Workouts

Sun
Rest

Mon
Run 5 mi (on Dreadmill)

Tues
Row 5K (ugh, I had to take a lot of breaks & it wasn't my favorite workout)
Back squats 5-5-5-5-5
(#105-105-115-115-120)

Wed
Run 1 mi wu, 4X800M, 1 mi cd
25 min of yoga DVD w/Steve

Cake taste testing? Why yes, I'd love to

My dear mom offered to make our wedding cake - we gladly accepted.  Not only will it save money (yeesh, it is RIDICULOUS how much places charge when "wedding" is in the description), but it will be so much more memorable knowing she made it.  Needless to say, my dad, Steve & I have been more than willing taste tasters. My mom has always been an excellent baker - she always made me the coolest birthday cakes growing up (including a 3-D doll cake).  She's in the process of practicing her recipes, as she wants to make sure it will be the.best.wedding.cake.  I have no doubts, but I understand the perfectionist attitude.  We've tried a few flavors, both of cake, filling, & frosting; as of now, we've narrowed it down but plan more taste-testing sessions.

This is a picture of our first taste-testing, when my parents visited us on their way to MT.  Wine, cake, frosting...I was one happy girl.  Our table was full & before long, so were our stomachs!  :)

Workouts

Fri
1 hr. riding recumbent bike

Sat
4 mi snowy run w/Steve

Snowshoe Running

Last year, I became interested in the idea of snowshoe running.  So often during the winter, Steve & I get stuck on the "Dreadmill" at the gym & our running motivation takes a serious dive.  I had done some reading on snowshoe running, a great way to enjoy "running" outside while there's snow on the ground.  After doing research, I purchased a pair of Redfeather women's snowshoes at the end of the season (thus allowing for a better price).  Snowshoes can range anywhere from $75-$250+ & don't often go on sale, but if you do enough digging, you can usually find something that will fit your needs for a good price.  I wasn't planning on becoming the next snowshoe racer, so I wanted to stick with a snowshoe that was smaller, lightweight, but not out of my price range.  As for shoes, I found another great deal on Gore-Tex Adidas trail shoes ($89 through Road Runner Sports); I bought a half-size up to make room for wool socks.  I went with trail running shoes because hiking shoes are too cumbersome for running.  To prevent snow buildup in my shoes, I bought a pair of gaiters similar to these (although mine were $25 & waterproof - essential for snow).  For clothing, I wore running tights with snowpants over top & several layers on top.  The snowpants are bulkier than what I'd like, but they're necessary because you'll kick snow up on  your rear & running tights will be soaked.  In the future, I'll probably look for a light pair of waterproof pants - rain pants might work well.  On top, I layered several wicking tops (all from my workout collection) - sports bra, short sleeve shirt, long sleeve shirt, & Capilene base layer.  The first time I wore my down jacket, but quickly had to stuff it in my backpack because it was too warm.  I always wear mittens & a hat - neck gaiter if it's cold enough.  Because I'm in the mountains in the middle of winter, I carry a backpack filled with water, food, & safety equipment (first aid, matches, knife, etc).  The weight of the backpack is an added bonus - it adds to the workout!

I've been up on the mountain (not enough snow in town) a few times & I fell.in.love. with snowshoe running.  But let me warn you, it's more like hiking & less like running.  Don't expect to strap on snowshoes & go for a 30 minute run.  No way Jose.  The area I've frequented is a dog-friendly cross country ski & snowshoe area. Snow is not usually packed down, making the snowshoeing that much more difficult & more of a workout.  If going uphill, I don't run - I'm breathing hard enough.  When flat or downhill, I run for 15-30 sec, walk for a few minutes, run 15-30 sec, walk...  Rinse & repeat.  I built myself up to running for 1 min.  Whoa buddy.  Of course, if utilizing an area with packed snow, you'd probably be able to run for longer periods of time.  The deep snow helps strengthen ankles too, especially wearing running shoes instead of ankle high hiking boots.

I try to take the dogs because it's an excellent way to tire them out.  A few pictures from one of our recent adventures...

See the dogs running behind me?  Brewer on the left, being chased by Gidget on the right.  :)

Brewer eating snow

How many dogs can you see in the trees??

Dogs running chest deep through "Mutt Meadows"

Gidget gets hot & buries in the snow

Workouts

Mon
4 mi trail run w/Steve & the pups
4X 21 dips, 50 squats

Tues
3.25 mi run
"20's"
3X 20 jumping pullups, 20 walking lunges w/20#, 20 thrusters w/20#

Wed
35 min run w/Steve

Thurs
~20-30 min snowshoeing
4X 25 15# kettlebell swings, 25 stair jumps, 25 crunches

Workouts

I've been working out, just not blogging about it...

Wed
Snowshoeing
Cycling class

Thurs
Strictly Strength class

Fri
4X Run 400M, 20 30# db swings, 10 GH s/ups
Cycling class

Sat
~5 mi run w/Steve

Sun
Rest

Jump, Brewer, Jump!

Some of you may have had the privilege of seeing Brewer do his "jumps."  This dog can get some height.  It's usually when he's incredibly excited - if you're getting home or (& almost always) when he's hungry & you bring the food out.  We caught a few good pictures last night...  Enjoy.  :)

Ready...set...

GO!

Getting excited...

WOO HOO!  (We like this picture the best)

PS - Please ignore the dirt spots that are apparently on my camera lens.  I think it got water droplets when we were snowshoeing & I haven't wiped them off.

Baking FAIL

Steve's birthday is on Monday & I have a work meeting/Christmas party at the Y the same night.  I signed up to bring a dessert & figured it would give me an excuse to bake something for Steve's birthday.  I came across this recipe for rainbow cupcakes.  FUN!  How cute do they look?  The recipe looked like something I could handle, especially considering my typically unskillful kitchen skills.  I figured I was taking them to a work party, so even if they didn't turn out as pretty as shown on the original website, as long as they tasted ok, they would be eaten.  Well, the following pictures will tell the story...

So colorful!  The batter separated & dosed with food coloring.

Continuing with the prettiness into the oven...

Epic FAIL.  My cupcakes look like the remnants of rainbow vomit.  I'll cover them up with frosting - I'm going to attempt this fun colorful idea for frosting - & no one will notice the difference (& hopefully they'll enjoy all the fun colors in the cupcake).  Don't get me wrong, they taste great.

With my perfectionist personality, I'm not going to let this fall by the wayside.  I want to try it again until I achieve the perfect rainbow cupcake.  I think one problem was pouring the different color batter in the cupcake tin; instead of pouring each color into the center of the previous color, I should try to cover the previous color entirely with the next color (not spreading it, as it says not to).  Other than that, I'm not sure what I did wrong.  Ah well, I'll keep trying.  Until then, I'll bake something different for Steve's birthday.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

Ain't it a good lookin' Christmas tree?  All for a whopping $12.  Mother Nature done good!  If you look closely, you'll notice we're missing ornaments on the bottom part of the tree.  This is not by accident - we have plenty of ornaments to fill the bottom half.  We happen to have three very large, furry creatures with a fifth appendage attached to their rear ends.  These appendages play no use other than to knock things over or whack you in the knees  Maybe even take out a small child.  Or act like a rudder when they're swimming.  The appendages move at warp speed when said beasts are excited, which is often.  Either way, we can't use our coffee table to place drinks nor can we put ornaments on the bottom part of the Christmas tree.  Small complaints compared to the love these dogs give.  But I think God's sense of humor is behind the reason for the tail.  (Although they're tails do dust the front half of our entertainment center :))

I like the dichotomy of the framed ballet picture next to the European-mount elk head.  The elk is Steve's from this year; his other European-mounted elk from a few years ago is in the bedroom.

Tree Hunting Madness

We've tried to make it a tradition for our tree hunting adventures - load up the dogs, snowshoes/skiis, warm clothes, food, saw, beer & head to the mountains for a fun day.  The two times we've gone it's always been really really cold - 1 degree F the first year & 4 degrees F this year.  Ouch.  Needless to say, it's fun, but when it's that cold we make the trip short & sweet.  Our beer froze almost instantly upon opening - beer slushy! (Don't worry, we weren't getting trashed, we're smart enough to realize freezing weather + beer + driving = not smart).  But there is something quite delicious about a cold beer while hunting the Christmas tree.  I didn't get too many pictures because my camera battery died early on into the adventure.  Georgia used her camera so I'll hopefully post more pictures once I receive them from her (she also has pictures of Steve & I with our tree).

Georgia & pups in the background

Shane & Georgia

Gidget burying in the snow

Matt manages to fall down while on snowshoes...Shane popping open a beer with his teeth (very redneck)

Georgia with the perfect Charlie Brown tree.  It was perfect!  But a bit too small.  Maybe next year.

Matt, Steve (hiding in the back), Shane

Shane's rat tail created while we were eating breakfast at our place before taking off (side note: he's growing his hair out for Locks of Love, hence the hair long enough for a rat tail)

Ring!

Pictures of my gorgeous engagement ring...  Does this mean I have to plan a wedding now?  :)