Author: cheriarmour

Living life to the fullest.

| cheriarmour

Sometimes, I complain about really stupid things.  Sometimes I am a grump.  Sometimes I take for granted the fact that I have a roof over my head, a warm bed, and more than enough food and resources to make things work.

And then the universe will yank you right back to reality to remind you that all the stupid, petty, ridiculous crap you’ve wasted energy on just isn’t worth it.

There is a tiny adorable elderly woman who has taken my Zumba® classes for over two years.  Two-and-a-half years ago, when she was taking my class, I thought she might be too frail, and am ashamed to say, that sometimes I doubted that she could do it.  But she always powered through, and at the same time, would let me know what she thought about everything.  When I got this position, she could not be happier, and she let me know.  A few weeks ago, when I was subbing a Toning class, she literally squealed when I walked down the hallway to see her.  I would hug her.  And over the last few months and weeks, she’s gotten smaller and smaller, colder and colder, and we realized that something was the matter.

A few months ago, after a bout with bronchitis, my teeny friend went to the doctor and found that she did not have bronchitis, but lung cancer, and that she would be leaving us within months.  Yesterday, when she woke up, she could not breathe well, and we in the community, have been keeping each other on a text thread, hoping that she pulls through, but realizing, that at 86, this may be the end of the road for her.

Simultaneously, one of my best friends suffered a tremendous loss this week.

I hate it, that anyone ever has to suffer, or that me, being a selfish human being, sometimes waits for these moments to remember how grateful I should be for the blessings I have.  But the sadness for my dear friends has reminded me that we, that I, have so much to be grateful for.

This Friday, here’s to being grateful for how beautiful and fragile life can be. 

What are you grateful for today? 

The invite list.

| cheriarmour

We’re coming up on over a month of being married, and as I’ve stated again and again, being married is amazing.  It’s like before when we were dating, but even better.

On Thursday night last week, our wedding photos, courtesy of Blest photography came in the mail, and I’ve spent the last few days looking through 900 amazing photographs again and again.  I’m debating how to share this with you all, if at all, but here’s a little taste for you guys, one of my favorite photos of the day.

CHERI+AUSTIN0501 (1)
At this moment, Cole had just asked us if we minded playing around in the tobacco for a while.  Of course we didn’t, and Austin helped me pick up my dress and sort of frolic in the field.

But I’m getting distracted.

Let’s talk invites.

So I’ve hopped around the wedding thing a lot, trying to give you the best info.  But since I’ve just gone through it and my sister is going through it (she’s doing a wedding reception with her husband in December), and it’s something that is the source of a lot of grief.

Who the heck do you invite to your wedding?  Who don’ t you invite? How do you keep from insulting folks?

This is something we went through – I have a large family, and my parents got married in the 80s, when a lot of times, your parents would invite whomever they wanted, and you, the couple-to-wed, has very little say in who is invited.

Things have changed since then, so here are a few rules when you’re trying to figure out who you invite.

  • Immediate family.  Duh.
  • Friends.  Invite folks that you would invite to your housewarming.  Do not invite frenemies.  You don’t need negativity on your day.
  • Work people.  For my small, more intimate job at Fleet Feet, I invited everyone, as we often invite each other to big life events.  At my new job, I invited no one, and my husband invited folks that were on his leadership team at work.
  • Family/your parents’ friends.  This one got a little tricky for us.  We wanted to invite everyone our parents had ever met, but it simply wasn’t possibly.  Our venue would only seat 140, and we really wanted to make sure we got everyone in that we could.  We invited family friends that we’d grown up with, and Austin’s mom invited a few of the same.

The tricky thing when going through this list is figuring out how you can keep from insulting folks when you don’t invite them to your wedding.

Here’s your answer.

Who cares?  It’s you/your partner’s day.  And real acquaintances who care for you will understand that you like them okay, but not necessarily enough to spend over $100 for them to eat up all your food and drink all your liquor.

How do you decide who gets invited to big events?  

 

Fitbit

| cheriarmour

I blogged a few weeks ago about how I was in a little bit of a running slump.  And almost as soon as I wrote those words, I went on a run the next evening that felt like my breakthrough.  A friend and I comfortably ran nearly seven miles and chatted, and I felt a little bit of my old running self coming back.

I’ve also found that sometimes, when I’m in a slump, if I buy myself a new toy, I seem to be able to overcome the slump rather quickly, since I’m focused on whatever new pair of shoes/jacket/shorts/watch, and it kind of kicks my motivation back into gear.

Well I’d been thinking about a Fitbit for a while, and going back and froth on weather the purchase would be a worthy one, since I’m pretty active.  But last week, after a particularly rough day at work where I’d received a ranty email (is ranty even a word!?), I was feeling very sorry for myself, and went and picked up a Fitbit off of my wedding registry at a cool 15% off (yay!) and I got to setting it up.

Fitbit

I think the original reason why I went back and forth on the Fitbit is that I wasn’t sure what it could offer someone like me who’s super active – buuut I will admit, the thing is pretty darn cool.  A few points?

  • It comes in a pretty sleek design, and isn’t super obtrusive, which is one of the main reasons I can’t wear my GPS constantly.  I don’t feel uncomfortable popping it on with my business casual during the day, and it fits in with my workout clothes just fine.  (As a point of reference, it sort of looks like one of those Livestrong bracelets folks were rocking in the early 2000s, and it’s not a whole lot heavier).
  • It was really really easy to set up.  You take it out of the box, put it on, and you just kinda go!  There’s a little dooder so you can sync it with your computer, and there’s a super simple app for your phone.
  • On aforementioned app, you can track your calories that you’ve eaten.  Not that I’m a super-stickler about my caloric intake, but it’s something that I loosely like to keep an eye on, and that tool was invaluable when I was losing some college weight – being able to keep track of everything I put into my mouth.
  • If you’re at all competitive, or like big round numbers, Fitbit sets a goal of 10,000 steps per day for everyone, and it encourages you – even on a day where you’re taking a break – to get up and move.  Just because it’s your day off doesn’t mean sit around for hours and hours, and Fitbit sort of reminds you of this.
  • …But I can see how this amazing little piece of technology can make obsessive folks such as myself, well, a little more obsessive.  If I feel like I haven’t hit my steps, I will move heaven and earth to make sure I hit those steps – I have to watch that in myself.
This is not indicative of my usual - I'd run over 7 miles, taught a class, and worked at the store that day!
This is not indicative of my usual – I’d run over 7 miles, taught a class, and worked at the store that day!

So overall, I’m loving this little gadget that I’ve thrown into the mix.

Do you have an Fitbit?  An app?  How do you keep track of your activity? 

Something bad happened to my Kindle.

| cheriarmour

I got my Kindle a few years ago.  I was kind of having a really tough year – I had just broken up with a boyfriend, was feeling a little meh, and in the mail from my younger sister Debra was the coolest invention since the iPhone – an Amazon Kindle.

I dressed my Kindle up – I bought a skin for it to jazz it up, and got it its own little sleeve holder to go in so I wouldn’t step on it on drop it in its off-time.  The Kindle took me through that breakup, through a summer at a camp in Virginia, though hurricane Sandy, through my employment at the bakery (it was great for breaks), and through time at the pool.

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One of the only pics of me and my Kindle, when it was still living.

Last Sunday, while my husband was trying to bore me by forcing me to watch NFL, I went to flip on my Kindle, and something just wasn’t right. The screen was weird and frozen, and I immediately, immediately got on the phone with Amazon Kindle support.  To their credit, Amazon has absolutely incredible customer support, and they were super helpful, but after a few “tried-and-true” fixes, I had to resign to the fact that my Kindle wasn’t coming back, and that Amazon no longer manufactured that old-school style.

They were great.  They’re sending me a refurbished model and I only paid the difference for them to ship it to me.  I will have to ship the old one back, and in the meantime, I’ve honestly felt a little bit lost.  I’ve been reading bits and pieces off of my iPhone screen, and patiently stalking the mailman for the day when my package gets here.

What’s one piece of technology you feel attached to? 

The rehearsal dinner.

| cheriarmour

At this point, we have been married for a little over a month, and this month has been one of the best ever.  It’s been a month of change, a month of emotions, and a month of getting to know one another better.  I absolutely love being married, and I really hope I can maintain this feeling like everything is awesome forever.

So, as far as #weddingwednesday, let’s talk the rehearsal dinner!

I wasn’t a million percent sure what the purpose of a rehearsal dinner was going into planning the wedding, very similarly to how I wasn’t sure what the purpose of engagement pictures was.  But as we planned, it became clear – despite the fact that my parents were absolutely more than willing to meet each other, because everyone was working and living their separate lives, there wasn’t a whole lot of time for our folks to meet each other and bond before the big day.

So, as we were trying to figure out how and where we would do our rehearsal dinner – someone on an online forum someone pointed out the absolutely obvious, that we should use the services at our amazing hotel, the Proximity in Greensboro, and set up our rehearsal dinner there.

And what an amazing suggestion that turned out to be!

So the Proximity is a green hotel in Greensboro, and I can’t describe to you how incredible it was to walk up to that building.  The service was spectacular, and at about 7:30pm the night before our wedding, I walked into a room that looked like a dream.

Lights, a beautifully set table, food, and all of our best family, friends, and bridal party in the same space.

There were a few tears, especially when my sister made a really sweet speech about my time spent at home for when my mother got sick last year.

But long story short, as you kind of go through some of the expenses you want to spend/don’t want to spend, a rehearsal dinner is definitely one of those things – it helps you to get your mind right and relax with friends and family before the big day.

Speaking of the tears that I shed at my rehearsal dinner, when was the last time you cried?  

 

 

Sweat Hope 5k – small but mighty

| cheriarmour

Earlier this month, I told you guys about the Sweat Hope 5k, and this weekend was the big event!

So Saturday morning, after about a week straight of rain, I woke up and the running Gods smiled on Raleigh, and I woke up to nothing but straight sun and beautiful temps.  I headed down to Wake Med Soccer park in Cary, and easily found my way to the race, where Whole Foods, Sola (a local coffee shop), Headbands of Hope (obviously), and a few other local vendors were set up.  I got my bib, and lined up with a little over 300 other runners to run the 5k, which started promptly at 9am.

HoH 5k1

I’m almost ashamed – I’ve lived in Raleigh on and off for the past fourish years, and until Saturday, had never run at Wake Med Soccer Park.  I was surprised!  The trails were really packed down, well-maintained, and ridiculously hilly!  For 3.1 miles, we ran up and and and up and down and up again – easily one of the most challenging 5k courses I’ve run.

HoH 5k

Overall, the race was a blast, incredibly well-done, and I would totally do it again, and hope to again next year!

*****

So in my secret life, I sing and recently recorded a song with an extremely talented local rapper for the purposes of performing it at a show on Sunday night.  So me, the husband, Marc “Franchise” Jusino, and a bunch of spectators hit the stage on Sunday to compete in a show.  Spoiler alert: we didn’t win, but we totally should have, but I have a lot of respect for the guy who did win.  Excellent excellent performer.

ShowBut we totally should have won!

What’s one cool thing you did this past weekend?

 

Pumpkin things.

| cheriarmour

But is a just me, or are things getting a little out-of-hand with the pumpkin everything thing?

I get it, it’s fall, and I think fall is one of the most wonderful seasons in the whole world.  Especially when the sun is out, which I haven’t really witnessed since fall began in North Carolina.  But the temps are a little cooler, I’ve been able to run without feeling like I’m going to vomit, and overall, I think this fall thing is a win.

Except…I went to a meeting early yesterday morning, and would you look at what I found.

Pumpkin PieThere, amongst all the asparatamey sweetness that is Yoplait (no shade to Yoplait, I used to like drink this stuff until I discovered Fage), was a Pumpkin Pie flavored yogurt as one of our breakfast options.  So obviously, I had to taste it.  I mean, what is the argument here.  I like pumpkin pie, I like yogurt.  But this was a major, major fail, and this, along the vast collection of pumpkin-flavored things to grace our Food Lion shelves over the last month, has just got to stop.

I have a confession to make.  I don’t care for the pumpkin spice latte (PSL).  I don’t care for pumpkin filled Oreos.  I don’t want pumpkin spice hummus.  Truthfully, the furthest I was ever willing to go was with pumpkin bread.  And pumpkin cheesecake, that too.  The rest of it?  I’m just not here for.

I’m sorry.

Does that make me grumpy?

I know better.

| cheriarmour

So a few days ago on my lunch break, I packed up my clothes and my shoes, and headed out for a run with a friend before I had to take off to teach a Zumba® Fitness class.  The weather is starting to get gorgeous here – yesterday, the temp must not have gotten over 80 degrees, and for the first time maybe since the summer kicked off, I didn’t feel like death following the run.

But I made a critical error.

I know so so much better than this, but I grabbed an old pair of Glycerin 11s, a pair from last October (almost a year ago), and did a short run in them.  My feet hurt.  My knees ached.  And as an employee at a running speciality store, I knew SO much better.  I know old shoes can make the difference between a good and uncomfortable run.  I know that they contribute to foot cramping and knee aches.  I know that looking at gross worn-out shoes is probably not helping me to pull out of this running slump whatsoever.

But I did it anyways, and only rethought it when, after only three miles, my feet were aching, knees aching, and when a co-worker from Fleet Feet walked in, took one look at my flattened out shoes, and started laughing.  We can tell these things.

So today, reflecting on my slump and how discouraging my achy breaky run was, I went to the store, picked up a pair of Glycerin 12s, and went for a little under 6 miles with a friend.

GlycerinThey felt really really great, and the just-under-six really didn’t feel as slumpy as all my runs have been in a while.  A few contributing factors to that?  Pretty new shoes, decent fall weather, a good friend to chat with while we powered through the gnarly gnarly hills of Raleigh.

Oh, and I registered for a half at the end of next month.  I’m sure that didn’t hurt my motivation since now I have to show up and kick some ass.

What do you do that you know is no good for you?  

 

If I had to plan my wedding again…

| cheriarmour

So, it’s wedding Wednesday, which we haven’t done in a lot of weeks, but you all will deal because I got married and bought a house in the span of the last 30 days.

Helene blogged an excellent post about if she had to plan her wedding again.  Yesterday is our one-month anniversary, and quite honestly, I’m still floating on the clouds, however, I thought the post was really interesting, and really pertinent, as it seems like every single person on my Facebook feed is engaged – so here it is…

WeddingIf I had to plan my wedding again….

First off, this is really really hard, because I honestly feel like the day was perfect.  But it was more because of the company I think.  Being with my friends, being with my husband, getting pictures taken, and dancing all night left very little to want for.  But as far as planning goes?

  • I would have spread the planning out a little bit more.  When we got engaged, I was really really overwhelmed.  My grandmother died immediately following our engagement, and I really didn’t get into planning until months before the big day.  Everything got done, but it made that time right before feel a little crunched in the weeks before.
  • Knowing how much it costs, I would have saved a little more leading up.  You think you have all the costs together.  But I absolutely guarantee, future brides, you will bleed money in the month or so before your wedding.  Even if your family is paying for it all, you’ll  need to buy this or that at Michael’s before.  You’ll forget that there are favors to be purchased, and jars to be crafted. Trust me on this one.
  • I would have delegated a little bit more, sooner.  My friends were absolutely incredible.  One bridesmaid registered me at Target and BBB.   One ran to Michael’s for chalk the morning of.  My brother put together some gifts for some of the folks for me.  But I wish I had realized just a little bit sooner that it is okay to ask friends for help.  A lot of times, they want to help, and would gladly do whatever it is you want to.  They have no stake in this.  They don’t care if you want pink flowers and yellow walls with  kites hanging off of them (just an example, and not at all indicative of what my gorgeous day was about).  But they will do what you tell them and be happy to do it.  <-to be fair to this point, I also hate to relinquish creative control to anyone, so the delegation I did was hard, but worth it 🙂

And that’s really it.  My wedding was such a gorgeous celebration, I have very little to say about the day of.  But leading up, there were definitely things I could have done to reduce my stress level.

What would you have done/what are you doing to streamline your wedding planning process?