1/2 Marathon of a Weekend

Sometimes I like to blog during my lunch breaks at work. Obviously I am procrastinating real tasks I should be doing, but whatever. I needed to get this written before I LEAVE FOR SPRING BREAK! IN ONLY 4 DAYS!

I needed to recap about the amazing weekend I got to spend with Absi and Zan and Megan and Mike in Williamsburg this past weekend! Oh, a trip to Williamsburg is NEVER long enough, but I do feel lucky that I get to hang out with Absi at spring break in less than a week.

Bowling and La Tolteca

When we got to Williamsburg, we immediately met up with Absi and Zan for dinner at La Tolteca. Um, did I ever go here before now? Where are we in Williamsburg? Was this place a secret no one told me about? I still don't know the answers to those questions, but the food was amazing and then we went straight the the bowling alley in Williamsburg where we drank awesomely orange-y blue moon and I attempted to teach Mike proper bowling form. Mike did not think bowling was a sport and I was offended because (fun fact) my great grandparents on my mom's side were actually professional bowlers, but then Mike took that back after he started bowling strikes.

Where I Survive the Half Marathon

I tried to sleep in because the half marathon was not until 1pm, but I got insane nervous butterflies at like 9am. I drank an entire water bottle and Absi/Zan offered me some coffee and oatmeal. I had to warn them that I might not be myself after the race, but that I would eventually recover. Mike dropped me off at the half start and I wandered around phone-less until Fife and Drum people escorted us to the actual starting line.  Oh, Williamsburg. I also ran into some people I used to work with who told me that this was, in fact, not the same course I had run in my first half marathon, it was much worse. I didn't think it was possible for a course in Williamsburg to be more hilly than the last one, but I was so so wrong. It was at this moment I started to have major regrets and to tell myself all I had to do was finish. At the starting line, I ended up finding two fitness instructors I used to supervise who were also running and had not trained that intensively! Yes, kindreds! We promised to meet up at the end and I was like: "Yay, we can drink our free beer together." I got a weird look from the boy and it was at that point that I remembered how old I was. "So, Rory, how old are you?" He said 19. And then I realized I was a full SEVEN years older than this kid. I'm still recovering from that one.

Anyway, the race was actually better than I had imagined it would be. There were NEVERENDING hills. Seriously. However, I think the hills actually helped my knee and foot issues when I ran. The downhills were actually worse. I finished 4 minutes after the time I ran during my first half marathon, but was in a lot less pain at the end and had a ton more hills. Cardio-wise I felt fine. My body just hurt, but I didn't feel like I was absolutely going to die. When I sprinted (just the last 50 ft.) across the finish line, I saw Mike waiting there for me at the end with flowers:) I'd never gotten flowers after running before so I had to give him a hug even though I was all sweaty. Then I made him hold the flowers while I got this picture with my fellow fitness instructors.

I still got a medal! MJ is just holding it.

Race Results: http://thecolonialsports.com/filemanager/cms/retrieve/1361803400/300/halfcomp.html

My Results:

456th overall      Hutcheson, Kelsey   Time: 2:09:21.84    Pace per mile: 9:52      26F    

Mike and I loved Jennifer Lawrence before you loved Jennifer Lawrence

I don't have pictures yet from Absi's awesome Oscar party YET, but there was Chanello's, formal wear, themed drinks, and Jennifer Lawrence so how could you go wrong?! Favorite moments: Channing Tatum's ballroom dancing, Jennifer Lawrence's trip and speech, Adele's win, Shirley Bassey singing Goldfinger. I think Silver Linings Playbook should have won more awards because it was awesome and refreshing, but oh well.

My favorite Jennifer Lawrence Oscar moment:

DC again, already?!

Mike and I ran errands in Williamsburg (I had to get an oil change and new tires) on Monday thend headed back to DC AFTER a quick stop by TJ's for essentials (duh). I returned home to enjoy the rest of my day off which involved being Rupe's pillow. It's Love Your Body Week this week so I'm linking to one of my favorite quotes by Tina Fey: http://themetapicture.com/tina-fey-on-body-image/ Read it and pin it and spread some positive body image this week!

Beach this weekend! Oh wow, I just realized I've been blogging for over a year!

Kelly's Brunch/ Valentine's/Mock Trial

So I know I did a poor job of updating the past couple of weekends. This is my attempt to rectify that and catch everything up.

• Babysitting
• I've been doing some babysitting on the side to try to make some extra money. A lot of my jobs are last-minute and have been pretty low maintenance (the kids are already asleep and I just watch the baby monitor and play with the animals). This little guy kept me company a couple of weekends ago.

I just love this picture.

• Kelly's Birthday Brunch
• I got to see my sister a couple of weekends ago when she came into town for Kelly's birthday brunch. Kelly's birthday brunches are always epic and Mike and I went last year. This year, Kim came too and she managed to get there before I did and then I got called out for her beating me to the event. This past week, Mike and I had dinner with Kellex and cooked fajitas. The real treat of the dinner was getting to see how the pictures on Alex's camera turned out from this event and, let me just say, most of them will not be posted on facebook. However, the ones that make it will be priceless. Happy birthday person! <3

Brunch at Lavagna for Kelly's Birthday!

Kellex.

Typical.

• Valentine's Date
• Although Valentine's was during the week this year, Mike and I did a late dinner after work at La Tasca to celebrate. We split sangria and small plates (as is typical) and apparently I was so hungry that I didn't take any pictures. Our waiter was awesome and brought us samples of sangria before we ordered (otherwise I was about to make a huge mistake and not order the mango blackberry!) so Mike left him a good tip. I also got a rose after dinner. As much as I love just staying in and watching Netflix and cooking, it was nice to get out and get dressed up and not have to worry about anything else.

• Steak & Ice & Silver Linings
• I've been meaning to make Mike go on an adventure with me for a while, but he's been very busy being awesome at mock trial (I'll explain #mikejohnsonproblems later on in this post). Last Saturday, I tore him away from work for a little to go to Costco (because no one can say no to free samples). Afterwards, we went to Steak & Ice, a new place on H Street by the Taylor Brothers that we've been meaning to try. It was awesome! Suggestions: Get the loaded fries and split a sandwich. They are huge.

Someone got artsy with signs around H Street. I made Mike take this pic for me.

Loaded fries, sauces. The only pic I have from Steak & Ice before we ate everything.

A meal we later made with our Costco bundle. 

• Mock Trial
• I make fun of Mike sometimes, but it is out of love. He has had a very busy February semester and all for awesome reasons. For the past four weeks, he was in a mock trial tournament for school and just kept winning so he'd had to do more work in later rounds. His team ended up being 2nd overall! (For those of you not in law school who are reading this, it is a VERY big deal, no matter what he tells you.) Anyway, I never know how he manages to do more on top of more on top of being boyfriend to this high-maintenance girl, but he does. He also inspired me to start using the hashtag #mikejohnsonproblems when describing a situation that is bad only because you have to choose between a good option and a better option or a situation when you keep getting more work because you are so good at something. Example: "Sometimes all you get for 4 weeks of work is making the 11th-ranked mock trial team in the nation and a 2nd place coffee cup."  I know, I know. I'm not that funny. Regardless, there is still a twitter account for this pending.

Rupe being annoyingly cute as I pretend to do work on my computer while Mike actually does work on his.

A video from the Java Hut talent showcase that Mike hosted.

So much to look forward to in the weekend ahead!

My Favorite Blogs

MY FAVORITE BLOGS

So I don't know if you assumed this or if this is a totally normal thing for my age group, but I read a lot of blogs (like blogs other than my friends' blogs) on topics related to finance, fashion, fitness, cooking, writing, God, etc. There is a lot of blogging and social networking going on that actually isn't that healthy and I believe has a negative effect on women (thinspiration blogs or tumblrs, healthy living blogs that promote restriction, basically anything that makes you feel like shit). Thankfully, I think I am pretty good at wedding out the negative blogs and have found some true gems in the world online blogging.

Here are some of my favorites and why:

• Shauna Niequist (Perspective, Grounding, Hope, Feeling Connected)
• Well, you had to know this one was coming, but there are some days when Shauna's words are like medicine to my soul whether from book or blog.

• Mama Pea at Peas and Thank You (Laughs, Vegan Recipes, Family Shenanigans)
• This former lawyer, now stay-at-home mom to two young girls is hilarious! I have her first cookbook and she has another on the way. She is vegan, but makes kid-friendly meals. Also, did I mention she's hilarious?

• Oh She Glows (Vegan Recipes, Cat Shenanigans, Positive Body Image, Fitness)
• Angela at OSG was the first blog I read regularly. I think I've been following her blog since mid-way through college. She is sweet, an awesome baker with her own business, has a hilarious cat named Sketchie and she is ALL about loving and listening to your body which is just another reason I love this blog.

• Kath at Kath Eats Real Food (Carnivore-Friendly Healthy Recipes)
• I have a friend who actually met Kath, like, hung out with her on a winery tour, and we both thought it was the coolest thing ever. She's been offering less recipes as of late

• Cara at MaskCara (Hair & Makeup Tips, Positive Body Image)
• This is a makeup/hair blog, but Cara emphasizes that she sees intense, natural beauty in everyone. She goes without makeup on her own blog plenty of times and emphasizes loving and treating yourself.

• LearnVest Daily (Financial Tips for Women)
• You have to sign-up for this daily email, but there are some awesome articles for women related to money: everything from curbing spending to how to ask for a raise to how to save for retirement.

• The Fitnessista (Carnivore-Friendly Healthy Recipes, Fitness, Fashion)
• Lots of archived free workouts to do at home or at a gym.

• The Bitches at Bitches who Brunch (Restaurant/Brunch Reviews in the DC area)
• My person, Kelly, was the first person to tell me about this blog. I've gone to two brunch places they ranked highly and both of them were awesome so now I trust them. (Side story: I babysat the other weekend for a couple and was talking to the mom about restaurants in DC and we both found out we read this blog and had a moment together about how much we loved it.) 

Now on to President's Day weekend!

Update: I wanted to add two sites that I wasn't sure were blogs, but that I read regularly like blogs.

http://www.xojane.com/ : I go to this website when I need to laugh. The writers have awesome Downton Abbey re-caps (RIP Season 3) and they make me feel like it's okay to be imperfect. xoJane makes me feel like it's okay to not always make excuses for myself, to be bitchy sometimes, and to not be afraid to look at things realistically.

and

http://www.raptitude.com/ : Guilty pleasure for the counselor and sociology nerd in me. I'm still not exactly sure what his site is all about, but I love it all.

The youngest sister introduced me to both of them proving, once again, that she is way cooler than I am.

New post coming soon!

Last Weekend's Re-Cap

WEEKEND RECAP (Pictures to come!)

I would like to remember what happened last weekend before moving on to this weekend, especially since there were so many noteworthy events!

1) First, I attended Georgetown Law's talent show put on by their residence life staff. As someone who has substantial experience in student programming, I was really impressed with how well attended this event was, especially since it was a Friday night. There was tons of food and themed decorations. Mike was asked to emcee the show and did a wonderful job! I sat with Selena and Emily Goo for most of the show and, while waiting for the show to start, Selena and I succeeded in getting Goo to let us make a pinterest board for her wedding!! My favorite performers in the show include: a guy who could solve 5 rubix cubes in like 2 minutes ONE-handed, a guy who covered Adele's "Someone Like You" who I subsequently stalked in the elevator, Will's (Selena's boyfriend) band, a spoken word poet, and a cover of Country Roads by John Denver (complete with harmonica solo).

After the show, Selena, Goo, and I headed to Dupont Circle for a GGSS party. Highlights of the party were homemade spicy guacamole and peanut butter cup martinis made with peanut butter vodka! Apparently the got the peanut butter-infused vodka in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware from here. It was an awesome girls night out even though parking in Dupont Circle is CRAZY and it was freezing out.

2) Saturday, Mike had a day full of interviews and everyone else seemed to be busy with play stuff so Jeff had the brilliant idea of he and Goo and I going out for brunch together in Eastern Market. Goo named the brunch #soroneryrunch because we all were "so ronery" and I think this will become a regular event. We went to a cute little italian place we had never been to and I ordered a salmon caesar salad. I've been on a caesar salad kick ever since and I normally am not into salads so I guess it was pretty good. After brunch, we got supplies for a paella dinner at the market. We also stopped at a new oil and vinegar shop that has the most marvelous olive oils, jams, pastas, and vinegars (ohmygawd the vinegars!). I have this thing for balsamic vinegar (in that I could probably drink it) so I loved the store. Later that night, we made sausage and chorizo paella and Jeff and Goo hosted an overdue group dinner.

3) Sunday, Kelly hosted a superbowl party and I talked Mike into coming with me even though he had to grade papers for some of it. There were some awesome dishes made by everyone there! Megan made peanut butter pretzel balls, Caitlin made bacon-wrapped tater tots, and Kelly and Alex made a gorgonzola, alfredo, and prosciutto pizza. We kept tabs on the game, periodically read Bleser's tweets about the game, and also kept tabs on the lackluster commercials. My favorite was obviously the clydesdale one.