October Foodie Pen pals!

It's Foodie Pen Pal time again!  I am loving Foodie Pen Pal so much that I keep signing up every month.  I just love getting boxes filled with fun and different foods to try and filling a box for someone else with some of my favorite things. 

First, what is Foodie Pen Pal?  Well, it’s a pen pal program started by Lindsay over at The Lean Green Bean.  You sign up with her and then she matches you with a partner and you send each other boxes.  Each box should contain about $15 worth of food products.  They can be anything from homemade stuff to boxed stuff to random things you find out and about.  You just want to make sure you communicate with your partner first in case they have any type of food allergies.  Then you box your items up and ship them out by the 15th of the month.  Simple, fun, and easy.

This month I was paired with Wendy.  She was so sweet and we actually had a decent amount in common.  She's on the rowing team and my dad's host/foster dad from high school won the gold medal in rowing in the 1936 Olympics.  Very cool!  Since I'm training for a half marathon we are both pretty active these days (her probably more so than me because I am slacking on my training).  Wendy sent me the best box!  It was filled with amazing homemade goodies that I started eating right away!

How great does this box look??  Amazing, right!  She sent me homemade pumpkin spice granola and chunky apple pear sauce, three chia bars (I ate two before snapping the picture), peanut butter with coconut (so delicious), and almond water with coconut (as you can tell, I took the picture after eating half of the granola, peanut butter, and apple pair sauce).  Oh, and she sent me some pumpkin spice tea, but I took that to work so didn't get a chance to include that in the pic.  It's my favorite type of tea, rooibos, flavored with pumpkin.  Quite relaxing and tasty.

Here's a close-up of the granola, water, and peanut butter.  All were great.  The almond water was a bit sweet, but still good.  And the granola is perfect for my yogurt (or by the handful, which is how I normally eat it).

She also included this adorable note.  I love the stamps!  

I hope she liked my box as much as I enjoyed hers.  If you want to do Foodie Pen Pal for the month of November, don't forget to sign up!  You won't regret it!

And have a Happy Halloween!  I can't wait to share pictures of Evan in his adorable Halloween costume!

Random dinners and finally a bus that works

First, I'd like to mention that the bus showed up last night so I finally got home at my regular time.  And the bus showed up this morning and it's not broken so far, so maybe I'll get to work at a decent time too.

And how do you like my new slippers?

Ivan bought them for me at Costco.  He loves slippers and can't imagine life without them.  I should have gotten them a size larger, but I didn't.  Oh well.

And today I have to call the vet because poor Dolce has a hurt foot.  He has been limping since Sunday.

I thought it would go away but I think it's getting worse.  Boo.  He looks really pathetic in this photo but really he's just sleeping.  My foot is starting to feel better though, so I'm happy about that.

Yesterday was a bit exhausting for some reason, even though I slept for a long time because my bus took 1.5 hours to get to DC.  I should have been wide awake.  Nope, I was tired and got a headache.  Fun times.  I have been the laziest cook ever for a while and all we've been eating is the fastest food I can cook.  On Sunday I made ground beef with hoisin sauce for Ivan.  It sounds gross, maybe, but it's actually really good.  I top it with cabbage and roll it in a tortilla and it's pretty tasty.  I didn't eat it this time because it has Red 40 in it and that's supposed to be really bad for kids.  I obviously didn't give it to Evan either.  Evan got a delicious meal of mystery pasta sauce (mystery because it has spinach and sweet potatoes in it) with polenta and some cheese.  He actually loves it.  Strange, I know.  I had some of the gazillion ravioli I have left over.

Then I made some lunches.

Don't you just love Evan's lunchbox?  I do!  And that's my green one.  It's not as cute because I need the biggest thing I can find because I take so much food.  People think it's weird that I plan out Evan's food for the week, but I'm telling you, it makes my life so much easier.  Every day I consult the list and put today's items in the bag or gather them in the fridge.  Hardly any thinking involved.  I think I should start doing the same thing for myself!

I have a chemistry test today so I tried to get some studying done.

It did not go well.  Pretty much about ten minutes into it Evan started crying and wouldn't calm down so I had to give up the notecards and head to bed.  Guess I'll try to study during my bus ride home.

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What did your evening look look like last night?

What did you have for dinner?

Do you bring or buy lunch if you work outside the home?

Broken buses and 10,000 ravioli

I drew this all by myself....

 Ugg, these past few days have been horrible with regards to commuting.  On Thursday my bus never showed up so I had to take the local (and got home at 7:15 rather than 6:30), on Friday the bus never showed AGAIN and I had to take the local and there was a huge accident and I didn't get home until 8:00pm (and keep in mind I leave the office at 5pm), and then this morning our morning bus broke down so I had to take the local.  Seriously bus company - service your buses!!!

Ok, I just had to complain about that for a second...as I sit here going to all the park and rides knowing I'm going to be 45 minutes late to work.

This weekend was super jam-packed.  I had my last day of First Tee.  The girls were actually sad and said they'd miss us.  That means A LOT because a lot of the girls don't love golf and they do it because their parents want them to...and then we spend 8 weeks trying to convince them that golf is a lot of fun and they should keep doing it.  So, it seems like we succeeded and most of them said they'd be back in the spring.  I will miss them and the golf season (and the extra paycheck!), but it will also be nice to have Saturday mornings free again.  And it's getting cold, so it is less fun golfing when it's 37* out like it was this past Saturday.

In the afternoon Evan and I took a trip down to DC to visit my co-worker and her new baby.  I LOVE babies and I really love tiny little newborns.  Her son was born just two weeks ago, so he was little little.  It was fun to see her, catch up, and hear her birth story.  After being pregnant I love hearing about other people's birth stories for some reason.  It's not something I ever thought about before, but now I'm always interested.  My plan had been to bring her some frozen food, but she didn't confirm until Friday night so I didn't have time to make anything.  I stopped by Panera and bought her a bunch of bagels instead, and I had already bought some granola and oatmeal a few weeks ago.  I felt like that was the nicest thing that people did for me when I had Evan - everyone came with food.  It was something that had never occurred to me and I appreciated it so much.  Keep that in mind!  If any one of your friends ever gives birth - head over with food, they will love you forever.

It's a good thing that I am not pregnant right now because I can tell you - Evan was NOT happy with me holding the baby.  He kept trying to crawl back into my lap and push the baby away.  Not in a mean way, but definitely in a jealous way.  I can totally see him being jealous of a new baby.  He played with his toys a bit but kept coming back and trying to crawl into my lap.  He does that when I hold my sister's daughter too.  He's definitely a momma's boy right now - he loves to cuddle with me and will climb into my lap and give me a kiss for no reason.  It's the most adorable thing in the world, but maybe it wouldn't be if I had another baby!

Later that night I picked up Ivan and we tried to go to Costco, but it was closed.  It was really annoying because Evan had fallen asleep in the car and then we woke him up to get him out - only to find out that Costco closes at 6pm!  On a Saturday!  Crazy sauce.  So we went to Target instead and spent a ton of money there.  On non-essential items - minus the dog food.  I HATE going to Target for that reason alone - I always find stupid stuff I don't need (and Ivan finds more) and then then next thing we know we are paying $80 when we only needed $13.00 dog food.  Frustration to the max (and yes, I did just say than and I know it sounds stupid, but I'm not erasing it).

Sunday was suppose to be a bit lazier, but it wasn't.  I got up early to go running with my sister and Evan - even though it was only 37* outside.  Freezing!  And I couldn't find our weather shield for Evan.

See that nice contraption that keeps Evan warm?  Where did it go?  I searched every box, closets, drawer, and cubby that it could possibly be and it is NO WHERE.  I have no clue what happened to it and it's driving me crazy because it's like $65 and I don't want to have to buy another one.  However, when it's cold and I force Evan to go for a run with me, I feel bad having the cold wind blow in his face.  He was fine yesterday though and only started fussing the last half mile, and never broke out into a full cry.  He did pitch one of his mittens overboard though and it's lost forever.  Sorry Mimi - it was one of the Mickey Mouse ones you made him last year.  It was a good run though.

That's me after the run in my running clothes.  Sorry, we don't have a great mirror to take good photos.  Also, I seem to have hurt my food somehow.  I'm not sure how, but it started hurting on Saturday and it's only gotten worse.  I wasn't even doing anything - just noticed this dull throb in my arch area and now it's so painful I can't walk normal.  I had to do a run-hop thing because it hurt to run and I am now hobbling all over the place.  I have no clue what could have happened and I am just praying that the pain disappears.  We'll see.  I'm thinking I probably shouldn't run on it until the pain goes away, even though running on it didn't make it worse.

We did finally go to Costco yesterday and spent a bunch of money on things we didn't need and some things we did.  I bought some Ravioli that I thought Evan would like, but he doesn't.  So, glad I have 10000 more raviolis for him.  And Ivan bought 32 Cokes.  Yup, I guess you can never have too much coke if your name is Ivan.  We also bought a HUGE bag of carrots that Ivan said he's going to help eat.  Ivan hates vegetables so I figured if he was going to eat a few carrots I'd buy them.  Of course we then had to make a quick trip to Giant to buy the rest of the food we didn't want 500 of or that Costco didn't carry organic of - like yogurt and eggs.

All in all the weekend was fun, but my main goal had been to study and that didn't happen much.  I started to study on Sunday afternoon while Evan was napping but then he woke up and was still tired and fell asleep on my chest for an hour.  So I watched Parenthood instead....

It's Friday and I'm blogging

Are you even reading this, because I don't usually blog on Fridays.  However, I have a meeting at work, so I am on the bus.  In reality it seems like I never got off the bus because it took me almost two hours to get home last night.  Obama decided to have a meeting around the corner from where my bus stops and clogged up the traffic big time.  Then my regular bus broke down and I had to take a local, which means it stops at all the park and rides.  By the time I got home it was time for bed.  Not really, but it felt like it.  Surprisingly enough I finished all my evening tasks and made it to bed early - 10pm!!  That's two early nights in the same week!  Who am I???  P.S. I probably should have been doing some Chemistry studying instead.

Of course, then this morning I got a late start because Evan kept crying and wouldn't let me take a shower.  I eventually just took him in the shower with me and then plopped him in the sink while I got ready for work.

He actually stays there contentedly for a long time.  Until he starts throwing everything overboard and then looks over the edge to see where it went.  I thought I might have to go to the late bus stop, but I didn't.  We made it in time to the regular bus.

I think I'm gonna do a few Fill in the Blanks this Friday.  That used to be my favorite link-up, but it was discontinued.  So now I'll make up my own, with a Halloween theme.  Feel free to play along and link to your answers in the comments!

Kattrina's Fill in the Blanks

1) This Halloween I'm going to dress up as nothing.  I don't usually dress up at all, not a big fan.  My son is going to be a one-eyed monster though.  It's a really cute costume and will keep him nice and warm.

2) My favorite Halloween candy is chocolate-based.  I really like the Snickers, Reese's peanut butter cups, Milky Ways, KitKats, etc.  I always hated those cinnamon red dot things that came in clear plastic bags.  Not good at all.

3) A Halloween memory I have is dumping all my candy out on the floor into a big pile with my sisters and looking at what we got.  Then we'd start a huge exchange, especially since my younger sister couldn't eat chocolate, we'd exchange all our non-chocolate for her chocolate.  Great deal!

4) Halloween is a fun holiday.  I love looking at people's costume and seeing how they decorate the house.  And it's the first holiday of the holiday season!  I've never been a huge Halloween party person though - just the low key holiday for me.

5) You are to old to go trick-or-treating after middle school...although I still went in 9th grade.  But I think 13 is kind of the cut-off in my book.

6) My Halloween tradition includes getting a pumpkin, going to my sister's house for pre-Halloween treats, then trick-or-treating with her in-laws.  It's an ok tradition, but I'd like to add a few things (like carving a pumpkin, which I haven't done since being a kid) and make it more our own family tradition.  Who knows.

So there you have it!

Happy Friday!!!

Cold mornings

Winter is a coming.  This morning before heading out I grabbed a scarf and put on a heavier coat.  Not a winter coat, but something heavier than my spring jacket.  It was in the 30s, which is cold for me.  I even put Evan's winter hat on.

I had a pretty exciting day back to work on Tuesday.  A few weeks ago I was asked to give the closing remarks at a Congressional Briefing.  I didn't really want to do it, but decided I would because who knows when I'd be asked again.  I was a bit nervous, but it went ok.  I feel like I could have done a better job and if ever asked again, I would, but it was my first time so I wasn't exactly clear on what my role was.  I didn't do a terrible job, but I could definitely have improved.  After, I took a picture in front of the podium, like a complete dork.  Oh well, sometimes you have to look ridiculous!

I had to get up extra early so I could look professional...meaning blow dry my hair and put on make-up.  After all that work I don't think I looked that professional anyway.  I could seriously use a haircut.  My hair was so drab, even after spending time drying it and stuff.  A haircut is just so expensive and we are so short on cash.  It would be nice to look decent again though, rather than frumpy.  Maybe one of these days.

My running is going slowly these days.  I went once at my parents' house, but that was it.  I really need to step my game up.  I usually get my runs in at work, it's the weekend runs that allude me.  I feel like I still have plenty of time, but in reality I don't.  I am going to try to be more vigilant about getting out there often and for longer distances.  Let's hope it works.

Not much to share today.  Hope you are having a great week!

Vermont in the Fall

 I have to start this off with a miracle.  Last night I went to bed at 9:30!!!!  Can you believe it???  It was a happy miracle.  I didn't make myself a lunch and sent Evan this morning with disposable diapers, but it was glorious.

I haven't been around because I took a short trip up to Vermont to visit my parents and aunt and uncle.  And dogs too, if you want to get technical.  It was a random trip because we don't usually head up north in the fall, actually this was my first trip to New England for fall foillage since. I lived in New Hampshire over 20 years ago.  The drive was spectacular, after we got off the New Jersey turnpike.

I love the drive up there because once you hit New York, it's all through the mountains and little towns. Our car was cramped with our stuff, myself, my husband, the baby, and the dog.  It makes for little space and lots of dog hair.  It looks like hubs is sleeping in our photo, but I promise you he was not.

Notice how jammed Dolce is to the side of the car?  I think it had something to do with the amount of dog fur Evan had in his hands...if Dolce got too close Evan pulled his hair out.  I don't think Dolce enjoyed the trip as much as the rest of us did.  I drove the first shift and Ivan drove the second.  This worked well because I got to enjoy the view.

And look at the pretty leaves.

And Lake Champlain.

Then we spent the weekend with my parents, and my aunt and uncle who are living with them for now (they are in the process of moving to Vermont and already sold their house but are looking for the perfect Vermont house).  It was great.  Evan really loved it because he always had someone to play with him and entertain him the entire weekend.  And my mom and aunt had a bunch of new toys that he got to play with too.  We took a lot of walks in the woods and fed the neighbor's horses...Evan's favorite.  My parents have a lot of land and it's beautiful to walk around (minus the ticks). 

Here's their driveway, with the beautiful changing leaves.

This is the side of the he house, where the den and sunroom look off.

And some apple trees.  They have red and green apple trees...we eat some and give some to the horses...and leave some for the deer.

Evan loved being outside and looking at everything, and so did Dolce.

Dolce did not enjoy sharing his space, attention, and food with the other dogs though (my parents have two dogs).

Evan just really loved playing with everyone, and I liked the occasional break to catch my breath.  It was nice having a few extra eyes and lots of extra energy!

Evan learned a lot of new skills while we were there.  As you can see, he learned how to ride his little cow and he also learned to go up and down three stairs by himself.  It was quite a feat.  He also finally learned to sign "more" which was super exciting for me.  

I took some more photos on my camera so I will post them when I upload them.  We had so much fun and Evan was an angel in the car.  He slept and played the entire time and hardly ever cried.  It was a relief!  Especially because we head up at least once a year and have a few more long car rides planned in the near future.

A Long Weekend

I guess it's been a while since I last posted.  I tried to write a post on Thirsday but I just wasn't into it and didn't have much to say.  So I didn't post what I wrote.  Then yesterday was a holiday so I had off, which would seem like a perfect opportunity to post except I try not to be on the computer or attached to technology when I'm home with Evan.  And when he was napping I did the responsible thing and watched NCIS and Parenthood.  I can proudly announce that I finished the entire season 4 of Parentohood already and am tempted to watch the live version on TV this season, but am not 100% sure.  I just don't know if I can wait an entire year...but then I hate waiting in anticipation each week because they end each show on a thread.  And now I have to choose another series to watch.  Any good suggestions out there?  I don't have a lot of options because I'm watching it on Amazon Prime.  I really wanted to watch Call the Midwives, but it's not on Prime.  Oh well.  I can watch Friday Nigh Lights or Downton Abby or Covert Affairs, and maybe some others.  I will have to see.  I need something good that entertains me while I wash dishes and fold laundry.

This weekend was pretty low-key, which was nice.  After a couple of go-go-go weekends it was nice to stay in the house and chill.  It rained a lot all week and even on Friday night.  That didn't stop us from heading to the football game.  We just put our rain gear on.

On Saturday I went grocery shopping and took Evan to the park.  The park wasn't that fun because he's a bit too little for the big slides and there were no swings, but it was nice to be outside.  We also went to Red Robin, which I love, and had some hamburgers and spent some money at Target.  I bought candy corn M&Ms, but they aren't that tasty.  A bit too sweet for me, but that hasn't stopped me from eating a bunch of them.

Sunday we went to my sister's for dinner and I actually went for a run, by myself.  No baby, no jogging stroller, just me, my shoes, and the pavement.  It was nice and I went 4.5 miles.  I was just gonna do 4 miles but the run felt so great the I ended up doing an extra half mile.  Then I walked the dog to cool down.  

I don't know what's up with his hair.  It is always looks like he just woke up.

Yesterday was beautiful out so Evan and I took Dolce for a nice walk, played on the swings again, and hung out waiting for the dryer guy to come fix the dryer.  I made some bread but I forgot to add the water so it turned out a bid solid and dry, so I threw it out.  I also made salsa chicken in the crock pot and crepes.  In the evening my sister invited me over for hot apple cidar, so I took Evan in his truck and we walked over there.  It was definitely a commitment pushing him in the truck, but he managed just fine.  I read a few books to my sister's kids and drank cidar before walking back home.  Then I ate dinner, cleaned up, did a chem assignment, and went to bed.

He looks so chill...hopefully this isn't a preview of his driving style.

Now it's Tuesday and it's back to work.  Fun times!

How was your weekend??!

Anniversaries and Stress

I really thought that after we turned in our grant that my stress level would go down.  Nope.  That would be too easy.  I've become so stressed that I started clenching my jaw, something I've never done before in my life.  If I'm not stressed about work, what am I stressed about?  Umm, my living situation.

We live in a dump.  We moved here last year because we wanted a two bedroom with the baby and the place is owned by my sister's in laws, so I thought it would be safer knowing the people we were renting from.  WRONG.  I didn't know how run down the place was until we moved in and it's been an entire year and hardly anything has been fixed and many things have broken.  The location is awesome - close to where I pick up the bus, close to my sister's place where we drop Evan off, and close to Ivan's job.  Plus, close to many biking and hiking paths.  However, the windows are crap and either don't open or don't stay open, there are broken closets, the bath tub has a bunch of cracks in it, the back porch door is taped to keep bugs and drafts from coming in, etc.  Recently, the dryer broke and the air conditioner broke.  And the main problem?  In June our electricity bill jumped from $189 to $310.  We are on the budget plan so they average the bills out so we pay the same each month based on the energy used the prior months.  So, while we were paying $189 a month we were actually using a lot more.  Looking back at how much energy we used...in Dec, Jan, and Feb our bill was close to $400 - so that means this year we have to pay a lot more on the budget plan.  It is impossible to use $400 worth of energy in an 1100sq ft. condo unless something is broken.  So, I emailed the owner and said I wanted to pay less rent because the condo was in bad shape and our electricity was too high (and the bill wasn't going to go down unless something was fixed).  That was a week ago. And I still haven't heard back...except my sister said that they got the email...meaning the were pissed and told her husband.  So now I am just confused as to what to do...continue to push for lower rent and piss him and the rest of my sister's in laws off (and probably never have a single thing fixed again) or find a new place.  If we stay and pay lower rent, I'm sure nothing will ever be fixed in the condo again.  If we move, we have to find a place that takes dogs and it will probably cost more money (although with a cheaper electricity bill we may not realize it) and it is expensive to move.  What would you do???  Please tell me what do to!!!!

Ok, it feels a little better getting that off my chest.  But I'm still mega stressed.  And I'm finding it hard to think rationally about it and make a clear decision.

How about we take a break and look at Evan sitting in a box.

That cheers me up.  We were reading the Tickle Monster Laughter Kit and he insisted on sitting in the box.

We also celebrated his one year baptism anniversary.  It wasn't a huge party or anything, but we tried to do something.  We lit his baptism candle, read this passage from the Bible:

Then we said a short prayer, did the sign of the cross with water, and ate some cookies.

Then we took a mini photo with Evan and his candle.

(I'm not sure why my arms look so skinny in that photo - they aren't that bony, trust me.)

It was nice and I really wanted to remember his baptism.  Next year I'll try and be more on top of things and buy him a little baptism present or something.

Then the rest of the night was studying for my Chem exam tonight and trying to catch up on sleep. Which I'd like to do more of right now.

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What is stressing you out these days?

How often do you move?

Do you celebrate baptism or christening anniversaries?

Pumpkins, Parenthood, etc.

It's dark when I leave for work now.  Pretty soon it's gonna be dark when I get home too.  Yesterday I went to walk the dog at 7pm and it was dark.  How sad.  It's not that I haven't experienced the days getting shorter for my entire life, but it still surprises me.  And it really surprises hubs because the days don't change in Honduras.  The closer to the equator you are the less the days change, so there it was pretty much light out from 6am-6pm and during the winter it might differ by half an hour.

What feels extra weird is that we've been having a hot spell so it was in the upper 80s all week and weekend.  And our air conditioner broke and the landlord doesn't want to fix it very quickly.  So we were pretty much roasting all weekend, in October...while the days get shorter.  Feels strange.  I think cooler temps are on the way though, and day light savings time is going to end in a few weeks too, so it will be lighter in the morning at least.

This weekend we went to the pumpkin patch!  Last year I skipped a lot of the holiday festivities because Evan was so young, but this year we are trying to enjoy them all.  It was lots of fun, but hot.

Yes, I'm holding a teddy bear.  It was teddy bear party day so if you brought a bear you got a free hay ride.  I'm all for free hay rides so I carried the bear around all day.  The hayride was itchy but fun.  They also had a petting zoo, fun slides, pony rides, face painting, and mining for gems.  We didn't do too many of those because they cost extra, but we did do the petting zoo.  Evan loved the goats and wasn't afraid to pet them or feed them.  I think it's because we have such a big, fluffy dog.

Then we walked to the pumpkin patch and snagged a mini-pumpkin.

Yesterday was filled with grocery shopping and cooking and some laundry.  First we went for a walk  though...my favorite thing.  The colors here are a little bland these days for autumn.  I'm hoping they perk up a bit.  

We took a different path and it was so pretty.

We stumbled upon this canoe and it made me think of Anne of Green Gables. 

I actually managed to cook three things yesterday: chili, tomatoe sauce, and meatballs.  All those things cooking didn't help my kitchen from exploding from heat though. Then I was determined to fold all these clothes and put them away before going to bed.  They'd been around for two weeks.

I succeeded, although it was 11:30pm when I crawled into bed.  And I have to get my run in today.  I think it's a half-caf coffee day.

And I can't put into words how excited I am that Season 4 of Parenthood is on Amazon Prime now!!!

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Do you go to a pumpkin patch or do you just buy your pumpkin at the store?

How often do you do laundry?  And do you fold your clothes right away?

September Foodie Pen Pals!

It’s time for another Food Pen Pal Reveal Day! 

I had so much fun putting my box together last month and then receiving a box – I decided to sign up again.  And again, as I just signed up for October.  I love food, what can I say.

What is Foodie Pen Pal?  Well, it’s a pen pal program started by Lindsay over at The Lean Green Bean.  You sign up with her and then she matches you with a partner.  Last month we had two partners – you sent a box to one person and someone different sent you a box.  This time she switched it up and we sent and received boxes from the same people.  Each box should contain about $15 worth of food products.  They can be anything from homemade stuff to boxed stuff to random things you find out and about.  You just want to make sure you communicate with your partner first in case they have any type of food allergies.  Then you box your items up and ship them out by the 15th of the month.  Simple, fun, and easy.

This time I was partnered with Andrea from Mommy Got Fit.  I was excited to find that she is a runner too!  I was so excited when I saw her box in the mail.  It came just in time to satisfy my craving for something not in my pantry.  When I opened it up I was thrilled to find some yummy packages of nut butters.  I LOVE nut butters, especially ones that contain chocolate and coconut.

Look at all those nut butters!  And one was missing because I ate it so fast I couldn’t photograph it.  Whoops!  Evan and I had the Chocolate Coconut Peanut Butter in our oatmeal this morning and it tasted extra delicious.

I also loved the grass-fed beef snack sticks.  I love grass-fed beef.  And the chickpeas are a great snack for work when I’m hungry and have no lunch-food left.

All in all, I was thrilled with my box and hope she loved hers too. 

Thanks Andrea!!!

If this sounds fun, hop over to The Lean Green Bean and sign up – you have until tonight to sign up for October!

Empty buses and half marathon training

It's a bit empty these days with the Federal government closed.  I'm not sure how noticeable it is in the rest of the country, but here in DC it is extra quiet.  I can't imagine how scary it must be to not be getting paid because bills are still due and food must still be bought, but I will say that the commute is nice.  The roads are a bit less crowded when the majority of workers are on a forced vacation.  Let's hope they pass the budget soon though.  And it is a bit difficult explaining ridiculous things like a government shutdown to my husband.  No matter how I explain it, it doesn't make sense to him...why? Because it's stupid and doesn't make sense in real life either.

As I mentioned before, Monday was the start of my half marathon training.  Except I didn't start because I was too busy at work.  I did start on Tuesday though.  I ran a short distance of 3 miles.  I'm not sure what it was but it was hard.  I've run three miles many times and I've run more than that on the weekends with my sister pushing the jogger, but something about running during lunch downtown made it hard.  I didn't stop to walk (although I really wanted to) but I did slow down a lot in my last mile, and not just because it was uphill.  I'm not sure what made the run so hard...the unexpected heat, lack of water, exhaustion? Could have been any of those.  I persevered though and finished.  Not sure how long it took me since I don't run with a watch, but I don't think it was too slow.  I am going again today.  And hopefully a coworker is joining me.

Talking about water, Evan loves my Camelback water bottle and can actually drink out of it.

The bottle's almost as big as him!  

Yesterday I needed to get some studying done, so Ivan took Evan on a long walk in the backpack.  It's funny because Evan must love that backpack because when he sees it on the floor he get really excited and yesterday (because he was tired) he cried until we put him in it.  Then he was super happy.  So, they went on a walk and Evan loved it.

I was glad to get a few minutes to study for my lab quiz.  I have a test next week so the study will have to be on all weekend.

And can I mention how excited I am that NCIS is back on.  And the Voice.  Last year at this time I was on maternity leave and life was a blur with lots of TV.  Now I can't even handle one TV show, but I'm determined to see NCIS, especially since one of the characters is leaving the show and being replaced with someone else.  I wish Parenthood would go on Amazon Prime so I could watch it for free!  I love that show too!

Ok, I'm falling asleep so toodles!

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Training for any races these days?

What's your favorite fall show?

Meet me at the bus

Can I get a sigh of relief? We finally turned our grant application in.  I'm not sure how far it went because it was a federal grant and the Feds aren't working until the budget's past, but it was submitted.  And that's a huge relief.  I hate grants and I especially hate huge grants with tons of work.  We've been working on that grant since August.  That's like two months.

Yesterday when I got off the bus I started walking up the hill to my house and there at the top of the hill was Ivan and Evan.  They decided to meet me at the bus!  It was the best thing in the world.  Every once in a while I see a mother and her two kids meeting her husband at the corner and walking him home and I mentioned to Ivan that I would love if they met me one day.  And today they did!  It was so much better walking to the house with some company.  It really is the little things.  Since they had already walked Dolce I had some time to play blocks.

I built this big tall castle and then Evan knocked it down.  To the very last piece.

That's all that was left.

Tonight after Evan decided to throw all his food on the floor, I decided to give him an actual bath.  These days he usually showers with Ivan or me so he doesn't get to play in the tub as much.  So, I stuck him in there with some bath toys I had bought him for his bday and he was the happiest little kiddo ever.  He splashed so much there was water all over the place.  It was quite adorable.  I think we should sign him up for swimming soon!

Yesterday was also supposed to be my first day of my half marathon training plan.  It didn't go so well. I brought all my running stuff so I could go during lunch but then I was so busy I didn't get to eat lunch until 3:00pm.  So there was no running.  I brought my stuff today in hopes that I'll have a better chance.  We shall see.  I have to go sometime.  Today is not ideal because I have class so I'll be extra tired tonight.  I'll survive though.

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What little thing made you happy yesterday?

Are you working with the federal shut down?