Happy New Year!!

It is that time of year again, the time of year when networks countdown the most popular news stories, radio stations countdown the most popular songs, and individuals reminisce about the biggest moments of the year gone by.

I can truly say 2010 has been an amazing year for me. I am at a job I enjoy working with people I truly like. I have reconnected with old friends, made some new friends, and am closer than ever with the people I love. I have a little home with my husband and two sweet pups. Maybe most importantly, I am content and very thankful for the life I have.

Since this is just the right time of year for countdowns I give you my 10 favorite moments of 2010! (You can click any of the bold links to read more!)

10. Running In Pink Project was born.  One little post in March of 2010 started my blog, which has grown tremendously over the last year. I love having this creative outlet, which I hope will grow into something really great in 2011!

9. Happy Birthday to Me-Turning 30 at Disney World. Even though this was pre-blog it still had to make the list. I turned 30 in the happiest place on earth, finally got a photo with Alice, had ice cream for breakfast, and generally spent one the happiest days I’ve ever had at Disney with the hubs.

8. Getting my PR during a local 5K. The hubs and I attended a local 5k where I felt “free” to just run for the very first time!

7.  Wicked (and Wicked Again). You all know I love a musical. Wicked is pretty much my favorite. I was lucky enough to see the touring production twice this year. Once on a nice date night with the hubs and once for a fantastic girls day out!

6. Family Time. The hubs and I took a road trip to WV to get in some serious family bonding time!

5. Finishing the Wine and Dine ½ Marathon. While this experience had its bumps (the hubs dropping out, getting permission to run his leg of the relay along with mine, finishing after nearly getting swept) it was a bittersweet experience. However, I think it is an experience that made me a better person and so it is on my list of favorites for 2010.

4. Attending the Healthy Living Summit in Chicago. This experience was pretty amazing. I got to meet some really great girls, including online pal Andrea. I learned a ton and had a wonderful time visiting “The Windy City” for the very first time.

3. Fit for a Princess-Disney Princess ½ Marathon Weekend. Even though this ½ marathon did not go exactly how I had hoped it still introduced me to the joys of organized endurance events (Disney Style), prepared me for future races, and put a drive in my soul to “try harder” and “be better” Later in the year (see #5) I did just that! (On a side note-I am somewhat sad, yet resolved, in reporting I am not participating in the ½ this year. We will be there on vacation to cheer you girls on and I will be doing the Royal Family 5k so I can participate in the Princess weekend but weight loss, not training, is my focus this year. I hope to cap off my year of fitness and weight loss by participating again next year. But, I can’t wait to see everyone!!)

2. Visiting New York for the very first time. There is not much I can say here other than “WOW!”. This was an experience with three of my great girlfriends that I will never ever forget.

1. God Bless Texas! The hubs and I took a trip to Dallas Texas and see the Cowboys play. This might seem like a strange thing to take the top spot. However, the hubs and I had an amazing week in Dallas bonding, ate great food, saw my most favorite team of all time play football, toured the stadium, and made some really cool memories. It definitely meets the criteria for an amazing moment.

What are some of your favorite moments of 2010?

Wishing you and yours a Happy, Healthy, and Beautiful 2011!!!!

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Cowboys & Margaritas

How can I even start to write a blog about having one of the best days ever while watching my favorite team of all time lose? Well, maybe I should just start with breakfast and go from there.

This hotel is a treasure trove of healthy breakfast options. This morning I visited the omelette station for an egg white omelette with mushrooms, spinach, tomato, and onions. I also grabbed some wheat toast. The omelette was delicious but slightly more oily than I would like so I only at about 1/3 of it. The hubs made sure I had some peanut butter on my toast so I could get my needed protein and calories.

We were a touch late to meet our tour group. It turns out it pays to be timely. I had won a jersey in a raffle but were late so it went to the runner up. BOO! I only pouted for a second because it was game time!!

Our group traveled to Cowboys stadium which is a sight to behold for any sports fan. It’s nothing short of amazing. I was snapping photos like a crazy tourist and I could even tell the hubs (not a Cowboys fan….yet) was getting excited.

We made our way over to tail-gate with our group and we made a couple of new pals. It’s amazing how easy it is to bond over football. Anywho, the tailgate options were meat, meat, cheese covered meat, grease covered meat and booze. Ok I am kidding (sort of) but it was pretty much a frat guy’s culinary dream. Mine, not so much. I was told I HAD to try the homemade salsa so I got some with a handful of tortilla chips. That plus two bottles of water and one diet soda rounded out my tail-gating experience. We were watching televisions outside of what was going on live inside so I figured we should probably just head on in.

If you are not a huge sports fan this might not make sense to you but going inside the stadium took my breath away. I have been waiting for as long as I can remember to see the Cowboys play and suddenly there I was. I was ecstatic.

I was so excited to see the DCC (Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders). I probably took 30 photos of them. I danced for all of my childhood, teens, and early twenties so dance teams are near and dear to my heart.

After the players were introduced (and I have never screamed so much in my life except at U2 which is to be expected. I mean Bono hellloooo) Miss America came out to sing The National Anthem.

 

Game on! The Cowboys led for a hot second before they started getting their cute Cowboy butts handed to them. Just watching them play was a huge thrill for me.

Around 1/2 time I started to get hungry but food in the stadium is obnoxious expensive. I mean 60.00 for a pizza? Please. That pizza better do my dishes and take phone calls for me at work. To be fair, I saw on the way out they offered fresh fruit near the entrance and I will file that fact away for next time. So, for the second day in a row I had skipped lunch. (It’s bad. I know. I am making a promise to do better tomorrow.)

I had seen several of the girls around me sipping these tall yummy looking frozen margaritas so I sent the hubs off to get one for me. In retrospect it was not the best plan to have this on an empty stomach but it certainly made watching them continue to lose (badly) for the second half a lot more fun!

In all honesty, even though the game was painfully bad, I could not have had more fun (even without said frozen margarita). We did have some overly obnoxious Jacksonville fans behind us screaming “Yeah baby. That’s money baby” every single time Jacksonville did something even remotely good. It was annoying but something tells me I’ll be saying “thats money baby” for the rest of the trip. All in all, I was all smiles and I think the whole experience made a Cowboys fan of the hubs! (Ok I know..He told me so himself and wants to do it all over again next season!!)

When we finally made it back to the hotel we decided to make the 1/2 mile walk to a burger joint for a dinner. Not the best choice but I ordered the smallest burger they offered with a small order of fries. I loaded the burger with veggies and the meal fit well within my planned calories for the day. The hubs and I walked back to the hotel for some REST, blogging, and more rest.

We are headed to Cowboys Stadium in the morning for a tour. I am almost ashamed of how stoked I am to stand on that famous star and take a photo! So that was my day and I can’t resist ending with…. How bout them Cowboys!?!?!

　

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Once a Cowboy…

Even with a little nap today started to feel like the day that would not end. However, I somehow found a second wind when it was time to go pick up our football game tickets, swag bags, and meet our tour guides. If there is one thing a blogger loves it’s swag so I was super excited to get my grab bag which had a shirt, hat, coffee mugs, pens, etc. Ican’t lie though-the most exciting thing was finally getting my little paws on those Dallas Cowboys game tickets!!

After we got our goodies we found a table and got ready for the meet and greet. I had a bad feeling they would bring in a no name 4th string guy for the event but was actually pleased to learn they had chosen a retired Cowboy instead.

Yup! That is Kevin Smith. He was part of the team back when they were a force to be reckoned with. I can remember being in elementary/ middle school and watching them win the 92, 93, and 95 Superbowls. This guy was a part of that team!!

I of course felt the need to meet him so after the interview/Q&A session I went up to have my photo made with a real live Dallas Cowboy! Retired or not, he was a great player and it was really neat to meet him.

I am completely 120% excited to go to the game tomorrow. I feel like a kid on Christmas Eve night. Teehee! Thankfully I am going on 4 hours of sleep so hopefully I will drift right off into some sweet Cowboys dreams!

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Our Lone Star Digs

After our late breakfast the hubs and I explored our hotel a little. To say this place is gigantic is an understatement.  In addition to the restaurants, Starbucks, etc this hotel is floor after floor of oversized suites. Can I just say any hotel with trees and waterfalls inside is okay by me? 😉

Still inside the hotel..

 

Our room is one of the more modest suites in the hotel but there is still plenty of space. The living room has a perfect little office/work area for me to set up my pink netbook and blog.

There is a small kitchen area across from the bathroom. I love having a microwave and fridge in the room because it makes healthy snacks/drinks easier to store. I do not love the mini bar items. Too tempting and too expensive!

The bedroom is at the other end of the suite and is cozy (ie small). However the room is really nice and the photos really do not do it justice.

And check out the view. I truly cannot get over how flat Texas is. When we were landing I felt like I could just see for days and days.

In a weird turn of events there is no”regular” television here. There are 2 flat screens in our room but all stocked with “On Demand” TV and movies. $5.00 for an episode of GLEE? I think I’ll pass!!!

I am heading to get in some rest before meeting up with our tour guide in a bit to pick up our game tickets (and maybe even meet a Cowboy or 2) !

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Bigger In Texas?

The word on the street is everything is bigger in Texas. However,during this upcoming trip I am hoping my waistline will not be one of them. Ahem.  Actually, hoping is not the right word. It is more like actively planning to combat this. I plan to leave Texas just as healthy (if not more so) than when I got there.

My first task is to plan. By planning I do not mean make a packing list plan, (which I have already done of course) but rather make a meal/workout plan. Since we are going to be in Texas for 5 days I have broken it down like this:

The Workouts:
Our hotel features a full gym. (Score!).  Even if there is not a full gym most hotels feature fitness rooms of some sort. Even the smallest of facilities work fine.  If I get bored with the fitness center I can go for a run or walk and see the scenery. Working out somewhere new is a lot of fun. Also, a final option is using a local Gold’s Gym since I get 7 passes to other Gold’s Gyms per year. If you use a chain like Gold’s ask your front desk about passes. Also, you will be surprised how many gyms in the cities you visit will give you a 1-week pass for free (or for a small fee). My motto- It never hurts to ask!! There is no excuse for skipping workouts while on vacation. I have learned this slowly but surely.

The Food:
This is all about priorities. When I asked myself what foods MUST I try while I am in Texas my first thoughts were a steak dinner and Mexican food. This equates to two meals out of five days worth of eating. I think I can plan well and certainly fit those in. Remember that amazing pizza I had in Chicago? It is ok to indulge a little on vacation as long as overall you are sticking to your plan and making smart choices. There is so much to be said for balance.

The Fun:
It is vacation so having fun is your biggest priority. Run 3 miles instead of 5 if you like, make a lap or four around the outlets for some extra cardio, find a park, do a walking tour of the city, etc. There are so many ways to work in healthy choices on your vacation. I plan to burn some calories jumping up and down and cheering on The Dallas Cowboys on Sunday!!

I will have my little blogging in pink netbook along for the trip so I can get my real time Texas blogging on ya’ll! I hope Dallas is ready for me!!

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