What do you do when you’re a runner but you haven’t been RUNNING consistently – in fact the thought that you ran your third marathon a mere three months ago seems so inconceivable – and you go for an easy 30 minute run that leaves you feeling like you might DIE? OK, dying might be a tad on the dramatic side. It wasn’t quite that bad, but today’s trek definitely wasn’t one of my better runs.

Here’s one thing I do to get over tough training days – I take a walk down memory lane. Sometimes when you have a crappy day and training makes you want to retire your running shoes is difficult you have to remind yourself of all that you’ve done and all that you’re capable of doing. Pull out your “victory” pictures and show yourself, you CAN do it.

Look at photos from past races or training runs and think about how AWESOME you were in that moment and how AWESOME you still are. There’s nothing like a good fire jumping photo to remind yourself you secretly have a “S” on your chest. If you’re a newbie to running or tackling a new adventure you can still celebrate victories from other events in your life. The important thing is to pull from past accomplishments and let it fuel you for the future. Tough training days don’t last forever – and they make your victories even sweeter.

Here are a few of my go-to victory pictures …

One of my FAVE running pics, ever!

I’m yelling to my sister “I’m PRing” at the Rock n Roll Savannah Half Marathon in 2011.

 Princess Power! This really needs no explanation. 

This is a collage from my first half marathon and the same race in 2013.

I was all smiles after my first marathon – the Marine Corps in 2010.

Still smiling after my most recent marathon, the Napa Valley Marathon, in March 2013.

No, the wine didn’t have anything to do with it. Ahem.

Another one of my FAVE running pics.

This is from the Peachtree Road Race – the race I’m trying to get myself ready for on July 4.

Often peeking at my pictures is just enough to squash the bad vibes, boost my confidence and remind myself that tough training days are only temporary; and more victory pictures are still to come.

How do you get over tough training days?

Winks & Smiles,

The post How To Get Over Tough Training Days appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

Ahh, it’s Monday already and time for my weekly meal plan. This summer is already zipping by. I had a fabulous Father’s Day yesterday and I hope you did, too. I started the day hanging out with my husband and father at the tennis courts; and later we had my sister and her crew, my mother-in-law, and some more family come over to grill out with us.

Sunday morning tennis with my two favorite “fathers.”

Me and my dad. I have no clue why I’m making that face. I probably wanted to get down and RUN.

Grilling at my house normally means leftovers and at least one less day of cooking and meal planning. I’m not mad at that. Ahem.

HERE ARE THIS WEEK’S EATS

• Monday – Father’s Day Leftovers: grilled chicken, ribs, and hot dogs; whole wheat bow-tie pasta salad, mixed green salad and grilled corn on the cob
• Tuesday – Oven roasted pork tenderloin, brown rice and broccoli
• Wednesday – Shrimp and beef tacos, and spinach salad
• Thursday – Swim meet night = leftovers-or-whatever-is-in-the-kitchen night
• Friday – Spaghetti with homemade meat sauce, and whole green beans
• Saturday – Eat out
• Sunday – Homemade buffalo wings, sweet potato fries and spinach salad

Wishing you a fabulous week and happy cooking!

Winks & Smiles,

The post Weekly Meal Plan for June 17-23 appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

So, when the fabulous folks at TapInfluence sent me some Black Box Wines to try I couldn’t resist. My husband was surprised – for some reason he thinks I’m bourgeoisie – and didn’t think I would be game to crack open a box of wine.

I love it when he’s wrong.

I had lots of faith – and was secretly hoping – that the wine would taste good on tap. See, the convenience of the box is ideal for summertime sipping. We spend so much time outside – at the pool, at the tennis courts, going to festivals and backyard BBQs – and many of these place don’t allow bottles so to grab a box of wine and go is genius, especially when I’m on drink duty for my tennis team. Sometimes it’s more about the food, drinks and desserts than the play on the court. For real.

Anyway, of course I had to try it first before I brought it down to the ladies. I opened a box of Merlot to go with my steak tacos last week and was really happy with the taste. I wouldn’t have guessed it came out of a box. It was right on par with the type of bottled wine I would normally buy and bring to one of my tennis soirees.

This box is equal to four 750ml bottles of wine. Yes, four.

Here are some details that caught my attention:

• This box’s SRP is $24.99 which equals out to buying four of those 750ml bottles at $6.25 each, so it’s budget friendly.
• It last for 4 weeks, no refrigeration needed, which is great cause that’s a lot of wine.
• It didn’t drip. Yes, I was actually waiting for the drip from the spout.
• The box boasts half the carbon footprint of glass bottles

It’s time to think inside the box. Available in ten delicious varietals and two sizes (3L and Tetra), Black Box Wine will have you ready to lose the bottle! Black Box Wines is perfect for all your summer gatherings!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of Black Box Wines. The opinions and text are all mine.

The post Summertime Sipping: Black Box Wines appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

Did I mention we ALWAYS have a blast and I’m sure we will this time, too.

Dimity and Sarah, the awesome Another Mother Runner ladies, held a contest to fill two teams to create the Ultimate Mother Runner Showdown. I’m happy to share that we were chosen to join Sarah’s team to run the Ragnar Relay in D.C. in October.

Yay for Team SBS!

We’ll be joining Sarah and nine other fabulous mother runners (12 total) to pile in two vans and take on 200 miles in 48 hours with very little sleep. Sounds like fun, right? Oh, you just wait. I can only imagine the shenanigans that will take place. Ahem. 

Renee and I had too much fun making our video. Here’s what earned us our spots …

You can meet the rest of our team here and check out Dimity’s team, too!

I’m looking forward to training and running my first Ragnar Relay! Many thanks to Sarah, Dimity, the folks at Ragnar and all of the other sponsors of the Ultimate Mother Runner Showdown.

Let’s. Get. It. On.

Winks & Smiles,

The post Running the Ragnar Relay in the Ultimate Mother Runner Showdown appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

Happy Monday, Everyone! I hope you’re ready for a FABULOUS week. I am … especially since I totally WRECKED last week’s meal plan.

GASP!

Don’t worry, I’m not really that upset about it. Perfection is totally overrated. And, I made some REALLY good steak tacos.

Not bad for a fumble.

It’s helpful that I know the cause of my downfall – it was not getting my weekly shopping done so that I could be prepared and have everything I need in my house ready to go. What a HUGE difference that makes for me. I’m glad to share that I’m on it this week. The shopping is all done and I’m excited to make it all happen.

HERE ARE THIS WEEK’S EATS:

• Monday – We’re juggling basketball camp and skills practice so we’ll be eating out tonight
• Tuesday – Salmon cakes, sweet potato fries and broccoli
• Wednesday – Grilled chicken and steak with spinach salad and brown rice
• Thursday – Swim meet + basketball practice = LEFTOVERS
• Friday – Grilled Hamburgers & hot dogs with baked beans and spinach salad
• Saturday – Chicken and shrimp quesadillas
• Sunday – It’s Father’s Day so we’ll either be throwing some food on the grill or taking my favorite guys out to eat!

Happy Cooking!

Winks & Smiles,

The post Weekly Meal Plan for June 10 – 16 appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

This year I’ve been really focused on developing my domestic side (there’s an organized, uncluttered, homemaking diva in me fighting to come out) and stepping up my cooking game has been a big focus. I recently took my first cooking class at The Cook’s Warehouse and loved it. Gasp!

Me – getting all knife savvy in cooking class.

And, wine … well apparently I’ve been focusing on that for years now so a food and wine festival is a perfect fit.

Ahem.

Napoleon and I spent last Sunday afternoon enjoying the final day of the three-day festival and had the opportunity to attend some of the Connoisseur Classes and Tasting Demonstrations; and then enjoy all of the awesomeness of the Tasting Tents.

Our first stop was Foods of the Southern Tailgate. Fun! They were grilling it up on the terrace.

Then we  just HAPPENED to find ourselves in The Bourbon Show tasting seminar.

On to the tasting tents …

Awesome eats, wine, beer and other spirits were everywhere. From mouthwatering BBQ to sweet treats – I don’t think I tasted one thing that wasn’t beyond good.

At the Buick Chocolate Creations tent I created my own specialty chocolate bar that’s being made and mailed to my home. Sweet!

OK, two of my FAVES – beer and ice cream. GASP! Even I was hesitant but it was good.

At one point it poured and I was stuck in a tent with an abundance of food, wine and some pretty happy people. Life can be so cruel.

The day was definitely a treat! My husband enjoyed it so much that he said this was his early Father’s Day present (well, OK) … as long as I bring him back next year.

Winks & Smiles,

The post Atlanta Food and Wine Festival Recap appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

Today is National Running Day!

Whoo-hoo!

Running has literally changed my life and I love to celebrate it – and the incredible running community – as often as possible.

It’s still tickles me to think back a few years ago when you couldn’t convince me to run to the mailbox let alone down the street. I was Lazy, Y’all. With a capital “L.”

“I HATE running.”

“I’ll NEVER run a marathon – NEVER.”

Those are things I used to say on the regular. Before my kids were born I used to smoke cigarettes and never thought that “running” was a possibility for someone like me.

Fast-forward to today I’ve conquered three full marathons, 13 half marathons and a gazillion 10K & 5Ks. Running has become a part of my life. It’s something that I love to do, want to do, and I need to do to keep me healthy – and sane. Ahem.

Today I celebrate my fellow walkers & runners; and applaud you for all that you do. MUAH!

For those of you who haven’t taken that first step – and want to – I invite you into our world and encourage you to give it a try.

Don’t let your doubts, fears or preconceived notions about running paralyze you. I’m so grateful that I kicked mine to the curb with the help, love and support of my family, friends and RUNNING family.

While running might not be a passion for everyone – you’ll never know if it is for YOU unless you lace up your shoes and get moving.

Cheering you on …

Winks & Smiles,

The post Celebrating National Running Day appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

Happy Monday, Lovelies! I’m excited for a new week and I hope you are, too. I’m pleased to share that I’ve been doing well with my meal planning. I strayed a little last week and didn’t make two of the meals (no worries – everybody still ate) so I’ve bumped them over to this week.  That’s two less days I needed to plan for plus I already have the ingredients – SCORE!

HERE ARE THIS WEEK’S EATS:

• Monday – Jerk shrimp penne pasta stir-fry with broccoli

• Tuesday – Buffalo chicken quesadillas on the grill; with grilled veggies (zucchini, squash, red onion, etc)

• Wednesday – Spaghetti with homemade meat sauce; and spinach salad

• Thursday – It’s swim meet and basketball night so it’s the perfect night for LEFTOVERS

• Friday – Grilled salmon, corn on the cob and three bean salad

• Saturday – Grilled chicken, burgers, hot dogs and leftover three bean salad

• Sunday – Oven roasted pork loin, brown rice and sautéed whole green beans

Happy Cooking!

Winks & Smiles,

The post Weekly Meal Plan for June 3 – 9 appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

Yesterday was my Miles’ 12th birthday; and Milan’s first swim meet of the summer. It was a busy, fun day and one that definitely needed to be captured with plenty of pics and videos.

I’ve shared how much I like the new BlackBerry Z10′s camera so it’s no surprise that I was using it yesterday, but I don’t think I’ve talked about how much I’m LOVING the video capabilities, too.

The clarity and quality of the video is great, but it’s the editing capabilities available on the phone that have me totally geeked.

Not only can you only can you trim the video (like many devices), but you rotate it so when you shoot it the wrong way you can flip it around. Not that I ever shoot things the wrong way – Ahem. You can also use the Enhance feature that lets you adjust the brightness, contrast, color, and the volume. Then you can share it right directly from the phone and skip having to edit it at all from your computer. I. LOVE. THAT.

Here’s an example of unedited video from yesterday, and the same video edited from the phone.

Cool, right?

The original didn’t really need any fixing but I wanted to show what you can do if you need to. I completely took out the volume (yes that was me yelling in the first one), cropped down the shot so it was more focused on her (I personally like that), and played with the brightness and colors just so you can tell the difference. I know it looks worse now, but if the video you’re shooting doesn’t come out right (poor lighting is often an issue) you could fix the lighting and colors easily. When I save it the device keeps the original video AND the new edit. That’s really important so you can always go back to what you originally shot.

By the way, Milan took first place in both of her events – 25 Freestyle and 25 Backstroke!

Miles also had an awesome day hanging out with some of his boys from school.

Needless to say, the BlackBerry Z10 is my new go-to device for photos and videos.

Winks & Smiles,

The post Showing off My Kids’ and the BlackBerry Z10′s Video Skills appeared first on Run Wifey Run.

GASP!

It’s actually a swimsuit cover up.  It was easy, and fun, and I think I might have a new hobby.

Winks & Smiles,

The post Wordless Wednesday: Making My First Maxi Dress appeared first on Run Wifey Run.