Faster than the Speed of Life

I keep waiting for life to slow down. And waiting.... and waiting. At this rate, I'm pretty sure I'll still be waiting 20 years from now. These days, the weeks are as busy as the weekends, the days as busy as the nights, and my google calendar is starting to look like it used to in college. Runs have to be scheduled and prioritized, meals quick and simple, and sleep? I'm sorry, I don't think I know what that is. Let me find a dictionary and get back to you. 
For now, though, I'm actually trying to take on as much as I can and welcome all the craziness, because I know that once Dan leaves, staying busy will help the time go a little bit faster. The only problem is that often I run out of time for many of the things that I love: when my schedule starts to fill up, among the first things to get dropped are baking, reading, catching up with friends, and blogging... and cleaning, but who am I to complain about that? Today, though, I am determined to make some time for at least a few of these things (I have a date with a cup of coffee and my kindle tonight), especially after all the craziness of the past weekend/week:
Friday morning before work I headed off to the gym (at the same time I always do) and watched the lovely royal wedding from the treadmill. I was so engrossed in the crazy hats and Kate's gorgeous dress that I got through 5 miles without even noticing. I'm thinking the royals should get married more often. (Also, as a note of clarification from Friday: I do know that Kate is a common nickname for Katherine, but every Catherine I know goes by Cate. Thoughts?) Friday was a super-productive day at work and afterwards I headed out for a little quality shopping. When I got home, I crashed from the week and slept. Hard.
Saturday I went running on my newly discovered running trail. I intended to get in at least 7 miles, but my body definitely wasn't feeling it and the hills just about killed me, so I took it slowly and ended up heading for home after only about 5. Last week was pretty great week of running, so I was a little bummed to end on a low note. I did, however, explore the neighborhood a little more and discovered three new trails through some light woods that were well marked and seemed pretty safe. I will definitely be heading back to them before too long!
When I got home, I made a quick grocery run and then Saturday evening, we had Dan's father, his brother and his girlfriend, and our friend C over for dinner. Dan grilled burgers, chicken, and corn and I made baked beans, pasta salad, and these yummy carrot cake cupcakes. C brought some fantastic wine and we all had a great time.
Sunday was a little bit lazy -- Dan and I ran errands around town during the day and had planned to go out to dinner that night, but went home to change and decided we were both too tired. We ended up staying in, ordering food, and watching one of my favorite movies:

Dear Zachary: A letter to a Son about his Father

I've wanted Dan to watch this with me since I saw it almost a year ago. It is heartbreaking, astounding, horrific, and inspiring all at the same time -- definitely not a happy movie, but one that I think everyone should see. Watch it with someone you can cry sob in front of (even the 3rd time around): you've been warned.
Monday and Tuesday were both ridiculous days at work, filled with big meetings, deadlines, and major to-do lists. Two of the huge projects I've been unceremoniously dropped into (mid-way through the planning) are going into their testing phase next week, so stress levels are running high... and patience levels low. I will be truly surprised (but thrilled) if everyone in my department makes it through the next month without exploding... especially myself. I get overwhelmed just thinking about it, but at least I'll be too busy to think about the fact that Dan won't be welcoming me home from work anytime soon. Luckily, Monday and Tuesday evenings more than made up for the rest of the day: Monday Dan and I went out for a great date night, and yesterday I went for a fantastic run and then met up with C for dinner, wine, and some girl time.
As you can tell, none of this leaves a whole lot of time for relaxing, so the next few days are all about catching up on the little things. I went for a long run this afternoon and spent almost an hour on the phone with my bestie. I'm also hoping to finish the book I'm reading, cook some mexican for Cinco de Mayo tomorrow, and catch up a little on sleep.
Hope that you all are also finding time for the little things that are so essential to sanity. Luckily, the weekend will be here again before we know it!

   Love,

    Meg

Silent Sundays: Wedding Pictures!

I still haven't made it through all of the pictures from our small wedding, but of everything I've collected so far, these are the best:

[Dan and the boys setting up our venue, my bestie M helps me get ready]

[the first kiss]

[husband and wife]

[my stepmom and I, cute cousin, my grandfather and mom and I, mom and I]

[all of our parents]

[the "wedding party" -- my bestie and Dan's brother, Dan's brother and his adorable girlfriend (on their way to prom after 
our ceremony), the four of us, me with my two new little brothers]

[my amazing best friend]

[champagne and cupcakes!]

[a few honeymoon shots: heading out with Dan's truck decorated, reading on the beach, Dan and his beloved truck, and the gorgeous 
sunrise we enjoyed on our last day]

   Love,

    Meg

Friday Favorites

Oh hey there Friday. You certainly took your time this week, didn't you? Seriously, friends, this week did not play fair. I'm pretty sure someone squeezed an extra day in there when I had my back turned. The good news, though, is that it's finally over. This weekend could not be any more welcome!
I've been feeling a little bit under the weather since about Tuesday -- that headache has hung around, my legs have been super sore (thanks to almost 20 miles in the past 5 days), and I've been especially tired. Every day I have promised my body an early bedtime, but sadly I have neglected to keep my word on that and I keep finding myself still awake trying to get things done at night. Last night I spent over 2 hours vacuuming, cleaning the kitchen, putting away laundry, and a thousand other tasks that have been piling up. While I'm glad that I got a lot done, this morning I really wished I had just given up and gotten two extra hours of sleep.
BUT today is Friday, the sun is out, and I have these lovely tidbits to share with you this week:

Have you been to one of these fantastic stores? I'd never heard of them until I went Christmas shopping with my bestie last December, but it was love at first sight. I purchased several gifts while I was there (and may or may not have gotten a thing or two for myself...) and have been dying to go back ever since. Or until two weeks ago, when I stumbled upon hometown's very own newly-opened shop. Hurray! I walked through quickly and looked around, but didn't allow myself to spend any money (oh, the willpower). I am already planning a return trip though: my jewelry collection is just crying for growth (I wear the same few pairs of earrings constantly) and I would love to find a home for some of their gorgeous decorations. Who can deny such a wonderful cause?

Confession: my survival this week required two trips to Starbucks. I try really hard to limit myself to one Starbucks run a week for the sake of both my waistline and my wallet (notice I make no such effort to contain my Dunkin' Donuts obsession... we all know our boundaries, right?) Some weeks, however, call for breaking the rules a little bit. Besides, the pumpkin bread? It calls to me sometimes.

This goofy wonderful guy always knows how to make me smile... and laugh out loud in a room full of cubicles. Our email conversations throughout the day are completely random, hysterical, and totally make my day. Recently he wrote me with a list of "exotic" animals he wanted to try as pets, including an Eastern Wallaroo (named Wall-E) and a Toyger to be friends with Toby. I agreed to both of these, but not the monkey who he wanted to train to run with me. I run so slowly, I'd hate to hold back a poor monkey.

Ahhh, retail therapy. I went shopping after work today and made a few exciting purchases: an adorable bathing suit top, a cute ruffle top, a new pair of running shorts, a pair of $1 earrings, and a really great dress for work. Unfortunately, I couldn't find pictures of most of these new additions to my wardrobe, so the above are stolen from my online wish list. I am especially in love with the one on the right -- so cute and perfect for summer! And speaking of wishing...

Yes, I watched the royal wedding this morning. I'm at the gym crazy early anyway, so I turned on the tv and read subtitles while I sweated through 5 miles. I thought it was a gorgeous ceremony and I definitely drooled over Princess Kate's gorgeous dress (does anyone understand why she's Catherine but Kate?), but I thought Pippa was  truly breathtaking. I can't imagine it's easy being the sister of royalty, but she seemed so graceful and sweet. She also just might have the cutest name in history. 
Hope that you are all as ready for this weekend as I am. Dan is determined to grill tomorrow night, and otherwise I'm hoping we will have a quiet, relaxing weekend. Sadly this is Dan's last (entire) normal weekend at home, so it will be bittersweet but hopefully fun!

   Love,

    Meg

A Lovely Discovery

Yesterday morning as I left the gym after pounding out another 4.5 miles, I was hit with a realization that I never saw coming: all of a sudden, it struck me that I was absolutely positively sick of running on a treadmill. I suppose it's not all that surprising -- in the past 2-3 months, I've logged over 200 miles, the great majority of which were completed on the treadmill. Don't get me wrong, I'm really thankful to have such easy access to a great gym -- I'm a wimp during the cold months, and without such an unavoidably convenient way to run inside, I'd still be making excuses and avoiding running like the plague. Truthfully, I've never thought running on a treadmill was as bad as a lot of people think. Once you get past the whole running-in-place thing, it's pretty nice to be in a temperature controlled environment with easy access to bathrooms, no need to carry a water bottle, and the ability to watch tv (although I never take advantage of that last one) Despite all these benefits, as of yesterday morning I was officially experiencing treadmill burnout.
The only difficulty? My neighborhood, as I've mentioned, is not runner friendly. Essentially, the neighborhood itself is built into a small mountain (great for hill-work but not more than once a week), and when you get out onto the main road there is no sidewalk, tall grass, and a fair amount of traffic. These are all pretty major problems.
This morning, though, I was determined to find somewhere to run outside, even if I had to run laps around the dog park. I decided to take a chance on the one place I'd never been: the neighborhood across the street. I still had to run along the main road to get there, but it's less than a quarter mile away and I figured it was worth a try. I'm so glad I did -- guess what I found?

A great little running path! I haven't explored the whole thing, because my legs were seriously sore this morning, but I was so busy being thrilled about my new running spot that I barely noticed. It is scenic, fairly popular (read: safe, Mom and Dad), and a great balance of hills and flat stretches. The best part, though, was this:

That's right, there's a half-mile loop around a little pond, complete with honking geese and lots of pretty trees. Perfect! Plus we got a ton of rain here last night (and more this morning, I barely made it home before another storm hit), so the air was cooler and the path was still wet. Running right after a storm is my favorite!
I'm so excited to have somewhere I can run outside -- even in the mornings before work. Unfortunately I don't think the trail is long enough for a long run, but it's definitely ideal for a quick few miles during the week. I doubt that I'll stop using the treadmill totally, but I'm really looking forward to mixing it up a little bit!

   Love,

    Meg

Terrible Tuesdays

It's official: Tuesday has become the new Monday. With Dan still home from the weekend (why can't I work 4 day weeks?), Mondays are much more bearable because I know that I'm not coming home to an empty apartment. Tuesday, on the other hand...  

Dan woke up this morning around 4:30 and left by 5, meaning that I didn't get back to sleep until at least 5:30. My alarm went off at 6 (and then again at 6:05) to drag me out of bed and to the gym. Since my neighborhood lacks in the "providing a safe place to run" department, I am relegated to the treadmill for any early morning workouts, since there is just no way that I am going to get up early enough to drive somewhere to run and then drive home to shower. 6:00 6:05 is already pushing it, really.

I got to work and my stress level got another little jolt when I started to have weird, blurry tunnel vision. I sat at my computer for about 20 minutes but was barely able to focus on the screen, an unnerving feeling in itself, but one that I knew was only foreshadowing the big event: a monster of a headache that was sure to follow. Eventually the vision corrected itself, and the headache certainly did make itself known right on schedule, but luckily it wasn't nearly as bad as I expected. A little caffeine (best excuse to drink a cherry coke I've ever heard) and a few Tylenol kept it at bay enough for me to focus on my to-do list... which was lucky, because I was ever-so-graciously handed another big project at work today. Lovely. My desk looks like a cyclone blew through and my calendar has gone from empty to booked solid in about three days. The office used to be so low-stress, but now my morning runs are a cakewalk compared to the hours between 8:30 and 5.

Now, to end such a fabulous day, I'm sitting in Panera, having resorted to a strategy I perfected in my college days: when your living space is a mess, relocate. After a weekend of too much baking and too little cleaning, the chaos of my kitchen has begun to creep into the rest of our apartment, and I am now in full avoidance mode. Also, there's that thing about the apartment being empty. Which, recently, comes with the added reminder that it is going to be empty a lot in the next year and a half. Panera is loud and busy, so here I am. The best part though? It was sunny and gorgeous when I walked in, and now it is absolutely pouring. We're talking inches per second here. And my umbrella? In the car, at least 100 yards away. Where else?

Lest you feel too bad for me, though, there were a few little bits of happiness that saved today: a pretty pink scarf to match the (formerly) gorgeous weather, leftover pizza from a great night last night (which included wine and a good friend), an extra long run this morning that was felt easy and good, and the promise of my warm bed on the other side of this horrific rain. Sometimes you just have to focus on the little things, right?

Here's hoping that all of your Tuesdays were... more Tuesday than Monday!

   Love,

    Meg

A Hoppin' Easter Weekend

[please excuse the terrible pun... it's that kind of Monday]

I am simply astounded at the speed with which our weekends fly by these days. I feel like I barely sat down, barely slept, barely took a breath at all this weekend, which was wonderful and exhausting all in the same sentence. Monday really did come a little too quickly for my taste. 
Dan and I often take Friday evenings off to relax and be boring, but not this week: as soon as I left work we headed straight for the grocery store and then home to make dinner. Dan's youngest brother Z and his adorable girlfriend came over and we had pierogies (best. appetizer. ever.), grilled chicken sandwiches, mashed potatoes, stuffed mushrooms, and this amazing pie for dessert. [Please, if you do nothing else this week, make that pie. It is surprisingly easy, sticky, and heavenly. Really, so so good. Go on, you know you want to.]

(before it went back in the oven to melt the marshmallows... all over my oven... which was absolutely worth it)

 Saturday I got up early for a long run while my awesome hubby went back to the grocery store to get ingredients for last minute sugar-less and egg-less cupcakes (my family has a thing for allergies). I made this recipe (not terrible but I'm not sure I'd make it again) and used a Splenda version of my favorite icing (definitely better with real sugar), finishing off some with sliced strawberries and the rest with sprinkles. While baking, I learned an important lesson which I feel compelled to share with any of you who are, like me, slightly clumsy and blessed with blonde hair: after turning the oven on to preheat, even for only 10 seconds until you remember that there are melted marshmallows lining the bottom, do not simply turn the oven off and dive in to start cleaning. The oven will be hot. You will burn your thumb to pieces and then jump up and down squealing, which will cause your husband to alternate concern and barely suppressed giggles. Two days later, your thumb will have a nasty blister that still hurts. You're welcome.
So Dan and I first headed out to my aunt's and uncle's to help celebrate my cousin's 8th birthday (we never turn down a party). We had a great time catching up with the adults, chuckling at the fearless 5-year-old-on-a-bicycle, and enjoying some fantastic hamburgers. Then we headed to Dan's parent's house for more grilling, easter egg dye-ing (for the girls), and a scary movie.
Sunday brought another morning run and super-fast baking session (this time cake-mix cookies and no burnt thumb... much better on both accounts) before we headed off to my mom's and then Dan's great aunt's to visit with lots of family and eat more excellent food. Last night, at the request of the four-year-old who I am convinced is stuck inside Dan, we went to see 'Hop.' It was a cute movie (although not nearly as good as Despicable Me or Alvin and the Chipmunks), and if you ask me there are definitely worse ways to end your weekend than a cherry coke, buttery popcorn, and holding hands with your hubby. 
Speaking of Dan, I was so thrilled to discover the most wonderful easter basket "hidden" in the pantry yesterday morning! Unfortunately, I was so excited that I didn't even think to take a picture, but it was filled with cute little tea towels, an adorable bunny dish, a piggy bank (because I am forever being made fun of for my overflowing "change cup"), and all the best kinds of easter candy. What a great husband, right?
As exhausting as this weekend was, I am so glad that we have been taking advantage of every last minute that Dan is here. I know that once he leaves, weekends are going to go from crazy busy to lonely and sad, so for now I'm loving all the time with family, friends, and my sweet hubby. I only wish time would slow down a little bit!
Hope that you all had a fantastic Easter with your own loved ones!

   Love,

    Meg

Friday Favorites

Let me tell you, it's mighty hard to complain about a week in which you A) get married to the love of your life, B) spend a few days relaxing at the beach with said love of your life, C) eat several metric tons of seafood and wedding cupcakes and peach rings and the best hot dogs on earth and ice cream and oh, the list goes on... and D) spend only two days at work. Even as annoying as those last two days can be (think sand in your bathing suit, another little annoyance to which I've been recently reintroduced), they really just can't produce a big enough stormcloud to overshadow the rest of such an amazing week. And what better way to celebrate than to share a few of the things that made this week so perfect? I'm truly over-the-top grateful for sooo many things this week, but here are some of the very best parts:

Did I mention that I ate enough seafood in three days at the beach to sink a relatively large, relatively water-tight cruise liner? Poor hubby has never been to the beach with me, and since he's such a nice guy (and had no clue of the damage I can do when presented with plate upon plate of crab legs), he agreed to take me to one of those all-you-can-eat (or eat-all-you-can) seafood buffets. It wasn't exactly a pretty sight, as I cracked and ripped and clawed and dipped and went back for more.... and then groaned all the way back to the hotel and basically all night about how incredibly, awfully full I was. Dan was such a good sport about it though, just shaking his head and laughing at me as I continued to stuff myself full of crabmeat. This is the point where I remind him, gently, that he did marry me, seafood-obsession and all.

I have said it many times before (and even included her in a previous FF post), but I just have to repeat myself: I would be totally lost without this amazing girl. She is the best best friend you could possibly ask for, and getting to spend so much time with her preparing for the wedding was beyond wonderful. She (and her awesome boyfriend, who kept Dan company) got in Friday morning just as I was getting home from a run, and we spent the next 30-ish hours running around like crazy trying to get everything ready (except for Friday night when we were able to take a break and enjoy a great dinner together, and Saturday when we sat down for 90 blissful minutes of spa pampering) Despite the chaos of those two days, the quality time we got to spend together was fantastic and I am so so lucky for her help and support. She always gives the best advice, made sure my hair and makeup looked amazing, and kept me laughing right up to the door of our venue. I honestly don't know what I would do without her!

(that's greek yogurt with granola in there, not some weird thick and chunky drink)

I mentioned my love of bowls a while back, but I don't think I've yet confessed that I also have a thing for mugs. Over the past few years, I've developed a rather large collection and I love each and every one of them much more than anyone should ever love a mug. This week was a good one for my little love affair, as I added two more mugs to the collection: the one above from the beach (which, since you can't tell from my sad phone pic, is a gorgeous shade of coral), and the most adorable set of "mr." and "mrs." mugs from my mom (only one of which is mine... apparently... sigh). I'm going to be making tea all weekend just to have an excuse to drink out of these two lovely new friends. Should I be worried about my unhealthy attachment to dishes?

Sadly, this is the best picture I have of the brand new diamonds that now call my left ring finger home. Speaking of love affairs, though.... I can't lie: I'm pretty sure I fall more in love with this little bit of bling every day. I've caught myself so many times in the past week just sitting there staring at it, completely oblivious to the world around me. Dan would likely blame this on my (blonde) hair, but I'm really just mesmerized by the added sparkle. It was the only wedding band out of about a gazillion I tried on that really worked with my engagement ring, which made my final choice pretty simple. You can tell in this picture that, since it's a wrap, it fits around the solitaire to make what looks like one ring, and I'm probably going to get them soldered so that I don't have to fit them back together at least a thousand times a day. Have any of you done this with your rings? Advice for or against?

It just wouldn't be right to end a post about this wonderful week without including this amazing guy. One would think that this would be a perfect time to give you a little wedding picture teaser, but the sad reality is: 1. I haven't looked through even half of the pictures that were taken yet, and 2. of the pictures I have gotten my hands on, not a single one of them contains just me and my new hubby. I know that we had at least one picture taken of the two of us during the whirlwind of flashes that followed the ceremony, so I'm crossing my fingers that I will find it soon! For now, though, you'll have to be content with this picture and the assurance that we looked pretty nice for the big day. 

Even though it still feels kind of strange to be a wife (I still don't feel old enough to drive or pay rent, much less choose a soulmate), I could not be luckier to have married the man I did. It's funny to think back to my junior year of high school and realize that I was meeting the guy who I will spend the rest of my life with, but I absolutely wouldn't have it any other way. He has proven to be the bravest, kindest, funniest, and most loving boyfriend/fiance/husband I could ever wish for, and I am thrilled that we get to embark on this next stage of our life together.

On that note, I am off to spend a busy but fun weekend with my new hubby. We have lots of family celebrations to attend and I'm pretty excited to go to each as a married couple! Hope that all of you have a wonderful weekend and an Easter filled with lots of chocolate bunnies (the best part)!

   Love,

    Meg