Bon Voyage 2nd mortgage, Bon Voyage Ben!

Well it's official. Thursday we closed on our house in ATL! We are now single home-owners. We almost don't know what to do with ourselves! We decided to have a fun weekend to celebrate and to make the most of the last couple of days that we will have together until June.


Wait... I think I owe you a little update. During the last two weeks Ben found out he was picked to work on a special project that will have him in DC for two months. Unfortuantely his employer will not pay for visits home, so it will be a long two months for both of us. We'll stay busy and somehow make it work to our advantage as much as we can.

So Friday we went to the Noodle Company, I had HIGH expectations for this place and it was all based on a chain in Atlanta called Doc Chey's. Doc Chey's was a noodle house that we would visit every blue moon to get in our yearly allotment of sodium and trans fat. :::Sigh::: I'm salvating now just thinking about it. Well, the Noodle Company fell WAY short. We even left hungry, but that was cured by a Steak N Shake milkshake. Oreo for me, chocolberry for Ben. We like to live a low-fat life-style, really.

Saturday morning was cold and overcast. The PERFECT conditions to stay in your sweats all day, eat cereal for every meal and watch a marathon of TBS featured movies. But with my Illini half marathon looming (two weeks away) I needed to get my ten mile run in.

Once we started, Ben turned around to tell me how great he was feeling. GREAT, who needs a partner to tell you he is doing great while you are still cussing the world?!?! I actually didn't get "settled" into my run until about mile 6, that would be just about the time my ipod died. In between breaths/wheezes is when I realized we've been running up and down hills the majority of this treck. Mental note: don't run this way again and charge ipod more often.

We made it, and, after mapping our route again, realized we ran .75 miles FARTHER than necessary! Ugh... I felt so cheated! The good news is my run times are improving. On shorter runs I'm coming in a full minute faster per mile than last year and I've improved by about 20-25 seconds per mile on my long runs.

After the run we cleaned up and headed to the mall. Got some shopping knocked out and picked up Ben's new suits. (He's got the most talented personal shopper, she knows exactly what he will look good in. I think I'll suggest a yearly bonus for all her efforts!) That night we decided to meet up with friends for dinner at Dewey's Pizza. We started craving Dewey's at about mile three of our run, when we ran by and they were baking their pizza's and the entire block smelled wonderful. So glad we went, I successfully recouped all 1500 calories that I burned earlier in the day and probably a little more with the chococlate cake I devoured for dessert!

Sunday was a lazy day. Rainy, cold, should I even get out of bed day. We nursed our sore muscles (quads mostly, those damn sneaky hills) and got Ben all packed up. I made him brownies for dessert as a little treat, but don't tell him, I really made them for me!

So it was an eventful weekend. Just enough celebrating, lounging, and of course training. Weather was too ugly to get the rest of my dirt for the garden (darn!), so I'll save that for one of my free weekends. It's just kitty and me for the next couple of months, but with the weather changing I'm sure we won't be bored.

Garden Party

Phew... I'm exhausted!

This weekend was the weekend I'd picked out to dismantle the flower box around our back tree, plant grass, and rebuild the box on the other side of the yard for a salsa garden. It was also the weekend our friend's boys had their first birthday party and my scheduled eight mile run. You're exhausted just reading about it, I know.

Saturday we slept in, so that already got us off to a late start and unfortunately (and maybe somewhat planned) not enough time to get our run in and cleaned up prior to heading to the party. So, rather than opting to just sit and watch TV, we decided to be productive. We were able to get the dirt out of the flower box and began removing the wooden planks when our cordless drill decided to die on us. Couldn't have been better timing. Clearly it was cake time.

It's now 3:30PM, our bellies are full of chocolate cake and I'm sure you can already guess, there's no way you're getting my running shoes on me now. So, still deciding not to flake out and jump on the couch, we get our work clothes back on and complete phase one of the whole process. Flower box disassembled, grass seed planted, and the area roped off so the little neighbor trolls don't tromp it to death.

That's probably one thing I haven't mentioned. Apparently our yard is the perfect spot to cut through to the street behind us, so all the kids walk, ride bikes and sometimes scooter through... it's very irritating. But because eight year olds intimidate me I haven't said anything. Instead we roped off the freshly planted area. In lieu of an amiable six inches off the ground, we've got it set at a less than friendly, third grader esophagus height. That should get the message across.

Today I awoke to discover I had muscles in my back that I didn't know existed. Apparently, shoveling the dirt yesterday really gave my back a work out, or I'm getting old. But I sucked it up, had a quick bite to eat and laced up my running shoes. Ben and I headed out and had a great eight mile run. I even got to use my fuel belt (which I really got more for looks than practicality).

Again, not opting for the couch, we returned, put our work clothes back on and headed to Lowe's. We bought 640 pounds of top soil for the garden and headed back to start, and finish, phase two: construct bed and fill with soil. This wasn't bad, took a little bit of finessing to get it level, but once we did it looked great. While Ben finished putting the last screws into the wooden planks I began hauling all 640 pounds of dirt from around the front of the house. I know, I'm super-human.

So, to sum up the weekend, I ate birthday cake, ran eight miles and proceeded to carry more than one quarter ton of dirt to the back of the house. No wonder I feel like I got run over by a Mack truck. What's on the agenda for next weekend? 10 miles and 600 more lbs of dirt for the garden. No, I'm not kidding. Can't wait!

The Maxi Dress

Okay ladies, I need your opinions.
The Maxi dress made it's appearance by celebrities in the summer of '07, bled into mainstream last summer, and this season they're everywhere from Old Navy to Target, all the way up to high end designers. I'm not one to run out and jump right into the most popular trends, but I feel like I've waited long enough.

When "the dress" made its comeback a few years ago, I was right there along with it. Dresses are comfortable, cute, cool, and much more put together looking than shorts or capris. Pair any dress with a cute pair of wedges, flip flops, or gladiator sandals and you are an instant fashionista.

My main concern with the maxi dress is looking like I'm wearing a muumuu. And, as many of you know, I'm cheap. I feel like this dress won't be as versatile as my shorter jersey knit dresses. I'm afraid I will need a special occasion to wear it, lowering the ratio of times worn into cost.

So I'm taking a nation-wide poll, or at least a poll of the half dozen people that actually read this, what their thoughts are on the subject.

Are you male/female?

Do you already own a maxi dress?
Do you plan on purchasing a Maxi dress this season?
How much is too much?
Is it the term "maxi" that actually ruins the trend for you and not the fit?
Should I keep the navy maxi dress I already bought?

If you are considering the maxi, here are some helpful tips that I came across in finding the right fit for you. Believe it or not, there are do's and don'ts of wearing a sack over your body.

1) Get a good cut: if you have an ample top, make sure the girls aren’t spilling out everywhere, and that’s just for starters. Make sure your waist is still defined, whether with an empire style or with a belt, and make sure that your not going to trip over a too-long hemline.

2) Prints: beware of busy prints that induce headaches or blurry vision, because that’s a lot of fabric to deal with. If you are particularly unsure or self-conscious, go with a solid print maxi dress to start.

3) Accessorize: another reason to go with a solid colored maxi dress is that it is going to be the easiest to accessorize with. Long necklaces, scarves, and look-at-me handbags go great with a maxi dress. Still not sure what to wear those trendy gladiator sandals with? Try them with a maxi dress to double up on trends.”

St. Patty's Day!

Ben and I had a fun St. Patty's day. The weather here was incredible so we took full advantage and headed over to our neighborhood restaurant for some green beer and yummy food after work. We put our names in at the outdoor patio at about 6 o'clock and didn't get seated outside until 7:30. So, needless to say, it was a good idea at 6 to sit outside but once the sun had gone down, we were freezing. It's so nice to be able to enjoy the weather. Welcome Spring, we've missed you!!

Home Cookin'

After a long week in Pittsburgh I came home Thursday night to dinner in the oven and mashed potatoes on the stove. Mom and Dad were here! They made a trip down to keep me company over the weekend while Ben was away. After an exhausting week it was nice to come back to a home cooked meal. Mom had made meat-loaf, mashed potatoes and corn. May not sound that appetizing, but that comfort food sure helped with the stressful week I had.

Friday I received all the paperwork for our mail away closing, so I got all of that signed, notarized, and the cashier's check mailed. This was just hours before I got a call from my realtor saying our closing had been pushed back seven days... the lender needed more time. That's a post for another day.. but after all the docs went out we headed to the outlets to blow off some steam!

Saturday I got my run in at the gym while mom & dad walked and relaxed in the hot tub. Training is going well, I have been having trouble mentally getting passed mile 2.5, but Saturday I was able to get it done. After our workout we got cleaned up and mom & I shopped while dad had my car washed and the oil changed. You can always count on your dad to get your car looking like it's not 14 years old.

Saturday night was such a beautiful night that decided to head to The Pub for a fun meal. This is where, instead of ordering Irish beer, my parents opted for a Michelob Ultra. You could say they aren't the adventurous type. Meanwhile I ordered a Stella and for some reason kept hearing Elaine from Seinfield in my head, "Stellllaaaaaa, Stellllaaaa." Afterwards, we decided to hit some car lots to dream a bit since I had just said adios to our second mortgage, why not move onto another payment?

Sunday we sprung forward so church was definitely missed and an extra cup each of coffee was made. After we got moving we headed downtown to the home & garden show. I was so impressed, real flowers and trees were inside the convention center. If I had all the money in the world, I found my perfect closet, kitchen, patio, outdoor fireplace, and home theater system. The outdoor living spaces they had created made me miss the south and wished we had weather here that enabled us to enjoy the outdoors ten months out of the year.

Sunday night was spent doing laundry and getting ready for the week ahead. Mom and Dad took off Monday morning. It was great having them in town to keep my mind busy and off the stress of our upcoming home closing and made time go by faster while Ben was away.

A night like any other...

Often when I'm traveling I prefer to stay at hotels that have restaurants so when I get "home" for the day I can run, shower, and then head down to grab a bite to eat at the bar. Tonight I sat down at the bar and ordered a drink. While I'm glancing over the menu I can feel a set of eyes starring at me from about four stools down. I look up to acknowledge an older, mousey, white haired gentleman, probably in his mid 60's, short, 5'7" at best (yes he was sitting, but the fact that his feet couldn't reach the ground was a dead give-away) and slightly stocky. Here's how this exchange went down:

Old Guy: Are you a podiatrist?
Me: Excuse me? (at this point I'm very aware of my feet and the fact
that I'm wearing red patent flats)
OG: Are you a podiatrist?
Me: No, why? Is there a podiatrist convention going on?
OG: Yes, and you look like one.
Me: ::awkward giggle:: Thanks.... I guess.
OG: Sure!

Was I just hit on? Was this a pick up line?

Sigh... Oh how I hate eating alone, Ben doesn't realize what a catch he has with guys like this knocking at my door.