Merry Christmas!!!

We wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas!!! 

We are celebrating our 5 year anniversary on a "babymoon" in Puerto Rico! Catch you on the East Coast next week!!! Till then, here's a preview of some of the fun we've been having....

Gift Guide For Pregnant Runners

My, how my gift ideas have changed! This whole growing a human thing changes what is truly useful to me. Here are some great purchases I've made recently:

For Two Fitness shirts from $50-$55 

These shirts are clever AND comfortable! I bought the long sleeve and tank top. They are made with super soft material and will stretch as needed.

Oiselle Sweatpants $79 

These sweatpants are so comfortable! They're lightweight yet warm. I love the tapered leg, no chance of me clumsily tripping over them! I recommend going up a size due to a slender fit.

Road ID from $19.99

This was my first purchase when I found out I was pregnant. I obviously didn't look pregnant, and wanted to take precautions in case something happened while running. It hasn't left my shoe since! (And actually revealed to a friend I was pregnant by accident!)

Nike Legendary Tights $95

These are great workout pants with my "expanding mid section". Although I've only gained a few pounds, I can definitely feel my stomach getting bigger. These beauties have a wide waist band, allowing me not to feel like I'm muffin topping just yet! 

H&M Maxi Skirt $17.95

These are awesome. Once thought to be a summer fashion, maxi skirts are fabulously transitioning into fall and winter! The stretchy waist makes it a perfect addition to a transitioning wardrobe. I grabbed a a few colors!

Pro Compression Socks $50

Although it hasn't happened yet, foot swelling seems to be a common pregnancy side effect. I am ready with my trusty socks that have gotten me through marathons! Check out their sock of the month for 50% off!

How about you? What would you add to this list? TELL ME ABOUT IT!

In case you missed it, I'm pregnant

How's THAT for a subject line!? It feels so weird to publicly talk about it. I'm not one for drawing attention (Though I run marathons with my name plastered on my shirt...), so it's been interesting to finally announce the big news! Here's how life has been over the past few months...

Weeks 0-4: Say WHAAAAAT? We found out right before we went to Connecticut to spectate the Hartford Marathon. We kept it to ourselves before I had the official visits etc.

There was a baby in there!

Weeks 5-8: Telling the family. We Skyped with our parents, but sent out this following picture to siblings because I have so many:

Poor Lamby posed tirelessly to get this exactly right!

I felt pretty good during this time, no real morning sickness to speak of.

 We went on our annual Bear Mountain hike!

I had my 29th birthday party, which was 1920's themed! Naturally drinks were sans the good stuff ;-)

Weeks 7-12: TIRED. I had exhaustion during weeks 4-6, but I attributed that to an audit happening at my school (earlier mornings, later nights). Weeks 7-12 took on a whole new meaning of TIRED. My bed time has been as early as 7:30pm, often with Mr. Miller waking me to "go to sleep" because I've dozed off. I've also experienced some pretty extreme headaches within the last few weeks. 

Exercise: HA! I've tried my best. I had signed up for a half marathon the day before I found out I was expecting, and was doing a decent job of training until week 7. To top it off, the conditions of the half marathon were ridiculous: 23 degrees but felt like 7 degrees, 4o MPH winds, and ocean water spraying up on the course. Yea. I made it 5 miles. I call that a victory.

This was a rare moment when my face was visible. Not the most flattering photo...

So there you have it. Around June 16, 2014, Baby Millz will be making an appearance!

How about you? What's new?! I've been out of the blogging game for a while...

BIG News!

I won't be running any miles alone for a while!!!

12 weeks down.

28 to go.

NYC Marathon 2013 Weekend

For the past two years, early November meant one thing: It was almost marathon time! This year, the experience was slightly different. This year, early November also meant marathon time...for everyone else. I wasn't sure what my emotions were going to be, and thankfully they were nothing but cheerful! 

The weekend kicked off with a fabulous event on Friday with, you guessed it: NIKE! We got to check out their new store on 3rd Ave between 66th and 67th street. They offer lots of great services, including run club, lockers, and gait analysis. The NYC Marathon items and displays were also a nice touch to kick off the weekend!

 Fabulous window display!

Cornelious Bolton III interviewing running legend Joan Benoit before a group run!

After checking out the store, we headed out on a "mystery" 2.62 mile run. We ran over the Queensboro Bridge and ended up in my backyard, Long Island City! We went to a cool rooftop spot that Mr. Miller and I had been to once and really wanted to return to. Nike went all out. Drinks, food, DJ...after a crazy stressful month at work, this was the perfect remedy. Thank you, Nike, for an amazing night!

 Even the smoke stacks are repping for Nike!

New rule: Only going out in sneakers.

Saturday was a great day. I went for an 8 mile run, a PDR post toe surgery in August. It has been a slow road, but I feel like I'm finally getting back to some decent distances. I ran to Central Park, and the feeling was incredible. Although the finish line was incredibly crowded, I loved seeing it again. It didn't give me the same feeling it did the first time, but the memories were pretty amazing.

 Hello, old friend. Hope to meet you again some year soon!

The foliage was breathtaking. It's like Central Park waits for marathon weekend to go from beautiful to stunning.

Sunday was a day of cheer! We met up with my running buddy, who lives right off the Pulaski Bridge in Long Island City. This proved to be a clutch spectating location! We watched the elites on tv, ran down when we knew they were close, then went back upstairs to warmth and to munch on a delicious brunch spread. We finally parked it outside and cheered our little hearts out. It worked out that anyone I was tracking would hit the half marathon point, and I would know to look for them within the next 5-8 minutes. I missed a few friends, but saw so many as well!

 Oh Meb, when I didn't think I could love you more, I do.

 LIC welcomes you

The bullhorn was clutch. It allowed me to cheer and not completely lose my voice!!! We called out names and charities and so many people were pumped. We spent almost 5 hours cheering there!

The good running vibes were contagious. For the first time since last year post-Philly marathon, I actually thought "I want to run this again." Thank you runners, for inspiring, persevering, and reminding New York how great we are when we come together to celebrate!!!

CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE FINISHERS! I've loved reading all your recaps, keep them coming!

How about you? Did you race this weekend? Cheer? Stalk on Twitter? TELL ME ABOUT IT!

A CHEERful Weekend

It's marathon Monday! Yes, indeed. It's the day after the weekend of marathons!  CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL WHO RAN THIS WEEKEND! I feel like it's too many to name, but AWESOME JOB EVERYONE! Twitter was alive and inspiring me like always...alas, no trigger finger on a 26.2 register button. I'm not THAT inspired ;-) 

I had the privilege of going to cheer for Ashley and Laura at the ING Hartford Marathon on Saturday. Mr. Miller joined me, and it was a fantastic day to spectate!!! It was a warm day, and runners certainly earned their medals. Read about Ashley's 4th marathon and Laura's 98th marathon!!!

 Can you imagine I was so distracted by cheering that I didn't see her coming in the blue hair?!

 This girl is FIERCE!!! Such a strong marathon in hot conditions.

My childhood friend Stephanie was all smiles to the finish!

Finish line photo: So proud of these ladies!

A weekend in Connecticut wouldn't be complete without some scenic views! On Sunday, Mr. Miller and I went hiking on Case Mountain. We brought Lambeau Puppy because the trail isn't challenging; some minor climbs but a clear path on a three mile loop. HE WAS A TROOPER! I have never seen this dog so happy. Off the leash, roaming, and staying with us the whole time. Unfortunately in the last mile, he fell into a bit of a mud puddle that SMELLED AWFUL. He got a bath when he got home, much to his chagrin. 

I know I know...same outfit! IT WAS CLEAN I PROMISE! ;-)

We experimented with running. He did okay but enjoys sniffing every leaf too much to keep going.

Then, of course, there was cheering for the Packers!!! We got my dad to put on some Packers apparel for the juju. (If you don't know what that is, watch Silver Linings Playbook. There is no meme for this. So sad.)

It worked! WE WON! Also, have you seen the Budweiser Quinoa commercials? Hilarious.

How about you? Did you race this weekend? Did you do something "Fall"? Are you a Giants fan in hiding? TELL ME ABOUT IT!

Marathon season!!!

Hello, strangers. I have been MIA. It has been a rough few weeks. Basically, everything in my job as a teacher has changed. Everything is new. Everything is stressful. Instead of moderate amounts of take home work, I have MOUNDS of take home work (In fact, I just remembered three things I have to do...). This change is a result of new curricula, a new teacher evaluation system, and the fact that we are getting reviewed in two weeks by our superintendent (The equivalent of an FBI search warrant on everything we do). So, I won't be blogging as much as I would like, nor reading the blogs that I so enjoy. But enough about that sad stuff, let's talk about more exciting things!

IT'S MARATHON SEASON! Despite my current dreary work outlook, I am SO excited to cheer for you runners who have worked SO hard toward your fall races!!! Seeing signs up for the NYC Marathon, seeing countdowns in the teens and twenties, have helped me jump back into running. More on that another time. Back to marathons. Get ready for some Mrs. Miller cheer sections!

CONGRATULATIONS TO MY SISTER JENNIFER! She ran her FIRST marathon, and it was a TRAIL marathon!!! Her time was incredible, 5:14, so close to my ROAD marathon times! I wasn't able to make it to cheer, but I was on pins and needles thinking about her all morning on Sunday! I am so proud of you Jenny girl! You are a rock star runner and always push me to be better (especially when you run backwards for me to catch up...) 

 Yea, it rained the whole time. Ain't nobody got time for that!

Smiling to the end! SHE DIDN'T FALL ONCE! Obviously we're opposites...

I'm also looking forward to cheering this weekend! Ashley is running the ING Hartford Marathon, and we talked AGES ago about my going to cheer for her! Since it's Columbus Day weekend, we're going to visit my parents, so it has worked out perfectly. 

We are wearing matching Sparkly Soul bands. Obviously a match made in runner heaven! Some other marathons coming up for Michelle and Jen!

How about you? What are you running?! I feel like I need to make a spreadsheet to keep track! Tell me about it so I can cheer loud and proud!!!