Hello.

We had so much fun during 2013.  Four countries?  Two marathons?  Weddings, beaches, big cities, small towns, BQs, lots of food and lots of fun. 

Whew, I'm tired just remembering all the madness.

We've decided that 2014 will a year of recovery.  You will not find us in foreign countries or far off destinations.  You will more likely find us on the couch; watching TV and eating take-out. 

And we are so excited about it.

I love resolutions, but this year instead of a long list I've decided to go with a theme for the year instead.  My theme this year is kindness.  Sounds simple.  But I'm hoping that by focusing on kindness every day (toward my friends, family, students, husband, world, and self) that I will end 2014 a kinder (duh) and more gracious person than I began it. 

And of course I have to have at least a couple of goals, just to keep things interesting.  The two I'm focusing on this year:

1.  Eat/buy/prepare a new fruit or vegetable every week, preferably local or seasonal.

When I first had this idea I immediately thought, "I could do a blog post every week with the food and how I prepared it and the nutritional benefits and where/how it grows!"  And then I thought, "Whoa whoa whoa.  Let's not get ahead of ourselves here."  I don't want to make a commitment that I can't keep.  So instead I've decided to Instagram a photo every week of whatever new foodie find we're trying.  So much simpler.  If I get the itch I'll do a monthly wrap up on the ol' blog.  No promises.

2.  Do yoga twice a week.

I never ever regret a yoga session.  But when life gets busy, it's the first thing to go.  I truly want to practice more often, so I'm going to commit to twice a week and see how it goes. 

In related news, I recently read this article which really spoke to me.  It discusses how we tend to wear our busyness on our sleeve like a badge of honor.  When asked how we are or what we're up to, we tend to answer with "busy".  I don't want to be "busy" anymore.  I want to prioritize my life and my time and move toward something deeper and more meaningful than "busy".  So with that, hopefully this paragraph is the last time you'll hear (or read) me using the B word.  And if you ask how I am, expect an actual answer.

Cheers to a kind, healthy, and uneventful year.

G&D and a resolution

I know I'm a little late on the whole resolution thing... it being February and all.  But, better late than never, right?  That's what I thought.

Because we're lazy, Drew & I are sharing a resolution this year.  We have decided that once a month we are going to try a new restaurant.  Don't tell BRGR, but we're branching out.

And, in our standard lazy-ass fashion, we waited until the very last weekend of January to make good on Month 1 of our resolution.  On Saturday we hit up the wildly popular new Plaza restaurant: Gram & Dun. 

Jim & Chris drove up from Wichita to join our supper club.  We're so popular.

Gram & Dun had fantastic atmosphere... and the waiter brought us warm mixed nuts with our wine.  Score.

In addition to the wine and nuts, I ordered the Wild Mushroom Ravioli.  It was so yummy.

Yumm-O.

Drew ordered the Roasted Chicken.  I kept stealing the butternut squash off his plate.  I knew the menu was a bit exotic for him, so I'm glad he found something familiar and tasty.

Chicken & Squash

AND, of course I didn't get a picture, but there was dessert as well.  OMG Dessert!  We were all sharing and Drew really wanted the Gram & Dun Bar.  I didn't think it sounded that fantastic, but I let him choose anyway.  I'm so freakin' glad I did.  I was dying with every bite.  Go there.  Try it.  It will change your life night.  It made me so so so happy.

If you haven't already picked up on it, my impression of G&D was pretty good.  I think this will be the place to hang once the weather gets nice... all that wine will go really well with that big ol' patio. 

And don't feel too bad about us cheating on BRGR... G&D is owned by the same folks.  No wonder we loved it.

I'd love restaurant suggestions if you've got them!  February is calling!

2011 Resolutions

Happy 2011!  I hope everyone is dealing with their champagne hangover as well as I am.  Please, we went to the movies last night and barely made it to midnight.  I feel like a million bucks.  And like a million years old.  Loser.

SO!  January 1st... you know what that means.  Time to make those big goals and resolutions for the fabulous new year.  Drew says January is his least favorite month because its post-holidays and super pre-Spring.  I don't mind January because I feel like its got so much promise and optimism.  Its a fresh new year.  Hooray! 

By February I'll be joining in on the winter-depression-hatefulness though. 

For now, let's roll with the new year enthusiasm and get on with the resolutions.

***

Resolution: Run a marathon.

I don't care if it is the slowest marathon in the history of marathon running.  I don't care if my knee busts open and I have to latch onto another runner to drag me across the finish line (watch out Lauren).  I want to train for and run a marathon this year.  I've got my sights on the Texas Big D marathon this Spring, but if for some reason my knee doesn't cooperate, I'm trying to stay open to dropping down to the half and pushing the full until next fall. 

But who am I kidding?  I want to run the full and I want to run it fast (fast for me... which isn't really fast at all, but you know).  It's a bit early in training to be this optimistic, but damnit, I feel good. 

Resolution:  Finish School!

I'll be done with classes this summer and student teaching in the fall!!!  I can't believe how soon that is!  This whole thing feels like it has gone very fast.  I cannot even explain how excited I am. 

On top of all that, I'd love to get a teaching job for next Spring, but for now I'm just going to focus on finishing up school.  I'm assuming whichever school I end up student teaching at will be so enamored with my charm that they will immediately offer me a full-time teaching position. 

Right?

Of course they will.

Resolution:  Stop spending money!

Okay, this one is probably always going to be on the resolution list.  Drew and I have recently been talking about financial goals for the future... big exciting stuff.  I sometimes forget about the big exciting stuff though... especially when I'm at Target.

"Oooh!  Pretty scarves!  Look at those shoes!!!  Oh, this dress is on sale!  I must buy it!"

So, I'm making a pretty serious decision: no clothes shopping whatsoever for at least 3 months and NO Target trips either.  Ouch.  Even saying that hurts a little.  But seriously, Target is my biggest problem.  I made 3 trips in December that were all close to $100 each... and couldn't for the life of me remember what I bought.  No idea.  That's not good.

Resolution: Eat better.

This one again is probably always going to be on the resolution list.  I weigh the exact same thing I did at this time last year, so I'm not trying to lose weight or anything.  But after all this holiday sugar madness, I just need to get back on track with healthy eating and give up the junk. 

So as part of my attempt to eat healthier, I'm giving up eating candy and any store-bought sweets.  I guess if I want to eat cookies, I'll just have to make them myself. 

Don't think I won't.

Resolution: Go to Church.

This one shouldn't be hard.  At all.  I live right down the street from my church.  I love our priest.  And I'm to the point where I naturally wake up on the weekends before the first service even starts.  There is absolutely no reason for me not to go to church every week.

And yet, I have the worst attendance ever.  I'm going to try to go every week this year.  Every week.

Resolution:  Keep Jade clean.

We all know I'm kind of a disaster in most areas of my life... but no where as much as I am with my car.  Jade Jetta is a serious disaster.  Like, I can't even allow people into my backseat because its covered in dog hair.  On top of that I usually have coffee cups, water bottles, and tupperware floating around too.  I drive a lot.  And I eat a lot.  It usually looks like I'm living in there.  And she deserves better than that.

I'm going to make it a point to keep all the junk out of my car and vacuum out the dog hair at least once a week so that I can actually allow others to ride with me... others who aren't of the furry variety.

***

And just in case you're wondering... I'm not the only one in the house making New Year's resolutions.  Ari had decided to try to stay awake while doing his neighborhood watch and not start barking from his crate until at least 7 AM.  Mya has resolved to be less furry and to find a boyfriend. 

Wish us luck!

Resolutions Revisited

Whoa this year went by quick, right?  Seems like just yesterday I was making big plans for fast running and going back to school.  Let's have a look-see back on the last year and how I did on all those goals/resolutions.

Resolution #1: Run faster.  Well, I PR'd in a half marathon by about 2 minutes.  So I guess this one was fulfilled.  However, all that fast running set me up for a bum knee and no fall racing.  So it doesn't really feel like I accomplished a lot in the area of running.  Maybe next year?

Resolution #2: Be more organized, get good grades.  I'm not so sure about the organization part, but I rocked the grades this year.  School has actually been such a good thing for me.  I know I run around like a crazy person and talk about how busy I am (I'm not really), but I think I need that kind of "stress" to keep me sane.

Resolution #3: Debt free, stop spending money.  We paid off Drew's car which was kind of a huge deal.  Now we put that money towards my newly acquired student loans so that by the time I get out of school *hopefully* we will be able to pay them off in one fell swoop and get to be debt free again.  As for the not spending money, I need to get back on that bandwagon.

Resolution #4: Vacations: Whoa.  I totally blew this one.  I listed like 4 mini-vacations we were going to take: Nashville, Kentucky, Skiing, and a float trip.  Nada.  Not one of those trips came to fruition.  Lame.

Resolution #5: Something about Eclipse: Okay, this one wasn't really a resolution... more like something I was looking forward to in the year 2010.  Don't freak out when I say this: I'm kind of over it.  Like... I don't really know when the next movie comes out and I don't really care either.  I guess vampires & werewolves are so last year.

Resolution #6: Start eating clean:  Although we definitely don't eat "clean" all the time, I think we've really cleaned up our eating this year.  We eat a lot less processed foods and eat a lot more whole, natural, real food.  I still bake way too many cookies, cakes, and whatnot, but overall I'd say we've made real progress.  Go us!

So there you have it... a somewhat productive year.  I really love that I recorded stuff on the blog... because usually by this time of the year I have absolutely no idea what resolutions I made the prior year.

How about you?  How'd you do in 2010?

Dilemma

So... there was a tie in the bag poll. Didn't see that one coming. Tie breaker: I didn't pay very close attention to the details and it turns out the Puma bag isn't actually big enough to hold my books. Oops! So cute though.

That means the brightly colored bag #1 wins by default! Yea! But... I'm not getting the bag. Sad I know.

In an effort to stick to the resolution to spend less money, I came to an agreement with Drew (the only one to vote for the roller princess backpack) that I will use a bag I already have for school and as a graduation present I get to pick out a really nice teacher bag. Brooke suggested a Coach teacher bag. I like the way you think, Brooke. So, no new bag for now... but feel free to point me in the direction of a super fabulous graduation bag!

I'm also disappointed that no one voted for bag #5. It was an Alexander McQueen (like on Glee!) and cost $2,939. Do you think people really log onto Zappos.com and drop three thousand dollars on a bag? I mean, I'd have a hard time buying a $50 bag online without holding it first, let alone a bag that costs more than my tuition.

Resolutions: How are we doing here?

Just so you don't think I'm hiding in a closet somewhere eating brownie batter, here's a little update to how the New Year is going so far...

Resolution: Run Faster. Did you know it snowed like a thousand times in the last week? The fact that I'm not cuddled up on the couch eating brownie batter is a miracle in itself. The fact that I made it to the gym to run on the treadmill 3 times this week is pretty unbelievable too. And I ran fast. Well, fast for me. On Wednesday, in an attempt to "run fast" I did 5 miles of intervals that went like this: 0.25 miles @ 6.5 mph, 0.25 miles @ 7 mph, 0.25 miles @ 7.5 mph, 0.25 miles @ 8 mph, repeat for 5 miles. OMG. I was so tired. Plus, lets be honest, once you get up to 8 mph the treadmill starts making a lot of noise and people start staring. So I'm pretty proud (or embarrassed) of myself for ignoring the looks and finishing the workout. Resolution = Success!

I keep seeing people update on FaceBook about how they are running a marathon this Spring and it makes me SUPER jealous! But I keep reminding myself to stick to the program. This Spring is for halfs. That works for me.

Resolution: Be More Organized, Get Good Grades, Look Cute, Not Old. Ummm... Drew organized the office so when I blog I feel more organized. I bought some notebooks and printed my syllubus for an online class. I feel pretty cute. This resolution is going really well. Resolution = Success!

Resolution: Stop Spending Money! Damn you Target. And damn you Costco with your cheap liquor. New resolution: don't shop at Costco in Missouri. I have no self control when it comes to cheap booze. There's a reason its illegal to sell liquor at Costco in Kansas. Resolution = Fail.

Resolution: Have More Fun! Hmmm... have sat on couch drinking hot chocolate & Bailey's for 3 viewings of Season 1 of Glee (yes, the entire season, 3 times) with husband. Glee = Fun. Husband = Fun. Resolution = Success!

****Note: Resolution having to do with Twilight & Teen Angst has been deffered until June****

Resolution: Eat Cleaner. We've been doing really well with this one. If you disregard all the Bailey's and hot chocolate (it's organic hot chocolate though!) and one trip to Spin Pizza, we've eaten really healthy this week. Only problem is... we are plum out of food. Last week at the store I cringed when Drew bought a ton of apples, thinking that we'd never eat all of them... along with the tons of other snacks we bought. Now we are 100% out of fruits and veggies in our fridge. Looks like we'll be going on an emergency grocery run today. And I guess we'll have to buy more apples.

I get really snacky, and with the lack of junk food in the house I have to turn to the only sweet foods we have: fruit. I've eaten a lot of raisins this week! Drew had a breakdown on Friday night and demanded to know where I was keeping my stash. I usually have some sort of chocolate hiding in the back of the freezer or some candy stashed on a high up shelf, but I don't anymore. That is commitment! He tried to send me out for chocolate chip cookies but I made him a hot chocolate & Peppermint Schnaps instead. Hot chocolate doesn't count when its below zero. That's a fact. Resolution = Kind of pretty successful so far.

New Resolution: Go to church. I added this one late... but with good cause. I've totally been slacking on my church attendence lately. It always seems like I get busy and things get prioritized in front of going to church. Like, I need to squeeze in a run, or I have to work, or I'm really tired and don't want to get up that early... early as in 10 AM. Time to get my priorities straight. God > Running. Church > Sleep. So far so good. I went to church this week and last... just have to keep it up.

That's enough of resolutions and betterment for now. More importantly... have you voted on a bag?! Please see poll to the right. Today is your last chance to vote in this very important election of bag! Now if you'll excuse me... I think I hear some brownie batter calling my name.