Halloween weekend

This weekend has been one of ups and downs for me. I had a really great time seeing friends Saturday and the hubs' family Sunday. I even picked pecans with my father in law and our youngest cousin asked for me to hold her - both of which were firsts for me! Remember all the trees at my FIL's house? Two of them produce pecans, and while they are still a little green according to my FIL, they taste good to me!!

We had a bonfire in the backyard with friends Saturday night and were able to use the bench my dad made for us. It was awesome to only lug two chairs back there instead of four or more, depending on the number of guests

Then there's the candy. And my recent downfall - candy corn and peanuts. I finally threw the rest of them away today so I will stop eating that sweet/salty goodness. We had a bunch of trick or treaters last night so I was on candy duty while the hubs took dog duty. Luckily we don't have much candy left so I won't be so tempted to eat it.

Love Target.

I AM SO EXCITED ABOUT THIS PURCHASE!!!

The hubs and I were strolling through Target looking for deals and steals when he spotted our fav coffee on sale WITH NEW FLAVORS!!! I love love love Dunkin Donut coffee and I love pumpkin lattes, so I figure this is just going to blow my mind.

The only bad news is, I prefer to drink lattes at home in the evening, so we usually stock up on some vanilla decaf for that purpose so I'm not up dusting a bookshelf at 12 am.

Kate and me

Walking with my buddy at the park! It's one of the best ways for us to catch up because we are both health-concious and like work out, so walking through the park after work is awesome. Tonight we walked for about an hour before it was getting dark so we headed home.

Kate ran the Chicago marathon a few weeks ago and I'm so proud of her for setting a goal and achieving it! She says she can cross it off her bucket list now - even though she didn't just cross it off, she finished just under 3h30min. That's pretty darn fast for a first-time marathoner!

(it would probably make for a better picture of me if I weren't almost a foot taller than Kate and leaning so much...)

Roasting rocks!

Last night we had my parents over for dinner (and I suckered them into a little yard work too) and intrduced them to the awesomeness that is roasted broccoli. The best part is that my grocery store had broccoli cutlets on sale, so I bought three tree tops for $1.34. That same store (Dierbergs) also had red raspberries on sale for 3/$4, which is a pretty good price for the off season so I stocked up. That trip to the store rocked my world because a lot of times the healthy food is more expensive. I think that just proves that you can have a healthy meal for not that much money. Add some grilled chicken to the broccoli and you've got dinner + dessert!!

Me too buddy.

I worked outside on the landscaping in front of our house all afternoon today. I feel about the same as the dog.

Spin and broccoli

Yesterday I took my first spinning class in two+ years. I was a sweaty sweaty mess at the end, but it was absolutely awesome. I like spinning because you can control the tension and make it your workout. I'm planning on going again Friday, but not sure about after that. The thing is, we don't have a gym membership, but this week I can take classes for free at work, so I'll take advantage of that! I think I can pay per class in the future, so we'll see if I can work it into the budget. It might just be worth it if I can prevent getting any more of what I call "the secretary thigh." I'm not really gaining any weight, but I can tell my thighs are wider than they used to be in college. I think that adds up from part work-all-day-in-a-chair job, and part getting-older.

Tonight I tried "roasting" broccoli in the oven with a little bit of EVOO and garlic salt and it was delish!! I'm pretty proud of myself for not burning them and really liking them!!

Fresh Kicks!

I love Saucony shoes. I've been running/walking/working out in my ProGrid Guide 2's since last January, but they are starting to feel pretty worn out. I just ordered some new kicks - I wanted the Guide 3, but they were not on sale and these were. These are the ProGrid Glide 2. I have not run in them yet, but I wore them shopping all day yesterday to break them in a bit. So far, so good. I plan to keep these as "running only" shoes and wear the old ones for everyday use.