in case you missed it, part I is here, II and III were eaten by the universe. i’ll fill you in – there were 13 cobs of corn one week and a watermelon (that was possibly the most ridic) another week. plus all the usuals, of course. peaches, plums, apricots, maybe a few zucchinis here and there, etc. jon had to reinforce one of my panniers the other day because the connection mechanism that holds it onto my bike was getting loose. oopsies! i’m back in business now.

this is how i do it. big panniers and a spare bungee cord just in case.

the loot:

-cable + padlock

-2 bags of cheese curds from thornloe

-some temiskaming cheese (also thornloe. best cheese place ever!)

-a purple bag filled with my work clothes and other sundries (deoderant, comb, etc)

-2X 1.5L of seedless concord grapes, for a raisin making project

-3L basket of delicious peaches

-a big bag of italian plums for some plumjum (i’m currently making the bellaeats plum cake that we loved last year with my last week’s bunch)

this week i actually managed to restrain myself a little bit. i didn’t get any veggies, so we will probably hit up the saturday market. it was the last day that thornloe was going to be at my market, so they had some killer sales and i stocked up. dill flavoured cheese curds are amazing. is this just a canadian thing? at the HLS, when i talked about eating cheese curds, i remember someone looking at me like i was crazy. also when i described poutine…. it’s delicious stuff! really!

for supper tonight, jon made burgers with some beef we got from his uncle’s farm. these burgers were definitely in contention with the epic burger from chicago.

vs

ok. they were both really really good – grass fed beef is where it’s at! i couldn’t tweet about the one on the left and have it displayed up on a screen like at epic.

i have to say that was a pretty cool thing for them to have. the top three posts on the left and right columns were my dining companions: stina, mary and dawn. i couldn’t tweet because i didn’t have roaming data on my phone but i did when i got back to the hotel!

i have some chicago posts to catch up on. they’ll come. soon. eventually. i hope. this week has been kind of crazy.

i ran a 15K race last weekend. i have a 10K this week! i’m hoping to splash my 56:08 time out of the water! one more week of work and then i have a whole 5 glorious days off to relax at the cottage and farm. i have some fun projects planned for while we’re out there, so hopefully also some good blogging will come of that too! in the meantime, i better get back to my cake.

out of the 13 races i’ve done in the last 6 years, there have been only two occasions when i have raced a distance and performed worse than i had in the past.

the first time was my 5th half marathon that i ran last spring – it was much hotter than i expected and i was unprepared. i wasn’t drinking enough and i likely hadn’t trained properly. i ran the course 4 minutes slower than i had the year before, and for some reason, it didn’t really bother me. by the fall, i bounced back to my old time (almost a minute faster) and a few weeks later, took 3 more minutes off.

(this was taken at that race, early on before things got really rough)

the second time was this weekend. half marathon #8. it was on a course i had never done before (this year i purposefully sought out new, interesting races to do. i’d seen this one on angela’s blog – she did the 10K last year). the race was super small (only a few hundred people) and not as well organized as most of the other races i do (my race kit had 4 boxes of triscuit crackers and a whole bunch of wrist and menstrual cramp tummy heat packs. random!). there was no elevation map on the race website, so i had no idea how many hills there would be! i knew it would be hilly-ish, but i wasn’t ready for steep hills in kilometre 2. at kilometre 16, it started to POUR. thunderstorms. i was soaked in an instant (squishy shoes), which didn’t help my defeated attitude. i made the same mistakes i’ve made many many times in the past: i didn’t drink enough and i didn’t take in enough calories, and you better believe i hit the wall. my splits were getting slower, i was getting tireder (is that a word?), and i just wanted the whole thing to be over! i had enough energy at the end to sprint the last kilometre and pass a bunch of people, which made it obvious that i hadn’t run hard enough during the rest of the race.

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gretchen rubin says that people feel happier when they are improving and this is true for me! she talks about how having an atmosphere of growth is important. i don’t have any more races until august, but i will take this lesson and work towards growing and improving, not only my time, but my attitude and outlook on myself too! i know i can’t get faster each and every race forever because that is obviously unsustainable. from now on, i will embrace my body for what it can do, even if it’s not always as fast as i wish it were!

although i’ve had a lot of fun with a busy spring racing season, i am happy that i have a few months of “breather” time to refocus and really work hard on my speed and hills without the pressure of getting a long long run in every single weekend.

until then, here are some funny pictures.

i am wearing a bondi band that says yoga on it and has a stick figure in tree pose. i am trying to imitate that here.

although these were taken pre-race, this pretty much sums up how i would feel after!

can you see the pain in my eyes? my legs look so slow, i may as well be walking (oh and i did half to stop and walk a few times up parts of those killer hills). i look a tiny bit deranged on the right, no? it kind of felt awesome passing some people at the end.

last weekend, for the third year in a row, i went to a 24 hour bike race with jon. i was the team’s support crew, although this race doesn’t require too much in the way of “support” because cabins, showers, bathrooms and meals (even sports drink if you’re interested) are provided! i was mostly just there for moral support.

jon had a team of 4 men. there were about 7 mens teams, 1 all women team, a bunch of solo male riders (including 1 adorable 12 year old!), 2 solo females, and 5-6 tag teams. it was really laid back and ended up being an awesome weekend. they had an 11km course set up on the trails and over the 24 hours, the team members took turns doing laps. we started off with a round of single laps, switching to doubles and then doing triples overnight (giving the other team members more sleeping time!). different teams had different strategies- the team in the cabin next to ours stuck to singles. our friends that were a tag team of 2 did 5 laps on, 5 laps off. any way you look at it, racing for 24 hours is kind of insane. the solo riders are by far the most hardcore – the top 3 riders probably rode for about 20 of the 24 hours (stopping only for eating and bathroom breaks). yikes. nutrition is definitely a challenge, as you don’t have much time to really eat OR digest (and you are taking in an excess of carbs for race fuel), so it kind of does a number on the tummy.

we set up a tent next to our cabin for working on bikes in in case it rained. we ended up not needing it at all! (i did use it to get away from the bugs for a bit though)

they always do something a little bit different for the start of the race. the first year we did it, it was a le mans style, with helmets on the bikes. last year was just a regular start. this year they did le mans but helmets were on the racer’s heads. jon is good at these things, and got a spot near the front of the pack, giving his team a bit of an edge.

jon is in the yellow and black jersey.

i wore my vibram five fingers on the first day and ended up making tons of friends! everyone wanted to chat about my shoes. it was pretty awesome. they are definitely a great conversation piece.

some reps from IMBA (international mountain biking association) were there. i love their vehicle!

some pictures from the weekend:

jon on the left // xavier on the right

second solo female and her 12 year old son who rode with her // the two solo females

three solo male winners // female team

mixed team // third place men’s

second place men’s team (team doppler effect!!!) // first place men’s

youngest (and cutest) rider // 3rd place tag team

second place tag team // first place tag team

what i loved most about this race was the sportsmanship. so many people had mechanical issues with their bikes. on our team, jon’s fork was not working 2 days before the race, part of jeff’s fork was damaged the night before the race, jon’s seat post was not staying up during the race, then right before one of his laps, the collar holding the seat post in broke, one of jeff’s pedals came off, some guy on another team cracked his frame, etc, etc, etc. it was awesome to see everyone step in to help each other out. competitors offering up spare parts so other teams could go on – quite inspiring. also, it makes me happy that in my sport, there isn’t much chance of a mechanical failure ending my race.

it was a fun but exhausting weekend. i was happy to have monday off from work to recover and sleep! three years ago, the guys entered a 5 man team and missed 3rd place by a hair. last year, they had a 4 man, 1 woman mixed team and placed 1st in the mixed category (which had 3 teams last year) – they would have been 3rd in the men’s category with the number of laps they did. this year, the 4 man team they put together came in 2nd. improvement is good!

blast! ecto just ate the post that i spent more than 3 days writing. boooo

so. i’ve been “doing” yoga for just over a year now. i say “doing”, because it’s been somewhat half hearted, 20 minutes of yoga for runners here, a half pigeon there, etc. more practiced yoga people always say that it’s important for beginners to go to a real class to get feedback and guidance on their form, but i never took it that seriously. all the yoga studios i had vaguely checked out online were far away and pretty expensive, and when i could do yoga at home for free by myself, why go anywhere else?

i never really enjoyed yoga that much though. sure, the stretching felt good and i’m sure my muscles appreciated it, but doing audio classes on the living room floor was kind of boring. i only did it because i knew it was good for me. sometimes i couldn’t even make it through the 20 minutes!!! (i wondered how anyone could do a 90 minute class). i do love the pants though, and i have always kind of joked that i lived the yoga lifestyle, even though i didn’t really *do* yoga)

cue the happiness project. april’s theme is money, and the resolution for the the week before last was to spend some money to buy some happiness. i thought about what area of my life i could splurge a little on and i thought of 2 things. yoga was the first. i did a bit of research and found a studio that is about a 7 minute bike ride from my house! this is convenient. having to take a bus and a subway to get downtown to pay $20 for a yoga class probably wouldn’t actually happen often. this place had some good reviews online (yelp and others) and they had a good rate for new students. i bought a 2 week unlimited pass and decided to try out studio yoga to see if it would make me happier.

i have so far been to 4 different classes (a gentle hatha, 2 different restorative classes, and a reduced heat flow class) and i am in love!! the studio is beautiful and spa like. since i don’t belong to a gym and do all my exercising outdoors or in my basement (or at the community pool!), it is a lovely change to be somewhere with fancy facilities. i have one more week left on my pass, and plan to try out a real hot class (i am a little scared!! if i like it, i’ll do a couple more classes before i decide to splurge on the yogitoes), iyengar (yoga that focuses on proper form), and go back to the classes i liked best before i figure out how often i want to be going back. i think i can afford at least once or twice a week. it’s a really good compliment to the running, biking and swimming that i do and it’s good for my soul too. yoga has made me extremely happy.

the second thing that i’ve been wanting for a while now but haven’t gotten around to picking up (maybe partially because i couldn’t justify spending the money…) is a bondiband. caitlin posted a coupon code (FIVE, five bands, $25), so i ordered a bunch. LOVE THEM!! i’ve worn them running, under my helmet, to yoga class, and just around (they are cute). they seem to stay put (especially the wicking ones) and they keep my hair out of my face, which is awesome. two days after my order arrived, i ordered a few more wicking bands! (jon wanted to know how many headbands a person needs. the answer to that is MANY)

so if you thought that money can’t buy happiness, you might be wrong.

i’ve switched my hours at work, so i have the day off tomorrow. i’m extremely excited about this as i haven’t really had a day off to myself in ages! all of our weekends are booked up with activities and the last two holidays (easter and christmas) have been somewhat hectic with lots of driving around and seeing people, etc. i’m planning to hit two morning yoga classes, do some fun grocery shopping, bake cookies, make ice cream, possibly try out some of ashley’s granola, go for a run in my vibrams (if my legs aren’t too sore from yoga) and watch an excess of tv! luxury to the extreme. i will also try and blog the rest of the post that got eaten up. i have a pot of steel cut oats on the stove now, and it needs my attention.

happy sunday night!

p.s. heather, i am on board with your invite to be a happy living blogger!

on a crazy whim back in november, i decided it would be a great idea to do a 30k race at the end of the winter. shortly after i signed up, i started to regret my decision. 30k is a long way and i didn’t feel like training that hard through the cold months.

i usually don’t really run much during that time. a few years ago i trained for an april half marathon, and ran through loads of snow and ice. it wasn’t fun. luckily this year’s winter was incredi-mild. this was great for my running, but horrible for my snowshoeing (i only got out once!!! ONCE.) i did long runs (almost) every weekend from about mid january. on the weeks when the weather was acceptable during the week, i’d do a fast 5k run. we skated on our rink at least a few hours a week, and i rode my bike on the trainer at least once or twice a week. good cross training!

my longest run was only 23k and it was NOT a good one. i bonked at about 15k and really really had to pee with nowhere to stop. it was much hotter than i thought and i was way over dressed. that was a bad morning, but i learned how important it was for me to force myself to regularly drink and eat my sharkies, whether i felt like it or not. all the weeks after that one went a lot better, but i was still a little worried that my only really long (longer than 21km) run was bad (and that it wasn’t even long enough!). i was also a little worried about the hills that jon’s uncle (who ran the race too) who ran the race as well used to break bike chains on years ago…

race morning looked grey, but environment canada said it wouldn’t rain until noon. whattadaya know! they were right on this time. it wasn’t as cold as i thought it would be, but i kept my fleece gloves on most of the race – the hat and neck warmer came off. the hills were BAD but i managed to run through them all. my second half was a bit slower than the first (i went out way too fast while running with jon’s uncle before i realized that i really need to slow down if i was going to make it through), but i managed to keep fairly consistent splits.

i loved the energy of the race. the course wasn’t super spectacular until the last 1/3, but the people out on the course were fantastic! it was such a nice change from the races in toronto and ottawa that i have done in the past when the general public just shake their fists at the runners, angry because the roads are closed and traffic is slow. hamilton and burlington really showed them up. almost every family with a house on the route was out in their driveway, tailgating, cheering, passing out fruit, water bottles, even beer in one case. there were people in costumes (the reapers by the cemetery were awesome!), cute kids, old people in wheelchairs, a tin pan “band”, etc. i’d do this one again, just for the awesome feeling.

the last few hundred metres of the race were right outside of Copps Coliseum, the big sports arena in Hamilton. Just as planned, the rocky theme song came on my ipod and i sprinted. the finish line was just inside – the stands were packed with people watching and cheering, which was pretty cool. at 3:26, i was 4 minutes faster than i thought i’d be. now i have a 30K PR and a time to beat next year! now i know that i need to work on hills early on

i love how colourful races are!

today i signed up for two fun races later on this summer:

this half marathon in niagara wine country

a shakespeare themed nighttime 15k race, a week before another 10k i plan to do. i will probably just so this one for fun, but i still hope for a good time.

i don’t regret my november decision one bit anymore! having a race to work towards really got me through grey months, fit and healthy. i haven’t decided if i’m going to do the bike race on the 18th of april or not (i haven’t ridden outside much yet), but if i do decide, i know i at least have the endurance to get through it!

ughhhhhh at least the rain isn’t supposed to start until 12:00. that gives me about 2.5 hours after the race start. i expect to finish in around 3:30 (but who knows! anything could happen)

check out the killer hill right near the end! i have saved my best songs for mile 16, when i’ll need as much extra fire as i can get my feet on!!

the last 200m are inside of Copps Coliseum, the big sports arena here. i hope to have the rocky theme song going as i do my final lap (cliché, i know, but motivating anyway!!).

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we are stopping for a post race lunch on the drive home at a new chain of restaurants: south street burger company. i am excited and can almost taste the milkshake i’m going to have. yum!

gotta get back to my prerace activities – wish me luck!! i’ll be back later with a story.

i am experiencing serious anxiety about this upcoming race. i don’t think i have taken it seriously enough. when i trained for a marathon, i was all business. i did my crazy long runs, i ran 3 times a week, no fooling around. 30k is no marathon (in fact, it’s right at the point where i was ready for my marathon to be over!), but i still haven’t given it the respect it deserves.

ACK!! at least jon will be there to scrape me off the pavement, if required. and i will be wearing a cute outfit.

i am going to face my fear!

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yay! they arrived so quickly. i’m pretty stoked to take them outside later this week for a quick tour around the block. wearing them around the house right now and they feel pretty cool. i like them with socks better! and apparently, i have short toes.

i am recommitting to this blogging thing. again. promise.

here’s what happened in february:

-i went to an awesome book event for one of my newest favourite books, that i have talked about here already: the happiness project. a conversation with the author, the amazing gretchen rubin, and heather from indigo.

i had just gotten to almost the end of my library copy by the time the book event happened, and i knew i wanted to buy my own copy. luckily this was the perfect time because i could have a chat with gretchen and get my copy signed! excuse the terrible pictures! it wasn’t me.

i am taking part in the 2010 happiness challenge, which comes with a monthly theme and weekly things to do (described in 2 minute videos by gretchen, every monday). so far we’ve done things like tackle nagging tasks, fight right, stop expecting praise and appreciation (the hardest), hug more, kiss more, touch more (my favourite). i can feel myself becoming a more pleasant person.

-i started seriously training for around the bay (which is in 21 days!!!) 30k race i am doing at the end of this month.

i’ve gone on 2+ hour training runs, i have done strength training a couple times each week, i’ve started interval training (yasso 800s!) and i have gone swimming once a week, every week since i last posted that i was going to try and get back into swimming.

our winter has been mild – perfect for outdoor runs but not so perfect for snowshoeing. we only have gotten out once so far (i fear this will be our only snowshoe adventure of 2010), but it was epic. 2.5 hours on the mountain biking trails of waterloo. my muscles ached the following two days!

today i’m up to a 21-25k run. i’ve got one more distance week left, and then i cut back in preparation of my taper before the race. edited to add- i ended up being out for 3 hours this morning. brutal. my knees hurt. happily i probably won’t have to do any more ridiculously long runs this year because this 30k race is the longest i am signing up for. everything else is half marathon and below.

soon i will start spending a bit more time on my bike, as the following race is the cyclocross st george to ancaster, where i will ride 35k through mud, rail trails, roads, single track and farm land.

-i went to a wake for a 16 year old who lost a battle with cancer. it was decidedly one of the most sad things i have done. my heart broke for his parents; no one should ever have to go through that.

-i got to interview and help select our summer intern for work. this was particularly exciting, as we went back to my alma mater for the interviews AND i was that summer intern myself, not too many years ago. we didn’t get our first pick, but i am pretty happy with the person who will be showing up in may. it definitely was an experience that made me feel old though!

-i went to a custom bike shop with jon to get his new bike spec-ed out, measured and designed. it was sooo cool! i wanted to share some pictures, but when we arrived, i discovered that my battery was completely out of juice maybe i’ll go back when we pick up the finished product and get some good shots. custom bikes are sweet, but i am definitely not enough of a for real biker to justify getting one, nor would i fully appreciate all the features. i would love a custom paint job though!

-last night, for the first time ever, i drove jon’s standard car home (about 12km) all by myself with no supervision – my maiden voyage. it was a little harrowing at times, since i’m a pretty new driver to begin with, and i’m still learning how to operate the standard vehicle. i stalled only once, drove in the wrong gear once or twice, but, all in all, it wasn’t too bad and i did not crash or die! someday soon i will get more comfortable doing this.

-i proofread jon’s mechanical engineering master’s thesis on deep drawing of warm formed aluminum. “what?” you say. yeah, that’s what i said too. after going through the 100+ pages a few times, combing carefully for missing commas and misplaced subordinating conjunctions, i still don’t really know what deep drawing is all about. that’s ok with me.

-i’m working on my mighty life list, inspired by maggie and karen. i’ll post it when i’m done. so far everything on the list (i’m up to #28 so far) is kind of epic. i think i need a few things that i can get started on right now. ideas?

-i pulled the ice cream maker out of hibernation for a batch of homemade cookies and cream (david lebovitz’s philidelphia vanilla with crushed oreos swirled in at the end). let me tell you, i have missssed ice cream. since we stopped buying it at the store, when i removed the freezer bowl from our freezer, our connection to the creamy cold treat was severed. i’m happy to have it back in my life.

-tomorrow i’m going to my first ever blog meetup (aside from the healthy living summit, which i guess was sort of blog meetup like) that angela is organizing in kensington market, a super cute area of toronto. i’m excited to meet new people, make some new friends (hopefully) and spend some time exploring the city. the weather is supposed to be gorge!

whew. that was long.

soon after we got home from florida, jon took me out on a re-con mission. there is a park across the road, and it has a creek, and in one area, the creek kind of widens out into a pond. we had discussed the skate-ability of it but we weren’t sure, since i had never seen anyone on the ice.
the re-con was a success. jon deemed it safe enough and got right to shovelling. 2 hours later, he came home to get me and the skates (it’s a little easier to shovel when you can move around faster). 1 more hour of hard work and we were able to skate around. we’ve been back 3-4 more times since – have had to re-shovel a few times due to snowfall, though nothing major (since we have not had any real storms this january). el nino hit two weeks ago and kind of did a number on my recreational area. there were big patches of open water that jon would not let me go near. our temperatures are finally back down to normal winter numbers, and from street level, the rink looks like it might be solid again! i’m pretty sure the weekend will involve some serious time on the blades (if i can handle the -21 wind chills)! i am thrilled. winter is really messing with my ability to do winter sports this year, and i am a sad puppy. no snowshoeing whatsoever and for the past two weeks, skating has been very touch and go.
i took my camera with us a couple of times and shot some video which i have finally finished editing into something to watch. enjoy!

skating in the park from haya finan on Vimeo.

the lack of snow/ice has been very good for my running though. around the bay is quickly coming up and i need to work up to more miles and hours. optimally i’d like to have run for 3 hours or so at least once before march 28. i have been able to get out for runs lately, but the next few weeks might require indoor bike workout substitutions when it’s too windy. walking to the bus stop was extremely laborious because i was walking into the wind and just the act of moving forward required immense effort. i kind of wished i was heavier, and also pointier/more aerodynamic for cutting through the wind. alas, i am light and rounded on top.

i’m going to try going swimming tomorrow before work. we’ll see if i can make it a fun, spa-like outing, as tina once suggested. then it’s the WEEKEND!!! lots of fun planned, including dinner at a super fancy place downtown (too bad i have to get dressed up for -19° weather. yay!). more to come.

riding my bike to work is one of my favourite parts of the day, so i thought it would be good to share with you since it makes me really happy. although i don’t bike in the super wintery months (dec-feb), i do bike in some pretty cold weather – so far the lowest has been -7°C (20°F) – and finding exactly the right things to wear has taken some trial and error. i’d say this wear is appropriate between -10 and +5. anything above that requires less layers. i’m not sure i’m hardcore enough to ride below that.

The Software

On Top

i don’t have a vest, which is really good for keeping your core warm while biking, so instead i wear a tight tanktop (this one happens to be biking specific – you can maybe see the little zip pocket on the back but i usually just use running tops) and a long sleeved shirt on top.

  
this is a cycling wind breaker, but i wear it around as my general fall/spring jacket. it’s got lots of reflective striping, goes down a little lower to cover your bum while biking (but not so low that it looks silly for just wearing around town), pit zips for extra ventilation, and good velcro closures around the wrists (sorry i didn’t picture those)

On the Bottom

  biking shorts and running tights underneath to keep my legs warm. i do not have special cycling leg warmers or knee warmers. so far my running tights are doing just fine. they are lightweight enough to not make me hot but solid enough to keep my knees and leg muscles warm. the biking shorts are a must if you are riding for more than 20 minutes. i could never go back to riding without padding! i’m on the lookout for a pair of biking tights so i don’t have to wear these layers (getting dressed and undressed is annoying) but i haven’t seen anything for less than $80 yet. i might have to just cave.

Accessories

  
these are a very recent purchase – lobster claw gloves! they are amazing. i have extremely poor circulation in my hands and feet and no matter how many pairs of gloves i wear, my fingers still get cold. lobster claws are mitts for a cyclist. they are super warm, plus since you group some fingers together, you can share internal warmth while still being able to brake and shift. they are fun. my only complaint is that i am unable to give stupid drivers the finger with these gloves

  
clockwise from top left:nike skull cap. it’s meant for running but it does really well in blocking wind under my helmet. it’s also got a nice ponytail hole.nike headband. for the extra cold days where my ears need more warmth than just what the hat provides.fleece liner gloves. for when it’s below -5 to wear under my lobsta clawsneck warmer. it’s like a scarf made out of tecnical fabric that won’t get caught in anything! best valentine’s day gift ever.  

woolen socks are a definite must for me and my perma-cold toes. when it gets really chilly, i will layer with thin running socks underneath the woolies for ultrawarmth.
and that is what i wear to ride my bike to work. it’s about 12.5km (almost 8 miles) and takes me between 35 and 45 minutes, depending which way i’m riding. (going into work is more downhill, coming home is more uphill) part II, hardware (gear) will be next!

i am sad the weekend is over. the party i went to last night wound up being pretty fun. we stayed in a hotel nearby instead of camping out in the backyard like we planned (that may have been too hobo like…

it was weird staying in a hotel so close to home (no one was in any shape to drive, public transit stopped running all the way to my house, and a cab would have been ridiculously expensive). the spare bedroom in the house was taken and sleeping on the couches would have been waiting up until the party died down and i was far too tired for that. luckily our friends had booked and paid for this room in a not entirely dodgy hotel that they were not going to be able to use, so we got to use it. there was even free breakfast with make your own waffles in the lobby! (i want my own waffle iron so badly. have i mentioned?)
we came home and i made two big batches of soup because jon is getting a root canal this week and i assume he won’t be able to eat solids. i’ll share recipes soon – a big soup post is coming!

back to work tomorrow! i’m going to a conference for 2 days this week, so that should be interesting. mix things up a bit.off to watch last week’s top chef. nighty night.