Lent

Today is Ash Wednesday. Which is also the first day of Lent. Lent is forty weekdays starting with Ash Wednesday and ends the day before Easter, April 20.

Every year I give something up. One year it was pop.  I didn't start drinking it again until years later. I occasionally have a pop now, but it wasn't like it was in the past. I might have one once a week. I have also given up chips, cookies and chocolate. But I have always gone back to eating those regularly.

This year I'm giving up snacking in between meals.  When I lost all my weight back in the 2010, that is what helped me do it. The reason I'm doing that this year is because I find myself in the kitchen a lot eating chips or cookies for no reason. It is just a habit. I hope these next 40 days can break that mindless ending habit.

Ranch with Bacon Mac & Cheese

Campbellskitchen.com

I saw this recipe and decided that I need to make it this weekend. It looks very tasty and very easy to make. The best thing about it is that it only requires four ingredients.

Ranch with Bacon Mac & Cheese
from Campbell's Kitchen

Ingredients
- 1/2 of a 1-pound package of penne pasta, cooked and drained
- 1 jar (14.5 ounces) Prego Flavored with Savory Bacon Alfredo Sauce
- 1/2 of a 1-ounce envelope rance salad dressing mix
- 1/2 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

Instructions
- Heat the oven to 350°F
- Stir the pasta, sauce, dressing mix and half the cheese into a bowl. Spoon the pasta into an 8x8x2-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese
- Bake for 30 minutes or until the pasta is hot and bubbling

Birthday

My 33rd birthday was yesterday.

I was trying to decide what I wanted to do on my birthday for almost a week. I ran 32 miles on my birthday last year. I knew that was something that I wouldn't do this year. I wanted to spend time with my husband instead of running most of my birthday away.

I was looking up things to do in Toledo, Ohio in Google earlier this week. I found a list from tripadvisor.com. The first item on the list was the Toledo Art Museum. I looked at the exhibition schedule for the Toledo Museum of Art. They will have an exhibition called Made in Hollywood in October. It will feature photographs from American film industry. The photos include movie stars, sets and scenes from 1920-1960. Even though the museum has an exhibition I would like to see now, I will wait until October to visit.

Down on the list of things to do in Toledo was Woodlawn Cemetery. Visitors to the cemetery made comments about mausoleums and monuments that are in the cemetery. Some also said how beautiful that the cemetery is. Since I never seen this cemetery, I decided that is what I wanted to go on my birthday.

My husband and I arrived at Woodlawn Cemetery in the afternoon. It is a very large cemetery. I could have easily spend half of the day there. But I didn't. I didn't want to bore my husband too much. I photographed mausoleums, monuments, statues and headstones. I was saying how beautiful everything was during our visit there. I know I will try to visit this cemetery again.

We headed out to the bookstore after the cemetery. I do own a Kindle, but I was looking for art books. I would rather have the physical book, especially an art book, then buy it on my Kindle. I was looking for a graffiti book, Wall and Piece by Banksy. I have admired his work for a while, but have never known who was behind it until this week. I finally found the book after scouring the art section for 10 minutes. I couldn't find it right away because nothing was in order.

After the bookstore, we went to the mall. I was in the buying mood. If anything caught my eye, I would buy it. Nothing did unfortunately. I looked at a bunch of cute shirts, but they weren't what I really wanted. I decided to keep my money for another day.

The last stop was to dinner at Famous Dave's BBQ. I had my usual chopped pork sandwich with broccoli, corn and a cornbread muffin. No dessert because dinner filled me up. I didn't go the entire day without dessert. I had a piece of red velvet cake after lunch.

Another birthday has passed by. I was very happy to spend my day with my wonderful husband.

Random things

After last week's driving to/from Cleveland and participating in an 24 hour race, this weekend is going to be different. I'm staying home. My husband and I have plans to spend tonight together. I went to Cleveland alone last week and I missed him. He was supposed to come with me, but he was unable to get the days off of work. So tonight, I will enjoy dinner and the evening with him.

The return of the IAAF Diamond League is also tonight. The Diamond League is an annual series of world class track and field meets. The first Diamond League meet will take place in Doha, Qatar. I will be able to watch the action this year on Universal Sports. I will be out with my husband when the track meet airs on Universal Sports, but my DVR will be recording it for me. I will be watching it Saturday morning when running on the treadmill. A couple of my favorite ladies will be running in Doha: Molly Beckwith (800m) and Allyson Felix (100m).

Mother's Day is on Sunday. Last year, only a few of my siblings and I were able to take Mom out for dinner. Everyone else was working. Looks like it is going to be the same again this year. I think only one of my sister's and her husband will be able to join Mom and me for dinner tomorrow evening. It is very rare to have all seven children and Mom together on a holiday since growing up. Sometimes I miss what we had back in the day. When all seven of us kids, plus Mom and Dad being together on holidays. Boy, how things have changed.

No-meat Fridays

I observe no-meat Fridays during Lent. I'm not a big fan of fish, so my options are limited. I found a couple of meatless recipes on the internet and presented them to my husband. I told him I could eat any of the three that I found. I asked him which one he wanted to try. He picked Three Cheese Baked Ziti with Spinach by Campbell's Kitchen.

I really liked it. As a fan of ziti, I was pleased with the mix of the three cheeses, spinach and sauce. We will be making this dish again.

Three Cheese Baked Ziti with Spinach
by Campbell's Kitchen

1 package (16 ounces) uncooked medium tube-shaped pasta (ziti)
1 bag (6 ounces) baby spinach, washed (about 4 cups)
1 jar (1 pound 9 ounces) Prego® Marinara Italian Sauce
1 cup ricotta cheese
4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese (about 1 cup)
3/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

Prepare the pasta according to the package directions. Add the spinach during the last minute of the cooking time. Drain the pasta and spinach well in a colander. Return them to the sauce pot.

Stir the sauce, ricotta, 1/2 cup of the mozzarella cheese, 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese, garlic powder and black pepper into the pasta mixture. Spoon the pasta mixture into a 13 x 9 x 2-inch shallow baking dish. Sprinkle with the remaining mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses.

Bake at 350°F. for 30 minutes or it's until hot and bubbling.

Photo credit: Campbell's Kitchen

Weekend plans

Compared to last weekend, this weekend will be so much different. I was in Battle Creek last weekend working crazy, long hours. Sunday was my only day off and I needed it. I completely took the day off from running and exercise. When Monday rolled around, I said to my husband that I needed another day off.

On the schedule this weekend are a few items. I'm excited for a dinner date with my husband, running, reading and finishing Season 1 of Downton Abbey.

Starting early

I figured out what I'm giving up for Lent this year. I'm saying goodbye to cookies, ice cream and peanut butter.

I picked those three items because when they are in the house, I can't stay away from them. Eating multiple cookies in one sitting. The never ending only one more scoop of ice cream. I say that as I stand at the kitchen counter eating it from the container. Eating an entire package of crackers with peanut butter spread on it.

Enough is enough. Instead of waiting for the start of Lent on Ash Wednesday (February 22), I decided to start early. I started my dessert fast of cookies, ice cream and peanut butter Monday.

Just because I'm run crazy miles, it doesn't give me a free pass to eat so much. People think because I run so much that I can eat anything I want. That is not true. I gain weight very easy. If I over eat one day, I can gain 1.5-2 pounds or more. It is all very frustrating. But it is my fault. I need more self control.

No more ice cream, cookies or peanut butter until Easter, which is April 8. During previous Lenten periods, I have given up a number of things: chocolate, chips, the vending machine at work and pop. The year I gave up pop, I never went back to drinking it after Lent was over. I do have a sip every now and then. But it is a sip; not an entire bottle, cup or can. Maybe this time around after Lent is over, I won't have the urge to start eating these items regularly again. I'm hoping it will be like my pop craving: just a small taste.

Valentine's Day

My husband and I stayed in on Valentine's Day. I had to work early that evening and when I finished, it was getting late. We talked about going to a restaurant, but decided not to. We figured the restaurant we wanted to go to would be busy, with a long wait time.

My husband is still having trouble eating certain types of food. I wanted him to be able to enjoy the meal, so we had ravioli and garlic bread. Ravioli is soft and wouldn't hurt his throat, but I wasn't sure how he would be able to handle the bread.

As I was finishing up with work, my husband was preparing dinner. When I walked downstairs, there was a lit candle and tablecloth out on the table. Usually we eat in front of the TV, it was nice to switch it up for Valentine's Day. We ate our dinner by candlelight and had a nice conversation.

I love how my husband is so sweet and make things special on any day of the year.

Thanksgiving Day run

If there was a local run near my home today, I probably would have run it. The closest Turkey Trot to me was north in Ann Arbor or south in Toledo, Ohio. I don't like to travel out of the county for just a 5K, so I ran at home. And it was much longer then a 5K.

I ran 22 miles on my treadmill this morning. I run long distance mostly everyday. But I like to run long distances on holidays so I don't feel so bad when I eat so much food. I try not to go overboard, but there are so many choices. You just have to sample everything.

I will be enjoying Thanksgiving with my family this afternoon. We will have some wonderful food, laughs and be watching the Lions/Packers football game. I think that is a great way to spend the day.

Displine

I made a choice in January 2010 to improve my health. I ended up losing 80 pounds in ten months. I've been pretty good about my eating choices. But I have slipped from time to time. And those slips have led me to gain a few pounds back.

Those pounds that I gained, helped me make a decision over the weekend. I decided until I lose the extra weight, I will be give up eating some items. Those items are cookies and ice cream. Besides giving those up, I also need to watch what I eat. I need to stop overeating at meals and snacking. Those calories do add up and pack on the pounds.

I want to lose the weight before the holidays start. When it is the holiday time, I need to really watch my intake. I know last year between Thanksgiving and Christmas, I gained a couple of pounds. So many desserts and extra plates of food. I worked hard and lost most of them at the start of the year. I don't want to do that this year. I would like to maintain a healthy weight through the rest of the year.

I love cookies and ice cream. I gave them up for almost an entire year back in 2010. I think I should be able to go without for a month or two. The new journey begins and I know I can achieve my short term goal.

Weekend plans

I've been looking forward to this weekend since my husband and I made the plans for it. It seems like lately that I've had my weekends booked with plans. This year must be the year for it. It seems like I'm doing something all the time.

My husband and I will be traveling to Ann Arbor Friday afternoon. He needs to go talk to a company to get a deduction taken off one of our bills. He tried to call the company, but for some reason they don't have a number that customers can call. Everything has to be done in person. After my husband deals with that, we will be going back to Graffiti Alley. We were there a couple of weeks ago and I took a bunch of photos. I decided that my Graffiti Alley photos will be used in an upcoming photo exhibition. I want to go back and take more photos and then I can decide which ones I want to have displayed in the gallery.

I will be running another half marathon on Saturday. This time I don't have to travel out of the county for. The first ever half marathon will be taking place in my town. When I first heard about it, I was unsure if I wanted to run it. It was sandwiched between my trail half marathon and my trail 50K. After a few weeks of debate, I decided to run it. My legs felt really good after the trail half marathon so I decided to try to run my best. I initially wanted to run this half as a training run for the 50K, but I know it would be hard for me to loaf. If my legs felt pretty good after running 13.1 miles on a messy, muddy trial. I know they will be fine after running on roads.

After the half marathon, my husband and I will be heading out on a little getaway. My husband booked a room at a wonderful hotel for our 10th wedding anniversary. Usually on our anniversary, we head out of town on vacation. Not this year. We will be going on vacation in a couple of weeks when we head to upstate New York. It is a vacation and road race weekend for me. My first ever road 50K. He booked this hotel because it has a lot. It has two indoor and outdoor pools, one seasonal outdoor pool, an adult only pool, hot tubs, whirlpools and a sauna. One other bonus is the 24 hour fitness center. Yes. I will be waking up early Sunday morning to run some miles. Anytime we need to stay at a hotel, one of the requirements is it has to have a fitness center. My running never takes a vacation.

Besides the hotel, we will be having dinner at a lovely Italian restaurant. We will probably also do some shopping. Also, I really need to stop at a jewelry store. My engagement and wedding rings are dirty and gross. It didn't help when I fell into a huge mud puddle last week during my trail half marathon. My rings need to be cleaned. It's been a while.

This weekend is going to be great. I get to look at some graffiti, run a half marathon and spend the evening with my wonderful husband. Who could ask for more?

Weekend update

I had a very pleasant weekend. It started with a trip to one of the local ice cream shops in town. They advertised that Friday was the return of the pumpkin flurry. Since I love anything pumpkin, I asked my husband if we could get some ice cream. I ordered a pumpkin flurry and it was so good. It had vanilla ice cream, pumpkin, graham cracker bits and whip cream. I will be heading back to the ice cream shop plenty of time's this fall to get the limited time pumpkin flurry.

After eating ice cream, we headed down to Toledo, Ohio. My husband and I did a little shopping. He got some new clothes as did I. After shopping we met up with one of my sister's and had dinner together at Don Pablo's.

Saturday morning was the start of a 24 hour run challenge on dailymile. I decided to run in the virtual 24 hour race because it would be fun. Challengers didn't have to run the entire time, just logging miles whenever you had the chance. I ran an easy six miles in the morning. I could have run more that morning, but I needed to get ready to photograph a college cross country invitational. The invitational started at 11 a.m. By then, it was hot and humid. I felt sorry for the runners. One of the women passed out during the race and was unable to finish.

At 8 p.m. Saturday night, I got on my treadmill and logged some more miles for the 24 hour race. I finished about 15 minutes before midnight, but I ran another 24 miles. That brought my total for the day to 30 miles. I could have probably gone a couple of more miles but at that point I had been awake for 20 hours. I was tired. I finished the challenge in ninth place with 30 miles and third woman overall. The winner of the challenge ran a total of 64 miles.

I woke up early on Sunday morning. After sleeping less then five hours, I was awake at 6 a.m. I thought about running, but I decided to take the day off. I finished up some work on the computer and worked on statements for an upcoming gallery exhibition that I'm in. I mentioned that I was tired and I ended up taking a two hour nap before noon. I also feel asleep on the couch while watching TV later that night for four hours. When I woke up, the clock read 11:45 p.m. With that I decided it was really time to head to bed.

I enjoyed my three day weekend. I wish I could have more of them.

Gifts

My wedding anniversary is just over three weeks away. I was talking with my husband sometime last week about what kind of gift that he wanted for our 10th wedding anniversary. He said he didn't know. He then asked me the same question and I also didn't know.

I Googled 10th wedding anniversary gifts earlier and found out that the traditional ten year gift was tin or aluminum. According to about.com, "tin and aluminum is a symbol of how a successful marriage needs to be flexible and durable and how it can be bent without being broken." Which I didn't know.

My husband and I both came up with a good idea. We have been using the same baking sheets and cake pans that we received as gifts from our wedding. Those pans and sheets are in rough shape. They have quite a bit of rust on them. Our idea was to replace them. Over the weekend, my husband and I drove to Toledo, Ohio to shop at Bed Bath & Beyond. We bought new cake pans, cookie sheets, spatulas, cheese grater and a plate grill. We bought the plate grill because I've been wanted a panini press for a while.

Its been a wonderful ten years with my husband. Hopefully if our pans rust, we don't wait another ten years to replace them.

Weekend update

Since I didn't have a race Saturday morning, I decided to take a rest day. I shocked my husband when I said I wasn't planning on running. He said that it was weird because I usually run. Taking the day off of running, let me do some other things.

After picking up a few items at the grocery store, I watched the movie Love Actually. I was pleasantly surprised how much I liked this movie. The huge cast was mainly British actors in the leading roles, except for Laura Linney. This movie is about love shown through ten different storylines. What really made it interesting is how some of these characters interacted with other characters from the movie. Some where friends, co-workers and family. The movie flowed well and connected everything. The character I enjoyed the most was Rufus. Rufus was only a minor character, but he was played by Rowan Atkinson. Rowan Atkinson is well known for his role as Mr. Bean. Atkinson played the role of a jewelery salesman who can't wrap a gift fast enough for Alan Rickman.

I was a little confused at the end of the movie. Most of the characters are meeting loved ones at Heathrow Airport. Alan Rickman just got back from a flight alone. He is met by his wife, played by Emma Thompson. Alan and Emma's characters kissed each other on the cheeck. They didn't look too in love to me. I had to Google it to make sure they were still together. I guess the movie could have made it more clear. Yes, I'm a nerd.

I woke up with my husband's alarm on Sunday morning. After he went to work, I ran 20 miles. I could have probably run a couple more miles, but I thought 122 miles run for the week was enough. I can always run more this week. After my run, I read and took a short nap before going to my niece's birthday party.

My niece turned three on Sunday. My sister hosted a lunch for family for the occasion. My niece blew out her candles on her cake after lunch. My sister gave her a piece of cake. She said she didn't want it. It didn't go to waste. I ate it. That cake was very light, fluffy and delicious. I can never turn down cake. I bought my niece a Beanie Baby lion named Midas. I bought it because it is something that I thought was cute and I actually wanted it for myself. Yes, I'm 32 and I still have stuffed animals. #Nerd.

I didn't go big with her present because I knew my brother and sisters would do that. My niece got many gifts. When she was opening them, it looked like Christmas. My brother-in-law, my niece's dad, said "she's not spoiled" in a sarcastic way. Everyone spoils them. She loved all of her gifts. She couldn't decided to play with first. My sister, her mom, bought her some Disney princess glamour shoes. It was a 4-pack. Once the box was opened, my niece tried on all of them. She decided to wear the blue pair. She looked so fancy in her heels.

It was a nice and relaxing weekend. Spent time watching a movie, reading, running and seeing family. I wish I had more of these weekends to enjoy.

Creating menus

For years my husband and I have planned a lunch menu. Lunch is mapped out for the entire week. No guessing on what we will be eating. We started planning a lunch menu because at one point we were eating out every day. Eating fast food or at restaurants everyday isn't healthy and it adds up to a lot of money spent. Our lunch menu works. There are some days were we have to switch things up. But it always works out.

Last week we decided to start creating dinner menus. We have been pretty good at eating dinner at home. Usually we only eat dinner at a restaurant once a week. Mostly on a Friday or Saturday. The dinner menu idea was created because my husband and I are trying to eat better. Our dinner ideas before were fine, but I like how I know what we are going to eat in advance. No more asking each other at 6 p.m. what we want to eat. Creating a menu with cookbooks gives us a chance to eat something new and not always resort to our same old favorites.

I sat down on Sunday and created the menu for this week. Recently we bought a couple of cookbooks and I'm finally putting them to use. I used three different cookbooks to plan our meals. I loved flipping the pages and looking at the pictures. The pictures were the reason most of the items made it on the menu. First it was the pictures, how easy it is to make and then finally the ingredients. After the menu was done. I created a grocery list. Most of the items we didn't have or had low quantities of. Maybe this will help us when we go grocery shopping to buy larger quantities of items that we will be using often.

I'm hoping my husband and I can stick to creating a dinner menu. If we can keep a lunch menu going for years, I'm hoping we can do the same with dinner.

Weekend plans

I will be running another relay race this weekend. It is much shorter then the Ragnar Relay I participated in last week. Ragnar was almost 200 miles from Madison, Wisconsin to Chicago, Illinois. This relay race is on a trail and is only 12 miles. There are three people on each team and we run about four miles each on the trail. The part of the trail race I'm not too fond of is running through water and mud. This relay race is called the Mud Wallop Dallop. It promises that we will be covered with mud and water when we finish. I will be bringing extra clothes to change into after my leg is done. I don't think I could walk around in wet shoes and socks for too long. It just feels so gross.

Besides the trail relay race Saturday, later in the evening I will be attending my sister's bachelorette party. This bachelorette party will not be wild or out of control. We are meeting at a fancy restaurant to eat, drink (everyone but me) and enjoy my sister's company. I hope my sister will enjoy this get together and the last few days of being single. I can't believe she gets married next week. I hope she has a long and wonderful marriage.

Random things

The end of Lent is near. Only one more hurdle standing in our way before Easter. Good Friday is today and I will be fasting again. I really hope I fast better today then I did on Ash Wednesday. I ate too much food and really felt bad. All of the meals that we eat on a fasting day are supposed to add up to one meal. I'm really going to stick with it today.

It will be a challenge again today. I will be running after work. I won't be running a marathon like I did on Ash Wednesday, but it will be a run of 15 miles. After my run, I hope just to have a banana or a protein drink for lunch. Both of those items aren't big. By the time I eat something small for dinner, everything I ate for the day will add up to one meal.

Over the last couple of weeks, I have been eating too much food. I do run a lot of miles and I get hungry. That has been leading to overeating and I have gained a few pounds. I know I will be able to lose those pounds I gained by watching my food intake. I need to get back on track and stop eating everything in sight.

My plan was to run the trails today. I think I might be ditching that plan. The weather is calling for showers and temperatures in the 40s. Yes, I'm a cold weather wimp. It was in the 50s yesterday and I was wearing my winter coat and a hat. And I was still cold. If it rains on race day, I will still run the race. I paid money to do it and I don't like wasting money. I still have time next week to make it out to the trail to get in a final practice run before next Saturday's race.

Weekend plans

So much to do this weekend. I've been waiting for this weekend since Sunday.

Our plans for Friday include a trip to Cabela's. Cabela's is a The North Face dealer and I want to check out the running clothes. I'm sure I'll find some clothing that I like. Hopefully it won't be too expensive. After checking out some clothes, my husband and I plan to see The Conspirator. It is directed by Robert Redford and it is about Mary Surratt, the female co-conspirator charged in the assassination of Abraham Lincoln. After the movie, we will be eating dinner at Don Pablo's.

On Saturday, we will be traveling to Toledo to pick up my bib for the Glass City Half Marathon. Hit the expo and go eat some pasta for dinner. Sunday morning I will be toeing the line for my first half marathon on the year. I really hope I can run a sub-two hour half. That is my goal. If I fail to reach it Sunday, I will try again when I run my second half Memorial Day weekend.

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday is the start of Lent. It is also a day of fasting. Usually I have no problems fasting, but I did this year.

I had to photograph a basketball game out of the county Tuesday. The round trip to and from the game was 130 miles. I like to run twice on Tuesdays. I run in the morning when I get home from work. Then I run again later in the day. I planned on running long Wednesday since I had to work Tuesday night.

I took a banana and a protein bar to work with me on Wednesday morning. I ate both of those before 7: 30 a.m. After I left work, I got on my treadmill for a long run. I decided to run a marathon. I don't know if running a marathon was a smart idea. When I hit 16 miles, I really felt like stopping. I told myself to run to 18 miles. Once I got to 18 miles, I told myself to run to 22 miles. When I reached 22 miles, I knew I would be able to run the last four miles. When I was doubting myself, it was because I didn't know if I could make it on a empty stomach. I did.

After running, I had a glass of water with a protein mix. That filled me up for about an hour. I was hungry. I couldn't deny myself any longer. I broke down and ate some food. But not too much. I ate a small cinnamon raisin bagel, a handful of raisins and a banana. I know that those healthy snacks will carry me through until dinner.

I know I ate more food then I should have on Ash Wednesday. I couldn't help it. I'm always really hungry after running long distances. I'll be sure to fast better on Good Friday. I won't plan on running a marathon that day.

Lent

After thinking about it for a while, I have decided what I'm giving up for Lent 2011. I will be giving up buying snacks at the grocery store.

Usually every Saturday morning I go to the grocery store. Certain items always find their way into my shopping cart. These items are oatmeal raisin cookies, cornbread and Town House Flipsides crackers. They are not bad items, but I can't seem to control myself around them. When I open the package, I can't stop. I could eat an entire package in one sitting, which isn't too good.

Since losing 80 pounds since last October, I have been maintaining my weight. Some days it goes up, but it usually comes back down. My ultimate goal is lose another 10 pounds. I really want to to weigh a certain amount for the first time in my life. If I am always stuffing my face with these delicious snacks, I'll never get there.

My house will be empty of these items starting on Wednesday. I know I'll miss them, but it is for my own good. I hope with giving up the snacks I can lose a couple of more pounds. Many years ago I gave up pop (that is what we call it in the Midwest). After Lent was over I never went back to drinking it. Sometimes if my husband has a pop, I'll take a sip or two. But I don't have the desire to drink a whole bottle. I don't know if I will feel that way about these items. It would be nice to lose the constant craving of eating the cookies, cornbread and crackers. Maybe after Lent it will be like how it is with pop, a small taste that can satisfy me.