The Longest Week Ever

Last week felt longer than the entire month of January for me. So while I'm absolutely shocked that February starts tomorrow, I'm looking back on things that happened last weekend and genuinely feeling like they were 3 or 4 weeks ago. Does anyone else ever feel like that?
Last weekend was actually fairly lousy. I ran 20 miles last Saturday (the longest run in my marathon training plan) but hurt my foot in the process. That Sunday, I somehow lost the sapphire necklace that my darling fiance gave me for our anniversary this year. At the beginning of the week, I found out about a bunch of significant changes that are taking place at my work as well. Without getting into a ton of detail- these changes are likely good ones, but it's going to be an adjustment. (And we all know how I feel about change in general! It keeps me up at night, to say the least.) The rest of the week was better, but I had to fly to Houston for work, which is always pretty tiring, and I spent the week feeling really frustrated by my foot, which definitely didn't love all the walking through airports I did!
I thought that the foot situation was looking up and I ran 9 miles yesterday without too much pain and I felt pretty positive that I'll be able to do 26 miles by Feb. 13. Then, of course, my house attacked me. Somehow in the process of me closing the door to my porch, the big glass doorknob fell off the door and landed right on the joint of my big toe. I've got a lovely bruise and my foot hurts quite a bit when I walk on it too much (3 cheers for my desk job!)- I'm guessing the run and the doorknob are equal partners in that pain. I'm curious to see how painful it will be tomorrow.
For the record, I still think that I'll be able to run the marathon, but I'm also thinking that my foot isn't going to feel very good afterward.
Of course, there's been plenty of things to enjoy about the past week or so as well. I've had a lot of fun with my friends, my darling fiance is finally done traveling for med school, and we've gotten a ton of work done on the honeymoon planning front. I only have 2 hotels left to book! (I still have to figure out bus tickets and decide about things to see and places to eat, but I feel better having an itinerary and places to stay lined up!) We're also close to finalizing our wedding food, and have selected the attire for the groomsmen and our wedding rings!
I've also started brushing up on my Spanish using the Rosetta Stone. I did the first lesson of level 1 last night and while it's a little easy for me, I think it's a good idea to start from the beginning. I'll try to do a review of the program after I've worked my way through it. My thoughts for now are that it's pretty engaging and very visual (I matched individual words and phrases that were printed on the screen and read aloud to pictures), but I'm confused about why the Rosetta Stone thinks that I need to learn the work for "elephant." (It's elefante.)

How was your weekend?

Race Update

Sorry for the long absence! I don't really have a ton to say, but I did want to write a quick update on my race plans. I've decided to skip the Gulf Coast Half Marathon on Oct. 10 and run the Jazz Half Marathon on Oct. 30 instead. I've made this decision for several reasons. First of all, both my 9 mile and my 10 mile long runs were bad. I expected the 9 miler to be bad because I ran a tough race the day before (but felt like I needed to stick to my training plan anyway) but the 10 miler took me by surprise. Let's put it this way: it was so bad that it was actually a 9.5 miler. Basically, it was insanely hot which took me by surprise (since it's cooled down a little bit here at least) and around mile 6 I stepped in a puddle and spent the next 3.5 miles rubbing the skin off my feet. So when I hit my door and realized I'd only gone 9.5 miles, I decided to call it a day. And we won't even talk about time.
My next reason is that my running buddy Margee hurt her foot and doesn't feel confident that she'll be well in time for the Gulf Coast Half Marathon.
And finally, the Jazz Half is $10 cheaper until the end of the month!
After Margee and I talked it over this weekend, I felt like a weight had been lifted off my shoulders and I went out and ran the best 6 miles (it was a "short" long run week) I've run in a long time. (It was also pretty cool Sunday evening, which had to have helped!)
The good run plus the extra training time is making me feel much less worried! I don't really pressure myself to race at a certain pace, but I don't want to get out there and do really poorly compared to my half last year, which is what I think would have happened had I raced on Oct. 10.
In other news, I discovered an awesome oatmeal topping this morning! Unsweetened apple sauce and walnuts- give it a try!!

Birthday Recap Part I: Karaoke

This weekend has been very nice. I haven't really done much at all since I've been recuperating from a cold. I'm feeling 100% better, but I still don't have any energy in the evenings. Last night I went to dinner with my house guests, then went home and was in bed by 10, while they went out and painted the town.
I got up bright and early and met Grace for a run- which was a lot of fun. I don't normally have company on my long runs, but I found that the 8 miles really flew by this time. So thanks for the company, Grace! After that I went to the Farmer's Market, took a 2 hour nap (I'm such a granny), spent some time with my house guests on the levee, and got groceries. Now I'm just relaxing and looking forward to another quiet night in.
Tomorrow I'm going to Gulfport to visit my parents. I've requested BBQ chicken for lunch specifically so I will have an excuse to make another batch of cilantro lime slaw. I actually made some for dinner tonight as well and had it with sauteed shrimp, salsa, and corn tortillas. Drool.
I know I've promised y'all a post about my birthday trip, and I think the best thing to do is to split my post into a few parts. First, I have to blog about Karaoke.
Last Friday, 7 of my girlfriends met me at Little Tokyo Uptown, where I had reserved a small Karaoke room. My friend Steph had the genius idea to bring costumes, so we shut the door, closed all the blinds, and spent the next 3 hours making absolute fools of ourselves. It was wonderful. We sang at the top of our lungs, danced around, jumped on the couches, and totally let loose. It reminded me of nothing so much as going to slumber parties when I was 14. It was excellent girly fun and I totally want to do it again. My one caveat is this: no matter how tempted you are, it is inadvisable to head-bang during Bohemian Rhapsody. My neck hurt for the next two days!
Of course we took a lot of really funny pictures and I can't resist sharing a few!

Why yes, that is a chicken hat.

It's not a birthday party until at least one of your friends ends up looking like a Muppet.
Party on,Garth. Party on, Wayne.
Have you ever done Karaoke? If so, what's your favorite song? I like to sing Jose Cuervo by Shelly West. :)

And stay tuned for Part II of my birthday recap!

Half Mary's

I just worked out my training schedule for this fall. There are 3 half marathons I want to run: one on Oct. 10, one on Oct. 30, and one on Nov. 27. I finished my first long run (6 miles) this morning and if I follow my schedule, I will make it up to 11 miles before I taper down to 6 the week before the first race. (I ran up to 12 miles before my half marathon last Nov. and did well, and Hal Higdon only takes you up to 10 miles prior to a race, so I think having 11 as my longest long run will be okay.) My challenge is figuring out how far I should run during the 2 weeks between the first and second race, and then in the month between the second and 3rd race.

Does anyone have an experience in making a training schedule for multiple races? Should I just skip the second race and only do the first and 3rd?

I had a really great run this morning, when I was expecting to have a lousy run, so I'm really happy right now. It's really easy for me to forget why I run and kind of dread it when the weather is as hot as it is now. However, after my run, I was happily showering and thinking of all the reasons I run.

I run because it makes me happy- There's no negative emotion that can stick with me after a mile or two.
I run because it makes me feel strong.
I run because I get to eat to fuel my runs. (And we all know how much I love to eat!)
I run because it's good for me- body and mind, the health benefits are amazing.
I run because I like to race- the energy of a crowd at race day is amazing to me. (I race with a big grin on my face because I'm happy to be out there.)
I run because I can- I am reminded with every run how blessed I am to have a healthy body that can carry me places.

Why do you do the things you love to do?

Run for Home

I didn't do very much this weekend. I planned to be productive on Friday afternoon until my darling fiance decided to make mint juleps at 4pm. Of course, he didn't have any mint, so we ended up sipping a combination of bourbon, simple syrup, and peppermint schnapps which was surprisingly tasty. We ended up having dinner at Ciro's Cote Sud- a little neighborhood french restaurant on Maple St. that I love. (And if you live in the area, they deliver!!) I almost always get their pate plate, but this time I had a bowl of french onion soup and the duck confit salad. I also split a tart tatin with my darling fiance for dessert.
On Saturday, we woke up prior to the crack of dawn because we were running the Run for Home 5K at Zephyr field in Metairie. Since I didn't pick up our race numbers on Friday evening (due to the "mint juleps" and the fact that I would have had to drive out there from my house at 5:30 pm), we got to the ball park around 6:45 because we thought there would be a line of people waiting to get their numbers. We were wrong. There were only about 50 runners in the race and we could have gotten there at 7:30 and been fine.
The run itself was nice- it mainly consisted of loops around a running trail that circled the ball park and Lafreniere park which is next to it. The weather, however, was pretty unpleasant. It was 80 degrees at 6am and incredibly humid- this did not change by the time the race started at 8. The only good thing was that it was really windy. Running into a headwind isn't great for time, but it did help to cool me off a little. We both did pretty well at the race and technically PR'd- my darling fiance's time was 27:10 and mine was 27:12. (I haven't run a 5 or 10 K race since last spring when I was just getting started, so it's not hard for me to PR this year. If I PR at any races next year, then I'll be excited- haha!)
The best thing about the race, though, was that it was an absolute bargain. For a $25 entry fee (proceeds going to Lighthouse for the Blind) you got a race T-shirt (which was actually pretty cute), 2 baseball tickets to a Zephyr's game, and entry into the raffle at the end of the race. They raffled off a ton of stuff and since it was a small race- the chances were really good. I won a gift certificate to Mr. Ed's Restaurant (And trust, me, I never win anything). I've never been there so I am excited to try them out! :)
I spent the rest of the weekend pretty much being lazy. I took a nap when I got home, then made pizza for dinner (I swear by the pizza dough you can pick up at Whole Foods- so good!). I did half spinach and goat cheese, half mozzarella, basil and prosciutto, and cracked an egg in the middle. I really prefer homemade pizza now because I love coming up with creative toppings. A few weeks ago I did tomato sauce, spinach, thinly sliced yellow squash and hunks of mozzarella and loved it!
After dinner, we remember that it was Free Comic Book Day and decided to take advantage of it by going to Crescent City Comics. We ended up getting some free comic books and buying a couple of other ones. The guys at the Crescent City Comics also gave us some free beer and had queso dip from Sarita's for people to try. It was excellent but extremely spicy. After that, we went home and sat on our porch and read comic books for the rest of the night.
On Sunday, we pretty much sat around the house all day and worked on our wedding website. It's almost done- thanks to my darling fiance who did *tons* of work on it! It has to be ready for when we send out our Save the Dates- but that still gives us some time because although we got them yesterday, I still have to address them all!
I actually really enjoyed the fact that I didn't really do that much this weekend. It's nice to stay home and I found myself on Monday wishing I had another day to hibernate.

Classic

So many recaps, so little time!
I also wanted to post about the Crescent City Classic on Sunday. I love the Classic for several reasons. First, it was my first race- which means that it's been a year since I've been racing! I'm so happy to have found such a wonderful and healthy hobby! Secondly, the Classic is, in my opinion, the perfect length at the perfect time of year in New Orleans. 10K in April is just about ideal for a good fun run for me. And finally, the Classic is a really fun race. Lots of people wear costumes, there is a brass band playing at the halfway point, and spectators hand out all sorts of stuff- like mimosas, jello shots, bananas, and donuts!
I did not choose to dress up this year, but my darling fiance did. He wore cut off denim shorts and a sleeveless Jimmy Buffet t-shirt. And he beat me by a full minute! He walked around the rest of the day declaring denim the original Under Armor.
I was really proud of both our times because we each knocked 5 minutes off of our times from last year. I ran it in 57 minutes! :)
Of course, now that the Classic is over, I've identified a bunch of races that I want to run this year. Here, in chronological order, are the races I've found thus far that I want to run-

Run for Home 5K
Greekfest 5K
Forge Racing Spring Trail Series
Spillway Classic
Gulf Coast Half Marathon
Jazz Half Marathon
Stennis Half Marathon

Confessions

So I failed to eat at least 5 servings of vegetables three times last week. (And once, already, this week.) So what have we learned? Mainly that I suck at eating veggies during the weekend. The only time I slipped up during the week, I actually ate 4 servings of vegetables, so at least I was close. My weekend servings (I messed up last Sunday, this past Saturday, and this Sunday) were a lot lower (think 2). I do eat vegetables at dinner, but I am 100% more likely to eat a sandwich or an egg and call it lunch on the weekend. I don't really plan ahead for my meal on the weekend and I also am prone to eating a big meal out, then eating like a bird the rest of the weekend because I am full. I also tend to shop on Sundays so by Saturday, even if I *should* down a green monster to make up my veggies- I'm often out of spinach. Never fear, the challenge is still on, and I am still maintaining my spreadsheet. However, I need to have a plan in place to get my veggies on the weekends! I'll let you know when I think of something! :)
The good news is that fitness wise, last week outstanding! I worked out a total of 5 times- 2 days of weight lifting, 1 day on the treadmill (at 15% incline and 4 Km/hr pace- try it, you'll like it!) and 2 runs!!!! It feels so good to be active again!
My runs were great, especially my 4 mile run on Sunday. I was feeling kind of anxious about it since I had a pretty hard time on my runs last week, but I told myself to just get out there and run around the park. It didn't matter how long it took or if I needed to walk- all I had to do was go outside, enjoy the weather, run to the park, run the loop around the park, and come home. Ultimately, I didn't walk at all, and even though I didn't push myself, my pace was 9:20- not bad! The best part was that I had a great time. I literally had a smile on my face for the entire run! It was wonderful and gave me a lot of much needed confidence. The Crescent City Classic is on April 3, and I do feel like I'll be ready in time. (Also, a note to people who want to run this race- tickets are $25 until March 15- after that, they are $30.)
This weekend was very nice all around. Of course, the gorgeous weather put me in a wonderful mood! On Friday, I ran errands after work, then ran 3 miles. That evening, we went to a friend's house for dinner. I brought this Kale Slaw (with buttermilk blue cheese dressing and walnuts) that was a big hit. (Now I just need to decide what to do with the leftover buttermilk I have- cornbread, perhaps?)
On Saturday, I had brunch at the Ruby Slipper with some of my sorority sisters (we're active in our local alumni club), went to the mall for a watch battery (and ended up buying a shirt for myself, and one for my darling fiance), got my hair cut and colored, and took my darling fiance to Squeal to have some yummy BBQ for dinner.
On Sunday, I spent most of the day cleaning our house (aka up to my neck in pet hair), but I did manage to get groceries and go for the 4 mile run I wrote about above. I also went to my friend Ashley's house to watch the Oscar's. I left before most of the awards were given out though because I was tired and I really only care about the fashion. :)

A Weekend of Good Food

I have eaten so well this weekend! Coquette was amazing. They infuse their own alcohols and I loved their fig infused Brandy. I had it in a French 75 to start my dinner, and I had a bit of it neat along side my dessert. As for food, my darling fiance and I split three small plates: roast oysters, fried shrimp with grapefruit, arugul, and chili oil, and duck and foie gras ravioli; as well as one large plate- seared scallops with green curry, rice noodles and bok choy. Everything was delicious! For dessert, we split a brownie with cherry cream anglais. So good!
On Saturday, I really enjoyed the Disney exhibit. I thought that the backgrounds were amazing- especially in Sleeping Beauty. I also really want to see The Princess and the Frog now! Oh, and The Ruby Slipper was delicious. I had the Huevos Rancheros and really loved them.
The ballet was okay. I really liked the first part of it, but the second half wasn't my favorite.
Today, I got up early and ran a couple of miles with my friend who were running in the Mardi Gras Marathon. I ran a mile to the race, then ran two miles with my friends. I wanted to run 3, but I couldn't keep up the pace for the third mile- sadly, I am so out of shape! However, I am really proud of my running buddy Margee who finished in 3:52! She's so awesome!
This afternoon, my darling fiance and I walked around Audubon park for a little while (the weather was amazing today!), then got groceries. This evening, we tried to cook something new for dinner- Grilled Pizza! It was awesome! We split our pizza into two smaller pieces. I topped both with tomato sauce, cheese, and prosciutto, then added spinach and goat cheese to one, and tomato and an egg to the other. We cooked them until the goat cheese was melted and the egg was sunny side up. Delicious! I've included a picture- grilled pizza, wine, and no make-up. Pretty much my idea of paradise. :)
We also went to Blue Cyprus Books before we went to the park this afternoon before going to the park. I bought The Mandarins by Simone De Beauvior. I have so many books to read this month!
Anyway, I had a really nice weekend and I hope everyone else did as well. Congratulations again to everyone who ran the Mardi Gras Marathon today!!

Great Day

I ran 5K this afternoon! I have been more than ready to get back into the swing of things and I'm finally feeling well enough to do it! I'm also running three miles with my marathon running friends on Sunday to help encourage them. I'm really looking forward to that. Running puts me in such a good mood! Of course I'm pooped now, which is kind of lousy- I remember when I thought 5K was too short for a short run. Oh well, I'll get my stamina back!
Other upcoming highlights include dinner at Coquette with my darling fiance tonight, brunch at the Ruby Slipper followed by a trip to the art museum to see the Disney Exhibit tomorrow, and Alvin Ailey at the ballet tomorrow night. We also went to the LPO's performance of Pictures at an Exhibition last night. It was beautiful!
On the vegetable front, things have been going really well. I've been averaging 6 servings of veggies and 2 of fruit a day (and never fewer than 5 servings of veggies). My biggest observation is that I am eating a huge volume of food! My second observation is that I hate carrot juice. Haha!
This week my darling fiance and I have gone through a bag of spinach, a bunch of kale, 2 sweet potatoes (topped with Amy's Organic Veggie Chili-yum!!) and a plastic box of salad. We've also nearly finished off a small raw veggie tray. We've also eaten a lot of other assorted veggies (we grilled burgers and had kabobs with tomato, squash, and zucchini one night, for example) and frozen veggies. As for fruit, we've gone through 3 blood oranges, most of a bag of apple slices (plus about a quarter of a bag of apple slices from last week), 2 frozen bananas, and a lot of frozen blackberries and cherries. (I've eaten most of the fruit.)
Things that have worked really well include the green monsters, the sweet potatoes with vegetarian chili (it's also low salt, which is a big plus), the grocery store salad bar, and of course the kale. :) I got a little tired of the salad by the end of the week because the frisee made it kind of bitter. The veggie tray has been as good as veggies can be as an afternoon snack (I dipped the carrots in cashew butter one day and was a huge fan), but I don't know if it's going to stick as a habit. I do like my greek yogurt ranch dip though.
So anyway, so far, so good!
Health wise, the other healthy thing I did this week was order a swimsuit. I'm going to start swimming at the gym with my running buddy Margee (who's training for a sprint tri, not to mention running in the Mardi Gras Marathon on Sunday- she's awesome!) and I needed a suit that would stay on a little better than my standard bikinis. Fortunately, Margee sent me a site that sells swimsuits at a pretty nice discount. I ordered this speedo in Navy. I think that it's pretty cute, actually. Hopefully it fits because I don't want to deal with sending it back and getting a different size. Some of the suits are hilariously garish- like this one, this one, and this one. (I kinda like the wonder woman suit though....)
I used to swim (recreationally) all the time when I was growing up because we had a huge pool, so I'm eager to get back in the habit!
Okay, I need to go walk the dogs, dry my hair, and pick out something to wear for tonight. Have a great weekend!

1/2 Marathon Recap

The Gulf Coast Half Marathon was great! I finished in 1:58:55 and came in 91st out of 203 people! I am very satisfied with my time because I had never run more than 12 miles before Saturday. My goal was to run the entire distance (which I did) and my slightly sub 2 hour time is a huge bonus. :)
The morning of the race was really cold. It was probably in the 40's during the entire race, but I wasn't so cold that I didn't end up tying my jacket around my waist after a mile and a half. I did find myself thinking around mile 9 that I was pretty cold, but that was just another reason to keep running. I'd have been colder had I slowed down!
I ran with my friends Margee and Jen. They are more experienced and faster than me (and came in at 44th and 45th because they are awesome!) so I was only able to keep up with them for the first 3 miles (because they picked up the pace after that). I averaged around a 9 minute/mile pace for the first 10 miles or so, then slowed to closer to a 9:30 pace for the last 3 miles. One of my favorite moments in the race were at mile 6, when I remembered how I was huffing and puffing at the end of the Crescent City Classic (a 10K and my first race) and contrasted that experience to my current physical state at 6 miles- I was breathing easy and feeling happy and strong. Also, there was a turn around point where you looped back on the course. When I passed Margee and Jen going the other way, they waved to me and cheered and yelled "It's her first 1/2 Marathon!"
Another highlight was right after I passed the 12 mile marker. A couple of runners said "Good job!" and I said "Thanks, it's my first 1/2 marathon and as of right now, the furthest I have ever run!"
I ran with them for the last 1.1 miles and at the very end, Margee and Jen were waiting for me. They ran to the finish with me, which really helped me find the extra energy to sprint to the end and finish strong. My darling fiance was there too, and he took a picture of us as I sprinted to the finish line!
Overall, I feel really proud of myself for accomplishing this goal. I ran faster than I expected and I really had a good time! This was a great race and I'm really happy that I decided to run it!

Should I go for it?

I just found out that there is going to be a half marathon at 8am the Sunday after Thanksgiving at the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi. Given that I ran 12 miles two weeks ago, 6 miles last Sunday, and am planning on making it to 13 this weekend, I know I can do the distance, although I would have preferred to run 13 miles prior to my first half marathon race (I'll probably do no more than 10 miles this weekend if I do the 1/2 though because you are supposed to taper the week before a race). It would also be on my way home from Thanksgiving with my family in Gulfport anyway, and I would certainly burn off Thanksgiving dinner! :)
It's not what I planned to do, but since I'm so far ahead on my training (I started my training earlier than I needed to so I would have some leeway in case I needed it) I am pretty sure I'll be fine. The race description also says that this is a good one for beginners....
As you can tell, I'm totally talking myself into it, but I'll blog my final decision when I make it. One issue is that it cuts down the time I get to spend with my family, but maybe I can get them to come cheer me on. Also, when I am at my family's house, my nutrition tends to suffer. We eat out a lot because my mom and I both tend to view visiting each other as an occasion for going out, and my parent's kitchen tends to be red meat and no-carb land (they love Atkins, and don't get me started on how much I disagree with them regarding that diet). These issues are fairly minor though, I can come equipped with oatmeal and whole wheat pasta or quinoa (at least my parents have plenty of frozen veggies)- I just have to be diligent about how I fuel in the few days prior to the race and try to stay away from the junk food. Except on Thanksgiving day of course. I'm totally allowed to be a pie eating monster then! :)

And...after about 5 minutes of consideration I've decided that I'm totally going to run the race! Racing is so much fun! I'm excited!!

The Great Pumpkin

This week has been very pumpkin-y. On Sunday, I carved pumpkins with Sarah, Jonathan, and our friend Georgia. This is my pumkin, which I named Zohan Homer after Sarah's cat Zoe (who would have been Zohan, had she been a boy) and my cat Homer. I brought home a bunch of pumpkin seeds and baked them with cayenne, cinnamon, sugar, and salt. I liked the flavor profile but it wasn't strong enough. Also, the pumkin seeds were nice and crispy straight out of the oven, but as they cooled, they got less crispy and harder to enjoy. I think that the seasoning mixture would be good on popcorn though. (Too bad I don't care for popcorn!)
On Monday, I opened up a can of pumpkin and mixed half of it with skim milk, garlic, vermouth, and shriracha (sounds strange, but makes a great sauce). I ended up mixing the sauce with some quinoa. I served it inside half a microwaved heirloom squash (I was going to roast it but I couldn't cut through the raw squash!), topped with strips of roasted red pepper and goat cheese (with the rest of the grilled Italian turkey sausage on the side). It was really good.
I ended up dipping a grilled cheese sandwich in the leftover pumpkin sauce for lunch the next day.
As for the rest of the canned pumpkin- I used 1/4 of the can in some oats for breakfast, along with brown sugar and pumpkin pie spice. This was delicious and tasted exactly like pie, but it didn't fill me up as much as I would have liked. I usually put almond or peanut butter in my oatmeal as well, so I think I needed a little more protein in this breakfast.
I remedied the hunger situation the next morning by making a pumpkin smoothie with 6oz of vanilla greek yogurt, 1/4 can of pumpkin, a banana, some milk, ground flax seeds, and some pumpkin pie spice. This was tasty and filling, but it didn't really taste like pie. Maybe I needed more pumpkin and spice.
Is anyone surprised that I'm not orange at this point? :)
Finally, after all this fall food, the weather seemed to get the hint to cool back down. It's been really depressing to have temperatures in the low 90's all week, given that it's the middle of October! It is supposed to be cool and sunny for the next week though, so I am really looking forward to the runs I have coming up. I have a 10 miler to look forward to this weekend so wish me luck!
Other things taking place this weekend include drinks at the new Sazerac bar in the Roosevelt hotel tonight, shopping at Macy's for charity tomorrow, and seeing Yo-Yo Ma play on Sunday!! I am really excited about Yo-Yo Ma!
I also plan to make a Lime Tart on Sunday b/c someone brought a giant bag of limes to work today- I grabbed several! (But I'll bring the tart to work, so it all evens out.)

Foodie Week and a Great Weekend

I wanted to share a few recipes I tried out this week that were really good. I mixed things up for breakfast by replacing my standard Greek yogurt/honey/fruit/and granola with baked oatmeal. I made a big casserole dish of baked oatmeal with blueberries, almonds, coconut, cinnamon and vanilla and it lasted me for 3 days. It was really good- my advice is to use a lot of spice because otherwise it can end up tasting a little bland.
My dinners this week have been especially tasty. I tried out this recipe for spaghetti with Kale and my dear boyfriend and I both loved it! I also adapted this recipe for shrimp scampi by using scallops and adding broccoli. (I've also actually used it to make some fantastic shrimp scampi too.)
I also made a couple recipe free dishes that turned out very well. I made artichoke hummus by combining 1 can of chick peas and 2 cans of artichoke bottoms (drained) in my food processor with a couple of cloves of garlic, a little lemon juice, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil.
For lunch, I made a baked bean bowl by putting a can of baked beans over brown rice and topping it with chopped tomato, chopped green onion, cilantro, sprouts, and a little BBQ sauce. It was really good! I find beans and rice to be very filling, but you can always beef it up with some shredded cooked chicken if you want more protein.
This weekend has been absolutely wonderful. Friday night, my dear boyfriend and I saw Opus at the Southern Rep Theater. We both thought it was a great play. The tagline is "Sex, Drugs, and Chamber Music." It's about the dynamic between the members of a string quartet as they get ready to play Beethoven's Opus 131 at the White House shortly after adding a new member (a young woman) to their group of middle aged men.
Before the play, we went to Iris and had drinks and appetizers. Iris is officially my favorite place to go before a play because it is within walking distance of both the Southern Rep and Le Petite Theaters. The bartender is also known for amazing, creative cocktails. My first cocktail, for example, contained elderflower liqueur, basil, and a pineapple balsamic reduction. My second one contained bourbon, vanilla, ginger liqueur, and Thai tea. My dear boyfriend had one drink that contained scotch, gin, and a plum/cardomom syrup. His other cocktail contained Rye, bitters, beet juice and apple juice. They were all amazing. As for food- we split a cheese plate, 1/2 a dozen oysters, and some short rib rolls that were wrapped in lettuce. It was all delicious!
I also got to wear the purple ruffled shirt that I bought last week. I paired it with black pumps and a pencil skirt. I'm glad I got to wear it because a cold front finally rolled in on Saturday.
On Saturday, I started the day off in a terrible mood because the chance of rain was 75% on and off all day. However, it never really rained! I really wanted to go for a run, but was convinced that the second I got out there, the bottom would fall out. Finally, I decided to just go for it. (I brought my phone with me so I could call home for a ride if I got trapped by rain.) I am so glad I did because I had the best run ever! I was a little nervous because of my horrible 8 mile run, but I shouldn't have been. Clearly, the 78 degree weather played a big part- but I had tons of energy and had a great time! I was also thrilled with my pace. I ran a 9 minute mile pace all the way through mile 6 (54 minutes, compared, for example, to my Crescent City Classic time of 62 minutes), and didn't slow up very much for my last 3 miles. I finished the run in 84:16!
On Saturday evening, we were supposed to have a picnic in the park and listen to the LPO, but that got cancelled due to rain (although it never rained!), so instead my dear boyfriend and I grilled out. We had chicken kabobs, mango chili chicken sausage, and sweet Italian turkey sausage (we cooked a ton of meat so we'd have leftovers to eat this week) along with a side salad. I had blue cheese on multi-grain bread for dessert as well. I really love the amablu Gorgonzola. It is a fairly mild blue cheese that is really creamy. It's great spread on bread or alongside a sliced pear.
Today I have been being pretty lazy. I am about to get up, clean the kitchen, and wash the dogs. Later, I am going to go over to Sarah's house to carve pumpkins, eat pizza, and watch Hocus Pocus. I loved that movie when I was a kid!
All in all this weekend has been just what I needed. It's been so nice to relax and spend some quality time with my dear boyfriend. :)

Fall is in the Air!

Yesterday a cold front passed through New Orleans and it is glorious! I had a wonderful run last night, slept with the windows open, and I didn't get all gross and sweaty walking the dogs this morning. I'm loving the cool weather!
This weekend was a lot of fun. We went to Oktoberfest on Friday night and I feasted on 3 different kinds of cabbage (cabbage rolls, sauerkraut, and purple stewed cabbage- divine!). After Oktoberfest, we went to the Balcony Bar and I also ate part of a fried appetizer with hot wings, fried mozzarella sticks, and jalapeno poppers. So bad, but so so good. :) On Saturday, I was worried about the weather, so I postponed my run and instead tried the Piyo (Pilates + yoga) class at the Reily Center. It was better (i.e. much more challenging) than I expected, but I thought the music was kind of cheesy (it sounded like 80's aerobics music). Saturday night I went to my friend Anne's birthday party. I also bought a sweet pair of dangly silver earrings while I was supposed to be shopping for a gift for Anne. Oops!
On Sunday I finally got around to tackling my 8 mile run around 2 pm. It wasn't very humid, but I guess it was hotter than I thought outside because that run was brutal. I felt really slow and tired the entire time and couldn't snap myself out of my negative thoughts about how lousy the run was. Sometimes my head just isn't in the game. But the important thing is that I pushed through it and ran further than I have ever run before! I ran my usual 4 mile run last night and at first, I felt like I was really slow and I felt the specter of my crappy run just hanging over my head. Fortunately, after a mile or so, I got warmed up and started to just enjoy the run and the weather and ended up with a pretty fast pace overall. I was so happy to have a good run! This week is my "cut back" week and I am supposed to only run 6 miles this weekend. I am not sure that I'll get to run at all this weekend because I upcoming travel (see below) but hopefully I'll at least get in some time on a treadmill.
I am traveling this weekend because I am going to Tulsa to celebrate my dear boyfriend's grandmother's 80th birthday. Of course, I spent Monday night having my semi-annual "I hate my clothes" pity party (which seems to happen every time the seasons change) and decided to go into work early, so I could hit the mall after work and before my run. I speed shopped and picked up 2 dresses (sadly I can only find a link to one of the dresses- the other has a maroon abstract floral print, a deep V in the front and back, and cap sleeves. Super cute!) and a cute purple shirt with ruffles on the front from Macy's, and a pair of light pink chinos from Jcrew (they were on sale for $19!!). I feel better now. :) One of the dresses and the pink pants will definitely be a part of my Tulsa wardrobe this weekend. I'm also really hoping to wear my trench coat because it will actually be cool in Tulsa!!
While I was shopping I also tried on this tunic and thought it was really cute, but I just didn't see myself wearing it that often. I tend to find it difficult to translate "trendy" items into something that looks realistic on me. Maybe if I find it on sale later in the year I'll pick it up but $40 was a little steep for something I'm not sure I'd actually end up wearing.
Other than that, I finished reading The Wide Sargasso Sea (which I loved) and have started reading Anathem, and am really enjoying it so far.

CCRR Race Results

I just looked up the official results from the Crescent Connection Road Race. I was 35th out of 296 women runners! Go me!!

LPO

Holy Cow, it's Thursday again! When did that happen?
I had an unintentionally busy weekend last weekend- when I all I wanted to do was stay in and hide from the world. Work was crazy last week (and has been pretty busy this week as well, hence the lack of blogging) and I just wanted to chill. However, it was my dear boyfriend's golden weekend (a weekend that is guaranteed to be free of work during his rotation schedule) and so we ended up going out on Friday and Saturday. All was not lost though, I did manage to eat takeout pizza from Slice (goat cheese, spinach, roasted garlic, and basil- so good!), run 7 miles (the furthest I've ever run!) and watch both Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and Swingers.
On Tuesday, I joined the Tulane gym. I have a family membership with the dear boyfriend now which lasts a semester and costs what a month at the JCC costs. I don't love the Tulane gym (because I feel weird around all the college students), but I can afford to join both a gym and a yoga studio this way. Next week I plan to start shopping around for a yoga studio, which should be lots of fun!
Tonight I'm going to see the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. Their Season Opener tonight is Romeo Meets Rachmaninoff. It should be lovely.
This weekend is also going to be very busy. Friday night my friend Sarah is having a Rosh Hashanah party. I am attempting to make a honey cake. I found the recipe on Smitten Kitchen. If you haven't checked out her blog, do so- the recipes are great! I made her roasted tomatoes and cipollini on Sunday night (using some of the divine garlic bread from Whole Foods that I am currently obsessed with) and it was amazingly good.
Saturday my friend Graham is having a black light themed birthday party. My costume for the party is a white t-shirt worn over a hot pink bikini top from American Apparel, black leggings, neon green leg warmers, and a white pair of those really obnoxious Kanye glasses. It should be hillarious! I also plan to run 8 miles on Saturday morning- wish me luck!!
Sunday I plan to run 2 miles in City Park with Steph. Other than that I plan to spend the rest of the day getting ready for Monday because I am hosting the first meeting of our new book club. We read The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie and I am serving a high tea because the book is set in England. I really enjoyed reading this book and I can't wait to talk about it. (After the meeting I'll post a book review.) I also get to pick the next book we read, so I have to brainstorm for that as well.

My menu for Monday is as follows:

Tomato Basil Soup
Cucumber, Ham, and Chicken Salad Sandwhiches

Scones
Raspberry Chocolate Tart

A Selection of Decaffinated Teas
Punch (Sprite + White Grape Peach Juice=my favorite!)

I'm very excited for all this baking! I actually went out and bought a tart pan and a springform cake pan on Friday.
Okay, now that I'm all caught up, I'll wrap this up with a promise to post more frequently. Hopefully I'll have a goofy picture or two from this weekend's black light party for the entertainment of my dear readers.

Thursday Already?

Wow. It seems like time has just flown by since Sunday!
I had a fun day off on Monday that started off with me eating delicious steak and salad for lunch, then taking down two cookie-bars and a small serving of blueberry cobbler with ice cream at lunch. Somehow that degenerated into me having a daiquiri, beer, and potato chips for dinner. Zapp's Tobasco flavored chips will be the end of me. :)
Tuesday was notable because I went to Phiddippides during my lunch break and got new shoes, body glide, and some goo. Three cheers for new running accessories! I was, in all honesty, still sore as heck from the race on Sunday (I was actually still sore yesterday too, but I'm fine today!), but I couldn't resist going for a run to try my new shoes out. I'm not going to lie, it was pretty brutal because I'd had a long day at work (work has been insane this week for various reason- not bad, but busy busy) and in addition to my soreness, I had very little energy. Nonetheless, I'm happy that I went because it kept me on schedule and helped me maintain my good running habit.
I got two different brands of goo at the running store: Power Bar Gel (Rasberry and Apple flavors) and Gu (Margee gave me an espresso gu for my birthday, and I also picked up strawberry bananna, berry, and chocolate flavors). I look forward to comparing the brands and flavors to see which tastes the best and to see how they affect my energy levels during my long (over 6 miles) runs.
A really funny thing happened after I went to bed on Tues. My dear boyfriend woke me up around 4am saying "I think the dog is under the bed." When I asked, still mostly asleep, why he thought that, he replied "Because I hear scratching and whining." I got down on the floor to look under our very low platform bed. Sure enough, Bernie, the larger of my two miniature shcnauzers (who technically needs to lose weight b/c he gained a pound this past year) had somehow gotten under the bed and was too big to get out! I kind of suspect that Hereaux had a hand in putting him under there because when we went to bed, Bernie was in his spot on a blanket on the floor next to my side of the bed. When I looked under the bed, Bernie was basically scooted over about a foot from where he was before, and Hereaux was in his rightful spot, trying to look innocent. I had to tug Bernie out from under there! Fortunately, my tubby little pup was just fine and hopefully he won't go under the bed again.
I've eaten a lot of delicious food that is considerably healthier than my Monday night dinner this week. Highlights include Cornish game hens stuffed with dried figs, onion, and garlic and baked in a cast iron dutch oven with dried rosemary, red wine, worchestershire sauce and a tiny bit of balsamic vinegar for 40 minutes at 425 F (so easy!) for dinner (along with mashed sweet potatoes and brussel sprouts); my attempt at this pasta dish from the blog TravelEatLove (I used feta instead of mozarella- also so easy!) for lunch; and a really yummy snack bar called Bumble Bar. I've had the chai and chocolate flavors and both are super tasty. I like them b/c they have rice crisps and lots of sesame seeds so the texture is really crunchy and satisfying- sort of like a really dense rice crispy treat. (The packaging is really cute too!)
So that's how my week's been going!
Also, congratulations are in order to my friend Amanda, who gave birth to baby Liam on Sept.1 (I'm so negligent for not posting this sooner- please forgive me!) and Amy, who gave birth to baby Josiah this morning! I also just found out that my friend Janette is expecting baby #2! Congratulations, girls!

Crescent Connection Road Race

I am so exhausted and happy right now. The race was awesome! I ran the most challenging 4 miles I've ever run in 36:02. I thought I would be lucky to run it in 40 minutes because I knew it was going to be tough.
I rode to the race with my running buddy Margee and a couple of her friends. We met up with more of her friends (she runs with a big group of people she went to high school with) at their apartment in the warehouse district, then walked to the bus that took us over the bridge to the West Bank. We were at the start of the race pretty early because Margee and her friends needed to register for the race, so we waited for about an hour for the race to start.
Once the race started, the first mile flew by like it was nothing. Most of the races I've done in New Orleans have started with a really slow first mile because they were so crowded, but this one wasn't too packed. I think the turnout may have been a little low because it looked like it was going to rain. The sky was really dark and we kept waiting for a downpour, but in the end, we only got a little drizzle.
The second mile was where we started up the bridge. Running in New Orleans is comparatively easy (aside from the heat, that is) because we literally have no hills. This is bad because there is no way to train to get used to hill. Unsurprisingly, the mile and a half to the top of the bridge was excruciating. It was really hard, but Margee was really awesome about encouraging me. Having a running buddy really helped me make it up that hill!
Once we got to the top of the bridge, the course evened out and we got a little bit of rain. The awesome view, the rain, and knowing that the hard part was over and that I only had a mile and a half to go was a great feeling! Soon I started downhill and I was flying! Never really having run down hill either, I was surprised to find that it was harder than I though it would be. Going fast wasn't a problem, but I had so much momentum and I was hitting the ground so hard, I was worried that I would trip and fall. I realized though that I was wasting energy by trying to slow myself down, so I just had to go with it and try not to trip.
The final half mile or so was off the bridge and on level ground. After going so fast down hill, my feet felt like bricks! I kept going though, and counted the last 4 minutes in seconds in my mind because I was so tired all I could think about was how long until I finished.
As I rounded the corner towards the finish line, I could hear the announcer saying the time. I thought I was hearing things because he was saying "35:20...35:30...." It took a minute for it to get through my head that I was well under 40. I crossed the finish at 36:02, feeling a little disappointed that I didn't make it under 36 minutes, but mainly thrilled that I'd gone so much faster than I anticipated. They handed out slips of paper with your ranking on it and I was 35th in the women's race! Margee was 30th! I was so excited to find out how well we did because I don't think I've ever run a race fast enough to be notified of my ranking before. And there were easily several hundred women running. I am so proud of myself because this race was really really hard. I'm totally doing it again next year.

Fun Trip to Mississippi

So my top secret trip this weekend was to Jackson, Ms. My cousin, Kaley (pictured), decided to throw a surprise 50th birthday party for her parents (whose birthdays are in Aug. and Sept.). I had a great time at the party on Friday night. On Saturday, Kaley and her hubby got up early and went to the first Mississippi State game of the season, so my dear boyfriend and I had breakfast with my Aunt and Uncle. My uncle also took my dear boyfriend skeet shooting for a little while, so I hung out with my aunt and took a little nap on her couch. (We were up late at the party the night before!)
After that, we drove to Gulfport to pick up my dogs from my parent's house (they dog sat for me for about a week and a half due to my farm trip last weekend). We had dinner with my parents and made a quick stop at the outlet mall where I basically bought out the new JCrew outlet and stopped at the Nike outlet for a new pair of running shorts. I am very excited about them b/c they are tight (which will hopefully prevent my legs from rubbing together) and have a zip pocket in the back. I'll never understand why most women's athletic shorts are made with no pockets. It's such a pain!
Besides the running shorts, I got 2 button down shirts (one is a bright purplish pink, and the other is dark purple- I'm really into purple for fall), a light weight v-neck sweater (bright pink), a plain white t-shirt (it was $7), a navy hoodie, a dark purple tissue tee, and a cool cream and black headband. I'd call that a spree! :) We finally got home around 10 last night. It was fun little trip!
Today I am going to clean up my house and run the Crescent Connection Road Race (it's less than 7 hours away!) Wish me luck!! :)

Running

I ran 6 miles again last night. I don't really like doing my long run during the week b/c that means I am running after a full day of working and my energy levels are lower than they would be if I woke up after a good night's sleep and promptly started running. (I do, on the other hand, think I am better hydrated during my weekly runs b/c I've had all day to drink my standard 2 Liters of water.) And of course after the run, I have to shower, make a quick dinner, and do the dishes- all things that involve standing on my tired legs. I also prefer running my long runs on the weekends b/c I think I fare much better if I can take a nap after I run. In this case, I ran at 6:30, got home at 7:30, then stayed awake for 3 more hours, feeling pretty crummy the entire time. I am way worse at recovering than I am at running.
Nonetheless, I am glad I ran. The weather has been amazing this week and I am glad I've gotten to take advantage of it. Also, I had to squeeze my long run in during the week again because I am running the 4 mile race on Sunday (Running 6 miles the day before would be, to put it mildly, a mistake). I am very proud of myself for being dedicated enough to knock out my long run during the week.
I will say that juggling my running schedule around my weekends has been a little stressful. Part of this is because I haven't increased my long run distance. This is intentional- I'm following a running plan (that I modified a tad bit) and I know I'm on track. (The reason I have run 6 miles three times without increasing my distance is that you are not supposed to increase your miles by more than 10% a week. I was running 4.5 miles twice a week, so adding another 6 mile run directly to that would have been a lot. Instead, I shortened my short runs, added the additional 6 mile run, then increased my short runs over the course of a couple weeks.) I think I will feel less stressed and more like I'm making progress next weekend when I finally increase my distance to 7 miles, which will be further than I have ever run. I can't wait!

Thinks to look forward to:
The Crescent Connection Road Race
Going to the running store to buy new shoes (post race), Body Glide, and Cliff Shots
Running 7 miles!