Three Things Thursday: Blog Love

It’s been a long time since I’ve done a Three Things Thursday. Honestly, I got tired of doing them and the fact that every blogger out there also does them kinda made me lose interest. But today, I’m bringing it back because I wanted to share three blog posts that I’ve read recently that I loved. I hope you love them too.

1. This recap of the Chicago Marathon.

Mary’s recap is the first time I’ve ever read or heard of her blog. I found the recap on Twitter and loved it. Chicago is my hometown, and this post makes me want to run the race next year badly. Really, really badly.

2. This story about bullying.

It’s no secret I love Lindsey’s blog, it just makes me smile. She’s on my blogroll for a reason! This is definitely one of her cutest stories yet – with a surprise ending.

3. This story of a cat who had to have her leg amputated.

This was written by my college friend, Ali. The post is a little older and I’ve been meaning to share it for some time now but keep forgetting. I teared up at the end. It’s so sweet and has a happy ending. After you read that post, you can read the one about when she brought the kitty home.

Have you read any posts lately that you loved? Share them in the comments!

Three Things Thursday

I’m getting less and less sleep every night and yesterday morning I didn’t wake up to my alarm. I even skipped my workout last night in lieu of a nap, but just ended up watching more Breaking Bad. To say I’m addicted to that show might be an understatement. It’s like I can’t.stop.watching. Or talking about it for that matter. But if this girl can talk about Hunger Games incessantly for 2 months, then I can talk about Breaking Bad.

Hubs and I finished season 3 last night. Then of course we couldn’t go to bed with that cliffhanger in our minds, so we had to watch the first episode of season 4. There are only a few shows that have ever been this addicting to me. Season 1 of Lost, season 1 of Dexter (which forced me to get Showtime for all the other seasons), the first 3 seasons of Nip/Tuck, the whole series of Battlestar Galactica (not kidding), and Veronica Mars. I guess I just love shows that end in cliffhangers every week because that’s what they all have in common. (Am I the only one? What shows have you been addicted to?)

I also might be slightly obsessed with Jesse Pinkman.

(He totally deserved that Emmy. That man is like Leo DiCaprio when he cries.)

Add him to my future husband list! He’s an inch shorter than me, but if Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes can make it work, so can I.

So today I bring you the three things I need now that I’m addicted to Breaking Bad.

This Coin

I don’t even know if that’s a real thing for sale, but I need it. In fact, it should be made into a race medal so there can be a Breaking Bad themed marathon and I can run it. Then at the end of the race, you get kisses from your favorite cast members. This is genius! Why do I have to think of everything?

These Nails

It has a little crystal meth nail! See? Drugs can be adorable.

These Shoes

These are real, yo. They also have special edition Converse for Dexter and Walking Dead. I probably wouldn’t wear these in public though. OR WOULD I?

I can’t wait to get through Season 4 because then I’ll be able to sleep again. Or I’ll just be annoyed that I have to wait till summer for Season 5. AMC is airing the first 8 episodes in 2012 and then the last 8 in 2013. Ugh. WHY do they break seasons up like that? And it’s going to be the last season. *sniff*

Alright, it’s almost lunch time. I need to go buy Corn Pops now that I know Jesse used to eat them.

Three Things Thursday

It’s been a long time since I’ve done a three things thursday. Who needs a blog with continuity anyway? Not this girl! While we’re on the subject of continuity, these three things have nothing to do with one another. Just the way I like it.   

 1.  Last night, hubs and I watched 4 more episodes of Spartacus. We didn’t leave the couch from 8pm – 12am. Well, if you’re in the market for lots of man-genitals, this is the show for you.

We both really like it so far. Especially the genitals.

2.  I finally tried almond butter. I was hoping it was the solution to my peanut butter problem. Which then became my sunflower seed butter problem. I thought if I didn’t like it enough, it would stop me from eating as much of it. Nope. I still love it. I don’t love it as much as PB or sunflower seed butter, but it’s still good enough to eat the entire jar in a few days.

I will never have enough nut butter left in any jar to make overnight oats. Anyone that has had overnight oats in a jar means you did not lick the jar clean. This is known as “will power.” If you have had oats in a jar, you have will power. You may not think you do. But you do. Trust me.

3.  When I was growing up, there was a good 2 year span during the 80’s when I thought “different” was spelled “diff’rent” because of Diff’rent Strokes.

Eff you, Arnold.

Three Things Thursday

I usually like talking about my workouts as I do them. I’m not a big fan of “workout dump” blog posts, but I haven’t been talking about mine this week and I really want to, so you’re gonna get one. 🙂

I’ll try, I’ll try. So hard to keep her happy.

Monday:  Chest and ab workout with Linda. We did torturous things like push-ups on an ab ball and more push-ups with a pike. My chest is still sore today.

Tuesday Morning:  Tempo run before work. I was scheduled to do a speed run, but I wasn’t sure my shin was feeling well enough after the 18 miles on Saturday to go all out. I’m glad I switched it up because my tempo run was awesome. So awesome that I added a mile to it.

Mile	Pace	Incline
1	10:00	.5
2	9:41	.5
3	9:31	.5
4	9:23	.5
5	9:14	.5
6	9:14/9:41 split	.5

Total miles:  6 in 57 minutes.

Oh, and you know what else happened on that run?

Tuesday Night:  Martial arts cardio class. I can’t even tell you what we did in class, but my hamstrings are still extremely sore today. And the instructor, Sheila, has no sympathy.

Wednesday:  Another workout with Linda. This one had 4 half-mile runs with sets of squats holding a 40lb bag (holy not easy) and bicycles and sets of pull-ups and good mornings in between.

During the first 30 seconds of our first run, hubs rolled his ankle and was down for the count. Now he has a golf ball sized bump on his ankle and he can barely walk, so he’s using a broken broom stick as a cane until a friend brings in a crutch for him to borrow. 😦

Tonight is my speed workout on the treadmill. I’m hoping it goes as well as Tuesday. 🙂

Before I get to today’s three things, check out more of the free wardrobe I inherited from my newly skinny best friend.

What can I say? The girl likes patterns. You know, friends getting skinnier is the best.  You get new clothes at no cost. Well, except the cost of your best friend looking hotter than you.

Today’s three things are my recent food discoveries:

 Jumbo Marshmallows

I’ve always been looking for a marshmallow that takes 6 bites to eat. Now I’ve found it! I don’t know where the need for this ever arose, but I’m glad it did.

Frosted Animal Crackers

By the way, Frosted Animal Crackers are not the same as Iced Animal Crackers.

For a long time, I thought frosted and iced animal crackers were the same thing. I never understood why one had higher calories and fat, so I just picked the lower one. Well, they are not the same my friends.

They are SO good. Just when I’m getting over my Sunflower Seed Butter addiction, these frosted beauties reared their ugly head. Perfect timing too, because I was looking to gain some more weight. Ugh.

Extra Dessert Delights Sugarfree Gum
(Apple Pie Flavor)

After you’ve gained 10lbs from eating too many gigantic marshmallows and frosted animal crackers, you might need some of this instead of actual dessert.

I’m pretty sure I bitched in a blog post recently that there is no way a gum can substitute for a dessert when you want something sweet. Well, I might have to take that back. MY LORD this gum tastes just like apple pie. My only problem is that I want to chew it while eating an actual slice of apple pie. You know, for comparison purposes.

Have you discovered anything delicious recently?

Three Things Thursday

First up, last night’s workout with Michael: “The Filthy Fifty” crossfit workout for time.

• 50 Box jumps
• 50 Jumping pull-ups
• 50 Kettlebell swings 
• 50 Walking Lunges (50 each leg)
• 50 Knees to elbows 
• 50 Push press  (I did 35 lbs, hubs did 45 lbs)
• 50 Back extensions  (Like sit ups for your back.)
• 50 Wall ball shots
• 50 Burpees   
• 50 Double unders  (That’s jumping rope with the rope passing under your feet twice. I did 100 normal jump ropes because I’m not that talented.)

It took me an hour to do that workout and it was HARD. Tonight is a tempo run…if my body cooperates and isn’t in too much pain. And then Friday is more torture from Michael.

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It’s been awhile since I’ve done a three things Thursday, so let’s get to it. Today’s three things are random things I love about my husband. (Feel free to gag.)

 

Are you sick of this picture yet?    Well…TOO BAD cuz it’s my favorite.

1.  He loves my best friend as much as I do.

Let’s face it. Guys don’t always love their significant other’s friends. My best friend, Lisa, lives near me so she’s a constant presence in my life. If they didn’t like each other, it would make social activites so much harder because I always want both of them there. It does help having the most awesome best friend in the world that is impossible to dislike, however it’s one of the things I’m most grateful for.

+10 Husband Points: Hubs bought me Britney tickets for my birthday – and got an extra ticket so Lisa could go with us. Yep. Pretty awesome.

2.  He loves to do different and new things.

I have a lot of friends that have significant others that aren’t really into trying new things or would rather stay home. (*cough*Tom-go to Incubus with us*cough*) My hubs will pretty much do anything he thinks sounds like it has a remote chance of being fun. He’s definitely more open to new things than I am.

He loves to hoop and is really good at it.

 

He drinks Guinness. Ok, that’s not different or new. I just think he looks really cute in this picture.

 

He loves to dress up in costume.  (Rob Zombie, anyone?)

He doesn’t mind photo bombing drag queens.

Overall, he’s just about open to anything. Even if he really doesn’t want to do something in particular (like watching The Back-up Plan), he’ll most likely do it just because I want to. Or because I pout.

3. He’s responsible with money and pays bills on time.

His money is his and my money is mine. While we split the bills, we still have seperate accounts. He can do whatever he wants with his money. We both spend money on things we really like (movies, concerts) but then we will usually forego other things that don’t mean as much (dinners and drinking out, expensive vacations) to make up for it. And more importantly, we live within our means. We really want to go to Alaska this year, but we need a new A/C for the house. First things first.

This may seem silly, but I can’t tell you how many people I hear bitch about how their significant other is horrible with money and that every month is a struggle. Everytime I hear about this issue in relationships, I think how awesome it is that I don’t have to worry about it and that my hubs knows how to prioritize things in his life.

Ok, so that wasn’t too sappy, right?

What does your significant other do that you love?

Updated: If you are single, feel free to tell me what you love about me! 🙂

(Cutest) Three Things Thursday (Ever)

I had one of those mornings. You know the ones where you feel like nothing in your closet looks good on and you feel like a tubby lardo. (My dad made up that catchy phrase, by the way. You can use it now too. Tubby lardo.)

Now I have a big mess to clean up.

That picture didn’t even capture all the clothes and shoes on the floor. But all that stuff was tried on and rejected this morning.

After a pep talk from the hubs about what he thought would be some good changes I can make in my diet, I felt a little better. So, I stayed on track instead of binging on tubs of frosting all day.

Lunch was in the form of the monster Grilled Chicken salad from Tenders.

This time the chicken came in a separate styrofoam container. So, I killed the Earth slowly just a bit more today.

Hubs decided we’d try out their fried desserts one more time. Last time we got the Fried Oreos and weren’t that impressed. This time, fried Twix:

We both shared one and thought it was just ok. That exterior is still too hard. It should be soft like a donut not hard like it survived the Chicago Fire of 1871.

Ok, I looked that date up.

I also ate the rest of my asparagus and Brussels sprouts as an afternoon snack to balance out the fried Twix. I appreciate that asparagus doesn’t waste any time getting into that urine stream.  

I have something in my teeth there.

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Now on to today’s Three Things. Three cute things Bunnypants does.   (Oh, and we just call her Pants for short.)

1.  She sticks her face through her playpen when she wants petting.

2. She loves to hang out in (and eat) boxes.

3. She growls when we feed her. We think she thinks we’re taking food from her and not giving it, because she will run in circles around our feet growling. If we take too long to feed her, she bites our ankles.

She doesn’t like when you look directly at her double chin.

Oh, and a bonus for you. Here are the names she came really close to having.

• Detective Rorschach (The fur on her back looks like a Rorschach test.)
• Professor Nerd-butt (She looks like the Nerds candy mascot. Little in the middle but she got much back.)

Alright, I’m heading out to the gym for a tempo run on the treadmill. Then I need to deal with that bathroom so I can relax and see who gets the axe on SYTYCD tonight.

Do you watch So You Think You Can Dance? (I LOVE it. The hubs and I have watched since season 3.)

Do you have a favorite this year yet? (I like them all so far and no one has really stood out yet. Well, except that short tapper dude who did the Broadway routine yesterday. He talks like McLovin from Superbad and annoys the crap out of me. Or maybe he annoys the stinky pee out of me.)

Three Things Thursday

Marathon Training: Ran on treadmill – 2 sets of 4×400 at 5k pace (Total 3.35 miles), walked 1 mile total for warm-up, cool down, and between sets.

No clue what my 5k pace is supposed to be, but I ran those 400’s at an 8:34 pace and then jogged slowly for 200 in between.

I also didn’t know what doing a “400”meant. For those of you that are metrically challenged like myself (I had to ask Michelle, who had to look it up recently), 400 meters is the equivalent of a quarter mile. So now when someone asks if you can run 1600 meters, you will know the answer is yes. It’s just a mile.

Rude.

Today I have a couple meetings scheduled over lunchtime, so Hubs picked me up a salad at Tenders.

This could be my new favorite salad. I think they call this one “Metric CrapTon of Chicken on Lettuce.” I couldn’t finish it. (Becky – I think you’re onto something with this place! :-))

Oh, Tenders is also the place that I mentioned in this post that will fry anything you bring in. Or…they can just fry those Oreos I had yesterday.

Weren’t you all supposed to hold an intervention if I wanted these before July 16th? Nice job lookin’ out for me, Jason. Sheesh.

Ok, now on to today’s three things. Right now, I’m in a meeting. So here are three reasons why I should never be allowed to call into a meeting from my desk:

 1.

2.

3.   

 

I just bought all that from Old Navy during the meeting. On top of the shopping, I blogged about it. < —- model employee

Oh, still in that meeting!

How do you figure out your 5k pace? (I can run a really slow and lazy 5k if I want to, so I don’t know how to figure that out.)

Come back later, cuz I have another giveaway coming up next post. 🙂

Three Things Thursday

First, I just wanted to mention that you may notice updates to the look of my blog…again (if you’re not reading by email or a reader.)  It’s still a work in progress, so if you notice anything funky – most likely I’m aware of it and will fix it. Or I have no clue what I’m doing.

Next up is the workout goodness.

Last night, hubs and I met our personal trainer for a workout that looked like this: 10 fast rounds starting at 10 repetitions each and decreasing by one rep every round until we reached 1 rep.

• weighted deep squats
• box jumps (18 inches for me, 24 inches for hubs – heh)
• push-ups
• sit-ups

We were super tired from our fitness class the day before and we still agreed the workout was a little easy for us. When we got home, I did 2.3 interval miles on the treadmill.

This morning, I got up and ran 3.25 interval miles on the treadmill (just like the ones last night) and walked .75 miles. My legs were still really fatigued from all the other workouts this week, so I probably should have taken a rest day. But I was already awake and too sweaty to go back to bed when I realized it, so I finished the workout and then played with the bunny.

Now on to today’s three things. Things I’m looking forward to.

1. Incubus is coming to Tampa! The bestie Facebooked me last night and we are already planning to buy tickets. That also means a new album is coming out. Oooh yeah.

The album comes out in July so that gives me a month to be a total creeper and learn all the lyrics. A new album also means that Brandon Boyd is back on my future husbands list. Helloooo lovah.

 2. I’m seeing 10 Years in concert in August.

They only have a few minor hit songs so most people I know have never heard of them, but I love them and have never seen them live. Everytime they come to town, they open for some band I hate so much that I can’t bring myself to buy a ticket (Disturbed, Sevendust – I’m lookin’ at you). Anyway, I’ve been seeing so many pop concerts lately, it will be nice to rock out again. 🙂

3. My birthday!

It’s not ’til Tuesday but I try to make everyone around me celebrate it for at least a week because I’m selfish like that. I’m also nice enough to share my birthday with celebrities: Prince, Bill Hader (from SNL), Liam Neeson, Dave Navaro (thanks Chris), and Anna Kournikova. I was going to keep June 7 to myself, but I felt generous. 😀

What celebrity shares your birthday?

Three Things Thursday

(last night’s) Workout: Ran outside 3.65 miles (34 minutes) 9:18 pace / Ran on the treadmill 1.6 miles (9:41/9:31 pace) – 5.25 miles total

Last night’s run was a good one and I didn’t even know it until I was done. After 3.65 miles outside, I had to go to the little girl’s room but the bathroom doors were already locked at the park. So, I had to cut my run short and go home. Don’t neglect the bowels, people.

After I did my biz at home, I hopped on the treadmill for a little more mileage. I was really surprised by my 9:18 pace since I’ve barely been running in the past month and a half. To be honest, it makes me a little giddy. 🙂

Also, I think I saw one of my old professors from college walking his dog but I didn’t wanna seem like a total creepster and call his name since it was getting dark and I was running past him at the SPEED OF LIGHT. (Speed of light is 9:18 by the way.)

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The first day of Operation: Look-Hotter-Than-The-Girls-In-My-Fitness-Class went well. I only had one can of pop (instead of 4) and NO peanut butter (a minor miracle), a turkey burger for dinner (more good fats), and my snacks were hard-boiled eggs and light Babybel cheese instead of Reeses eggs and cheesecake.

Today, lunch was a grilled turkey salad from Pita Pit. I asked for double meat, which I guess means “more meat than lettuce.” Not the wisest decision. Next time, no double meat.

I swear there is a salad under there. Also, check out my stuffed Peep because it’s awesome.

For dessert, I had this:

The gum is good and keeps its flavor for a long time. But, bloggers who tell you that dessert gum is a great substitute for something sweet when you really want it are full of shit.

Now, on to today’s three things. Things my mom wouldn’t let me do until I turned 18. (This post was inspired by Lisa’s post today, but I have no idea how.)

1. Eat Pop-Tarts. She wouldn’t even allow them in the house. When I would ask for them, she would say, “you can buy them yourself when you’re 18.”  So, I did.

I ate a whole box. It was rather anti-climatic too because I built up years of remembering how good they were and then I was let down. I ate the whole box anyway because I could.

2. Get my ears pierced a second time. I had them pierced the first time when I was 11. I wanted them done twice and begged for it. My mom hates ears pierced more than once. So, I got the “not until your 18” speech again. Right after I turned 18, I went to visit my Dad in Chicago. He had plans the night I came in town, so he gave me his car at the airport so I could drive myself home. Did I go right home? No. I found the first jewelry store I could in downtown Chicago and got my ears pierced a second time.

Now, I can’t wear anything but real gold in my second hole or they get really irritated (hey, a time when that doesn’t mean something dirty!), so I rarely wear earrings in them. (Perhaps that’s Mom Karma? Marma, if you will.)

3. Crap. I can’t think of a third thing. Umm. Take a look at a picture of me with something random from my desk.

 

Whew! That was close. I bet you almost noticed I had only 2 things.

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Tonight, the hubs and I are meeting up with our personal trainer again. I can’t wait to see what part of my body he will torture tonight. My arms and lats STILL hurt from Monday (I can’t straighten my arm fully without bicep soreness). I think only the waist down is fair game tonight. What?

Tell me about something that your parents wouldn’t let you do when you were younger?

Three Things Thursday

I think my bad morning from yesterday is seeping into today. Do you ever get tired of everything in general? I do. A lot. Today I’m tired of eating healthy, gaining weight, not pooping enough, boredom at work, and only getting 6 hours of sleep every night. I’m sure at least a few of those are related to one another.

I work out all the time. I try to eat healthy. I try to eat enough fruits and veggies, and I take my vitamins. I clean the house every day and pay my bills on time and I don’t bite my nails or drink coffee. 

I have a lot of good habits that you hear about all the time. So, today’s three things are my bad habits. These are bad habits I kinda like and want to keep. Forever.

Ok, maybe not forever.

Hopefully not forever.

I eat Splenda and Truvia (and think Stevia sucks)

I love Splenda and use it mostly in my oatmeal. If I’m in the mood for ice cream but want to eat something healthier, I’ll make a protein smoothie. Sometimes I’ll add a packet of Truvia to it if I want something extra sweet. Plus, Truvia has a real sugar-like consistency that I dig. But I do not like it in my oatmeal. So, I have boxes of both at home. If I’m out of one, it’s considered an emergency.

I love Diet Coke.

I don’t really discriminate against diet drinks in general. I know they’re bad because they leach calcium from your bones. I know they’re bad because the artificial sugars are known to stimulate hunger and make you eat more. I know I should drink more water. But I don’t.

I’ve quit diet coke for 2 months before and it sucks. So, I pick my battles. I will skip eating that cupcake most days, but I will not skip a diet coke if I really want it. Sometimes I drink one can a day, sometimes I drink four. Everytime I love it.

I Eat Too Many Sweets

I love sweets. I love cupcakes, cookies, marshmallows, and peanut buttery stuff the most. Pretty much anything with frosting is fair game to my tonsils. I’ve put out Facebook APBs for Cadbury Eggs (thanks Jack and Teri!) so I can make my newly discovered addiction, Cadbury Egg and Peep s’mores (thanks Melissa! I think…).

Is this normal? Probably not. When I eat low carb, I crave less sweets, so I try to eat low carb (not no carb) most of the time. I do try to limit my sweets as much as possible, but it’s hard and it sucks.

I’m thinking my bad habits might seep into Friday too. 

 

What’s your bad habit?