Friday Five: Fall Preview

I try to be an equal-opportunity season lover, but fall is my favorite. So I was excited that the theme for the Friday Five linkup hosted by Courtney at Eat Pray Run DC, Mar at Mar On The Run, and Cynthia at You Signed Up For What is Fall Preview. Here are the five things I'm looking forward to over the next few months.

Hiking with Django at Ohiopyle, PA

1. September! I'm excited about the whole month of September because a.) it's my birthday month, b.) my birthday coincides with the Labor Day weekend, making for my favorite holiday weekend, c.) my wedding anniversary is in September, d.) our main vacation is always in September as our anniversary present to ourselves.

2. Vacation! My husband and I spend our vacations very differently from most people we know. We are both more mountains/woods, cooler-weather people than beach/water, hot-weather people, and we like to be by ourselves instead of with crowds of people. So we usually spend our vacations hiking and exploring National Parks and other scenic areas of the country. And because we combine our vacation with our September wedding anniversary, school's back in session so that there are less crowds and everything is less expensive. This year we're going to Colorado, where we'll spend most of our time exploring Rocky Mountain National Park and a few days in Denver.

3. Buffalo Creek Half Marathon! As I said in a previous post, I have been looking forward to this half marathon since the day I finished the same race last year. That was when I decided to get more serious about running and work on speed and improving in general. My training is going great, and I'm in really great physical and mental shape. I cannot wait for the race on October 18!

4. Hiking! Fall is our favorite time for hiking. There are lots of wonderful state parks and scenic areas within an hour or two from us, so we usually spend fall weekends hiking. We go on trails to waterfalls, rocky outcroppings, and scenic overlooks, and everywhere the fall foliage is gorgeous. Plus, my dog will get to do the thing he loves to do most in the world--pee on leaves and kick them everywhere, ha ha! 

4. Cooler weather! My husband, dog, and I all do not like hot weather. Many summer weekends are too hot for us to do anything except go to the dog pool where my dog can cool down after running around. In the fall we get out a lot more in general, not just hiking. For example, it's often too hot in the evenings to take Django on a long walk, so I take him for a long walk in the morning when it's cooler. With cooler days, we'll be able to do a lot more walking in the evenings, which we all love to do. Plus, there's the obvious: Running! Running in cool weather is the absolute best. I've enjoyed the low-60s temps on my early morning runs this summer, but even then I get really hot. Running in 40-55 degree temps will be ideal! After my race, I'll also look for small local races to do since I won't be in a training program.

What are you excited about this fall?

I look forward to reading what everyone else wrote for their Friday Five! Check out the linkup!



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