. I’ve stayed around the same weight but my core is about 109182309812 times stronger. Along with every other muscle I own. And it’s done wonders to my running. I ran a 5K back in March before we started with a time of 25:30. I just ran a 5K two weekends ago in 23:30. Same route. Everything just feels…. better.

2. My new running shoes. I bought my first pair of Asics a few years ago and will never, ever look back. I LOVE these shoes. It literally feels like my feet are springing off of the pavement. And they’re comfy too–I tell everyone it feels like I’m running on a cloud. Or something like that. And they’re pretty. Duh.

3. Pretzel M&M’s. I need rehab.

I’m pretty sure these babies were a subject of another Five Things Friday. The love affair goes WAAAAY back.

4. I watched Safe Haven last night. And oh yeah, totally cried. I have no idea when I turned into such a sap but maybe that’s what 26 does to you. It’s like the sap switch is turned on. I could seriously cry about any and everything right now. Like for instance if you were to tell me that pretzel m&m’s were going to be discontinued–MAJOR tears. ha But back to the movie–not bad. Peter had to work last night so I figured that was my one shot to get a good chick flick in.

5. As of 5pm this afternoon, this girl is ON VACATION!!!!!! We are heading down to Hilton Head next week and I can. NOT. WAIT. We went down last week during fourth of July and had a blast and decided we’d go again. Unfortunately Peter can’t come because of work but I told him I’d make sure to have lots of fun in his honor. 😉 I’m also pretty stoked because my mom, dad, and I are running a 5k on the fourth. 🙂 This will be my mom & dad’s FIRST! They joined weight watchers back in October and have each lost over 60lbs so I’m slowly but surely planting the running bug in their ear. 😉 SO… if there are no posts next week, you know why. I plan on being knee deep in the water somewhere.

Sarah

Whoops.

So, totally took a couple of weeks off from blogging. Work has been crazy + it’s been absolutely beautiful outside which means I’ve been staying as far away from the computer as possible! BUT to make up for it, I’ve taken a TON of pictures (even by my standards) so I’ll play a little catch-up for you guys from the last two weekends. 🙂

Totally won my first 5k last weekend! It was a small-ish race (maybe 80 people total?) but still really proud of myself! When I first started running, never in a million years did I think I’d actually be the first female to cross the finish line. 🙂 I guess I can mark that off of my bucket list.

Last weekend was also Father’s Day so not only did I get to hang out with my awesome dad but I got to spend time with my favorite little person/niece. 🙂 Cutest/happiest baby ever? I think so.

Okay and I HAD to post this picture of her and Peter. It’s too cute not to.

This past weekend was a good mix of relaxation and productivity. Exactly how I like it. Friday I got off work a little early and went home for a NAP! I can’t remember the last time I did that. Peter and I also ventured over to the track near our house and got some running work in. It’s so much more fun when you have someone to motivate you and talk to when you’re running! That night I declared it a lazy night and we watched some gem’s on netflix–I learned about a girl who eats pottery & cigarette ashes, a lady who took 150 laxatives a day, and then watched a documentary about a mom who went on a binge drinking spree for 30 days to show her college aged daughter how harmful it is. I’m documentary OBSESSED! The only reason I still have netflix. 🙂

Saturday morning we got up and hit up a workout class and then declared it a date day. We headed over to my mom and dad’s house for a quick swim and then we went on an adventure in the mountains. So. Much. FUN!

Basically… Saturday was awesome. We had so much fun! We cooked out for the first time at our new place Saturday evening and invited a friend over. We also watched Pitch Perfect for the 10 millionth time.. which is okay because it’s aca-awesome and I love it.

Sunday was pretty much a chill day. We got up and lazed around on the couch for a while, ended up taking a 3+ mile walk, moved a few more things in, did our weekly grocery trip, I watched Peter & his friend play xbox for 2+ hours, did our normal pizza Sunday routine, watched a man walk across the grand canyon, and then called it a day. The only picture I got for ya is one of a magnolia blossom that I spotted on our walk. Exciting, I know.

So that’s the way things have been kind of playing out around here lately. Lots of exercise, lots of fun, lots of relaxation… life is GOOD. And even better? Once I make it to Friday, I’m officially on VACATION! I’m headed to Hilton Head for a few days with the rents and running a race while I’m there too on the 4th! 🙂 Lots of good things/pictures coming your way.

BUT… it’s almost lunch time now and my stomach is making a slightly embarrassing growling sound which is my cue to grab some grub. Have a wonderful Monday! 🙂

Sarah

“It would be pretty awesome if you dropped down on one knee with your PBR and proposed.”

Uhh–this weekend was crazy. And not like college crazy. Like, I’m a freaking adult and just moved in with my boyfriend crazy. (okay and maybe a little college crazy too–but not on my part)

So without further ado–

So long story short, Peter & I have planned on moving in together for a while now. At first, we were going to move into his place which just so happens to be the same place my brother lived for a few years during/after college.. in my parents back yard. And if it’s any indication of it’s size, it’s nicknamed “The Shack”. Don’t get me wrong, I would have absolutely LOVED to have lived rent free for a year but… after moving all of my stuff from my apartment, we quickly realized there was NO way it would work. So… we quickly looked for an alternative. And found a pretty freakin’ great one. It’s not huge by any means but it’s in the middle of downtown (LOVE), rent is reasonable (LOVE), hard wood floors throughout, and…. it’s ours. 🙂 And thus, this weekend was alllll about moving. Okay and there may or may not have been a big golf tournament going which led to a pretty big party atmosphere around the ‘rents house AND a 5k mixed in.

Good weekend? You better believe it.

(sorry this is INCREDIBLY small–my computer is being super slow and I didn’t feel like changing it!)

1. Right before my race! I always take the same picture before every 5k.

2. Ummm, hello top 100! Out of 470! Oh and not to mention I came in FIRST for my age group! WHATTT?! Still crazy to me that when I first started running, I could barely run a mile in like, what, 10 minutes? And now I’m consistently averaging sub 7 & sub 8 minute miles.

3. so many runners!

4. HERITAGE! This is from my (first) senior year of college–I lived with my 2 best friends in this apartment and had the time of my life.

5. Hello DIY. I hate DIY. Literally. But it just so happens Peter is pretty good at it. Those lamps USE to be brass and now they are AWESOME.

6. I have the coolest niece… ever.

7. the spread at my parent’s house Saturday night. (which I’ll now be working off for the next week!)

8. New rug from Urban Outfitters. I wish it would get here already! 🙂

There ya go. 🙂

Sarah

PS– the quote in my subject line? That would be from my brother… after several beers and golf.. to Peter. This was before him, my dad, my bro’s father in law, and my dad’s best friend started chanting for Peter to propose. Oy.

Hello Random Tuesday

There are many things I want to start blogging about–life, love, the future–but today I decided to keep it pretty simple. One of my favorite things to do when I was blogging regularly was to just write about random things going on that particular day or week…. so I decided to bring it back. I shall deem today, “Totally Random Tuesday”.

Maybe I’ll start my own link up one day?! 

1. There was a monkey on campus today. As in, someone’s pet monkey got loose and ran all over campus. If that’s not random, I don’t know what is. I couldn’t even make this stuff up if I tried. It was awesome. I even got interviewed by the local paper. (Clearly it was a slow news day)

2. Since I started college back in 2006, I’ve moved a total of….. SEVEN times. SEVEN!!!!!!! Move number 8 is coming up this week! 

3. I’m THIS close to signing up for my second half marathon. Ever since I ran my first last September, I feel like I have something to prove. I pretty much quit training all together about 5 weeks before my race and although I finished, my time wasn’t what I had hoped for… at all. I saw the Rock-n-Roll series is having a special tomorrow–$20 off all registration fees for National Running Day–and the Savannah half is looking more and more like a winner. It would be the perfect opportunity to get under 2 hours….. hmmm. I’ll let you know what I decide tomorrow.

4. Speaking of running, I’m running another 5K this weekend–my favorite distance by far. It’s suppose to be a pretty flat course so I’m hoping I can PR. I’m shooting for under 23 minutes. It’s crazy–when I first started running I was doing 3.1 in 28-29 minutes and now I’m hoping to be in the 22’s. Just goes to show that hard work pays off! 

5. I’m having way too much fun thinking about decorating my new apartment. I’ve been pinning like crazy! I’m OBSESSED with anything chevron right now and love, love LOVE bright colors! Good thing Peter gave me free reign…… 😉 Here are a few of my favorite pins lately!

 

 

 

 

Whether I can pull any of this off in my apartment is beyond me…. especially on a TIGHT budget… but you better believe I’m going to try. 😉 

Annnnnnd I think that’s enough random for this Tuesday.

SS

Weekend Shenanigans

So, since I’m “back”, I had to jump on the weekend shenanigans bandwagon. Most of my weekends aren’t really worthy of a post but either way, they’re still fun to write about.

(Okay and for the record–totally had more pictures from my weekend but my phone was being ridic so I went on a deleting spree… whoops. Who knew I’d be participating in my first linkup?! Totally win the “bad blogger” award this week.)

This weekend my work crew, 12 students, and I  headed to Pigeon Forge, TN for a summer outdoor recreation trip. Reason #10918208 my job is pretty fantastic. Friday we hit up Dollywood and basically walked 1098120398 miles, road every ride in the park and my coworkers and I decided that we were going to be badasses and be known as the Heisenbergs that day (we are all OBSESSED with Breaking Bad… anyone else out there watch it?!).

Friday night a few of us headed into downtown Gatlinburg and had a blast. I think I ate every carb in sight at Mellow Mushroom and then proceeded to walk even more after dinner. BUT brightside–it was the PERFECT summer night. Something I’ve been waiting on for a while now. It’s been an unusually cold spring so it was nice to walk around without a sweatshirt on all. the. time.

Saturday it was time for Splash Country. Okay. I’ll be the first to admit I HATE water parks. This day did absolutely nothing to change my mind. ha. Rides were great; having my shoes stolen… not so great. Waiting in line for an hour and a half? Terrible. The sun/sidewalk ripping a billion layers of skin off the bottom of my feet? WTFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFF. The good news is that I came away with only a minor sun burn and didn’t have to pay an arm and a leg for new shoes. But seriously– I had a great time and again, the weather was perfect.

Saturday night we headed to Dixie Stampede. Food=AMAZING. Show=CHEESY. You win some and lose some I guess?

Sunday we were suppose to head to Dollywood again but we woke up and it was POURING outside so an early trip back home it was. I can’t complain–I was ready to get back for Pizza Sunday and Peter! Back in September 2012, Peter and I started the tradition of Pizza Sunday–in the beginning we either ordered out or bought a funky Wal-Mart crust, added some toppings, and called it a day. Now it’s grown into a really fun tradition–we make our own crust and come up with  crazy, sometimes good, sometimes bad topping ideas. Last night was pretty simple–LOTS OF VEGGIES! It was delicious! Yesterday also consisted of a few walks, lots of rain, lots of relaxing, and an early bedtime. BASICALLY my idea of a perfect Sunday.

That was my weekend in a nutshell! I usually dread Mondays but I’m looking forward to this week–Peter & I are moving into our first apartment (!!), I get to see some of my best college girlfriends this weekend, running a 5K Saturday, and have a really fun Saturday night planned. Hope everyone has a great week! 🙂

SS

oh hey there.. don’t mind me.

So, I feel like when “normal” bloggers take a hiatus, it’s for a month or two. Am I right? 

Well… I’ve never been “normal” and so two years it was. It happens, right?! 

I use to love this blog. I enjoyed sitting down at my computer and writing about my life. And I won’t lie, two years later and it’s SO MUCH FUN to look back on my senior year of college and all of the crazy shenanigans that went down. But then I graduated college. And got a “real” job. And life just kind of got in the way for a while. But… I’ve had the itch to start my blog back up for a while now and decided summer’s getting ready to start, I’ve got more time on my hands, life is about to get pretty interesting so… what better time than now? I changed the name back to the original, made a new header (terrible, I know. Anyone good at photo shop?), and am ready to sit back and catch anyone that might still have me on their reader up on my life as of late. 

Here goes nothing?!

because it’s only appropriate to insert a cat picture…amiright?

As I was sitting here thinking about where to start, I looked at the last entry I posted for some inspiration (the same last entry in which I stated I was back to blogging again… ha ;)) and realized that I left off on a prettttty major cliffhanger–the prospect of a new job. I was unhappy with my job at the bank and was looking for something more fulfilling and meaningful when, HELLO, opportunity knocked on my door. And I’m happy to say that a week after that last post, I received the phone call (on my way to the beach mind you) that I was looking for. I GOT IT! And two years later, here I am. I’m the Assistant Director of Student Activities & Recreation at the college where I graduated. Although it’s not what I want to do for the rest of my life (and will be going back to school soon–more on that later!), it has by far been probably the coolest job I ever could have imagined. I’ve been skydiving, ziplining, skiing, done multiple races, traveled, came up with some crazy ideas, and have had the best time doing it. Not to mention I have the BEST co-workers imaginable. Seriously. 

Just flying through the air… no big deal.

I guess what I’m trying to say is–it was a good fit.

In my last entry I also talked about living with my best friends. Well, we no longer live together… but we’re still best friends. 🙂 DUH! Literally don’t know what I would have done without them these past two years. They’ve seen me at my best and at my worst and still think I’m pretty okay. 🙂 One moved an hour away to grad school and the other moved 6 hours away to Richmond (this past week actually!). I’m sad we’re no longer within a few feet of each other at all times but I’m so  incredibly happy that we’re all going after our dreams. They inspire me each and everyday. 🙂

 

And of COURSE the whole boy thing had to come up at some point, right? Well………….. again, I’m happy to report that we’re still holding strong. 🙂 Our two year anniversary is coming up in August so that’s pretty awesome, right? Oh and we’re moving in together next week. 🙂 We’ve had a few ups and downs and bumps in the road (like everyone!) but I can honestly say that he is my very best friend. He STILL gives me butterflies. I can’t wait to see what our future holds! 

 

What other random tidbits of information can I throw out there?

Within the last year I’ve really begun taking my fitness seriously. I FINALLY lost that 20 pounds I’d been wanting to lose for sometime (still have about 10 to go to hit my goal weight but I’ll get there in time) AND I ran my first half marathon! That was totally a bucket list item I wasn’t sure would ever get checked off but I did it! I learned a LOT about myself during those 13.1 miles–mostly that I can do anything I put my mind to! (cheesy but true) I’ve also decided that I want to make fitness/healthy living my career of choice. I’m currently researching nutrition programs and would like to start school again this fall/winter to become a registered dietitian. (is it just me or is every blogger a dietitian?!) It’s pretty daunting but as I’ve learned over the last couple of years–the things that scare you the most are usually the most rewarding. 

 

Other pretty substantial things that have happened in the last two years?

-I became an aunt for the first time and my niece is pretty awesome–not going to lie. 

 

-my sister got married!

-I’ve become a “runner” and it’s awesome

-The thought of buying new furniture now excites me (WTF)

-My weekends now consist of early morning workouts, random adventures, cleaning, movies, and early bed times (stark contrast to my college days!)

I could name off a million more things but they’re all quite boring. Just know this–in the last two years of my life, I’ve grown as a person, I’ve experienced heartache, joy, utter exhaustion, disappointment, stress (real stress!), I’ve had moments of brilliance and weakness, I’ve struggled to figure out who I am  on numerous occassions, I’ve changed my mind more times than I can count, I’ve moved twice, I’ve had to make my first “real” decisions about my life and the direction I want to take it in, but most of all I’ve lived life..and a pretty darn good one at that. 

I’d like to say “I’m back” but we see what happened last time. So I’ll say this–I hope that my next update won’t be two years from now. But if it is, I hope you have a fantastic two years. 

Sarah

Whoops.

Wow.

It’s been a while, eh? I’m still alive, I promise!

Life as a post grad has been hectic to say the least. It’s not quite what I expected and is taking some time to get use to but so far so… good?

I think when I last left off I was smack dab in the middle of my job training. Well, five months into the job I can say with full fledged confidence that it’s….. not me. But you know what? I’ve learned a valuable lesson. Money isn’t everything.. at least for me. And that it’s okay to make mistakes. In the last five months I’ve realized that I want a job that is fulfilling in so many other ways than just financially. And so with that, I applied and interviewed for a job at my college. It’s literally my DREAM job. I’m on pins and needles waiting to hear back and should know something this week! Keep your fingers crossed.

That being said, I’ve gained so much life experience from my current job. I’ve somehow become even more of a people person… working at a bank will do that to you. I can count money faster than you can count to ten. I can point out creepers, crazies, and assholes from a mile away. I can tell you any kind of gossip you need to know. And best of all, I can bullshit with the best of them. So not a bad tradeoff, eh?

In other news, life living with my best friends is amazing. We’re all going through this transition together and I’m so thankful I have them to share my frustrations, moments of joy, heartbreak, and everything in between with. We’re all learning that hard life lesson that college is over. Partying every weekend is out of the question and.. *drumroll*… we’re getting old. Okay, maybe not old in the age sense but old in that we’re officially out of college and the four (okay, five) best years of our life our over. Dagger. But there’s so much to look forward to…. right?! (That’s what we keep telling ourselves anyway..)

Perhaps some of the biggest news? Remember way back when I said there may or may not have been a boy entering the picture? Well….. he’s definitely in it to stay for a while. I won’t mention a name or drop pictures but.. I’ll say this. He’s pretty fantastic. 🙂 He makes me smile and keeps me sane and that’s all that matters, right? There will definitely be much more to come on this story. 🙂

Other than that, I can honestly say life is just… good. No matter what I think about my job, post grad life, paying bills, going to bed at 10PM, trading club nights for TV nights, and staying in on the weekend.. I honestly can’t complain. I live with my two best friends, have a wonderful loving family, a guy that I think is pretty amazing, Louisville beat UK, and so many memories to make. 🙂

 

Oh and a blog to start writing in again.

Boy have I missed this.

I’m baaaaaaack! 😉

-Sarah

My kind of day.

So, I promise I’ll get back to real posts as soon as I’m done with training. To be honest, my brain is fried from all of the info!

Until then, I’ll leave you with how I spent my day….. hiking to the top of Sharp Top mountain right off the Blue Ridge Parkway (one of the most scenic routes in the country) with one of my best friends.

It. Was. Perfect.

There are no words.

-Sarah

No Shoes, No Shirt… No Problem.

Happy Memorial Day everyone! 🙂

Happy Unofficial start of summer!

Happy Monday!

And now because I’m too lazy to write anything, I’ll leave you with my weekend… in pictures.

My favorite kind of summer weekend–late nights, friends, family, pool time, long island ice teas ;), relaxing, yoga…. life doesn’t get much better folks.

Now I’m off to go pack for another fun-filled training week in Roanoke. More about that at later date. 🙂

Until next time… enjoy your day!

Sarah

Here Goes Nothing…

Well my friends, as of tomorrow, I’ll be starting my first “big girl” job ever!

Wait… what?

How did this girl–a hard partying, sorority-loving, total college junkie–turn into a fortified member of the working class society?

Blows me.

As of 9AM tomorrow, I will be a full-time employee at one of the top banks in the country. Yeah, I’ll be starting out pretty low on the totem pole but as I’ve told everyone else, I’m really, REALLY looking forward to the challenge. More than I can even express in words.

My entire life, I’ve loved being the underdog. I’ve loved having to claw and fight for everything I’ve gotten. And this is no different. I’m going into this job with the mindset that I can do anything I set my mind to. Of course, at the same time I’m certainly nervous because let’s face it, I never really pictured myself working in a bank. What if I hate it? What if I get sucked into something that I can’t get out of? Or at least wait until it’s too late to get out of? I want a career, not a job.

I’m trying to remain cautiously optimistic about the whole thing. We’ll see what happens.

So, moving on.

How has my first week of post-grad life been so far?

Surprisingly boring. Very boring. I don’t know if you’re aware but during college, I was literally busy most days from 9AM-11PM. Seriously. Giving me an entire week off is not good for my sanity.

I’ve worked out more times than I can count. Ran more than a few miles. Watched way too much TV. And not to mention, up until Friday the weather here was horrible! Can we say… full blown cabin fever?!?!

That being said, with so much time on my hands, I’ve developed a few goals/projects/challenges for myself that will take place during the course of this summer. I won’t go into too much detail now but they will commence as soon as I’m back from training in two weeks! I’m definitely excited to get started and share them on the blog! I’ll give you one hint–one of the challenges may or may not center around a half-marathon… !!! 😉

More exciting news?

My best friends and I found a house together! FINALLY! As we will all be around here for the first few years of our post-grad life, of course it was decided that we would live together. These two girls mean the WORLD to me and I’ve lived with both of them separately and cannot WAIT to finally all be together. Odds are there will be more than a few crazy shenanigans to document.

Oh and there may or may not be a boy slowly entering the picture. Okay, well, he’s always been in the picture but in a new capacity. 😉

Until next time…

-Sarah