Thank you Amy and Allen and good luck to you!
This is the beautiful sunset we saw that night!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Amy and Allen - Married in Antigua!
I was recently on vacation in Antigua for my 1 year wedding anniversary when I met Amy and Allen on the beach! It was my first night there and Matt and I were lounging in some chairs and enjoying the sunset when we noticed a newlywed couple taking some photos! I had planned on just watching the sunset and not shooting at all but decided at the last minute to run back to the room for my camera. I got back just in time to get the sun going down and that is when I started chatting with Amy and Allen. They are from Atlanta and got married the day prior but didn't get any sunset photos. They had a friend taking some cool photos for them with a P&S camera and I jumped in and took a few myself! The sun was already down but the sky was still boasting some great colors and I am pretty happy with the shots!
Saturday, June 27, 2009
Susan - Maternity
I met up with some friends recently at a BBQ and promised Susan I would snap some maternity pictures of her! I would have arranged a more formal shoot but she lives down in Delaware and we haven't been able to visit them since January! Anyway, we snuck away from the party for about 10-15 minutes and I took as many shots as I could! Susan is 7 months pregnant and expecting a baby girl in July and she looks amazing! She is so beautiful and her skin was radiating with a nice pregnant glow!
The photos we took have a bit of an urban feel to them but I like how they turned out. It had just rained and the lighting seemed to be right.
Good luck Susan and Adam and I cannot wait to meet little Abigail!
Friday, June 19, 2009
Week 1 - Marathon Training
(I took this picture at a track near my house in Weehawken, NJ)
I am happy to say I am off to a great start with both my marathon training and fundraising! I logged 20.5 miles this week! Woo-hoo! Easy! Piece of cake so far! Let me back track a bit and fill out in on my week so far!
Last Wednesday (6/10) I attended a meeting for Fred's Team at the Sloan-Kettering Lab Research building on the upper east side in NYC. I was excited to learn more about the organization and to meet some fellow runners! The event went really well and they had a few speakers plus a nice spread of cocktail-type food! The first speaker was from the Board of the Aubrey Fund, which raises money for Pediatric Cancer Research and was followed by speakers from our big sponsors, Coca-Cola and Powerade. I met two first-time marathoners, Tina and Lori, who are both very sweet and eager to run the race! We chit-chatted for awhile about training programs and have been emailing back and forth about other things such as what to eat, cross-training, etc! I am hoping to attend one of the Fred's Team organized runs in Central Park and meet up with my new running friends! Overall it was a great event and I felt myself tearing up during the speeches and during the slide show. The Director of the Fred's Team told us that they bring the hospital patients out on 1st Avenue during the run to slap high fives with all the runners! It just feels so good to do this and to raise money at the same time!
Then on Thursday I ran the JPMorgan Corporate Challenge 5K race in Central Park with Team Bank of America. I really did not enjoy the race but it was for a good cause, "Teaming up for a Greener Tomorrow", so I guess that is all the matters. I just felt there were so many people (they said 8,000 people were there but it felt like 20,000) and many people were walking as opposed to running so it was quite crowded. I don't even know what my final time was but I know it was slow as it took forever to weave around people.
Then I ran 6.5 miles on Saturday with my friend Andrea from the Hoboken Elysianette Running Society Team. This was my first long run in 3 weeks! I took off due to shin splints and it was definitely worth it because they feel better now! Andrea has run a few marathons before and I appointed her as my coach and running mentor! She has given me a lot of good tips so far! On Sunday I ran again and decided to run to our gym (4 miles) and meet Matt there for some weight lifting. I run to the gym at least once a week...its a good way to log miles! My only problem is I usually don't like to run two days in a row but my training schedule calls for it so I am following it to a tee! Wednesday I jogged the 6 mile loop in Central Park with Aunt Theresa and Thursday I did 4 miles with my friend Lia who I also met through the Hoboken Elysianette team! I want to say a BIG THANK YOU to all my running partners so far! You are all my saving grace!
I also started fundraising and sent out my first email yesterday and have already raised $270! Thank you to everyone who has donated so far! Only $2730 left to raise! Also I cannot believe the overwhelming amounts of people who have responded to my email with similar stories of losing someone to cancer or to knowing a survivor. I will keep everyone anonymous but I have heard "I lost my grandmother to pancreatic cancer," "My aunt in being treated at Sloan-Kettering for Leukemia and just received a bone marrow transplant," and "My uncle is being treated for Prostate Cancer at Sloan-Kettering." I also have a friend who had a rare form of skin cancer removed last year and she responded and also donated which was so sweet! Of course I will be thinking of her on race day. I just cannot believe how many people cancer affects. I can only hope and pray for a cure one day.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
Jenna runs the marathon
I have been officially accepted to run in the NYC Marathon as a charity runner!!! Woohoo! Some of you may not know this but I set a personal goal for myself to run a full marathon this year and was praying and hoping to get into the NYC Marathon. I didn’t want to be too picky because I know marathon entries are competitive but I really was hoping to do one of the bigger marathons with a lot of spectators. Last year I applied to the lottery for the NYC Marathon as well as 2 charities but was not accepted so this year I decided to try again.
On June 2nd I found out that I was not accepted through the lottery and I was pretty bummed out. The race has space for 40,000 runners but it isn't easy to get one of these spots! I still knew I had a chance to get a charity spot but it’s very competitive and I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I decided to go on with my normal business and not think about it. This past Saturday, Matt and I went up to Penn State College to volunteer at their Summer Special Olympic Games. After the day was through we reflected how awesome it was to help out the athletes and see the smiles on their faces as they received their medals. As we got into the car to drive back I checked by blackberry and low and behold I had an email saying I had been accepted as a charity runner for Fred’s Team! I really felt that God had rewarded me that day with three amazing opportunities: 1) to volunteer at the Special Olympics 2) to be a charity runner and 3) to fulfill my dream of running a full marathon! As a charity runner I will be raising money towards cancer research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital in NYC! I am beyond ecstatic to run this race and to raise money for such a good cause.
I will be running the race in memory of my Grandmother, Connie Tramondo, who I lost 11 years ago to Cholangiocarcinoma. Cholangiocarcinoma is the rarest form of liver cancer and affects less than 10% of people diagnosed with liver cancer. Later on, I will talk more about my grandmother and her treatment at Memorial Sloan-Kettering. She had a very positive experience there and I would like write a separate post about it.
Now back to my running story! I have always been an athlete but have never been a runner. I played soccer for my entire life and dabbled in volleyball, lacrosse and even track. When I ran track I was a sprinter but never really enjoyed our work-outs or training sessions. I just wanted to do the races and liked the whole social aspect of it. Even in soccer, I disliked the long training runs we had to do and despised playing mid-field due to all the running involved! However after high school and college I had to find a way to stay in shape and so I joined a gym and took up jogging. I lifted weights, did the elliptical and jogged a few times a week on the treadmill (2-3 miles maximum).
When I moved to Las Vegas in 2005, I was struck with the marathon bug. My friend and co-worker, Ron, was a marathoner and swayed me to think I could be too. I still wasn’t convinced I could run more than 3 miles but decided to give it a go. The real motivation kicked in when Ron showed me all his glorious medals he’d received for running marathons all over the country! I was awestruck by these medals and decided I wanted one too! (Mind you I still have this odd obsession for medals.) It was mid-July in Vegas when I started training and temperature was anywhere between 105-110 so it was very rough. I made it to 5 miles and was so proud but then I lost my first toe nail. (Actually I had lost toe nails before in soccer so this wasn’t a huge deal). The bigger problem was I picked up a second job and really couldn’t find the time to train anymore. I was bummed out but kept in the back of my head that I wanted to run a marathon one day.
Fast forward to 2008, I am back in the New York area and preparing for my wedding. I am doing my normal work out routine and rotating some running in here and there. Then I find out that my younger sister, Dana, started training for a half marathon! I was so proud of her and talked to her every week about her training and how far she was running. I felt the marathon bug creeping in again and decided to up my running and add on some miles. She competed in her marathon and did very well and I said to myself “I am doing one too!” I went online and found a half marathon going on in Boston the same time we were going to be visiting there in May, but I didn’t sign up for it right away. I kept plugging away, 4 miles, 5, miles, 7 miles, 10 miles and yes I made up my own schedule because I didn’t have much time to train. Once I made it to 10 miles I knew I could do it and signed up for the race. The very next weekend I landed in Boston and ran the race! I cannot begin to explain what it felt like but it was a very emotional experience and such an accomplishment. I ran through the city and along the river and felt euphoric the entire time! I even cried when I started and again at the finish, overall it was just an amazing experience. I couldn’t wait to run my next race!
Now here I am 1 year later and I have run in 7 races!!! 3 half marathons, a 10 mile race, a 15K, a 10K and a 5 mile race.
Do you think I got the running bug? I am addicted! It is very rewarding but it hasn’t been easy. It takes many many many hours to train. The most training I have done is about 20-25 miles a week. These are hours I could be spending with my husband or cooking or cleaning or doing stuff around the house. I am so thankful he is so understanding and supportive of my running. Whenever I am tired and am thinking about skipping a run, he pushes me to still go. He comes to all my races and is always there to meet me at the finish line with a big hug and kiss. He is truly heaven sent.
Then there are the injuries…the nagging pain in my lower back which is always there, the pulled hamstring, the injured achilles tendon, shin splints, blisters, more lost toe nails and the list goes on but I still push through and continue to run. When you run, you have to expect you are going to get injured and you just work through it because you cannot wait until that next race! I am currently resting my shins for the last 3 weeks but am ready to get geared up again!
I am off to start my new adventure to train for a full marathon – 26.2 miles! I am very excited and will keep you posted on my training progress!
May 2008
Boston's Run to Remember - Half Marathon 2:12:28
September 2008
Hampton's Half Marathon: 2:06:30
Charity Runner for Friend's of Karen - raised $750 for children who are terminally ill with cancer
May 2009
Long Island Half Marathon: 2:00:12
My sister Dana and I at the finish. Her time was 1:48 - she is FAST!
On June 2nd I found out that I was not accepted through the lottery and I was pretty bummed out. The race has space for 40,000 runners but it isn't easy to get one of these spots! I still knew I had a chance to get a charity spot but it’s very competitive and I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I decided to go on with my normal business and not think about it. This past Saturday, Matt and I went up to Penn State College to volunteer at their Summer Special Olympic Games. After the day was through we reflected how awesome it was to help out the athletes and see the smiles on their faces as they received their medals. As we got into the car to drive back I checked by blackberry and low and behold I had an email saying I had been accepted as a charity runner for Fred’s Team! I really felt that God had rewarded me that day with three amazing opportunities: 1) to volunteer at the Special Olympics 2) to be a charity runner and 3) to fulfill my dream of running a full marathon! As a charity runner I will be raising money towards cancer research at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Hospital in NYC! I am beyond ecstatic to run this race and to raise money for such a good cause.
I will be running the race in memory of my Grandmother, Connie Tramondo, who I lost 11 years ago to Cholangiocarcinoma. Cholangiocarcinoma is the rarest form of liver cancer and affects less than 10% of people diagnosed with liver cancer. Later on, I will talk more about my grandmother and her treatment at Memorial Sloan-Kettering. She had a very positive experience there and I would like write a separate post about it.
Now back to my running story! I have always been an athlete but have never been a runner. I played soccer for my entire life and dabbled in volleyball, lacrosse and even track. When I ran track I was a sprinter but never really enjoyed our work-outs or training sessions. I just wanted to do the races and liked the whole social aspect of it. Even in soccer, I disliked the long training runs we had to do and despised playing mid-field due to all the running involved! However after high school and college I had to find a way to stay in shape and so I joined a gym and took up jogging. I lifted weights, did the elliptical and jogged a few times a week on the treadmill (2-3 miles maximum).
When I moved to Las Vegas in 2005, I was struck with the marathon bug. My friend and co-worker, Ron, was a marathoner and swayed me to think I could be too. I still wasn’t convinced I could run more than 3 miles but decided to give it a go. The real motivation kicked in when Ron showed me all his glorious medals he’d received for running marathons all over the country! I was awestruck by these medals and decided I wanted one too! (Mind you I still have this odd obsession for medals.) It was mid-July in Vegas when I started training and temperature was anywhere between 105-110 so it was very rough. I made it to 5 miles and was so proud but then I lost my first toe nail. (Actually I had lost toe nails before in soccer so this wasn’t a huge deal). The bigger problem was I picked up a second job and really couldn’t find the time to train anymore. I was bummed out but kept in the back of my head that I wanted to run a marathon one day.
Fast forward to 2008, I am back in the New York area and preparing for my wedding. I am doing my normal work out routine and rotating some running in here and there. Then I find out that my younger sister, Dana, started training for a half marathon! I was so proud of her and talked to her every week about her training and how far she was running. I felt the marathon bug creeping in again and decided to up my running and add on some miles. She competed in her marathon and did very well and I said to myself “I am doing one too!” I went online and found a half marathon going on in Boston the same time we were going to be visiting there in May, but I didn’t sign up for it right away. I kept plugging away, 4 miles, 5, miles, 7 miles, 10 miles and yes I made up my own schedule because I didn’t have much time to train. Once I made it to 10 miles I knew I could do it and signed up for the race. The very next weekend I landed in Boston and ran the race! I cannot begin to explain what it felt like but it was a very emotional experience and such an accomplishment. I ran through the city and along the river and felt euphoric the entire time! I even cried when I started and again at the finish, overall it was just an amazing experience. I couldn’t wait to run my next race!
Now here I am 1 year later and I have run in 7 races!!! 3 half marathons, a 10 mile race, a 15K, a 10K and a 5 mile race.
Do you think I got the running bug? I am addicted! It is very rewarding but it hasn’t been easy. It takes many many many hours to train. The most training I have done is about 20-25 miles a week. These are hours I could be spending with my husband or cooking or cleaning or doing stuff around the house. I am so thankful he is so understanding and supportive of my running. Whenever I am tired and am thinking about skipping a run, he pushes me to still go. He comes to all my races and is always there to meet me at the finish line with a big hug and kiss. He is truly heaven sent.
Then there are the injuries…the nagging pain in my lower back which is always there, the pulled hamstring, the injured achilles tendon, shin splints, blisters, more lost toe nails and the list goes on but I still push through and continue to run. When you run, you have to expect you are going to get injured and you just work through it because you cannot wait until that next race! I am currently resting my shins for the last 3 weeks but am ready to get geared up again!
I am off to start my new adventure to train for a full marathon – 26.2 miles! I am very excited and will keep you posted on my training progress!
May 2008
Boston's Run to Remember - Half Marathon 2:12:28
September 2008
Hampton's Half Marathon: 2:06:30
Charity Runner for Friend's of Karen - raised $750 for children who are terminally ill with cancer
May 2009
Long Island Half Marathon: 2:00:12
My sister Dana and I at the finish. Her time was 1:48 - she is FAST!
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