a time to celebrate

Last week, I missed blogging about our lives in Texas because I had to make an unexpected trip back to Knoxville. A lot has happened over the past week and a half!

I actually got a part-time job on Friday, January 15. I had started getting quite antsy at home, and one of Caleb’s friends at work, Brian, let me know about a job at an eye surgery center. I called about it, interviewed and got the job all in one day! I also found out later that afternoon that my grandfather, Papa, was not doing very well. I had a sleepless night from anxiety that Friday night, and the next morning I got the call from my mom that Papa passed away that morning with my grandmother right by his side.

Death is always a very hard thing to deal with, but in this case, I am so thankful Papa is in a better place, not suffering anymore. He had been sick with Alzheimer’s disease for years and had gotten significantly sicker over the past three months. I had the most amazing grandfather. He lived a very full life, and it was wonderful getting to go home and celebrate his life with my family.

Lulu visiting Papa in October

Caleb and I are planning on doing the Walk to End Alzheimer’s next September or October in Houston. If you are interested, go here http://www.alz.org/walk/. I believe there is a walk in Knoxville in April.

During our time of celebration, I gave myself slack in the health area. I ate a lot of baked goods from Ham N Goodys, honey-pecan fried chicken, summer sausage, cheese, buttery ham biscuits…I gave myself a lot of slack, actually. I only got one run in while I was in Knoxville, but I did make it to Pilates Monday and Wednesday nights. It felt so great to stretch and work my core (definitely something I can focus on more in Houston. I hope to have blog posts about some core-work soon!).

I flew back to Houston on Thursday (total flying time = 2 hours 10 minutes; total driving time in Houston traffic = 2 hours 30 minutes). I went to Rover Oaks – the dog “spa” as I like to refer to it to make myself feel better – where we sent Little Lu for the week. I brought Lulu home, and had a day to get the house ready for Caleb to get back from Carthage. I made him a “One Pot Meal” (Cajun Shrimp Boil) from our new cookbook on Friday, and we had tons of leftovers.

This past weekend was amazing! Caleb and I went for a forty-mile greenway ride on Saturday. I worked on my speed a bit, and I was exhausted afterward! We took Lulu to Memorial Park for a three-mile loop that evening. Yesterday, we ran our six-mile loop, and I was starving after we finished! My sweet husband went to grocery and got us the “Houstonian Roll” with salmon, tuna and avocado. Yum!! I love sushi. It makes such an easy meal!

Today, I started my new schedule of waking up at 5:00! Thankfully, this week, Caleb is in town and can help with packing my lunch J and walking Lulu, but I am preparing for next week when it will all be on me. I have to be at my new job by 7:00, and it is about a forty-minute drive from our apartment (only about six miles down Westheimer – the Kingston Pike equivalent – but even at 6:15, it is slow-moving – yuck!). It was a really great first day. There were not too many surgeries today, and they were all done by 9:45, so I was able to get home by 11:00! (Are those not the most perfect working hours!? I love the hours!) I hear Wednesday will be my hard day this week, so I am going to try to figure everything out tomorrow.

Caleb should be home by 5:00 this evening, and we are hitting the gym to swim laps!

I just talked to my mom, and she joined the YMCA this past weekend and started swimming. Yay, Go Mom!!

Lulu sitting in her new favorite place - between the cushions - and of course, with her arms crossed like a lady.

Important!!: All of you Knoxville-ians, if you love biking, running, and mostly adventuring, I encourage you to do the Knoxville Urban Adventure Race! It is awesome, and I wish so badly that Caleb and I were in town to do it again this year. Last year, Caleb, my sister Casey (+ Baby Marion - Casey did not know it yet, but she was pregnant racing!!), and I did the race and ended up in second place in our category and eleventh overall! It is exhaustingly AWESOME!! There is a link on this page if you are interested http://www.legacyparks.org/.

Before the Race

Caleb left, Molly repelling in the middle, and Casey preparing on the right.

the cold is no excuse

It finally cooled off down in Houston. Considering the 75 degree weather I have gotten kind of used to, 40 degree temperatures this week have felt cold! I realized this week that while I have started this blog trying to encourage a lot of friends and family reading from Tennessee, some of you reading may feel that the Texas weather gives me an unfair advantage. I, personally, prefer freezing temperatures to workout. I think that there is nothing better than running in 30 or 40 degree temperatures. But I realize most of you probably do not feel this way and may read my blog and think “Of course it is easy for those Texans to workout. It is like perfect spring weather down there!”

This week, I have been able to understand the desire to stay at home, eat dinner, watch television and just snuggle up, but I have fought the urge! Good news. You can too! On Tuesday night, I made soup for dinner….but I made it earlier in the day. So here is my latest tip to get you up and out of the house to work out on a cold night...

Make soup ahead of time! A lot of meals (like salmon, steamed broccoli, and noodles…the same meal I make us most nights of the week) have to be made right before you eat them. It is hard to organize your night if you plan on getting off work, working out (because you cannot work out after you eat), and then heading home to start making dinner. Instead, dinner needs to be waiting for you when you get home! If you have dinner prepared ahead of time, you have no excuses! Go exercise, and dream about your warm incentive waiting for you at home the whole time.

tortilla soup I made this week

my husband is home, and he is hardcore

Caleb got home Friday evening! Friday ended up being a relaxing night with no workout. I made a big dinner, rented Inception, and we ate candy!

I have started a “detox.” It is not a detox at all for a normal person, but because of the large amounts of sugar I like to consume every day, I have had to change my candy-addict-lifestyle. Before Christmas, I was eating about a bag of candy a day. Atleast. Since Christmas, I have been able to limit myself on a daily basis and only have tiny bits of candy/sugar as little rewards.

Overall, this past weekend was relaxing. Lulu and I shared our new favorite spot, the Millie Bush Bark Park, with Caleb on Saturday. Caleb and I met a really nice couple there, and we ended up talking with them for about an hour. They had two really pretty labradoodles, and they were so friendly and welcoming. It was nice!

Me and Lu on Saturday. Enjoying a very busy day at the dog park!

After our dog park date, Caleb and I got a run in and had Mexican for dinner later that night.

Sunday morning after church, we went to lunch with Sarah Henderson at Black Walnut (my favorite lunch spot of all time…same place we took my mom after church when she came to visit in December).

http://www.blackwalnutcafe.com/

Sunday night, we got about a mile swim in at the gym.
We really enjoyed our relaxing weekend at home together!

Thankfully, Caleb is working in Houston this week! His office is about 6 miles down Westheimer (the Kingston Pike of Houston) from our apartment. Caleb decided to try out the whole commuting by bike thing this week! Yesterday he biked to and from work in the 40 degree weather we finally have. Once he got home last night, we headed to the gym for a quick run on the treadmill and some weightlifting.

Last night, I cooked a TON of chicken. We had chicken and rice stir-fry last night, I am making chicken tortilla soup tonight, and I will make some chicken salad for sandwiches with whatever is left over.

I have actually stayed really busy since Christmas break. Last week, I of course had a lot of cleaning and organizing to do. I have been applying for jobs (I try to apply for at least one a day). I have been trying to chose the photos that will go in our wedding album (it is SO much harder than it sounds!!). I try to prepare ahead of time and make us good healthy meals constantly. I have been working on my cross stitch I am doing for my grandmother. I have not even had time to write my Christmas thank you notes, write wedding thank you notes, work on my other cross stitch patterns, work on re-staining our dinner table, get some pictures framed, hang other already framed pictures, read my book, find somewhere to volunteer, or even just stay caught up on laundry. It is amazing how there is always so much to be done!

double encouragement

So today was a great day! I was productive all day long – cleaned the apartment, got my workout in early during the day, was able to make a good dinner and have a friend over! Good day. And – tomorrow is going to be another good day – because Caleb returns to me!!

It is wonderful having visitors I have realized because it forces you to get your place looking decent....make a date to have friends over! Our apartment does not quite look like House Beautiful will be by to photograph anytime soon, but I got laundry put away, the bed made – the usual stuff normal people get done every day (especially when they are job-less and have time on their hands….).

Today I woke up with a “To Do List” that included cleaning, walking Lu, organizing, running Lu, grocery shopping, running myself, and being all prepared to cook dinner and have my Knoxville friend, Sarah Henderson, over for dinner at 6:30.

I started my blog this morning, got it up on Facebook, and started talking to my friend, Ellen Kessel. Already, I was learning and being encouraged by people reading my blog…how cool!! Just as I was thinking about how I would love to just start focusing on housework, Ellen and I decided that we would both go run! We started talking at 11:21, and decided that at 11:30, we would get off Facebook and run. It was just what I was looking for by starting this blog…being encouraged and being able to encourage. It is cool.

So my first bit of encouragement from today is to work with others.

Secondly, if you have trouble tearing yourself away from chores or “more important priorities” to go exercise, I can understand. Usually, with my attention to detail, I have trouble getting away from tasks during the day (and therefore, I get my workouts in at night at the last minute). But don’t forget…your health is a priority! The only way I have found I can make myself workout during the day is if I literally run my errands. There are two main ways I go about doing this….

1)      If you are running errands where you know you have a lot to carry back to your house, like groceries, make your route a loop that ends at a grocery near your house. This is what I did today! I ran a 4-mile loop from my apartment that ended at the grocery, just a quarter of a mile from our apartment. I carried my grocery list and debit card in my sports bra (sorry if that is too much information, but I thought you might wonder). I was able to go straight from working out to wandering up and down the grocery aisles deciding what I would cook for dinner tonight…without burning any gasoline, another plus!  This will obviously be difficult if your kitchen is depleted of its basic necessities…I found this out the hard way today. I decided today was the day to restock our refrigerator with the largest bottles of ketchup, mustard, mayonnaise (yes, the biggest container), pickles, banana peppers, and olives….yes, pretty much the all of the densest, heaviest items the grocery sells….O, and a 5-pound box of dog cookies. And dinner for tonight. Ha! I probably could have planned ahead a bit better, but I got an arm workout this way! Last time I did this, my arms were sorer than after lifting weights.

2)      If you are running errands that do not require much lifting at all, make those your destination! My three favorite destinations include the bank, the post office, and Redbox. All of these places require carrying at most 1 pound, unless you have a lot of mail…or money. It is really good to have a destination I think because you are focused on just getting there. You are not thinking about the total distance of there and back. Once you get to the destination, then you realize you have to run back. This is a good way to bump up your mileage! If you can run two miles easily right now, find a destination two miles away. Focus on getting there, take a break if you need to once your get there, and you have two miles to get back home!

In Knoxville, my bank was about a mile and a half from my parents’ house. There was usually no urgency to deposit money, so I would never drive. I would just wait until I had some free-time and run there. A hint about the post office: If you are taking mail you care about, put it in a zip-loc baggy. Even the items in your hands get sweaty on a run, so wrap them up safely. My final destination is my favorite! Redbox. I love running to Redbox because if you are frugal like me, it guarantees that you will have to go for another run the next day to return it!

My day ended up being just perfect! I did not get the apartment vacuumed or completely dusted, but I organized, exercised, cooked, and enjoyed great time with Sarah.

We had broiled rosemary salmon, steamed broccoli, and wilted spinach egg noodles for dinner. Sarah brought red velvet and zucchini walnut cupcakes over from Crave Cupcakes. Yum!

https://www.cravecupcakes.com/

And now I cannot wait for tomorrow….

here we go...

This week has been a little hectic. We traveled from Chattanooga on Saturday morning and got to Houston on Sunday afternoon. Sunday night, we hit the gym first thing to start working on my swimming skills. Caleb put a pretty pair of blue goggles in my stocking, and this was the first time I have ever really “gone swimming.” We ended up swimming 33 laps, which equals a mile!

(Side note: I did have to stop and breathe after every lap AND I was wearing flippers, so there is definitely some work to be done in this area.)

Lulabelle came along with us to Texas so that I will have someone at the apartment with me while Caleb travels. Caleb left on Monday morning to work in Carthage all week… I miss my husband.

Caleb has been working out in the Holiday Inn gym, where he really can only run on the treadmill, so that has been his workout every night this week. That is about to change though. He gets home tomorrow afternoon (Yay!!), and our weekends are dedicated to longer workouts.

This week, I have had a little trouble motivating myself here-and-there, but I have tried to get out and get active! Monday, I walked Lulabelle at Memorial Park in the afternoon.

(Go to this website to check it outhttp://www.memorialparkconservancy.org/Default.aspx?AspxAutoDetectCookieSupport=1)

That night, I decided it was more important to eat than to exercise, so the extent of my workout was playing with toys with Little Lu. Like I said, I like to make excuses to not actually break a sweat.

Tuesday, I was feeling lazy again, of course. I tried to skip my workout, but then Biggest Loser came on. Once I felt inspired by the 500-pound people who could get themselves to work out, I decided I had no choice. I had to quit watching television and go burn some calories. I went to the gym and swam 21 laps by myself!

Yesterday, I took Lulabelle to the Millie Bush Dog Park for 2 hours! It was a good way to have fun outside exercising and playing. I would suggest, if you do not have a dog, borrow someone else’s every now-and-then and go play outside. It is a fun way to be active!

Last night, I decided to hit to gym and do a longer workout. I rode 23 miles on the bike and then had a little 2-mile run on the treadmill. Then, I came home to my dog and ate a lot of food (the best part of exercising)!

we are committed

Yes, we are committed to each other. But while the commitment to be with someone for the rest of your life may sound a bit daunting to some, our latest commitment may intimidate some people more…

We invested in The Lone Star Half Ironman. In other words, in 94 days, Caleb and I are swimming 1.2 miles, biking 56 miles, and running 13.1 miles. All in one day!

Last Friday, the last day of 2010, was the final day to sign up for the race before prices went up. We signed up. The reality has sunk in, and the training has begun!

I wanted to start blogging about it A) to have accountability. Caleb and I have a tendency to justify being lazy and eating instead of getting a grueling workout in. I figure as long as I know my mom and sisters are looking every once-in-a-while, I will feel the pressure. B) You can see how our life in Texas is going. C) If anyone needs encouragement to get out and do something you may not be comfortable doing, let me be that for you! I, by no means, naturally just want to go exhaust myself like this, but I am really excited about challenging myself. You can too!

Us biking on the greenway near our apartment in early December. This day we did a 30 mile ride and a 6 mile run.