Wifey’s 2010 Shining Moments

As a former publicist, I’m used to putting other people in the spotlight, not myself. I spent several years promoting other people’s work, talent and accomplishments and being very quiet about my own. As time goes on, I’m learning that it’s OK and quite frankly, necessary to celebrate yourself and to graciously share your triumphs with others.

Sometimes taking a peek back at what you’ve done can help propel you even further into greatness. It’s easy to remember what you didn’t check off the “To Do List,” but looking at what was accomplished just might surprise you.

With that said, here are my 2010 shining moments:

Disney’s Princess Half Marathon
I became a princess thanks to the wonderful folks at Disney and ran my second half marathon since 2005.

11 Year Wedding Anniversary
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE Husband. Anyone married knows each happy year is truly worth celebrating.

USTA State Championship
My 3.0 Women’s USTA tennis team won the Georgia State Championship and went on to play in the sectional tournament. Fun times.

Get Moving Race & Relax
My BlogRollin’ partner and I held our first Race & Relax event where we inspired 20 ladies to Get Moving by running in a 5K with us then treated them to brunch and the spa. We’re planning our 2011 schedule now.

Peachtree Road Race
After joining Get Fit Atlanta to train for my first marathon, I ran the Peachtree faster than ever before. It was a blast.

Spoke at Evo
I took my first trip to Utah to speak at EVO ‘10 The Evolution of Women in Social Media; and tackled one of my biggest fears (yes, I’m a punk) and rode the Ziprider at Park City. AWESOME.

Survived my First Ice Bath
Um, I took the plunge in September and woke up the whole damn neighborhood. Yikes!

Spoke at Blogalicious 2010
The Ritz. In South Beach. With 250 dynamic bloggers. Enough said.

Launched Run Wifey Run
I started this blog in October to chronicle my tales of Marriage, Motherhood and all the Mayhem. Oh, yeah and this little race I did called a marathon. Gasp!

More Freelance Writing
I’ve always enjoyed writing for magazines and other online publications. I’m pleased that I was able to add several more stories to my list of clips.

Ran my first Marathon/Tweeted for Washington Post
26.2, baby! Never in my wildest dreams would I have ever thought I’d be a marathoner … and tweet my race for the Washington Post. AMAZING!

Coca-Cola Live Positively Conference
I was invited to attend the first Live Positively Social Media Conference: Conversations with Coca-Cola in Atlanta. It was intimate and informative; definitely one of the best blogging events I attended in 2010.

Served as a Judge for Disney’s Dreamers Academy with Steve Harvey and Essence Magazine
The DDA holds a special place in my heart. To be asked by Disney to serve as one of 10 judges who chose the final 100 participants was truly an honor.

PR’d the Atlanta Half Marathon
This was the first half marathon I ran in 2005. It probably took me 4 hours (I never looked at my time.) This year I shaved 30+ minutes off of my Princess run in the spring. I pushed myself … and it felt GREAT.

Spoke at Lavish
FAB-U-LOUS. That’s how I describe my dear friend The Broke Socialite and her first and highly anticipated conference – Lavish. It was all it was cracked up to be and I had a ball speaking on a panel.

While these things make me smile every time I think back to them, my biggest challenge and accomplishment is striving to be the best wife and mom I can be. I truly believe creating time and goals for myself makes me a better person – a better woman, wife, mother, daughter, sister and friend.

Cheers to a WONDERFUL 2010; and an even BRIGHTER 2011!

Winks & Smiles,

Does RUNNING in Stores Count as Exercise?

I wonder how many calories running through the stores burns? How about squatting to get in and out of the car? Hopefully a lot because yesterday I found myself indulging in this …

And these …

And I washed it down with this …

Yes, it’s the holidays and I was out celebrating my sister’s birthday and squeezed in a little shopping.

My sister and me

Before we hit the stores we used our gift certificates we got from my Race & Relax event last summer – big fun! Then we went to Six Feet Under to partake in that wonderful feast you saw above. After that is when we really got serious and headed to Target.

Serious. Calories. Burned.

While I’m definitely on a mission to meet my birthday goal, I’m going to relax my food plan through the weekend and enjoy some of the treats I don’t normally eat any other time of the year. Instead of depriving myself I’m going to stick to good portion sizes and small meals – even if they’re made up of fried chicken and pound cake. GASP!

Oh, and I’ll be the crazy one lunging through the toy aisle at Target.

Winks & Smiles,

The ChatterBox's Top 5 Ways to @ChooseCherries

You may have already read on Twitter and in some of our Race and Relax posts about the benefits of cherries and tart cherry juice for recovery after exercising...

"Cherries contain anthocyanins 1 and 2 that researchers believe can have a significant impact on relieving muscle and joint soreness more quickly. And, cherries’ powerful bundle  of antioxidants and carbohydrates offer added nutrition active people need. Available year-round as dried and frozen cherries and cherry juice, it’s easy to make cherries part of your training regimen." - Cherry Marketing Institute.

It was great news to me being that this "super fruit" is my fruit of choice during the late spring and summer plus I'm always drinking cherry-blend juices (pomegranate-cherry, cran-cherry).  I love me some cherries!

Our wonderful Race and Relax sponsor, Cherry Marketing Institute, sent all racers bottles of tart cherry juice to try out during our training.  When I got mine out of the mailbox, I immediately put it in the freezer to give it a quick chill.  Then... I forgot about it.  About 30 minutes later, I remembered it and fished a dynamic slushie out of the fridge.  As I savored my accidental frosty treat, I began to think of all the outside-of-the-box ways to enjoy the benefits of this bottle of antioxidant joy! (because that's what I do)

ChatterBox's Top 5 Ways to Choose Cherries

5 - Cherry Slushie:  Well, duh!  Pop the bottle in the freezer for about 30-45 minutes and have a chilly treat after your outdoor exercise / activity.

4 - Cherry Smoothie:  I make breakfast smoothies from vanilla nutrition drinks (i.e. Boost or Ensure). Running them through the blender with a bit of crushed ice froths them up to milkshake consistency.  Skip the ice and throw in your frozen cherry juice!  Yum!

3 - Cherry Popsicles:  Go old school with popsicle sticks and cherry juice poured in ice cube trays.

2 - Cherry Ice Cubes:  Ditch the sticks and drop your frozen cherry cubes in a glass of orange, apple, pomegranate, or cranberry juice.  Add a splash of club soda or lemon-lime soda for a fizzy kick.  (okay, diet lemon-lime soda...sheesh!)

1 - COCKTAILS!:  And speaking of kick... you know I had to go there, right?  Add a shot of your favorite adult indulgence to any of the above combinations in #2.  Now that's what I call recovery!

As you can see, though kind of unconventional, you can incorporate the benefits of tart cherry juice in many ways.  How do you choose cherries?  Check out these recipe suggestions.

Race & Relax Beauty: Krystal Grant

With our first Get Moving! Race & Relax event just days away, we are continuing to highlight some of the lovely participants who will be running or walking and celebrating their accomplishments with us on June 5.

Our next Race & Relax beauty is Krystal Grant. Always a huge supporter of The BlogRollers, Krystal signed on to race with us early and we’re so excited that she did! You can find her at KrystalGrant.com after you read her introduction below.

“After three pregnancies and two C-Sections I’m ready to slim back down to my pre-pregnancy body; and the 5K run is what I need to get my jumpstart. I also have a big trip to Miami planned in October and I’m desperate to wear a bikini. So I figured I better get rid of my flab! I’m excited to see all my blogger buddies and happy to meet new friends. I don’t want to be the girl to pass out and get escorted away in an ambulance so I think I’ll take it slow and just try to make it to the finish line. You can check out my “Bikini Bound” video at: http://wp.me/PFvK4-3L You can also find me on twitter at: www.twitter.com/krystalgrant or join my fan page at: www.facebook.com/KrystalGrantEnterprises”

Thanks, Krystal! We’re so glad to have you and, most importantly, we’re glad that you are moving!

Race & Relax has several wonderful sponsors including The Cherry Marketing Institute, Walt Disney World Resort, The Wine Sisterhood and Pampered By Adrienne. You can learn more about Get Moving! Race & Relax here.

Race & Relax Beauty: Kristi Cole

With our first Get Moving! Race & Relax event less than two weeks away, we’ve started highlighting some of the lovely participants who will be running or walking and celebrating their accomplishments with us on June 5.

Our next Race & Relax beauty is Kristi Cole. While Kristi does not blog or Twitter, she is a fellow Facebooker, and even more importantly she's Wifey's aunt. We were so excited when we saw that she registered  for the race and we're tickled to introduce her to the Race & Relax crew.

"Hello Fellow “Race & Relax”-ers! I’m a wife, mother of five, a grandmother and I work full time. I enjoy playing tennis, bike riding, walking/jogging. I love the fellowship of family & friends, reading, traveling, music and eating! I’m always looking for a healthy goal to aspire to. I need motivation or I will usually give up when I get bored or don’t see any immediate results. I recently completed a 12 week “Biggest Loser” competition with some co-workers. I was so focused and determined! It was a great way to exercise more than I usually do and to eat right. When I heard the Blogrollers were sponsoring the Race & Relax event, I wanted in! I love their creativity, talent and ability to make things happen! I’ve also been interested in training for a long distance run and this 5k is the perfect introduction. I don’t have much time to blog or twitter; but, I will jump on Facebook when I get a minute or two! Looking forward to meeting you all and enjoying the day together!"'

Thanks, Kristi! We’re so glad to have you and, most importantly, we’re glad that you are moving!

Race & Relax has several wonderful sponsors including The Cherry Marketing Institute, Walt Disney World Resort, The Wine Sisterhood and Pampered By Adrienne. You can learn more about Get Moving! Race & Relax here.

Race & Relax Beauty: Shannon Pierce

With our first Get Moving! Race & Relax event less than two weeks away, we thought it would be wonderful to highlight some of the lovely participants who will be running or walking and celebrating their accomplishments with us on June 5.

So without further ado our first Race & Relax beauty is Shannon Pierce. Shannon, also know as Shay Shay, blogs at Losing Fat and Winning in Life and shared a few words with us about why she joined the Race & Relax crew.

"I am so excited about Race & Relax! I use to be a self-proclaimed "non-runner," but decided to challenge myself in 2009 to run the ING Half Marathon. While I'm not sure I'll ever do a half marathon again (brutal for Shay Shay, but I can check it off my fitness list-yeah!), I have developed a love for the shorter 5K races. I've challenged myself to do at least one 5K a month. I love 5Ks because I can usually find a few girlfriends to do them with me (not so with half-marathons!). When I heard about Race & Relax I just had to register! This is the perfect event for Shay Shay: 5K (right distance), Brunch (I LOVE Brunch!), Relaxation (who doesn't like to relax?), and hanging with friends and meeting new ones. SWEET!"

Thanks, Shannon! We’re so glad to have you and, most importantly, we’re glad that you are moving!

Race & Relax has several wonderful sponsors including The Cherry Marketing Institute, Walt Disney World Resort, The Wine Sisterhood and Pampered By Adrienne. You can learn more about Get Moving! Race & Relax here.

Welcome Wine Sisterhood: Race & Relax's Newest Sponsor

We are so pleased to welcome the Wine Sisterhood to the party! The Wine Sisterhood has signed on as the exclusive Swag Bag sponsor for Get Moving! Race & Relax. Thanks to them all the participants will enjoy a lovely bag that we are filling with fitness and relaxation goodies!

The Wine Sisterhood joins the Cherry Marketing Institute, Walt Disney World Resort and Pampered by Adrienne as sponsors for this event. We appreciate all of their support in making Race & Relax happen and are super excited for a fabulous event.

We are only one month out from the big day when we will run/walk the 5K. If you are interested in putting something in the Race & Relax Swag Bag, compliments of the Wine Sisterhood, there are still swag sponsorships available. For more information, email theblogrollers@gmail.com.

Congratulations to Our #RaceRelax Contest Winner: Fiona Bryan

Random.org has spoken!

Our Run With Wifey Contest winner is none other than the beautiful 

"Bantering Blonde" Fiona Bryan! 

If you follow Fiona and The BlogRollers, you know she was more than on a mission to win this prize and her relentless perserverance paid off! You may remember that Fiona entered to win our Fourth Wheel Contest last year to roll with us to BlogHer '09 in the Chevy. Talk about a comeback, right? She stacked the Random.org odds in her favor with an impressive 19 entries which included posting about this contest on 10 different social media sites! Come hell or high water, she was rollin' with The BlogRollers!

We are excited to have Fiona with us on our inaugural #RunWifeyRun event and glad that we will help her to continue to reach her fitness goals. Please stop by her Bantering Blonde blog and MomActive sites or give her a congratulatory shout-out on twitter.

A big thanks to all of you who entered the contest. We truly appreciate your enthusiasm about this event as well as your desire to GET MOVING! We want you to know that this is only the beginning of many fun programs we have planned and rest assured there will be more opportunities like this in the future :)

Get Moving! Race & Relax takes place on June 5, 2010 and is sponsored by the Cherry Marketing Institute, Walt Disney World Resort, the Wine Sisterhood and Pampered by Adrienne.

Run With Wifey! Enter To Win Your Spot On Our Race & Relax Team!

You know what they say... When you wish upon a star, your dreams come true!   Many of you wished you were in or near Atlanta so you can take part in our Run Wifey Run: Get Moving! Race & Relax event this June.  Well here's your chance!  We are pleased to announce our...

Run With Wifey Race & Relax Contest!

One lucky lady who wants to Get Moving will win the opportunity to join us for the Race & Relax weekend and take part in all of the fun festivities we have planned. 

What You Win:

• Race & Relax Event Registration (which includes the Virginia Highlands Summerfest 5K run/walk; post-race brunch sponsored by Walt Disney World Resort; a Get Moving! Race & Relax "Powered By Red" race-day T-Shirt, train to manage your pain Red Recovery Routine and bottle of tart cherry juice sponsored by the Cherry Marketing Institute; and other goodies)
• Round Trip Airfare
• Hotel accommodations for Friday (6/4) and Saturday (6/5) night
• Transportation to airport and Race & Relax event activities.

How To Enter:

Leave a comment on our contest post on The BlogRollers Blog. Yep, that's it. Of course if you would like to butter us up a bit or let us know how much this would mean to your life, we'd love to hear it but, really, it has no bearing on whether you'll win or not. The winner will be chosen by Random.org on Tuesday May 4th.


Official Rules:

• Contest entries will be accepted until 11:59pm EST on Monday May 3rd.
• Contest open to continental US residents only.
• If you are already registered for the event you are not eligible for the contest.
• Georgia residents are permitted to enter but will NOT receive airfare and will be responsible for all transportation. If you live more than 100 miles from the Atlanta city limits, you are eligible for hotel accommodations.
• Contest winner must confirm their acceptance by 11:59pm EST on Thursday, May 6.

GET MOVING & GOOD LUCK!

The BlogRollers Welcome Race & Relax’s Newest Sponsor: Walt Disney World Resort

We are so pleased to share that Walt Disney World Resort has signed on as The Rest & Relax sponsor for Get Moving! Race & Relax. Participants will be pampered like princesses as they enjoy a post-race celebratory brunch and receive a spa gift certificate courtesy of Walt Disney World Resort.

Get Moving! Race & Relax is bringing together 15 women who will get moving by walking or running in the Virginia Highlands Summerfest 5K Road Race on Saturday, June 5, 2010.

In addition to the brunch and spa gift certificate, the ladies will receive a training/work out schedule, the race registration and official t-shirt, Train to manage your pain with the Red Recovery Routine and a tart bottle of cherry juice courtesy of the Cherry Marketing Institute, A Get Moving! Race & Relax, "Powered By Red" race-day T-shirt sponsored by the Cherry Marketing Institute, a swag bag full of other goodies including spa products from Pampered By Adrienne, and the support of other fabulous women just like them.

Get Moving! Race & Relax is almost sold out! The Race & Relax beauties are already preparing for the race and supporting each other via blogging, Facebook, e-mail and Twitter. You can follow our tweets, we’re using the hashtag #RaceRelax. Or, better yet, join us! There are still a couple of coveted spots left. For more information, visit http://theblogrollersraceandrelax.eventbrite.com/.

Get Moving! Race & Relax: Our First RunWifeyRun Event

We are so pleased to announce the launch of our inaugural Get Moving! Race & Relax event in Atlanta. Fifteen women will join forces and get moving by walking or running in the Virginia Highlands Summerfest 5K Road Race on Saturday, June 5, 2010. Afterwards, the ladies will indulge in a post-race celebratory brunch and enjoy other special treats. Created to inspire women to take care of themselves, Get Moving! focuses on the importance of physical exercise and making time for you. It’s the first event in our RunWifeyRun initiative – a WifeSavers series designed to help wives be the best that they can be.

Starting today participants will support each other via social media by tweeting, facebooking or blogging about their journey leading up to, during and after the event. They will receive the official Virginia Highlands Summerfest 5K race registration and race swag bag; a post-race celebratory brunch, a spa gift certificate; suggested training program/schedule and resource list; train to manage your pain with the Red Recovery Routine and a tart bottle of cherry juice courtesy of the Cherry Marketing Institute; a Get Moving! Race & Relax, Powered By Red race-day T-shirt sponsored by the Cherry Marketing Institute; a Get Moving! swag bag filled with indulgent goodies; special surprises; and most importantly they will get moving and hopefully continue to take care of themselves and their bodies.

We’re excited that several of our bloggy buddies have already signed on as VIP Movers and will be joining us for this journey – The fabulous Broke Socialite, Krystal at KrystalGrant.com, and The Divine Miss Mommy. We’re also excited that the lovely Joan of All Trades (who is about to give birth any moment) and new mommy NikkiD13 are also signed on and ready to Get Moving! Fitness is much more fun when you’re surrounded by friends!

We’d like to extend a special thank you to the Cherry Marketing Institute for sponsoring part of this important event. Cherries have such a high level of disease-fighting antioxidants and are an excellent choice for pain relief and exercise recovery. They are sure to help us as we start exercising and Get Moving! We encourage you to learn more about cherries here and follow them on Twitter at @choosecherries.

So, what are you waiting for? It’s time to Get Moving! Registration is open, click here and join us today! Hint, hint – there’s a discount if you are a WifeSavers VIP. You can also follow our journey on Twitter; we’ll be using the hashtags #Race&Relax and #RunWifeyRun.

Winks & Smiles,