Christmas Spirit

For one of my classes my professor so graciously accepted our offer of doing service instead of a final exam. We decided that we would help out and do the Sub for Santa thing at the mall and buy some gifts for a needy family. The night after we decided this, the director of One Heart Bulgaria emailed me telling me the Bulgarian government cut the orphanages' budgets by 25% causing a problem with getting Christmas gifts to the orphanage. I suggested a change in service projects to my class and they gladly accepted. I was so happy to be able to help the kids I know so well!

All of my classmates dropped off donations at our professors office (we had to write a short essay as well, but that was no biggie) and yesterday I went to pick them up. I was so glad that people had donated, but wasn't expecting a ton from poor, married, college students. My professor handed me the envelope and looked at me and said, "there's 300 dollars in there." My jaw dropped and tears began to flow. I could not believe how generous people were. There were only 10 of us in the class, and without my contribution we raised $300. As I drove home I was filled with an overwhelming sense of Christmas spirit. I began to miss my kids so badly and I was so thrilled to know that they would be having a good Christmas. After all, I was just leaving them this time last year.

I am so glad to know that there are kind-hearts out there in this world that can seem so mean.

I hope everyone has a Merry Christmas and remembers the real meaning of the season.

My Creations

I really love the Silhouette machine Tony got for me because I can create fun things! I don't have much time to blog today (two finals are staring me in the face) but I wanted to put this up. It's a card I made for my cousin, Shereena for her baby shower. The lighting is really bad because it came from a cell phone picture, but you can kinda get the idea. I was super proud :)

Merry Christmas

This made me laugh :)

Thanksgiving Week

School has kept me busy as it nears the semester's end, so I've had little time for blogging. I was so grateful (even THANKful) for this 5-day break that accompanied the Thanksgiving holiday. I've gotten some things accomplished and got in plenty of relaxation, which was much needed.

We had our own little T&H Thanksgiving dinner. Tony's parents went to see his sister, Carleigh, in California and since we couldn't afford to take days off to go with them, we decided we wanted to do our own little feast. It was a lot of fun and very delicious! We started our day by going on a jog (our own little "Turkey Trot" if you will). We ran about a 5k distance since I hadn't been running in a while. It was really fun to go running together again. We'll have to do it more often! After showering off we began our meal.

We only had a turkey breast so it took about 4 hours to cook. I didn't make everything from scratch but some new recipes I did try from scratch were cranberry sauce and stuffing. Both were very successful recipes and I would make them again. I usually don't like cranberry sauce (especially when you can see the rings from the can still in it) so I decided that maybe making it fresh would be better--I was right! It was so yummy. And the stuffing was good enough to impress even my dad, the ultimate connoisseur of stuffing/dressing. Here are some pics from our Thanksgiving feast:

Tired, but trying to look happy!

On Friday I ventured out into the wild to find some deals on Christmas gifts. The crowds actually weren't as bad as I was imagining and I got some really great prices on a couple gifts for Tony. I also got to go out for lunch with my friend, Amie, and it was really fun to see her!

We wrapped up our exciting Thanksgiving weekend with a trip to the Greek Orthodox church in Salt Lake City today. No, we're not converting, I had to do an "inter-ethnic activity" for my racial and minority groups class. I suppose going to their service works. It was an interesting experience and it reminded me a lot of the time we went to church in Bulgaria. It was really fun to go on an interesting adventure. After the Liturgy was over we headed over to temple sqaure to take some pictures for Christmas cards. It was a really fun weekend! I'm kind of sad to see it come to an end, but excited that in two weeks, I'll be done with classes!

I hope you all had a Happy Thanksgiving.

Report

So if you didn't notice on the sidebar, I lost .6 pounds this week on my little program. I'm okay with not meeting my 1 pound goal since I lost almost 2 last week. I have to tell you it's amazing I even lost .6! Two times this week I had french fries, and last night I ate apple pie. The apple pie kind of frustrated me after I ate it because I don't even really like it! I could have saved myself several (thousand) calories ;)

I told Tony yesterday that this week would be my healthiest week ever. I don't know how that's going to happen, but we'll see! Last week I kind of consider an off week, so I'm hopeful for the upcoming week.

In non-weight loss news:

We got Christmas decorations this weekend! I got some lighted garland for the fireplace mantel, a wreath for our door, some ornaments for the tree, a STAR for the tree (yeah, we've never had a star on our married life Christmas tree...sad I know), some garland, and other fun things. It is killing me inside to make myself wait until after Thanksgiving to decorate, and I don't know if I'm going to be able to do it. I really love decorating for Christmas! I want to clean really well before I do it though, so maybe the fact that I don't want to do that will help me wait to put the Christmas decor up. I'm just as bad as my mom :)

My Attempt to Be Trendy

Lately I've been seeing a lot of cute trends that I want to try. One of them being the flower clip. I think it's a really cute and classy little hair accessory. Note I said LITTLE. I'm so not into those humongous flowers that take up half the side of your head. Here are some examples:



So, while at the mall yesterday as I was picking up some awesome boots, I stopped in the store Icing. I saw some of these small flower clips and they were buy one, get one 50% off. So, I splurged and purchased a black rose bunch, and a cute brown flower similar to the second picture above. I think they are so cute! I just can't seem to figure out how to use them. This morning I tried to clip my black flower in my hair but I couldn't get it to work without it looking like a small animal created a nest on my head. I liked the look I got when I put it by a ponytail, but I wasn't in a ponytail mood today.

I know eventually I'll figure it out, but I thought I would turn to you, my loyal blogreaders. Have any of you tried this flower trend? How do you get it to work? Where exactly on your head to you place it? I don't want to look too "out there" with these flowers, but I really would like to wear them because I love them! Should I bag this altogether? Like I said, I really like the way they look when I use them with a ponytail or a messy bun, but other than that I can't seem to get it right, and I want to wear them more than just when I pull my hair back.

1 down, 20-something More to Go

This will be short because I have to finish getting ready for work, but I just wanted to direct you all to my sidebar "weight loss goal" area. I'm proud to announce that I lost a total of 1.9 pounds. I'm proud of this, but I didn't eat very well this weekend at all so I'm considering myself quite lucky to have those numbers. My little program seems to be working and I'm excited! I already feel a lot better because of the healthier foods I'm eating and the pounds dropping isn't too bad, either.

Hope everyone has a wonderful Monday morning!

Bringin' It

So I don't usually do this because of my fear that I will fail miserably, but I want to keep myself as accountable as possible so I meet my goal. I guess I figure if I have to stay accountable to Tony, my family, and my blog readership, it will increase my chances of success. So, here it goes.

I am starting now on a journey to lose about one pound per week until May 2nd (for a trip I'm planning on going on that I'll need to look ridiculously good in a swimsuit for :) ) I want to lose a grand total of a 20lb. Technically I could do this by March, but I'm giving myself some wiggle room by setting my goal date in May. A lot of people have told me that I really don't need to lose that much weight, but I could. I would still be in the middle of my healthy weight range and I feel like I would feel so much better. I want to get as healthy as I can before I have kids so that I will have developed those habits when they are here. I've been thinking a lot lately about how I want my children to have a healthy lifestyle. It's so important on so many levels and I know that it starts with me.

I'm not doing any crazy crash diets or body cleansing systems. I'm doing it through good ol' diet and exercise. Tony bought me a lovely (no really, it's really nice) heart rate monitor for my birthday and it is going to be my companion through this weight loss adventure. It not only reads my heart rate so I can check if I'm "in the zone" but it tells you how many calories you burned during your workout based on information you enter about yourself. Sweet deal, huh? Last night I finished the day right about even with my new determined caloric intake for the day and burned a whopping 540 calories, thanks to the plyometrics workout on P90X. I feel really great today, and so far I'm doing well (ha, it's only day TWO!)

So, there you have it. Hopefully I won't fail miserably, but I'm trying really hard to make it so I won't. I'm going to put up my stats on the side of the blog (not because I think you care, but so I can track it) and the whole world will see it. It's really hard for me to do this but I think I'll be okay. You're all friendly folks, and I don't think you'll bash me if I gain here and there :)

An Affair to Dismember

This past Friday night we hosted our first Murder Mystery dinner. It was really fun and it turned out really well. We worked pretty hard on it so we were quite pleased with the sucess.

Table Setting and Decorations

Appetizers

All of the monsters getting to know each other before dinner begins

I was Lizzie Bordeaux, a gothic Frenchwoman engaged to the deceased Neville Aster-Night

Here's a short little video of us questioning Madame Garlique about the fake garlic necklace she was wearing.

Unfortunately we didn't get any pictures of Tony (Hannibal Schecter) but he was just as well dressed as the rest of us. The characters in this "episode" were really funny, and everyone did an awesome job of staying in character throughout the night. I'm so glad everyone could come!

The characters were:
Hollie- Lizzie Bordeaux
Tony- Hannibal Schecter
Cory K- Balihi, the Rogersandhammerstein Monster
Alli K- Madame Garlique, fortune teller
Shereena F- Glumda, the Wicked Witch of DePressed
Aaron F- Mummy of Aldrinktotat
Ian M- Asthmadeus, Prince of Dimness
Amie N- Dr. Angela Deth, psychotic dentist

I would totally recommend this murder mystery! We just bought it in a package and it came with everything we needed (except the food).

I hope everyone had a Happy Halloween!!

Your Input

I was recently given the opportunity to become the Director of Internships for the organization I interned for during my Bulgaria service. I am really excited to be able to help out the organization and to start recruiting interns!

I am going to be holding an information meeting on the BYU campus sometime soon, and I need my blog reading friends' help! I want to give out some little thing to help people keep us in mind (kind of like a business card, but cooler)

If you were going to this internship meeting, what would you want to receive to help you keep One Heart Bulgaria in mind if you were ever interested in interning with them? So far I've only come up with pens but to be honest, I don't know if enough people will show up to the info meeting to make it worth the cost. But, if it would work, I'm willing to try to get it approved!

If you guys could help me out, that would be awesome! Also, anything else you'd want to know about/get/hear at this info meeting. We're (Tony and I) bringing homemade baklava which *pats self on back* tastes VERY authentic. So yeah, a free piece of baklava! I don't know how I can top that, but we'll see what you've got! :)

Creative Juices

Lately I've been trying to be creative. It started with a cake for Tony's birthday. I am quite notorious for my baking disasters in the kitchen. I never burn anything and it always TASTES good, but something falls apart or something else happens so that it just looks hideous. Well folks, this time I did my homework and took two days to make the cake you see below. It was the most gorgeous, most delicious yellow cake I've ever had. I'll refer you to the recipe if you wish. I think next time I won't use a ganache frosting (it was a bit too rich) but other than that it was perfection. Nothing I did mind you, I just found a good recipe with good tips and instructions.

I put it in a cake box to keep it safe on its journey to Sandy.

In other creative news, Tony bought me a Silhouette for an early birthday present. His company was having a huge warehouse sale and so it was only $100! Its regular retail price is $299. He also hooked me up with a free unlimited year subscription to the online store where I can download all of the images I want! Yay for husbands who work at scrapbooking companies!


I made this card with my Sil for my friend Amie, who graduated from college this past Saturday.

And last but not least, here is my "Halloween Blocks" project. I don't have many Halloween decorations so I made some. I bought the wooden blocks at Robert's, painted them, cut some cute halloween letters and shapes with my Sil, glued them down, and used some modgepodge to hold it all in place. I love them! Tony suggested that on the other side I make it say "Trick or Treat" so I can have two messages. I liked the idea and I plan on doing that sometime this week. I feel so crafty!

The Dentist

So, about a month ago I went to the dentist for my regular check-up. All went well (I did have a couple tiny cavities..boo..) but something during my visit really stuck out to me this time. I had noticed it before, but never as much as this particular time.

Do you notice that after the assistant is done cleaning your teeth, the dentist comes in, says hello to you, and then you somehow disappear from the dentist chair? He leans you back (like, past straight so your head has all the blood rushing to it) and checks your teeth. He then starts a charming conversation with his assistant: "So, Chrissy, did your boys like the pool party you went to the other day?" "Oh yes Dr. Nate" and they go on like this pausing only to call out numbers of rotten teeth you have. Then they raise you up in the chair. You still aren't sure what's going on or what is going to happen next. The dentist begins taking his gloves off, puts his hand on your shoulder, tells you how many cavities you have, then leaves. Did he even know I was here? I could have just left my teeth for him and done some shopping! That would probably look funny, though. Don't get me wrong, our dentist is great, it's just funny when he does this.

I thought it was really funny after that appointment, but this past Friday I had to go in for my fillings and things were a little different. Let's just start off by saying this: I have a new friend, and her name is Nitrus Oxide. Tony suggested I get it to calm my nerves and I loved it. It was so relaxing! Because I was on Nitrus, the dentist didn't get away with his "ingore Hollie chatter." While they were waiting for me to get numb they began talking and I (partially without realizing) said "hey! the left side of my mouth isn't numb yet, is that okay?" Looking shocked that I spoke up he said "well, I'll go slow and you raise your hand if it hurts." Satisfied with the answer, I closed my eyes and let him go to town.

During this process, however, the tubes feeding me my joyful juice were pinching my cheek. I kept reaching up, getting in the dentist's way each time, to adjust it. Finally after the fourth or fifth time, the doctor realized what was going on. "Oh no, I'm stepping on your tube!" he said. He took his foot off of it and adjusted it so it wouldn't pinch me anymore. When he did all that I suddenly felt a WHOLE lot better, too. He was cutting off my supply!

In the end I did well, it only took about 25 minutes and I was happy as a clam. The only not-so-fun thing was the incredibly numb mouth I had for 3 hours afterward. I'm just glad it's over now. I can't say I'm a fan of the dentist, though ours is terrific.

My Midnight Thoughts

I apologize for the lack of blogging. I just started the semester and figuring out my new schedule has been kind of difficult for me. So, here I find myself at midnight with a spare moment to blog about what's on my mind. Don't worry, no heavy politics here. I'm off the stuff. ;)

What's been on my mind recently has been the idea of the innocence of childhood. There are a couple reasons for this: 1) I am taking an amazingly interesting class on Race and Minority groups and we've been talking about the honesty of children, and 2) I feel that I am extremely naive because when I talk to other people about issues in the world today, I am just concerned that we are being nice to one another. I feel like a little kid when I think "well, that's just plain not nice!" Not that I posses the innocence of a child, but sometimes I feel like one.

In my class we are reading a book by a man named Wendell Berry called The Hidden Wound (amazing story, I recommend it). Berry is describing his feelings about having grown up on a farm in the south where his grandfather owned slaves. It's a very complex book about this "hidden wound" but the part I read the other day has just stuck with me and I cannot get it out of my mind.

Berry is very good friends with the black slaves on his grandfather's farm (named Nick and Aunt Georgie) and decides to invite Nick to his birthday party. Nick, knowing full well he could not enter the house for the party, sat outside on a bench and observed the party. Berry saw him, and decided he would rather be with Nick than be with the party because he loved him. After relaying this story, Berry says the following: (These are just a few exerpts)

To both the racist and the puritan, childhood is not a time of life that we grow out of, as the life of the child grows out of the life of the parent or as a plant grows out of the soil, but a time and a state of consciousness to be left behind, to cut oneself off from: "when I became a man, I put away childish things."

I am not necessarily objecting to the manly virtues, but I am objecting that they
should be so exlusively assigned to grownups, and that grownups should be so exlusively restritced to them. A man may have all the prescribed adult virtues and, if he lacks the childhood virtues, still be a dunce and a bore and a liar.

Under the dispensations of childhood, a child may cross the boundaries of class and race and property with a good deal of freedom, and his reason for crossing these boundaries is his honesty in the face of experience.

You see this all the time in children. They see no color, no political party, no rich or poor. They simply love everyone around them. I saw this a lot as I served in the orphanages in Bulgaria. The young children did not care that I was different, they just loved me because I was a person...just like them.

It's sad that we lose this "childhood honesty" as Berry talks about. Wouldn't the world be so perfectly splendid if we all acted as children do? I don't think we should be childISH, but childLIKE. I don't know if honesty is a good word to use, because I don't think that we all suddenly become horrible people when we are adults, but I do believe that as we enter adulthood social pressures and expectations somehow force us into being grown up, and not so loving and innocent and simple anymore.

As people rant and rave about politics and Obama's healthcare reform plan, I can't help but wonder what Obama feels like as people yell at him as he is trying to clarify his plans. I would hate to be President. I would cry myself to sleep every night. On my facebook status once I said that I wish I could tell Obama that I think he's a good man. Man, oh mighty did that get people going. I wish we all (including me) could look at Obama--and everyone for that matter!--and see the good in them, as a little child would do. I know I said no politics, but this is about people, not issues at hand.

Thanks for listening (er..reading) my thoughts. I just feel like this world needs to start being a kinder place or we are in some serious trouble. I am going to try harder to follow some true examples. Children.

Naska and Mimi, from the Bratsigovo, Bulgaria orphanage

Contacts and Bats

Well, it seems as if I chose a race that was a little too soon to train for. It's quite alright, though. There are plenty of 5Ks around to do. That one did sound pretty fun, but I want to run it well and make sure I can get the goal. I won't be Beating Beethoven this year.

In other news, I have been trying to get used to contacts this week. I started wearing them 4 hours the first day and I am supposed to increase my time by 2 hours each day until I get to "all day" wear. They're not too bad, really. I love being able to see 100% without hauling my glasses around. My eyesight wasn't horrible, but have contacts all the time is making my life so easy, and my headaches haven't been happening as much.

Putting them in was a little scary at first, but now I'm a pro at it. It's just the taking them out that I can't get a hang of. It takes me like 15 minutes to get them out. Is this normal?? I have to be doing some sort of damage to my eye by poking it that many times. Maybe I need to reconsider my form.

I'm really excited to have contacts for school. Wearing my glasses during lectures was so annoying, and it made my nose really sore and oily by the end of the day. Now I'll be able to see those powerpoints easy-cheesy! School starts a week from today and I'm getting quite anxious. I'm excited to start learning again. I'm also excited to graudate at the end of this year.

Nothing too exciting going on right now. We DO have a bat living in our hallway. We've named him Battier, after Shane Battier from the Houston Rockets.

Beat Beethoven!

I've found a new race! Next month Pleasant Grove is hosting a 5K race for Pleasant Grove Heritage Days called "Can You Beat Beethoven?" It's awesome--they play Beethoven's 5th over loud speakers for the duration of the race, and people who finish before the last note of the symphony (approx. 32 minutes) get a pin that says "I beat Beethoven!" I began training today so that I can totally beat Beethoven. I know for some finishing a 5K in 32 minutes is no biggie, but I've never focused on speedwork so this is a new challenge for me.

I am so stoked to beat Beethoven. I have 5 weeks to conquer this composer, and I'm going to do it.

Poof-less

Well, come to find out they don't do the old puff of air test anymore. What a relief! :) I did find out that I am forever doomed. My astigmatism has worsened and now I'm a full-time prescription wearer. I have to call on Thursday to set up an appointment get fitted for contacts. Ugh, I'm not excited about that. The doctor says it will be a lengthy process because of my astigmatism situation. Hopefully it will help with my reoccuring headaches, though.

We have the dentist on Thursday and they'll probably talk to me again about Invisalign braces--which are also supposed to help with my jaw/headache problems.

One day all of my problems will be solved!

My Appointment Tomorrow

This is totally me with the "poof" test at the eye doctor. I am going tomorrow, I'll let you know if I survive.

Why Can't We Be Friends?

As of late, I have been noticing an increasing number of facebook posts, status updates, etc. that are quite judgemental. I hate to say the word "judgemental" because I feel that by my thinking THEY are being judgemental, I am being judgemental as well. But I can't help but notice all of this. It spans from Obama's health reform plan to judging what people are wearing...

Don't get me wrong, I'm always up for a good debate, but it seems as if sometimes this Obama business can go so far as to almost ruin relationships! For instance, Tony posted a facebook status update that was posing a question about the health care proposal to extreme republicans who are just going nuts with this concept, who say Obama is Satan and things of the sort. I believe everyone has a right to free speech and if anyone likes a good debate--it's TONY, but his comment has ruffled the feathers of many of his family members. Ruffled them a lot. Tony's uncle now refers to him as his "favorite left-leaning nephew" and his grandpa is appauled that Tony is "behind this plan." Everyone in his family seems to think Tony is some sort of Satan worshipper, when he was just looking at ideas objectively and getting more opionions so he could form his own. He never once said he was 100% behind the health care reform. If anything he said he could see flaws in it. Even if Tony is a left-leaning Satan worshipper, what's it to you? I just don't get people sometimes and how mean they can get with this stuff. I realize it's important for our nation to choose the best thing for us, but when you start name-calling and judging because someone thinks a little differently than you....that is so not cool.

Aside from politics, I noticed a facebook status the other day commenting on a girl who was wearing a skirt that was a little short for BYU standards on campus. Yes, I signed the Honor Code agreement. Yes, she did too. I would probably raise an eyebrow to her outfit as well, but I don't think I would dedicate a facebook status to show my disgust for her dress and how she is not following the honor code. Talk about Holier Than Thou. I'm sure that girl is a really good person and maybe her skirt is a little short, but that doesn't give anyone any right to judge her. Last I checked, that wasn't our job here on earth.

One last situation--I was at Old Navy shopping the extra 50% off clearance sale and I was browsing through the swimsuits which were running at 4 bucks a piece. I picked up a bikini, and looked at it for a little bit. I thought it was really cute! But I kept on looking for tankinis and one pieces. As I was looking at this bikini, a middle-aged woman said to her friend (very loudly) "Someone who so proudly shows their garments [I guess my garments were showing a bit out of the top of my shirt, I didn't know] shouldn't be wearing bikinis on the beach. She obviously doesn't realize what garments mean." Excuse me? I almost said something to this woman. Seriously. Even if I did wear bikinis on the beach and DIDN'T understand what garments were about, there is absolutely no reason to say that about anyone.

I've always been one of those hippie-minded "let's all be friends and hold hands" types but I don't usually speak out about it. It's just amazing to me how mean people are getting towards one another. It really makes me sick sometimes. I wish people could talk with one another objectively and considerately.

Maybe in the next life?

Excitement

Recently I've found myself just plain excited. I can't put my finger on why I'm so giddy lately, but it feels really nice to be so excited about life. I seem to have much better days and not as many things bother me as before. I keep trying to figure out what I'm so excited about, and I can only thing of the following things to attribute my happiness to:

1. August 18th- our 3 year anniversary. Wow. I really love anniversaries because it's like a day set aside to just appreciate each other. Plus, it's another "na na na boo boo" that I've made it this far without a "surprise" baby. When I was engaged it bugged me so bad that everyone was like "you'll be a mom this time next year" so every anniversary is more proof that I'm responsible. :) Don't worry, I'm not anti-baby. I'm just anti-"right-now"-baby. That could change soon enough, so don't get your britches tangled! I do indeed want a family.

2. School starts August 31st! I know most people are dreading their first day of school, but I haven't been to actual classes on BYU's campus in...almost two years! With the Bulgaria internship last fall, and my deferrment mess this Winter semester, the last time I was in classes on campus was January of 2008. I'm really excited to start learning again and to FINISH learning! Yep, it's my final year at BYU. I'm not sure where I'll go from there, but we'll see, I guess!

3. Tony's birthday is September 6th. I love love love Tony's birthday because I get to buy him things he wants! I really love giving Tony gifts. Plus, I get stuff that I want all the time because he spoils me so it feels nice when Tony gets showered with some of his "wants" and not just his "needs". This year I want to have the big family party at our place, since it's big enough now. Yay!

4. My birthday is October 8th, but I don't care because October 15th we're going to Disneyland! We're little money savers and we're going to take a little trip to our honeymoon destination! I'm so excited for the hotel, the beaches, the Mickey Mouse (I never saw him last time) and everything else we're going to do in Anaheim! We've been talking about Disneyland a lot lately and we both agree that we will resist the temptation to ride the Peter Pan ride or any other of those dinky little princess rides. On our honeymoon we waited 2 hours in Peter Pan's line (we thought we should ride some classic rides) almost died of heat stroke and wasted two hours of our life for a tripped out ride that we probably should have been high on something to enjoy more. It was nice and cool in the ride, but definitely not worth a two hour wait. We're more excited for rides like Indiana Jones, The Tower of Terror, and Space Mountain, even though I almost threw up on Space Mountain. Indiana Jones is MY personal favorite and we rode it 5 times last time we were there. Yay Disneyland!

5. Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. From about August to February we 've got something exciting once a month! Thanksgiving this year will be okay, it will just be Tony and me because Tony's family is going to San Fransisco to be with Carleigh this Thanksgiving. We could go other places, I'm sure, but we're kind of looking forward to making our own feast.

Christmas will be spend in Indiana if all goes according to plan. We haven't been there on Christmas day in two years. Last year we planned on it, but my family wanted us to come out for Andrea's graduation in May plus we had been traveling madmen with Bulgaria. So, that should be fun.


Sorry to go on about all of this, but I just love this excited feeling I have!

Wonderful Muffins!

I have been trying to eat really well recently by trying to eat very nautral foods. I made some blueberry bran muffins tonight that are simply amazing and don't have any sugar in them! The sweetness comes from the honey and banana. I was amazed at how yummy they tasted!

I thought I would share the recipe so that you guys can try them out!

Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups unprocessed wheat bran or oat bran (I just used wheat bran cereal)
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed (I'm not sure if mine was ground or not, but it was still good!)
1 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup fat-free milk
1/3 cup honey
1 ripe medium banana, mahed with a fork
1 large egg
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup fresh blueberries

Position a rack in the center of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lightly coat 2 nonstick mini muffin pans with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine bran, flour, flaxseed, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside. In another bowl or a blender, combine the milk, honey, banana, egg, olive oil, and vanilla extract until smooth.

Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and pour in one third of the liquid mixture. Using a spoon, stir until smooth. Add the remaining liquid mixture and stir just until combined. Add the blueberries and stir again, but don't overmix.

Spoon 1 tablespoon of batter into each prepared muffin cup. Bake for about 8 minutes, or until the tops spring back when pressed gently in the centers. Do not overbake! Cool the muffins in the pan on a rack for 10 minutes before removing from the cups. Serve warm, or allow to cool completely on rack.

These freeze really well, also.

Almost Pretty

Yesterday at work I was driving the little girl I nanny to some "foam party" thrown by the Lehi Fire Department and she said something that just cracked me up:

Gracie: Hollie, you're kinda pretty!

Me: Well, thanks, Gracie! I think you're pretty, too.

Gracie: Hmmm, do you want to know why you're KINDA pretty?

Me: Sure, why not, let's boost my self esteem a little.

Gracie: Well, the thing is, your blonde hair doesn't curl like mine does. When your hair is curled it's all tight and scrunchy. My blonde hair is big and not scrunchy curls. Maybe one day your hair will be curled like mine and then you can be all the way pretty.


Wow. Good to know. I didn't realize the fashion sense this 3-year-old had hidden in her! I'll have to buy some product and curling irons so that I, too, can one day be pretty...all the way pretty. :)

Long Time, No Blog!

Sorry about the lack of blogging lately. I have been really busy lately planning a baby shower, going to family events, and things of that sort.

Let me begin by telling you all about our magnificent hike! We started at the trailhead at 6:45 am last Saturday so that we would have plenty of time to complete our monster hike. We were taking a trail called Jacob's Ladder which is notorious for being insanely steep and horribly rocky and slippery. It sure lived up to it's reputation. I was slipping all over the place and I was covered in dirt by the time we finished "the ladder." After the ladder there was a hill sort of thing we had to get over and it seemed to take a lifetime to get there. We had to take a stop under a nearby tree on this portion while it poured down rain. Luckily this only lasted for about 3 minutes. After we got over that stinkin' hill, the hike was easy cheesy! I was skipping through meadows and playing in rivers. The weather was nice and cool and the trail was FLAT. I felt so great!

A little after this point in the hike you kind of lose the trail and have to begin following cairns (little rock piles carefully made to tell you which direction to go). We thought we were totally following the cairns then suddenly...no more cairns. We couldn't find a rock pile anywhere! We wandered around for a bit and Tony even climbed over some tall rocks to see what he could see. We decided to go down to the river and follow it back to the last cairn we saw. We successfully retraced our footsteps and somehow got lost...again. So, we retraced once more, and found a trail, finally! Only to find out the the trail actually took us DOWNhill...the opposite way we were going. Frustrated and disappointed, we stopped and ate our lunch. We felt kind of dumb until we heard on the news just a couple days ago that two hikers got lost when they lost the Jacob's Ladder trail on Lone Peak. So, we're not the only ones!

We had fun watching the deer prance through the meadows, and we even saw a badger! I, unfortunately, made friends with a fat squirrel when I was "using the facilities" in the wilderness.

After lunch, we decided it was too dangerous to keep wandering around because it was about 2pm and we wouldn't make it back before dark. So, after trying so hard to reach the summit, we turned around and headed back down the mountain.

(there is a church talk in this somewhere, I'm sure...this is not copyrighted, feel free.)

We met up with some mountain man who told us we lost the trail like a MILE back from where we were! What the? We weren't really sure how we did that but we shrugged our shoulders and braced ourselves for what we knew was ahead...going DOWN Jacob's Ladder. I was cranky and hot and not in the mood to fall on my butt the whole way down so I grabbed on to Tony's pack and held on for dear life. We made it down the Ladder and celebrated when we saw the sign indicating the end. We were sure we were so close to the car that we would be there in 10 minutes or less. About half an hour later, we hit a dead end. We somehow took a wrong turn and ended up on an ATV trail. I was ticked...so ticked. My feet hurt, I was sunburnt, and I had already been lost enough for all the hikers on the mountain that day. I told Tony that if we got lost again, I wasn't going to be able to make it. I was running out of energy fast and if we didn't get to the car soon, I'd have to stop for a pretty lengthy break.

We found our trail and made it back to the car! We stopped at McDonald's and got some yummy food (there was no way I was cooking dinner) and rested the rest of the night. Too bad all that night and the whole next Sunday my knees were literally not working. I couldn't move. BUT--at least I didn't get attacked by fire ants and stung by stinging nettle 500 times like our last hike.

It was a really fun experience, and one day we are going to try to hike it again and get to the summit, but I'm not sure either of wants to anytime soon. We are planning our first camping trip for next weekend-ish. I've never been so we're going to a campsite to test out our "gear" and make sure I can hack it. If that works out, we might just do Lone Peak in two days so that we don't get any cranky Hollies. Those are not nice creatures at all.

To the Top of the World!

Tomorrow Tony and I are hiking Lone Peak. I'm sure some of you have been on this hike (probably with Tony). I'm writing about this particular hike ahead of time because I am a little nervous about it. Tony's told me stories of climbing over boulders with thousands of feet to drop on either side, about how you get dizzy at the top, the fact that it's 13 MILES LONG.

I am, however, really excited for the hike as well. It will totally test my fitness level and it will be a fun day activity....all day activity. We'll be hiking (with rests and lunch breaks) for about 12 hours. Plus, 13 miles is a half marathon basically, so if I can do it up a mountain, I can for sure do it jogging lightly on the ground! ;)

I'm about to head to the store to get some food and other supplies we need for the hike tomorrow. We have to wake up at 6:00am to start the day. Wooooooo hoo.

In other news, the little boy I nanny said to me as I was walking out the door to go home today, "bye, Hollie! I love you!" What the? It was nice because today I was REALLY tired and kind of irritable but the kids helped me get in a better mood and the fact that he told me he loved me made me feel like I am doing something worthwhile for my job right now.

In Remembrance

As you probably have all heard, Michael Jackson died today. I'm not really sure what to think of it, but I've decided to post this video in remembrance.

I give you the Bratsigovo, Bulgaria orphanage dancers:

Rest in Peace, Michael.

Featured:

Mummy: Hollie Anderson
Skeleton: Monica
Boy in Red: Stanimir
Crazy-haired blonde girl in back middle: Mariana
Crazy-haired blonde girl back left: I feel horrible for not remembering her name. It will come to me...
Zombie back right: Pepa

And They Said It Couldn't Be Done

Back in February or March I started some cute little tomato plants inside (you can read all about that here). When I transplanted them into large pots everyone was telling me that they probably wouldn't survive. I wasn't about to give up on my precious baby tomatoes because I loved having them! When it was safe, I put the pots out on the porch and at first I thought they weren't going to make it. They kind of turned brown and wilted a bit, but perked up after about a week, but I was still certain they would die.

Well, ladies and gentlemen, feast your eyes upon this!

I give you...my baby tomatoes!

Aren't they so cute?! I love my babies! Don't worry, I haven't named them yet.....though I've been tempted :)

Rumor Has It

Today at about 1pm I got an interesting email from the Relief Society President. It read:

"Hi, Hollie,

I'm sorry I didn't get your email until just now. You can always call me.

I had heard that your husband moved out of the ward, but I'm glad you're still with us.

Love,
*RS PRES*" (I won't put her name)

My first thought? AWESOME! There are saucy rumors going on in the ward about me and Tony! I think that's hilarious.

My second thought....wow I need to talk more. People don't realize my husband didn't leave me.


Aside from the church scandal, updates of our real life:

Tony and I went golfing! Tony was pressured into signing up for a golf tournament with his work and was paired to play with the Vice President of his company. Tony has never really played golf before. So, he borrowed his dad's golf clubs and we decided to go to the driving range during the 2 hours it wasn't pouring rain here yesterday.

Tony asked me for a lot of advice (if you didn't know..I played varsity golf in high school. I was a dork!) but I wasn't really sure what to say as I whiffed balls left and right. After we hit 90 balls and chipped and putted around, Tony is feeling much better about playing golf tomorrow. Especially since thunderstorms are in the forecast.

Silver Lake Hike

Saturday Tony and I decided to try out a new hike. We found a hike in American Fork canyon because it's close, and neither of us had been up there! Tony found a good-sized one called the Silver Lake hike. It was about 4 miles roundtrip, but you gain a lot of elevation (1,500 feet to be exact) so it's a little more strenuous than most 4 mile hikes.

Here are some pictures!

This one's for you, mom. We were in BEAR COUNTRY..and survived.

Amazing view. This was during a break in the middle of the hike.

We got to cross a river on some logs :).

This one is for Morgan, proving that you can find good picture opportunities in Utah!

Here we are, at the top. There was snow!

And, of course, it wouldn't be an Anderson trip without a dorky video! (We know you love them)
It was FREEZING at the lake, that's why I am talking all funny. Plus, I sprinted to the top once I realized we had reached the lake. I was very hungry and very excited to eat my snacks.

I would recommend this hike to almost anyone! It was so fun! There are some tricky log crossing parts and the end of the hike gets pretty rocky, but other than that it's fairly easy. Just the drive to the trailhead was spectacular. It was totally worth it!

Indiana Trip!

Tony and I took our annual trip to Indiana this past week. We would have gone at Christmastime, but we decided to wait and go when my sister, Andrea, graduated from high school. We got to see my family's new home, and it is beautiful! It was nice to have our own space in the basement even though Baylie, the golden retriever, was scratching daily on the door for our attention :).

The second night we were there we had a big family get-together. It was AWESOME! We made delicious kebabs and salad. There was yummy fruit and a delicious dessert made by two awesome sisters (pictured below).

This is my sister, Morgan and me. We make one mean trifle! It was her idea to add the artistic strawberry slices and blueberries on top of the whipped cream. She'll be a great chef when she's older. (Isn't she the cutest?!?!)

Because Andrea came and visited me in March, I promised Morgan that we would do something special, just the two of us. A few weeks before I came out I mentioned something to her about how I needed to get my eyebrows waxed. We eventually came up with the idea that I would take Morgan to get her eyebrows waxed for the first time ever. We went Friday morning to our friend Alene (thanks again Alene, you did an awesome job!) She was super nervous probably because she made ME go first and watched it, but she survived. I could tell that she really liked the way her eyebrows looked.

Here's a picture, post-waxing, to document this momentous occasion, haha.

Friday night was Andrea's graduation. It was neat to be there and see it, though I am not sure if she realized I was even there, haha! It was sweltering hot in the gymnasium and we were all dripping in sweat when we left. To cool off, we HAD to head over to Steak 'n Shake for some refreshing milkshakes! Mmmm.

Tony left us on Sunday because he had work and so we saved all of the mega-girl party stuff for Monday and Tuesday. Monday my mom and I took Morgan downtown to get a makeover at the MAC cosmetics counter. She was really hesitant to let them do her makeup, and didn't really want a makeover, but once they started doing it she lit up and thought she was hot to trot (and she was!) I got a picture of her "smokey eye" look so she could remember how to do it.

Wow, she looks like a supermodel!!!!

I was glad we got to visit with my family, and I'm especially glad I got to spend so much time with my sister, Morgan! Andrea was mostly out with her friends (typical teen) so I didn't see much of her at all, but I really got to spend some good, and much needed, sisterly time with Morgie Porgie! She's so much fun :) Good times, good people, good food, good shopping, and good fun! I can't wait for them to come out to visit Utah!

A Thank You Note

I would like to say "Thank You" to Dr. Conrad, my former Indianapolis Youth Wind Ensemble director. I would like to thank him for educating me on nearly EVERY John Phillip Sousa march out there, and also for making me play them all once a year. Because of Dr. Conrad, I have most of these marches nearly memorized and could tell you quite a bit about them.

I was especially thankful for this last night at rehearsal for Wasatch Winds. We are preparing for our Freedom Festival concert in Provo the week of the 4th of July. Can you guess who the star composer is? I suppose it wouldn 't be the 4th of July without a heaping handful of Sousa marches.

It's really a shame that it annoys me to play these marches. After all, John Phillip Sousa's marches are probably some of the most recognized pieces out there. It mostly annoys me when we play 3 or more in once concert, which is what typically happened in IYWE, and of course, is what is happening this concert. Maybe I'm the only one out there, but the marches get harder to play the more of them we rehearse. Not harder technically, but it seems as if gradually each one is getting slower and slower and takes longer to get through. Yes, I said "get through."

Just FYI: we are playing five or six sousa marches on our next concert. That's more than half of the performance. Ugh.

Also, I love listening to these marches, and I'm a big fan of John Phillip Sousa. I have a nice award from high school with his picture right on it! I've just been over-exposed to these marches, I think. :)

Marseilles Dress SHABBY APPLE GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

Marseilles Dress SHABBY APPLE GUEST GIVEAWAY!!!!

One of my friends told me about this, and I had to jump on it. I love Shabby Apple dresses and I've always wanted to get one!

Wish me luck!

Update

I usually hate when people call their posts "update" because when I blog I try to come up with some cute or clever title. However, tonight my post is "update" because I'm tired, and I really don't know what else to call it.

I am currently in Indiana visiting my family. I've been having lots of fun here getting to see family and friends. I got to attend my sisters (very hot) graduation. I'm not sure if she even noticed if I was there, but I was! There are pictures to prove it!

Saturday was her open house party. I guess these open houses aren't a nation-wide thing. It's just basically a party where people come, eat, and give you a card full of money for graduating. I helped my mom make food and I saw lots of people! It was a nice way to get in a lot of visiting in one spot. I made Andrea a quilt for graduation and gave it to her on Saturday. She seemed to like it alright, but for all the work I put into it I was expecting a window-shattering shriek of delight when she opened it. I guess I can't compete with a 50 dollar bill :).

Tony left today to go back to Utah. He has work and didn't want to take a whole week off in his first month of employment. Something about making good impressions.... I was pretty depressed all day today and the hours seemed to drag on forever as I waited for him to return to Utah and call me to tell me he was okay. Luckily, I have some pretty cool sisters who invited me into their room to watch funny YouTube videos. It was really fun to just pile on the bed and giggle at all of the funny videos of babies on YouTube. We also played with Andrea's cool, new iTouch. I was grateful to have them help me pass the time away and cheer me up a little bit.

Now I am just waiting for Tony to get back to the apartment. I'm sure he is visiting with his family, but I don't know how long I can last!

To the City of Pleasant Grove (and its drivers):

First of all, let me express how much I enjoy living in PG. There are things close by, lots of friendly people, and it's nice and quiet compared to the Provo scene Tony and I are used to.

But...

Why are there no sidewalks in this stinking town?! No matter where we seem to go there are no sidewalks! And if there are sidewalks, they last only for about 100 feet or so, then drop off into a ditch or sewage drain.

I suppose most people don't mind the lack of sidewalks because of these wonderful things called automobiles....but I DO. Who doesn't like to take a nice Sunday stroll when the weather is beautiful outside? But, I mostly mind because Tony and I love to go running at night. Running without sidewalks is a pretty tricky deal here in PG, especially when you factor in the lovely drivers that cruise 700 South from 9 to 10pm each night.

No sidewalks I can learn to deal with. I've learned to run in gravel and dirt and on the shoulders of some tricky, dark roads. But I think that no one else in the "Grove" realizes that there aren't sidewalks for runners to run on (or walkers to walk on). Each night Tony and I venture out to get in our daily exercise and to no surprise we get brights flashed at us, multiple honks, and other gestures that seem to say "Hey, don't you know that you're RUNNING?!" Of course we do.

I am not, what Tony calls, "sure-footed". I get panicked when it's dark and I can't see where my feet are going. So, lovely drivers of Pleasant Grove, when you honk at me or flash your brights at me to inform me that I am running without sidewalks, it throws me off. Literally. The other night I nearly jumped in front of a car because they honked and it scared me so badly that I jumped. Unfortunatley I jumped the wrong direction, causing for quite a scary moment. Don't worry, I'm alive.

I guess my point is this: yes, I realize I'm running. Yes, I realize I'm running on the shoulder of the road. But I am following all of the pedestrian rules (running against traffic, etc.) and we move as far to the side as we can as a car passes us. If you have a problem with me exercising on the shoulders of the small-town looking roads of PG, take it up with the city, 'cause thar ain't no sidewalks!!




*rant complete*

Dweeb Alert!

First of all, who says dweeb anymore? I do. And it makes me laugh every time I say it.

Second of all, the reason I called this post "Dweeb Alert" is because it's a post on how excited I am for The Biggest Loser finale tonight! (and I know that's kind of dweeb-ish to be so excited about a television show)

I have never been into this show until this season, and (I'll be careful how I say this, my mother might kill me) it's even taken over American Idol on my list of reality TV priorities. AI is still a close second, though.

The reasons I love this show are because I, too am on a weight loss "journey". I want to be healthy and to see these people who started off at nearly 400 pounds learn how to eat better and learn that they CAN be healthy just touches my little heart. I know that they way they do things is a bit extreme, maybe even unsafe, but at 400 pounds there isn't much that ISN'T unsafe. Eight hours of working out seems to be pretty safe to me when I look at the big picture.

Another reason I love this show, especially this season is that they have completely conquered two huge races! Being someone who hopes to call herself a "runner" one day I loved watching this. Halfway through the show they went home to visit their families and had a challenge to run a half marathon. All but one of them finished! Their times couldn't even touch some of these competitive racers, but it was so awesome to see them finish! 13 miles! Then last week they went home for 30 days before the last weigh in and while at home were challenged to run a MARATHON. Holy cow. The thought of running a marathon is very exciting to me, but terrifying as I know I could never do it. Two of the final four ran the entire race, one walked because of injury, and the other, a 50-something year-old man who has bad knees walked the entire thing. He had never finished any challenge before and it was really touching when he finished. (Even though he is the back-stabbing "Godfather" in the contest)

Call me a dork, a dweeb, or even tell me I'm wasting my time on pointless TV shows--but I LOVE The Biggest Loser and I am so pumped for the finale. I even bought myself some Ben & Jerry's Frozen yogurt to munch on while I throw a little party while watching. I'll be alone for half of the finale because Tony is working with a client.

Watch it tonight! I know American Idol is on too, but flip back and forth during commercials--you won't regret it :)

Field Trip!

Today I took the kids I nanny to the Museum of Ancient Life at Thanksgiving Point. It was a really cool place! I was sad that Tony couldn't join us because it was totally up his alley. Here are some pictures and videos from our prehistoric adventure.

This was cracking me up all day. Gracie was so excited to go, but she can't say "museum" correctly. Everytime she would say "yay! We're going to the Dinosaur Museum!" I would just crack up. Cute kid.

Getting ourselves geared up for the Dino madness! Raawr!

This picture was a pretty funny experience. This is the head of one of those long-necked dinosaurs (I couldn't LEARN a whole lot while at the museum with kids, so I don't know the actual name). We were at an activity station probably making fossil pictures when Gracie looked up and screamed. She looked up and saw this dinosaur looking over our shoulders with his mouth wide open and he scared her. How rude!

These T-Rex's were having some sort of family dispute.

Riding some strange looking dinosaur

Exploring the caves!

Digging in the quarry


I'm not going to lie, this scared me a little. I couldn't get too close because it gave me the heebie-jeebies!

This was such a fun day! I learned a lot about myself, the kids, and how tiring it is to run after kids running in two different directions at a huge museum. I'm gaining much appreciation for all you moms out there. It's such a fun job to be able to play with kids all day but boy, does it wear me out!

Wahoo!

About a month ago, we were saddened and terrified to find out that Tony had lost his job at Healthy Living magazine. We weren't sure what to do or how we were going to survive, but Tony being Tony, went at it and put some ads for himself on KSL classifieds and on Craigslist. He had been getting little "side gigs" for people here and there helping them build websites, but the only permanent prospect was the interview he got with a company called QuickCutz, a place full of engineers that make die cuts for scrapbookers out there. We knew that the chances of Tony getting this job were slim because of his inexperience compared to others with web development but he went in and gave it his all, and felt pretty good after the fact.

After his fist interview at QuickCutz we waited a week with no response. I encouraged Tony to email the Senior Web Developer and ask when they thought they would make a decision because Tony was getting lots of freelancing offers. Promptly after that email, the web developer emailed him back, asking for a second interview which would include the head hancho of sales at QuikCutz.

We considered this pure luck. Tony thought the only reason he got the second interview was because of the email he sent telling them that their company was his first choice. In the second interview they expressed their concern with Tony's lack of experience, but were very impressed with his "well-roundedness." It seems as if companies looking for these computer geeks are trying to steer away from the typical geek that can't communicate outside the worlds of Java and PHP. Tony having an English major was appealing to them because he could help edit content as well as actually develop the site. The second interview on Thursday went really well, and Tony felt great about it, but we wouldn't hear anything until Monday (today) or Tuesday.

Today at around 4:30 Tony got a call from QuickCutz on his cell phone. He quickly went into the bedroom (because I had the TV on) and I had no clue who he was talking to, but my ears perked when I heard him say, "really? Thank you so much!"

He got it. They offered Tony the job.

We proceeded to scream and jump and yell things like "WE'RE GOING ON A CRUISE!" We called family and everyone celebrated the success with us. What a relief!

Tony will be getting a salary and this job includes benefits and 401K plans. Tony deserved this job. He is such a hard worker and I can tell that he is so relieved. Today after celebrating he plopped on the couch and said "I'm so relieved I feel like I'm losing weight." :) I am so happy for him, for us, and for the future! He was telling me that the web guys at QuickCutz make pretty darn good money and he's confident he can move up in their world (as am I).


Thank you for all of your thoughts, prayers, concerns, and efforts to help us during our jobless situation. I wouldn't have said this a week ago, but maybe this period was good for us and helped us grow. It sure was humbling to not have money, haha!




Yay!

The Dinky Little Race ROCKS!

As you all know, I ran the Salt Lake City 5K this past weekend. It was a morning full of fun and excitement. Let me recap.

We (yes we, Tony was such a good husband and woke up with me to come watch) woke up at 5:30am and got ready for the race. I made some muffins the night before so I munched on those as I whipped my hair up in a ponytail and headed out the door. I, luckily, wasn't too tired because I had been practicing going to bed at a decent hour the whole week.

We arrived at the Gateway Mall at about 6:30 and my race started an hour later. Tony came and dropped me off at the trax train that took me to the starting point. It was a little chilly for my taste, but I somehow survived. I was so not looking forward to taking off my comfy sweatpants and giving my "gear bag" to the nice people who were taking it to the finish line for me.

The starting of the race was exciting...for a couple seconds. I had been telling myself all morning that I was going to run just a little harder than I usually do, so I could push myself and get a decent time. The gun went off, and I did just that. I set my pace a little quicker than normal and off I went. I was smiling from ear-to-ear thinking about running in my first official race. Then, one by one, everyone started passing me. I was passed by Spiderman, and other folks who I thought weren't a threat to pass me. I got really discouraged thinking that I was going to be finishing with the walkers at the back of the chute. But I kept my little pace steady and kept my chin up.

Success was mine as we hit State Street. The majority of the 5K was on this street and it was quite uphill. Not horribly uphill, but enough to cause a lot of people to struggle. When I turned the corner and saw the big stretch in front of me I said (out loud) "Thank you, Tony." He made me train on this horrible hill by us and even though I was able to run it easily before the race, I hated running it every time. I was so lucky I had trained on that hill! Sorry, I kind of got off topic there...success was mine was we hit state street....my steady non-sprinting at the start line pace made it so that I, as others stopped and grabbed their aching sides, was able to chug my little way up State Street, easy peasy. No matter that I stopped for a couple seconds after the climb because I wanted to puke...I DID IT.

The rest of the race was downhill from there and there was only about half a mile left, so it was smooth sailing. I picked up the pace quite a bit and made my way to the Gateway Mall and crossed the finish line. What a cool feeling. I was so proud of myself! My goal was to finish in 35 minutes (don't laugh, it was my first time), and I did it in 34:11!

Here are some "pictures" of my finish line cross. They're actually screen shots from the video Tony shot. The video is like 10 minutes long because Tony wasn't sure when I would cross, so I saved you the time and just took screen grabs of my finish :). I've outlined my head with a nice little square so you can see me.

Yeah, I totally beat that girl in the pink. We were battling it out the whole last stretch.

See? Beat her!

Wooo hoo!





#21883, that's me!

I can't tell you how proud I was of myself. Running that race made my weekend. I'm STILL on a high from it! I'm about to go on a run now, and I'm excited about it. I would encourage everyone to do this! It really makes you feel great.

I'm planning on continuing to train and I want to run my next 5K in 30 minutes. I am going to do a couple more 5k's to improve my speed, then I'm moving on to a 10K!