Fan of the week!

I have some really great news to share with you all (who even reads this blog anymore) I AM OFFICIALLY KATHIE LEE AND HODA'S FAN OF THE WEEK! 

It all started back in February when I decided to apply to be fan of week. I have watched the show for almost 5 years. In fact, it was a book Hoda suggested that inspired me to write 365 thank you cards in 365 days, leading to the creation of this blog. Here is the letter I wrote to them: 

I am a huge Kathie Lee and Hoda fan. I started watching the 4th hour of the Today Show my first year in college. During this time my parents were going through a nasty divorce and  I was adjusting to being in college. Since then, I have watched the 4th hour of the Today Show everyday for the last four years. Kathie Lee and Hoda are the people that I eat lunch with, workout to and laugh with everyday. During my lunch break I can always be found in the break room catching up with them. They are my “friends in my head”. If I could go out to lunch with anybody, it would be these two ladies. It has always been a dream of mine to join them on their Wednesday lunch and Matinee date to the theater to see Hoda’s favorite show,  Beautiful, which is now my favorite show! Thanks to them I have fallen in love with theatre all over again!

My favorite part of the show is their chat segment, which catches me up on everything happening. I live for Kathie Lee’s Friday funnies and iHoda playlist (or better yet, Kathie Lee’s face expressions throughout the songs). I also love Joy Fit Club, recently having lost 20 lbs I am so inspired by the stories of the men and women who have lost large amounts of weight and have transformed their lives.

Hoda has also been a great inspiration to me. Two years ago, she shared the book “A Simple Act of Gratitude: How Learning to Say Thank You Changed My Life” by John Kralik which inspired me to write 365 thank you cards in 365 days, leading to the creation of my blog. She has inspired me to start running and promoting breast cancer awareness through running. I listen to her iHoda playlists songs and audiobooks on almost all of my runs. Sometimes I add Kathie Lee's music into my running playlist. To this date I have run eight half marathons and am currently training for the NYC marathon and continue to raise money for the American Cancer Society.

During a trip to NYC this past year, I was out on a run and ran into Hoda. She was so sweet  and was exactly how she is on TV. You never know what celebrities are going to be like in real life. Hoda was truly the person she is on TV, generous, caring and kind. However that day, I didn't just run into Hoda Kotb, I ran into someone who has truly changed my life. I even got another selfie with her when I ran my 8th half marathon in April!

My day isn't complete if I don't watch the 4th hour with Kathie Lee and Hoda. Thank you ladies for always being there with me, through the thick and the thin. Cheers!

I basically forgot about entering into this competition, and then a few weeks ago I got a phone call letting me know I was being considered for a finalist. I sent in a few more photos and crossed my fingers. This past Friday I got another phone call letting me know I was one of the finalists. If you follow me on Twitter you might had noticed I was tweeting about being anxious and nauseous about something happening on Monday. I told very few people about being a finalist… Didn't want to jinx it!

Today at 9:45am I Skyped in with the Today Show. WHAT A COOL EXPERIENCE! Crossing my fingers and toes, I waited there until 10:20am when the announced fan of the week. When they first announced the city I had forgotten I put down South Hadley back in February. I thought I hadn't won. Then I saw my photo, heard my name and saw myself on air AND FREAKED OUT! WHAT THE WHAT! You can watch it all HERE!

I can't believe this all happened. Immediately after I was done my phone was blowing up with people saying they saw me on TV. How cool is that? After running around the house screaming with excitement I had to run back to work. I was hoping to catch it on TV myself, since it airs at 11am here in Boston. However, due to breaking news it didn't end up playing :( When I got back to work, no one seemed too excited. I was sort of bummed. I was really excited about it and wanted to share it with the people I worked with, but some of them (not all) showed zero interest or care in the world. Thats ok… no raining on my parade! I got to watch it in the break room once it was put online. It was so bizarre seeing myself on a show I watch every single day. I was shocked by all the sweet messages I got from friends via Facebook, text messages and Twitter. I am so blessed to have the friends I have and I want to thank them all from the bottom of my heart. 

In addition to being crowned "Fan of the Week" if you answer a question right, which I did, you win a vacation to somewhere all expenses paid. I won a trip to Miami! Some people would say that this is the most exciting part, and it is a great bonus, but to be on a show and interact with two people I have spent every lunch time and workout with since I was a first year in college, was the best part. I am so grateful to Kathie Lee and Hoda; I have laughed and I have cried with them. They have made me smile in some of the darkest times and are people I would consider "friends in my head". People may think they are silly or goofy, but they let me smile and laugh when it doesn't always seem possible. 

Today is a day I will always remember. I look forward to stopping by the studio when I am in NYC for my marathon and getting away with Janelle to Miami for a fun girls vacation! I am so honored and grateful, and feel like I am floating on a cloud!

Here is a video of my reaction to today. It is set to Beautiful from Beautiful: The Carole King Musical  because if it wasn't for Hoda I would have never seen the show and fallen so in love with it and Carole King's music!

More Magazine / Fitness Magazine Women's Half-Marathon

Read about my adventures from the rest of the trip here!

Sunday… RACE DAY. I woke up at 6am and it was the first time ever the idea of not going to the race crossed my mind. As quickly as it came into my mind it disappeared. I got up, got dressed, grabbed a power bar and headed to Central Park. Walking out the door I knew it would be a warm day. I got to Central Park and waited for Ev. We met up and went into the park to check bags. I didn't know what to expect from this race. I knew Disney was for fun and slow (since the humidity is BLAHHH), NYC Half was a PR opportunity (but I didn't tell anyone going in since I didn't want to quinx it) but this race I had no idea how to run it. My head wasn't in it. In a way I was running it to be there with Ev as she ran her first half and as a bonus get another half under my belt. Anyways, we checked bags and searched for Hoda Kotb who was hosting the race.

Before we knew it we were lining up to start. Ev and and I decided to go at our own paces. I didn't want to slow her down. As we approached the starting line Hoda was cheering us on. I managed to scream my head off and get a selfie with her. Did I mention that I ADORE Hoda?!? What a great way to start the race. After crossing the starting line I tweeted the photo and started texting it to people, aka not focusing on what the hell I was doing and my head wasn't in the game. Finally I put my phone away and focused on what I was doing, you know running a half marathon.

The first few miles were ok, I was getting warm and knew it was going to be a hot race. Still Central Park was gorgeous with flowers blooming. The mile markers were confusing, some were on the ground and my Garmina started later, so the whole race I really had no idea what mile I was at. The first loop around Central Park I was focusing on/observing where hills were and how to tackle them the second time around. We even saw Deena pass us who ended up winning the race (she was on her second loop).

In the second half of the race I found myself texting and tweeting some more. It actually helped. Miles 6-9 went by quickly. Miles 9-13 on the other hand…. I was losing my energy quickly. I don't think I started out too fast, maybe it was doing those hills a second time around. There are pros and cons to doing two loops around Central Park. The pro, you know what to expect that second time around. The con, the hills on exhausted legs are PAINFUL!

Finally the end was near. I started seeing people with medals and capes. The spectators cheering us on the whole way were awesome. I was a little more than half way through mile 12, I got a text from Ev that she had finished. I hurried my bum up to meet her. Crossing the finish line was GREAT. I managed to jump, god only knows where that energy came from. Crossing the finish line is a bizarre feeling. You are so relieved to be done. Especially after the final miles where you are just EXHAUSTED and are ready to be done! At the same time as you cross the finish line I always find myself in shock of what I have just done and become energized.

While I was sipping on water at the finish line, someone tapped me on my back. A woman told me how I got her through the race. I asked her how so. She told me she tried to keep up with me the whole race (I'm pretty slow). She explained that the sign on my back kept her going and that me and Lisa inspired her. I told her the story behind me wearing the sign and who Lisa was. It was a moment that got me. This race wasn't easy, it wasn't a walk in the park…. But knowing that someone read my sign and thought of Lisa that day and was inspired by her made it worth it.

I found Evelyn and gave her a big hug. I am so proud of her. It feels like just yesterday she was telling me that she was ready to sign up for a half, after running her longest distance (to that date) 6 miles. We sat and talked about how it went. She made a comment that I always think about during races but always forget right after: how emotional races are. They really are. Watching people running together, alone, running for a cause, seeing people find family along the course and then watching people finish is extremely emotional.

Evelyn and I took a quick photo and walked through the park along the course cheering people on. We were planning on going to lunch, however I had to go to midtown and she needed to get back uptown. We went our separate ways. I continued to walk the rest of the course cheering people on. This was one of the highlights of my day. I gave people high fives and hugs, telling them how incredible they were. If I didn't have somewhere to go I would have run or walked some of them in. It's really emotional.

Exiting the park I walked to Times Square got tickets for a show to see with Miss E that afternoon. Then I went back to the house, showered and ate lunch. Miss E and I went to see Cinderella that afternoon. It was so much fun taking her to the theater, especially seeing such a magical show with her. I love this kid so much and spending time with her always makes me smile. After the show we were going to meet up with someone I know in the cast, but the stage door was flooded with Carly Rae fans.. EEK!

We headed downtown and went out to dinner. Once we got back I crashed. Literally fell asleep on the ground while watching Mad Men. I was exhausted

Official Results: 2:37.42 min (12:03min/mile average pace)

The 8 Friends

The other day while I was watching my daily dose of Hoda and Kathie Lee, a segment popped up that caught my eye. Usually, I just watch the first ten minute chat time between them while eating lunch, then move on with my day. However, when their next segment started playing, I quickly got engaged. It was entitled "8 Friends Every Woman Need", based off a recent article in Prevention Magazine  http://www.prevention.com/8friendseverywomanneeds/index.shtml. I quickly grabbed a piece of paper and jotted down the "8 Friends" and their characteristics (read the link for characteristics of the "8 Friends"). They are the following:
1. A Childhood Friend
2. A New Friend
3. A Workout Friend
4. A Spiritual Friend
5. A Younger Friend
6. Your Partner's Friends
7. Your Mom
8. Yourself

I got thinking. I have always thought of myself to have lots of friends. However, I have really close friends, and then other friends who I enjoy hanging out with. I tried to fill in the list of the 8 Friends Every Woman Need". To my surprise, I didn't have some of the "friends" they said you needed. For example, I don't have a "Spiritual Friend" or a "Younger Friend" (by their definition). Try it out and see where you get on the list.