old friends, new adventures

the dream team. ;)

so i did it. finished my first 5K. i kinda can't believe it. not because i didn't think i could or because i wanted to win or something, i just know i never would have done this a year ago, and if i had, i would have hated every second of it. but i loved it. and i want to do it again. 

jenn, sarlo, ksteele, me

some of mine and kyle's closest friends got into knoxville friday night. we hung out and stayed up a little too late considering we were planning to rise early the next day for this crazy commitment we made, but we just missed each other and wanted to chat and laugh. chris has done plenty of races and was super ready, and his enthusiasm made me more excited. on saturday morning, we starting stirring around 6 a.m. we were all groggy and giggling at how early it was and how absurd it was that we, of all people, were all up so early and actually excited about it. we put on our lycra, had a snack and loaded up with our water bottles and tunes ready. we arrived to perfect weather and hundreds of people who have probably all been there since the time we got up stretching and being a little too serious about the whole thing. it was funny to observe something none of us (except chris and andy) had ever done. we got our tshirts and numbers, snapped some silly photos and got in line. i was weirdly nervous and my stomach felt a little butterfly-y, but i was excited to do something new and do it with some of my favorite people.

get it, people.

there's something about an event like this that makes you go harder than you normally go. i pushed myself more and loved listening to pumped up songs with one earbud, while the other one hung out so i could listen and watch the others running with me (or past me) as we went along. i would run for as long as my lungs or shins would let me, then walk for a bit, then start again. usually, i would run until there was a little uphill part, then walk up the hill and start again once it was more level. the only bad part of the 3.1 miles was at mile 2 being handed a cup of powerade instead of water. it was too late once i realized it, and i wasn't going to turn back and be like "oh sorry i wanted water, please." i only took two drinks of it, and after that felt so sick. never again. water all the way.

afterward with red faces and sweaty hair

i finished 18th out of 22 in my age division (not last!), and 508th out of 598 (still not last!) overall. my chiptime was 39:33, which was under 40 minutes, which is what i was aiming for considering the time i was averaging per mile when i run at home. no, this isn't a "good" time, but for me it is. i was averaging a 14 minute mile before the race, but averaged about a 12 minute one the day of the race. so i think that's pretty exciting, and makes me want to keep going and getting better. chris, of course, beat us all. kyle came in second, i was third, jennifer was fourth, kristin was fifth and sarina was sixth. andy held our bags for us and waited at the finish line. (thanks, andy!)

it was so fun to do this with them because we can all just do our own thing and goof off and not take anything too seriously. it was just about doing something different together, and it was a plus that it was something good for us. 

we hung around afterward and got the rita's italian ices they were passing out, then packed our sweaty butts home to rest for a second before going to breakfast at the fountain city diner. very fun and delicious. 

because we got up so early, we had a lot of time to do different things for the rest of our saturday. we walked downtown a lot at a festival they were having and got food from the savory & sweet food truck. we got told off by a security guard because we were standing by a museum eating a funnel cake and apparently that's not allowed. we had beer and played pool at the brewery, then went to dinner at sunspot. back at home, we played mad gab and laughed a lot.

one of the several pics stolen from kristin's instagram. ;)

sarina & kjd

not drunk. just singing or something. lol

jenny with kristin's glasses. lovely. :)

on sunday, i woke up with some sore gams and had to stretch before i got out of bed. we all went to knoxlife for church then had brunch at tomato head. the friends headed back to wv after that, and just like always when people leave, the house goes all quiet and weird for a while. i loved having all of them here, piling up in the floor on the air mattress and joking around. i miss having my good friends around, because no matter who i meet in other places, those are the people i will really want to spend my time with. 

bright tees & hipster glasses. the best. :) 

action shot. lol

oh, christopher. 

anyway. one more time -- i really loved the 5K, and i'm looking forward to more. i would love to do the color run, and as scary as the warrior dash looks, it also looks super freaking fun.

here's to good friends, new things and sore legs. 

love.

krq.

almost after

maybe i'm feeling brave because i'm about to run/walk my first 5K this weekend. maybe it's because i just painted my nails and rather like them. who can say? but i feel like posting a little "before & almost after."

a little over a year ago, it finally clicked that i probably should take care of myself. i'm not sure exactly what made that happen, but i'm thankful that it did. i started drinking Visalus, watched what i ate and began exercising pretty vigorously with the program, TurboFire, which if you don't know what that is, you should totally check it out. sometimes i feel like nothing is happening and i'm just busting my ass and waking up so sore that i can't walk for nothing. but recently i was looking through old photos and saw myself and was like "do i really look like that?" no, actually. not really. not anymore.


so here are some photos, more just to prove to myself that i should keep going.

face.

the first photo is from thanksgiving a couple of years ago. the second one is from last month when my siblings came to visit.

gams.

the first photo is from october of 2010. the second one is from this past easter.

and this photo is from yesterday. it's a new dress that ruby bought for me on jcrew clearance. it's a size medium. but what is important about this one is that i have a collarbone. who knew?

maybe you don't see that much of a difference, but i do. and i feel different than i did a year ago, that's for sure. i'm not where i want to be yet, and i'm trying really hard not to use cliche words like "journey" and "lifestyle change" in this situation, but all of that is true for me, too. i'm also not trying to be like "look at me how awesome i am," because sometimes i feel quite the opposite. just like millions of other people, i grew up thinking in the "diet" mindset, so when i would go on one and not lose 10 pound in 5 minutes like it said i would, i would feel frustrated. like i'd failed. like i couldn't do it, and sometimes i still feel that way. but finally, at 23, i'm getting that i should just take care of myself forever and if i eat a reese cup, not want to bash my head up against a wall afterwards, just run a little extra later. i'm just doing the best i can, and i guess looking through old pictures made me see that it's not for nothing. i hope you will appreciate my honesty here, because talking about this is not something that's ever been easy for me. i'm working on it.


tomorrow is my first 5K, and several of my friends will be there with me! i think most of them signed up out of peer pressure, but it will be fun running/walking together. i'm sure christopher will whip us all. show off. jk. kinda. i'll be sure to post about that next week.


have a beautiful weekend, people.


love.
krq.

itching to spend

i like to shop. and i pretty much have a daily thing that i really want to buy. today it's a heart rate monitor.

i would just really like to know exactly how many calories i'm burning when i feel like i'm dying from turbofire or running. i log into myfitnesspal every day, but i just wonder how accurate it is, and if it's not that accurate, am i just kicking myself in the ass?

the one i'm really liking the looks of is a fitbit.

it's tiny. it clips anywhere. and it tracks pretty much everything, including sleep. but it's about $100, and i don't know if you've heard, but i'm unemployed. so we'll see, i guess. 

but do any of you use heart rate monitors? what kinds do you like? i'm curious to hear. 

also, i'm lusting after this raincoat from free people. it's at the mall here, and i've looked at it every time we've gone shopping for the last month. in. love.

let me know what you're itching to purchase. 

love.

krq.

cheating

there is much debate as to whether or not you should cheat on diets. well, here's what i think.

if you're on a "diet," then no you shouldn't cheat. because i think a diet is something that should be done for a set amount of time and you should work hard to stay with the plan because it's not something you're going to do for the rest of your life. for instance, a year ago i did the 90 day Visalus challenge and lost about 20 pounds. that was the beginning of my new way of eating, i suppose, because up until that point, i hadn't really thought much about what was going into my body. so the 90 day thing was a good way to get me going. yes, it was a diet, and for the most part, i stayed with it. but in the meantime, i worked on changing the way i eat overall.

i switched from sugar in my coffee to splenda, from chips and dip to apples and peanut butter for snacks, from burgers and fries to big salads or soup for dinner. please don't think i'm telling you i eat like the healthiest person ever now, because i don't always. i'm not on a "diet" anymore, but i pay attention to what i'm eating. yes, sometimes kyle and i go to Dead End BBQ and get the nachos, because OHMYGAWD they're good. but not every day. once in a while isn't going to kill us. and most of the time, i'm packing him celery and apples for snacks at work and i snack on carrots and strawberries when i'm at home. 

so if you're just living as healthfully as possible, and you have a cheat day, then that's ok. don't beat yourself up over it. cheating on a diet, isn't going to kill you either, but i think there is a big difference between diets and your everyday healthy eating. and if you do cheat on your diet, move on. keep going. is this making any sense?

so in honor of my rambling argument, i give you two recipes. one healthy. one cheat.

Roasted Vegetables & Goat Cheese Pasta Salad

recipe found here.

i found this recipe on interest several weeks ago, and it was delicious. i made it with just whatever vegetables i had on hand. so great and only 191 calories per serving.

Pink Lemonade Cupcakes

recipe found here.

my mom makes this cake in the summertime when we have cookouts and things, but i made cupcake versions this time. it's so tangy and fluffy. and full of glorious sugar. i mean, it has to be since it's a Paula Deen recipe, right?

so there you go. i'm going to have my cheat days or cheat meals. and you can, too. just try not to think of eating healthy as a "diet," because it's not. eating healthy should be for forever, and a diet is just for a little while. and if you're one of these people who just eat whateverthehell they want and don't gain a pound, then get off my blog. just kidding. kinda. ;)

love.

krq.

things that are cool

coastal.com

this awesome company offers the coolest spectacle frames. and what's even better is, until april 27th, they're giving you your first pair free with the code on the homepage. i got mine a few weeks ago and with shipping and handling (which you still have to pay), my awesome glasses were only about $14. i love them! the only problem is choosing which frames to order because there are so many great ones. mine are nerdy and hipsterish and grandma-chic. perfect. everyone should take advantage of this offer. plus, they are fun to follow on instagram. @coastaldotcom

daily essentials

schwarzkopf osis "dust it" mattifying  powder

the hairdresser used this on me last weekend when i got my hair cut, and i loved it. i bought some in the salon. $20. that is way more than i ever spend on hair stuff (and apparently it's way cheaper on amazon, but whatev), but i just had to have it. it's sort of like dry shampoo, but not. it gives your hair lift like you've teased the crap out of it. you just sprinkle it into your roots, then sort of rub it in, and bam. big hair. 

pottermore

it's finally open again, people. i won't ramble on about how great it is, because i mean, of course it's great. you get to buy a wand, get sorted and everything. just check it out. seriously. and add me. AccioProphecy8133. (i didn't pick that, they give you options for usernames and that was the best one out of the lot.)

this american life

kyle listens to this podcast a lot, and i've got into it lately. i like listening to it while i'm doing other things, like cleaning or writing this blog. each episode has a theme and allows different people to tell their stories according to the theme. some of hilarious. some are devastating. it's great. 

hope everyone is having a good week. april's half over. how did that happen? and i'm supposed to be running my first 5K next weekend. eek! i'll keep you updated. 

love.

krq.

remember what i said?

i haven't forgotten about my goals for 2012, just in case you were wondering.

i think i'm doing pretty well for it to be halfway through april.

i am living healthier. 

i am working on a garden.

i started running, even though i totally suck.

i have been writing more letters and sending snail mail more often.

i'm working on paying off my credit cards, even though it's going to take a while. 

i updated my blog, but i'm still debating on that.

i don't think i've read a book a week, but i've read 7 books since january, so that's pretty good.

i drink more water.

and i'm trying to pray and read more. kyle has been getting up earlier to read the bible, so maybe that's what i need to do. 

as for the other goals, i'll get to them. i haven't abandoned my hopes for this year, and i intend to keep going, even if i fail.

a new goal: lose 15 more pounds by vacation time. it's 10 weeks away, so i think that's doable. i think i've finally got back into a good workout routine, so here we go. and even if i don't make it to 15 down, i'll feel better knowing i worked really hard up until beach time. 

also, i'm less than 100 views away from 10,000 views here. it only took about two years to do it, but yay! that's exciting, no? i wish it was more, but oh well. yay anyway!

dinner one night this week? found here.

love.

krq.

ps. follow me on pinterest! 

weekending

weekending: to be participating in the activities generally associated with the weekend. Such activities include going out with friends, watching television, procrastinating from unpleasant tasks, etc.

this is the first weekend Kyle and i have had to just have a weekend in over a month. seriously. he checked his calendar. five weeks ago was the last time we had a normal weekend. and as much as we love visiting home and doing all the fun things that life includes when you have large families and good friends, sometimes it's just nice to just do what you want with your person. 

last night we set out to see "Titanic" in 3D, but ended up going home to watch two episodes of "Mad Men" and lay around after we had too much mexican food and coffee. 

then this morning, we slept in until about 10 (or at least i did, even though i actually woke up at 8, but forced myself to stay in bed, but then let kyle stay there while i cooked), and i made breakfast. we ate and watched the safari screensaver on our Apple TV, because we only have about 10 channels and there was nothing on, so we figured we might as well watch photos of exotic animals we've never seen. sounds pretty pathetic now that i type it out, but really, we were content. 

i went to the park to run. i actually only ran about half of the time i was there, but the other half i was dodging the 2917912710 people that were there and don't know how to sidestep out of the way of someone trying to run (what is that?!). then my sister called, so i just walked for a while longer then headed home. i got dressed and we headed downtown. we had sandwiches that were too expensive for lunch, then i went to my hair appointment at Lox Salon. new favorite place. finally some cool people in this town! and my hair looks pretty awesome. thanks, Brynn!

Kyle has to do some things for work, so we're at MCG now, and later we'll finally see "Titanic." Rose and Jack on the big screen once more! can't wait. and for the record, i don't give two icebergs about 3D, i'm just excited to see it on a huge screen again and relive seeing it for the first time when i was 9 years old. 

even though we aren't doing anything grand or crazy, weekending with Kyle is one of my favorite things. we just do what we want, and don't rush anything. it's the weekend. relax. 

i hope you're weekend is shaping up nicely, as well. do something fun. i'll be crying into my popcorn later. yay!

love.

krq.

in love with

just a few things i'm loving right now. 

1. a beautiful mess.

i've probably talked about this before, but whatev. elsie larson is the creator of this blog and it is basically what i want my life to be. creating awesome things myself, writing about it and posting it on my adorable blog. and that's my job. like i do that as part of my career. i hope i can make this happen somehow. one day.

2. glamping

my dear friend chris osborne tweeted me this link to an awesome site of glammed up camping gear. i've never been camping, but when i do go, you can bet your fur-lined sleeping bag that this is how i'll be doing it. for sure. a lot of these items would be super awesome for beach trips, too. 

3. vintage suits

speaking of the beach, i need a new bathing suit. shopping for such things make most women break out into a sweat/hives, only to later sulk home hating themselves. and i'm no exception. what is it about those harsh lights and wonky mirrors in dressing rooms that make you look like a pale, fat, zombie lady? it's a nightmare. anyway, i'm in love with a few adorable (expensive) vintage-style suits from anthropologie, and i'm hoping to splurge before my family's beach trip in june. maybe kyle could buy the top and i'll buy the bottom? 

4. "boyfriend," by justin bieber

yes, that justin bieber. this song is so timberlake. and since i've given up on my number once celebcrush of ever making another album or leaving that skank jessica biel (jk. kinda.), this jam might be the next best thing. yes he started out as some awkward tween that middle school girls fell all over, but so did JT. i think the biebs might have something real going for him. 

5. the caviar manicure

this mani was all over runways during fashion week, and i've read several diy's about it. however, sephora will make it easier for me to try it out when they release their caviar manicure kits this month. oh yes. and the best part about this little bit of information is that kyle actually told me about it. way to stay on top of nail trends, dyer. 

that's about it. i'm still technically unemployed and definitely poor. but somehow the sunshine and leftover easter candy seem to keep me in an ok mood. 

love.

krq.