My 12 Days of Christmas Challenge
Today I am blatantly copying Kae and her 12 Days of Christmas Challenge. Starting on Wednesday the 13th, she has a challenge for each of the remaining 12 days until Christmas- read a Christmas book, go for a walk to look at lights, eat a family dinner at the table, etc. I love the idea of assigning an activity to make each day distinctive. The days in December always seem to fly by. This seems like a way to slow it down and feel like each day is important (not just a stepping stone to December 25th.) Here’s my own 12 Days of Christmas list: Wednesday 12/13- I didn’t read about Kae’s challenge until Thursday, but luckily Wednesday WAS a special day anyway- it was my “elfing” day! I opened and organized all the Amazon packages that had been shoved in my closet, and wrapped presents. I really enjoyed it! And I got a lot done. Thursday 12/14- Honestly, this day and Friday were hard to fit into the challenge. There are just so many things I have to get done, and I’m trying to reframe it. We can call this “elfing day junior”- when I got home from work I discovered four more gifts had arrived, so I had a mini-wrapping session (my daughter was at school late for a rehearsal.) I also finished up my Amazon orders. In the last post I asked for stocking stuffer ideas for my son, and I was amused to notice that almost EVERYONE mentioned socks. Okay you guys, socks have been ordered! Friday 12/15- Decorating my son’s room. Finishing the outdoor lights. Once again, these are more “tasks” than fun challenges, but I need one more “Christmas work day” and this is it! Saturday 12/16- Very special day- my son comes home!!! Family dinner at the table with festive decorations and twinkle lights. Sunday 12/17- Cookie baking! I’m thinking of making these rum balls from Sally’s Baking Addiction. These will be part of the gifts to my daughter’s flute and guitar teachers, and I think they’ll appreciate an “adult” cookie. I’ll also make another kind of cookie- not sure what yet, but something my kids will like. Monday 12/18- Starting the family puzzle! Ha ha, we’ll see how this goes. I decided we’re all going to do a puzzle this Christmas, so I ordered this one: My daughter has announced that it’s the “dumbest thing ever” but my son is humoring me so far. I’m looking forward to it! Tuesday 12/19- More cookie baking! I’ll make the dough for gingerbread men and sugar cookies, which we decorate on Christmas Eve. Plus one more cookie- probably biscotti- to add to gifts. Wednesday 12/20- Long run!!! I’m going to make a Christmas playlist for this run. Just for part of it- this is a planned 24 mile run and even I can’t listen to Christmas music for THAT long. Thursday 12/21- Present wrapping and Christmas movies with the kids. They’ll wrap the gifts they got for each other, and the gifts they’re giving us. Also any miscellaneous presents will be wrapped, like my Secret Santa present for work. Friday 12/22- My son will be going out with friends this night, so I’m going to try to watch a Christmas movie I’ve never seen before. Elf? (I know- I’m the only one in the world who hasn’t seen this.) White Christmas? Love Actually? If I can get my husband or daughter interested, it will definitely have a bearing on my choice. Saturday 12/23- Festivus! I’ll work in the morning and then we’ll do our usual Festivus activities, which include going out for bagels, last minute shopping and present wrapping, and watching Polar Express. We’ll do a little airing of the grievances, but otherwise our Festivus doesn’t follow the Costanza’s traditions (the bagel lunch is a nod to Kramer’s job at H&H in that episode, ha ha.) Sunday 12/24- Every year on Christmas Eve we host a cookie decorating party and dinner for my friend and her two daughters. We met when our kids were in preschool together, and we’ve been spending Christmas Even together for eleven years now. There we go! Did anyone else copy Kae? What activities are you doing in the next ten days? Header photo by Annie Spratt on Unsplash
Serious Christmas Vibes
Well, today was an exciting day! I arrived home from work to find a stack of Amazon packages outside the front door. I knew they weren’t for me- they were all presents I had ordered for the kids- but there’s still something exciting about seeing a pile of packages. I was also very happy they arrived on this particular day (more on that in a bit,) After I carried the packages in, I went to check the mailbox and found FOUR holiday cards and a mysterious package… which turned out to be a book from Kyria. At first I wondered if Kyria was my Secret Santa, but no… she asked for my address last week, which she would already have if she were my Secret Santa. No, Kyria sent me Running Your First Ultra as a gift!!! I absolutely can’t wait to read it. Thank you, Kyria! A little later I heard a truck pull up, and ANOTHER package was delivered. Now what??? OOOH!!! It was my Secret Santa gift! And guess what… my Secret SANta turned out to be SAN herself! She sent me a mug, vegan cookies, and peppermint soap. OH YES. I love everything, and the mug is being saved until January. I always get so sad when I have to put away the holiday mugs, so San’s mug will ease the pain of that day. THANK YOU SO MUCH, SAN! Phew, that was a lot of excitement. And, tomorrow is my “elfing” day. I’ve done this for a long time but just recently heard it called that. I take a day when no one else is home to wrap the “Santa” presents. Just to clarify- my kids do NOT believe in Santa anymore (in case you were getting seriously worried about my family.) But they still enjoy some Christmas magic, so the Santa presents are hidden away and appear under the tree on Christmas morning. I use special, “secret” wrapping paper and try to make them as pretty as possible. On my elfing day I’ll get my favorite tea from Starbucks in a festive holiday cup, and spread all the presents, wrapping paper and ribbons on the living room floor, so I can wrap leisurely. I’ll either listen to Christmas music or watch something Christmas-y while I’m doing it. This is so much more fun than wrapping presents while crouched furtively in the garage (I’ve done that too.) And this is why I was so happy the presents arrived today. There will still be a few more trickling in, but the more I can get wrapped tomorrow, the less I’ll have to do later. Things are moving right along! Most of the presents have arrived, most of the outdoor decorations are up, and most of my Christmas cards have been sent. I do have one area where I’m lacking, and I’m hoping to get some advice. I realized I have NO stocking stuffers for my son. My daughter is easy- a scented bodywash, some stickers, a bracelet, some candy… done. Does anyone have any ideas for a 21-year-old male who doesn’t like candy, is very picky about his soaps and personal care items, and obviously is too old for toys? HELP!!! Do you like wrapping presents? Do you do it all at once on a special day, or spread it out? Do you like Secret Santa exchanges? – I love them! I did San’s and we’re also doing one at work.
Weekly Rundown- Why We Live in Florida…
Tra-la-la! It was a beautiful week in South Florida. Our weather cooled down and we were able to open our windows for three days in a row. And there was a long run in there… but we’ll get to that in a bit. I’m joining the amazing Kim and Deborah for this weekly rundown (thank as always for hosting, ladies!) Let’s get right into it. Monday 4 mile run followed by a little core work (plank and dead bugs.) Tuesday Strength day at home… mostly focused on upper body and core. Yada yada… let’s get to the good stuff. Wednesday YOU GUYS. I woke up to 53 degrees FOR MY LONG RUN. I was standing at the start of the trail, applying lube and I actually felt… cold??? What is this odd sensation? Not only was it in the 50s, but it was cloudy and windy. I had to start running in order to warm up! This was a run of 22 amazing miles. Not only was it much easier to run, but it was easier to eat and drink. I ate a Lara bar! And it was even easier to drink my Tailwind. What a difference 30 degrees makes. On my run I saw these three, I assume a mom and two babies? Wild hogs aren’t necessarily vicious killers, but I know any wild animal can be dangerous, especially when babies are involved. I stopped and considered turning around, but they saw me and ran off into the bushes, so I was able to continue on. Later I had this text exchange with my husband: AHEM. Charlotte is our beautiful black cat, and I like to think she’s FESTIVELY PLUMP. Thursday Guess what I didn’t feel like doing? RUNNING. But I got out there and walked for one mile, and then ran for 3. I felt better and better as the run went on, which gives me confidence that I’ll be able to do back-to-back long runs at the end of the month. Friday Hmm. Still a little sore, but I went to the gym for sled pushing and pulling, squats, and deadlifts. I also decided to add in reverse flys, because my upper back was sore after the long run- I’m sure from carrying the hydration pack. I figure it can only help to strengthen those muscles a little. Saturday 4 mile run! Our weather has warmed up again, but even though it was 70 degrees it was still comfortable. Followed by a quick plank before heading off to work. Sunday OFF! Sleeping in, waffles, and then I HAVE TO get the outdoor decorations up- which means it will be at least 85 degrees. It’s always sweltering on the day I put up the Christmas lights. But that’s okay- no one has perfect weather all the time. How was your week? Any incredibly good or bad weather? Any unusual wildlife spotted on your runs? – This is the third time I’ve seen wild hogs on this trail. Florida is so weird.
Reading and Eating
It’s been a while since i’ve done one of these posts (and there’s a reason for that, which we’ll get to later.) Let’s start with eating! I did some baking last weekend, because I sent a care package to my son. Today (December 8th) is his 21st birthday. Here’s his Christmas photo when he was a year old: I remember the day he was born like it was yesterday… and now he’s an ADULT. The years go by fast. Anyway, ever since the kids were little I’ve made cinnamon rolls for their birthdays. Now that my son is in college, I send him his birthday rolls. I always use the recipe from Isa Chandra Moskowitz’s Vegan Brunch cookbook. I only sent half the batch to my son, so my daughter got to enjoy cinnamon rolls for breakfast all week. I also sent cookies! I made two cookies from Sally’s Baking Addiction- Peppermint Snowball Cookies and Seriously Soft Molasses Cookies. These recipes are easily veganized by using Earth Balance spread and a flax egg. When my son was a freshman in high school, he had his wisdom teeth extracted in December and could only eat soft foods. I googled “soft cookies” and found these molasses cookies, and he’s loved them ever since. I didn’t actually mail the peppermint ones- I figured they would be a melted mess before they even got out of Florida. My daughter loves peppermint so I made those for her. Here’s the first gingerbread waffles of the season! They are suspiciously similar to my “pumpkin spice” waffles. Two cups of oats, two scoops of protein powder, a banana, salt, 2 cups of water, and then lots of ginger, cinnamon and cloves. YUM. Several weeks ago, Suzanne mentioned Red Lentil Soup with Warm Spices in her “Dinners This Week” post. The link to the recipe is actually in a post by Julie. This soup is SO GOOD. It’s like dal, but with slightly different spices. I don’t even make the topping (and use vegetable broth and oil instead of butter) and it’s still delicious. The recipe says “? teaspoons cinnamon”- I use 1/2 teaspoon. And it doesn’t specify how much salt, so I do the same thing I do with all recipes- add enough salt so that it tastes delicious. If it doesn’t taste delicious, just add more salt until the flavors pop. Okay… reading. It took me an ENTIRE MONTH to finish this book. It wasn’t that I didn’t like it- I did! But NaBloPoMo really took up a lot of my time, and it’s not like this book is a thrilling page-turner. The plot was interesting, but it was very dense and wordy. I did want to find out what happened to the dad, and I liked the ending- that it was a little ambiguous but not really (I think Mia’s “most likely” scenario is probably the truth.) It’s not a book I would ever want to re-read though- once was definitely enough. Next up- a Christmas mystery should be arriving tomorrow (ahem- that is, if Amazon manages to deliver it correctly.) I’m in the mood for something festive! Have you read Happiness Falls? What did you think of it? Have you done any holiday baking yet? Header photo by Christian Wiediger on Unsplash