Ellie-Antics

We've got a spunky little gal on our hands. She has been doing all sorts of sweet moves lately ...

{The cheerleader pose. She breaks this one out every time we feed her a bite of food and at other random times. Good form, no?}

{The gymnast stretch. Whenever she's in her Bumbo and sees something interesting behind her.}

{The chill pose. She can sit. She can stand. But she prefers to lie.}

{This is her fake smile. It gets so crooked sometimes, like this. Love it.}

{I love this facial expression and her unidentifiable haircolor — captured by friend and co-worker Dave Blackhurst. What would you call the hair? Brown? Red? Bred?}

Food, Inc.

Have you seen this movie? Holy cow. Literally. It gave me a whole new perspective on what I buy at the store and eat, just like this book did. I agree with the Washington Post—every American should see this documentary.

Clay and I intended to watch part of it then go to bed, but we couldn't stop. It was so interesting.

It made me cry. It angered me. It made me want to be best friends with farmer Joel Salatin and his "piggles." But most importantly, it reinforced my committment to buy local, natural foods as much as possible.

Do you buy locally? What are some of your favorite local/natural foods? Please tell.

Half Marathon, Baby!

Prep-time

   After I had Ell-Bell, I knew I needed a fitness goal to keep me motivated. So when my sister suggested signing up for the Hobble Creek Half Marathon, I jumped on board. What made it even more fun was that my best friend, Karlee and my little brother, Forrest (I know, I know. "Run, Forrest, Run!") signed up too.
   At numerous points throughout my training I wondered what the heck I was thinking. I hadn't ever run more than 6 miles at once, and that was two years before at the Spudman Tri in Idaho (I just did the 10K). But I did remember that amazing feeling of accomplishment that burned in my chest when family and strangers cheered me on as I crossed my first finish.
   The training was really tough at times—physically because I was running on the all-too-frequent sleepless nights that come with new-momdom and mentally because 13.2 miles just seemed so long and at times I didn't even know why I wanted to run that far.
   But I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it—despite sleeplessness. Despite the frequent lack of motivation. Despite never having run even half as far as I would on the race day.

Race Day

   The night before the race, we enjoyed a carb-a-licious pasta dinner (Pasta Carbonara). Karlee came over to spend the night, and we spent some time talking excitedly about the day ahead and not so excitedly about the impending early wake-up. We charged our ipods, put our race clothes and food in neat little piles and said good night.
   I woke up at 2:30 a.m. and couldn't get back to sleep until 3:45, so 4:30 a.m. came much too soon. But luckily I had already mentally prepared myself for racing after a sleepless night, so I got out of bed and got ready. We picked up Rachel and Forrest on the way and despite a minor setback due to a forgotten ID (I won't name any names, Rachel) we were on our way.

Car pic + 5 am = flattering photo. I think not.

   Once at Mapleton Park, we got our race packs and loaded onto a bus, which stopped in the middle of the canyon for about 20 minutes for an unknown reason. Kind of annoying. But finally, we made it to the top and got into the race line-up. It was freezing, so we were jumping up and down and chattering our teeth. Right before the start some guy told me "It looks like you're packin' a biscuit!" He was referring to the bulging "tail" I had due to the race gummies, GU, headphones and ipod that were stuffed into the little pocket on the back of my shorts. Kind of funny looking. Karlee had the same thing going on, so we officially named ourselves "Team Biscuit" and hit the road.

   It was so pretty to run down the canyon and I loved running with a herd of almost 2,000 fellow race-lovers. There is something so motivating about getting cheered on by kind strangers as you pound the pavement toward the finish. Because of that, I didn't even need to touch my music. Rachel kind of sees music as the epidural of races anyway, so I felt a little more hardcore going without it.

High-five from Rachel right after I finished. You can spot the "biscuit" in all it's glory.
Minus these yummy gummies I ate on the road.

   When I saw the "Mile 12" sign, I got a new burst of energy. I couldn't believe we only had one mile left. There were tons of people cheering us on during that whole last mile. I picked up my pace and once I saw the finish line, started semi-sprinting. I saw 1:54 on the timer when I finished and was so happy to have met my goal of finishing in under two hours. My pace was 8:42 and I finished as number 467 out of 1150 runners.  

It made all the difference to train and race with a good friend. She was a huge motivator! Love ya, Karls.

Forrest, Rachel and I post-race. Don't we look alike?

I especially love this man, who trained with me, helped a LOT with Ellie and cheered me on all along the way. I don't know how I got so lucky.

Afterthoughts

   As cheesy as it sounds, finishing your first half marathon can be life-changing. It was for me, anyway. It reminded me that I can accomplish anything I set my mind to, no matter how difficult it seems. The hardest part was not the race itself, but the months of preparation to get there. I'm convinced that racing, and achieving pretty much anything in life takes more mental than physical strength.   

 did it, and I can't wait to do it again! 

I followed my own combo of these two training schedules and they worked great for me:

http://www.halhigdon.com/halfmarathon/novice.htm (Thanks Kim E.!)

http://www.marathonrookie.com/half-marathon-training.html (Thanks Dayna!)

Last but not least, some snaphots by Karlee of our babies. She did them a favor by getting a jump start on their wedding photos. Thanks Karlee!

Baking Fever

{Me and my little sister, Analiese. She is quite the aspiring baker!}

I don't know why, but I had a sudden urge to bake this week. Maybe it was the tempting recipe photos in my fave cooking magazine—Martha Stewart's Every Day Food. Here are the recipes and my evaluations:

#1 Mint-Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

{These babies are similar to Milano cookies but softer and heartier. Yum!}

Recipe:

1 1/4 C all purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/2 C (1 stick) unsalted butter, room temp.
2/3 C granulated sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 large egg
4 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used milk chocolate chips)
3/4 C confectioner's sugar (I used powdered sugar which is slightly different, but it worked fine)
1/4 tsp peppermint extract

1. Preheat oven to 325 with racks in upper and lower thirds. In small bowl, whick together flour and salt. In medium bowl, using electric mixer, beat butter and granulated sugar on high, scraping the bowl as needed, until light and fluffy, about 4 minutes. Add vanilla, beat to combine. Add egg and beat to combine. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture and beat just until combined. Transfer dough to quarter-size zip-top bag and snip a 3/4 inch hole in one corner. Pipe 54 cookies (I did less) 3/4 by 2 inches, 1/2 inch apart, onto two parchment-lined baking sheets. Chill until firm, about 20 minutes.

2. Bake until cookies are light golden at edges, about 15 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer immediately to wire racks and cool.

3. Microwave chocolate for about 1.5 minutes, stir until melted. In medium bowl, whisk together confectioner's sugar, peppermint extract and 4 teaspoons water. With small spatula or table knife, spread chocolate on flat side of half the cookies and mint glaze on the other half. Sandwich cookie halves together.

These were my favorite of the three for sure. So delicious, a refreshing alternative to your standard cookie and surprisingly easy. Next time, I will remember to bake the cookies before adding the filling (oops) and I'll add more peppermint. I'll also use semi-sweet chocolate instead of milk chocolate, which the recipe calls for.  

#2 Oatmeal Cream Pies

 {These cookies are a little gooey and a lot delicious.}

{My little sister Madi enjoying an oatmeal cream pie}

Recipe:

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 tsp coarse salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temp.
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 T unsulfered molasses
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
2 large eggs, room temp.
1 1/2 cup rolled oats (old-fashioned, not quick-cooking)
1/2 cup golden raisins (I omitted these. Not a fan of warm raisins.)
8 ounces (1 pkg.) cream cheese, room temp.
6 tablespoons confectioner's sugar (again, I used powdered)

1. Preheat oven to 350 with racks on upper and lower thirds of the oven. In large bowl, whisk flour, salt, baking powder, baking soda and cinnamon. In another large bowl, using an electric mixer, beat butter, brown and granulated sugars and molasses on high, scraping down bowl, until light and fluffy (about 4 minutes). Add vanilla, beat. Add eggs one at a time and scrape down bowl after each addition.

2. With mixer on low, add flour mixture and beat just until combined. With rubber spatula, add oats (and raisins if you're adding them). Drop dough in 2-tablespoon mounds, 2 inches apart, onto two baking sheets lined with parchment paper. (My cookies were so big and spread out a lot during baking, so I would make the mounds smaller and spread them out more.) Bake until cookies are just set at edges and slightly soft in middle, about 11 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Let cookies cool on sheets, 5 minutes. Transfer to wire racks and cool completely.

3. In medium bowl, using mixer, beat cream cheese and confectioner's sugar until light, 2 minutes, scraping bowl as needed. Spread filling on flat side of half the cookies. Sandwich with remaining half. Store in fridge up to 5 days.

These were so soft and the cream cheese filling made them amazing. They reminded me a lot of Little Debbie's oatmeal creams. Next time I will probably bake them slightly longer so they aren't so gooey.

#3 Whole-Wheat Brownies

{These rich brownies aren't as healthy-tasting as they sound. You won't be disappointed.}

Recipe:

6 T unsalted butter

1/2 c all purpose flour

1/2 c whole wheat flour

1/3 c unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp coarse salt

1/4 tsp baking soda

1 c packed light brown sugar

1 1/4 c unsweeted applesauce (I had to use 1/2 c canola oil since I didn't have applesauce)

1 large egg

8 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (I used milk chocolate chips and they were delish)

1. Preheat oven to 350. Butter an 8-inch square baking dish, line with parchment paper with 2-inch overhang on all sides. In medium bowl, whisk together flours, cocoa, baking powder and soda and salt.

2. In large bowl, stir together sugar, applesauce, and egg. Microwave butter and chocolate about 1.5 minutes and stir until melted. Stir chocolate mixture into sugar mixture. Pour into flour mixture and combine. Pour into pan and top with 2 oz. chocolate.

3. Bake about 40 minutes. Let cool on wire rack, lift using parchment paper and cut into squares. Store in airtight container.

I like that these are slightly healthier version of a brownie because of the whole wheat flour, the semi-sweet chocolate and the applesauce (which I will use next time). Next time, I'll add less flour so they are more gooey because they turned out a little too cakey for me. They were much more delicious on the second day though. I also think they'd be yummy with mint or a little bit of cream cheese frosting.

Happy baking!

Soaking up the Sun

I am really trying to make the most of these last weeks of  Summer. That explains why I have been blogging less and living more. Here are some pics of what we've been up to lately.

{Grandma Chelle and Ellie at a picnic dinner in the canyon. We forgot to bring a jacket for Ellie, but luckily my mom had a doll sweater. My 8-month-old still wears 0-3 size clothes and size newborn shoes. We love our little doll!}

{I've been taking advantage of the pool at my mom's house. Good thing, because Ellie is becoming quite the little water baby. Can you believe that frilly little swimsuit?}

{A group of little girls swarmed to Ellie as soon as I brought her by the pool. They all took turns holding her. It was so cute!}

{Love this funny face!}

{This one too. As you can see, this girl needs a haircut! I've been putting it off, but those bangs are getting a little too out of hand.}

{The after-bath. I love her curly hair and big blue eyes.}

{The side ponytail is making a major comeback.}

{Ellie waving "hi." I squish those cheeks all day long!}

Now, back to some more summer lovin.'