To all you Vikings Fans

I'm a huge football fan. The only perk of summer coming to an end is that football coming!!

Of course it is great when everyone gathers around the TV, enjoying guacamole and decked out in matching gear. But even more, its the intensity of the players. It is when someone scores a touchdown. They thrust their fists to the ground and flex every muscle in their upper body while yelling a the top of their lungs. I love the strategy that is involved, the trick plays and the perseverance of injured players. I get all worked up when men grab their teammate's helmet and yank on it, together they get excited and pumped up. You know that feeling when your blood REALLY gets flowing?  I've got that now just thinking about it!

Anyway, being an Iowa Hawkeye and Minnesota Vikings fan has been rough this year.

But this helped.

How Sprint saved my life.

Guess how many minutes I have talked on my phone since November 19th...

1,968 minutes!! That is 32.8 hours.

Since the strike of midnight on the19th of November there has been 34,050 minutes. I've been on the phone for over 17% of that time. 

Last summer I kept going over minutes (hard to believe, huh) and I blamed Bryan because he had Sprint and I had Verizon. He persuaded me to cross over to a plan that gave me unlimited minutes. Praise the Lord! If he hadn't done so, I would be bankrupt.

You may wonder how it is possible how one talks on the phone that much. I have no idea.

WE'RE ENGAGED!!

So I haven't written in a while but doesn't the title explain it all?

The day before Thanksgiving the love of my life asked me to spend the rest of my life with him. I screeched yes and he slid this beauty on my finger.

We got to share the news with much of our family in person over Thanksgiving. I don't think I've ever felt so grateful in my life.

 

Since that fateful day we've registered for gifts, found a reception hall, had someone agree to marry us, are exploring 2 options for bakeries, bought my man a ring, narrowed it down to 2 photographer possibilities, established a caterer and bridesmaids dresses, made reservations for the rehearsal dinner, set up a DJ, time and date. My bride-to-be pocket binder is attached to my side 24 hours a day, my planner is exploding and I'm beaming from cheek to cheek!

In the works this week: wedding gown, florist, suits, alcohol vendors, church, wedding website and possible save-the-dates. April 9th is only 121 days away!!

Too early for Christmas music?

After the first weekend of digging out my car, scraping my windows, and damp socks after trumping through the snow, I reserve the rights to:

1. Set my Pandora station to Christmas music.

AND

2. Drink an unlimited number of these until I can smell the first spring flower.

November Race #3

This morning in the twin cities we woke up to snow. A LOT of it, coming down in buckets.  I waited for a call letting me know the 9AM race was canceled but when my phone hadn't rang at 8:40 I headed out in a cotton sweatshirt, a headband, and my Laura-made gloves.

We sloshed our way through icy roads and fallen trees while listening to the winter storm thunder. It was the fastest 4 miler of my life! Race 2 of 3, check!

Hot Chocolate 15k

The run in Chicago this past weekend was a blast!  For the first weekend in November, we couldn't ask for better weather and it was a great way to celebrate my dear friend Alex's birthday.

   

Back in Jr High another dear friend made me a pair of mittens. Thanks Laura! They are still working like they were 8 years ago :)

 For some reason Alex's registration was for the 5k instead of the 15k. She swears it was a mistake...I'm still unsure.  Just kidding Al!  She finished every step of the 15k like a champ.

 We ran right along Lake Street - what a beautiful view!

 This is after the race. Al and I ran with a friend, Maergrethe who housed us the night before. Thanks Maergrethe - it was so nice to see you.

 This race had the best post-race party ever. Ghiradelli chocolate fondue and hot chocolate. Yum!

 At the post-post-race celebration (aka Alex's birthday celebration) I got to enjoy two of these beautiful drinks. I love seeing the "Bock" name in random places!

Internet Favorites

Well, my writing was consistent for about a week, not too bad!

Things have been a bit hectic lately with traveling to Boston, having someone very special pass away, off to Iowa for the weekend, and preparing for a Chicago race on Saturday!

I spend the majority of my day working online so when my brain needs a break, I've got a list of things to distract it with. In addition to my Google Reader subscription that updates me on blogs, here some recommendations to check out.

Internet favorites:

Groove Shark
 - This site is like Pandora on steroids!  It lets you create your own play lists and has A LOT of music options.

Ellie Krieger
 -  This cooking genius has TONS of tutorials for healthy cooking. Sometimes I'll click through them while I'm working, I'm excited to try some of the recipes out!

Caribou Coffee
 - I'm a big coffee fan. Right now Caribou Coffee is my top choice.  Their website has a "I Stay Awake For" section that people can submit their quotes on. I could read those things for hours!

My Utmost for His Highest 
- This is a must!  For a while I was starting my day off with these short devotions but now I find they are a good retreat in the middle of the day.



That's all I got for today!  In case you didn't already have enough things to distract you during the your day, here are a few more :)

Other DIY projects

When I first moved into my current apartment this past summer I was stoked to decorate and make it "home". The landlords actually PAID for the paint if we picked out the colors and did it ourselves! Looking back, I'm pretty sure that is what got me started.

In my excitement of decorating I made frequent trips to Target, Khols and Ikea..and my bank account diminished. Could I really justify spending $26 on a pillow to match the walls that I would live in for 9 months? As someone that frequently deals with shopper's remorse I knew what I had to do. Digging out some plastic bags, all of my receipts, and gathering up my purchases I returned (most of) my decorations and set out on a new challenge.

First was the space above the futon. Back in college I spent a few months in Europe and had always wanted to display some of the sights I was blessed enough to see. The hardest part of this project was limiting my picks to 3! I blew up shots of the London Bridge, Florence Duomo, and Eiffel Tower in black-and-white, then used black matte board for frames. $13 wall artwork, check!


Next, I had been dying to update some way to disply my jewlery. I'd been scoping out jewelry trees but couldn't find one that I really liked and most were between $15-30, so I opted to make one of my own. My mom found the perfect branch which I painted with some leftover, purple paint from our living room. Then I selected one of my many vases (thanks Bryan!) and used wine corks (suprised?) to fill the empty space. At some point I see myself switching out the vases and the corks but I absolutely LOVE the idea and the look! As for a price total? Completely free!


Finally, I had some space above my television that I wanted to fill. I liked the idea of some extra shelf space, something to hang my scarves on, and a splash of yellow on the gray wall. One 4-minute stop at the local Goodwill supplied me with a $3.99 shelf with hooks. We had some extra yellow paint from our kitchen, 2 coats in 2 days and my new masterpiece was good to go. I don't see this shelf making it to the livingroom of my future house but I think it may work well in a child's room someday!


I'm not determinded to do DIY projects for all of my future decroating but for now it is a good challenge and is quite enjoyable. If you have any suggestions...feel free to pass them on!

DIY Corkboard

I'm a HUGE wine drinker. I love holding my glass by the stem, throwing my head back and laughing like someone just said something magnificent. Or cupping a glass in my hand, swirling the red up to it's rims and discussing deep things that people only spill when they are sipping wine.

I've been saving corks for a while in order to make a corkboard, and I finally followed through.

First, the corks. Free (unless you count the hundreds of bottles of wine that they came with:) ).


I wanted to find a frame that was thick and rustic-looking but that could painted at some point. After 3 trips to the local Goodwill I found this bad boy for $4.99.


Once I had the board and corks, I sat in front of the TV to watch The Biggest Loser and played away! It was recommended to make sure the corks all fit before gluing them down.

The edges required trimming some of the cords. I'd recommend using a small drill but I managed with some knives. And wine. (potentially a bad combo!)


Once you've got the board fitted with corks, get to gluing! I used a hot glue gun which worked fantastic.


And voila! My very own, unique, fun and "wine-ish" bulletin board! The entire project took only a couple of hours and is very cheap if you can get your hands on a good supply of corks.


Now...off to decorate the corkboard!

Dreaming generation

If you're from my generation, we are a group of dreamers. We want to change the world, do what we want, and leave a name for generations to remember.

Compare us to our parents. Hard-working, stick with the basics, and do what you have to do.

Can you see the difference or is it just me?



I went to the University of Iowa where I was determined to find a passion that I could turn into a career. My theory was that if I have to spend 40 hours a week doing something..I better be enjoying it! I found myself earning a Bachelors in Health Promotion and enjoyed about 90% of my classes - now what student can honestly say that?



Now I have the privilege of spending 40 hours a week encouraging people to be active and pursue their health. (http://www.directlife.philips.com/)

Here I am! Working with a population that I have a heart for, standing behind something I believe in, and believing that I am having an impact. I have complete respect for my parents, they are two of the hardest working people that I know. And I REALLY appreciate them bringing me up as a dreamer, striver, go-getter.

Today I'm feeling thankful. Sometimes I get frustrated working at a computer so much and being "tied down" with a "real job" but I understand that I'm part of an elite group of people that enjoy what they do.

Side Note: Sweet article relating to what DirectLife is all about! For those of you show work in desk jobs this TOTALLY RELATES TO YOU!!

(http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/10/16/AR2010101602903.html)

sqUEEZing in a work-out

Today I'm sitting at my desk, sore. Most often this is because of a fast or long run but there has been no time for this recently. Life is a bit hectic right now, just how I like it!

All day I listen to "barriers" (what I like to call excuses) to being active. It is all about prioritizing folks, if you want to make it happen, make it happen!

Well, I managed to get in a workout yesterday, without breaking a sweat, fitting it into the small gaps of time I found.

First - Push ups.


Second - Lunges.


Third - Leg Lifts.



Fourth - Dips.


Fifth - Planks.


On a good day, you can get three sets of 15. Let me give you a brief picture of how they fit into my day yesterday.

Set 1. Wake up, lunge to the bathroom, leg lifts while washing face and doing make up, lunge to room, dips while looking into my closet for something to wear, push-ups before changing, plank position while discussing evening plans the the bf - then out the door!

Set 2 and Set 3. Follow same idea, worked into evening and night routines.

You'll probably get looks but you will feel great and spice up your usual routine!



The way this went down

Blog Revamp

So this blog needs a little better look and that is not my specialty. One thing that I can do is pictures - I take a LOT of them, so you think it would be pretty easy to find simple picture of just myself, right?

Here are some options.



Rocking the jean jacket and cheese curds.



Bon Jovi, you have a spot very close to my heart.


Portrait for work. Boring.



Ahahahha. The walrus never gets old!


False advertising.


Not my most attractive smile.


Woahhh. A little too hard-core.


Inappropriate?


Anyway, you get the idea..and probably a lot more thorough glimpse into this past year then you wanted. Note to self: try smiling in a "normal" picture on occasion...yeah right!

New Adventures

I'm a little embarrassed that I've written one post in the past year. Not only have I only written once, it was a post lashing out of emotions and incredibly dramatic.

Well guess what? I'm baaackkkk. A little more committed this time (at least for now ;-) ). I'm taking on new adventures and am too excited to NOT write about it.




It is all because of this, and the fact that I no longer have one. Without music, what else is one to do while running, besides let their mind run rampant with dreams and ambitions?

Several miles and a few hours later, I had decided to start my own business. My dream is to work with women one-on-one and do wellness coaching. The long-term benefits include having a flexible schedule and keeping my kids out of daycare in addition to feeding one of my biggest passions. For now it is an exciting, new challenge and a good place to channel my energy.

Get excited folks, because I sure am!

Waiting

This morning I woke up, something heavy hanging over me but not sure what it is. Then it came to me. The night before had been full of dreams, nightmares of death. The loss of one individual. With a feeling of expectancy.

I didn't sob or mourn, I nodded and accepted. Even in the middle of the night it seemed strange but almost too real, like if it were to happen today my response would be the same.

Waking up I wasn't sure why I was feeling bummed but then I remembered the dream. I send a text and wait for a response - the whole while waiting to not receive one. Who would I call? Nate then my dad. Then I guess Eric and try to get ahold of Paul's number. Does it seem strange that I have this thought out? I'd likely take a week off of work and have Bryan come get me, too upset to drive, maybe.

Even now my eyes well up - Whey do I get this way?

Then it comes. The Text. Assurance of a phone call. The agony is gone and relief comes...or is it the other way around?