Fallish

Falling off the running bandwagon is no bueno. Why? Because the restarting part isn't my idea of fun. After Ragnar, I became pretty inconsistent with my workouts due to life being a tad bit busy (excuses, I know). 

These past couple of weeks I've been in the "recharge and restart" phase. Surprisingly? It's been good.
Maybe its because I have a couple of awesome running partners. OR maybe it's because it's been a stress reliever.
Either way, I am pleasantly surprised.

We've had some unbelievably beautiful runs this past week. It makes me wish fall would stay a little longer. Not only that, the crisp air and changing colors reminds makes me homesick for Spokane.

And what's fall without a little football? 

And without parents?

They practically live here these days #RetiredPeopleProblems 

{this picture makes me cry for so many reasons}

So Utah? I usually like you. 

But in the fall? I love you. 

So keep that scenery coming.

And the parents too :)

Oh and maybe, just maybe, a win for those Cougs?

Thanks.

Lisa's Birthday

Today is Lisa's birthday.
Words can't describe how much I love this girl.

{gotta love the old school pics}

At her wedding this year, I shared a favorite memory of her:
When we were in High School, we made it a nightly tradition to go sit on the ends of each others beds and help each other pick out an outfit for school the next day. We'd talk about everything from the boys we liked to her leaving for college. Those nightly chats about our clothes, turned into a circle of trust and friendship. She made me feel like the coolest little sister ever.

I always joke it was tough growing up as her little sister because she was so perfect (even in those overalls).

Well, news flash people: I wasn't joking. She really is such an amazing person to look up to.

She's helped me through the worst of times and has been there for the best of them.

I am so thankful I have her not only a sister, but a best friend (as well as all my sisters) ♥‎

New York City

Five days.
Seven girls.
Fashion Week.
New York City.

Need I say more? I could probably stop right there. Our girls trip to New York was the trip of a lifetime! In the spring, a few of us talked about going to New York for Fashion Week in the fall. A few of us turned into seven and before I knew it, we were partying in the Big Apple.

Was I the typical tourist? Of course! Embraced my inner Asian (might have taken 800+ pictures...)

{Mr. Winn & girls at the 9/11 Memorial}

{Little Italy}

{Grand Central Station}

{Janers!}

{Times Square}

{Kim Kardashian. Life is complete}

{Our signs were a hit}

{Savannah Guthrie, Today Show Co-host}

{Birchbox event. Free samples? Like legit ones? Alright!}

{Jersey Boys}

{Did I have the chills after Newsies? Yep. It was THAT good. Jack-main character}

{Olivia Palermo-from In The City}

{Rock N'Roll bike tour that took us across The Brooklyn Bridge}

{Best day ever!}

{Kate. Love her}

{Stace and I at Top of the Rock, overlooking Central Park}

{Concrete Jungle}

Oh! And I can't forget the pics from my phone...

{Best street ever}

{Jef Holm & Emily Maynard from the Bachelorette}

{Our ten seconds of fame on The Today Show}

{Our new friends}

{...we had to}

{Serendipity Frozen Hot Chocolate. Amazing}

{Beatles baby aka Strawberry Fields}

New York City in a nutshell.

It's going to be pretty hard to top this trip.

Holla!

♥‎

Lessons of a Grown Up

I always hated when people told me that one day I would turn into my parents. What did that even mean? And how was that even possible? I never really bought into that saying and was annoyed when people would even say that. However, this past summer I've seen that saying come to pass.

Each and every year is a learning year for different reasons. I have learned so much about myself in a short six month period (since commuting to work in February). Who knew that such a small change could make a such a big difference?

If I don't leave work by 5pm each day I hit dead stop traffic on my ride home, which makes the commute just shy of an hour. Yesterday happened to be one of those lucky days where I clocked out at 4:59pm. I was thrilled that I wouldn't hit too bad of traffic and would (hopefully) be home by 6pm.

I was exhausted and wanted some sleep (and caffeine-but I'm trying to be better :). I thought, "If I can just make it home, I'll take a quick nap, eat, workout and go to bed."

Somehow one thought led to another and I got thinking about my parents. My dad always left for work around 6:30am and wouldn't get home until 4 or 5pm. Then we'd eat dinner as a family, he'd help bathe us, help with homework, run us to sporting events etc.. or watch a tv show with us (which most of the time he'd end up falling asleep-haha). And then would repeat day in and day out.

I complain about not being able to have a social life after 10pm or not ever having time to catch up on sleep. But I can't even imagine having a family on top of being tired all the time from commuting and working all day.

Thinking about that made me so grateful for my parents and the sacrifices they made for my siblings and I! Now I know why Dad ALWAYS took cat naps. He was exhausted all the time (now he's retired and thats a whole different story). Turns out all those people were right and that I am slowly turning into my parents (who knew?). 

{Family minus one BIL}

Moral of the story? 

Cat naps are needed for sanity and survival #fact 

And all those people proved me wrong, dang it.

Guess I'm a Johnson through and through!

Lately.

You know those weeks that you think to yourself, "I can't wait for this week to be over with?" Yeah, this past week was one of those weeks. This week was moving week. WOOF. 

Next time I move I am paying someone to move my boxes. H to the No am I moving by myself again. Also-I'm never living on the third floor again. Mark my words.

However, I shouldn't complain too much because I did have a blast (not kidding) moving my bed with my sister and BIL (see picture #8-notice the box spring on top of the car too).

Anyway, here is my life the past few weeks according to my phone:

1. That awkward (but awesome) moment when you show up to work and you are matching your coworker. Head to toe.

2. Mom's know best. Love the little notes Betsy sends me in the mail.

3. Did you know I love musicals? Well, I do. I'm not one to participate in them, but I sure love them! A bunch of friends and I went up to the Sundance outdoor theatre to see "Seven Brides for Seven Brothers." I had never seen it before. So cute! 

4. SNO (sisters night out) in Salt Lake. I love that they love so close and I love our new tradition. Sisters, dinner and shopping? What more do you need? (Notice I don't have a shopping bag. Proud moment).

5. Improvised table and breakfast on the go. Hey, I've been moving. 

6. Sleepover at Aunt Stephie's! I even let the girls stay up until 1am. Whaaa? #AuntOfTheYear

7. "Whew, that was some sale" is right! Loved July, but glad it's done. We managers are exhausted! 

8. Pretty sure we had to get a little creative when it came to moving my bed (see above). I love that Lisa and Scotty live so close. Not only are they family, they are friends. I always have a blast when I'm with them. I seriously love them.

‎♥‎♥‎♥

SNO

Can I just say family is the best? Not only that, sisters? 

Sisters Night Out happens to be one of my new favorite nights.

Family truly is the best and I'm so grateful they are some of my best friends.

I know when we are together, we always have a good time (and a diet coke).

 

"You can kid the world, but not your sister."

-Charlotte Gray

‎♥

Ragnar 2012, Team Sweaty or Not

Year two of Ragnar? Done and done.

This year was a little different all together. Last year I felt prepped and prepared, I was scared to death for the unknown (I had dreams of me being trampled out there) and it was a brand new experience for me.

2012 has definitely been an awesome year for me, but it has been an extremely one too, mainly because of work. I went from driving ten minutes to work to driving an hour to and from work (rush hour traffic both ways). I never realized how exhausting commuting could be. With that being said, I felt like Ragnar training didn't get my full attention this year.

Just weeks before the race, I begged to get out of it for fear of not being ready. However, my family wouldn't budge. Which I'm glad now (wasn't thrilled at the time). Although I wasn't ready, I still ran it and did better than I expected to! Maybe I wasn't running eight minute miles but hey, I finished and thats all that matters.

{Van #2}

Leg #1
4.0 miles

I knew I could easily get through this. Flat and it was a support leg (my van could give me water). However, it was around 1pm the sun was beating down and I was roasting! Thank goodness for our spray bottle and the local neighbors for hosing us down.

{Exchange numero dos at Snow Basin}

Leg #2
7.5 miles

Holy moly, 7.5 miles? Yeah, I did that. Since it was dark, each runner has to have a reflective vest and head lamp. With my head lamp guiding the way, I thought "I got this." But once I realized it was on a gravel trail I about died. Not only was it the longest distance I've ever run at one time, it was the hardest run I've ever done period (not to mention boring and a non-support leg). Oh, and it smelt like horse crap the entire way. On the positive side, I saw the sun rise over the beautiful Utah mountains. When I went to hand my sister Lindsey the wrist band, I was probably cursing under my breath and she could tell I was more ticked off, than relieved to be finished. It was hilarious. 

{^ what was going through my mind before my last leg ^}

Leg #3
7.5 miles

By this point, I felt like I couldn't run anymore. I was tired (no sleep) and sore (trail run). BUT this leg was straight down hill (literally). I'm convinced this was the prettiest leg on the entire course. It ran through Deer Valley and down into Park City. Mountains surrounding, Hundreds of lush Pine trees everywhere, beautiful cabins and resorts. I felt at home. The minute I saw the beloved "One Mile To Go" sign, I booked it. I sprinted the entire mile in. I knew that there was only one leg to go before the finish line (which Scotty, my brother in law ran). That was the most empowering one mile I have ever run.

{Here I come! Ready to hand the bracelet off to Scotty to bring us to the finish line!}

{The team! Minus Aunt Becky and Steve who had to jet to the airport.}

Until next year Ragnar! Next year we are going to spice things up. 

Not only that, Scottie will be home from his mission. Holla!

Oh and we got our Diet Cokes at the finish line. Thanks Betsy!

Happy Running!

♥♥♥

fresh start.

What I love.

After I stopped blogging on my other account, I really didn't care about blogging in general anymore. And when I did finally decided to blog again (by popular demand), all my excitement was gone. Meaning I didn't feel like I needed to tell the world I was happy, what I've been up to or that the last few months have been some of so fun (& hilarious). Life is good. And I didn't really care to share details anymore.

 It was a love-hate battle with the blog.

So I decided to print the last one and call it good.

Cheers to new beginnings.
Cheers to no strings attached.
And cheers to The Suite Life of Steph.

{And props to my bro-in-law who came up with my blog name}

testing

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