Gretch Runs

Happy Friday!  It's the end of October, and what a crazy month it was!  This was definitely the busiest month I've had all year, so it completely flew by.  Today's post is going to be all over the place and a bit cray (goes along with the "theme of the month", eh?) - I'll be sharing some of my favorite moments of the month, some recent news that caught my eye, fashion favorites, and what I'm listening to.  Let's go! Wedding in Tennessee A huge highlight of the month was our trip down to Tennessee, and celebrating my future father-in-law's wedding!  I enjoyed getting to meet some people on Michele's side of the family, as well as spend time with Dan's family.  It was such an amazing weekend and the weather could not have been any better!   Race x 3 I had three races this month, and they all ended up being amazing!  First up was Run Shadyside 5k , which I ran with Dan.  He ended up getting a huge PR in that race whic...

Do you believe in ghosts? I've always been intrigued by the idea of ghosts, and have heard plenty of stories of supernatural activity to make me at least open to the possibility.  With Halloween just around the corner, I thought it would be fun to share some spooky stories, favorite scary podcasts, and other Halloween fun. The stories I'm going to be sharing are all 100% true stories that happened to myself, Dan, and my mom.  There could be a perfectly reasonable explanation to everything, but that wouldn't be much fun!  I hope you enjoy, and I'd love to hear your scary stories! Scary Stories My Story: A few years ago, Dan and I took a trip to Boiling Springs to visit his family.  This was my first time staying at his dad's house, and I was to sleep in Dan's childhood bedroom.  While I was chatting with  Dan and his dad, he casually mentioned a ghost in the house.  He likes to tease and joke around a lot, so I didn't think anything of it...

It's been quite a while since I participated in the What I Ate Wednesday (# WIAW ) linkup, and I wanted to share what my Monday looked like this week!  I love reading "day in the life" posts from other bloggers, and I hope you enjoy another look into my day.  Monday was quite a busy day, so I hope you like the pictures and seeing what my life is like during the week. Check out the linkup to see what others are eating, or check out my previous WIAW posts here ! Day in the Life : October 26, 2015 6:30 - Wake up and attempt to get Selma awake.  She hates to wake up, so she always hides under the blankets when I turn on the lights.  Definitely not a morning dog, so I have to give her lots of hugs and cuddles before she'll go on her morning walk.  It was a chilly morning, but I got to see Venus/Mars/Jupiter in the sky.  Really cool! 6:45 - Feed Selma, get a quick shower and do other morning getting-ready things.  Thank goodness I packed lunch l...

Today for Tuesdays on the Run I'm going to be recapping the race that I did this weekend- the Pittsburgh 10 Miler!  This has quickly become one of my favorite races of the year, and I've run it every year since it started in 2013.  The course follows most of the Pittsburgh Marathon- but in reverse.  It's a pretty flat course (at least by Pittsburgh standards) and crosses four bridges. Let's take a look at how the race went for me, broken into two parts.  I always find it easier to divide longer races into smaller chunks to focus on, so I thought of this race as two five-mile runs.  Here we go! First Half: The race starts in Station Square, and runs down Carson Street to the West End. I started out with the 9:00 pace group, and wanted to see how I felt for the first 5 miles, then decide if I wanted to stick with them or go ahead at that point.  We encountered our first hill in the West End right after mile 1, which is short and steep, then crossed t...

Hello and welcome to a new week!  I hope you all had a great weekend- mine was relaxing, productive and lots of fun.  Typically when I have a race, I take it easy the rest of the weekend.  I did that once again since I was running the Pittsburgh 10 Miler, so hopefully this Monday recap isn't too boring.  Let's take a look at some highlights! I stopped by Ulta to pick up some products and use my 20% off coupon!  Here's what I got along with some thoughts on the products so far: Stila Got Inked Cushion Eye Liner  in Copper I've never used an eyeliner like this before.  There is a cushion that is soaked in ink, so you press a brush into the cushion and apply.  The color is really gorgeous but I'm still getting used to the application.  I love how the color is very subtle if applied thinly, but can also be applied thicker for a more dramatic look. L'Oreal Infallible Makeup Extender Setting Spray This is a long-time favorite of min...

Hi everyone and TGIF!  Unfortunately, I'm a bit under the weather today, so all I want to do is stay in bed and finish watching season 1 of The Good Wife. I hope you don't mind a quick post today!  I hope you all have a great weekend! Fashion It's now officially "sweater weather" and I'm so excited to break them out!  Here are my favorite looks from the week:   Target sweater x Forever 21 jeans x Target flats x Madewell belt   JCrew Factory sweater x American Eagle jeans x Limited scarf Gap Outlet sweater x Treasure and Bond jeans x Reebok sneakers Shows Scandal The only good thing about being sick this week was being able to catch up on Scandal.  I haven't been following along this season, so I caught up and have been a little underwhelmed.  It feels like the same story line is playing over and over again so far- Olivia and Fitz are together, now they're not, now they are...when will it stop!?  Does anyone else ...

Happy Thursday! Today I'll be joining in a linkup with one of my new favorite blogs- Elle Sees !  I've been loving Elle's blog and all of her amazing beauty reviews, so be sure to check her out.  The linkup is "Story Behind the Pic" - so I'll be sharing a few random pictures and giving you the story behind them.  To learn more about the linkup click here ! I've been to Prague twice so far.  My first time was right after I graduated from college, and I was there during my 22nd birthday.  I found this little spot right outside of the castle ( Prazsky Hrad ) and loved the view of the city!  When I went back in November a few years later with Dan, I had to find the same spot and get the same picture.  Who knows- maybe I'll be there years later and have a third picture to add!  Prague definitely tops my list of favorite cities in Europe. In case you don't know, Dan and I are attempting to visit every MLB stadium in the United States.  For ...

Hi everyone!  Happy Wednesday, and in case you're unaware, today is a very special day.  It's October 21, 2015!  I hope some of you know the significance of the day, and if not, hopefully this meme will jog your memory: Dan and I watched the original Back to the Future last night, and today we will of course be watching the second.  You can all thank him (or blame him) for this intro...if it weren't for him I never would have event watched the movie once! For today's post, I'm going to be talking about a book I recently finished called the Food Dare .  I mentioned this in my monthly goals, and want to give a quick review of the book as well as results! Before I start, I want to give some background.  I contacted Lindsey Banks , the author of The Food Dare and fellow Fitfluential Ambassador, to review her new book.  She offered me the opportunity to join her affiliate program, so if you're interested in buying the book or joining a Food Dare ...