People who love to eat, are always the best kind of people.

It seems like the blog world is full of recipes today. Maybe it is something about the temperatures cooling off but food is definitely on the brain... but I guess when isn't it??

Door County, WI- Pumpkin Patch Festival

Especially if you live up here in the North...ever heard of hibernation? Ya, true story. That is a very real thing.

Anyways, I wanted to share some of my very favorite eats lately & who doesn't love a good list of favorite things in blog land? Here goes it =)

1. Dad's Spaghetti- I wish I could tell you how this guy does it. Basically he buys an authentic sauce from a local Italian grocery story and adds loads of fresh tomatoes (from their garden), with garlic, onion, different types of sausages, peppers & the list probably goes on and on. You add everything but the kitchen sink until it looks like chili. Honestly, it is a little less intimidating to just buy some great sauce and add to it. I love the idea. The risk of screwing up is rather low, which wins points in my cook book.

And those noodles!!! Find noodles like this and you've at least got a Pinterest worthy picture.

2. Fresh Apples pie - Up north we went apple picking. First time ever. I am mad it took me so long to do this. I cannot believe how many we still have and the price was so reasonable. Apples in the fall are the bomb. dot. com. Forget this pumpkin trend.

**I don't really mean this -I am still bitter- I attempted pumpkin scones and they were really terrible. First time Pinterest truly let me down. It's going to take me some time to recover.**

Anyways apples are great, they are best smothered in peanut butter or cinnamon sugar rolled up in dough but the ones we picked are so good plain that I have been only eating every other one that way ;)

3. So this should need zero explanation. I can never look at another pickle the same. I have never tasted something so freaking amazing in my life. It almost beats sushi. I try to stay far away from fried food but forget it-All of my dignity is out the window. And while you are at, please cover mine in homemade ranch. Thanks.

4. This last one, I can actually take credit for. I guess I should have put a disclaimer in about how I don't cook. I would EL-OH-VE-EE-love to but Jacob and I's schedules never over lap. We never get to eat dinner together til the weekend and then we usually just eat out. However my favorite meal to make is fancy. Fancy and easyyyy. Actually I feel like its a joke that it is so easy. 

Crab legs. Directions: You boil them for 5 minutes AND melt butter in the microwave. Buy pretzel rolls and a can of good clam chowder. Heat & pretend you are on the East Coast somewhere... I guess unless you are on the east coast. BUT seriously that's it!!!

I sometimes buy an extra can of clams to make the chowder even better. It can get a little expensive, especially if you live in the middle of corn fields like we do, but so worth it.

So there ya have it!

What are some of your favorite things to eat lately?? 

Also, if you are interested, I worked on our wedding tab last night. You can read all about our day here :)

the happiest peninsula

Happy Monday!!!

This weekend was spent in probably my most favorite place, in the whole world, Door County WI.

                                              


I have grown up going here as a kid and recently we have been going a lot. It is only a short three hour drive from our house and its filled with all the best things in life. Wineries. The Lake. Adorable Shops. Amazing Food. LOTS of running :)

Door County was where I ran my first half Marathon. They have the most amazing State Park (where the race is held) and because the county is on a peninsula, the bluffs and views are really what make this place so special and runs almost easy.

Lately it has been so hard to get my legs moving outside. Instead I have been spending a lot of time with Blair and Serena on the treadmill.

                                                     

It is getting dark so early and the mornings are so cold already... but our last few trips here this fall have been exactly what I needed to get my legs going and those long runs in to prepare for my halfs.

Everyone should have views like this when they go out for a long run.
                                 

  

AND now for my favorite thing about running in DC...

Jake always (sometimes I beg) rents a bike and carries all my fuel, water, music, gloves and talks to me the whole time. What a guy :D Jake has signed up for some races with me but he just isn't into distance running and so when he gets to bike with me and push me and make me laugh when I want to die, my heart is pretty happy.

Well this weekend!!! I had three people to talk to :)

 Jake's parents joined us in Door County for for the first time. Obviously they loved it up there you would be crazy-sauce if you didn't & I would be really sad because we couldn't be friends. 

I would love to hear about your favorite places to run and I am thinking of ending posts with questions because I love other blogs that do that and I really love to hear back from who ever is reading SO here is my first attempt at post inspired questions. Don't leave me hanging!

If you run in the winter how the heck to do you get motivated in the dark & cold? Do you stick to the treadmill? (If you do, round of applause goes to you because I feel small parts of my soul die on that thing)

What is your favorite vacation spot???

Hope y'all have a great Monday!

I will just be at work, dreaming of still being here & waiting for your responses :)

<a href="http://www.bloglovin.com/blog/11083655/?claim=j9z9mms3cvy">Follow my blog with Bloglovin</a>

Haters going to hate.

I came across this article this morning.

It is a blogger's response to this picture.

I saw the picture on Facebook a few days ago and thought nothing of it. I am pretty sure my exact thought was “Wow! How awesome for her. I hope I look half as good as that after three kids!!” Never once did I think she was flaunting it or didn’t work hard for her body. She obviously makes it a priority and she is encouraging others to do the same. 

Well come to find out, after reading the article above...In the last few days this poor woman has been completely berated online and called a bully. You heard me right. A BULLY! She even went on Good Morning America to defend herself. She is defending herself on one of the biggest morning shows in. the. world. because she is in shape and makes amazing choices every day. How absolutely, completely absurd. Honestly, this was exactly why I was afraid to start a blog.  

I will let the article I posted continue this point because I couldn't have said it better myself.

Instead I want to make this point. 

I am over the judgment and scrutiny of being healthy. We are all or at least I hope we are trying to find the right balance for us. For some that might be just putting the 12th  extra Oreo down and for some of us it might be finally running 40 miles in one week. However small or extreme the choice is, it should be applauded, respected and not judged.

I am worried for the day I have a little girl who feels pressured to be anything besides herself. Being healthy is hard. Making the choice every day to be healthy is hard. Nothing about it is easy and simply because of that, others who are having a bad day or just cannot figure out how to make the right choices, belittle and hurt others who are. They make us feel embarrassed about voicing our passion for finishing a race or riding a century. We have to be quiet because the rest of the population is struggling.

Honestly I feel weird posting on Facebook about my running accomplishments. Why? I should be proud of them. Let’s please just stop judging one another and start supporting each other. Everyone has their own path and I am so sick of worrying how others might feel about mine, this blog included.

Ok  RANT over.

I promise my next post will be light hearted and full of rainbows, laughs & unicorns….or probably just pictures of Emma and pretty fall leaves, but either way thanks for listening & I hope you have a wonderful Friday J

My 3rd Half

This past weekend I ran in my third half marathon...both in life and for this year.

How awesome is that??? I forget that I only just started sometimes and I really need to be super proud of how far I have pushed myself in only a few short months.

I will say that the days before my race I was filled with doubt and anxiety over it. I just wasn't sure if I would PR and how I would react if I didn't.

Well I barelyyyyy Pr'd ...just by seconds...

However the pride I felt when I finished there is just nothing like it and my husbands smile and my family's hugs sure make this sport something to be proud of, pr or no pr.

At Mile 12 on both of my other half marathons I wanted to die. I had tears in my eyes and I could feel my blisters. My hips ached and I wanted it to be over.

This past weekend, mile 12 hit and I looked down at my watch and I saw an 8:12 pace and I didn't want to die. I was smiling. Well in that very moment I realized I could care less what time I came in at because it is an accomplishment to be running your 12th mile and feeling okay, dare I saw good, and enjoying the last seconds and relishing in the feeling of still having speedy legs.

After my race I found out I finished 766th place out of approximately 4050 runners. I am so proud of that and I have some new goals in mind for my November races AND I think I have maybe even rubbed off on my dad (he just bought his first garmin and printed a training plan)!!

Even more exciting than all of that, I have a new blog design in the works and hopefully will be growing this little page soon.

Running has given me so much this year already and I can't wait to see all the new places it will take me and all the new people it will push me to meet.

I feel truly lucky. I am going to reflect on that this week :)

Why do we avoid what is good for us?

I came across this today...

For many months now it has been the truth. But I can't lie...the last few weeks have been hard. Not hard in the sense that I find it difficult to run or don't have the time, but hard in the sense that my heart just hasn't been in it. I haven't been turning to running. I have no idea why. I haven't been sticking to any running schedule at all and last week was the first week in about 6 months that I ran less than 20 miles. I actually only ran 10. I don't necessarily feel burned out, I just feel bleh.

Honestly in turn, so does the rest of my life. Running gives me so much clarity and patience. It does so much for me and yet I have been turning it down. Why do we do that? Why do we avoid the things that are so good for us?

I think sometimes when I am overwhelmed I just mentally think it is easier to give up on myself. I am sure many people can relate to that. We all go through times like that.

Likewise I am afraid or nervous of failing so I don't try at all.

Ugh these two things are behaviors/habits I hate about myself and sticking with running these past months have really helped me turn away from those thoughts and start to out grow them. Somehow though these last few weeks I felt the old me creeping back, just a little. Doubting myself, running away from running no pun intended and making excuses...

I have 16 days till my third half marathon. I have 16 days to put my heart back into what I love and get my head together. I am making a commitment to myself to not feel sorry about the last few weeks. I think we dwell too hard sometimes on our mistakes or set backs.

Sometimes they are just what they are; mistakes & setbacks. 

So here goes it...16 days until I stand on yet another starting line.

Which brings me to my last thought for today...I think one of the best parts of being a runner is the gift of every starting line. If you run you get this new beginning, new chance with every race.

This sport is just full of great symbolism for life. Often we reflect on making it to the finishing line. The accomplishments. But I for one think that the starting line is not one to be over looked :)

It's hottttt

Ugh. August i.e. extreme heat finally hit here in MKE...with only 3 days left to spare.

I am distraught over how fast this summer went. I really love drinking and eating outside. I love playing corn hole or whatever you people call it now (In KY, where I went to college, we call it corn hole. I like the south and pretending I am a southern belle so I refuse to call it anything else). I like floating in a pool feeling the sun ruin my skin and reflecting on how awesome life is. I love summer vacations even if they are only to a lake up north and how calm work can get on a Friday because everyone is sneaking out early... one by one.

I am sure I could think up a trillion more reasons summer is the bomb. dot. com. BUT let me tell you one reason the summer has let me down.

Running in the summer SUCKS.

Plain and simple. It wasn't even that FREAKING hot here this summer compared to where some of you peeps live. But man, that SUN!! SHOOT me now and leave me on the side of the road. There could be the best breeze in the world but if the sun is out in full force that beautiful sun I complain about all 9 months of winter, asking...praying...NO NO pleading for its return sucks every last ounce of life from my happy running legs.

At first I didn't know what was happening this summer. I had just completed two great half marathons in the spring and then alllll of the sudden the first few weeks of June came and I turned into a snail. Sure I knew it was hotter but I didn't actually think it would slash my time like that. I was sad and miserable. Sure I was proud of my mileage but I definitely thought that if my average times were going to suffer like this all summer, I would never run a sub 2 hour half again!!!

Well low and behold, I started reading the bible. Runner's World. ***Get your subscription now, thank me for the rest of your life. The two hours it takes to read each issue will be the happiest, most exciting minutes of your month. Guaranteed.*** And so it seems that this happens to everyone. You slow down. The sun sucks your energy. You need to drink extra water. If you don't you risk all kinds of problems.

Well the CRAZY in me still hated seeing my times suck and the lazy bum in me hated working harder throughout every run. I worried about the fact that I never truly adapted to the heat, which is something the Bible implied would happen.

Now that it is the end of the summer, I realize a few things:

1. Maybe I never adapted because the temperatures WERE all over the place this summer.
2. That I am not an Olympic runner and even though my times suffered, I never gave up. I put some heavy mileage in and that is something to be seriously proud of.
3. Next summer I am going to embrace slowing down. Sometimes when you run just to run, it is way more fun and there will be plenty of time for speed work come fall.

So the long and short of it...If you are new to running please do your research and cut yourself some slack. Running in the heat is serious business. If you like shopping as much as I do, there are also some great products you can arm yourself with to battle the heat. Read up. Slow down. And Drink UP!

YUCK.

How important is your phone?

So here is a post that I didn't promise...ALSO please don't be mad because I have yet to write any of those posts I did promise. This blogging thing is hard and it doesn't help that the only two people reading love me a lot  I think I lost one---Amy, are you still reading? and already hear me rant and tell these stories in real life but I digress.

Ok so this morning I lost my phone. LOST IT. It is in my house somewhere but I am dying at work right now. Every buzzzzzz I hear and every time I see someone texting I start panicking. Full on sweat. I have screamed out a few times that I am going insane. My brain can't stop thinking about my little white iphone with a cracked backside and air bubbles in the screen protector. I can visualize this little gadget down to the freaking air bubbles but I cannot for the life of me remember where I set it down in our tiny house.

OK so why are we like this??? Why are we so flipping attached to our phones? bare with me this will tie back to running-everything does

Well I can think of a zillion superficial silly reasons we are attached to our phones but for me it is how I stay in touch with the people I love and until recently get through all of my sweat-pouring-into-my-eyeballs kind of runs---- which is very important to the people I love, because otherwise I am a crazy woman and sometimes very mean.

Until I got my beloved Garmin (which I will gladly review soon), I used a running ap to map my run. I use it currently to watch netflix and stalk blogs while at the gym. But most importantly it houses all of my glorious teenie bopper music that gets my legs moving and want to get that last mile in.

Really my phone is my life and if my grandma ever reads this she will roll her eyes and curse BUT it is. It keeps my life in line. Tells me where I need to be and connects me with the people I need to talk to. These people motivate me, calm me down, build me up, make me laugh and yell at me when I need it. It pushes me to work out and stay that extra 10 minutes at the gym. It houses millions of silly blurry pictures that make me smile and it makes me feel safe. Call it my adult baby blanket. I'll gladly agree. It is a fancy, very smart blanket.

NOW IF I COULD JUST FIND IT SO I CAN GET MY CROSS TRAINING IN THIS AFTERNOON!!!! :)