Easter Weekend

I'm feeling mildly uncreative today (hence the lackluster post title) but I have a ton of pictures to share with you all so bear with me!

On Friday evening the kids and I headed down to Moab, UT for a Easter getaway/post semester celebration. The weather forecast looked iffy but we sucked it up and hoped for the best. Saturday turned out to be pretty nice. The kids and I took advantage of National Park Week's free admission and hiked out to delicate arch in Arches National Park. It was amazing, I honestly wasn't expecting it to be so spectacular! It sprinkled on and off during our entire 3 mile hike but it felt great. I was so proud of the kids, they both did great hiking!

Yup, those lil specks are the kiddos :)

I only wore Ava in the ergo for about half of the hike!

enjoying the view together :)

 After our visit in Arches, we decided to take advantage of National Park Week and head over to Canyonlands National Park. It was pretty amazing too. I seriously took hundreds of pictures. I'll spare you all and NOT share them (unless you really want me too!), lol.

Got back to the campsite where it was miraculously not raining! Got the tent set up and the fire made. The kids roasted turkey dogs and snacked on cherry tomatoes while the salmon and veggies were cooking on the grill.

who needs a man? not me!

Sunday morning the kiddos and I were supposed to meet up for a hike with Tough Chik (if you're not following her, you should be!) Shannon and her husband in Arches. However, the weather didn't cooperate so we settled for meeting for a late breakfast/snack/coffee that did not go quite as we planned (after waiting 20 minutes to get seated, the waiter put our order in behind a dozen tables that came in AFTER us). But luckily I was in excellent company, which made our extra long dining out experience, dare I say enjoyable, lol :) I already can't wait for our next visit! After our meal, Shannon and her hubs hit the trails with their bikes to enjoy beautiful Moab and the kiddos and I took a drive to the southern end of Canyonlands to the Needles district. After we got back into town we decided to ditch the tent after our awful night of rain and get a room that night. Best decision ever!

Ava and her new BFF, the original Tough Chik herself, Shannon!

Monday morning I took some advice from one of my Tweeps and headed out to hike to Morning Glory Arch with the kids. It was about a 5-6 mile round trip hike and the kids were total troopers! It was seriously one of the most beautiful hikes I've ever been on. The trail followed along a creek and it was lush and the green and we were surrounded by amazing red rock everywhere.

Gorgeous!

My tough lil Guy helping his sister :)

Shortly after we got back from our hike the rain started again. We packed up and hit the road, it rained pretty much the entire trip back home.

Fun...

The aftermath of Moab!

Ouch!

Did you do anything fun and non sugar related for Easter? Did you get out and take advantage of free admission for National Park Week last week? Hope you all had an excellent weekend and I can't wait to hear your stories :)



Earth Day

Today is Earth Day. I've always believed that everyday is Earth Day though. I try to make a conscience effort year round to make environmentally friendly choices and do my part to take care of our planet. Having said that, every year on Earth Day I still make an effort to above and beyond. Let's all do something (no matter how little it may seem) to make a our planet a cleaner, better place. I want my kids and (future) grandkids to be able to continue to enjoy everything our amazing Earth has to offer for many generations to come.

And on that note, I'm heading out to enjoy some nature with the kiddos! Despite Moab being overrun with off-roading rednecks this weekend, I'm sure we'll still have a spectacular time. I'm also so excited to meet up with Shannon from Tough Chik while there as well. We're already planning an AM hike on Sunday. Keep your fingers crossed the weather isn't too bad for us!!

Do you do anything special to "celebrate" Earth Day? What are you doing to do your part?

"Only when the last tree has died and the last river been poisoned and the last fish been caught will we realise we cannot eat money." ~ Cree Indian Proverb

Triple - T

How ironic that it's Three Things Thursday and I had 3 things to share with you all today!

1 - School's Out for Summer (well, kinda...)! Finals are done! This semester is officially over for me. I am so mentally exhausted it's not even funny. Now I get a wonderful week and a half off until Summer semester starts. I'm going to enjoy every minute of it!!!

2 - Moab! My plans are confirmed. It's been up the air so much with what was going on and plans changed a gazillion times. My climbing plans are cancelled and the kiddos are coming with so I'm turning it into a fun family getaway. We're just taking the tent and dirt bagging it :) I'm taking the crash pad with in case we decide to do some bouldering, but I think we're just going to be doing alot of hiking and relaxing. I'm also thinking of doing a rugged Easter egg hunt... That part is still up in the air though.

3 - My new shoes! I ran in them today and they feel amazing! I feel so deprived. These are my first pair of actual running shoes!! Unfortunately the running gods hate me and decided to bring heavy winds and hail down on me so I'm going to do some yoga instead and pack for the weekend. I do see a nice, long run to really test out my new shoes next week though :)

Mizuno Wishes and Foodie Dreams :)

Since I had a fabulously delicious day with food, I decided to be nice and share some of it with you all!

Breakfast wasn't homemade by me, but across the street from my house is this amazing bakery. They have the best homemade bran cranberry muffins!! Seriously delicious stuff :) I never thought I'd be describing a BRAN muffin as delicious, but hey... If the shoe fits, wear it (Speaking of shoes... Just wait til the end of the post!).

Ok... So I didn't eat Larvets. But my kids did, lol. And they loved it!! My 5 yr old is obsessed with worms, and one of his favorite shows on TV is Bizarre Foods with Andrew Zimmern. When I seen these I couldn't pass them up. Part of me thought it would be a learning lesson for him (he'd taste how gross they were and lose part of his worm obsession), and it completely backfired! He now says "they're protein!"

Lunch was a wonderful sandwich made from leftover crab cakes (will add recipe soon!). Toasted a WW sandwich thin, topped my crab cake with a thin slice of cheese (trust me, for a girl from WI that's good!!), a couple slices of tomato, a huge handful of spinach and a little tiny bit of some homemade cocktail sauce. 

By the time dinner rolled I was too tired to throw together a culinary masterpiece (finals are almost done!!!!!). I had gotten a new Freschetta Simply Inspired pizza the other day at the grocery and just threw that in the oven. The classic bruschetta pizza is amazing!! I opted for the "ignorance is bliss" train of thought and completely overlooked the nutrition information (it is in the link if you are so inclined to check it out!).

And on a totally unrelated (to food) note! I got my new shoes in the mail today!!! I'm thrilled to say the least. I've been running in my old Nike cross training shoes for the longest time (bad, bad, bad I know...). Something has always been more important when the extra money was around. I finally just went for it. I tried my Mizuno's on right away and they fit perfectly. I'm hoping to get out for a run tomorrow to really try them out!!

Have you gotten any wonderful surprises in the mail this week?? Have you made any delicious meals you want to share with us??

Sunday Sunday

So this is week has been chaotic to say the least. Most college students can commiserate I suppose, this week and next is dreaded finals week for me. I've got three done and 1 left - my Bio-Organic Chemistry final. I'm not sure why this class has been so difficult, this is normally not a hard class for me. I'll just be happy when I'm done next week and can have a short break. Hopefully the Utah weather will cooperate!!

This last week has been crazy weather-wise too. It forced me to get a bit creative with the kiddos.

Yes, I am a Master Fort Builder!

I built them this amazing (if I do say so myself...) fort when our fore casted warm, sunny day turned against us. We improvised and had an impromptu movie day. Well they did, I spent the day studying for my Psych final. I would've much rather been snuggling and watching Tangled!

And on the topic of workouts... This week hasn't been pretty, not at all. I had my wonderful triple workout (yoga, weights, spinning) on Tuesday and then a nice, easy 2 mile run on Wednesday. After that my days and nights were consumed with homework. I should take this time to mention that I'm not the kind of person who can skip a week of workouts and be none worse the wear. If I'm not on the ball diet and exercise-wise, I can seriously gain 3 lbs a week, easily. My body hates me being inactive. I'm just hoping I can finish my last final and get my schedule 1re-organized and get back to my regular workouts.

And lastly... Yet another Virtual Race! I love these things :) It really keeps me motivated to run, and somehow makes the thought of an actual, real-life race less intimidating. Barefoot Neil Z (at because all of the cool kids are doing it) is hosting the 1st Annual I can't Afford the Actual Race Virtual Marathon. You can either run/walk the complete 26.2 miles over the 2 week time frame (April 17-May 1) or all at once.

Are you signed up for it? Are you running it over the 2 weeks or all at once?

Jelly Bean Virtual Race :)

I just stumbled upon  Run with Jess's blog and discovered another virtual race. The Jelly Bean (how appropriate for Easter!) Virtual Race. You have a choice of either a 5K or 10K on whichever day you choose that week (April 18-24). She has some great sponsors (Ryder's, Road ID, Bondi Band, and GU just to name a few!) lined up as well!

I'm all signed up for the 5K (keeping my fingers crossed it goes better than the Cupcake Marathon did!)!  Have you signed up for it yet?

It's a new day!!

So after being in agonizing pain for 2 entire days with a bum hip, I woke (semi) pain free this morning!!! While I'm so relieved, it's also so irritating. The pain comes and goes as it pleases without any rhyme or reason to it. I probably should just see a Dr about it, but my inner hippie is telling me to suck it up, it's not like it hurts all the time. We'll see... Maybe I'll get lucky and go another 6 months or so without any pain. *fingers crossed*

To "celebrate" feeling better today I treated myself to a triple workout. Nothing too hardcore (at all, lol), didn't want to re-injure anything! Did about 20-30 minutes of weights, finding my 1 rep max for the final evaluation for my strength training class at school. Found out my tricep extension and leg press didn't improve at all!!! Seriously. Frustrating. But anyways... Followed that up with 20 minutes of spinning, 7.2 miles, nice little cardio burst. Then the highlight of my day... My first Bikram Yoga class in about 4 weeks!!! I swear I'll never go that long without it again, it's so not worth it.

So my plans for the week involve buckling down and finishing up everything for this semester. Once this semester is done, I'm hoping to get down to Moab over Easter to do some climbing, I'd love to do the Ancient Art route of Fischer Towers! We shall see though.

Yup, that squiggly tower in the middle :)

I'm also hoping to meet up with Shannon from Tough Chik if I go to Moab.  She will be there breaking in her new bike during the same time as I will. How much fun would that be?!?!

Pain

This last month has been all about pain for me. Both physical and emotional. Dealing with the physical pain from a minor ankle strain and the ensuing emotional pain from not running... The emotional pain from all the crap going on in my life right now and the ensuing physical pain from me not handling my stress appropriately... And now last night, for the first time in months, the intermittent hip pain I've been dealing with for about 2 years reared it's ugly head. I've spent the entire night on the couch tossing and turning, downing anti-inflammatory meds like they're candy, and alternating heat and ice all with no relief.

I have come to the conclusion that it's my bodies way of punishing me for not going to yoga. The last month my school schedule has gotten crazy and I haven't made it to a yoga class for probably 4 weeks. I've decided I'm dragging my crippled self to yoga no matter what today. Wish me luck!

And on a positive (pain-free) note... I met Beth Rodden this weekend at the 4th annual Ogden Climbing Festival!! For those of you that aren't familiar she is a professional climber. Her climbing resume is seriously impressive and listening to her story was incredibly inspiring! I'm still kicking myself for not remembering my camera, as it would've been a great memory to have documented photographically.

Got an autograph though!!

This last week my blog feed has started to fill up with mentions of Boston as the Boston Marathon is coming up in 7 days. Good luck to all my blog friends racing it next Monday!! Hope everyone has an excellent week.

On a Serious Note...

I'd like to take some time to let you all know (in case you weren't aware) about a fellow Blogger that's doing something absolutely fantastic. On May 6th EMZ will be running for 24 hrs on a treadmill. No, she's not crazy. She's doing it to raise money and awareness for the Sojourner Center and Domestic Violence. This is a cause that is very important to me. She has set up a special blog just for her 24 hr marathon so please check it out and follow, show your support and donate if you can. Any amount can and will help.

And on that same note, check out her 5 lb Gummy Bear Giveaway! With a donation of any amount you can get 5 extra entries to win that yummy gob of goodness :) What are you waiting for?!?!



Five Things Friday

Since my life has been pretty event less of late, I haven't had too many interesting things to blog about.   I figured I'd hop on board the Five Things Friday blog train today and share some of my favorite things with you all.

1. Tough Chik ~ I love these T-shirts for myself, but I'm not writing about that today.  Recently Tough Chik starting making shirts for our Tough "little" chiks :)  My 3 yr old is in LOOOOVE with her new shirt!  It came in the mail yesterday and she HAD to wear it right away, was more than happy to pose for pictures all afternoon in it too.  And this morning, she grabbed her dirty shirt out of the hamper in the laundry room to wear today... She was heart broken when I told her I had to wash it before she could wear it again. May have to buy her a second one, lol...

She's making Muscles

Me & My Lil Tough Chik

2. Cakewalk Vegan Bakery in Salt Lake City, UT ~ Best. Cupcakes. EVER. Hands down. I am officially ruined for all other cupcakes.  I unfortunately have no pictures of these magnificent confections; because they taste so good, they don't last long enough for pictures to be taken.  I've started a little tradition of treating myself to a peanut butter massacre cupcake after a hard day of rock climbing in SLC.  Last week I started off the climbing season with some fun, easy Trad Climbing in Little Cottonwood Canyon.  After the sun went behind the clouds and our sunny, warm weather turned on us, Cakewalk was our ray of sunshine!!  My son had a confetti cupcake and after he demolished it in less than a minute, he proclaimed "That was the best cupcake, ever! Really Mom, The BEST!".

3. Nalgene ~ I love my Nalgene! I've had the same one for the longest time. I recently just won another one thru Nalgene on Twitter on World Water Day for my pledge to conserve water.  When I went on the website to get my new one I noticed the pretty ones in their clearance section! I ordered 2 more bottles and an easy sipper. A girl can never have too many Nalgene's right???

My original (lonely, beat up) Nalgene

My new Nalgene arsenal...

4. Seven Daughters Wine ~ This has got to be my favorite wine ever. I'm not a fan of red wine, but even their red wine blend is delicious! 

5. Ok, I guess I'll share a not-so-favorite thing too... It's April Fool's Day and I have not played one prank :(  When did I grow up??? It's a sad, sad day... 

What are some of your favorite things?  Did you play any pranks today for April Fool's?