Picture It.

Post race I feel pretty good. My calves are a little sore today. I have a feeling this is because I ran a lot harder during the race then I do during training. So today I hopped on the exercise bike just to get my legs moving and my muscles freed up a bit. I started a new book (I'm nooking the new Sookie Stackhouse!) and ten miles flew by! Granted they were a really comfortable pace, but felt better than sitting on my couch reading.

This all leads me to looking back at my goals. Recently I've been TERRIBLE at the eating well. I will say that I eat healthy. I make good food choices for the most part (nobody is perfect) but I've been out of control with portions and frequency. When I should be loosing weight from training I've been gaining (and not muscle). And right now there is nothing more important than how I'm fueling my body. So be prepared for long posts with lots and lots of photos! I'm going back to my shutterbug ways and taking shots of every single thing I eat. I need to be more aware and accountable.

I've also discovered that there are certain foods I can not have in my house so they are going in the do not buy list. They include: cereal, chips, frozen desserts, chocolate, and dried fruit. I don't know when to say no. I'm also putting myself on a baking freeze until after the race. Oh! and no alcohol until then as well. I need to focus on getting a ton of water, protein, and good carbs.

I think I need a mantra for this... I'm thinking something along the lines of, "My body is too good for that sugary junk!" that may be too long for a mantra.... maybe, "How's that gonna make me feel at mile 10?" Also too long, how about...

"I can do better."

I like it.

Also pertains to other parts of life. And if I feel like expanding it into a longer one... "I can do better, because I deserve better."

How about a garden update?! I was finally able to plant front porch flower pots!

I can't wait for them to all bloom!

Look at how much room I left for them to grow!
This is so unlike me, usually I pack them all in as tight as possible!
I'm learning!

Viking Fest Road Race.

Run! Run Run! I slept terribly last night. I didn't think I would be that nervous for the race this morning, but I was. I woke up at one point from the rain! The rain that wasn't supposed to be here until late tonight. The weather was actually perfect for running. Above 50 and cloudy. I actually like to run in the sun even if it isn't warm... just as an excuse to wear sunglasses. See, I have super watery eyes and people often think I'm sad or in pain most of the time.... I'm not! Just have watery eyes. 

I woke up early to prep for the race. I needed everything to go right so that I could build up some confidence for the half marathon.

I think I've found the perfect pre-race food. About 2 hrs before eat some lovely plain oats! 

1 glass of water before eating:

1/4C Oats 

1/4C Almond Milk 

1/4 C H20

1 Banana

1Tbs Chia Seeds

1/2Tbs Almond butter

1/2 Tbs Peanut butter

With a cup of Mint tea (I'm thinking some green tea might be good for the tiny caffeine kick)

Followed by 1 glass of water.

Half hour before the race eat a date with a smidge of peanut butter

I'm still not sure what I'm going to do during the race though. After five miles I definitely needed something to eat. I'm thinking about using some sort of a fanny pack thingy to hold maybe a water bottle and some goo or a shot Blok

I'll be getting water at every station that is provided that is for sure! This one only had the one hydration spot at the halfway mark. I need to work on my drinking while running action...

I felt great about this run. I ran the entire way! Hooray! At every single hill I said to myself... Conquer it! And I totally did! My goal for this race was to finish as close to 50 minutes as possible. I told my parents who were going to be at the finish line that I'd be there around 55.... guess what?! My finish time was exactly 50:00:16! I am sooooo happy. I really wish I could have made it under 50, but I still feel great about this finish!

Either I am running at lightning fast speed or my Mom jiggled the camera!

Almost at the finish!

I past that couple!

So glad my Mom and Dad were at the finish for me! really makes all the difference!

My Aunt Dawn also ran the race! Go Family!

Post race OJ! 

A great way to recover! Mix of protein and carbs. Delicious.

Do you see me?!

Look at all the people who finished after me!

Thanks for taking the photos Mamma!

After I got home from the race the parade started setting up on my street.

Megan came to watch with me!

And so did Ashley!

Once upon a time I was on the Jr high drill team....

Vikings are scary!

Even though we weren't technically on the parade route they still practiced their candy handing out skills! 

I am so happy about how the race went today. I can't believe that only a little while ago a Doctor was telling me to quit running because of my shin injury and today I ran 5 miles straight! I'd say that is a success!

Today my brother Joe was also involved in a race! His involved a bicycle. He road 106 miles!!! From Portland, Oregon to Pacific City, Oregon in a race called Reach the Beach. I just got off the phone with him and he said he totally rocked it! Go Team Michelson! :)

Just Around the River Bend.

This is my 150th post! Wowzas! I really enjoy writing this blog. Not only does it give me a chance to vent, ramble, and recommend.... it is also a great place for me to keep my memories. I've never been very good at keeping a diary or a journal, but I wish I had been. There is something really neat about going back and being able to see how you were at a certain time in your life. Just looking back over the past year and a half I can see how much I've changed and grown.

I've been thinking a lot about the path I want to take now. I've been graduated from Western for almost 3 years now (holy crap) and have not found a career/passion/decent job. I guess it sort of got me thinking about what I REALLY want to do with my life. I started off by thinking about what I definitely don't want to do with my life.

Basically.... work at a desk. I guess this is because I can't really imagine being creative in this type of job. I know there are many people out there who have desk jobs and love them and thats great (never say never) but I don't think that is my path.

I've thought long and hard about going back to school (become a librarian, nutritionist. dietitian, writer, rocket scientist you know the usual...) but I've never really followed through with finding info and going through with the process.

So now I'm unveiling my my recent life idea plan....

Going back to school.

The Art Institute of Seattle.

Baking & Pastry Program.

Thoughts?

I have a lot to think about and figure out. On Monday I've taking a virtual tour with one of the admissions officers and will have the opportunity to ask a lot of questions (like.... is studying abroad an option?).

So my life idea plan after school would go something like this....

Work for a little while in a bakery. Then open my own Cafe.

They say you should look back at what you wanted to do when you were little to find out what you should do when you grow up. Well when I was little I wanted to open up a bakery that sold muffin tops. This was long before the name had such a negative connotation.

I have a larger menu in mind for the Cafe now, but it would basically be focused on fresh and local ingredients. I'd offer low-fat options, gluten-free, vegetarian, and vegan. Basically everything that I look for in a restaurant and so rarely find.

I'll know a lot more after next week and there is a good chance that it might not work out, but if you never try you never know. I don't want to be 80 yrs old thinking to myself, "If only I had just gotten more information about that Culinary Program."

Today was such a great day! Sunshine and beautifulness! I've kind of gotten out of the habit of taking photos but here are a few food shots. I attempted to carb and protein pack my day so I'd be ready to race in the morning (which really means I ate a ton of food)!

The spinach was supposed to go into the omelet but I forgot! 

Dinner was inspired by my most recent Blog obsession: The Vegan Stoner
They make simple simple simple vegan recipes.
Usually vegan recipes have some weird ingredients and long drawn out processes, not these!
Simple ingredients, simple instructions and cute art!

Yummy Vegan Sloppy Joes!

I'm off to sleep so I can be well rested for my five mile race tomorrow morning! 

Colors of the Wind.

Also a Disney reference...

The Sun is out! It feels warm! Hello sunshine! I've missed you, please don't ever leave me again!

I've been busy soaking up as much time as possible in the rays.

17 days until my 1/2 Marathon. Yesterday I found a description of the course, it sounds a lot hillier than I thought. That makes me nervous. I haven't been running very many hills. So this morning I got up and went for a fairly hilly 4 miler.

I've been trying to pay more attention to how I fuel my workouts and how I recover. My friend Nicole sent me a link to an awesome blog about being a vegetarian runner called No Meat Athlete. There are a lot of great posts on nutrition. So before my run I ate a date dipped in almond butter and two glasses of water. I felt pretty good during the run, but a little shaky. I think I need a little more of something before my runs. Post run:

Protein!! 2 eggs with a smidge of toast and a smoothie.
This smoothie was little but powerful!
1 tiny banana
1 Tbs Chia seeds
1Tbs peanut butter
sprinkle of frozen fruit.
It kept me full for hours!

Lunch was very simple but tasty.
Pita with black beans, salsa, green onions and vegan cheese.
I'm not so sure of the vegan cheese yet...

Last night it was warm enough to do some good old fashion barbecuing and eat out on the deck!

Boca Chicken burgers are sooo delicious.

 I think I need to set some time for me to just sit around my house more often. I realized recently that I am almost never here except to sleep, shower and eat. It became really obvious when my new neighbor of two weeks saw me yesterday and said, "You're never home! You must work A lot." Now I'm self conscious of how much I'm not home and how often I come and go! But really I do think I need to set a goal for this next week to make it a point to slow down a bit more, get more sleep, clean my house, rest and relax.... because this summer is going to be crazy busy!

I finished 'The Help" last night. I LOVED IT! I need to decide what is next... I think I'll wait a few days for this book to settle. That is something I didn't have the luxury of doing when I was attempting my 100 book challenge.

A Whole New World.

I think this week's posts will all be Disney inspired...

On Sunday I ran 8 miles. They were slow. My average pace was about an eleven minute mile. I feel pretty good about it though... mostly because it was on the treadmill and I have a hard time staying focused for very long on the treadmill. I had very little discomfort in my shins after the run! This gives me a little bit of confidence for my race! I know that when I run with people I get a little competitive so I'm sure that on race day my pace will pick up, but I also need to make sure that I don't burn myself out. If I can maintain around a 10:30 pace that would be perfect! I think I've also decided that I should sign up for another half marathon in the Fall. Something close by just so that I can keep up my motivation.... Then maybe next year plan on running the Disney World Full Marathon?! The race goes through the parks! How neat would that be?! Anyways, I'm getting a bit ahead of myself here! 19 days until the race! I need to stay focused on that goal! On Saturday I'll be running in the Viking Fest 5 miler! Should be a great training run and a nice distance.

Today I spent playing in the dirt! It was finally nice enough for me to get some of my plants in pots! Today I tackled the Herbs and edibles!

Everything from Mint to Kale!
I have a TON more work to do in my garden but I put a dent in it!

If the sun doesn't stay out... at this rate I wont have Strawberries until July and Tomatoes until September!

After I worked in my yard for a little bit I headed on over to my Garden away from Garden at Carly's!
We planted some Spinach, Beans and Arugula.
Check out these pests we spotted on her Peony plant!
It is time to start thinking about pests!
I have a serious snail problem... any ideas or tips would be greatly appreciated! 

I'm exhausted! I think I need to bring back the goal of getting 7:30 hrs sleep each night!

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.

Such a great weekend! I don't want to go back to reality! The weekend was go-go-go! Mom and I stayed over in Seattle Thursday night so we would be up bright and early on Friday to walk around town and shop! After a sunshine shopping filled day in the city.... my best friend and her mom, my sister-in-law and her mom, sister, and aunt met up with us for dinner then we all went to see the musical Mary Poppins at the Paramount! Such a great time with the girls! We stayed another night in Seattle and went to Pike's Place market to get our veggies for the week. We also got flowers for the event at the Poulsbo Historical Society that Carly and I coordinated. The event was a huge success, but by Sunday I was soooo tired! So I'm back to blogging after my mini-blogging-vacation!

Sunshine in Seattle!!!! Finally!

P.F Changs for dinner! I love me so fried rice. They also have an entirely gluten-free menu!

Our fortunes.... I hope my Mom's alien one comes true... ha! 

Breakfast of Champions!
We were wasting no time or money on breakfast!
We came prepared with quick oats, bananas, and granola.
Simple easy breakfast that we could make right from the mini coffeepot!

I may not need coffee in the morning anymore, but I still like something hot! Yummy tea!

A guy asked if he could take a photo for us and wanted to know where we were from...
um.... you could call us local tourists.... 

Turns out we got up too early!
The market was just setting up and the stores weren't open yet!
I even had time to go to the hotel gym.
Which is totally a first for me! I forgot my ipod so I only lasted 2 miles.
But the hotel gym was so neat! on the top floor so we had views of the city and the mountains!

I want these tables!

I love market flowers!
These are peony tulips!

Shopping break for Nordstrom cafe lunch.
Its a tradition... and thats my favorite salad.
Salmon Nicoise.

Mom & I right before the dinner. 

The whole gang!
Palomino's was awesome Italian food!

Two of my favorites!
The show was a lot of fun, but I still like the movie more.
Nobody can do Mary like Julie Andrews and nobody can be Burt like Dick Van Dyke.

Ashley and her mom.
Look how preggers she is!

Good morning market. 

Fresh Produce.

Gluten Free Pasta in Fun Flavors.

More Veggies.

We loaded up with veggies and flowers!
I don't think we had ever been up ready shopped and back on the ferry before noon in our lives!
But the sun was out and our energy was high!

Carly at the Historical Museum event!
They would have been lost without us :)

Have a happy Monday!