day 15 & 16

day 15 :: yesterday

workout was awesome.  

lesson: do not write workout down with a marker. 

noted.

yesterday i ran to the gym and did all five circuits two times. 

when all was said and done, my hrm (hear rate monitor) read 1331 calories burned.

some of the cardio portions i have to change up.  jump rope, jumping jacks and plyo-steps aren't going to happen for me.  mostly because of the fact that i can't jump without peeing myself but also because i have to check out a step if i want to do plyo-steps and i don't want to take the time.  (plyo = jump training. so basically, it would be jumping off of and on to a step/box).  

instead, i busted out some old tricks i learned from an awesome trainer.  side-step running on the treadmill is a serious calorie burner.  it's also a super awesome workout for targeting the inner/outer thighs.  it sort of looks like this to start (this is not the awesome old trainer.  just some random dude from the google images):

{image}

basically you shuffle sideways in intervals (20 seconds per side).  for me, i raise the incline to 12% and the move the speed to 3.8 - 4.0 mph and then i shuffle 20 seconds per side (two times each side) with 10 seconds running forward in between each side.  when i get brave, i'll turn and go backwards.  i'm not there yet.  maybe if i try slowing the treadmill down a little bit.  give it a try.  i dare you.  adjust the speed and incline to your ability (over estimate because we tend to not give ourselves enough credit).  oh, and, NO HANDS!

day 16 :: today

after my workout i let my little guy sneak upstairs to the "adults only" training area so i could stretch.  our reserved time in the child center was up but i wasn't ready to leave.  we were being "ninjas"  so no one would see us.

have i ever mentioned how awesome this kid is?  he felt super cool to be stretching with mom.

don't cry but, i didn't take a photo of my written workout today.  i could get up from the couch and get it but, i'm not going to.  it was good stuff.  again.  hrm read 770 calories burned today.  

there was a woman in the gym who seemed to always be using whatever machine i needed every time i needed it.   i got tired of waiting so i improvised one of the hamstring exercises with an old favorite.  this is another burner.  it works so well, i tell you!  give it try.  will you? 

15-20 reps with your butt tight and hips as high up as you can get them.  roll the ball in toward your butt using your heels and then push it back out to start position.  good stuff.

{image}

 dinner was a bust again tonight.  i don't even think i really had a "meal"  ... but lunch was good.   another visit to the park with some cute little people.  a little windy but warm enough so, we'll take it!

this park has an entire section for the fitness enthusiast.  there are also a ton of trails around the area.  we live pretty far away so i've never used it but, it looks cool.  if you live in draper, i hope you take advantage of these free amenities.

now i'm totally pooped.  needing sleep.

tomorrow is a "rest" day so i'll go for an early run with running buddy/neighbor/friend who is back from vacation and take a break from the gym. 

did you workout today?

if so, what did you do?

if no, what stopped you?

chili mac

if you eat really clean all day and save your fat calories up for this dinner then it definitely qualifies as nutritious.  i think.

the kids in this house gobbled it up.  so did the man and the woman.

super good taste and super simple to make. 

to "healthify" just a little, i substituted vegetable oil for olive oil, ground beef for laura's lean ground sirloin, whole wheat shell pasta for regular elbow macaroni and regular tomato sauce with the "no salt added" version.  perfectly delicious.

chili mac

printable version

recipe via tracey's culinary adventures

1 tbsp olive oil

1 lb ground beef or turkey

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp cumin

1/2 tsp salt

1 tbsp brown sugar

2 cups water

2 - 8oz cans salt free tomato sauce

2 cups whole wheat noodles, elbow or shell 

8 oz sharp cheddar, shredded

heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.  add onion, chili powder, cumin and salt and saute until softened, about 5-7 minutes.   

add brown sugar and meat.  saute until meat is no longer pink.

stir in water, tomato sauce and noodles.  bring to a boil over medium high heat and then cover until noodles are cooked adjusting heat as necessary to maintain vigorous simmer and stirring frequently to avoid noodles sticking to the bottom of the pan.  (10-12 minutes)

turn heat off and stir in 1/2 of the cheese until melted.  top with remaining 1/2 of the cheese and cover for an additional 2 minutes until melted.

yields 6 servings

Nutrition Facts recipe chili mac Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 442 Total Fat 17.7g       Saturated Fat 8.4g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 80mg Sodium 564mg Carbohydrate 40.3g       Dietary Fiber 4.2g       Sugars 5.9g Protein 30.6g Vitamin A 24% Vitamin C 11% Calcium    29% Iron 34%

long weekend

we all love a long weekend.

i especially love a long weekend when i get to go on a date with my husband.

on friday the kids and i spent the day with my mom.  we had lunch at rumbi grill where i had the south seas salad with fat free sesame dressing and then we shopped the gateway.   she spoiled my kids with new summer clothes.  my mom is cool like that.  i totally would have just cut off some jeans into shorts and long sleeve shirts into tank tops.  "now go play."  ha!  you know i kid.

earlier in the week i'd gone to nordstrom rack and old navy with the hopes of finding some summer shorts.  this is a challenge for me because i really have a love/hate relationship with my legs.

for the obvious reasons, i love my legs.  they allow me to run.  they are strong and dependable and i'm grateful for them but, they're not shapely like i wish they were.  they're not stretch-mark/varicose vein/cellulite free like i wish they were.  my thighs are too thick to fit into bottoms that fit my waist.  my knees are discolored and probably my least favorite part of my body.  i bruise easily and have pockets of fat on my shins.  thank you genetics.  all things i have no control over so i accept and move on but ...

shorts are tough to find.  i'm not comfortable wearing shorts.  shorts look funny on me.

i want to wear shorts.

my friends say i'm shopping at the wrong stores.  that these shorts are not the right fit for my body type.  that i need shorter shorts or longer shorts.  shorts that don't hug my thighs.  

sigh.

sigh.

sigh.

so while at the gateway with my mom, we ventured into urban outfitters and i tried on these shorts.

they were super cute on.  the high waist is flattering and they balloon out enough that they actually feel comfortable.  but .... they're $54.  for a pair of shorts.

sigh.

then i found this super cute shirt.  this model sucks at modeling this shirt.  it was much cuter on me! snicker.

but .... it's was $39.00.  seriously people, i cringe.  $100 for one pair of shorts and a shirt!?  my mom says i wouldn't have blinked at the price tags back on that one day.  that one day when i had a job that paid me real money.

sigh.

so the search continues.  ugly legs remain.

****

our babies slept at my parents on friday night.  my husband took me on a date to thai basil.  well, i might have drove us there but, i'm pretty sure he drove me home and he paid the bill. 

i've been wanting to try this restaurant for awhile but we all know how much my man doesn't love curry so it wasn't a planned stop for food.  actually, we were going to go try "the wild rose" but lucky for us, they had their menu on the window as you walk in so we saved ourselves the embarrassment of being seated and then having to leave after we realized one entree was $30+!  yeah, so that didn't happen.  bummer because we really loved his other two restaurants but ... times have changed.

back at thai basil husband ordered sweet and sour chicken and i had the yellow curry.  yum. yum.

we went to frogurt too.  i had coconut yogurt with lots of berries.  husband had chocolate with lots of butterfinger.

on saturday morning i met up with candice for a run.  girl ran the ogden marathon last saturday and still wanted to run yesterday.  capital C Crazy!  i forgot my garmin but i guestimate we ran between 6.5 - 7 miles and guess who we ran passed twice on the trail?  jerry sloan!  what the celebrity?!  he totally talked to us too, he commented on the yummy bugs we were eating as we ran through swarms of them.  super gross.  then he may or may not have said we looked like super awesome runners.

so that was cool.

then the hub and i went to pick up the kids.  it was inevitable.  

and then.  and then ...

we took them to see kung-fu panda II.  it was funny but the husband didn't laugh much because he was so furious over having been financially raped by the movie theater so the kids could have a hot dog.  it should be illegal.  seriously.  what a friggin' rip off.  i chose to starve through the movie so i could come home and have my curry leftovers.  luckily we had an empty water bottle in the car so i ran out and grabbed it, filled it at the drinking fountain and then we passed it back and forth throughout the movie.  i can't believe people so willingly pay that kind of money for crappy junk food.  nasty. nasty.

normally we stop at the store to get snacks before we go to the movies but we were short on time and our little guy was getting tired so we didn't want to wait for the next movie.  i say "we" when i should say "i."  then wouldn't you know it,  little guy fell asleep on my lap 10 minutes into the show and slept the entire time.  shoot n' stuff!

so that's been our weekend so far.  now we're just hanging out.  my belly is sad.  i don't know why.  maybe it was the ihop i had for dinner?  kids eat free with the purchase of an entree right now.  did you know this? we were out late and happened to drive by.  the luck! i had their whole grain blueberry pancakes.  i only ate about 1/2 and had two scrambled eggs with water.  so maybe i have a bug?  maybe their pancakes were poisoned?  we'll never know.

i hate ihop.  crazy balloon lady made the kids those character balloons that make them really happy and loud and giggly and goofy.  the nerve.

anyway.  tomorrow i'll bust out jillian's day 11 workout.  i feel good besides the little tummy trouble.  i feel good about my food choices and good about my increased strength.  i like this "plan" a lot.

sorry for a super boring post. 

~ happy day.

food funk

guess what?  some people besides my mom and sister-in-law have started following my blog and i feel crazy awesome because of it.  we all like to feel "it" .... what's the word?  needed/wanted/desired/necessary/validated/important/worthwhile.  need i go on or do you get my point.  we all like to feel worthwhile.  some of us have an easier time than others at admitting it.  SEE ME! SEE ME!

thank you for seeing me.

****

yesterday i went for an early jog( -- think 5:45 a.m). normally i don't go out alone that early in the morning. usually i go out with my neighbor/friend/running buddy but she's on a much coveted vacation with her family and i didn't want to miss a run.  it was light enough outside that i felt safe enough.  i ran our 5.5 mile loop in just over 45 minutes.  quicker than we typically run it but there was no talking so, i'm sure that helped.

we are lucky to live in a beautiful area.  i run the same few loops all the time and never get tired of it.  our city is at the base of the oquirrh mountains and has a great deal of zoning for farmland and horse property.  it is not uncommon to see several deer out grazing in the early morning hours and yesterday, i happened to catch the beginning of a beautiful sunrise right over one of the small fishing lakes.

 

{iphone app is camera+ and processing app is phototreats}

currently i'm in a get-me-out-of-the-house mood.  i've been going stir crazy.  the hunk i call my husband has been working long hours which means that i get lonely.  and after awhile, bored.  he's one of the few taller humans i get to interact with on a daily basis and when he's not around, the shorter humans start to get on my nerves.  just a little.  

luckily the weather has been a little less temperamental (knock on wood) so i took the kids to the park for a lunch picnic yesterday.  i picked up a salad at super-target and ended up with a stomach ache later on.  i blame it on the processed deli meat.  only because it's the one thing i had to choke down.  deli meat = yuck.  the kids swiped my cheese before i could even offer it to them.

they ran around with some random kids and their kite-flying dad.  thank goodness for him and his free entertainment so i could enjoy my salad and skinny latte.

dinner has been crappy two out of the last three nights.  i hate to admit.  i only have photos of yesterday's dinnertime meal but i'll be posting about it separately (oh, the anticipation is going to kill you!).

between baseball games, practice and cub scout pack meeting, we've been stretched thin on time in the evenings and i didn't plan or prepare meals in advance.   never a good combo.  i end up eating super clean and feeling awesome all day and then BAM! i'm sitting at training table trying really hard not to have a cheese fry.  or two.

next week will be better.  i need to get out of this cooking funk.  i've found that meeting the ratio requirements laid out in "making the cut" is tougher than i thought it would be (40/30/30 :: carbs/protein/fat).  i've never thought of myself as a lover of carbs but i definitely choose carbs over protein more often than not.  i don't love to have eggs for breakfast, i don't love deli meat at all and chicken on salad for lunch can get old real fast.  

for dinner, it's a challenge to cook healthy dishes that actually taste good without adding some sort of carb.  i'm not feeling creative enough to work out some new recipes and i'm not interested in cooking myself a meal separate from what i'm feeding my family.  i need some inspiration.

being an example to my children is my top priority.  when we sit down for dinner at night, i don't want to be eating two separate meals.  it's sends the wrong message.  "ours is not good enough for her and hers is not good."  i want them to grow into capable adults.  the kind who can make informed/healthy choices.

i need to ponder this.  it deserves my immediate attention.  noted and i'll get back to you asap.

today i finished another workout in just over 60 minutes.  i think it was day 11.  it was fine.  still sweating like crazy and push-ups are not getting easier but i have to say, i really did feel stronger during my run yesterday.  this made me really happy.  i'm enjoying this process a great deal.  re-familiarizing myself with the gym equipment and waking up sleeping muscles.

for lunch today i made a salad out of the bar at our local grocer.  i love our local grocer.  they're not the cheapest option for food but their produce, meat and delicacies are top notch.  i don't like to shop anywhere else.

they even have a little sitting area for eating that over-looks the store. once i purchased my groceries, we took the elevator up with the full shopping cart, three kids, a slice of pizza, mac n' cheese, my salad and we were set to enjoy our lunch.  after sissy finished her glass of water, she decided the best spot for the empty cup would be over the rail.  

she got in BIG trouble for that one.  i'm the meanest mom ever by the way.

tonight we took our two older kids to training table for dinner.  the little guy went to have a special sleep over with grandpa and grandma.  at dinner, sissy said, "i mentioned to myself in my head that it's weird without gavin here.  i miss him already."  cute.  

that there is my grilled chicken sandwich less mayo.  notice the ketchup through the glass of water.  cool, right?  i probably had a few cheese fries but not too many.  it wasn't until our trip for yogurt after dinner that i came to regret eating too much.  thank goodness for alka seltzer.   husband calls me weak.  my belly can't handle that much sugary food all at once.  no more yogurt for me for a long time (think: at least a couple of days).

tomorrow i will repeat the day 10 workout for day 12.  i'm excited to be done with these circuits so i can move on to new stuff next week.  

husband and i will possibly be going on a hot date tomorrow night.  i might wash my hair.

i'm anxious over the low miles i've been logging every week so i'll try to add some miles in on saturday.  i'm having to constantly remind myself that this training is only for 30 days and i'm not signed up for any races in the near future so what's the big deal?  cross-training is good emily, not bad.

cross training is good.  my muscles are sore so i've been rolling a lot on my foam roller (self-myofascial release) which is also really good for me.

it's the cheese fries that i should be worrying about .... even though i only had a few.

lemon poppy seed muffins

{next time, i'll try using wheat flour instead of AP flour and yogurt instead of sour cream}

lemon poppy seed muffins

printable recipe

via brown eyed baker

2/3 cup granulated sugar

zest and juice from one lemon

2 cups flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled

3/4 cup sour cream (i used light)

2 eggs

1 tsp vanilla

2 tbsp poppy seeds

pre-heat oven to 400 degrees and line muffin tin with cups or spray with non-stick spray.

in a small bowl, 

mix the lemon zest and sugar together with your hands until sugar is dampened and smelling of delicious lemon.  

in a large bowl, whisk together flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  stir lemon sugar into mixture.

in a medium bowl, combine melted butter, eggs, sour cream, lemon juice and vanilla.  

fold wet ingredients into dry ingredients until combined adding the poppy seeds before the last few stirs.  try not to over mix.  

spoon batter into muffin cups and bake for 18-20 minutes until tops begin to golden.

cool on rack.

yields 12 muffins

Nutrition Facts lemon poppy seed muffins Serving Size: 1 serving Amount Per Serving Calories 217 Total Fat 9.9g       Saturated Fat 5.9g       Trans Fat 0g Cholesterol 55mg Sodium 179mg Carbohydrate 27.7g       Dietary Fiber 0.5g       Sugars 12.7g Protein 4.3g Vitamin A 7% Vitamin C 4% Calcium    9% Iron 5%

strengths and weaknesses

today i finished the day 9 workout in just over an hour.  one thing is for sure, i suck at push-ups which bugs because this wasn't always the case.  in fact, at one point in time, push-ups were a strength of mine.  that was five years ago when i used to do them with my feet on a bench and my hands on a body ball.  up, down, up, down.  now, i can barely squeak out four or five regular push-ups before i have to drop to my knees.  it's frustrating because it seems like no matter how much i do them, i am not getting any stronger.  

honestly, i think i know why the change.  back at that same time when i was pushing up on a balance ball, i lost a lot of weight and decided to have my mommy boobs enhanced.  the implants were placed under my muscles.  my muscles were therefore cut in order for the placement to be had.  my "pecs" seem to have never recovered so you can imagine how bad i suck at scorpion push ups.

jillian says if you even consider doing "girly" push-ups then you should "toughen up or go buy someone else's book."  she would be so disappointed in me when i do three push-ups and then drop to my knees for the rest.  

workout 8 written out here:

when i do jumping jacks, i pee my pants.  so that sucks.  

workout 9 looks like this along with my lunch from today:

push-ups can be my weakness as long as core strength can be my strength.  "pike crunches" are tough as hell but, i'm good at them.  proof that i have abdominal muscles under all the leftover mom belly stuff.  i even have photos of me doing pike crunches from a few months ago.  some of my internet friends and i worked through a 30-day picture challenge together and this happened to be one of the series i used to document my workout from that day.  you might wonder, "who has such photos of themselves?"  ... me, i do.  this is a pike crunch.  try it.

as far as my diet is concerned, the last two days have been boring.  simple yet good.  nothing exciting to report.  i haven't really been using any of the recipes from the "making the cut" book but i've been faithfully logging my food and i tried a new recipe for asian slaw last night.  it was dinner and it was good.  i'll post the the recipe soon.

at costco i picked up some taboule.  i'd read about it on janae's blog and it looked good so i thought i'd give it a try.  it is good.  i added it to my tortilla wrap yesterday for lunch along with a 1/4 cup of fat free cheddar, 1/4 cup of black beans and 1/2 an avocado.

can you tell i've been playing with photo apps on my iphone?  fun stuff.  this was our weather yesterday. it was pouring and the kids loved running around in the rain.

tomorrow is a rest day so i'll go for a run and give my little guy a break from the rec-center child care center.  he's been brave lately.  today was his first time in alone.  no tears!  when we got home i asked him if he would take a picture of mommy.  he's three.  he said, "because you're so cute?" then he said, "sure!" in his most pleasant voice.  i love that boy.

the end.

weekends end

we're going to make a group decision to pretend that i didn't eat what i really ate today.  okay?  my mom did not make twice baked potatoes and i did not eat one.  i did not buy "the kids" a bag of starburst from the gas station and we did not share them.  okay?  the fruit in the vanilla berry swirl soft serve at costco was not originally frozen in heavy syrup.  sooooooo ...

days like today, they happen.  and it's okay.  welcome even.  i enjoy food.  a lot of different kinds of food. even though jillian would for sure be screaming in my face.  tomorrow is going to be awesome.  and so is the next day.   however, if every day were like today,  i'd be headed down the wrong path.  that path does not lead to my goals.

breakfast was great.

but i got all screwed up having my hunky husband go with me to costco.  usually, if i'm not alone, i'm dragging two or three or four children along with me.  we don't do the "let's grab a hot dog" thing. ever. but today was chill and i basked in his presence even though i had to stand there and wait for him to try on the same pair of gloves he tries on every time he comes to costco with me.  yes, he has these gloves.  no, apparently he cannot remember what size he buys every other time.

after our little shopping trip, we went up to my parents for chillaxin' and dinner.  one minute, i was sitting on the porch, enjoying the sun ...

and then the next thing you know ....

the weather is seriously pre-menstural. 

my mom made dinner for us.  we love oven fry chicken and my plan was to just have chicken and salad but then she pulled the potatoes out of the oven and they had melted cheese all over them.  melted cheese.  i just can't not have something with melted cheese on it.  i'm sorry.  not.

i probably ate two mini butterfingers too.  maybe three but probably just two.  unless it was three.

are we bored yet?  no?  okay then, real quick, yesterday happened too.  i cleaned house all. day. long and it felt oh-so-good to have it done.  i was so focused on the task at hand that i didn't stop and sit to eat.  i just whipped up a shake before we headed to the rec center for swimming/running at 7:00.   this means dinner was way late but, we promised the kids they could swimming and i really wanted to squeeze a run in.

that's a click protein shake.  click is yummy.  if you like espresso, you'll like click.  i blend it with about a cup of vanilla soy milk and a scoop of chocolate protein powder.  yummers!

i'm excited to start a new workout tomorrow.   ...  are you going to exercise tomorrow?  i'm excited if you are.

one week down

yesterday was day seven. 

this is what the week looked like.  every single day.  today we have sunshine and it's so sun-shiny!

the first week was relatively easy and i definitely notice a difference in the fit of my clothes.  less bloaty-ness probably.  i'm not weighing myself or taking new measurements until the end of the 30 days.  even though the motivation to start the program stemmed from me wanting to drop a few pounds and tighten up, i don't want this to be the main motivation.  it's going to be on the bottom of the list of reasons for doing this.

"making the cut" workouts are tough as hell but i'm genuinely enjoying them.  they remind a lot of the same kind of training i did with a great personal trainer back in 2006.  my body responds to circuit training.   lifting weights without the cardio mixed in to keep my heart rate elevated bores the heck out of me.  i like to *feel* like i'm getting a good workout when i'm lifting weights and obviously, for me, that means i need to be short of breath and leaving puddles of sweat on the floor when i'm done with a minute of mountain climbers.

the third and fourth workouts were a repeat of the first and second.  i'll learn new moves next week.

my hair goes curly when i sweat.  i think this is weird because it doesn't go curly just from being wet.  only sweat has this effect.  maybe i should bottle my sweat up to sell as a hair curling product?

it's okay to take pictures of yourself at the gym.  it's not weird at all.

food wise, i have been right on track up until yesterday evening but, i'm okay with this because i was able to enjoy a fun night with the girls.  my cute friend candice hosted bunko at her house where i enjoyed my fair share of coconut topped chocolate chip cookies and two slices of hawaiian pizza.  by the time we got there, i was hungry after not eating too much throughout the day.  i probably did this on purpose knowing i would cave to any temptations at bunko even though i'd told candice earlier in the week that i was going to try not to have any pizza.  -- i need to mention that this girl is crazy and hosted bunko (12 crazy, loud women throwing dice around) the night before she was to run a marathon!  that's right, she's probably close to finishing her race as i type this and i'm dying to hear from her.  you go girl!!!!

tenille and i both won some money so we stopped at red mango on our way home because it was the right thing to do.  i love spending time chit chatting with tenille.  she's probably one of the most sincere, genuinely nice people i know.  

anyway, back up.  after my workout yesterday my mom came out and took the kids and i to lunch at zupas.  i ordered a small bowl of asparagus soup and had them build me a salad.  zupas is stupid.  you get four toppings on your salad but one topping = one teaspoon.  guess how many mandarin orange portions one can fit in a teaspoon?  yeah, like two.  i was annoyed and rude.  sometimes i can't help it.  stupidity makes me mad.  my mom was probably embarrassed (sorry mom).  she didn't raise me to be rude and demand more oranges from the snippety teenager behind the counter.   it's that time of the month.  i shall be excused.

after lunch we drove around american fork looking for the highland nursery.  once found, my too-nice-to-me-mother forced a potted plant down my throat for my front porch.  she wouldn't accept no for answer.

see how purdy ...

on thursday i ran to the store after the gym to get a few things for this yummy-looking quinoa salad i came across on the internet.  while there, i decided to grab a carton of eggs.  i've been going through eggs like crazy so we were due for some more.  too bad this was the only carton left of brown eggs.

want some poop with your eggs?

don't worry.  i didn't buy it.  seriously gross.

the salad ended up being a major bummer.  which was a major bummer. it looked and sounded so good but it was so bad, i don't even dare link to the original recipe.  i think it originated from the biggest loser or somewhere like that.  maybe i just don't like quinoa?  i try and try it but every time, i'm really disappointed.  the texture bothers me.  

it looks good right?  looks are deceiving.

in the evening i went with my hunky husband up to the in-laws so he could help them with some electrical work.  we stopped at mcdonalds on the way up there.  the kids were in heaven and my man scarfed his food like he might die if he didn't eat right. now.  i don't like mcdonalds.  i don't like feeding my family mcdonalds either but, whattya do sometimes?  for me, i waited until we got to my in-laws and then i raided their fridge to make myself something that wouldn't leave me feeling guilty and/or with the best diarrhea ever.  

it ended up looking like this.  yum?

today is a beautiful saturday but the husband is away working so i think i'll get some house work done while he's gone.  this will make me feel like a contributing member of our family and then hopefully when he gets home, i will be able to convince him to go over to the rec center with me so he can take the kids swimming while i squeeze a run in.  

happy saturday internet!