I AM alive!

Yeah, yeah…I know it has been almost 3 months since I last updated my blog. That’s because I have had some time off! After finishing my marathon travel schedule just prior to Christmas, I have had January & February with little traveling. Thus some “free time” makes me lazy! I definitely get more done when I’m too busy to do anything!

But now I’m off and running again . . . figuratively and literally. Mom came over the first week of February to run in a 5k race on Miami Beach. (See her blog for the details and pictures). It was so fun to have her in Miami for a week, she really acted as my personal assistant during those days and got a lot of little things done around my apartment and she basically did anything I told her to do. Thank goodness she is an obedient mother! It was great fun for me to run with her each morning and then have a short race to top it off. She is my inspiration for running anyway so it was nice to share this with her. That prompted me to try another 5k just this past weekend. I didn’t have my mom to run with this time, and opted for Lance Armstrong instead (on my ipod Nike workout). While Lance did not gossip with me along the way or enjoy the scenery (the ocean and plenty of shirtless model hard bodies, yum!) he did propel me to run a little faster and keep a strong pace through the 3 + miles. I ended up taking 3 minutes off my total time, which I felt was a pretty good feat for such a short distance. I finished 14th out of 89 in my age category and 373rd out of 1200+ in the total race. So I was happy with that. Here are a few pictures of the finish line, the ‘after party’ by the beach, and the beach itself that morning. Nice scenery for a run, huh?

Running with Lance and other Nike workouts have kept me burning the calories. As of this morning’s weigh-in, I’ve officially lost 44.4 pounds since June 4. I have 4.2 pounds left to reach my goal. I so wanted to have it done by the end of March, but it’s going to be tough since I’ve got two trips in that time which will limit my running time. It will be close though! Now when they call me “Sweet Hot Tada Tot” at work, I can really believe it! Here is a picture of my run this morning. With the time change it is still quite dark when I hit the road. This morning I really did have to run early because I had a lot to get done before getting on a plane, and it was Wednesday which is my ‘bridge run’ day. It was quite beautiful as I ran up & over one side of the bridge, I was watching the full moon descend, and when I turned around and ran the other direction up & over, the sun was coming up over the ocean. For all the things I don’t like about Miami, the beautiful scenery really makes me appreciate it. Also the 80 degree temperature this time of year is fabulous!

I did take a few days and go to Arizona for the President’s Day weekend. I enjoyed getting to see my other ‘mother and three sisters’ and have girl time. I do wish that happened more often and can’t wait for the next Bee meeting. Let’s get planning.

I’m currently en-route to Utah for my first working event of the year. It’s always fun to go ‘home’ for a few days, although I really don’t get to see more than the inside of the Marriott Center. But seeing the roots of my dance career means a lot to me. So although I really don’t have time to be away from the office right now, I never pass up an event at BYU. Maybe it’s my longing to be 21 again and have the innocence and naivetivity I did before I got ‘tainted’ by reality. I am sad that Alex won’t be there this year though. It was always fun to spend those days together.

Once I’m back from Utah, it’s a week in the office then off to Las Vegas for the first of four trips there this year. On the way to Vegas I will stop by San Antonio to celebrate Isabelle’s birthday, so I’m looking forward to being Aunt for a day. Then it’s back to our International Franchisee Convention in mid-April, then to Seattle, then to . . . . it’s just getting started again! Does anyone else volunteer to be my personal assistant for a few days?

Cold, Cold, Cold!

After a couple more weeks of traveling, I remember now why I live in Miami and put up with the humid summers. Last weekend I made a quick trip to Utah again. I was in town literally like 48 hours and worked about 40 of them! The event was good, it's always a treat to go back to BYU and be reminded of my 'dance roots'. It's also nice to be somewhere where people are nice, friendly, positive and generally happy. However, I was cold from the moment I stepped outside. Although there was no snow on the ground, it was SO cold. I did run the one morning though in 40 degree temps.

I was home for 48 hours then left again for Columbus, Ohio. And if I thought Utah was cold, I was wrong. It was -4 when we landed on Tuesday night. I don't think I ever warmed up my toes and fingers throughout the week. I ran twice while I was there, and it was in the 20s. I looked like a freak running down the sidewalk wrapped up in coats, scarf, gloves, etc. The event was wonderful as always and the taping of the finals will be aired on PBS on February 25. So tune in and see if you can spot me working away.

The best part of my trip this weekend was getting to see Chris, Colleen and Max. They made the drive up one day and we ventured out for dinner. There was to be the Christmas tree lighting ceremony at the outdoor mall we went to, but we couldn't make it through the parade and such to actually get to the lighting. It was SO bitter cold. Of course, I wasn't properly cold dressed, I don't think I even own a pair of closed-toe shoes anymore. But getting to play with Max for a couples hours warmed my heart!

I'm in the Chicago airport now on my layover back to Miami. I'm home for 48 hours again then off to Houston for Thanksgiving! I need to go home so I can thaw out!

I think I'll go back to San Juan...I know a boat you can get on...

I'm back from Puerto Rico. However, I might as well have been in PoDunk, Kansas because I worked the whole time! From 7:30 am until midnight for three days with no breaks. I actually had about 1 hour on Saturday that I rushed outside to take a look. It's too bad because this hotel has a fabulous pool and beach front. The lobby of this hotel is amazing and is a local hang-out since there are 4 bars and multiple live bands playing. Dancing in the lobby literally goes until the wee-hours of the morning. But alas, I needed my sleep due to the long hours, and since I was trying to recover from a cold I got in New Orleans, thus my dancing on the bar (at the bar) was postponed until next year. (Can you seriously imagine me dancing on the bar?! =-)) I'm home until Thursday then it's off to Utah again for the BYU Championships. I arrive there at midnight then work 2 straight days and fly out Sunday early, so it is another QUICK trip. I'm going from tropical heat to snow! That's my life...

The Big Easy

This time I am updating my blog sitting in the airport in New Orleans! I have been here 9 days so I'm ready to go home. We had our international championships all last week and executive meetings yesterday. I'm a little sick now, just a cold, I'm sure from lack of sleep and emotional stress. Luckily I had Amy, my mom and Isabelle visiting the event and they were a BIG help! Isabelle was entertainment for everyone, as you see in the pictures.

(The crew on Bourbon Street)

I'm running home to vote today, do laundry, unpack, repack, go to the office tomorrow for a few hours, then get back on a plane for Puerto Rico. The marathon continues....

A 10 Week Marathon...

It's been a while since I took the time to post something, I realize, but I started my marathon a few weeks ago and I'm happy to say I'm about 1/4 through it! And so far I'm holding up OK, not too tired...YET. It started with a trip to Hawaii. From Tuesday to Friday was the event, so I staryed an extra day on Saturday with nothing to do but lay on the beach, shop, etc. at my own pace. Then with a late flight on Sunday, I made the most of my trip, a little pre-cursor to my birthday, really not part of the marathon, but a nice break! Being 35 isn't all that great though.

Next was a trip to Utah for the wedding. All of you were there so I won't go into detail, but I sure loved seeing all my family, spending time at the cabin in the beautiful scenery, having our Bees meeting (cold water on mom and all!) and seeing my baby sister tie the knot. Whatever! =-)




And now, here I sit in the Mexico City airport. I flew in on Friday after work, arriving at midnight. We had an event yesterday that was really on a few hours long. The last hour was broadcast live on Fox TV in 43 Latin American Countries. So dealing with live TV keeps things on a tight schedule and we were in and out of the arena in only a few hours. Mexico City is HUGE! And the bus ride from the hotel to the arena which was probably on about 5-8 miles, took us 1 1/2 hours! It's weird to be in an event where you don't understand a word of what they are saying, but are expected to make everything run smoothly. It was a great experience which was paid for and which paid me very well for very little work. I just hope my face was on TV at some point. Maybe I could be the next Telemundo star?

It was daylight savings time in Mexico this morning, so I did get an extra hour of sleep before being on a 10am flight back to Miami. I leave first thing tomorrow for New Orleans for 9 days for our corporate championship event. So it's a quick laundry and re-pack for me today. Plus I have to stop at the office for a couple of hours on my way home. So, I'm going to grab some gatorade or something to keep me going and look ahead to the next big hill I have to run up!