Flashback Friday

April 26, 2007

Note to self...don't stop moving

No treadmill last night! The sky cleared and it turned out to be a beautiful day to run in circles around my neighborhood. It was another day of running one minute and walking two minutes. I'm hoping this gradual plan of getting back into running means that I'll actually be running and not just jogging like before. I'm trying to keep my speed up at a decent pace without totally killing myself. I think as long as I recover during the two minutes of walking before I run again then I am doing things correctly. I think it's about 2.5 miles that I cover in the 30 minutes which isn't bad considering that I'm walking for 20 minutes of it.

I watched a movie later in the evening. Bad idea. I should have kept moving. My legs are so tight now. It's like from Finding Nemo, "Just keep swimming. Just keep swimming." My new motto is going to be "Just keep moving. Just keep moving." The sad part is that I've been down this road before and I should have remembered that.

Oh, and the movie was highly disappointing. The Guardian failed to impress. It had potential up until the bar pick-up scene. Can anyone say Top Gun wannabe? They may as well have had the boys in uniform sing "You've lost that loving feeling" because that's all I could think about.

Kevin Costner is king - Ashton Kutcher is a joke. It was like watching Kelso from that That 70's Show struggling to be serious on the big screen for two hours. Does Kutcher only do one character? The sign of a craptastic actor? I vote yes. It's never a good sign when the minor actors that surround the main character are way more entertaining. The West Wing's Dule Hill played the token black man. That's a waste of a good actor right there. The movie probably would have been leaps and bounds better with him as the main character. Ah well, one less movie for the "To Buy" list.

~ END ~

I've never given The Guardian a second chance, it was that bad.  And it reminds me of Luke, the guy I was dating at the time.  That didn't last long.  He ripped apart the entire movie as it went along because he was a Coast Guard "expert."  Apparently when you wash out of the Coast Guard's basic training, as he did, it makes you an expert.  Most annoying person on the planet to watch a movie with.  Anywho, I still stand by the fact that the movie was a Top Gun wannabe.  And you just can't compete with a classic like Top Gun.  

Work, work, work

I'm half way through the week.  It hasn't been overly crazy but it does seem like I've been at work for ten days straight.  How does that happen?  Maybe it's the stress that comes with always putting on my happy face.  My job isn't roses, rainbows, and bunnies.

I took a day off in the exercise department.  I figure a few days off wouldn't kill me.  It may actually help me in the long run.

Tuesday Tidbits

• I'm on a decluttering spree again.  This feeling comes and goes.  I think this one has a direct correlation to this healthy eating thing I've been doing lately.  I feel like I'm being weighed down by more than my flabby thighs.  Spring cleaning, here I come!!

• Brinkley and I ran 6.25 miles today.  It wasn't nearly as easy as last week's long run.  I need to remember to wear shorts.  It always seems chilly outside at first but by mid-run, I'm super hot.  I decided to take the plunge when I got home by submerging my bottom half in an ice bath.  I haven't used an ice bath for recovery since I was training for my half marathon back in 2005.  It's brutal at first but it works wonders for muscle recovery.  The idea is that the ice limits blood flow to the legs and reduces inflammation from any damage done while running.

• I've been cleaning today.  Off and on.  I've accomplished quite a bit.  I noticed I have sprouts out in the cold box on the patio - broccoli and lettuce!!  My greenhouse sprouts are also going gang busters.  My pea sprouts are about 3 inches tall.

• I have early work shenanigans tomorrow so I'm off to bed early.  It's NCIS Tuesday so I'm going to plop in bed and watch it.  Then, with any luck, drift off to sleep shortly after.

• I'm sad my weekend is over already.  I love my time at home with Brink.  Although I'm pretty sure the run tuckered him enough that he'll just be sleeping most of tomorrow and will not miss me even a little.

Castle Monday

Aaaahhh! I've been trying every which way to distract myself today.  Castle is on at 9.  I'm hoping it's as big of an episode as they make it out to be!

I made pancakes for dinner.  I'm "carb loading" for my long run tomorrow.  I have no idea how far I'll actually run and if Brinkley will join me for the entire thing.  I think I'm slow enough that a long run really doesn't phase him much.  I have to keep an eye on his wimpy paws which tend to rub raw on occasion.  I gave him a small pancake as a special treat tonight.

I ran a lot of errands today.  I found a bathing suit for Disney World!  And I got lots of baby related items for Heidi's upcoming baby shower.  It was fun wandering the aisles upon aisles of baby stuff.  I loaded up on lots of goodies!!  And got started on my baby shower craft when I got home.  The next 7 weeks are going to fly by and I needed to be on the ball!

Sunday Funday

Moxon, Grandma, and I went to Disney On Ice today.  It was the 100 Years of Magic edition.  We're pretty sure we'd see it before but Moxon got a kick out of it.  He also got a kick out of the cotton candy, popcorn, snow cone, and dip 'n dots.  Last I heard from my brother, Moxon was still bouncing off the walls hours later!








When we got home, I waited a few hours before taking off an easy afternoon run.  Two miles was enough to make me feel less lazy for the day.  I told Brink I'd take him for a walk later too.  I'm sure he'll hold me to it.

I tried to make up for my popcorn and dip 'n dots consumption by eating brussels sprouts for dinner.  I'm currently stuffed and watching The West Wing.  I love this show!

Gym Rat Saturday

Even though I've had two late nights at work and little sleep lately, I still managed to get my bum out of bed and head to the gym for some easy cardio and weights.  The last thing I felt like doing this morning was running.  And I have this very tiny twitch of pain in my left knee (it comes and goes every few months) so I thought I'd hit the recumbent bike rather than treadmill.

I did my warm and cool down on the bike - cardio without the impact to the knees!  Yah!  Lifting weights got me nice and sweaty.  At least enough to make me feel like my trip to the gym was worth it.

I felt bad for Brinkley this morning.  He's had a lonely week.  Yesterday I didn't even make it home for lunch and then had to work late so he was home for a very long time.  He was doing the potty dance when I got home.  Even Milo was tired of being cooped up and darted out the front door as soon as  I opened it!

Once I survive the day, I'll have to make it up to him with lots of walks and playing this weekend.  I can't wait!

 

Flashback Friday

April 25, 2007

Rain, rain, rain...

While normally I would love the opportunity to go outside and play in the rain, I wasn't much feeling like it yesterday afternoon. My schedule called for an easy 30 minute walk. That's my kind of training right there! I froze my arse off and got drenched on my walk across campus earlier in the day, so I decided I would just head to the gym and use the treadmill for my walk. It was just that, a walk. My shins were pretty sore from the day before so that was kind of annoying. They are still sore today and I'm not exactly looking forward to the run/walk thing this evening.

On a much more hilarious note...when I was writing the title for this blog I was reminded of Milli Vanilli of all things. The "Blame It On The Rain" cheesiness of the late 80s/early 90s can't be beat! I vaguely remember the two guys wearing purple pimp like suits in the video. Ok, I couldn't help it. I just wiki-ed Milli Vanilli. They won a Grammy! What? That's definitely a "What were they thinking" moment. And they have a greatest hits album from 2007! Is there no shame in the music industry? HA, proof there is not.

~ END ~

It still boggles my mind about Milli Vanilli.  I want to lip sync a song or two and win a Grammy.  And make a "greatest hits" album.  And since Spring is approaching, that means rain!  I do love the rain.  And I love running in it.  I'll have to keep my old pair of running shoes handy for a few rainy runs this year!  

Small things

Two things brightened my day.

1.


Heaven in a bag. Only 100 calories. Sweet potato Pop Chips!! They are delicious!! I want to try the other flavors. All of 'em. YUM!!

2.


My little garden has sprouts already!!! Basil and red pepper are the ones popping out. My heating pad under my mini-greenhouse is working!!

I welcomed my little sprouts into the world and encouraged them to grow big and strong!

Idaho or Bust!

I purchased plane tickets today to visit my brother in Idaho!!  I got a heck of deal on tickets through Southwest Airlines so I'll be jetting off for a long weekend in April.  The main event is turkey hunting but we may also fit in some salmon fishing.  I'm so excited!!! AND it's happening in just three and half weeks.  I'm going to call it my Disney World distraction!!

Purchasing my tickets was the highlight of my day.  I worked my tail off at the gym this morning.  One mile run for warmup, weights, one mile run for cool down.  It was a great workout.  I even pulled 9:30 minute per mile pace for 1/4 mile at the end.  That made me extremely happy.  And sweaty.

The rest of the day was downhill from there.  Mostly because I've had a stomach ache all day.  Initially it felt like I was starving but the more I ate the more nauseous I felt.  Awesome.  I'm not sure what didn't agree with me.  Part of me wishes I would just throw up so that I could start feeling better.

And with that wealth of information, I'm headed off to bed.

Kitchen Firsts

Last night I attempted two new recipes, sweet and sour chicken and roasted chickpeas.
I had still had some chicken thighs to use up so decided to use the Sweet and Sour sauce that's been patiently waiting use in the cupboard.  I browned up the chicken first and took a half a cup of cooked chicken out for Brinkley.  Then I added the sauce and pineapple a let it simmer.  It turned out really good for a first time attempt!!  I had it with steamed rice.




Delicious!

I also tried my hand at roasting chick peas or garbanzo beans.  I'd seen dozens of recipes online and was intrigued.  It's a semi healthy snack - they are beans after all!  Good protein, good fiber, good snack, right?  I decided to go on the sweeter side rather than salty side.
Drain, rinse, and dry the chick peas.




Cover with whatever spice mixture you can come up with.  I used canola oil, sugar, cinnamon, and pumpkin spice.





Make sure all peas are coated.  Then put them on a cookie sheet for roasting.  375 degrees for about 40 minutes - taste test to make sure they are roasted through.

When they come out of the oven, cover them in honey and sprinkle lightly with sugar!!




I'm sold.  Very, VERY scrumptious!!  I think they would be a great addition to a trail mix concoction for hiking.  Mmmm.  I hope they hold their crunch over night!

Eureka

Eureka:
        A cry of joy or satisfaction when finds or discovers something.

I broke my stream of laziness this afternoon.  I took out the trash, swept up some leaves, vacuumed, and cleaned up the kitchen counters, which I subsequently made dirty again while making diner and roasted chickpeas!

While I was cleaning I was listening to the Jillian Michaels Podcast on iTunes.  Yes, I'm still obsessed with it at the moment.  I found some episodes I had not listened to yet and figured it would make good background noise while I puttered around.

What lead to my eureka moment?  Calories are a main topic of conversation on the podcast.  I fully understand that calories are energy and weight loss, gain, or maintenance is all determined by calories eaten and calories burned.  I must burn calories or lower my calorie intake in order to lose fat.  I've got that part down.

One thing I did not know was how many calories per day my body burns naturally doing it's daily functions.  Thanks to the podcast and some internet research I was able to determine my magic number to maintain my weight.  The number comes from multiple formulas that take into account your height, weight, age, and activity level.  My magic number is 1900, give or take 50-100 calories.  I've always just applied a "standard" to myself and let me tell you, it wasn't even close to that!

This magic number is definitely good to know.  With that number I can then determine exactly how many calories to eat or burn in a day in order to lose 1 pound or 2 pounds per week.

This is very much a Eureka moment in my life.  Two goals each day: reach my goal for how many calories to burn; reach my goal for how many calories to consume (never a problem).

It's still the same concept - calories in, calories out.  But it seems way more doable now that I know that magical number.

Tuesday Tidbits

• I feel fit today.  Six miles will do that to a person.  This bullet point has no other point.  I just wanted to mention that six mile run again.  It was awesome!

• I returned my itsy bitsy teenie weenie swimsuit today.  If I would have used the enclosed UPS return label, it would have cost $6.95.  I used good old Uncle Sam and paid $2.50.  The swimsuit search continues.

• Brinkley and I went for a walk this afternoon.  We went over to a nearby pond so Brinkley could stalk geese and squirrels.  Even though it is officially Spring, I haven't really seen anything Spring like.  I noticed only one tree with green buds.  Everything else was still very yellow. 

• I have been sluggish all weekend in getting things done.  Things are still a bit messy around here.  I've been telling myself all weekend that I was going to try making roasted chickpeas but the can still sits unopened by the stove.  Getting the can out of the pantry was a step in the right direction though.

• After my orthodontist appointment this morning I went to Bed, Bath and Beyond to purchase a salad spinner.  During my fresh food adventure over the past few weeks, I've realized one of the biggest hurdles towards me eating a salad at lunch was washing and drying the lettuce.  Wash a leave, wave it around like a lunatic until it's semi dry, wash the next one, wave it around... it took ten minutes to get my greens prepared.  So, I'm going to try this spinner contraption and see how it works.

• A new episode of Castle finally aired last night.  It seemed like eternity since the last new one.  I'm officially on pins and needles until next Monday thanks to the preview.  Beckett's secret comes out. She heard Castle confess his love and he finds out she lied to him about remembering.  Eeeckk!  And squee at the same time.  Caskett angst in the fandom, folks.

Monday Miles

Brinkley and I ran six miles today!



This is his not so patient stare down while I'm getting ready.



The bike path.  Around mile 2.


Artwork on the way back home.  Around mile 4.


Water break at the golf course!!  Around mile 4.75.  We love golf season!!


6 miles!!  69 minutes!  And 831 calories burned!! Hot damn!!  It was an awesome run.  It went by really fast mentally, which I've struggled with on longer runs lately.  I needed this run!!

Victory deserves a thumbs up!  Always.


Dinner is served.  Two cups of veggies (brussels sprouts, asparagus, peppers, and broccoli) and some chicken.  The veggie mix needed to be roasted longer.  And I missed the potatoes.  Lesson learned.  Brinkley also go to enjoy some chicken for his hard work today!!

Space Heater

I think Brinkley has taken this sharing the bed thing a little too far.



On the bright side, my side of the bed is nice and toasty!

Watch My Garden Grow

Besides grocery shopping, the only productive thing I did today was plant seeds!  I have a whole variety started.  Some are outside in the cold box on the patio and some are inside in my mini-greenhouse.

I have the heating pad on low under the greenhouse to get the environment prime for seeds!!  We shall see how this garden experiment turns out in a few weeks.  Hopefully I will get lots of adorable little sprouts.  I'll try not to name them all.

Slackers

My slacker self has done nothing so far today. It's been glorious. I think my boys are enjoying it too.

Waiting

My view at the moment. I'm waiting on someone. No matter how hungry I am, I must wait. Blah. Going to eat my arm soon. Maybe I could stab a squirrel with a pen and roast it on my car's engine.

Gym Rat Friday

It's My Friday!!!  It's My Friday!!!

I'm so close to my weekend I can taste it!  Brinkley wasn't too happy with the way I started my day.  I headed off to the gym first thing and left him glaring at me for abandoning him.  He must think I'm cheating on him because I'm in my workout clothes and that normally means he gets to go running.  Poor guy!

I hit the gym for a little over an hour.  I warmed up on the recumbent bike and elliptical and started my usual weight circuits.  I took little to no rest between exercises and mixed in bursts of cardio every few sets to keep my heart rate up, which increases my core temperature, which scorches calories.  Yes, the Jillian Michaels podcast is already brainwashing me!  I polished it off with a half mile cool down run on the treadmill.

It makes me happy that I can run a half mile as a cool down.  Half mile.  This time last year, I was just getting started with the whole walking and running thing again.  And now a half mile is a breeze!!  It's even, dare I say, enjoyable!!  Now THAT, folks, is progress!!

While I have no idea how the work day will play out, I do know it's "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" Saturday!!  I know I'll get to practice my sign language skills while driving around.  I'm sure I look like a complete fruit loop signing random words but I don't care.  I also know that the sun is shining and I'll be in short sleeves.  Oh, and did I mention that workout I've already completed??  Yup, this day is a success and it's only just begun!

Have a great day, everyone!!

Flashback Friday

April 27, 2007

So It Starts...


The blogging world has finally sucked me in. It's scary to finally take the blogging plunge but it's also not surprising that I finally caved in. My mind runs in overdrive every second of everyday and maybe, just maybe, this blogging thing may help me straighten things out upstairs.

Ultimately, the purpose of (Title Removed by Author) is for me to track my journey back into the running world. It's been a while and I know it won't be as fun and exciting as it was the first time around. I have a lot more on my plate than I did two years ago. At least I can take comfort in knowing that I've been here before, slowly adding minutes and miles, and that the pain does subside and the miles do get easier and more enjoyable.

Yesterday I started an 8 week program, courtesy of Runner's World, that should ease me back into running. The program is a different approach for me. Two years ago, I started the run/walk thing on my own and slowly got up to running almost daily. I lost 30lbs., ran a 5k and a half marathon. Then I slowly, and certainly with less pain and effort, went from being an athlete to a sedentary grad student. Luckily, that 30lbs is still MIA so I'm hoping that makes things a wee bit easier on me this time around!

So, yeah, I'm back! Yesterday wasn't so bad. I ran for a minute, walked two minutes, lather, rinse, repeat. Thirty minutes later, I was exhausted, but relieved that I had finally started "running" again.

~  END ~

There it is!  The start of my blogging life.  It seems like it was ten years ago and not five.  I was single, living solo for the first time, and had only Brink and Milo to keep me company.  Like so many other times in my life, I was starting something new - a project of some kind to better myself and my life.  The blog focused on running for a while but it morphed into me rambling about anything and everything.

Pod what?

All day long I thought about that run I missed out on this morning.  So when I got home from work, I changed into my running clothes, laced up my running shoes, and strapped on some flashing lights (to myself and Brinkley) and headed out for a run.  It was 1.5 miles of pure awesomeness!

I normally run with music but I mixed it up tonight.  I knew running with headphones blasting music wasn't the safest idea for a woman running in the dark.  See, I am smart!!  If only other women could be just as smart!  Anywho, I decided to try listening to a podcast with only one earbud in.  It worked out well.  I could hear everything, which was nothing really.  Nobody is really moving around in my neighborhood at night.

I've never really listened to podcasts before.  Because I'm sure my mom is wondering what that is... a podcast is a digital recording of a show (tv without the screen).  They can be downloaded for free in episodic format.  Ok, lame explanation.  Shows cover ever subject imaginable and run between 30-45 minutes in length.  I decided to stream some shows today through my iPhone as it was dreadfully slow at work and I was sick of everything on the radio.  Basically it plays on speaker phone and it's just like listening to the car radio.  Hands free entertainment!

Pretty much all day I listened to episodes of the Jillian Michaels Podcast.  You know, the screaming, yelling trainer on Biggest Loser?? Yup, that Jillian Michaels.  I found the podcasts highly entertaining and at times very informative.  And it really did help the day go by a little faster.  Hallelujah!

For now though, I'm going to hydrate, shower, and hit the hay!!

Consolidation

The morning didn't turn out quite like I planned.  I had hopes of knocking out an easy 2 or 3 mile run.  But I woke up feeling like crud.  Sore calves (thank you, Tower Trail), a kink in my back, that weird pain in my chest, a stuffy nose, and a scrathy throat kept my hitting the snooze button and avoiding the inevitable moving of limbs that the morning usually requires.

Once I got up and moving, life wasn't so bad.  But it was too late to fit in my run so I settled for a super hot shower in hopes of clearing crud and soothing aches and pains.  Effectiveness was minimal.  Oh well.

While my hair was drying, I took a stroll down memory lane on my Blogger dashboard.  Blogger is the blog publishing tool I use to post/host Brinkley Miles and Co.  I've used Blogger since April 2007 when I started a blog (which shall remain a mystery).  I'm pretty sure the only person I knew in real life that read it was my friend, Heidi.

I had a few posts that became pretty popular.  History geek posts, if you can believe that!  So it got me thinking about how somedays it feels like there is no meat to this blog, other than those that actually include meat from my cooking adventures.

I've decided to work on consolidating old blog posts with this blog.  I have a habit of starting multiple things and having no singular method of doing anything.  So, I'll start fixing that by moving posts over one by one, selectively.  Flashback Fridays perhaps?

Addicted to roasted vegetables?

It was a slow day at work.  I had plenty of time to figure out what I was going to make myself for dinner...roasted vegetables!!  Red potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, yellow pepper, and orange pepper!!  Simple yet so good!  And filling!  I seriously think I'm addicted.

Tomorrow morning I'm planning on making rice in the steamer so it will be ready at dinner time.  What I'll do with it from there I don't know yet.  I may have to search Pinterest for some tasty recipes!

I'm off to take Brinkley for a quick evening walk.  We're going to make a loop or two around the complex before bed.  I think we'll sleep good tonight!

Back to Work Wednesday

We made our monthly trip to DIA this morning.  Brent's back enroute to Alaska.  Boo.  I came home and took Brinkley Miles for a walk.  This was a challenge given the amount of squirrels that were out running around.  I think there was one per tree, which means Brinkley has to stalk each and every squirrel until it runs to the top of its respective tree.

I wish I had one more day off.  I was quite messy over the past few weeks and have piles of clothes strewn about.  I have a half unpacked bag from my running adventure.  And half unpacked box from Sierra Trading Post.  In addition to my Chaco's I also ordered a swimsuit.  Their online sizing was deceiving and I was delivered a size 8.  HA!  It looks like a swimsuit for a Cabbage Patch Doll.  It will be returned soon!

Tuesday Tidbits

Mobile version of Tuesday Tidbits so no bullets.

- Brent and I went hiking today. Almost 3 miles with lots of elevation gain!! I found a great trail to run on!!

- I hit up Sprouts to stock up on veggies for the week!!!

- We went for our first motorcycle ride of the year! Spring - yah!!!

- I got a cheap pair of Chaco sandals from Sierra Trading Post. They are a really pretty blue and super comfortable!! Perfect for the water park.

Daily Dose of Dog

I suppose we should get out of bed and start doing something productive.

Lazy

Lazy sums up the entire day. I watched tv most of the morning with this handsome doggy....



And Brent and I walked to Ace Hardware. I couldn't help stocking up on my patio seeds. I'm going to start some seeds inside tomorrow.



It's a good thing I have lots of dirt and containers on hand! I'm going to do my best with what I've got and day dream about large gardens and chicken coops while doing it.

Running of the Green

It was race day!!!  Last night Brinkley and I packed up after work and headed south to Bryn's house!  Even though we were shorted by an hour of sleep, we got up early and prepared (ate pancakes) for our 7k - 4.34 mile run!

When we arrived downtown it was cloudy out and a little chilly.  By the time the race started the sun was breaking out of the clouds and it turned into a beautiful morning for a run!  This was my first time running the Running of the Green so I was surprised by all of the hills on the course.  We ran right by Coors Field and out to the highway, down and up, down and up.  And then up into a neighborhood and down and over the highway.  And back up over the highway and down and up and down and up toward Coors Field and the finish line.

I found my perfect pace early on and stuck with it the entire time.  I was slow and steady going up the hills and made sure not to overdue it on the way up.  My legs felt great and I didn't once feel out of breath!  It was probably one of my best races ever in terms of strong and steady through the entire thing!






I had a lot of fun!!  And am already looking forward to the next race.  I may find another race locally to run in April.  Bryn and I are planning on running the Bolder  Boulder in May.  I'll need to fit in more longer runs if I expect to run the full 6.2 hilly miles for that race!!

70k Miles

Happy 70,000 miles to my Silver Bullet! It reached this milestone on the highway just outside of Denver, at night, in five lanes of traffic, going 60 mph. Darn right, I took a picture!!

I love my little car. It may not have cruise control, auto windows or locks, or a dashboard in one piece, but it's my little car. And it's paid for with hard earned money! I'm going to drive it until I have to push it. Then I'm going to put out to pasture and plant flowers in it!!

One Track Mind

I was told recently that I have a one-track mind.  I resent that.  My mind is overflowing with randomness.  It's a metropolitan switch yard upstairs.  Things that I've been interested in lately, in no particular order, include...

• Healthy recipes - more specifically, easy healthy recipes.  I've loved eating fresh foods lately and have really enjoyed my roasted vegetable creations.  I'd like to continue to expand my options.  I've spent a lot of time reading recipes and how to cook a whole variety of vegetables!  
• Sign Language - I recently had to make a list of yearly and career goals for work.  One of my aspirations was to become proficient in sign language so that I could be called upon as an interpreter, if needed.  We currently have Spanish speakers but no sign language interpreters.  I'm working through the online lessons at ASLU at Lifeprint.
•  Running - Spring and Summer are coming, which means lots of outdoor running!  My friend Bryn and I have a handful of races scheduled to get us through Spring.  We've got the St. Patrick's Day 4-mile run tomorrow.  The Bolder Boulder run at the end of May.  Six miles!  And the Estes Park 10k in June.  I've got my eye on the Rock 'N Roll Half Marathon in Denver in September.  I've been reading up on muscle recovery and stretching.  I don't want to get injured - I'm on a roll!  Oh, and I've been reading about weightlifting for runners and women.  I'm very intrigued by CrossFit and have looked for ways to incorporate some of the moves (damn you, burpees!) into my workouts.  There's still A LOT to learn.
• Hiking - it's that time of year again.  I've been checking out various hiking blogs to figure out cool new places to visit this summer.  I've still got my eyes on a few 14ers.  But I have to start simple and am checking current conditions at all the local spots - county, state, and national parks.  We've got options, by golly!
• Disney World - it's this small trip we have coming up.  I found a great website that gives photo tips for Disney World.  Some of the locals there go nuts and visit every weekend just to take photos!!  That would be pretty awesome.  I've yet to decide how much of a die-hard photographer I will be on the upcoming vacation.  I'll probably just go straight-up tourist.  
• I've been planning my patio garden for the year.  I think I'm going to try do mostly edible plants on the patio this year.  In the next few days I want to get all of my containers prepped and maybe even plant a few seeds inside.  See bullet point one ... my inspiration for a container garden!
• I've been internet brainstorming for fun Moxon Mondays for the summer.  I've found lots of arts and crafts projects and have a list of places to visit.  We're going to have a blast this summer!!
• Another work related item - I volunteered to be a department photographer of sorts.  I've been reading up on external flash photography, something I don't have any experience with and will need to know.  Sometimes to learn something new and gain experience, you got to stick your neck out there, right?  Yup.  

And those are just a few of the things rolling around upstairs.  There's never a dull moment up there that's for sure!!  More sharing is for another day!

Mid-Week

Oy, middle of the week!!

Brent made grilled chicken and roasted vegetables for dinner.  It was nice to come home to a warm meal, even if I had to beat him over the head and practically beg him to have it ready at 9 when I got home.  Delicious!

Veggies and protein are just what I needed after my morning gym adventure.  I ran one mile and lifted weights like it was going out of style.  And then I ran a half mile to polish it off.  I felt great when I was done!  Endorphin victory!

Tomorrow I'm hoping to catch an easy outdoor run before work if the temperatures aren't too brutal.  I'm crossing my fingers.

Blue Skies and More Pizza

Brink, Brent, and I went on our first hike of the year today!!  It was another beautiful day in Ft. Fun and I was more than ready to get out on a trail and start warming up the hiking boots!  I was even more motivated to hit the trail after receiving an email through work about a group hiking trip scheduled for August 16th up Mount Elbert, the tallest 14er in Colorado.  One way or another I will hike a 14er!!






We decided to hit the Devil's Backbone trailhead and hike the Blue Sky Trail north towards Ft. Fun.  When we first hit the trail we had a nice warm breeze to keep us company.  By the time we turned around at two miles up on the ridge line, the breeze was more of a wind and it was turning cold.

We had some great views of Devil's Backbone and saw some deer along the trail.  I have to give credit where credit is due, Brinkley saw the deer first....loooonnnggg before we did.  He's a smart little chap!  Can you see them?

How about now??

On the way back to the car, Brent started talking about making another pizza for dinner tonight.  I may have created a monster yesterday!  We had leftover sauce so he browned up some Italian flavored deer sausage and made deer and pepperoni pizza with red pepper, onion, and olives!!  It was delicious!!!

Look at that focus!!  (I'm just glad he didn't drop it on the floor!)

I'd ask Brent for the recipe but he never measures anything.  A dash of this, a dab of that.  The dough is a one in a million recipe, never to be recreated!

Homemade Pizza

Brent and I did something we've never done before yesterday ... we made pizza!!!  It was a team effort.  I made the dough, he made the sauce, and we split up topping duties.  For a first attempt, we did pretty darn good!!  We gobbled it right up.  I found the recipes for dough and sauce at Get Off Your Butt and Bake.  I'm sure it won't be the first time we try a recipe from that site.  There are many more that look delicious!




We made pizza after our movie date.  We went to see This Means War finally.  It was a really good movie!  We may have to add it to the collection some day.  We also saw some pretty good previews before the movie.  American Reunion is a must see.  I remember seeing American Pie in the theatre as a senior in high school.  Good times.  I'm more interested in the American Pie reunion than I was in my own high school reunion.  Sad, yes.  If Thomas Ian Nicholas went to my high school, things may have been different.  Ha!

Anywho, I'm off to find something to do before we go hiking today.  The first hike of the season!!  Yah!!

I'm normal!

This just in...I'm normal!!  Barely, but I'll take it.  I completely skipped over the overweight section and didn't even know it!  Now to just start creeping towards 20.

Perfect weather

Two mile run done!!

Hello, weekend!

I welcomed my weekend with a spin on the bike and some burpees!! I'm now showered and plopped in bed watching Friends on Nick at Nite.

Yah!

Rest Day

Today became an involuntary rest day.  I got off work a little late and by the time I got home, I was beat.  Flat beat.  I was glad that I had a nice hot dinner waiting for me in the crock pot.  I tried my hand at deer stew tonight with carrots, potatoes, red onion, and deer!  I added some root beer instead of beef broth and some onion soup mix.  It turned out pretty darn delicious!  It smells weird and looks weird but it tastes great.

I'm kind of thankful for the rest day.  I'm going to bed after eating and watching Blue Bloods.  Depending on how well I sleep, I may try going to the gym before work tomorrow.

Brent's home!!  And he's sleeping.  I tried to get him to wake and partake in the deer stew goodness but he had no interest.

One more day until the weekend!  I think I can, I think I can.