5 Tips For Your Next Road Trip

We love going for road trips and have gone for quite a few pretty lengthy trips. There is nothing like the beauty of the open road whizzing by. Plus, we solve all the world's problems while we're out for a long drive. :-)

This post is sponsored by EatSmart Products. All content and opinions are my own.

Here are some of our favorite tips for a successful road trip.

Pack Snacks

Pack healthy snacks to bring with you in the car. Dried fruits are great for a sweet snack. Nuts for some protein. If you have room in your cooler, cut up some veggies for the beginning of your trip for some crunch. Granola is good, too. Or make your own trail mix to get a variety of sweet, salty, and crunchy.

Friday Five 2.0 - Dream Waterfall Destinations

I've been so unmotivated to blog this week! I don't if it's the dreary weather or what, but every night I get home and just want to VEG. There were a couple posts I had intended to write, but well, that lack of motivation won.

Let's try to get back on track by linking up with Running on Happy and Fairytales and Fitness for Friday Five 2.0.

The theme this week is:

Dream Vacations or Winter Destinations

There are so many places I'd love to visit, but here are 5 waterfall destinations I'd love to cross off my list!

Ultimate Coffee Date - May 2015

Good morning!

It is absolutely gorgeous outside this morning as I sip on my coffee and catch up during the Ultimate Coffee Date. The wind is calm, the sky is blue, and the temperature is perfect.

If we were having coffee today... I would tell you about my winning week! I was the Week 3 winner for the #RockYourCore challenge in April, and got a huge box of goodies from Quest Nutrition - protein powder packets, protein bars, and even some protein chips. I also won entry to the Zion Half Marathon next March. Super excited for that!!

If we were having coffee today... I would tell you about all the races I have coming up - starting with a 16-miler tomorrow. A 16-miler that I decided to do last weekend (and registered for on Monday). Needless to say, I haven't really trained or prepared for it, but I'm excited about it nonetheless.

May 3 - Ride the Wind 16-miler
May 9 - FroYo 5k
May 30 - WildLand Fire Awareness Trail Half Marathon
July 31 - Once in a Blue Moon - Shoot the Moon - Three 5ks, One Night
Dec 5 - Run Laughlin Half Marathon

This will probably be it for my 2015 race schedule (unless I get a sponsor or a race sugar daddy) due to financial reasons, but I'll still try to get in as much running as possible. It's what I do. :-)

If we were having coffee today... I'd also mention that I was an ambassador for the Run Laughlin Half Marathon. You should totally join me for a fun #racecation. Use promo code EnjoyTheCourse to save $15 off the Half Marathon or $5 off the 5K. Or enter below to win a free entry!

a Rafflecopter giveaway
If we were having coffee today... I'd tell you about our trip to the Grand Canyon at the beginning of April. It was magnificent - especially the sunset. We definitely want to go back again! I need to write a full post about that trip soon!

I'd probably also mention how we spent some time at Zion National Park, coming back from Ragnar Trail Zion last week. Again, another post I need to write.

Another reason to love living in Vegas. So many national and state parks within a few hours drive. Awe inspiring!!

If you really want to feel like we're having coffee together, check out my vlog from this morning. I talk about the above and more. :-)



Now that we're all caught up, hop on over to the Ultimate Coffee Date hosts (Deb, Coco, or Lynda) to have coffee with a bunch of other fun bloggers!
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Ragnar Trail Zion - Pre-flight

Good morning from the glorious Zion Ponderosa Ranch. I'm just a few hours out from starting Ragnar Trail Zion 2015.

We left Vegas around 5pm last night and arrived at the most spectacular vacation home EVER around 10-10:30.

Good luck double rainbow on the drive

This is some serious GLAMPING we'll be doing. I took some virtual tour videos, but I'm not sure how well they turned out (never tried this function on my phone before). My phone is charging now, but I'm sure I'll take more pictures later. Be sure to follow me on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, or G+ for more updates throughout the weekend.

Here are a few pics of the house aka The Sanctuary (yes, that's the name of the vacation house; pretty fitting, right?).

Wide open kitchen

View from the living room

Upstairs TV area

Seriously, I think this vacation home is bigger than any house I've ever lived in. :) The mudroom/laundry room is the size of a pretty large bedroom. There is a huge living room (with a fireplace) on the ground floor as well as a master suite and a large bathroom.

The upstairs has a master suite with a jacuzzi bathtub, TV area (pictured above), 3 more bedrooms, and 2 more bathrooms.

There's even a hot tub outside, which we may or may not have already indulged in last night.

Now THIS is the way to do Ragnar Trail. Like I said, 100% unadulterated glamping is going down this weekend.

And maybe a little running, too. ;-)

While I'm out running and relaxing in this amazing house, feel free to read my recaps from 2013 and 2014.

2013: The Experience
2013: The Running
2013: A Few Other Things
2014: Here I Come
2014: The Recap

I'm excited to see what changes/improvements they made since last year. Prior to getting cancelled to the snow last year, the Ragnar staff had really made some great improvements to the transition area and courses, so I'm curious about what's changed for this year.

Have you ever run a race multiple years in a row, and noticed significant changes?

Who else is racing this weekend?

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5 For Friday - April 10

It's been a very, very long time since I've done a 5 for Friday type post. I've been feeling unmotivated and uninspired lately when it comes to blogging, but I've got a few exciting things going on that I wanted to share.

1. We are headed to the Grand Canyon this weekend. Neither of us has been before, so we're pretty excited. We're making a mini-weekend of it. We'll drive out Saturday morning and drive back Sunday afternoon/evening. I'm not sure why I decided it was important to go in April! Maybe it will be less crowded...?

Note: Deciding if it should have been "neither of us has been" or "neither of us have been" resulted in a long grammatical discussion before deciding that has been is correct. It still sounds weird, but according to Purdue Online Writing Lab, neither is singular and should use a singular verb - even if it sounds wrong. lol. So, there's your grammar lesson for the day. You're welcome. :-)

We're staying the night at the Yavapai Lodge - just one mile from the South Rim. I can't wait to, of course, see the beauty of the Grand Canyon, but also to do some trail running/walking/hiking. And maybe some outdoor yoga. It's going to be chilly, but I still can't wait!

2. I went shopping. To prepare for our chilly weekend at the Grand Canyon, and Ragnar Trail Zion in 2 weeks, and for a little retail therapy, I bought 3 pairs of running leggings at Walmart yesterday afternoon. Plus a few warmer tops. I needed a little color and a little fun for the cooler temps that I don't usually have to deal with here in Vegas.

3. I tried beets. I got 2 beets in our Bountiful Basket last week, and I kind of freaked out. Thank goodness for Pinterest! I ended up roasting them in a little olive oil/S&P to use in smoothies, of all things. The smoothies were delicious! Tangy, sweet, and probably very nutritious. Right? Right?



Waste not, want not. Instead of tossing out the stems and greens, I used them to make these delicious quesadillas.



The pesto was perfect. So savory! And combined with the squash and beet stems. SO GOOD! Of course, Jeff thought it was one of the most disgusting things he'd ever put in his mouth. MORE FOR ME!!

4. I started a new routine. Back on March 30th, I started a new morning routine to get me moving in the morning and to ensure I get at least some exercise every day.

I started with 10 and have been adding 1 rep every day. I'm now at 21. I'm going to keep increasing until I hit 25, and then I'll stay there for a couple weeks (probably through the end of April).

In addition, I've also been doing sun salutations every morning. I started with 1, worked up to 10, and will stick to 10 for a couple weeks now. Or until May 1st.

To keep me on track, I've also started using DailyMile again. If you're on there, we should totally be friends. :)

5. I joined the Tone It Up Bikini Series challenge.

It starts this coming Monday, and I'm kinda excited about it. Or at least hopeful for some good results. It's an 8 week program and sounds like it will be a really good one! I know I'll get out of it what I put into it, so I'm hoping I'll be able to give it my all. For real. I've been feeling very self-conscious and unhappy with my midsection lately, so here's to getting bikini ready!!

Well, that's all I have for now. Hope you all have a fabulous weekend! I promise it won't be another 17 days before my next post. :)

Have you ever been to the Grand Canyon?
Anyone else doing the Bikini Series?
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Staying Fit While Traveling

Good morning! It's FRIDAY!

And I think that summer is officially HERE! I know most people think of Memorial Day weekend as the unofficial start to summer, but I think more when school is out - even though I'm no longer in school.

With summer, comes travel. At least I like to pretend. :) We don't really have too many travel plans on the agenda the year, but a girl can dream.

And be prepared.

Catalina Island: The Running

In planning our vacation to Catalina Island, I simply knew I had to get in at least one run.
I packed for two. :-)

The weekend really went too fast don't they always? SO after the wedding with an open bar, I woke up Sunday morning determined to run off any hangover.

It was a bit of a struggle to crawl out of bed and change into my running clothes, but I did it. SO GLAD I DID!

It was a beautiful morning! There was a slight breeze; the weather was perfect.

I started out running along the ocean.

It's such a rare treat for me to run with the ocean by my side. And it was exhilarating. :)

Catalina Island: The Dive

As you probably know, I spent this past weekend on beautiful Catalina Island. When we found out my cousin was getting married there, we simply knew we had to attend. It was the perfect excuse to finally get in our first ocean dive.

We got certified back in July 2011 in MN. Obviously, there was no ocean available, so all of our certification dives were done in lakes. While in MN, we also dove Lake Wazee a couple times and did a dive at SeaLife in the Mall of America. Since moving to Vegas, we've only gone diving once - an eco-dive last June at Lake Mead.

An ocean dive was definitely the next step!

And our New in 2014 for May.

Becoming a certified diver was an immensely difficult and emotional accomplishment for me. You can read more about that here.

I'm still a pretty nervous diver.

Long Weekend Recap

Well, my long weekend has come to an end. :( Back to a regular routine this morning. It's okay. The memories from this weekend will last a long time. And if not, they'll be recorded here, for good measure. ;)

Obviously, the biggest highlight of the weekend was running the Tri-States Marathon with Katie.

Katie and me at the Start Line

Missed my recap of the race? Check it out here.

Besides running a marathon, the weekend was filled with delicious food and drinks.

And walking around the Strip.

Katie had never been to Vegas before, so we had to do at least something Vegas-y. But it was so cold! And we were both tired from a day of travel Thurs - Katie flying from KY; me circling the McCarran Airport for 20+ miles - that we just grabbed dinner at FIREFLY and called it a night.

So, before heading to Mesquite for the marathon, I had to at least show her the Vegas Strip. We parked at Fashion Show mall. I got some nail appliques on my ring fingers; Katie got her hair straightened AND bought the hair straightener. I decided that maybe it hadn't been the best idea to stop at the mall first. LOL.

We walked from Fashion Show to Aria, popping in and out of the casinos to hit the tables warm up.

Since we went during the afternoon, none of the free shows were going. I, at least, wanted to show her the Conservatory at the Bellagio.

It was between shows. #thwarted

It was still fun to see glimpses of the holiday show.

After walking around for a couple hours, we were both getting hungry! I saw I had a Starbucks reward for BOGO food, so we decided to grab sandwiches at Starbucks.

Unfortunately, we had to go to THREE locations before I could redeem my reward. Apparently rewards don't work in casinos. #lessonlearned

Katie and I got along fabulously! It was so much fun getting to know her in person and chatting about blogging and running. I so rarely get to do that in real life, so it was lots of fun!!

Come back anytime, Katie!

The rest of my weekend was spent watching movies and TV. And blogging a bit, too.

My legs were feeling pretty good on Sunday, but the DOMS definitely set in as I lounged on the recliner. Walking seemed to get more and more difficult as the day went on. I spent quite a bit of time massaging them throughout our movie marathon.

When I went to bed Sunday night, I was definitely happy about my decision to take Monday off work as well.

Thankfully, my legs were feeling much better yesterday. I even took Sallie for a 2-mile walk. They felt so good in fact that I think I'll even try going for a short, slow run before work today.

How was your weekend? Do anything particularly fun?
How long after a marathon until you're walking 100% normal again?
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Our visit to Valley of Fire State Park

It's Day 9 of Blogember!! Are we having fun yet? Today's topic is about our favorite places to shop online. I'm not really an online shopper, so instead, I'm going to share some pictures of Valley of Fire.

Back when my parents were visiting, we took a day to visit this state park.

Perfect weather. Blue skies. Gorgeous views!

We started at the Visitor's Center. I didn't take any pictures there, but there was a lot to see in the center. And lots to learn. For example, millions of years ago, it used to be a sea. Seems so weird that it's a desert now.

In the visitor's center, I talked to a ranger to decide on which trails for us to tackle.

After pulling my Dad away from the exhibits at the Visitor's Center, we headed to Mouse's Tank trail. What is Mouse's Tank? It's an interesting story, actually. Mouse isn't a what, but a who. A Southern Paiute Indian renegade in the 1890s, accused of murder and other crimes, hid out at this natural basin.

Looking down into the basin

It was a gorgeous trail! Along the way, there were tons of petroglyphs.

The trail itself was soft sand. It was kind of like walking along the beach - with cliffs instead of ocean views.

After dumping the sand out of our shoes, we headed to the Rainbow Vista.

From there, we took the Rainbow Vista trail to the Fire Canyon.

Again, the trail was very soft sand, but it was pretty well marked, and GORGEOUS, so totally worth it.

Our calves got a great workout for sure.

These pictures don't really do this state park justice, it really was breathtaking. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone visiting Vegas who is looking to get off the Strip for a day. It's an only an hour away and very easy to find.

My Biggest tip for visiting Valley of Fire? Wear hiking boots. Running shoes were okay, but they sure welcomed the sand, and filled right up with copious amounts of sand. We were totally surprised at how many people were hiking in flip flops. Weird.

I can't wait to go back.

As a matter of fact, I'll be heading back there next weekend for a half marathon - The Valley of Fire Half. I've been looking forward to this half for MONTHS and visiting the park with my parents only made me more excited about it.

My shins, however, seem to have other ideas. I've been spending my weekend icing and rolling and massaging. I'm still holding onto hope that I'll be able to run on Saturday. If not, I'm planning on still driving to the race to volunteer. It won't be the same, but it would still be fun.

Stay tuned...

Have you ever visited Valley of Fire?
What's your favorite state park?
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For more pictures of our hikes in Valley of Fire, visit my Facebook album.

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We went to Hoover Dam!

When I asked my dad what he wanted to do in Vegas, he gave me three suggestions.

1) Visit Hoover Dam
2) Jack in the Box
3) In 'n Out Burgers

LOL. Obviously, Jack in the Box and In 'n Out Burgers are not available in MN. We did squeeze in each of those, and they were delicious!

But this post is all about visiting Hoover Dam.

It was after biking to Hoover Dam in June 2012 that Jeff and I decided to stay in Vegas for awhile. At first we were just planning on staying for 6 months or so, but we're here for the foreseeable future now.

Back to the dam.

We didn't bike this time. Though that would have been lots of fun, we don't have two extra bikes. And with the government shutdown, I don't think that the trail would have been open.

Lucky for us, the Hoover Dam website had this note up when we were checking for hours, etc.

NOTE: Hoover Dam Visitors services remain open to the public during the current government shutdown because the facility is not operated by appropriated dollars.

Yay!!

We missed the turn for the bypass around Boulder City, and I'm so glad that we did! We stumbled upon this view of Lake Mead and had to pull over for some photo ops.

This was about as close as we could get to Lake Mead, since it is a National Recreational area, and therefore was closed during the shutdown.

From there we were just a few minutes from Hoover Dam.

We spent some time walking across the dam from Nevada to Arizona and back again. :)

It was pretty amazing to look down the dam and out across Lake Mead.

Jeff and Marna didn't feel like going on the tour, so it was just my dad and me.

Our docent explaining how the dam was built

It was really fascinating! I really like going on tours like that because I learn so much more than I would just walking around on my own. Plus, of course, you get to go to areas you wouldn't normally get to go - like through the tunnels used to construct the dam.

Before going on the tour, I thought the white rock was from the normal water level of Lake Mead. Actually it's from back in 1983 when the Colorado River flooded, giving Mother Nature the opportunity to test the spillways. :) The river flowed that high for 60+ days, resulting in the white rock.

Of course, the water level is still very low, compared to the hey day of Vegas. It used to sit about halfway further up the white wall.

A few years ago, the Hoover Dam Bypass was completed. Now motorists don't have to drive over the dam, and visitors to the dam, get this view.

Such a beautiful bridge!

There is a pedestrian walkway up on the bypass, but we didn't make it up there. I bet those views are even more fabulous!

Construction projects like the Hoover Dam are amazing to me! Especially considering the difference in technology from then compared to today.

After the dam tour, we met back up with Jeff and Marna and headed back into Boulder City for a late lunch.

We went to the Boulder Dam Brewery. It was very tasty, and many of their menu items had dam-related names, like the Turbine Turkey.

To see more pictures of our trip to Hoover Dam, click here to see my album on Facebook.

Have you ever visited Hoover Dam?
Do you like to go on guided tours or just explore on your own?
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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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Remembering

Yesterday's prompt for NaBloPoMo was:

Wordsworth called memory the "inward eye." Are your memories more sight-based, or do they concern sound, taste, touch, or smell? 

My memories are definitely more sight-based. For example, when I think back on this day 11 years ago, my memories are filled with sights. I remember seeing the trail around Lake of the Isles where I was running that morning. I  remember seeing the golden color of the tall weeds. I  remember seeing the blue skies.

I remember feeling how something just felt a bit off - not with anything related to my running, but just in general.

I can still see my apartment and my ragged old couch and the endless TV coverage. I can see the mostly empty bar at TGI Fridays where I was covering a shift, watching more endless coverage that night.

What's missing from all these memories are the sounds, the smells.

I wonder why that is. Do I not pay enough attention to these other senses? Do I focus too much on my sight? I wonder if memories can be shaped to include other senses.

What better way to try and test this than by planning a dream fitness vacation!

One of my bucket list life goals is to run a marathon or half on every continent besides Antarctica, so why not start with Australia?

I'd start my dream vacation off with a race. I'd arrive about a week beforehand to acclimate to the weather and do any finally tapering. I'd really focus on taking in the feel of the sweat on my skin, the smell of my surroundings hopefully not too much of the other runners, and the taste of the post-race food. Of course my eyes would be wide open to see the beauty of the course.

After the race, I'd spend a week relaxing at a yoga retreat. I figure this would be a great way to stretch and relax my muscles to aid in a healthy recovery.

Next up would be to the Red Centre, where I would hike through some of the national parks. Maybe go for a camel ride.

And to finish off this dream fitness vacation, I'd return to the coast to scuba dive in the
Great Barrier Reef.

Each day of this 4-week journey would be spectacular! In order to try to create memories that aren't just sight-based, I would keep a journal (or blog!) of daily impressions regarding the sounds, smells, tastes, touches of everything I experienced. Perhaps by recording specifics of these other senses, I could walk away from an amazing vacation with more than sight-based memories.

Now, if I could only get someone to sponsor me on this trip. :-)

Are your memories mostly sight-based? Have you ever tried to specifically enhance your memories of your other senses?
Would you like to accompany me on this fitness vacation?
What would your dream fitness vacation include?
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Viva Las Vegas!

Note: I began writing this post at the end of June, when it was still fresh in my mind. I'm disappointed with how long it's been since my last post, so I wanted to publish something today when I discovered this in my drafts. Hopefully I can do the rest of the trip some justice - and get back to regular posting.

Fifteen years ago, I graduated from a small two-year college in SW Missouri. Instead of going back for the official reunion, a few of us decided to meet up for a little reunion of our own in Las Vegas.

So, in the midst of Traveling with Liberty, we made a stop in Vegas.

The fun and festivities were supposed to begin on Tuesday June 19th, and they did for my friends, but Jeff and I took a little longer than expected driving from the Portland area. I finally joined my friends by mid-morning on Wednesday.

But before I could settle into enjoying Vegas, we needed to find a place for Jeff and Sallie to stay, which meant we needed to park the van while we searched hotels.com.

Parking the van turned out to be quite an ordeal.

The parking ramp at the Cosmopolitan we didn't actually stay at the Cosmo, but the condo Katie's parents hooked us up with had shared parking in the ramp is actually quite nice. Each spot has a sensor, so when you drive in, you can see just how many spots are available on each level.

One problem: The sensors hang down so low, that the clearance of the garage is greatly decreased. When we drove into the ramp, it clearly said CLEARANCE 8'2". Liberty measures around 7'5", so we figured we were good.

Wrong.

We *may* have hit a few signs/sensors, but I'm totally blaming the Cosmopolitan. I mean, seriously, update your signs!

Once parked, we still had to find a hotel room. A BIG THANK YOU to my friends for hanging out with Sallie while we searched, booked, and noted directions.

So, I kissed Jeff good-bye and settled into my room on the Strip with the girls.

Where I enjoyed this view from our room.

After showering and primping, we hit the Strip and headed north. We found ourselves at the Fashion Show Mall, where we shopped and ate at the food court. Nothing spectacular, but it was very fun.

Once back at the hotel, one of us crashed. Hard.

So, we left her to catch up on some sleep and headed to the Hash House A Go Go. Twisted Farm Food. The portions were ridiculously huge.

Seriously. Who can eat a pancake the size of one's head? Plus scrambled eggs? Plus bacon, sausage, or potatoes? I think the three of us could have *easily* shared one order.

The next day, we took a free shuttle to the Las Vegas Outlet Mall, where we shopped and shopped and shopped some more. I tried on a gorgeous, summertime dress at Banana Republic. It fit perfectly, and was only $40 (60% reduction), and yet I still talked myself out of buying it.

After shopping our little hearts out, Kate found so many amazing deals! we rested a few hours in our hotel room before getting all dolled up to catch a show, grab some dinner, and party at a Vegas night club or two.

We went to see V The Ultimate Variety Show. It was great. Better than I expected. The MC Wally Eastwood was hilarious. Plus, there was something for everyone. Sexy acrobatic men. Sensual female magicians. Lots of comedy. If you're in Vegas, I would definitely recommend this show.

From there we ate at one of the restaurants near to the theater. I can't remember the name now. Dinner was included in the price of the tickets. Sort of. There was a special menu that we could order from or we could order off the regular menu for a discount. The food was good, but the service wasn't the best.

After finishing dinner, we headed over to the Aria. Earlier in the day, we had gotten some tickets to a few different nightclubs and had decided on going to Haze. While in the lobby of the Aria, we were approached by a nicely dressed man. He suckered us into buying tickets to Gold to enjoy that club while we waited for Haze to open. It wasn't exactly the scene for all of us, but we all went. For $20, it was all we could drink, which didn't turn out to be much. Are we getting old?

From there, we finally made it to Haze. It. Was. LOUD! Maybe we really are getting old? Again, not the scene for everyone, but I was determined to drink, dance, and have some fun. My concept of time that night is gone, but at some point, one of the girls headed back to the hotel. The rest of us stumbled back (ok, only two of us were really stumbling) around 2:30, I think. I thought it was a fun enough club - if not for being super crowded and loud.

After sleeping and lounging, we got off to a later-than-usual start Friday morning. After breakfast, one of us really wanted to head to the Cosmopolitan pool and one of us wanted to shop some more, so we split into twos and went on our way. I went with the shopper. Hindsight being what it is, I probably shouldn't have. Or I should have changed into flip flips. I ended up getting huge blisters on my feet. I didn't think I'd ever walk normally again.

I had to relax for a couple hours in the room before I could hobble my way to dinner.

For dinner, we all headed to Beso Steakhouse in Crystals at City Center. Jeff even joined us.

Up to this point, we had collectively been pretty disappointed by the level of service we'd received in Vegas. It either slow or the server wasn't very personable or both. That all changed at Beso. The service was great, but even better, the food was fabulous. So good in fact that I shared the following on twitter the next day.

Just thinking about it again makes my mouth water.

Saturday morning, we started the day off at PBR Rock Bar and Grill at the suggestion of Katie's mom. I was not disappointed! I shared a plate of breakfast potato skins with Katie, and they were very tasty!

Katie's parents picked her up shortly after breakfast. After saying our good-byes, the rest of us checked out of our room and headed back out to the strip to walk through a few other hotels/casinos. It was a low-key, relaxed way to end our trip.

Molly and Dayna hailed a cab and headed to the airport, and Jeff picked me up to take me back to where he'd spent the week.

What a great stop on our travels of course, if you follow me on FB or Twitter, you know that we now call Vegas home! It was so fun to see these lovely ladies again. We walked, we shopped, we talked, we laughed. Great fun - even if I was exhausted and could barely walk by the end of it all.

Hopefully we'll be able to get together again sometime soon!

**I didn't take hardly any pictures, so most of the pictures in this post are from what my friends posted on FB. Thanks for covering me on the picture taking and sharing, ladies!

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Picky Eater

How lucky for you. Two posts in as many days!

Growing up, I was one of the pickiest eaters. I rarely liked to try anything new. And if I didn't like the look of something? Forget about it! Our closest neighbors were my aunt and uncle. When my mom tried to get me to eat something I didn't want to, I'm simply say that I'd had it before. Where? Aunt Judy's, of course. My mom didn't buy it. :)

I was pretty stubborn, too. I was told I couldn't leave the table until I'd finished what was on my plate. I would sit and sit and sit. Sometimes, I would sneak off to the bathroom to dispose of what I could down the toilet.

I've come a long way since then. I'm still not the most adventurous eater; I still judge food by the way it looks.

BUT compared to my husband, I am a regular [insert famous explorer of your choice].

We were eating dinner at the Persian restaurant in our hotel the last night of our stay in Costa Rica. I can't remember what was on my plate, but I asked Jeff if he'd like to try it.

"Are you kidding? I'm already pushing boundaries eating this salad."

He's kind of an "iceberg lettuce with ranch dressing" kind of salad-eating-guy. :)

Earlier in the trip, I saw Nutella on the shelf at the Mini-Super. Now you can't go camping (which is essentially what we were doing the 2nd have of our trip), without Nutella, as I learned at Girls Camp this past summer, so I bought some and some tortillas. Yum! They didn't have any bananas. Weird, I know, since Chiquita has a plantation in Costa Rica.

Jeff's response: "How is this not chocolate frosting?"

And that was about the extent of his dabbling with Nutella. Who doesn't ♥ Nutella?!

We also tried Tilapia (yum!), fried plantains with beans and rice for breakfast (double yum!), well, I guess that's about all I can think of right now.

Not in Costa Rica, but back here in St Paul, we recently tried a spearfish steak. My jury is still out a little on whether or not I actually liked it.

Neglect

My little corner of the world has been sadly neglected. I guess life just got in the way. I'm sure you all know how that goes.

Anyway, since it's already Jan 25th, I'm going to make some pretty loose goals for 2011 here at All Things Clarinda.

1. Post at least once each month! Lame post, funny post, serious post, re-post. I don't care. Just something, at least, to let you all know that I'm still here!

I guess that's really just about it. Anything more than that and I'm quite certain I'll just fall short. So, here's to my first post in 2011, my first post in Jan (and hopefully not my last).

Here's a few updates or things that have been on my mind recently.

Why do I live in MN??? It is WAY too cold here, and the winters seem to really be dragging these past couple of years. What does this mean? Well our plans for moving to the Mediterranean after we're finished with school have really intensified. We're anxiously anticipating the milder weather. Jeff has been investigating moving there for quite a long time, but we're really beginning the countdown now. After this winter, only one. more. to go! Yay!!

******
My trip to Costa Rica was phenomenal! So much sun, so much fun! We don't do much for adventurous vacationing; it was mostly just relaxing in the hot tub or down at the beach or lounging in the hammocks. I even finished two books. It was lovely. Well, except that whole part about returning to MN just in time for temps not even breaking 0°F!

*****
I'm all registered for my class for the Spring term, which begins on Monday. Jeff took this course earlier in his St Thomas career, and I've been on a couple trips with the professor when Jeff was in the Geography department. I'm excited to learn more about Humans and the Environment and play in the GIS lab. Plus the class begins at 9:35am MWF, so I'll be able to sleep-in slightly before class. It's going to be great not having to leave my apt until 9:20 or so rather than by 7:10 (which I'll still have to do on TR. oh well.). I really think this new schedule will be good for me and that I'll enjoy it much more. I'll still be heading to work right after class.

*****
I just discovered that there is a Core Power Yoga only a few blocks from my work. I see lots more hot yoga in my future! I'm very excited about it. This studio will be so much more convenient than the two in St Paul that are relatively close to my apt but more difficult to get to during the winter.

*****
If you know me, you know I don't generally like fish or seafood, and I'm not the most daring or adventurous eater. I know that fish is much healthier for me (and the environment), so I'm trying to incorporate more into my diet. In Costa Rica, we tried some tilapia. It was so very tasty!! I do think I'll try to make some at home some time. Last night, I tried some spearfish at the restaurant in our building. It was good, but I wasn't too crazy about the texture. It was cooked med-rare, and looked more like an undercooked pork chop than a fish fillet. I know it's just my untrained eye, but it didn't look that appetizing to me. It was served with sticky rice, vegetables, and wasabi. I ate all the veggies and half of the fish. The waitress suggested eating the rest on top of a salad, so that's what we'll be dining on for dinner tonight. :)

*****
I think that's good for now. Hopefully I'll be back again soon. Perhaps this week. Definitely sometime in February. (I hope).

Where I've Been

A friend of mine put up a map of all the places she'd visited. I thought I'd do the same. Mine isn't nearly as impressive as hers, but here it is...

I only included states that I have actually done something in (not just driven through).



create your own visited states map

Outside of the U.S., I've only been to Canada and the Bahamas, so my world map is even less impressive. I'm not even going to bother posting something like that.