Those were some great questions

Recently, Alyx asked her readers to ask her questions.  The questions she got were pretty dang good.  So good, in fact, that when she responded to them, she also asked the same list of questions to her readers, and created a link-up for it.  I'm a few days late to the party, on this one, but I'm joining in anyway.  So here goes...

 

1)  Where do you like to shop?  Thrift stores whenever possible for everyday clothes.  I LOVE finding something special at a thrift store, and then only having to spend a couple of dollars on it!  It's practically guilt-free, and as long as I keep an active clothing donation pile, Ammon doesn't get mad about it.  For work pants I wear the wide waistband editor pant from Express, and I buy my active wear from Old Navy these days.  And I will forever be a sucker for dresses from Ann Taylor.

 

 Believe it or not, I found this sweater at a thrift store ;)

2)  How do you plan your meals?  I have really been struggling with this lately.  A year ago when I did the Revolt Now! Fitness blogger challenge, I got into the habit of making one lunch and one dinner meal for the whole week.  We still follow this type of approach, but it's getting boring, and I'm running out of things to make that keep well for that long.  Now that I'm settling in to my new job, I'm hoping to devote some extra time to meal planning and execution.

 

 This is fairly representative of the kinds of things that we eat most nights.  Fairly clean, but not very exciting.

3)  Have you ever had a garden?  I tend to help other people keep their gardens.  We have been in rentals that don't have space, or allow for, extensive gardening, and the community plots around here are harder to get your hands on than the British crown jewels.  I do have 8 plants in my office at work, and a lovely collection of aloe plants on my windowsill at home to tide me over.

This plant sits next to me all day, 5 days a week at work.  It went through a rough patch, but is reviving quite nicely.

4)  Do you love getting the mail?  Not really.  Our mailbox is at the far end of the building, behind the dumpsters.  It's actually a little bit of a production for me to go over and get it.

5)  Any fitness app recommendations?  Oh goodness.  I explained my weird love for all of the fitness apps to Alyx the other night.  It's slightly out of control.  Endomondo is my go-to, favorite GPS fitness tracking app, they are droid compatible.  I've been toying around with DailyMile, but don't LOVE it.  I track all my outdoor runs in both Endomondo, and with the tracking app for my Garmin.  And when I want to food journal, I prefer Fitday, which has been around FOREVER, but nobody seems to really know about.  It is much superior to MFP, I know because I've tried them all.

6)  What is the worst book you ever read?  I'm going to possibly get called out for this, but I absolutely, positively, could not stand The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck.  The first half of Sense and Sensibility was positively intolerable, though the second half was probably some of Jane Austen's finest work.  Perks of Being a Wallflower and Gone Girl also really bothered me, and I disliked both of them very, very much.

7)  What food would you never, ever eat?  Blue cheese.  It tastes like band-aids.

8)  How many children do you want?  2 of our own, and then adopt or (maybe) have another of our own.  So 3 total, but probably only 2 biologically.

9)  Name 1 item on your bucket list or life list that you are eager to accomplish:  I am eager to complete all of them, that's why they're on my life list!  But I guess right now the ones that make me most excited are owning a home of our own, having a kiddo, and completing a triathlon.

 

It's Friday, which means that we all are going to be free for 48 hours very soon!  Hooray!!!  I hope that today is awesome for all of you!

Be More Awesome

I sincerely hope that by now, you have all seen Kid President, and that you all feel inspired to be more awesome.  But in the event that you don't believe in the power of YouTube, or you've chosen to live under a rock, please allow me to introduce you.

I am seriously considering watching this every single day for the rest of my life.  So much profound wisdom, all wrapped up in the most adorable of packages.  Because this is life, people.  It's not a game (except that it is).  And it isn't a cereal (except that it also is).

I love this notion of "Be More Awesome".  Maybe not the most grammatically correct sentiment ever, but it resonates in my heart the way that having "one little word" never has.  It lights me up, it gets me excited to go out and live life to the fullest.

So in honor of the "Be More Awesome" movement, I present to you 5 ways to make today more awesome:

1)  Pet a furry mammal, marsupial, or rodent.  Your choice, really, but generally it's a good idea if they happen to be a pet, and not an exotic animal.  Although, your life is pretty dang awesome if you're taking a picture with a Koala, or a baby Panda, or a Tiger.  So strike that, and let's stick with my first impression:  Pet some kind of furry animal.

2)  Buy someone a cupcake.  They are delicious.

3)  Give your favorite person a hug.  Don't let go, even if they tell you that you stink really bad from getting all sweaty while you were running.  They need your sweaty, stinky, loving reassurance.

4)  Go to bed 30 minutes early.  It's like having an extra special nap at the end of the day that nobody can judge you for.  Try it.

5)  Do yoga on your lunch break in your office, and then laugh at people when they walk in and you're in downward facing dog.  Because it's so awkward, it becomes totally awesome.  True story.

I hope that you all go out there and find a way to be more awesome today.  The world needs your awesomeness to shine through in a tremendous way!

You asked

Y'all asked me last week about my experiences with egg donation.  After thinking things over, I have decided to talk about my experiences in a series of vlogs.  Before we venture down this rabbit hole, I ask that we set the following ground rules:

1) If you choose to watch these vlogs, please have an open mind and an open heart.  This is something I feel strongly about, and have received a lot of negativity over.  It's made it harder to share my story, which is sad.  I think this story deserves to be told.

2) If you have questions, ASK!  Some I may feel are too personal or private to answer in a public forum, but I do promise to answer any and all questions to the best of my ability.

3) From what I understand, the treatment plans and processes for egg donors depend on the doctor you work with, and how your body responds to treatments.  Therefore, this is just my story, not what someone going through the egg donation process should necessarily expect.

4) If you have experiences with egg donation, or infertility, I would love to hear your story as well!  Sharing is caring.

Okay, so now that the not so fun stuff is over, here is vlog #1.   Why I decided to donate.

YouTube always picks the worst cover photos for vlogs.  Seriously.  Yikes.

That's all I have for you today... hopefully you all enjoyed!

Well that's scary as heck

I know that I committed to running a full marathon.  But what I did last night positively blew my mind.  I actually registered for said full marathon.

Ho-ly Cow.  There it is, the Denver Rock 'N' Roll marathon.  It will be my flagship marathon, the one by which any others that I ever run will be compared to.

I don't remember being this nervous registering for the GTIS half marathon a year ago, but I probably was.  Regardless of the distance, registering for any event with the word "marathon" in the title is a little bit... intense.

This party is going down on October 19, and we would LOVE for you to join us!  Registration is only $99 through February 28th.  And let's be real... that's dang cheap for a distance running event.  And by we, I mean my childhood friend that I've wrangled into doing this with me, and myself.  I'm estimating a 5 hour, 15 minute full marathon, so obviously we're not going to be out there to qualify for the Boston Marathon.  I'm out there to not die.

And obviously, to eat and drink ALL OF THE THINGS as soon as I cross the finish line.

What have you done lately that scares the ever loving poop out of you?

Monday you sly fox

How in the wide world of sports is it Monday already?  Sheesh.  I don't need a 3 day weekend every weekend or anything, but I do strongly prefer it when the work week does not sneak up on me like it did this time.  

Oh, weekend... you started off not so promisingly, and ended up... not so promisingly.  I want a mulligan on you, and to do you over better.  Friday I woke up to horrible back pain that had me reaching for the pain killers I keep in my desk for my coworkers.  Unfortunately, they didn't quite do the trick, and I was in bed by 8:30pm Friday night.  Which is, apparently, my new Friday night bedtime, since I've been crashed out in bed by 8:30 on the last 3 consecutive Friday nights.

 

Saturday, Gunner and I both had massages.  Well, I had a massage, and Gunner had Tellington Therapeutic touch. TTouch as it's called for short is used to help correct issues and imbalances that animals may have.  Gunner has a lot of weird quirks as a rescue dog now living in his third (and FINAL) adoptive home.  He has crazy anxiety that we have been working through.  The TTouch does a WORLD of good for our favorite chocolate lab, and I can not say enough good things about it.  But it isn't cheap, and it feels a little silly that we take our dog for periodic massages.  Luckily, our trainer is teaching me some basics that I can use on Gunner at home on a daily basis, in order to keep our costs down.

After our trip to Gunner's doggy spa, Ammon and I had a brief lunch date at Chipotle before we came back home for my massage.  The best thing that has ever happened to my stress levels is having a massage therapist who comes to my house.  Driving to and from a massage is always the worst, because you're too tense from other people being stupid to fully relax and enjoy your hour of relaxation.  My back finally started working much better again after the massage.  I had a long run scheduled for Saturday that ended up moving to Sunday, because of those back problems.  Thankfully, a massage was scheduled in the first place, otherwise there might have been some real problems.

On Sunday, I realized why blogging has been one of the best things that has ever happened to me.  You may or may not know it, but that half marathon that I'm doing in May?  I'm actually doing it with Alyx, who is pretty much the coolest young mom I've ever met.

If it weren't for blogging, I never would have met her.  I sure as heck never would have driven in rush hour traffic on a Friday to hang out at an airport with her.  But I did meet her through blogging, and then I did meet her in real life a few weeks ago.  And we did sign up to run 13.1 miles together in Lincoln, NE on May 4th.  Because we're super awesome like that.

We also agreed to help each other stay on top of our training runs.  Pushing the button to register for a big event may be 60% of the battle, but actually showing up to said event prepared for it is another story.  We are both dedicated to rocking the shit out of this half marathon, and making sure that we BOTH succeed at meeting our goals.

So come Sunday afternoon, when I just wanted to take a nap, and my boobs hurt, and my period had just started, and it was only 36 degrees outside, I texted Alyx and asked her for a little pep talk.  And she totally came through for me, reminding me that I just needed to do it, and then I could feel better about eating chocolate afterwards.  It was a little silly, but it was exactly what I needed to push me in the direction of putting on my most supportive sports bra, pulling on my compression socks, lacing up my shoes, and heading out for those 5 long miles.

She also followed up later to see how my run went.  If that isn't a true testament of the caliber of blogging friendships, I don't know what is. 

It didn't matter that my weekend went too fast, or that I was hurting for all of it, or even that I spent those 2 days in a hormonally induced firestorm of emotions.  It reminded me that friendships are special, and that there are amazing people in my life who can lift me up, even when I am flat like a pancake on the ground.

I hope that you have a fantastic Monday!

Thursday Thoughts

On Thursdays, I think about how awesome my dog and cat have it.  Gunner forcibly moved me off the couch last night, because I was in the spot he wanted to pass out in.  AND I LET HIM.  And really, I think it's adorable when my animals pass out anywhere, because it means that they are not terrorizing me for at least 5 minutes.

On Thursdays, I continue to ponder the perfection of this sign along the bike path near my work.  I ran on my lunch break yesterday, which I've never done before, and it was on that run that I found this sign.  I think this sign created some sort of magic for me, because despite the brutal wind, despite how hard it felt, I got back to the office feeling beyond fantastic.  And those good feelings held for the rest of my day.

On Thursdays I ponder how cool it is to swab your cheeks and register to be a bone marrow/blood stem cell donor.  Ammon thinks I have some strange obsession with giving up my genetic material, given I donated my eggs.  I had to pause at that, because he could be right.  However, I like to hope that it's just that people have really sad stories, and I like to help people find a happy ending.  I also ponder how PMS has brought me the world's most giant zit on my cheek.  Worst place for a zit ever.

I want to say yes more

I made Ammon take me to get cupcakes last night.  Yup.  I was off for President's day, and managed to do an hour of yin yoga, walk for coffee with a friend, and go for my regularly scheduled run, so I felt like I deserved the treat.  I am a big fan of cupcakes.  It doesn't matter what kind they are, even the grocery store cupcakes with rainbow frosting and plastic rings on top will make me ridiculously happy every single time.  And really, I believe in full-sized cupcakes.  But Ammon, being the wise voice of reason, is almost always able to talk me down to minis, to the point where I know to not push my luck, and just order the pint-sized treats if they're available.

Those perfect little sweets got me thinking about what I really want to get out of this body of mine in the life that I'm allotted (I'm still on that philosophical bent after yesterday's yoga, apparently).  At one point not too long ago, I really wanted to have a 6-pack.  To have bikini bridges, and thigh gap, and the most perfectly bikini-ready booty my husband has ever seen.  Those goals helped me stay fit and motivated up until our wedding day, and for that, I am so glad.  But I realized that baked chicken and spinach salads do NOT make this girl happy.  That these goals were going to be incredibly challenging to meet, and that the journey to getting there may overshadow the rewards of the end result.  I want to enjoy my life with this body, not simply make a body I enjoy with my life.  And that left me re-evaluating over and over what I really think is important, and what goals are worth pursuing.  What goals will leave me with incredible, life-shaping experiences, and joy and contentment.

That train of thought led me to pondering a concept that has always been a challenge for me:  moderation.  I hear the word thrown around a lot, but I'm not sure that it's an easily understood concept, or one that many people actually find easy to follow.  I know that for me personally, these are huge challenges.  However, I want to say yes to all of the things.  Yes to 8 hours of sleep a night.  Yes to 30-60 minutes of moderate intensity exercise most days.  Yes to fruit.  Yes to cupcakes.  Yes to beer.  Yes to spontaneous dance parties.  Heck yes to carbs. 

Essentially, I want to get as much out of this life as I can possibly squeeze out of it.  I watched an incredible documentary about 4 guys who traveled all over the world riding their bikes, meeting people, and just enjoying all of the things.  At one point, they're talking to a local, who shares with them that the time is much later than they thought, and they still had to travel at least another hour.  Two of the cyclists had a pretty profound conversation after this brief exchange with the local about time.  One of the men shared that he believes that time is a construct humans create in order to prove that their lives are being passed.  But when you are out living your life, time becomes ephemeral, and matters much less.  What a way to live, right?  Where time doesn't matter, because what is more important are the experiences that we pick up along the way.

What have you been saying yes to lately?  What have you been dying to say yes to that you have denied yourself for too long?  What does your healthy life look like?

Thoughts from the mat

I have been really into Yin Yoga lately.  It's a style of yoga that has had my heart for years now, but that I have never made a priority.  I love that it encourages letting go, surrendering, and coaxing the body into remarkable progress and healing.  I simply adore the feeling of knowing that whatever my body is capable of in that moment, it is enough, and it is doing good.  So often with running, or lifting, or a myriad of other activities, I simply do not feel that I am doing enough to bring about positive benefits.  It seems like you always have to push just **that much**beyond what you are already doing in order to see real and substantial progress.

I feel like a failure an awful lot in my health and fitness journey.  I didn't get in enough workouts, I felt fatigued, I just didn't push as hard as I should have.  All of this negativity creeps in, and suddenly, the fact that health and fitness is a process, a gradual and eventual set of steps that opens up a world of possibilities feels instead like an end result.  In practicing yin yoga, I remember that health and fitness are the tools by which I am able to live my life and my dreams more fully.  I remember that even doing one or two good things for myself is infinitely better that ignoring that which my body truly needs.

As I collapse further into poses, and mindfully control my breathing, I realize that not all exercise has to be full-out in order to benefit me.  That in our Insanity, T25, P90X culture, we are constantly trying to speed up processes that deserve time, and patience, and constance, and devotion.  There is a place for the fast and furious; there is also a place for the stillness, and looking within.  I am able to take the time in poses to realize that every body is different, and must take a different path.  I may wish that I could walk the "results in 90 days" path, but as many times as I have tried, I have experienced pain, exhaustion, failure, and injury.

I always walk away from these quiet yin yoga sessions with a new found perspective and understanding of what it is that I ask of my body, and what I must be willing to do in order to meet my aims.  My body is one that enjoys the slow, methodical, small, hard-fought gains.  There is a reason why I always gravitate back towards my yoga mat, regardless of how far I might stray.  It's because it works for me, in a way that little else does.   And it teaches me about myself, in a gentle, forgiving, light-hearted way, reminding me that self betterment is not something that happens in a day, a week, or even a year.  It is something that takes lifetimes to achieve.

It's called a bed for a reason

I just now made the decision to write a blog post, and publish it immediately.  On a Saturday, a day I almost never post.  Because lately I've thought about following self imposed blogging "rules" instead of sharing my thoughts and my heart, when those thoughts happen.  If I can't let those thoughts sit for a few days, I don't publish them.  This is about the things happening right here, right now.

Today I passed on my run, and instead said pass the epsom salts.  It was the 2nd time this week that I passed on a scheduled workout, and I don't really feel good about it.  However, my exhaustion has been ridiculous.  When I ran last night, I could barely keep up with the treadmill at 6.0mph, and had to drop down to a 5.5.  I had hoped to run around the lake today, and take it easy, but the temperature dropped about 15 degrees unexpectedly, and suddenly, it was below my minimum running temp threshold.  We did go for a walk in the middle of the day, but I just needed to admit to y'all, that, despite my good workout intentions and dedication, sometimes it just doesn't happen.

 

 True life:  The cat passed out on our treadmill last night, and it was the cutest thing I've ever seen.  I feel this way all of the time when I think about running inside.  I mean, it's called the bed of a treadmill for a reason.

And along that vein, the date for the marathon I had planned to run in September was announced, and it was announced for 3 weeks later than I had anticipated.  This would be no big deal, except that I had planned to run this race with a friend, and she will be out of the country during that time.  I'm not really sure that I'm mentally prepared to sign up for a FULL MARATHON without knowing someone else is suffering with me, so now I'm seeking alternate races during a time when she won't be out of the country.  We'll see what happens, but I'm getting the sinking feeling that I may be on my own in completing my marathon goal.  If anyone might potentially be interested in doing a marathon with me on either September 22 or October 5 in Colorado, PLEASE let me know.  I will love you long time.

We passed out at 8:30 last night with all of the lights on, and without locking the front door, or take the dog for his last walk of the night.  Next thing we knew, it was 3am.  Whoops.  Ammon took the dog for a walk, I brushed my teeth, and we passed out again.  We haven't felt quite right for a few days, obviously.  I'm really hoping we revive between now and tomorrow morning, because we are headed up the mountain for skiing ridiculously early in the morning.  And by ridiculously early, I mean that we have to leave the house no later than 6:30am.  I agreed to help my mom out with some Admin work in the non-profit that my family has been involved with for the last 18 years. I do 4-5 hours of volunteering, and get to also do 4-5 hours of skiing.  Fo' free.  If that isn't a sweet gig, I don't know what is.  

 

So before long, I'm going to throw back a melatonin and pass the eff out so that the 5:30am alarm clock doesn't hurt quite so bad.  Because let's face it, even well rested, 5:30am just plain sucks.  

Hope that you all have a fantastic night, you beautiful people, you.

Workouts lately

This is probably the longest week ever, and as I write this, it's only Tuesday.  Seriously.  However, it's been a while since I've talked about what my workouts are looking like, so I thought I would come by and tell you about it.  Don't worry, it has nothing to do with the fact that I left one of my textbooks at work and can't do homework, or that our Apple TV is refusing to stream Vampire Diaries right now.  Zero correlation there.

 

 Sheldon Cooper and Ammon say Bazinga.

On Mondays, I can literally conquer the world.  I love Mondays, and all of that fresh start bringing that they have going on.  I can get things done at work, our Monday afternoon staff meeting involves laughing for approximately 64.8% of the time, and the traffic on the drive home is minimal.  Therefore, I easily have the time and energy to get in my scheduled workout, which is a run/walk session.  This has been on the treadmill, because Colorado has officially entered an ice age.  This week's Monday workout was 40 minutes long, alternating 3 minutes of jogging with 2 minutes of walking.  At the end of it, I had gone 3.56 miles.  And truly, I felt like I belonged on the cover of a comic book or something.

Tuesday seems to have become my new designated rest [from working out] day.  I just cannot seem to bring myself to work out on Tuesdays.  I think this has a lot to do with my school schedule, and that I have homework due for 2 different classes every Wednesday.  Hard to get in a workout when you're furiously trying to finish assignments.  Also hard to get a workout in when you're trying not to bash in your computer screen.  But doesn't screaming count as a WORKOUT?  If I'm on the cover of a comic book on Mondays, then on Tuesdays they're putting my picture on a Milk carton.  Except, they totally don't do that anymore.  But you get what I'm saying, right?  So the scheduled Cross Training gets pushed back.

Wednesdays have a lot of pressure to redeem Tuesdays.  And a good amount of the time, they succeed.  In the event they succeed, I get in a workout, either another run/walk, or Cross Training, depending on how much redemption occurred.  Running is for fantabulous days, and yoga is for mediocre days.  Last week I took 2 days off in a row, and just didn't give a flip. 

Thursdays are my "just suck it up and get it done" days.  I will do the opposite workout of whatever happened on my last workout day, whenever that happened to be.  I've been really loving yoga as cross training lately, and particularly styles that emphasize holding poses for a while.  It's really helping my hips and glutes to open up.  Some weeks, Thursday has been rest day #2, but only if I work out on Wednesdays.

Fridays are always the day that I hope to make a rest day, but it almost never happens, because Tuesdays and Thursdays steal that glory.  So instead, I usually get in a run/walk after work, because it seems hard for me to get 2 in during the week before Friday.

My workout plan calls for Sundays to be a rest day, but as you can tell, I tend to take weekday rest days, and work out on the weekends.  I really actually prefer this, because I have more time, and don't feel rushed.  One day on the weekend I will cross train, either by taking Gunner for a walk, or doing yoga (again).  The other day I will do my "long" run/walk for the week.  Right now that means 4 miles, but it'll be ramping up pretty seriously before I even know what's going on.

We take our Saturday walks seriously.

And that's it, really.  It's kind of all over the place, but the goal is 3 runs a week, and 2 cross training days.  In 2 weeks it will increase to 4 runs a week, and 2 cross training days, and stay that way through the summer.  I don't believe in hard and fast rest days, but what my body is feeling like it needs most.  And hey, if that's a hot bath and wine, then I guess I'll just suffer the consequences ;).

What does your week in workouts look like?  Do you have hard and fast rest days, or do you go with the flow?

Be at peace

On Saturday, just 2 minutes after a highly effective yoga session, I got a call from my dad.  My dad almost never calls me unless there is a problem.  And sadly, this time was no different.

 

 I was blessed to have spent my college years living very near to my Grandmother's older sister and brother and their families.  These were people that I had previously not gotten to know.  It was an opportunity that allowed my family to reunite and draw near to one another again.  It was a beautiful gift that we were all given.

 

Many of those people that I met and grew to treasure are no longer with us.  And on Saturday afternoon, my dad was calling to let me know that my sweet, loving Great Uncle George was in the hospital and under comfort measures.  Apparently, he developed a leaking aortic aneurysm.  When he regained lucidity, he expressed his wish to not fight any longer.  At 92 years old, I wholeheartedly believe that he earned the right to make that choice.  My dad explained that he was no longer taking any fluids, and that nobody expected the ordeal to last very long.

And Sunday evening, my mom called to let me know that my Great Uncle had passed that morning.  I had spent some time looking through family photos taken over the last decade of my Grandmother with her siblings, and then just her siblings with my dad and the others of his generation.  My Great Uncle was the middle child, and I ache for my Aunt Deedee, the oldest of the three, and the only one remaining.  I feel sad that my future children will never meet their Great Grandmother, or her brother, and feel their immense, undeniably unconditional love. 

I wish that I could have made the time and found the funds to drag Ammon bodily out to Indiana/Ohio so that he could at least meet my Great Aunt and Uncle, given that my Grandmother passed soon after the two of us even met.  She would have liked to know that her big brother and sister (they are the two in the above picture) had given my main squeeze the stamp of approval.

So to my dear Uncle George:  I love you so, so much.  The way that you loved your wife and your family set a true example to me of what kind of man I should seek for a future mate.  I am glad I got to meet you, and spend time with you.  I am so sorry I didn't make more time.  I know that you are at peace, and for that I am truly filled with gratitude.  I have missed you every day for a long while now, but now it will be in a different way.  Give Aunt Billie and my Grandma some extra hugs when you see them for me, okay?

We have some wacky weekends

It was a pretty wacky weekend, y'all.  I don't generally buy into the concept of doing weekend updates, but I just feel like it's necessary this week for the simple fact that talking about my weekend is easier than talking about the other topics rolling around in my mind.

We started off our wild and wacky weekend by staying in Friday night and eating baked apples with fake ice cream and watching Arrested Development.  Oh, and passing out by 9pm.  Outrageousness at its sheer finest.

It felt really good to get to sleep as long as I wanted.  Sleeping in is a thing of the past now that

we have a dog and a cat who have basic needs.  Not surprisingly, I was up before the butt-crack of dawn Saturday morning for some puppy snuggles.

Amidst all of the puppy snuggles, I was furiously trying to find a place to get a decent haircut and set of highlights on short notice for crazy cheap.  My hair is... challenging on the best of days, so finding someone I'm willing to let cut it is difficult.  I've had good luck at beauty schools in the past, so I decided to give it another shot.  I called the local school, and sure enough they told me they could squeeze me in within an hour and a half.  And just a few hours later, I left looking like this:

The blonde is back, y'all, and I'm so happy about it.  Also, I had them re-create one of my most favorite haircuts of all time, and that's awesome too.  I've gotta say, as much as I loved having really short hair, I'm enjoying the growing out process immensely.

getting my hairs all gussied up was followed by some yoga, drinks with a friend I hadn't seen in 7 months, and a late night stop to Village Inn so that my husband could offset the beers he'd consumed with some high quality breakfast. 

Sunday was pretty much a waste of a day.  Sleep didn't really happen after our late night out, and I was up at 6:30 with the dog.  Laundry was done, blogs were read, and I pounded my head against my desktop computer over stupid homework for a stupid class that I am really hating as of late.  Oh, and it snowed again, so any chances of running outside (what I wanted to do most), were shot.  And truth be told, I was too tired to really make running 4 miles happen anyway, and I totally slacked on my workouts for the week.  Whoops.  Just going to have to do better this week with that, I suppose.

I thought the hoarfrost on this tree looked cool yesterday as I was doing laundry.  Don't you?

That was pretty much it for the weekend.  Like I said, totally wacky and wild, right?  This week, I'm really hoping to not be so drained from work and school, so that I can actually get around to doing my workouts as they are scheduled.  I'm also hoping that the weather will clear up enough that I can run outside at least once.  The treadmill is eating away at my soul.

How was your weekend?  Anything crazy or fun happen?

Just a quick hello

I just wanted to pop in really quick on this absurdly cold Thursday to say hello.  I've been absent a lot here lately, and that's because of all of the changes in our life lately.  My new job has new hours, I'm back in school for the semester, and the weather has nearly doubled my daily commute.  And while I've had a lot to say, I've found myself at a loss every time I've gone to write a word. 

Google wanted to make sure you knew that it was snowing when I took this picture last weekend.

I also thought I should mention that working in Accounting is just about the greatest thing in the WORLD for me.  My phone never rings, I have an office to myself, and I get to make numbers add up and match all day long.  If that isn't workday paradise, I truly don't know what is.  Oh, and the people in my new department are crazy awesome, and don't seem to mind helping me through my learning curve. 

And so that's all the time I have for today.  I do miss you all.  A lot.  I haven't forgotten about you, or the great comments you've left lately.  I do cherish them, and I thank you for leaving them.  You all truly make my day every time you take a moment to say hello!