Sweet - no added sugar - treat!

I have seen on Pinterest and all around the blog world this "one ingredient ice cream" made from bananas. I decided to change it up a bit. Last weekend I had a couple of browning bananas so I sliced them up into about inch slices and stored them in a big ziploc bag in the freezer. I was planning on making some sort of banana bread...but this was a good idea on a hot, stormy summery evening.

I added about a banana and a half worth of frozen slices (small bananas) to my tiny little food processor. I started the food processor....and let it chop up about half way. Then I added one HUMONGOUS strawberry, chopped up. I blended it until it seemed to be smooth - the last chunk was chopped up and it was almost whipped!

The strawberry flavor is very subtle. I will add a few more strawberries when I do this again! The texture is good and the icy deliciousness is a perfect, slightly sweet treat!

 

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Update - Earring Organizer!

I added a ribbon across the bottom to hold the NINE pairs of hoops and two dangling earrings with leverback closures.   The ribbon is a perfect addition to hold the hoops!

Earring Display and Storage

I have a jewelry problem.  I will readily admit that.  But I love to  feel fancy and wearing great, and usually sparkly jewelry is a good thing for me.  Lately I feel like I wear the same few earrings.  I have tons of pairs - but they are all in a jewelry box and I never have time to sort through them in the morning.  After browsing on pinterest - I saw a bunch of these frames filled with screen to hang earrings on...but EVERY blog I read talked about just how much screen they had to buy to get enough for a frame.  Apparently it comes in a GIANT roll of it at Lowes and I really dont have time or space for that!

Soooo, I started thinking, and looking around...and I remembered plastic canvas!  This was a less-than-$10 do it yourself project.

• $3.48 for a 3pack of 14x18 sheets of plastic canvas
• $4.99 inexpensive frame from Tuesday Morning (I bought two.   I really overestimated how much space I would need!)  
• hot glue gun and glue sticks (be sure to use the high heat kind)
• ribbon to hang it with
• scissors
• sharpie

First - remove all the insides from your frame:  Glass, backing and the mat.

Second - use the backing to measure and mark the size of your plastic canvas.  I made a mark just outside of where I needed to cut.  You want your plastic canvas to be exactly the same size as the backing so it will fit perfectly inside the little ledge.

Third - cut very carefully along the row you marked.  Don't leave any little "nubbins" sticking out.

Fourth - very carefully use the hot glue gun to put a VERY generous line of glue on the inside ledge.  Press the canvas into the ledge so the glue comes up through the holes.  I did a corner first, then worked my way around in about 4 inch sections.   

Fifth, after you have the canvas glued down all the way around, bend down the little tabs (that are used to hold the glass and backing in place) so they won't scratch your wall.   Then add another generous row of hot glue along the top to seal the canvas securely in place.

Finally, loop your length of ribbon and tie with a double knot in the end.  Slide the folded end into the frame hanger and then through the end that is tied.  Trim off any excess.

Hang your earrings and enjoy! I do need to get some more backs.  In addition to what you see here I have 5 more pairs of stud earrings to hang up!  

  I hope this will cause me to wear more of my earrings.

I still need some way to hang up my hoops - but I don't know what that might be.... I'll let you know what I figure out! 

2013 Color Run - May 19

Sunday morning I woke up bright and early (the day after the Warrior Dash!) to meet some of my awesome friends (and coworkers) to head to the National Harbor for the 2013 Spring Color Run.

This is a fun, not for time 5k.   The only requirement for this "Happiest 5K on the Planet" is that you wear white clothing and you have a great time!  We were ready!

We chose to walk this 5K and push Leah in the stroller.  Walking was fun and we had phenomenal time chatting and having fun together!  This is a really a great 5K for every fitness level. There were people of all shapes and sizes, lots of fitness levels, runners and walkers, families together, large groups and single participants, and lots of folks with costumes!

The start is in waves so every 2 or 3 minutes a group of participants was released.    Then at every kilometer mark was a "Color Zone" where volunteers threw colored cornstarch onto us!  

              

Want to try The Color Run?   

Here are a few tips to help you have the most fun!

• Sign up SUPER early.   These races sell out quickly!   Go to www.thecolorrun.com to see when this race will come to your area.   Sign up for the email alerts and you will be notified that tickets are on sale.  Sign up THAT DAY!   I signed up in early December for this one.
• Sign up with friends and form a team.   Not only is it more fun, but you save $5 per person!
• Bring a camera phone to take pictures but put it in a ziploc bag!   You will notice at the later color zones that my pictures are a little bit fuzzy....it's because of the color on the bag, but that is better than ruining my phone!
• Bring a bandana or a shirt large enough to pull up over your face.  The color is hard to get out of your nostrils after you breathe it in!   Last year when I did this I must have taken a deep breath and somehow got blue WAAAAy up in my nose because I had a blue result every time I blew (blue?) my nose for about 10 days!
• Wear sunglasses - this protects your eyes from the color!
• Make a costume - super fun!  We made tutus the last time and this time we made these sparkle skirts.  

HAVE FUN!  This is not a timed race, it is usually pretty crowded and is stroller and dog friendly!

Warrior Dash - 5/18

Our Warrior Dash day finally arrived.  We signed up for this back in the fall as a group.  I am a technology specialist and a bunch of us signed up together.  We made shirts...we carpooled...we cheered each other on!  It was a phenomenal day!

First off, it was cool (around 60) and drizzling rain.  PERFECT for a muddy obstacle run!  We got checked in, geared up and checked our gear.  Funniest part of that - NONE of us had our devices so we had NO idea what time our heat started or what time it was really :)   We don't have any action pictures yet - the Warrior Dash folks took lots of photos but they aren't posted for another 3 days.  Here are our after shots.

The course was 3.16 miles of up and down through a motocross course.  We went on muddy trails through the woods, up and down steep hills and over 12 obstacles.  You can see the Warrior Dash official photos of the obstacles here.

• Barricade Breakdown - up over walls and under wires in the mud.. About 5 walls and 5 unders
• Chained Up - This one was REALLY hard.  It was like a cargo net of chain links.  It was so hard because the chains shook and shook.  I really had trouble with this one because the shaking was sooo bad and I couldn't stabilize my core! I went around this one.
• Teetering Traverse - up a 2x12 ramp, over and down the 2x12 
• Trenches - I honestly think they left this one out...instead they did this large wooden structure that we had to climb over.  made out of 2x4s.  There were spaces of about 4' in between the wood slats.   It was ok to climb up and to climb down, but the OVER the top was tough because the slats were so far apart and we were about 15-20 ft off the ground.  I climbed up to the top but didn't make it over - this wasn't a physical issue, it was all in my head.
• Pipeline - not anything really, running/walking through a big tube tunnel
• Petrifying Plunge - a HUGE hill turned into a mudslide! 
• Warrior Wall - tall wall with a rope to help you get up and over.  I got up a little bit, but didn't make it over this one. I went around this one after trying it.
• Storming Normandy - crawl in the mud through lots of low barbed wire. 
• Vicious Valleys - HUGE!  These were tall slanted walls, up and downs that we had to go over.  The problem was that there was such a backup at this point that there lines in between each valley to climb the next wall.  We went around this one.
• Cargo Climb - tall cargo net to climb up and over! 
• Warrior Roast - leap over rows of fire!
• Muddy Mayhem - climb under barbed wire in really thick clay-mud.  I lost my shoe on this one!

This is a video that someone who completed the race on the same day made with a helmet cam!  It's a good view of the entire race.

I went slowly through the trails.  It was a lot of slippery footing and I was not willing to risk my re-constructed ankles.   I went much more slowly then I probably needed to but I wanted to be safe.

It was a super fun, SUPER MUDDY experience.  I felt so strong afterward!

A few really cool parts of the Warrior Dash - when you finish you can donate your muddy shoes!

I wrapped my fitbit well in plastic before we started and tucked it in to be safe.  It was great!  It logged 109 flights of stairs for the race!  SOOO many hills and up and overs!

At the start, they shoot off fire when it is GO TIME!  Look at this start line photo!

There is live music, food, beverages and a huge festival atmosphere afterward!

And my favorite part - afterwards I got this HUGE smoke turkey leg! YUM!

The attitude at this race is great.  People help each other all the time.  it is a great event and I highly recommend it to challenge yourself and step outside your comfort zone!