4 Years

4 years ago today...
I was here...

Dear Lee,

We made it through 4 years of not driving each other crazy; wait, what? That happens every day... Nevermind.

Thanks for...

• not thinking I am annoying
• not getting grossed out about how I can often out eat you
• or by how I am so sweatastic at the gym
  
• coming to yoga and spinning class that one time
• letting me get a dog
• taking Biff out pretty much all the time
• giving me awesome lessons every day
  (aka lessons on how I can try to be as awesome as Lee)
• beating me at every game and competition on the planet so as not to bloat my ego :(
• going running with me those 2 times even though you didn't really like it
• never saying anything bad about my cooking
  
• giving me a hug when I get home from work, most of the time
  
• everything, every day, forever
  

Things I have learned from/about marriage:

• Even when you love someone, and even when they are thebomb.com, marriage is work and that is okay
• Getting married is a big step of faith and trust and I don't know how I got so lucky. I really don't think I knew what I was doing when I picked Lee or that I was any better at making a decision than other people, or that I had a divine revelation that we were meant to be. It just kind of happened and I am so grateful.

I must have tricked Lee into marrying me somehow 'cuz I really am just a big weirdo.

Here's to getting old and wrinkly with my best friend.

is it summer?

How do you know when it is summer?

I know it is summer when...

I wear my hair up, which I hate doing.

and when...

It is still light outside at 8:53 PM
Everyone else is out of school and yet I am not.
Otter pops taste really good.
Other people are tan, I am not.
During a 5 PM run I: stand in someone's sprinklers, almost die of dehydration, and get really excited about the water fountain in the public library.

that time I almost died OR that time I watched too many episodes of unsolved mysteries as a child?

the time I nearly died...

OR

the time my imagination ran wild...

you decide...

PS: look at that photo again and smile about Biff's paw being in it.
Did you do that?
Alright, I guess I can tell you the story now.

but FIRST push play on this video and listen to the music so you will be sufficiently ready to be creeped out.

Our story begins with me deciding to go running at the high school track by myself. I have done this quite a few times now and have never worried for my own safety.

I ran a mile as two gals ran up and down the bleachers.
I ran another mile barefooted on the grass and the two girls leave.
I went to put my shoes back on for the next 2-3 miles on the track and into our story enters a shady figure.

An older (50-60 years old) gentleman walks toward the track wearing jeans and and buttoned up long sleeved denim shirt. From a distance he looked like he could have been a custodian, so at first his presence seemed a little odd, but not too out of the ordinary.

As he approaches the track the weirdness begins and he unbuttons his long sleeved shirt to reveal his bare chest.

The man then begins to walk laps around the track holding his shirt in his hand.

At this moment I am thinking: a little strange, but whatever. He wants some exercise, he wants some sun.

As I (jogging) pass him, I notice he has something in his hand, but can't see what.
On my second and third lap since he arrived I can see that it looks like he is tossing the thing around in his hands, switching hands and doing bicep curls.

On my fourth lap I see that thing in his hand is a rock with about a five inch diameter.
With each lap I jog he seems creepier, until I have imagined him as a Ted Bundy like attacker and when I realize he is holding a giant rock I imagine he will soon be using it to bash me on the head.

This is where I book it to the car, decide it is time to go, and leave my workout early driving all the way to the gym to finish.

So here is where you decide. I cannot trust myself because I truly did watch too many episodes of unsolved mysteries as a child.

Did I almost die?

Or is it time for me to be diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic?

Now that my friends is an unsolved mystery...

For no reason at all please enjoy a picture of Biff's blue tongue,
because your dog's tongue is not blue.

me + sepia = less pale

I know that all of my 6 blog followers woke up this morning thinking, "I hope Tiffany takes another picture of herself sitting on the couch, using a crummy laptop camera, wearing the grey hoodie she never takes off."

Well guess what guys? Your dreams just came true. I made these photos really special too by wearing no make up and using the sepia option so your eyes won't be blinded by my vampire like skin.

Lately I have been actually getting some time in the sun running outdoors and being an awesome referee/umpire during a sweet 5th grade kickball tournament, but I can't stay out in the sun too long or someone will notice that my skin is sparkling... Lee is really worried about me no longer being albino and told me to wear sunscreen. I think he is really paranoid about me getting cancer and stuff, it's okay because I force him to eat fruits and veggies and do cardio once a week. We have each other's back like that so we can live to be 100.

Anyway...

Did you guys know I got totally hooked up this year in the form of amazon.com gift cards? Between my parents, Lee's bros and sisters, and my students I got $100 towards awesome stuff.

One thing I bought was a 2 year subscription to runner's world. I am pretty excited about it.
Thanks family (and students) (not that any of them read this)
You guys really know what I love.

Which is picking out my own gifts! HAHA totally kidding, and yet, not.

PS: I got this awesome grey hoodie with birthday monies from Lee's grandma.

His family totally loves me. (and I love them back)

You know this hoodie is awesome cuz when I wore it Friday to Walgreens the guy there hit on me (kinda) by complimenting how awesome it is while I was getting some lady pills.

I am only a little embarassed abut how many times I just said awesome in this post.
I should really work on expanding my vocabulary.


In other news, Happy Father's Day!

I am so lucky to have a cool poppa who is a great listener and always tries to help me fix things like my computer or car even if he doesn't really know how.

My father-in-law is also really awesome sauce. He is fun to tease about dorky things that happen for example this one time he got bugged at a restaurant that was giving everyone free bread except us and he said to the waiter, "Are we gonna get some bread or what?" I think he would be embarrassed if he knew I wrote that, but I'm pretty sure he's never heard of my blog, so it's all good.


Have a great Father's Day and don't be too sad if your father has left this Earth. I'm sure he's looking down on you with love. Or at least that's what I believe about it.


PS (again) I am really excited that I am running a 10K Saturday with my sis-in-law because I am usually a loser who only runs alone. It is going to be off the hook. I hope to finish in under an hour and take some photos for once since I won't be some weird loner there.

walking like a grandma

I have come to the conclusion that people are just not interested in me talking about running all the time; something about how I never get any comments when I talk about running.

I keep trying to think about something else to post about, but lately it all comes back to running: my new watch I bought, magazines and books I have been reading, a blog I am flappin' obsessed with (thanks Jessica Z.), my recent mysterious discomforts during running and where the carp is it coming from? new shoes, etc. etc.

So I am racking my brain trying to think about something interesting and exciting to do/say/take photos of so here are some non-running highlights of my life lately.

1. Two weeks left of teaching some awesome 11 year olds and then they are going to move on to a new teacher who will take over in molding their little minds.
2. In 2 weeks I have 6 weeks off of work! (I know #1 and #2 are the same, but I am trying here)
3. Thursday night Lee talked me into a day of rest from working out so we could go to the movies [and I really needed it because Lee forced me to do a crazy leg workout that left me walking like an old lady for four days} we saw Super 8. It rocked my socks and so did that run-on sentence you just read. Pretend I'm not a teacher and stuff.
4. Today I tried to cook an artichoke and it was disgusting. I have 3 more artichokes in my fridge and don't know how to eat them. Advice/recipes please, in the comment area.
5. Lee is playing facebook tetris right now and I am pretty sure I need to end this post so I can go challenge him.

my reason for living

one of my reasons for living is..

making

homemade brownies

but don't forget about eating them

and licking the cooking utensils

don't worry, I saved one for the master

What are your reasons for living?

some of mine are...
brownies
oreos
cafe rio salad
eating in general
running

and of course real/meaningful things like..
learning and living the gospel
relationships with people and family
but, especially Lee

learning

I have been learning a few life lessons lately; who are we kidding? I learn them every day, but here are some nuggets of brilliancy for you.

*don't assign things to your students that you don't want to grade
*new shoes did not cure my mysterious "pain"
*something nerdy in me is happy to watch Tron Legacy over and over in the cardio cinema
*there is such a thing as eating too many gummy bears
*hearing kesha on the radio makes me wish I was in spin class
*I can run faster and harder than I thought; even if I feel like I can't go on, I can. And so can you.
*raspberry hammer gel tastes just like raspberry jam, just like that hippy/biker salesman promised it would
*no one in their right mind needs 5 onions; sorry bountiful baskets this is one week when I say
boo

shoes, thighs and a crisis

here in the house of terrible t we are the in the midst of a

potential

crisis

Long story short: about a week and a half ago I began having a dull pain/minor discomfort in my left thigh during running and only during running. I know, it was seriously a crisis.

Pain began the day of the race: me VS lee
PS: I do not believe the race caused it, but rather what I did the Fri & Sat prior to.
I rested for like 2 days,
then tried to run and still felt it.
I ran the next day and still felt it.
I cried to Lee over my own pathetic-ness and put ice on it.
Clarification: Not crying from physical pain, crying from dissappointment.
The next two days I rested.
{Saturday & Sunday}

About half way through Saturday I came to the realization that I had run somewhere in the vicinity of 800 miles on these:

Crisis potentially averted.

I have bought new shoes, but I bought them in a rush and they were cheap.
I will buy real shoes Saturday or next week.
Testing my cheapies out to see if it is really me hurting or my shoes hurting me.

Yesterday was so so.
Today will be a yoga day.

Wish me luck tomorrow.
I will be really disappointed if I have to miss out on the half marathon I have been training for!

In the meantime I am giving these guys a hug goodbye, and surprisingly they did not stink, even that close to my face.

PS: I am aware you are supposed to replace your shoes every 400 or so miles, but I pretty much just run on them until I fool myself into thinking I am injured. This happened to me last time too.

I need to be better at this stuff.

family couch evening

doggies on the couch

How many dogs could I fit on this couch with me?

At least two

Currently dogsitting;
currently two dogs are sitting on me.