Thursday, December 6, 2018

The BIG Three

No, no, no... I am not making a This is Us reference.  I am referring to this year's list of "To Do's" before I turn 40.  (Is she still talking about that?  Yes, yes I am!  lol) 

It was about this exact time of year last year when I found out I was picked in the lottery I entered to run the NYC Half-Marathon.  When the reality hit me that I voluntarily signed up to run 13.1 miles, which would take me hours, that's when the idea to create a "To Do" list emerged.

Number 1
So, yes I did run that 1/2 marathon, the day after St. Patrick's Day (One day I will join my Irish hubby and celebrate, this past March was not the year, lol).   And... I kicked ass!!!  I finished that race in 2 hours and wait for it... 22 lousy seconds!!!  UGH!!!  I didn't know.  My watch, the last leg where they posted  meters instead of miles.... I was confused.  Had I known I was SO SO close to that 2 hour mark, I think I could have pushed it to finish under 2 hours, like 1:59:59.  LOL   One thing I do know, I will never run the NYC Half again.  I know I will want to beat that time.  But that is a time I am already very proud of and yes, I'll admit, I am not sure if I can beat it.  So I am going to take it happily and walk away.

P.S.  My goal is to run atleast one half marathon a year.  I am aiming to get into the Brooklyn Half this year!


Number 2
My number two just recently arrived to my in a little black book.  😏  A boudoir session seemed like a necessity to capture me in my last few months in my 30s.  I had always wanted to do it and it was so much fun!  My photographer was awesome (and a high school friend).  I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone.  I actually took it at the end of June... I didn't have a summer glow and I wasn't in the best shape.  (I kinda took a 3 month vacation from consistently working out after that half marathon, lol).  But, that was my moment and I am so happy for taking that plunge, in a completely different way than Number 1.

I loved adding accessories!  So much fun!!


P.S.  I plan on doing another session in a couple of years.  I so want my forty something body to kick my 39 year old body's booty!


Number 3
I had a really, really hard time coming up with a third item.  But I felt like there needed to be atleast 3 things.  I didn't want to jump out of a plane, no desire.  I already have tattoos.  So.... I decided to take on an 80 day workout program, The 80 Day Obsession.  I started the day after my son's birthday, September 9 and figured I would end at the end of November.  Well... I didn't take into consideration that its actually 80 days of working out and that one day off a week wasn't counted into that number.  So instead of already being done with the program, I will finish it Saturday, the day before my birthday.  I couldn't have planned it any better, or worse.  Fortunately, I have been healthy for 80+ days and didn't miss a single workout.  The only thing I did was replace a cardio workout with a run a bunch of times to help me train for a few 5Ks I ran during this time.

How do I feel?  I LOVE this program honestly.  After just a couple of weeks, that layer of fat that I felt I was surrounded in seemed to dissipate.  I am leaner and stronger!  I took the diet part in the first month seriously and it went down hill from there, oops.  BUT, working out everyday is no longer a chore I dread.  Its' become part of my nightly routine.  So next week, I plan on continuing to exercise.  If I take too much time off, it will be just like starting all over again and I don't want that.  I am going to relax with some yoga for a week or two and then move on to a more intense program.

In case you are wondering, I workout from home and use Beachbody On Demand.  I love Autumn Calabrese.  I thought I'd hate her and her rock hard ab body, but I don't.  She makes the workouts enjoyable.


So, there you have it.  My Big Three!  It was nothing crazy.   Maybe a bit lame to some.  But all 3 pushed me outside of my comfort zone and towards something that I have never done, but wanted.  I feel healthy and accomplished.  And I am building upon all three in this upcoming year in my new decade.

What about you?  Have you ever had a bucket list of any kind?  I'd love to hear, please share!!!

Tuesday, December 4, 2018

Ohh Emm Gee... I'm Basically 40!!!

To be honest, I am kind of relieved at this point.  In 5 days, my two years of counting down will finally be over!  That's right, I have been dreading turning the big 4-0 for a long time now and it's so close now, so why not?

Hello, my name is Amy and I am forty years old. 

😂😂😪😪😂😂


Okay, so I am more at peace with this than I was, but to work out the remaining kinks and tribulations, I am going back to what helps me best, writing.  I cannot believe that the last time I posted here was in January!!!  SO much has happened.  SO much.  Coming back to this blog now, so close to the end of 2018 is like a reflection of my whole year.  And what a doozy it was.  But, let's get back to my turning 40.  

So if I celebrated my birthday with my family and friends already, I can't claim my thirties anymore can I?  I guess that's okay because I had an amazing, amazing SURPRISE birthday brunch!!!  Who throws a surprise birthday brunch, my hubby... who happens to know that brunch is my favorite meal of the day.  Too bad it's not a daily occurrence.

But since my party was so awesome and pretty much made it okay to turn 40, I am going to share that story with you all.  😉  Saturday, I ran a Jingle Bell 5K (the same one that one year ago jump started my love-hate relationship with running) with a group of friends from work.  We all met at my apartment since I live across the street from the park that the jog took place in.  We had previously planned on going out to brunch afterwards, but the race day plan found only one runner joining me with another friend who wasn't in the race for brunch a couple of hours after the race.  That didn't make me scratch my head at all though.  LOL

My runner friend suggested we go back to my place after the race to freshen up for our ladies lunch date.  The fact that my husband was awake, showered, dressed and out the door on a Saturday with our son before I got back (it was still the morning) didn't make me scratch my head either.  LOL  I did notice that my friend had a really nice outfit to wear and I thought, "Damn she is being fancy for a hipster joint."  LOL  And I proceeded to pick out an old sweater, jeans, and worn out boots.  I put together an outfit I had never worn before and never will because it was just, eh.   Thank God I put on a necklace.  LOL  She insisted on driving and we were off!

After circling the joint for a while, hello parking in Brooklyn on an Saturday afternoon, we finally found a spot and were about 10 minutes late joining our friend, who miraculously arrived early.  That should have made me scratch me head, LOL, she is never early.  Well, as we proceeded to walk up the stairs (me first as insisted upon by my friend) to the party room, which I was fully aware of since I checked this place out for my son's communion party, 🙈, I got about half-way up and stopped.  Not because it finally hit me, LOL, no, no, no..  Because I thought we were interrupting someone else's party!!!

Well, the first people I saw were my sister and my niece who live 8 hours away!  That's when it FINALLY  hit me!!!  Duh!  

My husband had orchestrated a surprise birthday brunch party a week before my actual birthday with the help of those two awesome friends.  My parents, my brother and sister and their families were all there!!!  They drove 8 hours from Buffalo to spend a day with me.  😅 My in-laws were there as were my closest work friends.  I was absolutely surprised and absolutely touched.  It is not often that the people I care about most are all in the same room together.  That's a downfall for not living close to family.  So when they all are (and it's not a funeral) it is amazingly awesome... as is my husband.  💖💝  He got me good.  They all did!  The effort, the thoughtfulness, the smiles... they all made me feel so special and loved.  

I don't think I'd mind turned 40 again.  In fact, every year after this one, I am absolutely positive I will forever feel that way!  LOL