I'm in love.....

....with Marshall Eriksen.  For serious kids.  Swooooooon.
I've pretty much spent every waking hour that I haven't been at work watching the first season of How I Met Your Mother.  I want to break up him and Lily and have him all for myself.

So I guess that's my explanation for my lack of blogging.  I'm sure you understand my fictional love affair, and will forgive accordingly.  Luckily, I have been running (and then immediately running [ok driving] home from the gym to watch more HIMYM, oftentimes still in my sweaty gross gym clothes).  Yes, my name is Jeri.  And I have a problem.

Thursday morning I got up early to go him up the gym for my long run of 8 miles.  I knew I was heading out of town for the boy's work Christmas party, and didn't want to try to trudge through the snow mountains of Minn. for 8 miles.  Treadmill it is.  Suit Treadmill UP!

I did the 8 miles in 1:11:25 for a pace of 8:56.  If you guys were chastising me for not fueling on last week's long run, you will not be impressed with this week.  Since I woke up late, I actually went and ran on a completely empty stomach.  But, I did manage to stop and drink water a lot more sporadically, and that did the trick.  I also had a Luna bar sitting on the treadmill ledge in case I needed a bite.  It's just really hard for me to eat before a run because my stomach is so darn temperamental.

1. 9:09
2. 9:08
3. 9:05
4. 9:04
5. 8:50
6. 8:56
7. 8:42
8. 8:28

After trying to drag Mr. Nimbus (as Slomohusky has affectionately coined N) out on a run bright and early Saturday morning, I was pointed in the direction of the door, and kindly asked to be quiet when I came back so he could catch up on his beauty sleep (may or may not have been his exact words....)

I grabbed my new YAKTRAX, threw on some warm clothes, and grabbed my Garmin.  Except it froze.  I called home to have my mom do a google search to see how to reset it, but no success.  No garmin?  No watch?  No set running route in this town?  What the heck did I do before technology!?!?  I checked the time on the oven clock before I went out the door and decided to run the parameter of the town.

The yaktrax worked great.  Most of the roads were still pretty snowy, slightly melty, and icy.  I had a little bit of sliding, but no slipping, so a total success in my book.  Want to know what wasn't a success?  The effing wind.  Oh wind, how I have not missed your absence while spending the last month in the gym.  (Btw, this was my first run outside since my Dallas HM...uh ya, I'm a wuss!)  I made it back without getting lost, and was surprised that I had been out for about 35-40 minutes.  I had estimated at about 20-25.  Sweet judge of time, Jerbear.  I immediately hopped online to map out my route:  3.3 miles.  I stopped once to stretch about 5 minutes in to the run, and a couple of times to take off and put back on the yaktrax (there was a stretch that was completely clear, SCORE!).  I probably ran somewhere between 9:30-10 minute miles.

And I'll leave you with some of the weekend's fun times......

We didn't leave the house dressed alike but someone spilled a drink on his white sweater.  So there you have it.*

The newlyweds and I.  I like Joel because he smiles with ALL of his teeth like I do.

Kelli and I with our pretty coats.

*There may have been an additional matching moment evening when I showed up in a grey striped thermal shirt to rival his grey striped thermal shirt.  Neither would give in and change, so we were that couple for Friday night.  Fortunately, no cameras were around to document it's awesomeness.