I pledge....

* to finish recapping my "25 things to do before I turn 26" list

*to show you guys some of the awesome stuff we've done this year (a 2009 recap is an excellent way to finally catch up on everything I've meant to blog about!)

*to finish my "26 things to do before I turn 27" list and share it with you all

...the time for blog neglection is over!!!!!!

Thanksgiving, by the numbers:

So, one of my goals over my 5, yes 5, day Thanksgiving weekend was to update this blog!!! I have been such a slacker, but things in the Nack world are just completely crazy right now. So, I have promised myself that December will be different, and here I am, starting out:

A Nack Thanksgiving, by the numbers:

Days off: Steph 5/Sean 4
Books read cover to cover: 2/1
Team Nackalista visits: 2
Delicious dinners at the best BBQ place in town: 1
Football games watched: 6+ (I've really lost track)
Pieces of plastic fruit the cat stole out of the centerpiece and used as a soccer ball: 5
Trips to Old Navy: 3
Trips to gun stores: 2
Hours that we didn't have to do anything remotely responsible: not nearly enough, but it was great while it lasted!


Happy beginning to the holiday season!!!

Happy Veterans Day!

Happy Veterans Day to my husband, who I am so very very proud of!!!

Thanks to everyone who has served and is currently serving!

Back to the Birthday....

Well...

I know that I promised I would blog the day after my birthday... and then it didn't happen. But then today, this happened:

drawings....

and candy in a cute pink box....

and flowers....

and RAINBOW CHIP CUPCAKES!!!!!!

So as you can see, thanks to Stella and Trey, today is my birthday! And that means I can blog tomorrow :)


Trey and Stella, I love you!!
aren't they cute???

Today I party, tomorrow I type.....

.... hello friends! Stay tuned tomorrow to see how The List turned out and get a last minute recap of the big 2-5, but today, today I celebrate the day of my birth!!

See you soon, and Happy Anniversary Mom and Dad!!! Thanks for sharing your day with me!

# 20

FANCY FRIDAYS!!!!

Fancy Fridays were born after I got tired of "Casual Friday." Casual Friday used to be awesome, because you could wear more comfortable clothes (khakis, polos, etc). But often, I found that "Casual Friday" would end up feeling like "Frumpy Friday," and it was easy to justify not trying as hard to look professional. So, to combat that, Fancy Fridays were born!!

My fabulous ladies Courtney and Melinda have joined me in our Fancy Friday festivities, and let me tell you, it makes a difference! :)

Yay for feeling fancy, not frumpy!!

Once upon a time....

... we rescued a tiny stray kitten, after it had cried outside our window for three days.. But we already had a Loki, and husband can only love one cat at a time, so off she went to live with CJ, Scott, and baby Abby. Her name is now Toby (really, we're not sure she's a she!), and she loves her farmhouse and her new dog Maddox! But I still miss her sometimes....

Growing as people....

I made my best friends try Key Lime Pie at our joint B-day dinner last week
good thing they have me, who hasn't had key lime pie???

Introducing CJ...

and Amanda...

...I don't think they're fans....

But know why they did it (other than because they love me)???

because for them, I tried crab.....

.....and it was awful.....
Love you ladies, next time let's just stick to the cheesy biscuits!!!

Happy Birthday!!

To my Loki.... you're my favorite cat!! :)

RnR Seattle 2009

Well friends, here we are at the end of another race! A few weeks ago, mom, dad, Sean and I headed to Seattle for the 2009 Inaugural Rock and Roll Marathon. It was an awesome trip, which will get it's own post, but right now we'll get down to the important part, the race!!

37000 runners. 13.1 (or 26.2) miles. 2 major hills. A million slightly less major hills.
3 awesome people cheering me on. 2 ice packs for 2 swollen knees. One medal!

We started out the race weekend at the Health and Fitness Expo, held at the Qwest Center in downtown Seattle, which is also the finish line:

Talk about a HUGE expo!!! Loved it though, going through all the merchandise and all the race info was so much fun! It's always so motivating to go to those!!

After a fabulous night in Seattle (that's another post... someday!) and scouting parking spots for the next day it was off to bed so we could get up SUPER early for the race.

Here is my fabulous cheering squad!!! And thanks for the rockin poster Dad!!


Before the race:

This was the biggest race EVER, and getting 37000 people ready for a race of this size seems SO crazy, but the Rock and Roll Franchise did an amazing job! You never felt like it was that big and they handled everything excellently! There was a "wave start," meaning that you lined up in corrals based on your estimated finish time, and each corral waited their turn to start. It must have taken an hour for everyone to start, but it was still great!! Here they are waiting for me:

And we're off!!!

with my new race friend Jared...

ready for a chat break!!

I'm so attractive when I chat!

Love him!!

Finally eying the finish line!!

Done!!!

Here's the recovery area (my favorite part!!)

This race was brutal and really took a lot out of me. Tons of hills, a mile and a half in a freeway tunnel, not enough hill training, it all added up to a pretty miserable experience and there were definitely times I wanted to quit. But I made it through the heat and the tears and the sweat and the blisters for this:

idea for photo stolen from the super talented Marianne Walker

Thank you so much to my parents and Sean for continuing to travel around and cheering me on no matter what!! I love you guys and definitely would not have finished without you (and the thought of that finishers shirt I bought the day before!). You guys are the best!!!

The best is yet to come....

Ok Jen, I know this isn't an awesome post, but I have 3 minutes until my bedtime, so it's all the post you guys are gonna get :) I promise, there are many things in the works here at S.Nack Time, here's a little preview for you:

*Travels far and wide
*My husband immortalized for all time
*Many new glasses!
*An explanation on why we collect glasses!
*An underground house!
*Home improvements
*The RnR Seattle Half Marathon (no, it didn't kill me!)
*Things I think are lamespice (yep, I said it)
and many, many more....

Until then, I leave you with a pic of my fancy new hair, and one completely competent level.

See you soon with my 100th post!! :)

Steph

Also...

Happy Father's Day! Love, your favorite Loki cat :)

Happy Father's Day!!!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful Daddy, who has ALWAYS been there for me, most of my great successes in life (and finishes in races!) are due to him. I love you!

Your little girl :)

Eugene Marathon 2009

Well, here I am, a few weeks later, finally getting around to posting about the marathon. Sorry it's taken so long, things have been crazy and overwhelming in the Nack house as of late. Hopefully things will be slowing down soon and we'll be back to our usual happy selves. :)

The marathon (half, but whatever) didn't go as well as I would like. It started out great, a little rainy, which I think is great cause it cools me off, and tons of people cheering us on. I made great time my first 6 miles or so and was right on track of making my goal time.

Around mile 10, I pulled a muscle in my right thigh, which was extremely painful. This is the leg that usually gives me trouble, but not that muscle. At that point, it was walking time. Walking time makes me sad :( But it was good because I got to spend some time with my crazy/wonderful boss who ran it even with pnuemonia!! I did finish, and I'm really proud of how the first half of the race went, so we're just gonna take the happiness from the first part and roll with it into our next race:

Here are some pictures for your general enjoyment:

Before the race

Mile 2 or 3 maybe...

Water please! Mile 8

Looking like I'm dying at the finish!!

After the race :) Thanks for the flowers Mom and Dad!!

I'll try and be better about posting, and keeping you updated on my training for Seattle, but that's all for now!!