Races Update

Of course I need to talk about my running!! :) So I ran the Firefly 2011 5K Race on 10/1/11 and I had a blast! It was at Piedmont Park, it was a 8pm race, night time and cold! I beat my time though, 35 min and I finished. The reflective gear was on, glow in the dark accessories were in full effect, it was much fun!

Following that race was the Run Around the Rock which took place on 11/5 and that was 10 miles. It was a run around Stone Mountain park, two times. Surprisingly I did not pass out and I finished this one in two HOURS. When I completed the 5 miles, I was like, "Okay, Nat, you're half way...". When I got to 7 miles, I'm like "3 more Nat and you're done.." When I got to 9 miles...you couldn't tell me nothin! LOL. I was like "YOU GOT THIS!!" I was sooo proud of myself and guess what, I need to start planning for my first half marathon in 2012! Yep, that 13.1 miles does not intimidate me at all, not anymore.

Lastly, let me wrap this up....my kids are driving me crazy in the background right now, lol.

I ran my second 10K on 12/17 and that was the Peachtree Corners Christmas 10K. The highlight of this race was that I set a PR by beating my time back in Sept by 10 minutes! I could not believe it, I was shocked. It was so cold out and I felt pretty tired. Little did I know, I was actually faster than I was months ago because I completed 6.2 miles in 1:09 minutes. Yay me!!! :)

The negative part of this race, the roads were NOT blocked off for cars and the cops were fussin' at us to get off the road and get on the sidewalk! What kind of mess is that? How rude? How about block this off and respect us runners?!?! Sheeesh, I digress. Anywho...

Major highlight of 2011???? Finding BLACK GIRLS RUN, ATL!!! I love absolutely love this group, they are THE BEST! Lata....

18 Months and Going Strong

Happy Holidays!! So...we're coming to an end with dear ole 2011 and I'm ready to start my 2012 on the right foot! My sisterlocks are now roughly 18 months old and I'm still in love with them. With my new lifestyle of running and sweating so hard more frequently, I find myself washing my hair every 7-10 days. I no longer 'band' my hair when washing, I leave it loose and towel dry. My ends STILL are not locked, but I'm not even too concerned with that anymore. My ends will lock in due time so I'll continue to patiently wait.

Overall, my 2011 was a great year and I'm looking forward to an even better 2012. Everyone in my family is healthy, my children are growing up and getting more beautiful everyday, I'm employed and able to pay my bills and most importantly, I have my health. Working on getting my finances right, getting my health right and most importantly, working on having a stronger and deeper relationship with God. I'm convinced, everything will only get better.

So long 2011...2012, I'm ready!

My First 10K!!!

On another note.....:-)

My running has been going extremely well. I ran the Atlanta's Finest 5K (Atlanta Police Foundation) on 8/6/11, beat my time from the HBCU race and even got my sister and cousin to join this one. This was their first race ever and they said they had a great time. I'm sure my sister really meant it because she now is even participating in races on her own:) She just did the Be the One 5K race on 9/24/11 that was held at Atlantic Station. Donations for this event help patients with leukemia and lymphoma. My sister is doing is great, she was able to shave off some time from her previous race last month!

Black Girls Run and I:)

My sister, Simone, and I. I love that girl.....

As for me, I suffered from my first FALL on 9/3/11!! My fall happened while I was participating in a group run with the fabolous Black Girls Run group, called myself getting in about 4 miles at the least to get ready for my upcoming race, and as soon as I took off with my run, my knees, my hands and then my CHIN met the concrete in that very order. Uneven pavement...smh. Now I know to keep my eyes on the pavement, pay attention, pick up my feet properly and try not to do that nonsense ever again. LOL. Needless to say, no running happened that day or the next...lol.

I ran my FIRST 10K Race on Labor Day!!!! YAY!!! I did the Atlanta Classic 10K (6.2 miles)Road Race in Cobb County, Mableton GA. My time was 77 min and I am happy with that, considering the fact that it was RAINING on race day, the course included THREE very steep hills to climb AND I FELL and bust my a** two days prior to the event. The race was difficult, but I finished and that is all that matters!! :)

15 Months!

Well, my sisterlocks are now 15 months old. I'm having a few problems with a couple of locs here and there. Some "bunching" has been happening, a couple locs around the perimeter are looking a little weak, but besides all that, they are doing fine. I am continuing to retighten them myself and also braid and tie with a scarf at night (for that "crinkly" look). I ended up trimming my hair last week because my hair was just uneven and the sides were a bit longer than the back.

I am also contemplating taking the retightening course that is offered in Atlanta twice a year, every June and December. We'll see...

Runner's High

Well...I completed the race yesterday and it was GREAT! My time was about 39 min so I'm satisfied with that considering this was only my 2nd race. We were so pumped and excited before the race. Afterwards, not only were we pumped, but we def experienced what they call a "runner's high". It was amazing and we felt sooo good. The "Black Girls RUN" running group are some fantastic ladies and the camaraderie we have as runners of all levels is a sure way to get ANYONE out there and moving. Such motivation and encouragement...a great team of ladies whom I'm excited to have met.

I was ready to get this party started! :)

Couple of views of the route.

Done!

Later on in the night, the ATL-Black Girls RUN group were able to get to know each other and not just run to 'Preserve the Sexy', but get all dolled up and 'Observe the Sexy'!

It was nice having a couple glasses of wine and just hanging out....without looking all sweaty and nasty..lol.

Black Girls RUN POWER!! :-)

SN: The photo with me in the middle, the young lady on my left...she's an RN at Grady Hospital and she looks JUST LIKE the actress Debbi Morgan. Check out the resemblance...and Debbie's CUTE natural hair:)

She said she hears that aaaaaaaaaaalll the time. It's those dimples! ;)

It looks to me that my blog has taken a funny twist...will it be about hair & my Sisterlocks progress or about my new found excitement about running?? How about a little bit of both? :)

One YEAR!

Wow, ONE YEAR already?? Can you believe it? So where should I start? I haven't posted since March so let me get caught up on what's new...

My locs are now ONE YEAR old and looking back at my pics from last year, I can definitely say I see a difference in my hair. The length of course and the texture has changed a bit. My hair is still not fully locked...(getting a little impatient) but still just taking it one day at a time. For some reason, my ends are still loose and because of that, I'll continue to use the starter SL shampoo. I'm hoping this shampoo will help my ends get with the program..lol. Normally, after at least a year, people move on to some other Green Tea or some sort of moisturizing shampoo. I'll stick with the "Getting Started" shampoo until my ends lock. I wash my hair about once a week and the only other products I've been using are the Natural Wonders products. My favorites are the Peppermint Mist and the Dry and Itchy Scalp. I am continuing to retighten my hair myself...a little "bunching" going on, but besides that, all is good.

As my hair continues to grow and change, will post more pics soon!

Besides my hair....I MUST mention something that I have discovered recently that I happen to REALLY enjoy and happens to be one of the highlights of my day:) RUNNING!! I participated in my 1st 5K race last month for the Mableton Day 5K in Mableton, GA.

I completed the race in....47 min!! Now, hey, don't judge me, that may have been long, but I was just happy to FINISH (and my friend and I were not the last:)

I have never been a fan of running, I have always been more of a walking on a treadmill or elliptical machine chick. However, I have been told that once I start running outdoors...I would get hooked. How true is that?? It's for real...I am having a fab time at it. Running is a great way to have some quality time with yourself, leave all the stress of LIFE behind you, listen to music while you run, or just have a one on one talk with God or just gather your thoughts on what you need to do for the day, the night, or even the week! Did I mention it's a great way to get in shape and live a much healthier lifestyle?:) The list is never ending... Btw, I'm soooooooooo loving these SL right now!

Oh! There was an article on the race as well...check me out in action!!! :-)

This Saturday, I'll be participating in my 2nd Race, the 4th Annual Atlanta HBCU Alumni Alliance Race. Did I attend an HBCU? Um..no. I graduated from the University of Wisconsin, but my amazing sister graduated from SPELMAN last month, soooooo I'll be representing the ladies of Spelman of course...afterall...I'm a "Spelman Sister" :)

My goal is to complete this race in 35 min! We shall see if I make that happen...

Actually, I have confidence..I WILL make that happen! Byyyeee!

9 Months

Last week Sunday was my 9 month Anniversary for my Sisterlocks. Wow...before I know it, it will be a year! My hair seems to be doing fine. Last month when I retightened my hair, I found some locks that were a little too small and getting weak. I ended up combining those few locks and they seem to be prospering pretty well. Now I can honestly say I'm starting to see some length in my hair. People are telling me that my hair is growing, but of course, with me looking at them everyday, it wasn't so apparent.

I retightened my hair this past Wednesday and my whole head was complete by Thursday night. To my surprise, I am definitely getting faster at this=)). Here is a pic of my hair after my Re-ti. I felt like a new "me", LOL.

5 Ways to Style Your Locs - BV Hair Talk

I know we all get tired of the same ole styles from time to time. I thought this link was helpful in coming up with some different ways to style our hair, whether you have Sisterlocks or Traditional locks. Locks are locks. ;-)

5 Ways to Style Your Locs - BV Hair Talk

8 Months and Counting....

I've reached my 8 month mark....wow...8 months already??? I have not been back to Wanda yet as I'm still making the brave attempt (yikes) at maintaining my hair on my own. Retightening your own hair can be very tricky because it is SOOOO easy to combine locks together by mistake. You definitely need patience and some strong arms, lol. There are a couple locks that I've decided to INTENTIONALLY combine because they were a little too thin and I worried they were going to fall off. Even with them combined, they're still pretty small and I'm quite happy with the size. Oh and that Nappyloc tool I bought...smh..the wrong size! :( I'm still using that sewing needle from Walmart! I guess I'll need to eventually order the Nappyloc tool that is the next size up. Here are a couple pics of me from last weekend.... My HaIr Is GrOwInG :-) And look at my profile pic over there-------> I look different!

Nappyloc Tool

I ordered my Nappyloc tool! With my locs getting a tad bit thicker...the yarn sewing needles aren't quite working anymore. I ordered the Micro 1/8 inch tool but I may end up ordering the Small 1/4 inch eventually. This should help me a great deal with my next retight! We shall see...

Happy Birthday to Me!

I recently celebrated a birthday this past Tues and being here in Atlanta...unfortunately, I spent my birthday being held hostage at home due to the 2011 Snow Storm that paid our city a visit. The city SHUT DOWN and we were covered with ice all over our interstates and side streets for several days. Nevertheless, it was a GREAT birthday and I'm very blessed to have lived another year.

Since I had so much time on my hands during this snow storm, I went ahead and retightened my hair:) YAY... It took me about 12 hours spread across Monday to Wednesday in between eating constantly, drinking wine all day and watching movies (no exaggeration:) Talk about a very relaxing snow storm..hahaha. Only in Atlanta...

~~Happy New Year!!~~

Happy New Year!!! Wow...I still cannot believe it's already 2011. I really enjoyed visiting the Underground Atlanta for the Peach Drop Festivities. Lucky for us, we were able to get outta there before any drama jumped off (smh)... Let's all make 2011 a much better year than 2010. I wish my family and everyone else out there much success, joy, blessings, accomplishments, happiness and absolutely all great things for 2011! All the best;-)