Weekend Recap…

Girls on The Go run weekend!  The hubs graciously drug himself out of bed at 4:30am Saturday morning with me…we let the princesses sleep in until 5:00 and then piled our tired little selves into the car.  First stop, Grammy and Papa’s for a princess drop-off!!  The hubs, my sister and I booked it down to Mission Bay because we had not picked up our race bibs yet and were not quite sure where we were headed.  Thankfully there was no traffic and we made good time because it was quite a trek just to get to the registration and race festivities area!  As soon as my sister and I got our bibs I made a b-line for the bathrooms, which I ended up waiting in line until just before it was time to take our spot for the race.  I left the hubs in charge of the camera and bless his heart for trying to capture some good pics (they’re a little on the blurry side)!! 

 Ready to run, but not quite awake yet…

Waiting amidst the sea of runners….I’m thinkin’ my sister is a little more than excited to get going!

And we’re off…with smiles on our faces (it sort of looks like I’m sticking out my tongue)!!

And we’re back….

Still have those smiles!  I was so proud of my sister for running her first race at under a 10 minute mile pace the entire way.  I swear the socks with the capes really helped…they almost made us fly!!

Our finisher’s medal…my first medal with a little “bling!”

There were lots of “freebies” being handed out and I snagged these, plus a water, to hydrate after the run.  My sister and I agreed that coconut water is somewhat of an acquired taste.  She’s not a fan and thinks it tastes a bit like dirty feet.  The hubs LOVES the stuff and I enjoy it occasionally, but it’s not my first choice for a drink.

My princesses made it down safely, sporting their “Wonder Woman” attire.

Stretching out and getting their “race faces” on…

Watch out for this one!  It’s just a “fun run” sweetie, no need to get aggressive!

My babies…so proud of them!

And they’re off…

They look like they’ve done this before!

And they’re back!

I think they’re hooked or they just want another pretty medal!  Either way, they both had a lot of fun and were so proud of themselves for running the whole way!

My biggest fan…My Superman!!

 

Enough with the running, let’s go eat!!  We met my parents at The Eggery near Mission Beach to fill our bellies and celebrate our victory as well as an early Mother’s Day.I opted for a spinach frittata with onions, tomatoes and mushrooms.  It was so good and just enough to fill me up without feeling stuffed.

Everyone enjoyed their meal and the service and atmosphere was fabulous!  Although parking was a bit of a hassle, I would definitely recommend this beach-front restaurant for breakfast!!

In the middle of her meal this little princess decided to lose her front tooth!  Just bit into a pancake and it popped right out onto the table!

I finished off the weekend feeling blessed and loved by my sweet little family!  The hubs preached a wonderful Mother’s Day message that left every mother in tears or at least tugging at their heart-strings.  After church the hubs and my princesses said the “day was mine,” so what better to do than shop…for none other than groceries and home improvement goodies!

Pinterest projects here we come!

I’m a regular…the “Ramona Gal” who shops here faithfully every Sunday. 

 Apparently the princesses had a couple other places in mind as well…

 Jamba Juice…to power through the shopping and because it was so blazin’ hot outside!

And because she wouldn’t hear of me cooking on Mother’s Day… My little Cailyn insisted that I have my favorite veggie tacos at Chipotle!  Two treats in one day, now that is simply unheard of!!

The hubs blessed me with a new “donut” pan (I’m thinking there’s a little hint behind that gift!) and an awesome Crossfit journal.  Now I can successfully live up to this (except it looks like I’ll be baking donuts this week!)…

And speaking of Crossfit, today’s WOD is a doozy!

Max double unders in 3 min.

400 M run

Max hand stand push-ups in 3 min.

400 M run

Max strict pull-ups in 3 min.

400 M run

Just thinking about it is making me sweat!  Have an awesome week!

Blessings,

J’lene

Ready to Run…

The wind finally died down and the mornings haven’t been so frigid, so I rolled myself out of bed to go on a much needed run!  Came home to grab my princess Makenna and went on a short jog-about with her.  It was such a sweet time, just her and I in the early morning sunshine!  And then it was home to drink  me up a little more sunshine…

 Something about this “green juice” that just brightens my day a little bit more!  And the fun part is, the more I experiment with different fruits and veggies, the more it becomes a mystery as to how it’s going to taste.  Sometimes you just have to walk on the wild side a bit!

 

Speaking of experiments, I’ve been playing around with some different recipes as we near Thanksgiving.  I started with breakfast because who says you have to wait until dinner to enjoy the yummy goodness that this holiday brings? 

 Sweet apples and cinnamon, what’s not to love?

Cinnamon Apple Coffee Cake (Grain Free)

(inspired by Against All Grain)

Yields 1 8-inch round cake

Ingredients:

1 cup blanched almond flour

1 1/2 cups almond meal

pinch of sea salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp cardamom

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1/4 cup raw honey, melted

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

3 large eggs, room temperature (cold eggs will harden the coconut oil!)

2 organic Fuji apples (peeled, cored and roughly chopped)

1 Tbsp lemon juice

For the Cinnamon Swirl

1/2 Tbsp cinnamon

1 1/2 Tbsp coconut oil, melted

2 Tbsp pure maple syrup

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly oil all sides of an 8-inch round cake pan with coconut oil.  Set aside.

In a small bowl, toss together the apples and lemon juice.

In a medium mixing bowl, mix together the flours, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamom and salt.  In another small bowl, combine the coconut oil, eggs, honey, maple syrup and vanilla.  Incorporate the wet ingredients into the dry.

Fold in the apple mixture and then spoon the batter into the prepared cake pan.  Spread into an even layer (it will be thick).

Mix the “Cinnamon Swirl” ingredients in a small bowl, then drizzle on top of batter.  Use a toothpick or knife to swirl the mixture into the batter.

Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Cool on a wire rack, then use a knife to loosen the cake from the sides of the pan.  Invert the cake onto the rack and continue to cool.  Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator for 1 to 2 days.

Tastes just like a cinnamon roll on Christmas morning!

I think the hubs could eat these sweet treats on any holiday, or any meal for that matter!  But I need him to keep fueling up with the “healthy” stuff and lay off the sweet tooth as we get ready for our first “Mud Run” this weekend.  It’s been way too long since I’ve done a race.  Although I run throughout the week, it’s just not the same rush, and I am so looking forward to this 5K obstacle run!  I’m praying that these past few months of Cross Fit will come in handy for climbing up the ropes and scaling the walls!  If nothing else, it will be a fun day getting dirty with the hubs and some great friends!

(source)

Have a fabulous weekend!

Blessings,

J’lene

Few Words for Monday…

Ahhhh!  Simply amazing!

This was what I walked outside to for this morning’s run…how MIGHTY is our God!!  I forgot about the fact that my legs felt like lead and I wanted to quit before I even began, I forgot about the fact that I have SO MUCH to do this week and can’t seem to sleep at night, and turned my eyes to the sky to focus on Him who gave me this new day!  Twenty-nine minutes later I was done with my 5K run and ready to face the rest of the day!  Thank you Lord for giving me a new perspective!

 

I’ve said it a million times, but I’ll say it again…”Life is crazy busy!”  My days have new meaning now that school is in full swing and new activities are well underway. 

Some things new for us this year…

a completed and almost ready to use (just need to set up the outside furniture)  side yard!

Class Days…

Ready for Kindergarten…

and 3rd grade!

By the looks of things they are probably thinking, “Seriously Mom, another picture!”

The hubs and I sharing in our homeschooling journey together!

Princess Makenna is so excited for an “American Girl History”, a “Chronicles of Narnia” literature class, and “Arts and Crafts.”

Princess Cailyn couldn’t be more excited about her  “For God So Loved the World” geography class, “Phonics Museum”, and “Arts and Crafts.”

That’s my girl,  loving on old friends and making new ones!

Cross Fit…getting fit as a family at Neighborhood Crossfit!

This is what I tell myself before every WOD!

 (source)

These are some of our new friends…box jumps, dead lifts, cleans, jerks, burpees, rope climbs, knees to bars, kipping pull-ups and double-unders!  More on our cross-fit adventure later! 

Our first family vacation…

We’re counting down the days until we get to play at Disney World!!

9 days and we’ll be cruisin’ Disney style… aboard the Disney Wonder!

and being treated like royalty at the “Happiest Place on Earth!”…

9 days is seriously too long for this mommy to wait!  I’m so ready to pack my bags and head off to Never, Never Land right now!

Not much excitement going on in my kitchen right now, but I’ll have some more grain free goodies to share with you tomorrow!

Blessings,

J’lene