Reflections of 2011 and Goals for 2012

There is so much to reflect on for 2011 that I am not sure where I want to start at. I met so many different goals that it was hard to believe that so many of my dreams came true.

A few goals of mine that were met in 2011: 

*I moved from my home town (nice big home) to a town that was nearby but that I was not expecting to move to as well as an apartment. Leaving this home was very hard for me because I great up there, but I knew it was best for Brian and I as well as my relationships to move.

*I overcame some very difficult friendships that I have not spoken about much on here, but were very difficult for me to deal with.

*I ran 4 half marathons- 2 of these half marathons were in the same month 2 weeks apart and then the other two were spread apart.

*After we moved to our new place only a 1 1/2 months later I received a job. I had been trying to find a job for over 2 years and all God wanted me to do was move to a new place. I was offered the 2nd grade position and LOVE IT! I only have 12 kids and I could not ask God for anything better.

*All of my family is still happy and healthy.

*Brian has been doing great in his job and his getting a ton of high lifting compliments.

Those are only a few goals that were met during 2011. 

Goals for 2012

1. Run a Full Marathon (not sure exactly where yet). 

2. Find some Professional Development hours that I can go too for school! 

3. Loose around 10 pounds. 

I know I know, I am not the typical person to say that I want to loose weight, but I would like to get down to the 115-120 range. Now I am not dead set on this goal, but I would like to try and make it happen. 

4. Strive to be the best teacher that I can be and learn from other teachers as I teach. 

A experiment that I did making clay dirt. 

5. Earn the money to be able to buy a home by November/December. 

6. Become more involved in my church. 

Brian and I started going to a new church this past year and I have wanted to become more involved, but between starting my first year of teaching and moving it has been hard to get involved with things. 

7. Plan our my schedule at least every 3 weeks, 3 weeks in advance. 

This really helped me 3 weeks before Christmas break, so I am going to try and stick with that.

These are my goals for 2012-2013 and I am so excited to try and meet these goals and hopefully set some new ones as I go through the year. Hopefully if I can I want to try and run one or two half marathons in the process of training for my full marathon. That is my main goal other than striving to be a great teacher this year. 

I hope everybody else had a great 2011 year and an even better 2012 year! 

Question: What are some of your goals for 2012-2013? 

White Elephant/Wild Game Christmas Party

Wild Game Christmas Party? What in the world is that? I know that is what you are probably thinking. If you or somebody you know is a hunter that is very easy for them to figure out. This year my brother hunted quite a bit and ended up killing even more than what he expected. The end result was their freezer being very full and not having enough room for all of the other meat from his recent kills.
They decided to have a Wild Game/White Elephant Christmas party for our Sunday School Class. We had tons of great food, friends and fellowship.

The table centerpieces were made from deer antlers that my brother had killed.

They did a great job wit the centerpieces. My sister-in-law her sister and my mother helped to come up with how they would look. 

Each person brought a dessert of side to go along with all the good food. 

 This chocolate fountain is very evil and had lots of great deserts and fruit to go with it.

















Our spread of food included Goose, Duck, Dove and Chicken Gumbo. We also had Elk Parmesan, venison (deer meat), Red Stag and Oryx Steak, Venison Wong tongs, Deer Sausage and Alligator.

So much good food and not enough room in my stomach for it all. Do you like the cute name tags with the actual pictures of the animals we are eating. That was my nice touch. I thought it would be fun for the people to see what the were eating. :0)
We ate outside and it was the perfect night to eat outside....

 All the yummy food that was going to be eaten very soon. Everything tasted great and my brother did a wonderful job of cooking it all.

 Brian was trying to learn a few things about cooking some stuff on the grill.

 These two little people have already been matched together by their parents. I am not sure if they have a say in the matter right now. :0)

My wonderful brother and sister-in-law who hosted this great party.
After everybody ate and was completely full we went on to have a great White Elephant Christmas Party. This Christmas Party was not like some White elephant parties I have been too. some people want a "real" W.E. gift and some want funny gifts. This was a funny gift party. I brought a mug warmer (kind of like the candle warmer) and a deer antler cup holder. Mine were funny, but there were better gifts.

The best gift of all was this....

I know what you are thinking....a snuggie, that is not funny. Well here is the story behind it. The person who has the snuggie on graduated from Texas A&M University and is a devoted Aggie fan as well as my whole family (except Brian and I). This person was number 8 or so and out of 16 gifts he choses the UT snuggie. He opened up the gift and some of the things that were said was,

"You have got to be kidding me!"
"I guess the dogs will have a good blanket for their bed!"
"What am I supposed to do with this?"
"I know, I can cut it up into dishrags and use it to clean my car!"

It was priceless the face he gave whenever he opened it and saw what it was. I have a feeling, this gift will be back again next year.
That was the end of the evening though. I got a cell phone holder for my car and Brian got some Turtle Wax cleaning supplies for the car.

And just for your enjoyment, my silly husband and my brother's dog Cocoa.

Brian can not seem to figure out that you can not see his eyes underneath his Santa hat. Cocoa is like a lab in a poodle body! He is so much fun to play with. 

Question: What Christmas parties have you gone to this year already? 

Coming up: Run Girl 13.1  1/2 Marathon Recap

A Stranger at the Door

How many of you used to stay alone at home whenever you were younger? If so, how old where you whenever your parents started letting you do that?

(This will probably be a little long, just a warning!)

I was probably around 12 whenever I could and whenever somebody would come to the door I would run and hide if I did not know who it was. I guess I was really nervous about it. I also grew up in the country where we had a baseball bat or firearm in every corner by the doors. Saying that, here is what happened...

The other night I was watching my nieces at their home and they live in a very nice neighborhood. This neighborhood only has about 21 people in it so everybody knows everybody's business and knows who comes in and out of the house. I was helping them with their homework and then all of a sudden I hear a ring at the door. I told them to stay there and I went to the door to answer it.

I knew in my brain not to answer it, but for some reason, I went ahead and did for whatever reason. I stick my little head out and this guy starts telling me about this work job program and I really was not paying attention because I was tired. I told him no thank you and closed and locked the door. I went and locked every since other door as well and then had a discussion with my nieces about how we never open the door to STRANGERS!!!!!!

Whenever my brother got back I told him what happened and he then talked to his daughters about the same thing I did. I started to leave and pulled almost out of the subdivision when I saw 4 COPS in the cul-de-sac. I pulled down there to tell them about what happened and it turns out that two other neighbors had called the cops on this guy as well.

ALL OF A SUDDEN........

the cop yells, "THERE HE IS, GO GET HIM" to the other cop. This cop speeds past me and the other one zooms past me as well. Turns out the guy crossed the street outside of the subdivision and the cops were going after him.

You talk about a CRAZY night. I was scared to death by the time I got home and laughing all at the same time. This guy will think twice before he comes into that subdivision again.

Lesson for the night: DO NOT OPEN THE DOOR TO STRANGERS! haha

Have you ever had a stranger come to the door? If so, what did you do?

Half Marathon #5 Checklist

In just a couple of days I will be running my 5th Half Marathon. I am making this checklist partly so that I can remember what I am supposed to bring with me. Brian is going to get to come with me to watch and help get around. I hate driving in new places that I do not know, and I especially hate driving in Houston, so Brian is going to help me out there.

I am staying with my friend and I am so excited to see her. It has been almost a year since I have seen or been able to hang out with her. We went to school together and then she was also one of my bridesmaids. We graduated with the same degree (Elementary Ed) and both teach 2nd Grade, but in different schools.

Let's see, where to start my checklist....

• Address for Packet Pickup.
• Address for the Race site. 
• Registration for race
• Running Skirt
• Running tights
• long sleeve shirt/top shirt
• ear warmer
• gloves
• socks
• sports bra
• Running Shoes
• Spi Belt 
• Yurbud Headphones
• Big and Small Camera
• Phone
• Body Glide
• Sport Beans (just incase)- I want to do this race without anything extra except water/gatorade, but I am nervous about it all the same. I have been training without all the extra items, but I am going to carry some, just incase. 
• Garmin Watch

All of my swag I will be getting. I am super excited about these items. 

Off the top of my head that is all that I can think of. I feel like I have not raced in so long so I am scared that I am going to forget something. Hopefully that is everything. 

*What is your must have item for your long races?* 

My bling that I will be getting on Sunday. 

This will be my first freezing cold race. According to Weatherbug it is supposed to be a high of 52 on Sunday and a low of 35. It should be an interesting race. I am not looking to PR in this race because I have been so busy with school it has been hard to get some training in, but I am really excited to just finish. 

I am a little sad about this weekend and that is because I am having to give my puppy dog to my parents so that they can take care of her for Brian and I. I am going to miss her!! 

Mommy, why are you leaving me?

*How many of you have half marathons or races this weekend?*

I will have a full recap next week after my race hopefully, but that is also my last week of school before the Christmas Holidays! ( *jumping up and down doing the happy dance*) :0) 

Thanksgiving and Black Friday

So I know this is more than a week late, but I have been incredibly busy lately with school and life. I have not had a weekend free for quite a while. Thanksgiving break was great because I got to review/giveaway a Handful Bra, which are amazing, I was out of school for a week and I got to spend Thanksgiving with my whole family.
So it started off with Thanksgiving with my family.

JoVan always makes up a new recipe for the turkey each year and it always turns out great. My family is very large. I have 2 brothers, 2 sister-in-laws, 4 neices and 1 nephew, plus my mom and dad. It may not be as large as some, but it is large for me. That is only my side, not Brian's. These are just a few of my amazing family members.

My mommy and I

Ryan and I

My niece and nephew. 

My sweet niece. 

Brian and I. He came there on his lunch break. 

After the food was ready we were all ready to chow down. Normally I would have done a Turkey Trot 10K, but I was not impressed by the course last year, so I decided not to this year.

Food time........

After we ate and devoured so much food I stayed for another hour or so and then had to hurry home and get ready to head to Brian's family's house.

 Brian and I were so stuffed already, we were not sure if we could fit anymore food into our stomach, but we knew we would have to somehow.

 Milly was being super lazy and loved having her stomach scratched.

 But, she of course had to go check out what pawpaw was doing. :0)
Let's make our way around the table. I love Brian's family. They are amazing and so much smaller than my family. haha

 mother and poppy

 Karen and Jason

 Brian and I

You can not forget about the dogs though. We had so many granddogs. Milly, Maddie, Pixie, Maggie and Lucy. No grandkids yet, but we have granddogs. Maybe grandkids soon. 

After being so full on Thanksgiving, the next day Karen, Kim and I got up at 3 a.m. and started our black Friday tradition. Our first stop is always JcPenny's for the annual snow globe. 

 I have gotten one of these globes every year since Brian and I started dating. 

 All of our loot! So many bags. I was accused of it being all mine, but it was not. I promise! :0) 

We have gone shopping together for the past 3 years I think. I love our tradition. I can see us being 90 year old women and still doing this! :0) 

Thanksgiving and Black Friday were amazing this year and so stress free. I love it whenever it is like that. This weekend I have my 5th half marathon coming up. I am very excited about it. I will have a full recap of it whenever I come back. 

Coming up next will be a Wild Game/White Elephant Christmas Party! Just wait until you see some of these pictures of the things we got to eat! :0) 

Winner of the Handful Bra

80 I know I am a little bit late on this, but I was so busy this weekend with getting ready for school, cleaning and Christmas shopping/wrapping. I had an amazing Thanksgiving and Black Friday holiday. I know you are so excited to see who the winner of the Handful Bra Review/Giveaway is. So here you go.......

The winner of the Handful Bra is.............................

Im The Marigold from Knickers in a Twist.

This was her comment that won....

 ImTheMarigold said...

I'm doing a Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving Day and then bikram yoga on Saturday.

Congratulations on winning. Please e-mail me at kaylajean87@yahoo.com and I will tell you how you can get your free Handful Bra. And Thanks for following! 

Don't Forget about my Giveaway!!!

Don't forget about my giveaway HERE!!! 

My giveaway ends Friday for a free Handful bra! They are amazing and so worth it! Come check it out! 

Who wants a Handful?? Bra Review and Giveaway

How many of you out there struggle to find just the right type of running clothing? Whether it be shorts, tops, socks, shoes, bras, etc? I like many of you are one of those people especially when it comes to running bras. I am not exactly the largest person in the world up top or the smallest, but I do struggle with finding the right type of bra that does make me look flat chested and more like a woman.

I have gone through so many different types of bras it is ridiculous trying to find just the right one. When I go searching for bras, they are either....

1. To tight or to big. 

2. Not flattering at all. 

I am not sure about you, but whenever I run I want to feel some support and I want to feel and look like a woman whenever I run somewhere. That is why I am so excited that I am not the owner of a Handful bra!

I am so excited to have one of these. These bras are designed to "flatter, NOT flatten." I took this bra on the ultimate test, that is a 10 mile run to try it out on Saturday and not only did it not move, no chafing or anything. It was fantastic! It was a beautiful day and this bra made my run and me :0) look and feel so much better.
These bras can be worn daytime or night time. I wore mine for my 10 mile run and then wore it again out for the day. I could not even tell that I was wearing it.

The Handful bra comes with "two removable and replaceable pads." It also has elastic criss-cross straps across your back that do not cut into your skin or leave marks or any kind. They stay put and move with your body as you workout.

Criss-Cross Straps

I love the criss-cross straps. I have fairly large shoulders and these straps fit right in the middle.

The handful bra was "created to fit your style in and out of the gym. It conceals from warm up to cool down so you've got two less things to worry about during your workout."













The Handful bra also comes in this fun and amazing mesh bag for "less waste and convenient laundering of the bra and pads." this way you do not mess up your bra whenever you go to throw it in the washing machine.

I ordered black because I can wear it with just about any of my running clothes, but there are also so many other colors you can choose from, such as.....

The sizing is very simple as well with sizes ranging from X-Small - Large.

Are you ready for a chance to win your very own Handful Bra! Sure you are! :0) Here is how you can win:

• Become a follower of Running Through Life or if you already are, tell me you are. 
• Like Handful Bra on Facebook, and let them know that I sent you! 
• Blog, Tweet (mention me in your tweet kkay6) or facebook about this review/giveaway and leave a separate comment for each. 
• Let me know which color Handful bra you would love to have! 
• Bonus: Tell me what you are going to do on Thanksgiving to get your workout in? 

The Giveaway will end on Friday, November 25th and I will announce a winner on Saturday. 

Disclaimer: I received my handful bra free of charge, but these opinions are my own.