5 Signs That I Probably Love Your Blog

Happy Friday!  I'm so happy it's the weekend!  I don't have too much planned, but I kind of like it that way.  Life has seemed so go, go, go lately that it will be nice to just kick back.  I'm linking up with Mar, Cynthia, and Courtney today (I know, sneaking in last minute!).  The theme has to do with blogger love, and I started thinking about all the blogs that I have read over time and what made me stick with some over others.  Basically, if you write about anything below, I read and love your stuff.

1. Dogs.  

Yep.  Bonus points if it is a corgi, dachshund, or any other short legged pup.  I haven't really come across any other blogs that talk about their fosters, but if you know of any that won't make me cry I would love to read them.

2. Every Day Running.

Ugh, probably should have been number one considering the name of my blog.  The first blog I ever read was called Runner's Kitchen.  She writes like once every ten years now, but I learned so much from her!  From different running products, apparel, and tasty snacks to fuel running, it was fun trying out new things that someone else suggested.  She also was super nice and answered a question I had about my first half marathon.  Even now after 8 half marathons under my belt I still love reading about other people's running life and what they are doing to help it!

3. New Workouts.

The pizza lift.  A legit workout.

I learned about Pure Barre and Body Pump from my blog reading.  I probably never would have tried them if I hadn't read about them from somebody's blog.  I was also really excited for my first spin class after reading about so many writers' love of it.  Thanks for keeping me diverse, guys!

4. Races.

Whether you are training for a race, running in a really cool race, or running one of my favorite races, I get excited to read about it.

5. Good Beer.

#sorrynotsorry #goodpeopledrinkgoodbeer Yikes, not sure where the hash tags came from. But seriously, if you drink good beer and write about your love of it then I will be excited to read your blog.


What do you like to read about in other people's blogs?  If you guys have any suggestions based on the above, send them my way!

5 Things about the ODU Big Blue 5k

Happy Friday!  This has been one of those weeks where I feel like I've been going and going.  It's been filled with a lot of fun, but I hadn't had a chance to recap the ODU Big Blue 5k yet, so I figured that the perfect time would be at the Friday Five Link Up with Mar, Cynthia, and Courtney!  I ran it with my best friend as part of her birthday weekend celebration and we had a fantastic time!

1. Packet Pick Up: The race didn't start until 10:30, so it was a much more relaxed race morning than usual.  There was plenty of parking on the ODU campus just a short walk away from the race start and we were excited to get to tour the campus a little bit since neither of us had ever really spent much time there.  We walked right up to the packet pick up and got our bibs and race shirts that were in a reusable bag (my favorite grocery bags!).  They also had packet pick up the night before, but since neither us of could conveniently get there, it was nice that we could get our stuff the morning of the race.  We had plenty of time before the race, so we walked around to see what the post race party would offer and put our bags back in the car so we wouldn't have to worry about bag check.

2. The Course: I have been in a weird running place since Shamrock.  I just haven't been quite as motivated and running has been down right HARD.  For some unknown reason, I figured that running at a race would be better than my normal runs and decided to set the virtual pacer on my Garmin so that I could finally PR.  Part of me is glad I did this, but part of me wishes I would have just run to run so I could enjoy the course a little more.  It was the warmest day we have had since winter, and I immediately wished I wore a tank top instead of my short sleeve shirt.  The course was really neat and wound through neighborhood roads and the ODU campus.  There were a ton of cheer squads (I think they were different sports teams and student groups).  I really liked running on one of the practice fields!  There wasn't a whole lot of shade and I was a big ol' baby and was really wanting to just walk.  When we got to the mile 2 marker I was convinced that we weren't getting a water stop (I don't know why because J&A always takes care of their runners.  Probably should have looked at the course map haha!).  We rounded a bend and I saw a table and got really excited and then got really sad.  They were donut holes in the cup!  Normally this would be awesome, but I wanted water so bad that I completely skipped the donuts and went right to the next table that thankfully had water.  Soon after we passed the mile 3 marker and were headed to the finish line that was on the football field.  It was really cool running down the field.  As I crossed the finish line I heard my Garmin make the noise saying I got a new record and did a mini happy dance.  I finally got a sub 27 5k time!    

Suns out guns out, right?

3. The Post Race Party: After I crossed the finish line I was given a bag of pretzels, a bottle of water, (I skipped the banana!) my medal and a cup.  The finish area was pretty large so I was able to stand off to the side to wait for my best friend to finish the race.  I wasn't feeling super great at the end of the race, so I drank my bottle of water and ate some pretzels.  When my best friend crossed the line we went over to ring the PR bell.  It was in a weird spot that was kind of crowded, but I think they just were trying to find a place where it was easily found at the end of the race and they had the professional photographer taking pictures by it.  I think a lot of people were unsure of what it was though because a lot of people were just hanging out by it and we had to strategically aim the camera so we didn't have strangers in our pictures!  I skipped the beer at the race (not a fan of Corona or Modelo) but was excited to get my fro yo.  They had mini cones of chocolate and cake batter and it hit the spot!  I got my pizza soon after and we just enjoyed the tailgate atmosphere for the afternoon.  There was a band playing, corn hole, and other games.  We ended up staying long enough to get a little bit of a sunburn.  Oops!  The post race party area was HUGE so we never felt too crowded and it was great just being able to hang out and enjoy the party without dodging lots of runners.

4. The Swag: I thought both the shirt and medal were really cool!  And can you ever have too many cups?

Sorry for this picture.
 My phone only takes selfies so this is actually a
really good picture if you think about it.

5. Other Thoughts: I wasn't really sure what to expect from this race, but I really liked it!  Out of the J&A races I've done, I think this one would be the best family friendly one.  There was a 1k for the kids before our race and lots of room for the kiddos to hang out.  I think there were a lot of people who hadn't ever run in races before because I felt like race etiquette was lacking from a lot of runners.  I tried to just roll with it because it was a different kind of event than usual.  (There was a charity football game and an ODU football game after the race, so they really made a whole day of it!) It can be frustrating though when you're trying to go and people stop without warning right in front of you.  I really did have a great time though and would definitely run in this race again!

Did you guys run in the ODU Big Blue 5k?  What did you think?  Have a great weekend!

**Disclaimer: I'm a J&A Ambassador and was given a race entry to this race.  All opinions are my own.  (I wouldn't have driven over 3 hours to run this race if I didn't truly love J&A).  

5 Trips for the Beer Lover

Happy Friday!  I'm linking up with Mar, Courtney, and Cynthia for the Friday 5!  The theme for the week (I KNOW, I'm actually with it this time!  Woo!) is 5 trips _________, so I figured I would give you guys some of my favorite beer trips I have been on.  I'm excited to read other bloggers' suggestions though!  Always nice to get away!

1. Dogfish Head Brewery: Lewes, Delaware.

I was so excited to finally make it out here!  My nice friend and I went in early November and it was perfect.  We stayed in Rehoboth Beach and had pretty much the whole boardwalk to ourselves.  It was an amazing way to relax and the brewery is so, so cool.  When you do the tasting they bring out your samples in the order they feel is best and give you background on each beer.  If you guys love craft beer you should definitely add it to your list of trips!

2. Flying Dog Brewery: Frederick, Maryland.

This is by far my favorite brewery tour that I've ever been on.  You learn a lot of the background and the brewing process, but it's also loud and obnoxious and fabulous.  You get very generous samples that you can drink before, during, and after the tour.  While you're in Frederick you should check out the downtown area.  It's really cute (and dog friendly!).

3. Devils Backbone Brewery: Lexington, Virginia.

This was another weekend away with my nice friend.  We stayed in downtown Lexington for his birthday and had a really laid back getaway.  We were also able to walk to Blue Lab Brewing, which has the best beer logo ever in my opinion.  There's a lot of hiking you can do in Lexington, so it was the perfect combo of beer and outdoor time.

Ok, so this logo is way cuter than the DB one.

4. Mission Brewing: San Diego, California.

My trip to San Diego a couple of summers ago was one of my all time favorite vacations.  There is SO much to do in San Diego (the zoo, Sea World, baseball, etc.) and such great beer.  We also went to Stone Brewing, which was cool too, but Mission was a blast.  It's in an old Wonder Bread factory and super chill.  It's really close to the Padres stadium (we actually ended up walking around the stadium while we waited for the brewery to officially open) and they have fantastic beer.  My nice friend and I kicked butt in table shuffle board there, too.  Just sayin'.  We also went to Local Brews and Local Grooves, a fun event that features local bands and beer from the area at the House of Blues.  I was so excited when the event decided to come to Maryland!  They do it EVERY week in San Diego.  I'm hoping we get it more frequently here, too!

5. Crawlin' Crab Half Marathon: Hampton, Virginia

I've sung its praises before, and I'll do it again.  This race is SO much fun and when it became a craft beer festival, too, it pretty much became my dream race.  You can read my recaps here and here.  Even if you aren't into running a half marathon, you can run the 5k and still enjoy the full beer fest.  We actually spent a lot more time at the festival after the 5k because I knew I probably wouldn't be too excited about sampling lots of beer after running a half.

Have a great weekend!

Beer lovers!  Where is the best place to go?  I've been to quite a few other breweries that almost made the list, but these weekends just stood out a little more!

Good Things

Happy Friday!  I'm linking up with Mar, Courtney, and Cynthia for the Friday Five and am excited to read about good things going on in others' lives.  It's been a pretty stressful week, and I need to refocus on the good!

1. Family time.  I had so much fun with my mom, aunts, and cousin last weekend and can't wait until we're all together again.  It was fun getting to show them around some of my favorite places.

2. Highlights.  One of my aunts is an amazing hair stylist and she covered up some of those gray highlights that were out in full force.

Cheers to being blonde again.

3. Best friend time!  One week from today I will be back with my best friend for the ODU Big Blue 5k!  I can't wait!

4. Jimmy Fallon.  Specifically, this video.

5. SUB 2 HALF MARATHONS!  Sorry guys, I'm still giddy whenever I think about it!  You can read my recap here.  Don't forget to link up any Shamrock recaps that you have!

The new picture you will be tired of looking at!

Have a great weekend!