Totally 80s

Kate from Can I Get Another Bottle of Whine... with my morning quiet time? is the mastermind behind this week's listicle topic. She gave us 3 choices:

10 Things Totally 80s
10 Tweets
10 Crushes

Such good choices! But ultimately, I went with ...

10 THINGS TOTALLY 80s

There were so many different ways I could have done this, but I decided to just share 1 thing from 10 different pop culture trends. Obviously, I could have probably come up with a list of 10 things in each category, but these are either the first thing that came to mind or my favorite or a special memory I have.

1. Movie - Can't Buy Me Love



I don't know what it is about this movie, but it's hands down my favorite 80s movie.



2. Song - Time After Time by Cyndi Lauper





I loved this song when I was young.
Oddly, it reminds me of the swingset in our backyard growing up.
My husband likes to rank Cyndi Lauper with Shakespeare because of how many times this song has been covered. lol.



3. Band - Poison



My older sisters would listen to this band, and I remember sneaking into their room to borrow their cassette tapes.



4. Heaththrob - River Phoenix



River was one of my first crushes! Oh, I was in love. :D



5. Fashion Trend - Pinned jeans

I scoured the Internet for a good picture of pinned jeans, and I could find NONE! I was hoping to re-create one this morning before work, but ran out of time.  Hopefully I'll update this post later with a good picture.



UPDATE: I finally found a picture online. From a fellow Listicler, of course! Thanks, Ellen for letting me use your fab picture. :D



6. TV show - Full House



I watched a LOT of 80s TV shows, but I this was definitely one of  my favorites.



7. Car - Ford Aerostar



When asking my husband for help with this post, he came up with this category. And the Aerostar.  He said everyone seemed to have this car.
And then I remembered that I'm pretty sure my family had one, too.



8. Electronic gadget - Nintendo Entertainment System



I remember when this came out. It was definitely the MUST HAVE gift of the time. We got one, and my brothers played it a LOT.



9. Home Appliance - Microwave oven



I think the 80s is when this appliance really sprang into popularity. I remember meeting a new family in the late 80s who didn't have one, and I thought it was so weird!



10. Health - Jane Fonda workout videos



Lastly, since this is a fitness blog, I can't leave out a popular health trend from the 80s!

What are your favorites trends from the 80s?

Now, why not head over to The good life to read all the other fabulous lists. I wonder which topic will be the most popular this week...
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Book Review: The Dark Tide

The Dark Tide by Andrew Gross
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

The Plot
One wealthy family's life is turned upside down the morning of a bombing at Grand Central station as they realize that their husband/father has perished in the destruction. He was a successful hedge fund manager, and as the family attempts to put their lives back in order, things begin to come out that question his integrity.

The same day as the bombing, there was a suspicious hit-and-run in the small town where the family lives. It doesn't sit well with the head detective, Ty Hauck, and, during his investigation, he stumbles upon some information that somehow links the victim with the hedge fund manager.

This link sets the story in motion and connects Hauck with the widow of of the hedge fund manager, Karen Friedman. As more and more links and information comes out about her husband's death, these two find they can't trust anyone else.

My Thoughts
I starting reading this during my lunch breaks at work, and it was always a little difficult to put it down when my break was over. The story, with all its little nuances and twists kept me interested from one scene to the next.

I thought Gross did a great job of unfolding the story bit by bit. I enjoyed Karen's character as well as Ty's and thought they worked really well together. Even their romance seemed to flow nicely and took time to properly develop. I enjoyed getting to know them as well as the other characters. While there was a mystery to solve, I felt that the true story lied between these two. The other characters were more peripheral but were developed appropriately for their role in the overall story.

In general, I really enjoyed this book. There were a few aspects that were obvious and predictable, and it was a little frustrating that the characters weren't getting there faster - but not enough for me to really complain.

View all my reviews
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Reading & Running

I've been absolute rubbish about reading in 12.

I set a goal at the beginning of the year to read 12 books in 2012. I actually did meet this goal because over the summer Jeff and I read 12 books together. That was super fun! But reading on my own was not really a priority, and the types of books I ended up reading were not the ones on my goal at least 6 of books were to be history, geography, or education related.

Instead of reading, I spent lots of time on Facebook and Twitter and Instagram and Pinterest and and and...

So, last week, I finally got frustrated enough with my phone on my lunch break our lunchroom is a like a signal black hole, rendering my phone all but useless and decided to read a book on my Kindle app on my phone.

That's 30 minutes a day of uninterrupted reading!

With no other plans for Friday night last night, I opened my Kindle as soon as I got home. Spent the entire night reading. I haven't done that in forever! I finally finished my book around 1:30 a.m. Oops!

Now, I can't wait to start the next one!!

I'll be posting a review of the book I just finished, so stay tuned for that. And hopefully for more book reviews in 2013.

*****

You may recall that I decided to take a running hiatus to hopefully allow my foot to heal. I was going to wait until 2013 before tying on my running shoes.

Well, I made it until Dec 29th.

The first week of my hiatus went well. I still made it to the gym every morning before work for some strength/weight work.

And then I stopped. The past two weeks were filled with sleeping in and preparing for our move and settling into our new apartment and and and...

I realized that without running, it was *that* much more difficult for me to motivate myself in other fitness-related areas.

So, today, I hit the pavement ... er, sidewalk ... with my Sallie-girl. She had a ball. Running. Jumping. Sniffing. Peeing.

My foot still hurt. And sometimes my knees. And it was a little hard to breathe at times. And this was only a 2+ mile run. Ugh. I've got some work to do.

I'll take it easy with the running Short distances. Easy paces. Just once or twice a weeks. for the next couple weeks.  I'll refocus on strength training.

What are your favorite books to read? I generally stick to fiction. Mysteries are my favorite, but sometimes I slip into other genres.

Are you on GoodReads? I'm not very active with it, but hope to be better in 2013. Feel free to friend me, if you use it.

How find motivation to exercise when you can't do your favorite form(s) of exercise?
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A Memory a Year

Today's theme, 10 ORNAMENTS ON YOUR TREE AND STORIES BEHIND THEM for Monday Listicles came to us from Kelly. Well, we don't have a tree or any ornaments since we don't really celebrate Christmas, BUT this last Friday was our 8-year wedding anniversary, so here are some favorite memories from our marriage - one from each year.

10 MEMORIES OR STORIES OF US 

1. We started dating in the beginning of Oct 2004. He invited me over to help him make Hamburger Helper. LOL. Decided things were moving too fast by the beginning of Nov, so we broke up. Our break-up lasted maybe three days before we decided to get engaged rather than break-up. :-) We were married six weeks later.


2. In 2005, we moved to Brooklyn, NY, but first we went for a short vacation to check it out. We were there for five days, I think, and ended up in Battery Park nearly every. single. day. Here's a conversation from one trip on the subway:
   
   

   Jeff: Check out this sign! It's written in seven different languages.
   Me: Wow! How cool!! Love the diversity of NYC.
   ***
   Me: Um, sweetie? Did you actually read the sign.
   Jeff: Nope. Why?
   Me: Well, it says that in order to get off at Battery Park, we need to be in one of the first three cars. Do you think we are?
   Jeff: No idea.
   
   

   So, we proceeded to walk through as many cars as we could, trying to get to the front of the train. We ended up getting off the train at the stop just after/before Battery Park, because we, in fact, were not in one of the first three cars. Oops!


3. In 2006 we moved from Brooklyn, NY to Dayton, OR just outside of Portland. A few weeks after moving, we made a trip back to MN for a visit. Via Amtrak. The trip out was 36 hours of hell. Ok, it wasn't really that bad, but it certainly wasn't all that comfortable. We upgraded to a suite for the return trip, and it was MUCH better. :) I actually got some sleep. ;-) Jeff, of course, loved every minute of the train trip.


4. 2007 brought us back to MN, and we moved into our first studio apartment. Now, when we first got married and were looking for an apartment, I was adament against living in a studio. What if we argued and I needed my own space. Just a few years later, I knew that our marriage would be able to survive living in a small space together. :-) Plus, it was a super nice studio. Barely a couple years old and the layout was just perfect. It even had a w/d in the unit. Yay! We really loved the location, too.


5. We moved twice in 2008 both in the Twin Cities, but the best thing to happen that year was adopting our cutie-patootie, Sallie Sue! We were staying with my parents between apartments, and they wanted to adopt another dog, so we went with them to the Animal Humane Society. Jeff immediately fell in love with Sallie, but I was unsure. We took her outside to play in the little dog run, and she promptly poo'ed. Right behind Jeff's foot. Which he then promptly stepped in. The smell was horrid!  I was pretty much done at that point. She was so expensive and her poo made me gag. Seemed like a lot of extra work. But somehow Jeff convinced me that we should adopt her. I'm thankful for this decision every single day. I really can't imagine my life without her cuteness in it.
   
   
   
   
   


6. In the summer of 2009, we took a massively long road trip 4600 miles to a nephews's graduation in WA. Instead of driving straight there, we went through SD, WY, UT, NV, CA to get to Yosemite, OR, and finally WA. We took the straight way back home. ;-) We got to see so much of the country, and it was so fun!


7. We wanted to do something special for our five year anniversary, and we had the whole month of January off from school, so we booked a trip to Water Island in Jan 2010. It's the smallest of the US Virgin Islands, just off St Thomas. We were there for a week, and we fell in love with ocean and the hot weather.
   
   
   
   
   


8. We wanted to make a January vacations our thing, so in Jan 2011, we headed to Costa Rica. We spent a few days at a volcano and then a week at the beach. We rented a car and drove across the country, which was an adventure in and of itself. Oh, the roads in Costa Rica! :)
   
   
   
   
   


9. After living nearly 2 years without a car, in May of 2012, we bought Liberty and headed off for our next adventure. Our destination was Belize, but as you probably know, we fell in love with Vegas and now call it home.
   
   
   
   
   


10. We have lots of great plans for adventure in 2013, but the main memory we hope to create in the next year is to do our first ocean dive together. We'd love to go somewhere exotic, like Belize, but that may take a little more saving, so we might settle for San Diego or Mexico. Stay tuned. =)

Thanks for tripping down memory lane with me today! If you're celebrating Christmas, may it be the merriest and brightest for you.
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Fitness Friday: Post-Run Routines {Part 2}

Waaaay back in Oct, I wrote a post about my post-run routines. I meant to do a follow-up post with some of the stretches that I do in addition to those simple strength exercises.

I really did take the pictures the very next week!

But then other things got in the way, and I never got around to fiddling with them to get them ready to post. Until this morning.

Now, this is what I do, and it works for me. I know my form isn't perfect, but it's still stretching and helps me feel better after running.

Of course, I'm on a hiatus until January 1st. I can't wait to run and do this stretches again soon!

Like I mentioned in that earlier post, I don't know the names of these stretches, but I'll try to describe them.

1. Lie on your back. Raise one leg straight until it is perpendicular (somewhat) to the floor. The other leg can either be flat or bent at the knee.

2. Lie on your back. Bend one leg and draw knee to chest. Keep other leg flat on the floor.

3. Lie on your back. Place ankle on opposite knee. Draw bent leg toward chest.

4. Lie on your back. Bend one leg and twist body away from bent leg.

Hold each stretch for a minimum count of 15. Remember to stretch both legs!

This is what has been working for me.

What are your favorite post-run stretches?
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Click the picture below to see who else is celebrating Fitness today.

Just a little whine

I really don't understand what's happening with me and the middle of the week! Meloncholy and crabbiness begin setting in Tuesday afternoon and seem to continue through Wed and sometimes Thu.

SO IT'S WHINY WEDNESDAY!!

Well, I don't want to be whiny today.

Driving into work, I thought about all these different things I wanted to whine about, but now, even though I'm still feeling overall blah, I can't seem to remember the specifics.

Instead, how about hearing about the wonderful weekend I had last weekend? **warning: might be slightly solipsistic going forward, but isn't that the point of a blog?**

Friday was our Christmas party at work.

Every department decorated a tree.

Ok. So, I didn't actually help, but I'm still a part of the department that won. :D
Only in Vegas would there be a Showgirl themed Christmas tree. Ha!

We enjoyed a delicious lunch! With, of course, lots of sweets for dessert.

I had prime rib with horseradish, turkey, cranberries, corn, TWO salads, cheese/crackers, and a roll. There was also lobster and shrimp, but seafood makes me gag. It was bad enough having to walk down the hall where they were serving it. Ick!

There were also drawings throughout the day for random gift cards. At 3 pm there were drawings for larger prizes including a 60", a 55", and a 40" flat screen TV. Wow!

After all the drawings were finished, there was one more surprise drawing left.

A $500 AMERICAN EXPRESS GIFT CARD!

I was standing in the back of the lunchroom, when the drawing took place. After the name was pulled, there was hesitation. "I don't know. Someone from Advertising."

AND THEN THEY CALLED MY NAME!

I had to walk all the way to the front. My face turned bright red someone later told me and I was fighting back tears. I couldn't believe it!!

The last couple hours of work are a blur. Lots of people stopped by and congratulated me. It was amazing.

Saturday was a pretty lazy day, but I did go shopping in the evening. I bought a great pair of boots + a super cute pair of heels. Total for both? $35. Score!

Then I headed to Target to spend the $25 gift card I'd gotten on Thursday. I bought some make-up and nail polish. I guess I was feeling all girly.

Sunday I got to meet up with a good friend that I haven't seen in over seven years! She was in town with some friends, but I was so excited to steal her away for a couple hours. It was so fun to see her again. Despite the years between visits, it was like no time had passed.

We met for breakfast at Coco's Bakery and Restaurant and I had the most delicious multi-grain pumpkin nut pancakes. It was a struggle at the end, but I managed to eat the entire plate! ;-)

It was such a gorgeous afternoon when I got back home, and I was in love with my new boots and my outfit,  that I walked around our apartment complex for a little self-portrait photo shoot.

Aren't my new boots adorable?!

I finished the weekend off with a 3-hour soak in the hot tub with my husband. We only had the jets going for like 20 min, but the conversation was so good that we just didn't want to get out. I was shocked to see the time when we finally got back to our apartment.

Tomorrow, we get the keys to our new apartment. Yay! We have until Sun to turn in our old keys, so this shouldn't be too bad of a move. Especially considering we don't have that much stuff + it's at the same complex. Just closer to the hot tub. It will be practically right out our back porch.

This. Could. Be. Dangerous.

Plus, I'm planning on lunch with another friend that I haven't seen in YEARS on Sunday, so it's looking to be a great weekend ahead!

How was your weekend last weekend?
Do you ever go on random self-portrait photo shoots just because?
What are your plans this coming weekend?
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10 kind of obscure SONGS I LOVE

Another Monday is here. Time for Monday Listicles. Stephanie suggested one of the topics today: 10 SONGS YOU LOVE, HATE OR LOVE TO HATE. The other topic was suggested by Rachée and Mrs RKFJ who called for 10 HOLIDAY SONGS.

I thought it would be fun to share a few songs that I love that are kind of obscure. Or maybe I'm just not cool enough to know that these songs were/are popular...?

10 somewhat obscure SONGS I LOVE

1. Sick & Beautiful by Artificial Joy Club


2. Reasons Why by Merrill Bainbridge


3. What it Feels like to be a Girl by Madonna


4. Sexy Silk by Jessica Cornish


5. Anxious Jenny by Canoe


6. Leave Your Boyfriends Behind by Leona Naess


7. The Wolf by Miniature Tigers


8. Gotta Have You by The Weepies


9. Merry Happy by Kate Nash


10. Gift of the Magi by Squirrel Nut Zippers For good measure, I've included one Christmas song. :D

All of the above songs make me want to either sing or dance or both. And, yes, I have been known to listen to them on repeat over and over and over again.

But I want to include two other songs that I love that are far, far from being obscure, but I LOVE THEM. I love the music, but more I love the lyrics and the messages. To me, these songs are so POWERFUL and I love that we have songs like this out there today that can be empowering and fun.

1. Firework by Katy Perry


2. Raise Your Glass by Pink

If you like the Firework song, watch this video from A Night of Too Many Stars, a benefit for autism. It *may* have brought me to tears.

HAPPY MONDAY, EVERYONE!
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Good Day

Sometimes just writing a whiny post is enough to help turn things around. Thanks for all your wonderful, supportive comments.

One whiny thing I hadn't mentioned in the post was my lack of warm clothing. I really only had one versatile sweater, and I had worn it everyday for too many days in a row. So, after work I stopped at Savers for a little retail therapy.

For $20, I brought home two pairs of work pants + 3 sweaters. Yay!

1 new sweater + 1 new pair of work pants

Thursday morning brought a surprise bonus from work. Everyone got one, and the amount depended upon how long you'd worked there in 2012. Since I started after July 1st, I didn't actually get a check but a $25 gift card to Target. Sweet!

Now, I always bring my lunch, but I'm also never one to turn down free food, so when invited out to lunch, I couldn't say no.

I had a delicious veggie stir fry at Le Thai in downtown Vegas.

Level 2 Spiciness

How spicy do you want it? 1-5.
1 is mild.
2 is medium.
3 is hot.
4 is fire.
All I could think was, if 4 is fire, what is 5? Nuclear?

The super fun looking restaurant next door had this sign outside.

At least two of us had to take a picture. :D

And then my day ended with some TV and hot cocoa with my husband.

So, yeah. It was a good day.

Now, today, we're celebrating Christmas at work. Instead of having a traditional company holiday party, they've devoted the entire day to celebrating. We started off with a continental breakfast. I *wanted* to take a picture, but I left my phone at my desk and ended up eating in the cafeteria.

I had some light peach yogurt, and mammoth-sized blueberry muffin, and the most delicious to-die-for mini quiche.

Yesterday, they sent out a menu for today's lunch:

Prime Rib
Turkey
Pork Tenderloin
Lobster
Shrimp
Variety of vegetables
Variety of salads
and of course Desserts

Good thing I worked out this morning. *wink*

Being all festive with jingle bell earrings.

Anything fun planned for the weekend?
Does your company do anything special for the holidays?
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I NEED SOME SUN!

I've been sad today. I know, right? On a day like 12/12/12? How is that even possible?

Okay the past couple of days. FOR NO APPARENT REASON.

Today, I even put a ribbon in my hair

Ok. So really the ribbon was for
the #runnerphotoaday challenge

and broke out the purple nail polish and purple tights.

I bought the nail polish several days ago
and was feeling guilty for not using it yet.

BUT TO NO AVAIL.

I was trying to figure it out, when it suddenly hit me. I haven't been outside in the daylight in several days. We're going through a bit of a cold snap here in Vegas hopefully just a snap and not something that will last weeks or (gasp!) months with highs only in the low 60s.

I know, I know. THAT'S NOT COLD! But it is. To me. Too cold to sit outside for lunch anyway - especially when that sun is hiding behind a thick layer of clouds.

**sigh**

There are other issues as well.

I'm making way more mistakes at work than I'd like to admit but at least I do admit them and accept them instead of trying to blame them on someone else. I know it's only been two months, and there is so much room for human error, but it doesn't make it any easier. So frustrating!

We can't seem to get ahead financially. I know I've only been working for just over two months, but it seems like we just aren't making any progress. And now, we're (hopefully) moving in the next week or so. I'm excited for the new apartment, but it will also mean another $200/month. Where is that going to come from?

We've met a few people here, but I really long for more friends. Yes, I'm lonely. There. I said it.

At least I'm still exercising, right? Despite taking a brief running hiatus, I've still been working out, so at least there's that.

happyfitmama on Pinterest.

Today's quick workout (Wednesday's are my light/easy day).
Sort of.
I'm not quite to these full lengths. Yet.
And while I have been noticing some improvement in the way I look, and I am very happy with said progress, sometimes like today it still makes me sad that I'm not where I want to be.

Wow. This post is so whiny! The last post I wrote on a Wednesday was also a little on the whiny side. Am I sensing a pattern? Maybe I should start a Whiny Wednesday meme? :D

At least it's almost time to head home.

What do you do when you're feeling a little down?
What makes you smile?
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Big Announcement

I've been holding off sharing this with you, but now it's officially official!

I've been accepted as a Fitfluential Ambassador. Whoo hoo!!

Ever since I first heard of Fitfluential, I've wanted to join the team, so I'm super excited about this. Yes, I had to apply a couple times before being accepted, so I'm taking this as a sign that my presence is actually growing.

What does this mean for Enjoying the Course? I'll still be blogging regularly (as ever) about my regular topics, but I'll also have the opportunity to work with exciting brands. You might see an increase in reviews and such, but overall, it's just an opportunity for me to embrace my fitness goals and share my experiences with even more fantastic people like YOU!

In other news, if you didn't see my message on my FB page yesterday, I'm taking a short break from running until 2013.

I want to be strong in 2013, so hopefully this short hiatus will do the trick.

Oddly, once making this decision, the pain seems to have intensified. I'm taking it as a good sign. Sometimes, things have to get worse before getting better, right?

If you'd like to follow along with what I'll be doing strength-training-wise, there is a link up above to my Fitness calendar. Check it out!

Oh, and one last thing. I've added a tab to the top with a list of all my race recaps. For your reading pleasure.
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My Favorite Foods to Smell

Okay. And eat.

Today's Monday Listicles is all about food. Bridget suggested the topic and gave us free reign over interpretation.

Ask anyone in my family, and they'll tell you stories of how picky of an eater I was growing up. The list of foods I wouldn't eat was probably longer than the list of what I would try. I'm much more adventurous now.

Still, I thought I'd take a slighty different approach, and try to come up with a list of foods that I love to smell.

TEN GREAT SMELLING FOODS

1. Fresh bread
2. Pumpkin pie
3. Roast - turkey, beef, pork
4. Potato soup
5. Chocolate chip cookies
6. Pizza
7. Flavored coffee
8. Warm apple cider
9. Buffalo wings
10. Peanut butter

There's a reason fresh bread is #1. That is without a doubt my all-time favorite. When I worked downtown Minneapolis, every morning I would walk by a Subway restaurant. I looked forward to the delectable smells wafting out into the skyway. It always made me smile, and took a lot of willpower to keep walking and not stop to simply relish in the moment of the wondrous smell of baking bread.

What are your favorite smelling foods?

Do you have any memories of the smell of a favorite food?

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I Am Great

Today, it's time to brag. Because, you know, it's good for the soul to do it every once in awhile.

Plus, it's our topic for today's Monday Listicles. It comes to us from Mrs. M at The Bonny Bard.

10 Reasons I Am Great

1. I am open-minded.
2. I am flexible and can adapt to new situations relatively quickly.
3. I can admit when I'm wrong and I own my mistakes.
4. I know my way around the kitchen and can sometimes produce some deliciousness.
5. I like both action movies and chick flicks.
6. I am a runner.
7. I am an optimist.
8. I can usually always find something good to say to or about anyone or anything.
9. I almost always give someone the benefit of the doubt.
10. I have a cute smile.

What else would you add to my list cuz I crave validation?
What makes you great?
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Great Santa Run Recap

Several weeks ago, an email appeared in my work Inbox asking that anyone interested in signing up for the Great Santa Run to contact HR. I asked a couple questions, went to the website, got super excited, and immediately contacted HR to add my name to the list.

Here's a little video about the 2011 run.


Since my work is a major sponsor, my registration was actually free. Can't beat that! When you register, you get a Santa suit to run in. The hope is to get as many Santas together in one area as possible. Last year, they won the World Santa Challenge and raised over $400,000 for individuals with disabilities! How cool is that!

There were over 8,000 Santas in 2011. The numbers weren't available yet on the website of how many were there this year, but I'm glad to have been a part of it. :)

Around 8:20, my ride arrived to pick me up. I knew that parking was going to be, um, complicated, so I asked a friend if he wanted to carpool. And yes, by carpool, I meant him pick me up. This is, I think, the 2nd race he's picked me up for, so he's kind of becoming my race chauffeur. (Thanks, Crosby!)

I'd picked up my Santa suit, race number, etc the day before (conveniently at work. yay!), but he'd registered with a team, so we needed to meet up with them to get his race packet.

He had brought his sweet girl, Maya, with him, so I didn't mind the wait at all.

I couldn't get her to look up at me, but isn't she a cutie!

Finally, the four of us were dressed as Santa and ready to go!

While we waited at what we thought was the start line, we got to see 4 skydiving Santas glide in to the starting area.

The race was supposed to start at 10am, and shortly after 10, they started announcing that all 5K participants should line up behind Santa. Um. We were ALL dressed like Santa! ;) So, we just started following the crowd and 10 minutes later, we were at the starting line. Phew!

I got my CharityMiles started on my phone just as we crossed. I ran for The Global Fund to fight against AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, since yesterday was also World AIDS Day. I didn't want to lose sight of my ride home in the sea of Santas, so I did my best to keep up with him. He's normally super fast, but I had two things in my favor yesterday. 1) There were a ton of Santas, so it was hard to run very fast anyway, and 2) He was running a marathon the next day (today!), so this was just kind of a slow warm-up, make-sure-everything-is-working-okay type of run for him.

Our final time was just shy of 32 min (31:58). Definitely no record for me, but it was fun! Weaving in and out of the throngs of Santas was exhilarating!

At the finish, we were just finished. There wasn't any food that I could see anyway. They were handing out bottles of water as you crossed the finish, but they had also handed out bottles around mile 1 in lieu of a water stop. It was kind of cool to get a whole bottle - except then you had to run with the bottle for the remaining 2.1 miles.

Also, the first 1,000 finishers were offered a shirt, but we didn't feel like standing in line. Plus, we had no idea if we were in the first 1,000, so we headed back to the car, where he completely changed out of his Santa suit before we headed back to the finish to meet up with our friends.

Ugh. I hate this picture of me. Next year, I'm wearing my own suit that will actually FIT! :)

After the race was finished, and before heading back home, I headed to the portapotty. I'd been holding it since before the race began and knew I wouldn't make it home. Now, I only mention this because instead of simply having hand sanitizer stations for disinfecting those germs, they had actually set up portable handwashing stations. This was a bad idea. I thought it seemed pretty cool, but the water didn't work very well, and there were no paper towels or anything for drying. I couldn't rinse off all the soap or try to wick it off with a paper towel, so I ended up wringing my hands continuously until the suds kind of went away. It was annoying. I'll take simple hand sanitizer any day.

All in all, it was a great way to start the Saturday! Now, if I could just figure out how to run a race in the morning and then not veg out and eat like shit the rest of the day!!

Have you, or will you, be running in a Santa race this year?
Do you ever accidentally type Satan when you mean to type Santa? oops!
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Not cool, body. Not cool.

Warning: If you're a male reader, you might want to skip this post.

I got my period on Monday. I knew it was coming because for the week or so prior my boobs felt like heavy bricks every time I'd unleash them from their sheath my bra. Once that painful heaviness sets in, I know the time is nearish. Sometimes it's a couple of weeks; sometimes it's a couple of days.

It's only in the past few years that I've starting experienced this.
And cramps.

I used to always feel so lucky not really ever having to deal with the pains of being a woman. My periods would come and go, and while I've always hated them, they would never cause me to DOUBLE OVER IN PAINFUL CRAMPS.

But, as I've gotten older, I've started to get ...

... the aforementioned painful boobs
... increased acne
... heavier flows
... painful cramps

Sometimes I joke with my husband about how I'm looking forward to menopause because it can't get much worse. He always assures me that it can. And probably will. Thanks, honey, you always know what to say.

So, last night, I awoke around 2 a.m. Now, it's not too unusual for me to wake up in the middle of the night, but lately, I've had a lot of trouble getting back to sleep.

But last night, in addition to the INSOMNIA, I had PAINFUL GUT-WRENCHING CRAMPS.

I took some Midol, but I just couldn't fall asleep.
Then, my body decided that since I was having such fun with my cramps, why not add a bit of gas to the equation.

NOT COOL, BODY. NOT COOL AT ALL.

I may have dozed a little here and there, but basically I've been awake since roughly 2 a.m.

On my way into work, I stopped at Walgreens because well, I need some supplies. I prefer the non-applicator kind because they seem a bit more comfortable to me, and I like the small size, so I can just slip them into my pocket.

As I was browsing this section I don't know why I browse since I always get the same thing, I saw these non-applicator ones.

At first I thought, Those are kind of neat. They come in a cute little tin.
Then, Who would spend $6.99 for 16 when you could spend $7.49 for 40? That's a lot of money for a cute little tin.

I also contemplated these.

I like the idea of using cups - disposable or reusable. Less waste and all that, but I used to have a DivaCup, and I was less than impressed with its, um, performance.

I hate spending money on something I'm not sure will work for me, and I'm also all about cheap, so I opted for the Walgreens brand non-applicator tampons. Exactly what I went to Walgreens with the intention of buying.

Have you ever tried any alternative supplies? 
Do you find yourself dreading this time more as you get older or is it just me?
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10 Photos From My Phone

For today's Monday Listicles, we had the option of two topics: 10 PHOTOS FROM OUR PHONE or 10 NAMES YOU CONSIDERED FOR YOUR KIDS.

Since I have no kids, I'll share with you ten photos.

4th of July from the parking lot of our new apartment in Vegas.
We'd moved in just a few days prior to this picture.

Goofy girl at Yappy Hour at Rumor Boutique Hotel

My cutie little girl!

Crazy girl sleeping with her toy dog

Free SURVIVOR concert at Fremont Street Experience

Her legs are all criss-crossed, but I guess she's comfortable.

Blue Moon captured through my phone and our mono-scope

Tiny little nearby park where I once stopped after a run for a little yoga.

My panting girl was SO HOT!

I won tickets from work to go to the NHRA. It was so much fun!

Wow! Flipping through my phone photos reminded me that I still have a few events I need to blog about. Oops!

Which of these in particular would you be most interested in reading a full post about?
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