Boston Dreaming

Remember when I thought things would slow down after the STAAR test? I'm not sure what I was on, but it seems as though things have picked up the pace. But that could be because finals are right around the corner, and I'm realizing just how much I have to do between now and then so that my students are adequately prepared to take it. Anyway, I am actually not going to talk about school in this post. What I meant by bringing that up is that I have been off my blogging game lately. It's getting harder and harder for me to squeeze in a weekday post, which is why I have yet to get back to you guys on the exciting fitnessandfroyo news I promised you in this post. So, let's first talk weather. The weather in Texas has been absolutely wonderful this week. I'm in full-on sandal mode these days, but when I walked out the door to go to school this week, the words "Oh, it's chilly out here!" surprisingly escaped my mouth. I mean, come on, it's May in Texas. And while I truly don't mind the heat, I'll take temperatures in the high 60's any day of the week.

Which leads me to the next item on the agenda - running. Before I get into the good stuff, I ran a race this morning! As a faithful Texas Ex, whenever I received an email about the 2015 Lone Star Stampede happening at the Houston Co-op, I immediately signed up. I always love a good 10K - it's easily my favorite distance - and the money raised goes towards scholarships for students attending UT. I can get on board with that. So, I woke up later than I do on a school day and hopped on I-10, which led me to 610, which led me to Uptown Park. I easily found the (free!) parking, and met my friend Cheyney in front of the Co-op before the race began.

As I mentioned above, the weather has been an absolute delight all week. This morning was not a disappointment, and I'd venture to say that the 55 degree temperatures at the start of the race were just about perfect. I started off fast - really fast - as my first mile came in at 7:22. Actually, the first four miles were under 8:00, and the last two came in at just over 8:00/mile. Certainly one of my fastest 10K races.

And as for the race itself, I had an absolute blast out there. I loved being among a sea of fellow Longhorns, many of them sporting burnt orange, and I saw quite a few familiar faces along the way. A perfect morning for a run through a beautiful Houston neighborhood.

And while we're on the subject of running, let's talk marathons. Some of you probably saw my Instagram post earlier this week, which talked of my recent marathon registration, and you knew what the exciting news was that I had to talk about. If you didn't see it - surprise! I registered to run a marathon. Yep. When I was much, much younger, and we still had a desktop computer, I remember sitting down and creating a Bucket List - things I want to do before I kick the bucket. Fingers crossed that I have a while before that one happens! And while some of the items on this list were somewhat silly - getting my driver's license and attending my high school prom, for example - some of them were a bit loftier. Travel to all 50 states. Skydive. Run a marathon. I haven't yet finished the first, I have crossed off the second, and earlier this week, I made the first move in crossing off the third. I signed up for my first full marathon. 

I know, I know. I'm crazy. That thought most definitely crossed my mind as I was reaching for my debit card to pay the entrance fee to this race. Which, by the way, was far cheaper than the entrance fee to running the Houston HALF Marathon. It pays to run a smaller race. So, let's move on toward the logistics, shall we?

The Race: The Woodlands Marathon

• When I first decided that I really and truly wanted to start training for a marathon, my first thought was to change my Houston half registration into a full. And then I realized that had me training throughout the entire volleyball season, and let's be real, there's no way I will be running more than even 6 miles during volleyball season, and the training plans I have looked at call for a couple of 10 mile weekday runs. Sorry, but that's just not going to happen. Volleyball is the extracurricular priority in the fall. But, I did know that I wanted to run my race before it got too hot outside. Which brings me to my next point.

Race Date: Saturday, March 5th, 2016

• The weather in Texas is very fickle, to use one of last week's vocabulary words, so there's really no telling what the weather will be like on race day. I've got my fingers crossed for temperatures no higher than 60 degrees, but realistically I've got to be prepared for anything. I really didn't want to travel for my first marathon, as I have read horror stories about the change in routine throwing people off their running game, so I knew I was going to stay in the state. Houston happens too early in the year, and Austin has too many hills, but a flat Woodlands course in the beginning of March seemed just right.

Training Plan: Hal Higdon's Marathon Novice Training Plan

• I haven't solidified this one yet. Which I think is acceptable, seeing as I still have about ten months before race day. I have, however, looked into some different race plans. The one that seems to be the most popular is Hal Higdon's Novice Training Plan. I can't decide whether I'm going to go with Novice 1 or Novice 2, but I think his is the winner. It's 18 weeks long, and typically the midweek distances are equivalent to the weekend long run. I shudder to think of the day I venture out and run 20 miles, but I'm leaning towards finding a running group to join. I know Houston is full of them, and not only will it make those long runs easier (or so I hear), but I'm sure to meet some top notch people along the way.

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But this training plan is where it's going to get tricky for me. I know I've talked on the blog before about how hard it is for me to truly take a rest day. Even on the days I intend to be rest days, I often end up doing something. However, I've read enough and I've heard enough to know that I have to take these rest days seriously. I can't only run, and what's even more important is that I make sure I am adequately fueling my body. I learned firsthand what it's like to run a long distance without enough food and water in my body, and it was not a fun experience. While I can't eat whatever I want - I've read that one over and over again, too - I also can't deprive myself of what my body needs and craves. Overall, I think this will be really good for me - both physically and mentally. I know that I have to rest in order to be successful, so unless I want to crash and burn the way my English classes did when I had them attempt to act out Shakespeare, I had better take those days seriously.

I have mentioned to a couple of teachers at school that I signed up for a marathon. Almost all of their first responses went something like this, "Oh, that requires a lot of discipline!" But then they followed it up with something encouraging, ie, telling me that I seem to be a very disciplined person. And I am. The reason I was so successful in the classroom is not because I'm naturally smart. It's because I knew the amount work that I would have to put in to it to get the results I wanted. It was the same thing with volleyball. Sure, some of it was athleticism. But it was repetition after repetition that allowed me to play at the level I played. So I'm not too worried about the discipline aspect of this. I know there will be times that I have to say no. I know this is going to be a lifestyle. But a girl can only run so many half marathons before she starts to crave a new challenge. And what better time to do it than when I'm young, right?

And I have a lofty goal for this first marathon of mine. I desperately want to run Boston one day, and I would love to knock it out with this first marathon. I know it's not a good idea for first-time marathon runners to have a goal time in mind, as the biggest goal should be to finish. And mine is, I promise. But I'm too competitive a person to not give myself something to aim for. I've got a lot of work to do, but that's never stopped me in the past. Obviously, Boston is the high goal for so many runners. And it's one that not everyone meets. In fact, for the age group I'm in, only 7.9 percent of marathoners - male or female - qualify to run Boston. So, while odds aren't necessarily in my favor, when have I ever let that discourage me? Getting a job at Bellaire my first year out of college was a longshot, but here I am, surviving each day (barely, some days). And I remember very vividly what happened on Marathon Monday in 2013. It shook me to my core and affected me more than I ever would have thought it would, because running means something different and special and personal to each individual runner, and to qualify for Boston the highest honor, and I couldn't believe that someone would try and take the joy and accomplishment away from so many. Ever since that day I knew I wanted to run Boston one day. Because I can run, and there are so many out there who can't. Because I'm not one to back down from a challenge, and I've learned that no dream is too big. Because I'll have to rely on strength that is not my own to get through this one, but I wouldn't want it any other way.

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Coach Kelli

Well, here we are at the end of another week, and I yet again neglected this little blog. It was one L O N G and F U L L, but very fun, week. I'll fill you guys in on as much as possible, so let's start with volleyball. Tryouts began bright and early Monday morning, with a 7am arrival time for the coaches. Bellaire isn't just right up the road the way Stratford was, but it is really easy for me to just hop on the Westpark Tollway in order to get over there.

We started out with lots of paperwork - getting the girls checked in and making sure they had both an updated physical and insurance before giving them a number and four safety pins, as that was how we would be posting who made the volleyball program. I was responsible for about 40 freshmen, which was a bit overwhelming, but come 3:00pm I knew who I wanted on my team.

We posted the list of who made the program right around 3:15pm, and I can tell you right now that that is going to be the very worst part of coaching. It's not that the girls who didn't make it weren't good, it's just that you can't field 90 players on three teams. And when you think about it, we're lucky to have so many good players who want to be a part of the Bellaire Volleyball program. It keeps it competitive for everyone, and we can choose from some of the best in the city.

I have 16 on my team, which is a lot, but I know that each one of them will vie for playing time, especially after watching them in the scrimmages on Friday and Saturday. I always loved the scrimmages when I was a player - four to six 25-30 minute games that just allow the girls to play. No referees, no keeping score, and everybody gets ample playing time. I am on the hunt to find a setter, and I threw about six different players in at setter, just to see how they reacted to the position. I find myself being especially hard on the setters, or at least focusing on them the most, and that can probably be credited to the fact that I heard a majority of these comments repeated over and over and over again to me when I played. Square up, don't release too early, release all the way to the net - who would have thought I would one day be repeating these things to my own players?

Ms. Tomlinson

On Thursday, I received the keys to my classroom! I attended as much as I could of a new teacher orientation in between practices, where we were introduced to many importance faces within Bellaire, were given parking passes (apparently parking is the number one complaint from teachers about Bellaire), and lastly, the keys to my very own classroom. I was relieved to learn that I would in fact have my own classroom, because in a school as big as Bellaire, some teachers are bound to be floating, meaning they float around the school and teach out of a new classroom each period. It requires a little extra organization, that I probably do have, in all honesty, but I don't even know what that organization would look like, and I'm looking forward to decorating my classroom. Come on, what first year teacher isn't looking forward to doing that?

I had about ten minutes before I needed to be at practice, but I just had to see my room, so I ran around the school trying to find it, found it, and started dreaming up different classroom setups. I could have up to 40 (!!!) students in my classroom at one time (fingers crossed that isn't the case), so I'll be working with quite a few desks. And Bellaire is an old school, so these are the old-timey desks. I'm still thinking of how I can arrange them into groups!

And not only did I get a classroom, but I got a classroom with a window. And you can't ask for much more than that. And the reason I even mention this is because my own high school is known for its lack of windows. And that's even after they added in windows the year it was rebuilt. A room with a view? I'll take it!

Royer's Pie Haven

Do y'all remember my Summer 2014 Bucket List? Well, as it turns out, I can still cross things off even when I'm not in Austin. I was out in Katy for my scrimmages yesterday, which cuts off about 30 minutes of the drive to Austin. I was going to just head up to Austin after the scrimmages and spend Saturday and Sunday with Dylan, but I had a couple of things going on Saturday night, and he had something going on this afternoon, so me driving to Austin didn't make much sense. We compromised, though, and decided to meet halfway for lunch. We started driving at the same time, and found ourselves in La Grange.

We enjoyed lunch together at The Back Porch BBQ, agreeing that one of the best things about Texas is that you can drive around any small town and find a great hole-in-the-wall BBQ joint. The Back Porch certainly didn't disappoint, but we made sure to save room for one slice of pie apiece. Dylan mentioned that we were really close to Round Top, so naturally we knew we were going to have to go to the original Royer's Pie Haven - the one that inspired the Royer's on Guadalupe in Austin. We never made it over to the one six blocks away from where I lived (and two away from where I worked everyday), but we did make it to the one in Round Top. Go figure.

Royer's Pie Haven was absolutely precious, as was the little town of Round Top itself, and the pie was just delicious. I was in the clear because both their peach and cherry flavors are vegan, so obviously I wasn't going to pass up this opportunity. I used to think I wasn't a pie person, but one bite of peach pie later and I was converted. It was so fresh and so warm, and absolutely worth the hour and a half drive. Not that the company had anything to do with it.

I can already tell you that I will surely be returning to Royer's Pie Haven, and if you ever find yourself antique shopping in the little town, I would recommend that you do the same!

Stay tuned for another post - this a quick one featuring a 20-minute treadmill workout I squeezed into a very full day this past week. It's been a while since I've shared a workout with you guys!

My Texas

And I am back, with the second recap of my weekend. I should probably clarify one thing - while this is my last weekend in Austin, I don't make my final move home until next Thursday, July 24th. I am, however, going home this weekend for a final pre-move drop off and preparation. I know myself well enough to know that it will take me quite some time to unpack all of my bags, especially when I started throwing things into bags and boxes, so I am going to work really hard this weekend to unpack what I have already brought home.

Enchanted Rock

Anyway, let's pick back up where we left off. So, after one incredible breakfast (arguably the best in Austin), Dylan and I headed back to my house, changed into athletic clothes, and made the hour and 45-minute drive to Llano so that we could hike the massive pink granite dome that offers incredible views of the Texas Hill Country - Enchanted Rock. Fun fact: it is the second largest formation of its kind in North America, and it is among the oldest exposed rock in North America. Cool, huh? I have wanted to visit Enchanted Rock since probably about my freshman year of college, so though I knew it was going to be so incredibly hot, this was really my very last chance to go. At least for a while, anyway. So, we made the plans to go on Saturday, made it out there very easily, paid the $7 entrance fee, parked our car, refilled our water bottles, and slathered on the sunscreen. The sun was out in full force, and there are few things worse than being sunburned.

We easily found the trail, and decided to start with The Summit Trail so that I could get the view from the very top of the rock. It wasn't a very long hike - about .6 miles - but it was a pretty steep one. And leave it to us to try and race one another up the steepest part of the mountain (I'll let you guess who won). We stopped a couple of times so that I could take some pictures before hanging out a bit at the top.

We had a little fun on the way down, taking unmarked trails and climbing over some rather large rocks. I took one series of rocks a little too quickly, almost losing my balance, but I managed to catch myself just in time. Once we made it back down to the bottom, we decided to take the loop trail, which winds around the base of Enchanted Rock. I'm not sure we covered the entire four mile loop, but we probably covered close to four miles due to taking a wrong turn and having to double back. That didn't bother me one bit because I love a good walk, and I especially didn't mind because I had some great company. One of my favorite things about Dylan (and I will probably pay for saying this when he recites it back to me) is how we can talk about something deep and serious one minute, and then the next minute we'll be joking around about something completely silly. Twelve consecutive hours with him led for quite a bit of conversation!

We finally made it back to the park headquarters, refilled our water bottles once again, purchased a Powerade to replace those electrolytes (I am such a salty sweater), and headed about 25 minutes South to Fredericksburg. I have been to Fredericksburg once before, but it was during Christmastime, and my roommate Jamie Lynn told us that we had to walk down Main Street, and I really wanted to buy some Fredericksburg Peaches from Fredericksburg. They were harder to come by than I thought, but we managed to find them!

We had a great time walking down Main Street, even making purchases for our dads, as they're both big history and Western buffs. I know my dad will read this (he was my first follower, after all), so I'll refrain from posting a picture until I give it to him as to keep from ruining the surprise. We also went into Rustlin' Rob's Texas Gourmet Foods, which was probably my personal favorite stop. This shop contains everything from salsa to sauces to honey butter to fudge, and so much more. Dylan and I had fun taste-testing everything, and being the salsa lover that I am, I purchased a jar of peach salsa. Fredericksburg Peaches in salsa form? Yes, please!

Cooper's BBQ

We started to get a lot little hungry at this point, so we made our way back to my car and headed 45 minutes North back to Llano for some Cooper's BBQ. To explain the title of my post, you should probably go listen to the song "My Texas," by Josh Abbott. I am now able to say I've "climbed up to Enchanted rock" and "eaten Cooper's down in Llano," among other Texas things. 

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Now, I've never been to the famous Franklin's BBQ in Austin, but this was the best barbeque I have ever had. I'm not sure if the fact that my stomach was practically eating itself by the time we got there, or that it's really just that good, but my stomach was so happy after about 20 minutes of chowing down on some good meat. Between the two of us we got brisket, sausage, turkey, chicken, and pork ribs, with a large pickle on the side. There was a little bit left at the end of our meal, but definitely not much! Cooper's is unlike any other barbeque place I've ever been due to the fact that you simply line up outside and choose the meats you want off the smoker before taking it inside to weigh and pay. 

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It can be intimidating if you have never been there before, or in awhile if you're Dylan, but we managed to order our food just fine. It was fairly crowded in the main dining area, but we were pointed to an additional dining area that we had all to ourselves for the majority of our meal. As I said earlier, the food was incredible, and the turkey and brisket were the unanimous favorites. We left with full and happy stomachs, and made the return trip to Austin, getting back around 8:30pm. We hung out for a little while longer until I could no longer stand the thin layer of dirt, sunscreen, and sweat on my skin, and I kicked him out so that I could take a shower and get ready for bed. I wish I could say that I called it an early night, but I sat around wasting time on Pinterest and my blog. I fell asleep in approximately eight minutes, though, and slept very soundly until about 8:30am, when I got up to get ready for a 9:45am Pure Barre class.

It was probably my favorite barre class I've taken thus far, though the thigh portion absolutely killed me. I really liked it because though it was still extremely challenging, I felt as though I could actually do all of the moves. In the class I took on Thursday, I felt a little lost through some of the movements, which is never a feeling you want to experience. That intimidation factor is what prevents people from coming back. So, I was glad to have had a good experience at this morning's class.

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I hurried home from North Austin so that I could shower and get ready for an 11:15am church service with Dylan. This was my last Sunday at the Austin Stone Community Church, at least until I come back and visit, and I'm not kidding when I say this was easily the best sermon I've heard all summer, if not one of the best sermons I've ever heard. Derwin Grey, the founder and lead paster of Transformation Church in South Carolina, was a guest speaker at this morning's service, and though he didn't talk about anything I haven't heard before, it was his passion and the way he made the topic so relatable that really impacted me. I left feeling so thankful to call myself an adopted daughter of the King, forgiven and loved unconditionally, and it was the sweetest way to end a four-year run at such an incredible church. I plan on purchasing his book, Limitless Life, and reading that before volleyball and school prevents me from reading for pleasure.

Lunch

And after church, I was absolutely starving, and because Dylan nor I ate not one vegetable yesterday, our only criteria for lunch was that it was somewhere relatively healthy. We settled on one of our favorites - Mandola's Italian Restaurant, and I knew immediately what I was going to order - the Mista Salad (sans cheese) with grilled chicken. 

I'm pretty sure I've ordered this salad every single time I've been to this restaurant, and I have yet to get tired of it. It is one of my very favorites, probably because the chicken is so tender and complements the salad so well. We both cleaned our plates, and even shared a Pignoli cookie for dessert. One of my last goals is to find a good Pignoli cookie recipe and make a batch of them before I leave. Dylan described it well when he said it's soft, even a little bit gooey, but has nuts on top which gives it a nice crunch. I couldn't agree more, and Dylan told me that he knew I liked it when I took more than one bite of it!

And that, my friends, is what I call one great weekend. I rounded out my Sunday by watching Germany win the World Cup, catching up with Katie and hearing some of her best stories from her trip, and baking a batch of Kit Kat-stuffed chocolate chip cookies for a friend in exchange for some school supplies. My heart was so full, and my body was so tired. A most perfect last weekend.

Last Weekend: Part One

And I am back, just blogging away as I watch the World Cup Finals. I think I'm rooting for Argentina, though I do think that Germany will come away victorious. And let's just remember that we only lost to Germany by one goal. But whatever the outcome, I will just be sad to see it end. I will admit that I am not the biggest soccer fan around, but I have sure enjoyed catching some of these games!

But I promised you guys a recap of my weekend, and it was a wonderful weekend filled with some of the most excellent food. So, let's just right in, shall we?

La Fonda San Miguel

If you remember my Summer 2014 To-Do List, this was not on it. But I had heard of this place, and even wanted to take Dylan, but reservations at a normal dinner hour are relatively hard to come by. Because La Fonda San Miguel is sort of an upscale Mexican restaurant, we decided to substitute it in place of La Condesa, another upscale Mexican restaurant. After looking more closely at La Condesa's menu, we decided that it wasn't really our style. So though this restaurant wasn't on the original list, I'm still crossing something off!

Anyway, we made reservations for 9pm on Friday night (like I said, reservations during the normal dinner hour are hard to come by), and arrived at the restaurant just before 9pm. It is sort of hidden away, and you might not see it unless you know it's there. I liked that, and I think it only added to its charm. I don't even know how to describe this restaurant, but it had a very unique atmosphere that became evident upon the first step inside the building. I loved it, and it was very different from any of my usual restaurant choices.

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We started off by ordering drinks - their famous Silvercoin (watermelon margarita that was more like a martini) for me, and a Cuba Libre for Dylan. The waiter wasn't lying when he recommended the Silvercoin to me - it was delicious, and had just the right amount of alcohol in it.

His & hers

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For our appetizer we went with the Tostadas Compuestas Surtidas (with the cheese on the side), which was three small tostadas, one topped with chicken, one topped with guacamole, and one topped with cochinita pibil (pulled pork shoulder). I love pork, so I had that one for myself, letting Dylan go at the other two. I was very impressed with the tostadas, and would absolutely recommend them as an appetizer.

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For our main meals, I opted for the Camarones Adobados, which is adobe-crusted shrimp over corn tortillas filled with rajas (sliced Poblano peppers), topped with a chipotle-black bean sauce. It was excellent, and though I thought I wasn't really that hungry, I ate every bite (really out of the ordinary, I know).

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Dylan went for the evening's special - the Chimichanga, and also cleaned his plate, remarking that he just "loves things that are fried." He's alone with that sentiment, but I'll take his word for this one!

And though I was pretty much stuffed, we weren't about to pass up dessert at a place like this. Because I wasn't incredibly hungry, I told Dylan not to worry about ordering something dairy-free. The Mango con Helado de Coco caught his eye, and once we were told that grilled mango topped the ice cream, we were sold. Even I could enjoy some of the grilled mango, and from the few bites that I had, I could tell it was delicious. There is just something about grilled fruit that tastes so good to me.

We went back to Dylan's and hung out there for a little while with his brother, taking BuzzFeed quizzes and playing Sudoku, before calling it a night just before midnight, knowing we had quite the full day ahead of us.

I headed home and went straight to bed, waking up right around 8:30am. I did a little more packing (tear), before Dylan came to get me just before 10am so that we could enjoy a most delicious breakfast.

The Carillon

For those of you who read my blog with any regularity, you already know that breakfast is my favorite meal of the day. Dylan isn't the biggest breakfast fan, but when he had breakfast with his dad at The Carillon, located within the AT&T Conference Center, he was converted, and he promised that he would take me sometime before I moved back home.

Yesterday was the day, and I am so glad that we got the chance to go. My work schedule didn't make breakfast very possible, unless we wanted to get there at 6:45am, and a big breakfast was just what we needed to fuel ourselves for an afternoon hike. But more on that to come.

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On Dylan's recommendation, I opted for the buffet, which was easily the best breakfast deal I have ever experienced. In addition to the full buffet, which included yogurt, cereal, fruit, toast, taco fixings, sausage, eggs, oatmeal, and smoothies, you also had the option to order pancakes, waffles, or an omelet.

For our first round through the line, I snagged a smoothie (I want to say it was of the strawberry-banana variety), filled a bowl with yogurt and granola, and loaded my plate up with fruit. Pineapple, cantaloupe, strawberries, and watermelon, oh my!

It was a good thing I was hungry, because there was so much good food to be eaten. For my second round through the buffet line, I picked up two pork sausage links, toasted an English muffin, and topped it with strawberry preserves. This plate wasn't quite as pretty as my first, but it was equally as tasty.

All of that in our stomachs, we headed back to my house so that we could change, stock up on some road trip snacks, and head out to cross yet another item off of my list.

And because this post has already been a novel, I'll continue on with the rest of the weekend's activities in a second post. Stay tuned, and check back in a little bit for the second part of my weekend!

Two Down

Happy Thursday! My heart is happy after a wonderful Wednesday spent with one of my favorite people on this Earth (though sometimes he tells me I'm a horrible decision maker). And we crossed two more items off of my Summer 2014 To-Do List, so life is even sweeter. So, let's start right in on those two items, shall we?

Top Golf

I know, I know, I'm late to the Top Golf game, but I was never in Houston long enough to make the trip out there (okay, maybe I was, but Dylan and I had said we would go together, and it's just far enough away from him to probably not be worth the trip). And the one in Austin is fairly new, and it's pretty much always crowded, and it's hard to give up a few hours when you're in the middle of a busy semester. So, with only two weeks left in Austin, and a night that Dylan didn't have to work, we made our way over to the Top Golf in North Austin. We got there around 3:45pm, became Top Golf Life Members,

and were told we had about a 20-30 minute wait. We were told there was a bar where we could wait, and then we were also told there was a lounge with pool tables. Guess which one we chose? We're adults, I swear! Anyway, after one full round of pool we got a text saying our bay was ready. We found the concierge, where we were promptly asked if we would need help getting set up. Since we were first-timers, we said we probably did, and someone else was immediately brought over to show us the ropes. I have to give a shout out to Eric, who asked us if we would be needing any left-handed clubs. Obviously, I would be needing some of those (though I did learn how to play golf right-handed), and though Dylan is a true righty, he is sometimes ambidextrous, and golf just happens to be one of those times. So, we were both given a bag of left-handed clubs, and led down to Bay 124.

We were shown very quickly how it works, and because this was not only our first time at Top Golf, we both have absolutely no idea how to play golf. For Dylan, this is understandable, but I, on the other hand, have no real excuse, because both my dad and my brother are avid golfers. That being said, it was a no-brainer that we took a few practice swings before starting the real thing.

Here's how it went down: neither of our scores were very high, but that's okay because we truly had a wonderful time laughing at one another's shots, and also commenting on one another's improvement. I'll go ahead and say that my score was higher than Dylan's, but his shots were much prettier than mine. My style of golfing is more like bowling, which I felt like was cheating, but I made it into the target areas quite a few times. The luck favors the lucky, right? Dylan actually looked good while he was golfing, consistently hitting balls right on line, to the back wall, and with a nice arc, and while I'll admit that I had a few good shots (improving after texting my dad a picture, with him advising me to keep my right arm straight), my points came mainly from my bowling shots. But hey, we sure had a great time together, and the set-up was just great. Fans with misters, televisions with the Argentina/Netherlands game on, water to keep us hydrated, and though we didn't take advantage of the food and drink menu because we had plans to get dinner elsewhere, it had some very appealing items. Next time!

Hopdoddy

Next up on the list was dinner at one of Austin's finest establishments: Hopdoddy. Read any list titled "greatest burgers," and Hopdoddy will almost certainly be on that list. It is always a "must visit" place when asked for recommendations, and that is with very good reason. The beef comes from humanely-raised cows, who are never given any growth hormones or antibiotics, the meat is grinded in-house, and the buns are made from scratch. The fries are thin and crisp, hand-cut from Kennebec potatoes, and their milkshakes are to die for (so I've heard, anyway). The menu stays fairly constant, with a few rotating items, and though you are almost always guaranteed a wait, you'll be hard-pressed to find someone who says it isn't well worth it.

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Hopdoddy, aside from being one of my favorite restaurants in Austin, also holds a special place in my heart because it is the site of Dylan's and my very first "real" date at the beginning of last summer. I realized tonight that I hadn't been back since said date, and though he very much knew of my blog, I didn't take a picture of our food for what I hope are very obvious reasons.

For our food this round, I went with the Thunderbird (sans bacon, pepper jack, and chipotle mayo), which is a recent addition to the Hopdoddy menu. It is a chicken burger topped with sliced avocado, green chiles, salsa verde, and the usual lettuce and tomatoes. I added a little bit of mustard to the top bun, and didn't leave even one crumb on my tray.

Dylan, after much deliberation, went with the Llano Poblano, and his tray looked similar to mine. We shared a regular order of fries, and Dylan just couldn't pass up the Raspberry White Chocolate Milkshake.

It looked so good that I contemplated taking a sip before I snapped back to reality and realized that might not be my best idea. My burger ended up filling me up so I didn't miss out on much by not having some of the milkshake. 

We parted ways after dinner because Dylan had a test to study for, so I went home and lounged, and once again managed to get to bed at a decent hour. It was a fabulous Wednesday afternoon, and ladies and gents, the two week countdown has officially begun. Here's to making every last day count!

Getting Specific

Happy Thursday (that's really a Friday)! Hopefully you are lucky enough to have tomorrow off so that you can enjoy a long weekend. I know I'll be more than ready for a couple days off of work after working eight hours tonight. Though I can't complain about having the afternoon and evening shift, especially on the Thursday before the Fourth of July, because it is so incredibly quiet around here. I plan on blogging, reading, and maybe watching a movie while painting my nails. Not too bad for being at work!

Asti

Let's start off this post with yet another item that has been crossed off of the list - Asti Trattoria. Dylan finished his test at the exact time I got off work, so we decided to grab a quick lunch before he left town for YoungLife camp. Asti is right in the Hyde Park neighborhood, so it was extremely easy to get to. And on top of that, there was approximately one other person in the restaurant when we were there, allowing us to be seated and tended to immediately.

Our waitress was extremely personable, and I really liked the feel of this restaurant. It was quiet (which was obviously contributed to by the lack of restaurant patrons), and had a very welcoming feel to it. We were well taken care of while we were here, and I found this to be a stellar lunch spot. Dylan and I don't typically get to go to lunch together because of our overlapping schedules, so this was a nice change of pace.

We started out with the Asti fries, seasoned with garlic and parsley, and they certainly didn't last very long. They were thin and crisp, which made it very easy to keep popping them into my mouth.

For my entree, I ordered the Grilled Salmon Salad. Dylan was disappointed in me for this, because I tend to gravitate toward salmon whenever we go out to eat, but one, I really like it, and two, if I ate a bowl of pasta in the middle of the day, that would be the end of my day. Plus, I just wanted something that was both healthy and refreshing, and this salad satisfied both of those requirements.

I was even too full for gelato at Dolce Vita, which was really too bad because they had a chocolate sorbet flavor. If you read this blog with any regularity, you know I'm a sucker for anything chocolate. I guess this means I'll have to go back!

Workout + Breakfast

I hung around at home for a little bit, watching Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory with two of my roommates, before dragging my tired self up to the gym for a 5:45pm cycling class. For once, it wasn't that my body was tired, it was more that I was just worn out, and felt as though I could have gone to sleep for the night right then and there. I knew I would regain some energy if I got a little exercise, so I did just that. I started out with a little incline treadmill walking, and then worked hard for 50 minutes in spin class.

The instructor last night was the same instructor I had on Saturday, so I knew this would be a good class. We did the same pyramid interval exercise, but we did it backwards this time. Meaning, we started out with four minutes of work, had one minute of rest, did three minutes of work, and so on. In my opinion, this pyramid interval was a little bit tougher than the one on Saturday:

• Seated flat
• Standing climb
• Jumps (10 seconds sprint, 10 seconds rest)
• Standing to seated sprint (15 seconds --> 20 seconds --> 25 seconds)

And we finished the pyramid interval with a 30-second sprint that left my legs feeling like jelly. I'd call that a successful class!

Today my workout happened bright and early in the morning, but this it was of the water variety. I forget how much I love early morning swims, probably because I don't get to do them enough. I love watching the sun come up over the water, and it was the perfect way to start this Thursday.

I was more than hungry by this point, so I headed home to fix myself my usual egg whites and spinach.

I decided to brave the heat and go for a walk at Town Lake, but the sun absolutely drained me, and I downed every ounce of water in my CamelBak once I got back to my car.

After both a swim and a sweaty walk at Town Lake, I was more than ready for a shower and a snack. I ate half of a Honeycrisp apple before dropping a friend off at her house in Westlake and then running a few errands.

Not long after I returned home, I headed over to SRD for work, which is where I will be for many, many hours. As I said earlier, though, I can't complain too much.

Austin Murals

As you guys may have noticed when I posted about my Summer 2014 To-Do List, one of the items on this list was "Austin Murals." That isn't very specific, and obviously it is not very plausible to visit every single mural in Austin, so I made a list of the ones that I want to see most. Granted, I have seen almost every mural on this list, and I've even taken pictures of a few of them, but I am starting over with the goal of taking pictures of every single one in these next three weeks. It seems like a lot, but many of them are located near one another, so it really shouldn't be too difficult.

And on that note, I'm off to do a little bit of reading. Catch y'all later!