Monday, April 24, 2017

Shouldless Days: April

I really did not think I was going to get a shouldless day in this month since my to do list is OUT OF CONTROL these days.  But I needed one more than ever this month.  Between wedding planning and being as busy as I've ever been at work, it feels like I'm going 90 mph all day every day.  And I'm not sleeping very well.  Probably because of the stress of being so busy, but my low dose of steroids (which is keeping my RA flare under control/making sure it doesn't come back before the wedding) certainly isn't helping.  All this is to say that life is wonderful right now, but I'm kind of stressed/tired/overwhelmed!!

So yesterday was a shouldless day.  Phil went to his mom's on Saturday so I got to spend my shouldless day with him which was wonderful. It's a taste of what is to come after the wedding is behind us!  I'm excited for the wedding but boy am I excited to just be MARRIED.  Here's how I spent the day!

I was up at 5:30 am.  Le sigh. So I went downstairs to the couch and read for a little bit. This is my April book club book and I'm kind of struggling with it because the protagonist is such an awful person and the other minor characters aren't likeable either. As the book unfolds I can see that she went through some terrible things but it seems like she was a manipulative person when she was younger, too. I'm not saying she deserved anything that happened to her.  I just struggle with really really unlikeable characters. I'll be glad when I finish this book and can move onto something else.


Luckily after 30 minutes of reading I was able to fall asleep on the couch for another hour.  My body desperately needs sleep right now so I'm trying to sneak in couch naps whenever I can!  When I woke up I had breakfast and enjoyed coffee in a new mug I got from my cousins at my wedding shower. I know I'm not a Mrs. yet, but I figured I'm close enough.  The mug is so pretty and has the perfect handle (comfortable handles are so important!!).  In the background you can see the Wusthaf knife block that the CEO and CFO of Phil's company generously gifted to us for our wedding!  Looooove those knives!!


When Phil got up, we turned on Face the Nation.  Oscar jumped on my lap for some cuddles...


and settled into to get caught up on the week in politics.


After that, I headed out for a run.  It was a beautiful day! 
Running along Lake Harriet = my happy place!
 My run went super well. This was the first run since my hip surgery where I felt like I am back!


I walked into the house to the smell of brunch cooking! Phil usually makes brunch one day of the weekend. He makes eggs and hashbrown squares with shredded pork tamale on top (he gets 2 tamales for lunch one day most weeks and saves one for our brunch).  It's delicious!!


After that I did some meal prep for my lunches for the week and the dinner we'd have that night.  Then I headed outside to read and enjoy a mocktail (beet and ginger concentrate with diet tonic water - yum!).


After that, I went to a barre class which was so hard and so good! There were only 2 students in the class so we got a lot of form corrections which are always helpful. Then it was time to head home and start dinner. Phil grilled chicken for the salads I'll have for lunch this week.

I love grilled chicken! I flattened it to an even thickness and marinated it in lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and herbs
Then Phil grilled the veggies for our dinner.


The peppers and onions were multi-purpose. Some will go on my salads, the others were seasoned with cumin for the tacos we had with some leftover pork that I had in the freezer. Asparagus is an odd pairing but we had some left from the dinner we grilled on Friday so I wanted to use it up. We do not waste produce in this house!!


After dinner, we settled in and watched a couple of episodes of "Bill Nye Saves the World." I loved it, Phil thought some of the segments were drawn out. We'll be watching the whole season, though. Bill Nye's quirkiness is so endearing!

Yesterday was one of the best days I've had in a long time.  Don't get me wrong - life is good these days. I just need more slow-paced days like these full of my favorite things and people, and with time outdoors!

12 comments:

Kyria @ Travel Spot said...

That sounds like a great day; I am sure you have been slammed! Sometimes it's so nice not to have any obligations to anyone else. I think that in itself eases my mind, even if I had a big day of chores or errands to do. I love that Phil cooks brunch on the weekends; it's nice to have a treat like that and it segregates the weekends from the weekdays and makes them special!

Unfortunately, I had two huge shouldless days this weekend, as I pulled something in my back and I could not really do anything except lie on the couch and read. I got a bunch of reading done, but I did not get any of the backyard chores, shopping or running done that I had planned on doing this weekend. Funny how a forced shouldless day just is not as enjoyable, although I am sure it was good for me in the long run!

Charbelle said...

I'm so glad you were able to work in a shouldless day!!! I know it's such a crazy busy time!!! So awesome about your run!!! I had a really awesome run last Wednesday but my Saturday morning run was miserable! I just keep in mind they can't all be great and I'm thankful that I'm running! The food all looks yummy!!! I'm working on not booking out my calendar on weekends in order to try and make sure that we're not constantly in go mode. This past weekend we helped clean the lake house and open it up for the season but next weekend will be quieter.

Marlys said...

Congrats on the great run you had! I bet it felt wonderful. And it was great you put wedding planning on the back burner for the day, too, and did only what you wanted to and enjoyed the day. Phil's breakfast looks great - always fun to have a meal prepared for you! And that pan of grilled veggies looked scrumptious!
We had a great weekend, too, as we got the lake yard and beach cleaned up, thanks to Abby & Ryan's great help! We were done by 12:30 on Saturday and just enjoyed the rest of the day as it was beautiful!

Jeanie said...

We really do need days like this and I'm glad you had one. And it sounds pretty darned productive too! I like your square plates and I say use the mug! I don't think anyone's backing out now!

Isn't it nice that Phil likes to cook too? You can have such a good time in the kitchen together!

Abby said...

Sounds like a wonderful day!! Yay! You deserved it! That breakfast Phil makes sounds fantastic!!!

I am so happy you had a good run!!!!!!

We had kind of a should less day Sunday since the weather was awful. I went for a bitter cold 5 mile run, we went to church, playED Scrabble, Cooked soup, and Ryan and I stayed at the cabin last night and watched 2 movies (which I NEVER do - but felt so tired!) we left at 6:30 this morning so I could start work (Ryan had today off). It was a great weekend!!

Amber said...

I am so glad you had such a wonderful day! That day does sound pretty perfect and like it would be an ideal day for me too. I can't wait for the weather to be better here so I can start spending more time outside again. We got more snow this weekend and it was brutally cold.

Stephany said...

What a perfect shouldless day, and how fun you got to spend it with Phil.

I already told you this, but I did not care for Luckiest Girl Alive. So many of my friends raved about it, but I couldn't get over how unlikable the protagonist was. Interested to hear what you think when you finish it!

katielookingforward said...

ahh yeah! I had a shouldless day on Saturday, although it wasn't quite intentional. I got up and wrapped a birthday present for my best friend, took a yoga class, and then went to a twins game and bonfire. It was great to feel like its summer. I've read luckiest girl alive and loved it! Hope you do too!

Gracie said...

Hurray for your hip feeling back to normal! Such a great feeling. I'm totally with you on the mug handle thing. The mug could be covered with profanity and I'd still use it if the handle is comfortable!

San said...

What a fantastic day :) I am glad you got to squeeze in one more shouldless day before the wedding. I can imagine you must be so busy right now!

Jolene - EverydayFoodie said...

That sounds like a fantastic "shouldless" day, and so nice that Phil was home to spend it with you :-)

This is the second time I've heard of this Bill Bye show now, haha! I'll have to check it out.

Linda said...

That brunch sounds SO DELICIOUS.