211 Days Left!!!

Lately, there has been so many countdowns...new job, bachelorette party, wedding, Thanksgiving, Christmas and honeymoon. Here's another to add to my busy schedule.

 

211 days left until the 2014 Pittsburgh Half-Marathon!

 

I wasn't really sure if I wanted to run again after my poor performance last year but after not registering in time for the Great Race and running intervals all summer to improve my speed, I'm craving a race.

 

So on October 1, I was one of those crazy runners waiting patiently as the countdown clock on the marathon website approached 9 a.m. It took longer than expected and I don't think I made it into the first group that received $10 off registration.

 

BUT I'M REGISTERED AND READY TO RUN!

 

This year, I decided I need extra motivation to run. The last two years, my only goal was to finish and I did, so I know that's possible even if I run really slow. Ever since I stopped participating in the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer in DC I've been missing doing something for a cause.

 

There really wasn't a cause that jumped to mind the last two years for me at the marathon. I'm partial to the Avon Foundation, so I didn't want to run for Komen and there wasn't any others that jumped out at me. This year, I noticed North Hills Community Outreach.

 

I didn't even really think about it just registered. I'm thrilled to be running for such a wonderful organization. An organization that I've volunteered for in the past through church and is instumental in the local community where I grew up.

 

This is probably the only post I'll do about the marathon until after the wedding or even after the holidays. I need to fundraise though, so I might place some posts about that in the future. I'm so excited to be running again!

 

Let's get training and fundraising!! To 2014!!

How to Plan a Wedding on a Budget

When I was in college and even after, my dream wedding was to get married a grand old church or cathedral in NYC (granted I thought I would be living there) and then have the reception on the New York Harbor. I probably wated the Today Show weddings way too much. Then reality hits and you realize planning a wedding is not cheap!

 

I'm incredibly budget minded at my current age, so planning a wedding has not been too difficult. Here are a few tips to keep in mind about planning that perfect wedding but remaining within a tight budget.

 

Look for alternative locations for ceremony and reception.

D and I are getting married at our childhood church camp. We were limited because of our large guest list. Many venues that hold that many are extremely expensive. Our ceremony and reception will be at the same location but different venues.

 

Think outside the box as far as catering is concerned.

Order what you like to eat, not what your parents want. I don't want to ruin the surprise of our fabulous menu but catering can be flexible.

 

Wait to take a honeymoon.

We are waiting but not for this reason. Neither one of us has vacation but it is definitely saving us money by not going until January.

 

Hire friends and family to help.

We hired a family friend who does wedding receptions on the side as a DJ. We hired my cousin's wife as the photographer and my best friend and bridesmaid is doing hair and makeup. Not to mention that all the musicians are either family or close friends.

 

Design and print your own paper materials.

I bought a Living Social coupon for the save-the-dates, which save a lot of money and I designed them myself. I also designed the invitation and printed it at Staples. This was cost effective but I was hoping it would be cheaper.

 

And that's my two cents for now...

 

Tuesday Link Love Randomness

Well, I'm back with some more link love. Two weeks in a row! That's a new record! I am trying though to maintain the blog and the daily post ideas. Doesn't always work though!

 

It's been a crazy week in my life if you haven't seen my posts on Facebook or the blog. Interviewed for a job, offered a job, accepted a job. Then throw in planning a wedding and today is D's birthday and the wildcard game for the Pirates. Sigh... I need a break.

 

 

Life Lately

 

The giant rubber duck arrived in Pittsburgh on Friday. I saw it from a far on my way to pick D up and then on my commutes. It's pretty cool. Definitely not as big as I thought it would be but I read that the Pittsburgh duck is smaller, so that it fits under the bridges. I'm hoping to go take pictures tomorrow afternoon after we get our marriage license.

 

The Pirates are playing the wild card game tonight. Pretty awesome! I'll admit. I had my doubts about them for awhile. I like baseball because I can actually afford to go the games and then I can feel a part of it more. I got to go to some awesome games this year. It's amazing that have gotten this far and I hope they win tonight, so D can maybe go to the playoffs! It's great publicity for the city too!

 

Marathon

 

Well, its been almost six months since the last half-marathon. Registration opened today and I'm in...hopefully...had a few gliches there. This year, I decided I wanted to run for a charity. I miss doing the Avon Walk for Breast Cancer and I really wanted to run for a reason since I already proved to myself that I could do it. I'm running for North Hills Community Outreach. I've done some volunteer work through them in the past for church and thought it was a good fit.

 

I'd say that's an awful lot of Pittsburgh love coming from an unlikely cheerleader. I do love the marathon and I think its great that the duck is here and the Pirates are doing so well. That's all the Pittsburgh love I can muster for now.