Archives for October 2017

#SPBoxSwap Reveal

October 31, 2017 filed under: fun!, linkup

I participated in the Sweet Progress Box Swap hosted by Ashley and Dean for the first time this month. I love the kind of swaps that result in putting something in the mail for someone to brighten their day.

Anyway, so the #SPBoxSwap. We were paired with our partners earlier this month and after emailing back and forth a few times to get to know each other and exchange some info on what we like and don’t like, we set out to do a little shopping for our assigned swap partner.

I was lucky that I got paired with Beth from thebethnextdoor.com, who I’ve had the pleasure of getting to know better in the last few months through The Peaceful Posse (a Facebook group for like-minded bloggers that are interested in interacting, engaging, and supporting each other). I’ve been reading Beth’s blog for a while now and have enjoyed learning about her life and little family. I had a lot of fun shopping for her and if you want to see what I put together for her, you should check out her #SPBox Swap reveal post today. While you’re at it, also see the other boxes that were exchanged.

But, let me now share the wonderful package Beth put together for me. She definitely paid close attention during our email exchange.

She knew I was in dire need of some extra Halloween decoration and she picked out these two cute deco items for me (which now sit on our mantel next to the tiny pumpkins I bought as our only fall decoration).

Beth also got me some nice (vanilla!) tea and a beautiful mug to drink it from. Didn’t I just mention that I love drinking beverages from pretty mugs? This one is going into my collection, it has a beautiful green fall color, too.

My favorite color is teal and Beth found this great Sally Hansen nail polish in teal and a little teal friend. The huge eyes crack me up, haha!

She also sent me this beautiful multi-color candle (which I will definitely enjoy lighting in the evenings this winter) and a box of mixed candy (including some licorice, that I love, and some candy corn, because I told her that I had never tried it before. Can you believe that? Well, I didn’t grow up with Halloween in Germany, so there also wasn’t any candy corn. Simple explanation.)

I couldn’t wait and had a cup of the black vanilla tea out of my beautiful new mug on Sunday afternoon. It was delicious!

I had a great time participating in this swap and I loved even more getting to know Beth better and making a new friend! You should definitely hop on over to her blog if you are not a follower already!
Thanks so much, Beth, for your thoughtful package and your sweet note! I loved everything!

On that note, I’ve hosted a Secret Santa Mug Swap last year before the holidays and am thinking about doing that again. Would you be interested in participating? Let me know in the comments!

Happy Halloween!

October Favorites

October 30, 2017 filed under: monthly favorites

1. Someone recommended the St.Ives Timeless Moisturizer for sensitive skin somewhere and I bought it on Amazon, because I was running out and needed a new one anyway. I love the texture and smell of this and it has really good reviews.

2. I really love working with Patons Grace Mercerized Cotton yarn, especially for my crochet items for my Etsy shop. Check out my new fall mini garlands where I used this cool rusty-orange color.

3. I never thought I’d say this, but I – the die-hard thin crust pizza lover – fell in love with Deep Dish Pizza. We gave it a try a few weeks ago when my cousin was here and I had to admit: it’s pretty tasty! It doesn’t really feel like pizza to me (more like an “open” pot pie), but does it have to? All that matters is that it tastes good and that it definitely does! J and I have had it twice since, he even requested it for his birthday dinner last week.

4. I am not much of a lipstick kind of girl, but this Revlon balm stain (color: honey) is a nice little touch of color and hydration for my lips without feeling like a full-on lipstick. I think I got it in one of my Target boxes a while back.

5. My favorite candy to munch on? Licorice. I’ll take that over any gummy bears or chocolate. I found some salt licorice at Dean and DeLuca’s in Napa Valley a few week ago and then stocked up on Gustaf’s Dutch Licorice when I went to World Market. It’s just a nice piece to pop into your mouth to suck on. Beats gobbling up a whole bag of cheetos (which, I admit, is sometimes necessary, too. Ha!).

6. This is Life with Lisa Ling is back on CNN with its 4th season. I’ve mentioned this show on here before and I am still as excited about new episodes as ever. She touches on such interesting (and controversial) topics and it’s more interesting than ever during these weird current times.

Currently | October

October 26, 2017 filed under: currently

loving the current fall weather. It’s still pretty warm during the day, but the evenings and mornings are cooler and we haven’t used the AC much anymore, but also haven’t needed the heater. I love this time of year for running and walks and not the least because our energy bill is lower, ha!

eating turkey meatballs (and ground turkey in general). It’s so versatile and such a light meat option for a ton of different dishes. I’ll share some of the recipes I’ve been making with ground turkey with you in November (for NaBloPoMo).

drinking my first cups of hot tea this fall. I’m on a peppermint kick right now. Yum.

listening to a new podcast, “The Move with Joe McIntyre”. If he can’t get me into podcasts, nobody will. Haha.

excited about a new coffee mug. I was out shopping for my #SPBoxSwap partner Beth last weekend and came across a mug that I just couldn’t walk away from. As previously mentioned, I have a bit of a mug addiction and I believe drinking coffee (or tea) out of pretty mugs makes every beverage that much better, am I right? Well, and this mug was just so different and unique. (I should get rid off some old mugs, though. Seriously.)

reading The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas. I am again on a slow reading path this month, but that’s ok. This book is worth my time though.

working on some crafty things. I am trying to find some time to prepare for the holidays and crochet some new garlands and make some more cards for our Etsy shop.

wishing and hoping for my bff’s cancer treatment to be effective. I cannot – and will not – accept anything else. She just finished her first round of chemo and I can’t help but being reminded of what a strong woman she is to go through all of this again.

bummed that the Red Sox didn’t make it to the World Series this year (but thrilled that at least the Yankees also got kicked out by the Astros!). The Red Sox had such a good season, but oh well. That is what happens in sports. You win some, you lose some.

looking forward to Halloween. I am not much into scary movies, but I’ve caught part of Hocus Pocus already (which always makes me happy, ha!) and I love that we get trick-or-treaters at our house now. When we lived on a 2nd-floor apartment in a fourplex, we never had trick-or-treaters.

What’s going on with you currently?

Recap | 2017 Napa Half Marathon

October 24, 2017 filed under: running, USA

A month ago, I ran the Napa half marathon with my cousin B + his girlfriend M.

We signed up on a whim. I hadn’t really planned to run another half marathon after my half in SF earlier this summer, but I had dared my cousin (and his girlfriend!) to run a race with me, after I got them both to start running over the summer, so I joked that we could run the “Napa Half” when they are here in September.

I mean, what a perfect opportunity to run a race together. Running in wine country and getting a bottle of wine at the finish line, besides the usual t-shirt and medal, were some extra perks.

I only half-expected my cousin to jump on the idea, but he instantly did! And M had to go along with it. So, I guess I was going to run another half in September after all.

I knew B was going to be much faster than me (he’s 26, physically fit, and a guy, so…!), and since this was going to be his first half marathon, it was going to be an automatic PR. First, he had offered to pace me, but I know and understand that you also wanna give your best at your first race, so I told him to run his own pace and get that (real) PR! M, who had just started running this last summer, was ‘only’ going to run the quarter marathon, but still that was going to be a huge accomplishment in itself!

So I decided to just have fun and do my best at that half that I didn’t really prepare for. I had kept up my running schedule after my half in July, but I also didn’t specifically train and also didn’t taper right for this race (due to our travels), but I knew that just having this experience together was going to be worth it.

We left Sacramento at 5:45 a.m. to make the 50-mile drive to Napa. Luckily, Sunday mornings around that time, the I-80 is pretty empty (usually not the case!) and it only took us an hour to get there. We had more than an extra hour to spare before race start, which was kind of nice.

We used the port-a-potties (twice), had our bananas and some water and then got warmed up just in time to head to the starting line.

The race was medium-sized (600 entries), so there were no corrals or anything. Everybody just started running at the same time. Since we were all running ‘our own races’, we headed out and settled into our paces.

B was gone before I could even attempt to keep up for a little while, M started somewhere behind me.

The course was hilly, but not terribly so. For every incline, there was an equal decline, which felt nice. I settled into a good pace and kept plugging along. I realized pretty quickly that I wasn’t going to hit the < 2 hour mark (which honestly I wasn’t even attempting), but I was still on track for a decent race. Cramping in my right calf hit me during the last 2 miles of the race, which I had never happened before and it sucked. I still managed to snag a PR though. Boo-yah! I didn’t really expect it, so this was awesome.

Especially because this meant I got a PR and B + M also got PRs (since it was their first official race) that day.

B ran an awesome race in 1:45:07 (7th in his age division (20-29)). He got an official shoutout on the website, too, because he (and M) were one of the few international participants!

I finished in 2:06:58, which shaved over 2.5 minutes off my previous PR (6th in my age division (40-49)). M finished her first quarter marathon in 1:13:43 (18th in her age division (20-29)).

We collected our medals, t-shirts and wine bottles, took an obligatory picture in front of the ‘race wall’, got some drinks and snacks and then got in line for a massage. We all needed one :)

After we recuperated for a bit, we decided that we deserved brunch at the Fremont Diner * again. We had been there the previous day on our Napa Wine Tour, but heck, we were so close, why not go there twice. We did a quick FaceTime call with my parents and when my mom offered to sponsor the brunch, it was decided.

We headed over to the Fremont Diner proudly showing off our medals and rewarded ourselves with a pre-brunch milkshake while we were waiting for a table. Perfect post-race refueling snack, am I right?

I opted for yogurt, granola, and coffee, B and M had the Farmer’s toast and a side of bacon. Yum. After we filled up our bellies, we headed home. We were all ready for a nap.

I wasn’t kidding when I told B + M during our planning phase that we should keep Sunday afternoon open for recuperating. We were all beat.

So, yeah, that was the Napa half marathon in September… aka “that time where I just wanted to have fun and ended up with a new PR”.

I am linking up with Erika, Patty and Marcia for Tuesdays on the Run.

* On a site note, I am so happy to report that The Fremont Diner was not damaged in the Northern California fires. They got pretty close, but luckily never reached the diner!

Apple Hill + a birthday

October 23, 2017 filed under: USA, weekend

We can’t go through a fall season here in CA without a trip to Apple Hill. Everybody knows that. Last year was special because I got to spend a day there with my Mom. Just me and her. I never get that anymore.

This year, we decided to make the trip for J’s birthday. Ok, well, his birthday was during the week, so we postponed the trip to the weekend.

We headed up into the Foothills in the early afternoon. Traffic was not too bad, luckily, but Apple Hill was busy – which was to be expected. We still had no problem finding parking.

First, we checked out the pumpkin patch. Obviously.

Then we were going to get an apple fritter, but the lines were insanely long and so we talked ourselves out of the necessity to have something super-sweet and sugary the size of our heads (kinda ridiculous, I agree).

We walked around instead, looked at all the different things you can make from apples, and did some apple tasting. There is only a handful of varieties that you’ll find at the supermarket, but there were so many new ones to try… have you heard of ‘Pippin’, ‘Honeycrisp’, or ‘Goldrush’?

We then drove over to Placerville and walked around this old mining town. It was nice, because part of the main street was blocked off from traffic for a wine and art festival that night, so we were able to walk around freely on the street. We got some coffee at a little coffee shop and then later grabbed dinner at the Buttercup Pantry. It’s a similar place to Mary Callendar’s, not anything fancy, but we have good memories of going there for breakfast a few years ago.

Dinner was good. They had a great soup + salad bar that I got to enjoy.

It was a beautiful fall day and I am so glad we got out for a few hours!

Did you do something fun this weekend?

Thinking Out Loud #9

October 19, 2017 filed under: Thinking out loud

Another Thursday, another opportunity to Think Out Loud. It’s my go-to excuse of a real post these days, but then again, these posts are kind of fun and keep you in the loop and I actually enjoy them on other people’s blogs, so I assume, you do, too?!

+ Yep, I still had no time to write up the National Park recaps yet. Maybe I’ll save them for November, when I’ll be participating again (!) in National Blog Posting Month (NaBloPoMo), where I will (attempt to) blog every day of the month.

+ I had a nice, low-key birthday celebration with J last night. We had pizza (per his request) and after dinner, he unwrapped presents. Thanks so much for all the birthday wishes you left for him via Instagram yesterday. I passed them on and he was touched by all the sweet messages so many of you wrote for him!

+ I don’t know why but I feel stressed right now. I go through phases where, realistically, nothing out of the ordinary is happening that should stress me out, but my perception is way off. I feel like I don’t have time for anything and I feel rushed all the time (even if nothing and nobody is rushing me). Do you know that feeling? No? Well, then you’re luckily, but chances are, you do know that feeling, too. I usually try to slow down my day (if possible), allow myself little treats (like a third cup of coffee or tea in the afternoon) and do something soothing in the evening (like knitting and listening to classical music) to get my perception back on track. What’s your remedy?

+ Oh, I just realized: Christmas is only 9 weeks away. Could that have anything to do with it?

+ I unraveled my latest knitting project and started over. Yeah, that happens sometimes and I usually hate doing that (because of all the time I had already put in), but also don’t want to keep knitting something that doesn’t turn out the way I want it to. I loved the star-part of the pattern (and will probably try and use it in a different project) , but my Mom finished a project with this pattern and said that the size and shape of the finished shawl wasn’t ideal, so I decided to abandon this while I still could. Priorities, am I right?

+ My niece is going to turn 9 years old this Saturday and I can’t wrap my head around how fast she’s growing up. I have the fondest memories of her as a two-year old and that didn’t seem so long ago, whaaa!

+ I polled on Twitter, but I am going to ask here, too: how much data do you average monthly on your cell phone (I am talking the data that goes through your cell phone carrier, not WiFi, which of course everyone should use when they can!). I am just asking because I feel like data usage has been going up and up and up every time I got a new phone (which is every 2-3 years) and even just in general in the last few months and I am trying to figure out if this is normal. I know that social media apps, like Facebook and Instagram, use a lot of data, especially when you also use the video features (like IG stories). I don’t stream other videos or music though and still feel that I am using a lot of data every month, so I was wondering if you have the same problem?!

What’s a random thought on your mind today?

I am linking up with Amanda from Running with Spoons for Thinking Out Loud.

October Link Love

October 16, 2017 filed under: link love

You might – or might not – have noticed that I completely skipped my September Link Love post. It was due to my travel and general “absence” from the blogosphere these last few weeks, so I apologize, but here’s my list of the best links I found in the last few weeks.

Around the Interwebs

Ahm, just read this. I beg you.

How to build a skincare routine. This is really fascinating. Also, I don’t have patience for this.

Regrets you may have in 10 years.

He’s a wise men. Life lessons from Anthony Bourdain.

How to process all the recent tragedies

19 GIFs that will explain the world. Mind blown.

Tell it like it is, Amy. Sometimes you gotta give it people straight.

I love when you get to that point in life: What shit are you too old for?

Around the blogosphere

Are you friends with your parents? I expected something different from this post, but it’s still a valid read.

Here’s some truth: 4 things that happen when you move away from your hometown.

Why is it so hard to talk to white folks about racism.

Why the runner’s nod matters. I just brought this up in my Friday Five post.

Craftiness

Bullet Journal as a mental health tool. Love it!

11 awesome bullet journal printables.

Printable 2018 calendar.

Free SVG cut file: Thankful for you.

Deliciousness

I can’t wait for soup season to start. I wanna try this one: Creamy Thai Chicken Noodle Soup

Healthy Zucchini Muffins.

This one is really good, I tried it already: Garlic Beef & Veggie Ramen.

I’ll take two orders, please. Skinny Cajun Sweet Potato Fries with Garlic Cheese Sauce.

Share a good link with me in the comments!

Friday Five | Things that make you go hmmm…

October 13, 2017 filed under: my so-called life

There are definitely a few “things that make me go hmmm…” when it comes to running and fitness in general, don’t you agree?

1. How to prevent toe blisters

I’ve asked for some advice on Instagram yesterday but didn’t get a lot of responses, so I am asking here again: what’s your best advice to prevent toe blisters, primarily on the toes next to the big ones.

Just FYI, I tried a lot of things already, but I still get blisters on the tip of my toes every so often and it’s not fun. And no, the second toe is not really longer than my big toe (just about the same length). Here is what I’ve fiddled with so far: I got fitted for shoes and bought all my shoes at the running store. I am wearing shoes a size bigger than my usual size (first sized up ½ size, then sized up again). I have run in Brooks (Ghost and Ravenna) and Asics (Gel-Cumulus). I have invested in good running socks. I have tried relacing my shoes different ways. I have tried vaseline. Except for trying other shoes (someone suggested Nike or Adidas), do you have any other suggestions?

And yes, the Asics need to be replaced, but that’s why I am investigating before buying a new pair of shoes.

2. Women who come to the gym all dolled up

If a woman comes to the gym at 5 am in the morning with full makeup, I can’t take them seriously. I am sorry. Are they trying to meet someone at the gym? Do they not sweat? Do they feel like they have to “put on their face” for a workout? Do they not have time to do their makeup after they work out? Just curious.

What makes you go hmm...? #FridayFive Click To Tweet

3. Guys and grunting noises

On that same note, what is it with guys at the gym that ‘grunt’ with every lift they do? Do they think it’s sexy? Do they think we want to hear this so we know how hard they’re working out? I don’t get it.

4. Running etiquette

When I am out running around the neighborhood, I’ve encountered friendly runners, who smile, wave or nod when they pass you, and grumpy runners, who stare straight ahead and don’t even acknowledge you. I always try to be one of the former, because I feel like we’re in this together and I always feel encouraged when other people acknowledge me (and my struggles, ha!), too. Definitely makes me wonder what you guys think?

5. Imposter syndrome, it’s a thing

Ok, I admit that this last one is kinda silly, but I also think that I can’t be the only one having these kinds of thoughts. I still struggle with imposter syndrome every once in a while, when it comes to running.

I’d call myself a ‘middle of the pack’-runner. I am not particularly fast, but also not the slowest. I cheer on other runners’ accomplishments and successes and am a HUGE advocate of the phrase “if you lace up your shoes and set one foot in front of the other, you’re a runner”.

But I still sometimes feel like I don’t know where I fit in. I compare myself to the fast runners and think ‘that will never be you’, I look at the runners with a huge weight loss journey and think ‘I don’t have this kind of accomplishment to show for”. I’ve always been semi-athletic and just picked up running a few years ago as my main form of exercise. That’s it. Nothing spectacular to report here. This kind of thinking definitely makes me go hmmm… sometimes.

What makes you go hmmm…?

I’m linking up with Running on Happy and Fairytales and Fitness for the Friday Five 2.0 Linkup

Thinking Out Loud #8

October 12, 2017 filed under: Thinking out loud, this and that

I am just coming off a three day weekend and have not managed to blog. So there is that. At least, I can try and throw a little update together. You’d like that, right?.

+ I had planned to publish the first road trip recap post this week, but I think this will have to wait until next week (hoping that I’ll get around to writing this weekend). Do you ever have all these grand plans for writing and then nothing happens? Yeah, me too.

Instead, I cleaned our house and grocery-shopped and did laundry and all the things that you have to do after your normal routine has been thrown off by traveling (but it was so worth it, no complaining here!)

+ Sadly, we had to say farewell to baseball season last weekend (the Red Sox didn’t make it through the playoffs and as of yesterday, John Farrell is gone, which makes me sad. He was a good manager and I liked him as a person.).

+ I received news yesterday that my bff’s cancer is back and I just about had it with the cancer news from friends. My bff has been dealing with this brain tumor for the last 9 years and it’s just so incredibly unfair. I am a bit scared and frankly a little pissed off, but also can’t help to be incredibly positive and hopeful that she’ll beat this sucker once again. What else could I even think right now?

+ My heart is breaking in a million little pieces lately with all the natural disasters wreaking havoc on all different parts of the country. Right now it’s ‘our turn’ here in California with catastrophic wildfires in Napa and Sonoma counties and the foothills. So many homes have burned down, so many people have been evacuated, some have lost their lives. It was super-smokey yesterday morning when I drove to work. I just don’t know what do with all the bad news right now. I feel really unsettled lately.

+ On a positive note, I had a couple more orders from my Etsy shop and I guess, I should be gearing up a little bit for the holiday season. It’s been fun to make cards again.

What’s a random thought on your mind today?

I am linking up with Amanda from Running with Spoons for Thinking Out Loud.

Road Tripping

October 6, 2017 filed under: travel, USA

As you already know, because I couldn’t shut up about it, I went on an epic road trip with my cousin and his girlfriend in September. They were here for a total of three weeks, but unfortunately – as I previously lamented – I couldn’t take the complete time off due to limited vacation time.
So we pieced together an itinerary over the last few months that would make it possible for me to travel with them for at least part of their trip while not using up any of my precious accrued vacation time. I did work some overtime before (and will work another couple of extra days after, like today!) to make up these hours and we took advantage of my long weekends.

There is no way I can recap our road trip in one post, so I thought I’d give you an overview of the three weeks and our travel itinerary and then recap the different stops in separate posts as to a) not overwhelm you with (mostly) photos, and b) to make it easier for back-referencing later, as I am trying to include some tips on how to do this road trip on the cheap (my cousin and his girlfriend are both students, so they were on a budget).

The hardest part was deciding on what we could actually fit into three weeks. I mean, you want to see as much as possible, but also not make this a not-too-rushed trip. Luckily, my travel companions were young and flexible, so we were able to push it a little bit.

So here’s our itinerary. I skipped out for a couple of days here in there for work, but mostly, I was able to do all the fun parts with them.

9/14 | fly to Las Vegas and then drive to Zion National Park
9/15 | Zion National Park
9/16 | Bryce Canyon National Park – drive to Page, AZ
9/17 | Lower Antelope Canyon – Horseshoe Bend – Monument Valley – Goosenecks State Park – drive to Moab, UT
9/18 | Arches National Park
9/19 | Canyonlands National Park – drive back to Las Vegas – fly back to Sacramento

We stayed in Sacramento from 9/20 – 9/24. I had to work for a couple of days and it gave B + M the opportunity to explore my city.

I had to work 9/28 and 9/29.

9/30 and 1/10 | SF for the weekend

I know, we packed A LOT into three weeks, but we wanted to maximize our time and see as much as possible as it was M’s first time in the States. I mean, we can always go back for more, am I right? (Not that I am plotting my next trip in my head already, or anything.)

Have you been to National Parks? Which one is a must-go?