Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Sausage Fest, upcoming travels, and all the good things

It has been awhile since I have participated in Katie's Take Time Tuesday linkup. I have much to be grateful for, so it is definitely time to partake again!

Live Half Full 

Sausage Fest
Last Thursday, Anne hosted a Sausage Fest Fun Run to help raise funds for Uniting Against Lung Cancer. We first went for an easy 5K run around the neighborhood. It was a beautiful evening and I enjoyed being able to see some sights and sounds from a different neighborhood.

I did almost the entire run with Katie. During this time, I got to catch up with her on her upcoming European vacation plans and a triathlon that she'll be doing next month (woo-hoo)!

After the run, we came back for a grillmaster feast of sausage, veggies, and all kinds of great side dishes, beverages, and dessert. Anne even had raffle prizes to give out!

Here are some pictures from the evening, courtesy of Pete:


The festivities were a blast. I had a great time catching up with so many other running blogger friends, both old and new. I am so blessed, as always, to have such a wonderful community of running friends. When is the next running blogger get-together!?!?!?

Travel Plans
It is really hard for me to believe that it is Labor Day Weekend this weekend. Where did the time go?

Adam and I will be headed up to Michigan again for the long weekend. We are staying in South Haven, where we've spent a lot of time over the years, but we also plan to spend some time exploring Saugatuck. I am looking forward to the opportunity to relax and enjoy all that the area has to offer. Other than the 5K trail race that I did in Fenn Valley back in June, I've never gone running in SW Michigan. It will be nice to get in a relaxed training run amidst the quaint scenery.

Southwest Michigan at its finest!

As far as other near-term travels, I'll be headed to Pittsburgh with Adam in October for a weekend of Pittsburgh sports. Namely, we'll be going to a Penguins game on Saturday night and a Steelers game on Sunday afternoon. It is going to be epic!

Other travel plans coming up:
  • My first-ever runcation will happen in November for the Disney Wine and Dine Half Marathon! I have still never worn a costume to run a race, and I am semi-entertaining the idea to wear one there. Where better to do so than in Disney? Or maybe I'll just keep it simple and wear mouse ears.
  • In December, Adam and I are taking a trip to Maui. (I am searching desperately for a race of any reasonable distance that will take place while we are there, but so far no luck!)
  • Next March, we are going on a cruise that starts in Panama (the country, not the city in Florida), then makes stops in Colombia, Aruba, Curacao, and Bonaire.
The travel bug never stops biting and I am always scheming on more wish-list destinations. All in all, though, I am very lucky and incredibly blessed to have so many fun travels to look forward to.

Other things I'm grateful for
  • Enjoying my new workplace, its people, and its resources very much
  • The change of seasons in the Midwest
  • The wonderful charitable organizations out there that serve their purposes the very best that they can
  • Remaining healthy and relatively injury-free these days (knock on wood)
And finally...
  • All of my amazing friends, family, and husband, as always, for everything that they do.

17 comments:

  1. Beautiful pics of Michigan. By the way, does the whole Chicago Running Blogoshpere spend their summers in Michigan!? I am totally jealous and need to plan a trip there next summer. Have fun! :)

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    1. Unfortunately I can't take credit for the Michigan pictures but I am glad you like them! Thanks to you, too, for the fab pictures from Sausage Fest. =)

      It does seem like a ton of the CRBs go to Michigan whenever possible! I know that Maggie is considering organizing a CRB getaway weekend for the Michigan Wine Trail race that Anne, Bob, and Erica just ran this past weekend. So that would be an awesome way for us all to enjoy Michigan together next year!!!

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  2. Oooh you're going to Maui!!! How exciting! Where are you planning to stay? We loved our hotel in Kihei, if you need a recommendation. Pretty reasonably priced, across the street from the beach and some great parks to run through, and so much nearby. And check out the Valley Isle Road Runners - they may have a race while you're there, and they also do group runs. I wanted to join them when we were on Maui, but definitely not enough time for everything!

    It's really cool for me to read everyone's recaps of the Sausage Fest - it means so much that so many people came out to support the cause! Wish we could have chatted more, but I'm glad you were able to make it!

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    1. Thanks, Anne! I am planning to go back and read your travel blogs about your time in Maui. =) We are staying at the Maui Lea at Maui Hill. I did look at the Valley Isle Road Runners for races, but didn't think to look for their group runs! Thanks for the recommendation!

      Thanks again for hosting and organizing the Sausage Fest! It was SO MUCH FUN. I can't wait for the next get-together. We seriously need to have CRB gatherings at least once a month!

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    2. Have you guys been to Maui before? If not, do check out my log, but my top recommendation would be sunrise at the top of Haleakala. I'm still super bummed we didn't have time to do that!

      We've talked about WRCE doing a monthly run, so maybe that'll happen once things slow down and fall gets here :)

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    3. Oh, and you're staying in Kihei! Cool! Yeah, definitely let me know if you want more info on where to go around there :)

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    4. Never been to Maui before! And I've heard a ton about Haleakala sunrises - it's a good thing that the jetlag works in our favor when us Midwesterners travel to Hawaii. =) Next time we catch up it would be great to talk more about your experience traveling around Kihei. =)

      Yay for WRCE monthly runs! Maybe we could even rotate hosting locations? I am so excited for fall, too!

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    5. Oh, we'll definitely have to chat! I think we have all of our travel guides too (they were free at the airport, but if you want to plan ahead, or think about planning ahead, it may help!), so remind me the next time we're getting together and I'll pass them along.

      We had talked about rotating hosting (either at someone's house, or just going to various restaurants), believe me, I had fun hosting last week, but I don't need to do it every time :) Are you doing the Oktoberfest 5k next month?

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    6. Thanks so much! Any and all resources on Maui would be tremendously appreciated!

      Hosting is a lot of work, indeed! It makes you appreciate other gatherings a lot more after having hosted them yourself, yes?

      No Oktoberfest for me - but I look forward to seeing the pictures from the WRCE in attendance there. Way to REPRESENT!!! =)

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  3. Running in SW Michigan is my favorite! So different from running in the city :-) I've run on the Van Buren Trail and biked on the Kal-Haven trail and both are lovely.

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    1. Ahhh, I was planning on just running the streets of South Haven so that is really helpful to know about the Van Buren Trail and the Kal-Haven trail. I'm not familiar with either so I am going to research them both now. Thanks for the tip!

      Do you and Jason have any special plans for the long weekend, yourselves?

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  4. Your upcoming travels look like so much fun too! I can't wait to hear about them!

    And thanks for linking up! :)

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    1. Likewise - I am super excited to hear about your European travels coming up in just a few days, too! Take lots of pictures!!!

      And thank you to YOU for hosting Take Time Tuesday!!! =)

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  5. Keep staying healthy and injury free!!
    Its exciting and sad at the same time seeing the fall and winter events hashed out when it feels like I barely knew the summer!
    you are a busy lady!

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    1. Likewise - I wish you much health and freedom from injury as you continue to train for the Chicago Marathon! This summer has been kind of weird with the extended cool spells intermixed with spikes of extreme heat, eh? And you are pretty darned busy yourself with your training and your family. =)

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  6. It was so great to see you at Sausage Fest! Also I looove Michigan so much and you should save the end of August next year for a CRB road trip to the Michigan Wine Half (or 5K) :)

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    1. It was so great to see you at Sausage Fest, too! How awesome was it that we all got to help you celebrate your birthday, too. =)

      Ooooooh, I am SO THERE for a CRB trip to the Michigan Wine Trail Half. YAY!!!!!!! I hope they announce next year's date soon! Let me know what I can do to help out with the planning. =)

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