its FRIDAY

I am getting a little anxious about my party tonight. Mainly because it looks like it is going be kinda  bust. I am having trouble deciding which recipe to demo. {Per usual, I am so indecisive}.

I decided to do a *NEW* Spring Recipe and have narrowed it down to two...

Strawberry Cheesecake Bombe ---OR--- Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookie Bars

Which one looks good to YOU? Its not too late to come out to my party either! 7 pm, My House... Also am thinking of trying the new PC cucumber dill guacamole recipe also from the S/S Season's Best.  I have kinda an obsession with guacamole right now ;) LOVE it.
Other things that make me Happy Today~

My Breakfast Sammie.

When the egg cooker came out I thought it was kinda ridiculous. But I use it ALL the time! I LOVE it ;)
 
My birthday tulips have started to bloom! Think Spring!

Yesterday was Nathan Fillion's birthday! {AKA CASTLE} I share my birth week with the ruggedly handsome Nathan Fillion! :D

I ran my fastest 3 miles yesterday...I came oh so close to getting my pace down in the 10's...so close! My average pace was 11:01. Its that 2nd mile that did it.  Miles 1 and 3 were both in the 10's. Oh well still calling it a win!  Running makes me happy, happy, happy...and to think I came so close to bailing on my run yesterday.

This Song I heard this morning...

slow down. . . or run faster. . .

The pace of life in getting to me...I feel like I am always running both figuratively and literally. I don't really know what to do about it. Buckle down and keep running, I guess.  All I can really control at this point is my attitude and how I deal with the things life throws my way.

 

The sunshine out there looks glorious! I can't wait to go home and put on mu running shoes.

I am slowly working on decluttering surfaces and spaces in the house.  It makes me feel a bit lighter.

Mikayla and I are both anxious to start gardening! Hoping this weekend to clear out some of the deadness that I didn't take care of in the fall.  Bring on SPRING and FLOWERS! I am ready!

Last night I made Chicken and Dumpling Soup.  It was delicious! Definitely a keeper...and just has good for lunch today!

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I cleaned my mantle last night.  It made me happy.  I am working to reclaim my house and my happy.

This morning I broke in my new t shirt the MR gave me for my birthday.  It was pretty chilly outside (12 degrees) but I decided to get out and run anyway...I am looking forward to real spring temps later in the week.

This is the back...

Birthday Weekend!

Tomorrow is my 34th birthday.  This weekend we celebrated with the Fam.

Saturday my sister and I did our training run together.  I think its awesome that our 7 mile run just happened to fall on my birthday weekend.  Its roughly 7 miles from my house to our parents house...which you may recall is on my bucket list. We started off strong.  Kinda had a blast in Chittenango.  Taking library selfies and pics of our shoes on the yellow brick sidewalk.

We quickly realized 7 miles is wicked far.  It was insanely windy, at one stretch where the road had open fields on both sides we literally thought the wind was going to blow us away. It was definately whisking away what little breath I had left.

As we came into the home stretch and nearing our parents road we saw a figure in a royal blue hoodie up ahead at the intersection.

Laura turned to me and said "I think Mom's up there waiting for us!"  We were taking a walk break at this point and I exclaimed, "We'd better start RUNNING!"  It was Mom.  She came out to run the last leg with us.  It was a fun surprise to find her there waiting and kind of a thrill to run with her for the first time.  We laughed and chatted as we jogged/walked the last mile.

Despite how hard it is.  Running with my sister is easily one of the highlights of my week. :-)

This morning Hannah (with Daddy's help) made me breakfast in bed.



After Church we went to Mom and Dad's for my birthday dinner.  I requested "appetizers".  Mom went above and beyond, we had quite the birthday smorgasbord.


Hannah took all of the following pictures... There are quite a few... Dozens more even but these are my favorites...

I DID indeed get FROZEN!

This one cracks me up ;-)  I believe this expression is what my sister has previously called..."Classic Amy".




A new sign for our living room, which excitedly is getting very close to ready for PAINT!

The CAKE: I found this recipe on pinterest.  Mom made it a reality and it was scrumptious!

~Lemon Blueberry Layer Cake~

Today I am struggling. Anxious, discouraged. Trying to quiet my soul enough to hear His whispers.

He is here I can feel it. 

Do not be discouraged, for The Lord your God will be with you wherever you go.  (Joshua 1:9)

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you. I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. (Isaiah 41:10)

But those who hope in The Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles, they run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint. (Isaiah 40:31)

Rejoice in The Lord always. I say it again rejoice! Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. (Philippians 4:4,6-7)

ah memories...

 This week marks my 10th anniversary with The Pampered Chef!

Yesterday, March 20, is the anniversary of my very first Party. This morning I went in search of the old blog entry I was sure I had to of written.  I did and I remember it like yesterday. Reading about it has me giggling and shaking my head. Not just the Pampered Chef adventures but my dramatic-young-mom-completely-overwhelmed-at-times tone. You can check it out here. The first entry is about signing.  There is one about still waiting for my kit to arrive, the night before the party! Oh, the anxiety.  And then of course the infamous party itself. :)

Oh how far I have come!

Next Friday night {March 28} I am having a celebratory Pampered Chef Party at my house. If you're in the area, you're invited. :)  I will be having a veggie pizza (although not for the demo) as a nod to my first party.  What's your favorite Pampered chef recipe or product??

Run on

It's SPRING!!!  This makes me blissfully happy.  Although I know the weather doesn't always agree with the calendar...there is hope! In fact the little spring shoots are poking through in my flower garden. Daffodils and Tulips will showing their colorful faces before we know it!

Now that it is officially Spring I can cross "keep going even through the winter" off my bucket list!  I have survived my first winter as a runner! ;-)

This morning was looking kinda gloomy, and rain is forecast for this afternoon.  So I decided I'd best get out there and run before work.

As I started out I noticed the sun was trying valiantly to poke through the clouds. {It looked way more amazing in person}. 

I did "that hill" this morning.  I am not crossing it off yet though.  I didn't make it all the way to the top running.  So next time. ;-) I tried to take a picture. I don't think it really shows the hill adequately but there it is... Its really not as insurmountable as I thought when I first started out last summer.  Especially after the hills in the Shamrock Run a couple weeks ago.

I really wanted to do 3 miles today.  Its a little harder in the morning as I have somewhat limited time.  As I was just over 2 miles...2.19 to be exact I was trying to decide which turn to take. The one back to my house or the loop which would put me over 3. "Let it Go" came up on my playlist.  I love this song a ridiculous amount.  This morning it was my power song.  I decided to go for that third mile and wound up listening to "Let it Go" on repeat for the whole last mile.  It felt great, I am trying really hard to cut out walking breaks.  I really want to become a stronger, faster runner.

Yes. I really do want Frozen for my birthday. :-) I feel moderately silly admitting this as a grown almost 34 year old woman. But there you have it. I can not wait to watch it again with my girls!

My next race the Springtime 10K is just under a month away! I am really excited about it.

And Pittsburgh! Pittsburgh is a mere 45 days away!

 

I feel like I really need to up my game!  7.5 miles planned for this Saturday with my sister!

more snow

I came across this on Facebook this morning.  It gave me a little boost of encouragement... I especially like #7. I think I am going to print it for my wall.  I think I finally decided to hang my bib holder and medal holder by my bed, thinking I will also make an inspiration board... the mister says it is ok to have "a wall of me". I laughed, pretty sure he was picking on me but I am going to do it anyway. ;)


And this...I need to remember this...



Yesterday was crazy.  We all knew it was coming.  But after hitting 50 degrees the day before, the bright blue skies and sunshine-- it seemed strange on one hand and on the other like maybe that taste of springtime never happened, maybe it was just a dream.  But spring is coming.  Slowly.  Tomorrow the temps are supposed to start climbing again.  Hopefully this last bout of snow won't last long.

This has been the snowiest winter! The kids came home early yesterday, went late today.  But at least they went! We have maxed out on snow days this year.

I had so much I wanted to do last night.  Sew, crochet, clean, make St Patrick's Day decorations. (Finally took down the last of the Christmas decorations!) But I watched a movie with the kids and had popcorn and cocoa instead. Oh well...

Think spring!

Shamrock Run

Saturday morning was the Shamrock Run.  It was Fantastic! I ran, along with my sister and her fiance and one of my sister's friends. I have yet to find a picture of myself in any of the race photo's posted.  But I am thinking its just as well.

The Start of the Race~


Here we are just prior to the start of the race.


Start line selfie :)


It was a perfect day for a run.  It was a little chilly prior to the race standing around. But it felt great running.  I was even a tad too warm.

It was great fun!  There were spectators through out the course.  Their cheers brought a smile to my face even though they were complete strangers. Every so often they also had live bands.  Even though I was running "solo" at that point, I felt great.  I was enjoying almost every moment. The sheer number of people running around me seemed so odd.  I thought at one point what a weird custom.  Running with 4000 people, just for fun through the city streets.  From my vantage point all I could see was hoards of runners in front of me.

On Saturday I was pretty happy with my results. I felt like I did decent for me.  Today--- not so much.  I made the mistake of looking up my sister's results and comparing mine.  No comparison really.  Which I knew already.  I knew her time immediately following the race. Seriously though almost 2000 people crossed the finish line between her and me.

I am telling myself I need to just get over it, and I am.  I had fun. :) I should be proud of myself for getting out there and finishing.

MY Official Results:

• Time: 47:41 {pace 11:55}
• Place: 2816 (this is what got to me- I wanted to be in the top half. :P There were over 3800 in the race though...)
• In my age bracket: 237

This morning the weather was so warm and springlike I headed out for a run before work.  Wore my Shamrock tee for the first time. {I did NOT run in just a T, I had a hoodie on. I snapped the pic post run on our front walk}.


This Saturday Laura and I will be running 6 miles. Next week I will get to cross TWO things off my Bucket List... It will officially be SPRING! So I can cross off "keep going even through the winter". We are slated to do 7 miles and plan to run from my house to our Mom and Dad's =)

Stonger!

Last summer I started running. I was pretty much hooked to second my feet touched the pavement.  Although at times it seemed laughable.  Sometimes I felt like a fraud and not a "real" runner.  Run I did.

Silly me on New Years sitting around with my sister and cousins committed to thinking about, seriously, for real running the Pittsburgh {Half} Marathon.  In a moment of what can only be characterized as temporary insanity I signed up.  Blew my Christmas money on a race entry.

Some days I still feel like a fake and a fraud.  But I am learning quickly I am stronger than I think am.  Saturday I ran my longest, 5.29 miles with my sister.  We took a couple walking breaks, and stopped to take our picture in front of the Library.  But as we ran I realized-- even though it was an additional mile, I felt better than I did on our run a week previous.

I probably had not run straight through in a very long time (possibly not since the 5K in August).  When I am alone, its easy to stop at the creek for a minute, to drink in the beauty.  To walk for a few minutes here or there.  When I am with my sister, she pushes me a bit more.  She's good for me.  She makes me want to be a stronger runner.

Tuesday I went to my parents and ran on the treadmill.  Actually RAN the whole time.  I have hated running on the treadmill.  I told myself it was harder than running outside, which in a way let myself off the hook to run slower and take a walking break or two.  Tuesday I surprised myself by running the whole time.

Today I told myself I would run 3 miles.  Knowing I could run at least two straight, since I did it on Tuesday; that's what I set my sights on.  As I passed the two mile mark I told myself I could go a bit farther, after the 2.5 mark maybe I'd take a little break.  But when I got there I thought...eh maybe just a bit farther....once I get to the 2.75 mark I'd slow down...start to cool off....

However I did the opposite.  I could hear my sister in my head...see her running backwards in front of me at the end of our 4 miler last week.  "Come on!" She said.  "We're going to finish strong!"  And I did, I ran for the whole workout.  It made me blissfully happy.  And I know that 3.1 is a mere faction of 13.1...I have got to tack on another TEN whole miles.  But today I feel like maybe...just maybe I can DO THIS.

After all, a year ago I didn't run at all.

My next race is Saturday! I can't believe it's here.  I am nervously excited!  A hillly 4 miler, and it's going to be kinda cold. I know Laura is going to leave me in the dust. 

But I know with each run I am getting stronger....and maybe just a little faster!

 

what's cooking...

Breakfast Burritos. I put a batch of these in the freezer yesterday.  Much to my family's delight.  I came across the recipe on pinterest. You can check out the original recipe HERE.  They are super easy to make.  I freeze mine on a cookie sheet and then put them in a freezer bag.  (This way they are individually frozen and you can easily pull out just one.) Wrap it in a paper towel and pop it in the microwave for 2 minutes and you have breakfast!

 -12 eggs, beaten
-1 lb bulk sausage, cooked (or crumbled links)
-2 cups cheddar cheese, shredded
-12 flour tortillas
Scramble eggs in large skillet until done and remove from heat; stir in cooked sausage and shredded cheese (You could mix in 1/2 cup salsa here if you like). Warm tortillas in microwave 20-30 seconds or until warm and flexible. Place 1/2 cup egg mixture into tortilla; roll burrito-style.Freeze burritos in single layer on a cookie sheet. When fully frozen (in about 1 hour) place burritos in large zip-top freezer bag; freeze.TO SERVE: Wrap in a paper towel.Cook in microwave until heated through (about 1 1/2 to 2 minutes).

I also tried out a new recipe last night.  This one has been on my list for a while.  Not sure what took me so long. A little nervous about the pesto maybe and the Fam's reaction.   Everyone seemed to love it though! It was quick and easy and will definitely make it again. It is from The Pampered Chef  cookbook, Dinner in Your Deep Covered Baker; it is also online HERE.

Creamy Lemon-Pesto Chicken Pasta

I am kinda of excited to try out some Freezer Meals. I picked up the ingredients yesterday for a menu I found on one of the Consultant Groups I belong too.

Menu 2 “Fresh and Delicious”

• Taco Soup
• Zesty Cheddar-stuffed Sliders with Grilled Onions
• Summer Grilled Chicken with a Twist
• Honey-Sesame Chicken Skewers
• Cran-Orange Pork Tenderloin

I hope to get them in the freezer tonight. :-) I will let you know how they turn out.

I am thinking about doing a class or a workshop sometime in the not too distant future..."Like" my Facebook page to see updates on that. ;-)