Your presence is requested at the Wedding of Sarah and Andrew today on A Wedding Story

My final trip to Buffalo ended last weekend with the wedding of my dear friend Sarah Utzig

(oops- I mean Sarah Lanigan).

We LOVE weddings! The morning of her wedding was spent reminiscing about our days back in high school when we'd watch episodes of The Wedding Story on TLC after school, singing the cheesy theme song to each other, and dreaming of our own weddings to be.

Sarah's wedding was incredible! I think she took notes about the good, the bad, and the ugly from all those episodes of The Wedding Story because her day was perfect! From the dress to the cake (that she's wanted since she was a little girl).

A perfect wedding turned into a not so perfect run the following day.

We left Buffalo late in the afternoon, but for good reason- we spent the morning visiting with family and friends.

We headed back to Virginia around 2:30 in the afternoon and 8 1/2 hours later we arrived home. But not after we (I mean Brendan) drove the last 3 1/2 hours home in pouring rain, thunder, and lightening. Also, as we reached Route 15 (an hour from home) the traffic was at a standstill. After waiting 25 minutes and moving .5 miles we turned around to go a different route adding an hour on to the trip. None of this seemed to bother Brie, she spent most of the time in the car like this...

After pulling in and unpacking at 11:30pm, I had 30 minutes left to get my run in for the day.

The streets are not well it around our home. So, I ran the sidewalk that runs in front of our condo- back and forth, and back and forth (about 12 times) to make it to a mile, all while it continued to rain.

However, the long drive home and the late run were well worth it.

The countless episodes of The Wedding Story we had watched together over the years had nothing on Sarah's perfect wedding story- it was amazing and I am thankful that I was able to be a part of it all.

"Defying Human Nature"

Well- I am almost done with my summer of run with only 10 days left. I know there were at least a few people out there that didn't think I'd make it through...none more than Mr. Lynn Ewald (more on him later)- but so far, so good!

I don't want to get too confident because things can happen- like this accident that almost brought my runs to a halt. I was told that it is against human nature to be able to run every day- injuries, sickness, fatigue, etc. prohibit someone from being able to achieve such a goal. Well, I guess I've defied human nature, not to mention my own expectations of what my mind and body can handle.

There are definitely days when the prospect of having to go out and run is not exciting.

But, most days I get out there and feel great as I complete my run. Running every day this summer has dropped me down an entire pant size too! Here is the stack of pants and capris that don't currently fit. My wonderful mother-in-law altered another 4 pairs!

In addition, completing another run is another day closer to finishing my summer of run and chowing down on four free lunches :) Good thing I've saved that stack of pants, because all of my winning lunches may bring me back up a pant size!

While we are on the topic of running and lunches- I thought I'd add that I am willing to trade in a free lunch for a picture of Mr. Lynn Ewald bowing down to me and all my running greatness.

It would look something like this (preferably at a faculty meeting too, but I won't get too picky).

Lynn- I'd give up one free lunch for this! What say you?

Flora and Fauna

One thing that I've come to really enjoy about my daily runs is the amazing plant and animal life that thrives along the paths surrounding my house.

I don't run on the paths every day and I never run the same route two days in a row for fear of encountering a creeper. But the days that I do run the paths I enjoy taking in all of the amazing scenery.

Here is a partial list of the wildlife that I've enjoyed watching throughout my summer runs:

Animals

Deer (one so close the other day I could have reached out from the path and touched it)

Chipmunks

Squirrels

Groundhogs

Birds- and this is just a small list, I cannot identify all of them- but I kinda want to take up bird watching as a hobby now (who cares if I am not a retired old man)

Bluejays - my personal favorite

Cardinals

Orioles

Crows

Kingfishers

Sparrows

Woodpeckers

Morning Doves

Carolina Chickadees

and lots of different butterflies.

Anyone have a favorite place to run?

Tricks of the Trade

What you need to run every day

a plan and a little motivation

mental and physical strength

tenacity

adequate rest and sleep

a foam roller

Road ID

Garmin GPS system

ice pack

heating pad

pain reliever

good running sneakers (get your foot analyzed before buying a pair)

jammin' tunes for your Ipod

a supportive family

y

and an entertaining running buddy