Isaac Got the Job!

This announcement deserves it's own post even though I just posted about the RNR 1/2 marathon.

ISAAC GOT THE ENERGY ENGINEER POSITION AT EATON! WOO HOO!

He'll stay at his current company, but will work out of an office MUCH closer to home. No more awful commute down Capital Blvd. Plus, it's a much more challenging job with lots of room for growth. It will involve some travel, but we're hoping for the best given the opportunity.

It's been a tough year for Isaac as he's rolled off the Leadership Development program at Eaton. But this makes it ALL worth it!

Congratulations sweetie!

Rock 'N Roll 1/2 Marathon

Isaac and I ran our first 1/2 marathon together this past weekend in Va. Beach. This was Isaac's first official half marathon, and he did great! In fact, if he hadn't been running with me, he probably would have finished much faster. : )

There were about 20,000 entrants, and about 16,000 people finished the race. The course was pretty flat, and the weather was nice--about mid 70's with a bit of humidity. We started running about 15 minutes after the official race start due to the "wave" start (they let certain amounts of people go about every 2 minutes). Luckily, our race time didn't start till after we crossed the start line (so my time looks deceiving on the race pics--I finished in 2:17, not 2:30 since it took 13 minutes to cross the start line).

The course was mobbed with people. I was prepared for that, but I thought it would thin out by mile 3 or 4. I would say it didn't ease up till about mile 10. That was a lot of ducking and weaving to pass people and get to water stops, etc.

Isaac and I tried to run our own pace. We ran 5/1 intervals meaning we ran for 5 minutes and then walked 1 minute (starting about mile 1.5). Some people clearly didn't understand that this was a strategy and a plan--not because we were tired. Studies show that you can reduce injuries and run more consistently if you alternate run and walk breaks. I whole-heartedly agree with this given that our mile splits were 10:28 to 10:34 EVERY mile for 13 miles. That's pretty consistent if you ask me. : ) Plus, the walk breaks are only supposed to slow you down about 30 seconds per mile.

At about mile 3, we passed a group of Navy supporters (Va Beach is a huge military town). They had music going and were dressed in Navy whites and waving flags. They just happened to be playing "Anchors Away" when Isaac and I passed. I took this as a good sign for things to come (as Isaac is a Navy veteran).

There were numerous bands and cheer teams on the course, and we enjoyed that. Our favorite was probably the military band and the steel drum/reggae band. You could almost forget you were running 13 miles. : ) At about mile 11, spectators (unaffiliated with the race) handed out "chilly willy" popsicles. I didn't get one, but I thought the support was tremendous. Some people that lived on the course used their water hoses to cool off runners, and had their own music playing to s upport the runners. Gotta love it!

By about mile 11-12, I was pretty much done. I didn't really look for the mile markers until then, which was a good thing. We headed back toward the beach and huge crowds lined the course. A little after mile 12 we ran up to the boardwalk and finished the last mile boardering the ocean. It was nice--but I was HAPPY to see the finish line.

We finished and got great attention by the finish line volunteers. They gave us water, popsicles (I ate one this time!), bananas, and cold towels. It was heavenly. I dropped Isaac off on a lawn and then headed back to mile 13 to watch for Kathleen. I saw her about 10 minutes later and ran the last .1 miles in with her. She did so well, especially since she didn't get to train as much as she would have liked for various reasons.

We headed back home to shower, then enjoyed a nice meal at 5 Guys. We earned it! Then headed back to the beach for the post race Black Crowes concert. By about 9:00, we were all exhausted and went back to Kathleens and collapsed into bed.

It was a great race, and I'm really glad we did it. We'll see what race is next. Raleigh has the city of Oaks 1/2 marathon and marathon on Nov 1, but the race fee is $75. Ouch. I literally could spend a fortune on race fees! So, we'll see.

Have a good day everyone...

Great Labor Day Weekend!

We had a great time in Viriginia Beach this past weekend. The weather stayed nice until we left on Monday, but that was okay. It didn't rain during the 1/2 marathon--yay!

We got to Va. Beach around lunchtime on Saturday. We had some lunch with Kathleen and then headed over to the race expo to pick up our race packets. The expo was at the Va. Beach Convention Center, and it was really nice and organized. I tried on some $175 funky running shoes called Newtons. My brother really likes them, but woah. That's a lot of money. The guy who helped me with the shoes gave me some running form tips and that was worth trying them on for sure!

We made spaghetti at Kathleen's and ate dinner together and watched the movie Clue, with my niece Haley. What a crazy, but funny movie. I think I remember seeing it for the first time when I was about Haley's age.

We all tried to turn in early in preparation for the race. But my sister's next door neighbor was having a birthday party and the walls were literally vibrating with the bass. Isaac and Kathleen asked her to turn it down. And she did, but it was still vibrating the walls. If we went into Kathleen's room and closed the door, we could not hear it. So we all snuggled up in one room, with Kathleen and Haley in sleeping bags on the floor. Unfortunately, the upstairs neighbor was loud... and the people entering the apartment complex parking lot were loud. So, I think it was about 12:30 before any of us got to sleep. 4 hours later we were up for the race! : ) It didn't matter really because we had quite a lot of adrenaline going.

The race was great and I'll tell you all about it in another post (as this would be a gigantic post!). But these pictures on this post are from post-race concert night. The Rock 'N Roll 1/2 Marathon had a whole music festival associated with it. And we got in free with our race number. We heard a couple lesser known bands, and heard a couple songs by the Black Crowes. But honestly, we were so tired... we left before it ended (much to Isaac's chagrin... poor Isaac).

Anyway... more later... for now we are still trying to catch up on rest after a long, busy, but FUN weekend.

I sure am bloggy this week!

I think this is my 4th or 5th post this week! So, I didn't get the job in the other BB&T department. They offered it to a guy who had been laid off from BB&T in the spring, and had his PMP (Project Management Professional) certification. I'm studying for it, but we'll see when I take it. The exam alone costs $500. It was a little discouraging, but I will figure it out. There are some integral issues with project management anyway (you're responsible for completing the project on time and budget, but you don't have any real power over those who do the work). So, we'll see how it all goes.

Work has been horrendous the last couple weeks. The big project I was working on for October is delayed at least till December, and possibly till 2010 if things don't start getting better. I've been working so hard. I find myself brain dead every afternoon. Hopefully there will be an end in sight.

Anyway, that's my latest update. We're looking forward to watching a few episodes of "How I Met Your Mother" tonight and taking it easy. Plus, another wedding band is on the way for Isaac. After another intensive search, we decided to call it a day. It should be here in a couple weeks. Lucky for us, they could order the same exact one (in a smaller size so it doesn't fly across the room again. : ) )

He's BACK!

Isaac made it home safely last night. He thinks the interviews went really well (although there was a weird point where one of the interviewers ate a chewy piece of candy before the interview began, and broke a crown... he was practically in too much pain to ask many questions!).

On another note--we have a missing wedding band in the house. Sweet Isaac was putting hair gel in his hair this morning and his ring flew off his finger. He really has no idea where it went... we took apart the sink, looked in the toilet (yuck!) and scoured the floors and closets... for about 2 hours. Looks like we probably need a new one, which isn't a problem. Isaac's just sad--as I would be too. Please pray that it pops up some place... or we can get another one soon.

So, that's the news of the day. Please pray for Isaac today. On top of being exhausted from his trip... he's really upset about the ring. Pray that he'll have a good day and not be too hard on himself. Love y'all!

Praying for Isaac

Isaac made it to Pittsburgh very safely, and on time. He flew Southwest and I think loves them as much as I do! I was praying for Isaac this morning (since that's all I can really do) and this verse came to me:

"You are a shield around me, O LORD; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head." (Psalm 3:3)

I love how it talks about lifting up our heads so that we can see clearly, and not be discouraged or feel guilty. A couple days of devotions and it's amazing how God's word comes back to me.

I love the cooler weather we've been having. Can't wait to run my 3 miles after work in 80 degree weather and lower humidity. Looks like we're going to have good weather for Sunday too! YAY!

And he's off!

Isaac leaves today for his interview. Turns out the "new" LDP (leadership development) class is in Pittsburgh too, and they'll be at the same hotel where he is. Plus, he is having dinner with his old program director. Looks like this trip will be good for some networking in addition to the interview.

We are in the "taper" phase of our training for the 1/2 marathon. We are just supposed to run 2 miles every other day till Friday, then nothing till race day. It's hard when you're used to running a lot more. But, I'm going to grab my book club book and enjoy that instead. I ended August with 98.5 miles. When I told Isaac last night he said, "Don't you want to get out there and finish the last 1.5 miles?" Uh, no. That was plenty for me. : )

So, I'll be missing my sweet husband. But it will be nice to finish this process and hopefully get good news!

Have a good day everyone. The sun is out--it's September--and fall is on the way! Hooray!