Week in Review (December 20 - December 26)

Tuesday (10,345 steps) - Work in the office. Went for a walk at lunch. Stopped at T-Mobile to pay my bill since I never did receive my final one. Pretty annoying that I never even got a bill and they already charged me a late fee. GOOD RIDDANCE. Since I had switched my tempo run to Monday, I had nothing to do.

Wednesday (8,973 steps) - All anyone has been talking about for days is our "once in a generation" storm. We were supposed to have something like a 70 degree temperature drop. Work in the office, and initially, it was a nice day!

A bit chilly in the office, but I went for a walk at lunch, and other than being windy, it was over 50 degrees.

I looked at the temperature just before leaving work, around 4:15 and it was still over 40 degrees. By the time I got into my car at 4:30, the temperature was already below freezing. And by the time I got home, less than a half hour later, it was already down to 5 degrees. You could just SEE the weather coming in. Did my workout, which was Peloton and some upper body. 

Thursday (4,062 steps) - THANKFULLY, it was a work from home day. It was BRISK when I got up.

Feels like -29??? Geez.

Even Robin decided that sleeping in the cat scratcher was a great idea since it's right by one of the floor vents.

Sometime during the day, I came across my friend's FB post. She posted pictures of the most adorable dog that she is fostering. I showed her to Ariel and we decided to put in an application for her!! By the end of the afternoon we found out that we were going to be able to adopt the dog!! A and I took turns shoveling the driveway and spent the rest of the night watching Criminal Minds.

Friday (6,558 steps) - Obviously we were going to skip Wash Park walk. It was WAY too cold for that. I definitely enjoyed sleeping in though.

I don't know if you can tell how cold it is - but it's cold.

Still -13 on my drive to work. Blech.

So with it being Christmas Eve, I really thought that we were going to be let out early. SADLY, I found out after arriving that we were having a regular work day. SAD!! I actually was really busy though, so the day went by pretty quickly. Also, Nicole said I could leave early if I got all my work done AND I found out that Joyce was going to be out the following week, so that prompted me to ask for a bonus work from home day to spend time with the puppy.

Cold enough for the kitties to canoodle

Had a workout, which is not normally something I have on a Friday, but because it was a weird week... ended up just doing a total of an hour on the Peloton. 

Saturday (27,462 steps) - Woke up before my alarm. Dragged A to Target with me so we could get some last minute supplies for the puppy! I ended up having to rush to get down to Waterton Canyon by 10:30. On a bit of a time crunch, and Maureen and I had 2 hours of running planned. I assumed it would be colder and windier, so I was definitely a bit overdressed. We planned to do 7-8 in the canyon and then a few with Colfax.

I was setting the pace, which was a relatively comfortable zone 2, in the mid 12's. A few miles up we saw a bunch of sheep butts:

We were enjoying our time in the canyon, so we opted to do 8 total, and took this picture right as we planned on turning around.

Saw the sheep again on the way down, and they were closer to the road, but still couldn't really get any great pictures of them. We stopped in the parking lot long enough to grab Colfax. Headed into Chatfield, which was a LOT harder to run on! Colfax enjoyed his time, and we were able to get a couple miles in, totaling just over 10 for the day.

Maureen and I wanted to stop and get coffee and picked a Sbux about 15 minutes away from Waterton. Turns out the Sbux was in the Safeway and they were out of half of the desserts, so we decided to pick something up from the bakery instead. I figured I would save money, but ended up buying a huge variety platter of bars anyway. I figured I would barely make it home to meet Tami and the puppy, but thankfully she called and said she was running about 10 minutes late, so I had time to take a shower before she got there. The puppy, whom we named Olive, IS THE CUTEST PUPPY EVER!! She has a bit of sad past, she was found as a stray in Texas with an embedded collar. She had to have it surgically removed, and as a result of her trauma is pretty scared of people, which is understandable. We let her outside to show her around, but she was afraid to come back in and it took a while to get her. Initial pictures of Olive, approximately 1 year old. Aussie / cattle dog / possibly Corgi mix. 

Tami suggested that at least until she gets more comfortable that we keep her harness and leash on her when letting her out so we can at least grab the leash when she gets close to the door. 

Did I mention that she had also just been spayed so has to wear a cone when we are sleeping or not home? A had her work Christmas party, so I was home alone with Olive, who is still very nervous, but adapting well. 

Sunday (19,089 steps) - Olive was afraid to attempt stairs, so she slept alone in the living room. She took a liking to the ottoman, which is where Pika always used to sit. Doesn't she look pathetic in the cone?

Since we were up, we woke up Ariel so we could do breakfast and presents. Ariel made cinnamon rolls, which has become a bit of a tradition on holidays.

Batman got a snazzy new collar for Christmas

I had a run planned with Maureen from Green Mountain. Everyone else planned on running just a 5k, so it was just me and Mo running to Stone House for a total of 5 miles before picking up Colfax for another 2, for a total of 7 miles.

Green Mountain Brewery is one of the few places I know of that is open on Christmas. They opened at noon and for the last 6-7 years have a big potluck. I had just one beer and didn't stick around for too much longer since we had plans for late lunch/dinner.

Robin also got a new collar for Christmas!

Olive didn't mind wearing Pika's old Christmas sweater

Deidre had invited us over for Christmas dinner, so we left around 3. Food was AMAZING, and it was great to see them again. We were surprised by them also getting us each a heated throw for a gift. (Thank you, we still are keeping the house at 60 degrees).

We got home just after dark and started our Christmas puzzle while re-watching the second season of Jack Ryan. Sadly, we weren't going to be able to finish it. I hate leaving puzzles unfinished!!

Monday (14,376 steps) - Woke up earlier than planned, but I didn't really care since I didn't have to work. A had practice, so I sat in the living room with the zoo.

She's quite happy at our house

And... Olive figured out the stairs! Well, she at least figured out the stairs to and from Ariel's room.

We finally finished the puzzle! This was a tough one (and a Christmas gift from Ariel) of 1000 pieces. Still took less than 24 hours.

Got the lasagna in the crockpot and went for my run. I didn't have anything on schedule, but 4 seemed like a good amount.

Dinner was fabulous - lasagna, stuffing, mashed potatoes and grape juice. Yum.

A had plans with a friend, so I stayed home with the animals again. Olive figured out the stairs going upstairs, much to Batman's dismay.

A still wasn't home by the time I went to bed, so Olive was sulking on the couch. Could she BE any more pathetic looking?!

Stats:

• 90,865 steps
• 21.31 miles run
• 100 minutes of cardio
• 20 minutes of strength training

Week in Review (December 13 - December 19)

Tuesday (15,965 steps) - Work in the office. Headed to Stonehouse for my run since I had an hour on schedule. It felt a lot colder than the last time I ran here. 

I went to Green Mountain Brewery after. Didn't get a beer and could NOT get warm, so I didn't stay for very long. Never gonna survive winter.

Wednesday (19,529 steps) - Work in the office. My neck has been hurting a LOT and I spent a lot of the morning trying to figure out why my HSA debit card would NOT work when I was trying to purchase a heating pad. Even after being on the phone with them twice (for a total of an hour), they couldn't figure it out. At some point they must have done something that worked because I was able to order one to pick up at Target on my way home. I left work a tiny bit early to pick that up, finish my day, and get my run in (75 minutes) before A's winter concert. It was NOT the most fun run I've ever had. I ran north towards the dog park and it was INSANELY windy. I was wearing one of my Smartwool vests, and I never really thought about the newer versions not having drawstrings for the hood, but they no longer do. Anyway, it was COLD and I wanted to keep the hood up and it wouldn't stay put because I couldn't cinch it. The two good things - I did the whole run without walking, which I have NEVER done (thankfully, the no walking is starting to become more of a norm, which I am LOVING) AND, the sunset was at least pretty. 

I only ended up needing my headlamp for maybe the last mile, and even then, it was more for the neighborhood section so that cars could see me. I had just a few minutes at home before heading to the school. This concert was pretty enjoyable, they sounded better than the last one. No matter where I sit I never seem to be able to get a good picture of Ariel, she is usually blocked by the cello. I got one afterwards and she's not looking at the camera. But - proof of life!

Thursday (8,257 steps) - Work from home. Spent a decent amount of the day working from bed with the heating pad. NOT FUN. (And no, I don't think that running made it worse. Just a dumb sleeping injury). I had cross training on schedule and did upper body, legs (for the first time in a VERY long time) and Peloton. Nothing else?

Friday (10,020 steps) - Wash Park with the gang! Not a ton of us were there, and it was deemed to be too cold for dogs, but it was a good walk. PLUS, Pete made mini pumpkin bread loaves. 

After work we had dinner and then A was going to put highlights in my hair. She started the process but I was doing some research on the dye while she was working and we realized we needed developer, which we did NOT have. Ugh.

Saturday (9,314 steps) - A surprising off day from running! I slept "late" and did Peloton (found a FUN Linkin Park lane break ride) and some strength training. Then I went to Sally to get the developer and the library. A did the highlights on my hair. We had lunch, showered, and then it was time to get ready for my work holiday party! We were both pretty excited since it was going to be at the aquarium!

Pleased with hair AND dress!

We got there after cocktail hour, but since I wasn't planning on drinking anyway, that was fine. The venue was much smaller than what I'm used to in previous years. The buffet was crowded and hard to navigate, but it was delicious!

And have you ever had a mashed potato in a martini glass? I haven't. Nicole and her husband, Jordan, sat with us and we decided to all go together to walk around the aquarium. It was neat, I don't think I had been there since A was VERY small. The tiger was not out (sad), but we were still able to pet the stingrays, which was neat!

Me and Nicole with our CEO on a mermaid body, haha

By the time we got back to our table it was already after 9. We scoped out the dessert table (that was almost completely gone (waaaah), and then we were ready to head out. It was nice getting home at a reasonable hour. We watched some tv and were still in bed relatively early. 

Sunday (16,938 steps) - I had a run on schedule but I was feeling pretty lazy, so I put it off a bit longer than I should have. The run itself was fine once I finally got out the door. After I got back I took a shower and got ready. Ben picked me up and we went to Boulder to walk around and have lunch. We couldn't decide on what to eat and eventually picked sushi. The place was ok, but the sushi wasn't wrapped well and everything fell apart. That was annoying. Ben dropped me off around 4. A was working a double shift, so while she was at work in the evening, I got the rest of the presents wrapped. A little weird not having a tree this year, but oh well. 

Monday (16,095 steps) - Work from home. I had a tempo run that was scheduled for Tuesday, but I had talked to Greg and told him I was going to switch it so that I could do it during the day so it would be warmer. I opted to run on the south side of the lake and NOT take the easy way out by doing the paved route I normally do. I had 15 minute of warm up, 10 at 75% effort, 15 recovery, 10 @ 75% effort, 15 cool down. I hit all my paces for the first 50 minutes, but ended up walking a tiny bit after my second interval because my legs were shaky from pushing so hard. Still an improvement from other speed workouts when I have had to walk even in the recovery sections. 

It seems that Robin's eye isn't doing much better, so I made an appointment for a follow-up. Unfortunately they didn't have anything on Thursday when I'm normally at home, so I had to schedule for Tuesday.

Stats:

• 96,118 steps
• 21.23 miles run
• 60 minutes of cardio
• 45 minutes of strength