An Engaging Weekend Snapshot

First off, I am SO SORRY that I have been ignoring you guys for the past few days!  I have my very first evaluation at work today, and I have been trying to mentally focus on that, plus other things, including THIS!

Harry proposed to me last Wednesday, which was a little bit of a surprise!  I knew that he was going to pop the question soon, but was all wrong about which day.;) 

In related news, I've been using my left hand A LOT more than usual, i.e. waving someone into traffic.

Friday was a total bore-fest for me at work.  My school was putting on the Winter Assembly, where all of the kids in the school had performances like singing or reciting poems.  This meant that my gym was taken over (they had to put the stage and thousands of chairs somewhere!), so I was stuck in the classroom with my students.  While I had an entertaining and thorough lecture on fitness and skill related components, I wanted my Friday to rock a little bit more, so I cranked up the Netflix for them.  So cut to me...

Bored P.E. teacher.  This gave me time to find ridiculous engagement/wedding-related things on Pinterest.

Later on:  DATE NIGHT!  This was when I had predicted Harry's proposal.  BAH!  Among many things, on our very first date (which was several days long, as I came up from Texas to hang out with the Kid), Harry took me to the Goodman Theater for "A Christmas Carol", as well as the annual comedy show from The Second City.  Harry saw a couple of months ago that the theater and The Second City had teamed up to perform "Twist Your Dickens", where they combined comedy and the beautiful tale.

(So you can see how I'd think that he was getting down on one knee this night, right?  RIGHT?!)

  What we got to sing with the cast at the end of the show.  IT WAS HILARIOUS.

Saturday morning, Harry and I hit up this new spot in our neighborhood.  For one thing, I'm STOKED that a place like this has been introduced to our neighborhood.  While our 'hood is clean and nice, the neighborhood association is trying very hard to make this more of a shopping district.  There are several closed or empty storefronts, so they have a lot of work to do.  This cutting-edge coffee shop could've been placed in trendier neighborhoods, but they put it in ours!  

From their website:

Our Story

Welcome to Berrista, where our beans are magic and flavor is always in season. Berrista is changing the face of coffee and sugar. Berrista is built upon a curious jellybean-shaped fruit called the Miracle Berry, which has the ability to make sour and bitter foods taste sweet.

EXPERIENCE THE FOOD REVOLUTION

What if you could eliminate the sugar from your favorite comfort foods without sacrificing the flavors you love? What if you could alter the taste of your meals so that even the most wholesome dish was as good as dessert? What if the simple solution to years of frustrating health and dieting woes was a small, mild-tasting fruit?

HOW DOES IT WORK?

The Miracle Berry temporarily blocks your ability to taste sour flavors and makes even the most bitter of foods mouthwateringly delicious. This extraordinary fruit allows you to replace the sugar and artificial sweeteners in your favorite recipes with low-glycemic foods such as lemons, limes, vinegar, and sour cream. The Miracle Berry can make anyone’s life just a little bit sweeter.

The future of food is here. We invite you to enjoy your vices.

 

UMMMM...I got a blueberry scone, chicken n' waffles, and Steampunk (with local-ish Intelligista beans) coffee.   Everything in this place is SUGAR-FREE, and DELICIOUS.

Harry and I hit up packet pick-up (with full tummies...ugh), and did some shopping at the cutest grocery shop I've ever been to.  Harry enjoyed their beer selection.  A lot.

The rest of the day was spent on lounging, which the Kid and I both desperately needed.  So much lounging entitles one to delivery for dinner, and sometimes you just need a thin-crust pizza (cut into slices, not squares, thank you very much).

Sunday morning, Harry and I set off for Fleet Feet's Rudolph Ramble 8K.  Neither one of us was trained for a race, so we both ran it easy.  Nonetheless, it was a very fun course, with entertaining, encouraging volunteers and tunes.

We met up with Harry's aunt and her sis-in-law (it was her very first 8K!).

I found out that my new FlipBelt is PER-FECT for races!  I've been using it during training runs, but unless you're wearing a ton of clothes that you need to pack in a bag and gear check, THIS is AWESOME for races!  I stuffed my Jeep keys, my ID and other cards in there (it makes me super nervous leaving that stuff somewhere in my Jeep) and my iPhone (5) in there, and was on my merry way out onto the course.

The clouds started to break up just a little as the race started.

Heading back toward the race start, after ~1.5 miles.

Near mile 4, I spotted this guy.  Gingy.  I had been running really easy up to this point.

I caught up to him!

Annnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnd selfie.

After we finished, we met up at a bar for brunch.  It was fine.:)

Directly afterward, Harry and I met up with Fearless Leader Greg from our running group for a brew at Bad Apple.  It was about 1:00pm at this point.  Harry and I eventually got a little hungry and ordered a burger ("Elvis's Last Supper"...YUMMMMMM!).

We got home and I had to RUSH.  We had company coming over!  Thankfully, I didn't have to cook anything, since we decided to go to the Colombian steakhouse around the corner from our apartment.  It was a great way to end the weekend!

After all of this food, I was ZONKED.  Our company was going to see a concert at the nearby theater, so they left relatively early.  I immediately washed my face, threw on my PJs, and hopped into bed!

Thanks to the wonderful Erin for the link-up!

And of course, all of the above is nothing but marvelous!  Thanks to the lovely Katie!

I hope that you had as glorious a weekend as I did!
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Have you run any holiday-related races lately?

QUICK:  What are you looking forward to on Christmas?!

QUICKER:  Favorite ornament on your Christmas tree, or favorite decoration?

Soggy, Rainy, Frizzy Run

This morning, I joined a small group of ZOOMA ambassadors for a 10-mile training run.  We were slightly worried about the weather, as there was some pretty yucky stuff heading our way.  It turns out that all it did was rain.  But it rained A LOT.  As in BUCKETS.

Universal Sole was happy to have us meet up at their downtown location once again.  There was another (marathon) running group that had taken off about thirty minutes before us that had met up there; there were about 30 backpacks and fitness bags inside the store full of their gear.  This store is very close to an easy access point to the Lakefront Trail, so it's the perfect spot for a meetup, not to mention they're very supportive, leaving Gatorade and water out for everyone.

We head out to the Lakefront Trail (after getting slightly lost), and decided a simple out-and-back would be the best for us.

We really are a wonderful mix of ladies.  All of us at different levels of fitness and life paths.  We found a good pace that fit everyone's needs, especially when it came to running in a monsoon.

Lucky for us, Fleet Feet had set out some aid stations along the lakefront.  Spoiled, again!  We stopped for a refreshment, then head back out.

I sort of felt like doing this at some point...

We turned around well before I took this picture, but I feel bad that I didn't snap a photo of the waves coming from Lake Shore Drive, from people driving through enormous puddles.  Tidal waves would fly up over the barriers between the trail and the road!  I saw only one runner get soaked, but it was entertaining.

Almost there!  The rain was letting up a bit, and there was little wind when that happened.  This made things slightly uncomfortable.  Mmmm...maybe a lot uncomfy.  It felt like I was running in soup.  Then it would start raining again, and it was refreshing as all getout.

We got back to the store and I realized the intensity of my hair.  Was my hair smooth and wet like most of the ladies?  No.  It was frizzed the frick out.  It looked like a bird nest!

And it was not fun to brush out, let me tell you.

I took off shortly after a good stretch.  Turns out, a couple of the girls went out for mimosas.  D'OH!  Perhaps that's something we should do after the ZOOMA Women's race next month.  :)

I saw Harry running around our 'hood as I got close to our house. I waved frantically like an idiot and hollered "HI, HONEY!", as if he could hear me.  Do you ever do this?  o.O  Once Harry got back home and showered up, we had some lunch.  I haven't eaten at Subway in forever.

Then we set off to pick up the Sophs.  We use a sticker (points, if you will) system here at the casa, so she can earn things she wants with good behavior (she can thank my experience in special education for this).  She desperately wanted a Stretchkins, so we had to make that happen.  I'm pretty sure she fell asleep with it.

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Do you like training in the rain?

How is your training going?  Whether it's running, Yoga, hiking, or rollerblading!  Details!

Parents/Friends-who-hang-out-with-kids:  Do you use any kind of reward/reinforcement system?-I learned over the years to keep things as positive as can be, never taking away, and not phrasing goals as "If you don't do this, then...".

Cookies & COSMOS

I soooooooooo meant to update you guys on my weekend yesterday, but work got so nuts that I was too exhausted to do anything when I got home yesterday.  I sat my booty on the couch and totally watched "House, M.D." on Netflix until Harry got home.  :P

We had the Sophs this past weekend, which is usually a good time.  These weekends are always packed with funsies, whether it's a ton of activities at the park, visiting with family, or a dance party and PJ day.   They almost always involve Skookies.

We head right over to Harry's parents' house right after picking her up Saturday.  They were sweet enough to feed us pizza (all three of us were STARVING), and they even let me watch some of the Spurs vs. Mavs game.  Harry and I snuggled up in his Dad's recliner...tightest snuggle ever!

It's always a riot to see what a tomboy Sophia can be.  Taking on a teenage boy (her uncle) is tough!  And as you can see, her main technique of tickling one's feet is to latch on like a howler monkey and never ever letting go.  Not even if you threaten to ground her.  :\

 After some visiting, some pizza, some coloring with Grandma and some near-napping for Harry and I, we head home.  My throat and sinuses were really bugging me, so I hit the sack early (it was 8:45pm or so at this point).  Harry and Sophs stayed up for Skookies, in which I was slightly envious.

I got up the next morning, still suffering from what I'm assuming was sinus blahhhhhh.  I had a 10-mile @ pace on the schedule, but I ended up just taking it easy.  I have the Wisconsin Half Marathon this weekend and didn't want to push anything, especially if I'm on the edge of getting sick.

I also go this e-mail!  SO EXCITING!  

Best believe, I spent most of my long run thinking about all of the amazing athletes and sporty girls with whom I would become besties!  There are a few that live in and around Chicago; I can't wait for a meet-up run or Yoga sesh.

After some breaky, we hit up the park for some kite flying, and then off to Fleet Feet in Old Town to pick up my packet.  Harry wanted to show Sophs the ropes.  This was her first time on a treadmill...I was so proud!

We left Fleet Feet and dropped off Sophs.  We won't see her for a couple of weeks, when she's doing the Run or Dye 5K with us!  She's so excited to do it!

USE DISCOUNT CODE BLOGCHICAGO FOR $10.00 OFF REGISTRATION!  :)

Harry and I usually watch COSMOS on Sunday evenings.  There have been a couple of occasions, like this past weekend, where we were just too doggone tired to watch it without dozing off.  We love the snot out of the show, but the couch is sooooo comfy.  :)  So last night after dinner, we made some dessert and snuggled up for our show.

Cookies and ice cream?  Uh, YES.

One last thing (I promise!):  This week, FitApproach is doing a weekly Yoga challenge on Instagram.  FUNSIES!  I just had to join in!  Go check it out if you have a chance.  :)

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Are you watching COSMOS?  What's your favorite thing about it so far?

-Please don't say the water bear.  Ew.

Parents or peeps who love hanging with kiddos:  What's your favorite activity?

-Sophia LOVES baking with me!  How cool is that?

Any races you have coming up?  How's your training going?