could it be? a hint of summer?

What a gorgeous day today! The birds are singing, the sun is shining, the air is perfect...so I started my day with an 8 mile run. It felt absolutely wonderful, except for the nagging going on in my right hip. Even that went away so I'm thankful to be injury free so far in the last weeks of training for my 3rd half marathon! I averaged 9:18 miles...just a little quicker and I'll be able to finish the half in 2 hours or less. That's my goal anyway. Time will tell if I actually accomplish it.

In other news, I've decided to tackle Anna Karenina this summer. It's been on my must-read list for longer than I care to remember so I found it (collecting dust in my basement) and can't wait to get started. I am an avid reader, but it's hard to find time to read while raising 2 active, imaginative kids. Something's gotta give and for me, it's books. Mostly because I'm one of those readers who gets immersed in a book and can't put it down. But the 800-something pages of Anna Karenina are beckoning to me and I'll be answering the call, right after my Weeds marathon is finished. I'm on season 5, episode 3 and loving every second of it. I said before that I'd love to be Nancy Botwin...but I'm way too much of a goody-goody. So I guess I'll just have to live vicariously through her immoral life because it's so much fun!

Taste test: Crispy Salted Oatmeal White Chocolate Cookies. Wow. Everyone has their personal preference as far as cookie texture. Some like them chewy...some like them crunchy...some like a little bit of both. Well this cookie falls into both categories. Eat one at room temperature and it's crispy goodness. Warm it up for 12 seconds in the microwave first and it's crunchy, chewy perfection. I think next time I might substitute butterscotch chips for the white chocolate. I love oatmeal scotchies and I think these might be a hit! One of the best cookies I've ever made...these will definitely be in heavy rotation!

I don't think I've ever mentioned this, but I'm a foodie. Maybe not a foodie in the true definition of the word (considering one of my favorite Mexican restaurants is Pepe's), but I LOVE food. I love eating, cooking, talking about food, eating at restaurants, I could go on and on and on. My favorite cuisine? I love them all. But if I had to pick a favorite, it would be Asian. I could eat Asian food for every single meal, every single day, for an entire month and not get tired of it. So when my little sister posted on Facebook earlier today that she was going to Chinatown for lunch, I felt a little pang of jealousy. Duck Spring Rolls and a Watermelon freeze at Joy Yee's? Sign me up, please! I love my neighborhood, but one of the definite downfalls to living in the burbs is the lack of restaurant choices, especially in our neck of the woods. Here in my town it's heavy on the fast food, pizza parlors and italian beef joints. I would love if a little sushi spot opened up within a 5 minute drive! Trader Joe's would be nice to have too. Oh well...this foodie girl can dream.

Hopefully I'm heading to Target today to pick up 2 bookshelves to help with my organization project. It will also help make our little basement home office a room of it's own, at least that's how I envision it. Stay tuned for more on that subject!