The Next Chapter: Life in North Carolina: April 2013

As most of you know, running has never been a strong suit of mine. Actually, it wasn't until around this time last year that I had run 3 consecutive miles since my middle school track days (this is where I learned I wasn't a great runner...). After running in a 5k with friends this fall without training, and feeling disgustingly out of shape, I made a New Year's resolution to run in a 10K (6.2 miles) sometime this year. I started running a lot in January and actually enjoyed myself (I was shocked, too). Then, a classmate of mine mentioned the biggest run in Chapel Hill - the Tar Heel 10-miler on April 20th. As it's name states, this was a 10 mile race as opposed to a 10K. At first I didn't think I'd be able to train adequately before the race a few months away. In February I ran 5 miles and decided if I ran 5 in February, I should be able to run 10 in April...so I bit the bullet and signed up. A few weeks later, so did my loving boyfriend.

And guess what! We ran the whole sha-bam last weekend!

After the race!

About a week before the race, the event was sold out (5,000+ runners!).

Evan and I had multiple goals for the Tar Heel 10-miler. They started out pretty easy, but got a little more reasonable as race day approached:

1. Don't be dead last. (Check!)
2. Don't walk. (Check!)
3. Run the race in under 2 hours, or at a 12-minute pace. (Check!)
4. Run the race at an 11-minute pace. (Check!)

We ended up crossing the finish line at 1:47:34. That ends up being a 10:45-minute split! We were pretty excited, and even got some awesome TarHeel medals!

I must admit, I've been pretty lazy since Saturday. I'm sure I'll be up and running again - with another race to train for - soon!

-M

Hello all! I come to you in high spirits after finishing up a paper this morning and getting to enjoy the beautiful weather all day long.

For starters, I just wanted to share a picture that I think is pretty cool. I took a 4-week photography class through UNC's continuing education program to get more comfortable with my new DSLR, and my last assignment was to take a "true silhouette". Evan was a great model each week... :)

Anyways, on to brighter things (and pictures). The temperature in NC escalated quickly about a week ago, and Evan and I have enjoyed soaking up the sun the last two weekends! Although we've lived here for almost a year now (so hard to believe!), there are still a lot of places we haven't visited and things we haven't done, and we have so much fun exploring our home in NC.

Last Saturday was a perfect 75 degrees, so we decided to go to the Duke Gardens (which I've been so excited to see!) and I was not disappointed. The gardens were beautiful with all the flowers in bloom.

The gardens were much larger than we realized, with three sections divided throughout the area.

This place is such a gem for Duke students, located right on campus. Duke students and visitors were all over the place picnicking and lounging in the sun. Next time we go, we plan on packing a blanket and lunch!

By the pond at Duke Gardens

Visiting the Duke Gardens motivated us to start working on our own garden and sprucing up out patio. Evan and I have been doing some home improvement projects to get ready for spring - new homemade wreath on the front door, lanterns added to the back patio, and begonias in a snazzy new pot!

Homemade felt flowers -
took forever to make, but turned out great!

The finished product!
(Sorry for the glare on the bow)

We're also planning on attempting to grow some fruits and vegetables in the community garden at our apartment complex. So far we've just added the garden soil and roped off our section, but seeds are being planted this week!

Yesterday was one of the most fun Saturday's Evan & I have had since we've moved to NC. To start off the day, I ran in the Color the Hill 5k with a bunch of friends from my class. Evan didn't run in the race, but was the best paparazzi we ever could have asked for. If you've never heard of a Color Run, they're quite the spectacle. Runners wear white and are bombarded with "color bombs" throughout the race. In this particular race, there was also a "color party" prior to the race, where participants had their own color packets to bombard others with. Below are some of the results...