Keeping Busy in the New Year

January 4, 2017 by Meridith

As with every new year, plans are made, goals are set, and we all strive to make this one be the best one yet!

This year has started off with me doing the Ragnar 30 Day Challenge. And starting Focus T25. And committing to another round of the Advocare 24 Day Challenge. (You’ll notice those last two are two competing companies. See me, caring not.)

Of course, I’m continuing my 2 times a week weight training session and running, too. Running in December sort of fell by the wayside but I need to start stepping it up again.

Because races.

There are SO MANY RACES that I have on my radar. I would love to do them all and I suppose eventually I will; however, these are the ones that have made the schedule for the first half of 2017. There are a couple of newbies along with a few tried and true. February and May are empty as of right now… but there’s always last minute additions (Broad Street?).

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There aren’t too many races to be found in my area in January, which is why I’m stoked for this one! Local race organizers, Good Day For A Run have two dates for this race, January 29th (I’ll be at that one) and February 11th. I’ve had this race on my radar for a couple of years now for several reasons.

It’s right down the street from my house. (It was right down the street from my old house too!)
It’s a 2 mile chipped event. I’ve never run a 2 mile race before! Have you? The quirky distance definitely has me intrigued.
It starts and ends at one of my favorite restaurants. And after the race? There’s chili and beer!
The swag is unique – a CHILI BOWL.
My buddy, Rachel, is coming down to run with me!

I’ll keep you posted with how it goes!

march

In March is a tried and true race, the Haddonfield Adrenaline 5k. This event is hosted by our local South Jersey Running Company which fosters a great sense of community within our local runners. Minus last year, I’ve participated in this race since 2012. This is the only race that my husband looks forward to each year so it basically goes without saying in our house that we are going to register.

We always see a large group of friends at this race and the party that’s held at the Haddonfield Running Company after is a good time. This is one of the few 5ks that I’ve done that have finisher medals (and they’re awesome) as well as Brooks race shirts.

My PR from this race has been my 5k PR since the first year I participated. This year needs to be the year that I finally beat it on March 18th.

Here’s a couple of past race recaps, if you’re interested: 2012, 2014, 2015

april

This is when things start ramping up!

April 1st (which just happens to be my 40th birthday, btw), I’ll be running the Hot Chocolate 15k in Philly for the very first time!

I’ve had my eye on this race since Brandi did a guest post for us in 2015. The swag looks awesome: a medal, hoodie, chocolate mug and goodies at the finish… plus I’m getting a visor because I used the BibRave code: BRPhillyHC.

I’m running with honorary Chick, Christina. Christina is celebrating her 40th birthday just before mine so we’ve declared this a joint birthday celebration!

Side note: Christina will be representing Scoot a Doot at the Disney Marathon this coming weekend! If you want to follow along, swing by the Scoot a Doot Facebook page.

April 23rd marks the 6th time I’ll be running the April Fools Half Marathon. So what keeps me coming back to this race? It’s flat and usually a lot of fun. I do training runs in Atlantic City so it’s familiar territory and through the years they’ve added things like free race photos and an awesome finish line village, complete with free beer.

I’ve run this race since its inauguration and since it switched dates to later in the month, I’m able to do both the Hot Chocolate 15k and this race. Win all around!

Blast from the past?Here’s last year’s recap.

Rounding out April, I’ll be running another Good Day For A Run race, the Heritage Vineyards 5 Miler. I participated in this race last year for the first time and it was absolutely perfect, which is why I’m returning for a repeat! It’s just down the road from my house (in the other direction from the Chili Run) and it’s an easy race for me. Easy packet pickup, easy drinking wine, etc.

The swag isn’t shabby either: a race shirt, free photos (I love free race photos – it should be standard!), a wine tumbler and wine ticket. People bring snacks or buy them from the multitude of food trucks and make a day out of it! If the weather cooperates, that’s my plan!

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Ah, Ragnar. I don’t want to say that this is the most important race but it’s definitely the one that has been on my bucket list the longest amount of time and also I’m quite sure will be the most physically challenging.

I’ve been talking about participating in a Ragnar since Cam first told me about it back in 2011. She’s blogged about Ragnar many times on Scoot a Doot and each time I sighed longingly because I wanted to run long distances and hang out with smelly people in a van, too!

When Ragnar announced that their Pennsylvania race would be returning in 2017, I knew this was it: the Ragnar that was meant for me! June 2nd-3rd I’ll be running with 11 teammates past horse-drawn buggies and into the Poconos (those are mountains for those who aren’t familiar with the regional).

That’s what on tap for me for the next six months, race wise! Everything from a 2 mile race to a relay with three legs of varying degrees of distances/difficulty. It will be fun, right?

What do you have on your agenda for the first half of 2017? Will I see you at any of these events?

Merry and Bright!

December 23, 2016 by scootadoot

A Food & Flowers Picture Post From Whole Foods

December 16, 2016 by Jennifer

A new Whole Foods opened up, and it’s the closest one to my house! I’m excited because, well, Whole Foods, AND healthy eating is good, right?? So I got to go to a grand opening tour and I took tons of pictures and recorded it on Facebook live (at the request of Whole Foods Boulder/Longmont). So If you’ve never been to one, here’s what it’s all about!

First, let’s start with the floral department since it’s always by the entrance, and it’s my favorite of all floral departments in any grocery store. And because pretty. And we need some beauty in our lives.

Looks and smells like summer.

Then you walk through the produce, and I’ll let the tour guide take over from here. (Apologies for the spotty cell reception I was getting on my iPhone.)

Not bad, eh? I also love the personal care section. They have great bath items (I’m a fan of relaxing soaks), and you can even find the perfect gift.

It’s bar soap, folks. Handmade. Smells amazing!

LOVE this.

What Boulder smelled like when I was a kid.

And they also fed us, which always makes for happy bloggers.

Whole Foods is really about the idea of LOHAS; Lifestyle of Health & Sustainability, and it’s reflected in their products and company policies and operations. Their mission statement says “… we offer a place for you to shop where value is inseparable from values.” So while they have a reputation for being pricey, which to be frank, can be true depending on the item, remember that with those extra dollars you’re supporting values like sustainable sourcing, fair wages for workers, and local farms to name a few.

What is your favorite store? Do you have Wegmans? Because I don’t and I want to know all about it!

Save

A Tale of Three Race Shirts

December 9, 2016 by Meridith

Once upon a time, in the spring of 2014, a brand spanking newly turned 37 year old Meridith registered for the Philadelphia Marathon weekend. Registration opened on her birthday, April Fool’s Day, and she was bound and determined to run in the November race (at the cheapest rate possible).

She clicked her way through the registration questions and when she got to the shirt size option, she swiftly chose the “large” without a second thought.

November came to pass and Meridith and Victoria were excited to go to the Convention Center for the expo. They both waited in line for their bibs, then their shirts. The blue large shirt was larger than Meridith expected it to be; it was boxy and seemed to have more material than necessary. She was bummed that it was ill-fitting but she rationalized, “Better too big than too small.” (She and Victoria had their share of too small shirts at the Nike Women’s Half.)

Hanging at the expo – Vic, Kyle, and Meridith

After running the race, she knew she would be returning so she filed away the shirt information in her mind so she would make a more fitting choice the following year.

The spring of 2015 arrived and with it, so did Meridith’s birthday and the registration for the Philly races. Armed with the knowledge she gained in November, she confidently clicked on the “medium” option for her shirt choice. She totally had the shirt game figured out! 10 points for Gryffindor!

Except… no.

She wailed in dismay (because she’s nothing if not dramatic) when she picked up her black shirt at the expo with her friend, Chrissy. The race had changed shirt companies and now the medium looked like it might fit her 6 year old child. Maybe.

Could she exchange sizes? No. She could not. (She asked.)

But the race was great and although she was sad she would never get to wear the race shirt in public (she’d post a picture but this is a family show and then we’d be getting all sorts of spammy comments), she vowed that she would finally make the correct choice in 2016.

This year the half marathon registration did not open on her birthday which goes along with the changes made to the race. A few weeks later, the freshly turned 39 year old Meridith registered for this year’s half. She anxiously clicked through the preliminary questions before arriving to the most important question of all: her shirt size.

She paused, thoughtfully, and then clicked the “extra large” option. And hoped for the best.

At the expo she watched as other racers picked up their shirts. “My chest will never fit in this shirt!” they exclaimed. She found her very short XL line and received her red shirt. And looked at it, doubtfully.

Would it fit?

Yes, yes it does! The sleeves are a bit long and the length is shorter than she likes but it does fit.

Meridith and her 2016 shirt lived happily ever after (while her 2015 and 2014 shirts were banished to the back of the closet).

Do you have a tale of woe when it comes to a race shirt? Meridith would love to hear it and empathize with you.

Your Banana Phone Is Ringing

December 8, 2016 by Meridith

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The headlines do not lie – especially the ones posted on the ONION.

Report: Bananas Still Most Popular Fruit For Pretending To Receive Phone Call

After having 3 people tag/text/share this hilarious “report” with me (Thanks Cyanne, Jes, and Jenn!), I started reminiscing about days gone by with my very own banana phones… and realizing just how many pictures I had with bananas pressed to my ear (shhhh, just go with it).

You want to see, don’t you?

Well, since it’s the season of giving, I’ll gladly share with you! You are most welcome!

I believe this was my very first banana call – to the president at the Nike Women’s Half.

From there it was game on! If there was a banana, I was either making a call or receiving one. I’m very important in the banana phone community.

Chatting while my younger son eats my post-race food. AC 10k, 2014.

Newsies banana phone – runDisney half 2015.

The first of many banana phone conversations with Chrissy! Broad Street 2015

Shocking news on the Bolder Boulder banana phone with Jenn, 2015.

Beat the Blerch 2015, “Mom, I’m still alive” banana phone call. Don’t worry, I called her on the cell after this picture in case the call didn’t go through.

Philly half 2015, train banana phone. Service is really crappy underground.

Atlantic City April Fool’s Half, 2016 – we are happy we didn’t blow away banana phone call.

Ash tweeted me this pic of her calling me on her banana phone, so naturally I tweeted back with the very fun but rarely seen these days, “party line”.

AC 10k 2016, PRs all around and feeling awesome in the rain.

Anyway, give me a call on the banana phone any time you want and I promise you this, I’ll always answer! (Unless we don’t have any bananas in the house and then it might be an onion or milk…)

What post-race photos do you find yourself doing time and time again?

Danke Switzerland!

September 5, 2016 by Meridith

Last Friday I shared our Germany adventure and today I’m back with the Switzerland portion! Guys, Switzerland was absolutely incredible and I’m anything but neutral about it. (See what I did there?)

My husband, Jay, has been visiting Switzerland for many, many years. Without me, much to my dismay. Granted, he was there on business. And granted, he wasn’t able to do much in the way of sightseeing, but still! We made up for that in spades on this trip.

Our hotel was in Lenzburg and it’s where Jay considered home base when he’s there on business. It had a great view of Castle Lenzburg!

hotelochsen

We grabbed lunch at the courtyard restaurant in the hotel before hiking up to the castle.

Aubergine Cordon Bleu

Castle Lenzburg from our balcony

Live life, make waves! I just loved this guy.

Sorry dragons.

We took it easy the first day because we had a big journey planned for the following day! Why? Because we got the golden ticket! (Shout out to Gene Wilder, may he rest in peace.)

merandjaylucerne

This golden ticket had little in the way to do with chocolate but did include a boat ride, cogwheel railway (at times a 48 degree angle!), aerial cable car, and panorama gondolas. We started in the city of Lucerne and took an hour boat ride to the base of Pilatus.

boatride

There was some down time before we were able to take the cogwheel railway up to the peak of the mountain but we had lunch and entertainment.

The majority of the time we were on our excursions we heard more German than anything else (which makes sense, of course). However, our ears perked up on the cogwheel railway where we sat with a few members of the Cleveland Orchestra. We spent the ride chatting with them and checking out the views.

Up we go!

uppilatus

Once off the cogwheel railway, we climbed to one of the higher points.

I can’t fully explain the feeling once we reached the top of Pilatus. We were surrounded by clouds and it felt as though we were touching the sky.

After we returned back to the city of Lucerne, we did get our handmade Swiss chocolate at Max Chocolatier; our golden ticket was truly complete!

The following day we took some time in the morning to visit the Swiss division of Jay’s company, which was fantastic. It was wonderful to put faces to the names and one of his coworkers even drew a map for us to follow while we visited his hometown of Zurich.

Zurich was my favorite of the “big” cities we visited. Driving there was a bit daunting (thankfully, I wasn’t driving!) but once we got situated, it was absolutely gorgeous.

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I think what I loved so much about Zurich is that we had no agenda. We wandered through the streets, visited a few churches and towers, and took in the sights.

The view from Grossmunster.

That evening we had a reservation at restaurant blindekuh; this was something that we had been planning since the very inception of our trip. It is a restaurant where you eat in complete darkness.

blindekuh

So much of our vacation had relied on our sense of sight. Experiencing great heights and views, as seen by the photographs. However, this was completely different. We had to rely on our other senses, which became hyper focused. Our waitress, Laila was visually impaired, as was all of the wait staff at blindekuh.

blindekuhcow

Once I got over a mild panic attack after being lead into the darkness (not exaggerating – there was a moment I wasn’t sure if I would be able to stay), I got a sense of where I was in the room, where Jay was in the room, and somewhat of what was going on around me. It was a bit jarring because the majority of the conversations around us were in a different language but Laila spoke English, which helped immensely.

It was an incredible 3 hour experience.

For the record, carrots and radishes have a very similar texture and I’m still not sure which one was in my salad.

I had a pasta dish, Jay had chicken (which was slightly more challenging), and we let them pick our ice cream because we weren’t quite to the point where they gave us an entire mystery meal.

The following day was another “easy” day – we spent more time in Lenzburg before heading to Hallwyl Castle in Seengen.

hallwyl1

Even the audio guide did not help us understand what exactly was going on here.

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hallwyl3

That evening we enjoyed an incredible dinner at Jay’s boss’ home. His family was gracious and lovely and really liked giving me alcoholic beverages.

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The following day was our last full day of our vacation and we had big plans. We drove 2 hours to Grindelwald, primarily to do this.

A tip from me, if you ever go there… don’t wear a dress unless you like constantly doing the Marilyn Monroe pose. I had shorts on underneath my dress but even still. It was breezy!

Breezy but worth it!

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We couldn’t have asked for a better last day on First Summit.

Next time I’ll do that!

We’ve been back home in New Jersey now for a week and with school starting for my kids on Wednesday, I’m back to being mom, cook, home project doer, and all the other responsibilities that were forgotten for just a little while on our vacation.

It’s good to be back with the experiences that I was exposed to while in Germany and Switzerland. They won’t soon be forgotten!

Happy Labor Day and enjoy each other.

A Quick Five to Massachusetts

August 17, 2016 by Meridith

A quick five day vacation, that is. Over the past few years, it feels like that only trips I’ve been on lately have been RACEcations. This trip was solely to relax and spend time with semi-retired Chick, Bec, and her family.

People, I did not even bring a sports bra! There was nary a Garmin or Spibelt in sight. I’d be lying if I said I missed any of those things. We really didn’t have much on the agenda and that was a-okay with me.

It was so good to just kick back, watch Bad Moms, eat yummy food, and enjoy each other’s company. (And the air conditioning because holy crap, it was hot.) Sometimes you just need to be with your people to recharge your soul and that’s exactly what we did!

We visited Hornstra Farms where we played with the barn cats and cows. And ate delicious ice cream (twice!).

Purple Cow = Black Raspberry with chocolate and white chips

We shopped a lot and bought random things. (Not these though – we just liked that our initials were together.)

I got to see the town where she grew up. You know, on the beach. #nottooshabby

You can “adopt” the carousel horses and the one I was one was named “Merry”. Kismet? I think so.

Fun house mirror… but I really am that much shorter than Bec and her daughter. Whomp whomp!

On the hottest day ever, we decided to go to Boston. I think a part of me is still there, melted on the pavement.

Worth melting for!

After 3 days, the cats came out of hiding. Cleo even let me pet her! #judgingme

We took a goodbye picture with pouts and frizzy hair but this one is much cuter.

My traveling doesn’t stop there! Later this week, I’ll be heading off to Europe for 10 days with my husband. We’ll be doing fun things there, including visiting Blindekuh (that would be a restaurant where you eat in complete darkness) and potentially doing this…

Oh! One more thing. As per usual, I hang out with some awesome people. Here are a few that you might be interested in checking out!

Are you into gardening? Do you want to be? This is a hot off the presses blog from Sonya, the brilliant friend who helped us start our home garden. I adore her!
My dear friend, Bernadette, is a mom who is kicking cancer’s ass. She wrote a children’s book to help little ones that have a mom with breast cancer. Check it out here.
Jersey Girl in the South is an awesome home decorating blog from Tracy. If only she lived closer – my house could use her expertise!

Happy Wednesday and happy middle of August!

All About Girl Power in Rio

August 10, 2016 by kpjenn

I don’t know about you, but the Olympics are easily one of my top five favorite things in the whole world. Winter or Summer, it doesn’t matter. I enjoy watching everything from snowboard cross to figure skating to soccer to beach volleyball. We’re only five days in to the 2016 games, and I’ve spent an immodest amount of time glued to my television.

Swimming. Gymnastics. Rugby. Volleyball. Soccer (I’m watching right now!). Water Polo. Basketball. Field Hockey.

One of my childhood (and current) besties reppin’ USA Rugby in Rio!

I don’t discriminate. I love it all. And in this year’s current political climate, I love it even more because the Olympics gives us (or me, at least) a reminder of what pride feels like. It gives us the opportunity to come together and cheer for a common goal – it gives us something to be excited and happy about.

But enough about THAT.

Watching the Olympics also makes me want to try (or go back to) like, 6 different sports. Watching volleyball reminds me of high school and summers spent at camp with my teammates. Gymnastics reminds me of tumbling and swinging around the gym as an 8 year old, pretending I was Dominque Moceanu. Swimming makes me want to go jump in a pool and track and field has me wishing I was a speed demon sprinter.

And this year? Despite all of the latent sexism in the commentary and coverage (I’m looking at you, Dan Hicks), this year’s games are about girl power. More than 50 percent of the US team are women, and a record 45 percent of the total competitors are women! And those ladies are badass.

I was supposed to write about yoga today, but instead I’m camped in front of the USWNT playing Colombia while I wait for the primetime coverage of the women’s gymnastics and swimming – all of these women are inspirational in their own ways. Whether it’s Mallory Pugh scoring goals, Simone Biles crushing everyone in the gym or Katie Ledecky smashing records in the pool, I’m on board with the ladies of Team USA.

Cotopaxi’s Journey to Good Health: Get Outdoors

July 29, 2016 by kpjenn

Last week, I introduced you all to Cotopaxi and their Journey to Good Health initiative. I kicked things off talking about some of my favorite healthy snacks and how I fuel my body with the right things to keep me feeling good throughout my day and my workouts.

This week, I had planned on talking about the second item on the list – taking care of the mind, specifically through yoga and meditation. I was going to take my fiance to his first yoga class, but, as fate would have it, life happened and our schedules got really busy. SO. Instead, this week I’m going to talk about taking care of the body – through hiking! One of my favorite activities.

I talk a lot about how growing up in Alaska afforded me many opportunities to be outdoors as a kid. For weekend and summer activities, my parents took us out on the trails and into the mountains to climb higher and see farther. I learned that my body was capable of summiting the highest peaks and reaching the lowest valleys.

When I lived in Wisconsin, my friends and I would visit Hixon Forest and climb the bluffs and the coulees of the driftless region. We spent so many afternoons looking out across the Mississippi and taking in the beauty around us. I learned that even when under the stress of school, my body could work and sweat and I could feel more alive in the fresh air.

Living now in Virginia, I get to explore the Appalachians and the Great Smokies. I go backpacking with my good friends. I spend time exploring our National Parks with my love. We go to the mountains to get away from the hustle and bustle of the city and work and obligations. When we are taking in the views from the Blue Ridge Mountains, I learn that no matter where I am in the world, climbing a mountain will always feel like home. That no matter what I’m doing, as long as I can get out and move my body, I know I’m okay.

Hiking is one of the most fun ways to enjoy the world around you – and you can make it as easy or as challenging as you want. Go for an hour, go for two, an overnight, a week. Pack your backpack, lace up your shoes and get out there – your body will work hard and feel good and you’ll get to see some of the most beautiful parts of this place that we live.

In the next Cotopaxi installment, I’ll finally get to talking about that yoga thing. Fingers crossed that our schedules work out and the boy can join me!

Finding Motivation in Unexpected PRs

June 3, 2016 by kpjenn

I’d be lying if I said that the last couple of weeks in the gym have been stellar. In fact, the last couple of weeks have been anything but stellar, from both a gym and nutrition perspective. Have I been working out? Yes. Have I been eating healthy? For the most part. Have I also been totally exhausted and consequently lacking motivation? Oh yes.

It’s been really difficult to push myself on days that I have to work out by myself and even more difficult to convince myself to go run or do any kind of heavy cardio workout. I couldn’t even.

So, it was a really pleasant surprise that after my weekend away (hiking and camping and watching baseball), getting back in the gym this week felt good. It probably helped a lot that we mixed up our workout routine again – instead of lifting heavy, we’ve transitioned into more HIIT-inspired workouts with elements of CrossFit (kind of). The boyfriend is currently training for his next Physical Fitness Test, so we’ve put more emphasis on those elements: running, pull-ups, crunches, and supplemented with other conditioning and weight training.

These workouts remind me a lot of what I used to do in high school and college basketball practices. Lots of conditioning and strength training that kicks my butt and simultaneously humbles me and reminds me how strong I am. That’s an awesome feeling.

Never was this more evident than earlier this week: I hit a massive PR on my bench press and then cranked out more pull-ups than I ever have.

It was really the pull-ups that got me though, because we did them at the very end of our workout and I was totally gassed. We pyramid them, starting at 6 and going down to 1, before working our way back up to 6. That ends up being 41 pull-ups.

As a kid, I used to do gymnastics and could do pull-ups and chin-ups no problem. I would actually do them all the time in my backyard. But, add about 20 years and 100 pounds and pull-ups got really, really difficult. Last summer, I could barely do one. But, this winter and spring I worked hard on the skill and now I can string them together much better. So, it was a huge win for me the other day when I did our 6-5-4-3-2-1-2-3-4-5-6 pyramid without failure.

They might not be the prettiest, but I’m proud of them and the hard work that I’ve put in to be able to even do this many. Seeing how far I’ve come in less than a year gives me the motivation I’ve been lacking to keep pushing myself, to keep programming workouts that challenge me and force me to work on my weak skills. To turn those weaknesses into strengths.

Moral of this story: sometimes we have down weeks. Sometimes we struggle to find our stride, literally and figuratively. Sometimes, we just want to eat ice cream and cake and sit on the couch and watch the NBA playoffs. But, sometimes, looking back at where you were and the progress you’ve made can be just the kick in the pants that you need to get your head and your heart back in it. Our bodies are capable of really amazing things – I’m excited to see what the next amazing thing is.

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