Slow It Down

I really wish time would just slow down a little bit. I can't believe this month is almost over already! I can remember when I was a kid and my Grandpa H would always say how fast time goes when you get older, and now I know exactly what he meant. It seems like the weeks/months just fly by, and I don't like it one bit. I need a slow motion button! 

We had a pretty good weekend of family time and some yummy food. Friday night Hubs and I went bowling, and I'm very happy to report that I beat him TWICE. Actually, you could say three times if you want to count overall pins. We ordered a Chicken Fajita Pizza from the snack bar, and it was freaking delicious (and cheap). We need to try making that one ourselves. Best pizza I ever had! Then we went home and had a family game night. I absolutely love family game nights. They are truly the best <3

Saturday the three of us ventured over to Richmond to check out some stores and eat at one of our favorite restaurants--Genghis Grill. As always, it was delicious and I had to take home half my bowl. They really need to open a location here in Hampton Roads so we don't have to drive over an hour to get our GG fix. Yum!

After we stuffed ourselves, we walked around the mall a bit and just happened to see this.

Yes, that is a man on the right. Yes, he is wearing a mini skirt, carrying a purse, and what you can't see in this pic is that he is also wearing heels. And yes, they are bedazzled to the max. There were people stopping them left and right to take their picture, and they were loving every minute of it. Apparently these folks are pretty popular because several of the locals made comments that they see them all around town and they are always the center of attention. Very interesting!

Yesterday I finally went running for the first time in ten days. I was so pumped because it was finally a little warmer and most of the snow/ice had melted from our "winter storm" last week. The trail I run on goes through a wooded area so there were still some spots of black ice where the sun never shines. I found this out by falling down within the first quarter mile of my run. I'm sure it looked hilarous because my foot only slipped a tad bit, but it was just enough to throw off my balance. I took several crazy steps while flailing my arms around trying to catch myself before digging it. Luckily I fell into the grass, so I just got right back up and kept going. I finished my six miles strong and it felt great!

We finished off the weekend with some laughs by watching this:

 

What were the highlights of your weekend?

 

What was your favorite movie of 2013?

How far did you run this weekend?

Ten Things

With another deployment looming on the horizon, I have been thinking a lot about the things I want to do with Hubs before he has to leave again. Of course this list is actually a mile long, but here are the top ten:

1. Go on a date every weekend. We often go several months without doing anything fun together. That is totally lame and it makes me sad.

2. Show him more love. One thing I know I'm not very good at is showin' some love. I have never been a real touchy-feely kind of person, but I have come to realize during his past deployments that I miss his touch soooo much. Hugs, holding hands, snuggling...all that stuff. I know I will miss it tremendously in a few months when he's gone, so he better watch out because I'm bringing it on.

3. Get professional family photos taken. We have been saying this for the past 6.5 years and still haven't done it. It's time.

4. Go on a weekend getaway--just the two of us. It has probably been about five years since we have just packed up and went somewhere alone for the weekend. We don't have to go far...just somewhere away from this crazy traffic and city life would be marvelous.

5. Surprise him with something he will never forget. Obviously, I can't tell you what it is. It's a secret!

6. Take lots of pictures. I want to take tons of pictures of us doing random things and being silly together. Looking at them will help me get through those tough, lonely days during his deployment.

7. Be more sociable. We haven't made many friends since we moved here two years ago. Part of that is our fault because we haven't really put ourselves out there too much, but also I think it is hard to make friends at this stage in life. Everyone is so busy with work, kids, school, etc. and a lot of times we don't have much in common with most people our age. Everyone else is having babies, and we are close to being empty-nesters. But, I hope we can somehow meet some more people to hang out and create memories with before he leaves.

8. Go on a REAL family vacation. We have never done this. Every year we use our vacation time to go back to Wisconsin to visit our families and friends. No offense, but I don't consider that a vacation because it is very stressful for me and I just can't relax there. Plus, we all kind of head our separate ways and do our own thing--we barely see eachother while we are up there! So, I want one week of just me and my guys exploring somewhere new and having the time of our lives together.

9. Do something outside our comfort zone. I have no clue what this will entail quite yet, but it's going to be something really cool. I promise. Ideas welcome :)

10. Throw him a kick-ass farewell party. Before Hubs deployed in 2012, I threw him a pretty awesome birthday/farewell party in our hometown. It was a lot of fun, and I plan to do it again this time around--only BIGGER and BETTER!

Walk It Out..and a Throwback

I never did get around to that foam roller last night, but I did go for a really nice, relaxing 4 mile walk. I had forgotten how much I love walking since I've been focusing more on my marathon training for the past two months. Walking has always helped me de-stress by giving me time to think things over that have been bothering me. By the time I'm done, I usually feel so much calmer and in a better mood than when I started. For some reason running doesn't give me the same peace of mind that walking does--probably because when I'm running, I am too focused on my pace and breathing and whatever pain my body is producing.  I need to start going for more walks on my non-running days to clear my head and come home refreshed.

We are supposed to be getting a "snowstorm" today over here on the East Coast, but it hasn't done anything yet. Since I am originally from Wisconsin, I find it hilarious that a forecast of a couple inches of the white stuff can produce such mass hysteria. People are talking about going to the store for supplies and making sure they have enough food, water, etc etc. What exactly do they think is going to happen? It's not the apocalypse people, it's just a little snow. Everything will be okay.

Every time I think about snow I remember one of my first dates with Hubs. It was the dead of winter, temperatures were somewhere in the teens, it was snowing (and there was already a couple feet on the ground), and we thought it would be a great idea to walk home from the bar with no coats on. Hubs has the bladder of an eighty year old, so he had to stop along the way home to take care of business next to a parked car. Just then, a fire truck came flying out of the fire station that was a couple blocks away from my house and it scared the crap out of us. Hubs went running down the road trying to get his stuff zipped back up and all I can remember is his tiny white hiney flashing me as he ran away from the fire truck. I also demolished my own son's snowman that night (sorry buddy, the truth finally comes out!) while trying to show off my kickboxing skills, although they weren't very good skills considering it took me a few tries to knock it down. We laughed so hard that night, and I wish we could go back to being so young and silly and carefree. It's hard to believe that was nine years ago already. Where has the time gone??

Here's a little throwback from our wild and carefree days. I miss those times soooo much.....

Weren't we cute?
Hubs and Me, Summer 2005

~Fluffy Girl~

Can't make this stuff up!

The weekend was pretty good overall. Friday night we went out for dinner and drinks with some friends to a place I have been wanting to try out for quite awhile--The Taphouse in Hampton. I was a little scared because it is "downtown"--which around here generally means an area that you wouldn't want to go at night--but it wasn't anything like I imagined it would be. I've heard that during the summer this is THE place to go for a good time on the weekend, so we will have to check it out again once the summer block parties start. It was a cozy little pub with some really good food, and they have a HUGE selection of beers on tap. Hubs tried out a few different beer selections, but I stuck with one of our new favorites that we discovered when we moved here: Yuengling. We had a good time chatting with our new friends and getting to know them better. I even got some good stair climbing in because the restroom was on the second floor, and I think I made at least 4-5 trips up there. I was wearing three inch heels which made the descent a little tricky, but I survived the night without rearranging my face on the wood floor. Go me!

Hubs and Me @ The Taphouse 1.17.14

Saturday we did absolutely nothing besides be lazy and catch up on our DVR. If it wasn't for the dogs needing to go outside, I never would have even seen the sky that day. Sometimes you just need a day of pure nothingness to relax and recharge your batteries.

Yesterday Hubs and I decided we needed to leave the house, but we didn't really have anything in particular to do. We ended up roaming the mall, where I saw this ridiculous and disgusting game:





I actually called Hubs back into the store to see this because I simply could not believe my eyes. The concept of this game just blows my mind. Who in the hell thinks of this stuff? And what kind of person would buy this for their children? "Here kids, go throw poop at each other's heads.It's tons of fun!" And then when they start throwing REAL poop at each other, who is to blame? Oh my goodness. I can't believe the pure stupidity going on in this world today. You can't make this stuff up!

Did you notice I didn't mention any running from this weekend? Yup, that's because I have now pulled a muscle (or something) in my right leg. I was doing some sprinting during one of my short runs last week and managed to come away with a very sore outer thigh. Actually, the pain kind of radiates all the way from my hip to my knee. I did find a foam roller yesterday when we were out and about, so I will be trying that tonight after I find some videos on how to do it correctly. I've got four miles on the schedule for tomorrow--we'll see how that feels after I've rolled myself out.

I hope everyone has a great week!

~Fluffy Girl~

Battle of the Sexes

Being the only female at work has it's pros and cons.

Pros

1. I have my own bathroom. I can spend as much time in there as I want, and nobody can bother me.

2. Every time I pull up to the shop with a truckload of material, the guys practically race eachother to come over and unload it. I think it is hilarious. What a bunch of buffoons!

3. I don't have to deal with other women's catty attitudes. Come on ladies, let's admit it--when there is an office full of women, there is bound to be drama. And there's always "that one" who nobody likes, but we are all forced to make nice and tolerate her crazy ass. I'm so glad I don't have to deal with any of this nonsense.

4. When it's time to go home, the guys always let me budge in line to punch out.

5. A majority of our customers and vendors have said that they prefer to deal with me instead of my boss. However, this probably actually has nothing to do with me being a girl and more to do with the fact that my boss is--um, we'll just say "a difficult person to deal with"--but whatever. I'll take the compliment.

Cons

1. Men stink--literally.

2. I don't have anyone to talk to or be friends with. Face it--most guys couldn't care less who got booted off of The Bachelor, and they don't want to hear about the hilarious thing my husband/son/dog/cat did last night. I do miss the "social" part of working with other women.

3. There's nobody to back me up when the boss is being a complete macho and egotistical bully. I think if there was another female around here, this wouldn't happen nearly as much as it does now.

4. People treat me like I'm an idiot because I work in a male-dominant industry. Sure, I don't know how to use a lathe or weld, but give me some credit. If you are trying to screw me over on pricing for material or sell me something I don't need just because I'm a girl, then YOU are the idiot. Don't you know that buying stuff and getting good deals is what women thrive at?? Duh, stupid.

5.  I will never understand this phenomenon: How men can be complete psycho jerkwads one second and then turn around and act like nothing ever happened. Kind of like the whole, I'm-going-to-punch-your-lights-out-and-then-shake-your-hand-and-buy-you-a-beer thing. This phenomenon happens around here on a daily basis, and it blows my mind every time. {poof}

What do you think--would you rather work with all women or all men?

~Fluffy Girl~

Twitchy

You can always tell when I'm stressed out because two things happen:

1. My right eye twitches.
2. I scratch my face (specifically my huge forehead) in my sleep.

My right eye has been twitching for days, and it is driving me in-freaking-sane. Like, seriously--it is making me a little crazy in the head. My most recent forehead scratch is pretty much healed up right now, but I'm sure another one will appear soon. It is so weird to wake up in the middle of the night and you are clawing yourself in the face.

I just had a brilliant idea! I should start wearing boxing gloves to bed, which would serve two purposes: I couldn't scratch myself in the face, and I could give Hubs a little bump on the noggin when he's snoring and keeping me awake. These seem appropriate:



What wierd and uncontrollable thing does your body do when you are stressed??

~Fluffy Girl~

Runner's Envy

Yesterday when my husband woke up, he decided that he needed to go run a half marathon--so he strapped on his shoes and did just that in under two hours. The reason this blows my mind is because he didn't train for it, he just did it. Sure, he runs a few miles a couple times a week for PT, but not usually more than 4-5 miles at a time. When he got home and showed me his tracker, I was overcome with runner's envy. How can he just wake up one day and decide to run a half marathon without training, and then pull off a sub 2:00??? I wish I was even half as athletic as he is.

After my envy subsided, I figured I better get my fluffy butt out there and get my 8 miles in. It turned out to be a pretty weird run. The first couple of miles I could not get my breathing or pace under control, so I took a walking break and gave myself a pep talk. The next four miles went really well, but then I got stuck waiting for traffic at a red light and that completely threw me off.  The last two miles I was cursing my heavy legs and just wishing it was over already.

On a good note, I finally broke out of that two pound yo-yo effect I've had going on with my weight for the past few months. I actually lost a couple pounds! I just hope I can continue on this path and not go back up again. Could this mean that my new thyroid medicine is finally working?? I sure hope so!

~Fluffy Girl~

This and That

Here's a bunch of random stuff that I have been thinking about this week but just haven't had the time to write about until now. Enjoy!

1. I need some good sleep. I haven't had a full night of rest in what feels like forever. Either the dogs are whining, Hubs is snoring, or I just plain can't sleep because my mind never stops racing.

2. My boy had his first job interview last night at a new pizza place that just opened up in the neighborhood. It was a "group" interview that included about ten applicants--that is a cool concept! The owner went around the room and asked random questions, and my son got this question: If I was cheating on my taxes, would you rat me out? Interesting question for a sixteen year old! I think he answered correctly. Hopefully he gets a call back for a one-on-one interview. Momma needs him to start paying some of his bills!!

3. I ran on a treadmill at the gym the other day because it was so cold outside, and it sucked. I absolutely hate treadmills, and it was the longest 4 miles I have ever ran. It was boring, hot, and there were way too many people around me. I definitely prefer the outdoors and solitude when it comes to running!

4. Hubs decided to shave his head bald again after having hair for over a year. For the record, I prefer him with hair. He was a little upset when I told him he looks five years older without hair, and then he was REALLY upset when a young buck on his basketball team told him he looks ten years older. Haha! Poor guy. Either way, he's a sexy stud in my book :)

5. This week has been really stressful at work. I'm super-duper glad that today is Friday and I won't have to deal with any of these jerks people for two days. I think Hubs and I might have to crack open that bottle of Cherry Doctor McGillicuddy's my parents brought us. Yum!!

6. I have been trying really hard not to think about Hubs's upcoming deployment, but it is a constant thought in the back of my head lately. Several times a day I find myself thinking about it--especially when I'm getting ready in the morning or driving to/from work--and I start to tear up. I just want to slow down time and enjoy every moment with him, no matter how trivial. I'm going to miss our bedtime talks, his nonsense "factoids", and everything else he does that makes me laugh. He is my everything <3

7. Below is a pic of my first official purchase order that I generated with my newly added title of "Purchasing Agent". I am so cool! (Not really-I've been writing purchase orders for a long time, just without the title.)

I hope everyone has a great Friday night! Cheers xoxo

~Fluffy Girl~

 

Facing Reality

After being sick for the past ten days, I'm finally almost back to feeling normal. Now that the cold-medicine-induced haze has cleared, I'm ready to look forward and start thinking what I want to accomplish this year.

The thing that has been weighing on my mind the most lately has been my marathon training. I had signed up to do a full marathon (26.2 miles) in March, but I have come to the disappointing conclusion that I need to face the reality that I'm not going to be physically ready for that yet. I have had some setbacks in my training--thyroid disease related health issues, injury, illness--and I just don't feel like my body is strong enough to be able to finish that race in two months. Yesterday I did finish my 12 miles--but it was painful, I was dizzy the last few miles, and I threw up twice. It really upsets me to have to put this goal off for now, but I am also trying to be realistic. Therefore, I have downgraded my registration from the full marathon to the half marathon. Sometimes things don't work out the way we want or expect them to, so we have to alter our goals. This just happens to be one of those moments. I don't like it, but it is what it is.

So, now that I have made that difficult decision it is time to move on and set some new goals for the half marathon. Over the next two months I plan to really push myself to improve my pace so I can set a new PR (personal record). I am aiming for a sub 2:10, which means I have to get down to about a 9:50 pace. I am currently running closer to a 10:40 with short walking breaks on my long runs. Let's do this!  

Don't get me wrong--I still plan to defeat the almighty full marathon sometime this year, it just won't be in March. After I complete the half marathon, I will continue training instead of taking a break and starting from scratch later in the year. I am on the prowl for a new marathon to sign up for in the fall/winter season. Any suggestions??

I hope everyone is happy, healthy, and enjoying the new year so far!

~Fluffy Girl~