Friday, June 20, 2014

On the Horizon

I think it has finally sunk in for me that it's summertime! That means some big and exciting things are on the horizon. For one, marathon training for the Space Coast Marathon begins July 7. 

My plan calls for pretty specific speedwork, so I've been on the lookout for a used Garmin that will fit my meager "fun" budget (more on that in a moment). I was really lucky...when I reached out to my Sub-30 group, I was able to get my hands on a gently used Forerunner 410. (Thanks Shane!) It's a tad bulky, but I couldn't beat the price. I'm so excited to use it!
I already kind of love the touch bezel.
The watch needed to be charged, so I wasn't able to use it for my speedwork today. Elizabeth and I went out in the heat and knocked out some intervals. She had never done them before - she's an athlete, but not really a runner - and loved them!
75% humidity is downright refreshing these days.
I refueled with a Vega Sport protein bar. Pretty tasty, but a little heavy for my post-run preference.
Also coming up is my trip to Ohio for my family reunion! It's been years since I've seen my dad's side of the family, so it will be really nice to get up there and visit with everyone. Matt won't be joining me (again, "fun" funds...we're getting there), so he'll have the house to himself while I share a hotel room with my siblings...just like old times!
My cousin Lindsay is my only girl-cousin on that side...my dad's siblings all had boys! Here we are sometime in the 90s, when I looked like a boy, too haha. 
Matt and I usually take a big vacation each summer for our wedding anniversary, but this year we didn't want to spend the money, and he won a weekend at a resort in Captiva Island, so we're using that instead! It's not a big trip, but it's just what we'll need.
I'm looking forward to getting away.
Okay, so why all this budgeting talk? Matt and I have finally decided to act like the adults people keep saying we are and buy a house! We close on June 26 (fingers crossed!), so we're really watching our funds. We purposely bought a fixer-upper, so once we're in, I'm sure the blog will be overwhelmed with photos. For now, here's one to keep your curiosity at bay:
Yes, it's pink. Yes, we're repainting. No, we're not sure what color yet.
The house is also why I may have to adjust my usual plan to run 12 races a year. I have two races on the horizon - an 80 mile relay and the aforementioned marathon - but I'm trying not to sign up for any others yet. There are a ton I ran last year that I'd love to reprise, but I just need to wait and see if they'll work out.
 
If all goes according to plan, in mid-July I'll get to meetup with some of my Sub-30 running friends, and I may even be at the MLB All Star Game...but that's entirely dependent on the contest and how voting goes.

This summer is certainly shaping up to be a full one...Can't say I'm complaining! The busier I am, the more fulfilled summer makes me feel!

Have you ever gone to a family reunion?
Do you like to travel in the summer?
Tell me about your first house-buying experience!

ABK

16 comments:

  1. A house!!! YAY! Be prepared to have an ever-growing list of things to do!! But so exciting! And YAY to a new garmin...want your full review!

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    1. I know, I'm already amazed at how much we have to plan to do! Luckily because we plan to fix this one up and sell it - we won't be in it forever - we get to pick-and-choose what we want to work on!

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  2. Yay for the house and Garmin! I can't wait to hear about both :)

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  3. Congrats on the house!!! I bet you're going to have so much fun updating it (and enjoying your fruit garden)!

    Enjoy your next run with the Garmin. I have the 220 and really like it. I bet yours has even more fun features!

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    1. There are so many features I don't even know what to do. I'm excited to use the Virtual Partner...it seems like it'll be really handy for keeping me on pace!

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  4. Congrats!!! You are closing so soon! That house looks exactly what I picture a FL house to look like. I love that they are fun colors. We painted our house a year after we bought it because it was an ugly powder blue color. And we ripped up the astro turf on the front stoop as well. I pretty much hated what our house looked like on the outside but when I walked in... there was hard wood floors, a piano, and a CAT greeted us. I knew the place was meant to be. (Except the previous owner had a picture of George Bush up- that was some pretty bad house ju-ju.) ps. That's the Garmin I use! I only know how to do 5% of all the things it actually does hahaha.

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    1. In this house, the thing I HATE is the kitchen. But I'm so excited to remodel it! We saw this one all emptied out...I feel like a picture of Bush might have been a deal breaker! lol.

      I'm glad you use this Garmin...now I know who to ask if I have questions. It's so complex! But I'm excited to use the Virtual Partner and to figure out intervals! Apparently you can put in your intervals and target paces and how many of each etc.

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  5. Congratulations on buying the house!! BTW, I think the pink colour is nice hey :) Exciting times, hope all goes well and smoothly. :)

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    1. I've seen a few pink houses I like, but I'm not sure I'd want to live in one! lol. Thanks for the warm wishes!

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  6. Congrats on buying the house! We're possibly going through that process ourselves... I like the pink color, but hey.

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    1. I think non-Floridians seem to like the pink...maybe because you only see pink houses in Florida and other tropical areas?

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  7. Congrats on the house!!! Okay, I like the pink colour. :D I remember being totally overwhelmed when I first became a home owner and that quickly diminished when the excitement kicked in with decorating!

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    1. Pink seems to be a hit! Maybe I should reconsider it...lol.

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  8. Congrats on the new house! When we bought our house, I accidentally knocked over my glass of water onto our closing documents which was a huge deal because apparently they couldn't 'just reprint them.' So, we had to lay them out sheet by sheet and let them dry. They acted like it was such an ordeal. Guess they've never had a klutz like me in there before?

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    1. I swear, the loan and title companies are sooo frustrating to work with. They misspelled our last name on a document and said the same thing - they couldn't reprint it. Like, THEY made the mistake! What the heck!

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