Taking a step back... March & April

March was filled with morning jogs to prep for a couple 5k's with my new running buddy Melissa, a trip to the Strawberry Festival with my friend Jenny, more jewelry shows, and a fancy dinner at Bern's with our good friends Dave and Marlise. 

I've been wanting to get back into running even though I would MUCH rather hit the gym and do a group class. I guess I just enjoy the social aspect of it, but I ended up signing up for the Gasparilla 5k which is a pretty HUGE production here in Tampa. For any of you who are not familiar with the Gasparilla concept, check this out: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gasparilla_Pirate_Festival

Yes, that's right. Gasparilla has its own wikipedia entry. We. Have. Arrived.

Along with the parades, music and arts presentations, pub crawls and such, Tampa hosts a marathon, 1/2 marathon, 15k and 5k in one weekend. Since I have no plans to be an Olympian, I just did the 5k.
So let's fast forward to the morning of the race. I was sick - soooooo sick thanks to the amazing idea I had to eat PIZZA for dinner the night before. For those of you who don't know, I'm lactose intolerant. Enough said. So I was sick, tired, and better yet, the weather was horrendous!  Tampa had quite a warm winter this past year so the race day weather ended up being somewhere around 88 degrees with about 99% humidity... oh and they ran out of water... WHAT? Yes, the 15k had gone on before the 5k and instead of the planned 8,000 participants that day, there were 12,000...

This is what I saw when I lined up. As I was standing here waiting to START, the WINNERS of the 5k were already crossing the finish line.

and therefore when I got to the ONLY water station on my 5k route, they were out of water. WORST. PLANNING. EVER. So I scooted to the finish line as quickly as I could without passing out and straight to the water truck.

I managed to look happy in my picture, but I really wanted to punch someone in the neck for running out of water. 

I don't even think I collected my medal until I had guzzled 2 bottles of water, but now I have a shiny new medal :) and afterwards headed over to Four Green Fields to join Dawson (who had been partaking in some bevies as I ran) Kim and Julie for a post run beer.

 Kim and Julie had run the 15k before my 5k.

March in Florida means a few things, basketball, spring training, strawberries and the Strawberry Festival! As you can guess, I'm the most excited over the last two! I LOVE STRAWBERRIES! In fact, I'm pretty sure I ate them for breakfast every day for a month with Greek yogurt and with chocolate for dessert! If you've never taken a trip to Plant City Florida before, March is the time to do it! Not only will you get to experience a great festival with food, rides, and the traditional aspects of a county fair, but you will get to check out some great entertainment at really good prices! This past year Lady Antebellum was a headliner and you could get tickets for $35! That is awesome!!!!

Well, this past year, I visited the strawberry festival with my sister, niece, nephew and my friend Jenny. I took a lot of super cute pictures of the kids including one of my niece dressed up as the Strawberry Princess, but with respect for my sister's wishes, I am not posting any pics of the kids. Oh well... just know it was too cute for words! As we walked the vendor stalls, my friend Jenny let me know that she had entered a recipe in a contest and had won first prize! So, we had to find the expo hall and take a picture!

So here is Jenny with her blue ribbon winning goodies!

We had such a great time! I can't wait until next year's festival!!!!

The weeks kept creeping by and I kept running and, thanks to my friend Melissa, I thought it would be a great idea to run another 5k... on St Patrick's Day... at 7am... about an hour and a half from where I live... yeah... haha - it was rough, but it was fun :)

I did get a pretty nice tech tee... notice the darkness in the background? Yeah, I took this picture inside my car about an hour before the race... then I napped.

As race time approached I got out of the car and stretched, then met up with Melissa and her BF. We got in line and waited for the race to start. 

Yup, that's the sun rise... and the start of the race.

Now, I'm all for race etiquette and people being nice, but I don't understand why people run up to you when you are about 1/4 mile from the finish line and tell you to give it your all and that they will run with you. What if I run slower then you? What if I want to walk? What if I want to do it alone? I can't stand people who do this (unless you are a friend who is being nice and has finished before me) and it is usually some random stranger who thinks they are doing you a favor. It happened. Again. At this race. And thanks to the crappy photographer at the finish line, I will always remember her. 

 

Ugh. Awesome. I'm so glad we crossed the finish line together and shared this epic moment. NOT.

After the race I went home for my traditional post race nap and then Dawson and I headed out to a local pub to celebrate St Patrick's Day with some friends and family. 

You've got to love a group of roaming bagpipers in a bar...

In March we celebrated a couple birthdays including our friend Kim's. We had a fun dinner out at Datz Deli in South Tampa. If you have not been there yet, make it a point to go! The food is delish and the wine/beer selection is pretty tasty too! The vanilla cupcakes are fabulous, just in case you happen to leave room for dessert. 

Earlier in my post I had mentioned a trip to Bern's. If you are not familiar with it, but live in the Tampa area I strongly recommend that you make a reservation and treat yourself to one of the best meals and deals around! Dawson and I have celebrated many occasions there including birthdays and our first wedding anniversary. Our last trip was to celebrate the wedding anniversary of our good friends Dave and Marlise. We had such a great time chatting the night away over some delicious wine, dinner and dessert! We were so glad to share such a special occasion with them! 

April was a pretty smooth month for us. Nothing too crazy, just more work, fun with friends and jewelry shows, but May? May was a little more involved...