Training
Triathlon training.
It’s not going so well.
It’s not really going at all.
This is the hardest time I’ve ever had training for an athletic event. I just can’t get in a groove.
I’ve always been a morning exerciser. Not necessarily early morning, but before the day really gets going. Once that moment passes, it’s gone. I can say I’m going to do it in the afternoon or evening, but it never actually happens.
My problem, my self-made problem, is that I can’t put my workouts ahead of baby’s schedule. Naptime interferes with morning gym time and then it all goes downhill from there. Unless his friends are there he hates the childcare and it’s so stinky hot I feel bad dragging him along outside with me. I know I could make it happen, I just haven’t been. That’s life.
We recently got back from 3 back to back to back beach trips: one with 10 kids under 2, one involving a 103 fever, and one a wedding weekend with friends. While I did exercise some on vacation, it hardly counts. It was enough to get me raring to go when we got back.
And then I potentially broke my toe. You know when you innocently stub your toe really hard and you drop to the floor, clutching it in pain, yelling “I broke my toe, I broke my toe!”, but really you just stubbed it and you’ll get over it in a few minutes?
That’s what I thought happened until I finally let go of my toe and the husband pointed out it was facing the wrong direction. Oops.
I don’t really think it’s broken, but it doesn’t feel great. It’s just another thing to add to the long list of things I let get in my way.
There’s not really a point to this post except to say that not everyone who does triathlons {or marathons or 10Ks or whatever} finds it easy. So if you ever thought about doing one, don’t let that be the reason that’s holding you back.
Luckily I get a pretty good daily workout hauling my adorable 24+ pound weight around every day, but that’s not exactly helping with my biking or swimming skills…
Roundups
Is it really Monday already? I had an absolutely packed weekend. It was a ton of fun, but even though I was baby free for the first weekend in this history of ever, I feel like I got absolutely nothing accomplished. That’s ok though, sometimes just having fun is the only thing you need to check off your to-do list.
Friday night we went out with friends and then to a rehearsal dinner at a fabulous restaurant {you know, the kind of restaurant that makes a side of green beans taste like a gourmet meal}. Saturday morning started bright an early at a semi-local vineyard for a bridal shower for one of my favorite people. After the shower at Weathervane Winery, we did a quick tasting. I don’t particularly care for North Carolina wines- something about grapes grown in old tobacco fields doesn’t sit well with my tastebuds. I did, however, love the wine slushies they had. Apparently it’s the new thing. I could so picture myself with a giant glass, a twisty straw, and a lounge chair by the pool.
We followed up the tasting with lunch at another vineyard. Childress Vineyards is the first vineyard I ever went to and even though I’ve now been to numerous wineries, this is still probably the most beautiful of them all. I’ve never had a chance to eat at their bistro before and it was fabulous. I loved the chance to catch up with old friends and it went way to quickly.
I hightailed it back to town just in time to throw on a dress, grab some heels, and head to the wedding of a good friend of the husband’s. After a day of rain and tornado warnings on Friday, the weather ended up being perfect on Saturday. The sun was shining, the sky was clear, and it was the perfect temperature for an early evening outdoor wedding. That is, until the sun went down and we all froze our butts off. I’m still trying to thaw.
As if that wasn’t enough for one weekend, the bridal shower made it’s way into a bachelorette party that night. Unfortunately we didn’t leave the wedding early enough for me to make it to that part of the evening, so I missed out on that fun. Not to mention I was completely frozen and exhausted anyways and I welcomed the warm comfort of my bed.
We spent the next morning getting breakfast with out of town friends that had come up for the wedding, then I finally got my baby back. He then proceeded to be a complete crankster for most of the afternoon and evening. I should’ve just gone and gotten some cuddles and let his grandparents keep him. {Just kidding!! Sort of.}
So yeah. For this mom that usually does nothing but chase around a toddler on the weekends, it was quite fun, exciting, and a nice break from the norm.
Now that I’ve rambled on way too long, here are some fun links from the week:
Reading
Have you heard of this life-changing loaf of bread? It’s not really bread at all. If you can eat bread, I wouldn’t say this is all that life-changing, but if you can’t, it’s pretty darn good. It’s a little bland and strange as is, but warm & toasty? Mmm. KB and I have been fighting for slices all week.
This is the most beautiful and well-written post I’ve stumbled across in terms of Boston-related reflections. it’s like Emily sucked the words right out of my brain before I even knew I was thinking them. You should check out her Babble link at the end of that post as well.
I had every intention of already making these but time got away from me. It’s happening this week. Yum.
I am so doing this to my hair the next time I dress up. Ok, I’m probably not. But wouldn’t it be adorable if I could?
This might be my favorite post of all times. It’s raw and honest, and as a former adamant high-raw vegan, she’s completely opening herself up to backlash and criticism, which makes her words that much stronger. It just goes to show health always comes first, not the label you put on it.
Writing
My thoughts on Boston come nowhere near conveying what they should, but here they are.
Will naming a disease affect how you decide to treat it? Apparently so.
I’d love to multitask by reading on the treadmill without getting motion sickness. This new technology might just let that happen.
Two posts that include some of my favorite trainer moms:
Quickie workouts for moms {or anybody pressed for time}
Struggling with exercise? Look her for some great fitness inspiration.
Do anything fun this weekend? Any good links to share?
Beverage, Recipe
It may not be an actual pie, but this gluten free, dairy free key lime pie green smoothie sure tastes like it!
I’ve never really been much of a cake person. I’m not a fan of icing and when you take the icing away, what’s left is pretty boring. When it came time to plan our wedding 5 years ago, the one thing I kept saying was “Do we have to have a cake?” Luckily for me, the husband agreed.
That left one big question. What to serve instead of cake?! The answer was easy. PIE! Key Lime Pie to be exact. If I hadn’t known for sure already that my now-husband was meant for me, this would have sealed the deal: a man that prefers key lime pie over cake.
Well, we ended up having cake anyways. There’s just something magnificent about a beautiful tower of confectionary goodness. It just screams wedding. Our cake was gorgeous- and delicious- perfect for smashing in each other’s faces. But there was key lime pie too, thanks to my pie-baking-connoisseur stepdad.
That’s a roundabout way of saying just how much the husband and I love key lime pie. Unfortunately we can’t eat key lime pie every day, but that doesn’t mean we can’t channel that delicious flavor combination into something we can have every day: a key lime pie green smoothie!
The lime juice and vanilla combine to create the essence of key lime pie, while the graham cracker crumble topping just seals the deal. The frozen banana provides the perfect consistency, although you could just add some ice cubes if you don’t have frozen bananas ready to go. The spinach creates the gorgeous green color a key lime pie necessitates, while secretly packing in some powerful nutrition.
Green Smoothie Recipe
by with a Side of Sneakers
- 1 cup Silk Pure Almond Unsweetened Vanilla
- 1 frozen banana
- ½ cup baby spinach leaves
- 1 Tbsp lime juice
- Zest of 1 lime
- ½ tsp vanilla extract
- 1 Medjool date, pitted
- 1 Tbsp crushed graham crackers, gluten free if needed
Combine all ingredients except graham crackers in a blender.
Blend until smooth.
Pour into a mug and top with crushed graham crackers.
Drink immediately.
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This nutrient packed green smoothie is 192 calories and packs in 5 grams of fiber. It’s easily gluten free and dairy free. It’s not a high protein smoothie, but you could easily add a scoop of vanilla protein powder to make this a great post-workout shake. If you’re watching your calories, this almond milk based shake saves you 30 calories over using skim milk, and has even more calcium.
Be sure to check out Silk Pure Almond website and Facebook page to see more delicious, creative recipes!
This post is part of a sponsored campaign with Silk and FitFluential, LLC. All opinions are my own. Learn more about Silk Pure Almond Unsweetened on Facebook and Twitter.
Click here for more Gluten Free Dairy Free Recipes that won’t leave you trapped in the kitchen for hours or hunting down a million bizarre ingredients.
Fun
While most people like to commemorate the remembrance of the sacrifices so many have made for our country with a Memorial Day cookout, around here we’ve made it a tradition to attend a wedding. This might be the 5th Memorial Day in a row {minus 1 maybe?} that we’ve celebrated a marriage over the holiday weekend.
This year we stayed local and watched a mutual college friend marry her sweetheart.
We dropped the bub off at Grandma’s for the day and headed out for some mommy & daddy fun time- only the 2nd or 3rd time we’ve done something sans baby in the past 5 months, and definitely the longest we’ve spent away from him at the same time. I’m happy to report we all survived.
Seeing as it was a mid afternoon wedding on the first 90+ degree day of the year {yes, in MAY} and I was wearing a black dress, I figured it was a good time to test out some new deodorant I’d received from Dove.
In addition to keeping you so fresh and so clean, clean, it’s supposed to help with the tone of your underarms. Officially, Dove ClearTone “visibly reduces dark marks and evens tone with regular use over time, while providing 24-hour odor and wetness protection.” Seriously, that’s a thing? I don’t think I can critique that part of it, but it did it’s job well and it didn’t get all over my dress or feel sticky and icky.
I am not one of those women who “glow”. I did not glow during pregnancy and I do not glow when I sweat. I just get sweaty and nasty. Most of the stronger deodorants are goopy and gross, or burn like crazy. Luckily the Dove Clinical Strength was comfortable and non-pain inducing.
On to the wedding. After a beautiful ceremony, there was a couple hours of down time before the reception started. I did all the normal between-wedding-things, like pumping in the car behind the church and “borrowing” some ice from the hotel since I forgot my cooler.
After relaxing and catching up with fellow wedding guests and another round of pumping, it was time for the reception. The highlight of the food was a made-to-order pasta bar with a chef who didn’t blink when I said I wanted everything! And the cake of course. Delicious!
I did my best, but after two nights in a row of staying up past my {9pm} bedtime {rehearsal dinner the night before}, I had to call it a night before the celebrations came to a close.
It was a great way to celebrate the weekend and it made me feel slightly human again to get out and enjoy some good old fashioned fun with the husband. I’m still catching up on sleep. {Catching up on sleep?! Who am I kidding?}
The weekend out was well-timed to mark the one year anniversary of our journey into this crazy insane life known as parenthood.
Memorial Day weekend last year we were at another wedding, this time a beach wedding. I had only found out I was pregnant four days before we boarded the plane for the trip. It was fun spilling the news once we arrived to our hotel-mates for the weekend and keeping it a secret from everyone else at the shindig, bride and groom included.
Busted. I’m wearing the same dress to both weddings. Fashionista I am not.
P.S. Several pictures stolen from FB. Thanks friends 
Click pictures for source links.
*Disclaimer: As part of the DailyBuzz Healthy Living Program, I received free Clear Tone Deodorant from Dove. Opinions are my own of course!
Thoughts
December 6, 2008.
it was 3 years ago, but it might as well have been yesterday. Two of our friends were getting ready to tie the knot.
My best friend and her husband knocked on the door as I slipped into my pink silk party dress and quickly tied the sash. I begrudgingly tugged on my black tights hoping they’d at least do a little something to protect my legs from the biting early winter cold. I stepped into my favorite pair of black heels and we headed out the door.
It was during the lull between the ceremony and the reception that I first noticed something was wrong. I was sitting awkwardly on a grey faux-leather ottoman, trying to be at least somewhat ladylike in my fancy dress. All the 20- something’s had gathered at a friend’s house until it was time to head downtown to continue the celebration. It was then I noticed the front of my left foot bothering me. I surreptitiously slipped out of my heel and rubbed my foot a few times. I chalked it up to an uncomfortable shoe.
Already? I’d barely even walked in my heels yet. I ignored it and continued to get wrapped up in wedding excitement as we piled into a couple cars and headed downtown.
When I woke up the next morning the pain still lingered. “I guess I better get some new running shoes”, I thought to myself. I’d only run three miles the morning of the wedding, but it looked like I might be heading down the path of injury. Not surprising…I’d been putting off getting new shoes for awhile, optimistically holding out until the next pair of my favorite DS trainers were released.
I brushed the dull pain off for a few days and took it easy on my feet, but when it started to bruise I knew this wasn’t something that was going to go away on its own anytime soon. If only I knew then just how long it would be.
Dec 6, 2008. It was the start of a beautiful marriage for our friends; it was the start of a long trying journey for me.
I never forget that it hurts, but it’s become such a part of my life, such a part of me, that I often cease to acknowledge it. It’s just a part of me, like having brown hair and arms that don’t straighten. It’s only when I have to cave in and ask for some help opening a jar of peanut butter or a bottle of water that I remember just how bad it was. I’m so grateful to have gotten past the worst of it, but perpetually frustrated to still be dealing with it.
To slip on shoes and run like a normal person; to tie the laces without difficulty. The things I used to take for granted and never will again.
I still wonder if this is where the story ends- a poorly written cliffhanger that just leaves everything hanging as is; no closure, no sequel, no answers.
I wonder if I’ll be able to hold my baby or change a diaper in the middle of the night when the pain is at its worst.
I wonder if I’ll be able to gather up the courage to run through the pain again, or if getting through it once is all I had in me.
I wonder if it’ll ever go away.
One thing I don’t wonder is where my life would be if this had never happened. As with any major decision or event in life, like choosing which college to go to, the things that come afterward may never have happened otherwise. Without this, I’d probably still take running for granted; I’d probably still be at a job that made me miserable; I’d probably never have signed up for a triathlon; I certainly wouldn’t be blogging.
Good or bad, the things that happen to you in life shape who you are, and pain or not, this is who I am.
