I love this time of the year.
That’s right, we finally got ourselves a Christmas tree. Every year we seem to be surprised when we realize Christmas is right around the corner – less than three weeks now!
So we hunted…
And we gathered…
And then we decorated!
It was SO much fun. When Roman went down for his nap and when he went to sleep at night, he asked, “Will the Trissmas tree still be there when I wake up, mama?” He’s a big fan.
I also ran a race this weekend – my first since I got pregnant, since I felt so awful in the first trimester. I’d actually forgotten I even signed up for this one, until I got the email with all the race details at the end of the week. Oops! It was the NYRR Jingle Bell Jog, a 4 mile race in Prospect Park, Brooklyn. WOO HOO for a race super close to where I live!! Love not having to be up at dawn to take the subway into Manhattan to race. 🙂
I’ve actually been doing quite a bit of running since I started to feel human again and I had just nailed a tempo run on Thursday, so I wasn’t worried about how it was going to go. While I wore my Garmin, I didn’t look at it once.
I had such a fun race! It kicked off with them playing Run DMC’s Christmas in Hollis for the music to cross the start line, which was awesome. (That song is also featured in my all-time favorite Christmas movie, Die Hard). 🙂
I knew the first mile would be the hardest, since it incorporated the hill in Prospect Park. Since it was only the first mile, I didn’t need any walk breaks and it didn’t seem that daunting. On Mile 2 I saw Fran & Roman cheering me on, which I wasn’t expecting – I thought I’d only see them at the finish – so that was a nice surprise. Mile 3 is a lot of downhill, so that was a great mile. Mile 4 is mainly flat, a slight climb to the final turn, then a quarter mile of flat to the finish line. I saw my boys here again and actually doubled back so I could stop and give Roman a high five. (See what I mean about not thinking about my pace? I would NEVER double back in a race if I was in my non-preggo racing zone!!)
I felt great crossing the finish line and I was surprised and happy to find out once I checked my splits at home that I really ran pretty well, considering being 22 weeks pregnant. I mean, at 38:10 it was 8 minutes slower than my 4 mile PR, but interestingly, it was 2 minutes faster than the last time I ran a 4 mile race when I was pregnant with Roman, at 21 weeks! So I’m hitting pregnancy PRs here, people!! 😉
I did notice my hamstrings really felt sore all weekend following the race – although they were sore on Friday when I did yoga as well, so I think it was a combination of the tempo run and the race in quick succession.
Rolling ensued.
And legs up the wall never hurt anyone, either.
Please notice my constant helper in all things stretching, recovery and yoga.
And since this post is full of Christmas spirit, I need to share something awesome that my friends Mandy and Gabe are doing to celebrate the season – a cocktail advent calendar. Even though I can’t partake, I look forward every day to seeing what new concoction they come up with for their holiday libation. Mandy is posting these on Instagram, along with the recipe for each of them. Do yourself a favor and follow her for some serious Christmas cheer.
And finally I just wanted to share yesterday’s challenge from Elf for Health – it was a favorite of mine last year as well, the gratitude challenge. This year we were asked to share 20 things for which we’re most grateful. I decided to do it in a stream-of-consciousness way, just listing things as they occurred to me. I could have made this list at least 100 items long and still thought of more – I think that’s when you know you are a lucky person, when you have so much in your life that makes you happy and grateful. Here’s my list:
Your turn!
What’s your favorite Christmas movie?
What are you most grateful for?
Favorite holiday tradition?
Gotta love a PPR (that’s preggo PR). 😀
Sounds like a fun, festive race. We’ve got the tree up but the decorations are in process…..
Marcia recently posted…I ‘Mustache’ You Some Questions
Love that! I was all about PPPR’s after Roman (post partum PRs) but I can definitely get on board with PPR’s!
Beautiful Christmas tree. Congrats on finishing the race. Races around this time of year are so fun. My favorite Christmas movie has to be Elf.
Lacey@fairytalesandfitness recently posted…Checking Out the Non-Conventional Running Shoes
Elf is such a good one! Will Ferrell is amazing in that.
I loved seeing your Instagram pics from the race and decorating the tree this past weekend! I already started following your friends because hell yes!!!
Love the socks and love that Roman is by your side for all things stretching and recovering. So, so sweet!
Allie recently posted…The Rundown: Reminders
We’re seeing our friends this weekend and there’s rumors of a special non-alcoholic mocktail for the advent calendar. Since my usual choices are water or seltzer, I’m a little bit excited!
Umm…I love the idea of a cocktail advent countdown – I might have to start one of my own!!!
Great job on that race – so glad that you are feeling good these days.
And, I love your constant sidekick!
Kim recently posted…Happy Holidays or Merry Christmas?
You should DEFINITELY do a cocktail advent for next year!! 🙂 It’s so fun – I’m always checking her instagram to see what they’ve been concocting!
My favorite Christmas movie has to be Elf. And of course this year I’m most thankful for my little family and our new baby.
Jessica recently posted…Forget Being “Nice” – Be Safe
I could watch Elf again and again. 🙂 That’s some good stuff to be thankful for! There’s so much glorious snuggle time in the first few months of baby.
Oh, what a fun run! And the second trimester is a bit magical for me. Both times, I felt amazing. And I LOVED food, which was really nice.
The cocktail advent countdown is awesome.
And I can’t believe how close Christmas is. What the heck?
Tamara recently posted…This Mouse Has a House and This Kid Has a Heart!
It crept up on me AGAIN (it does that every year!). I’m really enjoying the seconds trimester – hoping the feeling lasts well into the third!!
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