The best things ever.

January 28, 2014 | cheriarmour

Seriously, yesterday was an incredible day. I’m finding that the more I choose to be happy, the happier I am, and yesterday, every little thing made me extraordinarily happy.

The weather was gorgeous in North Carolina yesterday. Seriously, it was like 60 degrees. I was able to run 6 miles in shorts and a tank top. Today, it’s supposed to snow. Climate change at its absolutely finest.
I forgot my Garmin charger in Florida. Not the good part obviously. But my sister sent it my way yesterday, which was perfect timing because I got the beeping sound of death that indicates your Garmin is fixin’ to die. (Like the way I threw Southern lingo into there?)
My sweet tooth was going nuts yesterday. So I made an executive decision, stopped by the Harris Teeter on the way home, and bough this teeny tiny Ben and Jerry’s, pictured above. It’s like a tiny taste of exactly what I needed, and it won’t ruin your life, as it comes in at 280 calories of cookie dough goodness.
Apothic Red Wine. Bought some of that too. And drank some. YUM!
Gloves. I was given some Columbia gloves as a gift. Très necessary, as the temp plummeted from 60s to upper 20s as the evening went on.
Glamour Magazine. I love magazines. If I could, I would have a subscription to Glamour, Rolling Stone, Elle, InStyle, Self, Shape, Women’s Health, Brides, Runner’s World, and Cosmo. But there are only 24 hours in the day, and my bank account would be very upset if all I bought was nail polish and magazines like I want to.
I made some time to clean! So in between the baby ice cream consumption and a glass of vino, I was able to light candles, sweep, sprinkle some smelly stuff on the carpet, and vacuum. There’s almost nothing that makes me happier than waking up in the morning to a clean space.

So, if you could have a subscription to any magazines, which ones would you have?

What things are making you happy today/this week?

Weekend update! We heart DC!

January 27, 2014January 27, 2014 | cheriarmour

If you’ve been following along about anything here on the blog, you’ll know that I’m absolutely enamored of the District of Columbia. So best bud Scott invited me up, and Friday, after work, I took off, and made the trip, that was a little over 4 hours. Not a bad drive, right?

So Friday evening, me and the bestie braved the cold, and met some Elon friends out, and just enjoyed some tasty drinks.

The next day, we braved the cold temps and wind yet again, and hit this spot called Pound the Hill, a coffee bar that turns into a wine bar in the evenings. We went earlier in the day, so we missed the wine, but enjoyed some ah-mazing treats nonetheless.

Dear Scott, in front of Pound the Hill in DC. It’s right next to a yoga studio – how genius is that, right?

The space is small, but extremely warm! These DC coffee shops get packed! Best to get there early, grab a seat, and stay there.

Menus. And I spotted Nutella. Well, say no more, if there’s Nutella involved, I need to taste these.

A Nutella latte with skim to cut the sweetness! It was delicious – hot and creamy!

The holy grail of things to eat! This sandwich was a Nutella, banana, and honey sandwich. SO sweet, but good if you’re into that….which I totally am. If you don’t have a sweet tooth, just skip this one. But I loved it.

I packed my running clothes. I have big news, I’m running the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon on April 13th, and it’s time to up the mileage. The wind slowed down, and Scott provided me with directions to get to Capitol Hill. So off I went. Are you ready for this?

In one of the greatest cities, in the greatest country in the world, I got to run to the Capital building, peek a few blocks down to see some monuments, and run back. The run totaled about 4 miles or so, and I didn’t feel too chilly, despite some good wind.

Next, we hit a birthday party, where the girls based it around the coolest theme.

So this doesn’t look like a whole lot of pizza right? Well, that’s because the girls made 5, yes 5 (?!) pizzas, allowed us to taste each one, and then paired each pizza with a beer. Very cool, and I was impressed by how much DC folks, friend’s of Scott’s were so welcoming and seemed to enjoy meeting me and hearing about what I did. Seriously, DC folk seem like nice, genuine, kind people.

And finally folks, no post would be complete without a picture of a pup, right? This guy, Fitzgerald, was the dog of the house where we were staying. I’m glad I left little Coco behind – she had not yet received her ThunderShirt, and the long car ride, plus Fitz’s high pitty energy would have freaked her out. But I’m glad to be home with my lady.

So folks, what did you do this weekend? Fill me in!

PC Time Machine

January 23, 2014January 22, 2014 | cheriarmour

Thank you God for Austin Samples, because my girl over at Olive to Run posed this question on her Facebook page.

What is the WORST injury you’ve ever had? [running related or not]

As i described my worst injury to her, I began on a quest to find the photo that would explain the injury.

First, I called my mom, who allowed me to break into her email to see if I’d sent her the photo from my Elon email, since I’d been at Elon when the injury had been incurred.
Then I logged into her email. No dice.
I emailed my Dad at work. Except Papa Cheri would not be at work til like 9am. Okay.
I tried to log into my Elon email, knowing fully well that they’d shut us out of our email like 60 days after we’d graduated.
And finally, I tore through my house, looking for an old PC that I hadn’t booted up since maybe 2010. The thanks to Austin comes in where I realized I had no cords and no mouse to use the thing. I got all of those things, and finally booted it.

Time machine much?

AIM was still on the desktop. And Marilyn was asleep in the background.

But the main event, the only reason that I booted the PC in the first place?

The worst injury I ever got.

::clears throat::

I played rugby for a short time my freshman year. During this particular game, where my boyfriend at the time was watching from the sidelines in horror, a girl tackled me from pretty high up. Now take a close look at my right knee without getting nauseated. So when she did this, I heard a loud crack, and went down. I remember the coach asking me what was wrong, and I couldn’t tell her, all I could tell her was that I was in horrible pain radiating from my right knee. It swelled up immediately, and what ended up happening was something called a tibial tuberosity, meaning that a bone that sat at the bottom of my knee had been pulled up and off by my ACL, accounting for that crack I heard. I spent the next, like 8 weeks in an ACL brace and on crutches, and to this day, that knee gets sore from time to time.

See!

Okay, enough of me walking down memory lane.

What is the worst injury, running or not running related that you’ve ever gotten?

I made a Facebook page! And scenes from the week!

January 21, 2014 | cheriarmour

Yous know I love my social media right? So it only seemed fitting that I’d make a Facebook page for the blog, and folks seem to be enjoying it. So here’s the deal, if you love me, and you’d love to interact with me a little more, do a few things for me:

Read the blog obviously.
Follow me on Bloglovin‘ if you’re a fellow blogger. (Seriously, the most useful tool for keeping me and all my blogs organized and in one place, rather than logging on to every single blog.)
And follow me on my Facebook . It’s a little more interactive, because there’s no real lag time between when you comment or ask me a question, and when you get a response, either from me, or from another informed reader.

Okay, moving right along, I hope you guys had an amazing 3-day weekend. Usually I’m a little more service-oriented and reflective on MLK Day, but since I made a little addition to my family…

…I spent a lot of the day doing laundry, straightening up, vacuuming, and using my degree in Psychology to train my little girl to make sure she only poops outside. She’s doing so well! She’s extremely clingy, and she keeps hurting Austin’s feelings, because she’s glued to me, but she could take or leave my husband-to-be. He texted me yesterday and said “I hope Coco starts to like me more.”

My shadow and I went for a run yesterday morning. She’s very tall, and her hair is long. Is that what I look like?

GoodNESS, these Raleigh hills kicked my butt. Look closely at the end of that road. Mama ran ALL of that.

The legs got to come out yesterday, and probably for the last time all week. They’re predicting snow tonight. Woo-hoo! Raleigh never gets any good snow!

And finally, look at this dinner I snagged last night! Me and the nearly-husband met with some good friends from undergrad at the Remedy Cafe, a little joint that features a lot of local, vegan, and vegetarian items. I went with friend “chicken” and some veg mac and cheese. It was awesome, and I split it in half, added a salad, and brought the rest of it for lunch today.

How was your weekend? Hope it was lovely!

Forgiveness

January 17, 2014January 17, 2014 | cheriarmour

If you’re a runner, surely by now you’ve heard of Meg Menzies, the runner and mother of three from Virginia, who was struck and killed on a run earlier this week.

From the looks of things, it seems like she was doing everything right. She was running against traffic, wasn’t running in the street, when an allegedly intoxicated driver crossed the white line and hit her.

And on Saturday, bunches of us are running our miles and dedicating them to the mother of three, who lost her life on Monday.

It really freaked me out when I read about this and got me thinking.

A little over 2 years ago, one of my campers was killed when the driver she was riding with failed to negotiate a turn in the middle of the night. He escaped, with a .09 BAC and a broken wrist. She did not, and was consumed by flames when the BMW caught fire.

It really, really bothered me for months, and I went so far as to reach out to her mother, who seemed glad to talk and share about Remy, who was nothing short of a firecracker. She loved it when I played Beyonce in class, she wore this jangly Tiffany’s bracelet all the time, and once screamed at us for making her clean her room. So I looked up the kid who’d killed her. And found that he was still being held in a prison in Norfolk, coincidentally, an hour from where we’d camped that summer.

I thinking of writing him. I’m not still super angry. Or sad. But I do bet he doesn’t feel great in the least about what happened, and I do bet it could be interesting to talk to the guy who spent his last few moments with my girl. I totally forgive him. I already had when I realized he would have to spend the rest of his life thinking about how Remy had passed. But I want him to know that.

I want…

January 16, 2014 | cheriarmour

This list is one of those things that’s both running and non-running related. It’s one of those lists that I may be able to get to some of it this year, and maybe some of it not. But it’s that list that if the stars all aligned, the money was just a-flowing, this is what I’d want. And maybe, with the proper planning, I can make this all happen.

These boots.

I had a pair, and I wore a hole through them. I really really miss them, and I would like to get another pair. One of these paychecks….

These tights to go with my Minnetonka Fringed Boots.

These wedding bands. (I will ~~probably~~ be in possession of these August 23, 2014).

photo (9) — Two rose gold eternity bands. One on the top, one on the bottom. How pretty!!!

A Starbucks gift card with an unlimited balance. I would get a decaf latte with skin and two Splenda once every few days.
To go horseback riding. I realized today that I have not been on a horse since 2010, and I’d love to go for a trail ride.
To run this.

There are a few things standing between me and this want. One, the lottery. I haven’t entered (it’s not open yet), it’s 26.2 miles in hilly San Fran, and tickets to San Fran ain’t cheap!

To have a full-time job as a fitness blogger. Then a book. Then a line of cocktails like Bethenny Frankely had. Oh my god my heart just went a-flutter thinking of it. Can you imagine?
This computer to blog from

A nice camera for the blog so I’m not relying on my phone for your photos.
For the rooms in my apartment to be painted. I need to recruit Austin for this undertaking.
A dog. A dog a dog a dog!!! Austin says no, but I’m working on it.
Jackie Warner’s abs/friendship.

And that’s about it for now.

What’s on your wishlist?

If you were thinking natural girls don’t need maintenance, think again.

January 16, 2014 | cheriarmour

When I made the transition to natural hair, I was probably about 17-years-old. I had been traumatized by repeated trips to the salon, where, in an effort to tame my naps, the stylist would pour chemicals on my head and allow them to sit until my hair would lie in fear of the chemicals.

Safe, right?

Eventually, the chemicals took their toll and my hair was not looking too well off by middle school.

Then, I graduated to having my hair braided all the time. Which was fine, except the place where we went in Charlotte would pull our hair so violently, I ended up in her bathroom in tears once. And I was too scared to ever tell her that my head usually hurt for two days after the box braids were put in. Plus it smelled weird there.

So finally, at the tender age of 16 or 17, I got fed up with it, and I somehow decided that I was going to wear my hair in dreadlocks. My mom gave me a really hard time about it – locs were not yet super mainstream, and she associated the style with marijuana use and dirt.

But I was really persistent, and wore my hair in a short style, and nearly 10 years later, here I am!

If any of you are thinking of going natural, and you feel moved to do it, DO IT!

Locs fit my lifestyle. Most people assume I’m from California, largely due to my demeanor and the fact that I sound like Hilary Banks when I talk , and the locs fit the Cali lifestyle. I’m also semi-crunchy, and I work out a ton. But just because the locs fit my lifestyle doesn’t mean that they’re not work.

After weeks of running and working out and washing, my hair was in a state. I didn’t have a ton of time, so I made an appointment with someone local to maintain my locs, but she abruptly canceled on me. My mane couldn’t wait. It was begging for maintenance. And the fact that she abruptly canceled on me made me a little leery. I don’t normally let anyone touch my hair, and I’m not letting someone touch my hair who doesn’t show up for her appointments.

Desperate times call for desperate measures, and it was time for John Frieda’s Smoothing Shampoo + Conditioner. I’d read reviews, and black women had said some good things about the way it had left their hair feeling. (Normally I go for Giovanni, but I needed heavy-duty artillery for this mess).

Post-shower + wash, the hair was already looking better, and felt a lot softer.

And I set to the task of twisting with a few clips, since my growth was so soft and not really wanting to stay, with this.

Which leaves the hair feeling light and soft. And there’s no smell really, which is good, cause I hate smelly hair stuff.

Work those clips honey!

…And ta-dahhhhh! Here is the finished product.

Soft, manageable, looking much better, and cheaper than getting it done!

Are any of you guys thinking about going natural? Why or why not?

I think I’m done being mad at Lululemon now.

January 15, 2014 | cheriarmour

I walked into Lululemon yesterday for the first time since this gem, in which the CEO and co-founder of Lululemon, a high-end specialty retail store that caters to mainly young women, yogis and runners, implied that ::ahem:: some women’s bodies were not made for his yoga pants. Read: the founder just called us too fat to wear his pants.

I mean, I don’t pay nearly $100 for your pants for you to insult me and call me fat. Plus I get all my running and yoga apparel for the most part from Fleet Feet, so it wasn’t a huge deal to quit paying Lululemon visits.

But yesterday, I decided I was over being mad at Lulu, especially since they put the gag on the co-founder, and now, former CEO, and stopped in to see what was going on. I made a few observations, that I adored! For one, the girls who work there are adorable, which I forgot. I don’t ever remember being that cute when I was working retail, so color me jealous!

These sweatpants which felt like heaven.

And I decided I need a gym bag. I real one. I’m tired of shoving my planner next to sweaty tights and sweaty pairs of underwear – it’s time (now that I’ve been working out consistently for like 4 years), that I graduate to a real gym bag with real pockets for the dirty clothes and pockets for my phone and for my sneaks and stuff.

So the iPhone went into selfie mode, and I took a selfie with my two favorite by the most glorious full-length mirror the store had to offer.

So the real question here is is…

Are you still mad at Lululemon? Why or why not?

Which gym bag do I get out of the two pictured above?

What are you listening to?

January 12, 2014 | cheriarmour

I have a very visceral reaction to music. The first time I ever heard Waka Waka by Shakira, I welled up and got all teary. I think I was also going through a breakup and I also get like hyper-emotional when I work out, so it may just be that but whatevs.

The other day, I was riding to dinner with the husband-to-be and one of those cheesy countdowns of the top 5 songs was on. I typically only listen to the Beyoncé CD in my car, most specifically Yoncé/Partition, but I decided that Queen Bey could use a break.

I heard this song.

And I kind of started feeling weepy. I make no bones about the fact that I am 25 shit 26 years old, and a full-fledged Directioner (Zayn is the best, and the movie was hilarious and fantastic).

This song was immediately added to my running playlist, no questions asked.

Now here’s my question for you.

What song have you recently added to your running/workout playlist?

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