Interior Plans

We just submitted our plans to the city on Friday for approval!  We should be hearing back on whether or not we need any revisions by the end of the week. If all goes well, we can then start working on our house!  We're so excited to begin! 

I would have loved to show you the original floor plans for the house, but we don't have a copy of those available right now.  So here are the new floor plans for the interior of our home.  

Top Floor

The image isn't the best quality, but you can see the overall layout of the upstairs.  Honestly, there's nothing in the home that is remaining intact, except for the general location of the kitchen, nursery and master bedroom. Some of the biggest changes that we'll be making to the top floor is the location of the front door and the stairs, as well as the second bedroom becoming our master closet and bathroom.  We are most looking forward to having an additional window in the master that looks out over the Salt Lake valley and the awesome windows on the back side of the house that overlook our creek and our mountain views.

Bottom Floor

Just like the top floor, the bottom floor is getting completely restructured.  We are no longer having the large fourth bedroom downstairs, but are now using it to be the new location of the stairs, and our exercise room.  The biggest challenge we faced with the downstairs is the location of our HVAC system. It's not directly in the middle of the home, but it might as well be.  So now we've had to work around it.  We've laid out a decent size family room (given the HVAC), two bedrooms with their own ensuite bathrooms and walk in closets. We have a designated gym area, laundry room, and guest bath.  We are looking forward to the outdoor living and dining room we'll have just off of the family room.

Our architect asked us to give him pictures of the general look we'd like for our home, and these are the pictures we sent him.  We found out we can raise our ceiling in our kitchen and living room and we are  to look like these awesome homes with the exposed trusses and beams.  We want the overall feeling of the home to be light and bright, so these pictures capture that feeling for our general home design.

We can't wait to get this project started!  Hopefully by next week we'll have a start date.  Until then...

House Plans

 After our architect went through our house and drew up the original plans for the house he asked us what we wanted our home to look like both exterior and interior.  We really wanted to embrace the style of the home, with it's shed roof and large windows, so here are the pictures that we sent him.

And here is what he came up with.  We are beyond excited!  It's difficult to tell from the images (since they are in black and white), but we are still keeping most of the exterior of the house in wood (as seen by the lines that run across the home), and the rest of the home will have a smooth stucco finish, with a somewhat "concrete" look.  We are so happy with the renderings, and hope that it looks even better when it's all finished.

The top drawing is of the backside of the house, with it's upper deck and lower outdoor living area.  The bottom drawing is of the front of the home, you can see that the entrance of the home as been moved to the left of the front windows, as opposed to it originally being on the right of the windows.

Next Monday I'll show you our inspiration for the interior space and the new floor plans.  Have a great week!

A Reason to Blog

We are resurrecting our blog again!  We have had three major things happen to our little Crandallion family in the last month.

1. We welcomed our sweet baby Jane on April 23rd, and now are a family of three
2. We moved to Utah when Jane was only 8 days old (to continue working for the family business)
3. We purchased a home, which is a total fixer upper, and is thus the purpose for our blog revival

Our home is located along the bench in Cottonwood Heights, and we are completely thrilled to start this new project.  We started our project back in December when we purchased the home, and have been working with an architect since.  We currently haven't begun any physical work to the home, but we hope to begin the demo phase next month.

Here are some photos of our home in its current condition. You definitely need to keep an open mind while looking at the pictures, and know that nothing inside or out of the house is going to stay.

Wooden fencing will be put up around this area to give privacy from the street view, also creating a beautiful courtyard patio

Right behind this deck (a bit difficult to see in the picture) is the natural creek that flows through our backyard, it runs three months out of the year and is our most favorite feature of the house

Top floor, will be completely removed to open up the house

Top floor, living room, will become a casual dining room and small sitting area

Top floor, deck off the living room and master bedroom, will be completely replaced

Top floor, the area in front of the kitchen will become the main living area

Top floor, kitchen, will remain the kitchen area and all of the walls surrounding it will be removed to open the space

Top floor, formal living room, will become the entrance to the house and the stairs will be moved here

Top Floor, Bedroom one, soon to be nursery

Top floor, bedroom two, soon to become a master bathroom and walk in closet

Top floor, master bedroom, remaining the master, adding a picture window on the right wall to get a view of the valley, replacing doors

Top floor, master bathroom, remain part of the master bath

Top floor, main bathroom, will be downsized and part will become the pantry

Bottom floor, living area, will stay as part of the living area, but also a laundry room and bathroom 

Bottom floor, fourth bedroom, will become a work out area, the stairs will be moved here as well

Bottom Floor, fifth bedroom, will remain a bedroom with an attached bathroom, but part will used as the main living area (not pictured is a bathroom on the left, which will become part of the main living area)

Bottom floor, laundry room, will become part of the main living area, with a new set of sliding glass doors that lead to the outdoor living room

 Bottom floor, cold storage, will become a bedroom with an attached bathroom and sliding glass doors leading to the patio.

This is obviously a huge renovation inside and out.  We hope to be completed by the end of the year, but hopefully sooner.  We are so excited to start this project and we are looking forward to sharing our progress with you.   

Tips and Tricks for a Training Run

Dinner the night before a long run:

Usually I eat rice (typically brown), lots of veggies, and fish or chicken.  Sometimes this is eaten as separate portions to a meal, or all together like in sushi or even sometimes Chipotle.  This is a sure pre-dinner meal that will give me good protein and carbs, and will keep my tummy happy through out the run the next day.  And LOTS of water throughout the day.  


Pre-long run breakfast:
A slice of sprouted wheat bread with natural peanut butter, and/or a banana

Post workout meal:
Immediately after a long run I want something with fruit, I think fruit tastes the best after a hard workout.  After I've had my fruit fix, which usually is an orange or a smoothie from jamba, I then have a big bowl of oatmeal with berries, chia seeds, agave, and sometimes granola for a real treat.  

My list of favorites:
1. and 3.  I think these shots are some of the best tasting energy gels I've tried thus far.  I've tried several flavors of Gu, which are just fine, but the flavors that Clif makes taste good.  My favorite flavors are the "Razz" and "Chocolate."  I know what you're thinking about the chocolate, it has to taste terrible, which is what I used to think, but my friend convinced me to try it and it tastes like pudding!  Craziness!

2. Stinger Waffle: This is one of my favorite carb-rich foods for a long run, After about an hour to an hour and a half in, I eat one of these, and they're sooooo good.  A yummy waffle cookie, and it's made with everything you need to keep up your energy.

4. Nike Running Tanks: I love how light and airy these tanks are, without being clingy.  It's still really hot in California, and when my runs are spanning from 6-10:00AM I need something light and cool.

5. Neutrogena sunscreen: One of the best sunscreens I've used while sweating my guts out. Even though the sweat is pouring off me, the sunscreen doesn't run or get into my eyes, it works really well.

6. Vitalyte electrolyte drink: I've had problems in the past with other electrolyte drinks that use sorbitol instead of sugar, and they've killed my stomach.  This drink tastes really good, isn't took expensive and it keeps me hydrated and my tummy happy.

7. Nathan water belt: Eh, this is just an ok water belt.  I don't love it, but it gets the job done.  If I were to get a new belt, I would go with something that is insulated and keeps my drinks cool through out my run.  My frozen water bottles with this belt melt in an hour, not great.

8. Garmin Forerunner 305: This is the satellite GPS I use to track my runs.  It has a ton of features including a heart monitor, GPS tracking of the run, and many more, but I unfortunately don't use most of them.  On my screen I keep track of: my pace, my overall time, my distance, and the clock.  All I need to keep track of the important stuff.

9. Lululemon dart and dash shorts: My new favorite shorts!  I wear these on my long runs, and they are soooo wonderful.  They stay in place, which is the best feature, unlike many other compression/spandex shorts that end up riding up.  These have 5 pockets to store anything from a phone, keys, Gu's money.  I love these.  I so recommend them!

10. New Balance Minimus Trail Shoes: I've been wearing these since February and I love them.  It takes a good long while to work up to a long mileage, and my feet are so tried after I've worn them on a long run, but they have helped with my IT-band problems, so much.  I had terrible IT-band issues, and since changing my foot strike and switching into these shoes, I haven't had any problems.  I also just purchased their road version of these shoes and can't wait to test them out.  It's sad how excited I get over new running shoes.

There are my top ten long run favorites and tips.  I don't know if any of you out there are training for a race, or are interested in training for a race, but all of these things have helped me so much.  I hope at least one will help you.

My life: Training

I haven't blogged forEVER.  So it's weird to try and start it all back up again.  But a lot has gone on since that last time I blogged, way way back at the beginning of the year.  Two biggest things:

1. I started a 400 hour Pilates teacher training certification in May, and will complete it by mid-October.  That's right, I'm going to be a Pilates teacher!  And hopefully take all of my knowledge from my PT aide job from the past 3 years, and now all of the knowledge I'm receiving from my certification and teach Pilates to every man, woman, and child.  I'm looking to teach in a PT clinic that incorporates Pilates into their rehab, if not, hopefully in a private studio with advanced students.

2. I've been training for a marathon steadily since April, and since June have been doing some hardcore weekly training.  This is a lot of work and dedication.  I've loved the training, seeing how my body can adapt to running consistently over 3 hours, and soon I'll be running between 3 1/2-4 hours.  I love our bodies!  I've enjoyed exploring our area, in the hills and trails to the neighborhoods and beach.  Every Saturday morning this summer has been with my running buddies and running outside around Orange County.  I've learned a lot about the importance of proper gear (shoes, clothes, sunscreen) and nutrition.  I've changed my perspective on food after reading books and articles from professional runners on fueling our bodies with the best food to reach peak performance.  Food is fuel.

So here's a little snap shot of my busy life.  No pictures to post of summer vacations, since my life of training has taken over, but I've loved this summer and the many wonderful things Ryan and I have been doing.  And next weekend is my bday and we're going to spend it doing my favorite things in LA.  Concert, yummy food, flea market, and museums.

I'll be posting again soon on all of the running tips I've picked up since my training.  Happy labor day weekend!

(And this is who I'll be seeing next weekend, sooooooo excited)

The Tops

These are my five favorite things right now.  I have to share them because I'm hoping to make them your favorite things too :)

1. "Downton Abbey."  My favorite thing by far, this Masterpiece Theater mini series is so amazing.  I feel like I'm watching a movie with every episode.  They just put the first season on Netflix and Hulu Plus, and the second is online (with no commercials, amazing).
2. My local Orange library, and the Southern California digital library.  I've found so many great books and so many books that I can send straight to my kindle.  Awesome.
3. My new Baggu reusable tote.  It's so big, but wraps up so small, and the print just makes me happy.
4. Ryan surprising me with a home cooked meal when I get home from work.  He knocks my socks off.
5. Getting the employee discount for Nike.  My boss hooked me up and now I got some more sweet running gear.  I just wish I could afford this super cute jacket.  I am loving coral* like crazy right now.

Have any favorites you'd like to share with me?

*Wasn't Michelle William's dress adorable?  And that color!

Get Your Mid-Foot On

Just read this book and absolutely loved it.  Running has always been my favorite form of exercise, and this book has deepened that love.  Not only will it tell you about a man's journey to discovering the world's best runners, but it will also tell you how to run efficiently and injury free.  Hallelujah!

One of the best books I've ever read.  The development of the author's story into the science and research of running, and the stories of the world's best runners will amaze you.   Happy running/reading!

*The author describing his book

This is Halloween

Crandall style. We decided to be lumber jacks this year. I was inspired when I saw my beautiful flannel dress in a thrift shop. We pulled this look together for only $20. Complete with matching felt beards. We didn't hit any parties except for our ward's and my parents trunk or treat. And sadly we didn't get one trick or treater last night. But we had fun eating in-n-out, eating Halloween candy and watching "the dark night." It was a good weekend.