Grits in the City - Fitness. Family. Food.

Hope you enjoy all these as much as I do!

fall apple picking at hillview farms

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I always associate one thing with the fall — apples. And lots of them. This year we decided to give apple picking at Hillview Farms a try. Since having the kids, we try to go once a year and we usually switch up where we go to check out some new places along the way.

apple picking at hill view farms

I have passed by the farm some on a few of my longer runs and always been curious and a friend recommended it. From the road, it looks quite modest. I was pleasantly surprised how much more there is to the farm than I expected.

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race recap: 2022 jersey shore half marathon

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I did it! I made it to the end. As someone who in general hates rain, spending 2.5 hours+ continually in the rain is huge. That’s probably why going into the race, the most I’d run was 15 minutes in the rain. Woah. What a miss. That practice would have come in handy before the 2022 Jersey Shore Half Marathon. (Lesson learned.)

After I finished my last half marathon, I decided to sit out more than the usual recovery cycle. With my knee not feeling 100%, I wanted to take it slow — let it heal and allow plenty of time to fully do the training cycle all the way through. Almost a year later felt appropriate.

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8 tips for preparing for running in the rain on race day

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I’m gearing up to run my third half marathon but my first ever real race fully in the rain. An admitted rain avoider (I’ve rescheduled many an outdoor run for less), I find myself confronted with preparing to make the most of running in the rain during a big race.

I asked friends and followers on a few social media platforms for what has worked for them and this is what they told me.

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half marathon training: check in going into my third half

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Well, it’s less than a month until my half marathon. I can’t believe it is almost here! Figured I would share a quick update on how everything is going training for my third half marathon.

Half marathon training plan

I’ve kept to the same half marathon training plan as I’ve used for the other half marathons I have run. Not ready to possibly mess up a good thing! I’ve been using Hal Higdon’s Novice 1, which does a great job of helping me to scale up my runs and allows me some flexibility to still have time to go to classes at the aerial studio. I’ve also been taking some Peloton classes — specifically cycling, yoga, bike bootcamp and strength for runners.

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Running a race in costume: 6 tips to help you plan

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Halloween is approaching. The candy is stocked at all the stores while costumes as starting to sell out everywhere. Eeeek. No stress!

It’s common for themed races to pop up for the holidays, including Halloween. Last year, I ran my second half marathon (and first one that wasn’t virtual) on Halloween. I tried to find information going into my race about running in costume and couldn’t find the best details on it. I definitely have some learnings to share based on my experience running a race in costume so hopefully you can be better prepared for yours!

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5 things to keep in mind regarding roof repairs

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When buying a home, there are certain things you scrutinize closely — with the age and condition of the roof being one of the top ones on the list. And rightfully so. Depending on the size of your home, replacing it will cost somewhere in the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars and can impact your ability to occupy the home depending on the extent of repairs required. I know for us, this was a big concern we focused on during our homesearch since it was such a big ticket issue.

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Goat yoga with Healing with Crystal Flow and Air

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I’ve always been curious to try goat yoga. I love yoga. I love goats. Why wouldn’t I love yoga and goats? I’ve never come across goat yoga anywhere close enough to be possible — until last month!

When I saw it pop up as one of the workshops on the Air New Providence website, I was thrilled! The workshop was in partnership wit Samantha of Healing with Crystal Flow. Sam is also an Air instructor!

What to bring & wear

I was worried about what to wear since it was a pretty warm day. I was happy I went with a sleeveless shirt that was good for yoga but wasn’t cropped. If you want to have the goats on your back, I found it more comfortable to have on something that fully covered my back and that wasn’t too delicate that I’d be worried about it getting snagged.

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bobolink and hunterdon land trust’s farmers’ market

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I’ve been wanting to pay Bobolink Farm and Dairy a visit ever since we tried their cheddar as part of a cheese tasting with Vaughan Cheese at work. They weren’t doing tours for bit in the spring because there was so much rain but they’re back to doing them periodically and I finally found a weekend they offered one which worked for us, too.

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labor day sales: 2022 edition

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September is getting dangerously close (IMHO) to the holidays. If you are like me, the fall goes by in a blur — likely aided by the weekends that become filled with activities and college football games (Roll Tide!). These Labor Day sales are a perfect way to jump start knocking off some people from your holiday present list! I’ll continue to update this as I learn of more.

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5 reasons i send handwritten cards 

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I’m a writer. I love the feeling of pen to paper. Of putting my thoughts down, and looking back at them later. The same applies in communicating with my friends. I’m always chasing for address updates, trying to ensure I can send a note when the mood strikes or when certain moments throughout the year arise. I’ve made handwritten cards a part of my Mother’s Day routine — it has become an important part of processing my grief and lifting up others on the day to celebrate them.

Are you someone who doesn’t do this often? Letter writing seems to be dying out, but I am all about it as it has been so valuable for me over the years. Here are five reasons why I’ve made sending handwritten cards and notes such a priority.

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