tired of being sick

i think i've just about kicked a 4th head cold in 3 months. actually felt like getting on the bike and spinning for 30 minutes on the trainer tonight ... first i have felt like doing any physical activity for days.

the recycled colds this winter have made it hard to get in any sort of a routine and feel productive and efficient at anything. i spend a week being sick, a week catching up from being sick, a week of "yay! i'm getting back in a routine, i love exercising and feeling smart" then boom i'm sick again ... lather rinse repeat.

went and saw my doc today; she's suffering through her 3rd cold of the winter. i think i'll call it ultimate sympathy to share a box of kleenex and a cup of 'Gypsy Cold Care' tea with my doc while we chatted, drew blood, and gave me another vitamin b shot in the rear. (there was much hand washing and sanitizing taking place.) :)

hurry up spring! i'm tired of winter and tired of being sick!!

worst april fools joke ever!

big white fluffy snowflakes are falling from the sky .... Again!
it is sticking to the yard and bushes and trees.
this is stupid!
ok God, how about a nice shout of "April Fools!" and a gorgeous 68 and sunny tomorrow.

night skiing!

"All my patience is about to pay off," Andy declared on our way home from snoqualmie late on saturday night. Andy has spent three trips to the slopes this winter: hanging on the green runs, watching me panic getting on the chair lift, watching me bite it over and over again getting off said chair lift, and watching me ski with a death grip on my poles. (did you know those poles were supposed to be used for something more than helping you stand back up after you fall down?!)


it was absolutly dumping and gorgous on saturday night! kari met us up there. it was lots of fun to hang out with kari and experience a sport not involving 2 wheels for a change.
4+ inches of snow accumulated on our cars between 7-10pm. it was so much fun to ski in all the fluff.

kari has only snowboarded a hand full of times; andy rented a snowboard this trip; so he wouldn't be too bored watching us trying to learn. Andy was pleased that he hasn't lost all his snowboard skills. he hasn't snowboarded for 5 or 6 years.

kari and i both had monumental breakthroughs in the snow! we are very close to graduating from the green runs! andy is very ready for all his patience to pay off. :)



the arrangement of the vents in my new helmet created a great mohawk style.

Operation: Creative Space, Phase 1

it's finally time to get started on creating my creative space ... andy had to work today, so i cleared the room, pulled out trim, old window treatments, etc. the walls are spackle and ready to be sanded. andy hates this type of work ... he should give me a big kiss for doing it myself.

ok, i've discovered the joys of downhill skiing in the last couple months ... finally got the call from andy that he's done at work, so i'm off w/ our ski gear ... night skiing at snoqualmi this evening! more on that later!! :) enough work! time to play!!

tia runs?

i entered and completed my first 5K on sunday afternoon. my very first running event as an adult!
my conclusions? running is hard. and for some reason, not nearly as satisfying as riding a bike.
yet, i still feel drawn to dabble in some different types of events this season as i rebuild my fitness.



yay! jazz hands! i was quite proud of my christmas motif. as it was hail/snowing on us at the start, it seemed rather fitting.

this is the first run i've done outside this year. i've been jogging on the tredmill at the gym, and doing some walking during lunch outside (among other stuff). my body reminded me on monday, that running outside is a lot different than walking.



still a sprinter at heart:
see that chick in the pink -- i had to dust her by the time we got to the finish line, which was just at the top of that rise. and then i felt like i was going to hurl ... guess there are a few similarities to racing a bike.

i met all my goals for the race.
1. i didn't chicken out - i actually showed up.
2. i confidently placed myself toward the front of the start line.
3. i finished! didn't take any walk breaks - ran the whole thing.
4. my finish time was where i thought i should be, based on what i can do in the gym... way to not be a slacker outside on the road.

bye bye hair!

it was time to lose the hair ...
before:


after:


i have about 11 inches of ponytail to donate. my head feels so free and light! i love it!!
it's still long enough to get in a ponytail, which was my only real requirement. :)
my little social experiment is to see how long it takes the guys i work with to notice that i'm minus a foot of hair.

the frog is back!!!!

i love frogs!
last spring a frog moved into one of our "water features" in the back yard. i was ecstatic. i love nature in my yard. i want nature to feel comfortable just doing it's nature thing in my yard. last year this frog sat out there singing for weeks - then one night - there were 2 frogs singing - i assume he finally got his lady b/c later, in early summer, there were tadpoles and then little frogs in our so called "water feature".
tonight is the first night that i have heard my frog. he's back!
yay spring!

oh, and Happy Birthday Andy!!! (he's 33 today! old geezer!)

Pre-Spring?!

we got this catalog in the mail just after christmas -- what the hell kind of season is "PreSpring"? at that point i decided it described the total blah of cold and rain and snow and general ick that plagued us after the holidays until spring actually began.

well, i think this week really begins "PreSpring" - and i present the following photo evidence from my garden as proof that spring really is just around the corner....


dafadills! poking their little green heads out of the dirt!


first blooms on the first rhodie!

iris! just one of my many gigantic fields of iris, streching after a long winter's nap.