I first participated as a Foodie Penpal back in November. It was such a fun idea and I was so excited when my items arrived. I wasn't blogging at the time so I never posted about my experience. In January, with all the excitement leading up to the WDW Marathon I completely forgot to enter myself again until this month.
What is extra fun about the Foodie Penpal matches is that you are matched with two different people, one to send goodies to and one to receive from. Turns out both my matches this month were MIA and I ended up getting re-matched a few days after original matches were posted.
I would be receiving my package to Abby and she blogs at Life is Wonderific. I shared with Abby I do not like peanut butter or spicy foods, and some of my current favorites are coffee, dark chocolate and green smoothies. I was excited when her package arrived!
Abby selected a cute card and wrote a simple note inside. I think my favorite item has to be the chocolate coffee, even though I haven't tried it yet! The Odwalla bar was delicious, I had not stumbled upon that bar yet and will be searching for it in the future. The Cookie Dough Luna Bar is one of my favorites (I actually have a box of them in my pantry right now). Lastly, the Cadbury Royal Dark Chocolate Bar is being saved for an extra rough day, as I know it will be delicious.
I sent my package to Jenna in Southern California and she blogs at Momma Told Me. After reading her likes and dislikes, and staying within the $15 spending limit I decided to send her locally made Williamson Bros BBQ Sauce and Jalapeno Cornbread Mix I was able to pick up during our weekend in Pigeon Forge. I also included two Pure Bliss Energy Bars, they are made locally here in Marietta and they are divine!
If you would like to read more about becoming a Foodie Pen Pal, you can do so at The Lean Green Bean. In addition to the spending limit, you'll find dates listed on when you can join, when you'll need to email your penpal and when you'll need to ship your package. You do not have to have a blog to participate either! Once you know all the specifics, you can sign-up HERE.
QUESTIONS:
-Have you ever participated as a Foodie Penpal?
-What is one item you like to send or would send if you were to participate?
I feel like this week went by crazy fast! Maybe it's because a normal week was cut short with our trip down to Tampa on Thursday, but even before that, I remember posting sometime on Twitter Tuesday night that I couldn't believe how fast the last 48hrs had past.
Monday: Fun Workout
Abigail and I met up with friends at The Georgia Aquarium. Abigail has always loved our visits to the aquarium, especially when we go with friends. We walked through the River Scout exhibit, and the favorite was the river otters. They were so playful, swimming around and scratching their backs (usually they are napping!). The girls asked all types of questions with one aquarium employee at the beluga tank before it was time for the dolphin show, Dolphin Tales. If you've never seen the show, it's more theatrical with a Broadway style script and singing. While the show is done well, I'd prefer a more educational "show" to learn about the dolphins.
Our friends had to leave but we still went through my favorite exhibit of the aquarium, Ocean Voyager. Ever since our first visit to Georgia Aquarium, this has always been my favorite. The four whale sharks are massive in size and yet so peaceful to watch. You can spot a bunch of different fish and sharks, and the manta rays are truly majestic to watch as well. Abigail was using my camera to take pictures, just as she did on our last visit with her Papa last month. A little boy came over and was just as excited about everything and he started pointing at different fish, suggesting she take pictures of different ones. It was sweet. The aquarium employee, Ms Renee, who answered all the questions at the beluga tank, talked a bit about the exhibit (I did not remember this "tank" is the size of a football field! and this viewing area is "in an end zone".). Ms Renee started chatting with Abigail and the little boy, answering more questions. She was absolutely wonderful!
After the aquarium we popped over to Atlanta Station so I could return something at Dillard's. Then Abigail and I walked over to Athleta to check out their running apparel and swim suits. I've had cheap Target suits the last couple years, since they only seem to last one season since they are so cheap. I was in love with their selection, they offered amazing customer service and as I purchased my items I was told of their product guarantee "Love it or return it. Any time. Any reason.". If you are in the market for a new suit, I highly recommend looking into Athleta.
In the evening I was able to escape to the gym for the CORE group fitness class. It's 30 minutes of exclusive core workouts. When the class was finished I ran a mile on the treadmill, with the first half mile at a steep incline at a 10:55 minute mile pace.
Tuesday: 7 Miles
Our morning was postponed waiting for the cable guy. While we waited, I hooked up our bubble machine outside so Abigail and Brewer could pop bubbles. Abigail has always loved bubbles, but I had no idea how much Brewer would like bubbles!
Late in the afternoon, we went back to Food Truck Tuesday and met up with more friends at the park. I finally got to enjoy good food (not Abigail's leftovers) AND I remembered to take a picture of my yummy food. I ordered Lola's Coconut Chicken from Ibiza Bites and plantains with honey and coconut from a Cuban/Puerto Rican truck. I guess I was in a coco-nutty mood! The food was delicious and it was nice to not eat Abigail's rejected food selection for once. I really had my heart/stomach set on a panini, but that truck wasn't there so I'll have to keep that on a back burner for another week. I did learn a new pre-pay option with King of Pops so we were all able to get our preferred popsicle flavors without eating dessert first!
Wednesday: XT or Rest
Abigail and I joined friends at the local skating rink for the last Tiny Tots playdate before summer break. We usually skate together, but Abigail decided she wanted to take her bicycle. She rode her bike and told me to skate with her and she kept speeding up in the same spot and I eventually realized she was shouting "I win!". It was so funny, her little legs pedaling so fast and the disappointment on her face when I would skate faster than she could pedal. She is going to miss these Tiny Tot days but we'll have to find a park with a flat loop where she can ride her bike more often. Our driveway is too bumpy and she doesn't like riding there, and people drive way too fast in our neighborhood for us to want to attempt our street. Maybe I can try running while she rides, that would be a great combination.
This is the Amaryllis I planted late last spring and it never bloomed. It normally is sold around Christmastime but I bought it when it was on clearance and I planted it the following spring. I was super excited early in the week when I saw a bloom emerging. Then the bloom split, and I was more excited because I was going to have two beautiful flowers. I snapped this picture before we left for Tiny Tots. When we returned after Abigail's swim class, she and Brewer were playing out back and the next thing I realized both the beautiful Amaryllis blooms were destroyed. Sigh. He digs holes throughout our backyard, jumps in our compost to eat the rotting fruits and vegetables, has started jumping THROUGH a huge hedge, climbs over Abigail's sandbox... At least I got a picture before the blooms were just a memory.
In the evening I was able to head to the gym and run 5.5 miles in 58 minutes (10:32 pace). I knew I wasn't going to get any running in on Thursday since we'd be driving to Tampa.
Thursday: 5 Miles I had some errands to run before heading out of town for the long weekend. My mom loves the dark chocolate edamame from Trader Joe's so we made a special trip to East Cobb to get her a few packs as part of her birthday gift. We also stopped at Whole Foods for a stash of my new favorite, Espresso Chip Bonk Breaker energy bars!
I packed and Matt had an afternoon meeting for work before we could eventually got on the road. It was late enough to get stuck in the after work traffic heading out of town, which is extremely annoying. Even with Brewer tranquilized he was still more than a handful. I ended up sitting with Brewer and Abigail in the backseat, which helped him stay settled. He even laid on my lap the majority of the ride.
Friday: 4 Miles or XT
Even though we arrived after 1am, Brewer and Abigail were up at 7:30 as usual (she normally sleeps in later than the dog). I decided to start the morning taking Brewer for a run. We ran a fast mile, at a 9:39 minute pace then finished with a no leash all out sprint back up my parent's "driveway". We got to spend the morning with our nephew and I even got to rock him to sleep on the porch swing.
Matt and I headed out for "a date night", well that's at least what we told Abigail! We wanted to get in on the Monstrous Summer fun going on at Magic Kingdom, it opened at 6am and was staying open for 24hrs. We ended up meeting one of my WDWMarathon friends, Jen and her husband Clint. It was lots of fun riding all the more "adult" rides like Pirates of the Caribbean, Space Mountain and Splash Mountain. We had more sweet treats than we normally have when Abigail is with us. The Mickey cake pops were sure tasty, I had the vanilla and Matt indulged in the Red Velvet. We *only* made it until a bit after 2am, and I barely made it to get our picture with Mike & Sulley. I'm looking forward to the movie, it comes out the weekend of Matt's birthday!
Saturday: LR: 8 Miles, 10min strong finish
Since we stayed up so late, Matt and I slept in! We made it to my cousin's son's 1st birthday party out in Riverview and got to see almost everyone on my mom's side of the family. For dinner we stopped at a new place in North Tampa, Cigar City Brew Pub. They took over a property that used to be a TGI Friday's, and it was so neat to see how they customized. Most the features throughout the restaurant are repurposed from their brewery. If you're in the Tampa area, I highly recommend visiting, my family gave the beer and food two thumbs up!
Sunday: Rest
For my mom's birthday, we headed out to the beach to meet up with my brother, sister-in-law and nephew. We all had a great time lounging by and playing in the pool, Abigail had a great time playing in the sand at the beach too.
QUESTIONS:
-Did you do anything fun last week?
-Are you excited Monster's University is being released next month?
We did not know Pocahontas & Meeko were going to surprise us with a meet & greet opportunity this morning at Camp Mickey-Minnie in Disney's Animal Kingdom! Abigail was very excited!
QUESTION:
-Who was the most impressive "movie star" you have met at a Disney Park?
What an exhausting week...and I barely did any training!
Monday: 3 Miles + Strides
I much as I knew I needed to run, I didn't. After a crazy/mostly good weekend out of town, nothing went as I originally planned and I was bummed. Pity Party for 1 please!
Tuesday: 5 Miles
I was still in a funk but last minute changed my clothes and headed to the gym. I only had an hour before childcare ended at noon so I am pleased with the 4mi I ran, leaving myself adequate time to cool down and stretch. While I had a good run (10:43mm pace), I was disappointed that my childcare time was expiring because I wanted to keep running.
Abigail had a swim lesson and dance class in the afternoon, our usual Tuesday activities. After dance we headed to a local Tuesday Farmer's Market where I picked up some kale and spinach (pretty disappointed with the overall selection of this market). Then we met up with friends for Food Truck Tuesday! More friends were here tonight, so Abigail had so much fun. How I didn't get one picture from the entire day is beyond me! Wednesday: XT or Rest Matt and I were startled out of bed when Abigail announced from our bedroom door that she threw up. What a wake up call! I spent my day rationing fluids and food. Abigail is only 4yo so she wasn't able to comprehend why she couldn't drink or eat as much as she wanted. It was exhausting for both of us! Even though Abigail was feeling better in the afternoon, she took a nice long afternoon nap which is very unusual! I had a 6pm Chiropractor appointment, so luckily Matt was able to get home in time to take over before I had to leave. I picked up a Starbucks on the way so I could unwind the long day. The visits always start with 15-20 minutes in a massage chair. I love this chair; it even has a calf muscle massage option! I got cracked in all the right spots and was able to go home fairly refreshed. We were all thankful Abigail's afternoon/evening was back to normal.
Thursday: 3-5 Miles Abigail & I took the morning easy, not wanting to overdo it too quickly. Since she seemed to be back to normal, had hadn't puked in over 24hrs we decided to venture to her swim lesson (chlorine kills everything, right?). Her appetite was back and had a good class so I took her to gymnastics a few hours later. Again, she was her normal self again. So weird! I did get to Gold's to run a bit in the evening. I managed a 5K in 34 minutes (10:55mm pace) but was tired. I stopped by Publix on my way home and stocked up on my favorite chocolate, Chocolove Almonds & Sea Salt in Dark Chocolate. Yes, it has been one of those weeks! I finished my day with season finales of Grey's Anatomy & Scandal...wow!
Friday: 3 Miles or XT (Optional Bail Card) The sun finally came out enough for me to get out Abigail's little princess pool and let her play outdoors with water. Brewer loved it just as much, if not more, than Abigail. The colder weather lingering throughout May has really been extra strange for me. I'm still a FLgrl at heart and it is NOT supposed to be cold in May. I sat outside and got some much needed Vitamin D while the kiddos played. I look forward to more of these moments throughout the summer! Another exciting piece of Friday? My Foodie Penpal package arrived! I'll be posting all about what I received on May 31st, so keep an eye out.
Saturday: LR: 8 Miles We attended an early afternoon birthday party before Matt's parents arrived for the night. Abigail wanted her Nana & Papa to go bowling! So we enjoyed a full day socializing and playing.
Sunday: Rest I woke up early, race morning style, and felt energized. I checked the weather, still a chance for rain. I had told Brandi I would join her at the Freight Train 5K, and she was hoping to PR again like she did on the course last year. About 15mins before the 7:30am race start, it started to POUR. Luckily there were some tailgate tents from different vendors and the majority of the racers were able to get out of the downpour. The race is the first of four in The Locotamotive Series so the race would proceed rain or shine.
The race start was delayed but when the rain let up a bit we were sent on our way, my first experience running in the rain. Unfortunately, the jacket I bought last month (in case of rain for Auburn's Finish on the 50) is not waterproof like I thought! I wasn't drenched but I wasn't dry either. My new InknBurn Dragonfly shorts were FABULOUS! The best part of this morning? I managed a new PR! Even in the rain!
QUESTIONS:
-Do you ever have weeks that seem completely exhausting? How do you recover?
-If you have a favorite chocolate splurge, I'd love to know, please share!
It took me forever to think of someone or something Disney related with the letter "K" other than "Kingdom". Finally, I remembered the Kilimanjaro Safaris! Well, I had to go back and look it up because we usually just call it the Safari instead of by it's full name.
It wasn't until October 2010 until our very first visit to Animal Kingdom, so that was our first time also riding the Kilimanjaro Safaris. The big touring vehicles reminded me a bit of The Jungle Cruise boats on wheels, but it was more informational in comparison the the hilarity of The Jungle Cruise.
The African savanna reminded me and my parents of Busch Gardens, easy to compare since we are from Tampa. Abigail loved looking for all the animals (she wasn't yet 2yo on this visit).
Black Rhino
Our second visit to Animal Kingdom wasn't again until March 2012. Abigail still loves seeing all the different animals! Every time you experience the safari you will have the chance to see a variety of animals.
Crocodile
Crazy Ostrich running at our truck!
QUESTIONS:
-Have you experienced the Kilimanjaro Safaris for yourself?
Below is the Another Mother Runner's Half Marathon: Finish It Training Week 6. Since Week 5 didn't go as well, I should have set that to repeat but instead I was using this week to taper a bit for the half marathon I thought I was running on Mother's Day (I'll touch on this again later). Maybe I should restart Week 5 today, May 13th.
Monday: 3 Miles + Strides or XT
The weather Monday was completely nasty, but it didn't matter since my running friend Katie (from Corral G) would be in town! We had talked about going for a run or dinner, then decided on a Hot Yoga class. The class was Be Hot and was 75mins in length. The instructor focused a lot of the class on balance, Katie and I have LOTS of room for improvement in our yoga skills. It was so nice seeing Katie, and it was so great of her for coming back to the house for dinner where Abigail covered her in stickers and she got lots of unwanted attention from Brewer.
As I walked her out, I checked the mail and my first StrideBox arrived! Through a Twitter chat sometime in April I heard all about StrideBox, it's a monthly subscription for runners to try "cool stuff". My box cost $15 and 9 items arrived, very wonderfully packaged, and I was very impressed. I had purchased/tried JellyBelly Sport Beans before but never this specific item and the same goes for the Stinger chews, I have tried another one of thier products but never these chews. I was most excited about The Klitch footwear clip! I never knew something like this existed, and I pulled it up on Amazon.com and this same item retails for $16.95.
Tuesday: 6 Miles Food Truck Tuesdays has returned to a local park during dinner time, so I knew if I wanted to go I had to get my miles in early. I ran 5mi in 58 minutes, an 11:35 pace. I would have tried running a bit more but the gym's childcare closes from noon-4pm daily.
Somehow we never made it to any of the Smyrna Food Truck Tuesdays last year. Abigail & I drove straight over after her dance class, we enjoyed a popsicle each from King of Pops. Abigail chose Strawberry Lemonade and decided to indulge in their Chocolate Sea Salt! Abigail still devoured all her mac & cheese (The Mac Attack) from the Happy Belly Truck. Since it was the first week, we're hoping more trucks will rotate through each Tuesday.
Wednesday: Rest
I had a morning meeting which led to Chick-Fil-A lunch with friends. Abs & I came home to play with Brewer in the backyard before we headed to her swim class. After swim I was on a mission to find the new Chobani Flip I have heard so much about! They are currently only stocked at Target so I took a mini cooler bag to stock up. I found three flavors: Key Lime Crumble, Honey Bee Nana & Raspberry Choco Fix. I got extra lucky because Target had two of these on sale for under a dollar! I had the Key Lime Crumble for dessert and I was super surprised I had to fight Abigail for my yogurt. She loved the "sprinkles" of graham cracker crumbs and white chocolate chips and I'm thrilled, not only did she try it, but she really liked it! We'll be going through lots more Chobani in our house now!!!
Thursday: 3 Miles Speed Training
During Abigail's swim class I decided to search for race details Mountain Momma Half Marathon, my Mother's Day gift! Upon pulling up the site, I saw the race has been postponed until 2014. What? How did I not get notified? Upon further investigation, I discovered I never registered for this race! How did I miss this? Turns out only 19 people registered for this race. The race contact I spoke with said next year they plan to also allow men to register and it will not be held on Mother's Day in 2014.
I hadn't planned on running today, since I had been tapering this week for the half marathon on Sunday. When Abigail & I got home from her gymnastics class, Matt suggested I go for a run. (Well, I didn't think I was pouting.) I wasn't completely in the mood, maybe I was pouting, so I decided to use the VFuel Gel that came in my StrideBox. The flavor was Peach Cobbler and it was very yummy! Unlike other fuels, VFuel is made with only real ingredients. I have never had tummy issues from other fuels, I know other runners who have had some terrible experiences, but had a great run with the help of this VFuel. I ran 5.75mi in 60min, a 10:26mm average pace. I would absolutely LOVE! to sub-1hr at The Peachtree Road Race so I was very happy with this training run!
Friday: 3 Miles or XT
Before we headed out of town for the weekend, the mail arrived with my FREE Quest Bars compliments of Hungry Girl! I got two of Hungry Girl's favorites, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough & Apple Pie and I am so glad because these are two of my favorites too. Sometimes I warm the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough for 10-15 seconds in the microwave (I suggest you do this on freezer paper), and it tastes like a warm cookie straight from the oven. I am so glad Marcia & Lena introduced me to Quest Bars, they have become my new favorite go to bar over the last couple months.
Saturday: LR: 9 Miles Sunday: Rest
There was zero running this weekend. Even though my race was cancelled, we still spent the weekend in Pigeon Forge. Matt & I used to make trips at least annually to Pigeon Forge but it's been THREE years since our last trip. I will post separately about our weekend getaway. Hope you all had a wonderful weekend!
QUESTIONS:
-Do you subscribe to a monthly subscription box service like StrideBox?
-Have you tried Quest Bars and/or gotten your two FREE yet?
-Have you ever had a race get cancelled because of low registration?
We don't often stay at the WDW Resorts. There's usually 5 of us, making one hotel room feel very small, so we stay off property at my aunt & uncle's timeshare or at a Holiday Inn Express (my parents use their points). Many of our Disney visits are day trips from Tampa. It makes sense to us because we get free parking with our annual passes and since we spend all day in the parks, we don't ever leave time to enjoy where we stay (i.e. pool time or on site restaurants).
This picture is from Pop Century, where we stayed for Abigail's 3rd Birthday! It was too cold to even think about enjoy time poolside but we really liked all the super-sized toys and decor throughout the resort.
Overall, this week's training was not great. I ran a Half Marathon on April 27th so I rightfully should have planned rest days but I have a training plan to following and I want to succeed. Well, sometimes a plan needs to be tweaked along the way to ensure success. While this was not my best training week, it was a good week, even with the spontaneous Strep factor...
Monday: 3 Miles + Strides
I knew I was going to start the 30 Day Love Your Greens Challenge with smoothies, but I decided I would step it up a notch and try again with my juicer. I made a huge batch so I could drink off it all week. The recipe wasn't awful; the ginger has taken a while to get used to.
I soon realized you get what you pay for when it comes to a juicer. Towards the end of my juicing, I realized there was only one or two drops coming from multiple slices of apples. One of the pieces of the juicer was clogged with fiber so I transferred all the pulp to a strainer to get every last drop of juice. Not ideal, but it was a very cheap juicer and this is probably why I haven't used it as much as I would like, because it's not really efficient and crazy difficult to clean all the pieces.
Tuesday: 5 Miles
I headed to Gold's in attempt to run a few slow miles. I was pleasantly surprised my legs weren't screaming at me from all the rolling hills during the Auburn Half. After previous races, my legs (particularly my IT bands) have been so extremely sore after hilly races. While I am not really training for hills, I am training and it's nice to know my body is responding without revolting after a race. While my legs felt good, my heart wasn't feeling it. I tried to push through and just couldn't, so I finished two very slow miles and called it a day.
Wednesday: XT or Rest
In the morning, we attended my very last MOPS meeting. MOPS International, Mother's of PreSchoolers, is a Christian based mom's group and it has been a huge part of my "mom life" for the last 4 years. I've really tried to not think about this too much, this is definitely the end of a season of life for me. I will very much miss the advice and encouragement from these women on a regular basis, but I hope to continue the friendships made.
Matt had an all day golf tournament through work so I bought last minute tickets for Abigail and I to Disney on Ice! On Tuesday, I saw a commercial on TV advertising $15 opening night tickets, SOLD. I have wanted to take Abigail to a Disney on Ice show for a couple years now, but the shows have always been scheduled for dates when we already had plans to be out of town. This show was "World of Fantasy" incorporating Cars, Little Mermaid, Pixie Hollow & Toy Story. Abigail loved the show! I'm glad we got the prices we did because all the story lines were directly from the movies, the skating was very well done but for us it wasn't anything extra spectacular since we do have Disney Annual Passes and visit the parks frequently.
Thursday: 3-5 Miles
I went back to the gym, in attempt to run, although I still was not completely feeling it. I kept it slow and was encouraged when others tweeted me saying it's okay to have an easy week, sometimes your body needs it and I know to listen. I felt much better than Tuesday so I managed 5 slow miles.
When I got home, Abigail was getting out of the bath and Matt had be inspect her spreading rash/hives. Lovely. After a quick call to our Pediatrician's on call nurse, we gave her Benedryl and planned for a sick visit to the doctor on Friday to play it safe.
Friday: 3 Miles or XT
Abigail's doctor appointment was not at our usual location but in Acworth, about 30-40mins north of us. It seemed to take forever to get there but Abigail was still her usual self, no signs of a sick kid beyond the red spots. The doctor almost didn't do a Strep test, which I asked for since the on call nurse really seemed to believe the rash/hives was Strep even without seeing Abs. Abigail was a champ getting her throat swabbed, maybe it was the promise of ice cream? The test came back positive, the doctor was very surprised. We were sent on our way with an Amoxicillin prescription and a dosage for Zyrtec to help with the rash/hives. We spent the rest of the day taking it easy, and hoping for no other Strep symptoms! It's not easy forcing a child with so much energy to rest when she feels normal.
Saturday: LR: 8 Miles
Matt and Abigail had a morning home while I headed to breakfast with some awesome Atlanta runners & bloggers! We met at The Flying Biscuit in Brookhaven after Brandi's 5K. It was nice to sit and chat without literally running off before a race. We have been talking more since the Publix Georgia Marathon weekend and it was about time our calendars finally aligned for us to get together! In case you'd like to "meet" these ladies through their blogs, I have listed them below.
Sunday: Rest
We attended the afternoon Braves game against the Mets. Abigail was still feeling fine and with two and a half days worth of antibiotics in her, we decided she would be fine attending. She actually stayed awake the entire game but grew restless during the 7th inning when the Braves went through THREE pitchers (hey, I was growing restless too). Abigail wanted to stick around to run the bases and even thought the line was super long we waited. She did great!
All the kids receive a certificate for running the bases and a Braves shirt!
QUESTIONS:
-How good are you at listening to your body when it comes to needing extra rest?
-How do you handle extra rest days when it doesn't "fit" into your training plan?
I would be receiving my package to Abby and she blogs at Life is Wonderific. I shared with Abby I do not like peanut butter or spicy foods, and some of my current favorites are coffee, dark chocolate and green smoothies. I was excited when her package arrived! 
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