Our vacation in a nutshell was relaxing. We did two nights on Sanibel Island on the gulf coast and then six nights in Fort Lauderdale. I managed to maintain the 11 pound weight loss by not going out of control on vacation and also trying to keep up on my running. Here’s a recap via iPhone photo dump!

Our view from dinner our last night in Florida. The bartender at the hotel next to ours recommended asking for second floor balcony at a restaurant and we lucked out on the seats closest to the ocean!

All in all it was a great vacation and was a perfect relaxing time before grad school starts in a couple of weeks! Now I’m just trying to ease back into things at work and home.

On Tuesday we stopped by Lucas Oil Stadium to tour the stadium and get a glimpse of the floor. Little did we know we were in for so much more!

I love seeing the Butler Bulldogs logo in the same space as the other three teams. Plus, my Dawgs were sent home to play in the Final Four!

Lucas Oil Stadium is supposed to hold over 71,000 people this weekend. You can see how tiny the court is compared to the dome!

The internal banners filter the light from the external windows. They also look really cool and give a total "WOW" effect!

The locker rooms are very generic providing each student-athlete with the same championship experience. I thought it was pretty cool that we were in what was probably Duke's locker room!

Here's the training room. Each locker room had a training room, coaches' room and student-athlete rooms. Pretty swank accomodations!

This banner is pretty powerful - you see it as you come out of the tunnel for the first time. It really hit me that the Dawgs had made it to the final four when I saw that. I'm not going to lie, I had butterflies in my stomach exiting the tunnel to the court!

Here's us taking the stairs to the court for the first time, just like the players will on Saturday! The bank of jumbotrons in the middle was HUGE and you just feel so tiny amongst all the seats!

We actually were able to shoot a few balls on the court, had our picture taken on the logo and were able to investigate the two tone wood court. They actually make a court just for the final four and the school who wins has an opportunity to purchase the court after the championship is over.

Here's a possible logo for the 2015 Final Four - looks a little plain! ;)

Here's the press room before being fully setup. It was kind of neat to see where 1200 media personnel are going to be fighting to get a few words from each of the teams!

Looking back it was a great tour and made me super excited to get our tickets on Friday. I can't wait to find out where we're sitting and to be able to see my Dawgs take on the Michigan State Spartans on Saturday night!

LET’S GO DAWGS!

The Georiga Tech Yellow Jacket or the "Emo Bee" as I kept calling him. Unfortunately Ohio State put away the Yellow Jackets so there was no victory for the emo bee on Sunday.

Xavier takes the floor to warm-up before the second game.

Xavier played a very close game with Pitt and really it looked like it could go either way but in the end the Jesuits pulled out the Win! Go Muskies!

When the Xavier game ended it brought our basketball vacation to a close. I can't wait until next year!

Although I'm really glad that Butler is in the Final Four! GO DAWGS!

I’m really looking forward to the Final Four this weekend in Indianapolis.  The city is already abuzz! 

Rod and I decided on the games in Milwaukee and booked a hotel back in January. After I took the GRE yesterday (and got more than I needed to get into grad school! :D) we headed north for basketball. Luckily I got to hear my beloved Butler Bulldogs take on the UTEP Miners in the car on the way up. I consider myself lucky to be born and raised on Xavier University basketball AND that I got to see them dominate the Minnesota Golden Gophers today in Milwaukee. We’ve seen a total of four basketball games in person and we’ve got more on Sunday!

Here's the Bradley Center ready for NCAA Division I Men's Basketball tournament action!

Here's the Muskies and the Golden Gophers warming up before the first game of our two sessions.

Here's the Muskies practicing during the warm-up

Here's the Bradley Center scoreboard. Having all of the advertising covered up in the arena was really nice. It truly put the focus on the student-athlete!

The Xavier and Minnesota tip-off. Our seats are the second row of the upper deck right at midcourt! I also got to see one of my favorite Jesuit priests (Fr. Mike Graham) at the game since he's now the president of XU!

I loved the Georgia Tech Hornet! The costume was decidedly lowtech but I really enjoyed his antics. I can't wait to see Georgia Tech take on Ohio State on Sunday!

Here's tip-off for the Ohio State vs. UC Santa Barbara. UCSB really put together a great game even though they were behind most of the game.

1. Take the GRE and apply to grad school. I’m thinking I want to get my Masters of Education in Student Affairs at Indiana University Purdue University, Indianapolis (IUPUI). I’m going to look at taking the GRE this spring and applying shortly afterwards.

2. Run a sub-2:35 half-marathon! I ran my half in 2:38:55 back in November so I’m hoping I can shave off three minutes and fifty-five seconds from my time. I’ve got a half-marathon in May so I’m hoping that I’ll be able to do it then.

3. Run a 10k. I have one of these scheduled for March 6th. It’s part of the training series runs for the Mini-Marathon. I’d like to do it in 1:10 to match my split during my half-marathon from November.

4. Run a 15k. I have one of these scheduled for April 10th. I think this will be interesting because it’s SO close to a half-marathon but I have to think of it as just another training length!

5. I’d like to lose one pants size. Currently I’m a size 12 and I’d love to be a solid size 10 again. I’d love to go lower but that’s a reasonable goal for me at this point!

6. Go on two vacations this year. I love to travel and seeing new places with the hubs. He’s great to explore new cities with and it strengthens our relationship to have more special shared experiences.

7. Go to the beach this year. Even if it’s just another trip to the Indiana Dunes I want to take a relaxing day at the beach. It was SO much fun doing that trip and it would be great to make it an annual event.

8. Start my 403-(b) at work! This is an easy one, up to a certain percent they will match and I’m not currently taking advantage of this. We do get also a retirement fund that is equal to a certain amount of my annual salary but it would be nice to also have something that I’ve funded myself.

9. Start tracking my calories better. I’m really good during the day but once I get home at night I tend not to pay attention to portion sizes. It’s not that I’m dieting or restricting myself but I know I am eating more than I really need. I need to be more mindful of my eating and work on making sure I’m actually hungry before standing in front of the pantry/fridge and snacking.

10. Drink more water! I’m really bad about making sure I drink my 64 ounces a day. My skin is better when I get enough water and I feel better overall. Plus I have a flatter belly without all that diet coke!

Some of these goals might not seem like they are that exciting or that impressive but I’m really wanting to push myself not only in big ways but in little ways too. It all adds up to a better Jessica in 2010!

Join me in not making New Year’s resolutions; what are your goals for 2010?

I was excited to hang my two new ornaments from a couple of ornament exchanges I had participated in this month. The first was one from Sunny California!

The other was a couple of foodie related ornaments!

We hung the lights on the outside of the house and decorated with our new Christmas tree that we picked up last year after the season was over. It is SO much bigger than our old tree so it took a lot longer to put up than normal.

The dogs have their stockings and ours are hung. After we got the house decorated we had a frozen pizza for dinner while making hot chocolate to take down to the Circle! We even made peppermint whipped cream to top our decadent dark hot chocolates. Yum!

Each year we bring the dogs as it’s a great opportunity to expose them to crowds and celebrate the season with them. Here I am with Mario waiting for the “tree” to be lighted. We only go for the end of the concert and lighting but it’s always really special to be there when they do the countdown and flip the switch!

I love that Rod and I have our own tradition to kick off the holiday season! It’s only our fourth year of decorating and going to watch the tree lighting but it’s always so much fun. If we ever have kids it will be great to share this with them!

My results from the race:

Place    Age
Overall  Grp  Name                     City & State     Sex Age  Pace     FINISH
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

3172     257  JESSICA XXXXXXXXXXXXXX  INDIANAPOLIS IN    F 26  11:24    51:20.2

I was really pleased with my results as I haven’t done a lot of running since my half-marathon at the beginning of the month plus I did a strength workout the day before at the gym. I also was really glad that I had picked up long running pants while in Colorado back in September as it was 38 and misting during the race! Brrrr!

After the race we headed to Cincinnati for dinner with the fam (since Rods’ parents are in Florida for vacation) and I was really proud of myself for keeping myself out of trouble! You can see my plate below and I tried to not over do it with anything. I had one small piece of turkey; one small piece of ham; a baked sweet potato topped with butter; sugar-free cranberries; a little green bean casserole; one spoonful of stuffing; a 100% whole wheat roll (from Trader Joes) and corn topped with butter. I tried to make the bulk of my meal the sweet potato and I was mindful of how much of an appetite I had worked up in the morning.

Doesn’t my plate look AMAZING? Yum! Also not pictured was a slice of sugar-free pumpkin pie topped with a dollop of cool whip. I didn’t feel too stuffed and it was just enough of each Thanksgiving treat to feel satisfied. We also didn’t take home leftovers so I won’t feel guilty about having all that rich food in our fridge!

How was your Thanksgiving holiday? I hope it was spectacular!

Coming down Pennsylvania I saw Rod standing and cheering with our dog sitter (who also lives in our neighborhood) and it was really great to see people I knew out cheering. I was just grinning like a crazy lady through my neighborhood because I was so excited to see everyone and just have the great crowd support.

I kept waving and cheering if I saw people out and that really kept my spirits up, it also kept me motivated and enjoying the party atmosphere of the race. I felt lucky to live in one of the neighborhoods along the race route and also lucky that so many neighbors had come out to support the runners.

I even started to overtake the racewalker guy who I had been behind for a couple of miles because I was so excited to power through my regular running route! I usually run the opposite way through the neighborhoods though so it was a little tough realizing how much downhill I normally run. After passing the 10K mark I had my Clif Shot Gel in Mocha (and proceeded to get it all over my hands - yeah brown gel on hands looks gross) and felt revived. It also was tough crossing over Fall Creek and running along Fall Creek Parkway with no shade and lots of wind. It was really hot and when the half-marathon split off from the full marathon I was glad that we were going to be running in a neighborhood with lots of trees again!

Running through Meridan Park was both really cool and really tough. It was miles 7 through 10 and it was a lot of uphill, rough roads and very few water stops. It was really awesome though because there were a ton of neighbors out with music, dancing, yard signs, chalk decorations in the street and even kids handing out water to the runners. It was also really motivating for everyone to be out giving high fives and encouragement. I was really impressed with their neighborhood’s presence and getting to see another historic neighborhood proud of their urban living!

There was also supposed to be Shot Gels in this area and I never saw them, I didn’t see all the water stops I was supposed to see in this area either but since I brought my hydration belt along I didn’t worry about it at all! I’m glad I wore the hydration belt because it kept my anxiety in check and I didn’t have to worry about catching water when I wanted bloks or gels. When we exited Meridan Park we had our steepest incline of the race up until that point.

I was just glad that Rod was there cheering me on and I could see one of my favorite spots in Indianapolis, the Children’s Museum. I just wish we could have run past the side with the Dinosaurs breaking out of the dome!

I first tried to walk up the hill and when I saw Rod I pushed myself to move a little faster. It was SO rough after doing 9 miles to get up that hill. In my mind I also knew that I was getting close to the point where I had stopped in my training (11 miles). Coming down Meridian Street was really rough because there was a lot of uphill and just straight aways with 20 to 30 mile per hour winds blowing against us. It would have been nice to not be running into the wind but I didn’t have a lot of choice on that.

When I was on that stretch of Meridian Street I was also passed by the three winners of the full Marathon and I was just cheering like CRAZY when they went by - I was SO excited to see them and that they were finishing strong. The winner didn’t even look like he was breathing hard at all! When we crossed under I-65 and you could see the Monument looming ahead it was so rough knowing that you had another mile and a half to just keep powering through. My feet really started hurting at this point and I was just trying not to get blown over!

At this point Rod was cheering for me and I was just trying to keep my head down and my mind on my music. I know for my next half-marathon I need to have some of the songs from the beginning of my playlist at this point to keep my energy up. I really could have used a little Party in the USA or Round Round to keep me running! Instead I started losing steam to Fleetwood Mac’s “Edge of Seventeen”. That won’t be on my playlist again!

When I finally made it to the mile 12 sign I teared up a little inside, realizing that it was the first time I went 12 miles in my life. I had walked a little but I had made it to 12 miles. I kept pushing through and when I got to the circle there was no water at the water stop, just powerade. I decided to keep running until I was past Rod and my mom over by the state house and then maybe I’d stop for a little water before I got to mile 13.

At this point I’m not going to lie, my feet were killing me. I had blisters on both feet and I was regretting my decision to not wear my new shoes (I had worn them on a few runs before the race). I also knew I was SO close to the end but I couldn’t push through, I had to walk and get a little water to keep me going. I walked around the corner to New York Street and then as soon as I got through to West Street I realized there was a huge hill at the end before you turned the corner to the finish line. I walked a little of the way and was like SCREW IT, I’m pushing through this! The crowd noticed me pick up and all these people kept cheering for me to finish strong and were telling me “YOU CAN DO IT, FINISH STRONG!” That was all I needed to haul ass and pass a bunch of people around me.

You’ll notice in this pic that you can see a bunch of half-marathoners behind me, I pushed through and passed all of them all the way back until the lady in the purple top! I was on FIRE! I knew I wanted to taste the victory of finishing and I just wanted to be able to stop! I started tearing up and told myself I couldn’t stop.

When I got closer to the end I threw up my arms because to me, no matter if my gun time was 2:43, I had finished 13.1 miles and in my mind I was a champion. I started tearing up when I went through the finish chute and was just dazed and confused. I couldn’t believe it, my journey was over and I finished! My goal time was 2:40 going into the event and I blew that away with my official chip time of 2:38:55.1!

I was really glad that I packed a mini cooler with ONE coconut waters and a EAS Myoplex Vanilla Cream shake. I grabbed a banana, bottle of water and a powerade zero in the finish chute but I wasn’t really finding any cookies or bagels I wanted (or could eat). It was good to have the Coconut water because it instantly hydrated me after my long run and I just felt really good. Since I had it in training it was perfect for my after race drink!
I loved getting my “bling bling” for the first time and I’m SO proud of it! I’m not going to lie, I wore it while watching football on Sunday and also Saturday night when we were watching TV. The ribbon is really cool and I just am so proud of my first half-marathon. I know I need to work on some things when I do my Mini-Marathon training starting in January but for the next week I’m just reveling in my finish! I’ve got a massage on the schedule for today and I’m off work so it’s my last day of relaxing before it’s back to the grind.

Thanks for all of the support and well wishes, it really meant a lot to me these past few days!

Since I had taken a half-day on Friday I was able to get all my race gear together and ready to go before we even went to dinner. My mom came into town for my race so before we headed to dinner Rod and Mom picked out their strategy to cheer me on for the race. She was at four different locations and Rod was at nine different locations. Both were at the start and finish line which were very motivating!

For my big carb loading dinner on Friday night we went to Buca di Beppo and feasted on their Penne San Remo (substituting whole wheat pasta for their regular pasta) and their proscuitto stuffed chicken. We also split an appetizer of fried calamari and the antipasto salad. It was SO good and the perfect carb loading for the night before a big race! There’s also a TON of leftovers in our fridge so we have lunch for this week, yum!

In the morning I woke up bright and early at 5:30 after a night of tossing and turning. I was SO nervous and excited that I spent most of the night looking at the clock and dreaming about the upcoming race. I’m really glad that I went to bed at 9:15 on Thursday so I had a night of rest to base my race off of (I can’t thank my trainer enough for that bit of wisdom)!

For breakfast I had a slice of Ezekiel Cinnamon Raisin bread topped with Almond Butter. We stopped at Starbucks (where I had my first red cup of the season) so I could grab a soy latte. I actually ran into a guy that I graduated with from Butler in the parking garage and we were off to the starting line. I went through my stretches and ran into someone I worked with at the TV station who is a decorated racewalker! He put my nerves to ease, I stretched again and used the port o’lets before saying goodbye to Rod and my mom.

To keep myself at the proper pace (and since they didn’t have official corrals) I got in line right behind the 5:00 Marathon Pace Group and figured that was a perfect place for me to run the first half of the race. I saw Boomer (the Pacers mascot) and was off! It really kept me calm to be standing with a pace group that was all about just running it and having fun. There were a lot of first timers in that group and that also eased my nerves. I didn’t see Rod or my mom since there was such a crowd, but they at least got a picture of the sign so I knew where I started!

The first major landmark we ran past was the Lucas Oil Stadium where the Indianapolis Colts play. There were a lot of people cheering as we came around that corner and that was where I first saw Rod! I was SO glad to see him I started cheering, clapping and waving my arms around.

I still had my gloves at this point and was really glad that I had a gun time of 14:00 for my first mile. On my watch I did a 10 minute mile so I was really excited. I might have been a little too excited because I really picked up the pace and at the next mile marker the timer read 21:00 - eek! I started slowing down so that I wasn’t overexerting myself too early in the race. Heading up Meridian street to the Monument was really special. I started getting choked up a little when we were coming through there as the monument was where Rod and I got engaged back in 2007!

It was really cool to be part of such a large group of people touring the city and seeing all the sights that Indianapolis has to offer. When we ran through the circle and past the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra’s theater they had music playing and it was really fun to run on the bricks.

Rod got a great picture of me running through the circle and I look SO happy. I think I was still in awe that I was doing this and that there were so many people out running on a chilly morning. Around Mile Three my stomach really started hurting. I had been drinking water at each station (and walking through the stations so I could drink properly) so I figured to break out some of my Clif Shot Bloks.

It took me a while to get into the package and by the time I finally got them open I was right by Rod on Massachusetts Ave! I love the picture he got of the runners with Chase tower in the background. What a perfect fall view of Downtown Indianapolis!

I’ve got my shot bloks in hand and I’m just smiling away in this shot. I was really happy as I was still on part of the loop I run on my own. It just made me really appreciate all the spectators and just how much energy and excitement the runners had! I know I was in a slower group but everyone was really supportive and encouraging of everyone around them.

Towards the end of Mass Ave one of the local high schools had their drumline out keeping people motivated. They were really good and fun to watch as we were running by, although there wasn’t a water stop there where there was supposed to be one (I was a little obsessed with the course map before the race). Running by the Indianapolis Public Schools bus depot was really cool as the Marathon was raising money for IPS and they had all the buses out honking and cheering for the runners.

When we came around 10th street there was a family who had set up their own water stop and was all dressed in crazy costumes. The kids were handing out cups of water and the adults were cheering like crazy. Anytime I saw people out cheering I made sure to yell and cheer to thank them for coming out. It may have used some precious energy but I had so much fun, it was almost like a party to me. Running up along Central to the Old Northside was really rewarding because I usually run that stretch at the beginning of a run so I felt like I had just gotten started and it was almost mile number five!

I think this recap is getting long enough, I’m going to continue it on in my next post! If you’d just like to know how I did, you can visit my results here.

Place    Age                                                      Split-1    Avg
Overall  Grp  Name                     City & State     Sex Age     10.0K   Pace     FINISH
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

   2326  242  JESSICA XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX  INDIANAPOLIS IN    F 26  1:10:49.8  12:07  2:38:55.1

Not bad for my first time, plus I beat my goal time of 2:40! I’m SO proud of myself and I’m not going to lie, I wore my medal last night while we watched TV!

Have a great Sunday and I promise to post the first part of my recap soon!