Running Through the Weekend

Today was the first day I have slept past 6 am in I don't even know how long. 'Twas amazing. That being said, I've been pretty busy lately and have been spending most of my mornings running. 

Last weekend we celebrated my honey getting a promotion by running a 5k lakeside. 

We also went to dinner the night before. It's been a while since we have run together on this trail. I'm pretty pleased with how my time has been improving on this little stretch. 

The next day some of the MRTT ladies and I went to run the UCF U Can Finish 5 Miler Distance Dare. The race starts with a 2 mile run around the football field and then you jump right into a 5 mile run through campus. 

There were baseball, softball and ladies basketball teams cheering us on as well as the Glee Club. Running through the campus brought back so many memories and kind of made me miss spending 5 days a week there. 

The medal was pretty cool. The 5 mile medal was a shield and if you did the 2 mile portion you received the sword. I mean, does it get any better?

Again, I was pretty pleased with my times and love that these ladies push me on the course. The race started out fairly cool and then the humidity hit us, so that was not a fun battle to fight at all. Plus, I've been battling a head cold for the better part of 2 weeks and spent almost every walk break blowing my nose (don't you love my Rudolph look in the photo???).

This weekend was kind of a challenge. There was a huge triathlon going on in town and it was using up the majority of the running paths we run on. Michelle and I just decided to head out and see what the course would bring us. Well, the course brought us 8 miles of hills upon hills. You know the kind of hills that race directors will say are "rolling" in their course description. 

The great part about the run was that it was 55 when we left. Yes, 55, no humidity and did I say 55? It was only in the mid 60's by the time we finished. I ran with my jacket on for the first 2 miles. My jacket was also stuffed with tissues because again....head cold. 

My time was not great but I did get to spend some quality time with my friend in some absolutely gorgeous weather. 

Now it's time to get my head in the game for the half I am running this weekend. I haven't done that distance in a while and am actually pretty nervous. I'm fairly behind on my training and need this to be the kick in the pants that I so desperately need. 

I hope all of you have a fantastic week! 

"Who's Winning, UCF or the Knights?"

Yesterday we went to the UCF Spring Game. It's a really family friendly event and it was the kiddos first football game. We all sported UCF gear, even Scott.

Before we get into the game, I have to share these two photos with you. Scott has been busting his butt and I started busting mine as well. Scott has lost 43.5 pounds and is now rocking a size 42, which he hasn't worn in a long time. Scott's journey has re-inspired me to make better food choices and really kick it into high gear. Yesterday was really the first day that I felt like I had accomplished something.

Check us out!

Okay, back to the football game. When we arrived we hit up the food trucks in the tailgating area. The only downside to the food trucks was that they had HUGE lines. We were in one line for almost an hour and I went ahead and stood in another line that seemed to be moving faster. Boy am I glad I did that. We ate at It's All Greek to Me and Aaron had his first chicken gyro (Jill ate some of the chicken, but mainly the fries).  If you are local and have a chance to stop by that truck, do it. It was SO delicious!

We checked out some of the activities and the kiddos scored a poster (which in case you were wondering, doubles as a sword and within 5 minutes is confiscated by the meanest mommy on the planet). We made it into the stadium a little bit after kick off and the kiddos were hooked. Jill turned into my Mom and started growl-yelling and Aaron was yelling "third down" every time he heard the bells. It was pretty amazing.

The funniest thing during the whole game was trying to explain a spring game to the kiddos. They kept asking who was winning and at one point Jill tried to boo the other team. I had to keep reminding them that it is the same team.

After the game we came home and played some front yard football. I think it's safe to say we are all ready for college football season to start again. Let's go Knights! #ChargeOn

Thanksgiving Thursday

For those of you that don't know what Thanksgiving Thursday is, it is the one time during the week where you stop and basically count your blessings. Even if you've had one of those weeks, I promise you can find at least one thing to be thankful for, no matter how big or small.

This week I am thankful for:

• Scott who busted his butt this week and still made time to hang out with us on New Year's Day. Love that man!

• Aaron who has taken full advantage of his winter break and has been playing (and snuggling) his heart out.

• Jillian who keeps you honest and makes the most of each and every day.

• Family all around us.

• Skype sessions with my parents and Tay Tay that include all three of them singing Ol Man River from Show Boat. 

• The Knights winning the Fiesta Bowl! 

• Great friends, especially those that run with you at dusk.

• Coffee and lots of it.

• Electricity.

• Another year gone and another year just beginning.

• Extended winter break.

What are you thankful for this week?

Thanksgiving Thursday

For those of you that don't know what Thanksgiving Thursday is, it is the one time during the week where you stop and basically count your blessings. Even if you've had one of those weeks, I promise you can find at least one thing to be thankful for, no matter how big or small.

This week I am thankful for:

• Scott and all that he has done for me this week. I'm pretty lucky!

• Aaron who cracks me up with the silly things he does.

• Jilly who is turning into a Momma's girl and I love it!

• Family all around us!

• BK who saved a lot of people by calling 911 and saved our university from an unspeakable tragedy.

• My 238E girls, I love our morning "time outs".

What are you thankful for this week?

The Day You Never Want to Happen

Today was one of those day you never want to see happen, let alone be a part of. The first alert came through at 2:11 a.m. saying there was a suspicious death on campus. Then all hell broke loose. 

Campus was closed until noon and I was at home monitoring social media, the news and hoping to God it was not one of the students from the area I work in. 

The drive in was eerie to say the least since campus is normally bustling. Two helicopters were still circling the area when I pulled up to my building. Then we waited...and waited...

The press conference started around four and all of the details started pouring in. The fact that this suicide was actually meant to be a mass shooting stunned us all. I was standing next to two of our student employees as the news unfolded and seeing the shock on their face was intense.  

In that moment I was thankful. Thankful that UCF Police handled the situation the way they did. Thankful only one person was harmed and that he did not harm anyone else. 

I was also proud. Proud of the way the UCF community rallied together. Proud of a colleague who made speaking to the media look effortless. Proud of all of my coworkers that came in and attended to business as usual. 

It is a scary world that we live in. It is scary that events like this are something we need to be trained to handle and in some cases have to handle. 

Now we move on. We continue to be thankful. We continue to be proud. We continue to be Knights.