Thanksgiving Part 1

Hello Beautiful People,

I hope you are all enjoying your holiday. I certainly have been. I've been resting and getting my share of fun in. I have spent hours in the recliner watching football and knitting. I have gotten up to see the Sunrise at the beach twice (and a third time tomorrow). I have discovered a wonderful new (to me) coffee shop that serves the most amazing Hot Chocolate. I have sung Christmas caroles at the big Christmas Tree lighting at the boardwalk. I ran one 5k this morning and I have another tomorrow morning. I have spent some wonderful time with friends and family and honorary family. It's been a Blessed time. And it's not over yet!

There's a lot to discuss and since the weekend isn't over yet I'll make this a Two part post.

My drive down to the beach began with snow. I was laughing so hard as I quickly threw my stuff in my bags and packed my car. I wanted to get on the road while it was still light out and I did. I put on my Christmas music and was a happy camper. My original plan was to go out at lunch and get some Starbucks and gas. I got neither. It was too late for me to get caffeine and I really needed to drink my water anyway.  I had so much that I needed a potty stop. It was my halfway stop and I was getting hungry. I mentioned in the Random Wednesday that I really wanted Wendy's, but settled for a turkey and cheese lunchable. It held me.

When I got to my dad's I had a chicken salad on a croissant for dinner. It was late and I didn't want too much.  I was tired and didn't know how long I would last. The answer: Not long.

I went upstairs to try and stay up for the Syracuse game while I blogged and totally fell asleep. I saw the beginning, halftime, and end of the game. I missed everything in between. And I never made it off of the couch. I had planned on sleeping in and I did. But, when I woke up I was all crooked. I couldn't move my back. So I had to shift and let my spine re-align before I got up. Ugh...felt like a punishment for not getting up early.



After I got my shower I finally put on my new Aaron Rodgers shirt. It fit!  And it looks really cute on me. Not gonna lie, walked in front of that mirror every chance I got. I looked SKINNY!  HOLLA!!!  Too bad I was only going to get to see him pacing on the sidelines for the game. DOH. OH well, at least I got to enjoy the mustache...ahhh


I had gotten a sandwich because I missed breakfast and I wanted to make sure that I wasn't hungry for dinner. My snacks for the game included a piece of cheese (get it...Cheeseheads...haha) and a mimosa. Um not a bad way to start the day.  I pulled out my knitting and tried to enjoy the game...not a win.  I was sad for Aaron. Aaron Rodgers call me for consolation!

I was a little sad when I got on Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. I saw everyone's photos and posts from their Turkey Trots...and a couple of friends competed in their first Half Marathon on Thanksgiving morning. It was hard for me to not get up and go run, but it was a much needed and planned day of rest. Besides, I had two races scheduled for this weekend.

I did not care to watch the second game and so I moved into the living room and watched the Modern Family marathon with my Stepmom. Is there any better person to spend the day with than Cam???

Soon it was time for dinner. YEAH! Been waiting all day for this. The turkey was deep fried which makes for the moistest meat...yum. The stuffing had scrapple in it. O.M.G. My plate had spinach, green beans, and mashed potatoes too. I let my belly settle before I got up for seconds. I got a scoop of spinach, stuffing and potatoes.

I passed on the pumpkin pie as it is not my favorite and instead had a caramel hot chocolate that I brought. It was a nice treat.

That night I had another football game to watch. It's been a sports heaven week for me. The Ravens were playing. WOO WOO!  So I made my wardrobe change into my Ravens shirt and watched the first half with my dad. And then I went upstairs. I had an early wake up call for Sunrise club.

My alarm seemed to go off VERY early. But, I needed to get a shower before I left because I would also be going to a few stores on Black Friday. So I showered and then I layered on the clothes. Last year we were cold and I expected nothing less. I put on my knee socks and sweatpants. I had a long sleeve shirt, fleece jacket, and coat. I grabbed my hat, gloves, and bottle of water and headed out the door. Only to find my car covered in frost. DOH!  Luckily Ms. Liz had given me that defroster spray so I sprayed on got on the road. It put me a little behind though. Sunrise was scheduled for 6:57 and I was pushing it. I got there at 6:50 and sprinted to hug my much missed friend Mr. Brian. I haven't seen him since last Thanksgiving and I miss him much.

The first thing I noticed after I let go was that we were not alone. SO many people were out for Sunrise club. HOORAY!  I love that. It wasn't as cold as last year, but that could be attributed to my many layers. It was still cold, just not windy.




We took about a 1000 pictures and then even walked down onto the beach for a couple photos. It was even more gorgeous...just a little colder.  And so we walked back to the boardwalk and took our usual stroll to the end for the board walk and back. It's my favorite part of the day. Everyone is happy and saying hello and wishing you a good day. Who wouldn't be happy? This is literally the most beautiful moment of the day and we are all sharing it.



After a little while the cold got to us and we headed down the street in search for some Hot Chocolate...but not before I took this gem:


Our quest for hot chocolate also led to the realization that we were hungry. We looked at one place to eat, but the breakfasts looked heavy and I just wanted something light. Then we passed a little coffee place that drew us in: Cafe a Go Go.

We asked for some Salted Caramel Hot chocolates and banana bread. The comfy leather couch was open and we got cozy. O to the M to the G. That was the bestest Hot Chocolate that I have ever had in my life. The couple that owns this wonderful establishment were just the cutest and nicest. I heart them. We didn't want to leave, but leave we must.

I had to get to the outlets before it got crazy and someone wanted to go back to sleep.

As I drove by the first two Outlet shopping centers I did not feel good about the parking, but when I got to my destination I miraculously found a spot up front. My first stop was Reebok. I was on a mission. I needed new sneakers. The first thing I noticed was that the clothes were on super sale. Practically free!  And the second was that the sneakers were buy 1 and get 1 for $20. Seriously?  HEAVEN!

It took me a little while to decide on the ones I wanted. I found a neon yellow pair that I liked and then I was trying to decide between the hot pink ones that I loved the look of and the grey with pink ones that felt a smidgen better. Have to go with comfort.



And then it was time to look at clothes. I found a fantastic Neon yellow jacket with a hood on super duper sale. And I wanted to look at running pants. I don't have enough of them. Seriously, I don't. Previously I was running in my active wear pants. Which was fine because my belly was bigger and held them up. And I wasn't running for long periods of time. Well now I need appropriate gear. I found a cool pair of capri running tights that are grey with neon yellow. Matches the jacket!  Score.



As I was looking at the pants I saw the sneakers that mom likes and decided that I would get her a pair for Christmas (she knows cause I had to call and ask her size so I'm not spoiling anything). I don't need that second pair for myself. One is fine. But, I did want more knee socks!  The bonus is that after a certain amount of money spent you got a giftcard. So I was able to get one and get the pants and socks. YEAH!

Okay, so that was a fun adventure. I took my bag to my car and decided to run into Aeropostale to see if they had a good sale on jeans.  The sale was very good and I grabbed a couple to go try on. I also went and picked out some leggings and  sweat pants to try on.

The jeans fit nicely, but everything else was an epic fail. The sweatpants were about a foot too long and the leggings were atrocious. That was upsetting. Ugh.

As I was getting ready to head to the register I noticed some sweaters. I had gotten rid of a lot of my winter clothes as they were big and I was planning on moving south very shortly. Now that plans are pushed back a few months I need clothes to keep me warm. However, I had no desire to go back into the dressing room. So I tried them on over my long sleeve shirt. I found two that I liked. Very good sale. Sold. And at the register there was a top secret bonus discount. They were practically paying me to take these clothes! 

Because of that I had some bonus allotted money to play with. I was not going to another shopping center and Coach just happened to be in this one. If I could find one that I loved for this small amount I would get it.

I walked in and immediately thought NO. They gave me a great discount at the door, but the bags on display were not what I was looking for. I would head back to the clearance and see what they had. Otherwise I was outta there.

At first I didn't see anything. And then I saw it. I saw a purple bag. It was perfect. I wanted something small. I really need to carry less things. My bags are starting to hurt my back again. This bag was the same thing that Cousin Hannah had gotten in black. So I quickly called her to see how she liked it. Was it big enough? And I saw a red one. So now I needed to decide which color. The price was right ($45) and purple won. HOLLA!

I could not wait to get out of there. The store was mobbed and when I left the parking lot was awful. Cars stalking people for their spots. Ugh. I just wanted to get across to my car.  I was parked right in front of the Maidenform store. So I ran into it to see about a new bra. The girls are getting smaller. But, gotta tell you, after the leggings experience the very last thing I wanted to do was try on bras. I did it though. Got two smaller bras. It was a nice thing :-)

I could not get out of that parking lot fast enough. I like to shop, but I avoid Black Friday at every cost. I just happened to be in the area in need of new smaller things and if I could save some money I would. And now I was happy to leave.

When I came home I was tired and wanted to nap, but I had been invited to join Mr. Brian and his family at the tree lighting at the boardwalk later that night. So I had things to do. We decided that I would pack a bag and crash at his brother's since we were planning on Sunrise again this morning. They live 10 minutes from the beach...a much nicer commute. 

I got my shower and put on my new jeans and sweater. I felt nice and pretty...and skinny!



I told you there was a lot to talk about. So tomorrow I will tell you all about the Christmas Tree lighting (you know I was in heaven) and all about the races. Even I don't know how the second one is going to go yet. haha. It's almost time for me to go to bed again. Sunrise club alarms come very early in the morning...and I wouldn't miss them for the world!

Have a Blessed Night.

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