the 4 year runniversary.

in my general nerdiness, i know exactly the day i began running. that would be today! its a day that changed so much in my life and who knows where i would be without it. heres the recaps of the last 2 years in case you havent read them. so in honor i put in some double digit miles this flat, downhill miles that ended at my favorite breakfast place in vegas! it let me think about the last year and the races/places i got to do/see and some of the outside things that changed too. i was also rewarded with this...

helll-o red velvet coffee cake!

#8 the et 1/2 marathon

rachel, nv

august 4th, 2012

2:18:41!

holy omg this one was tough! it started at midnight just outside area 51, and ps i am totally afraid of the dark. a headlight was required and the course was no joke. the 1st 6.5 miles were straight up a 800 foot elevation gain. luckily the last 6.5 were a straight shot down to the little ale-inn. 

#9 the nike womens 1/2 marathon

san francisco, ca

october 14th, 2012

2:08:34!

i finally made it through the lottery and into the race! it was as amazing as i was hoping it would be and a vacay with some of my favorite people to boot. the super hilly course was nothin to laugh at. but the bling, was 1000% worth it:)

#10 saints and sinners 1/2 marathon

boulder city, nv

october 20th, 2012

1:57:15!!!

so i got a little crazy and decided to sign up for back to back halves, just to see if i could do it. for the record...i totally can. and can totally rock it!

#11 the kaiser permanete southern california 1/2 marathon

irvine, ca

january 12th, 2013

1:56:03

this wasnt in the original plan. it actually came right in the middle of training for surf city the next month. while in town for my grandpas 80th birthday i needed a 12 mile training run and found a 1/2 only 3 miles from the hotel. some quick convincing to my friend jen and i had a buddy that paced me all the way to a shiny new pr!

#12 surf city 1/2 marathon

huntington beach, ca

february 5th, 2013 

1:58:03!

a long time in the making, this was a half run half cheer on friends from college to their 1st full marathon event! the weekend turned into a big reunion and i had a blast:) 

i did of course also have a lot of fun this year...

 midnight 5k

st george, ut

may 26th, 2012

27:08!

tarmisha decided she wanted to run a 5k and it doesnt take very much to convince sandy and i to run:) so we headed up north 1 friday after work to st george and ran at midnight! it was so fun.

roadrunner 4th of july 5k blast

las vegas, nv 

july 4th, 2012

27:30!

instead of the traditional morning 5k on 4th of july, sandy found a night one instead. a few light up tiaras later we had ourselves 1 very festive group!

 police and fire 10k

las vegas, nv

august 11th, 2012

57:34!

ive never done 2 races on back to back weekends before, but came home with a win in my age group for a fun experiment! ran into lots of runner group friends and even saw sno-cones at the finish line. only in vegas haha!

ragnar relay series

las vegas, nv

november 9th-10th

 

i had been dying to this 200 mile overnight relay for quite some time. 2012 was finally the year to do it! i joined a team with sandy and had an amazing time being stuck in a van for 30 hours with 5 other girls chasing another van plus getting out a running a total of 21 miles as well. it was a total blast! 

10k turkey trot

dana point, ca

november 22nd, 2012

52:59!!!!

with how much fun my mom and i had at the 4th of july race the turkey trot it didnt take much convincing to get in a few miles before all the turkey family fun! i think this is for sure going to be a new tradition:) plus a shiny new 10k pr is always good.

the ugly sweater run

las vegas, nv

decemeber 15th, 2012

 

who doesnt want to hunt for an ugly sweater then run it? joined by some new ragnar friends (seriously, those girls are lifers) we headed to fremont street dressed up and on the hunt for beer and hot chocolate. soo fun!

the color run 

las vegas, nv

february 16th, 2013

we had such a blast year, there was no way we were missin it this year! next time though, we will not line up in the way way back haha.

the hot chocolate 15k

san diego, ca

march 24th, 2013

1:23:07!

chocolate at the finish line plus a sparkle skirt and wings? wow my mom will let me talk her into just about anything;) but omg was it worth it!

wow i spent a lot of the year running! i had a blast and cant wait to see what this new year brings:) now off to enjoy this...

clearly my mom and i think alike;)

the breakup.

i have been dreading writing this post for awhile, probably why i havent done it yet. i have also been a little mia lately because of this posts title. mostly ive been trying to hide in my bubble and let myself at least try to start the healing process. but eventually i have to come out of that and face the realizations of all of this. last saturday richard and i broke up. 

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it was my choice, i am the one that said the words and made my decision to walk away from it all. that doesnt make any of this hurt less or easier because i said those words. in the end we were just going in two different directions. three years of love, memories, and emotion dont just go away overnight. we are both still trying to figure out our next moves. luckily our lease was up so we are able to walk away from the apartment without having to break a contract. i have decided to move home with my parents, who graciously opened their arms and said of course.

i am still wading through a lot of my own emotions and most days are still a roller coaster filled with all of them. i have been truly blessed with an amazing amount of support from everyone around me. they say time will heal, and im sure theyre right. but right now im letting myself wallow when i want to and be sad when it hits me, which it does, often. ps breaking up with someone the week of a race is not a good idea for your psyche. you think taper madness is bad? add a breakup in there, not a good combo (more on that later). 

source

i know i made the right decision and one day when all of this is past, ill see it. for now im going to ride the breakup train and whatever emotion will hit me next. stick with me my friends, this blog will still be filled with love, just a different kind going forward.

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its my turn to take back the power.

for most of my life ive kept 2 things inside pretty well. the first not totally being comfortable in my own skin and second my knee pain. now let me clear somethings up. this is not a pity party or in no way am i fishing for nice compliments. this is simply my story and how i finally took charge of my own body issues!

i am comfortable with who i am, amazingly grateful for the people in my life and for the things i am able to do on a daily basis. but somehow i have managed to surround myself with beautifully skinny girls (who i wouldnt trade for the world) and just dont feel 100% comfortable all the time. i in no way feel overweight, i just dont want to be the heavy girl at the 5k anymore for example. i want to be able to go to any store and not worry about them having my jeans size. or have people look at me and go youre a runner? i want to look as great as i feel. i have the training part down, i can rattle off my plan, mileage for the week, and all the times of my races at the drop of a hat. i got it dialed and it works wonders for me. so why havent i lost any weight in the last 3 years other than the few in the beginning? it doesnt take a rocket scientist to figure out why a runner doing 20+/- miles a week with 2 days of cross-training isnt losing weight...its the nutrition.

 

so it all came to pass about a month and a half ago at a work happy hour as i sat there with my iced tea drooling over the alcohol and and cheeseburgers with fries everyone was eating and not having to worry about working those off. i was never blessed with that type of metabolism, i mean a lot of it is in the genes people. now some of these beautiful ladies work rockin hard to not have to worry about that friday night happy hour, i just wondered why working just as much as they did didnt seem to be making a difference. it was also a day where my hair sucked, i wasnt loving anything in my closet, and couldnt eat a french fry without feeling bad. it wasnt a good day to say the least. the next morning i got up to complete my 12 miles (which felt great) knowing they were all loving their beds as my alarm went off at 4am to beat at least a little bit of the heat. i knew something had to change and i was the only one who could really and truly make that happen.

monday morning i went into my boss, the pain still a little raw (it was written all over my face) and asked for her nutritionists phone number. she had raved about joanie forever. telling all of us how great she was and that she worked with anyone. she changed your food yes, but not to a crazy calorie counting diet plan or something we send to your house or you can only eat these 3 foods. she was real. finally realizing it was the nutrition meant i needed help, someone that could work with me and my likes/dislikes and being a runner. you see its often frowned upon for runners to go on diets because we cant totally cut out any one food. but there had to be an answer somewhere.

source

so i called the next morning and by wednesday afternoon i was sitting in her office going over bloodwork and talking all about me and my body. she listened to everything and gave me quite a few faces when i told her about the things i was eating. we worked out a plan and she made a "highly recommended" suggestion that i go to the grocery store to stock up on my new things that night! its made up of lots and lots of fruits and veggies, whole grain foods, lean meats/proteins, and things with the lowest sugar/fat possible plus how many of each i should be eating per day. she had lots of great suggestions about particular brands and broke everything down for me. i literally took home a book of information comparing darn near every brand of cereal for example with all its nutritional value. i got on the scale and didnt love what i saw at 170.5 pounds. we did measurements of literally every part of my body and she gave me an "approved joanie" list of things to buy. i headed back to work that day actually feeling great about the step i had taken and was ready to make the change. now i wasnt looking to be a size 2 (or 4 or 6 for that matter), that was never in the cards for me. but i wanted to feel good about myself, and that the work i was doing on the pavement showed!

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friday afternoon i went to see her again and we talked all about how my couple days had been and what i had been eating. she was seriously impressed with my willingness to try new food (except spinach, kale, beans, or oatmeal to name a few) and could tell i was committed. she made me get back on that scale and i was terrified to say the least. turns out i had lost 3 pounds just changing my diet in 3 days!!! i was ecstatic to already have some changes. now yes i know most of it was water weight and flushing out the bad stuff from my body, but i took it!

things fell into place with joanie quickly, not that it wasnt and still is a struggle some days. the pizza on fridays, donuts/pastries on saturday mornings, lunch dates with friends, and the offers of lets go get fast food after the et race were abundant. i have never been to so many birthday parties with delicious looking cake in such a short time. i have had days (quite a few actually) when all i really wanted to do was eat like i used too. the problem was i didnt used to eat awful, especially during half marathon training. but now comparing i didnt eat great either.

i can make my own healthier version of things
like mac & cheese! you dont have to
give up everything to be healthy!

i can now say from july 18th to september 5th i am down 14.5 pounds and 27 inches!!! i have a few weeks left with joanie and am hoping to have a big update friday when i get down to 155 pounds because then we can measure again. keep your fingers crossed:) i feel wayyy better about myself and things are fitting so much better than they used to. my body feels happier when i run having these healthy things and a better balance inside it. i know for a fact i made the right choice going to her!

now that i had the nutrition part under control something else had now reflared up, knee pain. i havent had the best luck over the years. it started when i was 12 and developed osgood schlatters disease in both knees, its common in young athletes actually. basically your body is growing and the impact of sports is putting too much pressure on the tendons in your legs which is causing pain in the knees. most grow out of it, which i did. until freshmen year of high school when i got patellar tendonist in my left knee along with knee cap falling on top of it and to the outside of my leg. the arches in both my feet also fell at the same time. i had to quit everything cold turkey and went to 6 weeks of physical therapy. it helped a lot but i was told i would always probably have some knee pain when exercising, i just had to decide what i could really deal with.

so i took that for a long while and usually icing a few times helped until about 3 weeks ago when i got a bad tightness in the backs of both my knees and the front hurt a lot and quite often. with my past track record of knee pain i decided i should go to a sports doc asap. my mom luckily had a great one that worked on her foot last summer that was also a runner so i knew he would get it. luckily again i got a same week appointment and was into see dr hanson quickly. we took xrays and did ligament tests which i passed all of them. we talked about my changing to minimalist shoes and everything was fine till he had me hop on one knee at a time and it hurt real bad in my right knee. he told me i needed to get into see his friend ron, a physical therapist quickly. there was 8 weeks till my race and he knew ron could fix me in plenty of time.

those just dont look right!

about 5 minutes later i called ron and made an appointment for that next tuesday. i was still cleared to run by both guys as long as it didnt hurt. the 8 miler that weekend wasnt my best run ever, but i couldnt back down now. tuesday came quickly and it seemed like ron had all the answers. he listened to all my stories, did some general tests, had me run on the treadmill and knew immediately what was wrong. he didnt even need xrays to tell him what he already knew. basically it was everything but my knees haha! it all came down to my hips which oddly didnt surprise me. i had hip/knee issues as a kid too. when i was 6 months old i wore a brace to pull my knees apart because they were a bit bowed in and couldnt even go around my moms hip when she would hold me. luckily the brace worked and i never had to have surgery. but now its allll coming full circle lol.

we worked mostly on my form that day and i found out that my glutes had terrible strength. i needed to build them up quickly so i could stop using my hips so much to propel me forward but the rest of my body. we worked on shortening my stride and upping the tempo. i was totally out of breath and my entire lower body was sore, except my knee. ron told me this was his favorite thing to treat and i might even get faster. i didnt really believe that until my next 2 runs!

boom!!

ive been back once after the initial and dang do my muscles need work. i am at a 1 pound weight on each leg when the average is 7-8 pounds. ron says he can fix me in 9 sessions like i said and i might even be really mad at him when this is all done. he told me ive had knee pain for so long and people have always told me it wasnt fixable, he tells me it is and were gonna do it together.

gotta do my own work!

for the first time in a long time i feel really in control of my own body. i feel skinnier in my clothes and people around me are starting to seriously notice. the support i have received from friends, family, and richard has been amazing! my knees are feeling better and i improved my 9 mile route time by 10 minutes from year ago! i know these things are working together and i couldnt be happier with both results:)


ps if you live in the las vegas area and would like information for either one of them, please let me know! i would be more than happy to pass it along and let them hep you on your journey:) also if you have any questions, i would love to help in anyway i can!!

the post 3 1/2 marathons in a row and triathlon blues.

during the end of my triathlon training i was sooo looking forward to a training break. i had been non-stop since about july last year and was for sure ready to take it a little slower for awhile. when i found out i got into nike i was super excited and knew that i could have my break and still have plenty of time to be race ready. well that much anticipated break came and at first my body loved it. run when i wanted and however far i felt like that day at any pace, or rest when i felt like it. then it didnt really know what to do or react.

now what?

all the while everything else in my life really started to build up. work was getting really crazy and sometimes my job is just hard. my class at the time was getting to the final and it was completely overwhelming and really hard. i was also beginning to look at my life as i realized i had graduated exactly 5 years ago and what had i done. there were things i had accomplished i wouldnt trade for the world, but felt incredibly stuck in my current situation. while all this was building i was able to keep it under control for the most part until my brother came home that weekend. after he graciously took me being upset about him not being there or asking about my triathlon and our pure excitement about nike, he told the big reason he had come home, he was being deployed in about 45 days. at first i was ok, i asked a lot of questions and he answered as much as he could. it wasnt until we came back from running errands that day that it hit me, he was really leaving.

didnt we just get to do this?!

that was the straw that broke the camels back. that next week i was a mess. i couldnt focus, keep myself together at work, my runs werent the same, and i couldnt shake this terrible feeling. i broke down a few times, tried to go home from work, and not unload everything on my richard or my family as much as i could. when i couldnt get right after running and had a full breakdown in my bosses office 1 thursday i realized there was something bigger going on. we talked for awhile and i started thinking about post-partum depression. now i didnt think i was fully depressed plus i hadnt given birth. but i did start some research and found that it could be a very real possiblity. you have this buildup for an incredibly long time and then just like that, its over.


in the research it talked about this happening to runners and the best way to combat it was to line up your next something before you finished your current training. i realized i pretty much had always done this without knowing it. i did have nike, but it wasnt for 5 months and i knew that was too long to wait. the thing it didnt talk about was what to do when your actually in it or how to get out. it sounded like a "each runner has to find their way." what does that mean? i was looking for some direction here people! it seems that no one really talks about any of this. i decided i want to put myself out there so others can know that it really does happen to people.


now its been about 2 weeks since the culmination of everything and i am still trying to kick the end of this funk.  i also have been doing some research into another 1/2 before nike, which i know sounds a little nuts, but everything seems more balanced when i have a training plan and working toward something closer than 5 months from now. luckily when i pitched that idea to richard he hopped on board right away, knowing the same thing. i have been keeping very busy, as always, and still running of course, but i know inside i am not back to my whole normal self quite yet. i am signed up for a 5k with a friend doing her very 1st one this weekend and cant help but secretly hope this will be the final push i need to get back on track!

plus i get a date with this guy on sunday!
maybe that will help too :)

the no boys allowed weekend.

some days i wonder what it would have been like to live by myself? outside of my parents house but not with roommates. i had roommates in college of course. some were bat-freakin-nuts and some were amazing. once i graduated from college i moved home to my parents yet i always longed for that independence.

growing up it was instilled in me that you never live with a boy before you are married (ps if you havent read the background story, check it out here). so when i decided to finally move out and in with richard i was afraid of how it would work with my parents. they werent exactly ok with it, they werent exactly not ok either. they did told me they would work on it and that was all i could ask for. since we have moved in i have loved it! its a whole new chapter in my life and am so glad that i did. this past weekend i got a taste of what it would have been like it i did get that pure independence...

since we moved in last october i have only stayed one night here by myself, it was a rough, unplanned night 4th of july weekend. i had gone out of town a few times with family/friends since living together, but he hadnt. this time he was headed to a 2-day concert event in southern california with some friends and i had the apartment to myself! i didnt have big plans but it was all about me. they had left friday morning so when i came home from work that afternoon it was different kind of empty. i spent the first few hours cleaning. i didnt want to do it later in the weekend and i wanted a clean house.

boys watch tron when we are out of town,
girls watch mama mia:)

once clean it felt like a whole different place. there were no more boy germs and i knew that any mess left for the whole weekend would only be mine. when i left at anytime during the weekend i knew it was going to look the exact same as when i left it. i changed the sheets to flannel immediately. i grew up sleeping on flannel sheets, but richard hates them, tells me they are way too warm to sleep on. so i was going to take full advantage while he was away 2 nights.

flannel sheets, my true love!

saturday i had to work open house, it did break up my weekend a little bit. afterwords i headed to hobby lobby to pick up a few halloween things and a few things for my arts and crafts time (more on that in a later post, its a secret). i talked to richard while at work when i was waiting for my student to finish up everything. he had called the day before but we didnt get to talk much. we had texted quite a bit back and forth throughout the day though, thank goodness for technology!

my craftiness at work!

i ended up taking an hour nap on the couch at 630p that night and loved it. i could take naps whenever i wanted and where ever i wanted (richard hates when i fall asleep on the couch with him while he watches tv). i got to eat dinner whenever i wanted and watched finding nemo, i seriously love that movie. by this time though, i was startin to really miss richard. i had heard from him quite a few times the day before, but saturday was less and less. plus i had woken up from nap when it was super dark outside and i think i discombobulated myself a little bit.

going to bed that night i struggled to fall asleep and stay asleep. i went to bed rather early around 930p and just didnt sleep right. i had a long run in the morning early and knew i needed some sleep. i had originally planned to go to a friends birthday event, but decided i didnt want to go without richard since i met them through him. plus with some recent events (involving some not so nice girls) i wasnt really comfortable going by myself. finally i fell asleep curled up in my flannel sheets and slept till my alarm went off the next morning.

430am comes awful early on a sunday! being home by myself i didnt have to worry about waking anyone else up though. i scooted out the door into the dark for my 10 miler and last long run of my cycle. i just about beat the sun all the way home and felt really good after having 2 great nights of sleep! i was meeting my parents for breakfast later that morning so i headed into the shower pretty quick so i could sleep for about an hour before i had to get up again.

after i got out of the shower i was headed to the thermostat to turn down the air a little bit while i slept when i noticed bags on the counter that werent mine. richard came around the corner in his glasses (which i love and he rarely wears) and looking exhausted! they had decided after getting back to the hotel late to just drive all the way home and sleep in their own beds instead of getting half assed sleep in the hotel. i was so glad to have him home and to get to take a nap with him before i left:)

i met my parents for breakfast a little while later and we had a really good time. mom and i traded long runs/walks and how we were feeling. dad had lifted that morning so he was telling me all about it as well. we had a lot of things to talk about and it made breakfast fly by. afterward my mom and i went to get mani/pedis and they felt so good! im telling you, best rest idea ever.

having richard home when i got there was great. i was glad to have the apartment to myself for the weekend and that he had an amazing time with his friends, but glad we could get back to being us. i am a creature of habit i have realized, shocking i know. i like change and can deal with it, but sometimes no change is even better. it was great to have the apartment to myself for the weekend and get to experience a small taste of that! and there are still some days where i wonder what would have happened if i did. but, i have a pretty great thing going now:)

check out jesi's facebook page for all her photos!

the birthday bash.

birthdays are one of my favorite times of the year.  mostly because you get to focus on one person and make sure that their day is the most special of all.  i had plans this year of doing nothing less than the best for richards birthday.  this would be my 2nd year planning his birthday festivities and i was ready for the challenge. 

boys are often not much help in birthday party planning for themselves.  they seem to have no opinion other than to have fun and be the ones to just show up.  i learned this the previous year, thank goodness i had great help.  this year seemed to be a little tougher though.  richard was definitely starting to struggle with the idea of turning 29 and i was completely unsure of how to party plan around that.  do we go big because this is the last of the 20's?  do we go small and save all the really big stuff for next year when he hits the new age group?  quite the dilemma.

earlier in the year he had told me that he would love to do something revolving around an outing for his birthday.  a concert, vacation, or a sporting event for example.  soon after we found out that flogging molly would be coming to las vegas the day after his birthday and it was a friday night.  we knew that we wanted to do something interactive during the day with the guys on saturday and then go out that night.  he had already decided to take that friday off for whatever was planned, so it was working out perfect.  after much debate and research, theres really not much to do in las vegas for locals, richard decided on paintball saturday, dinner at buca di beppo, and then heading to fremont street.  we made a reservation for dinner and were excited because with a larger group we could do family style.  and found a paintball place that was decently priced for rental, paint, and play deals. 
 
i had decided what i was going to buy richard for his birthday months ago when i was looking for valentines presents.  it was too big for the day of love and honestly not mushy enough, there i said it.  when we moved into our apartment one of the 1st things richard started lusting after was an old fashioned popcorn machine.  he wanted the red one that looked like the ones you find in a movie theater.  so i started doing my research, found a great one on amazon that i ordered 3 weeks before his birthday arrived, and had it delivered to my office so i could store it there till his birthday was here.  he had been begging me for weeks to tell him what it was, but i am an excellent secret keeper. 

richards birthday actually falls on st patricks day...its a built in party for your birthday every year!  he didnt want to go out that night, wanted to save his strength for the next night of drinking and debauchery.  i came home from body pump and gave him a small present to open in the morning.  a transformer bag full of a new workout outfit.  he had been saying for months that he wanted new workout clothes and i found the coolest pair of reversible shorts i just couldnt resist.  i told him his big present was going to be there when he gets home that night, he was just going to have to wait.  later when i got home from work i went straight into set up mode.  i had found some really cool popcorn bowls and had read the directions multiple times for set up so there would be hot popcorn when he got home.  i have to say, i was pretty proud of myself...

i also found butch.  he is a running joke after we saw an 8 year-old running around the orange county swap meet with a balloon dog.  richard thought it was the greatest thing on the planet and still brings him up at least once a week.  about 2 weeks before his birthday we found a very similar one at albertsons and richard had not stopped talking about him since. 

when he got home that night i realized i could have just bought the dog and that would have been the best present ever.  he was literally more excited about the dog than the popcorn machine. 

while all of this was going on the weekend event plans were falling apart.  some friends were weary about money, some didnt understand why were doing a whole separate day on saturday to celebrate, some thought they would be too hung over to participate, some were going out of town (for a very good reason though), and some were attending other dinners planned after this invite was sent.  it even got to a point that richard considered canceling the whole day because it seemed like more of an inconvenience to everyone rather than a fun day that was planned.

once friday arrived concert plans were coming together.  vanessa had rented a hotel room at hooters so we would have somewhere to convene, crash, and use as a home base.  a few came over to our apartment in the afternoon so we could all drive down to the strip together.  we hung out at the hotel for a few hours and the guys chomped down on wings, we were at hooters after all.  somehow, as usual, there was also beer pong involved.

finally it was time to go to mandalay bay for the concert and meet up with the rest of the concert goers.  now wrangling everyone together was quite the task and it seemed to take forever.  we made it inside where we needed wristbands for the floor and most of the group already needed more alcohol. 

ready to make our way to the floor you could feel the excitement building.  we made it for the 2nd opening band and the floor was surprisingly still a bit empty.  i was really glad!  richard had decided earlier in the week he was going to do the mosh pit.  this was his 1st big venue concert and he was really excited.  

well he made it through the 1st round and came back so exhilarated that he was instantly ready for round 2.  that one didnt go quite as well.  he came back so out of breath and just kept laying on me while trying to collect himself.  after awhile he still couldnt catch his breath and was trying to sit on the ground.  at this point we went up to the top where the snack bars were and took a break for awhile.  he still couldnt catch his breath and seemed to somehow be falling asleep at the same time.  we decided we would go back to the hotel, take a nap, catch him up, and then meet everyone back out when the concert was over.  after finally walking toward the exit he started to feel better and we ended up hanging out around the event center and had a really good talk instead.  we made it back right at the end of the concert for the last song and the encore. 

after the concert the group was all pretty drunk and it was a lot later then we had thought it was going to be so we decided to just head back to the hotel.  plus we were starving and there was a late night restaurant at the the hotel!  we started on the worlds LONGEST walk back to hooters stopping every 5 feet it seemed like and most of the group just getting really frustrated with each other.  finally making it we headed to the restaurant only to be greeted with a 30 minute wait at 1230am.  once getting a table the group was really quiet and honestly everyone just seemed mad at each other.  i dont know what happened in that last 1/2 hour, but it was a super awkward dinner.  about that time it was 2 am and it was definitely time to go home.

waking up the next day without a hangover was fantastic (thats what happens when your in training and cant drink).  it was actually a little cold and windy that day so it was nice to not be outside.  we went over to matts to hang out in the afternoon and watch a movie.  it was literally the weirdest movie i have ever seen.  it was called the game with michael douglas,  im still not even sure if i liked it.  and the whole afternoon was a little weird honestly, we kinda felt left out and there were only a few people there.

dinner that night was much smaller than expected, but the table was surrounded by great people.  we even got the waitress to sing happy birthday, against richards very strong wishes otherwise.  the best part, definitely the monster size sundae...

with the evening being rather windy fremont street was a little too much.  there was a ufc fight going on that night so that took prescient anyway.  we headed back to matts and the guys had decided to get a poker game going while the early fights were on.  richard tried to win money, but no such luck.  this was more of an early night, especially with all the craziness from the night before.

sunday evening was my turn!  i had planned a super special dinner that i was hoping he would love.  i found out over last summer that his favorite all time meal is the chicken cutlets his aunt makes.  i messaged her a few weeks back for the recipe and she was totally on board.  we woke up late that afternoon and hadnt really done much other than grocery shop, it was a great lazy kind of sunday.  i had kept the secret pretty well and was really nervous about making this dinner.  for some reason richard had decided to take a really late nap and slept through most of my cooking.  when he woke up though, he was not very impressed.  i knew that mine would never taste as good as aunt mar's, but i thought he would have been a little more excited.  i thought they were delicious, and they made fantastic leftovers.

i made a few realizations this weekend.  one, with family so far away and not able to see him every day the way i do, i am going to be the biggest cheerleader/celebrator in his life right now (which is definitely ok with me).  two, keep his best interest at heart no matter what others say/do.  three, i am an excellent secret keeper.  four, i will always be more excited about things and thats ok.  i think for a 29th birthday weekend and the ups and down this turned out to be a good one.  for sure one to remember!