Evening Run

I'm running a 5K on Sunday so I've been back at it since we got back from Mexico.  My back is feeling okay.  My body in general is pretty stiff.  I'm going to start stretching more.

 

It's crazy how much endurance you lose after taking a couple weeks off from exercising.

 

Anyway, last night I decided to run around my old neighborhood which is only about 3 miles from where I live now, because it's completely flat.  It's a nice neighborhood and always brings back lots of high school memories.

 

The weather was perfect and made a big difference from Tuesday's run when it was hot and humid.

 

My current neighborhood is very hilly and it makes it that much harder for me to stay at a good pace.  Some hills are okay but we pretty much live on the top of a hill so in any direction you go, you know you have to run back up it and I dread it!

 

We live near our town's high school but the track is crappy.  It's gravel and grass - not your traditional track.  With all the property taxes we pay, you would think they could put in a decent track!!!  I digress.

 

Last night went like this:

 

Distance: 3.1 miles

Time: 33:50

Pace: 10:55 min/mile

 

This is my fastest pace since 3/23/2014 (10:44 min/mi.)

 

It's SO hard for me to run a 5K in less than 30 minutes.  I've been "running" for over 2 years and I have yet to accomplish that but the closest was 3.1 in 30:22.  So close!

 

So instead of adding mileage and increasing my risk of another injury, I'm going to focus on my 5K time.

 

Have a good weekend!!!

Wedding Wednesday - First Look & Ceremony

It feels like Tuesday but it's already Wednesday!

 



 

Today for WW, I'm sharing our first look and some ceremony photos.

 

After debating about it for a bit, we decided to do a first look before our ceremony followed by bridal party pictures before as well.  Mainly beacuse we didn't want to miss our cocktail hour!  We figured that was the best opportunity to walk around and say "hi" to everyone and I think it worked out pretty well.  Plus, our venue provides a 90 minute cocktail hour, so it was plenty of time.  We knew once the reception started, we wouldn't have a chance to get to every table with the first dances, cake cutting, bouquet toss, dancing, photo booth, etc.

 

We stayed at the same hotel the night before the wedding but in separate rooms.  I shared my room with 3 of my best friends/bridesmaids.  It felt like old times when we'd have sleepovers.  We went to sleep by a decent hour.  I'd say 11ish.

 

I was wide awake by 7am the next day.

 

Hair and makeup went smoothly and those girls did a great job.

 

We hopped in our shuttle around 2 and headed over to the venue.  Here I am, sneaking up behind him ;)

 

Photo credit: Chris Carter Photography

A few people asked if I was crying at this point.  No.  I was so EXCITED and happy.  The only times I cried/got teary is when it was my turn to walk down the aisle.  It was a short aisle so it didn't last long, lol.  I cried the most leaving the resort in Mexico.

Photo Credit: Chris Carter Photography

 

After the first look, we did family and bridal party pictures for about an hour.  The back drop of the lake was amazing!

 

Now, the ceremony:

Dad & Mom

Handsome hubby ;)

 

My girls!
 

The sky was iffy but it all worked out!

You may kiss the bride!

Exiting the ceremony into cocktail hour!  Note Saro's socks that match the girls dresses.

 

That's about all I've got for today.  I can't wait to see the rest of the pictures!

 

Have a good day!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

We had a pretty good weekend.  It's so nice to be off for 3 days!  I got two

3 mile runs in, we did a lot of yard work and stuff around the house, saw our niece and

went to our friends house down the street for a BBQ.

 

We bought a lot of mulch from Home Depot (the "quick" trip that took 2 hours.  UGH lol) as well as Deck Over paint for our deck because it really needs a makeover!  I spread 4

 bags by myself while Saro was at work and I wanted to die afterwards (this was after running 3 miles, too).  I actually napped which I never do but I was feeling really nauseous.

 

The problem with painting the deck is power washing it and then allowing it to dry for up to a week. 

 

#Homeownerproblems

 

We've had a vegetable garden for 3 years but this year, decided to expand it.  We put Weed Block down and planted butternut squash, eggplant, various peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers and herbs.  I'll hold of planting lettuce until later in the summer.

 

Saro trimmed our neighbors shrubs that were hanging over, preventing a lot of sun from reaching the garden.  We're hoping for a good turnout this year!  It kills me to spend $1 on one pepper or tomato.  Just ridiculous.

 

 

 

Do you plant a vegetable garden?  What do you like to plant and then eat? :)  My favorite thing is to grow a lot of basil and make fresh pesto!

 

Have a good week!

I'm an Aunt!

This is a delayed post but my niece was born on our wedding day!  My sister in law (Saro's sister) called me early that morning and I just knew she must be in labor.  Well, she was (exactly a week early)!  It was a bittersweet moment.  Our niece was on the way but they would miss our wedding.  I got teary on the phone with her but because I was happy and sad at the same time!

 

I haven't asked them their permission to share pictures yet but my friend who is great at newborn photos took some really great ones of her sleeping.  I hope to share some soon!

 

Her name is Natalie Rose and she's sooooo cute.  I've only seen her twice so far - hopefully will again this weekend.

 

I'm so excited to be her Aunt!

 

My cousin is due in 2 weeks so I will have a nephew soon too!!!

 

Have a great 3 day weekend!

Wedding Wednesday: Our Honeymoon Part 2

 

 

 

Check out honeymoon part 1 here.

 

This is a picture from the lobby down to the martini bar.

 

The resort also had a cute little ice cream hut.  Ice cream whenever you want it!

 

 

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We decided to do 2 excursions.  One was a catamaran boat trip to an island not too far away, called Isla Mujeres.  First, we stopped to snorkel for about 30 minutes.  The water was pretty rough that day (cue the sea sickness) so they warned us the current would be pulling us a bit (and it did).  Getting out of the boat, we all had to grab a rope and stay together.  We were pretty close to shore and the boat followed us as the current took us a ways down.  The snorkeling was AMAZING.  I wish I brought an under-the-water camera but I totally forgot.  There were HUNDREDS of fish right below us.  Some small but some big!  Bigger than a foot long.

 

 

We sailed through the MOST beautiful, blue, clear water I think I've ever seen.  After snorkeling, the boat dropped us off where we had about 3 hours to do whatever we wanted.  People live on the island and it's very safe.  It's only about 4 miles long and 500 meters wide.  We decided to rent a golf cart - $15 for 1 hour.  We pulled a dumb move and left our IDs in the hotel so we did what any normal tourist would do.  Rent one without insurance, ha!  We drove up and down the island a couple times and it was a lot of fun.  I was pretty sunburned that day so the covered golf cart and my hat came in handy at that point.  We dropped the golf cart off and grabbed lunch a great local fish place.  We had yummy fish tacos (the corn tortillas were SO good) and some Dos Equis to cool off.

 

 

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The day before we left, we did an all day tour to Chichen Itza.  It was 2.5 hours from the resort, located in the Mexican state of Yucatan and it was HOT - close to 100 degrees that day.  It was really cool to see the Mayan ruins and learn more about them.  We also learned why it's one of the new wonders of the world.  On 2 days out of the whole year, at a certain time of day, a snake image appears on one side of the ruin.

 

 

There were a lot of these guys everywhere - the resort, too.

 

We also stopped at a swimming cenote which was really cool too! 

 

 Followed by lunch (more yummy tortillas - this time, 2 very thin torillas filled with black beans and topped with slow cooked chicken and fresh sala!  Omg.  To die for).

 

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On our last night, the resort hosted a dinner party right on the beach.  It was a great way to end our week.  They really go ALL OUT at this resort - lanterns, lights, etc.  Here's a panoramic photo of the party from the shoreline:

 

Here are some random pictures we took of ourselves on the beach at the hotel.

Jumping photos are really hard to capture!

Scored these beachy pants from Marshall's!  I wore them this day and the day on Isla Mujeres.

I loved just staring at the water.

<3

This was truly the best time of our lives.  Once we packed up our suitcases and were about to leave the room, I started sobbing on Saro's shoulder.  Our wedding and the best honeymoon ever was actually over :(  I know there are many more great times to come but it was very bittersweet.

 

Where did you go on your honeymoon?  Would you return?  Or, where would you really like to go?

 

That's all, folks!

 



 

 



Our Honeymoon: Part 1

We went to the Excellence all inclusive resort in Playa Mujeres, Mexico for 7 nights, 8 days.  It was about 30 minutes from the Cancun airport.  It was truly amazing.  If you're looking to go somewhere, I definitely recommend it.  It's an adults only resort.  We arrived after a short flight from NYC and our first stop?  The hotel's martini bar of course!  I had a yummy lemon drop martini. 

 

Looking pale.  Not for long. 

 

This was a voucher for a romantic dinner at any restaurant with wine of our choice.

 

Our room wasn't ready yet so we decided to grab some lunch at the grill which is an over the water (pool) restaurant.  As we sat down, Saro said "do you believe we are on our honeymoon?"  I got teary eyed (super emotional week!) and said "No!  But I'm so happy we are."  After 7 years together and planning our wedding for the last year, it was surreal feeling.

 

Our room was ready shortly after that.  We had planned on taking a nap but once we saw our room and the location, we said forget it!  We were too excited.  We had a ground floor "swim out" suite with a back patio, outdoor bed & 2 lawn chairs.  You could just jump right into the pool.  It wasn't the busy part of the pool.  In fact, it was the quietest part of all of the pools.

 

View from the back patio

View of room from the living area

 

The first 4 days, we didn't do much more than relax, go to the beach and pool, get massages on the beach, and just enjoy each other's company.  The resort has the following restaurants: Italian, Mexican, French, Mediterranean, Asian, Indian, Lobster House/The Grill, & Tapas.  They also have a hut on the beach which is open for lunch - burgers, burritos, etc.  We thought the food was excellent.  We especially liked Agave (mexican), Basmati (Indian), and the grilled lobster from the lobster house.  The waiter even brought us an extra lobster!!

 

Check out my overall review of the resort here!  It's rare to find a resort that has SO MANY amazing reviews.  Of course there are some negatives but very minimal compared to the positives.  We loved it and already said we will return for our 10th anniversary / my 40th birthday ;)

 

 

 

 

Stay tuned for part 2!

The Best Day Of My Life!

Was our wedding day on May 4th.

 

 

Just an amazing spent with each other and our family and friends. 

I cried that it was over and then again leaving our honeymoon. 

More posts and pictures to come!!!

 

 

I'm waiting to get all of the professional pictures back but here are a few!

 

 

By the lake at sunset.

 

 

 



 

Vanilla cake with hazelnut mousse, chocolate chips and butter whipped cream!  Amazing.

 

R + F winner and 13 Days Off

Angela won the R + F samples!  Congrats :)

 

Only a few more hours until I am off for 13 whole days!!!  I came in to work this morning to breakfast and mimosas from my coworkers.  They're truly the best.

 

Have a good two weeks and I will be back on or around May 15th :)