My 2013 Running Challenge

 

Yeah, right! I'm not putting myself through that in 2013!  BUT, my recent 26.2 didn't totally deter me from running. I was taking a shower (where I do my best thinking) and I decided what this year's challenge would be:

 

ONE RACE PER MONTH!

(minus January...I had to start training at some point!)

 

I'm really excited about my new running challenge. I'm gonna do a mix of 5Ks, 10Ks, and half marathon(s). 

 

Here's what I have on the calendar so far:

 

February- On the 24th, Delaine T. and I are running a 10K called "Last Chance For Boston" in Dublin, OH.

 

March- I haven't officially registered but I plan to run a 5K or 10K (haven't decided which) called the "Shamrock Run" in Columbus, OH on the 17th.

 

April- Last year, in April, I ran the 2nd Annual Run Cbus 10 miler in Gahanna, OH. I know they are having it again this year but they haven't set a date yet. Hopefully it will be in April...I really enjoyed that race!

 

As far as the other months, I'm not sure! I would LOVE suggestions. If you have done a fun race, let me know!



Angel Does Not Like Sweatpants

Let's be real, most of you will not care about this video...bad quality, made with my phone, my dog and husband...you get the idea. But I know I will love this video months/years down the road :) Angel hates Jimmy's pants and I have the proof:

 

 

My New Favorite Hot Drink

The Vanilla Spice Latte by Starbucks

 

My go-to drink the last few years has been the vanilla latte. I always get excited in the fall time and around holidays because the seasonal drinks come out so that I can get a break from the vanilla latte. Now that we are into the new year, I was happy to see this drink advertised. I tried it and it was awesome! I'm writing this short blog to tell you to try it!

 

Cougar or Creeper?

I'm sitting here, thinking about nothing in particular, and I laugh out loud...I mean, I LOL'd. Recently, amongst my group of friends, we made up the game "Cougar or Creeper?" (We aren't THAT bored, I promise). We went around the room by couples...if the lady is older: COUGAR...if the guy is older: CREEPER! The game made for an interesting few minutes. Just try it sometime when you are in a large group of couples or out at the bar :)

 

 

Cougar or Creeper?!

The Davis Date Jars

First of all, I want to give credit where credit is due. The Davis Date Jar idea came from this blog. Jimmy and I go on dates all of the time but our dates are typically the same...usually it's dinner, maybe a movie, occasionally something out of the ordinary. I saw this blog on pinterest and thought the idea was awesome. So...I decided to put my own little twist on it.

I took regular ol' index cards and cut them in half (because I don't like plain white cards, I used colored ones). I wrote one of the ideas from her list on each half-card. I made up a few on my own or edited her ideas to things we could do it Columbus. I then separated the ideas into two groups: stay-at-home dates and going-out dates. I took two mason jars (from last summer's hillbilly party :)) and put the cards in them:

All we have to do is decide if we want to go out or stay in then draw a surprise date from the appropriate jar...let the fun begin!



Jamaica Day 5: Our Last Day

 

Another day of relaxation. Pools, beaches, books, only one mimosa, and a little lunch on the beach.

 

 I can’t believe I get to experience this awesomeness. We enjoyed the best dinner of the whole trip and finished up the night with a chocolate buffet.

I wanted to take that little bucket home with me! It was cute :)

Thanks Jamaica for another great vaca!

 

Jamaica Day 4: Just Chillin'

 

FINALLY…the day I’ve been waiting for (relaxation day). Jimmy is finally worn out and has seen all that he wants to see at the resorts. Now we can sit back, enjoy it’s beauty, and just relax! After three vacations, I have figured out that Jimmy is in A.D.D. mode the first 2-3 days because he wants to see/do everything. Once he accomplishes this, he is a little more chill.

 

This is as good as I'll ever look in the morning :)

 

The Breakfast Buffet 

 

 After our buffet breakfast, we spent the morning and early afternoon on the beach.

 

 

Jimmy played some volleyball and I read my book while sippin’ on a mimosa.

 

 

 It was awesome. Three mimosas and a game of pool later, we decided to go to the private island on the other resort. We returned to the nude beach (with our clothes on) to experience the awesome water on that side. Then it was nap time J

That night, we ate at The Oleander where I had some delicious stuffed chicken and Jimmy tried the lobster. We finished in time to see a couples game show thing…it was hilarious! It was really just a way to get the husbands to do embarrassing things in front of everyone. When that was over, we watched some Jamaican dancers and witnessed some crazy karaoke. Awesome day.

 

Jamaica Day 3: Adventure Day

First thought as I wake up: “Drank way too much the night before.” That’s how it goes here in Jamaica, mon. No regrets cuz I did nothing stupid! Got up, took some Ibuprofen, ate breakfast, and I was a new woman…ready to conquer our day.

(view of our patio from our room-it looked out to the ocean)

 

We left in the morning for our ziplining and tubing adventure. That was our Christmas gift to each other. It was amazing. The ziplining was so much fun and not as scary as I thought it would be. I was brave and volunteered to be the first person in our group to go J Jimmy did a great job! I thought he would be more scared but he was a big boy. We followed that up with a relaxing tubing adventure down a river. The tour guides were awesome and taught us a lot about Jamaica. They determined that we are now “gangstas for life” since we finished the ziplining alive. (Ziplining and tubing pics are on the waterproof disposable cameras that I haven't developed yet)

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 I am typing this just about 1 short hour after our return from the adventure. As I’m here typing, Jimmy’s taking a little nap and I’m doing my bad habit of biting my fingernails. As I was doing this, my tooth chipped! It still looks normal from the front because the back of the tooth is what chipped. I can’t wait to tell Jimmy when he wakes up! I hope the rest of my tooth doesn’t chip and I hope I can get into the dentist ASAP, y’all!

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 Tonight we attended the “Returning Guests Dinner.” They had some pretty good food that I will probably never eat again cuz it’s just not my thang (steak and lobster).

 

I couldn’t stop thinking about my tooth the entire time. At the dinner, they gave us a gift in the form of Appleton Jamaican Rum. We now have the challenge of figuring out how we will get it to Ohio (we didn’t check any bags).

(P.S. This never made it back with us :()

 

We went to another resort after dinner to see a steel pan band. The performance included some amazing dancers.

 

They even had Michael Jackson!

 

Jimmy and I, along with 4 other couples, were called to the stage to show off some of the dancers’ Caribbean dance moves. I’m sure it was an interesting sight! We returned to our room a little earlier than usual, watched Conan, and went good night.

Jamaica Day 2: Our Surprise Discovery ;)

We slept in so late this day that we caught the tail-end of breakfast. Our main goal for the day (besides having crazy fun) was to check out the private island off of one of the resorts (P.S. Sandals Montego Bay has “stay at one, play at three” in which you have access to all three of their resorts…in case you were confused about us going from one resort to the other). The resort takes you a very short distance by boat to their private island.

 

We spent time talking to Diana the parrot, sippin’ bevs and eating food, chillin’ in the pool,

 and just laying out. As we were exploring the island a bit, we realized they had a small section designated as a nude beach! YIKES! This was my first experience at a nude beach and it was sort of awkward. Unfortunately, the best beach on the island was the nude beach (best water area, less wind, etc.). So Jimmy and I tried our best not to stare at all of the B’s and B’s (butts and boobs, in case you didn’t know)…oh yeah, and the P’s (you can figure that one out…so weird)!

 

After returning to the main part of the resort we decided to do paddle boarding (pics of this are on our water proof cameras which I haven't taken to the store yet). It wasn’t the experience I wanted it to be…mainly because of the wind. It was blowing SO HARD that day and it took us really far out. It took every bit of strength and energy in this tiny body to get me back to the beach. Paddle boarding is NOT easy in those conditions. I was so sore afterwards!

 We decided to attend the beach party for dinner that night where they had a buffet with yummy food and delicious desserts.

They had live reggae music and other entertainment. When the party started getting lame, we went to a different resort where they had a white party.

We ended up sitting in Cricketer’s Bar to watch the National Championship game and had such a blast with the other 8 or so people at the bar. Let’s just say Lil Jon was in my head saying “Shots, shots, shots, shots, shots…”

 

We headed back to the previous resort, yet again, for a big dance party to end the night. I found out that the choreography to the “Wobble” song from hip hop fitness is global. The entertainment team started the dance so I had to join in! We had so much fun this day and, again, had no trouble falling asleep J

 

Jamaica Day 1: I’m so excited! I’m so…

…scared (think: Saved By The Bell)! Why am I excited? Because we made it to Jamaica, mon. Why am I scared? Because I almost fell asleep on the shuttle from one of the resorts to the resort where we currently reside. (More questions to come)…Why did I almost fall asleep? One too many Rum Punches!

 

Jimmy and I were overly excited when we arrived to the resort. The guy who checked us in asked if we would like a drink. “NO” was the wrong answer…so we ordered rum punch (a must have Jamaican drink).

 While waiting on our room to be ready, we ordered some Jerk Chicken (another Jamaican classic).  The 1^st rum punch was so amazing that I ordered another. We then changed into our bathing suits and headed to another resort to check it out. Jimmy and I decided it was appropriate to order a “Bob Marley.” That ended up being a shot! YIKES (we took it anyway, of course.)! The bartender, who was very convincing, decided it was a good idea to force us into getting another bev. I wasn’t in the mood to argue with him so I ordered something. All of this was just in time for a game of pool against my boo.

I really don’t remember the game…but I know we had fun! We then headed back to our resort in time for dinner.

After my pork chop and mashed potatoes dinner, we thought we were going to a disco party at another resort but they must have had that the night before…so we just explored and went for a late night snack at Criketer’s Bar where they had some karaoke action. After returning to our room, we had no problem falling asleep that night.

Just a little note

Note: For those expecting my Part 3 of 2012 post, I will just have to do it later because I have 5 upcoming posts about my trip to Jamaica!

Lisa's 2012- Part 2 (weddings and mini-vacas)

I dedicate this post to weddings and mini vacations (so, lots of pics to share). Technically, Jimmy and I didn't take a "big trip" in 2012. We did our regular Sandals vaca in December 2011 and we are leaving for our next trip in just 5 days!!! Anyway, we still managed to get out of Ohio this year...here are some of my adventures:
 

Nebraska-April

Life on the farm in Nebraska (where my sisters live)

My sister, Ashley, with her daughter, Rylee, and our nephew, Drew (he was my best friend on this trip)

My sister, Shawna, and two of her sons, Drew and Quinten

 

WV (where my parents live) and DC (very close to where my parents live)- May

Posing in DC with my sister, Katelyn...we walked A LOT that day!

Me and my boo at the race I ran in WV (put on by my parents' church)

 

Chicago- August (we took a trip with our friends Dan and Becca)



The amazing city at night...what an awesome place to visit. Many adventures occurred in our short 2 1/2 days ;)

 

Indianapolis, Colts/Dolphins game- November



Thanks for the best birthday present EVER, Jimmy!

 

Last, but not least, WEDDINGS! I think we went to three this year (so sorry if I've forgotten one):

 The Hatt Wedding-February. The most fun wedding I've ever been to!

 Erika's Wedding-May. Loved the theme...Kentucky Derby!

The Denton Wedding-November. The wedding I was the most excited about!

 

That's all for this post! My final 2012 post will include my local adventures of the year :)