I'm Celebrating My Birthday!!!

I had a wonderful evening last night. I had the opportunity to attend the annual fashion show at Fleet Feet Sports here in Chicago. The store has a very inspiring history. In 1976, running was a male dominated sport, but 2 women, Sally Edwards, and Elizabeth Jansen, only 28 years old, both teachers, and best friends, decided to go against the odds and open a running store. They purchased a run down, old Victorian home in the poorest area of downtown Sacramento, CA and opened Fleet Feet Sports. This powerhouse combo began a lot of firsts in the area, the first marathon, the first fun run, and the first triathlon. It wasn't long until they opened a second location and people began to ask about opening their own Fleet Feet stores. Now it's a chain that spreads across the United States. Each store is locally owned and operated, and committed to enhancing the local running and walking communities. 

Saw lots of fun things last night. There was a jacket that was a combo jacket and vest. It was held together as a jacket with magnets, so just a matter of pulling the upper jacket portion away from the vest. There was a zippered back pocket for storing the upper portion of the jacket. Such a great idea for days when you begin the workout and it's cool and then you heat up and need to pair down. When the model pulled away the top of the jacket, she threw it to me, so I was able to take a closer look. Then she came back and had me push the piece into the back pocket. Fun! They also had a jacket that had a built-in piece that would go over the hand and act as a glove. I really loved that as I am always starting out with my sleeves pulled down over my hands until I begin to warm up.

The only negative part of the evening was that the store was so, so crowded after the show, rather claustrophobic actually. I'm planning to head back next week to take a closer look when things are not so chaotic. If you live in Chicago, you might want to check out the show. The cost is $20.00, but you come home with a great goodie bag, and a really nice store coupon. So between the bag and the coupon, the experience more than pays for itself. Hey!, and it's fun on top of it all :) 

It's that time of year...another day older, and thankfully, not deeper in debt!!! By all means, a good thing :)

My actual birthday is December 12th, so a few days away still. I always like to do a little something fun for my birthday, so this year I thought I would host a giveaway that you might enjoy. You may remember the sewing caddy I made HERE back in October. It has become my favorite sewing companion.

In case you missed it, I did a video on making 1 for yourself. 

   

The fun news is that I have 3 to give away. I will draw the first name on my actual birthday, Tuesday, December 12, 2017. The second on Wednesday the 13th, and the final on the 14th. 

If you would like the opportunity to win one of my little caddies, just leave a message on this post by Monday, December 11, 2017, 11:59 pm, CDT.

Good Luck!
 Rhonda

Monday Morning Inspiration/Thumb Holes

We have a wonderful store in Chicago called Fleet Feet Sports. Truly an American success story. The owner began with a dream and 1 small store in Chicago. Now he has stores all over the United States. Amazing!

About twice a year, Fleet Feet has an evening fashion show to showcase all the new styles that are coming in for the season. It's a lot of fun. The last show was held the first of December. A design detail that they mentioned quite often and which also stood out to me was thumb holes, in tops as well as jackets. 

I love thumb holes! When I ski, it's a must for me. The thumb hole holds my sleeve in place and gives added warmth to my hands. Same holds true for my morning walks. when I start my walk, I'm cold, but once I warm up, I then just roll the extra length back and it helps to cool my body. As much as I love thumb holes in my athletic wear, I love them in casual t-shirts too.  

I poked around on Pinterest and was surprised to find so many examples, so I thought I would share them with you as well. 

Below is an example they were especially excited about at Fleet Feet. Rather than the hole being in the cuff of the sleeve, it's just an added piece of fabric.

Here's an easy way to add a thumb hole to a sweatshirt cuff. 

Love the styling on this thumb hole extension.

Although there is an opening for the thumb, this one is designed to still keep the cold out if the thumb hole is not being used. 

This added strip is even easier to do than the first example.

This could be added to a purchased or previously made top or sweatshirt. The pop of color would also be fun. 

I thought this one was interesting. The thumb hole is actually hidden in the zippered cuff. What a great design detail!

Another pop of color and a fun detail. A"v" shaped inset was added along with another strip to allow for an opening.

From Lulumon, the cuff with a thumb hole is the perfect place to hide and hold keys, credit cards and identification.

This was an ad for Fossil watches. The added length for the thumb hole was attached with a zipper for easy viewing of the watch.

Another jacket with a thumb hole. Elastic around the hand helps to keep the cold out. There's also a hidden zippered pocket included.  

Hope you found that a little interesting :)

Hope you can find a little time to get out this week and enjoy nature. And if you do...stay warm!

Have a wonderful week!

Rhonda

Monday Morning Inspiration/Leisure Wear

Last week I shared that I made it through the lottery process for the Chicago Marathon. I'm very excited, nervous, anxious, and... confidant :) What I have ahead of me is the endurance aspect, but I know I can do it. 

I was thinking about my workout clothes, for the most part, not what I would want anyone to see me in, and yet, I'm out every morning going up and down the streets of Chicago in some very abominable clothing. So it's time for some new cute pieces.

I decided to take a look at the fairly new trend of Athleisure Wear on Pinterest and I came across the super cute outfit below. Now this isn't appropriate for running, but it is cute. As it turns out, it's from Tory Burch, and it's from her Tory Sport line. 

In the Tory Sport line you'll find;

1. Swimwear

2. Running clothes

3. Golf Wear

4. Tennis Wear

5. Atheleisure Wear

I was able to pull out a few videos. I always like to see the clothes on a person and how the clothes move on the body. The videos are only about 10 seconds long, so no need to grab a cup of coffee...or tea :) 

I also pulled out a few of the pieces that I especially like. None of this is earth shaking fashion, but it's really quite pretty. It also looks so comfortable and easy to wear.

From the Golf Line;

 Tennis; 

Running

I especially like the nylon parka. Not great for running, but a great piece for traveling.

If you would like to take a closer look at the entire collection, you can find it HERE. I think this is a great line, full of inspiration. Hope you enjoy it too.

Now, a little something from the Rhonda Files. I was supposed to participate in a rescue flight yesterday, but it was canceled due to the horrible rains that they've had in Texas. Since it was such a beautiful day, I decided to go up and just do a little currency work. It was also rather windy, so a great day to practice crosswind landings.

On my very last landing of the day, I landed and within moments of landing, one of my tires blew out. I immediately knew what it was, did my best to control an airplane that at the moment had a mind of its own. Pulled back the power, pumped the brakes and got it stopped before it went off the runway. 

In the picture below, you can see that the left tire is completely flat. The truck behind the airplane belongs to the fire department. Once I had the plane under control, I called the tower and told the controller that I was disabled. The fireman heard my call and immediately jumped in the truck. He parked behind me with his flashing lights as a precaution for possible landing aircraft.

I handled the incident so well. The guys who came to get the aircraft off the runway, well that's a different story. But, the plane is back in the hangar. It can be fixed, I survived, and you're here reading another Monday Morning Inspiration post! So all is good :)

Have a wonderful day and a great week!

Rhonda