Weekend in way too many pictures

Is Tuesday too late for a weekend recap? Probably. Do I care? Not even a little bit.

Um, my weekend was great.

My Friday daytime consisted of this:

Yep. Those would be my teeth...

So when I was fourteen and I got my braces taken off, they told me I needed to get my wisdom teeth taken out. Then again when I was eighteen and about to go off to school they said, "Hey, you should really get those wisdom teeth taken out." Then I went to the dentist in March and he said, "Didn't I tell you like eight years ago to get your wisdom teeth taken out?" To which I replied, "Nope you are high on laughing gas and I have no idea what you are talking about." So I figured it was about time I looked into getting those suckers removed. Turns out that I do need to get them taken out. (I know, I was surprised too.) So I'm definitely going to get it taken care of before I turn thirty.

My Friday night consisted of this:

If you're not immediately overcome with jealousy and inspiration then, congratulations, your life is more exciting than mine.

My Saturday consisted of this:

My Saturday actually consisted of more than this, but
if I'm being honest this was definitely the highlight.

And Sunday...

My grandmother (AKA-Mimi, yes she's AWESOME) turned 75 last week, and we like to party. We had a little birthday brunch for her on Sunday, and I've gotta share some pictures that have been cracking me up. Just a little background, in my family, we like to overdo EVERYTHING. The bigger and more ridiculous, the better. (Shocking that I am a spawn of this, right?) So, duh, I went out to get balloons. Oh and HEY. Did y'all know that there is a national helium shortage? I call bull on that. But when four different employees from four different stores were looking at ME like I'M an idiot for not knowing this, I just rolled my eyes and took their word for it. Whatever. Freaking conspiracy.

So anyways, I ran to Target (again, shocking) to find ridiculous things to validate this celebration. I totally succeeded in finding some fabulous accessories. Exhibit A:

Sparkly Party Girl Hat

And Exhibit B:

You would not believe how entertaining these things turned out to be. My apologies for the excessive pictures, but come on, this is funny stuff.

Clearly, those were a hit. I was lucky to squeeze as much family time into this weekend as I usually have in a whole month. So of course a few more pictures...

My mom is beautiful

My brother is ridiculous

And cake is delicious.

Doing a late weekend recap makes me realize how quickly this week is already going by! Also, I can't believe tomorrow is Halloween. (Really what I can't believe is that it's almost November.) I'm not dressing up, but I will try my best to wear an orange shirt and eat lots and lots of candy, cause I'm no scrooge.

LOVELOVELOVELOVELOVE,
Nat

Whiners are weiners

Allow me to entertain you before I bore you to death with a list of my current complaints. (BTW-you're welcome.)

I'm loving this running thing. It's the cheapest therapy for the layperson.  Some days I'm all...

YAY I CAN DO ANYTHING BECAUSE
I AM WOMAN AND I ACTUALLY SHAVED TODAY!! BRING IT WORLD!

Other days not so much. So I'd like to make known my short (ish) list of current complaints as they pertain to the topic:

1. Let's talk about why certain people think it's acceptable to stand uncomfortably close to the trails while SMOKING A MOTHER-TRUCKING CIGARETTE. Those of us that are actually concerned with our health, not to mention gasping for air anyways do not appreciate it. I'm confident that this isn't even legal. Okay confident is not the word. I actually went home and googled it and turns out that it is totally legal but frowned upon by ME. If I catch you doing this I make sure to give you evil-est eye and choke and gag ever so dramatically. When I am at a bar, I expect smoke. When I am trying to enjoy a little bit of nature, I expect the only smell entering my nostrils to be the all natural stench of the Trinity River. So all you smokers take your tobacco somewhere else where it's welcomed (like the the bowling alley) and stop interfering with my run. Kthanksdontchokeonyournastycigonyourwayout.

2. Cold? WTF where did you come from?????!!?!! I was off Friday, so I decided to go run around 1 o'clock. What I did not take into consideration was this:

I never looked it up, but I'm also pretty confident
that the wind was blowing 83 miles per hour. I am not kidding. 

I guess it's a good thing that I got to experience this, because for the next four months this will be what all of my runs are like. Not to mention the race is in February. I'm not sure if y'all remember but this is the one month in Texas when the blizzards usually occur. I should really invest in some pants. And long sleeves. Donations are welcome. I'd also like to discuss something I'd never experienced before, post-cold-weather-run SNOT. I was totes fine while I was running and then when I was done and slowed to a walk the snotgates were opened. This is not a joke. It's a very real and serious problem. I don't really know what I'm supposed to do about this. I already carry pepper spray, a water bottle, and belt for my iphone, someone please tell me where in the hell I'm supposed to carry kleenex. Actually, I could probably stop carrying the pepper spray. Because seriously what rapist/kidnapper is interested in the girl who is is producing a literal snot waterfall. Nevermind problem solved. Thanks guys.

3. This:

I HATE you.

This hill is at the beginning and end of every single run. I really am super pissed because this picture doesn't do it justice AT ALL. It is seriously a straight up 90 degree angle. No joke. I took a protractor to it this week. Really, believe me. It's a beast and I hate it. I'm petitioning to have the hill removed and replaced by an outdoor escalator. You will all be required to sign it. It's a struggle to WALK, not to mention run, or bike. I can confidently say there have been more than one occasion where I have stopped mid-hill on my bike and said "Screw this" and pushed it up that thing as the real bikers pass me up with a condescending "Psstt." I hate them too.

That's probably it. For now. Because I'm cold and I really want to get in bed and watch Grey's Anatomy. I'll do a weekend update tomorrow that will be filled with nothing but positive energy and happy happy things. So brace yourself.

LOVELOVELOVE,

Nat

Grandma hip and a strawberry push pop?

I'm convinced that my body is totally clueless as to how old I am. I don't really blame it. It's not like me watching Golden Girls while simultaneously eating a push pop is exactly helping to clear things up. 

I have a bad hip. Like, seriously, I'm looking for any available Craigslist Orthopedic surgeon who might be willing to cut me a deal on an experimental/back-alley type hip replacement. I had an amazazing run on Tuesday, no pain, really one of the all time best runs I've ever had. Totally high on life. But the minute I stopped my hip started to bug me. It's crazy how I can be totally pain free running and the minute I start to walk the pain sets in. It's really just a feeling like I need to pop something back into socket. Super weird. So Wednesday I was dealing with the aftermath of that, I spent all day limping around work, and got home and did a really easy slow job with lots of walking, trying to walk it out. I am pretty much clueless when it comes to gauging how my body reacts to a workout. Has anyone (under the age of 65) experienced this? Today I had pretty much no pain at all, so I'm thinking the "walk it out" method was effective here, but tomorrow is long run day, so I guess we'll have to wait and see.

So this weekend I bought myself a fancy purse. Normally I cringe at the thought of buying a purse because:
a) I don't like to spend more than $20 on ANYTHING. (Except a really delicious dinner. That's my exception.) and b) I always talk myself out of buying purses because my thought process goes like this "FORTY DOLLARS? Are they HIGH??? I can't buy this purse! I could buy FOUR SHIRTS for the price of this purse!" Irrational really. But I'm a little cray cray.

But y'all know how the story ends. I bought the purse. And it makes me smile every time I dig for my keys. It gorg and I'm obsessed with it so please please shower it with lots of comments.

Please ignore my sleepy unwashed hair and direct your attention to the purse.  So pretty.

Wednesday Tay came over. Wednesdays are pretty much our thing. I cook dinner. We eat dinner. He pretends to help me wash dishes while actually splashing me with water and throwing towels. But he does have a couple of redeeming qualities. He bought me a pink Ducks Unlimited hat. Now we officially match.

He's such a grown up with his tie and his fancy pens. You'd never know he tried to pants me while I was loading the dishwasher. Also don't panic, I did not feed the man onions, peas, and carrots for dinner. This was the early stages of fried rice. 

During dinner I may or may not have hinted at the fact that if I didn't get some fro-yo in my belly immediately someone was going to end up with a black eye. Let's just say that no one ended up with a black eye and I am now able to give you a very vivid oral description of every single flavor offered at our local fro-yo place. And yes, I am a member of their rewards program. 

Tonight I had a date with my absolute bestie. Now that we're both done with school, we only live about an hour apart, but we are both so crazy busy that it's still a treat when we get to hang out. The original plan was to meet up, grab dinner, and then go see Perks of Being a Wallflower. But you girls know that sometimes when you're at dinner and you're chowing down queso and rambling on about nothing that you get distracted. We wound up deciding that we'd rather just talk each others ears off than go to a movie. Don't worry, we'll redbox it. So we enjoyed our Fuzzy's tacos and then headed over to the mothership Target. I'm still a little unclear as to what happened there tonight because somehow I left without having purchased anything. Really, something must be wrong. Surely I am feverish. 

So I spent the whole night pushing an empty basket and being a good dressing room buddy.

I told her that her pose had to signify how the clothes made her feel. She felt "lost" in that shirt. 

Also I got engaged at Target! Totally kidding. but I'm pretty sure that a complete stranger could propose to me at Target and get a resounding YES because that place is like my Mecca and that type of euphoria is definitely conducive to my agree-ability. Also Taylor wasn't jealous AT ALL. Troublesome?

I think it should be noted that I had absolutely nothing to do with his name being changed to "Booty Call" in my phone. He did that all on his own. I'm far too mature for stuff like that. 

As we were checking out I managed to talk Allison into buying me a push-pop. Y'all. These things are SPRING LOADED now!! And delicious. 

Empty basket. One push pop.

I would say the past 48 hours were a huge success. I'm sooo excited that the weekend is almost here! Also the 50 degree weather means finally getting to bust out the winter clothes! Tomorrow I'm working a half day, going to the dentist, going on a long run and then joining the family in Dallas to celebrate my Mimi's 75th birthday! How are you guys planning to spend the weekend?

Hugs,

Nat

Date with my DVR

I have a theory about Mondays and Tuesdays. It goes like this:

Everybody whines and whines about Mondays. I love Mondays. By the time Monday rolls around and I get to work, everyone is in such a frenzy to catch up after all the time they lost over the weekend that it's a stunning display of organized chaos, and before you know it's 5o'clock and you're walking out the door. Mondays are a breeze. You can quote me on that.

But Tuesdays? Tuesdays are sly little bastards. I got to work today, checked my email, updated my calendars, listened to my messages, wrote out my to-do list, exchanged witty banter with the co-workers, picked out my playlist for the day, ate a banana, and then glanced over to corner of my computer screen... 

8:09am.

You have GOT TO BE KIDDING ME. 

And that riveting story about sums up my Tuesday. Yes, it was that good. 

But you know what rocks about Tuesdays? Two words: New Girl! Die. SO amazing. I start to twitch with anxiety when they skip a week. It's almost as if the presidential candidates don't care about my weekly dose of Zooey Deschanel. Rude. 

This is true. 

{Running Update: Tonight's run was next to perfect. I somehow managed to shave almost 40 seconds per mile off my  pace. Don't ask me where that energy came from and don't expect it to happen again, but still, it was just the boost encouragement I needed. I'm crossing my fingers and praying that the weather will cool down for good. Please and thank you Jesus.}

Now if you will excuse me I have a date with my DVR, and a fiber one brownie. Please don't be jealous. It's a relationship that is built a mutual love and understanding. We get each other. 

Next time I will be more interesting. Promise.

LOVELOVELOVE!

Nat

PS: Did anyone else snag the T-Swift album yesterday? What do y'all think? I've got some pretty strong opinions currently forming, but I feel like I need to give it a full 24 hours before putting it on blast. 

Setting Goals: I have too much free time.

I don't keep a journal. Primarily because I don't like my handwriting. But one of the main reasons I decided to get back into this thing, is because I need a way to document whatever the hell I've got going on in my life. 

It's been almost a year since I graduated college, and through my careful observance of the real world and the way all these very serious adults conduct themselves, I've decided I need to start setting some goals. Inspirational people are the ones who've set goals, went after them, and achieved them. I've decided I'm going to be one of those people. 

Now, it should be noted that many of my goals are things such as:

• Remember to put on deodorant every morning (Don't you judge me)
• Eat a vegetable a day (I'm still undecided as to whether onion rings count as vegetables)
• Put x-amount of paycheck into savings (For what? I'm not sure, but all the responsible people do it so I'm really just following suit.)
• Limit my trips to Target to only one visit per day (Y'all. I'm not even kidding. Not at all. I'm single-handedly responsible for the vast success of the fabulous red bullseye empire)

You get the picture. But this time I've really gone and done it. I set a big one. 

I'm going to run a half-marathon.

Yes, you read that right. 13.1 miles. For those of you who knew me in high school-or hell, for those of you who knew me last Tuesday, you are aware that I am not an athlete. I once stood directly on home plate while at bat during an intramural softball game. You can't make this stuff up, folks. 

My last year of school, I went on this mini fitness/self-discovery journey where I started working out, eating right, lecturing people about how sodas will kill you, and ultimately lost twenty pounds in about three and a half months. It was during this time that I got into the groove of running. Nothing impressive. I'm not fast, not even a little. And I don't run very far at all, (3.5 is the most I've ever run without stopping) But I just really got into the mental aspect of it. It's so rewarding to go for a run and get that feeling of accomplishment once you're finished. 

So one night, after a few glasses of wine and some blog-stalking, (did y'all know that there are women in this world that run FULL marathons while PREGNANT??!! Yeah, let's talk inspirational) I decided I could do it. I could train, and I could run a half-marathon. So that's what I'm going to do. And the more I publicly broadcast it, the harder it will be for me to back out. So, please, dear sweet Jesus, y'all have to keep me accountable. I'm two weeks into training (haven't missed a day yet). I wanted to be able to document this journey of my insanity, and want all the tips/encouragement/feedback I can get (Calling me a self-destructive moron does count as feedback and I totally welcome it). 

Hugs,

Nat

Let's try this again.

Hello. I know what you're thinking, "Wow, she has really spruced this place up." Well you're right, I have. Quite a feat for me. I don't even want to TRY to explain how computer/internet/blogosphere illiterate I am. Seriously, the amount of time it took me just to figure out how to log in to my blogger account is embarrassing. But the point is- I'M BACK! For real this time. Probably. Maybe. We'll see. 

Hugs,

Nat