#LiAR Throws a Party

#LiAR Throws a Party

May 28, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

Pretty sure in a recent post we mentioned that this entire year is just flying by for both of us!  Not only have we been anxiously awaiting the arrival of our babies (except now Teal’s is here!!), but we’ve also had quite a few friends also having their own major life events.  One of said friends is our dear friend, Bitner.  Now you’ve seen him before in race recaps because he’s also a runner and we’ve gone out to races with him (for example, Tour des Fleurs 2011, Rock n Roll San Antonio 2011, White Rock Marathon 2011, Tour des Fleurs 2012, Tour des Fleurs 2013 and some others that haven’t been documented on the blog).

IMG_3047

Bitner and his partner were tying the knot and he had asked both of us to be Bridesmaids in his wedding, so we decided we needed to throw him a proper wedding shower before the big day.  Sadly Teal’s due date and Bitner’s wedding date ended up being within two days of each other so she would no longer be in the wedding 🙁 , but this was a great way to still be apart of the festivities for her.

We like to think we throw a darn good party and we kicked it off by Beth’s sister, Kate, designing us the perfect custom wedding shower invitation.  This is the part of the blog where we say WE LOVE KATE!! No, really we do! She’s such a talented graphic designer and can custom make pretty much anything!  If you are ever looking for invitations, announcements, cards, cupcake toppers, signs, water bottle labels, etc. Kate’s Etsy shop is where you need to go! Just look at this beautiful invite that is now apart of her etsy shop!

ignore that we cut off the bottom so the address is removed and added a copyright

ignore that we cut off the bottom so the address is removed and added a copyright

We went with gold & silver for the colors since that’s what the wedding colors are.  They’re just such classic colors – you can’t go wrong and obviously, Bitner did not!  Since everyone loves a good brunch we figured we would center the theme around that and also to make serving mimosas acceptable.  Although these days amongst this group of friends we pretty much think any celebration calls for mimosas. 🙂 Are we really that far off?

IMG_2693

IMG_3025

IMG_3026

IMG_3029

 

You might have already noticed but we opted to make a little photo booth for the shower too full of props and a cute background with a burlap love sign. Whoever it was that first thought up the idea of photobooths full of props at events such as these was a genius! They just add to the fun!  Just a little bit of the fun –

PicMonkey Collage (1)

 

All in all it was a very fun day!  We loved getting to honor and celebrate Bitner and his upcoming wedding. Bitner received so many gifts that centered around hosting his own party at his house we debated just heading straight there to continue the festivities for the day. 😉

We would tell you, Steven & Chaz, that we wish you a lifetime of happiness, but we in fact know you have a lifetime of happiness together in store.  We love you guys!

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: , , , , , ,
Running for Two: Trimester Two

Running for Two: Trimester Two

May 27, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

I had to go back and really remember what range of time made up the second trimester for me which is kind of sad since I’m really still early on in the third trimester.  My second trimester was made up mostly of February, March, April and a little bit of May.  I was hoping to still put in at least another 100 mile month in either February or March, but that just did not happen.  February ended with 71.81 miles while March came in at 67.41 miles. During this time I had the fact that I was registered for Rock n Roll Dallas as my last half to run while pregnant as my motivation to get the miles in as much as possible.  A lot of my running at this point had become solo which was not really what I was use to and made for some lonely times out on the pavement.

photo 2 (1)

16 weeks 3 days pregnant

photo 1

an overall pace of 9:52 don’t be fooled by the garmin set to current pace

I had already seen somewhat of a decline in my pace (which was to be expected), but then the month of April came and not only did I find another pace decline but also an overall mileage decline. 🙁  For me personally April was one of the busiest months as far as work was concerned and then to try and motivate myself to run solo after long days at the office or just feeling guilty about how late Mr. H and I would be eating dinner if I ran before cooking for the night.  I really have never been an early morning workout person.  Pre-pregnancy I faked it for about 6 years with my Tuesday & Thursday 6:00 a.m. weights sessions at Private Training Zone.  But when you have a group waiting for you AND you’ve already paid for the sessions it’s easy to get your lazy behind out of bed.  During this pregnancy those weights sessions have moved from the a.m. to the p.m. because there is just no will power whatsoever to get up and especially not get up for a solo run.  I’m hoping that one day this may change. Fingers crossed.

WW 45 Beth

Back to April, my total mileage came in at a lame 16.96.  Talk about a drastic decrease!  But you know what?! I may have only gotten out there to run on four different days (one of them being a race), but that’s better than 0 days of running!

It was probably in this month as well that I started noticing when I started my runs that my legs just felt like bricks.  And the times when you would dig down deep and pull from your core for a run, nope, that wasn’t really happening anymore.  I found myself one day on the treadmill trying to bust out a mile but in the last tenth of the mile I bumped the speed up a couple of notches, got an ache in my stomach and had to stop.  I walked at an incline for 5 minutes on the treadmill before it finally went away and I finished out the last bit of that mile at a very reasonable pace.  My body just can’t do the things it use to with running.  All of this is such a HUGE lesson in constantly listening to your body and not pushing it past its limits.  I like to think for the most part I’m doing a pretty good job at obeying it.  It’s just a weird combination on run of feeling like your legs are bricks, your mind knowing you really can do this and your body just saying, “Nope, slow it down! We’ve got a baby to look out for!”  It is also pretty incredible the protective mode your body goes into!

25 weeks 3 days pregnant at the Running Moms Rock 5K

25 weeks 3 days pregnant at the Running Moms Rock 5K

Being in Texas we should be in a regular stint of just HOT weather, but we have been completely blessed with some amazing weather so far this spring!  Don’t get me wrong there have been some hot days, but then a little cold front comes through and we’ve had some mornings in the low 50’s.  The weather is just another aspect of this pregnancy that has spoiled me! Regardless, for the past month or so you will NOT find me outside running without at least a handheld water bottle.  Staying hydrated and taking care of my lil guy is a high priority to me!  Pretty soon if I’m still outside running my camelbak will make it’s glorious return to my runs.

While my numbers might have been down in April and they might not be much better for this month either, but as a whole I’ve put in (according to Runkeeper) 428.4 miles in this pregnancy. I am so very proud of each and every one of the miles! I don’t really have any goals going into the third trimester other than to get runs in when and while I can.  And in the times when I can’t run to make sure I’m getting other forms of cardio in as well!

Filed Under: Pregnancy Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,
#LiAR Does Seattle

#LiAR Does Seattle

May 22, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

Back in March we squeezed in one last trip for Teal & Michael before Teal’s doctor would say it was time to call it quits on traveling by plane.  Our husbands actually came up with this trip and figured a lot of it out between the two of them so thanks for taking on that responsibility guys!  Thanks to a few of our tweeps that live in Seattle we had quite a list of things to do while there and sadly we just didn’t have the time to do all of them.
IMG_2558

 

We just happened to be in Seattle the weekend that the Sounders had their opening match of the season, which was perfect since both of our guys like soccer and this would be a completely new experience for both of us!  Of course, this day Seattle was experiencing a record day of rainfall.  We lucked out with seats that had us under an overhang, so we weren’t just drenched the whole time, but don’t worry we still all bought Sounders ponchos that came in handy as we made our trek back to the hotel after the game.

IMG_2565

 

IMG 1

 

That night we decided to take a recommendation from Guy Fieri and Diners, Drive-ins & Dives by dining at Bizzaro Italian Cafe. It did not disappoint and we were all glad we had it on our list of places to dine while in Seattle. We definitely followed the advice of getting their early so we didn’t have to wait and we didn’t have to wait!  If memory serves us correctly between the four of us we tried the Elk Bolognese, Margarita, Gnocchi Cavolifore and The Cow. We started with an appetizer we don’t see listed on the online menu but was delicious! So if you go there maybe you can figure it out. 🙂

IMG_2874

On our second full day in Seattle we walked from our hotel over to the Space Needle and opted to go for the combo of Space Needle & Chihuly Garden and Glass tickets.  Both were very fun touristy things to do and this day was probably just an all around touristy day for us.

IMG 2

IMG_2920

 

We checked out the EMP Museum that afternoon too before making our way over to the Fremont Troll.  We learned later about some other things in that area we should have checked out, but we didn’t so maybe next trip!

IMG_2953

IMG_2971

Our last full day in Seattle was more touristy things! Of course we had to check out Pike Place Market!

IMG_2977

 

Once at Pike Place Market we were given the recommendation of finding The Crumpet Shop and trying the “Life Changer” as it would in fact change our lives. It was absolutely delicious and we were so glad we listened to that sound advice! So if you are ever in Seattle and a crumpet fix go to The Crumpet Shop. None of us had ever had a crumpet before either so it was an all around new experience for each of us!

IMG_2624

 

Next up we walked over to Bill Speidel’s Underground Tour and took, well, an underground tour of Seattle. It was awesome getting to learn the history of the city since none of us knew it and see where it all really started. The tour guides add their own humor to the tours which really helps liven it up.

IMG_2989

After the tour was over we were all HUNGRY and had multiple suggestions of eating at The Crab Pot so we said – fresh seafood? For it! We went with “The Alaskan” to try a bit of everything: King crab, dungeness crab, snow crab, shrimp, steamed clams, Pacific mussels and andouille sausage.

IMG_2991

IMG 3

 

After our late lunch we opted to partially follow through with some advice we had received. 🙂 We were running out of time in the day and had heard a lot of good things about Bainbridge Island.  We decided to at least take the ferry out to it and enjoy being out on the water and seeing the views. We happened to be on the ferry that day during “rush hour” if you will. Living here in Dallas with no islands to live on and commute from and really every one drives everywhere it was cool to see other people’s commutes. When we got to the Bainbridge we saw so many people grabbing their bikes and taking off like it was the start of a bike rally or something. Not that we really know what those are like since we are SO not bike people. 🙂

IMG_2634

 

After the ferry ride we HAD to stop off at the gum wall. Who ever would have thought one piece of gum would create something like this? Not that we know exactly how it got started……

IMG_2638

 

We also let the dudes partake in Seattle breweries and pubs while we were there, but since we mainly just sat there, drank our water and watched because we can’t have alcohol we didn’t really commemorate those stops with pictures. 🙂 All around it was a great trip that flew by entirely too fast. There are a ton of other things we wish we could have fit in to that time too, but we should just plan to go back right?!

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Wordless Wednesday No. 48

Wordless Wednesday No. 48

May 21, 2014 by · 2 Comments

IMG_2558

 

IMG 1

IMG_2874

 

IMG 2

IMG_2920

IMG_2953

IMG_2971

 

IMG_2977

IMG_2624

IMG_2989

IMG_2991

IMG 3

IMG_2634

IMG_2638

 

Filed Under: Life Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , , ,
The 2014 Running of Large Marg

The 2014 Running of Large Marg

May 8, 2014 by · 2 Comments

Ok. Not that race recaps are the most exciting thing in the world but they get even harder when you decide to wait for.ever. to post them but here goes! Hope you are still reading! 🙂

IMG_2467 (1)

We signed up to run the Levee Run in March because lets face it, who wouldn’t want to run over Large Marg? We love Large Marg and Teal was still holding on to her jealously from when Beth got to run it the first year without her. 🙁

IMG_2464 (1)

At this point Beth was about 17 weeks pregnant and Teal about 30 weeks, so we pretty much knew we wouldn’t stay together since our times were very different at this point. Teal was already having a hard time not having to stop often or pee and her pace was pretty slow at this point. Beth was still able to stay pretty close to her normal pace and way less peeing was going on. Hope you guys like knowing that information about us?

 

We couldn’t miss an opportunity for a picture so we made sure to stay together for the first .5 miles to at least get on the bridges together and take a pic, the rest we ran alone…. BLAHHHHH. And blah for sure with this race course.

IMG_2468 (1)

Now, while we do not bash this race by any means, the best part is literally the bridge and the rest is basically LAME. The race does an awesome job of stalking the bridge with so many cheering people. The trek across is loud and awesome because you get what seems like 10 schools of children cheering with signs, noise makers, instruments and anything else they can find! It’s awesome! The rest is dull, no cheering, no real on lookers at all, almost no water stops, and it runs you through the design district which is basically a bunch of buildings. It’s only a 10k so really it’s not that big of a deal or different from many 10ks with cheering or water or anything like that… just being whiney 🙂

 

The course had no bathrooms along the course. Teal had to stop and use a construction course bathroom and then another random one just sitting on the street at around mile 4.5. Pregnancy will make you lose any pickiness when it comes to needing to go. They were disgusting!

 

The race finishes over the bridge, which gives you something to look forward to.  The kids on the bridges actually made one of us cry while passing. They are just so positive with their cheers and really make you “in a super cheesy way” feel inspirational. One lady’s sign said, “ these kids are watching in awe of you.” Which is kind of cool to think about!

IMG_2473 (1)

Next year we totally plan to hang around. Perhaps one of the coolest things about this race is the after party. It’s located in one of the newest up and coming parts of Dallas and is located in the same area as many of the new local breweries and restaurants that are around after serving local beer and food. What’s not to love there, well, except when you can’t participate in the adult beverages?

Filed Under: Races, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , , , ,
A Little Baby Update

A Little Baby Update

May 6, 2014 by · 4 Comments

Well, it’s been awhile since we’ve given an update on our pregnancies and OK, fine, it’s been awhile since we’ve given any sort of updates in general!  Since we posted the Wordless Wednesday last week we thought it was only fair to update.

SO many things have been going on from preparing for each of our babies to get here to fun life events for friends to each of us having stuff at work pick up steam.  Which ultimately has all played a part in making the time just feel like it’s flying by!

Time has flown by so much Teal now finds herself 40 weeks pregnant!  We are all on baby watch with her!

 

IMG_3520[1]

Beginning of 2nd trimester on the left and the end of 2nd trimester on the right

While Beth is 27 weeks pregnant and welcoming in the third trimester!

IMG_3521[1]

Beginning of the 2nd trimester on the left and end of the 2nd trimester on the right!

It feels like it was just yesterday we were posting the big news of Teal being pregnant!  For the most part things are still going smoothly with each of our pregnancies. *knock on wood* It would be nice for them to remain that way!

Filed Under: Pregnancy, Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,
#LiAR Goes Ultra

#LiAR Goes Ultra

May 1, 2014 by · Leave a Comment

Ok, so we didn’t totally go ultra…..but we DID go and crew our favorite groupie in her first ever ultra race!!  Since Catherine refers to herself as a LiAR groupie we can just put that out there on the ol’ blog, right?!

IMG_2307[1]
Thanks again to Ninja for letting us ride with him down to Huntsville for Rocky Raccoon!  We all meet up verrry early Saturday morning which was race day to make the roughly two and a half hour drive.  We actually left Dallas at the time of the race’s start and hoped to get there just in time to see Catherine come in from her first of three 16.7 mile loops!  And we did in fact make it! We got to join in a set up right by the finish line so we could see her coming from a mile away. Ok, just kidding it was less than a mile, but you get the idea….
This was really our first time at an ultra and we’d heard about “crewing” and knew people that had gone out to “crew” a friend’s race, but what all “crewing” entailed we did not know!
IMG_2311[1]
Ha, mostly we sat around a lot and learned from other people “crewing” around us what to do.  Which was good because by the time Catherine came in from loop 1 Ninja and Byron that we’d been hanging out with had wandered off somewhere and it was just us with our racer!
IMG_2306[1]

If you zoomed in you’d definitely see the beginnings of a smile on that face – loop 1 is done!

Do you need food?!
Do you need your water refilled?!
What do you need help with?!
Are you changing shoes?!
We don’t know what to do but ask you questions?!
So again, do you need food?!
Do you need something to drink?!
And then she was off again! And we resumed our sitting and eating the food that Teal, the smart woman that she is, brought with her!  We are pregnant….we’re allowed to sit around and eat all the food! 🙂
IMG_2308[1]
We should also mention our buddy, Paul, was out there as well.  We did zero things to crew for him. Ha! Paul was pretty darn reliant on himself and the food tent for the runners.  Which also, holy cow, ALL of the food they have out there for these crazy ultra runners!  
IMG_2315[1]

Congrats, Paul! A nice first 50 miler in the books for you!

And then our girl, Cat, came in for the BIG finish! Of course she’d stolen Ninja’s jacket from him at an aid station so we were looking for the wrong color race attire.  Teal could tell she was coming solely on her gait and we were excited to see her after a few hours and finished with such an awesome accomplishment!IMG_2319[1]

She did it! (of course she did) photo cred: Ninja

She did it! (of course she did)
photo cred: Ninja

 

In case you ever doubted in this post that we were the most awesome crew people ever, well, here you go…..

1669962_10203500188329143_1910099680_o

photo cred: Studebaker

 

Now we are just waiting for Catherine to tell us when her next 50 miler is so we can test our crewing skills again! 🙂  She’s a freaking rock star in our books!  We are lucky she let’s us even hang out with her! 🙂

One, last shout out, for that day goes to Jason of Cook Train Eat Race who completed his first 50 miler that day and in the time since this race  Jason has completed his first 100 miler! Freaking awesome! Who runs 100 miles?!

964652_10202235816369023_1323227110_o

photo cred: Byron

 

You ultra people are freaking crazy! 🙂  In a good way!  Hope you’ve enjoyed this blog post of a race that happened almost 3 months ago! We have such rock star friends!

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: , , , ,