from the heART: number 45

When someone tells you that there is ladies night for paint balling, the only question that needs to be asked is, when are we going?

I was not at all sure what to expect from this adventure. My only reference for paint balling came from what I'd seen in the movies, which goes one of two ways, super scary and intense like in Failure to Launch, or totally fun and non threatening like in Ten Things I Hate About You. I would say our experience fell somewhere in the middle. 

Sure I was unaware what the heck I was doing during the first round and didn't even fire a single shot. But with that, there was only room for improvement and no looking back. Turned out to be a blast, a feeling I'm sure not shared by our entire group. But would I do it again? Another easy answer, OH HECK YES!!

from the heART: it's pie time

Number 42: make a homemade pie from scratch

The inspiration for my 101 list came from my older sister who made a list and she made a list because my sister in law made a list. As our lists would have it, some of our items happened to be the same, including making a pie from scratch. So I was delighted when my sister in law wanted to complete this one together. 

I am going to honest and not at all humble for a moment and make the bold statement that our pie turned out awesome and tasted even better. However, to bring me back down now, I will follow that with, I had no idea just how easy pie baking actually is. This realization made me question why this was the first time I have attempted pie baking and wonder why I haven't been making pies for years. Lesson quickly learned: bake more pies!

from the heART: worst parade ever

Months and months went into training for the Nashville Country Music Marathon and it certainly paid off because we FINISHED and gosh darn it, this time we got a medal! Throughout our training there were multiple long runs that we did well over 13.1 miles (half a marathon) with no medal at our finish, so this was a good day ... almost. It turns out that Phoenix, Arizona is probably one of the most ideal places to run a marathon and Nashville, Tennessee probably being one of the worst. 

We had a friend who ran this marathon last year, so upon arrival in Nashville, we asked him about the course. What type of drinks and snacks do they hand out? What in the city do we run past? Are there a lot of hills? To the first two questions, the answers were pretty typical, water, Gatorade, Gu, oranges, convention center, Country Music Hall of Fame, football stadium. It's the last questions answer that after the race left my mom and I a little shocked to say the least. The answer to the hills question was, "It's not to bad, there is maybe one hill and it's at the beginning." This answer was not only ok with us, we were beyond joyful with this answer.

Turns out, he lied. And not only a little lie, it was a big fat lie! THE ENTIRE COURSE WAS MADE UP OF HILLS! Oh, and yes, again, we trained in good old, flat as could be, Phoenix, Arizona. BUT, again, we FINISHED and that is what mattered to us. I could not be any prouder of my mom! She truly is a rockstar, badass (and I'm not just saying this because she made me swear that I would run one at 54 so I know what she went through, and trying to get out of it) she really is amazing and deserves way more than just a medal!

Favorite things about the day:

      1] Finishing (obviously)

      2] Check out Mom's sweet bib number: 20000

      3] Best sign while running: Worst Parade Ever

from the heART: you're so vain, you probably think this post is about me

At first glance you may be thinking that it is very odd to post photos of oneself. Well fear not, this post is not about me, but is about my extremely talented sister, Lexi. She is not only an incredible sister, loving friend, and a great fiance (to Steve), she is a spectacular photographer. 

Don't believe me? Well look for yourself right here. I guarantee that you won't be disappointed and will surely be impressed.

from the heART: the turkinator

If I didn't have dog fever before, I certainly do now. Spend just 5 minutes with Turkey dog, yes that really is his name, and you too will have dog fever. Turkey, Turkinator, Turks, whatever you call him, he will still be one of the sweetest, spastic, loveable pups ever. 

My sister and her new husband (as of this past Saturday!) moved to Hawaii which has given our family the pleasure of housing their two dogs before they are able to make their way over to the islands. If his looks weren't enough to win you over, his bag-o-tricks surely would be enough. Of course he has the classics down: sit, stay, and down. BUT if you tell him to "gobble" oh yes he barks! AND if you shoot him with a "bang, bang" he growls and rolls over on his back.

Turkey totally has my heart and I will be sad to see him go. Well, oh shucks, I suppose I'll just have to plan a trip to Hawaii. Oh well, what are you going to do.

from the heART: the Lord is risen indeed

Simply put, I love Easter. Time spent reflecting on the Lord and spending time with family is all a blessing. This year in particular may top as one of my favorites.

Late afternoon Friday, my older sister, her fiance, and two dogs left their homes in Tennessee for good and made the long drive out to Arizona for their wedding this coming weekend. Not sure if they would make it by Sunday morning, they pushed through and arrived on Saturday night. Having the whole family together for Easter was an occasion that hasn't happened in a long time and really made it special. BUT it also meant that our egg hunt was kicked way up in intensity! Yup, you read correctly, I said egg hunt. Sure the youngest in the bunch is 22 and the oldest is 33 and no that doesn't stop us. 

The eggs are filled with spare change and candy and is debated every year if the winner is who finds the most eggs or the most cash. This year the wins went to my sister in law for most eggs and my younger sister with most cash. (I do have a strong suspicion that most improved hunter will likely go to B-Wise who walked away with only 4 eggs this year.)  

However, at the end of the day, I think we are all winners because we are grown adults running around the yard searching for easter eggs! 

He is risen! The Lord is risen indeed!

from the heART: you stay classy san diego

This past weekend I took Friday off work and headed to the west coast for a weekend full of surprises. My poolmate Anna was in town for her spring break and I just couldn't pass up an opportunity to be there for her surprise birthday party that her mom put together. 

Before we surprised Anna Friday night, Sasha and I decided to pick up a very berry sundae from Costco then head to the beach for a while. However, after we picked up our tasty  treat and were back on the road, we passed the flowers fields and clearly our plans immediately changed. There are acres upon acres, full of thousands upon thousands of ranunculus of multiple colors. The flowers fields were nothing short of remarkable! 

After the flowers, we headed to happy hour which really was full of happiness! Between spots our group couldn't miss out on the nation wide hype of Mega Millions and so we bought our (losing) tickets. Even though we didn't win, our tickets did bring us much entertainment talking about what we would spend the money on if we were to win. Josh would buy a yacht, Anna would take a trip around the world, and I would buy a puppy, which I was given grief for saying but hey, its my fake money and I'll do what I want! 

The next morning we woke up and Sasha cooked up a storm! We helped where we could and ended up with a fabulous breakfast of monkey bread and a sausage frittata. Afterwards we packed up and headed to the boat for a day on the water. The sun decided it didn't want to come out but we didn't mind. We just bundled up and enjoyed our time together minus my sea sickness (whoops) and a light drizzle. While out we spotted not only sea lions but were fortunate to see a whale! Anna saw its arm and side, I saw its back, and Sasha saw its tail, so pretty much we saw a whole whale which was awesome! 

After the boat we said our fake goodbyes and all went on our fake separate ways. Only to all come back together at John and Whitney's to get ready for Anna's surprise party! Which ended the night and the weekend in a great way! Good food, good conversation, (good March Madness games) with the best of friends! It went quickly but was a lovely weekend overall and I always love spending time with my best friends!

from the heART: baseball, baseball, baseball

Living in Phoenix, we are fortunate in having the pleasure of Spring Training baseball games during the lovely month of March. Not wanting to miss out on the fun, I went to a game last week. Colorado Rockies vs. San Francisco Giants. Not one who particularly loves to watch baseball, I sure do love the atmosphere and good company. Both of which I enjoyed.

We had baseball, beer and babes.