Life is Beautiful

Life is hard. But life is also beautiful. For me, especially, I have noticed that when life is the hardest, I am able to see the beautiful things more easily. I often find that we dwell so much on our problems, struggles or shortcomings that we just seclude ourselves in our own little world. Now, I'm not writing this post to tell you "Don't take life for granted" because we've all heard that before. My intent is not for this to be cliche and full of lame quotes (even though I have many quotes to share). I just had a desire to write this because I woke up this morning realizing that I have had incredible experiences and countless blessings in my life. There are so many amazing people in my life who genuinely love me and care about me. There are many great things in each one of our lives.

Each day in life is a day to learn. But learning without execution is useless. We have the opportunity to shape our life the way we want it. And if you aren't able to shape it through actions, you can still shape it through your perspective. As John Milton said best, "The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven."

For me life is about progression. Discovering your true self and what makes you happy. It's about adventure and doing things that will enrich your life. Why do we waste time on one person who doesn't care when there are handful of people who do? Why waste time on something that doesn't make you happy? Ok. I'm probably becoming a tad bit cliche (and I still have plenty of quotes), but it is all so simple! Life is simple. It is the people who make it complicated. I guess here are the things I am trying to say, but in simple terms. My darling friend Kat, also does a great job of this, go read her post>>HERE.

• Life is about becoming a better version of yourself.
• If you want something, go out and get it! Nobody is going to bring it to you.
• Spend time with people who make you happier and your life better.
• If someone's presence doesn't add value to your life, their absence will make no difference.
• There's always room to grow, expand your horizons.
• Go on an adventure.
•  The dream in your heart may be bigger than the environment in which you find yourself.  When talking about environment it is whatever surrounds you. (The Compound Effect, Darren Hardy)
• "If you are not willing to risk the unusual, you will have to settle for the ordinary." -Jim Rohn
• Do the things you love, that bring you joy, happiness and excitement.
• Find things to look forward to, mark up your calendar. 
• "Make an obstacle an opportunity, make a negative a positive" -Lance Armstrong
• "A pebble held close to the eye appears to be a gigantic obstacle. Cast on the ground, it is seen in perspective." (Richard G. Scott)
• If you love life it will love you back.
• Be kind to others, it will benefit you as well.
• Incomplete tasks keep calling you back to the past to take care of them. Think about what you can complete today.
• Time has a wonderful way of showing us what truly matters.
• To get through the hardest journey we need to take only one step at a time, but we must keep on stepping.

Just my thoughts on a Tuesday morning :) xo

Utah Valley Half Marathon

Whoot whoot!!!! I did it!!!! I ran 13.1 miles at the Utah Valley Half Marathon!! Not only did I want to post about this race because I've been talking about it for weeks, but also because I hope other people will find it helpful since I read people's blogs prior to the race!

Overall, the race went super well! The first 8 miles down the canyon was a piece of cake and the last 4 were a little tougher but I finished in 2:29 (with a 15 minute bathroom break and walking) so I am pleased because I had a fun time! Most organized race ever and great for beginners!

Ok so here's the details! Waking up at 3am wasn't as bad as I thought, we got on the bus at 4 and were in Provo canyon by 4:30am. They had fire pits and like a thousand porter pottys. It was a little windy but we lucked out with nice weather, about 60 degrees (June 9). The start was pretty casual, since we had timers on our number bibs we just walked across the start line to activate the time chip and started to run. It was so cool to see how many people were running, it was just a blob going down the canyon. It wasn't crowded but you definitely had to cross in and out of people. The scenery was beautiful!

Not gonna lie, the run in the canyon went by way fast! The aid stations kept appearing and I kept thinking, I already ran two miles? There was an incline on mile 3 and 5, it was gradual so if you paced yourself you were able to keep running. I caught up with my bestie Ashlee at mile 5 and we kept the same pace for the rest of the race! The porter potty at mile 6 (GU gel station) was packed so we went off to a bathroom at a campground but even there the wait took us 15 minutes. Once we got out of the canyon it was all flat road. This was where it got hard. The last 4 miles had water stations at each mile which was nice! We walked a little but on the last mile my dad met us and ran with us for a little :)  We could see the finish line but it was not getting any closer. We kept running and when we got closer to the finish every one was cheering and all the pain went away! I started getting teary eyed because it was so awesome! People probably thought I was dying because I was trying to hold my emotion back. Ashlee and I crossed the finish line together with the biggest smiles on our faces! It did not feel like we had just ran 13.1 miles. Best moment ever!!!!!

They had smoothies, creamies, chocolate milk, powerade, oranges, everything! It was fun to hang around and get tons of pictures. After breakfast we came back to wait for Kaylie to finish the marathon! There was a guy who had sprained his ankle at mile 11 and finished the 26 miles! Crazy! Other people were pale with blue lips and others looked like they had just taken a walk in the park. I definitely want to run a marathon some day but I will for sure need to buckle down with training!

The Utah Valley Marathon is a great race and I loved it! My medal was awesome, they had great sponsors and it was so well organized. Training is really worth it! I followed this >> Half Marathon Training Plan. I will definitely run this race again! But ok, ok enough blabbing, here's the pics!

Ready to go the night before!

3am rise and shine! (Me, Kaylie, Ashlee, Mallory, Morgin)

Starting line

The finish!!!!

So happy!

 Here's some tips that helped me get through my first half marathon!

 1) Don't change anything on race day
 2) Figure out if gels or shot bloks work for you a few weeks before the race
 3) Try to use one of your long runs as a practice "race day" (eat, wear, and do what you plan to do on race day)
 4) Plan everything out the week of the race (check list) and have everything ready to go the night before (outfit, gels, breakfast) so you don't have to stress about anything on race day
 5) Sign up with friends, nothing is more of a motivator than knowing someone else is by your side
 6) Do your research, use sites like Runners World or Fitness Mag to find helpful tips and ease your nerves :)

Good luck! I'm ready to go sign up for the Big Cottonwood Half!! xo

Half Marathon/Work Out Music

My first half marathon is in 2 days and 8 hours!!!!! I know anyone who works out is always in search for new music so I thought I'd share my playlist. I have a pretty good variety; techno, country, rock, pop, slow, upbeat, etc! Hope you find something you like!

And if you can't make it through the whole list, these are my three "power songs" right now:

• My Body- Young the Giant
• Every Single Day- Benny Benassi
• I Made It- Kevin Rudolf (for the end of the race)

You can also find my playlist on Spotify 

with this link>>2012 Half Marathon Running

The Weekend: Memorial Day

A three day weekend is always a good one! And another Saturday passed means another week closer to my race!!! This past weekend I was scheduled to run 11 miles for my long run. I planned to do it outside but it rained all day! So I had to go to the gym and run on the treadmill, I was planning on just seeing how long I would last and guess what?!?! Bam! I did it!

Such an accomplishment!!! I am so proud of myself that I've stuck to training and I just hope that when race day comes it all pays off! Speaking of race day, I got an email with all the info which excited me even more!! Only 11 more days!!!

I spent the rest of the weekend relaxing, shopping and hanging with the boy. We were having a grand old time sending videos to my friend Ashlee while she was out of town.

Then on Memorial Day I went to see Dark Shadows with my mom and it was pretty good! All the actors were great and if you like the whole vampire, werewolf, ghost story line this movie is perfect for you! It was a little odd at times but overall I liked it!

Later that night Greg and I went to a BBQ to celebrate Jordan's birthday! Jordan is my good friend from high school, it's so nice to stay in touch with friends from back in the day. It was such a fun night! Swimming in their 90 degree pool and hot tubbing was perfect! Happy Birthday Jordy!!

2009

I hope you all had a great weekend! And I am thankful for the true meaning of Memorial Day, to remember those we have lost and those who have given their lives for us. xo

Popcorn...my addiction

Anybody who knows me, especially if you follow me on Twitter or Instagram, knows that I have an addiction to popcorn. It didn't start until about a year ago and now I think it's a problem. Last night Greg and I were going to have a Mad Men marathon and usually we make popcorn at his house, but I randomly decided I would go to the movie theater and spend $7 on a large popcorn.

 I even have a special order, my popcorn needs to be "buttered in thirds" (movie theater lingo) which means by popcorn is thoroughly covered in butter. Then I have to add the salt of course! Driving with popcorn in your lap is a lot harder than I expected...popcorn was flying every where anddd I couldn't help but snack on the way haha.

My friends totally make fun of me, especially when I get heartburn (what? grandmas get heartburn) but what can I say...the first step to recovery is admitting you have a problem ;) xo

The Weekend: St. George

So this past weekend Greg and I took a last minute trip down to St. George with his family. His sisters were doing a sprint triathlon so we went down to support them! Can I just say...best getaway ever!!!

View from the condo

St. George is the best weekend getaway, it's a quick 4 hour drive and we had the best weather (it was raining in Salt Lake)! Greg and I always compete to who can get the tannest (I always win..duh).

We spent most of our time by the pool and eating. On Saturday it was race day, Greg's sisters Heather and Ashley did amazing!!! They swam, biked and ran! They made me super excited for my race (which is in 15 days).

Did I mention they are both moms?!

Greg's Cute Niece

The sun makes me so happy, I could live in 100 degree weather every day! Just the sight of palm trees completes my life :) I'm so happy we got to escape for a little fun in the sun!

On our way back home we had quite the adventure...Greg's tooth was hurting so we went to Wal-Mart to get him floss and ended up buying three kinds of floss, mouth wash and special tooth picks...$10 and one hour later he still didn't get whatever was in his tooth. Haha! Then on our way home we stopped in Beaver (3 times) for food and got to see the famous Chevron chair!

I definitely thought it was bigger, but it's still pretty big! Then we kept seeing people looking through weird types of glasses and realized it was the eclipse!!! Luckily some kind kids let us borrow their equipment to check out this spectacle!

Welder's mask does the trick

Although I look like an alien, I got to see the eclipse! Pretty cool!

Greg's three pairs of glasses

After our 5 1/2 hour drive/adventure we finally made it home, if I could have it my way my vacations would last for months at a time :) At least this weekend is a long weekend with memorial day!! Can't wait! xo

The Weekend: Shopping, Peer Pressure, 8 miles and Mom's Day

So looking back, my weekend was pretty eventful! Here's what's up!

Friday night me, Kaylie and Ashlee (love these girls) went up to Park City. We had a successful shopping trip and had a good number of laughs. First stop was J Crew, oh man we love it there, already planning a trip back. My favorite part was when Kaylie and I walked out of the dressing room with the same outfit on haha, no joke!

Then once we had managed to enter every store, my lovely friends discovered that I don't have my ears pierced. And that's when the peer pressure began....yes. I don't have my ears pierced and I'm 21 haha. So here's Ash convincing me to get my ears pierced.

And here I am giving into peer pressure...

Let's just say it didn't work out at Claires, but that didn't stop Kaylie and Ashlee, they were able to find a piercing place that was open late...but first we had to eat haha. We went to the famous Davanzas, my most favorite place!!! I recommend it! Super cheap but super mmmm

 Next we were off to the piercing place oh boy..what an adventure. You can tell by my expression that I was a tad bit terrified of the neighborhood this place was in and the place itself hahah

We were going to get it done until I was told that they put a little ring in instead of a stud...anddddd that's not really my style, I prefer the fake diamond studs haha. So we left without my ears pierced, but it definitely was the funniest adventure! And who knows maybe there's a reason it didn't work out, maybe I'll win the Guinness book world record for oldest woman without pierced ears!

So if you didn't know, I am running my first half marathon on June 9th and have been trying to train for the past few weeks. On Saturday it was my long run day and I was supposed to run 8 miles and...not to toot my own horn but...I freaking did it! Toot toot! I am so proud of myself because I didn't think I could do it. The first few miles were hard but with the help of my Clif Shot Blocks (best invention ever) I was able to pull through! Can't wait for the 9 miles this weekend!

And as we all know, Mother's Day was on Sunday. I think it's amazing to have a day to celebrate the people who sacrifice anything for you, guide you through the world and love you unconditionally. I love my mommy! Being an only child I am super close to my parents, we're each others' best friends and I am so grateful for that! Love you mom!

Since my mom has been converted to the iPhone, I thought it was only appropriate to get her the cutest case ever made. My mom loves elephants so it's perfect, super cute huh?!

Oh and look at my cute dress I wore, just thought I'd share :) Got it from Hautelook.com, I would recommend you sign up so you can get amazing deals on clothes, shoes, jewelry, etc!

Well that was my weekend, I hope yours was good! Can't wait to see what this weekend brings...in fact it's Tuesday and I am already wishing for Friday...typical. xo