"Hooping"

When my friend Whitney invited me over to her house this past Saturday afternoon with the intention to do some "hooping" I was confused.

I thought, hooping? But I don't really smoke anything.

When she invited Deidra under the same pretense Deidra thought she wanted to play some basketball.

Upon further questioning I realized Whitney was inviting us over to do some hula-hooping. 

If you've ever been to a music festival or show I'm sure you've seen someone doing all sorts of awesome moves with their hula-hoop. They move to the music and can move the hoop up and down their body, always staying with the beat of the music. It's pretty crazy how good they can be. (go check out some you tube videos if you can't picture it)

google pic

Jen, was in town this weekend for the Russell Race and brought along her hoops, as she is into hooping and is actually really good. (i.e.she can move the hoop from her waist to neck, over to her shoulder, and back down)

My first response was that I would come over but I didn't think I could hula-hoop any more. I was sure some where along the way from childhood to my 20s I lost my hooping touch.

Not the case at all. With the right size hoop and a bit of rhythm I think just about anyone could do it.

We spent the afternoon having a few brews, listening to music and attempting to master tricks of the hoop. I semi- mastered the lasso and may have even dropped it low a couple of times.

Jen (to the right) giving some pointers

It hard to know what to do with your arms, hence my awkward pose here. 

Deidra was hesitant to try her hand at hooping, but once she did she was a natural. 

It was so much fun. My hips were even a bit bruised from all the hooping we did.

Jen is hoping to be able to teach a few classes this summer, which I plan on attending!! It was a great workout.

O.T.W>- First 5K.

Over the Weekend...

I completed my very first 5K. To most people this doesn't seem like a huge deal, but I felt like it was an accomplishment. As I mentioned Friday, I work out at my local gym, run on the tread mill a few times a week, and do the occasional class, but I've never been brave enough to actually enter any type of race until this weekend!

Saturday morning came quite earlier as I hopped out of bed for a my morning cup of coffee and a bowl of oatmeal. Ryan got up with me to give me a pep talk and sent me on my way!

Deidra joined me as it was her first 'race' as well. We got to Russell Crossroads around 8 am, stretched it out, pinned on our numbers and eagerly awaited the cannon to sound signaling the start of the race.

It was so much fun! The energy of the crowd kept me pumped up and I just moved at my own pace. The hills proved to be a bit tough, but Deidra and I had talked about the impending hills and decided it was best to take long strides and take them at a steady pace. (like we really have any idea)

I had to stop twice to tie my shoe. I know, I know... ROOKIE MISTAKE. (double knots next time) and between mile one and the turn around I had to walk it out for a minute(the hills got me), but after the turn around I found my second wind and brought it on home.

My mom and Deidra's mom were waiting for us at the finish line!! It was so much fun I would definitely do it again.

After the race we went to the after party/award ceremonny which was hosted at The Stables at Russell Crossroads, where they had a grits bar, sweet potato soup, a band, and even a couple of kegs. That was reason enough to run in my opinion!

#1 FANS!!

Several of my good friends completed either the 10K or 5K as well. Hayden (in the hat below) even placed first in her age group.

For lunch, Deidra, her mom, my mom and I eased over to Catherine's Market.

It was an awesome day with awesome weather and good company.

I'm officially a racer!

A Weeks Worth All in One

For starters... O.T.W. for LAST weekend:

Here it is Friday and I'm just now posting about last weekend. It wasn't a super crazy weekend, but we were on the go (or I was).

We hit up my little cousin's party for his fourth birthday. Who doesn't love cake, ice cream, and family time?  FUN.

BIG 4! 

On Sunday, I had a bridal shower and a baby shower to attend!! So I tossed on a dress, pearls and pumps and hit the circuit. Celebrations abound!

Sweet (soon-to-be) Aunt Bess and the mother-to-be Carrie! 

It was a good weekend because this kid was in town with her boo. I love ole Ali and it was fun to harass her a bit!! There's just something about those Sanford... I tend to love 'um!

Dinner with friends Saturday night may have gotten a bit rowdy.

On Sunday I was lucky enough to have breakfast with my old roomie, Kaci, lunch with some of my BFFs, and a home cooked dinner with my parents. Awesomeness.

In other news.....

I've been doing some shopping here and there. Don't tell Ryan though. (and don't worry he won't know that I said not to tell him because he only checks my blog when I ask him if he's read it lately and even then he mostly just skims the pictures) I am attempting to be prepared because I know we have several weddings and parties coming up and a girl needs to have options!

One of my purchases that I'm super stoked about it is a pair of leopard print jeans. You may recall this rambling post regarding my dire need for leopard print jeans a few months ago.

Well, Deidra helped my dream come true. She found a pair and scooped them up for me.

I went ahead and order the shirt shown above to go with them... let's hope it comes together nicely in real life.

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Coming up this weekend I have decided to do the Russell Forrest Run. I'm doing the 5K which is only three miles, but I'm a little nervous about it.

I workout and hit the gym a few times a week, but I've always been intimidated to actually register and try out a "run". I feel like people who run races are professional runners which I AM NOT! But I said to heck with over thinking... I can walk when I need to and it will be fun!

I should have a full report on Monday!

TGIF!

V Day Run Down

Ryan and I don't "do" valentine's day so much. Not because it's lame or a holiday created by for us to spend money, but just because we don't. 

If we do buy something for one another it's usually something practical, for instance last year I got new tennis shoes which were needed. This year Ryan hooked me up with a new Otter Box iPhone cover. I'm hard on my stuff and I've broken two covers since I've had this phone. See... Practical. 

I made Ryan's Valentine Card this year. It was a portrait of him. On the inside I wrote a sweet note...

Notice the stunning similarity.  May have missed my calling.

... on the outside I wrote, "Love, Mrs. Sanford (not your mom)". Ryan glanced at the card quickly and read aloud, "Love, Mrs. Sanford (your hot mom)" I got so tickled. Because both are kind of true.

I love Ryan everyday. Valentine's is just an excuse to go out to eat and indulge in too much candy. Holla for a dollar if you ate your weight in candy yesterday! I'm hollering in my office, albeit a bit of a stifled holler, as this left over chocolate Reese's heart is in my mouth makes it a bit difficult to yell. 

V Day Vino

For dinner we did a group date night with several friends. We had cocktails and caught up. It was so fun!! Valentine's made for a good excuse for a night on the town!!

Beauty Department: Shellac Mani

Maybe this is old news to most... but I'm in a small town. Fun stuff doesn't arrive here until it is old news.

I went in for my first shellac mani this past Friday. I was a bit skeptical because I'm am super hard on my nails. A regular manicure on my nails might make it 24 hours before chipping... and that's a stretch.

I'm don't know what I do exactly to freak up my manicures so quickly, as I do not have a very labor intensive job (no hammering done here), yet I can ruin a good mani in no time.

According to the nail lady (what's the proper name? nail technician?) this type manicure should last at least 14 days with minimal chipping and would continue to shine.

So, I went for it.

Narrowed down the color options!

I'm on day 7 and it's holding strong. I think I'm sold on the the Shellac Manicure. It's looks natural and is still shining.

I think the best part... is that it's DRY in 60 seconds. No need to wait around!

DAY 7 (sneak photo while working). Also note, I'm dressed very  patriotic today. GOD BLESS THE USA, right?

I love it!

The one draw back is the limited color options. The salon I went to only had about 20 colors to choose from which saddens my soul a bit, as I love color options.

Final Verdict on Shellac Mani: MAKE YOUR APPOINTMENT TODAY!   

O.T.W- Awesome Weather Weekend

Over the weekend....

We had a beautiful weekend as far as the weather goes. I mean really, is it February? And did Phil, the groundhog, tell us just last week that we will be having six more weeks of cold winter? Because if so, Phil, was wrong about this past weekend. Sunny skies and in the 70's....

I opened the windows and doors and just embraced the awesomeness that was.

Saturday I decided to stop simply "pinning" stuff on Pintrest and to actually try something out. So, after spending the morning deep cleaning our house (I'm talking base boards and all) I decided to mess up the freshly cleaned kitchen in order to bake a cake!! Nonsensical, I suppose.

A bit unconditional in my ways, I cranked up Dave Matthews' Pandora Station on our new Bose stereo (thanks in-laws), cracked open a cold brew and got to baking. I enjoyed the slight breeze drifting through the house from the open windows as I embarked on a baking journey unsure of where I might end up.

I ended up in Awesome Cake, USA... as I threw down ala Bobby Flay style in my own kitchen. If there's one thing I'm don't lack in, it's giving myself a pat on the back when well deserved. And that's just what I did... patted myself on the back for the uber-moist (weird word there, sorry) Strawberry Yogurt Cake I created. 

As you can tell, I should have let it cool longer prior to icing.  I got a little overeager. 

When Ryan arrived home Saturday afternoon to a clean house, a flour covered wife, and the smell of a freshly baked cake I'm sure he thought to himself how great he had it! (see what I mean about patting myself on the back? it's all in good fun though)

***Side note regarding the cake in case you, yourself, would like to try it: It should be called Strawberry-Lemon Yogurt Cake, as it has lemon zest and lemon juice in the cake. It ended up having a stronger sense of lemon than I originally imagined. I have shared it with family, friends and coworkers alike... all giving rave reviews but it should def have the word "lemon" in the title so that one expects the lemon flavor.***

On Sunday Ryan and I had a breakfast date at the local Huddle House because we're obviously either A.) a little redneck or B)an elderly couple because that was the majority of the other patrons we had breakfast with.  No complaints here though. I loved my waffle!

Since the weather was so nice, when Ryan and I got home from our breakfast date Maggie and I went for a walk. She may be on the small side but Maggie can go step for step with me. Lots of energy!

Sunday night, in honor of the Big Game we ordered pizza and invited a few folks over to partake in the Super Bowl fun.

We took up money for a Monkey Board to make it a bit more interesting. Ryan was the big winner, which meant I kind of won too since we share money. Whoop, Whoop!!

Hope you guys had a great weekend!