Oh, hai.

Greetings from Virginia!

Can I just tell you that I have been here since Friday and not put on "real" clothes (aka not pajamas) since I've been here? It's glorious.

We had a wonderful Christmas Eve and Christmas - my dad was extra spoiled since his birthday is today also.

I decided after inhaling 9,576,422 extra calories since being here, I needed to go for a run. And my pops rode his bike beside me, which made me feel a little bit like Rocky Balboa.

"It's not ovah!"

But I was really glad he went with me, because I was too embarrassed to wuss out and walk so I made sure to run the whole way. :)

Maybe I'll do it again tomorrow.

....or continue eating the cheeseball, spinach dip, cookies, cherry cheesecake, etc.

Merry Christmas!!!

Beer is good for carbo-loading.

So Friday afternoon we had our work holiday party. It was nice to get out of the office early and see all the white elephant gifts. (I still maintain the gift i bought was the best - a Waist Trimmer from the 99 cent store.)

After stuffing my face with half a quesadilla, a meatball, carrots & ranch and two Bud Lights, i figured a run would not be happening. But the weather was sooo nice (finally!) that i talked myself into it.

And it was a great run! Maybe I'm on to something with this beer & quesadilla mix... :)

I also managed to go to the gym yesterday to log 4 miles and do some weight training. The couple of runs I've done on the treadmill have been less than stellar; i guess I'm used to the asphalt now. (But i do like having the TV right there on the 'mill - genius.)

I'm sure the majority of us prefer the road to the treadmill, but do you find the treadmill a bit more challenging  when you haven't used it lately?

I leave Friday to see my family in Virginia!! Hoping for no snowstorms this year. :)

Tom & I exchanged gifts already - we can never wait for the actually holiday. Imagine my surprise when i was presented with a pretty blue box!!! This is my first piece of Tiffany's jewelry...he did good. :D

Oh, I have a blog?

Sorry I've been so quiet lately...it's the holidays, things are busy, it's still cold in Phoenix, blah blah. My posting will probably be sporadic until after the New Year, but I'll still be around!

I got a 7 day pass for a gym last night, since I knew I wouldn't be getting out to run in this crappy weather. I've definitely lost some stamina since taking a couple weeks of running, as evidenced by the 3 mile treadmill run. :P

I just need it to quit raining/being cold so I can get back into the swing of things! Anyone else struggling to run?

These guys are hardcore. 

I am a WIMP.

You guys. I don't like cold weather. Part of the reason I moved to Arizona.

And this past week, it has been cooooold. (for Arizona.)

Which has led to me not running. Because I'm a wimp.

Part is due to not having winter running gear and (the biggest) part is that I hate being cold.

So basically, i don't have anything to blog about because I haven't been running!

BUT - it's supposed to be warming up at the end of the week. And uh, I kinda have a half marathon to train for so I need to get my butt in gear.

I'm back to Vegas this weekend....just for Friday night. We'll see if the black jack tables are as kind to me this trip as last!

Pic from this weekend's Ugly Christmas Sweater bar crawl!

Proud.

It's not much, but it's something.

The past two days I had a horrible headache - the kind that was a constant dull ache and makes you want to throw up. Tuesday night it was all I could do to just lay on the couch. But last night I felt a tad bit better and contemplated a run.

Normally, I would have talked myself out of it. But something has happened: the past few runs I have felt strong. I've found myself craving the turnover of my feet on the pavement and the rhythmic breathing.

So I strapped on the Sauconys and went for a run. A pretty decent three miler - when I was worried I'd barely be able to make it one mile.

I like it when this happens. :)