Once in a Blue Moon

Once in a blue moon, this homebody goes out on the town. And last week, it was to see the founder of Blue Moon at Crystal Bridges Museum's Oktoberfest. Since we moved this summer, Trea and I have spent literally all of our free time working on the house, and it was so nice to have a date night that did not include sitting on the couch watching TV.

The Great Hall was beautiful, with tables decorated with pumpkin vines and Blue Moon bottles, and we eagerly dug into our roasted pumpkin -- filled with gruyere and bacon -- as soon as we arrived.

We tasted several different brews, and some of them were pretty strange. My favorite, of course, was the original Belgian White Blue Moon, and I did not care at all for the beer-wine hybrids that the company is trying to market. Wheat ale and merlot, anyone? NO.

After a glass of champagne and tasting 6 different beers, we were treated to something truly unique -- a beer float. Delicious vanilla bean ice cream topped with Blue Moon's seasonal Gingerbread beer, which will be out this winter. It was amazing. They gave us tiny little mini-floats, and I could've had about a dozen of them. 

We followed up with dinner at Table Mesa {dinner while sitting in a restaurant! Not takeout on the couch!} where I had a chicken curry burrito that I'm still having dreams about.

And after all that beer tasting and indulgence, you guessed it... I have lots of running to do.

Moving On

Trea and I left our little house in the woods last week. We're still in the same area, but we moved to town, near restaurants and shopping and bike trails, to a neighborhood where I can finally walk out the front door and run on safe roads with sidewalks. We're in our dream house, where we never actually believed we would be. 

This is what we wanted, and yet, I'm nostalgic for our first house. 

Just after we moved in, 2007.

It's where Trea proposed before we even had a key to the front door. 

And after our wedding, it's where I hung the necklace I wore and where it stayed for 5 years, making me smile every time I saw it.

It's where we brought home baby Bella.

Where we made things beautiful.

Where we learned new things.

It's where we found ourselves.

We have so many memories in that house. It's the only place we've ever lived, so it feels like our entire history is there. 

We shed so many tears leaving this place, but I think we made the right decision. The new house holds lots of possibilities, and I'm so excited to go for a run in our new neighborhood as soon as I recover from all the unpacking. 

But a little piece of me will always miss our house in the woods. It was exactly what we needed when we needed it -- the perfect place for our beginning.

Being quiet

Where have I been for over a month? I've been being quiet. (Well, first I went to Puerto Rico, and then I was quiet.) I've loved writing in this space, but lately, I just haven't had a clear direction in my life. So I've been quiet while I try to figure out what's next. Lately, life has gotten the best of me.

Every day is busy. Every evening is packed with my to-do list that never ends. Every moment is filled. Every second is noise. There's no time to do the things I love. I'm barely running, barely reading, barely speaking to friends and family. Last week, I decided to stop and get away, even if for only an hour.

On a gorgeous sunny day, I left work to grab lunch, intending to drive thru Chick-Fil-A like I always do, and rush back to my desk to keep working. And then I changed my mind. I saw the drive-thru line madness, thought of the intercom that never understands me, and I took myself out to lunch at a little cafe on our downtown square. Table for one, please.

I felt the breeze. I soaked up the sun. I was quiet.

And when lunch was over, I still wasn't ready to leave my solitude. Working out lately has been sporadic and half-hearted. I certainly can't call it training, even though I have a race this weekend (and no, I don't want to talk about it). So I decided to use my quiet time to move my feet. I was in business clothes, so I didn't run. Instead, I left my car on the square and walked about a mile or so back to the office. Down my favorite street in the world. Through someone's sprinkler.

I got back to my desk a little damp and with a smile on my face. And after work, I did it all again to retrieve my car. There are a lot of days when I drive straight to work, sit at my desk for hours, and drive straight home and sit on the couch. But not this day.

I'm determined to have more days like this. Even if I only spend 30 minutes, and whether it's walking or running or riding my bike, I will spend more time being quiet. Then I'll figure out what's next and find my voice again.

Five

Five years later...still just as many butterflies.

Let's Run Away

Escape. It's my favorite thing to do. Trea and I don't travel a ton, but we try to as much as possible. There's a great big world to see, and I can't get enough of it. I have a new place to log all of our vacation adventures, so stop on by, if you're so inclined. amtaylotravels.tumblr.com

Let's Run Away

Music Monday: Madness by Muse

*Edited to remove a video for technical issues.

Madness. I just got home from SXSW in Austin (that's South by Southwest, or just "South by" if you're too cool for school). The only word I can think of to sum up my experience is madness. That also happens to be my latest favorite workout song, so it all works out.

I was at SXSW Thursday through late last night, and I can easily say I've never experienced anything quite like it. I took my first ride in a pedicab.

 Which was sponsored by Game of Thrones!

I spent some time in heaven, er...I mean, Whole Foods. I had never been to one before, and now I want to move to Austin and marry the flagship store.

I ate more food off trucks than I ever have in my life, and the kimchi fries from Chi'lantro were amazing -- a close runner-up to my all time favorite animal fries from In-N-Out Burger.

While I was trying to navigate the madness and massive crowds downtown near the Austin Convention Center, my favorite lunch spot was The Big Cheese, where I could quickly grab a gooey, hot grilled cheese on my way to my next session.

I only went for a run one time while I was there, unfortunately. I spent a lot of time walking though. I walked almost everywhere I went, and I loved experiencing the weirdness that is Austin, although this was one of the most exhausting trips I've ever taken.

I did get away from the madness one night to do some exploring on my own. I had a fantastic dinner at Annie's Cafe on Congress. I got there before it got too crowded and had some of the best food of the entire trip. And on the walk back to the hotel, I got to hear some amazing bluegrass that seemed to really annoy the poor pup who was trying to sleep on the bass case. 

   Oh yeah, and I also learned a bunch of stuff and made a few new contacts. 

We attended the Interactive Festival, not Film. Oops.

Now that I'm back (and slept like the dead for 12 hours straight), I'm ready to get back to the business of training. The Bentonville Half is only a few weeks away! Madness by Muse is at the top of my playlist this week, and on constant repeat in between workouts. I can't get enough. What are you listening to this week? 

Running through my hometown

The only way to truly see a city is on foot. When you aren't whizzing by in a car, you see things you never would have noticed. That's one of my favorite things about running -- seeing things that have been there all along like it's the first time.

Last weekend, Trea and I had 6 miles to run, and we were in my tiny hometown of Stamps, Arkansas. This town is not impressive, and it has about 2,000 residents on a busy day. I had no idea how to run 6 miles through such a teeny hamlet, so we saw about every square inch of the place, zig-zagging up and down every block. Just as we were leaving my parents' house, Trea's iPod battery croaked, so I spent an hour giving him a tour of where I grew up, trying to keep him entertained.

The downtown triangle. No, it isn't big enough to have a square.
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Stamps isn't exactly runner friendly. The few sidewalks that exist are cracked and falling apart, and it seems a requirement to have at least one dog guarding every front porch -- none of them fenced in or tied up. It's a town of elderly drivers, big trucks and outdoorsmen. But I was pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed running there.

It's funny to try to give a "tour" of a place where you haven't lived in over a decade and where little happens. I blurted things out in short, breathless bursts as we ran, random snippets of fuzzy flashes from my childhood. "That's where my friend, Fabian, lived. He had a band." "That's where Aunt Lou lived. She kept every card and picture she ever got in her giant Bible."

The last time I toured this town on foot, I was too young to drive. Most of the things I remember aren't there anymore, but it's still good to go back and see what memories I've kept tucked away. Like the time I got in trouble for stealing a piece of gum at Hamilton's, a grocery store that closed down long ago and always smelled of fried chicken. Or how Miss Eva and Miss Betty at Petrey's would write down my purchases -- a Coke in a glass bottle and an orange sherbet push-up -- and send mom a bill at the end of the month. My grandmother's beautiful church, the softball field where we confirmed that I do not have hand/eye coordination, the band hall where I was forced to learn to play the recorder.

There are hardly any businesses left on our little downtown triangle, but Griffin's Pharmacy is still there -- where I used to play with my best friend and get Coke floats from her mom at the soda fountain. And thankfully, the Stamps Cafe is still going strong. After 6 windy, hilly miles, we were so happy to scarf down homemade burgers and fries. Their food is easily better than Red Robin, hands down.

The Stamps Cafe wastes no energy on aesthetic appeal. It's all about the food!
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The difference between Stamps and where I live now is stark. One is slowly fading, and the other is booming. But I see beauty in both. Who says you can never go home?

White Christmas in Steamboat

I have Colorado fever. Trea and I spent an extra long Christmas week in Steamboat Springs, and it was hands down the best Christmas I've ever had. I'm usually a beach girl and like to go where there's sunshine. I've never actually gone toward snow on purpose before. But I'm so glad I did this year! I think Christmas ski trips will become an annual tradition!

I've never skied before, but I completely fell in love with it. Steamboat is the cutest little town, and they've gotten a TON of snow this year. We skied 8 days straight (whew!), and almost every day was a powder day. The conditions couldn't have been better. Once, Trea actually got stuck in waist-deep powder and had to go fishing for a lost ski. It was beautiful! 

We got to Steamboat the weekend before Christmas, and there weren't any crowds yet, so we had the slopes practically all to ourselves. We stayed at the Trailhead Lodge, and loved every minute of it. We had reserved a studio condo, but they upgraded us to a one bedroom condo when we got there. It felt just like home -- but better! We had a fireplace, balcony, full kitchen and washer/dryer, so we were able to continue being homebodies just like in Arkansas. We ate dinner most evenings at the condo and watched Christmas movies. Trea was so happy to be there that he sat through Love Actually without complaining one single time.  

The Trailhead also had its own private gondola right outside the front door, so even though we weren't at the base of the mountain, we could hop on the gondola and be taken right where we needed to go every morning without getting into the car. Cruising over town to get up the mountain was one of my favorite things!

We rented all our ski equipment (skis, poles, boots and helmets) from Black Tie Ski Rentals, run by the nicest guys in the world. Since I had never skied before, I had no clue what boots should feel like, so it took skiing in three different pairs before I finally found ones that I didn't want to hurl off the mountain.  {The Salomon Divine 550 in size 24.5 would make an excellent birthday present. Ahem.}

Skiing was a lot harder than I expected it to be. I'm fairly fit, I've been running 2-3 times a week and going to a personal trainer twice a week for the last month or two, so I felt like I was in pretty good shape. Um, NO. The first day out, we took a full day of ski school. Trea knows how to ski, so he was just there to hang out with me, but I needed to be taught all the basics. And it was our ski instructor's first time to ever teach a class. Boy, did he learn a lot with me!

Guess who was the first person to fall down in ski school? {*Raises hand*} Guess who got mad and took off her skis and marched in boots down the bunny slope? {*Raises hand*} The first few hours did not go well. Also, since new skiers are so new that they can't handle the ski lift, you have to side-step your way up the bunny slope every time you ski down. From 10 a.m. until 3 p.m., THAT'S A LOT OF SIDE STEPPING. It was about 9 degrees outside, and I was burning up. Trea actually soaked through a base layer and two jackets. Ick. We worked super hard, and the next day, I swear I felt worse than the day after a marathon. I hurt in places that I didn't know could hurt. Thumb muscles! Who knew?!

I had trouble keeping up with the class because everyone else was catching on faster than me, so I was sent over to the Magic Carpet with Trea to practice with the little kids. Yes, I was reduced to skiing with first graders, but I learned so much with them! Adult ski classes are not taught the same as kid ski classes, and even though I wasn't actually involved in the kid classes, I was listening and paying close attention to the instructors around me. Just hearing the kids' instruction was so helpful, and I learned to pizza like a pro!

After a few days of pizza-ing my way all over the green trails, we moved up to blue runs the last couple of days we were there. It was amazing.

Whoosh!

After several hours of shredding the powder, we were always starving, so we hit up the apres ski scene every afternoon at either Slopeside, Bear River Grill or The Snowbird at the Ptarmigan -- our favorite.

I was surprised at how much fuel skiing requires. Luckily, restaurants take this into account when serving up portions. This was breakfast at The Paramount, another fav. Because who doesn't need chicken fried steak and biscuits covered in elk sausage gravy and eggs right before hitting the slopes?

I think we only went out for dinner one night -- Christmas Eve. We took a sleigh ride up the mountain to Ragnar's for some fine mountaintop dining and live music. Unfortunately, the sleigh ride was during a bit of a blizzard, so it wasn't the postcard moment I had anticipated. It was more like a hunker-down-in-your-coat, emerge-as-a-lump-of-snow type of evening. Oh well. The music was really good.

We literally spent as much time as possible on the mountain because we both became completely addicted. But we had to take time for recovery. After our apres ski drinks and snacks, we would moan and groan our way back to the hotel where we kept a buffet of Advil, Salonpas patches, Icy Hot and Aspercreme. Trea's favorite thing was to soak in one of the three hot tubs at the hotel...which were outside...where the snow is. It was nice while you were in, but slightly less fun on the way out. Minus-2 is super cold.

Yes, that's a pile of snow behind my head.

We had tons of fun in the Tetons and Yellowstone, but I think this might be the best vacation yet. I have never been so sad to leave a place. I got sick almost as soon as we got home and have been stuck in bed all week with an actual fever, not of the Colorado variety. I think it's because I need more fresh mountain air! I cannot wait until next year!

2012 in pictures

2012 wasn't what I expected, but as I've looked back on all my iPhone pics from this year, as all good bloggers do on New Year's Eve, I am filled with gratitude for the happiness that I've found. It started rough, but 2012 might just be my favorite year ever. 

I had to stop running for a {long} while for a slow-healing stress fracture.

I learned to embrace cross-training. And goggle eyes. 

I cheered my face off at the Bentonville Half.

And in a desperate attempt to fill my weekends that had previously been spent running and recovering, I found my inner decorator. {Photos before, during and after}

I traveled far and often.

I fell in love with the Windy City. 

Primarily, because of the pizza.

I hung out with the Lincolns. 

Found peace in the mountains,

Witnessed otherworldly wonders, 

And became mildly obsessed with moose.

I rediscovered my love for running 

And ran a 5K on Thanksgiving Day -- my only race of the year.

I learned how to paint at Painting with a Twist!

And I spent the most fun Christmas of my life skiing through a Bob Ross painting with my best friend. {Full story on that coming soon!}

2012 has been filled with adventure and new experiences, and I can't wait to see what 2013 holds. 

Happy New Year!