I was chipped!!

This week has been a good week for workouts. I'm happy with myself. Whoo hoo. Go me! :)

Monday's Workout: 
Treadmill Run: 5 miles

I've taken to calling them DREADmill runs because I just want to get outside and run. Spring - PLEASE!!!

Tuesday's Workout: 
A serious lift session that included back, shoulders, abs, triceps and biceps. I'm still sore.

Wednesday's Workout: I had this Wednesday off with Kellan, but since it's our final Whip It Wednesday competition at work I did get a run in. I brought Kellan to a doctor appt in the morning and then dropped him at daycare just long enough to get in a run at LA Fitness.
Treadmill Run: 6.5 miles

After my run I went to hang out with my sister in law, Carly and my new nephew Everett. We had lunch and went for a long walk even though it was a little chilly outside. You know, just a couple of moms going for a walk on a Wednesday afternoon. Ha ha.

Anyway, I'm pretty happy with how my training for my half marathon has been unfolding. I just hope it continues to be as successful as time crawls on.

So! On Tuesday I came home from work to find this on my front step!

Right away I was excited because I love this brand. Food Should Taste Good has definitely graced my shopping cart more than a few times. And I knew what was waiting inside that box. Deliciousness. Healthy deliciousness. 

 Food Should Taste Good sent me a variety of their chips. SWOON! They make sweet potato chips that are made with all natural ingredients. Their chips have 25% less fat than other sweet potato chips. That means they are way better for me than regular chips. And here's the kicker - they taste awesome. We busted open the bag of Salt and Vinegar chips that very night and even Pete liked them. We can't wait to try the other flavors they sent - Sweet Potato chips in Barbeque and Salt and Pepper, in addition to the Salt and Vinegar that we already enjoyed. They also apparently make Kettle Corn chips. WOW. We are going to salsify some of those bad boys. SOON. I'll let you know how the other flavors are. I'm sure they are going to rock. Check them out at any store. I've seen them all over. Trust me - they are GOOD! And good for you! (And for those who care they are gluten free. I'm not. But they are.)

It's going to be a crazy week. My stepdad's birthday is tomorrow so we'll be heading to their house for a birthday dinner. Friday we have a baby sitter - whoo hoo - DATE NIGHT. Saturday night we are babysitting for Tom and Elise so we'll be staying in. Then Sunday we are going to get out and enjoy the warm weather that is supposed to be gracing us. Sunday night Pete is going to the Wild hockey game with Tom. I'll leave you with a picture of Kellan trying to play with Wyatt yesterday. Wyatt is very sweet with Kellan, but is much more interested in his toys. Just wait until Kellan can THROW your toys for you Mr. Wyatt. You may be changing your mind about this Kellan guy. He may well end up being your favorite person in the world. In fact I'm pretty sure that inevitable :)

Has anyone else tried Food Should Taste Good chips? 

Does anyone have any cool weekend plans?

Comment below!!

Committing to the Stretch and Strengthen Day

Well hello there. It's been a little while since my last post. Let's catch up, shall we?

Last weekend was a good one. The weather is finally warming to a temperature that is just barely tolerable when you step outside and that's been so good for my mindset. I can't wait for spring to be here. To go for walks after work. For Kellan to learn how to walk on the grass instead of standing at the window staring out at the snow.

So I'll start with how my training plan has been going.
Saturday: I actually did Stretch and Strengthen - stretching and planks for 20 minutes on the floor in Kellan's room while he played. Whoo hoo!
Monday's Workout: Ran 4 miles on the treadmill. I don't remember my pace, but I got in 4 miles.
Tuesday's Workout: A good lift session, abs and more stretching.
Wednesday's Workout: Ran 8 miles at an 8:20/mile pace. Wow - I am ahead of my training plan in mileage and that feels really good. Wednesdays we have a competition at work for most steps and that was definitely a motivating factor in how many miles I got in. My total fitbit miles for the day were over 12 since I also did a lot of walking that day. Awesome.
Thursday: Rest Day - but we did stick Kellan in the BOB stroller after work and went for a long walk with Wyatt. We had to get out and enjoy the sun and 40 degree weather.
Friday's Workout: This morning I woke up and came into work early. I ran 3 miles on the treadmill BEFORE work. I can't even remember the last time I did that, but I have lunch plans today with the girls at work so I had to get it in. I am so happy that I made the decision and came in and got it done. Run for today - check.

I've been doing really great with getting my miles in. My training plan wants me to run 4 days a week, but I'm fine with 3 or 4 days depending on the week. I need to COMMIT to the stretch and strengthen days though. I am so guilty of not doing that. Why is it that I can go for a run that takes me over an hour, but I find it hard on the weekends to sit down and stretch for 15 - 20 minutes? It doesn't make sense. I also find myself skipping lift days when in my mind I KNOW how important cross training is. I convince myself at times that getting in more miles will help me more. But I know that stretching and strengthening will ultimately make me a better runner than a few more 3 mile training runs. So like before when I committed on this blog to run at least 3 times a week, I am committing to stretching. Should it really be that hard? :) Anyone else find this to be the case for them? Please tell me I'm not alone here!!!!

In other news Kellan is awesome. God I love that kid. Pete and I were talking just the other night about how fast everything is happening. He's trying to walk at daycare. WALK! I mean what happened to my little tiny peanut guy that couldn't even hold his own head up? Don't get me wrong it's amazing. Watching him grow is so cool. He's learning so much. You can't stop him from standing anymore. He's crawling all over the house and pulling himself up onto everything. PULLING HIMSELF UP. It's just crazy. And awesome.








He also got to meet his new cousin recently. Which is just so cool. Super happy for Mitch and Carly. Their baby is seriously cute. I can't wait to see what kind of kiddo he is going to be. I already know these two are going to be great friends. It's going to be awesome to see them growing up together. Learning from one another.






This weekend we have some fun plans. Tonight we have dinner with Oma and Papa. Saturday Kellan has swim lessons and then we are going to watch the Wild game with some friends, Elise and Tom and Kellan's best friend, Eva :) Sunday we are having lunch with Grandma Janet. It's going to be a great weekend. I can't wait for the kind of weather when we can get outside and go for more walks. Especially since Kellan LOVES being outside. I'll leave with a picture of the kiddo being a ham - I love it. Have a great weekend everyone!

A shiner, a weekend, a nephew, some running

Friday at work I ran a little longer run during lunch. I had gotten into work early that day at 7am, so I figured a couple extra minutes at lunch would be ok. I got in 7.62 miles! WHOO HOO. It was still kind of icy out on the trails, but it felt good to be outside breathing the fresh air. I was able to run with my friend at work, Beans. I swear we talk the whole time and it just makes the run go by so quickly.

We picked Kellan up from daycare on Friday and the kiddo had his first shiner. Under his eye was red and kind of puffy. I think he met the mean side of a table or something. Which is not surprising because that kid just wants to stand, stand, stand all day long.



Of course he's healing like crazy cause that's what little kiddos do. Luckily.

We had a great weekend. Friday night we stayed in waiting for news of our new nephew's arrival. He didn't end up being born until Saturday. Saturday we took Kellan to his weekly swim lesson and then while he napped after class we grabbed a quick Big Jim IPA at Northbound Smokehouse near our house and some wings. We like to try to get out while the kiddo naps when we can and he's great about taking a snooze in his car seat. We just bring him in with us and if he happens to wake up we let him hang out and have a snack at the table :)



We did a big grocery shopping trip and cleaned the house and just kind of hung out at home. We were still kind of waiting to hear about our nephew and wanted to be available. Sunday we hung home. We painted a ton of trim on our main level. We are kind of contemplating potentially listing our house for sale so we are trying to get it ready for showings. We went for a walk outside in the amazingly warm weather. I wish the sun had been brighter, but it was still awesome to get outside. It was our first time using the BOB stroller and Kellan loved it. He fell asleep during our walk - it's the fresh air and it was nap time - and so we let him snooze for a bit once we got home.



After the walk and an afternoon nap we played in the house for a little while - and got really excited to go meet Kellan's new nephew :)

After a couple of hours we headed to the hospital to meet him! We were so excited to meet him and to see Pete's brother and our amazing sister-in-law. He is so adorable! I won't post pictures yet, but there will definitely be pictures coming. It was so awesome just to see him and he looked so healthy and it was just amazing :) I love being an aunt for the second time - and I can't wait to spend a little more time with him. We brought some champagne and toasted his arrival. Here's hoping his parents get some sleep in the coming month(s) ;)

Our cat has been super snugly since his surgery last month - so he spent a little quality time on my lap on Sunday night while we watched the Wild game.

And lastly my half marathon training plan OFFICIALLY started today. Pete and I are both following the plan. In the first few weeks the mileage goals are low so I'll modify where I feel like I can. This week calls for four 3-mile runs and a 5 mile run this weekend. I ran 5.2 miles outside today. It was amazing weather and I had to take the opportunity while I could.

No plans tonight. Just hanging with Pete and the kiddo. I'll try to upload some pictures I took of my nephew at the hospital and send them to my sister-in-law, but other than that no plans :)

Has anyone else had any good runs lately?

Whip It Wednesdays

It's Pete's birthday today!! He's 32. Should I be telling the internet that? Does he care? He's younger than me so there should be no shame. Although for the next month we're the same age! Whoo hoo.

So at work we are doing a Fitbit challenge and we have a team head to head competition on Wednesdays. We call it Whip It Wednesday - as in Whip It Into Shape! It's a really cool program through my work. They gave all the employees a free Fitbit and they've set up challenges throughout the year. I'm lucky enough to be on our wellness committee so I get to help come up with the ideas. It's good motivation. So back to Whip It Wednesday -



I ran 7 miles over lunch. SEVEN! YAYAYAYAY! I am so happy - it's my longest run since before I was pregnant. Just inching ever closer as I start my half marathon training.

Wednesday's Workout: Treadmill Run
Distance: 7 miles
Time: 54:50
Pace: 7:50/mile

Tonight we will celebrate my husband's birthday. We're having Halibut - YUM! I put Kellan into a cute new outfit this morning. I don't ever buy full priced clothes for him, but I really like him to look nice. Whenever Gap has an additional 40% off their clearance items I go take a look. Some of the items are still overpriced in my opinion - even at 40% off the clearance price, but I've found some steals lately. I'll typically get the item if it's $6 or less - just to give you an idea of how hard I'm searching for the right deals ha.

Here's a picture from this morning (before I blow dried and styled my hair) of Kellan's new corduroy pants and cute onsie with a monster on it saying Feed Me. :)

What a cutie. I love him. 

It's supposed to be warmer here on Friday so I plan to do my run outside. Another 5 miler I think. I love running outside the first few times of the year. It's so liberating to be off the treadmill and and outside breathing the fresh air. 

Anyone else have any good run stories to share in the comments?

Do you like running outside for the first few times of the season?

A Rockin' Weekend and Pete's Birthday Week

We had a great weekend. Friday night was a chill night at home. Saturday we got up and did some things around the house - grocery shopping, cleaning, etc. Then we took Kellan to his swim lesson - which he still loves so much. That's so awesome. Saturday afternoon we hung out with Pete's mom for a little while and had lunch - it was super nice to spend some time with her. Saturday night we went over to Pete's (twin) brother's house. I made a chicken rice bowl recipe to celebrate their birthday - which is coming up tomorrow. It was super fun and Kellan loved hanging out with his Aunt Carly and his future cousin!!!

Too cute - I die. I can't wait for those kiddos to hang out in real life! Amazing. I feel incredibly lucky to have family that we really like hanging out with on both sides! WOW. 

Sunday Pete was brewing with his friends so my mom and I took the little dude to a free event in Minneapolis called Rock the Cradle. 

I heard that the event was pretty busy and some people even told me to skip it because it gets too crowded. We decided to get there early and got inside 10 minutes before the event was supposed to start. There were areas all throughout the Art Museum that were set up with different activities for the kiddos. We headed straight to the photo booth for a quick photo. I think they are going to email it to me - so I'll post it when I get it. Then we went to the Cartoon and Music production. It was put on by a guy that is a cartoon illustrator that mixes his cartoons up a big projection screen with songs that he sings about the characters in the story. Well - Kellan LOVED it. They gave out these weird moracca things that made noise. He loved the music and he was really digging watching the other kids dance. It was awesome and I loved that my mom got to spend the time with him. 

After the event we went to lunch at one of our favorite spots - Mill Valley Kitchen. We split the hummus plate and each got a bowl of their Vegan Chili. It is SO good. Everything I've ordered there has been really good. It's a different concept of a restaurant because they list the calories and I think the protein level in each meal. It's pretty awesome. It's organic. We really like going there - so it was a treat for me to get to spend that time with my mom at a place we both enjoy so much. And she paid for lunch too! I am so lucky!

Sunday night I had one pooped kiddo. He took a long bath at night and then passed out on my lap during his last feeding of the night. HOW CUTE! And don't worry - his cheeks are only red because his exema was a little red from the longer bath. What a cutie. God I love that kiddo. 

He was up really early on Monday morning so I was up too. While he played on the floor I did a circuit workout on the floor next to him. 

Monday's Workout: Circuits

15 push ups, 15 Table Dips, 15 Squats (repeat the circuit 3 times)

15 - 15lb arm curls, 10 - 15lb overhead presses, 15 sit ups (repeat the circuit 3 times)

It was nice to get a quick workout in before the day even started. Then I took the stairs to work which is 15 flights. Not to shabby. That afternoon we actually went to go look at a house we were interested in. It's crazy to be starting the process or even the THOUGHT PROCESS of moving, but we're getting to the point where we are ready for a bigger house with a different layout. I'll talk more about that in a future post. 

I took the stairs up to work again today - maybe it's a new habit?? I also got down to the gym over lunch. 

Tuesday's Workout: Treadmill Run

Distance: 5 miles

Time: 39:52

Pace: 7:47/mile

Tomorrow is Pete's birthday so we'll be celebrating and I have to wrap his presents tonight. He has the golf simulator tonight with his buddies so Kellan and I can have a wrapping party :)

Have a great night everyone!