Mac n’ Cheese Party

Have you met my roommate? She loves Mac n Cheese. Mac n Cheese in all forms. She loves it. She loves making it. She loves eating it. She loves talking about it.

Really what’s not to love about it. It’s cheese + noodles = delicious.

She came up with the fantastic idea of having a mac n cheese party. Brilliant.

Everyone makes mac n cheese differently and no we’re not talking about the blue box version.

I decided I was going to make spicy mac n cheese. I had been reading a lot of Homesick Texan and I get the feeling that if she were to make mac n cheese, she would make a good spicy mac.

To start I needed a good noodle. Not just elbow macaroni, but something interesting. Cavatappi. Perfect. I found 2 boxes at my local QFC.

Next I needed some good cheese. Of course pepper jack to add some kick, but then throw in some Gruyere and then naturally some cheddar.

To mix with the cheese I added some sour cream, ground mustard, cayenne pepper and some half-n-half. Mix it all up and bake it.

After it’s been baking then top it off with some bread crumbs and perfect.

I ended up baking both boxes of Cavatappi which may have been a bit too much.

The best part about the mac n cheese party is everyone made a different kind. And it was all delicious.

There was also a girl who made dessert mac n cheese! It was tasty!

All in all I was stuffed, but it was fantastic.

Chicago

I’m still in Chicago. This project is pretty entertaining. I was supposed to roll off in November and here it is now February and I’m still here. Now the projection is April.

Definitely life has been different. I’m having difficulty deciding what it is I want to do about the current situation.

On one hand I actually do love the traveling. I like getting airline miles. I like getting hotel miles. I feel all business-y and professional walking around downtown Chicago. Seattle doesn’t exactly give you that feel.

I’m getting to experience a different world and I love it. I love the people on my team and I enjoy hanging out with them during the week. I would definitely take this situation over me going back to M$.

However, there is stress associated with the travel.

I don’t sleep well. At all. I will go to bed at 9:30 and toss and turn all night.

I miss my boyfriend. I think this has something to do with the sleeping as well. I really miss having him to snuggle with at night.

I miss my friends

I can’t enjoy a normal life like most people, everything is scheduled for me.

What am I to do?

On one hand I want to be selfish, I wanted to travel and I’m young. This is the time that I will get to do it in my life and isn’t now the time that I should be considering myself?

On the other hand I really deeply love and care for my boyfriend and I miss him all the time. I always feel like the weekends aren’t enough time with him. I always want more. Plus I know he would prefer that I not be traveling.

I have always been very adamant about not making decisions based on a boy and I’ve always advised people to do what they want. Be independent. It’s been my motto for so long. But being with Eric have made me rethink that. Being an island isn’t always the best way of going about life. Sharing life with someone else is so much better. I think that’s what I love the most about him. I love doing things together. We make a really great team.

For now I’ll keep on trekking on. Keep my outlook bright. Be positive. Who knows what my future will hold.

Mailbox Peak

Yesterday Eric and I hiked Mailbox Peak. This was my 2nd attempt at the trail, I had tried once before in my fat Heather days but was unsuccessful. This time I was in much better shape and despite the warnings of this being a “difficult trail” I figured I was perfectly capable of climbing most any of the local mountains. That might have been a bad assumption.

The trail says 2.5 miles. This seems a little misleading. It felt more like 3-3.5 miles. Plus not to mention that distance is you hiking straight up. Every 100 or so yards Eric and I had to take a break to catch our breath. After catching up with another hiker who had passed us he described the top being nearby and in a snow field.

Snow field. That sounds pretty harmless. Plus the trail report said snow shoes were not necessary. Sounds pretty simple to me.

After hiking and hiking and feeling pretty worn down we started to see signs of snow. Perfect. We’re close to the top. We even saw a sign that said “almost there”. I’m sure no one would write that on a sign unless they really meant it. Oh how it was wrong. After hiking in more and more snow and me getting more and more frustrated with falling, my patience was wearing thin.

Not to mention you could not see the top. Looking up all you could see was a snowy haze. Finally Eric spotted the mailbox. At last!

I was very happy to see that dumb mailbox.

The time for the hardest part. Heading down.

This was the part that I was most concerned about because I’m not very experienced hiking in the snow. I fell A LOT. In fact I rolled down the mountain a little. That was scary. After I got up I was feeling a little shaky. Luckily Eric was nice enough to help me down and calm my nerves a little. Once I got the hang out digging my feet in the snow wasn’t so bad.

Then came the ice. The ice was scary but there were plenty of roots to grab on to, then came the roots + mud. A little slippery but still much better than the snow. The downhill portion always makes me want to run. At this point we both wanted to get off the mountain and when we finally did a big hug was exchanged.

Eric may have been a little upset with me for taking him on such a hard hike, but as much as I complained it was a good hike. I feel pretty accomplished knowing I completed it.

Hopefully I can convince Eric to try this hike again this summer. I’ve heard the wildflowers on the top are beautiful not to mention the fantastic views which we unfortunately missed due to the fog.

Eric’s 30th Birthday

Last week my wonderful boyfriend had a very huge birthday. He turned 30! I love birthdays and since this was a big birthday I wanted to make sure it was a special event for him.

The night before me and his sisters got together and baked a cake for him. It was lots of fun and a great chance to get to know them better. I’m so thankful that he is close to his family. The cake turned out great even though we felt like it wasn’t perfect.

The day of Eric’s birthday party was the Husky game. The Huskies won!, however, Eric was feeling sick. After napping some that day he seemed good to go for his big party.

The turnout was great and everyone seemed to have a great time. Also celebrating her birthday was Erin so we combined the birthday celebration. The more the merrier.

I also got more of a chance to talk to some of Eric’s friend I don’t see that often and my good friend Fouad came who I hadn’t seen in a while.

All in all it was a great birthday. Happy Birthday babe!

Rattlesnake Mountain

Last Sunday E and I decided to go hiking. Seattle has been having a very mild winter so most of the trails don’t have snow on them yet, at least not at the lower elevations.

We headed out past North Bend to Rattlesnake Mountain, a favorite of mine for trail running. I like Rattlesnake because there are lots of scenery changes and not that many switch backs.

I was glad to see that the trail was not covered in snow, I didn’t really have the proper gear for snow/ice hiking, however, I wanted to be able to see some snow. When we drove up the view from the side of the mountain facing us showed no signs of snow.

E and I packed some pretzels and beef jerky. I made the mistake of not eating breakfast that morning so the snacks were essential.

We hiked up past Rattlesnake Ridge and decided to work toward the east peak. Which would give us approximately ~8 mile hike.

We hiked for a while to the point where we got to some ice patches and snow, still no sign that said “East Peak”.  We met several other hikers that seemed just as confused as us, there were several signs for Snoqualmie point which was still a ways away, but no East Peak.

Eventually we gave up and turned around. We met several other hikers that kept asking us how much further to the peak. Who knows really.

Once E and I got back and I got a nice warm shower, E made a nice fire (survivorman style) and dinner! I’m a lucky girl.

Too bad I had to return to Chicago the next morning.

First book of the year

I’m starting my first book of the year. The Russia Hand: A Memoir of Presidential Diplomacy

2010 New Years Resolutions

1. Lose 30 pounds. This one is absolutely necessary as I am going to Hawaii with E and his family this summer and I’d like to have a nice bikini bod

2. Read 1 book a month. I started out with this, but then I didn’t keep with it last year.

3. Run Bridger Ridge. I’m going to train harder for it this year and make sure I actually complete it.

4. Pay off credit cards. I’m starting to save money, but I need to start getting rid of my credit card debt.

5. Try to be nicer. This is a really serious goal of mine. I tend to judge people pretty harshly, but in addition to that I tend to verbalize these criticisms. I need to learn to keep my thoughts to myself.

6. Take swimming lessons. I’ve been wanting to learn how to swim and I’ve never really been good at it.

7. Get promoted again. I know this is a big goal, but I think I can do it.

8. Keep in closer contact with my family. As I get older, I’m not spending as much time with my family as I normally do and with my distance between them I need to make an effort to call them.

9. Go Skiing. I have no excuse for this one because I live slow close to so many ski resorts.

10. Be a better big to Rachel.

2009 – Year in Review

1. Lose my remaining weight (30 pounds) – NO

2. Run the Bridger Ridge Run (http://www.winddrinkers.org/BRR/BridgerRidge.html) – I registered but didn’t go

3. Plan more dinner parties – Yes

4. Go Skiing – NO

5. Drink less – Yes

6. Be more frugal and put more of my money in to savings/investments – Yes

7. Get Promoted at work. – Yes

8. Travel abroad – No

9. Get in to Marathon Maniacs (http://www.marathonmaniacs.com/) – Yes

10. Raise for more than $1500 for my marathon. (http://pages.teamintraining.org/wa/whidbey09/hricharq1q) – Yes

11. Read at least 1 book a month – I only read 6 books this year

6/11 isn’t bad but I can definitely do better. This year was definitely a year of firsts. I went on some dates for the very first time since I was 18! This year I wasn’t as much of a super woman as I normally am, but I learned that I don’t need to do EVERYTHING. Cutting back my activities is a good thing.

January

Kerstin moved in!

Kerstin and I ran a pub run together and I met some great new friends.

February

I was sent a great email from my Big Brothers Big Sisters coordinator about how well I was doing with Rachel.

March

I ran the Mercer Island Marathon for the 2nd time in a row

I participated in a Bachelorette Auction and was purchased

I started dating E

Kerstin and I went to Bags & Bottles

I ran the St. Patty’s day Dash in the slushy cold.

Rachel and I went ceramic painting

Kerstin and I had a house party

April

Kerstin and I ran our 2nd pub run together, it was a blast again

I took Rachel for her very first sushi

E took me to UW to see the cherry blossoms

I ran the Whidbey Island Marathon

E took me to Harstine Island for a fantastic weekend

I went to Texas for my annual Easter trip

I met Heather Armstrong from dooce.com when she was on her book tour

May

I went to Vegas with my AKPsi friends

I watched my sister graduate from college

I ran the Kirkland Half Marathon for the 2nd year in a row

I ran my very first relay and met some fantastic friends

I took Rachel to the Tulip festival

My friend Erin’s mom lost her long battle with cancer

I started up Sushi club!

E and I broke up

June

I purchased Texapedia.org

I ran the inaugural Seattle Rock n’ Roll Marathon

I went to the Washington Brewer’s Festival

I got the new iPhone!

I went to Texas to visit Erin and Celine

Kerstin and I got a new grill and this kicked off our summer grilling dinners

I ran the Girls on the run 5K with an excellent running buddy

July

I turned 25!!

Richie turned 60

E and I got back together

I went to my very first sounders game

August

I went Blueberry picking with Laura

Rachel and I went to the BBBS picnic

I went on my very first boat ride of the summer

I bought my very first pair of expensive jeans

E and I went to more Sounders games

Jess had a beautiful boy, Caden

September

I went to my very first college football game

I went to my very first tailgate

I went sailing for the first time

I got promoted!

I started traveling for work, my first stop Minneapolis, MN

October

I signed up for another marathon with Team in Training

I started traveling to Chicago for work

I ran the Nike Women’s Marathon

I ran the Marine Corps Marathon

November

I went to my very first college basketball game

I ran the Seattle Marathon

My family came to visit for Thanksgiving

December

E came to Chicago to see me

I went to my very first professional football game

October

What’s going On?

So I realize I haven’t blogged in a long time. I know that part of my goals of starting this blog is to help document my life year by year/month by month and the past few months I have not been doing a good job at that.

I feel like I have good reason though.

I started traveling for work back in September. This means every Monday morning I wake up at 3:30 a.m. (much to E’s enjoyment) to get ready for a 6:15 a.m. flight. Every Thursday I hop on a plane again and head back to Seattle and I get home Thursday night. Then I spend Friday – Sunday in Seattle and then I repeat the process.

September – October I was working in Minneapolis. This was my first every traveling project. The whole thing was very glamorous for me, I’ve never been to Minneapolis, staying in a hotel and having someone cover your expenses. But that only lasted the first week. My first week my returning flight was delayed an hour, and then the following week it was delayed 4 hours and then I decided that I hated the Minneapolis airport and Alaska Airlines. My final week there my flight was actually on time, only because I switched to a different airline.

Then about a week before I finished in Minneapolis, I got a notice saying I was going to Chicago. Chicago is another city I’ve never been to so I thought alright that sounds awesome. The project was supposed to last until the end of November. That didn’t seem too bad. The end of November has already passed and the project is still going strong so who knows how much longer I’ll be here.

The one thing is I do really love Chicago. I love working downtown, I love staying downtown I am just really starting to miss the normal-ness in my life. I miss waking up during the week and getting coffee with E. I miss mid-day lunches with friends. I miss happy hour after work, playing soccer or going for a run with friends. I miss having dinner with E. I miss all of those random during the week events that happen. Instead my schedule is very planned out, more so than it was before. As soon as I get home I try to coordinate the next 48 hours + of activities and spending time with friends. I know I’ve been more of a flake and I’m not the “super-woman” I once was with regards of being on top of things, but I’m trying my best to not fall behind on my obligations.

I’m still running, just not as much. I’ve managed to complete 3 marathons in the past 2 months which is a huge feat for me. But most of my big accomplishments lately have been travel related, I’m a Silver Elite member now hooray now I get to board early and get a free checked bag. I’m a Gold Marriott member which I haven’t really figured out what good that’s going to do for me. But other than that I’m just trying to remain sane and calm and try to relax from time to time and remember that I have a good job and that they’re paying me to live in Chicago and I should be grateful for that.

It’s That Time Again

Fundraising for Team in Training again for the 3rd year in a row. This year I’m running the Eugene Marathon.

http://pages.teamintraining.org/wa/eugene10/hrichardso