Onward Wisconsin!

Yesterday around noonish, I embarked on a small girls' trip to Door County with my Wine Club chicas. We got slightly delayed in our departure due to a massive storm that decided to sweep through both Minne and Sconny. The storm started while I was half-way through my Heat Yoga class, and the fact that I could hear it and see the world darkening while I was in the yoga studio was a bit scary.

So about an hour later than we had originally planned we were off. We made it to the Wisconsin border and then decided we needed lunch. We didn't opt for fancy, we opted for Wendy's, as it was quick and would get us back on the road. Well, let me tell you, the Wendy's in Hudson had the most polite staff. They greeted us, treated us very well and even thanked us for coming. Halfway through the meal, they even checked up on us to make sure everything was good. It was more service than you sometimes receive at a fine dining restaurant.

We then continued on the road ... and finally made it to Green Bay ... in what felt like hours later. (okay, it was hours later, but it felt significantly longer than it should have.) We had to stop at Lambeau field, it was on one of the ladies' bucket lists, and the rest of us wanted to check it out, too. She brought a vikings hat, and we took some funny pics and posted them on Facebook. D told me when he say that I was at Lambeau he was slightly jealous. Everyone was courteous (though we got a fear stares for the vikings hat).

We then found a Mexican restaurant and had a little supper. Okay, the plates were huge ... I opted for tamales ensuring they were gluten-free, but could hardly touch the sides. The food was good. the place had $3 margaritas, but I have a hard time with Tequila, so I opted for a sangria. D totally called me on the sangria when I told him we had Mexican for dinner. (I guess after almost 10 years, I shouldn't surprised that he knows me as well as he does.)

And then an hour later, we were finally at our destination. We rented out a house for the long weekend. It's quaint and perfect for this kind of trip. It's an old house that they renovated and updated. It's decorated so festively that you can tell the owners take a lot of pride in what they do.

I'm excited to see what the rest of Door County has to offer us this weekend.

Sweat, Soccer, Shower

Today was all about the letter S. I started out by rejoining the world of Hot Yoga. I figured  I would see if my finger could handle it. It was a fairly good session. My finger could handle it, I definitely got my sweat on and I felt rejuvenated for the rest of the day. I highly recommend if you like yoga, like to sweat to do the Hot Yoga ... nothing makes me feel like I've accomplished more then after a good session.

Secondly was soccer. K had a game today and he had team pictures ... and it was cold today. I cheered on my little man, but had to leave at halftime to get to a familial shower. My cousin and his wife are having a baby at the end of October. My cousins who threw it together did a good job - they always do - so the food and games were good. It was just tough because I don't really know this family probably as well as I should. So, there were some awkward moments, but alas, I carried on.

On to a new week!

Stampeding Through the Bunker

Today marked the day of D and my September 5K. It was called the Bunker Stampede. It was a beautiful course through a nearby regional park. The weather couldn't have been more perfect. It was a smaller race (as in less than 170 competitors) but I think the maximum they let register is 300. So, we knew it would be smaller. It was nice running through the park with the crisp air. In fact, the cooler air threw us for a turn this morning when trying to decide what to wear.

Anyway, D was happy with his time ... and I shaved another 30 seconds off my time, so was very happy. I am truly living the small progress is still progress mantra when it comes to my running. I can't wait until I catch up with him. Right now he's about 8 minutes faster than me, so I have quite a lot of catching up to do. But I will get there!

We hired a babysitter while we ran the race - while I think D offered too much per hour/it was a pretty sweet deal, so it's good to know we have that option going forward.

In other news, I had my hair cut today ... and went for a bob. I had fairly long hair going in, and had been thinking about doing something different. So, I wasn't sure what I was going to do going in, but just suggested to my stylist (aka, my baby sister) to cut it off in a bob. It was fun coming home and surprising D. I knew he was thinking I'd just planned on getting a trim, but instead I came home all different and more polished.

Our dress code returns to business formal this week, so it will be fun to return on Monday with business clothes and a little more of a business-minded haircut. What do you do to celebrate the new season?

My Little Gymnast

We're looking for ways to get O involved in activities and create a social network. Yes, he's only 3, but because K was in daycare before O was born, K learned social norms differently. O is used to spending all his time with D - which is great, but it means he is not used to listening to other adults or interacting with kids other than his overly nice brother. 

We tried soccer, but realized we may have been a bit early on that one. We had to keep reminded ourselves that K was a year older when he first did soccer (and clearly that year makes a huge difference.) So, now we've signed him up for a gymnastics program. 

It's going better than soccer. O is engaged, he's involved and he's excited to show me what he learned. I guess I am just glad he's involved in something that he finds fun. He's my silly little firecracker and he definitely needs something to keep him busy!

Today he showed me how he learned to do donkey kicks. I found this somewhat humorous as it's in one of my CorePower Yoga workouts. And he does them probably better than I do.

Just Another Day at the Office

It's not every day that you can say you attended a work meeting with The Band Perry, Luke Bryan, Bruno Mars and Justin Timberlake. But today I can say that. Yes, it was the big company's annual meeting. We hear from our top leaders, get inspired for the remainder of the year and are treated to musical delights.

This year, I wrote one of the speeches being delivered. It's a strange sensation watching someone deliver the words you craft. My executive did a great job. They delivered it the way I would have wanted. I was very happy. In fact, it was a perfect day all around.

I had a great lunch with my team. We chatted, we bonded. We then went to the meeting and had a great time. Afterwards, we enjoyed a team happy hour and bonded more.

Yes, it's days like this that make you realize that you work for a great place, you have great work friends and you are inspired to do great work.

It's a shame that it's only once a year, but then again, if it were more frequent, it would not be as special. Yes, sometimes when  you work for corporate America, you realize you work for the man. But working for the man can also be pretty sweet ... and our company does lots of good, so that helps, too.

Here's to ending the evening feeling inspired.