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Thursday, March 31, 2011
More Boston Stuff
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Monday, March 28, 2011
Ta Da!!!! The Finished Product!!
Yesterday was the 2-month mark until our wedding and on Friday I finally sent out the invitations. I wanted to share the invitations with you since I handmade them all and am quite proud. I made 125 and I was very stubborn and would not allow anyone to help me. I only accepted help when it came to putting stamps and labels on the envelopes.
I lined all 125 envelopes with heart paper for some added color, since I LOVE a lot of color!
This is the finished product
Not sure why I can't get this picture to rotate. I used embossing powder for the mason jar and flowers and then I added matching glitter to each flower. I will carry wildflowers and the centerpieces on the tables will be wildflowers in mason jars. I selected pink, purple and orange flowers because those are the wedding colors.
Me, my sister, my grandmother and my great Aunt Lu stuffing envelops and putting on stamps. I can't believe I forgot to take pictures of the RSVP cards!!! But if you enlarge this picture you might be able to see them.
(Sorry, Laura, not the best picture of you, I must have said something stupid)
(Sorry, Laura, not the best picture of you, I must have said something stupid)
Grr, pictures are refusing to rotate! These are the stamps I used. I'm not really into all the weddingy themed stuff, I prefer colorful things and springy things, and I love butterflies!
For the RSVP cards I hand-cut each one into a heart shape. There are 4 possible color combinations for the RSVP cards:
bright pink card with orange envelops
orange card with bright pink envelope
purple card with green envelope
green card with purple envelope
Yes, I LOVE color!!
Thanks for letting me share these with you! Have a great week!!
Wednesday, March 23, 2011
Boston Marathon Street Banners are HERE!!!
For all my Boston Marathon people, this post if for you...check out what went up on the streets of Boston this past week...
I like the banners this year. There are 8-10 different ones, each with the flag from the runner's home country. I always get so excited once I see these banners. Last year we had green leaves and even some shade for the race. This year I doubt we will be getting as early a spring as last year so expect to see ugly brown and bare trees(as you can see in the picture below). BOO! By the way, these pictures were taken around 2pm in the afternoon, looks like a depressing white backdrop...but no...that's just winter time in New England. (It's spring, I know)
This is Massachusetts Avenue in Boston, pretty close to where we live.
Don't forget, if you need help or have a question about Boston or the race send us an email! See you all soon! ryan.couto@gmail.com
Friday, March 18, 2011
5 Things Friday
1. I have been terrible about reading blogs lately, I read a few here and there but I'm really struggling to keep up. *IF YOU ARE ON TWITTER, PLEASE COMMENT AND LEAVE YOUR TWITTER NAME.* I don't even know what it's called...a twitter name?? I want to follow you on twitter so we can stay in touch because I am able to go on Twiter via my blackberry but I can't always read blogs on my blackberry. Thanks.
2. New Bedford Half Marathon coming up on Sunday, not doing this one for speed but rather pushing handicapped children in wheelchairs, should be interesting!
3. Poor Ryan hurt himself last night!!!! We were going for a run and about 5 steps into the run he stopped and hunched over in pain/discomfort. Not sure what happened :-( He seems a little better today but he is still walking funny so we don't really know how it is. He can walk but cannot push-off.
4. We signed up for Goofy's Challenge this week. It will be my 7th Goofy and Ryan's 2nd. I think we will do the 5k this year with my parents too.
5. Did you know that we are going back to Alaska in June???
2. New Bedford Half Marathon coming up on Sunday, not doing this one for speed but rather pushing handicapped children in wheelchairs, should be interesting!
3. Poor Ryan hurt himself last night!!!! We were going for a run and about 5 steps into the run he stopped and hunched over in pain/discomfort. Not sure what happened :-( He seems a little better today but he is still walking funny so we don't really know how it is. He can walk but cannot push-off.
4. We signed up for Goofy's Challenge this week. It will be my 7th Goofy and Ryan's 2nd. I think we will do the 5k this year with my parents too.
5. Did you know that we are going back to Alaska in June???
Picture taken at 11:30 AT NIGHT! Anchorage, AK
Have a great day and a great weekend! Who is racing?? Good luck!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Hyannis Marathon Race Report
Better late than never, right? On Sunday, February 27th Ryan and I ran the Hyannis Marathon in Hyannis MA. This was my second time running this race, I ran it back in 2006, this was Ryan's first time. Hyannis was somewhat of a marathon milestone for me as it was my 20th marathon.
I was planning on pacing a couple of women to a BQ, so my plan was to run around 3:50:00 and Ryan's plan was to run somewhere just over 4 hours. We both viewed it as a training run and since all of our friends were running we decided to join in on the fun. The weather was kinda of on the chilly side with either rain, sleet or snow. The night before we got about 2 inches of snow but then the rain came and washed it away. This course is said to be flat but in my opinion there are quite a few rolling hills. It was a double loop course with a half marathon and a 10k, so needless to say, the first loop was crowded and the second loop was quiet!!
All was going well with pacing, we ran dead even splits and the day went by really fast. It felt mile 17 popped up out of nowhere and then suddenly we were at mile 20. My legs felt really strong and everything was feeling good except for my back. My back NEVER bothers me so it was kind of strange to be happening all of a sudden. Around mile 20.5 my back started to cramp up and the discomfort began traveling along side of my ribs and towards the front. My friend that i was pacing, Wendy, was on fire and there was no doubt in my mind she would get her BQ. She even stopped at a port-a-potty for 3 minutes but we made up the time. I felt like she wanted to pick things up and that I was holding her back. Around mile 22 I realized that I was leaning forward/hunched over while I was running. Wendy decided to take off and I pulled over on the side of the road and just bent over and hung there for a minute. My back was killing me, I could barely stand up straight. Every .10-.25 mile I had to stop and bend over. It sucked. Wendy got her BQ and I finished in 3:55. As soon as I finished I laid down and put my feet in the air and my back felt better. See pictures below to see WHY my back was hurting me!!! Also, it gives the answer to yesterday's Wordless Wednesday post.
Ryan had a good race too and he met up with a friend just past the half way mark and then the two of them ran the rest of the way together. He looked really strong at the finish and didn't seem to be phased at all. We were both kind of hungry at the end but had to walk all the way back to the car to get food. Most of the post-race food had been picked over, which is sadly kind of normal after a race that offers shorter distances in addition to a marathon. While we were at the car, our friend called to say that Ryan had placed in the Clydesdale division!!!!!
I was planning on pacing a couple of women to a BQ, so my plan was to run around 3:50:00 and Ryan's plan was to run somewhere just over 4 hours. We both viewed it as a training run and since all of our friends were running we decided to join in on the fun. The weather was kinda of on the chilly side with either rain, sleet or snow. The night before we got about 2 inches of snow but then the rain came and washed it away. This course is said to be flat but in my opinion there are quite a few rolling hills. It was a double loop course with a half marathon and a 10k, so needless to say, the first loop was crowded and the second loop was quiet!!
All was going well with pacing, we ran dead even splits and the day went by really fast. It felt mile 17 popped up out of nowhere and then suddenly we were at mile 20. My legs felt really strong and everything was feeling good except for my back. My back NEVER bothers me so it was kind of strange to be happening all of a sudden. Around mile 20.5 my back started to cramp up and the discomfort began traveling along side of my ribs and towards the front. My friend that i was pacing, Wendy, was on fire and there was no doubt in my mind she would get her BQ. She even stopped at a port-a-potty for 3 minutes but we made up the time. I felt like she wanted to pick things up and that I was holding her back. Around mile 22 I realized that I was leaning forward/hunched over while I was running. Wendy decided to take off and I pulled over on the side of the road and just bent over and hung there for a minute. My back was killing me, I could barely stand up straight. Every .10-.25 mile I had to stop and bend over. It sucked. Wendy got her BQ and I finished in 3:55. As soon as I finished I laid down and put my feet in the air and my back felt better. See pictures below to see WHY my back was hurting me!!! Also, it gives the answer to yesterday's Wordless Wednesday post.
Ryan had a good race too and he met up with a friend just past the half way mark and then the two of them ran the rest of the way together. He looked really strong at the finish and didn't seem to be phased at all. We were both kind of hungry at the end but had to walk all the way back to the car to get food. Most of the post-race food had been picked over, which is sadly kind of normal after a race that offers shorter distances in addition to a marathon. While we were at the car, our friend called to say that Ryan had placed in the Clydesdale division!!!!!
Ryan and his 2 medals! Way to go, Lovie!!
Post race
And here is why my back HURT!! I spent all day Friday and Saturday hunched over like this! (I believe I have a paw-print sticker on my hand, my 2.5 year old nephew gave me a sticker for using the "potty")
Working on invitations. I made 120, not quite finished yet.
This is just the base of the invitation. I punched the flower pattern on the bottom and then I used stamps and embossing powder (you put special powder on the stamp-ink and then use a heating tool and the embossing powder hardens and becomes raised and shiny). The base of the invitation has a turquoise colored mason jar with pink, purple and orange wildflowers inside. My colors for the wedding are pink, purple and orange and our centerpieces are turquoise mason jars with multicolored wildflowers, so it ties in nicely.
Yes, you read that correctly, pink, purple and orange...wait til you see the bridesmaid dresses!
Up next: Black Cat 20 Mile Race Report. We ran a 20 mile race 1 week after the marathon. Stay tuned!
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Saturday, March 5, 2011
It's That Time of Year Here in Boston!!
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Wednesday, March 2, 2011
Hyannis Marathon Recap
Hi everyone! Just a QUICK recap about the Hyannis Marathon Ryan and I ran on Sunday. We will post pictures and more info later. To make a long story short, the race was a success! The weather was crappy, freezing rain, snow and rain but it wasn't too cold, in the 30s.I set out to pace 2 women from my running club for their first BQ. 1 woman, Wendy, successfully got her BQ! She was amazing! She even took a pit stop for about 3 minutes but we made up the time. She was thrilled, it was fun to help her reach her goal. Ryan had a great race...I'll let him tell you more about that though...(hint, he got some hardware!)
Hyannis was a great day for me. I ran this marathon back on 2006 and it was my 3rd marathon. This past Sunday I ran it as my 20th marathon. Can't believe I hit #20 already! Time sure flies when you're having fun! :-)
Pictures and more info in the next post! We've been so bad about posting lately! We are less than 3 months away til the wedding now!
Hyannis was a great day for me. I ran this marathon back on 2006 and it was my 3rd marathon. This past Sunday I ran it as my 20th marathon. Can't believe I hit #20 already! Time sure flies when you're having fun! :-)
Pictures and more info in the next post! We've been so bad about posting lately! We are less than 3 months away til the wedding now!
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