So what did we do with ourselves today you’re surely wondering?

Why we took up the offer of a fellow homeschooling mama to blow this pop stand in favor of the YMCA and burn off some energy this afternoon.

Not me, mind you. I burned off a bunch of energy at 6 AM with my new running friends. These kids though? Yeah. They’ve got a ton energy to burn and let’s call a spade a spade: They are driving me nuts.

Don’t get me wrong, I still love them – but let’s face it. It’s winter. They’re kids. Our new yard is small and sort of boring. We miss our friends. It was time to herd some sheep and get the flock out of this house for a little while.

After some time in the padded room, I decided to write a children’s book.

I’m going to call it: The Monkey and the Snorkeler Go Swimming

Is it possible we burned off a little too much energy? After I accepted my Children’s Lit award, we hit up Goodwill and the monkey fell asleep while we waited in the donation drop off line of 100 cars. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who had the idea to donate stuff today. It’s all about the tax breaks, baby. Well not for me it’s not! I just moved, peeps! I need to get this stuff out of my house! Here, you can have my receipt if you let me cut to the front of the line!

Oh great. Now she’s going to be raring to ring in the new year. Quick, someone set the clock ahead 3 hours! That’s the only way I’m going to stay up until “midnight”. I’m celebrating with my pillows and a little bit of drool tonight.

After sheep herding fun we came back to the sheep pen (do sheep live in pens? Or is that pigs? Bah. Details.) and I did my best to avoid cooking once again.

Not only am I not cooking, I’m not even making hummus! Blasphemy! Good thing Sabra hummus is so damn creamy and good. I’m jealous actually – what the heck do those Sabra scientists do to make it so flocking creamy?

I bought the roasted garlic variety (because you know, vampires) and holy garlic breath batman we loved this. In fact, “we” loved this so much “we” barely left me a tablespoon for faux-cooking tonight.

My sad little layer of hummus on my slice of toasted sesame Ezekiel bread.

Light on the hummus, heavy on the spinach. Isn’t that how that saying goes?

Wow. My last post of 2009. Do I know how to ring in the blog new year or what?

• Whensday?
• Thanksgiving is Officially Over
• Rest Day

Dear Blog,

Hi. How are you? I am fine.

That’s a big fat liiiiieeeee I ammmm insssssaaaaannnneeeee!!!

*ahem*

My Dearest Blog, I’m terribly sorry that I’ve been neglecting you in recent days – please know that I am here and still love you. We’ll be moving into a new house together in just a few days so please hold tight and know that I still love to run, eat healthy food, write crazy posts and return library books late. My daily insanity will return when real life insanity subsides – I promise.

So Blog, the very least I can do is fill you in on some of things I’ve been up to when I’m not packing, carrying all our worldly possessions out to the car in boxes or wiping cobwebs from the basement out of my eyebrows.

First, we’re still doing our homeschooling thing.

Yesterday we hit a park that just so happens to be right down the street from our house. This would be the same park where I ran trails this fall and found a big wad of cash on the ground. Remember that, Blog? Good times.

We had a lesson on gravity, potential energy, kinetic energy and selected a sacrifice to be an example and show the rest how a catapult works.

Another lie. Well, really – a joke. They just played. They’re kindergartners and preschoolers for crying out loud.

Maxine actually did pretty well at the start of our trail walk, but before long was cranky and into the sling she went. I considered signing her up to be the next catapult sacrifice but we moved on to other things before the sign up sheet came around to us.

Right after I took this picture she cried “Don’t take my picture! Did you take my picture??”

No honey, I definitely did not take your picture.

I’m up for mother of the year, did you hear?

Our trail walk ended with a little ice skating booting in the woods – fun for kids and adults a like.

As far as food goes, all you’ve been missing out on Blog is lots of cinnamon raisin Ezekiel toast with almond butter and bananas and giant salads too. When the going gets tough, the tough make a salad.

I did buy a green Kombucha today though.

A 10 day course of antibiotics (thank you infected tooth) is my excuse to spend $3.49 on a bottle of this stuff thanks to it’s probiotic magic.

I also like the Multi-Green variety because of all the B vitamins it’s got from the blue green algae and other sea shrubbery. Given my quasi-vegan lifestyle I like to believe drinking seaweed helps out with some essential B vitamins I am otherwise missing out on.

I should probably be taking a supplement but I hate supplements. I’d rather get it from food. I’m happily living in the dark and hoping my b12 stores are holding strong. What can I say, Denial isn’t just a river in Egypt. Or wherever the hell the Nile river is.

That’s right I am HOMESKOOLING ! I am totaly kwalified to teatch these kids.

I can’t forget about the vegan-minded man in my life either! I had a little one-on-one time with my boyfriend Brendan today too.

This Whole Food Energy Bar came from Vega and was one of many that was sent a while ago. It’s been in hanging out in my stash of the bars and I snagged it as I ran out the door today to make my 174th trip to the new house in the last 13 days.

Oh Brendan, you still rock. Thanks for everything you’ve taught me, I still think about your advice daily!

Sorry about the glare on your face, bro.

I do like these bars and they definitely do a good job of quelling hunger pangs on the run.

I’ve been eating a ton of oranges lately too (just one today though), much like the rest of the produce loving world. It is winter after all.

So Blog, that’s what’s been happening around here. We are slipping ever closer to the brink of insanity as our moving day continues to inch ever closer.

Wait, what do you mean Friday is CHRISTMAS?? All I’m thinking about is Saturday!

And to all my fellow blogs out there in blogland that I know and love – I miss you and will be around again soon.

Yours truly,
Alison

• Sweet Tooth Fairy
• Strawberry Shortcuts
• Our Sunday Best

For the last week or so I feel like I’ve been walking around with my head in the clouds. I barely recognize my life right now. I’m so distracted it’s almost like I’ve got an innocent little crush on my new house. Moving to the new house seems more real now as our official Moving Day draws ever closer and our whole life revolves new house excitement.

It’s funny because as giddy as I am about the new house, I still love the house we live in now. We’re not moving because we’re unhappy here; we’re moving from the burbs to the city to make our homeschooling lives easier.

Still, I can’t help but feel a little guilty as I walk through the rooms of my current house daydreaming about what life will be like in the new house.

Fortunately we had something pretty easy on the agenda for today. I don’t know that I’m worth much in the way of brain power right now.

We hit up The George Eastman House (of Eastman Kodak fame) to tour of their annual Sweet Creations Gingerbread house exhibit with some friends today.

The Sweet Creations exhibit is a collection of Gingerbread creations made by local people and groups around the area.

Let the drooling begin.

A Gingerbread House after my own heart.

Why am I suddenly in the mood for something with frosting?

Chocolate Covered Pretzels are my Achilles heel – just in case you ever wanted to attempt to take me down.

See that crooked “T” in the “MARKET” of “PUBLIC MARKET” written in gummy letter font? I snapped this photo just as I had finished swatting a certain three year old and her snaky little tongue off that T. Who needs a flu vaccine when you can just lick a gummy letter that 500 grubby little hands have surely touched?

Grubby Hands? Observe.

Sugar Buzz? We have lift off.

Someone even made a Gluten Free Gingerbread House!

Looks like I’m not the only one that’s got a warm and fuzzy feelings toward a sweet little house.

OK gang, it’s time to buzz off.

We’re outta here.

We’ve got a lunch date with the new house!

We hit up a bagel shop on the way from the Gingerbread exhibit which just so happened right in between the museum and our new house. (Have I mentioned how I excited I am about living in the city!?) I snagged a veggie bagel sandwich and then we all went back to new house to have lunch together.

Everything Bagels are my other Achilles heel – just in case I haven’t given away enough secrets tonight.

I only ended up eating half of the bagel along with the last of the leftover black bean and salsa soup and I took the other half home for a snack later.

After lunch we did a little ice breaking.

And had a little fun that we won’t be able to have once the furniture arrives next week.

For some of us though, the ice breaking activities were just a little too intense and we decided it was time to call it a day.

We returned home to find a fun package from FoodBuzz and Pace waiting on our doorstep! Two bottles of Pace Picante salsa for us to try and review.

The timing of this package couldn’t have been better given my mental frailty. Someone scribble meal planning on my list of my New Years Resolutions please? (Just put it right there underneath “Always return library books on time”.)

I cracked the jar of medium salsa to complete a very simple bean burrito dinner.

A whole wheat tortilla, spicy vegetarian refried beans, corn, black beans and Pace Picante salsa.

Salsa makes anything taste good. I’m glad I’ve still got a bunch left in the jar to do something a little more creative with at some point in the near future. I predict that I will no longer be feeling like a school girl with her head in the clouds once I get back to the realities of moving and packing tomorrow.

• Pastry Drills
• There’s Always a Silver Lining
• The Reasons I Had Kids

We may or may not have shopped for produce at the little Wegmans in the Museum of Play today.

She may or may not be more gentle with the fake produce than the paid store cashiers can be with the real stuff.

This may or may not be the most ironic picture considering the girl eats practically NO vegetables. And has never eaten a banana in her entire life – except unknowingly in fruit smoothies.

We may or may not have broken the “Only 5 Items at a Time” shopping rule.

We may or may not have had a tea party by all ourselves.

A group lunch may or may not have followed the solo tea party.

I may or may not have made Black Bean and Salsa Soup with Quinoa while I made Black Bean Pancakes for dinner last night.

I may or may not have thought that I left my wallet at the gas station today.

I may or may not have driven 15 minutes to the gas station in the opposite direction of home before realizing my wallet was actually in the center console of the car.

I may or may not have my head screwed on properly.

It may or may not have been nearly 6 o’clock by the time we made it to the not-play Wegmans tonight for real produce that had to be paid for with real money.

I may or may not have scooped up this Annie’s Goddess Dressing that I had for the first time at a friend’s house last week.

This dressing may or may not totally rock. I may or may not have devoured a huge salad with green leaf lettuce, spinach, tomatoes, carrots, cukes and hemp seeds with Goddess dressing for dinner tonight.

I may or may not have totally forgotten that I made Averie’s version of this dressing early this fall with cashews, lemon juice and my food processor.

We may or may not have been interrupted playing Trouble tonight.

There may or may not be an older child here that I completely failed to take any pictures of today.

I may or may not be eating a cane shaped peppermint flavored piece of high fructose corn syrup right now.

It may or may not have been a long day.

• Whensday?
• There’s Always a Silver Lining
• Say What You Mean To Say

The fact that I have no pictures from today is a true testament to just how crazy things are right now as we prepare to uproot our lives and move into a new house.

Following my gym workout early this morning I took a phone call from a distraught breastfeeding mother only to have the call go much longer than I anticipated and be forced to end the call leaving barely enough time to throw together a packed lunch and rush out the door to meet up with our realtor for the final walk through of the new house before closing tomorrow morning to leave for our next destination in another rush to get to Ava’s homeschooling class before returning home to an answering machine full of messages to listen to while getting dinner prepped and then realizing I left my camera in my purse and I left my purse in Ava’s classroom in the basement of a church 30 minutes away.

I then decided instead of posting about dinner with no pictures I would write a random post that began with the longest run on sentence of all time with the hopes the Guinness Book of World Records might take notice and ask to include me in the next edition of their book.

This, my friends, is why I have no pictures of the cabbage and bean soup I made for dinner tonight. My insanity ate my homework.

Maybe I’ll take pictures of leftovers and post them with and a recipe tomorrow if nothing more exciting comes up. Until then, here we are. Just you and me and some words and no pictures.

Well wait. I suppose I do have a hard drive full of pictures. In fact, I actually have a story. I’ve been holding on to some pictures for just the right day and apparently the day has finally come. I might lead you believe that I’ve had these pictures for months when really it’s only been about a week. But that’s neither here nor there. Do you want to read my story or not?

Last week on a run I passed a brand new bottle of apple juice on the side of the road.

I see all sorts of things on the side of the road when I run. Regular garbage, bottles, cans, plastic bags, broken objects, old socks, a lone shoe.

I once passed a rolled up dirty diaper for weeks before it was finally picked up. Not picked up by me of course, although I would feel much more noble writing about this today if I could say I went back to fetch and dispose of that diaper after passing it for the 20th time and then even went on to pick up all the trash I saw on the side of the road that day.

Sadly I’m not that noble though – in truth I just never thought about that diaper after I ran by it until I saw it again the next time, only to promptly forget about it again.

On this particular morning though when I ran by a full bottle of apple juice – I got to thinking. How exactly does this happen? How does a brand new bottle of apple juice end up on the side of the road?

Was a kid so excited to have apple juice that they begged to hold the bottle after leaving the store, only to accidentally toss or drop the juice out the window on the way home?

I sound like I speak from experience.

Did the parents threaten to throw the apple juice out the window if the kids didn’t stop pestering each other in the back seat?

Again, I sound like I speak from experience.

Maybe the driver set the bottle of juice on top of the car while getting in, forgetting it was up there and driving off with the bottle on roof, only have it roll off and as the driver swerved when reaching for their coffee/cell phone/lipstick/laptop/overdue library books?

I did that once actually – set something on top of my car and drove off forgetting all about it. Except I didn’t do it with a bottle of apple juice but with my wallet instead. Thanks in part to my awesome driving skillz and also in part to the roof rack on my car that kept my wallet from sliding off, it made it from our last rest stop to our final destination, 50 miles down the road. My wallet was covered in bugs, but still on the roof nonetheless.

Or (and probably the most likely scenario) did the trunk of the car fly open just in time for crow to daringly swoop down and reach into the grocery bag and swipe out the bottle of juice with it’s talons believing it was a dead animal carcass? Once the crow realized it was a plastic jug of juice instead dead squirrel, raccoon or bag of my neighbors garbage, it dropped the juice to have it land gracefully on the side of the road.

Damn crows.

After running by the bottle, I let these various new-bottle-of-apple-juice-on-the-side-of-the-road scenarios play out in my head for the rest of the day. OK, that’s a lie. I spent the next mile or so contriving stories until I got home and then promptly forgot all about it.

But what do you know though – I remembered the bottle the next morning well before I left on my run and had enough forethought to bring my camera along with me. I had to investigate further and to capture clues, CSI-style, to see if I could figure out just how this bottle met it’s fate on the side of the road. And then blog about my findings of course.

A dirty diaper to pick up and throw away, do my part to clean up our environment and honor Mother Earth?

Nope. Out of site, out of mind.

Garbage that might someday be worth blogging about?

Ooooh where’s my camera?

So here I am, a day later and instead of just running by or picking anything up I simply stopped to take pictures.

Take only pictures and leave only foot prints, isn’t that what they say?

It was then that I discovered this wasn’t a brand new bottle at all. The seal was broken and it had been opened.

But the bottle was in fact full. How did I know it was full you’re most certainly wondering?

Well, I kicked it. That’s how.

This story would probably be much more interesting if I could say that the bottle was actually a bomb and exploded when I kicked it. I was forced to dive head first into the ditch like MacGyver and narrowly escaped harm.

Or I wish I could say a genie came out of the bottle and granted me three coupons for free Wegmans brand apple juice.

Or better yet, it might be most interesting to say that I opened the bottle and found a key taped to the inside of the bottle that just so happens to unlock the door of the classroom where I would eerily leave my purse and camera at a later date.

Freaky.

But no, it was just full with what appeared to be some brown liquid that sloshed in the bottle when I kicked it and that was it. I didn’t open it. It didn’t explode or even gurgle a little. It just moved a couple inches forward and that was it. It didn’t even cross my mind to pick it up and carry it home to empty it and then recycle bottle. How boring.

I promise I won’t forget my camera tomorrow.

• Won’t You Be My Neighbor?
• Warm Fruit Cereal
• Three Signs

Zak didn’t exactly get to go home early today due to garlic breath, but he did get home earlier than usual tonight. We loaded the whole family into the car and hit up the pool at the fitness center for some family fun and exercise too.

Swimming is probably my least favorite form of cardio, but I rather enjoyed it tonight. Maybe because I haven’t swam laps since the spring? Whatever the reason, it was a nice change of pace and I swam laps for 30 minutes, alternated 100 yards of freestyle and 100 yards backstroke while Zak entertained children in the shallow end. He got his turn to swim laps while I took cold, wet girlies into the locker room for nice long hot showers on someone else’s dime (forgive me, Mother Earth), blow drying hair and hiding in lockers until dad was done and ready to go.

So what’s the best thing to do after an evening at the pool?

First, make a bucket of air popped corn.

Next, get out the coconut oil.

It’s time to give your chlorine dried out face a little TLC.

Did you read that whole label? Go back and read it! Take special note of the part that says “soft, smooth skin”. A giant, HUGE shout to Cindy for bringing this miracle moisturizer to my attention!

So, where were we? Oh yes, dig out a little coconut oil.

Ready?

Time for a rub down.

Oh yeah, get in there really good.

Smear it all around. Yup, yup, that’s the ticket.

Totally loved this. Totally will be doing this again. Totally not telling anyone my new beauty secret.

Oops.

• Waiting For Pop Off
• The Opposite of Birthday Beet Juice
• Reunited and it Feels So Good

I felt much better this morning after my some green juice and a family walk to the playground. I definitely was up for a trail run when Shawn, my running partner in crime, showed up and we headed out to a large park just down the road to hit the trails.

I need a do over of this picture because it would be much more interesting if me and/or Shawn were in this shot – but alas, I didn’t think about that until I was home, photo op lost.

Oh wait, there I am.

And Shawn too! How did I not see him the first time?

Hmmm, I’m sort of thirsty, isn’t there a water fountain around here anywhere?

You know… I could really use a couple hundred bucks right about now.

Alright, alright that’s enough. Now I’m just being crazy.

6.52 miles in 1:01. Trails are fun but I never do them because I’m too chicken to do them by myself. Afraid of getting lost, being attacked by some creature, finding a large wad of cash on the ground and having no one to help me carry it out of the park… you know. The usual.

Getting sick of these yet? Don’t worry, the Garmin goes back on Tuesday.

I got home to see a refreshing site!

The cake is gone! A big shout out to my children and husband who took care of the last piece of cake while I was gone. They do love me!

Hmmm, isn’t this what I had for lunch yesterday? Yes, yes, I’m fairly sure I’ve seen a picture just like this before. Those carrots and mushrooms look new, but besides that – it’s deju vu. All over again. Let’s see if I can do a little better after lunch today, hmmm?

Raw soup? Sounds like a plan.

Thanks to a little inspiration from Brendan and Cindy, I made Creamy Carrot Ginger Avocado soup.

1 Avocado
2 Carrots
A couple inches of ginger grated on my cute little ginger grater flounder
2 cups of cold water

Into the food processor! Mush! Mush!

Isn’t Ginger Great? Grate? Gr8?

A tossed salad with my raw soup for dinner. Where’s Tony the Tiger when you need him?

Oh! There he is! That’s GrrrrrEAT!

Doesn’t this bowl of Raw Carrot Ginger Avocado soup look like a giant hard boiled egg?

I thought so too. And I didn’t even have to use photoshop!

• We Came, We Saw, We Raked
• Stay At Home Turkey Trot
• Stay at Home

Homeschooling Ice Skating started today.

If you decide to go, get your act in gear.
If you decide to stay home, stay in your pajamas.

OK! Let’s get our act in gear! Time to go ice skating!

If you decide to abandon your oldest and send her out by herself with blades strapped to her feet, be sure to take a picture of it.

*Click*

If you decide to stay behind with Strawberry No Shorts, Smirksalot and a lone yellow crock, find a dear soul to go fetch the stranded big one.

Hooray! The dear soul happens to teach ice skating lessons to wee ones! At a mere $1 a minute she will teach your child to march on the ice. Sold! 10 minutes please.

If you choose to go with the rest of the homeschoolers and take off your skates, leave the rink.
If you choose to beg and plead to stay and watch the Zamboni, stay and watch the Zamboni.

If you have an eggplant in your refrigerator, make eggplant parm for dinner tonight.
If you don’t have an eggplant in your refrigerator, choose something else.

If you made eggplant parm, bake it at 375 for about 30 minutes.

4 servings, 182 calories per serving.

If you have Ezekiel buns in your freezer, make an eggplant parm sandwich.
If you prefer pasta, make pasta.

If you like beets, steam them.
If you have a husband who doesn’t like beets, make him corn.

If you have 3 minutes until The Office comes on, click Publish.

• True or False
• Thanksgiving is Officially Over
• Sweet Tooth Fairy

Going through the bin of winter stuff. This is what I call a rocking Monday night.

Oh big pink mittens how I’ve (not really) missed you. It won’t be much longer now until I’m wiping my runny winter running nose on you.

Geez I hope I washed those before I put them away for the season. They weren’t crunchy so I’ll take that as a good sign.

What else do we do around here for fun on Monday night? Why we wait for the corn to pop.

And while we wait, we feed the children a little butter just to watch them come flying across the room and dive for the spoon. It’s like feeding the fish in the pond, they’re so cute you can’t help it.

OK, time to stop feeding the Koi, here we go!

Whoops it’s getting a little hot in here…

Air popped corn – Monday night socks have officially been rocked off. And replaced with pink stockings.

We put the offer in on our probable new house tonight! I fully expect them to counter, at which point I will offer them a little pat of butter on a spoon and it will surely be an offer they’ll be unable to resist.

• The Opposite of Birthday Beet Juice
• The Beautiful People Know
• Recalibration

After a meeting this morning, more errands, taking Ava to her homeschool gym class, I decided we had not yet done enough running around so we hit up Wegmans for “just one thing”.

Usually I groan when I see Christmas stuff out at the stores before Halloween, but today I squealed!

Celestial Seasonings Holiday Teas are back! They’re back everyone! They’re BACK!

I fell in love with these last year. More specifically, Candy Cane Lane and Sugar Cookie Sleigh Ride.

I’m afraid to even look at the ingredient list lest it contain something I don’t want to consume. I have no idea how they can possibly combine tea leaves to make tea taste JUST LIKE A FRIGGIN’ SUGAR COOKIE without the use of something we should not be eating. It’s probably all fine and well because chances are I looked last year – but I don’t want to look yet, just in case. I just want to drink my cookie tea. Go away.

I mean seriously, it just doesn’t feel like mid-October without mechanical holiday characters and sparkly lead filled lights and fake trees dusted with some concoction of chemicals that looks like snow right in the middle of the grocery store.

Zak’s working late, I’m whooped after a long day so I did what any reasonable woman would do. I made myself a Christmas dinner.

(Green and red. Get it?) That would be smashed avocado on Ezekiel toast with salsa. Zak can fend for himself with leftovers when he decides to grace us with his presence. (*Insert evil wife cackle here*)

The kids are in the tub laughing hysterically at something. I’m fairly confident the floor is holding an inch of splashed out water and Say Yes to Cucumber body wash/bubble bath. At least now I won’t have to mop in there for a while. Someone remind me to paint the living room ceiling before we put the house on the market.

• There’s Always a Silver Lining
• The Quickest Way to a Long Workout
• Half Brained Half Marathon