Wicked Random Wednesday 4.30.14

Before we dive into version #I don’t know of Wicked Random Wednesday, I wanted to thank everyone for their congratulations on becoming a Girls Gone Sporty Ambassador. I truly appreciate everyone who reads this blog – whether you’ve been visiting the page since its inception (I know it has been so long ago…way back in November), comment on every single post, or just read the page occasionally, I appreciate the fact that you’re here and that you’ve taken the time to read what I have to say. I absolutely love the running/blogging community, and have connected with some really awesome people along the way!

So now that I’ve said that, it’s time for wicked random Wednesday!

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Back from Vacation and Some BIG News!

My attempt at looking graceful, athletic, and happy, all at the same time…

Hello all! I know it’s been a while since I’ve last posted, and I’ve missed you all so much! If you read my blog regularly, you were probably aware that I was going on vacation, but not sure quite when. I don’t like to post exactly when I go on vacay because I like to keep everyone guessing…for obvious reasons.

My husband, parents, sister, her fiancé, and I all spent almost seven lovely days down in Kiawah Island, SC, where we enjoyed some gorgeous sunshine (only to be greeted by brown and cold when we got back to Massachusetts), great food, and of course, awesome exercise!

I missed everyone here online that I attempted to post quite a few times while I was away on vacay, but I never seemed to get to finish because we just did SO MUCH.

Take it off! (Your Socks, I Mean)

Aughhhh! I can’t believe it myself but this is a post about running! Not about clothing that you can but for cheap or a product review, but an actual post about running.

Have I gone for a run lately? Other than sprinting a quarter mile with my dog last week…no. Do I plan to soon? I really hope so! I don’t want to jinx it though, so I won’t elaborate, since I’ve set a time and place to go running and posted on here exactly what day and when I plan on getting started and then, BOOM! My knee starts bothering me again…

…So to celebrate my love of running and my hope to start running again soon, I thought I’d take my socks off and we could all get re-acquainted.

WARNING: This post is not for the faint of heart! Read on at your own risk…

Wining, Dining, and Throwback Thursday

Today was an awesome day. We went to press (well, almost) a day ahead of time today. That pretty much never happens. OK, it never happens.

I got home as close to on time (meaning I left work at quarter past five, I very rarely leave at 5:00 on the dot), took Bella for a nice, long walk, then returned home. Just as I was setting out for my walk with Bogie, JP came driving down the street, so Bogie and I sprinted (not ran, sprinted) a quarter mile down the road back to the house. #Bestfeelingever!

Wicked Random Wednesday 4.9.14

OK, it’s been a couple weeks (maybe a few?) since my last Wicked Random Wednesday, and I apologize. I’ve been crazy busy lately – with work, it’s getting closer to my sister’s wedding, etc. etc. Plus, I felt like if I wrote an installation last week that the post might seem a little stale, and I NEVER want that to happen! Luckily, I’ve saved all of my philosophical (and not) ramblings for this week’s post…

Ten Dollar Tuesday 4.8.14 and Doggie Photo Dump

Hello All! I was really contemplating today whether or not I should do a post today, because a) I haven’t bought any running clothes this past week, and b) I’ve been so crazy busy with work (we go to press this week!), that I wasn’t sure I’d have time. Alas, I’m here, even if it is an hour before the clock strikes midnight and it’s actually Wednesday.

Clean Eating Update and Smoothie Recipe

Hello all! The last time I updated you on my clean eating, I was having a few obstacles I was trying to overcome, and I wanted to give you a brief update on how everything’s going:

• Going out: Clean eating sure can be a struggle while going out. I mentioned in yesterday’s blog post that I attended my cousin’s wedding shower last weekend. This time of year is always crazy busy for me, but now, it’s gotten even busier – I have something going on every agile weekend until July. For the most part, I’ve been able to make healthy choices, but when someone puts a piece of cake in front of me (today, last weekend, and next weekend, we’re celebrating Easter dinner a week early because we’ll be in South Carolina for the holiday), I just can’t say no!

• The coffee dilemma: I think you all know that I LOVE my coffee. Well, I’ve been really trying to avoid putting sugar or weird creamer in my coffee, but I love my International Delight Almond Joy creamer a little to much to to give it up completely. Up until now, I was trying to use skim milk, almond or vanilla extract, and stevia to make my coffee experience more enjoyable. And since I can’t have cream (high cholesterol), I have moved back to enjoying my International Delight creamer.

• Swedish fish: My husband bought me these little guys the other night and I couldn’t help but devour them. What can I say, I don’t have the best willpower.

I understood when I decided to try clean eating that it would be difficult, but I don’t regret any of the foods that I’ve eaten. For the most part, I’m trying to stick to this lifestyle, and I do feel so much better because of it! Luckily, because JP is trying to eat healthy, too, it’s not as difficult as it would normally be.

Also, I mentioned in yesterday’s post that I made up my own smoothie recipe. If you love coconut and you like strawberries, you’ll LOVE this:

Lis’ Strawberry Coconut Super-food Smoothie

Ingredients:
1/2 cup lite coconut milk (I used Thai Kitchen
1/2 cup 0% fat Greek yogurt (I used Chobani)
1/2 cup chopped strawberries, fresh
1 banana
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1 tablespoon sweetened coconut flakes
3 stevia packets, to taste
10 ice cubes
A splash of water to help break down ice cubes

Directions:
Put everything in the blender, and blend. Enjoy!

You can also substitute other ingredients (I want to try substituting the banana with watermelon and/or pineapple in the near future). Also, if you’re on a Paleo diet, just substitute the Greek yogurt with more coconut milk. There are so many different ways you can make this recipe!

Six Things I Love Saturday

Hello all! I know I haven’t been posting much lately, and I apologize. This blog – that was supposed to be about running (and still is, I promise!) – has recently turned into a blog about food, clean eating, and all random factoids about me that somehow relate to different days of the week. I’m not sure how I feel about constantly relating my posts to different days of the week, but as long as the content is quality and you, my readers, enjoy it, I don’t mind. And since I always receive great feedback on my Saturday (and sometimes Friday) posts, without further ado, here are six things I love!

1. Springtime
Can anyone deny how awesome warmer weather is – especially after the crappy winter we’ve had? And the higher temps and longer days make me hopeful that I can start running again soon.

2. Smoothies
I’ve really been enjoying making smoothies for myself lately, and came up with one particular concoction that I can’t wait to share with you tomorrow. Now that it’s getting warmer out and the days are longer, I can’t help but crave superfoods like strawberries, pineapple, and watermelon. Mmm, watermelon!

3. Family
I’ve been blessed with a wonderful, loving family that I’m very close to. I’m literally close to them – my parents live 5 minutes away from me in one direction and my sister lives 5 minutes away in the other direction. Lately, I’ve been spending even more time with my family. Last Saturday, I enjoyed some quality time with my cousin, grandmother, mom, and sister at my cousin’s bridal shower. And tomorrow, I’ll be spending the day at my parents’ house, celebrating my grandmother’s and father’s birthdays.

Me with my sister, cousin, and grandmother at my cousin’s shower.

4. Game of Thrones
Aaaaargh, I’m so excited for Season 4 to start again tomorrow night!

5. The ocean.
I love, love, love the beach…and the ocean, in general, and am so excited that I’ll be going on vacation to South Carolina fairly soon to enjoy some time in the sun and on the beach!

Ahh, pure heaven!

By the way, I took this quiz today and found out that I belong on Cape Cod. Although I love the ocean, I can see myself more in Rhode Island or on the coast in Southern Maine.

But then I took this quiz, and was told that I belong in Massachusetts. I was hoping I’d get somewhere warm, but instead got my place of residence. Creepy! Maybe I should look into moving to the Cape…

6. New England
Yeah, I’ve had it with winter, but I have to admit, New England is pretty awesome, and although I kind of live in the sticks of Massachusetts (we don’t even have a grocery store in my town), I’m lucky enough to have pretty easy access to a lot of stuff. If I want to go to the beach, I can drive 45 minutes away and get there. If I want to go skiing (something I say I’m going to do every year and then don’t), the closest place to go is about a half hour away. We have the mountains in the Berkshires, Vermont, New Hampshire, and even Maine; part of the Appalachian trail; we abut the Atlantic Ocean; and there is so many food unique to New England. Hello, we’re home to Dunkin Donuts! So although I love visiting other states – and who knows, I may someday venture out beyond these six states and find somewhere new to live – a piece of my heart will always belong to New England.

What season do you prefer…and why?

Would you rather live near the ocean, near a lake, in the mountains, in the city, or somewhere else? If somewhere else, what would you prefer…and why?

Ten Dollar Tuesday

It’s been a while since I’ve written about running…mainly because I haven’t been doing much of it (if you’re new to this blog, I’m injured and am having some major issues with my IT band). BUT…while I was shopping last year, I came up with an idea of how I could incorporate running in my blog without doing it…and that’s how $10 Tuesday was born!