By the slice

Mark was super excited that I made him his very own supreme pizza.

(Our house is 60 degrees right now, and I am wearing two tank tops, a sweater and a vest.
Don’t tell me I don’t know how to layer!)

Sausage, pepperoni, ham, mushrooms and onions. His mouth was watering.

Little did he know that the sausage, well, came from a turkey. And the pepperoni – it came from a turkey, too. The ham … OK, it was from a pig but the cheese was low fat. My Krispy Kreme-and-strawberry milk-for-breakfast husband was eating somewhat good for him. And he didn’t even know it!

Of course, I crushed his ignorance-is-bliss pizza by accidentally burning the crust. A finishing touch we’ll call it, and I’m sticking to it.

Do you encourage your significant other to eat healthy or swap out items to make less-healthy family meals a bit more figure friendly?

Up and away

Pre-workout eats: Chocolate oats

Workout: 60-minute Slow Flow yoga class

Saturday is all about accomplishing things: a good workout – or simply getting in a workout; going to the grocery and staying under budget; picking up a pork loin for a Sunday night dinner and Cubans later in the week; and taking a step toward being a grown-up and meeting with a Realtor.

Oh, and managing to pull up your short, short hair into a ponytail.

I managed to pull it up this morning after my shower before going to yoga. Yes, I shower before yoga. No one wants to be the stinky girl at the studio.

I think I managed OK with the do … with a little help.

I have about 5 bajillion bobby pins in my hair and have no choice but to wear it this way for the rest of the day. Thank goodness our plans for later involve homemade pizza, a redbox and sitting on the couch in front of the fire.

What are your Saturday plans?

Restin’ up for Friday Love

Can you see the disgust in Denali’s face? I promise – it’s there. I was trying to explain to him that it was a rest day and rest days mean no walking for 2 miles. Especially when the temperature is hovering around 2 degrees.

Needless to say, he wasn’t happy. He didn’t tell me, so to speak. We’ll call it Mother’s intuition.

But it’s Friday, and I’m not going to let an active Siberian husky bring me down. Let’s bring on the love!

Food. Toilet paper. Ha! I’m watching Rachael Ray right now, and this woman is addicted to eating toilet paper. Yuck! Doesn’t she know pudding is so much better? Yes, I said pudding. I love pudding – rice, tapioca, banana, those Jell-O indulgences. It’s all very tasty. And though you need to watch sugar and fat contents, puddings are made with milk and serve as a great way to sneak in some calcium.

Fitness. This week, I’ve met my goal of three runs and I managed to rack up nearly 15 miles. The cherry on top? I felt really good. I think I’m getting some of my energy back as I navigate the second trimester. However, I think I’ve also made a breakthrough and dropped some of my expectations in terms of pace. Yes, I used to run 8:30s and was able to just go run 10 miles. No, I can’t do that now. Yes, I will again.

Life. Mark and I are taking a big step tomorrow. A grown-up step. We’re meeting with a Realtor to discuss/kick off our quest to be home owners! With a sea monkey on the way, our two-bedroom duplex isn’t going to cut it – especially when you consider the second bedroom currently serves as an office/Denali’s room/storage/bike rack.

          

Our dream home would have a fenced in backyard, basement and a kitchen with plenty of storage. We’re also hoping to move to a location more central to both our workplaces and closer to his parents. Hello, we’ll need baby-sitters!

Do you have a room in your house that serves as a catch-all?

I hope you all have a good weekend!

Three Things Thursday

Pre-workout eats: Kashi Dark Chocolate Coconut Fruit & Grain bar (Buy these. The taste awesome ... to me at least.)
Workout: Ran 6.00 miles

Hello new readers! I'm waving to you from my desk right now. I am. I swear. Just a shame you can't see me ... or the giant cup of decaf hazelnut coffee sitting next to me.

1. So you'll never guess what I did today. I mean it's so out of character that you might need to sit down. Are you sitting? OK.

I ran ... on the TREADMILL.

I know, I know. It's quite the feat seeing as a) I HATE the treadmill; b) I have no gym membership; and c) I don't own a treadmill.

I promise I didn't go covert and break into Anytime Fitness or a neighbor's house.

I actually hit up the fitness center at the local college that's 5 minutes from my house (or 15 minutes if you get "disoriented" leaving the parking garage). A day pass is $5, which gets you a decent treadmill run in Tempo shorts. Sure beats trying to brave the treacherous sidewalks with a snow-eating beast after yesterday's ice. I'm not sure I'll do it all the time but it's nice little option to have in your back pocket when it's 8 degrees in the morning.

2. I'm going to take a minute to pat myself on the back. I ran 6 miles on the dot - the farthest in, like, ever ... or since Dec. 16. And, had the dern treadmill not cut me off at an hour, I really think I could have gone 7 - at least. Kim's getting her groove back! Sure, it was a tad slow but I'm always slower on the treadmill.

3. Seeing as I got "disoriented" on campus and ran a mile farther than anticipated, my schedule was a little crunched this morning. Factor in that I actually spent 5 minutes blow drying my hair, I was teetering on being late for work. My solution? Not slicing my green pepper, which is part of my afternoon snack. I figure I'll use a plastic knife ... or break off pieces. It should work. Right? Right!

Now, go off. And have a fantabulous Thursday while you are at it!

Use your noodle

You know in that post down there, the one where I talk about my cleavage, you can erase the part where I walked Denali this morning.

Why, you ask.

Well, this gal got a little present this morning. At 6:30, Mark rolled over and told me school was canceled. I wouldn’t have to rush around to squeeze in a walk with Denali before yoga; Mark would have the time this morning after catching up with “The Doctors.”

Three cheers for icy roads! OK … just one cheer because I nearly fell on my butt just walking from the back door to my car.

Actually, let’s make that two cheers because there was another bonus – a hot lunch date.

Oops. Wrong date. It was more like this.

 

Mark picked me up from work, and we headed a new-to-us Vietnamese restaurant that my co-workers rave about. Labeled as “the shit” and “cheap” we knew it would be perfect for us.

Mark, in all his adventurousness, tried the shrimp fried rice with egg roll. I think he just wanted the egg roll.

I opted for the traditional pho, picking a version that had eye round steak and well-done flank. Tripe? I’ll pass. (By the way, I have no idea why that piece of hair decided to stick out on its own. Rogue hair, I tell ya!)

I also got the Goi Cuon, “raw” spring rolls served with a peanut sauce. Yum … in an interesting, “it needs to grow on you” sort of way.

The best part of the meal, though, was when “Ice, Ice Baby” came on the Musaq.

I had no choice but to dance in the restaurant. I just didn’t.

What song makes you bust a move?

Under the big top

Workout: Walk with D-boy and 60-minute Vinyasa Flow yoga class

Warning: Baby and boob talk ahead ...

It's official: I'm showing.

 

Now take your gaze up about 12 inches because that's where I'm really showing.

I know, I know. So sorry to disappoint.

I'm officially 15 weeks pregnant today - my second week in the second trimester - and I just look a little pudgier and with a chest that's, like, tripled in size. It's seriously ridiculous. I feel like a porn star.

And they're not making running any easier. They hurt ... they tingle ... in general, they just annoy me. It doesn't matter what I do, either. Tight sports bra, comfy sports bra. Warm weather, cold weather. Rain, no rain. They hurt all the same. And to think it's only going to get worse with breast-feeding. Oi! I'll be running in August with Ace bandages wrapped around me like I had implants. The artificial kind.

In other sea monkey developments ...

Well, folks, we've been upgraded to an orange. Mmm. The sea monkey is 4.5 inches long, 2 ounces in weight and looking a little more human as each goes by. He (I've given up optimism) is a little Jane Fonda follower - kicking, curling toes, and moving those little arms and legs.

And despite his modest weight, I've gained 11(!) pounds. Needless to say, I'm a bit unsettled. I talked to the doctor yesterday about the weight gain. I got the usual "veggies and fruits are your friends" - along with some reassurance. I won't gaining 50 pounds (praise Grilled Cheesus). He said the people who gain a fifth-grader are chowing down on fast food, chips, candy - anything in sight and without thought - on a regular basis. I am still thinking about what I eat and why I'm eating it, and those are good signs.

Another good sign?

He didn’t say anything about ice cream. Just kidding. Sort of. His focus was more on my work and commitment to a healthy lifestyle pre-pregnancy. Aware of my weight-loss history, he told me that I would not go in reverse. I just won't. A little reminder of how far I've come ... and a warning not to fig it up all at the same time. This guy has talent!

Take your pick

Pre-workout eats: Kashi bar

Workout: Ran 5.00 miles; average pace, 9:40.

Run when it’s 37 degrees through a drizzly mist and slushy puddles OR when it’s 10 degrees with a clear path.

Opt for soup and salad a restaurant and later indulge in dessert OR eat a burger and fries and opt for a piece of fruit later.

Cut your lunch break short so you can walk the mile (roundtrip) to the restaurant OR have more time to eat and drive to the eatery.

Sleep in and work out in the afternoon OR get up early, work out and get your nap on in the afternoon.

Run farther and go to work with craptastic hair OR go for a quick run and have nice hair.

So … can you guess my answers? Huh? Huh!

I choose to run when it’s warmer. Even if my socks were soaked and my tights splattered, it was so much easier to breathe in the 37-degree air this morning.

I choose soup and salad – a) because I love soup; and b) because I love dessert. Case in point: Lunch today. Cobb salad sans cheese and bacon, dip-fork dressing method and veggie soup – and a hot chocolate upon return to my desk.

After walking back to work, of course – so there’s my answer for that one.

Nap!

Craptastic hair! (If you could see me now, I swear … LORD. HAVE. MERCY.)

What would you pick?

All in a night's work

Pre-workout eats: Cinnamon raisin English muffin with PB and a banana - on the side
Workout: Ran 3.31 miles; average pace, 9:11.

There would be no excuses.

My running tights were clean, my Garmin was charged and I had a pair of matching socks. Those items -- along with a compression top, Brooks half-zip, fleece vest and my shoes -- were laid out (albeit haphazardly) on the kitchen table last night.

I pumped myself up. "I get to run. I get to run. I get to run," I told myself. I made no allowances for "haves to" in that sentence. Nope, not one crept in.

I went to bed with plenty of time (and when the people upstairs decided to stop power sanding the floor) and only woke up once to go to the bathroom. And in pregnant lady world, that's an accomplishment.

When I rolled out of bed, I repeated my new mantra. I warmed up some decaf coffee, got my snack on and got dressed. And, thanks to the lackluster wireless at our place, I was ready to go before I could check Weather.com. Even if it was 8 degrees, I knew I would feel foolish getting undressed after all the work I'd put in.

Thankfully - and I mean that in relative terms - it was 13 degrees. And to be doubly thankful, I had a buddy in Mark, who is off for MLK Day.

It was a decent run, a bit faster in the second mile than I am used to of late, but nice. I think we were just trying to stay warm.

And speaking of warm, I have another new mantra: One crap day of winter puts me one day closer to spring.

Think spring, jelly beans!

P.S. If you are bored today, read this article over at USA Today. A little inspiration for us all.

Dispatches from a snowy Indiana

Walk with Deanli: ~3 miles

    

Along our walk today, we encountered what might have been one of the strangest things ever. We were beginning to loop the park near our house and there was a hawk/falcon/bird in the middle of the pathway standing over a dead bird, or what we thought was a dead bird. Wary of any defensive actions the bird might take, we turned around and looped the park in the opposite direction. When we neared the same spot, the bird had moved from the pathway to a bench – and moved the dead thing with it.

Weird!

We also a freshly not-alive squirrel on our way back. It totally creeped me out … but it could have been worse. Denali could have seen the squirrel, and I was in no mood to pry a squirrel out of his mouth. Been there, done that.

What kind of odd wildlife have you seen on a walk/run/bike ride?

10 things I hate about ... well, not you

Workout: 75-minute Deep Stretch Flow yoga class and (planned) long walk with Denali

It's OK , you can call me "Kranky Kimberly" this weekend. "Krazy Kimberly" would work, too.

1. I hate this weather. Another 8-degree morning, another run postponed.
2. I hate people who do not shovel their sidewalks and make my runs more difficult - when I actually get out there.
3. I hate driving next to semis. It freaks me the fig out.
4. And speaking of driving, I also hate driving behind motorcycles.
5. I hate boring weekends. Relaxing weekends, all good. Boring weekends, bad.
6. I hate that the highlight of my weekend thus far was going to Target yesterday and buying hard-surface placemats on clearance.
7. I hate that no matter how high we set the thermostat, it always seems to be 62 degrees in our place.
8. I hate that Denali got up at 5 a.m. this morning for breakfast and potty trip as it was my turn to take care of him. Yesterday, on Mark's day, he waited until 6 a.m.
9. I hate too-picky people on "House Hunters" who complain about room colors and a 3,000-square-foot home being too small.
10. I hate that my lunch is not ready yet. Mark should have had it waiting for me, on the table, when I returned from yoga. He knows yoga, strangely, always makes me hungry.

In other, more positive things, my arms are burning from a million chaturangas in this morning's yoga class. The instructor always manages to kick my butt and make me feel better by the end of class.

Hope you're having a great weekend! Anyone planning to watch the Golden Globes tonight?