Today's blog post is dedicated to my fabulous cousin Emily. This morning, she decided to take the plunge and registered for the 2014 Disney Princess Half Marathon! I'm SO incredibly excited for her, because I know what an amazing experience running the Princess Half is! Now, granted, I've only run two half marathons, but in my limited experience, Disney is a race like no other. There's so much going on, so many things to look at, so many people nearby. It's so exciting, it makes me think about wanting to do it too! Family vacation, anyone? ;)

My cousin Emily is truly one of the funniest people I've ever known. Her story telling ability is spot on, her sarcasm can make even the stodgiest person chuckle, and if you ever travel with her, you're pretty much guaranteed a travel horror or two that turn into a really funny tale afterward. And I couldn't be more excited for her! I can't wait to hear the stories she has after her run! 

Welcome to the race, princess! :D

Momma Mondays

I know it probably goes without saying that every person thinks he or she has the best mom in the world. I too fall into this category, but mostly because in my case, it's true! Whether she's teaching her students, taking care of her family, or tackling amazing feats like running her first 5K, my mom just plain rocks. 

My mom and I have the great fortune to both be teachers, and, therefore, both be off during our summers. We always have great intentions of spending time together -- going on adventures, taking day trips, or just getting together for a quick bite to eat, but the past few summers, we've struggled with this. Two summers ago, my mom spent almost the entire summer in Florida, taking care of my grandfather. Last summer, we did get together, but not nearly often enough for my liking. 

So, this summer, we decided to pick a day a week that we could spend time doing things together. Hence, momma Mondays. Every Monday, we're spending the day together. Whether we're doing housework at each other's houses, spending a day running errands, or doing something fun together, we're making the time to get together every week, which I love! 

Today's momma Monday was a necessary one. After teaching morning Jazz, I went to my parents' house. Mom and I had breakfast and then spent the next two hours cleaning out, detailing, and washing our cars. Our cars are now spotless (until we drive them again, that is!), we didn't have to do all the work on our own, and we got to spend time together. My car is the cleanest it's been probably since I got it. Wins all around in my book! 

It doesn't really matter to me what we do on these Mondays. I'm just glad that my mom and I have the chance to get together. We're lucky ladies like that. 

Highest of highs, lowest of lows

Happy National Running Day! I think it's neat that runners all over the country laced up their shoes today to log a few miles. I got in a run this morning with my friends Johnna and Tom, and really enjoyed not only the run, but the conversation too. 

Today is also my friend Andrea's 30th birthday! Happy Birthday, lady! We'll be celebrating not only her birthday this weekend, but also her bachelorette party, since Andrea will be marrying the love of her life, Kelly, in only two short weeks! 

Today is also a hard day. Yesterday, I learned of the passing of one of my students. Andrew Weber was a junior I had in my Honors class this year. He was funny and kind. He always lifted others up instead of bringing others down. He had aspirations of being a rapper, which he admitted he knew people looked at him like he was crazy and couldn't do it. But he wanted to do it anyway. On Saturday, he suddenly went in to cardiac arrest, and yesterday morning, they learned he had no brain activity and removed life support. He leaves behind so many family members and friends who love him. He and his girlfriend shared a locker right outside my classroom. So many of us at LPHS will miss him. 

Late last night, we learned of the passing of two more former students. One was 20, and would have graduated a few years ago, but the other was a junior. They were found together, and it appears as though the cause was overdosing. This makes me so sad, on so many levels, but mostly because these are not the first students we've lost because of drugs. I wish I knew what to do, some way to help, some way to stop this problem, some way to help these kids. We need to do more, so many of us acknowledge that, but I think we all feel lost on how to help. 

It is so odd to me how things can be so good, and so bad in the exact same moment. It's summer. There are so many good things going on in life right now. But at the same time, there is this aching and sadness for these lost lives that won't go away. I just wish I knew how to fix it all. 

Say some prayers for our students and their friends and family, if you're the praying kind. 

My mother, my hero

Today's 5K was totally unlike any other I've ever run. I wasn't looking to PR. I wasn't looking to beat last year's race time. I wasn't looking to see how I compared to people in my new age bracket. Today was special because it was about momma.  

Back in 1999, my mom and I decided to run the Sunburst 5K together. That lasted about four weeks, until my mom seriously injured her hip, and we were sidelined. We weren't too upset about it, considering we'd never run past a mile in our training. 

We both stopped running for many years, until I picked it back up again in the summer of 2009. So, in March, when my mom casually mentioned that the 2013 Sunburst would fall on her 60th birthday, and that she was thinking about running it, I jumped at the chance to run with her. We found her a good 5K training program, my parents purchased a treadmill, and she was quite literally off and running! 

This morning, the weather looked nothing short of ominous, but mom was in good spirits as we drove to the race. Once there, we met up with my bestie Andrea, our high school friend Julie, and my friend Kaity, who just so happens to be the wedding photographer for both Andrea and my weddings! 

At 7:15, we were off! There's something so cool about running with thousands of other people. Mom did great -- we did a run/walk throughout the course, and mom did GREAT! Sunburst is one of my favorite races because of the ending through the tunnel into Notre Dame stadium and ending on the 50 yard line. Mom and I went running through the tunnel with smiles on our faces and crossed the finish line hand in hand! Fourteen years after our initial plan to run Sunburst, we completed our goal! 

And, her AMAZING finish time was 37:56, which is 6 minutes faster than she did in her training runs! SO, SO, SO proud of her! And so, so, so glad we got to do this together on her 60th birthday. My mom ROCKS! 

Happy Birthday, Mom! Here's to many more birthdays and many, many, many more races! 

Mom and daughter, in matching purple! 

And then there was the most special day of my life

Where have I been lately? The end of the school year is always a busy time, but this year it has been especially busy because it's been filled with bridal showers, bachelorette parties, weddings, and so many other special things. 

May 11, 2013 was the most very special day of my life. Dan and I woke up and went for a little run before heading to Michigan City to see The Great Gatsby with 38 of my students. It. Was. Awesome! And, afterward, the kids stayed with me for a discussion about the movie in relation to the novel. I love connecting with kids outside of school! Some of my students asked Dan and I if we wanted to go to Steak and Shake with them (such sweet kids!), but we had dinner reservations in South Bend, so we started our trek home. The sun was shining, and we had such a great talk about the movie. 

We got ready to go to Parisi's, and I was having a hard time getting my shirt to look the way I wanted it to. I had accessorized with the key necklace Dan got me for my birthday, and by 6:30, we were ready to go. As I went to get my purse, Dan said, "Hold on, I want you to hear that song I've been working on! I finally finished it!" So, we went down to the basement, where Dan's guitar and amp were set up. On the coffee table sat a square shaped box underneath a piece of white fabric surrounded by flowers. 

At that moment, I was pretty sure I knew the direction we were heading, but I didn't want to get too excited, just in case the item underneath the cloth was a piece of dessert or something (which, to be honest, I still would have been really excited about!). 

Dan started the music he'd recorded on his phone and his live music and told me he was dedicating this song to me. 

I think I started crying about then. :) My recently engaged friends told me that when their moments came, they pretty much blacked out what was said, what happened, etc., so I was trying really hard to focus on the lines of Dan's beautiful song. But after the first line, "The moment I met you..." I could barely breathe. 

So, I sat there smiling and crying and laughing at the funny lines (there were funny lines!), and looking at this amazing man in front of me singing about our life and our love. I may not remember everything he said in those moments, but I will never forget how I felt in that moment. 

When the last few lines of the song started, Dan removed the white fabric from the table, revealing a wooden box locked with a red heart lock. And that's when he dropped to one knee and sang,

"I love you
Grow old with me
I love you
You mean the world to me
I love you
Will you marry me?" 

Through my tears, I said a resoundingly happy YES, and then Dan started messing with his guitar amp. I said, "Can you come over here?" And he did, and we kissed. :)

Dan said, "You have the key to my heart," to which I responded, "That's sweet." And Dan said, "No, seriously, you have the key to the heart!" 

Ever the engineer, Dan made the lock on the box to match the key necklace he gave me for my birthday. Since I was wearing the necklace, we were able to use it to open the box (and I say we because my hands were shaking and I couldn't quite get it to turn enough), and inside was the most amazingly beautiful ring I've ever seen. 

Perfection. 

It was truly, genuinely perfect. I couldn't ask for more than spending the rest of my life with Dan. He's got my whole heart for our whole lives. 

About thirty minutes post-engagement, at mom and dad's! 

We sat and talked for a little while before heading over to mom and dad's house to share the happy news with them in person. My mom and I were already crying by the front door before my dad could even get up off the couch to hear the news. I think she was just as happy as we were!  

Our beautiful ring (and free champagne!)

After we left mom and dad's, we started calling and texting all of our loved ones. There were a LOT of people to contact, and it ended up taking us the rest of the night. But, it was important to us that we were able to tell our close friends and family before it hit Facebook. We had reservations at Parisi's, and upon getting there, I told our waitress that we had just gotten engaged an hour beforehand. She was so excited for us, and brought us a free bottle of champagne! 

Happy, happy, happy! 

With summer vacation starting, well, today, we've started the process of planning our lives together. Our wedding date is May 10, 2014, just one day shy of a year from when Dan asked me to be his wife. I feel this blog might be taking a different direction entirely -- from running to wedding planning (with running as stress relief), but we shall see! 

Incredibly, incredibly happy! 

What makes a runner?

A few weeks ago, I was teaching sports writing in my journalism class. This is probably my least favorite thing to teach in journalism because one, I feel like I don't know NEARLY enough about sports to effectively teach about writing them, and two, students don't seem to love writing sports (perhaps they're responding to my less than enthusiastic lessons?). Regardless, I try to encourage students to write sports features, because features are something I can wrap my brain around. 

So, off my students went to find sports information. They quickly landed on the totally weird. Wife carrying, cheese racing, and chess boxing were just a few of the favorites. But one of my students asked if she could write her feature about what makes an athlete. She brought up the argument of cheerleaders (ARE cheerleaders athletes?) and marching band (those students are doing strenuous work, darnit!) and whether or not those types of things count as school athletics. 

As she was writing, I did my own searching. What makes an athlete? What makes something a sport? After my very serious research that lasted all of fifteen minutes, I came to the conclusion that there really is no conclusion on the topic. It seems the term athlete and sport can be used in a lot of different ways. 

Tonight, one my Facebook friends posted about how she went on a run, but noted that she's not a runner. My mom, who is currently training for her first 5K, has expressed frustration with not feeling like she's going far enough or fast enough on her training runs. We're running her first race together on June 1 (her 60th birthday!), and she keeps insisting that we run separately. Not happening, lady. You're stuck with me! 

What makes someone a runner? If the person runs. By running, she is a runner, regardless of distance, pace, time, or mileage. To be a runner, you only have to start. I'm so proud of the runners around me who have taken on this awesome sport. Keep it up, runners! 

A love/hate blog

I write to you tonight as a tired teacher who needs a brain break! Truthfully, I don't know why I'm so tired and need a brain break. This is the calm before the storm... at this time next Thursday, I'll have 52 research papers in my possession. Eeeek! And so, in honor of papers I love/hate, I bring you my favorite products (and, also least favorite products) right now.

Loves:

My new Mizuno Wave Alchemy running shoes – There’s something so fun about opening a new pair of shoes for the first time, even if they were bought out of necessity (the last new shoes were 500 miles ago!)! Dan got new runners too – a great pair of Asics that he loves! We can run so fast now! 

Everything I've tried by the Greenhousewives Bath Company -- Go here to check them out! So, I’m taking baby steps to clean up my life bit by bit with cleaner food, cleaner products for the home, and cleaner products for the body. A friend of mine introduced me to this company via Facebook (her friend started it! so cool!), and I thought it might be worth an order. I bought sparingly, not really knowing what I wanted to try. I ordered the Sore Muscle Bath Salts and the Cocoa Body Butter Bar. HOLY AMAZING! First, the products are super fun, easy on the skin, and smell AMAZING. Seriously, it takes everything in me not to lick my legs after I use the cocoa bar. (How’s that for a visual?!)

Chevron print anything -- Seriously, it's getting ridiculous how much I love chevron prints. Clothing? Yes! Artwork? Sold! Furniture? Yes, let's recover it in chevron! This might be my favorite print of all time! 

The Great Gatsby -- Words. Can't. Describe. 

No loves:

Benefit Cosmetics/faulty information – Okay, I realize it could just be me here, but I have to rant a bit! Last weekend, my friends and I had our makeup done for my bestie Teresa’s bachelorette party. Our makeup artist told us all of the awesome BENEFITS to using their makeup line, including all the wonderful vitamins and minerals in the products. Everyone looked beautiful! But about six hours later, I noticed my face would NOT stop itching! Another bridesmaid had mentioned that her face felt itchy earlier that evening. Well, what would you know, when I washed my face that night, my skin was red, patchy, and dry, almost like I had a chemical burn! Days later, it’s finally back to normal. I purchased a few of the products and ALMOST used them today, but was running late, so I left them alone. THEN, the bride-to-be mentioned that she is having a serious eye allergy that she thinks might be related to her new mascara! Upon looking on their website, I found this:

Benefit does not test for or claim that our products are hypo-allergenic (least likely to cause an allergic reaction) or non-comedogenic (does not cause pimples & blackheads). If you have a specific allergy, please contact Customer Care to determine if a product is suitable for your skin.

UGH! Don’t you think you should at least MENTION that to your customers?! I realize I have crazy skin, but it’s frustrating nonetheless! I like to know my information up front, please. No wonder I’ve been doing the same makeup routine since… I started doing makeup! 

Dale’s Raw Protein Powder – I LOVE Dale’s products. So when I was running low on my fabulous Meijer protein powder, I thought I’d give Dale’s a try! It’s plant protein! It’s healthy! It’s got the worst after taste of all time! L Even mixed with yummy ingredients like strawberries, bananas, or chocolate milk, it totally still tastes like grimy plant. Ick. 

Cilantro -- Because it still just plain sucks.