It's been a while. Here's what's new in my neck of the woods:
* Summer racing season is in full bloom. I've done one of my three target races for the year, the American Fork Canyon Half Marathon. My goal was to finish it in under 2 hours and I crossed the line at 1:59:13. At mile 8, I was on target for a 1:53 finish, but I couldn't sustain the pace for the last five miles. It was an awesome race, with awesome organization and food at the finish line. I'll definitely be doing that one again in the future. Next up is the San Rafael Classic Olympic Tri next weekend. I've already resigned myself to my fate of coming in last. This really isn't about me being modest--I will be very shocked if I'm not dead last--but I'm just going to go out and do the race for myself and not worry about it...too much.
* As I was laying on the grass following my half marathon finish I was thinking "holy crap. I have to do this again, only I have to swim 1.2 miles and then bike 56 miles beforehand." I'm a wee bit nervous about that as well.
* While Wade was away on a scout trip this last week, I took the opportunity to redo the master bedroom. The inspiration hit one day while I was laying in bed reading. I find that I spend a lot of time in my room and when I looked around, it looked suspiciously like my college dorm. Specifically, there were mounds of books and papers and crap milling around and the walls were beat up from 10 years of living and so I decided to redo it. I knew that Wade wouldn't be on board--and it's easier to displace just one of you instead of both of you--so I waited until he left. Needless to say, he wasn't exactly thrilled when he got home, but it's done. When everything is put back together I'll post some pictures.
* The neighbors have put their house up for sale. I have been looking forward to this day for a long, long time. I hope it sells quickly to a family with respectable children that won't ring my doorbell incessantly at 9 in the morning. One can hope, right?
* My brother and his wife took the kids for the entire weekend this last weekend. It was awesome. Too bad that Wade and I were dead tired from our escapades (him--canoeing, me--running 1/2 marathon + redoing the master bedroom all week) to actually capitalize on this rare occasion. It was nice to only have to get ourselves ready for church (we were still late) and to sit through sacrament meeting without interruption (Wade had to speak though) and then come home and take an uninterrupted 3 hour nap. I guess it wasn't a complete loss. The house was really, really quiet though. Too quiet. That quickly changed the minute the kids returned.
* J. started piano lessons this month. He's been doing really well and seems to enjoy them.
* I was hired as a math tutor for my regular babysitter. We've worked out a deal where we tutor for an hour and then I get to go "exercise" for two hours. I'm still making a profit and she's earning some money for summer fun. It's a win-win situation. Originally, I was going to use my two hours for swimming, but have had to use it to run errands and such on a few occasions. I don't mind, because at least I don't have to drag the kids with me.
* The summer is simultaneously dragging and flying. I can't wait for school to start again, even if it means having to endure the morning routine again.
Tuesday, June 26, 2012
Wednesday, June 6, 2012
What's For Dinner Wednesday--Balsamic Chicken Pasta Salad
Hey, look at me go!
This recipe was found on tasteofhome.com. It looked good and guess what...it was. I halved the recipe because it makes A LOT, but this is the recipe in it's full glory.
3 cups uncooked bow tie pasta
4 cups cubed cooked chicken
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped red onion
4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled (cheaters: real bacon bits found in the salad dressing aisle)
1/4 cup crumpled Gorgonzola cheese (found in the "exotic" cheese aisle)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup minced fresh basil (cheaters: basil from a jar works too)
2 T brown sugar
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse in cold water; transfer to a large bowl. Add the chicken, tomatoes, onion, bacon and Gorgonzola cheese.
In a small bowl, whisk the oil, basil, vinegar, brown sugar, garlic, salt and pepper. Drizzle over salad and toss to coat; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
This was a very easy meal to throw together and it tasted great. Wade went back three times, so I'm guessing he really liked it. Warning though, the onion can be a little overpowering if you're not really an onion person.
This recipe was found on tasteofhome.com. It looked good and guess what...it was. I halved the recipe because it makes A LOT, but this is the recipe in it's full glory.
3 cups uncooked bow tie pasta
4 cups cubed cooked chicken
2 cups chopped tomatoes
1/2 cup chopped red onion
4 bacon strips, cooked and crumbled (cheaters: real bacon bits found in the salad dressing aisle)
1/4 cup crumpled Gorgonzola cheese (found in the "exotic" cheese aisle)
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup minced fresh basil (cheaters: basil from a jar works too)
2 T brown sugar
1 tsp minced garlic
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and rinse in cold water; transfer to a large bowl. Add the chicken, tomatoes, onion, bacon and Gorgonzola cheese.
In a small bowl, whisk the oil, basil, vinegar, brown sugar, garlic, salt and pepper. Drizzle over salad and toss to coat; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
This was a very easy meal to throw together and it tasted great. Wade went back three times, so I'm guessing he really liked it. Warning though, the onion can be a little overpowering if you're not really an onion person.
Sunday, June 3, 2012
Sweet Revenge
Oh. My. Heck. The days are FLYING, aren't they??? Well, they were until J got out of school. But still...it's been almost two weeks. I'm not doing so good with my resolution here...
Monday, I ran a Memorial Day 5k with my older brother. We did this same race last year. I love the race because it's (a) free and more importantly (b) you run a portion of it through American Fork cemetery where they've lined the pathway with American flags and theoretically you're reminded of the sacrifices made for the freedoms we enjoy.
The reason behind the theoretically will be divulged shortly.
The only thing I don't like about this race is that it's an hour away. But, it's a small price to pay for an avenging race against your older brother.
Back in March, we raced together in my annual Running of the Leopards 5k. I've done that race every year since it's inception--2008. My brother, macho man that he is, made it a goal to beat me and by golly if he didn't pull it off by a measly 15 seconds.
But I've been hearing about those 15 seconds for two months now. Monday was my race to win if it was going to kill me.
About half way to the race I realized that I had forgotten my music. My heart sunk because I am a much faster runner with music. I'm not someone that has to have music on their run, but if I'm pushing it hard, I do considerably better when I'm not listening to myself wheeze. But, I had no option to turn around and go back for it. I was going to have to go au natural on this race. It's been a long time since I've done that.
We met up and got situated at the starting line. The first part of my strategy was to determine at what pace my brother was going to run. I need some warm up time in the first mile and can't usually go all out from the beginning. I let him set the pace and made sure to keep him in my sights. As I warmed up and sped up, I realized that I was going a bit faster than him and so I hung back, letting him think he had me for the first half mile.
Then I waited for a big group of people to pass. I melded into them and overtook my brother on the outside. To be honest, I thought this would only buy me a few minutes at most. I had chosen a bright green shirt to run in and thought he'd pick me out pretty quick, but at least I would have the upper hand for a little bit.
We wound our way through the streets of American Fork and started the big climb to the cemetery. In previous years, I always end up having to walk up this hill, but I was a little worried about where Eric was at, so I kept running. We turned down the pathway through the cemetery--this is where the theoretical comes into place--and it's downhill the rest of the way to the finish line. I figured if Eric had his eye on me, this is where he'd be overtaking me so I took off as fast as I could go. I barely registered the flags at the time (though I did think about their meaning throughout the rest of the day--I'm not completely heartless) and flew the final mile.
As I neared the finish line, I thought he'd sprint past me and overtake me by his 15 seconds, so I turned on the jets and crossed it before he could. I was a little surprised that he wasn't right behind me, huffing. And then, I waited at the finish line.
And waited.
Can you imagine the look on his face when he crossed and there I was, holding a water bottle and looking relaxed? He thought he was ahead of me the entire time. He didn't see me when I passed by a half mile into the race.
I beat him by over 2 minutes.
2 FULL minutes.
Ahhhh....revenge is so sweet.
Monday, I ran a Memorial Day 5k with my older brother. We did this same race last year. I love the race because it's (a) free and more importantly (b) you run a portion of it through American Fork cemetery where they've lined the pathway with American flags and theoretically you're reminded of the sacrifices made for the freedoms we enjoy.
The reason behind the theoretically will be divulged shortly.
The only thing I don't like about this race is that it's an hour away. But, it's a small price to pay for an avenging race against your older brother.
Back in March, we raced together in my annual Running of the Leopards 5k. I've done that race every year since it's inception--2008. My brother, macho man that he is, made it a goal to beat me and by golly if he didn't pull it off by a measly 15 seconds.
But I've been hearing about those 15 seconds for two months now. Monday was my race to win if it was going to kill me.
About half way to the race I realized that I had forgotten my music. My heart sunk because I am a much faster runner with music. I'm not someone that has to have music on their run, but if I'm pushing it hard, I do considerably better when I'm not listening to myself wheeze. But, I had no option to turn around and go back for it. I was going to have to go au natural on this race. It's been a long time since I've done that.
We met up and got situated at the starting line. The first part of my strategy was to determine at what pace my brother was going to run. I need some warm up time in the first mile and can't usually go all out from the beginning. I let him set the pace and made sure to keep him in my sights. As I warmed up and sped up, I realized that I was going a bit faster than him and so I hung back, letting him think he had me for the first half mile.
Then I waited for a big group of people to pass. I melded into them and overtook my brother on the outside. To be honest, I thought this would only buy me a few minutes at most. I had chosen a bright green shirt to run in and thought he'd pick me out pretty quick, but at least I would have the upper hand for a little bit.
We wound our way through the streets of American Fork and started the big climb to the cemetery. In previous years, I always end up having to walk up this hill, but I was a little worried about where Eric was at, so I kept running. We turned down the pathway through the cemetery--this is where the theoretical comes into place--and it's downhill the rest of the way to the finish line. I figured if Eric had his eye on me, this is where he'd be overtaking me so I took off as fast as I could go. I barely registered the flags at the time (though I did think about their meaning throughout the rest of the day--I'm not completely heartless) and flew the final mile.
As I neared the finish line, I thought he'd sprint past me and overtake me by his 15 seconds, so I turned on the jets and crossed it before he could. I was a little surprised that he wasn't right behind me, huffing. And then, I waited at the finish line.
And waited.
Can you imagine the look on his face when he crossed and there I was, holding a water bottle and looking relaxed? He thought he was ahead of me the entire time. He didn't see me when I passed by a half mile into the race.
I beat him by over 2 minutes.
2 FULL minutes.
Ahhhh....revenge is so sweet.
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