holiday decorations Archives

4 miles in the dark and pumpkin fun

Hi there.

Last night at 7pm I went for a run. It felt good.

4 miles in the dark

I’m recovered from the Staten Island Half. I did feel slow the second 2 miles but no aches or pains. YAY! And since it’s been a while since I’ve gone for a run in the dark I enjoyed the spooky (and not so spooky….um…sorry Minnie Mouse isn’t capable of being spooky) decorations.

Boo!

Minnie Mouse

Skeletons having good conversation

I’m enjoying this amazing month! October is my favorite ~~month~~ color.

My favorite color is October

My birthday is in 5 days. But more than that, there’s something so comforting about the cooler temps (well except that we hit 84 degrees the last few days….can you say Indian summer?!) and the gorgeous colors of the trees in peaches, reds, and greens.

An action shot. LOL

Gorgeous colors

Add in my favorite attire of hoodies, puffy vests, jeans and boots and baking apple crisps….apple picking and pumpkin picking too! Just no pumpkin spice. I am not a fan. Cinnamon is good though.

I baked this and ate this all by myself 🙂

An apple picking day isn’t complete without climbing into the tree for a selfie

hoodies and leaves!

Last Sunday we went pumpkin picking.

🙂

Love that we all look the same height in shadow. 🙂

In the corn maize maze

And I made my Nemo. Not sure it came out as good as the one I saw on Pinterest but i struggled to find paint that wasn’t all dried up. I finally ended up using white wall paint (satin finish lol!) But since I had no black paint I had to use a Sharpie. Um…. Using Sharpies on pumpkin skin isn’t easy.

It’s also Breast Cancer Awareness Month! I usually coordinate my mammo in October but since I was so late making an appointment I’m going next month.

Favorite month?

Favorite season?

Favorite temperature?

Favorite thing to make with apples or pumpkin?

share this

Flamingos Frogs and Florida weather

12. December 2015 · 3 comments · Categories: holiday decorations, running, Uncategorized · Tags: hair color, holiday decorations, ornaments, running

I worked from home again today and went for literally the exact run as yesterday only this time I stopped to take a picture of that Flamingo I told you about.

Santa and a flock of flamingos.

And then I passed a SECOND house with the same flamingo!

solo bird

How did I miss this yesterday? Oh, and I also spotted a frog.

It was 61 degrees today which was even warmer than yesterday so I went with short sleeves. It’s almost like Florida.

A right to bare arms in December

Apparently last year on this day it was 38 degrees. Why is it that we runners are so obsessed with weather?

After my run I took a ride to Target and Bed Bath and Beyond for a few things. I ended up getting this 50 piece ornament box for $15. You can never have enough Christmas balls right? =)

I also colored my hair today and for the first time ever I opted for chocolate brown instead of red. I kinda dig it. =)

no more orangey ends!

Duncan digs it too!

doggie kisses!

Well I have a wild and crazy Friday night ahead of me….time to fill out, address and stamp my holiday cards.

Have a super weekend!

share this

5 things to keep me happy

07. December 2015 · 6 comments · Categories: holiday decorations, recreational fun, running, Uncategorized · Tags: apple crisp, big chill 5k, cherry blossom 10-miler, Christmas tree, decorations, happy, holiday spirit, ornaments, running, Zen

I’m just enjoying life as best as I can lately. I have a lot on my plate these days and my goal is just to try and keep my mindset in a Zen, happy place. Nobody wants a Scrooge around right? Here are 5 things to keep me happy lately:

Running: Of course! I ran on Friday around the neighborhood for an easy 3 miles. Saturday was a special run. It was the Big Chill 5k held on the campus of Rutgers University. Over 8,000 runners and walkers donate toys as their registration fee and then run. I got to see Jane and Mr. SOTSS ran as well.
Me and Jane

The entire back wall eventually is totally filled with donated toys

Me and Mr. SOTSS….It was super sunny and I was squinting just a tad.

While I didn’t pay the extra fee for a timing chip, my Garmin let me know that I ran a 9:26 pace and finished in 29 minutes! That’s pretty unbelievable considering A. I’ve been so slow lately and B. there were so many walkers to dodge and weave that I for sure wasn’t able to run freely leaving me to believe that my time would be much slower.In addition to running I also registered for the Cherry Blossom 10-miler lottery. It’s a very popular race held in Washington D.C. in April. After the Big Chill, Mr. SOTSS and I joined Jane and her posse for breakfast and we made the decision to enter the lottery. I’m looking forward to it if I get in. I want 2016 to be the year I run lots of shorter distances and 10 miles has always been a favorite distance of mine yet I’ve never run an actual 10 mile race.
Getting in the Holiday Spirit: Yup, I put up my tree and decorated a little outside while Duncan napped. That’s about right.
Woke up for the picture

Boy do I enjoy revealing all my ornaments each year that have been in hibernation for a year. And I had a new ornament to put up. The one I bought as a souvenir from my trip to Jamaica this past summer.Each ornament brings back warm fuzzy feelings. Totally made me happy.

Why yes! May ALL your miles be merry =)

Running chick!

marathon ornament

Doodle ornament

My cute lil snowman
Spending quality time with my honey: We spent lots of quality time this weekend which culminated in a lovely hike today with the dogs.
The boys in my life

Even though it’s December it is still officially Autumn. 50s and sunny.

And speaking of doggies….
Cute doggies!: I’ve had to do a large amount of freelance work today and seeing them cuddled so cute around me makes me happy.
Family dinner: This past Thursday my mom and dad had me over for dinner and homemade apple crisp. It felt really good to tell them all of the things in my life lately….the good, the bad and the ugly. They are so supportive and just want me to be happy….so….I’ll try as hard as I can to keep this mindset that way.

So how was your weekend? Can you tell me 5 things that have made you happy lately?

share this

A Holiday Decorations Walk and a Busy Saturday

13. December 2014 · 3 comments · Categories: cross training, holiday decorations, labradoodle, Uncategorized · Tags: busy saturday, charity drive, holiday decorations, walking

Hi there. Hope you are all having a great weekend so far. I know there are lots of runners who are in Hawaii this weekend for the Honolulu Marathon. JEALOUS! (well, except for the idea of running in humidity).

Yesterday, I took a nice brisk walk through the neighborhood.

this was definitely a BRISK walk. It was cold out.

I passed a bunch of homes decorated outside for the holidays and it reminded me of the post I wrote last year when I ran past some majorly absurd holiday decorations.

Do you remember the snowman that was square? The Icecube man!

square man

Make sure you go read that post for a good laugh but here are some more decorations I discovered yesterday.

There was the swan. Explain to me why this is related to any winter holiday?

Reindeer: yes, Peppermint candy: yes Santa: yes, Swan: WTF?!

And these pirate looking toy soldiers were so scary looking.

Scary pirate toy soliders

There was also this Mr. and Mr’s Gingerbread but Mr Gingerbread’s pants were falling down. Scandalous =)

Gingerbread couple. It’s hard to see but Mr. Gingerbread’s “pole” is visible because his pants were falling down. ROTFLMAO!

And then I saw these two decorations, the Eiffel Tower and a huge jeweled crown. I’m stumped.

Eiffel Tower and a Crown on the lawn. Explain please!

So that’s that..

Today is a busy day. First I’m headed to the local dog park to help take photos for their big event: Pictures with Santa.

pictures with santa

Duncan loves to pose with santa!

Duncan and Santa “Paws”

I’m not as much a frequenter of the dog park anymore but I do all their graphic design stuff pro-bono (logo, flyers etc) and last night I helped ice and decorate the cupcakes that will be sold today.

holiday cupcake decorating

Then I’m heading over to a Caring Kids event. Caring Kids is an organization my Sister-in-Law is co-executive director of.

Caring Kids

Their mission is to help children grow into compassionate, positive, and empowered members of society through character education, social activities, and parent support. And today is their 4th annual holiday party and charity drive. We all sponsored an underprivileged child and purchased gifts that they requested. Today we’re going to wrap the gifts and get them ready for delivery. It will be a fun, festive and heartwarming afternoon. Just a big reminder what the true meaning of gift giving is all about.

And because that isn’t enough for one day, I’m rushing back from that to head over to my friend Nicole’s holiday party.

So what are you up to this weekend?

And tell me what is the most absurd holiday decoration you’ve ever seen?

share this