tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-67246040234156395922024-03-21T17:30:20.568-04:00The Hartmans' Highlight ReelLaurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.comBlogger81125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-43546023084336135032011-12-20T21:32:00.000-05:002011-12-20T21:32:09.027-05:00Merry Christmas!I know it has been forever since I have posted anything on here (maybe <i>posting more often</i> will be one of my New Year's Resolutions...), but I just wanted to send out our Christmas card for this year. We've gone virtual this year, so you won't be getting one in the mail. We look forward to seeing everybody soon!<br />
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Merry Christmas! <br />
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Love, <br />
Andrew & Lauren<br/>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-35265778037241816452011-07-12T20:35:00.000-04:002011-07-12T20:35:00.951-04:00The Beach and Our THIRD Anniversary!I can't believe it has already been over a week since we came back from the beach and our beach trip with my family has come and gone. Time is going by TOO fast! <br />
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Not only am I a little delayed in doing a blog post about the beach, but I'm also disappointed with myself that I really didn't take that many pictures while we were there. Few pictures does NOT mean that we didn't have a great time...it just means that we stayed too busy for me to even think about grabbing my camera to snap a picture! <br />
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Every morning at the beach we all either went running, riding, or walking. Afterwards, Andrew and I generally recouped from our morning until lunch time, after which we headed to the beach or the pool for the afternoon until it was time for dinner. We all took turns making dinner, and we went out to eat twice. This was pretty much our week! Nothing too exciting, except for maybe our trip to the outlets. I feel like we stayed busier this year than before, and for some reason I think that made the week really fly by! <br />
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Thankfully the weather was really great. It was hot and humid (as usual), really windy a few days, and towards the end of the week the air started to get smoky from a wildfire that was burning in North Carolina.<br />
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I'm sorry that I didn't take more pictures, but here's a look at a few moments from our vacation!<br />
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Most importantly, the ocean. The water was really warm, but I didn't get in because I'm a chicken and I don't like for weird unseen stingy things to touch me. Below, Andrew and I are posing with the ocean to prove we were actually there. <br />
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And in goes Andrew :)<br />
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Above is my sister and I with our semi-matching outfits. Per my dad, the economy is doing well when people wear madras. This is why he is a dentist, not a stockbroker. Below is a cute/sour face from my nephew, Landon. The two times we went out to dinner we discovered that he really likes lemons, even though they are clearly sour. <br />
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One night after dinner we went to the <a href="http://www.murrellsinletmarshwalk.com/">Marshwalk in Murrells Inlet</a>. It was new last year and word had obviously spread about how awesome this place is because it was really crowded. It's basically just a dock/walkway behind a bunch of awesome restaurants with lots of cool boats and beautiful views of the inlet. Above is me with my siblings and nephew. Below is a shot of Andrew and me at the marshwalk.<br />
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And finally, below is a cute picture of my nephew on one of his many strolls. <br />
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Again, I apologize for not taking more pictures, but we really had a great time and had a lot of fun!<br />
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On a different note, today Andrew and I are celebrating our THIRD anniversary! Talk about time flying by! It has been a great three years. We've had a lot of fun together and we have definitely grown closer. Being married rocks :)<br />
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To "celebrate" I took the day off so that we could spend a little more time together. We didn't do anything super exciting, since we had sort of decided to count<a href="http://hartmanshighlightreel.blogspot.com/2011/05/holden-beach.html"> our trip to Holden Beach</a> earlier this year as an "anniversary gift" to ourselves. We were going to do something outside today, but it was almost 100 degrees outside so we went to a new self-serve frozen yogurt place downtown called <a href="http://www.frogurtusa.com/Index.asp">Frogurt</a>, then we snuggled up on the couch and watched True Grit. <br />
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A good anniversary, if you ask me. Here's to many, many more to come :)</br>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-86085718578959057102011-05-30T20:10:00.000-04:002011-05-30T20:10:11.605-04:00Memorial Day WeekendAndrew and I had an eventful yet relaxing Memorial Day weekend, and as usual, it went by way too fast. <br />
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On Friday evening we had our friends Justin and Grace over for dinner. Grace and I planned out our schedule to train for the Richmond Marathon this November. I still can't believe we're going to run 26.2 miles! <br />
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On Saturday morning I ran in the Appalachian Power Festival Run 10K with Grace. It was my first 10K race, and I did great! If you want to read more about it, check out my other blog, <a href="http://www.therunningcook.blogspot.com/">The Running Cook</a>, by clicking <a href="http://therunningcook.blogspot.com/2011/05/appalachian-power-festival-run-10k-race.html">here</a>. <br />
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After the race, Andrew went for a bike ride on the Parkway while I went grocery shopping. I went to the pool for the first time of the season in the afternoon. Unfortunately, the water is still a little too cold for swimming! <br />
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On Saturday evening we met up with our friends Kendra and Derek for a Salem Red Sox baseball game. It was our first baseball game of the season. Andrew had gotten two teacher appreciation tickets through school, so we got to enjoy the game for free. The Sox lost the game, but at least they shot off some fireworks after the game!<br />
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After the game we were craving some ice cream...so we went to go check out Scott & Ellie's new location in Salem. Scott & Ellie's serves Homestead Creamery ice cream, which is a local creamery that makes the best ice cream I have ever tasted...no exaggeration. I had some vanilla ice cream with freshly made brownies smashed in and Andrew enjoyed some black raspberry ice cream.<br />
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On Sunday we pretty much did a whole lot of <i>nothing</i>. Andrew watched the Indy 500 and the Coca-Cola 600. For dinner Andrew made some steaks on the grill (first time!).<br />
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The meal was made complete with a baked potato and green beans.<br />
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While I was waiting on dinner to be done, I took a picture of our pretty wildflowers. <br />
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This morning Andrew went riding while I went running. We didn't realize how hot it was going to be outside, but combined with the humidity, it was brutal. It really knocked the energy out of us and made it hard for both of us to perform well. <br />
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I had plans to go to the pool in the afternoon, but it was just way too hot (I <i>never</i> thought I would say that it's too hot for the pool...). So we had another uneventful afternoon while dinner was cooking in the crock pot. For our Memorial Day dinner, I made pulled pork barbecue (my first time!), homemade coleslaw, corn, and juicy watermelon! I can't wait to eat these leftovers...<br />
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So that's what we did this weekend...as for James, this is what he did all weekend: <br />
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Actually, that's what he does pretty much all the time. Must be nice!<br />
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Now it's back to work for both of us, and soon Andrew will be out of school for the summer! <br/>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-26919230296598867022011-05-13T17:38:00.000-04:002011-05-13T17:38:28.319-04:00Mother's Day and Landon's DedicationLast weekend we went to visit with my sister and her family for Mother's day and Landon's dedication at their church. On Saturday afternoon we relaxed, played some yard games, and waited on dinner. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAKp5PGKOILjc7V2WiPqW25puh6rcgj9RQXyvKUx1BasHrSU4xPQbcwEodAmI_2RhmYZqY6_ztHlQ_O-EU0qoPgiA5G_pOkmk3UmUjNZODHoZIxdIXpoGIu342PvHjBaj_juxBGyJCwI/s1600/DSC00224.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEikAKp5PGKOILjc7V2WiPqW25puh6rcgj9RQXyvKUx1BasHrSU4xPQbcwEodAmI_2RhmYZqY6_ztHlQ_O-EU0qoPgiA5G_pOkmk3UmUjNZODHoZIxdIXpoGIu342PvHjBaj_juxBGyJCwI/s400/DSC00224.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">A serious game of bocce ball<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfMua_BR46wtD5T9-4qyv3hv6J_CaXCYZaoUcnGFRwZrcw4ZSCw89QHwaZOHyAqdZSahyd_BU_7kfWWK9jxaCltrNfqQe1fWjuf5mbNaaOEj_MVgv0o5B6UY65pFISFlWxaHFJZCBekr4/s1600/DSC00226.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjfMua_BR46wtD5T9-4qyv3hv6J_CaXCYZaoUcnGFRwZrcw4ZSCw89QHwaZOHyAqdZSahyd_BU_7kfWWK9jxaCltrNfqQe1fWjuf5mbNaaOEj_MVgv0o5B6UY65pFISFlWxaHFJZCBekr4/s400/DSC00226.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">Cornhole!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVg0TRYM3H1ztwxeSF5EQva314yyAObJ4aksoUcLgge6yUIxPqtR069niNcmAf7rPuFfIllJSVeXoBy-MhUtZ2YMNdqe5yn29T5rEf5xLGcipM_u95SOSMblbUztq94dtaQn4D5FkKOTY/s1600/DSC00228.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhVg0TRYM3H1ztwxeSF5EQva314yyAObJ4aksoUcLgge6yUIxPqtR069niNcmAf7rPuFfIllJSVeXoBy-MhUtZ2YMNdqe5yn29T5rEf5xLGcipM_u95SOSMblbUztq94dtaQn4D5FkKOTY/s400/DSC00228.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">wheee!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppy7k326qrzNBejPzRpU4RVs85BrWh-STRij_f-SQTzsBaNPTZby6XhHLk8IqgjYjWfKFOGt_jJqu17pdtJgndYdv1PvYid-XLElmJEjJppiEkBnazciwDsk0VJS8VoYYdFG5vovkZDQ/s1600/DSC00236.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgppy7k326qrzNBejPzRpU4RVs85BrWh-STRij_f-SQTzsBaNPTZby6XhHLk8IqgjYjWfKFOGt_jJqu17pdtJgndYdv1PvYid-XLElmJEjJppiEkBnazciwDsk0VJS8VoYYdFG5vovkZDQ/s400/DSC00236.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">mmm yummy dinner!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2rBclWWyFIivmwLr6JjglVJuu-IUhcMHL9iooJ-lJXM9BlbVGeQzZ7jeHEQvIafgf5B1At5sRR4UEGBRthmEO9yWCzHEF4otZ8eKoQYDt6HOutgRYiy3wDT1u-M-0VI99Z9MptMujlQ/s1600/DSC00237.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjS2rBclWWyFIivmwLr6JjglVJuu-IUhcMHL9iooJ-lJXM9BlbVGeQzZ7jeHEQvIafgf5B1At5sRR4UEGBRthmEO9yWCzHEF4otZ8eKoQYDt6HOutgRYiy3wDT1u-M-0VI99Z9MptMujlQ/s400/DSC00237.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">After dinner I was surprised with an early birthday celebration! My grandmother's carrot cake is THE BEST!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXGEimZlkAfA9EpA1sdLrwmHPHXbexwvp4UXI596-C6QAFaCHhwqKqZsmaqjEvWYtV8_T3R-NA023T3dt9uVwVPJKcbTrjYynI2i8q4LQdP3hQ8ZbkPwljrfe0t0zNiPBoT3P04IIqbA/s1600/DSC00239.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdXGEimZlkAfA9EpA1sdLrwmHPHXbexwvp4UXI596-C6QAFaCHhwqKqZsmaqjEvWYtV8_T3R-NA023T3dt9uVwVPJKcbTrjYynI2i8q4LQdP3hQ8ZbkPwljrfe0t0zNiPBoT3P04IIqbA/s400/DSC00239.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgczQLbSjV1ThxdLypDsoyiWy3_yXeNK7-ansfxSk3xFVFaBLwUQq_gINbI2IYACx357jI7UpXBHZw1PHErbaSrhM3eGxCnJyhGaUhj8e7RFIRZfxiQhUtONBY7oYla8gPuqPuE8H7rhE0/s1600/DSC00241.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgczQLbSjV1ThxdLypDsoyiWy3_yXeNK7-ansfxSk3xFVFaBLwUQq_gINbI2IYACx357jI7UpXBHZw1PHErbaSrhM3eGxCnJyhGaUhj8e7RFIRZfxiQhUtONBY7oYla8gPuqPuE8H7rhE0/s400/DSC00241.JPG" width="285" /></a></div><div align="left">After dinner I gave my mom her mother's day present...bullets for her new gun! Apparently Walter and Sarah got the memo too because she ended up with 3 boxes...I mean, what better mother's day present could you ask for?<br />
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On Sunday morning we all went to Sarah and Brian's church for Landon's dedication. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS8vUrQ-BImhlqYmvcvBM9i58_xdpNSnUjXYTmdSKyl6hQLsjvBW8aguHaidbObl7NAozhKUt9D9g0cl_qxAKsaKVQRHTRamwFOfhZbj2bvnzuwD1Fhc1upT0ezs1YJrREXAn9p71nM-w/s1600/DSC00249.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiS8vUrQ-BImhlqYmvcvBM9i58_xdpNSnUjXYTmdSKyl6hQLsjvBW8aguHaidbObl7NAozhKUt9D9g0cl_qxAKsaKVQRHTRamwFOfhZbj2bvnzuwD1Fhc1upT0ezs1YJrREXAn9p71nM-w/s400/DSC00249.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Afterwards we went back to their house for the celebration!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8_Oq7exUbkdmcvLbGxBPTIflHp0Dtb_QL5KYph1FKCffFpb9B3rNiCZc1kV-F8ZB_mmCoYLpXr_tqCWh3onoxH-K9OgbDlmJC9THO-3Ml1OAUOhNHp6TVTZOsTPNrEhe6yqPYDSHroI/s1600/DSC00251.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhS8_Oq7exUbkdmcvLbGxBPTIflHp0Dtb_QL5KYph1FKCffFpb9B3rNiCZc1kV-F8ZB_mmCoYLpXr_tqCWh3onoxH-K9OgbDlmJC9THO-3Ml1OAUOhNHp6TVTZOsTPNrEhe6yqPYDSHroI/s400/DSC00251.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">Landon is so cute you could just eat him up (ha!).<br />
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</div><div align="left">And last, I know this is a little late, but...<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GYpJhQiYxZlQsL8zVYYtdRdnDA5vfXWO2FEGTm39d1TO6UjcxV-ofKl-sAt7bk33SEAosuThq5ydhkmZ5DElxlikQyb4IaNhniopJ0UXnhDMzRXJA27T9grLcvqv9XKPG3cQGD4VecU/s1600/DSC00257-1.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="354" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8GYpJhQiYxZlQsL8zVYYtdRdnDA5vfXWO2FEGTm39d1TO6UjcxV-ofKl-sAt7bk33SEAosuThq5ydhkmZ5DElxlikQyb4IaNhniopJ0UXnhDMzRXJA27T9grLcvqv9XKPG3cQGD4VecU/s400/DSC00257-1.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-90738724902034033942011-05-06T16:39:00.001-04:002011-05-06T16:39:51.268-04:00A Happy/Sad Kind of DayI'll give you the sad news first...<br />
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Today I picked up my very last prescription from Lipes Pharmacy. Lipes is an independent pharmacy in the Crystal Spring neighborhood that has been open since 1929, and is now going to <a href="http://www.roanoke.com/business/wb/285279">close at the end of the month</a>. I'm really sad about this because I really love Lipes. They know my family, and they know my name when I walk in the door. Not only that, but I don't even have to tell them the name of the prescription I'm there to pick up because they remember every time. Granted I only have one prescription, but when I walk in they just ask me if I'm there to pick up "my regular". I'm really going to miss them. I got a little teary-eyed when I walked out the door, and I snapped a picture so that I could always remember them!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZnNFc0gG_EHxiJw4IQ34T-2ITJwa2N-IC_n8i6s0qG5ii6A8E6Kf0FJz_0YKs62e_md4xG_x_8Tn25tmwhNGC85hZ8crX3JFL2iADyzin2ZBuxDWeCqKcVSYfiCwk1IDaxP4wixgrMug/s1600/downsized_0506111549.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiZnNFc0gG_EHxiJw4IQ34T-2ITJwa2N-IC_n8i6s0qG5ii6A8E6Kf0FJz_0YKs62e_md4xG_x_8Tn25tmwhNGC85hZ8crX3JFL2iADyzin2ZBuxDWeCqKcVSYfiCwk1IDaxP4wixgrMug/s400/downsized_0506111549.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>I think in honor of this we should go to <a href="http://www.forkinthealley.com/">Fork in the Alley</a> and enjoy a Lipes Burger (burger topped with Tinnell's pimento cheese and a pickle!). Maybe we'll have to do just that later this month...<br />
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Alright, enough sad news. Now onto the good part! <br />
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Today during lunch, my friend from work, Kelly, walked with me to the <a href="http://www.communityschool.net/strawberry.html">Strawberry Festival</a>. We've been looking forward to getting our fill of delicious strawberry shortcake for literally 2 months now. As always, it was so good and I ate every last bit of it. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbkmZ6pimnkilfizRlkT13ys9jJeKov62qvsfa6WwFzbZmwZS12VZJDWVIGixbDwRm-Qyi5ACTJNiMxJBMhgTsj9tWLRm_Yf0H4WQNsdAYh9Y_XXEsEcTIUpVecHwg__PYrfKgUedK0JI/s1600/IMG01090-20110506-1215.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbkmZ6pimnkilfizRlkT13ys9jJeKov62qvsfa6WwFzbZmwZS12VZJDWVIGixbDwRm-Qyi5ACTJNiMxJBMhgTsj9tWLRm_Yf0H4WQNsdAYh9Y_XXEsEcTIUpVecHwg__PYrfKgUedK0JI/s400/IMG01090-20110506-1215.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1C1G9fZfMI0u0Bc3-119TBa_kngVlXY27ufzBOJ4nEBHQTEQ3UFbj7qLgPkiMXsM5N2eWYhbKggE98lmFp9mMJ0uAA1WogkG1jQ5EZvKds3Rb2b_xMCs7ep8IiAYJFOlbHgFuQgchfWg/s1600/downsized_0506111214.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1C1G9fZfMI0u0Bc3-119TBa_kngVlXY27ufzBOJ4nEBHQTEQ3UFbj7qLgPkiMXsM5N2eWYhbKggE98lmFp9mMJ0uAA1WogkG1jQ5EZvKds3Rb2b_xMCs7ep8IiAYJFOlbHgFuQgchfWg/s400/downsized_0506111214.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>If you didn't get a chance to go today, the festival is going on tomorrow from 10-4, but don't wait too late because they've run out of strawberries before (now <i>that</i> was a sad day...). While you're downtown, be sure to check out the <a href="http://www.greenvale-school.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=74&Itemid=59">Chili Cook-Off</a>, too!</br>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-2776591548973414382011-05-03T22:20:00.000-04:002011-05-03T22:20:21.309-04:00Holden BeachLast week Andrew and I had an amazing time on a week-long vacation to Holden Beach, NC. Our trip was planned somewhat last minute, but we're so glad we decided to go somewhere over Andrew's spring break instead of just staying at home. It was so wonderful to be able to get away from everything and just spend time relaxing together with few distractions. We had never been to Holden Beach before, but after last week I have a feeling we'll be back! <br />
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The weather was perfect with only two days being rainy or extremely windy, but it worked out perfectly because we went outlet shopping on the rainy day and went for a walk on the beach (making sure there weren't any tornado warnings) and watched movies inside when it was really windy. On all of the other picturesque days, we went for bike rides in the morning and in the afternoon we were on the beach reading, sleeping, or just watching the waves roll in. We went out to dinner three nights and ate in on the others. Overall I'd say it was a perfect vacation...we didn't really want to come home! <br />
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I took a ton of pictures, but they were mostly of the beautiful sunsets we witnessed nearly every night. So with no further ado, I'll let the photos roll...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFEye1s7b6qd-kBwGDr0b7d0la_TVBa9NFchpC9y6npa0mfxjSu9uqc81fLRRlkm5jH23BlIZCI4Ou-5IvGD70WoG6Q7hYGxEJJIa91n3-wdoDNSoFNyoMcyYzu_yg2_0QUVIuGd9ZImo/s1600/DSC00134.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="392" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhFEye1s7b6qd-kBwGDr0b7d0la_TVBa9NFchpC9y6npa0mfxjSu9uqc81fLRRlkm5jH23BlIZCI4Ou-5IvGD70WoG6Q7hYGxEJJIa91n3-wdoDNSoFNyoMcyYzu_yg2_0QUVIuGd9ZImo/s400/DSC00134.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>This is the house we stayed in. It was on the 2nd row (way cheaper than the ocean front homes!) so we just had to walk across the street to get to the beach! <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIq_deyfmEIG7x_weeA29VM5b3otV94k6eBdySCCl8b7umxQ-iORkDYqTIFcThnx6x7kdlmQ_E6lC5kGEoHPh9WlMzcfI-6sulX-wgMJYMlZjyD2pky-vNXA50lwGT_DB5ZHgh28o2fQo/s1600/DSC00029.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIq_deyfmEIG7x_weeA29VM5b3otV94k6eBdySCCl8b7umxQ-iORkDYqTIFcThnx6x7kdlmQ_E6lC5kGEoHPh9WlMzcfI-6sulX-wgMJYMlZjyD2pky-vNXA50lwGT_DB5ZHgh28o2fQo/s400/DSC00029.JPG" width="300" /></a></div>Even though we weren't right on the ocean, we still had a little bit of a view from the upstairs. We ate breakfast and drank coffee out on the front deck in the mornings.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglV1F2c4LKlDE_CqRKecmJYEB2wT68p0M6NJqig54nA0IRDhdUA_s7KLHYVeKkceXK5f3Eno4F9TnEmQzs1WicGaWz7l8mHHYkMgj5_PIO_AffedIOO8_IbEFpdC6GJCVQyFNGhrwUjSo/s1600/DSC00195.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglV1F2c4LKlDE_CqRKecmJYEB2wT68p0M6NJqig54nA0IRDhdUA_s7KLHYVeKkceXK5f3Eno4F9TnEmQzs1WicGaWz7l8mHHYkMgj5_PIO_AffedIOO8_IbEFpdC6GJCVQyFNGhrwUjSo/s400/DSC00195.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>One of the things I really loved about the house was all of the windows upstairs displaying the beautiful views in the front and the back. Behind the house was a marshy area and the intracoastal waterway, so even with all of the windows it was still pretty private. The picture above is from the kitchen...I would just LOVE to have a view like that from my kitchen at home!<br />
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Now onto the many beautiful sunsets...these first few are of the sun setting over the intracoastal waterway.<br />
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We even got a beautiful rainbow and sunset on the rainy day.<br />
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And here are a few more pictures of the beach in the late afternoon.<br />
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Besides shrimp, I'm not a huge fan of seafood, so of course Andrew was really excited that he got to eat his fill during the week!<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFWe6z3Drk3Rs_sGvx8kwcB63_dUZ79nwEgAYwgmVaBfcroLwJM9b0LAEPsHkKZV7adzBji0tafn66x6PeJ35gOr53liwcpQy7gRDiMAlwXif_aNQYukdqeqUAdLo4EglQ5ZsUs3Zd6c/s1600/DSC00082.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcFWe6z3Drk3Rs_sGvx8kwcB63_dUZ79nwEgAYwgmVaBfcroLwJM9b0LAEPsHkKZV7adzBji0tafn66x6PeJ35gOr53liwcpQy7gRDiMAlwXif_aNQYukdqeqUAdLo4EglQ5ZsUs3Zd6c/s400/DSC00082.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center"><a href="http://www.becksrestaurant.com/">Becks</a>!! (somewhat of a Sharpley family tradition/novelty)<br />
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</div><div align="left">I enjoyed some shrimp with a delicious pasta from <a href="http://sharkysoceanisle.com/">Sharky's</a> in Ocean Isle.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOaVhuJCgYmicsQooz9ovb1ZHo3UcrUjREE1gTK_rbXOUZkkei1sasjZR2XeoXCCuitjAHQTPWVHNJBJ5ABZf0GBcuE84QIc0HlVX3RS9FzNV3Iv0ZXqj36s56dcMSg3jnPCAj6HeLVa4/s1600/DSC00121.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOaVhuJCgYmicsQooz9ovb1ZHo3UcrUjREE1gTK_rbXOUZkkei1sasjZR2XeoXCCuitjAHQTPWVHNJBJ5ABZf0GBcuE84QIc0HlVX3RS9FzNV3Iv0ZXqj36s56dcMSg3jnPCAj6HeLVa4/s400/DSC00121.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjakmthobXiyUm8qI6BT619nPXhZRqVdzDH0TVduY168InGuCKVUqfWcmTCxHtB9f_q-FZHfv0B5AL8O5oAx8qOC40fvz0h0ifH4ls0ugtWhsw7N59ioeATs5GGQX4FUZ-sVw031xMF-VA/s1600/DSC00080.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjakmthobXiyUm8qI6BT619nPXhZRqVdzDH0TVduY168InGuCKVUqfWcmTCxHtB9f_q-FZHfv0B5AL8O5oAx8qOC40fvz0h0ifH4ls0ugtWhsw7N59ioeATs5GGQX4FUZ-sVw031xMF-VA/s400/DSC00080.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">And of course, who doesn't love HUSH PUPPIES!?!<br />
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</div><div align="left">We also ate at <a href="http://www.inletview.com/main.asp">Inlet View Bar & Grill</a> (no food pictures, sorry!) and I enjoyed a delicious grilled shrimp burger and Andrew had yet another seafood platter!<br />
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Now onto a few pictures of us...<br />
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The island was great for bike rides in the morning.<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQMFElyLMWnmZh0kFvm4LDQP53hVTIZyE20zuQCvzi6OdBZHQvtobaMdMOrl_ogH5nf8A7uRiokt_DrHMe7e4l9MZWZfTnDvO9hCbXKoxmW6taFpmW1Vz343UD4VA_cnD_MfgBmN0nRr0/s1600/DSC00129.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQMFElyLMWnmZh0kFvm4LDQP53hVTIZyE20zuQCvzi6OdBZHQvtobaMdMOrl_ogH5nf8A7uRiokt_DrHMe7e4l9MZWZfTnDvO9hCbXKoxmW6taFpmW1Vz343UD4VA_cnD_MfgBmN0nRr0/s400/DSC00129.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7KSfqwTsaMRU9pm8WPp41LkekrumzOc4sK910dbjZNJjAYR1UbbDz28rstelWceQxnHBBQ2S-Ope_8PRhWoiHJqt3OQ0-8IGY0hu4XhH_T1zvPK8Hli7jWeMko8hiiw2q9f1M7AnkBI/s1600/DSC00079.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgs7KSfqwTsaMRU9pm8WPp41LkekrumzOc4sK910dbjZNJjAYR1UbbDz28rstelWceQxnHBBQ2S-Ope_8PRhWoiHJqt3OQ0-8IGY0hu4XhH_T1zvPK8Hli7jWeMko8hiiw2q9f1M7AnkBI/s400/DSC00079.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
There was a pier about a mile away so we walked to it when it was too windy to sit out on the beach.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSLprYEwTfSjrZkc7Cmf7vu2AKQx0NfwPaaWWE94nTpeqgvo43fQ275Sy5rWFt4fFkDNdLL42_jVayqCJWmiXcRFbL7Re2-4bpe6v-F88cd98BxKD1k3Ldr2ZmlGXv3hswovbsqtVwXYM/s1600/DSC00126.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSLprYEwTfSjrZkc7Cmf7vu2AKQx0NfwPaaWWE94nTpeqgvo43fQ275Sy5rWFt4fFkDNdLL42_jVayqCJWmiXcRFbL7Re2-4bpe6v-F88cd98BxKD1k3Ldr2ZmlGXv3hswovbsqtVwXYM/s400/DSC00126.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjioKQPRNlAS_1Ww3xFQWVP9xuKzYQVznPya7ouSQvx3SMyxRsFek96TcWo0oRT5j8s9L52gUQ01k1_hGqG910vkNuLEBql1-snGPn4-N6fkl17ARnJPlPdsrZX16-_mw6TDpyzUBzI_5M/s1600/DSC00125.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjioKQPRNlAS_1Ww3xFQWVP9xuKzYQVznPya7ouSQvx3SMyxRsFek96TcWo0oRT5j8s9L52gUQ01k1_hGqG910vkNuLEBql1-snGPn4-N6fkl17ARnJPlPdsrZX16-_mw6TDpyzUBzI_5M/s400/DSC00125.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQwcQ_ODZCSetrwbPKn2nxljz1bnHjeLH4buCCdBQnr6IdleLOrgszd0GUc8BjbsqhC06HvJJIFPOH187NwhzHbOxciG8I8yCFZcbJ9ROXsoiypYb7qU696eXn4lqw1UzluT35FpCrBU/s1600/DSC00146.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWQwcQ_ODZCSetrwbPKn2nxljz1bnHjeLH4buCCdBQnr6IdleLOrgszd0GUc8BjbsqhC06HvJJIFPOH187NwhzHbOxciG8I8yCFZcbJ9ROXsoiypYb7qU696eXn4lqw1UzluT35FpCrBU/s400/DSC00146.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div align="center">Gettin' our beach on!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJJEFlgJVIp5WOp4vbnHOPwRIU_uTp6JCNjttj1qcU94RkAflvGsWiKBNLQnN7m8ZcgBM3st6pZ0MOyTuhJmn2SbWtupOGaEH0rCTWQE2jDZd8GKAAsBOIZT7f_N2dR5BTZz-sbGQT8o/s1600/DSC00153.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpJJEFlgJVIp5WOp4vbnHOPwRIU_uTp6JCNjttj1qcU94RkAflvGsWiKBNLQnN7m8ZcgBM3st6pZ0MOyTuhJmn2SbWtupOGaEH0rCTWQE2jDZd8GKAAsBOIZT7f_N2dR5BTZz-sbGQT8o/s400/DSC00153.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div align="center">On the back deck<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4qfBt9HOGnZn_2fC224d6DzgjRzvHoANt6UNW6ZmCAnYFaVPRy-5ZNerDhS1F21GHhZV5_z5r8LMyk3qdpITuVa39dSoQ2mGrSqZGukd0Xr78DtzfZ9EcIdS0GuFfa7OiNPOtDEzG0Zc/s1600/DSC00173.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4qfBt9HOGnZn_2fC224d6DzgjRzvHoANt6UNW6ZmCAnYFaVPRy-5ZNerDhS1F21GHhZV5_z5r8LMyk3qdpITuVa39dSoQ2mGrSqZGukd0Xr78DtzfZ9EcIdS0GuFfa7OiNPOtDEzG0Zc/s400/DSC00173.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">Trying to get some photos worthy of the Christmas card...<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwgpzCEMVYDf6cG3r-HlrIhGPrPvm02-VnpALRwLP_8VfHPy3ufG72_zzp9QKek5RANE6lenatYTJTPc_S_wGy_CKrEQwEaTG24wPBESZ8z_ERJ0Rvj_AZ8xksWD4ZXYj-WhUEpldL9hI/s1600/DSC00183.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwgpzCEMVYDf6cG3r-HlrIhGPrPvm02-VnpALRwLP_8VfHPy3ufG72_zzp9QKek5RANE6lenatYTJTPc_S_wGy_CKrEQwEaTG24wPBESZ8z_ERJ0Rvj_AZ8xksWD4ZXYj-WhUEpldL9hI/s400/DSC00183.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><br />
And a few more random ones...<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicerL0nIALDnFeMu3kojEzR2JqeamaM3ldy-ThA6rAGqIiSm9tGQ93tK-PwQCEJkKtW7KTh1FSKkSYDJ1Zww2aPJrEf4GFpbm69cwkEEtQaN79uwZB-IrYJzofX-fHgT1t1ekXzOC1h0o/s1600/DSC00033.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicerL0nIALDnFeMu3kojEzR2JqeamaM3ldy-ThA6rAGqIiSm9tGQ93tK-PwQCEJkKtW7KTh1FSKkSYDJ1Zww2aPJrEf4GFpbm69cwkEEtQaN79uwZB-IrYJzofX-fHgT1t1ekXzOC1h0o/s400/DSC00033.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">Boats in the intracoastal waterway<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivcVrdXLhx5Px6HT2CJMDuNCsfHj7acYhziOzjj3wRihtWETeweGy-iuN7X40S1D1flvnt03Y58k7L5KERhrBJtL6iBCkQLXEpmhKU8DOMP8xe6GiZJGufpzG6dODNKJTb75Jz1e9M8dc/s1600/DSC00198.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEivcVrdXLhx5Px6HT2CJMDuNCsfHj7acYhziOzjj3wRihtWETeweGy-iuN7X40S1D1flvnt03Y58k7L5KERhrBJtL6iBCkQLXEpmhKU8DOMP8xe6GiZJGufpzG6dODNKJTb75Jz1e9M8dc/s400/DSC00198.JPG" width="266" /></a></div><div align="center">A cute little house!<br />
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</div><div align="left">And this ends the slide show of our vacation. As you can see we didn't do way too much, but that's exactly the way we wanted it to be. Holden Beach is a beautiful place and we really enjoyed it. Although we didn't want to leave, we came home relaxed and refreshed...and looking forward to going back again!<br />
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</div>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-8427902353104985282011-04-22T09:16:00.000-04:002011-04-22T09:16:16.386-04:00Nice Weeds!A few weeks ago I updated my Facebook status to something about how I was a little disappointed that the landscaping crew hadn't hit our garden of weeds in the back yard when they mowed the grass for the first time of the season. I publicly admitted that my gardening skills were inadequate and that I was a little upset that I hadn’t inherited my mom’s and grandmother’s green thumbs. <br />
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This unfortunate fact was only further confirmed a week or so later when my weeds started getting these beautiful orange flowers on them, and I realized that these weeds were in fact my wildflowers coming back to life from last year (I obviously didn’t have faith in the “perennial” that was on the box of seeds). There are definitely some weeds in my garden, but obviously I have no idea how to discern a weed from a wildflower.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg4yDfpBzLVyeqF9hBJ4JdzClNDwF9WHNYXfWGmyAtwP33O9Msvuh98-1whyphenhyphen0e36QPRweXOgKfwYnIzgIvddEDgUl-uWQCAtja7uSpL4s1XRcSZEeQ_gN3C3Yh8SpqBexuOzRvbUiclGk/s1600/DSC09986.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjg4yDfpBzLVyeqF9hBJ4JdzClNDwF9WHNYXfWGmyAtwP33O9Msvuh98-1whyphenhyphen0e36QPRweXOgKfwYnIzgIvddEDgUl-uWQCAtja7uSpL4s1XRcSZEeQ_gN3C3Yh8SpqBexuOzRvbUiclGk/s400/DSC09986.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvD4f4WTPas0L2Fo91KT9s9MyECz4z99nQojpHujYYabxDkwDxgIAZM9jGr702mkk4RmD_5Mb5Tim_mT1ZRQcLTqw9aSYOC8B9sLiFf1RzOp6zn8aZrT43ysy0VPLdn6zXBbU2d85oZY/s1600/DSC09991.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="300" width="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDvD4f4WTPas0L2Fo91KT9s9MyECz4z99nQojpHujYYabxDkwDxgIAZM9jGr702mkk4RmD_5Mb5Tim_mT1ZRQcLTqw9aSYOC8B9sLiFf1RzOp6zn8aZrT43ysy0VPLdn6zXBbU2d85oZY/s400/DSC09991.JPG" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SDmUvxViec-RqwgBuHxR9QDMl6C9jv_vCRgLTZU2BvW9sD6H-5kBIyVyqF8dHkEGMZd-r3_9SW2lk7FP2_jmrqRJ7q8WipcuV4qFaNU6Dl32odYLeFFSutJDiMfca-tKdFi7mbgeaBI/s1600/DSC09990.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left:1em; margin-right:1em"><img border="0" height="400" width="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1SDmUvxViec-RqwgBuHxR9QDMl6C9jv_vCRgLTZU2BvW9sD6H-5kBIyVyqF8dHkEGMZd-r3_9SW2lk7FP2_jmrqRJ7q8WipcuV4qFaNU6Dl32odYLeFFSutJDiMfca-tKdFi7mbgeaBI/s400/DSC09990.JPG" /></a></div>So since I was on the verge of going out and ripping up all of my wildflowers thinking that they were weeds, I think I’ll just accept my own gardening ignorance and let them just try to live together…Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-12113767606548302011-04-18T16:40:00.000-04:002011-04-18T16:40:11.419-04:00The Running CookThis is just a quick post to let everyone know that I now have another blog in addition to this one. I would like to officially introduce you to The Running Cook.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinhpx11XLl39-l3xlvUN5C4Hz0CPvLt9L7XfpIxPgfb4IKfSv5rGYFhZ7L7-4JsvVBUG2qUp6EdeqrFPh0LbPy0MpxKvAm1M2b9iROdoScJRx_a-nJU73hNAYJymHd62Cc_vU_Loi_jhg/s1600/Untitled.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="143" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinhpx11XLl39-l3xlvUN5C4Hz0CPvLt9L7XfpIxPgfb4IKfSv5rGYFhZ7L7-4JsvVBUG2qUp6EdeqrFPh0LbPy0MpxKvAm1M2b9iROdoScJRx_a-nJU73hNAYJymHd62Cc_vU_Loi_jhg/s400/Untitled.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
As you can probably tell from the title, the blog will be about all of my running as well as any good recipes that I try and would like to share. Yes, I will still continue to post on this blog, but it will be more about things that Andrew and I do together and to keep you updated about our lives as a couple, which was the original intention of the blog anyways. For some reason I just felt like I needed to separate the two in case readers didn't really care to hear about me running 9 minute miles and <a href="http://www.runnersworld.com/article/0,7120,s6-238-267--1047-0,00.html">improving my VO2 max</a> or something.<br />
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Posts from The Running Cook will not be automatically e-mailed out to everyone, so you will actually have to visit the website (<a href="http://therunningcook.blogspot.com/">www.therunningcook.blogspot.com</a>) to get updates. However, when I run a race or if I share a particularly amazing recipe, I will put a link to it on here so that you'll know it's there. So if you're a follower now, be sure to click on over to that blog and follow me there, too!</br>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-27811205854931066952011-04-17T17:39:00.000-04:002011-04-17T17:39:08.014-04:00An Epic DayYesterday was quite an eventful and epic day. <br />
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My morning started at 4:15 AM as I woke up to get ready for the Blue Ridge Half Marathon. I was more nervous than usual about it, not only because of the difficulty of the race, but the uncertainties involving the weather. Perhaps I should say that one thing was actually certain. It was going to rain. A lot. What I didn't know was how it could impact the race. If severe storms rolled through, they could call the race off and I might not get to finish. I didn't know quite what to wear because I wasn't sure whether I'd be cold or hot. I wasn't sure how my feet would do being wet the whole time. And what if I panicked again about getting through the porta potty line before the race started?!? So with all of this going through my head, it's no surprise that I think I only got about 4 hours of sleep the night before. Even though I knew I was physically ready for the race, I was still nervous. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNSO5B40AxOpbNJnjVqsCVLWJCvPUNnRaLJXDU4Ybrx2Gb8rYHlR8XPS-JJNA8mat8duuUl20LOLq62tbVHhrBItWUiEou0ZBbmwEcxNuKXHlta7sasyoaOxyiM6emGJ32tOuioOsXa2Q/s1600/DSC09871.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNSO5B40AxOpbNJnjVqsCVLWJCvPUNnRaLJXDU4Ybrx2Gb8rYHlR8XPS-JJNA8mat8duuUl20LOLq62tbVHhrBItWUiEou0ZBbmwEcxNuKXHlta7sasyoaOxyiM6emGJ32tOuioOsXa2Q/s400/DSC09871.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">"lucky" bib number!<br />
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</div><div align="left">So, fast forward a few hours to 7:30 and, after going through the porta potty line THREE times, we were standing in the rain ready to go. The beginning of the race is probably one of the most exciting times because it is a united atmosphere of nervous energy. Everyone stayed pretty close for the first mile until we hit Mill Mountain, then we all started to space out more and more for the rest of the race. I am definitely glad to have been running with someone, because there were some points along the course where it could have gotten really lonely, especially with the rain. We tackled the mountain fairly well and we were relieved once we knew we had gotten that over with. The rest of the course did contain some minor hills, but nothing compared to Mill Mountain. <br />
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One of the things that made this race so bearable in the pouring rain was all of the wonderful spectators (to include my amazing family) and volunteers who stood out in the rain supporting us. I tried to say thank you as we passed each volunteer and spectator cheering us on without even knowing us, but I will say it again: THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMYfWRhR1Tbw_bLjqQmIBHDgz75ApInmVvIFo1XDVu77Wj86UDwNnzed7U07f7AlyWFRWZuct2LKd1QLhtPwEZkPWVpFH3dsBZd1xIR7ncDYCyAIWrOe1q2ZjMvk8MqR8vyaFXATTGYAw/s1600/DSC09877.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMYfWRhR1Tbw_bLjqQmIBHDgz75ApInmVvIFo1XDVu77Wj86UDwNnzed7U07f7AlyWFRWZuct2LKd1QLhtPwEZkPWVpFH3dsBZd1xIR7ncDYCyAIWrOe1q2ZjMvk8MqR8vyaFXATTGYAw/s400/DSC09877.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div align="center">Running in the rain!<br />
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</div><div align="left">We took some walking breaks throughout our run as we had planned, and we finished with an amazing time. Our goal was to finish the race in around 2:20, but our chip time was a little under 2:15! We were definitely very excited about our performance because it was obvious to us that all of our training had paid off! <br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLbVO_xGlnilel1b_YNNN2_0M3Yuo15ZrIJPOBDILjms4w-tm18IDWVTAqBenVXp2k_CZbxvHq88-JIrkxiNOdHw2O7a68QeC5YgGDpM89Exu5O9JjXng4bot4AgIMpVuZ6yFwt4XFE3s/s1600/DSC09887.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLbVO_xGlnilel1b_YNNN2_0M3Yuo15ZrIJPOBDILjms4w-tm18IDWVTAqBenVXp2k_CZbxvHq88-JIrkxiNOdHw2O7a68QeC5YgGDpM89Exu5O9JjXng4bot4AgIMpVuZ6yFwt4XFE3s/s400/DSC09887.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div align="center">Coming across the finish line<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsUdbLZ3YsqMfuwfsQ359p-wou8BG7AYjGF08M-0sOdNUvj1XBQT4IDk3x9KhgPw5faEtvXifaxljUrSG0vWSYg-CVkcEvwVdrkDte7ecapy5GCKUyyMO4JgLPWi2RvDG3Fja9evXDH9w/s1600/DSC09889.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsUdbLZ3YsqMfuwfsQ359p-wou8BG7AYjGF08M-0sOdNUvj1XBQT4IDk3x9KhgPw5faEtvXifaxljUrSG0vWSYg-CVkcEvwVdrkDte7ecapy5GCKUyyMO4JgLPWi2RvDG3Fja9evXDH9w/s400/DSC09889.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">Me with my training partner, Grace<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2CvpktvT7QzrmbiBHtoTt4WwghhnLdtj4lvzI9oNz_MEsRq4gzwV9wFx1cOoxPBn23t712PQL1ydGtGic56Gmu-3nJeC7arG4VctPHU4-jCZGK2QgjZbzq-yDINsccrKOMQSXRV6qvM/s1600/DSC09890.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir2CvpktvT7QzrmbiBHtoTt4WwghhnLdtj4lvzI9oNz_MEsRq4gzwV9wFx1cOoxPBn23t712PQL1ydGtGic56Gmu-3nJeC7arG4VctPHU4-jCZGK2QgjZbzq-yDINsccrKOMQSXRV6qvM/s400/DSC09890.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div align="center">Me with my brother, Walter (who also ran the race and finished in 1:48!)<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Mqg578S4OVQI3fzblpdRP6iMJQKqcx8fc1ha_AyOalw8L0_w5aGV7QVHZnwFPZW7FgMHQK_zPyAJ4gu4MXXXC9mUtnW3T7ogiKMNNUAYB0TPb0yzjzGyPw0xyUprjzpHwaboAxKCNII/s1600/DSC09985.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4Mqg578S4OVQI3fzblpdRP6iMJQKqcx8fc1ha_AyOalw8L0_w5aGV7QVHZnwFPZW7FgMHQK_zPyAJ4gu4MXXXC9mUtnW3T7ogiKMNNUAYB0TPb0yzjzGyPw0xyUprjzpHwaboAxKCNII/s400/DSC09985.JPG" width="300" /></a></div><div align="center">Awesome finisher medal!<br />
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</div><div align="left">Normally I would have loved to stick around and cheer on other people finishing and eat my fill of delicious bagels, but it was really wet and I was starting to get cold. So we went home where I finally got warm and dry. I stretched for a little while and refueled, then enjoyed a nice nap in the afternoon. We all met for dinner at Ruby Tuesdays, then we headed downtown for the Roanoke Twilight Criterium. <br />
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We have never been to a bike race before, so it was really neat to watch, especially downtown in the dark! We watched the professional race, so they were going FAST! So fast that it was hard to get a picture of them!<br />
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</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3llCoArRZAlClNxZOCHcCBTuzarTFEz9S6iNu2A5yDeedUwbmhEKmLRcfM_g_KPtKMlzYOpvuKuy4drMTkQo_x8X-wB_srCm09SPtqCIUQxVEDuzFIK7gBC_Vavb5msuOkvyM7g_nNa0/s1600/DSC09931.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh3llCoArRZAlClNxZOCHcCBTuzarTFEz9S6iNu2A5yDeedUwbmhEKmLRcfM_g_KPtKMlzYOpvuKuy4drMTkQo_x8X-wB_srCm09SPtqCIUQxVEDuzFIK7gBC_Vavb5msuOkvyM7g_nNa0/s400/DSC09931.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizLBNxU4dbIcWxpN7GzgXVA2ABoOXk5bSBbf-DnhFU9gk7BuRJaO-wh-qIPxAAZWyUtHEzCZk1mZGpbGcM0rgHpTVTGHHolz1ZyVAMgCxzOtvaLtUGAc0txo7zOGJbs10JwDPFKebw9EI/s1600/DSC09969.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 0em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizLBNxU4dbIcWxpN7GzgXVA2ABoOXk5bSBbf-DnhFU9gk7BuRJaO-wh-qIPxAAZWyUtHEzCZk1mZGpbGcM0rgHpTVTGHHolz1ZyVAMgCxzOtvaLtUGAc0txo7zOGJbs10JwDPFKebw9EI/s400/DSC09969.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><br />
I also shot a video of the riders as they were going by (if you get our blog through e-mail, you'll have to visit the website to watch it):<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dyn0sf3_1bk_vvj4MDWUtcXv2ECqgvDY8x9SjiwyJ7D-okih9P7mNKNtzLCeFEHiJjttfPaf61jM9Ep05J49g' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div><br />
Going to the bike race was an exciting way to end a great day, but I'm definitely exhausted today! Right now we're both looking forward to being on our way to the beach in less than a week. Hopefully it will be a good change for us to just relax and have fun.Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-58785801234216554532011-03-15T16:33:00.005-04:002011-03-15T17:17:05.158-04:00Like A Kid On Christmas Morning<div>Greetings everyone. It's been quite a while since I've done a blog posting. I tell Lauren that I let her handle the blogging because, in my opinion, she does a much better job. Since this post is all about me, though, I figured I'd handle it.<br /></div><div><br /></div><div>As faithful followers of our blog know, Lauren has become quite a runner! I think it's great that she's found a hobby that lets her get outside and exercise. In fact, her enjoyment of running encouraged me to find something I could do for exercise and for some outside active fun as well. I ran track and cross country in high school and, as I like to say, that got running out of my system. I also have a knee that will hurt sometimes, so I was looking for something a little "lower impact". I've always enjoyed biking and did a lot when I was a kid, so I decided to look into that route, but with a twist. With the exception of an old Schwinn I had in middle school, I've always had mountain bikes. This time, I'm going to try out road biking.</div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div>I did research on different brands, different frame materials (aluminum, aluminum and carbon fiber, carbon fiber, titanium and carbon fiber), different components. I did some shopping and test riding at different bike stores. Yesterday I got one! A new bike for a new adventure into the world of cycling on the road!</div><div><br /></div><div> </div><div>Many of the online forums I read advised "you're new... buy used;" and so I did. I purchased a <em>very</em> gently used <a href="http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCBkModel.jsp?spid=39253">2009 Specialized Allez Sport</a>. The name is apparently French for "go". It was owned by a friend of the people at the bike store who is very meticulous with his bikes and so it was well cared for and never even ridden in the rain. In fact, they said he came in and bought a slightly lower end bike to use as his "rain bike" and couldn't even bring himself to ride that one in the rain.</div><div><br /></div><div>The people at <a href="http://www.cardinalbicycle.com/">Cardinal Bicycle</a> were very helpful in getting me a good bike and helping pick out my necessary accessories (seat bag, spare tube, mini pump, patches, tire tool, computer, and water bottle cages) and even put it all on for me while I waited. I was really pleased with the fact that they were not pushy at all. They knew I was just getting started and helped me pick what I needed for my level of experience. Unlike other bike stores, the salesman I talked to Saturday never even attempted to "close the sale". He gave me his card and told me to mention I talked to him if/when I came back. I really appreciated the fact that they recognized I was shopping around, and getting a feel for what was out there and didn't try to sell me that day.</div><div><br /></div><div>Here it is!</div><div><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA80WGEo38vvn3wnOThBi8VjRjn5ClO-Y4DW6qgJlSuDtTvTllZeqY_v1hyphenhyphentza1DJ6naQQ3EcdA4f-_6WddMNLjYZEKILo4xdGk9rBAC8Q6cTOydpIKUDpIOyHh3KJXrpL_TAZ6ZX-8GY/s1600/DSC09756.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA80WGEo38vvn3wnOThBi8VjRjn5ClO-Y4DW6qgJlSuDtTvTllZeqY_v1hyphenhyphentza1DJ6naQQ3EcdA4f-_6WddMNLjYZEKILo4xdGk9rBAC8Q6cTOydpIKUDpIOyHh3KJXrpL_TAZ6ZX-8GY/s320/DSC09756.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5584414574428037954" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq66VSoHqVAheUD8f139WMxCVZ1TcvN9Nwzv0zDLr5sNdEfX5DT_DIy7NUfmKLey996gRdsW5HwjzmYKNgEtwS2kswMZxy2iU5X1ZTlEsp58SGTVNYpb0CEmyqyU0YF83-swFejcBaXt8/s1600/DSC09755.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhq66VSoHqVAheUD8f139WMxCVZ1TcvN9Nwzv0zDLr5sNdEfX5DT_DIy7NUfmKLey996gRdsW5HwjzmYKNgEtwS2kswMZxy2iU5X1ZTlEsp58SGTVNYpb0CEmyqyU0YF83-swFejcBaXt8/s320/DSC09755.JPG" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5584414565200665010" /></a><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div></div><div>My plan is to start on the <a href="http://www.greenways.org/">Greenway</a> and in the roads around our house. My goal is to be able to ride to the top of Mill Mountain (where the giant star is) by the end of the summer. We'll see how that goes! Right now though, on this cold and rainy day in Roanoke, I am "like a kid on Christmas morning," waiting for the weather to be nice so I can go outside and ride my new bike!</div><div><br /></div>Andrewhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16426906523768299805noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-79214940703389484752011-03-14T11:05:00.000-04:002011-03-14T11:05:10.835-04:00A Taste of SpringYesterday Andrew and I got out and enjoyed the warm and sunny weather, despite my strong desire to take a nap since we lost an hour of sleep the night before (I have a bittersweet relationship with the start of Daylight Saving Time...). We decided to take a walk up the "old road" to the Mill Mountain Star. <br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMg8PpxPnjyViHSju1qdaraZhAYYyP05xZEeK2gSL_q_13-B8FrqIoR-xhkgkpOwUK1qQ8xBgyCgyYvzu3r5WujvuvDBp0h9wWfDtGjHMk_HEx1J3UlRciF0HVLc2DXHwF84Ie6e-ubhY/s1600/DSC09730.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMg8PpxPnjyViHSju1qdaraZhAYYyP05xZEeK2gSL_q_13-B8FrqIoR-xhkgkpOwUK1qQ8xBgyCgyYvzu3r5WujvuvDBp0h9wWfDtGjHMk_HEx1J3UlRciF0HVLc2DXHwF84Ie6e-ubhY/s400/DSC09730.JPG" width="360" /></a><p align="center">The old toll booth on the way up<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDDcPrkCH5EKaUeJERjOXUrD5S_7BZZ0UybHEaWp_Okr-24-QLNa7XOYzg8lBHicQzCPUukYxu4DIDn5H7qZigUBvttscQDskmxRxrLk9lExpWHEYOFIANp7ffT-Ar1IW3vpFqQHPPpd4/s1600/DSC09732.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjDDcPrkCH5EKaUeJERjOXUrD5S_7BZZ0UybHEaWp_Okr-24-QLNa7XOYzg8lBHicQzCPUukYxu4DIDn5H7qZigUBvttscQDskmxRxrLk9lExpWHEYOFIANp7ffT-Ar1IW3vpFqQHPPpd4/s400/DSC09732.JPG" width="360" /></a><p align="center">This is one of the switchbacks on the way up. It's worth mentioning that the Blue Ridge Marathon and Half Marathon courses come down the mountain this way.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbpDNsgaogg8GgOQZR25M-6coLUfZfL7fXk0_1crXR51sXxPOLg67LqRyYiqYTJgZrWksHqIpjGht998BR1hxPZfnfxuO8kGyh0nqNg8Sc_bv6GGyxlOUN3fydvbLVjry_GouIltknaAg/s1600/DSC09744.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbpDNsgaogg8GgOQZR25M-6coLUfZfL7fXk0_1crXR51sXxPOLg67LqRyYiqYTJgZrWksHqIpjGht998BR1hxPZfnfxuO8kGyh0nqNg8Sc_bv6GGyxlOUN3fydvbLVjry_GouIltknaAg/s400/DSC09744.JPG" width="360" /></a><p align=center>The view from the top!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTFeJXptRSEnQFFIdSn4CyMSIj6ckIobKAHowPQccB3pVRbR5N_iKlaXEMt5Z6Wx_GjB9plQf_tLeYoOiwhI6_sptZydsoh6MiM-mKCffK6quBeUJm9zHmjs3zTOiPUA4h3H1TI7yHTno/s1600/DSC09745.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTFeJXptRSEnQFFIdSn4CyMSIj6ckIobKAHowPQccB3pVRbR5N_iKlaXEMt5Z6Wx_GjB9plQf_tLeYoOiwhI6_sptZydsoh6MiM-mKCffK6quBeUJm9zHmjs3zTOiPUA4h3H1TI7yHTno/s400/DSC09745.JPG" width="360" /></a><p align=center>The Star (duh!)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiDmf2iUTsu47HdVylrEctRY426SN_7IlT0mEhJQfm7ZsVj1TNmAEuN9os4rsANKMx3tIm9Zfx9EjnQ8U0JDITJTSAbOaKYa2J9Sgd316J5ixpITk_d05VN-fOSKeMafhhKUQBcY266-k/s1600/DSC09748.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiDmf2iUTsu47HdVylrEctRY426SN_7IlT0mEhJQfm7ZsVj1TNmAEuN9os4rsANKMx3tIm9Zfx9EjnQ8U0JDITJTSAbOaKYa2J9Sgd316J5ixpITk_d05VN-fOSKeMafhhKUQBcY266-k/s400/DSC09748.JPG" width="270" /></a><p align=center>Me at the top!<br />
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<p align=left>I think we're both ready for spring and summer to be here and ready to spend more time doing things outdoors. So needless to say, we're hoping that this warmer weather is here to stay.Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-73560521857725111952011-03-04T06:20:00.001-05:002011-03-04T06:20:58.908-05:00It's Official: April 16, 2011 - Blue Ridge Half Marathon<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDsQcz_oEfQ7fibhyphenhyphenrHTQxzmQlCXYGXAO-qif6QbJ0DSccSLvGj1CuWOzb2XJoznfy5EDBfKo4oD-YO-Uicb3H2xLfI6FPRtiQU3ZzoTTCmhbMuNmxjcfjtO5L_3EXnADL3t7upgcxVYg/s1600/imagesCAITCD65.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580027710040695810" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDsQcz_oEfQ7fibhyphenhyphenrHTQxzmQlCXYGXAO-qif6QbJ0DSccSLvGj1CuWOzb2XJoznfy5EDBfKo4oD-YO-Uicb3H2xLfI6FPRtiQU3ZzoTTCmhbMuNmxjcfjtO5L_3EXnADL3t7upgcxVYg/s400/imagesCAITCD65.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 88px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a>It's official. I signed up for the Blue Ridge Half Marathon. Yep, that's the one that goes up Mill Mountain. If you're not super familiar with Roanoke, that's the one with the neon star on top:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8DSGFbr8D_-i7dxiiQJdjxHL19LPYPEf2v4tbWMKRkfVLhgO40112bCFEtmDGQGCKc4_1oUlSVkDl2MrKFFrhGRPgqjX6n-di-yAsf8bRNsAYnjKyTBbqQ4V9ymrKKtYDGjBoD0reG88/s1600/_K1F4834.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580030601393713698" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8DSGFbr8D_-i7dxiiQJdjxHL19LPYPEf2v4tbWMKRkfVLhgO40112bCFEtmDGQGCKc4_1oUlSVkDl2MrKFFrhGRPgqjX6n-di-yAsf8bRNsAYnjKyTBbqQ4V9ymrKKtYDGjBoD0reG88/s400/_K1F4834.jpg" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 400px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 268px;" /></a><p align="center">This is Andrew and I standing under the star (this is from our engagement session a few years ago. Don't we look tall?)<br />
<p align="left">It's also the same mountain from which you have this amazing view:<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfvybBCca-LnIbrEwdyXsYZGTGDotC3ntKybTojK88MphVPO26iEWBh6xlBtOwd51K0cW34Q1iRT7AyU9UE0ThRbnB-dA45rYTXsz10wkfWkBQ4u15FRYEiG5Nz9G7yG9RvdnTNSJFDM/s1600/DSC05071.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5580030595603018786" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjkfvybBCca-LnIbrEwdyXsYZGTGDotC3ntKybTojK88MphVPO26iEWBh6xlBtOwd51K0cW34Q1iRT7AyU9UE0ThRbnB-dA45rYTXsz10wkfWkBQ4u15FRYEiG5Nz9G7yG9RvdnTNSJFDM/s400/DSC05071.JPG" style="cursor: pointer; display: block; height: 300px; margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center; width: 400px;" /></a>You can also check out live views from the Star from the <a href="http://blueridgemarathon.com/starcam/">StarCam</a>!)<br />
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So yes, we're running up Mill Mountain. Call me crazy, but I'm really excited about this race. Training for this half marathon has also been much better because I've had a wonderful running buddy to talk to through most of my long runs and during some training throughout the week. It's amazing what a difference it makes! And I honestly have to say that I'm loving the challenge of training for this race because I know I'm pushing myself to limits that I've never pushed myself to before (specifically, running up mountains!), and in the process I know I'm making myself stronger.<br />
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Here is a little bit more about the half marathon from the race's <a href="http://blueridgemarathon.com/">website</a>:<br />
<blockquote><em>Runners will start in the heart of the city in front of the magnificent Taubman Museum of Art. The course begins easily with one mile of rolling hills, before taking its first turn upward as runners begin the two-mile climb up Mill Mountain. While full marathoners will continue on to the brutal but beautiful climb up Roanoke Mountain, half marathoners will ascend Mill Mountain to the famous Mill Mountain Star, overlooking the beautiful Roanoke Valley and — much of the course still to be run!<br />
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From the Star, runners will encounter a major 2-mile decent down Prospect Avenue – also known as the “old road” to Mill Mountain. Back on the valley floor the final seven miles is rolling with several challenging hills, but no additional significant climbs.<br />
<br />
The terrain flattens out for the next 3 miles as you emerge from the neighborhood and make your way along the Roanoke River on a portion of Roanoke’s greenway system. After a few miles on the greenway the course will head toward the finish line. The final two miles return you to downtown where the course takes you past the Virginia Museum of Transportation and back to the Taubman Museum of Art.</em></blockquote>And a video from the race's website:<br />
<p align="center"><iframe frameborder="0" height="225" src="http://player.vimeo.com/video/12566952" width="400"></iframe><br />
<p align=left>Another exciting thing about this race is that my brother will be doing it, too! But I'm sure he'll finish <em>much</em> faster than we will. Also, the route for the full marathon goes right by my parents' house. I wish we could be standing there to cheer people on, but I guess some encouraging signs will have to do. The full marathon is also "challenging" the Mount Lemmon Marathon in Tucson, AZ, which has 6,000 feet of straight climbing, for the title of "Toughest Road Marathon in the World." Some say that the Blue Ridge Marathon's 7,234 feet of elevation <em>change</em> is worse than just 6,000 feet of elevation <em>gain</em>. Apparently they are going to let the runners decide.<br />
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Personally, I'm just excited about being a part of the HALF marathon portion of what could be the World's Toughest Road Marathon.<br />
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I'll let you know how it goes!Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-60458315365228375572011-02-23T18:38:00.007-05:002011-02-23T20:50:01.305-05:00Exciting News!!No, we're not having a baby. But keep reading, I promise it's good!<br /><br />Before I let the cat out of the bag, let me just say that our exciting news is not shared out of arrogance or conceitedness, but rather so that you can share in our joy and excitement of accomplishing a goal that we've been working very hard to meet.<br /><br />As of today, with the exception of our mortgage, Andrew and I are DEBT FREE! Since April of 2009, we've been working to pay off Andrew's car payment and both of our student loans, which at that time combined to a little over <strong>$43,000</strong>.<br /><br />We decided to do this after reading Dave Ramsey's book, <em>The Total Money Makeover</em>. The "Debt Snowball" is <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/new/baby-step-2/">Baby Step 2</a> (of 7), but it's certainly the most difficult of <a href="http://www.daveramsey.com/new/baby-steps/">the 7 Baby Steps</a>. So yes, while we do have several more steps to go, we wanted to do what many other Dave Ramsey fans have done upon completing Baby Step 2. This is us shouting:<br /><br /><p align=center><span style="font-size:500%;">WE'RE <br /><br />DEBT <br /><br />FREE!!<br /></span><p align="center"><iframe style="WIDTH: 120px; HEIGHT: 240px" marginheight="0" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=theharhigree-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&asins=159555078X" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no"></iframe><br /></p>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-66083336571824940542011-02-14T21:20:00.003-05:002011-02-14T21:46:51.889-05:00The White House...In the Woods?This past weekend was my final weekend away from home. Although I have really enjoyed seeing my sister and her family each weekend, I'm <em>really</em> looking forward to being home. I've only got 3 more days of class left. I can see the light!<br /><br />This past weekend was yet another enjoyable one. On Friday night we watched <em>Conviction</em> and ate our fill of Sarah's deer chili. On Saturday we all went to the outlet mall in Leesburg. Andrew and I found a few good deals at the Gap outlet, but we really didn't find too much. <br /><br />On the way home we drove through a really nice neighborhood with ridiculously huge houses. We all found the one below to be particularly interesting. It's a scaled-down replica of the White House. I mean, really? Who does this?<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgubk6x2vd6wW2ILTD8j4rGyNvm1MCiQ5huYhQ9794vcO25PFe35Wmq7sV3WMHy-cSNFM_3bMJDs11BP1OA5pr5IMfAT3mx2-ARf3yv3-D-9qwIgWE2e6R4Ub_nH0WIGzBGh0Yt3Q4kY00/s1600/DSC09679.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgubk6x2vd6wW2ILTD8j4rGyNvm1MCiQ5huYhQ9794vcO25PFe35Wmq7sV3WMHy-cSNFM_3bMJDs11BP1OA5pr5IMfAT3mx2-ARf3yv3-D-9qwIgWE2e6R4Ub_nH0WIGzBGh0Yt3Q4kY00/s400/DSC09679.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573739782514595810" /></a>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-44152356834404132872011-02-14T21:05:00.002-05:002011-02-14T21:11:48.832-05:00To My Valentine<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGD_XPWXxJo-BSHUmtcxidNZGSkL4DSqHZt8gn8Y5ZmSsBLrwRkUUCeh7IvOiKkJuX8Fdid14DSnh6TCV5yMFdeFqb0MO2T7-na2ps4G24wQfRYLKT5URrddey0WB5-RmKNbUksmPpcwI/s1600/DSC09703.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGD_XPWXxJo-BSHUmtcxidNZGSkL4DSqHZt8gn8Y5ZmSsBLrwRkUUCeh7IvOiKkJuX8Fdid14DSnh6TCV5yMFdeFqb0MO2T7-na2ps4G24wQfRYLKT5URrddey0WB5-RmKNbUksmPpcwI/s400/DSC09703.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573732251453379522" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFk9rYAG0yhDTf7H6jWtoUer-nZknEa5o-oZf3FptHoApcDF_8_xhwAvNuKPjlnu-FaBxOZV1q1Fnso-EWfEOlCEEmr7jqHzUkcJCEYyapSvk-4lOPSDS-wjzXFyUTIA1Aqjh-cvw4g1U/s1600/DSC09704.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgFk9rYAG0yhDTf7H6jWtoUer-nZknEa5o-oZf3FptHoApcDF_8_xhwAvNuKPjlnu-FaBxOZV1q1Fnso-EWfEOlCEEmr7jqHzUkcJCEYyapSvk-4lOPSDS-wjzXFyUTIA1Aqjh-cvw4g1U/s400/DSC09704.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573732246590202146" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7eOzOBl8EPfEE1JXt0OjmNXJjWxxiAuWBFebAkXYSvQbnYbVumU2ZtJMfiB_tCpIzE_wSonZfDOsGKH9jQ6TWlIOVgifzl6Ihe7yBNe4beQtDJaQeg2mYtu5VlMefuwVJAQBrZ3oL1xI/s1600/DSC09705.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7eOzOBl8EPfEE1JXt0OjmNXJjWxxiAuWBFebAkXYSvQbnYbVumU2ZtJMfiB_tCpIzE_wSonZfDOsGKH9jQ6TWlIOVgifzl6Ihe7yBNe4beQtDJaQeg2mYtu5VlMefuwVJAQBrZ3oL1xI/s400/DSC09705.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573732243832544370" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNM4WTUKb0PXIVwDYHZawwoUzt1DFccm5KZEJZqx1ZnEl9ISlM4_UEHW_GH-YXR113eZgWtYmfM4c5NLco9-wCaVryj5nOpH8oN5SXO0oAERS1LNJPKfAn-cNwKULPdCfmebPlq4r2Dos/s1600/DSC09706.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNM4WTUKb0PXIVwDYHZawwoUzt1DFccm5KZEJZqx1ZnEl9ISlM4_UEHW_GH-YXR113eZgWtYmfM4c5NLco9-wCaVryj5nOpH8oN5SXO0oAERS1LNJPKfAn-cNwKULPdCfmebPlq4r2Dos/s400/DSC09706.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573732238513884370" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2vN2HrHCqLhDMFeul84K7l6hxjBNcCergebutk-PbR4OgEHD_cANd2pzeEn9c3CiFefITMm8Qf7Sbq94O5344_qpCP4XQFPvACbZxDvmVNjZ-x-J0-zb8I_riY-NliHXJh9KYjxBSRRE/s1600/DSC09707.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2vN2HrHCqLhDMFeul84K7l6hxjBNcCergebutk-PbR4OgEHD_cANd2pzeEn9c3CiFefITMm8Qf7Sbq94O5344_qpCP4XQFPvACbZxDvmVNjZ-x-J0-zb8I_riY-NliHXJh9KYjxBSRRE/s400/DSC09707.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5573732234571670962" /></a>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-76466463752804296432011-02-07T20:58:00.008-05:002011-02-07T22:05:20.836-05:00Deer Sightings and Our Fave CommercialsI had a case of the Mondays today so I was itching to get outside for a run after class. I went around the loop 4 times for a total of 5.3 miles. While I was running I saw at least 6 deer just prancing around like they were right at home. I tried to get a picture of 2 of them with my cell phone but the quality is pretty terrible.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGm1rnPBzxVAFWrsu-QEgaQGKvKW0SQO3-vN0kCMPTjCEzr1-Q5tQPzrnPUbXiwQkYJQ-IuXPq8tbOn855dM6L2Z0mHCPzQWmgf6rjMezDraGv_z1xjPAj8MeE1IFW14W0_5ei0aXJiIw/s1600/downsized_0207111720a.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgGm1rnPBzxVAFWrsu-QEgaQGKvKW0SQO3-vN0kCMPTjCEzr1-Q5tQPzrnPUbXiwQkYJQ-IuXPq8tbOn855dM6L2Z0mHCPzQWmgf6rjMezDraGv_z1xjPAj8MeE1IFW14W0_5ei0aXJiIw/s400/downsized_0207111720a.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5571134350832928754" /></a><br />I think these were the same deer that walked right past our classroom windows last week. What more could you expect from these crazy city deer?<br /><br />I think I watched more of the Super Bowl last night than in previous years only because I had absolutely nothing else to do. My favorite part about the Super Bowl is, of course, the commercials. I didn't catch all of them, but this one definitely made me LOL when I was sitting in my room all by myself.<br /><p align=center><iframe title="YouTube video player" width="420" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/ptrCxdj4k7Y" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><p align=left>Andrew said this one was his favorite:<br /><p align=center><iframe title="YouTube video player" width="420" height="266" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/SKL254Y_jtc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe><br /><p align=left>I'll let you decide which one you like...obviously our definitions of a "good commercial" differ greatly.<br /> <br />Only 8 more days of class! Woohoo!Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-71435505368118411762011-02-06T16:08:00.003-05:002011-02-06T16:41:54.260-05:00Sarah's BirthdayThis weekend we celebrated Sarah's 34th birthday. I once again enjoyed being away from <s>prison</s> my hotel room and staying at my sister's house. My parents and Andrew came up to visit as well. On Friday evening we ate some cake and watched <em>The Social Network</em>.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN1CULfXdKFjw6E_oG5Ns9LPiYCgA25VGfFbLoOU4w9mvg3DYt2UJ7W85hqCj4glX0__C8b6wr86oNVPUTHtneTQJKGXCQ2hBWI7rSigLBqbuQMrazyY5EbJzKH0YpuMbukfohs2OF8uk/s1600/DSC09652.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjN1CULfXdKFjw6E_oG5Ns9LPiYCgA25VGfFbLoOU4w9mvg3DYt2UJ7W85hqCj4glX0__C8b6wr86oNVPUTHtneTQJKGXCQ2hBWI7rSigLBqbuQMrazyY5EbJzKH0YpuMbukfohs2OF8uk/s400/DSC09652.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688207234416594" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT3XDFCEi8d_Po9yL49YDhqjHr-P1_v2b3tcm6zTkdDCKH69p_1wCSJtmdgagJZNs-S7ZR6RUYaKNojC8YvX1ymtxMjFS6GXniUqL0gFaHpR95Qh-2Tkp5Df-XYW3cJoekN63cWFWPVSk/s1600/DSC09657.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 299px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT3XDFCEi8d_Po9yL49YDhqjHr-P1_v2b3tcm6zTkdDCKH69p_1wCSJtmdgagJZNs-S7ZR6RUYaKNojC8YvX1ymtxMjFS6GXniUqL0gFaHpR95Qh-2Tkp5Df-XYW3cJoekN63cWFWPVSk/s400/DSC09657.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688211766689362" /></a>On Saturday we went to the mall for a little while and later we continued our tradition of going to the Japanese steakhouse for dinner (we go every year for Sarah's birthday).<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3bmUJSgsawJRusRoRMpvfswfXCpEpAB7_5uzvEx92N7WDGJo_2LsbMb6eV-ERxsdLh6wNXpnJg80w_ERncO0YBrmmDidIuYfm7YUS2shXb4sQnrUbBFi5ZlojbkKJOYkBUEN9HtRv7U/s1600/DSC09672.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih3bmUJSgsawJRusRoRMpvfswfXCpEpAB7_5uzvEx92N7WDGJo_2LsbMb6eV-ERxsdLh6wNXpnJg80w_ERncO0YBrmmDidIuYfm7YUS2shXb4sQnrUbBFi5ZlojbkKJOYkBUEN9HtRv7U/s400/DSC09672.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688617343712354" /></a>Landon did so well at the restaurant but he was a little unsure what to think of the fire. I think he was pretty mesmerized:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN10BPfUC3zTb_RWeSlr884z0pqicEh_CGZLwUjv9HLjisYSsWHW5q2pMopnNllpMSGJm1Ew7eRxR7RwRdwmzTmEwH_5GbDTsE99XBSCDZlCsPPq2N71ASCOBvqgi0aLXMU2oCae_O28E/s1600/DSC09673.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN10BPfUC3zTb_RWeSlr884z0pqicEh_CGZLwUjv9HLjisYSsWHW5q2pMopnNllpMSGJm1Ew7eRxR7RwRdwmzTmEwH_5GbDTsE99XBSCDZlCsPPq2N71ASCOBvqgi0aLXMU2oCae_O28E/s400/DSC09673.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688620703600770" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusAD_jBVWQOE-WsL_qXT7LjhVoEFgIHttBTUXoT6CUrCv-Z095JVz8LyT25_O4NUaDay4YOvsKaUsfmWyBooaDJzwsXR01AjQS6-ciYqe89U6KZ8ShmANHycfUCSXKDrvFTLLzsNEdCo/s1600/DSC09658.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjusAD_jBVWQOE-WsL_qXT7LjhVoEFgIHttBTUXoT6CUrCv-Z095JVz8LyT25_O4NUaDay4YOvsKaUsfmWyBooaDJzwsXR01AjQS6-ciYqe89U6KZ8ShmANHycfUCSXKDrvFTLLzsNEdCo/s400/DSC09658.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688220308804594" /></a><p align=center>Sarah & Brian<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKQrWvptd_atzY1hgan5JRZLpSuyCZMQ0njvrf1WPncJcAv7G8J2qadw7t_fl3zkeJmiOyUAedmObBkZsQXohOAI7PDHYfwNVFL_Oqe7zQFoGOZWF7o25Rw21YT8L-KqexDI-yeKPxBs/s1600/DSC09662.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmKQrWvptd_atzY1hgan5JRZLpSuyCZMQ0njvrf1WPncJcAv7G8J2qadw7t_fl3zkeJmiOyUAedmObBkZsQXohOAI7PDHYfwNVFL_Oqe7zQFoGOZWF7o25Rw21YT8L-KqexDI-yeKPxBs/s400/DSC09662.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688227384764674" /></a><p align=center>Mom & Dad<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0s_Bm1yguxUACn3AquIVwPrQDRDcIqmpZ4VzQxeB_KYhgrTBN7QhHvdKBTxyrUMq20hjKaeTiG0n4rpVY7fgYph5dgSsWW79hjN0SQL7ybOMRfzrivr17JUCUBFW6rvVrgglzvozEZlg/s1600/DSC09661.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0s_Bm1yguxUACn3AquIVwPrQDRDcIqmpZ4VzQxeB_KYhgrTBN7QhHvdKBTxyrUMq20hjKaeTiG0n4rpVY7fgYph5dgSsWW79hjN0SQL7ybOMRfzrivr17JUCUBFW6rvVrgglzvozEZlg/s400/DSC09661.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688224399263234" /></a><p align=center>Andrew & me<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu2CniutNLljNVWp2-swsb5FlMRgTbc3Citu7GS3i0k57CwPUD7LMcM4e7yZxd-JUGBa95fb8ITP66Vc5flHraynIwObr9AbyXnUqzmQ0jKJulacbBpSCc-FjdG9s7YOHnqyu-titOx6k/s1600/DSC09677.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgu2CniutNLljNVWp2-swsb5FlMRgTbc3Citu7GS3i0k57CwPUD7LMcM4e7yZxd-JUGBa95fb8ITP66Vc5flHraynIwObr9AbyXnUqzmQ0jKJulacbBpSCc-FjdG9s7YOHnqyu-titOx6k/s400/DSC09677.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5570688625788747394" /></a><p align=center>Sarah got to hit the gong since it was her birthday.<br /><p align=left>So now I'm back in my room trying to pass the time until dinner and the Super Bowl. Apparently they are having some sort of "party" for us here this evening. <br /><br />I'm hoping that this week will go by as quickly as last week did. I've only got one more weekend away and about two weeks (9 days) of classes left. So long for now!Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-14255407434133179022011-02-02T21:12:00.004-05:002011-02-02T22:03:40.884-05:00"It's Groundhog Day!"It's quite appropriate that I'm giving an update on Groundhog Day because I'm starting to feel like my life here is much like Phil's life in the movie Groundhog Day. Yep. It's the same thing. Over. And over. And over again. <br /><p align=center><iframe title="YouTube video player" class="youtube-player" type="text/html" width="480" height="390" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/T_yDWQsrajA" frameborder="0" allowFullScreen></iframe> <br /><p align=center>(if you get our blog through e-mail, go to the <a href="http://www.hartmanshighlightreel.blogspot.com">blog website</a> or click <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T_yDWQsrajA">here</a> to watch the video)<br /><p align=left>Today it was a little warmer and sunny outside but still a little windy. I decided to go running outside after class anyways because I realized that I haven't taken a breath of fresh air since returning on Sunday afternoon. It was very refreshing. In fact, I'm being extremely efficient right now and letting some cold fresh air into my room with the heat running. I also like to be efficient by letting the shower run as hot as possible for about 10 minutes to humidify my room because it's like the Sahara in here and I have to peel my contacts off of my eyes every night and I wake up each morning with red scratchy eyes. <br /><br />Anyways, here's a pretty picture I took while I was out running today. It was SO nice just to get out of the building for a little while. Sorry I blocked the corner of the picture with my glove...<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgZ5zExQMRIDvVGmjsg2rffKz1KVS5GS6f8ocZrETpYbzzaNHn8LignhfpbESUnRBIdBkiHLD0_g1XmKvCrVT1fTCZ6Yi3bRz04_aRHAbmXVpEFOE5AodL3snyKz-8Ibt53-vxuMuxmg/s1600/downsized_0202111659.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBgZ5zExQMRIDvVGmjsg2rffKz1KVS5GS6f8ocZrETpYbzzaNHn8LignhfpbESUnRBIdBkiHLD0_g1XmKvCrVT1fTCZ6Yi3bRz04_aRHAbmXVpEFOE5AodL3snyKz-8Ibt53-vxuMuxmg/s400/downsized_0202111659.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569288042122519538" /></a><br />This evening after dinner I was walking to another section of the building to play some ping pong. I was walking in a section that I had never been in before and I stumbled across this creepy staircase that looks like it goes on forever and ever:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMQDlMHiIYrcB7GnARvj-yELV-fFun811nl_4cVstzBVsig-fO9Ca0q7md76OGayBoOho7I1Cc6dY0lZMLVz1-q9AtDU1JK7EiHViUpq-S2XOtzwJ5wwZKjE1bat2gYuixQY9VYTbOJUU/s1600/0202111916.jpg"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMQDlMHiIYrcB7GnARvj-yELV-fFun811nl_4cVstzBVsig-fO9Ca0q7md76OGayBoOho7I1Cc6dY0lZMLVz1-q9AtDU1JK7EiHViUpq-S2XOtzwJ5wwZKjE1bat2gYuixQY9VYTbOJUU/s400/0202111916.jpg" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5569288050158545970" /></a><br />This picture is pretty much the epitome of this facility. There's so much concrete everywhere and it just doesn't make sense. <br /><br />The food this week has been sub par compared to the first week. But the word on the street is that there will be another 900 people here next week (the VA is currently the only resident) so the food should get better. <br /><br />I'm looking forward to seeing my family again this weekend. This time we'll be celebrating my sister's birthday so I'm sure it will be a good time. After that I will only have 2 more weeks left! Yay!Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-91288695697138412282011-01-30T16:58:00.003-05:002011-01-30T17:32:46.917-05:00First Weekend AwayThis weekend I got to take a much needed break from where I'm staying. Andrew drove up and we met at my sister's house, which about 40 minutes away from here. It was so great to get away and visit with my family. On Friday we watched a movie and relaxed. On Saturday I did my long run outside (thank goodness I didn't have to do it on the treadmill!), then Andrew and I went out to Panera for lunch and went to Target. Before coming back today we went out to lunch with Sarah, Brian, and Landon. I brought Andrew back to see my accommodations (he said it's obvious that their decorating style is "former soviet republic"), then he headed back to Roanoke. Now I'm all unpacked and ready to begin week #2. I hate to wish my life away, but I hope it goes by as quickly as last week did. <br /><br />Here are some pictures from this weekend:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwSg6T42OjrkaPY5HNjV15S9YeEx68nsOwnFcPHQ8vGz_jeyeoLit3PAux6kEaviOpHJESz2N8-4aX9ckG5fEHIPVvw3b05NOUEbLsdfEZNbrUii-dNyKmCPP04ak3uowEQ2eH-1fitRA/s1600/DSC09624.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 400px; height: 267px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwSg6T42OjrkaPY5HNjV15S9YeEx68nsOwnFcPHQ8vGz_jeyeoLit3PAux6kEaviOpHJESz2N8-4aX9ckG5fEHIPVvw3b05NOUEbLsdfEZNbrUii-dNyKmCPP04ak3uowEQ2eH-1fitRA/s400/DSC09624.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568107492765906450" /></a><p align=center>Sarah and me with Landon<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIRzePLJkRp-Q9bwfr5V4RVgLp_XC5wTi2nQDvpVRfR8gKYTWLC5EUzu_AAM4pSABjqMoxGR8YINcoZO-Ow58q6hltE04-3NPzG61aPdF4bnr7oQakq7d2CZFUCDXMcz51XoiCFl65Vhc/s1600/DSC09643.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 267px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIRzePLJkRp-Q9bwfr5V4RVgLp_XC5wTi2nQDvpVRfR8gKYTWLC5EUzu_AAM4pSABjqMoxGR8YINcoZO-Ow58q6hltE04-3NPzG61aPdF4bnr7oQakq7d2CZFUCDXMcz51XoiCFl65Vhc/s400/DSC09643.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568107507066126946" /></a><p align=center>Andrew playing with Landon...they were buds.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgliURBLkxZVonUweNzvo5xWaBm_DqE441lVYhfP52BzS3XjHI_uHZL5BUl-2zo7wHdVyYv_3QiWifPTCl057Y67nJHUKSsL-TorLAdmxaDHI2m7lBnuVV2qph0y_ouj5jopBWsDR4oFvI/s1600/DSC09622.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgliURBLkxZVonUweNzvo5xWaBm_DqE441lVYhfP52BzS3XjHI_uHZL5BUl-2zo7wHdVyYv_3QiWifPTCl057Y67nJHUKSsL-TorLAdmxaDHI2m7lBnuVV2qph0y_ouj5jopBWsDR4oFvI/s400/DSC09622.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568107489870067922" /></a><p align=center>Andrew helping Landon learn to walk<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF0i2LgTt32hf7ymhXGnOSMQKs47DxsMT4vmeCMNS9c6TzHGrA1qNsaZUEQIfRbT86Rr6etqdMSlOoQ9yAAkTrqGyknB6RktyMWbioSx1E6ZPlVBDDeHP4gK5urYl6Fr4W21rfNE7to38/s1600/DSC09644.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiF0i2LgTt32hf7ymhXGnOSMQKs47DxsMT4vmeCMNS9c6TzHGrA1qNsaZUEQIfRbT86Rr6etqdMSlOoQ9yAAkTrqGyknB6RktyMWbioSx1E6ZPlVBDDeHP4gK5urYl6Fr4W21rfNE7to38/s400/DSC09644.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568107512768352226" /></a><p align=center>Me and Landon<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioCq4a519jgwmOLbDacwpLdhyphenhyphenY4Rrv1wIxwhebJq_8F6qASZZaztfclwLwBSohbE8D1gRfqb6RFuVMA0davxb8lrefU89FuyAhYoALgkoS-FNwcKXsUb3jzf4rdZ-Ykm3essGk7ue6h5s/s1600/DSC09636.JPG"><img style="display:block; margin:0px auto 10px; text-align:center;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEioCq4a519jgwmOLbDacwpLdhyphenhyphenY4Rrv1wIxwhebJq_8F6qASZZaztfclwLwBSohbE8D1gRfqb6RFuVMA0davxb8lrefU89FuyAhYoALgkoS-FNwcKXsUb3jzf4rdZ-Ykm3essGk7ue6h5s/s400/DSC09636.JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5568107501806519794" /></a><p align=center>Landon playing with his tractor<br /><br /><p align=left>I'm SO SO SO thankful for Sarah opening up her home to us for a relaxing weekend. I have the best sissy :) <br /><br />Well that's all for now...I'll be off to dinner here in a little while.Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-8098840062965168362011-01-27T21:51:00.003-05:002011-01-27T21:59:06.104-05:00Thank Goodness I Drive a JeepThis afternoon I took the shuttle out to the parking lot with a few of my friends so that we could clean off our cars. Most of the parking lot wasn't plowed and if you were parked on a row that did get plowed, your car got plowed in. Just like I did:<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6518KGZVo0rBAMDN7nPKvSY4uIzy0omYifi1onyVOM2XW1UOoD239d76P1hm4eqhfTECnBsSd_oWsORVvh6HhIqcl04ajYOaCqQgVFY8YPRedJCqm6Na17w4026xwOV_tZmGhj2h6VFY/s1600/0127111711.jpg"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5567065054762742978" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj6518KGZVo0rBAMDN7nPKvSY4uIzy0omYifi1onyVOM2XW1UOoD239d76P1hm4eqhfTECnBsSd_oWsORVvh6HhIqcl04ajYOaCqQgVFY8YPRedJCqm6Na17w4026xwOV_tZmGhj2h6VFY/s400/0127111711.jpg" /></a><br />WOMP. <br /><br />I got all of the snow off and made a path so that I could get out tomorrow afternoon. My sister has been gracious enough to let me stay at her house and Andrew is coming up to visit, too! <br /><br />Even more good news: I actually learned something new today!!Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-45408954550977124882011-01-26T20:47:00.003-05:002011-01-26T22:00:19.944-05:00Day Two Brings Snow2 days down, 16 to go.<br /><br />Today's class was once again a review of things I already knew. You have no idea how hard it is to stay awake and pay attention for 8 hours while listening to something you already know. Thank goodness for coffee. It's also frustrating that not everybody has the same experience or pre-requisite training. So while I understand everything we're going over, some people don't. And so as not to comfuse anyone, whenever we ask questions about a more complex subject we're told that "we aren't going to go over that here...you'll learn that when you get back home...". Really? I don't understand why I'm here then. But I must remind myself that it's only the second day, so hopefully I will learn something in the next 16 days of class. Okay - enough complaining.<br /><br />Wait...no, I lied. I have one more thing to complain about. Today I went to the fitness center because I couldn't run outside due to the snow. I had to run on the treadmill that was one foot away from a white wall because all of the others were taken. It was the most boring 40 minutes of my life. I thought about trying to pretend that I was outside in the snow (with the white and all), but it just wasn't working. The only thing saving me from insanity was my iPod shuffle (thanks to my wonderful hubby who gave it to me for Christmas).<br /><br />Okay, enough negativity. Dinner tonight was good. Also, it snowed! Some people would say this is a bad thing, but I really love the snow. It's so pretty. One advantage of being here is that we don't have to go outside to get anywhere, which is great since it's cold and snowy. I just looked out my window and I think we have about 5 inches. It's dark though so I can't really tell.<br /><br />I'll leave you with a picture I took earlier this afternoon of the nice view out of my room window. When it's clear you can see alot farther, but the snow is pretty too.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt4yGD0mB51drl5ChjPD-gFaPy_KWwzd5Dedh6eOm4iZPbB0TE4-3y3JyrU4BL4-uOoKgVGqQ4CfdavS4jBoqpSNv1j-LDe_xaR4JlYI5-gNbqtJMxqt3_NGXUwyXbRsXvUQ_p_KmZKLQ/s1600/DSC09620.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5566678310784791314" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgt4yGD0mB51drl5ChjPD-gFaPy_KWwzd5Dedh6eOm4iZPbB0TE4-3y3JyrU4BL4-uOoKgVGqQ4CfdavS4jBoqpSNv1j-LDe_xaR4JlYI5-gNbqtJMxqt3_NGXUwyXbRsXvUQ_p_KmZKLQ/s400/DSC09620.JPG" /></a>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-607745095584239562011-01-25T21:26:00.004-05:002011-01-25T22:11:23.414-05:00One Day DownYesterday was my travel day for my month long centralized training session in Northern VA. Today was our first day of classroom training and I have 17 more days of class to go (30 days including weekends).<br /><br />The facility we're staying in is...interesting. It's an "all inclusive" place, so we eat, sleep, and train all in the same place. When I first arrived the person at the front desk told me to go to the right, take an elevator DOWN one floor, go down a really long tunnel labeled "Alaska" then take the fork left until you come to an elevator. Then I was to take the elevator UP and find my room. It didn't really make sense to me to go down to go up, but whatever. I still haven't figured this place out. After about 20 minutes of pushing an extremely heavy luggage cart that I couldn't steer through a half mile of tunnels, I finally found my room. Once I made it back to my car, I had to park it another half mile away. There is a shuttle, but I chose the path through the woods to get back to the facility, where I also saw 2 deer. Awesome.<br /><br />My room is nice, but extremely small. Thankfully everything fits in here, so it doesn't really matter how big it is since I'm not in here for most of the day. I do have a decent view out of my little window, so that's a plus.<br /><br />Another plus is that so far the food is really good. They have lots of options and it's really easy to eat healthy(ish). Unfortunately I haven't been able to find any water fountains so I have to stock up on water whenever I go to the dining area. There is a $3 bottle of water in my room, but I'm not about to drink that (darn you, Dave Ramsey!).<br /><br />The classroom training today was alright for it just being the first day. Everything was mostly a review of things we already knew, but that was to be expected. I'm just hoping that I will actually learn something so that I won't be going away for nothing, but it wouldn't surprise me if that were the case. One good thing about the training is the breakout stations, which are stocked with an unlimited (and free!) supply of "Starbucks" coffee, Tazo tea, and snack foods. MMM.<br /><br />Last night I managed to get to the fitness center, which is larger than it usually is in most hotels, but it still has a lot to be desired. It's also about a half mile away through a confusing maze of tunnels underground, so I didn't have to warm up much once I got there. There are only 4 treadmills, 2 of which are a foot away from a white wall. So as if running on a treadmill wasn't boring enough, you can also stare straight at a blank white wall for an hour. Awesome. Today we actually got out of class 15 minutes early so I was able to rush back to my room, change, and go running outside on the 1.3 mile loop around the facility a few times before it got dark. Unfortunately I think the weather might prevent me from doing that on quite a few days (like tomorrow - I think it's supposed to snow).<br /><br />One thing I am thankful about is that I am relatively close to home, and also close to my sister. There are some people here from as far away as Anchorage. Yikes! At least I can see Andrew and my sister on the weekends!<br /><br />Well, I think that's all for now. But don't worry, I will have <em>plenty </em>of time to keep you updated, though I may run out of things to write about...<br /><br>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-51693237299885783282011-01-21T12:45:00.001-05:002011-01-21T12:45:49.020-05:00The Only Downside of Training for a Spring Race:<p class="mobile-photo"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfo1fuNf52H6bI-vKFeWmEOwKGA8v9aQjpwdh0TxwqcA1AqHrBwINnmBkIqFui28i7vTxuofjlxv6IHousGaxV-4U2DlQLULdjM3YUX95eICShay5MSJDl6oL8vjUouyq-J8yvulZ9Imk/s1600/0121111035-749021.jpg"><img src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgfo1fuNf52H6bI-vKFeWmEOwKGA8v9aQjpwdh0TxwqcA1AqHrBwINnmBkIqFui28i7vTxuofjlxv6IHousGaxV-4U2DlQLULdjM3YUX95eICShay5MSJDl6oL8vjUouyq-J8yvulZ9Imk/s400/0121111035-749021.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564696855339119314" /></a></p>It's cold outside. That means some of my long runs must be done inside, and that means becoming bff's with the treadmill (aka "dreadmill"). This morning I had to run at least 7 miles on the treadmill. It was boring (I might have fallen asleep), but endurable. If anything, running on a treadmill might help increase my mental stamina. But one thing is for sure...I can't wait for warmer weather. Sorry, but I am just not a cold weather fan.Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-84901351873874939872011-01-20T19:55:00.007-05:002011-01-20T21:01:09.866-05:00VT Hockey Game and Pancakes<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzvYBvWMFZQrNYVtnKH5nVwCTAk362e2hEbDA0p5ZESwtPBJtaW-qEblu3KDv-8FgVm8JRZTNDT9jSQY1iR43lyln_sYiR_Hcr3AQ_iYaA_jWb4ty9qfLkj7aQNJY8aMVTah4PEY3nI3Q/s1600/DSC09581.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564442147076737906" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjzvYBvWMFZQrNYVtnKH5nVwCTAk362e2hEbDA0p5ZESwtPBJtaW-qEblu3KDv-8FgVm8JRZTNDT9jSQY1iR43lyln_sYiR_Hcr3AQ_iYaA_jWb4ty9qfLkj7aQNJY8aMVTah4PEY3nI3Q/s400/DSC09581.JPG" /></a>Last weekend Andrew and I got together with another couple and went to a Virginia Tech Hockey game. We actually had no idea VT had a hockey team, but apparently they do! Their home games are at the Roanoke Civic Center, and tickets are only $5 (free with a VT ID or for those under 12). It had been a really long time since I had been to a hockey game, but I was quickly reminded of how much fun they are to watch! Not only the fast pace of the game, but it was great fun watching the players <s>literally beat each other up</s> push and shove each other around on the ice. I mean, what's hockey without some good violence? Virginia Tech faced off against Penn State and they tied 2-2 (yes, apparently you can tie in hockey even after one overtime...lame!). It was a fun time and we decided that we'd have to come back for some more games in the future. <a href="http://www.virginiatechicehockey.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=102&Itemid=186">Their season</a> is almost over though, so it will have to wait until next fall/winter.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTQ2-OJOwZ9ox6dInWyLjicB14NyjNlNAx6plJegCS4Ww5hsaMvTBWDxVMcKK08Fxs2okNNkVoRfN9ulYDXQSdyvMJSBkXXjaB_SJJaU-k1cWtm6UUJ_M1WjwU3skQ0taCtAHnXmGJVvo/s1600/DSC09564.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 287px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564442157287545106" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTQ2-OJOwZ9ox6dInWyLjicB14NyjNlNAx6plJegCS4Ww5hsaMvTBWDxVMcKK08Fxs2okNNkVoRfN9ulYDXQSdyvMJSBkXXjaB_SJJaU-k1cWtm6UUJ_M1WjwU3skQ0taCtAHnXmGJVvo/s400/DSC09564.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJpZ2OJgjlrRQ81VEaD74sZ3pDKDP_ixBxs9r2nZH7gXYjNNFsOLGyHbl47qVP1VTb2RVPGbu3larmjS6-zJgzEeJBlRleoGwJ2rECeHctKS0_cCYI4-d7f5NE5XfzjSrZm8S6pHopm0M/s1600/DSC09551.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564442154093647266" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJpZ2OJgjlrRQ81VEaD74sZ3pDKDP_ixBxs9r2nZH7gXYjNNFsOLGyHbl47qVP1VTb2RVPGbu3larmjS6-zJgzEeJBlRleoGwJ2rECeHctKS0_cCYI4-d7f5NE5XfzjSrZm8S6pHopm0M/s400/DSC09551.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpri05oF3S8xVzsmT1G_Jv3vMSujp9HsCR-6DPZW6XzeQZMLAmsWi1BPrl4ZYbhg2NymN1iAwJ6OlHoVd-X98FsdFBwnpRzFmnOdY7FsG8MXgjLUHHmo8YFzJAUWGOWaRrIc4lzfxDm6g/s1600/DSC09550.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564442134634433746" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjpri05oF3S8xVzsmT1G_Jv3vMSujp9HsCR-6DPZW6XzeQZMLAmsWi1BPrl4ZYbhg2NymN1iAwJ6OlHoVd-X98FsdFBwnpRzFmnOdY7FsG8MXgjLUHHmo8YFzJAUWGOWaRrIc4lzfxDm6g/s400/DSC09550.JPG" /></a><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBw0nJAp9xyP4bo9QTOCa5JOnUsRhAGdaYKO0OtsdRcgzf1TqxOrSSOc9iWb8seHZkMYjixzLsFNnVsm8onzsqzjPZe5P10WJjKZ5CTjNzitxDYW8nIsxLm2Vyd6ryIvuWpyGrYzvM-c/s1600/DSC09545.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564442140158498898" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKBw0nJAp9xyP4bo9QTOCa5JOnUsRhAGdaYKO0OtsdRcgzf1TqxOrSSOc9iWb8seHZkMYjixzLsFNnVsm8onzsqzjPZe5P10WJjKZ5CTjNzitxDYW8nIsxLm2Vyd6ryIvuWpyGrYzvM-c/s400/DSC09545.JPG" /></a><br /><br />I also wanted to share another recipe. This time it's for <strong>oatmeal cottage cheese pancakes</strong>. I know the sound of that is probably enough to make some of you throw up in your mouth, but just trust me on this one; they are amazing. I've also calculated that if you follow the recipe below, which makes 2 servings, each serving contains a whopping 27 grams of protein. They also have 13 grams of fat, only 5 grams of sugar (until you put some syrup on them anyways...), 32 carbs, and approximately 350 calories. So unlike regular pancakes that leave you feeling like you want to die and hungry again in an hour, these keep you full for half the day and don't cause you to have a sugar crash after you eat them. So anyways, here's the recipe:<br /><br />Ingredients:<ul><li>1 cup whole grain oats</li><li>1 cup low fat cottage cheese</li><li>3 eggs</li><li>3 packets of Splenda*</li><li>2 teaspoons pumpkin pie spice (or other combination of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves)</li></ul>*for those of you who are anti-artificial-sweetener, 3 packets of Splenda is the equivalent of 1/8 cup of sugar...but you really can't taste the Splenda in this recipe, just FYI! And using real sugar also defeats the purpose of this being a pancake recipe that won't cause a sugar crash in an hour.<br /><br />Combine all of the ingredients in a blender, and mix until smooth (just at least until you can't really tell that it has oatmeal in it). Also, don't try to use a hand mixer instead. It won't work. Trust me.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeLC0vtxIXCiugTQdYpEOi8Tzj61epqmXrJDZDyjuNgXa3cDxfN203r70eGqlqnJ6bGM-4iGw-Q_aySsDPxFigt9OpIqGtcjg0qgB18KemmHnGY0ZsZAz94jxQjL8qY7M8aAxuT-6bSyk/s1600/DSC09521.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564447356940610818" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeLC0vtxIXCiugTQdYpEOi8Tzj61epqmXrJDZDyjuNgXa3cDxfN203r70eGqlqnJ6bGM-4iGw-Q_aySsDPxFigt9OpIqGtcjg0qgB18KemmHnGY0ZsZAz94jxQjL8qY7M8aAxuT-6bSyk/s400/DSC09521.JPG" /></a><br />Pour a little bit onto a hot pan and cook them up just like regular pancakes!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwATP9Al0BE4A8YiG3eOvHjraQdHFzNfaHN7zeaMUVb4GEbyNkxQWZzl1Gft7_TN_pSiDc6xM8u7BxGRIlRPkEHW6du4c0QQSvzQCaOreV8tDsEISWvDHrvbhw5qcgM6a3RQme_T-JqMs/s1600/DSC09534.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564447360609203170" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjwATP9Al0BE4A8YiG3eOvHjraQdHFzNfaHN7zeaMUVb4GEbyNkxQWZzl1Gft7_TN_pSiDc6xM8u7BxGRIlRPkEHW6du4c0QQSvzQCaOreV8tDsEISWvDHrvbhw5qcgM6a3RQme_T-JqMs/s400/DSC09534.JPG" /></a><br />They are really good with bananas on top and a little bit of maple syrup!<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvFAxAAv6XmzgEoWAOUrbq_7YgPnDzAEUp-GXW0FbMVqcroBCTqR6XUTOq4zsY-muWga-9dBwJSWa3_pZRT40qqRYBgOPq1li6ZlI-fperjh4JF4qHinzUK8y66QVOJdMVFW08Kt1X4M/s1600/DSC09540.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 300px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 400px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5564447366124578802" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEibvFAxAAv6XmzgEoWAOUrbq_7YgPnDzAEUp-GXW0FbMVqcroBCTqR6XUTOq4zsY-muWga-9dBwJSWa3_pZRT40qqRYBgOPq1li6ZlI-fperjh4JF4qHinzUK8y66QVOJdMVFW08Kt1X4M/s400/DSC09540.JPG" /></a><br />These pancakes aren't as fluffy as regular pancakes. Their consistency is denser, more like buckwheat pancakes (if you've ever had the pleasure of eating those). MMM MMM MMM...just posting this is making me crave them!<br /><br />In other news, I am about to go away for training for my new job for a WHOLE MONTH. So I apologize in advance if I do posts about random things because I am bored out of my mind. I'm hoping it won't be too bad and that the time will go by fast.<br /><br />Also, I decided to train for my second half marathon: the Blue Ridge Half Marathon on April 16. The course goes up Mill Mountain, so it will certainly be more of a challenge than the Star City Half. Thankfully I have a friend who I am training with. We've only done one long run together so far, but running with someone else makes it a million times better, especially when it's 32 degrees out!<br /><br />I think that's all for now. I'm sure you'll be hearing from me while I'm trying to pass the time during training!<br /><br>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6724604023415639592.post-25951675082440334892011-01-02T19:51:00.004-05:002011-01-02T20:31:10.998-05:00New Year, New RecipeFor my first post of 2011, I thought I'd start things off with a new, semi-healthy recipe. After all, wasn't "eating healthier" everybody's New Year's resolution?<br /><br />Here's what we had for dinner tonight...<br /><br /><strong>Veggie & Egg Bake</strong><br /><br />Ingredients:<br /><ul><li>1 green bell pepper, chopped</li><li>1 10 oz package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and well drained</li><li>1 10 oz can diced tomatoes and green chilies, drained</li><li>6 eggs, beaten</li><li>1 16 oz container low fat cottage cheese</li><li>1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese</li><li>1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese</li><li>1 tsp dried oregano</li></UL>To make:<br /><ul><li>Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.</li><li>Pour into a 9x13 casserole dish.</li><li>Bake at 350 for 40 minutes or until center is set.</li></UL><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMkjI-I_BWqtGrQAzmPtkl87DKNGy_2a6MMfsPJB464jExynvgdDfjrfYaQgV_XXzY9msl2TXDEQts4qz2yJA_V4eBGt_F5Ext48Qn5KgSIMI9FfHpKCeOi57qddFKqOnyEXMvzdTujvg/s1600/DSC09509.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 267px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557761205955854658" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMkjI-I_BWqtGrQAzmPtkl87DKNGy_2a6MMfsPJB464jExynvgdDfjrfYaQgV_XXzY9msl2TXDEQts4qz2yJA_V4eBGt_F5Ext48Qn5KgSIMI9FfHpKCeOi57qddFKqOnyEXMvzdTujvg/s400/DSC09509.JPG" /></a>This tastes like a casserole version of an omelet, or like a quiche without the crust. It makes 6 servings. It's packed with veggies, low fat cheese, and the incredible, edible egg. It's also meatless, so it makes for a lighter yet satisfying meal.<br /><br />I was craving some sweet potatoes, so I made some oven baked sweet potato wedges. To make, cut sweet potatoes into small wedges and place on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and turn the wedges to coat the sides. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake at 425 until they are browned to your desire (about 30-40 minutes, but keep an eye on them). They are delicious and remind me of sweet potato chips. MMM.<br /><br /><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9vW-5SSb9D8Cry9zo5VBznkJprUUt4PKOcFjd-D7U0jR_a663_R-rwxFooOWiei5nqsGNRLVGLu9CXcpymL3QDUm78MF_JTqNgBVUDubjmCzvu-DeAr8p1jYiP-UYDEhU7EF6dQow3c/s1600/DSC09518.JPG"><img style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN: 0px auto 10px; WIDTH: 400px; DISPLAY: block; HEIGHT: 300px; CURSOR: hand" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5557761209555926770" border="0" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW9vW-5SSb9D8Cry9zo5VBznkJprUUt4PKOcFjd-D7U0jR_a663_R-rwxFooOWiei5nqsGNRLVGLu9CXcpymL3QDUm78MF_JTqNgBVUDubjmCzvu-DeAr8p1jYiP-UYDEhU7EF6dQow3c/s400/DSC09518.JPG" /></a>Laurenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13671771472404441867noreply@blogger.com0