Things I’m Looking Forward To | 8.3.15

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I find that some weeks I look at our calendar and there is almost nothing going on and then we have a week like this one. I am already stocking up on coffee and snacks because busy weeks while fun always need a little bit of extra fuel. So what am I looking forward to this week?

Wicked! Yes I am finally getting out on a week night with a friend to do something fun. When you have two little ones this is a rare occurrence and I am so excited to get out. I also can cross Wicked off my bucket list. This show has been on it since I found out about it when I lived in Boston and had no money to go see the show when it was literally in a theatre two blocks from my dorm. Fun fact: there will be $25 Wicked tickets prior to each performance!!  In short, patrons need to arrive 2.5 hours before the performance to put their name in the barrel and ½ hour later, names are drawn to purchase a pair of tickets (don’t forget your cash!)

New Seasons Slabtown opens this week! Okay so who else loves to visit new grocery stores? There is something about a brand new store with all of it’s organized displays and it’s clean and new and fresh. I just love grocery shopping in general so if you say new store you’ll be I’ll be there for the opening. Oh and I’m getting a sneak peek of the new store tonight so follow me on instagram [@runwithtongs] and snapchat [lindsayingalls] for a sneak peek too!

Oregon Wine Country Half Marathon! I won’t be running this half (this year at least) but I am so excited to head out to wine country and cheer Neil on. This will be Neil’s 5th half marathon and I couldn’t be prouder of him. He used to tell me that he could never be a runner but he obviously has proved himself wrong. So excited for this event! 

 In edition to these three events we also have three birthday parties and will be spending time with friends before they head back to Germany. I feel like August is just our month with so many great things going on. The one thing I am not looking forward to is packing because packing with two little ones is less than ideal but alas it has to be done some way, some how.

Photo Credit: Oregon Wine Country Half

How Local Can You Go? | Local Food Challenge + Giveaway

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Eating local is something that is pretty important in our house. We make an effort to purchase locally produced products and locally grown produce and we are lucky that we have so many great farmers markets in the area and that the grocery stores we frequent the most such as Whole Foods has so many locally produced products and fruits and veggies.  For the month of August we [our family] are putting even a greater focus on eating locally and we are participating in the Oregon Food Bank Local Food Challenge. 

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The Local Food Challenge is an opportunity for you spend one month really focusing on where your food comes from and to track how much you spend while you do it. Here are a few things to think about before and during the challenge:

  • Local food supports the local economy: Money spent on local food stays close to home and is reinvested in the community.
  • It’s easier on the environment: From helping to maintain farmland and open spaces to reducing the carbon footprint.
  • Locally grown food is full of flavor: Food grown nearby is less likely to have lost nutrient value since the time between harvest and market is shorter.
  • It builds community: Shopping at a farmers market can encourage you to explore the neighborhood, make new friends or reconnect with old ones.

I would say in July we probably only spent about 25% of our monthly grocery budget on local products/produce. So for the month of August we are taking the Oregon Food Bank Local Food Challenge and we are challenging ourselves to spend 50% of our food budget locally. It might be a bit of a lofty goal but I think ultimately it will force us to eat more whole foods and shop the farmers markets and farm stands around us more often. 

Don’t worry you don’t have to have a lofty as a goal as us. You can participate in the Local Food Challenge  with goal to dedicate at least 10% of your food budget on foodsgrown, raised, or caught within 200 miles of where you live. For the average person that’s just $5/week. We’re excited to join Oregon Food Bank for the Local Food Challenge , a month long initiative to eat locally August 1-31. Register today and make a commitment to eat local!

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*Giveaway*

To make shopping locally easier Whole Foods is kindly offering a $50 Gift Card for one lucky RWT reader. Also if you are local to Portland don’t forget to check out one of the Whole Foods Meet The Makers events going on this month. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

It’s Broken.

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FEET

My toe that is. Monday Edith and I were doing a little cookie baking and a smashed my toe on her learning tower and when I folded over in pain I looked down to see my toe (second to the last) was a little bent. As the day went on walking became harder and my toe became more swollen and more purple. Fast forward a few days and my toe is still bruised and still in lots of pain when walking or when my littles step on my feet – didn’t realize how often they did that until I did this.

So after talking to my PT I went to the doctors to see if I should get it x-rayed and was told it was just a break, tape it together, take this homeopathic bone repair remedy and don’t run until there is no pain. I asked what that looked like in days or weeks and she said 2 or so weeks but it could be longer depending on how things heal. That being said I think I am going to have to walk my next 5k and as for my 10k we will see where things are in 2 weeks. Trying not to feel down about this but I was pumped to be back to running again after my knee issues and now here we are again. At this point I might not be running any races until 2016. 

You Are A Runner | Self Doubt and The Galloway Method

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race

When I first decided to take up running I used the Couch to 5K (C25k) program. For those of you who aren’t familiar it is a program that starts of with run/walk intervals and overtime the distance you run becomes more and more until ultimately you can run a 5K in 30 (or so) minutes. The thing was at this time in my life I decided that I wasn’t a true runner unless I could run without stopping. No walk breaks. Period. 

Well I ran my first 5K after completing the C25K program and I ran it straight through. I completed my first race with no walking so I just must be a runner now – right? Yes, at least that’s what I thought at the moment. The thing is once I wanted to increase my distance I found myself resorting to walking breaks again. I felt like a failure and downgraded myself to a “wannabe runner” and I felt a bit defeated and unmotivated to continue with running. That’s until I signed up for Disney Half (which I wasn’t able to run – you can read about that here.) 

Hotel Running

RunDisney has paired up with Jeff Galloway to create training plans for a variety of levels. The thing that is different about the Galloway Plan is that he promotes a run walk run method. The amount you run and the amount you walk depends on your level so some might do a 30sec/30sec and others will do a lot more running such as 6min/1min intervals. When I started to train for the half I adopted this method and to my surprise I was able to finish a 5k in less time than I had run previously and I felt stronger at the end. At that moment I was sold. 

Since 2011 I have been using the Galloway Method and it is working well for me and guess what? I am a runner. I feel like one despite choosing to take walk breaks. You know why? Because taking walk breaks is okay and it actually makes me a stronger and more motivated runner. 

I may never run a race without walking or be an elite runner but I am a runner. I run for me. I run for fun. I run to release stress. I run because it gives me joy and I run/walk because it’s what works for me. 

Are you a Galloway Runner? Have you ever tried a run/walk plan like Galloway or Couch to 5k/10k? 

This post is IN ABSOLUTELY NO WAY sponsored. I came across Galloway on my own and wanted to share this with you because it’s what has worked for me for years. 

#LJInspired Insta Challenge

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Lorna Jane has done it again. As you know I love her clothes and I’m obsessed with my MNB planner so of course I was thrilled to hear she is releasing a new book –Inspired.

#LJInspired

In this inspiring coffee table book you can expect to find

  • Honest & authentic advice from Lorna Jane Clarkson on finding your personal style, dreaming big and balance
  • Nourishing recipes that look almost too good to eatp;
  • A glimpse into the inspiring LJHQ office
  • DIY beauty recipes like you’ve never seen before
  • Exclusive Q&A’s and features from iconic women who INSPIRE us
  • Chapters include: It starts with Believe, Dream Big, Style, Beauty, Happiness, Life at Lorna Jane & more…

I can’t wait to get my copy of Lorna Jane Inspired! Pre-order yours today:http://www.lornajane.com/INSPIRED/Inspired.

#LJInspired MadLibFill in this blog prompt mad lib for a chance to win a copy of Lorna Jane’s new book, Inspired! Get our own copy of the;mad lib here –> #LJInspired MadLib Template, fill in the blanks with your own answers, and make sure to share your link, tagging @LornaJaneActive @FitApproach and hashtag: #LJInspired #SweatPink in all of your shares! 

Love IG as much as I do? Join me starting on Monday, July 13th for a fun 5 day #LJInspired Instagram Challenge hosted by @FitApproach & @LornaJaneActive.

Here are the daily prompts:;

  • Day 1 (Monday, July 13th): How do you dream big? #sweatpink #LJInspired @FitApproach @lornajaneactive
  • Day 2 (Tuesday, July 14th): What’s your fave healthy swap? #LJInspired #SweatPink @FitApproach @LornaJaneActive
  • Day 3 (Wednesday, July 15th): Who inspires you? [Tag 2-3 friends!!] #LJInspired #SweatPink @lornajaneactive @fitapproach
  • Day 4 (Thursday, July 16th): What does happiness mean to you? #LJInspired #sweatpink @fitapproach @lornajaneactive
  • Day 5 (Friday, July 17th): What makes you an #LJInspired girl? #sweatpink @LornaJaneActive @FitApproach

And don’t forget to join me (and@FitApproach @LornaJaneActive) on 7/21 from 5:30-6:30 pm PT for a fun #LJInspired #SweatPink Twitter party for another chance to win prizes & a copy of Inspired: https://www.facebook.com/events/852624931491346/.

[bctt tweet=”I’m joining @FitApproach @LornaJaneActive for #LJInspired Twitter party on 7/21 (5:30-6:30pm PT): http://on.fb.me/1HIR2y2 #sweatpink “]

This post is sponsored by  Lorna Jane. All opinions are my own.

Konmari & My Unintentional Capsule Wardrobe

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Konmari & My Un-intentional Capsule Wardrobe

We have a lot of stuff. Some of it has value and is used regularly but a lot of it has been moved from home, to home, to home. We finally hit a wall and decided that it was time to make some major changes in our home. I’ve tried a variety of tidying/de-cluttering methods so you won’t be surprised when I jumped on the Konmari* bandwagon. 

While Neil was off this past week we both took on the first step of theKonmari* Method and went through and cleaned our closets. Included in the clean out where all of our clothes, coats, shoes, bags and accessories. I was surprised by how much clothing et al that I actually own considering I only wear a handful of items. 

I went through my large pile of clothes and ended up with two boxes of off season clothes/pre-pregnancy clothes that still don’t fit but I would wear them in a heartbeat if they did. I also ended up with about 22 articles of season appropriate clothing, 10 or so pajama tops and bottoms and 15 or so workout tops and bottoms, plus one stuffed to the brim bag for thredup.com*, three bags to donate and one bag of items to just toss. Neil on the other hand still has a 40+ item closet, two boxes of off season plus four bags to donate and one bag to toss. #horders

Konmari & My Un-intentional Capsule Wardrobe

After Konmari*-ing my closet I ended up with an un-intentional capsule wardrobe. This wardrobe includes:

  • 1 pair of shorts
  • 1 pair of crop pants
  • 2 dresses
  • 6 black t-shirts
  • 3 tank tops
  • 3 sweaters/long sleeve 
  • 1 denim jacket
  • 4 sandals 
  • 1 healed sandal

If I’m being completely honest I would say that I could easily eliminate another 5-8 items from my closet because they don’t give me joy aka I’m not practicing pure Konmari*. Those 5-8 items are ones I kept because going out in the nude is not an option (for me). I have also hit that point in the season where I am having a hard time convincing myself to spend more money on clothes that I will only wear for a few months and ideally I’ll would never wear again because they will be too big (that’s an entirely different post). How do you deal with a lack of clothing when you are far from the size you want to be and you are mid season? 

*Affiliate Link 

Currently. 07.05.15.

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sou'wester trailers

Doing: I am just going through our photos from our stay earlier this week at The Sou’Wester Lodge in Seaview, Washington. We had another amazing visit and already made reservations for November. It feels nice to have a place that we consider “our place” to visit year after year. We love staying in the vintage trailers, walking down to the beach and crossing the bridge to Astoria for some good food and beer.  

Thinking about: My goals for the upcoming month. I want to be a little bit fitter, a little bit more gentle and relaxed and make as many memories as possible. 

Watching: Neil and I have been binging on Scandal while he has been on vacation. I don’t know why it took us so long to start watching it but we are really into it. I also have been re-watching Pretty Little Liars (yes I’m 12). 

Looking forward to: Our camping trip next week for Edith’s third (!!!!) birthday. 

Reading: I am currently reading The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing and I am loving it. It has really helped to change the way I de-clutter and organize. This week alone we have made two trips to donate unwanted items and we have a huge box filled with papers to shred. While we have a ways to go still I am really finding this book helpful. Who else has read it? or what are you reading?

Loving: Neil being on vacation and I’m hating that he has to go back to work tomorrow. There really is nothing better than having your partner home to help take on the day-to-day activities, to get out and explore the world with and to stay up past our bedtimes to watch too many episodes of Scandal. 

What are you currently doing, thinking about, watching, looking forward to, reading and/or loving?

Sou'wester DITL hike5

As always this post is inspired by Sometimes Sweet.