Crazy Running Legs

Living life in moderation...one run at a time

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Weekend Recap + Lobster Mac & Cheese {Somewhat Healthy Recipe}

March 3, 2013 by Michelle 11 Comments

This weekend was BUSY. I knew it was going to be, but I honestly didn’t realize I would still be catching my breath. It’s times like this when I think, “Woah, how am I going to do this with 3 kids?” I mean, I know I’ll do it, but the reality checks just keep coming! Ha ha.

I kicked off Friday night with an hour on the spin bike at the gym.

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Obligatory gym bathroom selfie. I look super happy to be there, no?

I actually intended to stop at 50 minutes, but this lady started talking to me about she wished she had more kids and hadn’t focused so much on her career. I haven’t actually figured out how to politely tell people I don’t really care, so I listened and smiled. Meanwhile, my kids/husband were at home starving (kidding – Dan was making them tomato and mozzarella paninis). Pregnancy really draws people to you. I’m not 100% sure this is a good thing.

I arrived home to my family finishing up dinner and decided to make pancakes instead of a sandwich. I just can’t quit you pancakes.

While they were eating dessert (well, technically it was just apples, but it was after dinner) – B lost his 2nd tooth! This damn tooth has been loose for the past 2 months and I was wondering when it come out. FINALLY.

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The good news is that we didn’t fail at tooth fairy duties this time. A crispy, dirty $1 bill was delivered without any drama. We’ve learned. The rest of the night was spent doing nothing in front of the TV. What can I say, Fridays are exciting!

Saturday morning came waaaay too early. We were up and dressed and ready for our insane day by 8:15. We went to the gym and I did my Circuit Workout. Then I rushed over to Davis Bakery for breakfast and coffee, before making it to L’s dance class. From there we rushed to B’s baseball game. There was basically a lot of rushing going on.

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It was opening day and it was chilly and windy.

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This is what I felt like doing too.

B did a great job hitting the ball (it’s his first time playing coach pitch) and did some decent fielding. At this age they still don’t really “play”, so nobody gets out and everyone gets to bat. It’s good because the parents aren’t really cutthroat and everyone gets a turn, but it feels like the longest 3 innings ever.

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That’s my boy!

Thankfully, one of B’s teammates has a little sister who is the same age as L and they are now best friends. They were pretty adorable.

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This is how girls are different than boys.

After the game, we braved my sanity and did some shopping at Target. As always — after about $100 and 1.5 hours later we left. I’m not even really sure what I bought, except these cute shoes:

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I’m a sucker for $20 Target shoes.

When we got home we were ALL ready for a nap. I think I did actually fall asleep for about a half hour because I don’t remember most of the afternoon. All I know is that at some point I started getting ready for my night out. Yes, I left the house! I picked up my friends Jackie and Carol (my friends pretty much want me to be pregnant forever so they have a permanent DD) and we headed over to my colleague’s (my boss) birthday/housewarming party!

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There was an abundance of food, wine, liquor, and shots…

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And this lady!

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Even though I feel like I talk to her every day, I haven’t seen Paula (or her hubs) in ages, so it was really nice to hang out (and Melissa, she’d want me to let you know that she molested me with a very, very long hug that involved rubbing my back).

Also fun? The party of course. Most of the people there I had worked with at some point in the past 6 years. Some I hadn’t seen in a while –  the last time we saw each other I was pregnant with L. I felt the need to clarify that it was a different baby. Lol.

We partied until 12:45ish and then headed home. The best part of the night? There was no puking in my car. (OK, maybe one of the best parts)

Today Dan was really, really sweet and let me sleep in. I needed it! When I finally got my butt out of bed, we did our usual Sunday thing: ate pancakes/drank coffee, relaxed, and then went to the 1:15 spin class. The kids are always super nutty on Sundays (probably because it the one day that we are all together all day!), but thinking back to the day I wouldn’t have it any other way. They are nuts, but they are my nuts.

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Clearly, she dressed herself.

Since we really haven’t had a good quality family dinner the past few nights – I treated everyone tonight and made Lobster Mac and Cheese (see recipe below!). It’s probably the richest meal I’ve made in ages (or ever), but it was worth the splurge. I can’t wait for the leftovers tomorrow!

I modified this recipe. It was actually very simple and took about 40 minutes from start to finish.

Lobster Mac & Cheese

Lobster Mac & Cheese

 

Ingredients:

  • 2 lobster tails
  • 1.5 lbs of whole wheat penne pasta
  • 4 tablespoons of butter
  • 1/4 cup of flour
  • 2 cups of hot milk
  • 2 cups of fontina cheese
  • 1 cup of 2% sharp cheddar cheese
  • Salt & Pepper to taste
  • 1/2 – 1 cup of Italian breadcrumbs

Directions:

Broil the lobster tail. I used these instructions and it was much easier than I thought it was going to be! Once broiled, chop the lobster into chunks and set aside. Once the lobster is done, turn the oven onto bake at 425 degrees.

While you’re broiling the lobster, prepare/boil the pasta and shred the cheese (I shredded the fontina, but used shredded sharp cheddar because I am lazy).

Once the cheese is ready, either microwave the milk for a minute or heat the milk on the stove (DON’T bring it to a boil or scald it – it just needs to be hot). In a saucepan, add 3 tablespoons of the butter and warm it at a medium heat. Once melted, add the flour and whisk until blended. Slowly add hot milk and continue whisking. If you keep the heat at medium it will take a few minutes for the milk to thicken. Once it thickens, remove the saucepan from the heat Add the cheese, salt, and pepper until smooth and then set aside.

Next, drain the (al dente) cooked pasta and thoroughly mix together the lobster, pasta, and the cheese sauce. Pour the mixture into baking dish. Melt the remaining tablespoon of butter and pour over the top of pasta mixture – followed by sprinkling 1/2 cup – 1 cup of breadcrumbs (I find this strategy works better than combining the butter/breadcrumbs together and sprinkling it on top). Bake for 15-20 minutes. The breadcrumbs should be browned and the pasta should be a little crunchy on top, but thicky and gooey on in the middle. YUM.

Now my full belly and I are going to catch up on The Americans and weep because tomorrow is Monday. Weekend, I hardly knew you!

What is the richest meal you’ve ever eaten or made?? 

Filed Under: Family, Friends, recipes, Weekend

Three Things Thursday

February 14, 2013 by Michelle 10 Comments

Happy Valentine’s Day!

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Do you feel my contempt for the “holiday”? It’s not that I’m against the idea of love – I just… think it’s so sensationalized. I did send my kids to school with Valentines and I did get flowers from Dan, but BAAAAH- HUMBUG. Maybe I’m just not in the mood to celebrate this year, because I don’t remember feeling so “blah” about it last year. Or maybe I just have a cold, black heart. Did you celebrate?

In any case – here are 3 things unrelated to Valentine’s Day.

1. I made pancakes for dinner last night and they were AMAZING.

Protein pancakes with fruit dinner. Living the crazy life!

Not just any pancakes – Greek Yogurt Pancakes.

Source: everydaybelle.com via Michelle on Pinterest

 

I was tempted to make them for dinner again tonight because they were that good. But, then I dropped the rest of my eggs on the floor when I opened the fridge tonight and that was the end of that dream.

I’m going to play around with the recipe and post a version of my own later next week. Be on the lookout!

2. I have banned myself from buying new running shoes until June. I simply don’t need them – but that doesn’t mean I don’t look at them. OFTEN. (if doesn’t help that I get emails from both Running Warehouse AND Roadrunner Sports) This of course does not ban me from buying shoes for B. Which is exactly what I did today. His next pair of running shoes…

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Aren’t they pretty? I bought them solely on how they look – they have gotten really great reviews (for kids and adults).

3. The hubby and I are going on a real date tomorrow night. We’re going to see Imagine Dragons…

Ummm… are there really stuffed animals and Lou Diamond Phillips in that video? What the?

We’re also planning on eating a full meal sans kids (well, except this one I’m carrying around) — it’s the first time we’ve been out in a while! The show is at the House of Blues, which I like to call Paula’s Place. Surprisingly  I’ve NEVER been there!

3 Random Questions:

1. What’s your favorite breakfast food for dinner?

2. Have you ever banned yourself from shopping? For what?

3. What’s the last concert you went to?

Filed Under: 3TT, recipes

Three Things Thursday {includes my favorite Margarita recipe!}

January 31, 2013 by Michelle 16 Comments

Thank you all so much for your nice comments and commiseration on not running again until after the baby . Yes, I was being a bit dramatic – but it does surprise me how much it bothers me. I guess that means I really love it!

Instead of dwelling, now it’s time for another Three Things Thursday. Let’s get down to business.

1. Just because I’m not running doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate my compression socks.

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I actually forgot I bought these and busted them out this week. Some timing right? They are definitely helping me with with my silly varicose veins and helping me avoid middle of the leg cramps <–those are the WORST.

I know a lot of people run in these things. I’m not 100% convinced that they would help me. I guess I’ll find out sometime this summer!

2. Tonight is the series finale of 30 Rock. *sniff*

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I remember the first time I watched this show, I HATED it. Then I forced myself to keep watching and now it’s seriously one of my top 10 shows ever. It’s ridiculous and over the top and it makes me love Alec Baldwin.

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I am surprised it’s lasted for as long as it has and I’m so happy it will live on in syndication. If you’ve never watched or just caught an episode and thought “WTH is going on with this show?” give it a chance because it silly, but so incredibly smart. Plus: Tina Fey.

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3. Tomorrow we are having a chili cook off at work! I teamed up with a few of my coworkers to form “Veg on the Edge.” Yes, our chili is vegetarian. We’re also serving margaritas, because what’s chili without a few margs? Of COURSE, I will not be drinking them (Boo!), but we are using the margarita recipe I discovered last summer. I promised to share it and despite the odd timing – here it is!

Margs

Simple Lime Margaritas

Ingredients (makes 1 large margarita – I usually make it in batches of 4)

  • 2 ounces simple syrup
  • 3 ounces of freshly squeezed lime juice
  • 3 ounces of quality tequila (I prefer silver over gold)
  • 1 teaspoons of orange liquor (I use either Cointreau or Triple Sec)
  • Ice
  • Salt for rim (optional)

Directions:

Salt the rim of your glass. Combine ingredients into a shaker. Shake. Pour over ice. Drink. Keeping drinking. Drink one for me.

3 Random Questions:

1. Compression socks – yay or nay?

2. All time favorite TV show? (I’ll go with Friends, but my top 5 are in a tight race)

3. Favorite cocktail?

Filed Under: 3TT, recipes

Embracing the Christmas Spirit

December 18, 2012 by Michelle 16 Comments

On Sunday we took the bull by the horns and finally accepted that Christmas is in a week.

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Yes, we finally embraced it.

While the house is finally 100% decorated and 75% of the presents are purchased – we hadn’t done some of the most important family traditions… Santa and cookies… and it really wasn’t feeling like Christmas.

Obviously, Santa was the priority. We learned out lesson last year about getting in line EARLY to avoid the rush (yes, we did wait 2.5 hours to see Santa) and got to Millenia Mall at 9:30 on Sunday morning. There was already a line at least 15-20 people deep.

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Thankfully, it was much shorter than previous years (I really don’t think I’ve wait less than 90 minutes) and I was able to grab some Starbucks will waiting ( Gingerbread Lattes are the BEST). They also had some free entertainment this year – a magician – who my kids LOVED.

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After about an hour – it was our turn!

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I know people think I am crazy for waiting in this line, but I will reiterate my stance: It is WORTH THE WAIT.

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They do such a great job of capturing that moment of meeting Santa…

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And yes, he really does look like the real thing!

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(Plus, the CD of high-res pictures (this year we got 40 in total) – at a reasonable price – that I can use as I want helps.)

After Santa, I did a little shopping (not enough – I need to go back!) and the kids got their well-deserved hot chocolate. It’s hard enough for me stand in line for an hour – I give my kids credit! In the end we were in and out of the mall in 2 hours. Not bad.

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Later that day B me asked if we could make cookies and I obliged by finding this recipe on Pinterest.

Source: chef-in-training.com via Michelle on Pinterest

 

Super duper easy!

The kids helped me pour everything into the mixer and then spooned the dough onto the cookie sheet.

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After showers and jammies they got to try out their treat. A perfect way to end the day.

I think we are going to make a batch of my favorite cookies later this week — White Chocolate Cranberry!

What are your favorite holiday traditions? These are definitely some of mine!

Filed Under: Christmas, Family, Holidays, Mom Stuff, Pinterest, recipes

My Wild And Crazy {Super Lame} Weekend

November 18, 2012 by Michelle 10 Comments

Ahhh…the weekend before Thanksgiving. How did we get here already?

I wish I could say that I did a ton of stuff this weekend, but the majority of this weekend I spent sleeping. I went to bed early Friday night, last night, and I’m pretty sure tonight will be a three-peat. Guess this baby is growing or something?

We were relatively busy the hours I wasn’t dreaming in bed. Friday night L had a school Thanksgiving performance. Her preschool class sang 2 songs about Thanksgiving (along with the PreK class and the after school kids). All of the kids were really cute.

Ready for her preschool Thanksgiving performance.

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Her school opted to celebrate Thanksgiving this year instead of Christmas, which is FINE with me! Christmas is too hectic as it is. They also did a canned food drive and gave away 2 Publix gift cards to families in need. It made me tear up. Although, what doesn’t these days?

After we celebrated with a trip to Sweet Frog, the new frozen yogurt place that just opened up literally across the street. I will be back. Many, many, times. They had a huge selection of yogurt (or like 20) and pretty much anything wanted for toppings.

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I am not adventurous with my yogurt. I usually stick with tart and fruit. Boring.

Saturday was B’s last baseball game of the season.

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He really loved playing — and was especially proud of his medal.

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I was just really happy it was a medal, trophies take up too much space.

After the game I fit in a spin/upper body workout and then we meet my friend Tracy for lunch. There are no pictures of this because we both looked scary and really you don’t need to see that. While the kids were napping, I cleaned the bathroom and thought about cleaning other rooms.

For dinner, I was supposed to cook Curry Chicken, but I was feeling extremely lazy and instead we picked up some pizza. Sausage, mushroom, and spinach for me, please.

Today I set my alarm to get up early to run my last double run until my next race (!!!) – except I totally turned it off and slept in until 7:45. No big deal though, the weather was pretty grey and windy so I was still able to take advantage of the cooler temps. I left the house around 9 and four bathroom stops later (I’m pretty sure I saw at least 10 people I knew at Walgreens, 7-Eleven and Publix — and a nice older Asian man struck up a conversation with me about running while pregnant) I made it home.

So, in the end I ran 10 miles in 1:47 (this did not include the bathroom stops, but it include walk breaks) and I felt really good. The last 3 miles consisted of a brutal headwind that reminded me of the miles of highway I ran in Savannah last year. Yeah, wind is still my nemesis.

The afternoon was pretty low key. It involved a trip to Starbucks (I had to take advantage of that BOGO deal they had going on, don’t worry I shared!) and a trip to Publix. I am fully stocked for Thanksgiving!

Here’s my Turkey-Day Menu:

  • Pull Apart Cinnamon Bread (Breakfast!)
  • Turkey Breast (I might brine it – haven’t decided)
  • Apple & Sausage Stuffing
  • Sweet Potato Casserole
  • Hash Brown Casserole
  • Cornbread Casserole
  • Green Bean Casserole
  • Yeast Rolls
  • S’mores Bars
  • Pretzel Brownies
  • {Store Made} Pumpkin Pie

I’m already excited about Thursday!!

The store was surprisingly low key today, so I was in and out in zero time. Is everyone waiting until Wednesday to shop? It was  like the Twilight Zone.

When I got home I immediately started on dinner… this awesome find from Pinterest.

Source: thecozyapron.com via Michelle on Pinterest

 

I used chicken sausage instead of pork sausage and Blue Moon beer instead of a German Oktoberfest beer (PS – it was somewhat torturous to open the beer and not drink it). It was really easy (the hard part was waiting for the potatoes to soften) and a huge hit. I’m pretty sure  nobody had a clue that there was cabbage in there.

While the food cooked, B played catched with his Uncle Adam.

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Gotta love the shorts/sweater combo.

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and L made pizza on the iPad. She comes up with some very, umm, interesting combinations.

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Future chef?

We finished up the night bawling while watching Toy Story 3 (ok, it could have been me bawling) and now, I’m seriously considering going to bed soon. I have a busy week ahead of me — including a Dr. appointment and a hair appointment (I’m pretty sure the last time I got my hair down was February?), so I might as well get in all the sleep while I can!

What’s on your Thanksgiving day menu? Any hair recommendations? I’m going for a trim (I don’t want to lose the length) and highlights (gotta cover up those greys!).

Filed Under: Holidays, Mom Stuff, Pregnancy, recipes, running, Weekend

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Meet Michelle

I'm a working mom of three who somehow became a runner. I also like to eat, drink wine, and laugh. Sometimes I'm dramatic and I definitely don't EVER get enough sleep. Read More…

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