Where's the Beach?

Christmas Day Yesterday was a long one, but a good one that even included some snow flurries (closest thing to a white Christmas we'll ever get). It started off with more time in the kitchen getting food ready to take with us to our hometown where we started off with lunch at my sister's house. But...before going there, I must talk about my gifts of course. We got the food started before opening our own Christmas presents. It was a Victoria's Secret Christmas for me. I can never have too many PJs and was in need of new undies and house shoes. I got Jason a down vest, some new PJs, a much-needed new robe and some other goodies. Heath and Maddie (via Jason) got a gift for Jason and me. This was something we both needed in a BIG way. It's a Triggerpoint set complete with 2 different rollers and 2 balls and DVDs to help you roll out all the muscles - ideal for runners (sorry for the ugly picture below). So, after opening our own gifts, getting ready and packed up, we...

Thank You I really wanted to thank everyone for your kind words from yesterday's post. I know that most of my replies were simply "thank you" but your words and support really do mean a lot. I've had 14 years to reflect on what happened to my friend. I've written about it (would love to publish one day), I even sat through most of the trial. So while I think about what has happened, I am now able to talk about it more freely. Sometimes I wonder if that might startle people a bit...in terms of how to react. I know it's also hard to know what to say to someone when talking about something so tragic, so sad, and so serious. So thank you all. Cardio Only Day This morning I wide awake shortly after 5 am. I thought about trying to stay in bed for another hour, but knew I wouldn't really fall back asleep. So I did myself a favor and got up to get my cardio done. I was not planning on step aerobics at all today. But weights are just not in the cards for me t...

Chili Night  So last night we donned the PJs early and just sat around and relaxed. I made the Chipotle Tempeh Chili while Jason flipped around the TV: between Iron Man Kona and Miracle on 34th Street. Once the chili was done, we opted for a funny, light-hearted move, The Tooth Fairy . I have to say that I was really skeptical, but it was really a cute movie. Bed time came fairly early. More Shopping and a Painful Run This morning Sarah and I both started out with some oatmeal, then a trip to Kohl's and back to the mall. We had an expired coupon printed for New York and Company for an extra $40 off. There was a new one that I hadn't printed, but they said we could bring that in with the merchandise to get the difference. Um, for $40, totally worth it. When we got home, Sarah decided she wanted to try one of my new Cathe DVDs - High Reps . She did the leg workout along with abs and said it was totally kick butt. Shaky legs (her words)! She cleaned up, packed up, and heade...

Running Like (and In) the Wind I checked the weather just before setting out for the run. Sunny, 50 degrees with no wind chill, but winds at 17mph and gusting up to 22mph. My first thought - I am bat-ass crazy. I hate running in the wind. My next thought - I'm scared I'm going to hate every second of running now. In reality, it was an awesome run, despite the wind. It felt sooooo good to be out there in the sunshine, feet pounding the pavement next to Jason. We did a super fast 1.9 mile run in 14:20. I will admit to being annoyed that it wasn't a full 2 miles. Is that nuts? Yes, probably so. Now this is the cardio I've been missing desperately. My endorphin rush was so high that I seriously was thinking, "Oh, maybe I could get in another 2 miles after work." I know, I know, had to talk myself back down to reality. If I want to be able to run consistently again, I cannot do crazy things like that. I have to take it slow and be happy with 2 miles, then 3 ...

2.5 Miles I am really tired of these sub-30 degree mornings already. It's only December....going to be a long winter I'm afraid. Last night I had mentioned trying for a run today at lunch as it was supposed to be in the upper 40's. Jason ended up bowing out of the run. But, I had it in my head that I was going to try again today cold temps and gusty winds be damned. I set out right at noon with winds between 10 and 18 mph and wind chill of 37. I warmed up inside with some high knee jogs and butt kicks. My goal is to always make sure my muscles are warm and loosened up before running. I hit the pavement and it felt so good. I didn't notice the cold one bit. Even the gusting wind felt like a treat. I tried to run on the sidewalks when I could (they are so terribly wonky in our neighborhood though) or run as close to the middle of the street as I safely could. From what I've read, short, fast runs are more ideal when trying to get back into it. So that's what ...

Friday Follow Up Believe it or not, we did not have pizza last night per the norm. We met up with some friends at a recently opened Irish pub called Dugan's downtown fairly close to our house. A good friend has just leased a condo in that same building on one of the upper floors so he came down to joins us as well. We hung out until a bit after 8 then went up to check out his new place. We were all starved so we ended up heading back to our house where I threw together dinner. We had cranberries left from Thanksgiving so I made another batch of the Chipotle Cranberry Relish to go with Quorn cutless, roasted potatoes and lima beans. I flaked out on the veggie side part so it ended up being a random can of lima beans I had in the cabinet. I was out of OJ for the relish so I ended up adding in some unsweetened applesauce and apple cider vinegar. It turned out just as tasty as the original. I didn't take pictures of the meal - I was hungry ;-) 1-Mile This morning started off ...