Cards of Faith

These are my note cards, and they are one of my most prized possessions. 86 weeks ago, my best friend moved away. For 7 years, in college and after my best friend and I have picked a verse of the week and meditated on it, we worked on memorizing them, and we talked about them. But, 86 weeks ago, that got a lot harder to do. Now we no longer memorize the verses, but we still think, pray, and meditate on them.

Here is how it works. On odd weeks, I pick a verse. On even weeks, she picks a verse. When it is your turn to pick the verse, you write it out on 2 note cards, and put your name, date, and week number on the top. The back is for writing prayer requests, worries, anxieties, thoughts, feelings, and updates. Some weeks the backs are more full than others. Then you mail the note cards out to the other person on Thursday, and they have it in the mail by Monday for their week. No one has ever read these cards other than the two of us. This is something personal and private between us and we don't really share it with anyone else.

It is a fun way to keep in touch, keep us accountable to spending time in the word, and it continues to connect us even thought we live hours apart. When I get my note card, it is one of the best moments of my week!

13.1 and Done, again.

I ran another half this weekend, and to put it kindly, it stunk.
I knew from mile 2 that it was going to be rough. It was a battle the whole way. The course was much flatter and faster than last week's half, so I should have PR'ed. I should have run faster, and it should have been easier than last week. But it wasn't.
I ended up running 1:57, again. I ran the exact same time as I did last week. To say that I was frustrated would be an understatement. This simply reconfirmed what I have known all along, running is 20% physical, and 80% mental. I did not have the mental game, at all. At no point in the race did I zone out, or feel good. I felt like garbage. But, I finished it.
The one thing that was positive both this weekend and last, was my husband.
P is so supportive of everything that I do. He is perfectly understanding when I ask if we can afford to pay yet another race fee. Yes, he says its ok to pay hundreds of dollars in order to run on a public street that every other day I could run that same path for free.
Yesterday, he rode his bike over 26 miles in order to ride the path and meet me at about 8 different times and take pictures, cheer me on, and offer me water. He was pretty much awesome.
In summary, the race stunk, P ruled, end of story.

Friday Confessions

Here are my weekly confessions:

1.I accidentally drank out of the same cup that my dog did.
2. I stepped on someones shoe in the race and almost tripped them.
3. I've hardly worked out this week at all.
4. I ate a whole sleeve of Tag-a-longs girl scout cookies.
5. I pick wedgies in public.

Alright, fess up and admit what you have done wrong this week.

Back to the cool kids table

Remember when I blogged about being invited to the cool kids table the other day. Well, I was invited back...Holla, holla! Nicole over at The Budgeting Babe tagged me and of course I had to play along. The very first blog I ever read years ago was the Budgeting Babe. At that point, I didn't even know what a blog was, I had never even heard about a blog. I clicked on a link in an article that led me over to her site, and I was hooked. I learned so much from Nicole's blog, and it inspired me and challenged me to take a long look at our finances. At that point, we were living with debt, had no budget, and used credit cards. Her posts entertained me and educated me about more than just finance. She reminded me to save aggressively, invest smartly, give generously, and most importantly use some of that money on the things you are passionate about. I simply learned that finance can be interesting and not intimidating.
Before I answer her questions, I just want to say thanks to Nicole for putting it all out there for so many years. I know there are so many people who have learned so much from you!

Here we go:

Big or small, name one financial mistake you’ve made.
I took out a student loan. At the time, I felt really weird about it, and rather than finding a full time job and cash flowing graduate school, I took a loan. I could have done without it if I had put my mind to it.
What is the charity nearest and dearest to your heart?
Any charity that's mission is to feed the poor. I think the toy charities are great, and clothing charities have their place, but I am so passionate about feeding people. The most basic need is food. In a country where many of us have too much food, there is no reason why someone in this country should go hungry. My favorite is the St. Vincent De Paul society because my dad is the president of this ministry at his church, and I have seen first hand what food donations can do. And, I have seen first hand how heart breaking it is when we are not generous enough to donate.
What’s the best financial advice you ever got?
Get out of debt and have a fully funded emergency fund! Thanks Dave!!!
If someone gave you $1,000 today and you had to spend it on something OTHER than paying down debt or investing it, what would you do with it?
I would put it towards a vacation with P. I would go where ever he wants to go. He works such long hours, works so hard, and NEVER complains about work. He deserves the vacation of his dreams.
What’s your favorite meal?
My mom's pancakes. I don't know why, but they taste better than anyone elses.
What is the farthest you’ve ever run?
26.2 baby!
Where is one place you’d like to visit?
Just one?? I would go back to Paris right now. Who's gonna send me????
Name one item on your bucket list.
Give someone an outrageous gift
Could you live on half your income?
Yes we could, and we do!
What did you spend yesterday?
5.03 on a terrible sandwich.
Are you financially independent?
Yep!

Ok, I am tagging EVERYONE! These questions were awesome, so I am passing them back to you. That is Denise, Carla, Michelle, Leslie, Aubrey, Penny Pincher, Serendipity, Shannon Marie, One Family, and Brooke--you guys better do this!

Again, thanks Nicole for tagging me and inviting me back to the cool kids table!

13.1 and Done

Hello bloggy ladies and gents, how are ya'll? I missed you over the weekend. I went dark for the weekend, and unpluged from the internet and it was awesome. As much as I enjoy blogging, and reading what you were doing, it felt great to hardly open my ipad and spend time with the husband, family, and good friends.

This weekend I did the first half marthon of the year. In a word, it went really well. In another word, I was so flippin' nervous. I have no idea why, but about 2 days before the race, I decided to look at the elevation chart and saw this:

To be frank, it scared the heck out of me because Austin is located in the beautiful hill country, and we live in Dallas, which is the Southern most part of the great plains. Basically, the elevation chart that I have been training on looks something like this.

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There are not hills in Dallas, so I have not trained on them, and to say that I was worried about this race for 48 hours would be the understatement of the year.

Saturday night, I went to bed later than expected, and I didn't sleep well at all due to my mind racing about the race. I woke up, got dressed, and P and his friend dropped me off a couple of blocks from the start line. I jogged to the start, and got in line for the bathroom. There were 14 porta potties, and 20,000 runners. That is not a good ratio. I ended up waiting in line to use the bathroom for almost an hour. While in line, I stretched, listened to music, and tried to calm down my rumbling stomach. I was really nervous that I would miss the start of the race because the bathroom line was so long, but I got in and got out right as the gun was fired. Not the way I wanted to start the race.

The first 4 miles were a complete blur. I didn't get to warm up like I wanted, and so I started out cold, and those first miles, I wanted to zone out and run. Before I was ready, I saw the first hill, and freaked a bit, but I held my pace and made the climb. It was easier than I expected, and because I did it so easily, it did a lot for my confidence.

P and his friend were on their bikes and decided to ride around and support me during the race. I saw them right at the start, and then again at mile 8, and 11. It was awesome knowing that I had support so close by.

Miles 3 through 6 were pretty rough due to some pretty steady climbs, and my pace slowed down a bit, but I was able to keep going.

I honestly don't remember much from miles 8-11. I listened to the Dave Ramsey show on podcast and kept plugging along. Before I knew it, I was on mile 12 and I saw P on his bike. Up ahead loomed the biggest hill of the race. P was yelling encouragement, and I looked at him, and yelled back, "I am going to make this hill my bitch." (Sorry for swearing Mom). However, as I was running up the hill, it kicked my butt, and I had to walk the last portion of the hill.

I finally finished, and crossed the finish line with a brand new PR! 1:57.

Friday Confessions

Here are my weekly confessions:
1.I wanted to go vegan this week because P is out of town on a business trip. I ate an egg scramble the first meal after he left.
2. I have eaten cookies every single day this week.
3. I have eaten out at least once every day this week.
4. I have watched probably 20 episodes of The Big Bang Theory this week.

Alright, fess up, what have you done wrong this week?

Tapering

I have started my taper this week. My mileage has dropped off quite a bit, and to be perfectly honest, it freaks me out. I have gotten so used to higher mileage that doing so few miles is actually really weird. I didn't even run today, and I miss it. In fact, I have not even worked out today. I have foam rolled, stretched, and rested. My legs feel more fresh than they have in weeks, and I am actually aching to move.
I am running a 1/2 this weekend, and I think I am beyond ready physically. The part that is going to be the hardest is the mental battle, which is something I have always dealt with. I grew up running track and cross country, and even won 3rd place in state one year, but I quit doing track because I could not handle the nerves that came at the starting line. Every single time that I toe the line in a race, no matter if it is a marathon or a 5K, that same feeling creeps back in, and the doubt monster creeps in. I have a lot of goals for this race, but the number one goal is to run and gain confidence. I have done this distance a hundred times, and I know I could reach my time goal on a training run, but I need to prove to myself that I can do it during a race.
I am aiming for a sub 2 hour race. That's actually a lie. I really want to run this race in 1:50 or less. As I said before, I know that I am physically capable, but now I just need to whip my mind into shape.

Jailbait

Happy Valentines day lovelies. I have never been big on the Valentines Day. I really dislike the idea that it takes a special day to show those around you love. I think that you should say and show love to others EVERY SINGLE DAY.

Even so, in honor of Valentines day, I thought that it only be appropriate to discuss a deep, serious, and burning question about your wife, husband, spouse or lover.
Who is more likley to go to jail? You or your significant other?

I have this fear and anxiety about going to prison. Everytime I see a movie with a jail scene, or watch one of those shows about women in jail, it gets my mind-a-racin'.
P and I talk about the prison issue frequently, because I bring it up almost weekly. We have both agreed that out of the two of us, I would probably be the one to do time. In my honest opinion, I think P agrees that I would go to jail because at times, I think he doubts my grasp on reality. I tend to go from 0 to extreem quickly, when it comes to well.....everything. For example, if I dislike my job today, then I tend to think I will dislike my job forever, and it will always be bad. If P and I get into a fight, I tend to think we will never resolve it and we will fight forever.
I am not the greatest driver in the world, and sometimes I fear that I might hit someone and have to go to jail. Don't forget that I run yellow lights.
I can be tought, but I truly think jail would have the power to break me.

P is too good of a person to ever go to jail. He is so nice to everyone, always tells the truth, and he has great moral character. Plus, he is really funny and smart and people tend to like like him, so no one would want to see him suffer in prison.

Me on the other hand? I can be socially awkard and weirdly aggressive, so the police would think I am guilty from the start.
Sometimes if P glances around the room and sees another woman, I look him in the eyes and tell him that I will stab her if he looks at her again. And, I am almost always joking when I say that. Before we were married, I told P that if he ever cheated me, I would pull a Lorena Bobbit and cut his "special appendage" off. But, I didn't say it so nicely. See, weirdly aggressive.

Other times, when I am on the phone, in the middle of a conversation, I will suddenly say, "I've got a bomb in my car," just to see if the FBI is spying on me. From the movies I have come to learn they don't take national security lightly these days, so I should probably stop that.
Jail seems really really scary, and I don't think I would ever want to end up there.

With all of that being said, P I love you, and lets cherish all these Valenties Days before we have to place our hands together on either side of a plexiglass wall.

Who in your relationship is the crazy one? Who would be the most likley to go to jail?

**Please note that 99% of this post is scarcastic, yet true.**

Friday Confessions

Here are my weekly confessions:
1.P and I ate his entire birthday cake in less than 12 hours.
2. I used P's razor to shave.
3. I didn't brush my teeth on Saturday.
4. Walking my dog, I picked up his poo in a poo bag, but I didn't want to carry it with me on our hour long walk, and threw it on the ground. A man in his car saw it, and stopped and stared at me until I picked up the poo bag.
5. Yesterday I ate fries, fro-yo,chips,and cookies. And 3 full meals.

What did you do wrong this week? Fess up.

Cool Kids

Do you remember middle school? That horrible horrible time in life when the social cliques were beginning to form, and you were either in or out of the cool kids club.
I don't know why, but I was never invited to sit at the cool kids table at lunch. I don't know if it was because I was dressed by my mother every day. Maybe it was because I was that kid that sprinted to each class, dodging groups and open lockers in the hallway. That may have taken my cool quotient down a couple of notches.
Needless to say, middle school was not the best experience of my life, and the mental and emotional scars have all been healed.
But yesterday, something happened. I got invited to the cool kids table. Carla tagged me, which in effect means that I was given the golden ticket to sit with the popular kids. Carla asked me these questions, and because I am the newbie at the table, I will do exactly as I am told and answer the questions.
Here goes:

1. What is the bravest thing you've had to do in your life?
I went to graduate school and lived on my own for the first time, in a brand new city, where I didn't know anyone. It was hard and scary, but the time I lived alone really taught me a lot.

2. If you had to wear one colour for the rest of your life, which would it be & why?
Black. It goes with everything.

3. Coffee, tea, or neither? Favourite flavour?
I don't drink either.

4. Do you have any birthmarks?
Nope. I used to have a light one on my booty, but I think it disappeared.
5. One thing you regret (if anything) in life?
See this post.
http://livesimply-livewell.blogspot.com/2011/10/regrets.html

6. Do you play any instruments? If not, do you regret not learning?
I took piano lessons for YEARS as a child. I hated every single second of it. I blocked everything I learned from my mind, so no. I am not musical at all.

7. How many REALLY good friends do you have?
3 or 4

8. Have you ever "dropped out" of anything? Lessons, school, etc...
The only team I was ever cut from was the 7th grade volleyball team. It devastated me.

9. Smartphone or "old school" phone?
Old school flip phone.

10. How long have you been blogging for?
4 years

11. Do you *LOVE* your job? I mean really love your job? Or is it "just a paycheck"?
I used to. I taught at a Christian school, and it was a great job. My job right now has its ups and downs.

Thanks for tagging me Carla! I feel really special. From what the other kids at the table told me, the appropriate response now is to tag a few more people. But, being so new to the table, I will do a huge faux pas, and rather than keep it exclusive, I would like to give everyone else the chance to play! If you want to answer the questions that Carla posed to me, do it! Uncool kids unite, we are all part of the cool kids table now.
I hope the cool kids don't tell me to leave tomorrow.

Blessing Bags

As a couponer, I often get items for free or for pennies on the dollar. Sometimes, the items that I get are travel size. I usually hold on to these items and use them when we travel, or I donate them to the food bank.
Last week, I came up with the idea to pack little bags full of my travel items and let P, who drives around all the time carry them in his car. When he passes someone on the side of the road, who is in need, he can give this bag to them, and hopefully be a blessing.
It's not much, but it is a small gesture to be a blessing to someone else.

Friday Confessions

Here are my Friday Confessions:
1.I could not find the ice scoop at work, and without thinking I stuck my hand in and fished around for it.
2. I made a cake last night and had about 6 spoonfuls of batter.
3. I ate 75% of my husbands birthday ice cream 2 days before the day. I told him to just have the rest.
4. I overspent on P's birthday this year, and told him not to look at the checking account.
5. I get french kissed by my dog every morning as he jumps on the bed to wake me up.
Alright, fess up, what have you done this week?