Lululemon and a 6' Tall Lady

I work out at least three times each week, sometimes as many as six times a week.  I go through a lot of clothes and I am constantly doing laundry.  Being 6-feet tall makes finding the right workout clothes pretty difficult, especially in the winter when I need long items.  For me, the right fit means that they aren't too tight or too loose and actually cover the intended areas of my body.  I'm long and lean and not everyone designs clothes for my shape. A lot of brands will have long lengths, but then I swim in the clothes because they are so baggy.

Lululemon is my hero.

Let's outline some of the issues I have when shopping:

My Tall Girl Problem #1 - My legs are LONG
My inseam is 35" when I'm flat foot and if I'm wearing heels I need pants with at least a 36" inseam.  This is an issue when shopping for yoga pants or running pants.  Summer is great when I can just wear shorts.

My Tall Girl Problem #2 - My ribcage is small
Sports bras are also a challenge.  I need a small or extra small to fit my ribcage and bust, but a medium or large to fit correctly over my shoulders.  If I get a small the bra hits me mid-boob (I just typed that) and if I get a medium or large the bras are too loose to even work properly.

My Tall Girl Problem #3 - My torso is long
Similar to the sports bras, I can wear a small shirt, sometimes even an extra small.  Sounds nice, until I put the shirt on and it is a mid-drift when I lift my arms.

My Tall Girl Problem #4 - Long arms
Most long sleeve shirts aren't long enough for me.  Running outdoors in the winter requires long sleeves that stay put.

On a whim I ventured into a new Lululemon store just to check out what all the hype was about.  I'm much more of a TJ Maxx or Target shopper for exercise attire so there was some sticker shock when I checked out the Lulu prices.  But since I was there, why not try something on?  Of course, their clothes fit me perfectly.  The pants are long, the sleeves are long, their clothes have a slim fit and some items even come in a long size.  My poor bank account.

Solution to problem #1

The Speed Tight *full-on Luxtreme

The pants look short when you hold them up, but the store associate promised they run long so I gave them a shot.  The don't bunch at the ankle on me like they do in this picture, but they hit me in the same place - even with my crazy long legs.  And they're thick!  I've run a half marathon (at 25 degrees) in them and many training runs and can't get enough of them.  

Solution to problem #2 

Flow y bra iv

I own four Lulu sports bras, size 6, and they're perfect.  All four are different styles, one of them is the one pictured above.  It looks like they switch out their styles pretty often so I can't find my other styles online, but I haven't tried one on that hasn't felt good.  They are much more snug (on my A cups) than any other bra I've tried, and they are long enough to actually cover my chest properly.  I won't wear any other bra for a long run or a race.  

Solution to problem #3 & #4

Swiftly tech short sleeve

These shirts are so long!  And on top of that they have a slim fit, so they fit well in the arms, and all the way down the shirt.  Nothing is baggy or bunchy.  I wore this shirt with one of their skirts for my Disney Half Marathon and loved it.  You don't even feel it's there while you're running.  

I also have the shirt in long sleeve, and they are actually long enough.  I can use the thumb holes without the shirt becoming super uncomfortable.   Even without using the holes, the sleeves stay put.  They are snug the entire length of my arm so they don't bunch up and move around.  

Swiftly tech long sleeve *print

Now that the weather is heating up, I'm putting away my longer items and pulling back out my shorts.  I have an unreasonable amount of the Nike running shorts so I didn't think I needed any of the Lulu shorts until I tried on a pair a few weeks ago.  They fit completely different than the Nike shorts and I love the way they feel.  

Tracker short II 2-way stretch

They sit much lower than the Nikes and hold their form, but not in a stiff way.  I've only worn them once because of the temps, but I'll be wearing them this weekend in a 10k and I'm looking forward to it.  I'm not getting rid of any shorts that I own, but these are top of the pile in the shorts rotation.    

I can't say how happy I am that I found a store where I can buy clothes right off the rack.  I know the clothes are expensive and require some care when washing (delicate cycle, hang dry, no fabric softener) but they are quality pieces and they don't fall apart so once a quarter I can justify a new piece.  To all the tall ladies out there, check out Lululemon for your workout gear.  

*Lululemon did not sponsor this post.  The opinions above are mine alone and I was not compensated in any way for my endorsement.

Skyfall: Movie Review

I'm not a professional movie blogger and I certainly don't go to a lot of movies these days.   This review is my own and I'm sure a bunch of people will disagree with it but here it goes.  I was entertained, but not impressed.

I've never been a huge fan of James Bond movies, they always seem a little corny for me.  I know they're supposed to have a little bit of a *wink* factor, but the writing sometimes makes me roll my eyes or laugh out loud, even in serious scenes.  I thought this movie, while not high on the corny scale, was a bit too slow and at the same time too unrealistic for me.  I miss the Casino Royale James Bond, my favorite Bond film, ever.

The movie opens with a chase, as always.  It was entertaining, but at points it was too obvious that there was a green screen and that ruined the rest of the chase for me.  The end of the chase ended with another agent trying to shoot the bad guy that Bond was wrestling with atop a moving train.  (By this point half the train was missing and it was still going - what are the conductors doing!?)  She took a hard shot, missed and hit Bond.  Instead of taking a 2nd shot, without anyone in her way, she just looked at Bond falling into the water.  That's when I had to tell myself to suspend reality for a bit because it was about to get silly.

There were quite a few other times in the movie when the most unrealistic choice was made and it really bothered me.  I totally understand that Bond films aren't real, no movie is, but come on.  It was also hard for me to look at Ralph Fiennes and not think of Harry Potter.  But I'm sure I'm the only one who had that problem.

While some of the plot didn't sit well with me, the cinematography was outstanding, locations were gorgeous and Daniel Craig never disappoints in a tux.  That's where the entertaining part of the movie comes in.  I was okay sitting there for more than 2 hours because it was a beautiful film, even if I was upset with the plot and storyline.  Did anyone else think the holding cell looked a lot like the one in Avengers?  One of the friends I was with brought that up and I totally agree.  Let's be a little original, Bond.

Javier Bardem was awesome as this movie's villain.  His blonde hair and eyebrows were uber-creepy and his accent was like nothing he's done before.  He's so talented it hurts.

I also noticed that there wasn't much romance in this film and where there was a woman, her romantic connection to Bond was short lived.  It didn't feel like a James Bond movie without a super hot female lead.  Yes, there are women, hot women, in the movie, but none as significant as Vesper Lynd played by Eva Green in Casino Royale.  Maybe James is still getting over the loss...

Ultimately, I give the movie 2.5 out of 5 stars.  Will I see it again?   Nope.  Will I recommend it to friends, only if they are big James Bond fans and they're probably already going to see it.  I have a feeling this is one of those movies who will have a big opening weekend (and it did) but will quickly fall down the charts.  I don't think it will hold the top of the Box Office for long, especially with the big Thanksgiving films coming out soon.  Daniel Craig and the visual aspects of the film from falling down to 2 stars.

Our New Car: 2013 Honda CR-V

For a while Stephen and I were doing great without a car payment.  Both of our cars were paid off and we were putting "car payment" money into savings.  Life was good, especially while we were planning and paying for a wedding.  In the back of our mind we always knew that Stephen's car would break at some time, but we were hoping to make it to 2013.  The beloved Jetta had other ideas.  It started breaking down on Stephen's commute home at rush-hour.  Knowing that he was stranded on the side of the highway in Atlanta traffic was the final straw, for me, and we decided it was time to go car shopping.

Our 2013 Honda CR-V with AWD

Long story short, after visiting a few dealerships we drove into the Honda dealership to see what they had.  We had our heart set on a 2012 small SUV because all the 2013s were starting to come in and we thought we'd get a great deal.  We knew we wanted All Wheel Drive and that wasn't something we were going to compromise on.  When Honda didn't have any 2012s with AWD we looked at a 2013, just to see how they drove and how they looked.  After about 5 hours of back and forth negotiating on the price, our financing, trade in value for the Jetta and maintenance packages we finally came to a monthly payment that met our needs.  I think it's important to go into the dealership with what you're willing to put down in cash and what your limit is for monthly payments and make the dealership work towards that.  Don't budge!  While we couldn't get the cost of the vehicle down as low as we wanted, we were able to get great financing, below what they offered, a higher warranty package and a lot for our trade in.  All those helped bring our monthly cost to what works for us.

We're in love with this car.  One of the most important things to us was storage because when we have to travel with the dogs, we need to make sure we can get their crates in the back.  Yes, one day we'll have kids and dog crates will be replaced with all the baby necessities, but right now we're focused on our pups.

The car comes with an ECON button that helps you keep your MPG as low as possible and it lets you know when you're getting good gas mileage.  Because the car tracks and shows us our current Average MPG and the range left in our tank of gas, it's become a game to get the MPG to stay in one place or to go up.  I drive the CR-V to and from work during the week and I average around 20 MPG.  Not great, but I'm only driving 7 miles a day.  When we get the car on the highway it climbs up to 24 MPG and higher.  Cruise Control helps it stay high.

The green lights come on when you're getting good gas mileage.  I always try to keep the green lights on.

Dash screens

 It's a little blurry, but the picture above shows the two screens that are on the dash.  The top screen scrolls through 4 different options - blank, music details, the MPG that you see above and just the time.  I like to keep it on the screen you see because it tells me how I'm doing on gas and how much is left in my tank.  The bottom screen can be your phonebook and phone commands, your map with GPS or other info on your car.  When you put the car in reverse you get the backup camera with three different camera options!  Our driveway is very narrow and it definitely helps me back out every morning.

Center console storage

 The car has a ton of space, exactly what we needed from it.  Each front seat has it's own arm rest and the center console is crazy deep and spacious.  There is the standard power jack, the AUX jack and a USB connection as well.  We also have heated seats, which I didn't think I'd need, but I've used quite a few times already on the 40 degree mornings we've had lately.

We've had a few people ride with us in the backseat and all have said it's spacious

This is also the first car I've had with steering wheel controls for the radio and for hands free calling.  It's been SO nice to have my phone connect to the car with bluetooth.  I keep bluetooth turned on on my phone all the time and when I get in the car it automatically finds it (after I've set it up to recognize my phone, of course).  Now when I get a phone call I never have to dig for it in my purse while driving.  I've noticed that my phone also doesn't make noise when I get a text message while I'm driving so I'm never tempted to check a text or send one out.  Love it.  The car pulls my phone's contact list to the main screen so I can call anyone in my contacts right from the car.  While the car is moving the option to scroll or type disappears, safety first.

The trunk area has small storage spaces on the sides and the spare tire is under the floor of the back so it's not in our way.  

When you want to lay the backseats down, you pull a little tab and they fold down automatically.  No pulling and lifting required.  This will be helpful on Home Depot trips or when we travel with the dogs.  I don't want their sharp claws on the nice, pretty, new-car smelling leather.

View from the back of the car to the front.  I keep the trunk cover pulled forward to hide what we have or don't have in the trunk space.

 With the package of the car, a few other awesome treats were included for us - a sunroof  (I've never had a sunroof!) and defrosting side view mirrors.  When you turn on the rear defrost button it automatically defrosts the side mirrors, too.  Nice touch, Honda.

While we were car shopping, Stephen noted that at every dealership we went to all of the cars or SUVs were black, grey, silver or white.  There wasn't variety!  We were going to settle for a black car, because I'd die with a silver or white car, but when we saw this beauty right off the truck, we knew it had to be ours.

I'm 6 feet tall, so you can see that the CR-V, while spacious, isn't a huge vehicle.  We didn't want a gas guzzling SUV with tons of space that two people could never use.

When we bought the car, exactly one month ago (I was waiting to blog about it until I was familiar with it for an honest review), there weren't many 2013s in Atlanta.  We even had to have State Farm add it to their system.  But if everyone who drives one loves it as much as we do, I have a feeling in the next few months we'll start to see a lot more.  I've been driving the CR-V for a month now and I haven't found anything that doesn't fit right, work smoothly or feels awkward.  This is my first fully-loaded car and I'm so glad we have it.  We worked hard with the salesman and his boss to make it work and we couldn't be happier.

iPhone Upgrade!

It's not what you think, I didn't upgrade to the brand new iPhone 5 - I went from my 3GS to the 4S.  I was up for an upgrade for about 6 months, but I knew that Apple would be introducing a new phone soon so I waited.

When the iPhone 5 was revealed I wasn't overly impressed.  I didn't want to have change out all of the chargers in my house and car and adding an extra row of apps in the screen wasn't super necessary.  The larger size of the phone didn't impress me either.  I want smaller phones, not larger.  My decision was easy when I saw that a new, 16G iPhone 4S was now only $99.  

Once the phone was ordered I wanted to design my own case.  I found a website, Coveroo, where you can pick you own case, your own design or upload your own design and even personalize the case.  I chose the above case and added my monogram.  When it arrived at home I fell madly in love.  

But our love story wouldn't last forever.  That first night I took a picture of Goose being cute, as usual, and I noticed that something was wrong with the camera.  Our house looked like it was filled with fog.  I didn't know if it was the camera or the new case so I took off the case and tried the picture again - perfect.  I had to admit, the case was causing my flash to reflect off the case and wash out the picture.  I've contacted Coveroo and they will be refunding me the money as soon as I send back the case.  I'm on a search for a new case now.  Sadly, I don't think I'll find one that I love as much as my polka dot Florida Gator case.