On Tuesday of this week I was tagged by the oh-so fabulous Mary of M.A.S. in her “5 Things” post.  The idea being to share 5 personal truths about yourself and then tag 5 others to do the same.  Here’s the thing, I never write personal posts on the blog.  Like never.  But I’m not one to turn down a challenge, so just for today we’re getting personal with 5 truths…

ONE || I believe there is no problem a good bottle of wine and your girlfriends can’t solve.  And I am so grateful to have the absolute best group of girlfriends to do just that with.  These ladies are my sisters (YA-YA)!  One I’ve known my whole life, one I suffered through two years of  law school just to meet, and the others I experienced college and so much after that with.  We’ve lived in the same house, the same high rise, across state lines, and even continents.  We’ve suffered broken hearts, celebrated marriages, had babies, dealt with loss, and anything else the universe could and will throw at us.  They know exactly who I am (and love me anyway), and I truly wouldn’t be me without them.  The photo above is from a trip some of us took to the Cape last fall and it makes my heart happy.

TWO || I’ve been hesitant about sharing my faith on my blog.  To be fair I very rarely share anything too personal on the blog, but I’ve been especially hesitant about sharing my faith, values, beliefs, etc, and it’s really been weighing on me.  Why not share?  Well for one people are mean and the internet seems to have bred what I think of as a brave-coward.  Someone who will post something awful on a blog or via social media, but would never actually say that same thing to your face.  And second religion is a very touchy, very personal subject.  A subject not everyone agrees on, one not everyone believes in.  But I had an “ah-ha” moment when emailing with Lara Casey this week; I can’t keep who I am out of my business.  And who I am first and foremost is a Christian.  I’m sure some people won’t agree and some people will roll their eyes every time I say blessed or if I quote scripture on Instagram but that’s their problem, not mine.  Faith and belief are the most powerful things we have as humans.  I don’t care if you believe in the Bible, the Torah, The Book of Morman or whatever , it’s not my place to judge.  Just believe in something.  In the words of the great country song by Aaron Tippin “you’ve got to stand for something or you’ll fall for anything.”

THREE ||  I hate getting ready.  Like hate times infinity.  When you see me on the blog I look like THIS .  But on an everyday basis I look nothing like that.  Nothing.  I work from home most days which means I don’t dry my hair, I don’t wear makeup, and practically live in black leggings and a sweatshirt.  Getting ready takes a lot of effort and a lot of time.  Who’s got time for all that?  Not this gal.

FOUR ||  If one more person asks me when we’re going to have children I might scream.  I know there is no ill will in the asking, but seriously  it never ends.  When you’re single it’s “why don’t you have a boyfriend”, then it’s “when are you going to get married”, and now it’s “when are you going to have children?”  Well the answer is…who knows!!??  I’m not worried about my “biological clock” (a word I also loathe), or “what-ifs”, and “you’re not getting any younger” statements.  I’m loving life right now and our perfect family of three (obviously the third is this little gem).  So that is that, and p.s. no one likes any of those questions ever, like ever.

FIVE ||  I married up.  Not “up” in the sense of wealth and power and all that jazz, but “up” in the sense of a person.  I’m not exactly the warm and fuzzy type.  In fact I’m sure his jaw is dropping at this very moment if he’s reading this and I will in turn deny that I ever wrote it.  And it’s not like the Mr. doesn’t have his faults, because trust me he does.  But the truth remains, my husband is a better person than I.  He is the most pure of heart individual I know and he makes me the best version of myself everyday.  Marriage is work.  It’s the best kind of work if you have the right partner, but nonetheless it’s work.  Anthony keeps me on my path and he keeps us pursuing our path together.  And man it’s been fun so far.  It also doesn’t hurt that he’s an excellent gift giver.

BONUS SIX || Just in case you’re new my name is not Martha (read the whole story HERE).

So there you have it, 5 things about Martha (or rather Mandy).  I’m not sure waxing poetically about myself will become a regular occurrence on the blog, but it was fun (and a tad scary).  And now I pass the torch to Kelly, Gaby, Ashlyn, Ashley, and Anna.  Good luck ladies, xoxo

Let me emphasize the “first” when I say First Half Marathon Training. Eight weeks ago, my boyfriend and I decided we wanted to run in our first half marathon. Neither of us are “runners,” but we are/were athletes. I’m not here to tell you about how fun the running became; I’ll tell you that running will always be a bit frustrating and boring to me.  Eight weeks ago, I didn’t understand how people could say it could ever be therapeutic, thrilling or fun.  But I did know that I wanted to challenge myself physically, and I wanted to prove to myself that I could do this thing.  After a week or two in, I quickly realized the training was very mental for me. Getting 13.1 under my belt was definitely doable, but it would just take patience and one step at a time. Training is coming to an end, and I learned that I honestly started to enjoy a good 5-miler on an overcast day, and that’s something I never imaged that I’d ever say.

Having a set training regimen helped immensely.  We found what I thought to be an aggressive 8-week training schedule published online by Dartmouth.  I convinced myself that if Dartmouth said this is what you had to do to prepare for running 13.1 miles, this is was what I had to do…like our own little scientific formula. Every Tuesday and Thursday, my boyfriend and I would hold each other accountable to our “easy” runs and carve out time on Sundays for the long distance runs. 

As the weeks went by and we increased our mileage, I found myself running longer distances than I ever had before.  There were good and bad runs (I learned that hills can seriously break you and running outside really IS more exciting), but I completed each run, per our scientific formula, and I took it step by step up through the end of our schedule.

Now at the end of my training, I decided on a quick list of half marathon training essentials I really had to have. Have you run a half (or full!) marathon?  Are you running your first soon like us?  I’d love to hear what you have to add to the list. And since the big race is this Saturday (be on the lookout for my inevitable race bib pic), any last-minute tips are appreciated too!  Send some good vibes to Music City as we take on our first 13.1.  Cheers, Kat