Weekend Wrap Up!

It's just another manic Monday!

Well, I hope not. Actually, today shouldn't be too bad!
Here's what I was up to this weekend...

Boy was I tired, but I got my butt out of bed and did a chest/shoulder workout at home.

Work wasn't too bad. I kind of had to be Mrs. Meany Teacher because the kids were all hyped up from their classroom fall parties. Believe me, I love a good party, but it is difficult to be expected to teach a class directly after they had a party with lots of sugar!

At the end of the day I had a huge surprise come visit me! One of my past piano students popped in to say hi! He looked so grown up! It was awesome.

After work I had two piano lessons- very strange for a Friday, but they were rescheduled due to being in NYC.

That evening, we met some friends to celebrate Steve's Birthday at the Game Table Cafe! 

The Game Table Cafe sells sandwiches, desserts, and coffee. But the cool part is they have a HUGE game library! So we hung out and played a variety of games. 

The people that work there even teach you how to play the games if you need help! 

A guy named Evan helped us out A LOT and he was really good at what he did! It was so fun and we will be back!

What a night! What a morning! The short story is...

1. I got little sleep due to an infected toe!

2. I had a horrible 13.1 mile run one the beautiful back roads around Messiah College.

Read the whole wonderful story here!

After my run, I made the most unhealthy salad EVER at the grocery store and devoured it at home. It was so good!

Then I blogged my little booty off. Paul was at a hockey game so I had time to CONCENTRATE and get some writing done!

I know, I know, I haven't told you about my NYC trip. Come this week. Like, tomorrow, Wednesday, and Thursday. I PROMISE!!!!

I got up relatively early and chilled with Jelly!

Then I went to Planet Fitness and lifted. It was empty!

Before going home, I ran a couple errands... including a quick Dollar Tree pop in to see if that had any good puzzles. Negatron. But they did have all their Christmas stuff out!

It was really hard not to buy a bunch of these tins!

 Then I came home and basically did puzzles the whole rest of the night!

There was a quick storm which Chrissy enjoyed watching...

And that's about it! It's 8:11 right now. I'm going to hit publish and then go hit up solvingjonbenet.blogspot.com... I think I'm about to crack the case!

Tell me something fun you did this weekend!
Have any good runs?
Who wants to go to the Game Table Cafe with us???

The cruddiest run.

Guys, yesterday I had the CRUDDIEST run. It was just the worst.

Let me set it up for you...

Friday was not a great day for reasons I can't get into. (Sorry to be vague, but in this instance I have to be.) I stayed up really late (12:30ish) but planned to get up at a reasonable time- like 7-8 as I am trying to clean up my sleeping habits. My body had other plans.

I woke up at 5:30 with EXCRUTIATING pain in my 4th toe on my right foot. It hurt SO FREAKING BAD. It was pulsating. It felt like I was being continuously stabbed in the toe. Even though I was so tired, I could not fall back asleep due to the horrible pain.

At 7:00, I got up to get an ice pack. I couldn't put any weight on my foot as my toe hurt so bad. I hobbled back to bed and laid my foot on the ice pack. WOW!!! Sweet relief!!!! I fell asleep... for 17 minutes. When the ice pack wasn't cold anymore, the pain came back and it woke me up. Never fear, I'm a runner! I have lots of ice packs! I got another one out of the freezer and was able to sleep for 20 minutes. Then I woke up and got one more ice pack. I slept straight until 11:12. I was happy for the sleep but pissed that I couldn't stick to a sleep schedule like I wanted to.

I was wondering if I was going to be able to run that day or even within the next several days. Just four hours earlier, I could barely walk! Luckily, at this point, my toe didn't hurt as long as I didn't move it. It was more red than the others. Was it an ingrown toenail causing the pain!? I soaked it in salt water. I wasn't sure if that was going to do anything but it was worth a shot.

Around 1 o'clock squeezed my foot into my running shoe. I could feel pain but not a ton. I would definitely be able to run. Since the weather was beautiful, I wanted to drive somewhere so I could really soak in the fall beauty of Central PA.

I decided to park at Messiah College and run the back roads around the campus. This was a place I used to run at all the time with the running group I trained with for marathons. I figured I wouldn't need directions to find the parking lot as I drove there a million times. Surely I would remember how to get there. WRONG!!! There was construction and some roads were closed, so I had no clue where I was! I drove around aimlessly for awhile, worried because my gas tank was on empty. But then I remembered I had a smartphone, so I went to Google Maps and it directed me to the stadium lot I always parked in...

Except there was a rent-a-cop dude who stopped me and made me roll down my window.

"What are you here for?" he asked.

"I was going to park here and go for a run," I said.

"Nope," he simply replied.

Ummmm.... okay??? I figured I deserved more of an answer than "Nope." So I just looked at him.

"No one can park here until the ceremonies are over," he told me. It looked like something was going on in the stadium, but there were plenty of open parking spaces. I didn't understand why I couldn't park there.

"Okay, is there somewhere else I can park?" I asked. He told me to turn around and find a spot outside one of the buildings.

So off I went to search for another spot. Boy was this going to mess up the route I had planned out, especially because I totally planned on blowing up the bathroom at the stadium.

I finally found a spot and off I went on my run. I took the long way around the stadium lot so I didn't have to run by the rent-a-cop. By the time I made it to the stadium bathrooms, everyone was leaving. Seriously!? Just 10 minutes ago I had tried to park and wasn't allowed to until the ceremony was over even though there were plenty of parking spots available! Oh well, I was going to be running a little longer than I originally planned, it seemed. (My original thought was 11 miles.)

The scenery was beautiful, but my body felt heavy. I did not feel good at all. The whole entire thing was hilly, and I am not used to that type of terrain at all. I probably could have walked up some of the hills faster than I ran up them. I have officially found a weak spot in my running...

Before I even got to mile four, I was feeling absolutely horrible. I felt like I ran 8 miles, not 3.71. I had already passed two dead deer on the side of the road and about 10 Trump signs. DANG IT!!! The whole point of this run was to relax, not think about the election and other horrible life-y things, and just have a good time. I was not having a good time AT ALL.

I turned to Snap Chat and messaged my gal friends... Ali, Kristina, and Karen are wonderful women I can whine to. I felt a little bit better after I snapped them, and off I went to run some more.

As the run went on, I started to feel better. I never felt great, but my Snap Chat stop was definitely the low point. There were no more dead deer but there were literally probably 15 more Trump signs. That's what I get for running in South Central PA...

For the entire run, I listened to my favorite podcast- Rob Has A Podcast. I tried to zone out to nerdy Survivor talk. It was hard to believe that just three days ago, I MET ROB!!!!! I promise I will tell you about that fun experience on Tuesday!

Due to having to park somewhere else, I was approaching 13 miles. I did a couple loops around the parking lot to make it 13.1. I really freaking slow hilly half marathon is what I accomplished.

I went home, stretched, and decided to reward myself with a huge, fatty salad that I made at the grocery store. I also picked up some hydrogen peroxide that Karen swore would clear up my foot faster.

And now I'm writing this post for you as I sip sangria and listen to Jelly lick himself.

Doesn't he just look like a ball of fur????

Life isn't so bad.

When was the last time you had a really cruddy run?
Are you strong on hills?

Weekly Workouts... (UGH!!!!!!!!!)

I had this whole wonderful post typed out and then... I accidentally deleted it! Okay, so here I go again. Round two. This whole blogging every day thing is going to get a lot harder if I keep deleting posts and have to write them all over again!

Saturday- 8 miles. It was really windy so I wasn't too excited but it ended up being a good run.

Sunday- 9 miles. It was a gorgeous fall run!

Monday- 6 miler in my hood. I felt good!

Tuesday- Lifting back @ home.

Wednesday- 8 miles before we left for NYC. 

Thursday- 8 miles in Central Park! More about that run in a couple days!

Friday- Lifting chest @ home.

How were your workouts this week?

I'm back!

I'm back!

You didn't even know I was gone, did you? Well, I don't like to broadcast that we are away from home. I would prefer to let you know I was gone rather than I am gone.

On Wednesday, Paul and I traveled to NYC to see a live taping of our favorite Survivor Podcast- Survivor Know It Alls!

I'll have a recap of that coming soon... and a recap of my Central Park Run! Woot!

But the short story is... I GOT TO MEET ROB CESTERNINO!!!!

And I had an awesome 8 mile run in Central Park on Thursday morning!

There's so much more to say, so stay tuned! I just need some time to get my thoughts down on paper and my pictures edited!

Even though we were only gone 26 hours, we missed our kitties! There is really no place like home.

You'll never guess what happened two days before we left. I discovered my wallet was missing! I finally tracked it down at the grocery store. I left it at the register and didn't even discover it was missing until the next day. It was so scary because obviously I need my drivers license and credit card to travel! But I found it and it's safe. Whew.

I was considering running a 5 miler tomorrow but I'm just not feeling it. I may wake up raring to go, but I'll more than likely just sleep in!

Oh, one last thing! Last night Paul and I were minding out own business... I was blogging, he was playing Guitar Hero. At precisely 6:01pm the doorbell rang. It was this big kid in like a burlap sack with a pointy hood kind of like the KKK. It was freaky! I didn't answer the door. Then I looked across the street and saw a bunch of girls walking toward our house dressed like cats. It was Trick or Treat night! I thought it was Monday but it was last night!

So we grabbed our bowl of candy (luckily it has been ready for weeks and no I hadn't eaten any of it) and got to work. We sat in our carport with our bowls of candy and played spooky music.

I was surprised because kids were taking HANDFULS of candy. One kid took like 5 pencils! I DON'T HAVE AN UNLIMITED SUPPLY OF PENCILS! After we started running out of goodies, I told kids to only take one. "Just one!?" they asked. I was surprised. I feel like the polite thing to do is just follow the directions of the person handing out the candy! Although maybe that's the teacher in me...

Around 7:30 things really died down so we set the bowl out on our front stoop and went inside. There was probably like 20 pieces of candy left in the bowl. 5 minutes later, it was all gone. Someone must have taken all of it! What the heck!?

I guess we are too trusting. Is that what it is? One thing's for sure, Paul and I need to learn the Trick or Treat etiquette for next year!

That's it for today! I hope you have a great weekend planned!

What did I miss while I was gone?
Tell me what you do for Trick or Treat and what we did wrong!
Do you have any fun plans this weekend?

Survey

This is one of those random surveys I found on Facebook! I hope your week started off well!

Tattoos- ZERO. I’m not really a “never say never” person, but I really think in this case it is safe to say I will never  get a tattoo. I simply don’t trust myself to choose a tattoo that I would like for the rest of my life. I have a pretty epic scar from the second time Chrissy bit me, and I brag that now I don’t need a tattoo because my undying love for my cats is already permanently encapsulated on m body!

Piercings- 4. I got my ears pierced around second grade. I got my cartilage pierced in eighth grade but eventually my ear started growing OVER the earring! My dad had to rip my earring out with pliers- not kidding! That’s what happens when you get your ears pierced at the mall. About 5 years ago, I got my cartilage pierced again at an actual piercing establishment and I have never had any problems with it. When I was 22 I got my navel pierced and I am going to rock that as long as possible!

Marriages- 1. 8 years and counting!

Divorces- 0

Pregnancies- 0. I'm child free and I love it!

Surgeries- 1. I had a plica removed from my knee a couple years ago. I wish I hadn’t done it. I don’t think the plica was actually what was causing me trouble, and I don’t want to talk about this in more detail because it makes me so angry!

Been to jail- No, but I have visited people in jail.

Shot a gun- No, and I hope I never have to!

Quit a job- I quit a job as a waitress when I was 16. I could not handle it!

Flown on a plane- Yes, and I hate it so much!

Hit a deer- No, thank goodness!

Gone zip lining- No, and at this point, I have no desire to!

Skipped school- I skipped some classes in college but I never skipped school in high school or anything like that.

Watched someone give birth- No.

Watched someone die- No.

Been in Canada- Yes, about 10 years ago. Paul and I were in Buffalo for the weekend to see a game. We drove across the border (this was back before you needed a passport) and saw Niagara Falls. We also went up a tall building to look over the falls. I forget what the building was called. We were only in Canada for a couple hours... and that is the only time I ever left the country!

Rode in an ambulance- Yes, when I was 14 I fell off my bike and got knocked unconscious! There was a 70th birthday party for my Grandpa going on at our house. The party was wrapping up and I had to return some videos to the video store. It was only a couple blocks away so I rode my bike there. As I was slowing down in front of the store, I remember losing my balance and tipping over. It was sooooo dumb! The last thing I thought before I blacked out was, "Oh my gosh, I'm going to look so stupid..." When I woke up, there were people crowded all around me. I heard someone say, "Who is her mother?" I tried to say my mom's name but it was hard to talk. They asked me to lift my legs and I lifted them straight up in the air. I wanted to prove I wasn't paralyzed! They took my to the hospital and besides a cut on the back of my head I was fine. **Note: This was back before people wore helmets!!!**

Been downhill skiing- Yes, I skied a lot in high school! I was pretty good at it. I have not skied since college, and now that I'm a runner, I probably won't ever ski again. I could totally see myself getting hurt!

Rode on a motorcycle- Yes, I rode on the back of my uncle's Harley once. I liked it when we were going slow but not when we were going fast. Never again!

Rode a horse- I know I rode a horse on our 5th grade field trip to Camp Hebron and I swear my parents took me riding once as a child. A really wanted to ride horse when I was a kid.

Stayed in a hospital- Yes, lots of times with Paul!

Donated blood- Yes, I donated in high school and college. I actually haven't donated since college and I am ashamed of that. I really hate needles and the last time I gave blood I almost passed out. It was not a fun experience. Still, it is something I should do.

Rode in the back of a police car- No.

Done charity work- I can't think of anything, but I am sure I have!? We donate money to charities.

Picked up a hitchhiker- NO!!!!!

Rode on a train- Yes, it's a great way to travel! Oh, and my dad works for Amtrak! We are taking it to NYC soon. I'm excited to sit back, relax, and not worry about driving!

Camped in a tent- I'm sure you have already guessed that I'm not much of a camper! We camped as a family growing up, which I think I liked. I went the summer before college with friends. And that is the last time I camped!

Danced in the rain- Yes, so romantic, right!?

Went streaking- No, but I want to do this race!

Have you ever ridden in an ambulance?
Do you donate blood?
Please tell me you never picked up a hitchhiker...
Answer some of these questions for me!

A Fun Day At Knoebels!

On Saturday, my family and I went to Knoebels for Hallo-Fun! Along for the fun were my Mom and Dad, older brother Julian, younger brother Tyler, his wife Debby, and their three kids: Ellie, Clementine, and Clark.

This is basically going to be a glorified photo dump of our trip, with some little anecdotes sprinkled in!

I got to ride up with Tyler's family. It was nice not to have to drive! I chatted with Debby the whole way.

When we arrived, it was chilly! The parking lot was windy!

You will notice a theme with Clem's pictures... She never looked particularly happy!

The first thing we did was get some pizza. Priorities!

 I promised Debby I would take a lot of photos of her. Normally she is taking the photos and is never in them!

 While Knoebels has some great rides for kids and adults, I wasn't there to ride rides. I wanted to see my nieces squeal and have fun!

Knoebels is always beautiful, but it's especially beautiful in the fall.

I feel like Ellie may be too big for this one next year! 

              

 My fam! I love them so much!

Tyler was super excited because he thought maybe Ellie would be 42 inches this year and would be able to ride the best coaster in the park- The Phoenix! At 42 inches, you can ride it with an adult. Ellie just turned 4 a couple weeks ago.

At first she wasn't sure she wanted to ride it, so she pretended she wasn't tall enough. THAT FACE!

But she rode it and she LOVED IT!!!! Then she rode it again and sat in the back seat- which was A LOT more wicked. She was a little frantic during that ride but was laughing by the time it was over.

 Doesn't Clementine look EVIL?????

This makes me laugh so hard!!!!

I took Ellie and Clementine on the carousel. This picture was taken before the ride started. 

As soon as I strapped them both in, Ellie looked at me seriously and said, "Hold on to Clem." 

"Should I hold on to you?" I asked Ellie. 

"No!" she laughed, as if that was the silliest question in the world.

Debby! SHE WAS THERE!!!!

It was so fun to see my older brother! I haven't been to Knoebels with him in a long time!

He doesn't ride rides anymore but he did eat pretty much everything in the park!

Clementine rode around in the wagon like a princess...

Grandpa and Clark

We had to have some fun with Snapchat. Ellie LOVED this filter!

And my brother never really knew what Snapchat was, so I showed him!

Tyler convinced Ellie to go in the Haunted House. The Haunted House at Knoebel's is NO JOKE!! I thought she'd be crying by the end but she took it like a champ! Take a look...

Speaking of food, my new favorite is KETTLE CORN. Oh my gosh, why is it so good?

 Ellie rode the Kiddie Whip all by herself. Look how proud and stoic she is!

Debby and her little bear, Clark!

He was a good boy all day.

He even got to nap in the wagon.

These pictures of Ellie crack me up...

The last thing we always do before we leave Knoebels is ride the train. During Hallo-Fun, they have lots of spooky decorations throughout the ride through the woods!

This was one of the best days I had with my family in a long time!

Do you like kettle corn?
What are your favorite rides at Knoebels or at the park you like to go to?