I want to tell you everything from the last two days + Gotta Start SOMEWHERE!

Well, I have a bunch of pictures that I haven’t shared with you yet from the last few days but the problem is that I don’t really remember the exact sequence of everything.  Short story even shorter, my post will probably be all over the place (but that is normal).

Most importantly, we were beyond excited to have Knox home after almost a week apart!

One morning I took Brooke to school and then we started to take a picture (because it is normal to take a daily selfie together before jumping out of the car).  Turns out she wasn’t interested in sharing the photo frame with anybody else.  At least my chin and left cheek made a little appearance.

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I came home and watched This is Us while walking and added in some hill walking during every commercial break.  This week’s episode of This is Us made me cry but that isn’t saying much because I also cried over a song I heard on the radio the other day.

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One night I found Brooke asleep like this.  We bought her and Knox these little dog sleeping bags for Christmas and she hasn’t wanted to sleep on her bed since (we usually just move her up once she falls asleep).  I was happy to see that she shared her blanket with Beretta.

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Not my best thinking moment… I was carrying a bunch of stuff in from the car and decided to put my water bottle (that has a hole on the top) in my diaper bag and get it out as soon as I set everything down.  Well, I forgot about the water bottle until I was thirsty ten minutes after coming inside and found that my bag had tipped over and the water bottle had emptied everything (minus the ice cubes) into the bag.  I shouldn’t have nice things.

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Skye is learning all about Care of Adults with Complex Illness with Andrew (one of the courses he is studying).  PS this scene just makes me so happy.

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I think I figured out finally the best way to get these two to do chores without any tears not that those happen every time but I’ve wanted to figure out a way to make it more of an enjoyable experience for everyone.  I turned on the Greatest Showman soundtrack loud, turned the timer to 15 minutes and told the kids we were going to see how much we could get done in that time and turned it into more of a game.  Success.  They were running around trying to get everything cleaned while singing to the music.  Let’s just see if this happens again.

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Studies have proven that it is 92% harder to get up and be productive when a baby is cuddled up on you and looking so peaceful.

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Exhibit B… Andrew left for his run (he is doing the Lululemon/Strava challenge and only needs about 7 more miles to hit the 80km mark!!) and the two of us just stayed on the couch.

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Just another staring contest.

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I went to Target by myself and it felt so weird to be alone there, ha.  I spent a little bit too long looking at everything (especially the baby stuff and Vday candy) and it felt so good.

The best mix possible:

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CHIP GAINES (from Fixer Upper) is training for a marathon!  I saw this entry on Joanna’s blog about it and it made me very excited.  It is going to be fun to follow along with his training.  I like his method so far of adding an extra .2 to each run:)  You gotta start somewhere (I’m right there with you Chip starting next Friday!  I’ll be starting to run again)!

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Let’s catch up on food over the last two days with the highlights… breakfast is always a yogurt and oatmeal.  For lunch I’ve really been feeling like eggs/breakfast foods so 2 out of 3 meals a day have been breakfasty.  I’ve also had a lot of cereal for snacks lately so as you can tell, all I need in life are breakfast type foods.

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For dinner one night we had zoodles (this is what we use to make zoodles) with turkey and a salad on the side (followed by brownies in which I mixed in Andes mint pieces in… turns out that was a brilliant idea ((fyi mixing in rolos is an even better idea)).

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And for another dinner we made this pineapple chicken again because it is so delicious.

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Grilling in the winter with short sleeves on:)  PS do you ever run with a headlamp?  I used to in the early mornings and it made it so nice but also it made me so dizzy at times.

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One day I took the big kids to get a hot chocolate (because that is the normal seasonal thing to do) and they wanted SLURPEES INSTEAD!?!  I was confused but maybe the lei that Brooke insisted on wearing made them think it was summer and a good idea to get a frozen treat instead.

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We have one amazing accomplishment today.  If you want to be featured then send your accomplishment to [email protected]

Maybe everyone is snowed in because I’ve missed getting a few of these each week!

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Abigail!!!  “In 2015 I started running.  In 2016 I ran my first 5k.  In 2016 I ran my first 10k up a mountain, then the day after ran my second 10k round the lake below the mountain.  In 2017 I ran my first half marathon in a country I’d never visited. In 2018 I’m going to run 200km in the northern hemisphere and southern Hemisphere combined over 40 days.  Why the heck not!?!?”  You can check out her fundraiser HERE!

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What are your Friday night plans?

What were/are your favorite classes in school?  Or favorite subjects?

Do you remember your first run?  How far did you go?  How old were you? Do you remember how you felt?

How often do you run in the dark?  Do you use a headlamp ever?

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52 comments

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I’m personally going to be lazy after work tonight. Is that allowed LOL? Anyway, I don’t exactly remember my first run…just my first race which I guess was about 8 years ago now. 8 years ago on St. Patrick’s Day! I remember shocking myself because I couldn’t believe I ran an entire 5k without stopping. Ah college and the glory years…Lol.

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I’m pretty sure Skye gets more adorable by the second. :) No Friday night plans here. It’s been a long/tough week, so I might be crashing by like 7:30 tonight, and I’m perfectly fine with that.

I always loved English! I’m a huge grammar nerd, and I LOVE writing and reading, so it’s the perfect combo. And when I first started running and trying to train for something, I went running for 8 minutes. It’s funny to think how short that is compared to how long I can run now, but you’re right that you have to start somewhere!

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In the winter, if I run outside I am always running in the dark because I start so early. And I usually do run with a headlamp. It is WARM in the Boston area now so I ran outside this morning for the first time in a long time. Except my headlamp was useless because there is so much snow on the ground AND the air was warm so it was this foggy/misty mess and the headlamp was making it even hazier (hard to explain, I don’t know the technical phenomenon :) ). At night in the winter I always walk my dog with my headlamp on because it is dark and SO much easier to see the ground AND for cars to see me.

Happy weekend! Super cute pics of the family today :)

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Janae,

Honest question. How come the big hoopla every time Knox comes back? I find it kind of passive aggressive and rude to make a huge deal about him coming “home.” Doesn’t he have two homes? It’s great (and totally understandable) that everyone is excited to see him but the whole “oh thank God he’s home” is kind of just dismissive and rude to his other home or at least comes across that way even if that’s not the intention. Anyway, just something you may want to consider for future posts.

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Hey Lauren! Great question! Knox absolutely has two homes (maybe next time I should say, ‘Knox came back to one of his 2 homes’?)! Having a kid gone for a week is hard and we always make a big deal when we get one of them back home, it’s just how we do it! And it is how their other parents do it too… we are all just excited to have time together. I have a fabulous relationship with both ex’s and have no reason to be passive so if you read it as passive, I’m sorry! Have a great day!

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Late catching up on your posts…just FYI…I don’t see it as a problem or weird (and certainly not passive aggressive!) that you’re so excited for Knox to return. He is part of your family and it always feels good when everyone is home together ☺️And I’m sure Brooke especially misses him!

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We are getting a snow storm today so our Friday night plans will be take-out and a movie!

That picture of Brooke and Knox when they’re cleaning (Brooke is holding a little vacuum) is so adorable! I love their faces!! I bet they keep you laughing all day :-)

My first real run (other than the mile they made us run in gym class as kids) was a 5K race when I was in high school. It was so hard and made me hate running and I didn’t run again for about 4 years! Then I got super into it :-) Do Chip and Joanna have a blog where Chip is going to be doing write-ups about his training?? I would love to follow that!!

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I want to find those gummy bears at my Target! YUM! Going tomorrow;)
I loved reading about Chip running! That is going to be amazing if he keeps blogging about it;)

What is the color name of the Victoria Secret Lip Glass you love?
I know I could try to search back in posts….but trying to save myself time;)

My Friday night plans include my bed and catching up on This is Us! I wish I had a treadmill at home and could watch TV while I run. Our gym treadmills have too low of a phone/ipad ledge…..so I can only watch stuff on the ellpitical……and I don’t know how to get my DISH shows on my phone…..I should take some time and figure it out. but since I can’t watch anything while running (I just listen to stuff) It doesn’t matter as much to me to try to figure it out.

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Hey Janae, do you (or any of the readers!) know when the lululemon strave challenge ends? I can’t figure out if runs on the 15th actually count or if I need to have the 80km completed before the 15th. Thanks!

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Pineapple chicken, yum! That looks so good. I love cooked pineapple in any dish! Pretty crazy that he’s in short sleeves in January — the weather sure has been nice and warm for you!

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We have the cleaning/crying problem in our house too but it’s not as bad as the homework/crying problem. We even bribed them with iPad time (which is a big deal at our house because we refused to get one until this Christmas when Trevon and I both got “big” callings) and it worked for about 2 days.

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Where is your backpack from?! I love it! I’ve been looking for one just like that!!!

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It is from Azaria and I love it! Have a great day Maggie!!

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I have a half day off this afternoon to go to the dentist and I’m fighting a cold. So…Friday night = hibernating and trying to get better.

Being a music teacher, orchestra was a big favorite. I also love writing and English, and some math classes were fun. One Physics class was also pretty amazing but only because of the amazing teacher.

The first run I remember was being forced to run the mile in gym class. I knew nothing about running and probably tried to go way too fast because I’m pretty sure I almost died, like, twice. Haha

I used to run so early in the morning at our old house through orchards and farmland that it was really dark. I stopped that once I heard that there were coyotes regularly showing up in that area even WITH the sun shining. Yeah…no.

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I saw that Chip is running a marathon! I think that’s awesome of him and it kind of sounds like it might be for charity. At least I think he may raise some money but who knows!
I really need to try pasta with ground turkey. I think it every time you post but one day I will buy ground turkey! Does you add any spices or anything while it cooks?

Have a great Friday Janae!

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Hey!! When it is with spaghetti we just add a little salt and pepper. I am boring ha… I just love the taste of marinara sauce:) Have an amazing weekend girl!

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Our Friday night routine is usually to go out to eat with our kids. But our 16 year old wants to go to dinner with a friend (boohoo) and we are meeting friends for a beer so we’ll go out tomorrow night instead.

I was (am) a nerd and liked most of my classes. Probably my favorites were civic classes.

I went to a very small high school and we all had to do everything (band, sports, drama) or there would not be any activities. Long story short, I don’t remember my first run but it had to be for track. Our school did not have a track so our routine was pretty consistent, even for sprinters – a longer run, a day of hill sprints, a day of ladders running around the block (we knew which house was at 100 meters, 200 meters, etc.), technique days before meets.

I cannot run with a head lamp b/c it makes me sick. But I can run with knuckles – go figure! I also have a hard time on the treadmill with motion sickness so I can only watch boring shows on HGTV or the food network. Action movies make me want to barf!

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Oh that isn’t fun… do you have motion sickness in the car too?! I am so sorry! I hope you have a blast with your friends tonight and dinner tomorrow night with the kiddos! Enjoy Jackie!

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I don’t watch Fixer Upper or follow them, but I love Chip’s take on increasing his runs by .2! It really shows a focus on what you CAN do and what you can do in this moment rather than succumbing to the feeling of being overwhelmed.

I think my first run would probably have been the one mile run in middle school. Pure torture! :) But to this day, if I take a long break from running, I start with one mile and I walk/run until I build up strength.
Have a great weekend!

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I’m planning to clean the house tonight…I know I’m living on the edge ;)
My favorite classes in school were science, math, and advanced pe! Which makes sense because I now teach 8th grade science and I love it.
I remember running back in middle school with my trusty portable cd player and I would have to hold it a certain way so the cd wouldn’t skip! It’s amazing how far technology has come.

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Skye is such a doll! I love how Knox and Brooke love her too!

Friday night = Date night w. hubby at home! I am grilling some steaks with asparagus and potatoes of some sort. I bought a really nice bottle of wine for Christmas to drink but I ended up getting super sick with stomach flu! I may treat myself tonight after tiny human goes to sleep.

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Can we come over and make it a double date… that dinner sounds delicious! So glad you are feeling better and enjoy every second tonight!

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All these sweet pictures of Skye are great. I’m 21 weeks along and these make me excited for our little addition.

My first real run was on the treadmill – and I quickly became an outsider runner after that!

Have a wonderful weekend.

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Oh Mary… I am SO so excited for you:) Please keep me updated with how you are doing! Thank you and I hope your weekend is wonderful too!

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I have to say thank you to you for talking about This Is Us! After my little one was born, I needed a show to watch while nursing and he’s sleeping on me. I was searching, saw This Is Us, and thought “Janae talks about this show a lot. I’ll try it.” (Yes I hope you know we’re on a first name basis ;)) OMG it’s my favorite now! So so good! And I cry at most episodes too.

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Of course we are on a first name basis. That makes me so happy and I LOVE that you love the show. It is addicting. I hope you are having a great day with your little one!

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What makes me of backpack is that? I think I remember you sharing about it one time but I don’t remember. I like it!
I started early morning running last year and using a headlamp. I didn’t like at first but More I did it the more I got used to it.

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Hey Mary! The bag is from here:

https://azariabrand.com/
I LOVE it! So glad that you like the headlamp more now and I hope you have a wonderful day!

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I learned a fun headlamp trick when I was training for a Ragnar trail relay – wear it around your waist. That way it still lights up your surroundings, but isn’t on your head bouncing around. I LOVE it. I rarely wear my headlamp on my head anymore because of it.

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THAT IS BRILLIANT. Thank you so much Randi! I will definitely try that out… why aren’t we all doing this?!? Have a beautiful day!

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Would you ever consider doing a post from Andrew about balancing school/studying/class with the rest of your life? I’m a nursing student too and find it difficult to manage everything else in life (just a husband…no kids!) so I would LOVE to hear any tips/tricks from him juggling school/marriage/kids.

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100% YES!!! I will definitely have him do this (I want to know his secrets too ha… because he is rocking it;)! Good luck with your schooling and keep me updated on everything! Look for this post in the next two weeksish! Thanks Kit and have a fabulous day Kit!

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Friday night plans- book club tonight with my sister!

My first run was a somewhere between a mile and 1.5. I can’t remember exactly. 4 years ago I decided on a whim to train for a 5K with my sister (two of our cousins were running a half). The rest is history. I was 33.

I have not hardly ever run in the dark- but that means I am not hardly ever running :( I just ordered a reflective vest for me and leash for the dog so hopefully we can get in some more running.

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That is an awesome way to get the kids to do their chores!! My little boy also loves to sleep in his sleeping bag every night :) And I also very often accidentally let my water bottle leak in my bag. My other half thinks I have problems with all of my bottles, but I think it’s probably just ditziness!

I never ran with a head lamp, but I do do almost all of my runs in winter in the dark (evenings – I am *not* a morning person!) I wear arm bands with lights on them, and a reflective jacket, and more lights on my shoes.

My Friday night = Chinese takeaway with friends :) Hope you have a good one, Janae!

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My favorite subject in school was definitely English. I loved reading as a kid (and still do). I would read just about anything that I could get my hands on.

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Friday plans are to get my hair done with my daughter after work (woohoo!!) and then date night with the hubs afterwards.

Well, I teach English so I am definitely biased but I also really liked history in school and in college, I loved math (weird).

I remember running a mile after I had my last baby because I had decided without ever running that I wanted to run a 1/2 marathon. Well, that particular half marathon didn’t pan out, but I didn’t stop running.

I run in the dark about 3-4 mornings each week. I wear reflective gear and the hubs usually wears the headlamp because he’s the best and knows I don’t like to wear or carry anything extra :)

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Skye is getting so cute everyday. I’m seeing babies everywhere and I think I have a serious case of baby fever.

My first run was when I was Brooke’s age and it was probably around 2Km in the track with my Dad. I can’t remember how I felt but I do remember he was very proud.

I bet you are extremely excited about going back to run. It’s always exciting. Hope you enjoy your weekend :)

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Hellllllllo ( I realized I never say “hey” first in my comments.. Although I suppose at this point this post is no exception; in Switzerland, people say, “hej!”)

Learned in high school the wonders of music + chores; still do it a decade later. Music + cleaning tasks ({laundry, wipe surfaces, clean room, etc}) = okay. Cleaning tasks alone? ……okay….

:p

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Kids missed Jiu Jitsu this week attending some school events so they’ll be doing that tonight. I tweaked my back really bad this past Monday so I’m just trying to do stretches and such to get it back. I loved all the electives. Ha! English was my favorite, though, although I loved Art and Spanish, too. Also loved the classes where the teachers were so stellar, they made that subject awesome. Teachers are AWESOME! This will sound pretty pathetic but in seventh grade was when I did my first mile. Our PE teacher used to have us practice to run the mile and then timed us at the end of the session. I clocked in at a 8.23 mile. Not fast from what I’ve seen others do but it’s my fastest and I’m not a runner so it’s my proud “runner” moment. :) Ooh, I also loved running hurdles! :) Have a great weekend, Janae!

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Plan is to workout after my kiddo is in bed, then relax with Netflix! Just finished The Crown and watching a royal family documentary series. Dinner is Boca burgers and sweet potato fries.

I remember the snuggle days! Now she hardly ever wants to so I soak it up when I can get it. :)

I hope you have a great first run next week, I came home from my six week appointment and told my husband I was going for a run, ha! Felt like molasses but I did it.
Have a great weekend!?

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Our Friday night plans include a date with 20/20 or Redbox (haha we’re party animals, right?!), Chipotle tacos and our fireplace!! Fridays are my favorite!!

I used to love my creative writing class! It was so much fun and such a good change up from the basic courses!

Oh gosh, my first run seems like it was forever ago!! I know when I was in high school as a cheerleader, I despised running! Now here I am over 10 years later paying good money to run in races! HA!

I used to run in the dark, but for safety reasons I like running during the day much better!! We go for walks at night though when my boyfriend can and we always use our headlamps! They’re so handy!!

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I have spent a good part of my winter break on a This is Us binge…SO GOOD! I’m off to a Wizards game tonight in DC! hope all of you have a lovely weekend!

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I just finished the Strava Lululemon challenge today! Luckily I’m training for the Napa Valley Marathon so I knocked 80k out in 5 runs. Go Andrew!

While I was on maternity leave my husband told me that if I could make money just cuddling and staring at my daughter like it was my job he’d let me stay home but since that clearly wasn’t going to happen I had to go back to work. Enjoy those snuggles!

Have a great weekend!

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Was in Target this afternoon and saw scented Donut pillows in the Valentines’ Section. Immediately thought of you:)

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I MUST FIND THAT!! It makes me so happy that you thought of me Laurie! Thank you and I hope you have a great weekend!

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That picture of Skye and Andrew studying is beyond precious!

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Ive been really curious lately- What is Andrews studying to become? PA?

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Hey Stacey! He is in nursing school and will be go to nurse practitioner school after this:) I hope you have a great weekend!

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Friday night= catching up on your blog, snuggled with my hubs watching friends on Netflix, sipping on egg roll soup (so much healthier than an actual egg roll) and its pouring rain!

I love that Chip is running his 1st marathon! I remember some of my 1st runs in my neighborhood. I would go around the block and think that was great let me do it again and I would end up walking some of it. Crazy to see when you continue to run how far you have come!!

That mix that you found. . .holy smokes that looks SOOO good! There is nothing better than chocolate covered gummy bears! Right now we are on Whole 30 so all sweets are on hold!

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I love how sassy the kids look in the chores photo! They are growing up so fast!

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Have y’all tried a grill light? My hubby has one and loves it! https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B000WEKNYW/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1516162001&sr=8-3&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=weber+grill+light&dpPl=1&dpID=31efA9—kL&ref=plSrch

The headlamp works, too, though!

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This is so random (and about 6 months late, lol), but did Andrew earn anything from the challenge? I got my husband into it since he is on Strava and I told him in the past there have been shirts and stuff you could earn, but he never got anything or noticed where you can submit to win? He made several of his buddies do it too…and everyone thinks I was making it up! Lol…maybe I am? Can you clarify? :)

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