Snow? In March?

This has been SUCH a long day. 

I rolled out of bed at 5 so I could be at work by 6:30.  Worked from 6:30-noon.  Hey, guess what?

It started snowing/raining/sleeting late last night and continued throughout the night.  This morning, it turned to snow.  We now have probably 4-5 inches of snow on the ground.  And it’s March 20th.  Not cool, winter.  Not cool.

The upside is that it’s supposed to be in the 40s tomorrow so hopefully it will all melt.  But still, sucky.

I was absolutely determined to get the shopping-related errands done today.  They’ve been stressing me out for the last week and I was tired of it.  So I forged ahead and did my errands, snow be damned.

First stop: Ulta, for shower hostess gifts.  I have 7 hostesses (roughly) so it had to be something reasonably inexpensive.  I’m going to wrap them up with a note hoping that all their showers will be as nice as mine!

And a nice flatiron for my hair.  My straightener right now is a joke—I think I bought it at the drugstore for $9.99 my freshman year in college, and it doesn’t work.  I’m so tired of long hair, but I want it to look nice for my shower/bachelorette parties/etc, so I figured I should splurge on a nice one.

 

Then I stopped by the running store to a) restock on Gu and b) pick up some odds and ends to wrap up for my sister’s maid of honor gift half marathon registration.   My friend/the owner Bob was there, and of course he asked about my shoes.  Guiltily, I told him that they just weren’t working all that well and showed him my dead toenail/new blisters. 

He felt bad and gave me some new cushiony insoles to try.

They are so wonderful there, but I think they think I’m a lost cause at this point.  Bob admitted that he can’t think of one more thing that would help me that I haven’t tried, and recommended I see a doctor.  (Which I plan to do after the wedding—things are just too crazy now.)  It makes me sad that there’s really nothing else they can think of that will help my poor feet.  😦

Bob even said, “I’ve never said this before, but maybe you should just go to a sporting goods store, find a pair of shoes that feels good on your feet for $50, and keep trying that until you find something.  At this point, you don’t have anything to lose.”  (Except more money.  But…a nice sentiment.)

Anyway, I got this.  I’m not sure if it’s going to be for my sister or for me quite yet.  Oops. 

And an array of goodies to give my sister—non-cotton socks, sport beans, shot blocks, various Gu flavors, and Body Glide.

I also bought a whole box of Chocolate Gu.  If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?  This should last me awhile, and it’s discounted if you buy by the box.

 

Then I headed to the mall and picked up some bronzing airbrush spray while I waited to get my eyebrows done.

Got my eyebrows waxed, came home, ate dinner, and now we’re watching The September Issue and possibly The Hurt Locker later.

Anyway, not a cheap day, but I think I’m mostly done shopping-wise for my Chicago trip.  Tomorrow’s MUST GET DONE LIST:

• thank you note for the gift we got this week
• print/cut/assemble/address rehearsal dinner invitations
• write out cards for shower hostesses
• try to get as much Chicago packing done as possible

Anyone else getting unseasonably awful weather?

Snow day!

After my disastrous commute last night, the snow kept falling, and falling, and falling.

Late last night I saw that the university I work at canceled classes and the administrative offices were on a delay.  However, after my commute last night, and the fact that this morning would have added an extra several inches of snow and more cars on top of that, I decided there was no way I was going to risk such a long drive.  Road conditions are a nightmare.  Every road in KC is marked as “covered” on the Department of Transportation’s website.   So, I called in this morning.  I’m keeping an eye on my e-mail from home, but I just did NOT feel safe driving in this mess!

I woke up, checked out the situation, called in, ate my breakfast cookie and went back to bed.  Two hours later I went into snow day prep mode!

Coffee, computer, sweatpants, and slipper socks.  Yes, please.

Check out our back porch!

The only problem is that this throws yet another wrench in my training plans.  No way can I get to the gym if I can’t even make it to work in this weather, and it’s currently 7 degrees out with 6-8ish inches of snow on the roads (plus ice).  Sigh.  I hate having to juggle SO much, but it’s just not going to happen so much.

In other news, last night I watched the documentary Spirit of the Marathon on Hulu.  It was a great watch!  I highly recommend it for any runners out there, even if you’re not a marathoner.  It had some really interesting history on the marathon and running in general (especially women in running).  And now it’s making me want to run a marathon, which I’m pretty sure is a bad idea just yet.

Anyway, today I’m hoping to get a lot of relaxing and a little cleaning done.  I’m off to vacuum now!

Anyone else have a snow day?

Oh the weather outside is frightful…

I started the day off right today.  I finally bought a foam roller online!  Yay.  I can’t wait to roll myself silly when I get it.

Today was a short work day!  Shortly after lunch, snow started falling pretty heavily.  My boss is super-conscious of winter driving, so she left, and our secretary left, and she told me to leave early if I wanted.  So, I finished what I was working on and left too!

I couldn’t let Hal down, though, so I bolted to the gym for a quick three miles.

I was in the zone today and pounded out a solid 3 miles in 29:00ish.  I made sure to tie my shoes REALLY tight which helped with the blister issue, but it still hurt a little.  I did catch this program on the TV at the gym.  It was something about the nation’s obesity epidemic, but I thought it was a little morbid that they illustrated it with a visit to a company that manufactures coffins for the morbidly obese.  (Interestingly enough, they were called Goliath Coffins or something.  Yikes.)

Then I drove home.  It was a nightmare.  It took me an hour and a half instead of the usual half hour.  It was snowy and icy and awful.

But, I made it safe and sound and now I’m relaxing at home.  I’m so glad I’m home a little early today–yesterday I spent all night rounding up addresses for wedding invitations, which is no. fun. at. all.  I will be so glad when these invitations are in the mail!  (But then, you know, the RSVP headache starts, so…oh well.)

It’s still snowing and I can’t say I’d mind a snow day tomorrow…we’ll see!

For fun, a gratuitous cat and dog picture:

What are your feelings towards snow?  Love it, hate it, neutral? I generally don’t mind it, I just don’t like unsafe roads!

Winter Wonderland

Kansas City got 8 or so inches of snow while we were gone for Christmas, and another 3-4 piled on overnight!  Look!

It’s the good snow–fluffy and pretty and not icy.  The roads were fine this morning on my way to work!

This morning I snacked on the most delicious pear.  Tim is a staunch Bartlett supporter, but I picked up Anjou last week because they looked 100 times better.  And it was pretty awesome, I must say.  (Woulda been better with almond butter, though.  But isn’t everything?)

After work I headed to the gym for a bit of strength training.  I forgot my lifting gloves, so my game was off and I had another kinda ADD workout.  I did:

• 5 minute warmup on the treadmill
• 3 sets of 12 squats at 135 lbs.
• 3 sets of 12 deadlifts at 75 lbs.
• 2 sets of 12 shoulder presses at 40 lbs.
• 2 sets of 12 Bulgarian split squats at 40 lbs.
• 15 minutes on the elliptical with the resistance maxed out

The problem with lifting is that halfway through, I get HANGRY.  Like, thinking about breakfast cookies and pickles and almond butter constantly hangry.  And my gym’s half an hour from home!  Strangely enough, (or probably not), lifting always makes me desperately crave eggs.  So guess what was for dinner?

An egg and two egg whites with some cheese, and two slices of wheat toast, one with AB&J and one with a little buttah.  Delish!  It totally hit the spot.  I finished about 15 minutes ago, though, and my tummy’s still a-rumbling.  Hmm…

Happy New Year’s Eve Eve!  Don’t forget to enter my super awesome Road ID giveaway!

Ice, ice, baby

Happy Thursday!  I’m glad it’s almost the weekend.  I can’t wait to sleep in, cut more wedding invitations (barf) and wear pajamas 24/7.

Anyway, apparently planning for my bridal shower and my bachelorette party is getting into gear.  I don’t know the details of either but I’m getting excited/nervous about both of them already.  I got a very mysterious phone call from my sister asking if I could take one Monday in April off work, and my mom requested a shower guest list from me, too.  I didn’t expect this, but I feel kind of guilty about both of them!  I know that having showers and bachelorette parties are pretty standard as far as weddings go, but I can’t help thinking about how much time/effort/money is going into these and I feel a little bit bad.  I know my family and bridesmaids are awesome and doing this because they love me, and I am so thankful.  I just hope they know it!  I’ll have to find some really awesome hostess gifts.

Anyway, moving right along.  This morning, again, the first cup of coffee I made was full of grounds.  WTF?  We have a Keurig.  Any thoughts?  (If it’s broken it’s not a tragedy.  We also own a french press and a regular coffee maker.)

I wanted to take a picture of my breakfast cookie, held triumphantly aloft, because I thought I’d FINALLY reached perfect hand-holdability.  But, alas.

I’m hooked on breakfast cookies!  They keep me full for sooo long and are yummy.

Today Tim decided to go play poker with some friends right after work, so I went straight home instead of going to the gym.  I did, however, change into my running clothes at work, so as soon as I got home I could let Milhouse out of his crate and we could run together for as long as he deemed prudent.  I COULD have changed when I got home, but the second Milhouse sees a person in the house he whines, loudly, to get let out of the crate and it breaks my little heart.   So, I came prepared and changed at work.   It was still pretty cold today–23 degrees!  See?

There is nothing like taking a riled-up beagle running ON ICE.  I should take a video.  He stretches first–a quick downward dog and child’s pose–and then just takes these huge bounding leaps, ears flapping in the breeze.  It’s adorable and hilarious.

 

We made a friend!

 

We only did about a mile and a half because I underestimated how very slippery it is to run on solid ice with a very fast dog.   I felt a little unsteady, to say the least, even though I didn’t hurt myself!  I have to say, I definitely feel like cold weather running is my thing.  I have always hated being hot–I don’t particularly like the summer, and love bundling up in sweaters.  And even though I like getting a good workout, I hate the physical act of sweating.  I’m going to need to invest in some gear–I have a warm compression shirt on the way, and a Road ID, but I’d also like a warm pair of running tights and gloves, some kind of hat, and some spikes.  (Any recommendations?)  I feel so peaceful when it’s just me and the dog with snow crunching under our feet–no iPod, no TVs, no cars–it’s perfect for me.  I wanted to keep going tonight!

I came home and made breakfast for dinner since Tim was gone.  He is a strict food constructionist–breakfast is eaten at breakfast time, hot dogs go on hot dog buns and not bread, et cetera.  Breakfast for dinner is my favorite!  Pancakes and bacon–yum.

Healthy?  Well, probably not.  Awesome once in awhile?  YES!

It appears I’ve tired out my running buddy and I am too. 

 

Are you a cold weather person or a warm weather person?  I’m definitely a polar bear inside!

Oink, oink

Well, it is cold today.  People in Kansas City are freaking out because the high today is 11 degrees.  Maybe, again, I am hardcore, but this does not strike me as a huge deal.  We got about two inches of snow last night, and half the city has shut down–schools, and apparently people’s ability to drive.  My commute this morning was quadrupled in length–30 minutes to 2 hours, which was fun.  But anyway.  See?  Snow.

If nothing else, snow gives me an excuse to break out my cute snow boots.  I can’t wear tall boots because my calves are monstro sized.  These boots are by Tretorn and this is my second pair.  They’re fuzzy and warm and leak-proof.  My first pair is perfectly fine, still, but I bought the white and they got all banged up, sadly.  These are brown and shiny and less prone to scuffing.

At lunch today, I got my H1N1 vaccine.  Even though I’m a hair over the age limit (I’m 25 and they’re approving it for 24 and unders), I was able to get one gratis through my employer because of my asthma.  It didn’t hurt at all.  I did, however, laugh, when the nurse touched my upper arm/shoulder and told me to stop flexing my muscle, when, in fact, I was not flexing…that’s just my arm.  Wooo!

I know the H1N1 shot is controversial, but frankly, I am not a doctor and I tend to trust people with medical degrees.  I get annoyed when non-lawyers attempt to give legal advice and I presume doctors feel the same way when non-doctors try to think they know better than the doctors do.  I’m trusting.  I admit it.  If my arm turns purple and falls off, at least I know how to sue.

Anyway, my laptop is dead.  The poor old thing will be 3 years old on March 17, 2010 and is luckily still under warranty through Best Buy.  The last week it’s not been registering that it’s plugged in when it is, which I think means the AC adapter and/or battery are fried.  It’s happened to this laptop before, and if it breaks one more time in the next three months I get a replacement.

Also, my “Control” key has completely fallen off.  I have, very literally, lost control.  Sigh.  Hopefully they can replace it.

I didn’t work out today because my quads and hamstrings are on fire.  No, not on fire–flex your muscle real hard until it gets to the point of hurting real bad.  That’s what it feels like right now, ALL THE TIME.  My body says rest.  I say okay.  I’m hoping to run outside again tomorrow when it’s warmed up a bit.

So, tonight, we are watching the Glee finale and eating macaroni and cheese and hot dogs, which, really, in my mind is the perfect little evening.

Here is a cute picture of Southpaw to finish this post off right:

Do you/did you get a flu shot?

Hardcore.

This morning did not start out well.  First, I tried to make coffee.  My first cup was full of coffee grounds, which is gross, so I dumped it.  My second cup came out too watery to drink.  I hope our coffee maker isn’t broken.

Then, I took off on my half hour long commute to work.  Fifteen minutes in, I realized that I’d packed my gym bag with a nice clean pair of workout pants, a tank, and sports bra…but I’d left my running shoes at home.  (And even though I’m pretty awesome, running in heels isn’t my strong suit.)

Then I got to work and promptly ripped a ginormous hole in my tights that rendered them unwearable.  So I was sitting there, bare-legged, uncaffeinated, and cold, with nary a workout in sight.  Not a good start to my day!

Lunch was good, though, mostly because of my amaaaazing yogurty mess.  I haven’t had anything pomegranate, ever, but I liked it!  The crunchy bits were nice, especially with the granola.

Speaking of granola, Mix My Granola sent me a sample to review.  In my mix, I put cinnamon granola base, Bing cherries, pecans, hazelnuts, coconut, chia seeds and chocolate chips.  I’m a granola snob and connoisseur and this stuff is GOOD.  The cinnamon base is not overwhelmingly cinnamony (which I like), and the mix-ins were delicious.  I was especially impressed with the dried cherries, which were soft and sweet, unlike a lot of times when you get them and they’re hard and flavorless.  If I have one tiny complaint, it’s that I couldn’t really taste the coconut, but I had plenty of other competing flavors in there vying for attention so that’s probably my fault.

Mix My Granola has also generously offered 10% off to Fit Bride readers!  To use this awesome coupon, just enter coupon code “FITBRIDE” at checkout.

They also had Christmas cookies at the front desk today.  Usually I can resist, but this guy was too cute!

However…if I’m going to eat sweets in the middle of the day, portion control is key for me.  So, I beheaded the penguin, threw his body into the trash and ate his noggin.  It was delish!

Yesterday’s workout was super intense.  I can barely walk straight today because my quads and hamstrings are so sore, but I love that feeling.  I like knowing how hard I’m working and it makes me feel alive and strong!  I decided to continue the “hardcore week” theme by going home and running outside.  (It’s currently 28-ish degrees, sleeting and snowing in Kansas City.)  I actually like cold weather, so I figured what the heck.  If I’m going to be a runner (or am I already?), I’m going to have to adapt to less-than-perfect situations.  I bundled up in my warmest running clothes and a hat to keep the precipitation out of my eyes and I was off!

My neighborhood is hilly, but it’s not STAGGERINGLY hilly like the roads nearby.  Basically, if I made a loop around my subdivision, it’s .6 miles exactly with some gentle little hills.  So, I did that 5 times for a total of 3 miles!  Honestly, I could have kept going but I was getting hangry.  It was sleeting, freezing rain, and snowing on me, and the temperature was 28 degrees!  I took Milhouse for my first loop around, but he was NOT a fan of the weather and made a beeline for our door when he saw it again.

Tim took this awesome picture of me when I walked in the door (after asking me “What the hell were you doing?”).  I love that the glasses-fog makes me look like a robot (next time, I will wear contacts):

Hard. Core.  Please note my wet hat.

Even though I was cold and wet, I LOVED this run so much.  It was peaceful and cool.  I think I’m going to invest in some good cold weather running gear and keep this going!

What workouts make you feel hardcore?

Snow?

Yep, that’s what I woke up to this morning.  Milhouse was not pleased.

It was just a little layer that melted by the time I got to work, but snow nonetheless.  It’s weird to think that it’s essentially winter now, and we’re getting married in spring, which will be next season change we see.  Eep!

This will be a quickie post.  I’m exhausted and feeling a bit icky and I have to pack for my trip, so I’m skipping the workout.  But dinner was a healthy stir fry!

• Extra lean round steak (about 8 ounces)
• Carrots (lots)
• Mushrooms (lots)
• Drizzle of olive oil to keep the pan non-sticky
• Garlic (lots)
• 2 T. teriyaki sauce
• 1 T. lemon juice
• Cashews (about 1/2 c.)
• Brown rice

The beauty of this is that I just throw everything but the rice in one pan, put it on medium heat, and let it go.  One dish, super easy and quick, and you can throw in pretty much any veggie you have on hand.

In other news, I love this stuff:

Frozen brown rice.  Stick the bag in the microwave for four minutes and you’re done!  I love this for busy nights when I am literally too tired and lazy to boil a cup of water.

Anyway, I’m off to pack.  I’ll be back tomorrow from lovely Chicago!