It’s safe to say this was one of the best weekends I’ve had in a long time. Aside from my typical nights working I had the greatest Sunday, full of the best things in life: running, friends, and brunch.

I woke up at 6am Sunday morning and immediately hopped in the car to drive downtown. The Shamrock Shuffle was yesterday and we were so lucky to have such a beautiful day for it! It was the perfect day to officially kick-off running season in Chicago.

Since it was an 8K I felt relaxed the whole time, no pressure or nerves at all. Everyone else seemed to be in the same boat…no one seemed to be taking the race too seriously. The one thing I have to say is it was PACKED. This was definitely not a race to run for time. The first mile I felt like I was running in place!

I decided to hang back with some friends and not start in my corral so the race got started later than I planned. By 9:15 we were off and running! I absolutely loved the course–we weaved through the main streets downtown, something you obviously don’t get to do every day. It was pretty remarkable that a city as big and busy as Chicago is able to shut down its main streets for almost four hours, even on a Sunday.

My stomach felt funky before the race so I was pretty worried I’d have to stop and walk but luckily the energy and excitement kept me going and I ran all 5 miles. Sure it took me longer because I was surrounded by thousands of people but I actually liked that better! It wasn’t a competitive race, it was a community race, and I felt that every step of the way.

I have no idea what my time was! It doesn’t really matter. But the sun came out just as mile 5 was coming to an end and I saw Zain at the finish line so I left a very happy girl.

So what does a runner do to celebrate a great morning? She eats brunch, of course.

We picked up Spencer and Meggie and headed out to Lincoln Park to grab breakfast at 2 Sparrows. The wait was pretty crazy but well worth it once we got seated in a booth (my favorite). We also had a chance to walk around the neighborhood while we waited for our table so we went to a pet shop and played with the tiniest puppies in the world. I’m now officially in love with French bulldogs 🙂

Brunch was great! Our server forgot to put in our order so we were given plenty of appetizers on the house. He felt so badly about it but to be honest, I’ll take free food any day!

First things first, a goat cheese cinnamon roll.

I know everyone else wasn’t blown away by this, but I loved it. It was sweet without being sickening, and the goat cheese gave it so much depth of flavor (when I say things like that do I sound like I know what I’m talking about?)

Next up were a few donuts: maple & bacon and chocolate, caramel, & peanut

I didn’t love these. They weren’t fluffy how I like my donuts, and to be honest I think I’m just a vanilla long john fanatic. They looked really pretty though so that counts for something!

For my breakfast I had the market quiche. I’m really disappointed in myself for not branching out and trying something different, especially because 2 Sparrows has some really unique, farm-to-table options that you don’t see anywhere else. But when I see quiche on a menu, there’s a 90% chance that’s what I’m ordering. Ever since I studied abroad in Paris I’ve loved the simple idea of that meal: quiche with a simple salad. The market quiche of the day was filled with cheddar cheese, pesto, tomato and onion. It was pretty good! Nothing out-of-this-world but I definitely enjoyed it.

I loved the atmosphere of 2 Sparrows and they had so many cool options that I’d be crazy not to go back. I’ll just have to try something new next time and hope that I fall in love with it. Regardless I’d be happy just going back for a cup of coffee and that cinnamon roll.

Once we finished brunch we knew we had to stay outside–it was in the mid-50s yesterday, a tropical paradise by Midwest-standards, so we decided to walk to Lincoln Park Zoo. I didn’t get any pictures inside but I hadn’t been there before and it was mind-blowing! It’s outdoors and free of charge so you just turn a corner and boom, you’re in the zoo staring at a camel.

All in all a very tiring but exciting day. I have the best time when I’m outside, with my friends, eating great food and being active. Winter can be a hard time for people like me (aka can’t-sit-still folks) so this little taste of spring was much-appreciated.

If you stuck around this long, good for you! I’m proud I kept your attention this long. Have a great Monday!

Questions:

• Are you signed up for any upcoming races?
• What’s your favorite outdoor activity to do in the spring?

Hello? Is anybody still there?

In case you haven’t noticed I haven’t written anything in a week. No eats, workouts, or philosophical thoughts I just had to share. I wish I could say there was a better reason for it, but I honestly didn’t have time to sit down at a computer and write for fun in the past week.  Between St. Patrick’s Day weekend and the way things have been at work, my focus has been elsewhere.

Let’s do a quick, random catch-up to get us all back to speed.  Let’s be friends again, ok?

I’m not a fan of not having “a path”. I know we’ve talked about this before so I won’t get all into it again, but man does it suck feeling like everyone around or above you has it all together and you’re “gaining experience”. I’ve learned more in the past few months that I have in a long time—almost like I’m in school again. It’s been great! I just hate that things aren’t guaranteed in life, you know? I’m just working my way up the bracket.

Speaking of brackets, is anyone else excited about March Madness?? This is one of my favorite times of the year! First of all it brings back memories of spring break because in the past I’ve usually been traveling during the games (oh Austin how I miss you!) But secondly, who doesn’t love college basketball? It’s so quick and action-packed and filling out a bracket, pretending I have a clue who’s going to come out on top is always so much fun. Last year was too random for my taste (I’m looking at you, Florida Gulf Coast) but this year I can already tell is going to be exciting because there are fewer teams who are shoe-ins.  Gotta fill out my bracket soon! Wouldn’t it be nice to win a billion dollars?

I’ve been trying to shake up my meals lately. Throughout winter I pretty much ate the same thing for breakfast and lunch (thanks to laziness inspired by the polar vortex): bagel egg sandwich and a hummus/cheese/veggie sandwich for lunch.  With spring right around the corner my creative juices are flowing, so here are some ideas I’ve been having lately.

And finally, in other news, I built a dresser! 7 hours later and rug burn all over my legs and here you have it!

With that being said, I can’t wait to catch up on all your blogs! I’ve missed a lot in the past week I’m sure. It feels good to get back to writing – it always does.

Questions:

• Do you usually stick to the same favorites for meals?
• Did you have a fun St. Patrick’s Day weekend?
• Are you filling out a March Madness bracket? Who do you think will win it all?

It’s been a whirlwind week. It definitely doesn’t feel like Friday that’s for sure! I did a lot after work this week which probably explains it. Remember awhile ago when we talked about not looking forward to the weekends and instead making every day special so time doesn’t slip through your fingertips? Yeah, I’ve been trying that out.

On Tuesday I went to Zain’s company basketball game. It’s always so funny to see grown men running around an elementary school gym for 30 minutes.

Wednesday night Zain and I had tickets to Second City! If you’re not sure what that is it’s a comedy/improv theater that got so many famous careers started, from Tina Fey to Stephen Colbert and Steve Carell.

Oh my gosh you guys it was soooooooooooooo good. How often these days do we look away from the screen and sit in a room full of people and laugh for two hours? It was so refreshing, not to mention hilarious. I can definitely see some of those improv actors on SNL one day.

After the show we got a quick dinner at Chipotle–I had the veggie tacos for no reason other than the guacamole apocalypse.

You’ve all heard about that, right? That Chipotle might need to “temporarily” stop serving guacamole because of rising food prices? Mark my words if that happens I’m going to be outside my local store picketing with a sign and everything. What good is Chipotle without the guac? It’s basically just a taco bell, people.

In other news, Trader Joe’s is officially my favorite store on the planet. I’m running really low on groceries right now so I decided to stop in TJ’s before work and get my meals for the day. I bought a mini quiche, a lemon Luna bar, a bag of sugar snap peas and a can of soup for $8. Breakfast, lunch, and snacks for under $10? TJ’s I love you (not to mention their food is killer – this mini quiche was delicious and I was definitely the envy of the office).

Side comment: I think I’m officially getting old. I’m still sore from a workout that I did on Sunday. Come on, body, this is just ridiculous. I just want to do a pushup without bursting into tears.

And last but not least, I’ve been doing a great job working on my personal goals! One of the things I promised myself at the start of this year was that I was going to do more fun things around the city, even during the week. Yeah sometimes I get off work and the only thing I want to do is watch Millionaire Matchmaker and eat a giant quesedilla, but that’s not what makes life memorable. Something I used to do a few years back was go to concerts, and I’d forgotten how much I love to do that. So recently I bought tickets to three upcoming concerts–Bastille, Neon Trees/Smallpools, and Luke Bryan. Even typing those words out is getting me so excited! Music is a huge part of what makes me happy so seeing it live is gonna be great!!

Questions:

• Are you as mad about the “guacamole apocalypse” as I am?
• What are you looking forward to about this weekend?
• Are you going to any upcoming concerts? What’s the best concert you’ve ever been to?

Okay first thing’s first…let’s play doctor! Does anyone know what this pain is?

It’s the weirdest pain in my lower calf…it feels like a really bad charlie horse. Luckily I was able to run 4 miles on it this morning but as soon as I got to work it was instantly painful once I sat down. I’m guessing it’s just a pulled muscle or something but it’s unbearable for a few minutes and then I pop some Advil and it’s gone. I know that should be a good thing but I don’t want to be putting a temporary band-aid over a bigger problem, ya know?

Random life question: how does Advil just KNOW what to do once you’ve taken it? If I have a headache, Advil cures it. Toothache? Advil’s got it. Throbbing toe? Done. So how does it just know where to go? Haha is this a stupid question or what? These are the things I think about at work….(another similar question: where are all the baby pigeons?)

Anyway….

Here’s a look at what I’ve been eating the past few days. I’ve been trying to sneak vegetables in as much as possible–after all, March is the month of green, no?

I’m a little sad that I missed National Pancake Day yesterday. In fact, I didn’t really celebrate Fat Tuesday at all (minus some m&ms but that’s nothing out of the ordinary for me haha). Do they make calendars for foodies to remind them when each “National ____ Day” is? If I miss National Omelet Day or National Cupcake Day someone’s gonna get shanked.

On a little serious note, I’d like to discuss this article that I read yesterday. It has a  great message that really spoke to me.

6 Things You Should Stop Expecting From Others

For me, the things that I tend to worry about in life are oftentimes the things on this list. I let things that other people do bother me too much, and put wayyyy too much emphasis on what people do or don’t do for me. Personally, I need to STOP needing a partner in crime all the time and need to be capable of doing activities that I love by myself. I need to realize that it’s not a wasted moment just because someone isn’t enjoying it with me. Not everything in life is meant to be social. I also was really struck by the one about people being on time. It’s so funny because I’m rarely on time myself but if someone, especially someone close to me, shows up really late to something, I take it personally, like time spent with me isn’t important to them. What’s up with that?! I read way too much into it!

Regardless of what you think of the artcile and if you relate to one or more of the tips, it’s definitely a good idea to place less emphasis on what other people around you are doing. This is definitly something I need to work on. I’ve noticed that my entire day can change instantly by someone else’s opinion, words, or actions. That’s not a good way to live…it’s downright exhausting.

Take a look at it and let’s discuss below!