Medal Monday

It’s Medal Monday! I have a few this week, mostly because I haven’t posted in awhile!

Zooma has amazing challenges, they usually span a couple of months and incorporate running and cross training. I walk the miles, and it definitely keeps me motivated! The swag for this one included a beach ball, shades, and a reusable straw.

This was a team challenge, my teammate and I met through the Hydrow community and she was super accommodating. This took place in early June, during AIDS/LifeCycle. It was the only day I didn’t ride, actually. Each row had to be faster than the one before. She rode first, sent me a screen shot of her pace, and then I did the next distance down, etc. It took all morning, and we earned a tee, socks, and a sticker. Hydrow is huge on stickers! 

 This challenge was in honor of a member having surgery that would keep him from rowing. We all did 2000 meters in one day, actually it was one hour. One has to be at  rhythm of 18, and one at 26. It’s really hard to keep your row at one pace for 1000 meters, but I managed it on my first try. Whew! I’m still waiting on the sticker for this one, but they are rolling out now, so I should have it soon! 

Have you earned any fun swag lately? 

Book Lover’s Con Houston, day 4

 I guess I really don’t want it to end, because I didn’t blog yesterday about our final day at BLC 22. 

We finally got to sleep in a bit on Sunday morning, because the first event was Brunch and Bubbly. The first and only event. 

:::::insert crying face here::::

Sarah and I headed down a little early, but we were some of the few! Everyone was tired from the night before. We sat on the carpet and waited for the doors to open. We had a fun distraction, though. Author Lora Leigh had her sweet pup with her, Boo Boo. 

We also took one more pass at the swap table. Any books leftover were being donated to a woman’s shelter.

When the doors to the event were opened, we were in the first group to enter, so we were placed at a table with author Cathryn Marr. She had some surprises for us!

The buffet had a grits bar

Mimosas made to order 

Mystery shots

My breakfast! The wine glass on the left was from Cathryn, and the boot and sticker were from BLC22. 

Our swag…

Live entertainment, and this guy was on point! 

Parfaits…. So yummy!

After we finished our breakfast and they drew raffles for those not at an author table, it was time to say goodbye to our new friends! 

Time to head upstairs and pack up our final swag, and leave our bags with the concierge. We had a few hours to kill between checkout and our Uber pickup.

Earrings from the swag bag

There was even an Amazon  gift card!

Keychain from the swag bag!

Reading in the bar while we wait for my friend 

When I posted pics of the Hobbit Cafe on Facebook, my friend Monica, who I haven’t seen in years, commented that she lived close by! I didn’t realize she was living in Houston, so of course we made plans to hook up for some lunch! 

The food was so so good! After lunch, we hung out at their house for a bit, and then it was time to head back to the hotel to pick up our Uber. 

Such an amazing weekend, and I am eagerly awaiting an email to register for next year! 

Have you ever been to a Book Convention or Event?

Book Lover’s Con Houston, Day 3

 Day 3 of Book Lover’s Con started with Biscuits and Books. They had biscuits, gravy, jam, and butter, plus coffee and tea. They were so yummy, Sarah and I both opted for blueberry jam. Delicious! The event used a pic of our table for their Instagram story! The authors were supposed to table hop, but I think many of them got super comfy and spent most of their time at one table. 

Sarah and I brought our doubles with us so that we could trade them in at the Book Swap table. 

I turned in three, but only found one. I did go back later and found another.

I also met Liam the Gnome. He has his own Instagram, and he has a lot of adventures!

After breakfast, we went to Xs and Os, which was a cross between tic tac toe and BINGO. 

Each author would come to your table, and flip their wooden coin to determine if it was an X or an O. The first flip was for their book covers in row 1, then for their names, and then their photo. It was a lot of fun, and often frustrating when the flip didn’t go my way! I did manage to win a few prizes though, and so did Sarah.

One of our table mates gave me some of her swag as well, because she already had that book. So nice!

Afterwards, we went to the bar for lunch. We bumped into one of the authors, who gave us her raffle tickets! We filled them out during lunch and dropped them off before the BLC Book Signing. 

I managed to restrict myself to only four books. I had so many already, but I couldn’t resist buying some more! Plus, I met Nancy Naigle, who writes the books that a lot of Hallmark movies are based on! She was so nice, and she told us some fun stories about the filming of her movies and even about my fave Hallmark heart throb, Ryan Paevey. Swoon. 

They drew the winners at this event, but neither of us had any luck. We were actually relieved. Where would we put it? We did NOT bring big enough suitcases. 

The Book Lover’s Two Step was next. You went from table to table, meeting the authors and talking about their books. They gave you a raffle ticket and some swag, and then you chose which baskets to put your tickets into. I put the bulk of my tickets into Nancy Naigle’s basket….

I may have fangirled, and gotten a pic taken with her. I couldn’t resist! We were all dressed and ready for the VIP event for the BLC Barbecue, which Sarah and I both got to attend. We were given a swag bag before the event, and then we got VIP seats with Carolyn Brown and her family. They were all so nice, and Carolyn gave us even more swag!

The dinner was chicken or brisket sliders, plus grilled veggies. So yummy! 

After dinner was the Saints and Sinners Dance. We went in, got our pic at the photo booth, and then hung around for awhile, dancing a little as well. The costumes were amazing. We totally dropped the ball on this one, though. We attended in our BBQ outfits. 

Of course there was more swag! Our poor suitcases were  going to be crammed full! 

The music was on point! We had a great time, and said goodbye for now to our BLC friends! Only brunch in the morning and then it was time to go home. 

Stay tuned for Day 4……