This was last week's recipe. Despite the hundred-plus recipes I've saved in my Google Reader or bookmarked, and my dozens of cookbooks, I couldn't find a recipe I felt like making. So, I started browsing Tasty Kitchen again, and found this chicken recipe.
30 Minute Lemon Brown Sugar Chicken
from Tasty Kitchen
Ingredients
1 lb. Boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1 c. Flour
2 t. Paprika
1 t. Salt
1 1/2 T. Canola oil
2 whole lemons, juiced
2 T. Dark brown sugar
1 T. Fresh lemon zest
Directions
Preheat oven to 350F
Pound the chicken breasts thin. Set aside.
Combine the flour, paprika, and salt in a cake or pie pan. Drop each chicken breast in the mixture and toss to coat completely.
Heat the oil over medium heat in a large skillet. Drop each breast in the oil and brown on both sides (should only take about 4 minutes). Remove chicken breasts and keep warm on a plate.
Pour the lemon juice in the pan and stir to deglaze. Put chicken breasts in a casserole dish and pour juice on top. Sprinkle with brown sugar and lemon zest.
Bake for 30 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 165F.
The Photo
Still no photos. Note to self: ask Alec to remind me to take photos of new recipes.
The Verdict
I didn't do a very good job with this one. I left the salt out of the flour mixture. Since I was only doing 2 chicken breasts, I only used one lemon. My pan was a touch too hot, so most of it evaporated when it hit the pan. So, I didn't end up with much sauce. I squeezed a little more juice on to the chicken once I put it in the baking pan. I was not exact with my measurements for the brown sugar and the lemon zest. I just sprinkled both of those over the chicken until I thought it looked good. In the end the chicken turned out a little dry, but since the pan was too hot, I think I overcooked it on the browning step.
Overall, though, we thought the flavors were good and I'll probably make this one again.
Wednesday, January 19, 2011
Sunday, January 16, 2011
This Week's Workouts
This week I added running back in to my workout schedule, and started Jeff Galloway's 5K training plan. Last time I started a running program, I used the Couch to 5K program. I thought about doing that again, but then I looked back over my blog posts about that program, I realized that I had one major difficulty with it. It started out with time-based intervals, but then switched to distance-based intervals. Since I'm a pretty slow runner, when the transition came, the distance was quite a bit farther than I had gone during the time intervals. Ultimately, I wasn't successful with the program, and I think that's why.
So, I turned to Jeff Galloway's program. It takes a little longer (15 weeks vs. 9 weeks for C25K), but the increases seem more reasonable. Jeff also advocates a run/walk method, which I used when I trained for Disney 2009 and it worked very well for me. I should finish up at the end of April, and I found a race that sounds good on April 30.
I did all my runs with a 2 minute run/2 minute walk interval. I know when I was finishing up my Disney training, my run segments were twice as long as my walks, but I evidently did not write down exactly what I was doing.
Anyway, here's what I did this week.
Monday
Plan: 10-15 minutes running
Actual: 14:30 minutes, 1.01 miles, flat on the treadmill (plus 5 minute warm up & 5 minute cool down walks)
Tuesday
Plan: cross train
Actual: 1-hour Pilates class (beginner mat)
Wednesday
Plan: 10-15 minutes running
Actual: 14:30 minutes, 1.01 miles, flat on the treadmill (plus 5 minute warm up & 5 minute cool down walks)
Thursday
Plan: cross train
Actual: rest day (I couldn't take my usual mat class because we had a staff meeting. I was going to work out with one of our apprentice instructors instead, but she ended up not being available.)
Friday
Plan: rest day
Actual: 1-hour Belly Dancing workshop
Saturday
Plan: 1 mile run
Actual: cross train, 1.5 mile walk (among other walking)
I did a museum day with Archer & a friend of hers. The 1.5 miles was the walk from the restaurant where we ate lunch to where Archer's friend parked her car after we missed the bus and it was a 30-minute wait for the next one. We weren't walking fast, but at least we were moving. I say it counts.
Sunday
Plan: cross train
Actual: 1 mile run
Since I knew I could do a mile from my runs earlier in the week that I could do a mile fairly easily I wanted to add a little bit of a challenge to the weekend run. So, instead of doing the treadmill flat, after a 5-minute warm up walk, I put it on a random incline program. I set it for 16 minutes, thinking that I'd have to go slower than I did when I was keeping it flat. I was thrilled that I actually did the mile in 14:30, just like earlier in the week! I finished up to 16 minutes with some brisk walking, then actually did 15 minutes of cool down because I wanted to find out which house the guy chose on House Hunters International!
I'm pleased with my results for the week and hope I can keep it up!
So, I turned to Jeff Galloway's program. It takes a little longer (15 weeks vs. 9 weeks for C25K), but the increases seem more reasonable. Jeff also advocates a run/walk method, which I used when I trained for Disney 2009 and it worked very well for me. I should finish up at the end of April, and I found a race that sounds good on April 30.
I did all my runs with a 2 minute run/2 minute walk interval. I know when I was finishing up my Disney training, my run segments were twice as long as my walks, but I evidently did not write down exactly what I was doing.
Anyway, here's what I did this week.
Monday
Plan: 10-15 minutes running
Actual: 14:30 minutes, 1.01 miles, flat on the treadmill (plus 5 minute warm up & 5 minute cool down walks)
Tuesday
Plan: cross train
Actual: 1-hour Pilates class (beginner mat)
Wednesday
Plan: 10-15 minutes running
Actual: 14:30 minutes, 1.01 miles, flat on the treadmill (plus 5 minute warm up & 5 minute cool down walks)
Thursday
Plan: cross train
Actual: rest day (I couldn't take my usual mat class because we had a staff meeting. I was going to work out with one of our apprentice instructors instead, but she ended up not being available.)
Friday
Plan: rest day
Actual: 1-hour Belly Dancing workshop
Saturday
Plan: 1 mile run
Actual: cross train, 1.5 mile walk (among other walking)
I did a museum day with Archer & a friend of hers. The 1.5 miles was the walk from the restaurant where we ate lunch to where Archer's friend parked her car after we missed the bus and it was a 30-minute wait for the next one. We weren't walking fast, but at least we were moving. I say it counts.
Sunday
Plan: cross train
Actual: 1 mile run
Since I knew I could do a mile from my runs earlier in the week that I could do a mile fairly easily I wanted to add a little bit of a challenge to the weekend run. So, instead of doing the treadmill flat, after a 5-minute warm up walk, I put it on a random incline program. I set it for 16 minutes, thinking that I'd have to go slower than I did when I was keeping it flat. I was thrilled that I actually did the mile in 14:30, just like earlier in the week! I finished up to 16 minutes with some brisk walking, then actually did 15 minutes of cool down because I wanted to find out which house the guy chose on House Hunters International!
I'm pleased with my results for the week and hope I can keep it up!
Wednesday, January 12, 2011
Recipe(s) of the Week: New Year's Day Dinner
On New Year's Day, Alec and I had my cousins over for a light supper followed by a visit to the National Zoo for their Zoo Lights exhibit.
True to form, I served dishes that I had never made before.
I have never been one to eat the traditional (at least in the South) New Year's Day meal. I am just not a fan of collard greens or black-eyed peas. The cornbread is the only element of this traditional meal I like.
On New Year's Eve, I was catching up on my blog reading, and I saw a recipe for Black-Eyed Pea dip. It actually sounded good to me, so I decided it would be perfect for New Year's Day.
Zannie's Black-Eyed Pea Dip
from The Pioneer Woman Cooks
Ingredients
1 (14-oz.) can black-eyed peas
1/4 whole onion, chopped fine
1/4 c. sour cream
8 slices jarred jalapenos
1 c. grated sharp cheddar cheese
3 T. salsa
Hot sauce, to taste
Salt & black pepper, to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Drain black-eyed peas and partially mash, leaving some whole.
Add all other ingredients, stirring to combine
Spread into a 1 1/2 quart baking dish & bake for 20-30 minutes until hot & bubbly.
Serve with tortilla chips.
PW notes that if you can find them, you can use canned black-eyed peas with jalapenos and eliminate the sliced jalapenos.
The Photo
I'm not really back into the swing of blogging, so I didn't take a photo.
The Verdict
Everyone really liked this dish. I'll definitely be adding it to future New Year's menus, and probably making it again before that!
Of course, I had some changes, substitutions and mistakes. I couldn't find the black-eyed peas with jalapenos and I did not feel like buying a whole jar of sliced jalapenos just for this recipe. I substituted a 4 oz. can of diced green chilies. I also totally forgot to add the salsa, but no one really missed it. I had some on hand, so it would not have been a big deal to use 3 tablespoons for the recipe. I'd say that if you don't have any on hand and don't have a use for it, it could easily be left out.
My main tip is: don't try to buy canned black eyed peas on New Year's Day! The store was very nearly out!
I also really wanted to use my fancy new slow cooker. I had already used it once earlier in the week just to make sure it worked okay. Ingrid had made white chicken chili over the Christmas holiday, and Alec suggested we have it for this meal. It was too late to call her and I was planning a fairly early-morning grocery run, so I was afraid she wouldn't get an e-mail in time. So, I turned to the Internet to find a recipe. I found this one on Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen site. I joined it a while back, but I have not used it much, except to save recipes featured in the Tasty Kitchen blog. I think this was the first time I'd actually made something I saved.
Crockpot White Chicken Chili
from: Tasty Kitchen
Ingredients
3 whole chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 whole onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 (15 oz.) cans white beans, drained
1 (15 oz.) can pink beans (pinquitos)
2 (4 oz.) cans diced green chilies
2 c. chicken stock
1 whole jalapeno (seeded & minced)
2 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. chipotle chili powder
Salt & pepper, to taste
1/2 c. finely crushed tortilla chips
2 c. shredded pepper jack cheese
Directions
Throw all of the ingredients, except for the cheese and tortilla chips, into your slow cooker.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 4 hours. During the last 30 minutes, stir in the crushed tortilla chips and the shredded cheese and heat until the cheese is melted and the chili has thickened.
The Photo
Same story as above.
The Verdict
I think everyone liked this dish as well. This time I didn't make any mistakes, but I did have some changes and there are also a few things I'd do differently next time.
I didn't bother to cut up the chicken. I just threw the breasts in the cooker. Towards the end of the cook time, when I opened it up to add the cheese, I pulled out the chicken and shredded it up, then threw it back in.
I did my main shopping for this at Trader Joe's, and they didn't have the pink beans. I'd actually never heard of them, so I wasn't sure what my chances were of finding them. So, I grabbed a can of pintos instead. I did drain the pintos along with the white beans. Later, I saw the pink beans in the Mexican section of the regular grocery store, so I'll try those next time.
I'm used to not really stirring the ingredients when I do a slow cooker meal. Without really thinking, I just tossed the spices in. When I opened it up at the end, they were all still just sitting on top. I think that next time I will whisk the spices in with the chicken broth before I pour that in so they will be more evenly distributed.
I don't remember what kind of cheese I used, but it wasn't pepper jack. I might have done Colby jack or maybe just plain jack.
True to form, I served dishes that I had never made before.
I have never been one to eat the traditional (at least in the South) New Year's Day meal. I am just not a fan of collard greens or black-eyed peas. The cornbread is the only element of this traditional meal I like.
On New Year's Eve, I was catching up on my blog reading, and I saw a recipe for Black-Eyed Pea dip. It actually sounded good to me, so I decided it would be perfect for New Year's Day.
Zannie's Black-Eyed Pea Dip
from The Pioneer Woman Cooks
Ingredients
1 (14-oz.) can black-eyed peas
1/4 whole onion, chopped fine
1/4 c. sour cream
8 slices jarred jalapenos
1 c. grated sharp cheddar cheese
3 T. salsa
Hot sauce, to taste
Salt & black pepper, to taste
Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Drain black-eyed peas and partially mash, leaving some whole.
Add all other ingredients, stirring to combine
Spread into a 1 1/2 quart baking dish & bake for 20-30 minutes until hot & bubbly.
Serve with tortilla chips.
PW notes that if you can find them, you can use canned black-eyed peas with jalapenos and eliminate the sliced jalapenos.
The Photo
I'm not really back into the swing of blogging, so I didn't take a photo.
The Verdict
Everyone really liked this dish. I'll definitely be adding it to future New Year's menus, and probably making it again before that!
Of course, I had some changes, substitutions and mistakes. I couldn't find the black-eyed peas with jalapenos and I did not feel like buying a whole jar of sliced jalapenos just for this recipe. I substituted a 4 oz. can of diced green chilies. I also totally forgot to add the salsa, but no one really missed it. I had some on hand, so it would not have been a big deal to use 3 tablespoons for the recipe. I'd say that if you don't have any on hand and don't have a use for it, it could easily be left out.
My main tip is: don't try to buy canned black eyed peas on New Year's Day! The store was very nearly out!
I also really wanted to use my fancy new slow cooker. I had already used it once earlier in the week just to make sure it worked okay. Ingrid had made white chicken chili over the Christmas holiday, and Alec suggested we have it for this meal. It was too late to call her and I was planning a fairly early-morning grocery run, so I was afraid she wouldn't get an e-mail in time. So, I turned to the Internet to find a recipe. I found this one on Pioneer Woman's Tasty Kitchen site. I joined it a while back, but I have not used it much, except to save recipes featured in the Tasty Kitchen blog. I think this was the first time I'd actually made something I saved.
Crockpot White Chicken Chili
from: Tasty Kitchen
Ingredients
3 whole chicken breasts, cut into bite-sized pieces
1 whole onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 (15 oz.) cans white beans, drained
1 (15 oz.) can pink beans (pinquitos)
2 (4 oz.) cans diced green chilies
2 c. chicken stock
1 whole jalapeno (seeded & minced)
2 t. ground cumin
1/2 t. chipotle chili powder
Salt & pepper, to taste
1/2 c. finely crushed tortilla chips
2 c. shredded pepper jack cheese
Directions
Throw all of the ingredients, except for the cheese and tortilla chips, into your slow cooker.
Cook on low for 6-8 hours, or high for 4 hours. During the last 30 minutes, stir in the crushed tortilla chips and the shredded cheese and heat until the cheese is melted and the chili has thickened.
The Photo
Same story as above.
The Verdict
I think everyone liked this dish as well. This time I didn't make any mistakes, but I did have some changes and there are also a few things I'd do differently next time.
I didn't bother to cut up the chicken. I just threw the breasts in the cooker. Towards the end of the cook time, when I opened it up to add the cheese, I pulled out the chicken and shredded it up, then threw it back in.
I did my main shopping for this at Trader Joe's, and they didn't have the pink beans. I'd actually never heard of them, so I wasn't sure what my chances were of finding them. So, I grabbed a can of pintos instead. I did drain the pintos along with the white beans. Later, I saw the pink beans in the Mexican section of the regular grocery store, so I'll try those next time.
I'm used to not really stirring the ingredients when I do a slow cooker meal. Without really thinking, I just tossed the spices in. When I opened it up at the end, they were all still just sitting on top. I think that next time I will whisk the spices in with the chicken broth before I pour that in so they will be more evenly distributed.
I don't remember what kind of cheese I used, but it wasn't pepper jack. I might have done Colby jack or maybe just plain jack.
Monday, January 10, 2011
Back to Blogging
It's been a really, really long time since I've blogged (I can't believe my last post was in June 2009!). Life since April, 2009, has been, well, interesting. I think pretty much everyone who reads this blog knows our story, so I won't get in to it again. Let's just say the stress and uncertainty put a damper on my creative juices. Things have settled down considerably, and I find I miss blogging. So, I figured the new year was a good time to get back to it.
My 2011 New Years resolutions are basically the same as they were back in 2008 when I started the blog. Except that I want to get back to all these things, not start doing them!
Get Back to Blogging
Clearly this is the first step to that. I may not be the world's greatest writer, but I enjoy doing it and the blog gives me a reason to several times a week.
Get Back to Running
After I completed the Disney World Half Marathon in January 2009, I didn't sign up for another race of any kind, and I obviously needed that motivation to keep up with the running. I'm not sure what my immediate next race will be, but in 2012 I hope to complete Disney's Coast to Coast Challenge by finishing both the Disney World Half Marathon in January and the Disneyland Half Marathon in September. In the meantime, I'm back on a basic 5K training plan (which I started tonight and will talk more about later). I'll be looking for a 5K to do at the end of April or beginning of May - the program is 15 weeks. Then, I hope to shoot for a longer race in the Fall, which will put me in a good position to start training for Disney in January. I am generally more fit than I was when I started back in 2008, due to my job managing a Pilates studio, where I get to take classes 2-3 times per week. Several of our clients are runners, and have said that Pilates has helped them improve so I hope the same holds true for me.
Get Back to Creativity in the Kitchen
One or two people have told me they've missed my recipe-of-the-week posts, and I miss serving all those new dishes! I like learning new things, and most of the time it's fun to sort through recipes and cookbooks to find something new to try (though I have to admit that sometimes it's also frustrating, because while I have tons of recipes to choose from, sometimes nothing sounds good). In the end, I feel a sense of accomplishment from doing it and it's a great way to keep Alec and I out of the rut of eating the same meals week after week. Ingrid, Raoul and The World's Greatest Niece (TWGN) gave us a new slow cooker for Christmas so I plan to try a bunch of recipes for that. Also for Christmas, M.K, E. and E.W. (the world's greatest nephew) sent a neat box of spice blends, so those will be a lot of fun to experiment with. I've already tried 3 new recipes this year, including one in the slow cooker and used the spices twice so I'll post about all that soon.
It's well past time for me to be shutting down the computer, so I will close but I promise to be back soon!
My 2011 New Years resolutions are basically the same as they were back in 2008 when I started the blog. Except that I want to get back to all these things, not start doing them!
Get Back to Blogging
Clearly this is the first step to that. I may not be the world's greatest writer, but I enjoy doing it and the blog gives me a reason to several times a week.
Get Back to Running
After I completed the Disney World Half Marathon in January 2009, I didn't sign up for another race of any kind, and I obviously needed that motivation to keep up with the running. I'm not sure what my immediate next race will be, but in 2012 I hope to complete Disney's Coast to Coast Challenge by finishing both the Disney World Half Marathon in January and the Disneyland Half Marathon in September. In the meantime, I'm back on a basic 5K training plan (which I started tonight and will talk more about later). I'll be looking for a 5K to do at the end of April or beginning of May - the program is 15 weeks. Then, I hope to shoot for a longer race in the Fall, which will put me in a good position to start training for Disney in January. I am generally more fit than I was when I started back in 2008, due to my job managing a Pilates studio, where I get to take classes 2-3 times per week. Several of our clients are runners, and have said that Pilates has helped them improve so I hope the same holds true for me.
Get Back to Creativity in the Kitchen
One or two people have told me they've missed my recipe-of-the-week posts, and I miss serving all those new dishes! I like learning new things, and most of the time it's fun to sort through recipes and cookbooks to find something new to try (though I have to admit that sometimes it's also frustrating, because while I have tons of recipes to choose from, sometimes nothing sounds good). In the end, I feel a sense of accomplishment from doing it and it's a great way to keep Alec and I out of the rut of eating the same meals week after week. Ingrid, Raoul and The World's Greatest Niece (TWGN) gave us a new slow cooker for Christmas so I plan to try a bunch of recipes for that. Also for Christmas, M.K, E. and E.W. (the world's greatest nephew) sent a neat box of spice blends, so those will be a lot of fun to experiment with. I've already tried 3 new recipes this year, including one in the slow cooker and used the spices twice so I'll post about all that soon.
It's well past time for me to be shutting down the computer, so I will close but I promise to be back soon!
Sunday, June 28, 2009
This week's workouts
So like I said in the last post, this week I picked back up my running with the goal to (hopefully) do the Marine Corps 10K at the end of October.
With the weather here, I've been waiting as late as possible in the day to go out. I really wish I was a morning person, because the humidity is generally lower then (at least it seems to be when I stumble out to walk River). But, I just can't motivate myself to do a true workout then. So, I have to settle for going out just before sunset, around 8 PM.
Here's what I did this week:
Monday: cross-train - 1 mile walk; 15:17:45; didn't record weather info.
Tuesday: skipped
Wednesday: skipped
Thursday: goal was 15 minutes run/walk - did 1.12 miles in 16:08:56; it was 80 degrees with 55% humidity when I finished. I'm doing 2 minutes running, 2 minutes walking which is why I ended up doing 16 minutes instead of 15. I felt OK during the first 3 sets, but then the run in the 4th set was very difficult and I was feeling quite winded. I definitely slowed down during the last walk. Overall, I have trouble with my breathing. I tend to get a tightness around my diaphragm and I often feel I can't get my breath.
Friday: cross train - 1 mile walk; 15:15:17; 73 degrees with 93% humidity (after a huge downpour about an hour before); I felt pretty good, except for my continuing breathing issues.
Saturday: a rest day according to the training plan, but I did walk nearly 3 miles around downtown DC visiting a bunch of museums with my good friend "Archer". That's not counting the walking we did in the museums. Now, it's not like we were speed walking or anything, but I think it counts for something!
Sunday (today): goal was a 1 mile run; I missed my turn and went a different way; ended up doing 1.18 miles in 16:12:105. It was only 69 degrees, but the humidity was high (I forgot to write it down). This time, I was most winded on the first run.
Since writing down what I'm doing in the blog makes me feel accountable and thus motivates me, here's the plan for the upcoming week:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday: cross train
Tuesday, Thursday: 15-minute run
Saturday: rest day
Sunday: 1 mile
I will have to suck it up on Friday and work out in the morning because we have tentative plans for the afternoon/evening. I might up Sunday's workout to the same distance as whatever I manage Tuesday & Thursday. It seems silly for my "long" run to be shorter than what I do those days.
With the weather here, I've been waiting as late as possible in the day to go out. I really wish I was a morning person, because the humidity is generally lower then (at least it seems to be when I stumble out to walk River). But, I just can't motivate myself to do a true workout then. So, I have to settle for going out just before sunset, around 8 PM.
Here's what I did this week:
Monday: cross-train - 1 mile walk; 15:17:45; didn't record weather info.
Tuesday: skipped
Wednesday: skipped
Thursday: goal was 15 minutes run/walk - did 1.12 miles in 16:08:56; it was 80 degrees with 55% humidity when I finished. I'm doing 2 minutes running, 2 minutes walking which is why I ended up doing 16 minutes instead of 15. I felt OK during the first 3 sets, but then the run in the 4th set was very difficult and I was feeling quite winded. I definitely slowed down during the last walk. Overall, I have trouble with my breathing. I tend to get a tightness around my diaphragm and I often feel I can't get my breath.
Friday: cross train - 1 mile walk; 15:15:17; 73 degrees with 93% humidity (after a huge downpour about an hour before); I felt pretty good, except for my continuing breathing issues.
Saturday: a rest day according to the training plan, but I did walk nearly 3 miles around downtown DC visiting a bunch of museums with my good friend "Archer". That's not counting the walking we did in the museums. Now, it's not like we were speed walking or anything, but I think it counts for something!
Sunday (today): goal was a 1 mile run; I missed my turn and went a different way; ended up doing 1.18 miles in 16:12:105. It was only 69 degrees, but the humidity was high (I forgot to write it down). This time, I was most winded on the first run.
Since writing down what I'm doing in the blog makes me feel accountable and thus motivates me, here's the plan for the upcoming week:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday: cross train
Tuesday, Thursday: 15-minute run
Saturday: rest day
Sunday: 1 mile
I will have to suck it up on Friday and work out in the morning because we have tentative plans for the afternoon/evening. I might up Sunday's workout to the same distance as whatever I manage Tuesday & Thursday. It seems silly for my "long" run to be shorter than what I do those days.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
An Update
Alec and I visited some of my family over the weekend, and my cousin Belle was on my case (but in a nice way!) about not updating the blog. We've just had so much going on, and it's not that I haven't had anything to blog about, but I just haven't had the motivation.
We moved to the Washington, DC area at the end of April (can't believe it will be 2 months on Monday - time flies). As I think most everyone who reads this knows, Alec lost his job, so we've been staying with his folks while he looks for one. The new news is that now I'm job hunting to, as my contract was cut from full-time to as-needed (which has consisted of about 8 hours in the last week - not really enough to live on, even when living with family!). When it rains it pours, that's for sure.
We have done some fun stuff since we've been here, though, so I'll have some posts about that. No new recipes lately, though. I just haven't been feeling creative in the kitchen.
This week, my goal was to get back on the running bandwagon. I want to do the Marine Corps 10K in October, and though I haven't signed up, I do have a training plan laid out. I did my "assignment" for Monday (a 1-mile walk), then skipped Tuesday and Wednesday. I am making myself go out tonight, though, for a 15-minute workout. I'm doing Jeff Galloway's run/walk method, which I did informally for the Disney 1/2 marathon, but this time I'm actually following one of his training plans (or trying to anyway). Since I haven't done much running since Disney, I took his 10-K plan, which starts with 2 mile "long" runs and added on the first 5 weeks of his 5-K plan, to build up to the 2 miles. So, tonight will be a 10-15 minute run, with 2-minutes of walking/2 minutes of jogging. That should actually have me covering a little more than a mile, as I was able to walk my mile on Monday in a little over 15 minutes. Fortunately, my in-laws' neighborhood is walker/runner friendly. I have also been getting in at least a mile a day with River, but those are slow walks as she must stop to sniff every few feet. Still, we go about a half-mile in the morning and in the evening.
We moved to the Washington, DC area at the end of April (can't believe it will be 2 months on Monday - time flies). As I think most everyone who reads this knows, Alec lost his job, so we've been staying with his folks while he looks for one. The new news is that now I'm job hunting to, as my contract was cut from full-time to as-needed (which has consisted of about 8 hours in the last week - not really enough to live on, even when living with family!). When it rains it pours, that's for sure.
We have done some fun stuff since we've been here, though, so I'll have some posts about that. No new recipes lately, though. I just haven't been feeling creative in the kitchen.
This week, my goal was to get back on the running bandwagon. I want to do the Marine Corps 10K in October, and though I haven't signed up, I do have a training plan laid out. I did my "assignment" for Monday (a 1-mile walk), then skipped Tuesday and Wednesday. I am making myself go out tonight, though, for a 15-minute workout. I'm doing Jeff Galloway's run/walk method, which I did informally for the Disney 1/2 marathon, but this time I'm actually following one of his training plans (or trying to anyway). Since I haven't done much running since Disney, I took his 10-K plan, which starts with 2 mile "long" runs and added on the first 5 weeks of his 5-K plan, to build up to the 2 miles. So, tonight will be a 10-15 minute run, with 2-minutes of walking/2 minutes of jogging. That should actually have me covering a little more than a mile, as I was able to walk my mile on Monday in a little over 15 minutes. Fortunately, my in-laws' neighborhood is walker/runner friendly. I have also been getting in at least a mile a day with River, but those are slow walks as she must stop to sniff every few feet. Still, we go about a half-mile in the morning and in the evening.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
How Yesterday Turned Out
Yesterday ended on a much better note than it started. To continue the story:
2:34 pm: The Orkin man asks to unplug the extension cord he had to run in order to work in the back yard, because the outlet back there didn't work. I figure this means they must be done with the drilling. I am very happy.
2:35 pm: I resume watching High Noon. I enjoyed this movie, too. As with Midnight Bayou its been too long since I read the book to really compare them, but it was a good movie.
3:10 pm: They start drilling again!!!!!!
3:20 pm: Alec reminds me via IM that his photographer picked him up, so he is at work without a car and needs me to come get him.
3:36 pm: I load River up in the car and head out to get Alec
When we got home, the Orkin man was still there. He told us he was done in our yard, though so we could lock our gate.
Later, we headed out for dinner (we opted to actually eat at the sushi place rather than get take out). The place we like is very small, only 3 tables and about 7 seats at the sushi bar. They're all full when we get there, but a few people are finishing up. We decided to run over to Blockbuster to pick up a movie & come back.
At Blockbuster, they have Australia, which was my second choice for my birthday movie, so we got that. We also got Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler. We trade in our mailed movie so we get one free rental.
Back at the sushi restaurant, we have an awesome meal. Then, we went to Maggie Moos to get ice cream. After that, we headed home to relax and watch our movies. Australia was a great movie, but quite a bit more sad & emotional than I expected. So, even though it was almost 3 hours long, and it was close to midnight when we finished it, we decided to watch Bedtime Stories to cheer ourselves up. This was a very cute movie. Thus, my day ended at 2 am, and I was happy but tired!
2:34 pm: The Orkin man asks to unplug the extension cord he had to run in order to work in the back yard, because the outlet back there didn't work. I figure this means they must be done with the drilling. I am very happy.
2:35 pm: I resume watching High Noon. I enjoyed this movie, too. As with Midnight Bayou its been too long since I read the book to really compare them, but it was a good movie.
3:10 pm: They start drilling again!!!!!!
3:20 pm: Alec reminds me via IM that his photographer picked him up, so he is at work without a car and needs me to come get him.
3:36 pm: I load River up in the car and head out to get Alec
When we got home, the Orkin man was still there. He told us he was done in our yard, though so we could lock our gate.
Later, we headed out for dinner (we opted to actually eat at the sushi place rather than get take out). The place we like is very small, only 3 tables and about 7 seats at the sushi bar. They're all full when we get there, but a few people are finishing up. We decided to run over to Blockbuster to pick up a movie & come back.
At Blockbuster, they have Australia, which was my second choice for my birthday movie, so we got that. We also got Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler. We trade in our mailed movie so we get one free rental.
Back at the sushi restaurant, we have an awesome meal. Then, we went to Maggie Moos to get ice cream. After that, we headed home to relax and watch our movies. Australia was a great movie, but quite a bit more sad & emotional than I expected. So, even though it was almost 3 hours long, and it was close to midnight when we finished it, we decided to watch Bedtime Stories to cheer ourselves up. This was a very cute movie. Thus, my day ended at 2 am, and I was happy but tired!
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