BSN Photo Shoot

So, this morning was my long-awaited photo shoot with BSN. I was supposed to meet them at 9:00 a.m., so I got up at 5:15 to give myself plenty of time to get ready and not feel rushed. I made the decision to curl my hair, and if I had known it was going to take TWO HOURS, I might not have done it. However, I was thrilled with how it turned out, and I'm glad I did it.

Here is how it looked right after I finished curling it:

 

 

 

And after I finished messing with it:

I grabbed some breakfast, then went back to put on makeup, grabbed the things I thought I might need for the shoot, and headed over to the pre-arranged meeting place with BSN. They took us over to a gym for our photo shoot, and EVERY OTHER SUPPLEMENT COMPANY ON THE PLANET was doing a photo shoot there today, too. That may be a slight exaggeration, but the place was packed. We were getting ready to shoot, and in walks on of the fitness personalities I most admire, Amanda Latona. She was shooting with the same group I was in (she is sponsored by BSN), so I introduced myself to her and asked her if I could get an autograph later.

Anyway, We proceeded with the shoot. The photographer was amazing. He made me feel so comfortable from the get-go, and I was so glad that I wasn't feeling tense or nervous. Just enjoying the experience.  This are the two outfits I wore during the shoot:

After we finished, I got Amanda to sign a poster of her that I had brought with me just in case I was able to meet her. AND she took a couple of photos with me, too! I was so honored to meet her and discover that she is so likeable...a ham, really. :-)

Now I'm back at the hotel, coming down off the emotional high that I've been on all day! Enjoying a cup of coffee, uploading a few pics, and trying to keep you all informed!  Oh, and look how well my hair held the curl--this is about eight hours later.  I have NEVER had curl stay this long!   

 

Heading to the Arnold!

Oh, my goodness! The Arnold hasn't even started yet, and I'm already having an amazing time!
So, this morning I got to the airport in OKC, and made it through security. They confiscated my very threatening jar of peanut butter, which didn't make me very happy, but they didn't fuss about my chicken, almonds, or sweet potatoes, so I just let it go. I figure God knows I have very little control around PB, so He is probably just protecting me from myself. :-)

I snapped a pic of myself, traveling in my bb.com hoodie.  This shirt is so comfortable.  I'm trying to decide which is better, the hoodie or the sweatshirt.  It's a toss-up.

The flight went smoothly, and while waiting for my bags at baggage claim, I happened to meet Helga, the lady who is coordinating tomorrow's photo shoot. She was so sweet and it was great to finally meet her.

I got a cab to bring me to the hotel, and the driver was from Ethiopia. I talked to him a bit about his country, and he asked about supplementation for weightlifting. I told him about protein powder, BCAAs, and pre-workout supplements. The awesome thing is that I had a bunch of the samples from bodybuilding.com that come in my orders, so I gave him one of each to try! Hopefully he will become a new bb.com customer soon!

The hotel I am staying at is BEAUTIFUL, the room is awesome, and I even have a fridge to store my food so I don't have to eat out all the time. It is literally across the street from the convention center!

This is the view of my hotel from INSIDE the convention center.  That's how close it is!

After I left the convention center, I decided to go for a little walk to see what was else was nearby.  I spotted a place called North Market that looked interesting, so I headed over.  It was quite possibly one of the coolest things I've ever seen.  It's a huge building, and instead of just being a store, it's actually a MARKET.  Lots of tiny little shops (40 or so, if I had to guess), filled with awesome local goods. 

Here is a view from inside the market:

 

There is a little shop in there called Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams.  They had several unique flavors, but this one really grabbed my attention.  I'm avoiding sugary treats, BUT I had a little taste of this one and I will definitely be going back for a scoop on Saturday or Sunday evening.  It was delicious!

 

And on the way back to the hotel, look what I found!  I had to snap a pic; I was so excited to see something familiar in an unfamiliar place.  Kinda made it feel like home.





And finally, a view of the convention center from my hotel room.  Think I could just jump over there in the morning?  Hmmm...probably not.