A Day in my Life

Happy Wednesday! I honestly thought yesterday was Thursday so as you can see, my whole week is thrown off. I don't think I've ever posted a day in my life so I figured what better day to do it than yesterday, the last official day of school for my students!

I started my day off as I usually do with a 6 am run around my neighborhood. 

I straightened up the kitchen afterwards and then gave myself a dipped manicure to celebrate the {almost} start of summer!

My first grade class had our last class Google Meet for the year which called for dressing up!

I headed out right after the meeting to go finish up some things in my classroom. I dropped off some thank you cards for my students along the way.

Of course I stopped for an iced coffee along the way! It was an odd feeling leaving the school for the summer.

I ended up going to my parents house for lunch after being at the school. No pictures were taken but we just relaxed and had burgers for lunch! Along the way I stopped at a Little Free Library for a new book.

I convinced John to go on a walk with me when he got home from work. It was gorgeous out!

We saw baby ducks along the golf course!

For dinner we made burrito bowls in the Instant Pot. One of our favorite meals since it is super simple and quick!

After dinner, we watched some Grey's Anatomy and hung out before going to bed.

Question of the Day: Do you have any summer plans yet?

Friday Favorites

Another Friday, another list of things I've been loving! This week went by super slowly for me for some reason so I'm pretty pumped that it is actually Friday now! We have yet another chill weekend ahead of us. Tomorrow we are planning to have a window date with our nephews since Joey turned 1 yesterday! We may also try and have some sort of indoor date night either tonight or tomorrow. Other than that, you can find me relaxing :) I hope you all have something nice planned for the weekend!

Brookside Crunchy Clusters

Some of my coworkers arranged a "booze fairy" thing where we took turns "boozing" one another. The person who boozed me last week really spoiled me! Along with the booze, she also gave me some snacks, one of which were these Brookside Crunchy Clusters. They are a mix of crispy pieces and chewy berries covered in dark chocolate. They are dangerously good! It's took everything in me not to finish the whole bag in one sitting.

Where the Crawdads Sing by Delia Owens

Kya Clark is a quiet girl who has survived for years alone in the marsh that she calls home. She is referred to as the "Marsh Girl" by everyone in the nearby town and is pointed to as the suspect when Chase Andrews, a well-known man, is found dead. The book intertwines two separate timelines that follow along with Kya's life as well as the murder case of Chase. 

This book was really hyped up for me by many people so I was happy when I got my hands on it. It wasn't a book I'd normally pick up on my own but I am so glad I got around to reading it. I was hooked from the beginning and stayed up late one night because I couldn't stop reading until I knew what really happened!

Our Patio Project

Awhile back John found a pin on Pinterest for a really cool lighting project we could do for our patio that used the string lights I'm obsessed with. We live in a townhouse so we lack a backyard where we can do cool stuff so our patio has to do. John and his dad worked on it for a few days but it may have been able to be done all in one day if they chose the fast setting cement. First we bought pretty barrel planters which they put 8 foot posts in and then set them in with cement. Once that set, we put soil in the planters which later we planted some pretty flowers in. The final step was to drill in hooks near the top and hang the lights! It was a fairly simple project and looks amazing on our back patio both during the day and at night! We have already spent many nights sitting out there and relaxing.

Question of the Day: What is something your loving this week?

Marine Corps Marathon 2020?

Yes, that question mark is supposed to be part of my title. It's not a typo. The reason it's there is because I am questioning my participation in the 2020 Marine Corps Marathon along with the likelihood of it actually taking place live and in person on October 25, 2020.

Let's start from the beginning. The MCM has been on my bucket list for awhile now. My brother becoming a Marine in December was the final push to put in for the lottery this year. I eagerly registered for the lottery on the first day it opened in the middle of March. When I received the e-mail on April 1st telling me I was selected to run the race, I was ecstatic! 

WINNER WINNER, CHICKEN DINNER!

Obviously during this time COVID-19 was slowly becoming a bigger deal than anyone anticipated. When I registered on March 18th, I was in my first week of remote teaching but there was limited information so the idea of registering for a race about 7 months out seemed safe. By time the selections were made on April 1, I had already had to defer my entry for a marathon that I was planning to run on April 19th but had been cancelled. Once again, the race was still 7 months away so I was too worried.

Fast forward to May 15th. The MCM Organization sent us an email regarding the race, which you can see below. To sum it up for you, they let us know that they were still proceeding as planned but we had the option to defer early if we wanted. The deferral fee would be discounted and that deferral would be valid for 2021, 2022, or 2023. Score! Oh, and the even better part? If we defer now but the 2020 event does remain live, we will be allowed to come back, as long as space remains. Sounds like the best plan, right?!

I was all set to go with this plan. I discussed the options with John, my family, and my one friend and all said deferring was the best option. With so many unknowns, deferring would allow me to wait and see without losing out on ever using this registration fee. Plus having THREE different years I could choose to use my deferral is awesome!

Well, I was all set to hit "defer" when the MCM put up a post on Facebook the day after the Boston Marathon officially cancelled their race that was originally scheduled for April 20th and then rescheduled for September 14, 2020. It's pictured below, but in summary, they are being optimistic as they continue preparation for the October race. They are investigating ways to assure a healthy and safe environment for all participants. Would that mean we'd have to wear masks? I could not imagine running 26.2 miles in a mask. But how else would you maintain social distancing and safety at an event with close to 30,000 runners? So. Many. Questions.

You're probably starting to wonder if I'm going to answer your question "sooo did you defer?!" I thought by now my answer would be yes, but due to me being super indecisive, I haven't gone through and actually deferred yet. After much though and discussion with anyone who would listen, I know it is the best decision, but I have until September to make a choice so I am planning to give myself some more time to see what is going on. I just fear I will defer and then not have the opportunity to join back in if it stays live and as close to normal as possible. As much as I am eager to run the marathon, if waiting a year or two allows me to run the race as close to as normal as possible, then I'm all in with waiting. As for training, my training schedule would begin on June 22nd. I am planning to follow along with my training schedule as closely as possible in hopes that by time I hit my longer distance runs in August, I have an idea if the race is a go or not.

Question of the Day: Have you had any races cancelled or postponed due to COVID-19?

Friday Favorites

Happy Friday AND National Donut Day! I'm getting this out a little later than usual today because I honestly forgot it was Friday... sad, right? I just have lost all track of my days but now that I know it's really Friday, YAY! We don't have much going on this weekend besides hopefully finishing up a little backyard project we (read: mostly John and his dad) have been working on. I can't wait to share about it!Today I'm sharing a few things I've been loving lately. I've been doing a little online shopping lately so I wanted to share those things with you!

Senita High Waisted Rio Shorts & Hideaway Sports Bra

My friend has raved about Senita Athletics for awhile now so once I saw they offered shorts with POCKETS that were cheaper than I've ever seen, I had to really check them out. The high waisted Rio shorts have the perfect inseam length (3.75 inches) and don't ride up at all while I run. My phone fits in the side pocket and doesn't move around while moving. The hideaway sports bra also has a pocket on the back, as part of the racer-back. My phone fits in there and I hardly notice it while I run! Senita has completely sold me on their clothing. I'm already planning my next order ;)

ROADiD Elite Band

For being a ROADiD ambassador, I received an Elite ID with the clasp. When I first open the package, I was a little taken aback because I had to be the one to size it to my wrist. I was nervous at first because I didn't want to ruin it, but with some help from John and the videos on their website, we figured it out quickly! It was actually super simple and allowed me to get the best fit. I love the clasp closure because it's quick to take on and off. I never thought I'd like wearing a ROADiD on my wrist but I honestly don't even notice it's there!

Starbucks Vanilla Sweet Cream Cold Brew

I had to run to Target the other day for a few things and while there, I noticed the Starbucks inside had reopened. I figured since I haven't been buying coffee out due to being home most of the time, I'd treat myself! My typical go-to is a chai tea latte but I wanted to be adventurous so instead I picked something off the menu I'd never tried before: the vanilla sweet cream cold brew. I worried the coffee taste would be too strong (I like the cover it as much as possible lol) but it was a perfect blend without being overly sweet! I brought it home to drink while reading on the back patio for a little bit :)

Question of the Day: What is something you've been loving this week?