Venting {and Stress Eating}

Everything was going fine today


{THEN}


Gary received a nasty, long FB message from someone that he has chosen to keep at arms length.  He immediately sent me this message to read {you married folks know how this sort of stuff goes} and as I was reading it, one part completely stuck out to me.


This person used my infertility as a weapon in what they were writing, and even acknowledged that it was a dig.


I was stunned.


I am NOT surprised that this person would do such a thing, but it just blew me away that they would use something I have no control over as their weapon of choice.  


Now, I am not going to say I have never said mean things about people before.  That would be a lie.  But I would NEVER use a blind man's blindness against him.


If this person wanted to get me involved in what they wrote to Gary, call me a bitch, call me self centered, point out the flaws I CAN CHANGE, but don't use my infertility against us....that's just low.


My first reaction when this person spews their hatred {did you really think this is the first time we've had issues with this person?} is to reach for food.  Sweet, Salty, Crunchy, Soft, it doesn't matter.  It would all go into my mouth. The rest of the day & the next day!


Today, I did better.  I only let myself a small handful of some oven cooked chickpeas a coworker brought to share.  And I decided to write this blog post.  I am actively working on changing my habits with food and finding other ways to deal with my emotions.


Gary & I had been encouraging each other all weekend with the fact that we'd have to walk in close to 100 degree weather all this week {no bueno}.  In the past, when this person surfaced, our lives stopped for a few hours as we tried to figure out how to handle them.  Not today.  We took our walk as planned {even added a street to the walk} and let off steam as it fueled us to keep a quick pace.


Score 1 for Team Us!


As the ever so eloquent Christina Aguilera sang in her song "Fighter:"


"After all that you put me through,
You think I'd despise you,
But in the end I wanna thank you,

'Cause you've made me that much stronger"


This song has been on my workout playlist since the day it came out & it definitely applies to this situation!


***How do you deal with stress?***


PS - Please know I only posted this so publicly because, unless this person is actively stalking us, they have NO idea I blog.  I would never talk about a personal situation concerning someone I love & admire.

Anniversary Dinner

In the midst of all my first 5k craziness last week, Gary & I had a very low key 7th anniversary weekend.  We said we weren't going to do anything special because we wanted to save all of our extra money for our road trip next month, but we did have a few indulgences!


First up we went to Jack London Square and saw a Ben & Jerry's shop.  The closest one to us is over an hour away & we don't buy ice cream for the freezer, so we instantly knew we wanted to find some schweddy balls  to put in our mouths!


I am choosing not to post the pictures of us actually eating it...they could be used for blackmail!

We were really good and shared a kid sized cup....the perfect treat!


Once we got to the hotel, we had already decided to order in some Chinese take out and eat while watching a movie or TV show.  


Well that was before I saw in a local magazine that there was a German restaurant nearby.  I am half German, so I jump at a chance to have some of my ethnic food, especially because there are NO German restaurants near us!  When I asked Gary if we could change our plans he said "this is your weekend, we will go where you want."  What a guy!


So Speisekammer it was!


First up were the Reibekuchen {Potato Pancakes with apple compote}

I haven't had potato pancakes in such a long time and these were worth the wait!  Perfect crispy on the outside, but nice and chewy on the inside.

They didn't last us very long!

Next up was the Spätzle baked with Caramelized Onions, Parmesan & Cheddar Cheeses for the main course!  Gary & I both got the half order, his with ham and mine with bacon.

Freaking amazing!

But since it was a special dinner, I decided to save room for dessert by taking half of my dinner home for my mom & dad to enjoy!

Proof that I didn't eat everything!

We asked to look at the dessert menu and were dumbfounded when they handed us a menu at least 4 pages long.  One page was just for foodie dessert, then one page for drinkable desserts, and two pages dedicated to wines & ports.  Plenty to choose from!

Right away I knew I wanted the Apfelstrudel {Apple Strudel} with a scoop of ice cream and a side of whipped cream.

HOLY MOLY!!  The best part was the whipped cream.  It tasted so fresh that I joked with Gary about them having a cow right out back!

That and a latte for me was the perfect end to our anniversary dinner!

Of course we had to get some pictures of ourselves and not just the food!

If you are ever in the Oakland/Alameda area, I would definitely suggest Speisekammer.  The food is delicious and satisfying and the prices were pretty reasonable.  For all the food I mentioned {and the iced tea & coffee for Gary that I did not} our bill came to right under $50.  

PS - that Monday {our actual anniversary, Gary surprised me with flowers & a card}.  I am a lucky gal!

***What is your favorite food to splurge on?***

***Are you a foodie dessert person or an adult beverage dessert person?***

See Jane Run 5k {Leftovers}

I love my husband for MANY reasons.

The main reason THIS week??

PICTURES!  

While I was busy getting my 5k on, Gary was a rock star blogger and took a TON of pictures for our memories {and my blog posts}!

Here's a sampling of some of my favorite pics from the 5k!

Me with my See Jane Run Swag!

What woman wouldn't??

All smiles at 7 am

We had noooo idea what was about to happen to us!  ha ha ha

I love these two!

That park was packed full!

A lady had just asked if we were famous because we had so many people there taking pictures!

Look carefully...these signs were ALL over.  Very confusing, but they made me laugh!

Almost there!

Finishing strong

We did it!!

I know I get overly mushy sometimes, but I seriously could not do anything I do without the support of Gary...he is my biggest supporter & #1 fan!

This is going up on my wall with my medal!

TRUTH.  We've been friends for 20+ years now and I wouldn't have wanted to share this experience with anyone else.

See Jane Run 5k {Recap}

My first 5k was a success and SUCH a blur, but I am going to try and sort all my thoughts out to share with you!

What I ran for...chocolate & champagne!

Since the race was almost 2 hours from home, Gary & I decided to stay overnight in Alameda {the horribleness of our hotel stay will be another post}, so we could walk the .9 miles to the Start Line and not have to wake up toooo early.


We still woke up at 5:45 to make the 6am Continental Breakfast the hotel provided.  Good thing we brought some boiled eggs and fruit of our own...the coffee and nutri-grain bar I got was not going to hold me over for 3 hours!


My race did not start until 8:30, but we wanted to meet my BFF, Deidre, and her family ahead of time, so we got there at 7:30.  Once the Half Marathon started at 8, Dee and I went to the Porta Potty station....holy crap!  There were 3 LONG ass lines!  Luckily, they all went quickly, so WE could go quickly!  hee hee

Imagine this with 3 LONG lines...

After that, Dee & I lined up as close to the Start Line as we could...which wasn't that close. While waiting for the race to start, we went over our strategy for the day.  When training together, we would start off walking before jogging, but wanted to kick it up a notch!

If you would turn left, we were a ways back from the Starting line.

Weeeeellll, that didn't work out for us.  I don't know how other races work, but there were a lot of people in the front who started at a slow walking pace, making it difficult for those wanting to jog/run.  It seriously took us about 2-3 minutes before we could even start our jog.


Once we got going though, we jogged longer than we had before.  There were times we had to stop and walk, but we jogged whenever we could.


The run itself was beautiful!  We ran right along the waterfront, so the view was magnificent!

To say there were a lot of people there is like telling you that Oprah is kind of rich.  The running lanes were packed!  We were weaving between people in order to keep our pace. 


As we approached the Finish Line, we definitely picked up speed and finished strong {my official time was 46:28}!!  Our families were there to greet us and take pictures.   As we crossed the Finish line, we received our medals and were ushered into a line to pick up food and drink. 

I was dying to get some pretzels and peanut butter {in my hand while taking this photo} in my stomach and chug down some coconut water.

After that, it was really confusing.  There was a huge Expo going on, but the lines were long and unorganized.  Nobody knew what the were in line for.  We thought we were in a line for the photo booth and it took about 5 minutes to realize that it was actually a wraparound line for the booth to get shirts & bags.  Funny thing is, that was the booth we just came from and there was no line.  Then the line to get chocolate & champagne {please remember, I ran for this pairing} was super long, but dissinagrated halfway through.  


I don't want to sweat about the small stuff, because in the scheme of things, this is small stuff, but I do think there were a lot of things the event organizers could have planned better for.  

One of the lines that seemed to end in the middle of a crowd!

Overall, I had one of the best times of my life!  I feel so accomplished...this was the first time in a LONG time that I set a personal goal, worked hard for it and did it, giving 110%.  I even brought the medal to work to show some of my coworkers! 


My quads hurt for hours after the race, but settled down in my knees on Monday and to a dull soreness overall by Tuesday.  I LOVE IT!  Makes me feel strong!


What now? 


My next 5k is a nighttime, glow-in-the-dark race near the end of September in San Jose and I have another one the week after that in Modesto. 


My goals for those are easy {in theory} -
1. Run {or jog} the whole thing!  No walking. 
2. Beat my time of 46:28.  I would like to get to under 40 minutes.


Two goals that I KNOW I can accomplish...shit, 6 months ago, I would have never thought I would run down the street, not to mention a 5k!


Doing the See Jane Run 5k showed me I can do anything I want and I am grateful for that!

Dee & I with our friend Susan, who is married to my brother's best friend....family by choice!  :)

{Seven}

~Seven years ago I knew how it felt to be so nervous & excited at the exact same time.

~Seven years ago I was happy to have 2 of my closest friends there to support me.

~Seven years ago my dad walked me down the aisle to my future.

~Seven years ago, I married my best friend.

~And seven years later, I would do it all over again in a heartbeat.

Thank you Gary for showing me what a loving marriage is...it has not always been easy, but I think we're doing a fine job!

Consider this post my contract renewal for another year.  ;-)

I DID IT!!

I'll fill you in on ALL the deets later this week, but for now just know I completed my first 5k this morning!!!

I finished with my BFF right by my side...and DAMN, we finished strong!

Of course, my biggest supporter was there cheering me on & ready to CELEBRATE!

Cheers to all my running friends out there!  And to those of you that even have the slightest interest in running...sign up for a 5k.  You can do it...I PROMISE!

Top 5 Friday {Summer Songs}

BBQing is in full swing, the sun doesn't set until past my bedtime, and we are running the AC at night.

You know what that means, right??

SUMMER is in da house!!  Fo shizzle!

There are certain songs that just make me feel like summer.

{Don't be afraid to sing, or even dance, along}

1. "Summer Nights" - John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John

What female under the age of 40 did not have a sleepover that included this movie??  Some of my best high school memories included summer sleepovers & "Grease."

2. "Summertime" - DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince

Will Smith has always been such a cool guy, hasn't he??  If there is one song that says "summer is here, so grab your flip flops," this is it!

3. "American Pie" - Don McLean

What road trip happens without this song?!?!  It's so fun to sing along to, but so deep when you really think about the lyrics.

4. "Boys of Summer" - Don Henley

This is in the Top 3 of my favorite Don Henley songs...he is such an amazing writer, musician and performer. Gary & I have seen the Eagles 3 times and Don Henley on his own once {tied for BEST show I have ever been to with John Mayer...JM concerts are a freaking religious experience}.  Whenever I hear this song, I wish I had a top to put down on my car.



5. "Smooth" - Santana {featuring Rob Thomas}

Well, hello, summer of 1999.  It was the summer I went to Europe & the summer before I met Gary.  I did a lot of growing up that summer, and this song was a part of the whole experience!


***Which of these songs do you like the best?***


***What song screams "SUMMER" to you?***