this past weekend...

We headed up to Phoenix, yet again to celebrate some birthdays!!! August is a busy month for birthdays around here: our friends Travis, Joe, and Kevin all have birthdays, as well our next door neighbor Katie. Plus, Rick's sister and Grandfather, as well as my sister in law Carissa, and her son Bladen also have birthdays. Phew!

Friday night we headed up to Phoenix and loaded up at Ikea. I hate going to that place, but we got so many things for the nursery, it was pretty awesome. Then we met Ann and Marcel for dinner (Annie ordered three things, yes three, off the menu and neraly finished it all. She is nothing short of amazing), and went to my parents' house to relive their recent Italian vacation. It was nice to see everyone.

Saturday morning we went to Rick's parents' house where I met up with his Mom and sister for a girls' day of fun to celebrate Samantha's birthday!

First we headed to Drybar. I love love love this place. What an indulgence. They had champagne and mimosas, and I had cucumber water. The deep conditioning treatment and scalp massage were to die for! Here are our before and after pics:

They did an amazing job! Worth every penny! And I am still rockin' my blowout 4 days later.... gotta love thick hair.

After that we went to True Foods for lunch. We all shared the vegetable crudite, artichoke pizza, chicken salad sandwich, and kale salad. It was sooooo good. We finished up the day with some shopping at Giggle, Lululemon, and H & M.

That night we all headed out to Copperblues for dinner, and Lucky Strike for some bowling. They did not have any lanes, so we went to a bar close to home. They drank, we all laughed. It was such a fun day!

The next morning I woke up early to meet a friend from college for breakfast.... it was so nice catching up with Shylah, and she gave me crib bedding and all the baby hangers I could ever need, as well as a learning toy for my little babe. It's amazing how people you haven't see in five years still can be so generous and thoughtful!

After breakfast my brothers and their families came over for a pool party at my parent's to celebrate Carissa and Bladen's birthday. It was fun, albeit short, party but it was nice to get everyone together. I do love those kids. My little niece is so so delicious.

We quickly headed back to Tucson so Rick could do a fantasy football draft. I should hang a sign that says "We interrupt this marriage, to bring you football season". No truer words have ever been spoken.

That night I had a little meltdown trying to pick out my outfit for work the next day. Even the "go to" shirts that I thought would last me my whole pregnancy were not fitting, and I got upset. Rick is always so good at consoling me when I get sad, and he convinced me to go get some new things the next day. I have really only bought a small amount of maternity items, and was determined not to by anything. I think it is such a waste of money, and I really do not like shopping. I am an online girl all the way, but he was right, it was time. And he left me this the next morning: 

My blessings are not lost on me, I assure you. Oh, and I got loads of maternity clothes yesterday, and I am so happy I did...

i left my heart in San Francisco...

Two words to describe this trip: Magical and Unforgettable. We saw, we ate, we laughed, we danced, they drank, and we made awesome memories. This is one of my favorite trips to date, and without a doubt, we will be back. Gio and Matt were the most loving and gracious hosts, we couldn't have felt more welcomed or entertained. Thank you dear friends, we feel so lucky.

Things we saw/did: Chinatown, rode a Cable car, Pier 39, Ghiradelli, Tree Man, Buena Vista Irish Coffees, AT&T Park, 21st Amendment, Tommy's Joynt, Golden Gate Park, Japanese Tea Gardens, Bison, Fine Arts Building, Union Street Fair, Fresca, SF Symphony Black and White Ball, Cyndi Lauper, The Drifters, Mama's Cafe, the church where Marilyn Monroe and Joe DiMaggio were married, Golden Gate Bridge, the Marina, Little Italy. So much more left to see for such a small city...

Weekend.

This past weekend was a perfect combination of both lazy and exhausting. I have been having a lot of problems with my arch on my right foot. I ran 9 miles on Wednesday last week, and around the last mile and a half, it felt like a knife was being stabbed into by arch. I hobbled home, and started icing. It hurt so badly to go up on to my toes. I talked the next day with my trainer about it, he suggested I ice and rest it, and head to 'Fleet Feet' to get analyzed. He was concerned about it being plantar fasciitis, which is quite common, but also takes a long time to heal. I was praying that wasn't what was happening, training for a marathon and all.

So, I rested on Thursday, and did boot camp on Friday, staying away from the sprints and the jumps. Otherwise I felt OK. Our Friday night consisted of being lazy, watching DVR, icing, and having pizza and beer for dinner. It was wonderful!

On Saturday morning, we woke up and met our friends and next door neighbors, Josh and Katie, for breakfast and a hike along Saguaro National Monument. It was a beautiful day and I was thinking I was getting off easy, as she is 6 months pregnant and all. Not the case! We drove up to 'Biscuit's Country Cafe' for breakfast {biscuits and gravy, yes, please}, which is owned by the guy that lives across the street from us. It was yummy, and we ate way too much to be going directly out for a hike!

The Saguaro National Monument is a beautiful hike, with lots of cacti, trails, and wildlife! We even saw a desert tortoise. There is a long loop that we took around the park, and there were tons of hills. I mean gigantic mountainous hills! I felt so bad for Katie hiking up those mountains with her 6 month pregnant belly. We all got a little sunburned, but got a great workout, and went for beers, wings, and nachos afterward. I think it was an even trade!



After lunch we headed over to Fleet Feet where I got new custom insoles for my running shoes. The problem is, they need to be broken in, so you can only wear them for an hour or two at a time. Fail. The lady at the store told me I should NOT be running long distances, let alone 18 miles the next day with my injured foot. I was not happy. The Tucson Marathon was only a little over a month away!

The next morning I woke up determined, and excited. My foot felt great, I had iced the whole night before, and I was ready. I headed out for my 18 mile run, not wearing my new insoles, but the ones I had bought for our European adventure. My foot started to slowly hurt on my arch, but the pain peaked at about mile 5 and it never got any worse, so I just kept going. I made it through just fine, with the exception of some crazy toenail damage. My second toes on both feet have developed blisters underneath them, and are destroying my nail. So, I have an appointment with a podiatrist to cut those suckers off! My time on my 18 miler was right at my goal, so I felt OK, but still nervous.

love the views in Tucson...

I was nervous about my feet, my toes, and not having enough training before the Tucson Marathon December 11th. After talking with my friend, speedy, Olympic runner Alex, who said she is running only the half at the Tucson Marathon, and advice from my sweet husband, I have decided to do the half at the Tucson Marathon, and a month later do the Rock and Roll Full Marathon in Phoenix on January 15th. We are going to be in town for my husband to do the Tough Mudder, and the Rock and Roll is the very next day. Perfect!!

After I made this decision, I was able to take a deep breath of sorts. I had only been cramming in the training for this race since the Ragnar, I was not planning on any more races at all, so my training was short and not what I would have loved it to be. Now I have more time, and although I am more relaxed about the time frame, I am still terrified. I think that is exactly what makes it a perfect goal.

Weekend.

Another fun filled weekend has come and gone... we did some relaxing, but most of it was go, go, go....

On Friday I had kind of a rough day, so after work, instead of bootcamp, I headed to get a pedicure. It was a really good one, although I felt bad for the nail technician because my feet are not so great after all this running!!

After Rick got home from work, we went out to one of our favorite Vietnamese restaurants, had some beers, and Rick had Pho. He loves Pho, and gets it extra spicy. I had some amazing hot and sour soup and their grilled beef with a salad. Delish! We both finished everything we ordered, and went home watch some of our favorite shows, Modern Family, and The League.... boring, I know, but we were still exhausted from the previous Vegas/Ragnar weekend.

The next morning I got up early to cook, we had invited over our neighbors Katie and Josh for breakfast. I made homemade pumpkin spice pancakes with pecan syrup, scrambled eggs with cheese, and veggie sausages. They turned out really delicious and we had a great time catching up with them!

Later, we went and ran errands, did some shopping, and had lunch at this Greek place that had amazing gyros!!

Don't you just love my new beanie?!?

That evening, we went to dinner with our good friends, Ashley and Ricardo, at Monkey Burger, this wonderful gourmet burger place. They have the best burgers, fries, and dipping sauces!! I had the Madness burger because I was in the mood for spicy! It had Jalapeno slices · Shredded Lettuce · Pepper Jack Cheese · Fajita Peppers · Tabasco Scallion Aioli, with sweet potato fries! YUM!

After dinner we headed to see Paranormal Activity 3. It was not as scary as the first two, but had some unexpected twists and brought new terrifying ways to scare you to light. I was in Ashley's lap almost the entire time, my face buried in her shoulder, our hands holding super tight. She would tell me the parts I missed after I kept my eyes shut for too long and missed something. That is a good friend.

The next morning the strangest thing happened. That day I was planning on doing 8 miles... my schedule had 12, but I had not run that far in a long time, so I thought I would cut it short. I only brought my camelback and one gu, and ran towards the Julian wash by my house.

The Julian wash is part of "The Loop" in Tucson. The Loop is 55 miles of car-free paths being developed around metropolitan Tucson, with links to Marana and Oro Valley, for Pima County residents and visitors on foot, bikes, skates and horses. The Loop connects the Rillito River Park, the Santa Cruz River Park, the Julian Wash Greenway, the Harrison Greenway and the Pantano River Park.  It will connect to parks, trails, bus and bike routes, workplaces, schools, restaurants, hotels and motels, shopping areas, and sports and entertainment venues.

Pretty awesome, huh!? Julian Wash picks up right around 2.3 miles from my house, so I was just gonna take that and go 4 miles, and head back. But- I got to four miles, and thought, I'll go to the end of Julian wash, which would make it about 10 miles round trip. I walked a little when I got a side cramp, wasn't too stressed about time, I had my one gu about 6 miles in, and just enjoyed the scenery and the breeze when it would blow through. It was hot otherwise, probably about 80*.

I hit 10 miles, and then decided I would do the 12 on my plan, what's 2 more miles?? By the time I hit twelve, I checked my watch, and I still had a great pace... I thought hey- let's see how fast I can do 13.1... so, I did. And I got a PR! Seriously, who would ever have thought I would run 13.1 for no reason at all, without stressing, walking a little, not eating anything special the day/night before, not having enough gu, and in 80* heat? Not this gal. Anything over 75* is so uncomfortable for me. Sub 2 hour half marathon, here I come!!

But- this upcoming weekend is an 18 miler.... seems like so much more. Oy. But- I must not have given it all I had, because I came home, cleaned the house, went grocery shopping, and cooked dinner. That has never happened after a half marathon before, either. All those sessions with Ray must be paying off! I love when the runs get up there, because I can eat all I want and not feel bad about it. Halloween candy, here I come!!

Happy Halloween, everyone!! My scary movie loving bestie and I are ballerinas!!

Tonight, Rick and I are hanging at the neighbors', eating, drinking, and handing out candy. Can't wait :)

Celebrate!

This weekend was a whirlwind to say the least! We celebrated my sweet husband's birthday twice, with my family and his family and friends. It is always wonderful to see what an awesome group of friends we have that will always come out to celebrate with us. After weekends like this, we really feel so blessed and lucky to have them in our lives.

On Friday night, we got up to Phoenix around 7 pm and were greeted by my entire family at my parents' house. My Mom had prepared an awesome feast for us (as always) including all homemade ramaki, bruschetta, chicken parmesan, sauce with pasta and meatballs and sausage, and a huge salad. She also made homemade chocolate cake for my Rick for dessert. My brother Mike was there with his girlfriend, Carissa, and her two kids who are 4 and 2 years old. Those kids are so adorable, we have all fallen in love with them completely. The boy, who is 2, ran around the house chasing after our huge German Shepherd, and the little girl was with me the entire time, sitting on my lap and saying the cutest things. Rick and I got a glimpse of what energy these children have, but it was so wonderful to be in a house with little ones running around.

My baby brother Stephen is getting married this April, and he finally got around to asking my brother and husband to be groomsman in the wedding. His fiancee Lauren asked her sister and I awhile ago, so excited! He iced them with Smirnoff ices wrapped in paper (Rick's had Jeff Gordon's on it, his absolute fav) saying "Congratulations on being a groomsman in the Bird/Burdorf wedding!" Cute. This wedding is going to be so fun. I can't wait!!

On Saturday, Rick and I headed over to Rick's parents to get ready for his birthday BBQ that night. His Mom prepared various Italian treats from sausage with peppers and onions, to meatballs, bruschetta, and cookies. We brought some chips and dip and a cheese and meat platter. All day long people came and went, and the boys worked on a homemade double beer pong table with an automatic ball washer that they will bring with them to NASCAR this year. It really turned out perfect, and is almost ready for November 13th.

I had a wonderful time chatting with my girlfriends all night, and Rick's friends got him some lovely gifts.

On Sunday we woke up and headed over to my brother Mike's new house that he just moved into with his girlfriend and her two babies. It is so nice, and perfect for him for a first home. He really did a great job fixing it up, he got it for an amazing price, and I am so proud of him! After we finished visiting, we went over to my dear friend Randi and her husband Kevin's new house. It is so beautiful, gigantic, and perfect for them and their three adorable girls. Their littlest has always been a little shy, but she has come out of her shell and was totally in love with Rick. She kept having him hold her, and she would give him eskimo kisses, and hug him so tight. It was so sweet. I love that family so much. Randi has been one of my closest friends for over 15 years, and a bridesmaid in my wedding.

We also went over to Randi's little sister, Lindsay's new house to visit and see her new baby Aiden. He was born two months ago and is just perfect. We visited, ate cupcakes, and watched football. It was so nice to be around people I have missed lately, and feel at home with.

We drove back to Tucson after our visits, we had to get Rick ready for a business trip he is taking to Florida this upcoming week. I have to get ready for the Ragnar relay race we are running in Vegas this weekend, and I am all alone all week! I am so ready for this race to be over!! I have not gotten back into enjoying running since my trip to Europe. I am excited, however, to stay at the Paris hotel, and party for my husband's 30th birthday!!

Feast.

I hope everyone had an awesome weekend! We sure did... our weekend basically consisted of laying around, eating, an awesome massage, more eating, spending quality time with some loved ones, oh- and more eating. Basically a weekend of feasting!

Friday night Rick and I hit up one of our favorite restaurants, The Melting Pot, to celebrate his 30th birthday, just the two of us. His birthday isn't until the 23rd, but we have a lot of things coming up, and don't have a free weekend night to spend together alone, until then. We had cheddar cheese fondue, followed by a main course of filet, shrimp, pasta, chicken, and teriyaki beef cooked bourgionne style, which is basically a fancy French way of saying "deep fried". It was delicious. We ended with milk chocolate fondue for dessert. I could not eat a single bite more. I was to the point of uncomfortable full, but it was worth it. Every bite was more delicious than the last. I gave Rick one of his birthday presents at dinner, a book of pretty photos I had done for him by an outstanding photographer in Tucson. I had a lot of fun doing them, and boy was he surprised! He looovveeed them! Thanks, Shay!

Saturday we slept in, cleaned the house, and got ready to head to our dear friend Jill's parent's house to celebrate the holiday, Yom Kippur. Yom Kippur, also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest and most solemn day of the year for those of Jewish faith. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Neither Rick or I are Jewish, but they always invite us to spend the holiday with them, and we always have a great time. Jill's parents are hilarious, so warm and welcoming, and awesome hosts. We always fill our bellys with delicious food, and spend the whole night laughing. Can't wait until next year!

On Sunday, we slept in again, had french toast for breakfast, and while Rick was engaged in a high stakes day of Fantasy Football, I made homemade pumpkin spice chocolate chip cookies. I had never made cookies with pumpkin puree before, and they turned out soooo yummy! Rick said they "taste like Fall". Ultimate compliment in my book! It had the delicious taste of pumpkin spice, brown sugar, and chocolate chips. These will definitely be made again! And how dreamy is my Kitchen Aid mixer in its creamy buttercup color??

After a morning of baking, I headed out to Trader Joe's to stock up for the week. I had some leftover pumpkin puree from the cookies and wanted to make pumpkin soup. Trader Joe's had a lovely pumpkin patch set up, and it really put me in the mood to decorate the house more, and give more thought to what we are going to carve our pumpkins into. I love, love this time of year.

After I got home, I had a bowl of cheerios with almond milk (yum!) and set out on a run. I had procrastinated long enough, didn't wanna do it, still would rather do anything than run, but Rick talked me into it. I initially was just going to run to Julian's Wash and back (about 5 miles), but the weather was so lovely, and I had an 8:00 pace up until that point, so I ended up doing 8 miles. Rick was so cute, as I was running back, I saw his truck drive by. He was worried I had been hit by a car, or fell off the side of the freeway, or kidnapped, and was looking for me. He asked if I wanted a ride, I yelled "No thanks!", and off he went. He must really love me.

Once I got home, hot and sweaty, I remembered I was making pumpkin soup for dinner. Feeling about 100* inside my body, it wasn't the most appealing. But- Rick helped me chop and stir, and by the time the soup was ready, I had cooled down and was ready to gobble up some pumpkin soup. It was delicious! Creamy, hot and spicy, and full of flavor! Soooo perfect for a cool Autumn evening.

It was a wonderful weekend, and this week we have Fall Break on Thursday and Friday, so it will be an easy week- I hope to really get out and enjoy the weather! We are heading up to Phoenix this coming weekend to celebrate Rick's birthday with family and friends. Happy Fall!!

25.

This weekend my sweet husband's lovely little sister turned the big 25! Rick and I headed up to Phoenix Friday for a fun-filled weekend of food, drinks, family, and fun.

As soon as we arrived in town on Friday evening, we went straight to Valle Luna (if you haven't had the fundido, you MUST, you are missing out) to celebrate my middle brother and my Daddy's birthday. Rick and I will be in Europe during both of their birthdays, so we wanted to have a special dinner to celebrate them. I didn't take any pictures, I am terrible, but it was a wonderful time of gorging ourselves on great Mexican food, cake, and ice cream.

The next day we ran errands, got some new sneaks for Eurofest walking, and met up with our dear friends Joe and Jill at the mall where they were having lunch with their adorable son, Tyler. Rick and I experienced our first flash mob when we were trying to navigate our way through the crazy crowds. It was interesting, but I was more eager to meet our friends, and shutting down the escalators was not helping my frustration level.

Saturday evening we went to the Cardinals vs. Chargers preseason game with Rick's parents and his sister, Samantha, and her friends. It was such a wonderful time, and Samantha's season ticket seats were sweet! So close to the field, it is much more of an exciting game when you are up close, rather than straining to see from the nose bleeds.

It was so nice being able to spend quality time with Rick's family in such a fun environment. The one thing I miss about living in Phoenix (besides friends and family, of course) are the professional sports. I love love attending games for the Cardinals, Dbacks, and most of all, the Phoenix SUNS! Any time we can come up for a game, it is a guaranteed good time.

On Sunday, Rick and I went to our friends Joe and Jill's place so Rick and Joe could do one of their many fantasy football drafts, and Jill and I could spend some quality time together, and I could kiss all over her baby, Tyler. He is such a good boy! He is getting so big, and never fusses and will sit while we have our girl talk over lunch and shopping excursions. I love him, and her!

Sunday was Rick's sister Samantha's actual birthday, so we all headed down to Postino's Wine Bar in Phoenix. This place is one of the best spots in all of Arizona for fresh, delicious food. Their boards of bruschetta are out of this world. We ate and drank and laughed and celebrated. A perfect way to end a wonderful weekend eating at my favorite spots, with my favorite people.

The last photo is caramel, not liquor. My idea of a perfect shot ;)

This quote was up on the chalk board at Postino's:

"Where there is no wine, there is no love." ~Euripides