Hurricane Road Trip!

Well as most of you know, me and my boys evacuated for Hurricane Isaac.  We headed to Tennessee with my friend Stephanie and her three kids.  We left Sunday afternoon when the storm looked like it was heading straight towards us.  It may have been a little early to leave since they hadn't even closed schools yet but we wanted to beat the traffic.  I was a little uneasy about leaving when I didn't know for sure about school but I felt like it was the right thing to do.  On the way there we got the call that school was closed Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday.  That made me feel a lot better about our decision to leave.  Fortunately, the storm made a turn west and here at home we only got a lot of rain and wind (that we are still feeling today). Although I am glad our home is safe....I so feel for the people in Mississippi and Louisiana where the storm went.  Such devastation.  I am praying for all these people and I know you are too.

So our evacuation turned into a mini vacation!  We stayed at Stephanie's in-laws' house and they were so nice and so awesome for letting us come and invade their house!  Not only was it me and my boys and Stephanie and her kids....but another one of our friends Michelle arrived on Monday with her three kids!  So we had a total of 4 adults, 8 kids, and 5 dogs in the house those 3 days!!!  Crazy!  But the kids all had a blast!  They got to "swim" in the hot tub (the water wasn't hot) which they LOVED!

They got to eat watermelon, have a bonfire, and see fireflies for the very first time!!!  They thought the fireflies were sooo awesome!!!

We also got to go to a pool at the town's rec center and swim.  Hayden got to jump off the diving board for the first time!  Hate I couldn't get a picture of it!  Our friend Michelle who came to stay too...it was her little girl Hannah's 11th birthday!  We ate lunch at a Mexican restaurant and she had some birthday fun there!

Stephanie's mother-in-law had bubbles for all the kids!  They of course had a blast with these!

On the way there I didn't get to take pictures of the mountains because it was dark when we got there.  I took TONS on the way home though!  I LOVE the mountains and although we didn't get to go hiking it is a definite must next time we go there!

The kids were in awe of the mountains and the side of the road where you could see rock!  My kids have never seen this...it's pretty flat and coastal where we are.

Such beautiful scenery!!!

It was really weird to me that they had "runaway truck ramps" for the big diesel trucks...in case they were going too fast coming down the mountain they could use these to slow themselves down!  Luckily, we didn't see any trucks having to use these.

As you can see I took so many pictures as we were driving!  It was just sooo beautiful and majestic!  Of course the pictures don't do it justice!

This was a bridge I saw from the road as we were coming into Chattanooga.  I learned later that it is a walking bridge!  (Running for me lol)

 

Sawyer's best friend Sophie moved to Chattanooga last Christmas.  So of course we had to stop to see her on our way home! Sawyer and Sophie have been best friends since they were babies!  It was one of the toughest days as a mom when Sophie had her goodbye party and Sawyer had to say goodbye to her.  He cried and cried and it broke my heart!  Luckily, Sophie came and graduated Pre-K with Sawyer and their class in May and she got to stay overnight at our house for one of the nights she was here.

They were so excited to see each other!!!

And I was sooo excited to see Sophie's mom, Stephanie!  I've missed her sooo much!!!

Here I am with my two Stephanie's!!!  Yes two of my best friends are named Stephanie!!!  :-)

I told you we had a ton of kids with us!!!!  They were all excited to be visiting Sophie and her new and gorgeous house in Chattanooga!!!

Always have to have a goofy pic with my children lol!

 Sophie held Sawyer's hand and walked him out to the car when it was time to leave.  So sweet!!!

It was sooo great to see our friends in Chattanooga!

I ate way too much yummy food while in Tennessee so I've got to get back on track.  I took my running clothes and shoes but never got the opportunity to run.  So I missed one of my runs for this week.  I DID do my burpees and planks every day though!  I just went to the privacy of my bedroom there to do them! :-)

Even though the hurricane didn't come our way, I am thankful we evacuated because we got a mini vacation out of it AND got to see Stephanie and Sophie!  It made it all worth it!  When we got home last night the boys cried because they had so much fun and didn't want it to end.  Back to reality!

Thanks Stephanie for letting us road trip to Tennessee with you!!!  We had a blast!!!

QOTD: Do you prefer mountains or the beach?

The Weekly Chase...Hurricane Isaac

It's time for The Weekly Chase!!! I'm so thankful Melissa at Live, Love, and Run started this!  It keeps me accountable each week and I love that!  Link up with us if you haven't already!


Here are my goals from last week:

• Goal #1: Continue the Burpee Boom Challenge. CHECK! I've done a total of 210 burpees this week!!!  
• Goal #2: Make an appointment for a sports massage. FAIL. Yep I totally forgot about this until Saturday when I was running 11 miles.  :-(
• Goal #3: Make Sawyer's 5th birthday special! CHECK!!! Sawyer had a blast!  You can read my recap on his birthday here.

Overall I did pretty good for the week.  And I got through the first week of my baby being in Kindergarten!!!  So that's an accomplishment for sure! :-)

Here are the goals for this week:

Goal #1: Continue the Burpee Boom Challenge. This is the last week of the challenge!  The goal is to do 250 burpees this week!!!  My plan is to do 40 burpees for 4 days and 30 burpees for 3 days to equal 250.  How is everyone else doing with the challenge???

Goal #2: Stay safe from Hurricane Isaac. Yes there is a hurricane heading our way.  We left yesterday and headed to Tennessee to get out of the storm's path.  I rode out Hurricane Ivan and Hurricane Katrina.  I didn't have any kids yet with Ivan....and that was one of the scariest nights of my life.  With Katrina Hayden was 3 weeks old.  Now that they are older I just can't stay for another hurricane.  It would scare my two boys to death.  My hubby however opted to stay.  Please say prayers that he stays safe.  

With all of this going on...I did not make any other goals for this week.  I'm not sure what the week is going to bring so I have to have goals that I know I can accomplish.  Please forgive me if I don't get to post much this week...I'm not sure what kind of internet service I will have this week.  I hope everyone has a great week!  And if the hurricane is in your path...please stay safe!!!

QOTD: What are your goals for the week?

Don't forget to enter my Zipfizz Giveaway!  It ends tonight at 12PM EST!

Runner Spotlights #2

This weekend has been super busy...again!  I had an 11 mile run yesterday morning.  Then we had the boys' birthday pool party yesterday afternoon.  They had so much fun!!!

After the party, Stephanie and I had to go pick up the stuff that didn't sell at the consignment sale.  The good news is that it seems like a lot of my stuff sold...ALL of my big items sold.  I did have a stack of clothes left and some shoes.  The bad news is I still don't know how much money I made but should find that out soon.

Another thing we are watching this week is this tropical storm that is coming into the Gulf...Isaac.  I'm debating on whether we should stay here...or if we should evacuate.  If we evacuate we will head to Tennessee with Stephanie.  Just so you know....it's pretty much coming straight my way!  :-(

It's time for another runner spotlight!  If you want me to spotlight you send me an email at mindy@roadrunnergirl.com!

This week I am spotlighting Melissa from 13 Going On Crazy!  Melissa is one half marathon away from completing her challenge of running 13 half marathons in 13 months!  Her last half marathon is next weekend in Disneyland!  What an ending!  Read on to learn more about this inspiring runner!

When and why did you start running?

I started running in the summer of 2005, my first summer living fulltime in LA. When I got started, I could run about 1 mile. Then I built up to 2 miles. I ran my first race in Phoenix at the Rock and Roll Half Marathon, in January 2006. From there, I took a short running hiatus and picked it up again in 2008 and have been signing up for races ever since.

What is your favorite race and race distance?

I took my first steps at Epcot in Walt Disney World, maybe that is why I love RunDisney so much. Though I love all RunDisney events my favorite is the Disneyland Half Marathon. Though this was my second half marathon, this was the race where I realized how much I love running and that it was a sport that I wanted to continue participating in.

What is your race day routine?

On race day I always and only eat a banana before the race and I pack a GoGo SqueeZ Apple Sauce in my pocket. I know that it is strange to be eating apple sauce on the run, but it works well for me. 

What is your most favorite piece of running gear?

I am a gadgets geek! If it needs to be charged I will most likely love to get my hands on it! My favorite running gear is my Garmin 610. Syncing my runs and being able to visually see how far I have come in terms of my training always pushes me to go harder and further.

Do you follow any diet or take any specific supplements that complement your running?

I eat very clean, no junk, nothing fried, and very balanced. I limit my carb intake to only 1 meal a day and it will most likely be at dinner, as I never know what the night will hold! I also drink at least 2 bottles of Smart Water a day, which is a lot of water for petite person!

What do you wish you’d known when you first started running?

I am a type A person, which naturally makes me competitive, I wish that I would have realized sooner that when it comes to running that I am only competing against myself.

What is your fondest running memory?

Each and every time I run right down the middle of Main Street towards the castle in both Walt Disney World and Disneyland it's the most thrilling and exhilarating moment for me as a runner. At this point of the race everything simply clicks. Besides crossing the finish line, this moment makes all of the miles, training, pain, early morning runs, and sweat worthwhile.  

What is one thing that most people do not know about you?

I love edamame and green beans, but I hate peapods!!

Here are all the different ways you can connect with Melissa!

Blog: www.13goingoncrazy.com

Twitter: www.twitter.com/13goingoncrazy

Facebook: www.facebook.com/13goingoncrazy

Pinterest: www.pinterest.com/13goingoncrazy

Instagram: 13goingoncrazy

Thanks so much for sharing with us Melissa!!!

QOTD: Do you evacuate for hurricanes? Or do you just ride them out?

Don't forget to enter my Zipfizz Giveaway!!!