I didn’t run Wednesday morning. My hamstring wasn’t hurting, but it was a little sore Tuesday night, so I iced, stretched, and foam rolled. I talked to my coach about it and he suggested I do an easy run/walk if it felt okay later in the day or go on a bike ride. We are both being SUPER careful. I am not trying to rush back into training, as badly as I want to, because I do not want this to turn into something long term. It is still a million times better than it was, but I want it to stay that way! So, I lounged around the house before I left for a funeral and I enjoyed another breakfast burrito.

I went into the bedroom to hang some clothes up and found this. I’m not kidding you, it’s every time there are clothes on the bed! I think I shared another picture just this week of her doing this. So goofy.

I met my parents at the funeral (I shared about this on Wednesday’s post) for Jay. I grew up with Jay’s daughter, Adrienne. She’s the reason I went to the Catholic high school that I went to and she actually taught me how to write my first check! The funeral was a beautiful celebration of Jay’s life. It was very emotional, but it was so nice to hear stories about Jay and get to catch up with everyone who loved him. After the funeral, we went back to their house for a luncheon. The food was amazing – not the best picture, sorry!

After the funeral and luncheon, I came home to our next Homemade. Delivered. order! So. Pumped. They literally drop this off at your front door! You’re supposed to leave the things they brought to you the last time so they can pick it back up. Win-win. Cooking is one of my favorite things to do, but right now, occasionally ordering from them is super nice. You still get to cook these items, you just don’t do all of the prep.

I got three things this week. One is quiche for breakfast! I got a sweet potato crust to go with it, too. I’ve had this before and it is SO delicious. I can’t wait to have this. I even chose the dairy free option.

We also got pulled pork tacos. They send EVERYTHING and you throw the meat in the crockpot. We are having this for dinner tonight, so I’ll post more about it on Friday!

The last thing I ordered was Italian Meatloaf. Mmm. We had this for dinner last night and holy cow. I don’t know what was in this that made it a little sweet, but we ate the entire thing…not joking.

After putting all of that stuff in the fridge, I headed out to get a short run/walk in. I was still hopeful that my hamstring wouldn’t bother me at all and I’d be able to run the whole time. BUT I told myself that if it felt tight at all, I was going to stop and walk.

Not sure where I thought my head was, but I was pretty pumped about breaking in my new Nuun trucker. I guess I think I’m taller than I really am. HA!

I love running over the highway. Sometimes I just stand and watch the cars go underneath the bridge.

Well, nothing bad happened, but my hammy felt tight twice, so I stopped and walked. I only did 2 miles, but I ran about 3/4 of the first and then maybe ran half of the second. Not ideal, but not terrible. (I’m trying to stay positive!)

Jake took a half day from work so he could go pick up his camper shell in Arkansas! He has been waiting FOREVER to get one. I love it!

He got home right after I finished my run/walk. He was so excited. I was given the full tour.

Then it was time for some foam rolling. I needed to watch The Office while I rolled. It helps.

Hurts so good. I’ve been rolling out my quads a lot. I can feel knots in them, so I’ve been trying to work them out. I think one of the most important things when foam rolling is breathing. It’s easy to hold your breath because it hurts, but breathing makes all the difference for me. Any other foam rolling tips?!

I always get lots of puppy cuddles when I’m foam rolling.

ALWAYS.

I was feeling lazy and didn’t want to go to the store to get a side for our meatloaf, so I threw together some arugula (my least favorite lettuce), an avocado, onion, and some grape tomatoes. I topped everything with avocado oil and balsamic vinegar. Super simple and it actually tasted pretty good! Not the prettiest dinner picture, but it was yummy! That meatloaf…amazing. Definitely my favorite meatloaf. Ever.
This is why I meal prep and get ALL groceries on one day. I HATE going to the grocery store. If it doesn’t happen on meal prep day, it’s not going to happen.

Still over here sitting in the dark staring at our Christmas tree! I haven’t wanted to leave the house at night because I love doing this so much. We don’t have anywhere to go tonight and this is exactly what I plan on doing!

Remember how I was bragging about being SO disciplined Tuesday night? Well…I guess I spoke too soon. I NEEDED cookies last night. Whoops.

Double whoops. Girls need chocolate sometimes!!!! Cookie dough is the best.

Cuddles with my girls while Dad worked on his new camper shell. We were very content on the couch, in sweats, with blankets…

When one of your besties gets a puppy, you HAVE to go see it! This is Birdie. Isn’t she adorable??? She was playing tug-of-war with her big sister, Ellie, for the first time, so I had to document it! They are both super sweet dogs.

Then I made Jake pose while holding Birdie for a million pictures. I love the second one with the sign behind the tree – Merry Christmas, ya filthy animal! HA! She kept biting and licking him. We love her already!

My alarm went off at 4:30 to get up and run. I just didn’t feel like running in the dark! And since I have that option right now, I’m going to enjoy it. I got up at 5 and started working on my to-do list for the day. I figured I’d knock some stuff out and then go run when the sun comes up. This way, I’m not behind in any way! I managed to get quite a bit accomplished. I work the best in the mornings. Anyone else this way? Once I’m tired in the afternoons/evenings, I’m not as motivated. Also, there are Christmas trees that need to be stared at. Priorities!

I also put our quiche in the oven, too. Check out this sweet potato crust. Mmmmm.

This came at the perfect time because we were out of eggs…you know my groceries rule! ; ) We still have a bunch of veggies left over from our burritos, so I added some to the quiche. I think it’s going to be good!

I have two interviews today and I want to finish up some stuff for the first 3 chapters of my dissertation. I’d love to get started on the 4th chapter this week or next. If I can do that, I might be able to pull off a May graduation. We will just have to see! I need to find 4 or 5 more people to interview, as well. I’m trying not to stress about it. I know I’ll end up graduating (I hope!), sometime in 2018, so that’s what matters! But also, the sooner, the better…
Happy Friday Eve!