Snow Day!

I love snow. Maybe its because I am a teacher, maybe its because I am still a kid at heart. What ever the reason, I still get so excited when I wake up in the morning and run to the window and see the big fat flakes coming down.  Living here in the Willamette Valley, we usually get one snow "storm" a winter. I really do use the term storm lightly, as an inch and a half of snow shuts down the county. I realize in some parts of the country that is a laughable amount, but that's how we roll. I always get a kick out of the names the local news calls our storms "Arctic Blast 2011" "Christmas Freeze 2010" etc, as they go on non-stop breaking news coverage.

Much to my delight, yesterday morning the flakes were coming down. With about an 2 inches covering the field, the Mister and I took Gus out to play fetch, his most favorite thing in the world.

By noon, the roads had cleared up. But when I woke up this morning, more snow had fallen. If it wasn't a holiday, I probably wouldn't have to go to work. Today is the perfect day for some crafting.

 It's supposed to warm up a bit later today, so my guess I will be at work, on time, tomorrow.

Pina Colada Cupcakes

It's just about mid-January, so most people have thrown their resolutions out the window. BUT if you are still trying to eat healthier, I have a delicious treat for you. If you are done with healthy eating, these are still a delicious treat. Let's all thank Pinterest for bringing this to my attention.

Pina Colada Cupcakes

For the cupcakes:
1 box of yellow cake mix
1 20 oz can of crushed pineapple

For the Frosting:
1 block reduced fat cream cheese
1 20 oz can of crushed pineapple (drained)
1 cup sweetened coconut
1 cup powdered sugar (I think it was about a cup...)

Dump the can of  pineapple (juice and all) into the cake mix.

Stir it until combined and fill your cupcake pan 1/2-2/3 of the way full.

Bake like you normally would (350 for 15ish minutes.)

This picture is awful. At least you know my blog is real, right?

Feel free to lick the bowl/spoon/beaters. There is no raw egg! Let's be real, I would have licked the spoon anyway. BUT my friend who was baking with me is 7 months pregnant, so she could also lick the spoon without fear that her unborn son will have a third eye or 17 toes or whatever raw eggs do to people and fetuses.

For the frosting, mix the coconut, cream cheese and drained pineapple together with powdered sugar. The original recipe called for 1/4 cup granulated sugar. We started with that, but it just tasted like cream cheese, so we pulled out the powdered sugar and added it until it tasted yummy.

When the cupcakes are cooled, frost and enjoy!

So, how was it?
I really liked these and so did the Mister (who doesn't like cake!) Kim also liked them lots. We were brainstorming different frosting options as we were eating them. We both think a mix of a vanilla pudding packet and Cool Whip with the coconut/pineapple would be yummy (that is a Skinny Girl trick!) The original pin said these were 154 calories, but with the change to the frosting I'm not really sure, but they are less than most cupcakes!

What have you been treating yourself with??

Mid week confessions.

It's time for some confessin'!

-I am addicted to TV on DVD. The Mister is too. We watched the entire series of Friday Night Lights in 4 weeks. That wouldn't be that bad if we didn't have to wait for 2 weeks for seasons 2-5 to be delivered to us from Amazon.
- Currently we are watching Parks and Rec on DVD. I have literally watched between 3-4 episodes a day since we got them. Including all the deleted scenes.
- I have taken down all the Christmas decor, BUT it is living in plastic totes that I still haven't taken out of the living room.
- I think I am getting the itch-- you know kind of like a very mild, non-contagious case of baby fever. The Mister and I are not really ready to have one yet, as we like to go on vacation and spend money on ourselves, but I am surrounded by newborns and pregnant ladies. I think I am feeling left out of the baby party.
- I got 3 different gift certificates for salons/beauty places for Christmas. Was I being sent a message?
- I must apologize to all the non-teachers reading this before I continue. I have only been back at work for a week and a half and I am already counting down to spring break. At least Monday is MLK Jr. Day.
- I am a health teacher and right now I am in the middle of teaching 8th graders all about eating healthy. In my head, all I can think about is eating cheese pizza. And washing it down with some chocolate milk.

How I Became a Runner

If one of your New Year's resolution is to exercise more, or run a 5k I have a tool to share with you.

If you had asked me 5 or 6 years ago if I would ever run a marathon (or even a half marathon) I would have laughed at you. While I loved to go to the gym and take step or go 30 minutes on the elliptical, I was sporadic at it at best, and I definitely did not like to run. I kind of wanted to run. I was always jealous of the people I see jogging outside on a nice day, in their cute running outfits (seriously, I LOVE workout clothes!) but I never knew how to start running. Running was hard for me, I would try to go out and do a mile or two around the track at a local high school, but I would get tired quickly and have to walk. Then I would get discouraged and then negative thoughts would start to creep into my head and I would give up.

Then somehow I came across the Couch to 5K program. I honestly don't know how I heard about it. But when I checked it out, I thought "I can do that." It is a series of 30(ish) minute workouts that lasts 9 weeks. Each workout starts with a 5 minute walk to warm up and ends with a 5 minute walk to cool down. The first week alternates between a 1 minute jog and a 1 1/2 minute walk. You do it 3 times a week, and each week increases the jogging time. At the end of 9 weeks, you are jogging 30 minutes, or 3 miles. There is an app for the program that uses your own music, and a "coach" tells you when to walk and jog.

Here is somethings that helped me when I started:
*It is really easy to quit. I told a friend of mine (who I consider to be a running superstar) what I was doing, and she suggested made me sign up for a 5K race that would be around the time that I was scheduled to finish the program. She also signed up for it. It kept me motivated to do it knowing that I had already paid for the race AND that my friend was counting on me to do it with her.
*Speaking of friends, find someone train with. For me, my iPod was fine for the C25K program. But when I decided to train for a marathon, I needed to have a person with me. An hour or two is a long time to keep yourself motivated.
*It's NOT about speed. Who cares if you are slow? I know I am not going to EVER win one of these races I sign up for. But that's not why I do it. One thing that I loved about the Couch to 5K was that it was about jogging for the time, not about trying to reach a certain distance. I still am not fast. If you do sign up for a race (which is the fun part!) make sure you check out the details. Many of the races have a minimum speed, usually around a 15 minute mile. Most races I have seen have "sweepers" that means you have to run on the sidewalks and obey traffic laws after a certain time at a certain point on the course. Others will actually make you get on a bus and drive you to the end if you don't make it. (The Disneyland/World Half marathons do this)

If you want to do a longer distance, I highly recommend Hal Higdon's schedule for a half marathon. He also has a marathon training schedule. They are for novices, and I have used both. he does recommend that you are able to run 3 miles to start with.

Let me know if you have any questions! I am no expert, but I have been through this. The hardest part is getting started and staying motivated. I would love to help you in any way I can! The more people you let know about your goal the better!

***I wasn't paid or compensated in any way by any company I mentioned here. I just really believe in these programs and wanted to share with everyone!***