the blissed life: happening: tgi..n?!?: october 2014, you will be missed!

that’s right…thank goodness it’s november(almost).

october 2014 you have worn me out in every way imaginable! although you will end like many octobers past; celebrating Halloween in a makeshift, last minute, homemade costume you have been arguably one of the most memorable months of my life.

week one: vegas baby!

cody joined me in sin city for three days while I attended a training conference. we didn’t have plans but, getting away together for a short time at half the cost was reason enough for him to make the trip. while detained (i.e., attending the conference), cody gambled and managed to win big. enough to pay for the trip; making it a whole lot more fun. i think i’ll call him c money from now on.

we did what you do in vegas; watched the bellagio fountains, devoured fine cuisine, watched a show, gambled (obviously), stayed up WAY too late, sunned by the pool, and rode insanity at the stratosphere. my fondest memory though was spontaneously joining a dance party in the ‘streets’ outside of new york new york after the cirque de solei show. that’s where I fell in love all over again with my husband.

week two: j+h=love

the next week was all about my brother’s wedding. set in a picturesque fall, on a saturday afternoon, in a local park, my brother, joe, married his long-time sweetheart, heather. i can honestly say i have never been so close to bursting into tears at a wedding. watching my brother repeat his vows just made me so unspeakably happy. i simply adore them!

of course, the reception was a hoot! and i sincerely loved the fact that I got to ‘bounce’ people off the party bus. in addition to my bridesmaid duty that was my crowning responsibility. (my brother has an ironic sense of humor.)

week three: marathon week

no one can ever truly prepare you for what to expect during your first marathon. no matter what food you eat, how much sleep you get, mileage run, or the hours you spend watching the weather and then deciding what to wear you’ll never to be ready to run 26.2 miles. on october 19^th i ran the imt marathon in downtown des moines. it was an experience that I will truly remember for the rest of my life.

the marathon was on a sunday so after a long weekend of errands and thinking about the marathon I was anxious. my mom and sisters came up saturday evening. they made posters and I watched the movie my husband had recorded for me earlier in the week: without limits. how fitting! ‘run you little German boy, run.’ classic! i crashed around 10 while the rest stayed up chatting.

the next morning was just as memorable as the run itself. naturally, we rolled out of the house late but, surprisingly brandea woke up on time. cody back into my mom’s new car and we had to make a speedy trip back to the house when we realized we forgot the backpack of goods.

my mom, sisters, and husband kept me going for 26.2 miles that day. i saw them at least 7 or 8 times and their posters were hilarious. by the end of the race I couldn’t focus on much more than the fact that I was dying but, cody was right there running nearly 4 miles straight with me right up to the finish. the culmination of the accomplishment itself, the physical exhaustion, my family’s support and the flood of texts, phone calls, 'likes', and facebook comments was absolutely overwhelming! and then I threw up.

week four: recovery and the big two.nine celebration

most of this week was spent devouring a package of oreos and easing back into a normal workout routine. by saturday I was ready to celebrate my birthday and the fact that 4 months of intense running was OVER. cody had reserved a limo a few months prior and dinner reservations had been made. we invited several of our close friends and were ready for a one wild and crazy night. it started with dinner at americana and ended at our place over a breakfast pizza, repairing an oversized inflatted phalic object around 3 am. we had achieved wild and crazy!