Running, Recipes, and Real life adventures!
Hey gang, I'm back!!! Big news!! I was offered a job supervising the pathology lab at the VA hospital in Tampa Florida!!! 
I'm looking forward to sharing this adventure!! Stay tuned!! Here are some pics from our visit to Tampa last month!
Cheers!
Michelle
Hey gang,
In efforts to stick with my mantra of moving forward I’ve realized I also need to recognize toxic situations and when to separate myself from them. Ive learned that not everyone has my best interests at heart, and have decided my personal life needs to be kept a little more private. While I have loved sharing my running and life stories with you, along with some recipes I have created, for now I need to take a little break. I am not canceling or shutting my blog down, just stepping back for a bit to think about where I’d like to see this blog move in the future, if at all.
I shall return, I just am unsure of when or where…
Until then, CHEERS!!
Michelle
Here’s some snap shots of my amazing weekend. I hope you all had a great Mother’s Day weekend!
My family spoiled me with my favorite food and places in Chicago. Cheers to my amazing family for making me feel so loved and for always being in my corner.
Happy belated Mother’s Day!!
Michelle
This morning I was reading one of my favorite blogs over at Suzlyfe. I love her blog because its raw, its real, all while being informative and entertaining. I needed a little respite from the funk I’ve been in, so when I opened my email this morning to get my daily dose of Suz, I found myself moved to tears.
See, between not getting promoted and not hearing back on any prospective leads I thought I had, along with dealing with some resentment and anger issues (don’t ask, we can save that for another post, or not…) I’ve found myself in a funk. My mood sucks, my running sucks (if you can call running twice a week actual running) and my cooking has even started to suck. The ONE thing I actually think I am half way decent at has fallen flat and left my family (more so me) less than impressed. This has been ongoing for the last few weeks, and with each dish I prepare, it’s either under/over cooked, over seasoned, or just plain blah. And this is quite unlike me, I’d like to think at least. So last night when my hubby had to take my oldest to the dentist, I thought, HEY, I will make the steak for the tacos we planned on having along with getting the beans and corn ready. Too easy, right? Wrong…I cooked the steak with beautiful grill marks and set aside to rest. I then decided it necessary to mutilate the beans, overcooking them by a good 15 minutes. Just before they got home from the dentist I went to slice in to my beautifully grilled and rested meat to find it was still RAW. And not just slightly raw, I am talking, the cow may have had a MOO or two left in him. Ugh…I threw it back in the pan, and sighed a heavy sigh.
After dinner we cleared the plates and I told my family I was on a hiatus from cooking. If I can’t joy in cooking, I simply can’t cook. With that, I headed upstairs to take a shower and have a good cry but when I turned around my oldest daughter had decided to come up and comfort me. I don’t hide my emotions very well, and my family knows me better than most. She gave me a huge hug and said, “You ok, Mom?” and I broke in to a sob. “Don’t settle in life honey,” I pleaded with her. “Write your books, chase your dreams, just please don’t get stuck like Mommy is. While I was in the Air Force it was ok to have this job, but now I feel stuck.” And she just hugged me tighter, promising she’d chase her dreams. We even pinky promised which is like a golden seal in our house. Yup, my almost 18 year old still will pinky promise with me. ❤ And suddenly I found my happiness again, right there in the comfort of my first born daughter’s arms. Funny how the tables can turn.
My takeaway from last night was twofold. Yes, I am feeling stuck, and I think RUT might be my new middle name. BUT…I had a beautiful moment with my daughter that no one can take away, and I need to focus on moments like these vs. feeling a little stuck. Because we can’t be stuck if we are still making the choice to get out of bed every day and do our best.
My time will come. I just know it. And I am so thankful for the beautiful people in my life that have helped me see the brighter side of things. Thanks Suz, this one is for you!
Cheers,
Michelle
To piggyback on yesterday’s pretty pathetically sad post (I am TOTALLY blaming Mother Nature and the crazy rain we’ve been having in the Chicagoland area), today I am going to chat about what I’ve envisioned all along for my life. I always envisioned myself being successful. And not just holding a steady job, keeping my kids alive and make sure I pay the house payment each month. No…I saw myself in a position that I wanted for myself. Maybe owning my own coffee-wine shop/restaurant, maybe working side by side with someone in a creative aspect, heck, maybe even owning a cute little shack/food truck somewhere near the beach where I would serve yummy food to customers that were lined up wearing swimwear and sunscreen. Can’t you smell the salty air and feel that wonderful breeze in your hair already?! I sure can!!!
Either way, the dreams all had a common theme. It was me, doing what I love, and sharing that love with others. And while I didn’t have to use my imagination for this post, as these dreams have been a part of me since I was a small child, I am sharing these dreams with you as part of the Wednesday word post from over at Deb Runs! Today’s word is imagination! What do you imagine for your future? Do you have any dreams that some might call far fetched?
Cheers!
Michelle
Sorry for my absence as of late. My days are filled with work, and I spend my evenings with my hubby as we are still getting used to being around one another. Any spare time has been spent with my family. Thus, the blog and my running have taken a back seat…that will hopefully change soon!!
Here’s what we’ve been up to!!!!!
In the last month we’ve eaten tons of amazing food at some very wonderful restaurants, taken an amazing family trip to Disney, and I am currently stepping outside of my comfort zone at my job (time will tell if anything pans out, but I am still celebrating that I had the courage to go for it anyhow!).
I’ve also been cooking a lot more, especially Sunday suppers and I just finished the super fun MasterClass series by Gordon Ramsay. I’ve gone through the instructional videos once, having re-watched the “how to break down a whole chicken” video a few times and attempted my first breakdown on Sunday with success. It wasn’t perfect, but I did it!!
I have not, however, been running. I haven’t quite figured out where that is going to fit in my already busy day, and I need to figure it out pretty quickly as training for the Chicago Marathon will need to commence before I know it. I think once the weather warms up a little more, and we continue to get more day light, it’ll be a little easier to make the time after work.
How have you all been? Tell me something that’s new with you in the last month or so!!
Cheers!
Michelle
Here is the recipe for my spicy broccoli puree! Note, I failed to take proper pictures other than my perfect bite, so all but the first picture are from Amazon and Pinterest just to give you an idea. 🙂
Here’s what you’ll need:
2 cups of steamed broccoli or broccolini if you can find it. I think it’s a bit sweeter, but either will do.
Reserve 1 cup of the steaming liquid for puree
Calabrian chili flakes or crushed red pepper flakes to taste
1/2 teaspoon of garlic powder
salt and pepper to taste
1 pat of unsalted butter
Add the steamed broccoli, seasonings and butter to your food processor. Pulse on high until you get a creamy consistency, adding in little by little the reserved steaming liquid being careful not to get it too watery.
Serve with your favorite main dish!
Do you puree your veggies? What is your favorite veggie dish!
I hope you all enjoy this recipe, and I look forward to a lot more recipes to share this year!
Cheers!
Michelle
I will elaborate later. But. He’s. Home. We’ve got happy hearts. 
Cheers! Thanks for all the support this year!!!
Michelle
The girls asked what I wanted for my birthday this year. That was easy for me to answer since the only other obvious gift would be my husband’s return. I wanted one last girls day in the city!! We took the train down, ate lots of yummy food, and went to the Shedd aquarium. Here’s our day (this past Saturday) in pics!!
Thanks for all of the love and support this year. I am so very thankful. (Sorry for the repeat pics, but wanted to document the day). I couldn’t have asked for a better 44th bday minus my hubby being here with us.
What do you ask for on your birthday? Ever been to the Shedd aquarium in Chicago?
Cheers!
Michelle
Deployments affect the entire family. Remember when I told you about my husband’s foot locker being delivered last week? While it was super exciting to see his stuff, I can honestly say after dragging in to our formal living room to get it out of the way that I didn’t think about it again. That is, until several days later.
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while (and if not-keep reading!), you know that my other true love is named Sammy. He is my golden retriever, my best 4 legged friend, my soul mate, and my all around buddy. He was how I got through severe post partum depression, and I love him more than there are words to describe. He follows me (and the girls) everywhere, and is always there when I need a good cry. He listens to my every word (except when I am reprimanding him, then he just cowers) and loves me no matter what, even on the bad days.
Well, Sammy hasn’t done so well over the difficult months of deployment. It’s aged him, and he’s not the normal happy Sammy. He’s sad. He sleeps a lot, and he is in constant need of attention. So the girls and I happily oblige, as loving him makes us feel better, too. So even though we have all been hurting, we make time to give each other extra love…win/win.
But in this last week, he’s taken a bad turn for the worse. He won’t listen, he often refuses to go in his kennel, and he doesn’t leave my side from the time I walk in the door to the time I walk out the next day for work. For the majority of this past year, he’s slept in my older daughter’s room because her bed is smaller and he loves that feeling of security. (He’s used to sleeping between my husband and I, but since he’s left he’s only slept with me maybe 3 or 4 times.) But in this past week, he’s slept RIGHT next to me either at the head or foot of the bed. He’s touching me in SOME way. And I just couldn’t figure out why? Does he feel the giddy anticipation of my husband’s arrival? Is he not feeling well? Does he have a sixth sense about something that’s due to happen???
No.
None of those things are what is happening with Sammy.
He smells my husband’s scent from his foot locker. But he doesn’t know where he is, or if he’s even coming back. And as each day passes, his anxiety is increasing because he doesn’t understand. And realizing that this morning, made my heart physically ache for my sweet Sammy.
I am praying the scent from the foot locker, fades…that, or my husband returns quick enough to heal poor Sammy’s broken heart.
Have your pets ever reacted poorly to a family member being gone for an extended period of time?? How did you comfort them?
Cheers,
Michelle
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