Recent News in the Land of Fave

Wedding season is in full swing!
I had my first bridal shower hosted by two of my dear friends and they planned an amazing shower! I must brag for a minute - I have some pretty awesome friends. yes, you should be jealous. they all rock. ALL of them. I feel bad for people who don't have friends liek I do. they are all so remarkable people. they have good hearts, personal goals, and are so supportive to everyone.

My mom (the trditionalist) hosted a lovely engagement party for IronGreg and me. Complete with a cupcake buffet. Both families made it in town for the occassion. thanks, mom.

The dress is at home and hanging up at "the farm" (my sister's house) where IronGreg can't sneak a peek! now I muse say as the alteration process went on, I fell out of love with my dress. I like it. mostly. I think it's pretty, I jsut don't think it's very flattering on me. maybe I jsut need a flatter stomach (yes, I finally got the over 30 belly). Can i please have my body from 28 back? Just for one day?

this coming weekend is the bachelorette party! yee-haw! the irls are heading west for some good times.
What happens at the bachelorette...stays at the bachelorette.
Wait. I don't want that rule for the bachelor party...or maybe I do!

I haven't seen the insie of a gym much recently. I am trying to get in one swim a week. you read that right -= only ONE swim. last year i was doing 3/week.
Last week I went to track practice. first time I ran in three weeks. I had a leftover cupcake from previously mentoned party prior to track. in the words of julia rpoverts in pretty woman, "big mistake. big. HUGE. well i have to go shopping now." okay so maybe I don't have to go shopping (although i bought two fab pairs of shoes on saturday), I did have to jog during track. I was "vurping" the whole time. it was awful. never again will I eat a cupcake BEFORE running. afterwards, however...
I am hopinh to actually run tongiht. i wonder if I can find m,y shoes under the layer of dust.
and maybe while I dust them off I will also unearth diamond. oh how I love my bike. but man I sure have neglected her.
It is hard watchign everyone train religiously and make PR's. i jsut have to come to terms that now I have different goals. I am not racing this season. I don't know when I will do an Ironman again. it's sounds good and all, but it jsut doens't fit in life right now. something about marriage and babies. sigh. why can't I do it all?

oh so ask me why I went shopping on saturday? b/c the wedding dress place didn't make my custom piece. even though i was there to pick up my dress. when the tough get mad, the tough go shopping! i mean I was in old towne alexandria after all. so I spent 90 minutes on king street with friends and then went back and picked up the not-so-fabulous-anymore dress.

oh! i did go on a 50 mile bike ride a few weeks ago. It was SO mush fun. GO TEAM LOLLYGAG!!! Love those girls. Muah!

When am I supposed to breathe?

Saturday:
- rode outside for the first time since IMAZ. rode 55 miles. moving average was 17+
that works for me.
- went to dinner with another couple. during dinner Greg got a call and 30 mintues later his house was sold.

Sunday.
Easter.
- watched Big D, my nephew, find Easter Eggs. so precious. he loves his auntie! and his auntie sure does love him.

monday
- made offer on house.
- received counter-offer on house.

tuesday
- made counter offer on house.
- received counter offer on house.
- accepted counter offer.
- had dinner wiht mom in town for one night.

wednesday
- rode outside. hard gear up hills.
- feel asleep on massage table post-ride.

thursday
- deadline at work.
getting mani and pedi after work.

friday
- mom and grandma in town for weekend.

saturday
- bridal shower
- engagement party

I really need to get my brows done.

Monument Avenue 10k

In Pamplona they have the running of the bulls.
In Richmond, Virginia there is the running of the Monument Avenue 10k.
Along with 38,000 of your closest friends, the most beautiful street in richmond, monument Avenue, is filled with runners, walkers, supporters, bands, and volunteers.
this year was colder than most, but not a bad day.
After working 75 hours by COB Friday, I was tired, but Ir eally wanted to hit my goal time that surgery got in my way. and this year I wanted it. 54 minutes.
I woke up and told myself all morning I would do it. I had been running a solid 8:30 pace on my training runs. well the ones that actually happened. I was fairly confident, but know I have a tendency of not performing on race day and ending up dispaoointed.
I went out and paced with my Garmin, my trusty friend. I ws holind a good apce. However when I would do math in my head at mile markers things seemed off, but i kept going with it. I mean who can do math while running anyways?!
unfortunautely this day was like all others. I ended up finishing in 56:13. a 9:02 pace.
However, according to my garmin I ran 7.15 miles and my splits were better than I was hoping for:

mile 1 - 7:29
mile 2 - 7:48
mile 3 - 8:08
mile 4 - 8:13
mile 5 - 7:42
mile 6 - 7:57
mile 7 - 7:43
mile 8 (.2) - 1:19 (8:19 pace)
so forget the official time. I am going to go with my garmin. The map shows my zig zags through the crowds. so i am going to say that I ran 7.15 miles. yeah that's better.
ho hum.

i have decided to run the richmond half marathon.
my goal time...well that's a secret of course.
i just hope that work and settling into married life allow me to train for a change.

Dress Fitting #1

what an experience!
one that I would rather not do again...but I must...two more times.

BIG sister and I arrived almsot an hour early. You can never be sure with DC traffic.
We had the assistant seamstress or something. whatever she was, she definitely was not a good listener that's for sure.
she accomplished pinning the hem so I could walk, though.
then the head semstress came over. her name was Marie, so BIG sister has renamed her Madam Curie.
the figured out where to pull and pinch to make it fit. she also said I have "high hips" um yeah - you call it what you want to lady, I know they are wider than you would think just looking at them.
then came the custom piece. Lord have mercy on my sould.
we will see what I end up with.
Manager Pamela came over...in her see-thru outfit. yes, she is quite Klassy.
I thought I was going to wear in my bridal shoes by kicking her in the teeth with them.
needless to say I left with a headache, frustrated , and cranky. and in DC traffic.

let's hope the April 2nd fitting goes a little better.

Less than a month!

Less than a month until the first of the wedding festivities begin!

april 10th is my first bridal shower hosted by BM Missy and Greeter Margo, two of my dear friends.
And that same night is the Engagement Party.
Yes this sounds crazy, but this allows my Grandma who lives 6 hours away to make it to two events.
she is aging so much faster these days and it really breaks my heart.
anyways, back to the plans.

so the bridal shower (at a botanical garden) and the engagment party are coming up. big question - what am I going to wear?!?! those of you who know me, you know how I feel about party dresses. every girl's closet should be filled with them! Luckily, I have the most perfect navy and white floral dress to wear to the shower (can you believe I am restraining from buying a new one...something about buying a new house). I do hope it still fits...maybe I shoudl try it on since it's been awhile. I did order about 6 dresses and 2 pairs of shoes last night for the engeagment party. I hope one of them works! I love Nordie's dresses!

speaking of engagements - the announcement was in the paper. my home town, IronGreg's hoem town..and of course the RIC too. shew.

my shoes FINALLY arrived. it only took an additional TWO WEEKS!! and many annoying phonecalls. but they are here and I think they are just beautiful. Unforunately, they are slingbacks, and my narrow feet just flop right out of them. I even tried a few sizes. Sigh. Of course they are non-returnable so I will have to try a pad and see if a shoe maker and make the sling back smaller.

the wedding party and hostess gifts are coming along and I just love all of them! I can't wait to wrap them all pretty and pass them out! I love giving fun gifts that have a special touch. It will be weird receiving gifts. I was telling BIG sister that as much as I love hosting showers and giving gifts, it's REALLY weird to think of being onthe other end. so i may make some funny faces. I mean I picked out the stuff. it's really a weird concept now that I am on the receiving end (that's what he said).

The tux's have been picked out and pick-up delivery points all figured out. I just hope the guys are getting fitted! I will not check up on them. I will not check up on them. I will not check up on them.

The BM dresses are now supposed to arrive on May 5th - boo! One of my BM's - that I went to school with starting in THIRD GRADE - she is now living in Germany. BUT! she is going to be in DC at the end of April!! and the dress store is in DC! how perfect...if the dresses come early. I have called and called, but they can't committ until the first week of April. so don't you know it's on my calendar to call them the first monday of April! It would be great if she was here to receive the dress! then I know it wouldn't get lost with international shipping.

Most importantly...hte invitations have arrived! Of course I thik they are beautiful - I picked them out. I jsut hope everyone thinks they are classic and timeless (just like me :)) A few nights ago Lou Lou and Miso came over for stuffing party day one. We watched Precious (so good) and stuffed. Went by before we knew it. however, I had to cancel day two b/c mom brought to my attention that I cannot go get wedding stamps for the reply cards b/c prices are going up! ooh good catch. so they go to the calligrapher's next week.

speaking of next week - my first dress fitting!!! I have these fears that the wrong dress was ordered or left on a part of the dress I ordered to be left off. I guess I will find out soon enough.

as you can see there has been lots of flurry on the wedding front...not so much on the training front. I have been working a lot which is a good thing! (better than the alternative). i still make most of my workouts, esp in the mornings. but my bike is only ridden every other week. good thing my first tri is in August! and it's only a sprint.

now that's it's on FB I can shout out the exciting news.
My brother and KP are engaged!!!! I just lvoe my BIG brother and I could not be happier that he found someone so wonderful. She is a FAVulous addition to the family

ps - 14 weeks until the BIG day! Ack!

Princess Fave

Yesterday was the Disney Princess Half Marathon in Orlando , Florida.
Plan of attack: hang with my friend, Princess DJM and have fun!

Princess Cathy and I flew to Florida on Fridya night. Delayed flight...almost missing our flight...we made it. And finally made it to our hotel around 1am friday ngiht/saturday morning.

Saturday we headed off to the expo and toodled around town. Dinner at T-Rex at Downtown Disney. We met some of my growing-up friends for dessert - I passed on ice cream. :(

Sunday morning started EARLY. a 2:30am wake-up call. I tossed and turned all night trying to figure out why I am doing this. I mean it's just for fun anyways. and what fun is waking up so damn early. If it weren't for knowing that Princess DJM was waiting for me and Princess Cathy at the start line, I totally would have said forget it - and jsut gone to the parks to play...after sleeping in of course.
but we made it to the bus and o the race. It ws SO COLD! Coldest race I have ever done. and I was not prepared for it - I mean I was in Florida after all. but no 30-something degrees sucks. My hands were SO cold. good thing I had packed capris...even though they had a hole in the crotch. I was wearing a skirt on top of them.
the time was nearing. about 1 minute before the fireworks (ironman has a canon, Princess gets fireworks), I looked at Princess DJM and let her know I felt the rumble - it was going to be a long day.
I could not warm up, but kept moving foward. finally a couple miles I was able to strip off the long sleeved shirt. although I wished i had it back later!
along the way we saw chip and Dale, Princess minnie and Mickey, cinderella, Tiana, ariel, jack sparrow, genie, aladdin, tarzan, peter pan, pinochip and gepeto, woody, gosh so many charachers! I think w  stopped at least 20 times. but the lines move fairly quickly.

Cons: 2 port-o-jon stops, cant in road, narrow roads with 15,000 people gets a little congested, pants with a hole in the crotch is really uncomfrtable.

Pros: a race like no other, pixie dust at the finish line, and most of all - the smile on Princess DJM's face.

After a short nap, Princess Cathy and I headed to a day at Magic Kingdon for some rides.

Unfortunautely the bell man was at my door at 2:15 this morning and the bus was there at 2:30 to take me to the airport.

Thank you to SQ for the ride home. and to IronGreg for letting me in the condo that he locked me out of :)

Pictures to come. Princess DJM has them and she is still playing at the parks with her lovely family.

Decision Made: Re-Committed

I talked it over with IronGreg, Coach K, and training buddies.
I am not even going to attempt this race for time.
(but I REALLY want to b/c a little part of me thinks I can do it)
but instead....
I am going to take my time.
Run with my friends (when I race I have to be alone).
And stop to take pictures with the Princesses.
After all, this race is about the experience and not a predicted finish time.
We will see how my leg feels and think about Richmond Half Marathon in november...as a married lady!

what to do....

In 15 days I am supposed to run the Disney Princess Half Marathon.
But I am not looking forward to this race.
my shin has been killing me softly. It makes me miss workouts. 
My whole point of doing this race was to PR. (um is there any other point, seriously?)
See in 2007 I finished in 2:04:06. I was SO close to breaking two hours.
But I had to hit the port-o-jon at mile 10.
So I have gotten the stomach issues under control.
But now I have this whole leg-that-was-cut-open issue.
I am not sure I can run my usual 9:00 pace.
So do I bother going? Or do I stay home?

Not a Good Start to the Month

February. A new month of training.
In January I lost my goal of 2 lbs and 1% body fat.
This month, I get down to business.
Monday morning I decided not to swim b/c the roads were not in ideal conditions from the snow.
then at work I nded up leaving at 8:15...so I missed my 6:00 ride.
this morning I slept right though my alarm clock and multiple texts.
So first of themonth....and I miss my first three workouts.
Not the best way to start the month.
But I guess I can only get better from here.

Snow and the YMCA

It's snowing in Richmond.
Again.

I had a GREAT saturday plan at the Y.
9:15-10:00 - spin class
10:00 - 10:30 - Awesome Abs
10:30 - 11:30 - Body Shape

But when it snows in Richmond...the YMCA closes.

Guess I will get my filing and tax preperations done. not as much fun.

On another note, Princess and the Fan Vet.
Some of you may know about this from my rant on Facebook.
Princess was supposed to go to her annual vet appointment this morning, Saturday.
Well her vet, Fan Vet, called Friday to remind us of the appointment.
Yes, thank you for the remidner, we will eb there.
Then they go on to say...
In the event of incelemnt weather (the impending snow), and you are unable to make it, there will be a cancellation fee.
I'm sorry, what!
I got to work. Made an appointment with a reputable vet that is closer to my house and much more technologically saavy.
Then I called Fan Vet. Cancelled the appointment and let them know that I will be picking up her medical records.

So no gym. no errands. and no vet appt.
but i am getting my filing done.
and i am goign to a wedding tonight...my feet and legs are going to cold in a dress and heels! brrr.

My Nephew, TD

Last night I went to the farm so BIG sister and I could discuss some wedding things over dinner.

BIL (brother-in-law) was out of town, so while BIG Sister was cleaning up dinner, I gave TD a bath.
TD has lots of farm animals for the bath that spray water and a book on farm animals and the sounds they make. So while giving him a bath we reviewed our animal sounds.
And I added one. We performed it ALL night. BIG Sister was quite impressed.
ME: What does the cow say?
TD: Moooo
Me: What’s a rooster say?
TD: Cock-a-doo-doo
Me: What does Princess (my dog) say?
TD: Arf! Arf!
Me: What does TD say?
TD: I love Auntie!

Classic.

Oh it gets even better.


BIG Sister called to tell me that when she woke TD up this morning the first thing he said was “Where Auntie?”
And when he found out I was not there he ran and stood in the corner saying, “no mama, no! need auntie” and throwing a temper tantrum that I was not there to wake him up.
I am SO the Cool auntie.

That little booger sure does not how to win over this girl’s heart.

Queen city

As always, I enjoyed my time in the QC this past weekend.
I can't say I got my long run in, but I got some wedding planning done, and that was the main goal.

IronGreg and I went tasting. we loved all the the food, so now we have to pick which we want to serve.
We were able to pick out the cake! I had a vision in my head, so I met with the pasrty chef and voila!

then Marms and I went to meet the florist. The florist who my mom and sister really liked passed away the weekend I got engaged - hmph. So we decided to go with one that came highly recommended to us from many people.

Figured out how to do place cards. working with creative people comes in handy - we put our heads to gether and one thing came to another and voila! creative place cards!

i did come back and do my long "run" last night. I got to the gym at 7:00 thinking the post-work rush would be gone. man was I wrong. the first treadmill wasn't going to be open until 7:30 - and with a 75 minute run, I didn't want to push it off 30 minutes. So I hopped on the elliptical and away I went. I pushed it hard. I picked "Random Hills" on a mid-level for the workout. 75 minutes, 8.5 miles, and 650 calories later I was done.

I got home around 9:00 and by 9:15 ws asleep...in my gym clothes on the sofa. Luckily, IronGreg called and woke me up about an hour later.

so now if only I could get on treadmills whenever I wanted, could pick out flowers, and food. oh and earrings and shoes. i really want to elope.

Shoulders

This morning at swim class, Coach PK clearly woke up on the wrong side of the bed.
300 warm up instead of 200 - okay.
lots of normal drills - ok.
then what do I hear...
a 200 with 8 (non-modified) push-ups after each 25.
holy shoulders, batman.
I am SO weak. I jsut kept thinking...wedding dress...wedding dress...wedding dress.

In running news, yesterday the Richmond Princesses met at the TuckY for a 45 minute tmill run. I ran 45 minutes without stopping. It sounds so minor, but after HAVING to take a walk break for the last year - you get used to it. and i finished the run at 7.5...and felt great. maybe this week I will try to kick it up a notch.

wedding news. not mush to report. this weekend IronGreg and I are heading to the QC to pick out food, cake flavors, and flowers. I am sure we will find other things to cross off the list as well.
Last night I spent HOURS researching flowers and reception decor. there's a lot to think about.

5k

yay! I ran a 5k on the treadmill last night.
Half Marathon trainign has officially started.

And I am not sure ifd I shoudl admit this, but I think that was the 1st or 2nd time I ran 30 minutes without taking a walk break since the surgery. Thank God that's behind me!

Getting Back Into the Swing of Things

Since IMAZ, I have down squat.
Fave = slug.
I hit the recumbant bike at the gym once.
I hit the treadmill...once.
The elliptical...once.
The pool...maybe twice.
I did finally pick up my bike about a week ago.
But I haven't yet put the pedals back on her.

However, this week I actually decided to start getting back in shape again.
you know about Tuesday's Track Torture.
wednesday i did nothing.
thursday i hit a strength class. my legs were incredibly sore when I woke up and I really didn't want to go - but I thought about that wedding dress and was able to peel myself out of my ncie warm bed.
and what did we do - lots of jumps, lunges, calf raises
needless to say I spent the day yesterday walkign around the office with a limp in my step b/c my legs hurt so bad.
I had left my gym bag in my locker. After my morning workout I kew I would back after work for masters and a run - sounds good, right?
NOT.
so i left my things there. locked of course.
and this morning moseied back over to the gym, having the motivation since all my getting ready things - make-up, hair dryer, etc - were all in that locker.
so i met my friend Kat there for a little t-mill social hour.
NOT
i managed to squeak out a 15 minute run/walk. you rea that correctly...15 minutes - not miles...minutes.
my quads were cursing my name.
so i hit the recumbant bike for 15 minutes.
then managed to hit the weird lower back/oblique machine for lots of ab/core work.
i really liked it. ew.
so tomorrow i am going back and triyng some yoga.

it's weird not training for a big triathlon. i want to do so many things...and I can!

How to play Basketball - track style.

It was FREEZING outside in Virginia.
Blasted cold front.
I sure am glad though that I do not live in the lakes region. They were saying how many days in a row it has snowed there - yeah no thanks.
Anyways, in honor of the frigid temperatures, our Coach was "kind" and decided we could do our track workout inside - at the basketball arena at UR.
Although these workouts have happened int he past, I have been fortunate enough to never be able to make one.
Hot damn.
the warm up started witrh a 15-20 minute run of laps around the arena past all the concessions.
First set...
run up and down EVERY set of stairs around the ENTIRE gym.
I'm sorry, did I hear you correctly?
Yes, yes I did.
Up and down.
Taking my time up.
Sprinign down.
Over tiem, the springing slowed. Everything slowed.
I didn't thinkI would ever get to my water bottle.
towards the top the lights were dim and you prayed your feet stayed under you because it would be a long way down.
Mission Accomplished.
As we run more recovery laps around the arena, I try to remind myself why I was so happy to be out of the cold and in a nice HEATED facility.

Well, training 2010 is definitely here.
Tonight = Garage Ride.

Check one more off the list

Yay! I got the bridesmaids dresses.
They're navy and the 3 girls that tried it on all loved so ding! ding! ding! we found a winner.

It's a new year.
Resolution? what's that?
Hmm
Last year I was supposed to go to church kmore often. And i did. for the first 4 months.
this year I am all focused on "wedding arms and honeymoon abs".
so i guess as vain as it sounds, my goal is to get in wedding shape.
sure i just did an ironman, but becuasse trainign took up so much time i haven't seen a weight room in about a YEAR! so you can imagine.
yesterday started training....
i swam.
i could not pull the water.
Coach K said it's because I took time off - which she wanted me to - but I lost the feel for the water. boo hiss.
tonight i actually am puttng on running shoes! watch out!

Fave 0 - Snow 1

Ths snow won.
I didn't get to go BM dress shopping over the weekend.

Oh well.
Appointment is rescheduled for early January. Snow please don't come back then!

It doesn't feel liek Christmas. I try. But I am just not in the spirit. Not grinch, but jksut not feelign the holiday.
Heading home with the family tomorrow so maybe that will help. being together. going to mass. taditional christmas morning omelette.
although this year there i sno shopping ont he 26th - I am heading up to spend a few days with the FIL's. meeting the WHOLE gang. it will be nice. hope the air travel is nice.

well at least i don't have to work until monday. although i think i worked 5 days worth of work and hours in 3.
planned on taking monday off. but not anymore. duty calls.

and let's not even discuss the last time I have seen the inside of the gym.

Snow! Snow! Snow!

I can hear the sounds of Bing crosby and Danny Kay singing the song "Snow!" in Irving Berlin's White Christmas (which, by the way, is the best Christmas movie ever).

I love fresh snow. The innocence...serenity...gentleness.

I hate snow after about oh 2 days. It's dirty and messy and gets in my way.

I can usually be found doing a dance welcoming the glorious white flakes.

Not this time.

We are scheduled to have 6-12 inches...which is HUGE for Virginia. Especially since we had a good snow last year and usually we don't get snow every year!

However, I have an appointment to go Bridesmaid dress shopping up in Alexandria - about 2 hour drive on a normal day (unless you go at the wrong time and you hit DC traffic. then you just start drinking).

So tonight I will be found in my house doing the "NO Snow" dance! I am not quite sure how it goes, but when I figure it out I am sure I will have it mastered.

I don't consider myself Bridezilla, but all I haVe to say to Mother Nature is....

YOU AREN'T GOING TO STOP ME BECAUSE I'M THE BRIDE!

Melissa Fave, you are an IRONMAN

Two weeks ago, I finished my first Ironman - Ironman Arizona.

It was a lot to take it and the day went by SO fast. 13 hours and 43 minutes never felt so short.

I am happy with the day overall.

I am amazed and thankful for the support I received from near and far.

I promise I will do a race report. Probably over christmas vacation...sorry for the delay, but I am VERY busy at work - which is a good thing!

BRB...