Race Recaps

Warning: This is a REALLY long post. 

This fall, I signed crazy self up for two half marathons. It all started one day after I got home from the gym and was reading my favorite blog and an advertisement for the Big Cottonwood Canyon Half was on the sidebar of the page. I clicked on it solely because of the amazing fall leaves in the picture. Yes, I am a sucker for fall. I watched the short race video and by the end I was crying! Crying! I am not a cryer! I can't even blame it on monthly hormones. I was just so in love with the whole idea of running with fall leaves around me. I called my Mom who knew how far I couldn't run and my dislike for the sport, and told her that I was going to sign up for it. Her response was less than exciting because she probably thought I would change my mind after my first week of training. Before I dropped the dough (races are PRICY), I told myself I had to first run a 5 and 10K. So that's what I did! After that, I signed up and started upping my miles. I could go on and on about training but this is already boring enough. To summarize training = early mornings, good running partners, strategic potty timing, almost vomiting after eating my first and only GU, and discovering great remedies for chafing. TMI? I also know the location of every drinking fountain in Provo Canyon by heart. 

Big Cottonwood: I planned on running by myself (big mistake), but a friend dropped out at the last minute and my runner of a sister-in-law took her spot. Man was I grateful! I would've walked the last 3 miles because I was mentally done. She ran the whole thing without a problem and was nice enough to stay behind with me the whole time. It started with at 3:30 am wakeup call, a bus ride up the canyon, freezing for 1.5 hours at the starting line, a port a potty stop, and then we were off! The first 7 miles were straight down the curvy canyon. I didn't see many fall leaves (false advertising!!) but it was still so beautiful! I could hardly believe our pace, we were going considerably faster than my goal! I was feeling great until the very bitter end when I was just so sick of running. Thanks to my trusty Katy Perry and her Roar song (aka the best running song ever), I made it across the finish line! I don't care of this sounds cocky, but I was SO proud of myself! After months of early mornings, terrible shin splints, and a couple of breakdowns, I made it! We finished in 2:18. Slow for a lot of people, but 12 minutes faster than my goal. Go us!

This is a look of pure joy crossing the finish line. Check out that heel strike-ouch!

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Provo Canyon Halloween Half:

I signed up for this half before I had even run my first one! Crazy? Yes. My good running partner/friend Kasie had signed up and I wanted to do it with her. We landed the perfect race day. Not too hot, not to cold. Our costumes were minimal because you have to consider what you could actually wear for 13 miles. They changed the course last minute and instead of a downhill start at Sundance, we started at Deer Creek. This meant rolling hill after rolling hill. I was so nervous! Somehow, I champed right through...or over them. People's costumes kept me fairly entertained the whole time which helped a ton! Even though this was a harder course, I only had to stop once to massage (and threaten) my knee for about 45 seconds and once to strip down a layer. No walking for us! We finished at 2:18 and I think my final time was a few seconds better than Big Cottonwood. Not bad considering those hills! Some good friends were at the finish line waiting for us and they even made us a sign!

Hailey, me, Kas, Telley, Chelsie

Me and Kas

Rob and I

You've survived a very long post! Congrats. Now onto deciding my next race. Who wants to run it with me?

Fall Time

Fall leaves. Pumpkin chocolate chip cookies. Running through fall leaves....that crunching noise makes me giddy! A lover boy who also makes me giddy. Skinny jeans and boots. I could go on and on for the reasons that I along with almost every female, loves fall. I'm currently one week in to three weeks off of work post-gallbladder and appendix removal, so I thought I would devote a few minutes of my endless hours to updating this lil blog. 

My little sister is no longer little. She's now 16, driving, dateable, and about 5 inches taller than me. I've been able to go to quite a few of her volleyball games this year, which are fairly entertaining when you add in my Dad's commentary and snack on his large bag of treats. She had a big 16th birthday party that was so fun! We roasted hot dogs and there were marshmallow covered brownies in abundance so you know that I was pretty much having the best day of my life. Plus, I ran 13.1 miles that morning, justifying eating my weight in my most favorite foods. I sat up a "photo booth" with some fantastic props. I knew her friends would like it, but I think they loved it! The boys even got really into it. Thanks for getting another year older Reag so we don't have to drive you everywhere, we can torture you over dating, and so that I could gain 5 lbs on your birthday brownies. Love ya!

The chicas at R's game in Park City on her birthday.

Ah, Celeste. It is so nice to have a friend who can appreciate the amazingness of Fall as much as me. This season, I have nearly peed my pants and cried (yes, at the same time) while running down Provo Canyon through the Fall splendor with her. We don't pass up the chance to stop and take a breather while snapping endless pics on our phones of the beauty around us. On a particularly lovely day, we went up to Sundance for an afternoon of tasty food and excellent people watching. Check out those leaves below! Beauty. 

My dear friend Alyece talked me into doing my first ever group bike ride. I was expecting a bit more of a race-like atmosphere but I was pleasantly surprised that people were just content to stroll around. The ride was 30 miles through Santiquin and Utah Lake. It was so much fun! We passed orchard after orchard and we both survived the 32 degree starting line temperature. Success. I can't wait to do another one!

Every two years, Josh Groban graces us with his presence here in Utah. I tend to only listen to him at Christmas time but man, that human can swoon me when he sings live. Ah, bliss! Josh (yes, first name basis) is charming, whitty, and great with the crowd. As much as I love his singing, I would be content to have him talk for two hours instead. It's Jocelyn and I's little tradition, and we are already looking forward to him in 2015. Please note the ladies behind us in the picture below. Can you say death? Eeeek! This picture frightened me! I left it un-cropped for your viewing pleasure.

And lastly, but certainly not least. The lover boy. Things are going well my friends. Very well. Being with him every single day is pretty much heaven. Cheesy but true! Our Fall activities include: a few last park dates (which include food, people watching, a little you know what ;) before the weather got cold, a day in Park City shopping, leaf strolling/running, lots and lots of Breaking Bad episodes, trips to my favorite barn for pumpkins and treats, a full moon lift ride at Sundance, a splendid day at Frightmares, a hot dog roast up the canyon with friends, a haunted house double date with Joc and Reed, and a few movies here and there. This past week has not been the best week of my life and I'm so so grateful for Rob for making it better! And my fam, shout out to them and their nurse-approved care following my slice and dice. Thank you!

Stay tuned for my race recaps! In case you didn't know, 13.1 miles is a long long ways. 

End of Summer 2013

The Summer of 2013 has treated me well. So very well. And it just keeps getting better! One of my best friends Meghan came home to visit from Kentucky. We had a friend BBQ and everyone was able to come. Yea for a "Posse" reunion!

Love these girls!

Me and Meg

One of best parts of summer is going to Bee's games. Boys in baseball pants, people watching, my beloved hot dogs...pretty much a perfect summer night. We attended a splendid game while Meg was in town. 

Meg, Joc, Me, and Whitney

Celeste and I spent a great afternoon at the local pool. We soaked in some rays and headed straight to J-Dawgs to properly celebrate National Hot Dog Day. Hot Dogs are my true love and I was more than excited to have a reason to eat one! Pool time + hot dogs = one happy Kish.

Yep, I posed with my dog. 

To cap off my summer, I planned a quick trip to Bear Lake with some of my best girls. Joc and I went up a night early and stayed at Camille's cute new house. We went to dinner at one of my Logan favorites--Calloway's. I may have starved myself all day in preparation for Logan food and by the time i got there, I ate and ate and ate. I ate to the point that our waiter felt it was necessary to comment. I could care less and we laughed about my serious food consumption skills. 

 The next morning, we met up with Whit and her friend Allison for little Bear Lake fun. After an emergency potty break and a few cuss words aimed at my GPS, we finally made it to our jet skiis. Despite Whitney's best efforts to kill someone, we all survived. Joc was a great jet ski partner and we had a great time chasing ducks and laughing at Whit's suicidal driving. 

Jocelyn, Whit, Allison, and I.

After we turned our keys in, we went straight to lunch. We all had raspberry shakes on our mind and we were not disappointed! Our weekend ended with a movie at the dollar theater and more couch surfing. Sunday morning, we went to Camille's little girl Miley's baby blessing. I just love her and her little family! It was a great weekend with really good friends!

 I tend to avoid displaying my dating/relationship news on social media but I think it's time to post about it. The best part of my summer has been this guy:

We met in July, clicked instantly, and have been together pretty much every day since! We've been hiking, tubing down the Provo River, to a couple of Bees and Real Salt Lake games, movies, swimming, four wheeling, Thanksgiving Point, and some fun double dates. Single life was good but this is so much better!

The End.

Summer Running

At the beginning of the summer, I spotted an advertisement for the Big Cottonwood Canyon Half Marathon online. I clicked on it, looked through the pictures and videos, and cried. Yes, cried. I'm not a super emotional person but the pictures were beautiful! Oh the leaves!! Stunning. Anyway, I decided right then and there that I would sign up for the half. This coming from the girl who could barely survive 2 miles. So began my running journey. I started out with my first 5K (see earlier post) and ventured into my first 10K. My friend Celeste and I signed up for a midnight glow-stick 10K. I go to bed nightly at 10 PM, so a race starting at 10 may have not been the best decision of my life. Because of a course error, I ended up running 8.6 miles. Without stopping. And lived. I had never run that far and although I was a little peeved while running, I was so proud of myself for making it! 

Hands on hips = my go to picture pose. Why??

Celeste and I with our pre-run glow.

 For the past several years, I wanted to run my hometown's 5K at the annual county fair. I had never signed up because I couldn't run 3.1 miles and I really didn't want to try. This year, I did it! They changed the course to a route that was uphill for the first half. I found out 2 days before so I hadn't adequately trained for that many hills. It was a tough race but I was so happy to finally be able to do it! My not so little sister ran it with me AKA I watched her in the distance as she schooled me.

Thanks to a couple of very good friends, I think I've trained pretty well for my half next week. It helps so much to have good running partners. Thanks Kasie and Celeste! Our 6 am runs down the canyon have bonded us through sweat, cramps, and scares of not making it to the bathroom. 

Kas and I after our 10.7 mile run.

Wish me luck for my race next week! Oh and the one I signed up for in October too. What was I thinking?

4th of July

This year, I spent the 4th in Idaho with a good friend from work. I was her plus-one and doubled as car babysitter for her cute little guy. I was seriously dreading riding 10+ hours in the car with a toddler but Dane was a total champ and I have a years worth of birth control built up. My friend Charlotte is from a tiny town by the Oregon border called Grangeville. I have a serious soft spot in my heart for small towns and Grangeville is no exception. Rolling hills of farmland and a cute flag lined Main Street. It was lovely. Char comes from a great family and I had so much fun with them! We wanted to run the local 5K but since it was going to be too hot by the race start time, we did our own little 3.1 mile run down the country roads. You could seriously run for hours and hours and hours. I ran down the middle of the street just because I could! We got ready and headed into town for the 4th festivities. It started off with an egg toss that I pretty sure I should sit out on in the future. It was wild and so not for me. Throwing raw eggs to your partner? I got us out on the second throw mainly cause I was afraid of getting egg juice on my TOMS. That would've been tragic! There was fantastic parade that went on and on. It was very impressive for a small town. After considering dying of heat stroke on the side of the parade route, we headed home. I had a great nap and we were off again for a BBQ and fireworks in town. It was a great 4th of July!

Char, the back of Dane's head, and I 

Such a beautiful place. I loved the canola fields (the yellow stuff).

 The next morning, we ran again and set off to go boating just over the border in Washington....on a river. I just couldn't wrap my head around boating on a river until I saw it. There was plenty of room. It's been far to long since I've been on a boat and I loved every minute. The highlight of my day was tubing with two of the little boy cousins. They were hilarious and provided the most dramatic tube ride of my life. There was lots of screaming and words of dread. My favorite line came from the 4 year old: "I just want to live until I'm 6!!!" It was so funny!

Me and the boys. I'm well aware of my ultra cute face.

We spotted big foot on the way home. Such a friendly guy!

 On Saturday, morning we set out on an early rafting trip. Oh my fun! I loved every minute of it and may have peed my pants, well swim suit bottoms a couple of times with laughter. We washed away about 5 lbs of dirt from the muddy water and went to Char's grandma's 90th birthday party. The highlight of the party was a pet bobcat! Yes, a pet. If you want one, they're $1700. It was a cute little thing but I was satisfied with just a picture. It was such a fun weekend! 

The girls (Char's sisters) before rafting.

Only in Idaho!

Mexico 2013

In an effort to catch some sun and eat our weight in guac and virgin pina's, 3 good friends and I journeyed to the land of Cancun. For the first couple of days, our dreams had come true. Then during a bike ride into town, the heavens opened and the rain came down. And down. And down. We all survived a crazy storm that had us questioning our safety for about 8 hours. We spent more time than I would've liked watching the limited English channels on TV due to the endless rain. Luckily on our last 1.5 days, it warmed up and I managed to get fried. It's not a trip to Mexico if I don't resemble a lobster for a least part of it. Now enjoy some really unflattering images of me. 

 If you couldn't tell, I have this thing with jumping pictures. I feel they are necessary at all times and all places. I'm not good at many things in this life, but I can take a good (and a lot of bad) jumping pictures. 

Renae, Chels, Steph, and I

Right before the rain started. Little did we know.

Me and Chels on the "lets get fried" day.

5K, Idaho, and Summer Nights

I ran my first 5K! I was soooo nervous but I survived and finished with a smile on my face. I have few lofty goals for running this summer that I can't even believe as I'm typing this. I've never been a runner and I don't think I'll ever be very good, but it's been fun to work towards something and it's good for weight loss. Win. 

 After the race we signed up for a free "mini" hot air balloon ride. There was a bit of wind at the moment, so we had some difficulties getting up in the air. It was exciting! The getting out of the basket part was the best. The middle age guy helping got to feel each of us up whether he liked it or not. It was hilarious! 

Finally going up in the air.

Whit, Celeste, and I post run.

My good friend Charlotte invited me to come up to Boise with her for a half marathon her family was participating in. Cute little Dane accompanied us. I just love him. Char rocked the race and it was fun to get to know her family. I had few expectations for Boise and thought it would be a podunk town. I was wrong! It is a beautiful city and very urban feeling. I could totally live there. Thanks Char for the fun trip!

Dane. How cute is he?

I love this time of year. The weather has been beautiful so one weekend, we devoted our evenings to the outdoors. We headed up to Rock Canyon Park for a little picnic and enjoyed the people watching and sunset. 

 The next night, some lovelies from the ward came over to bask in the good weather after church. It was such a fun night full of bocci ball, red vines, and lots and lots of watermelon. 

 Joc and I attended our first Bee's game of the season. How we love them! We chowed down on obligatory hot dogs and ran into some old friends and caught up on life. Baseball, summer nights, Jocy, and my beloved hot dogs = a very good day.