7.5 Miles and a Surprise Trip to Irvine

Our weekend didn't start or end the way I expected. The schedule said 10 miles, but we ended up both running 7.5. With the sun glaring and the finish location just too close, I opted not to run the extra 2.5 miles. I just wasn't feeling it, but I was delighted to see Eddie walking towards me at the finish, greeting me with a huge smile. It was the toughest 7.5 I've done in quite some time. As all runners know, we all just have those days. After our run, we were eating breakfast when Eddie said he had a surprise for me. He had booked a getaway for us in Irvine! I had been wanting to get away for a while and I couldn't believe he had planned this for us. He took me home so I could pack, and after lunch, we headed up north.

Eddie had scoped everything out in advance. The hotel we stayed at was nearby plenty of shopping and entertainment. We saw Beyond the Lights, a romantic comedy that I'd wanted to see, and we both really enjoyed it. It was really nice to spend some time with my hubby. It was so thoughtful of Eddie to surprise me! What a gentleman.



Irvine Spectrum - it was great to spend the day walking outside.

They even have a ferris wheel.

9 and One of Us it Not Feeling Fine

After a strong finish of 9, one of us is not feeling all that fine. With a headache and a bit of fatigue, Eddie isn't totally in tip top shape, but maybe corned beef, potatoes, and cabbage will help him feel better tonight. We had a nice breakfast with eggs, pancakes, and sausage. Eddie had his usual eggs omelet. We couldn't find a good comedy on Netflix so we opted for Side Effects, which was a thriller but we found it terribly slow. Eddie fell asleep but came to when Clueless came on. I guess the thriller wasn't so thrilling. We're getting some house stuff done tonight, and I'm looking forward to a productive week and more activities next weekend!

Traning Schedule - 10 weeks to Half Marathon

17 11/8/2014 9 mi
18 11/15/2014 10 mi
19 11/22/2014 8 mi
20 11/29/2014 10 mi
21 12/6/2014 11 mi
22 12/13/2014 8 mi
23 12/20/2014 10 mi
24 12/27/2014 12 mi
25 1/3/2015 8 mi (or 6 mi since we're running the half next week)
26 1/10/2015 So Cal Half

8 Miles

We started with over 200 pieces of candy and had about half left at the end of our first Halloween at our new home. Our showpiece were lanterns that lit up and spoke when people approached. It was fun to see the kids' reactions, which ranged from scared, curious, and delighted. It was a busy night shuffling between providing directions to a lost pizza delivery boy with poor cell reception to non-stop visitors. Thankfully, the pizza and wings did show even if it was almost 2hrs later. We really felt the fall weather arrive when a very loud rainstorm woke us up at night and our 7a run was met with a strong cold winds . Still - we made it through 8 miles and both finished strong. Despite Eddie's work travel this week, I was proud to see him run ahead with a burst of energy in the second half.

While there are many reasons I love my hubby, today gave me one more reason. After our run, he suggested we go for Pho for breakfast. Thank goodness for places that open at 9am, because it was exactly what we needed after running outside on a cold day. I wonder if they're open on Thanksgiving? We are doing a turkey trot after all. We also bought a 7ft Christmas tree today that Eddie says we can set up on Thanksgiving. Bring on the turkey legs, stuffing and cranberry sauce, we're ready!



Is Eddie a pilot or old man from Up?

9 Miles

I can't say that this 9 miles was enjoyable. Actually, it was downright hard. Eddie felt like he could have ran 10, but afterwards, we both agreed we felt like we ran a half marathon. It was the longest distance we've ran in a long time so I suppose it should not have come as a huge surprise, but it always does. Shouldn't we feel like this a breeze with 7 halfs behind us? Just goes to show that you've got to be really committed, which is why I'm so glad Eddie has really kept us accountable to our scheduled mileage. Our long awaited backyard is finally finished. Thanks to my hubby for helping with our projects this week! We are slowly but surely making our house a home.


Happy Halloween! We are preparing for a slew of trick or treaters this Friday.

Oktoberfest and 8 Glorious Miles

After a long hiatus, we've returned. Yes, faithful readers, the long awaited return of our running stories, race reviews, and weekend jaunts has finally come. As I was reading our entries from years prior last night, I realized just how many great memories we have already. It's so easy to forget. That's why we decided to returne. We still have so much more to experience and we've only just begun our journey. 

 

So here's the latest and greatest.  We got married in June, followed by a wedding reception in May, followed by a new home, alongside a new job, and did I mention we're training for our 7th half marathon together? With Eddie's encouragement, he signed us up for our running group once again and I have to admit waking up at 6am on the weekends aren't as tough as they use to be. The 8mi run last week was tough for Eddie, but OK for me. In fact, I'm actually looking forward to our 9mi run this Saturday. Eddie has been extremely upbeat this training season. Hard to believe that just a few years I never thought he'd ever say yes to my crazy idea of doing a half marathon. Now he's waking me up on Saturday!

 

The past few months have been a blur of handymen, furniture delivery people, and stuff and more stuff. So I'm happy to report, that life is finally beginning to gain some semblance of what we had before. For Eddie, this means regular home cooked meals, which makes him happy.

  

 

Oktoberfest - We had  "free" bratwurst, potato salad, pretzels, strudel and beer, finally putting our HOA fees to good use.

 

One of the  best pho places ever and we found it in Palm Springs.



A San Elijo Hills Sunset. Gorgeous!

Married in Kauai

Where we got married at Poipu Beach at this very spot, which is very bit as magical as it looks.

It was a significant milestone to have survived our respective bachelorette and bachelor happy hours (x2 for me). I can honestly say that I've consumed more alcohol in the last month than I have in my entire 30s so were delighted to finally be off to Kauai to get married. At long last, after months of planning and anticipation, we were so glad to discover that we 100% made the right choice to celebrate our marriage and honeymoon on this island.

Here are some highlights from our trip - where we visited and where we ate:
Day 1 - R&R/Lavas @ the Sheraton - Best Wings/Puka Dog
Day 2 - Get marriage certificate at a very official government office - The Wine Shop and get a cabana on the beach/Koloa Fish Market - Best Mac Salad and Laulau
Day 3 - Kauai Movie Tour/Tahiti Nui Bar - Best Mai-Tais
Day 4 - Get married!/Tidepools @ the Hyatt
Day 5 - Kilohana Plantation and Train Tour/Mark's Place - Best Teriyaki Chicken
Day 6 - Kauai Coffee Plantation Tour
Day 7 - Good bye for now Kauai!

Can you believe you get your marriage license at The Wine Shop?

 

The Puka Dog, a hot dog inserted in a cylindrical bun with delicious sauces. We choose the spicy chili sauce with mustard and coconut relish. We would definitely eat this again!

Wailua Falls - the backdrop of many famous movies and shows, like Fantasy Island.

The Coco Palms Hotel, made popular by the movie Blue Hawaii, is being renovated. It will be great to see it when it's done.

Waimea River - the photo does not do it justice.

Our fabulously entertaining tour guide, Mickey, from Alabama. He was hilarious.

George Clooney filmed The Descendants here - also where we ate lunch and enjoyed a mai-tai.

I made a friend at the Kilohana Plantation.



We were given bread to feed the goats. I admit I was a little nervous at first, but they are so friendly!

These wild pigs were hungry and angry, squealing at baby pigs to get away from their food.

A baby pig - so cute!

 

Just got my make-up done for the big day and wearing my just married shirt already.

 

Our big day.

Eddie's first luau (not to be mistaken for lua which means the restroom in Hawaiian).

Eddie asked me to dance to a song by Elvis at the Luau.

Opening act - hula dancers.

Chickens are everywhere on the island. It was a very strange sight to see when we first arrived.

On our coffee tour and it's very hot - we couldn't wait to get back to air conditioning.

After missing the malasadas (Portuguese donuts) from two previously failed attempts, we finally made it. When the sign says back at 2pm, it really means back whenever. This plays open "around 10a" which can mean 11a.

These malasadas reminded Eddie of dessert at Michael Mina's restaurant in Atlantic City, but these were 3 for $1.50. Amazing!