Minneapolis-Star-Tribune-runningkellometers

Sorry I haven't been posting much over the weekend. I only had my iPad with me and I don't yet know how to use many of the features. Warning, the "iBlogger" iPad app is not for the "Blogger" website, despite the logo being exactly the same. (I will be contacting Apple to try and get my money back from that scam, by the way.)

I spent the weekend (Thursday through Sunday) with my husband's family in Lake Geneva. We had tons of fun! The scenery is beautiful.

We always play lots of really fun games.

Drink too much alcohol...
and end up like this

The birthday gods must have been shining down on me because I didn't get sick the next day. I felt horrible, don't get me wrong, but didn't get sick. As my birthday is January 6 and most people are tired from Christmas and/or New Years, my birthday isn't usually a big deal. I have fun keeping things relatively low key and my husband and I just go out to dinner and that is it. This year was an exception and we had a ton of fun (as I'm sure you can tell from the pictures)!

I planned on doing a local race in Lake Geneva on Saturday, but we always go to church on Saturday night. I thought I would be able to squeeze in both but decided against going to the run and ran on the treadmill instead. I also planned on getting up early our last day to run around the area, but packing took longer than expected and I wasn't able to get out there. I'm disappointed I wasn't able to run outside like I always love to do on vacation, but I was happy to get the run in regardless! Now I know for next year to plan my time better to get it done!

I'm happy to be back to reality, sleep in my own bed, and catch up on all the blogs I've missed! Today I plan on hitting up our office fitness center to get in 3 miles and also see if I can do the circuit workout that my friend Kate and I did last Monday. We'll see if they have the right equipment to do all of the exercises! Half marathon training will start soon and I'm excited to get my butt in gear to work towards my first sub-2 hour half marathon in May! I think I'm going to enjoy not training for a marathon this year, but I already know I'm going to miss it. Do you get race envy? Wish you signed up or trained for something when cheering on a friend? Do you sign up for next year's race right away? What do you do to help counter your envy?

After a long day of travel and shopping we arrived at the Abbey Resort last night. The hotel restaurant is arguably the worst food you've ever eaten in your whole life. (I've been watching a lot of "Kitchen Nightmares" lately and am seriously considering nominating this place.) I was exhausted after dinner so we just hung out in the hot tub and went to bed early.

Since today is my birthday (I turn 28), I woke up to some Facebook notifications and a phone call from my brother. So far it has been a great day and most of my gifts have been running related! I got a new pair of Nike running tights that I'm really looking forward to testing out for the race tomorrow. Considering it is unseasonably warm, I'm glad I brought 5 different running outfits (which is more than regular outfits I packed). Everyone here thinks I'm crazy to run while on vacation, but I think of it as a new adventure. All of the trips I've taken in 2011 involved a run of some sort, whether on the treadmill or outside. Atlanta was way hillier than I expected, and the elevation in Denver didn't affect me as much as everyone made it out to be. And Santa Rosa, CA is beautiful any time of year, period.

What are your thoughts on running while on vacation? Or, what does your spouse/family think of your vacation workout habits?

I've been catching up on the latest issue of Runners World and am totally pumped up for the Olympic trials. The article on Des Davilla has me ready and raring to go. I've been reading up on all the different athletes and the female race sounds super competitive and exciting! Sorry Toph, I'm calling first dibs on the big TV on January 14! Are you all as excited as me? Who will you be cheering for?

For some reason I can't figure out how to upload images in blogger on my iPad so I apologize for the picture-less post :(

Yesterday I was so sore I could barely move so I decided to take a rest day. Working out at the gym is hard!

My husband and I will be leaving tomorrow afternoon to go to Lake Geneva. Every year his family goes up there around or after New Years and takes over a whole hallway at the hotel. It is a weekend where we sit around, drink, play games, and eat really delicious junk food. It's basically Christmas without all the stress of preparing, cleaning, and gift giving. We leave on Thursday and come back on Sunday. Since we won't be around to celebrate my birthday on Friday, I got to open up my present early. Drum roll please...

NBD

Yes, that's an iPad! I've been wanting one ever since they came out but would never justify such a large purchase (especially on myself). My husband knew what I was thinking so he decide to get one for me. (After I opened it, he did say that it was on sale because someone returned it after opening it. He really knows how I love a good deal.) on the plus side, I'll be able to keep up with all my blogs while in Lake Geneva, as long as the hotel has some kind of wi-fi. (Although, The Abbey tries hard to be upscale so there might only be free wi-fi in the lobby.)

Naturally the first thing I did was take a bunch of photos of my dog and mess with the Photo Booth feature. I know this is going to be a fun weekend!

Today on Living Social's website, they have a 1 year subscription to Women's Health magazine for $8. As I'm just starting to get more into lifting weights, I thought it would be a good starting point. If you want in on this deal too, here's the link!

Have any of you subscribed to Women's Health before? What did you think of the mag?

Do any of you also have an iPad? What are some good apps? Pinterest really needs a better iPad app.