A pre-Florida weekend recap

So, has Day Light Savings time totally wrecked everyone? Surprisingly, I haven't suffered any adverse effects from "losing" an hour early Sunday morning—I was able to fall asleep without incident on Sunday night and waking up to a pitch-black sky this morning didn't bum me out at all like I thought it would.

Maybe it didn't bother me because DLS isn't really that big of a deal or maybe it's because

I'M GOING TO FLORIDA TODAY AND DON'T CARE ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE!

Needless to say, there are LOTS of last-minute preparations to be done before we head out tonight, and I'm being extra cautious with my packing/planning because Saturday night I had a dream that I showed up in Orlando without my clothes, cell phone charger or camera.

That being said, I'm going to give you guys a quick and dirty weekend recap before I bid you adieu and proceed to over-stuff my suitcase with clean underwear and makeup.

Friday night: Clay and I met Dan and Emily at the Malibu Grill for dinner and drinks. I ordered the wedge salad and a Thai chicken pizza that was definitely worth writing home about, but I didn't snap any pictures of my food because well, I was too busy eating it. Bonus? The restaurant sells champagne by the glass and a glass was only about a dollar more expensive than a Diet Coke. I'm not very good at math, but that's the kind of numbers situation where everyone involved comes out a winner.

Oh yeah, and the company was awesome. :) Dan and Emily recently embarked on a new healthy lifestyle that includes lots and lots of home-juicing and I gotta say, they both look amazing! They're smaller, brighter and happier!

Check out those sweet tanned thighs.

Saturday morning I woke up slightly earlier than normal so I could complete my long run before I started my equally long list of errands. I opted to stick to the trails this time around and I don't know why this happens, but I actually felt more exhausted and sore than when I run my hilly route. I'm not sure if the long stretches of flat surface aggravate my hips because my body is literally locked in one range of motion, but my bones and joints absolutely ache afterwards. But the good news? Zero nausea. I took a shot of salt before and after my run and in addition to sipping on water every 20 minutes during my workout, I sucked on a few pieces of Swedish Fish candy after mile 8. I recently read an article that said you should absolutely take some sort of fuel with you if running any longer than an hour. I've never snacked during a run before and let me tell ya, it made ALL the difference!

It's still ugly and brown, but hey! It was WARM!

12.25 miles down!

I was still several hours away from the onset of my leg stiffness, so I felt bright-eyed and bushy-tailed for my hair appointment later that afternoon. I was extra relieved that the salt shots and Swedish Fish kept me from feeling sick because when I initially scheduled my hair appointment on the same day as my long run, I had a gnawing fear that I might have to get up repeatedly during the coloring process to um, use the facilities.

While my hair color set (I get subtle low-lights added to the crown of my head in an effort to create a rich, darker brown that's more closely aligned with my natural hair color), my stylist kindly offered to give me a pedicure. So by the time I emerged from the salon just a few hours later, I felt pampered, refreshed and pretty. She even used a new root lifter that gave my hair the perfect amount of "oomfph!" in the back.

Saturday night we ventured to the in-laws' to play cards and catch-up, chowing down on my mother-in-law's famous banana and chocolate chip muffins while we visisted. And get this: She made orange walnut muffins that were UN-BE-LIEV-ABLE. That woman has a gift.

Early Sunday afternoon I went to the trail yet again, but this time to meet Maria for my 3-mile recovery workout. We ran 3.5 miles together, once again chatting away and totally losing track of both time and distance. The sun was shining, the weather was warm—it was perfect!

After our workout, Maria and I hopped into our cars and met the rest of the book club ladies at Starbucks to discuss our latest read and afterwards we drove to Half-Priced Books to pick out the next. Admittedly, I did not get all the way through Oxygen. The book was very slow-moving and if I have zero sympathy or "like" for the main character, it's impossible for me to get through. As I was lamenting to Maria earlier this week: I absolutely love reading, but the very second I feel like I have to read something, I automatically don't want to. Had I chosen to read Oxygen on my own, I probably would have finished it within 2 days. But since I knew I had a deadline to finish the book, my brain like, rejected the very idea of reading it. It's like a flashback to all of the summer reading I had to do in my Honor's English class and how much I hated The Odyssey.

(And while we were perusing the shelves at Half-Priced Books, I found a copy of She's Come Undone for only $.50 and convinced Maria she had to buy it. It's still one of my absolute favorite books and I'm itching for the chance to talk about it in-depth with someone!)

Our next book club read is called Suite Francaise and, if I remember anything from all of my years of French classes, I think the translation is basically "a collection of French stories". The book follows a group of men and woman thrown together during the Nazi occupation n 1940. I find World War II history fascinating and I think this going to be an amazing read simply because the author herself was deported to Auschwitz in 1942 and this novel wasn't found until decades later.

Sunday evening I had my first-ever cake disaster. To thank my in-laws for puppy-sitting Joey during our vacation, I baked a fudge marble cake (delicious) and I actually invented my very own decadent chocolate frosting recipe, but the cakes refused to come out of the pans correctly and the layers crumbled and cracked. I tried to repair the damage by using some frosting as a "glue" to hold the pieces together, but the already-delicate cakes broke apart even more under the weight of the icing. It was a disaster. I called the cake's time of death at 11:10 p.m.. 

And I might have even cried a little.

Okay, I did cry a little.

It was a long day.

And cake makes me emotional.

But just because the cake was ugly and sad didn't mean that it didn't taste awesome. Clay and I stood over the battered cake with forks and dug into the mess, smearing chocolate icing all over our faces and pretty much every surface in our kitchen. It was the most heavenly mess I've ever eaten.

Meh, you can't win them all.

And then of course there was the not-so-small matter of IU beating Michigan and earning the title of the 2012-2013 Big Ten Champions! The last few seconds of the game were heart-attack inducing at best, but the boys pulled off a (sloppy) victory and the whole state is booming with Hoosier Pride. And Oladipo tearing up and embracing Coach Crean during the celebration? Priceless.

Alright, I am hitting "publish" on this baby, finishing up a few odd ends at work and then going home to finish packing for the trip! I'll probably be pretty MIA this week for posting (but I will try to sneak something in since our villa has WiFi), so please be patient! If I don't talk to you before next Monday, have a fantastic week!