Discoveries and the best costume ever.

This weekend, I got to test out a new product that I bought last week. You know those weird blisters I was getting on the bottoms of my feet from running? No more! This stuff is fantastic. It rolls right on without having to dry before use, stays put for at least 7.6 miles (the farthest I've tested it so far), and doesn't smell or linger on the skin. I think I've found my new favourite accessory!

Our Halloween costumes this year are different this year. No boxes, no frames or beards, no wigs. Just normal clothes that somehow work as Curious George and The Man in The Yellow Hat.

Why is this the best costume ever? Because I basically get to wear skinnies, a headband and a turtleneck (okay and there's a tail too) to host our party this week. That means I'll be warm, super-comfy, and have my hair out of my face. Excellent! Nolan gets to wear skinnies (hot!), a button-down and his fave Dansko black shoes (not pictured. hah. there's also the small matter of the hat, but it just kind of sits on top of his head so it's a non-issue).

 Today I used PayPal for the first time. My favourite lunch spot has been advertising this deal for awhile now - where you get $5 off lunch when you pay with PayPal (which means my lunch was $3 something). Not only that, but the remaining balance due goes onto the card I've set in PayPal as my default. Fantastic lunch for a killer price and paid for via mobile? Google wallet, you've got competition.

Over the weekend, we got to hang out with Nolan's parents and spend some quality time enjoying the lovely Fall weather! We went on a nice walk in Edgewood Park, ate delicious foods, watched The Walking Dead (I know - I never thought we'd like it!), watched the Oregon Ducks dominate their game again (mostly), and just generally enjoyed family time. Love those weekends!

Thankful Thursday

This week I tried something new. Rather than sticking to my neighbourhood (-ish) for my run, I ran this trail on Tuesday and it was rough! Not too far of a distance, but the elevation - ! I came home and had to finish my CrossFit WOD and I was t.i.r.e.d. But it was beautiful and isolated and probably very scary when dark. I swear the continuous climbs were totally worth it when I got to the top of the ridge and literally heard nothing but the wind and an eagle. Really. I'm adding every trail run within 15 miles of my house to my to-do list. They're everywhere! Nate, if you're reading this - I'm bringing you here the second you get back from China.

We were up in Placerville this weekend, and actually managed to make a one-night stay feel like a 3 day stay, and enjoy some prolonged relaxation time with family! We even got to bring home a souvenir from the ranch: Huevos a la Rory. He apparently keeps his chickens so happy that they keep giving him HUGE double-yolk eggs. Here's one we brought home - conjoined twins!

Yesterday I placed an order for some items from a sports-adventure site we like, and when I checked the tracking today...apparently it was almost to my house. Holy cow. Amazon can't touch that.

This week has been really interesting, what with the BART strike keeping me at home, and the rushed weekend getting up to the ranch and back, but I'm feeling pretty good. And productive. Working at home is the best way to get in really solid work with no distractions - amazing! With that:

1. I'm thankful for being caught up. Not just at work, but at home, with all the little to-dos I have going on. It feels good to be more or less on track and able to relax at night!
2. I'm thankful for new/old finds. We were able to sort through some of my grandma's stuff, since her home is being sold soon, and found some pretty great things that I will continue using in her honour! Some cool antiques, and some old classics. And a new roll of wax paper, which was on my list anyway. w00t!
3. I'm thankful for resolve. I've been struggling in terms of some of my WODs, not working quite hard enough (or working too hard and falling over publicly at the gym, like yesterday :( ), or like today - not wanting to wake up at 5am and face the scary darkness. I'm thankful that I've pushed through it, because I'm starting to feel more like my old self again - and already plotting my next excellent workout!
4. I'm thankful for the holidays! I'm already in the thick of my favourite season, but the day after Halloween is just next week, and that is the official start of the "Holiday" season! YAY! Then maybe I can crank up my Christmas music a little louder on my morning commute.
5. I'm thankful for a respite in Nolan's schedule these 2 weeks. It's so nice to see him actually getting sleep, actually being able to see friends, and actually being around for even more meals together. Double YAY!

What are you thankful for?

Thankful Thursday/Friday

I think I'm starting a bad habit here and becoming okay with posting my Thankfulness on Fridays. It's a slippery slope until I forget to do it at all! So let this be the last time, if I can help it.

This week I got *this* close to overdosing on my favourite lunch. I ended up with just a little too much sauce and a few too many eggplant chips (blasphemy!) on my salad...so that you can barely tell it's a salad anymore! It was delicious, if not a little drowned. Mmm, tandoori chicken, chickpeas and cauliflower over spinach and drenched in sauce with eggplant scattered on top. Best lunch ever.

Wednesday I checked out happy hour with my friend Susan in Mountain View at a place I've been wanting to try - Xanh. Seriously tasty eats for fantastic happy hour price! And with that kind of weather, why wouldn't you sit outside and sip cocktails all night? You can't see it in the picture, but I had a gorgeous glass of prosecco with lychee floating in it. We only ate about half the food here (mine's on the left), and I had the rest of my salad and tofu wraps today for lunch. Yum!

I also got a random whim to redecorate our pillows this week. I had been looking for the burlap to start on something for our halloween party, and found this lovely pumpkin-coloured fabric. 15 minutes later, we have "new" pillows on our couch. Hah!

Nolan's back from Seattle, and one of my jobs was to unpack his suitcase while he's working a late shift, and repack for our weekend at the ranch. I found this little gem rolled up in there:

 I guess ACEP has hopped on the zombie fan train too. Fitting, since we watched our first episode of The Walking Dead last night. No comments, please! I had weird dreams last night and am still deciding if I can watch another episode/invest in that kind of creepy show.

 It's Friday night, we have a fun weekend ahead of us, and I'm going to try and fit in a quick yoga sesh before Nolan gets home and we sit in the car for a couple hours. So let's hop to it!

1. I'm thankful for yoga! I fit it in as often as possible, and haven't ever been anything but SO GLAD that I made time for it. Even if that means waking up at a terribly early hour to squeeze it in. 

2. I'm thankful for breakfast with Nolan. We go out to places a lot and are fortunate to have a lot of meals together, but breakfast is one that I really cherish. We get to start our day off together and just sit in the morning quiet and sip our coffee and enjoy the company. Nothing I like better than that, and I'm so thankful we get to make that happen relatively often.

3. I'm thankful that I have the option to work from home fairly often. Days like today when there is a BART strike make me realize that even more. Not only is working from home great for the benefit of solid, focused work time, but I can't imagine having to use PTO or take a day unpaid because some selfish folks in the union decide they want more money and that they're going to close down my commute to try and get it. Bah! Anyway: thankful, yes.

4. I'm thankful for my youth! Whether it's the ridiculous amounts of food I eat, or the awesome physical things I can make my body do, I'm thankful every day for the chance to really enjoy my youth and not let it pass me by. Today my WOD included some sprints, and just feeling how fast and hard I can push my body (relatively speaking here: I'm no Usain Bolt) makes me truly appreciate what we're capable of. So cool!

5. I'm thankful for family friendships. Whether it's siblings that are true and dear friends to whom you can tell anything, or parents that you can have such a loving, open relationship and friendship with - I recognize it's a true blessing, and a rare one.

What are you thankful for?

Thankful Thursday

This week has been more experimenting with food, more squeezing in small dates with Nolan, and more Indian food. This is one of our go-to weekend activities when Nolan's too drowsy to really do anything else (this means I stand a better chance of winning one of these days, though I realize it's still a long shot).

Favourite new side dish: Moroccan cauliflower rice! See recipe here :) I didn't have any apricots, but I did have delicious charred eggplant and lamb to go with it! Spicy, delicious, and healthy. Oh and easy to make. 

Among all the little things, I'm finding so many little (and big) reasons to be thankful. So, as we head into the holiday season (YAY!), let's reflect a bit:

1. I'm thankful for those little dates with Nolan, though he's been working such long hours. Even though I've been grouchy some days, and he's been tired, those times with him are cherished.

2. I'm thankful for the beautiful, chilly mornings and the warm drive to work. WHICH has gotten a bit longer since I've changed my BART station to Daly City...but my overall commute is a bit shorter, and now I can take any train I choose without having to wait for a specific one or time my coming or going to catch a certain train. Yay for less stress!

3. I'm thankful for less structure. Lately I've been trying to de-structurize my life a little. I've put so many little boxes and checklists around my days, that I end each day productively, but stressed. I'm thankful for the chance to relax a little more each day.

4. I'm thankful for my health. I overworked my back a bit during a workout last weekend, and it basically crippled my workouts for a few days. I'm thankful it was just sore muscles and not a chronic or more serious problem.

5. I'm thankful for good food - I've had a lot of it this week (can we say, 5 times having some sort of Indian?). Nothing satisfies like a full belly of tasty food!

What are you thankful for?

Thankful Thursday

This past week for date night, we tried something we haven't done in several years: homemade sushi. I was so proud of preparing the rice (cauliflower rice - YES it works in sushi and tastes just fine once you add rice vinegar!), cooked up the shrimp in coconut flour, egg, and coconut oil and spices to get a delicious tempura, and then got our nice teriyaki sauce and chopsticks all ready to go with the Nori. However, it turns out that sushi is my downfall in the kitchen. It TASTED fantastic, but, well...see for yourself. 

Apparently Nolan is a great sushi-maker (top plate with crab california rolls is his), and I make a plate of nasty little seaweed and shrimp turds. At least it was delicious.

Since I've added a lot more running on top of my CrossFit days, my feet have been paying the price. A little blister here, a little chafing there...even when I wear my super comfy socks and shoes. So thank goodness my husband procures me free rolls of medical tape, which is squishy and soft and keeps my feet feeling good even after several miles! Too bad it's so ugly.

Last night we had this week's date night, and decided to re-try an Indian place in Redwood City. We tried it 2 years ago, and it was horrendous. But you know, everyone's gotta improve after years of bad feedback, right? You hope? Well the good news is that this place definitely improved. Bad news is that now we have yet another tasty Indian place to eat at whenever we want. Thai, Indian, Indonesian...curries are our weakness.

Speaking of good things:

1. I'm thankful for a couple nights in the last couple weeks, that I've actually gotten to spend with Nolan. He's working quite a bit these days, and I so look forward to nights alone with him. 

2. I'm thankful for a continued drive to excel at work! I'm still very much on a learning curve, but it's satisfying, exhausting, and very exciting work. I'm so fortunate!

3. I'm thankful for a weekend coming up. I'm going to shut down my laptop, get some extra sleep, and eat delicious and healthy food. Yay!

4. I'm thankful for my mom's taste in shows and movies. I scoff at them, but it turns out that she always knows best. It's nice to have something funny to watch in the background as I'm doing work.

5. I'm thankful for the fantastic fall weather. There's been pumpkin foods, apple spice candles, crisp mornings with hot coffee on my drive to work, and chilly runs that require eating homemade turkey chili afterwards. I LOVE this time of year.

What are you thankful for?