Legally Blonde The Musical!

While I was home in Omaha for the weekend I saw Bridgett and her husband at Luke & Andrea's wedding in Iowa, and we decided that we finally had to go see Legally Blonde The Musical! We had been talking about seeing it 3 months ago and since the show is ending October 19th - which is so sad - we had to go soon! So, last Thursday Bridgett, Andrea and Courtney and I all went to the show and had dinner beforehand at a fun restaurant called Hell's Kitchen. It was so good! Then we went to one of the most entertaining, fun, girly and pink musicals I've seen. I loved it! The "Elle Woods" of the show, Bailey Hanks, was actually the winner of the MTV Show that picked the next Elle Woods for this show. And she was fabulous...so adorable, great singer/dancer/performer. I wish I could see it again and I really want the CD now. It was a very fun night for all of us girls and the first time Andrea and Courtney had seen a Broadway Show. Hopefully we'll be able to go see more! Snaps! :)

Lots of Races & Running!

Recently Philip and I have entered a lot of races and have been doing a lot running! Just this past Sunday we decided to take the train to White Plains, NY to do the Westchester County Half Marathon & 10K. I ran the half and Philip ran the 10K so it fit into our individual training schedules. It was a beautiful course with streams and lots of trees and we both ran our fastest times! Philip ran his 10K in under 50 minutes with a 7:32 pace and I ran my half in 1 hour, 42 min with a 7:52 pace. Philip was 4th Place in his age group and 27th overall. I ended up being 5th Place in my age group and 106th overall. Not bad. It was awesome and I'm hoping this means I'll be set for my 3:40 goal at the Philly Marathon. Here's a photo of Philip and I with our medals after the race.

A couple weekends ago we both did the Fred Lebow 5K in Van Cortlandt Park in the Bronx. It was actually a very difficult race because it was cross country through hills and trails. It was fun to do it together though. I pretty much trailed behind Philip the whole way and then in the end he let me beat him by a second! With my training program for the Women's Nike Marathon in San Francisco next weekend and the Philadelphia Marathon on Nov 23rd, I've also tried to add some races for my long runs. So on Sept 28th I did the 18 mile New York Road Runners Marathon Tune-Up which was held in Central Park starting at 7am. It was great - just like running a race with water stations and everything. It definitely is a much better way to run 18 miles on my own!

This coming Thursday I leave for San Francisco to meet up with 20 girls who are running the Women's Nike Marathon. I am really looking forward to seeing friends Amanda & Amy. It will be a vacation of wine country, Alkatrez, running and checking out beautiful San Fran! I've never been before, and I can't wait!

Luke & Andrea's Wedding in Iowa

While I was in town I was also able to go to Monroe, Iowa to see my sister and go to Luke & Andrea's wedding on Saturday. Luke is my sister Kim's brother-in-law. I was very excited to go to their wedding because Claire and the twins were all dressed up! Claire was the flower girl and Finn & Tad were in their tuxes. They looked so cute! Here's some photos of them...
It was also very fun because I saw my friend Bridgett and her husband, Josh, who also live in New York City. Josh and Luke have been friends forever. Here's a photo of the two couples.

At the wedding, Bridgett and I decided we were going to see Legally Blonde The Musical the next week.

It was a very busy trip back home - but it was so wonderful being able to see so many family and friends!

My first trip back home!

Over the weekend of Oct 3-5 I took my first trip back home to Omaha! It was so wonderful to come back and see everyone! I had a packed Friday of breakfast with my Dad and Donna, lunch with high school friends at Old Chicago, and a visit to Nebraska Children's Home Society to see my old work buddies. I was so excited to see my Ralston friend's as many of them are recently pregnant and I got to see Kris's baby Brock for the first time too! Here's a photo of all of us at Old Chicago (from left to right: Lisa, me & Brock, Kris, Shannon, Melanie and Kellie). Both Lisa and Melanie are pregnant - which is so crazy and very exciting!
One of the reasons I came into town was because I was asked to sing at Alison Cox's wedding, one of my early childhood friends that I grew up with through high school. The wedding was Friday night and it was absolutely gorgeous! I am so glad I was able to come and sing at her wedding. Here's a photo of us at the reception.

Afterward, I met up with some of my friends from the Omaha Jaycees and Shannon came out too! Here's a photo of us at 2 Fine Irishmen (front row: Me, Heather, Tonya; backrow: Shannon, Mark & Brad). It was so great to see everyone!

Oyster Festival at Uylsses

On Saturday, Sept. 27th Philip and I met up with his work friend Kenta and some of his friends and family at this Oyster Fest at the Uylsses in the Financial District. It was actually a lot like Oktoberfest and there was plenty of sampling of beers and lots of food, especially oysters - which I am not a fan of and won't eat. But anyways, it was a very fun atmosphere! - tons of people, great live music, good food, drinks and a fun time! Here are a couple of photos from the Oyster Fest. Kenta is the guy in the middle with the white shirt and arms up! Oh and yes, Philip still has his mustashe!

2 Job Offers - And I Accept!

This has been a VERY EXCITING week for me as I have accepted a job at the Hess Corporation!!! I am so excited. :) Earlier this week I was offered the Marketing Director position at Carnegie East House, a beautiful nonprofit senior residential living place - but I decided to turn down that offer because I have ACCEPTED the Corporate Governance Administrator position at Hess, which is a Fortune 70 leading independent global energy/oil company. I have been temping at Hess and have always loved it here, especially the people. In my new position I will be working with the Executive Team, their Legal Department and the Board of Directors. I will report to the Corporate Secretary of the General Council. I'm so excited to have this opportunity to be a part of such a strong and successful company. I am going to learn so much. I will officially start on Oct 21st which works out perfectly so I don't have to take time off for my San Francisco Marathon on Oct. 19th. And I'll be temping here in Hess' IT Department until then anyways, so it works out perfect! I can't tell you what a great feeling it is to have a job offer - and with the company I have wanted to work for since I first interviewed to temp here. I just signed all the paperwork this morning - so it's official!

Seeing Old Friends!

This past week I was able to see some familiar faces - which is always fun. Last week I double-booked myself and had dinner with my high school and college friend, Kiersten, who has been living in NYC for 5 years now. She's a buyer for Saks and always has the best stories! She recently traveled to China for two weeks to see the Olympics in Beijing, Hong Kong, Taiwan and some other cities...what an awesome trip! Anyways, Kiersten and I decided to meet for dinner after work on Wednesday night. We went to PJ Clarks which is apparently a hopping hangout for happy hour among the Midtown workers. It was packed! But we got a table right away and had a great time catching up. After dinner I had made plans to meet my college friend and 'lil sis in my sorority, Michelle, out for dessert at Pinkberry - which I had been wanted to try! Michelle was visiting New York for the first time with her mom and aunt and we had made plans for awhile to meet up while she was here. Pinkberry was perfect since neither of us had been there - and it was delicious. If you're not familiar with Pinkberry it's this cute frozen yogurt place with not a lot of varieties of yogurt but lots of fun toppings. And I guess lots of celebrities hang out there! Here's a photo of me and Michelle at Pinkberry.

And last Saturday I saw another old college friend, Courtney, who actually lives in Connecticut now, just a half-hour out of the city. Courtney was coming into Manhattan that day, so we decided to have brunch together. Philip came too. It was so great to catch up and hear how she is doing, etc. I'm trying to convince her to move into the city now too. After brunch we met up with Courtney and some of her work friends out at a sports bar - Brother Jimmy's. It was a great Saturday of brunch, shopping and hanging out at the sports bar! Courtney and I plan to hang out soon again! Here's a photo of me, Courtney's work friend, Courtney, and her friend Katie.