Michael & Liz are Bloggable

Far too often we are blogging about things other than ourselves. And since you come here to find out what we are doing and how we are doing, here is a "life update".

Garden:
I can't really say that I am more excited than Liz about the garden we have built, but I am pretty stinkin' excited. Liz will blog about it all soon. We got all the soil last weekend and put it into the garden and today Liz worked on planting seeds and seedlings. It's really awesome to look out there and see green scattered around. There's also a lot of empty space too but that's where all the seeds are planted. Liz just said to me "I'm going to go out and check the plants". I couldn't help but laugh and say "tell them I say 'Hi!'". I am really proud of how she has approached this garden though. She has taken it seriously and has really done her research. I think some people would just throw seeds in and not do the proper reading to figure out what each plant needs. How deep each seed goes, how many to plant, how far away to space them. There's a LOT of information to sort through. I'm glad this little investment has turned into such a passion of hers. I can only hope it reaps the benefits that I am imaging in my head. My one contribution was taking some of the wall stones and breaking them in half so they fit in the corners and it doesn't look terrible on the sides. We also had a problem with Daisy and Gryffin trying to eat some of the dirt so completing the sides will prevent them from doing that. There's a lot of organic material in the dirt including horse manure, and since our dogs are gross, we definitely don't want them fraternizing. Look for a post about this coming soon, but planting is done and now it's just time for waiting and watering... and then EATING!

Woodworking:
From now until we go to Asheville and Nashville on April 22nd, I am going to be working on the cornhole I am building for our friends John and Allison. After that, when I have the time, I think I want to work on building an end table for our couch that would also double as a dog crate. Right now the dogs use metal crates that just take up space and have no use other than stacking blankets on top. You can see a picture of what I'm going for here. I won't exactly copy that design since we have two dogs and it'll obviously be different. It will be bigger than our two crates combined and will also give the dogs physical access to each other instead of completely separating them. They never fight (viciously) and giving them more room would be sweet. That will be a HUGE project so it may be my last commitment until at least my Christmas Secret Santa project.

Photography:
Liz is working hard to get more experience and get better and better with her pictures. She took a class last Fall and went to a photography workshop in March that she absolutely loved. Between gardening and photography, she is a happy camper. This Summer she'll be taking another class, a much more advanced one. This past weekend she met up with a family from our church and did a photo shoot with them. She was pleasantly surprised with how it went and thinks she got a lot of quality pictures out of it. She also said she felt like she learned a lot about herself, not only as a photographer but also as a person. It's tough in those situations to decide on what you want people to do and also dictate that to them. This is all a part of the "experience" she's looking to gain.

Running:
For anyone on the outs, I am running a half marathon in Nashville on April 24th. It's the Country Music Half Marathon. I wish I had counted the number of half marathons I've done, it's got to be in the 10 to 12 range. I am absolutely loving running right now. I feel like lately it's gotten to the point where I feel like I'm in the middle of marathon training, not half-marathon training. On Monday, I went out to go as fast as I possibly could and ran 10 miles in 83 minutes, which is roughly 8:15 minutes per mile. That's right on pace with my fastest half marathon ever which was 1:47:13. Today I ran 9 miles and strictly just wanted to do it at a relaxed and easy pace. I ended up finishing in 81 minutes which is a 9 minute mile. To say 9 minutes per mile is an "easy pace", feels great. At this point I am definitely signing up for the City of Oaks Marathon in Raleigh in the Fall. Also, on the Tuesday after my half marathon in Nashville, I am doing something pretty special as far as running goes. Look for a blog called "The Home Run" coming soon on that subject.

New Year's Resolutions:
I made 3 this year: Not to drink any soda (which that is Liz's too), lose 26 pounds going from 196 to 170, and learn everything there is to know about wood finishes. So far we haven't had any soda. It's tough sometimes though because I feel like I'm cheating when I have Hi-C or lemonade from fast food restaurants. We really only ever have Chick-Fil-A (as far as fast food goes), but I feel like having any kind of sugary drink is cheating no matter what it is. "No sugary drinks" might be my 2012 resolution since "no soda" is every other year for us. So far, weight loss wise, I've lost 18 pounds and am down to 178.4. Here's the proof:


People say blogs without pictures are boring. Since we are saving the garden pictures for a garden post, this is the only kind of picture I could include. It's been really hard not to be complacent especially since I've been running so well. Starting on April 26th I am going to start doing the P90X workout program so that will help. Also in June and August I am going to be doing something that I have a feeling will put me over the top weight wise. Look for a blog post on that soon. The last resolution I haven't worked on at all. I might give that some time around Summer or Fall.

House Projects:
I have a list of things to accomplish in the house and it continues to grow. Recently I finished plastering the window in our front guest bedroom since it was ruined by rain water. It was fixed on the outside, but I still hadn't finished it on the inside. I am also working on expanding the attic. It isn't big enough and there are some things we want to store up there like an extra bed from the guest room. Expanding the attic should be simple but just timely. Anything else is just odds and ends like painting something here or re-caulking something there. But there is always a list and it continues to grow.

Daisy & Gryffin:
These two pups are just so much fun. We spent all day in the garden and they absolutely loved being outside and running around. Gryffin is still obsessed with his ball and still follows me everywhere and Daisy continues to try and be as independent as possible. She loves sleeping on the brown chair all by herself and she will spend hours just lying in the grass in the yard.

We made a decision about Gryffin though. He has one behavior issue that needs to be corrected and we are going to take him to dog obedience class starting in May to do it. Whenever we are walking around the neighborhood and he sees another dog, he goes absolutely NUTS. If someone comes in the house and he is being held back he goes NUTS. Anyone who has met him knows what I am referring too. He gets so excited that it's almost like he gets taken over by a velociraptor and he just squeals and screams and basically has a seizure. This NEEDS to be corrected and I really want to do it. The other thing about this is that he is so incredibly smart, it's almost a shame that his aptitude for learning is being wasted without the proper instruction. I realize these changes will only take place if we instill it in him, but I need direction from a professional. So I am very excited to spend that time with Gryffin. I hope to blog and post some videos in the future of his learning things (hopefully).

This post has been too long so I will end it there. Do you feel updated?