found this.

sometimes i forget how far i have come because it took me so long to get here.
i found this today.
this was halloween '07. 25ish pounds heavier.

this was a couple weeks ago.



its weird to see old pictures.
those sneaky lbs - just crept up when i wasnt looking!
never again! :)


xo - K

To nook, or not to nook.

I must first say that this post is for my mother. My whole childhood I grew up with my mom constantly having a book in her hand at all times. I am the nerdy reader I am now because of her. That being said, recent technology has cause an internal battle in my heart that is making some life decisions harder for me. This is the nook - it's supposed to be 100 times better than the kindle and can hold up to almost 18,000 e-books. A READERS DREAM! I already have two bookcases packed full of books and am quite scared to imagine what they will look like a few years down the road. At first glance the nook is the perfect solution. A small, cute, useful reading device that would solve all of my space saving problems. The problem- is my gigantic love of books. I love the smell, the texture, the way they look after you have been holding them and folding their pages during bed time reading sessions. I LOVE going to barnes and noble to look for new books and cool new covers. Will I regret my decision if I turn my back on that smell, and those dog eared pages? Will I be a traitor to a way of life that will probably eventually fade out into oblivion just like record stores and juke boxes? Or will I be happy to carry thousands of my favorite books in the palm of my hand which I can pull out and read at a moments notice? These might seem like silly questions to some people, but I really have been thinking a lot about this recently and I still haven't figured out quite how I feel. That being said, my mom needs to put this on her christmas list - stat. She, of all people, would love this. And so would her wall to wall bookcase that is exploding with paperbacks. What to do you guys think? Should I Nook, or stick to good old fashion books?

Need is a very strong word...

but I NEED this. seriously.
no wedding necessary,
i'll just wear this baby around
every day of my life.

RACE DAY!

So the day finally came! Here I am waiting for my group number to be called! I was so nervous and felt like I had to pee but the bathrooms were backed up for a mile and I didnt really have time so I just went over and got in my group.


They were asking who of us were first time racers. Look how many there were! What was awesome is that I started in the 2:30-2:50 group and I ended up finishing my race at 2:27 so I could have gone up a group but was too scared to! It was a little hard in the beginning because you haven't quite spread out yet so there are tons of people ahead of you who are walking right in your way and you have to kind of go in and out of them to get around them! But it was so much fun!


Zak found me at mile 13 (I thought it was 12 but he told me otherwise!) When I finally saw that finish line I just took off sprinting - I was so excited to be done!!


Afterwards Z found me as I was passing the food tables and eating everything I could get my hands on! I am still in shock that I finished and that I am a runner now! As much as my knees hurt and my legs hurt and my poor stomach hurt, I would do it again in a heart beat! It feels like such a big accomplishment in my life that I never really thought I would be able to achieve! But I did it!!!



So my next plan is to start training for the Austin, TX half-marathon in Feb and I am hoping to improve my time considerably by then! This time Jimmy is going to be running it with me so that will be fun too! What a great three months training, and a great, great race day! All the hard work was totally worth it!

love, K

I swear, never a dull moment...

Since I started training for this half marathon it has been a roller-coaster of sweating, and aching, and trying to figure out how far I can push my body before it gets really pissed off! Since my long runs have always been on sundays, the last month or so has been one crazy sunday after another!

Two weeks ago I ran and then Zak and I went to cheesecake factory for date night, only to have it ruined by me barfing in their bathroom and needing to go home asap. Diagnosis: dehydration. Then last weekend I could barely finish my run because my stomach was hurting so bad and after I got home I was in the bathroom pretty much all night!

Poor Zak, our date night just keeps getting cancelled due to my body's lack of acceptance that I am now a runner and this is the new norm! So then comes today, I was prepared before my run, had been drinking plenty of water, had my little running gummies with me to keep up my calories, took am immodium before to make sure my stomach didnt bother me, had my protein shake when I got home..... long story short, the run went great!

I came home jumping and dancing around at how awesome it had gone and how finally my body accepted its new, healthier, fate! Fast forward two hours... Zak and I head off to costco to grab a few things and then were going to eat lunch right after. Well, we didn't quite make it that far..

If any of you have been to costco on a sunday you know how it is very reminiscent of a zoo. People push you out of the way for a cart, and give dirty looks if you take the food sample they are reaching for - and the worst part, the check out lines!!

As we are standing in the checkout line with about ten people ahead of us, I start to feel hot and dizzy. This is the following conversation Zak and I have -

Me: I'm going to pass out
Z: No babe, its just the lights in here
Me: No, seriously...
Z: calm down, you'll be ok..

Bam- out.

To Zak's credit, I always feel kind of dizzy and apparently tell him I'm going to pass out all the time, so to him this is nothing new, but the poor guy didn't know that he should actually probably brace himself to catch me and before he knew it, down I went!

When I came-to all the women in line were buzzing around and one of the managers had gone to get me something to sit down on. Everyone was really sweet and let us get a fast-pass to the front of the line so we could check out.

Moral of the story: Pass out in Costco if you really need to get to the front of the line quick! haha
But seriously, I have learned my lesson that you can't burn 1,200 calories in one sitting and think that a scoop of protein powder will tide you over. This whole training experience has been an eye opening time for me, and I feel like I just keep learning the hard way how not to do things! I am hoping this is the last of these experiences for me to deal with, but I guess you never know!

Now I am off to eat a big, delicious dinner. Just what the doctor ordered.

xo, K

I Finally won something! I never win anything!!

I can't believe I forgot to post this before! I won this...



ooooh lala right!? I'm so excited, especially because I have been thinking about doing these as a gift for my honey buns for a long time!
And what better time than when I am in the best shape of my life!
Melissa Vossler is amazing and I am so excited to meet her and have her take my pictures!
Check her out! --> www.melissavossler.com



Have a happy first weekend of October everyone!


xo, K

Yesterday,

I wore a shirt to work that I bought right after high school. This is the first time it has fit me in almost 5 years. YESSSS!!! ok, the end.