So many things to tell you and the worst run ever

This may be a long post because I have so many things to update you on.  A lot has happened since we last "chatted" and since we are practically best friends I feel like I need to give you the full update.  Hold on to your seats people, it's gonna be a long ride.  But don't get too excited because I haven nothing of real importance to tell you.

First, what is this update with out a mention of Halloween?  I know I am late on this and should have posted on Friday with the rest of the blogger world, but I was swamped at work and by the time I finished all I wanted was to rest my eyes from the computer screen.  However, Evan was the cutest monster ever.  Don't you agree?  My niece was an adorable Angelina Ballerina and I went as myself, so don't make any comments about what my costume might have been.

Instagram: mapleandmud

I bought Evan's costume second hand and mainly because it looked nice and warm.  Figures it was practically 60 degrees that night, but he didn't seem to be too hot.  And yes, we had to go trick-or-treating with his Easter basket because I dropped the ball on a Halloween basket.  I also didn't have a Halloween shirt for him to wear that day either.  I am trying to keep on top of things but I obviously wasn't on top of everything.  We only got candy from a few houses because I didn't want piles of it waiting to be eaten by me.  So,  I had pretty much eaten all the candy by Friday...maybe I should have let him go to a few more houses!

This weekend was a blur of many things.  Saturday started out nice and slow because it was the first weekend with no First Tee!  No getting up at 6am to get ready for golf!  I wish I could say I was productive and did a ton of other things but no, Evan and I slept in.  We walked the dog and had some breakfast and took the morning slow.  Then when Ivan came home I went to take a shower...and read my Runner's World magazine for the first hour (no worries, the water wasn't running).  Ivan caught me though and he came to see why my shower was taking two hours!  Evan and I decided to do a little shopping and banking so the two of us headed out (Evan refused to nap so I gave up after 30 mins).  After the bank we went to my favorite baby consignment store.  I bought Evan the cutest clothes ever.  Seriously, so adorable.  I also got him some puzzles and a new sippy cup.  I then went next door to the upscale dog store for some glucosamine pills for Dolce.  He has a limp that won't go away and I think it is a bit or arthritis.  I had really wanted to buy myself a new pair of pants, but after shopping for toddler and doggie I decided to call it quits.

On the way home Evan fell asleep and when we got home Ivan was sleeping.  I put Evan in his crib and thought I'd make my favorite cookies, great pumpkin cookies, since everyone else was napping.  I have wanted to make these for a while but never found the time.  I put the flour and oats in the bowl and then realized I needed a cup of brown sugar and I only had a few tablespoons. So off to the store I went...all by myself.  Yay - party at the Giant.  When I got home Evan was awake though...so no cookies were made...until that night when he went to bed.  I think I started around 10pm - but the time was changing that night so I figured I could stay up extra late.  And it was worth it.  I love these cookies!!

My instagram: mapleandmud

Sunday was an even more productive and pumpkin day!!!

First, we came off daylight savings time, which is my favorite thing to do.  An extra hour in the day! My dream come true!  I thought I'd get an early run in since Evan would be up early, but I was mistaken.  Evan slept until 8:15am!  I got bored and actually folded and put away our large stack of clean clothes.  After Evan woke up, we headed out for a run.  The worst ever.  It was sunny and when I checked the weather I thought it said 55 degrees.  NO WAY!  I think that was the high, it was more like 46 degrees.  I bundled Evan up but I was wearing shorts and a short sleeved t-shirt.

I can tell you, it was too cold for this outfit.  The second bad thing about my run?  It was WINDY.  So windy!  So I was extra cold.  Plus, the route I went on was kinda hilly and pushing the BOB through the wind, up hills, was ridiculously unfun.  At one point the wind was blowing the stroller sideways and I was having to use all my arm muscle (which, honestly, isn't much)  to keep the stroller on the path.  Then Evan's blanket blew away and I had to run and get it.  On a few of the hills where the wind was blowing directly into my face I felt like I was running in place.  It was one tough run.  It was also the longest run I've done with BOB - 5.5 miles.  I finished the run without walking though and feeling returned to my legs and arms eventually.  And the biggest accomplishment?  Evan didn't cry at all!!!  Usually he starts crying at about the 4 mile mark and I can stretch out another half mile or so, but he was content pointing to every tree for the entire run (and eating a smoothie I made him for the road).  Let's hope this run wasn't a preview of what my winter training runs are going to be!

After I got home, I hopped in the shower and off to church we went.  I bought Evan the cutest church outfit at the consignment store the day before and I was so excited to put him in it.

Sorry for the crappy iPad photo, but he wouldn't stand long enough and at a good enough angle, so this was all I got.  I thought it he looked pretty dapper.  After church we headed to brunch with some friends and then finally headed home.  Evan went down for a nap and I started to do some major cooking.  I made pollo guisado (a Honduran dish) for Ivan and then was going to make pumpkin muffins and spinach and quinoa patties for Evan...however, when I looked in the fridge there was only one egg left and I needed five.  So, quick change of plans.  I ended up making pumpkin pancakes and pumpkin soup for Evan.  I had found some canned pumpkin with BPA-free liners and bought a bunch, so I just happened to have all the ingredients for those two dishes.  I guess I was on a pumpkin roll or something - cookies, soup, and pancakes!  I then decided I had enough energy to organize all of Evan's clothes and pull the clothes that don't fit him anymore and put the larger and more wintery clothes in his dresser.  And then I actually stuffed his diapers!

But with all that cooking and organizing - I didn't do my two Chemistry assignments and I didn't clean the bathrooms....some things never change.

And this morning I woke up refreshed from the extra hour of sleep (don't worry, my body will adjust in a day and it won't feel so exciting anymore)!

Happy Monday!!!!

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!

FIve Question Friday

Another Friday.  Unbelievable.  Where did all the time go?  I feel like it was just Monday yesterday.  Evan is going to be a teenager before I know it (and let's not think about how old I'm gonna be)!

I do have to say that I'm pretty exhausted here.  Last night was not a good sleep night, for Evan or me.  Let me first say that Yerba Mate is a stimulant.  I was not aware of this.  Innocent ol' me was doing a bit of grocery shopping and was dying of thirst.  I picked up a drink in the organic tea section and all I paid attention to was the part that said "pear infusion" or something.  So, I opened it up and chugged it down (don't worry, I paid for it).  Then I looked closer at the bottle and noticed it said Yerba Mate.  Since I'm nursing I thought maybe I should make sure that it's safe for nursing mothers, so I looked to see if it mentioned anything.  And that's when I noticed it talked about being a stimulant, like caffeine.  Oh no - bad news for me.  I haven't had a "stimulant" in forever, so I had a feeling sleep would elude me.  And it did.

Evan slept the first half of the night, but didn't sleep so well the second half.  Part of the problem is that time really flies when you're sleeping.  I felt like I had just gone to sleep and then heard Evan crying and tried to get him to fall back alseep.  Until hubs informed me that it was already 2am.  Baby Evan had slept from 8:30pm - 2:00am.  Not bad!  After that it went down hill, and it didn't help that I went to be so late.  Oh well - a little lost sleep won't harm me too much.

And now, onto Five Question Friday from My Little Life.  I haven't participated for a while so I'm excited to join up this week.

1. Who wakes up in the morning with the kids, you or the hubby?
   Currently, hubs wakes up first because he has to be to work at 6:30am and I don't have to be anywhere.  However, when I go back to work we'll both get up at the same time.  I'll get up to feed Evan or pump and he'll get up to walk Dolce.
2. Do you watch the World Series even if your team isn't in it?
   No.  I definitely don't.  I would watch part of it if the Orioles were playing, maybe.  But maybe not.  I love going to baseball games but I don't really like watching it as much on TV.  Maybe because the best thing about baseball games is the food - hot dogs, nachos, funnel cake, etc.  I like watching the Ravens play though.
3. What is the best compliment you have received?
   Ya know, I don't really know.  When I was pregnant the best compliment was this lactation consultant who said I had great ab structure.  I loved that compliment, even if it wasn't true.  I like unexpected compliments the best - or compliments about my work or my attitude (like being happy or supportive or a good friend, etc.).  Whatever the compliment, I always say thank you.  In high school my math teacher said that when people give you a compliment you should always say thank you, because whether you believe the compliment or not, it is like a gift.  I remember that to this day and no matter what, I always say thank you.
4. Do/Did you dress up to take your kids trick-or-treating?
   This is my son's first Halloween, so I have never taken him trick-or-treating.  I'm not really going to this year either.  He will only be two months and doesn't need a bag of candy (and neither do Dad and I).  We'll put him in a cute pajama outfit and take him out with his cousins (if it's not too cold), but that's about it.  And no, I won't be dressing up.
5. Do you have a favorite Bible verse?  What is it and why?
   Yes, I have a few favorite Bible verses.  I will share my two favorite.
   
   "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." Jeremiah 29: 11
   
   "Trust in the LORD with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."  Proverbs 3: 5-6
   
   Both of those verses really resonate with me.  When things don't work out the way I was planning or life takes a turn for the worse, these verses make me feel better and less alone.  

So there we go - the five questions and my five answers.

What about you?  What are your Halloween plans?  Favorite Bible verses?