A Dose of a Race Recap (Rock N' Roll San Diego)...

I did it! I finished my first half marathon! And it was the best.feeling.ever!

We arrived in San Diego on Friday afternoon and Saturday we headed to the San Diego Convention Center to check out the race expo and pick up our race packets. We arrived around 12/1 pm and didn't have any problems waiting in lines or dealing with traffic. With over 30,000 participants you can imagine the crowds but we seemed to luck out! We checked out some vendors, did a lil shopping, snagged some free samples and picked up our parking pass. Since we were staying in Ocean Beach (not downtown where the race start was) I was really glad we purchased a parking pass to avoid road closures and the early morning parking issues. The rest of the afternoon was spent having lunch by the ocean, relaxing, and ordering some Italian take-out. 

 Race Expo

 Carb loading with a view.

Race morning was finally here! Strangely I wasn't nervous or anxious at all. Just really excited that it was finally happening! My family arrived at 3:45 in the morning (ouch) to pick us up. I was so happy that my mom, sister and niece were able to make the trip for the race. We arrived downtown at about 4 am and made our way to the shuttles. We had to wait in line about 10 or 15 mins and it was kinda chilly. Poor Meg didn't bring any sort of jacket or throw away shirt. :( But after the sun came up it was so nice out and slightly overcast. We made it to the start line with plenty of time to relax, stretch, and use the bathrooms. I was so worried with such an early start time that we may be cutting it close but everything went so smoothly! My family managed to find us among the masses of people and we took some pictures and then at 6:45 am we were off!!

Nike Free's, Nike shorts, Adidas top (with a handy side zipper pocket!), Pro Compression socks, and Sweaty Bands headband.

Waiting in line for the shuttle.

4 am and we're ready to Rock N' Roll!

Brinley was such a lil trooper!

 Ready to cheer on Auntie Lou Lou!

Meg and I decided beforehand that we would start in the same corral together and then each run our own race. My plan was to start slow and hopefully increase my pace as the race went on. Miles 1-3 were slow (maybe too slow) but I was so happy in the beginning that I actually had to tell myself to knock it off cuz I was already getting emotional about the whole thing! ha! Oh I'm such a sap! But before I knew it, miles were flying by. We made our way through some cute little neighborhoods and through Balboa Park and then ended downtown. The course wasn't as scenic as I'd hoped but I was barely paying attention to my surroundings anyways. There were a few unexpected hills (mile 8 and 11 I remember) but nothing too horrible. I actually was surprised at how awesome I felt the entire time! I took some water at mile 4 and 8...and ate a couple Honey Stingers chews at mile 7 and half a GU gel at mile 8 but never stopped. The end was mostly downhill which was awesome but it was crowded! It was difficult trying to run hard the last couple miles while dodging people. I made it to the finish line feeling fantastic! 

2:13:26

I was secretly hoping for 2:10 but since it's my first race I'm happy with how everything turned out. Even though looking back I think I ran it maybe too conservatively. I know I had more in me! But I guess being a newbie you don't really know what to expect. Meg and my sister even teased me at the end, saying it looked like I didn't even break a sweat. It was a learning experience for sure but so much fun! I'm just so happy that I did it. I stuck to my training for 12 weeks, never missed an early Saturday morning run and proved to myself that I could do something I never thought possible a year ago! I'm already looking forward to my next race! 

 Meg also had an awesome race finishing in 2:01:??

My Nike app splits.

That mile 11 hill screwed up my negative splits. ha.

I gotta thank my best friend Nick for all his help with training and being such a great motivator. I felt so well prepared because of him. I definitely wouldn't have been able to do it without him. He was the reason I started running in the first place! And my family of course for making the drive, waking up at ungodly hours and being just as excited as I was about the whole thing! :) Love them!

So congrats if you made it through this entire post! :) Check back later for more to come about our post race fun!

Tell me, have you ever ran a half or full marathon?? Will you do it again?

P.S. Happy National Running Day! 

A Dose of #ABC13...

Finally a recap of the Arizona Blogger Conference 2013! So.Much.Fun! Our hosts, The Phoenix Style Collective, did such an awesome job! The event was held at The Hotel Palomar in Downtown Phoenix. I wish I had some photos of the space but I loved the contemporary, swanky decor! The night started off with some food, drinks, a bit of mingling and some fun pop-up shops! But before I get ahead of myself, the outfit! 

 What I wore, Dress: LuLu*s Shoes: Zara

 At check in we received an adorable sparkly tote from Hello Apparel filled with tons of fun swag! 

Then of course, there was some photo booth fun to be had!

After all this funny business we had the opportunity to hear from some really inspiring bloggers! Jessie of Style and Pepper, Danielle of Sometimes Sweet, Sarah of Emma Magazine, Sara from Frances Vintage (If you're in PHX, Frances is a must visit!), and Summer of The Girls with Glasses. 

Overall, my favorite part of the night was just getting to meet other local bloggers. It's just so cool to be able to chat with all these talented, sweet girls in real life! And I gotta say, the best business card award goes the The Chic Spy. Girl had an iPhone case to match her cards, so cute!

To cap off the night, Marci and I enjoyed some champs at the hotel's rooftop bar! I can't wait till next year and I hope I get a chance to hang out with some of my new blogging friends soon! 

For even more photos, be sure to check out Marci's recap here.

A Dose of Bloggers...

Calling all AZ bloggers!!

I've got my ticket, how bout you?

Check out the Phoenix Style Collective blog for more details.

I'll be attending with this gorgeous gal and I'm soooo excited!! Hope to see some familiar faces there!

A Dose of Lou...

Here is a bit of what I've been up to during this holiday season so far!

A night at the ballet.

Since my sister, my mom and myself all have December birthdays we plan a fun outing every year to celebrate together. Usually it's a play, music event etc. This year it was The Nutcracker ballet! It was my first time attending a professional ballet and it was so beautiful. #missedmycalling :) We started with dinner at Province and ended with a late night dessert at the Cheesecake Factory. Seeing the Nutcracker made me feel like I was 6 years old again. Oh nostalgia, I live for that stuff! It was a great night and I highly recommend checking out all the performing arts opportunities that Downtown Phoenix has to offer! Especially during the holidays!

Cocktails at The Phoenician and party time with Meg.

A Christmas party was the perfect occasion to finally bust out my faux leather skinnies. I wish I had a better picture of them but they have ankle zippers and fit like a glove...and they're from Forever 21! Score. So the party was highly entertaining. White elephant gifts included; a snuggie, a neck strap for your wine glass (hands-free!) , a beer bong (complete with a Coors light), an industrial flashlight, a donation to the "human fund" (Seinfeld reference) etc. And we may or may not have given and/or received some of those! P.S. The Phoenician is an insanely beautiful resort. The entire place was decorated for the holidays. Kinda looks like we are in a forest of Christmas trees huh!?

Christmas tree decorating.

Please take note of Meg's flip flops, tank top...and scarf! Ha! That's Arizona winter for you.

Our finished product. Pretty dang good if I do say so myself.



And on a side note, I was cleaning out my purse the other day and came across this. 9! Count em, 9 varieties of lipstick in one purse. Really!? How many does a girl need at one time? Please tell me I'm not the only one who is hoarding lip gloss. How many are currently in your purse? Spill it!

And more birthday fun to come!

Tomorrow is my birthday (eek!) so I'm celebrating by taking the day off work and spending quality one-on-one time with my nephew! I couldn't think of a better way to spend my day! Then tomorrow night, a birthday dinner with all my good friends! So excited to see all my favorite faces in one room!

A Dose of Crafty...

Attention all Arizona gals! Frances and Smeeks is hosting their annual Crafeteria this Friday Dec. 7th! If you've never paid a visit to either of these amazing shops in Phoenix, they are definitely a must! I attended Crafeteria last year and boy oh boy..so many great holiday gifts! Unfortunately I won't be able to attend this year due to a Christmas party but I just had to share this with you all! So go check it out and mark some items off that Christmas list!

For more info and daily giveaways leading up to the event go here.