So, this morning at 9:15 I had to go out to the grocery store because I was out of milk. It was 12 degrees outside. I really think it feels colder today because it has been so warm this winter. I am definitely not running outside today.

Anyhow. So, we’re smack dab in the middle of the weekend. It’s been a couple of days since my last post. I am getting over the cold. I definitely hope I beat it – because I did not get it nearly as bad as some of my friends at work did. Most of them have been battling “the cold” for the last three weeks. Now I just have a case of the sniffles for the most part.

The coolest thing was waiting for me on Friday when I got home from work:

A Luna bar (for the record, I have never seen the chocolate chunk kind – have you???) and a birthday card and message from the Luna Bar company! It really made my day. I actually have no idea how they knew it was my birthday, but what a great surprise! I am really excited to have this bar at some point this week.

On Saturday morning I woke up when my alarm went off. I went right downstairs and started making homemade mac & cheese. I have been craving mac and cheese for over a month now! Can you believe that?? I just have not had the time to make it. It takes a while when you are making it from scratch. To make it a little easier I measured out all of my ingredients and did some prep before I started cooking:

It was pretty shadowy on Saturday morning! Sometimes I feel that homemade mac & cheese is a pretty involved process for what it actually is. But it is just so good, that I can’t help but make it a couple of times a year. Normally I like to put tomatoes, chicken or broccoli in the mixture. But I went for traditional this time.

I cooked the milk and bay leaves, I made my own bread crumbs, I boiled the water. I always use a whole wheat pasta with more protein in it when I make mac & cheese. I also use a reduced fat cheese, unsalted butter and whole wheat flour for the roux. I really do think that making all of these little changes add up to a healthier end result.

Who doesn’t just wake up on a Saturday morning and make mac & cheese in their pjs and crocks?? No big deal, right?

That’s what I thought.

Eventually the end result was accomplished:

Because I was giving one tray to a friend, I felt like I really had to try a taste of it to make sure it was presentable. So, I had mac & cheese for breakfast. Yes, I did.

I added some hot sauce to it, and it was pretty good. I can’t wait to have some today!

The rest of my day yesterday was very busy. I had a birthday party to attend, then I went to the gym and ran 3 1/2 miles. It was my first run since coming down with the cold. I was really glad to start running again. I was supposed to do nine miles on Saturday, but that did not happen. (I’m ok with it, I guess.) Because I did not want the cold to get worse, I ran inside at the gym on the evil treadmill. The only good thing about doing this was that I was able to watch the US Olympic Marathon trials while I ran. (The unfortunate thing is that I forgot my ear buds so I couldn’t listen to any of the commentary – it was a weird experience…) I was thrilled that Kara Goucher made the team (she is my favorite runner!) and I was happy to see that Desiree Daliva and my friend Nichole’s favorite runner Shalane Flanagan. Nichole and I are already planning our Olympic marathon viewing party for this summer. 🙂

After my run and tv viewing, I had some football to watch. The 49ers won in amazing fashion and the Patriots totally blew away the Broncos which was really fun to watch. It was such a great day in sports – this made me really happy. While we watched football, I snacked on some great bbq chicken pizza.

It was a late night since the Patriots game went until almost midnight. But before I went to bed last night, I set my alarm and I got up this morning when it went off. I made oatmeal for breakfast even though I really wanted mac & cheese.

I think this was the first time this winter that I’ve made stove top oats..? It just has not been oatmeal weather I guess. This bowl of oats was soo good. (Probably because my mom put some extra brown sugar in my bowl! 🙂 )

In the mix:

Oats

1% milk

Water

Ground flax

Chia seeds

A splash of vanilla

brown sugar & almond butter – YUM.

Ok, I’ve got to get going. It is so cold outside that I really do not feel like leaving the house. But I might venture to the gym to get my training back on track. See you in a bit! Enjoy your Sunday and stay warm.