Category: Fort Leonard Wood
Go! St. Louis Race Expo
| April 15, 2012 | Posted by Madeline @ Food, Fitness, and Family under 1/2 Marathon, Family, FitFluential, Fort Leonard Wood, Hubs |
Chris and I woke up bright and early yesterday to load up the car and head to St. Louis for the Go! St. Louis Half Marathon. It’s amazing how much stuff you bring with you for a mere 24 hours when you have a baby. After 30 minutes of him trying to sign out on leave we were off! The weather on the way was not promising … heavy rain, thunder, and lightning. Fun times.
Our first stop when we got in to town was Chris’ “happy place” … Chipotle. We were blessed to have a Chipotle on campus in college as well as have one at Fort Hood. When we moved to Fort Leonard Wood and they didn’t have one I think Chris went through serious withdrawals. Now whenever he sees on he HAS to stop. Luckily today it was in the plan 
She’s kind of annoyed that her cheese crisp is taking a few minutes …
I had a steak burrito with brown rice, black beans, pico de gallo, cheese, and lettuce. It was delicious.
After indulging and stuffing ourselves we headed downtown to the race expo. The expo was held at the Chaifetz Arena at Saint Louis University. We were able to find parking on the street within walking distance which was perfect. I thought it was pretty well organized. We picked our bibs up on the main floor. The one thing that was new-to-me with the bib pick-up was that the bigs were organized by bib number instead of last name. Luckily they had computers set up with volunteers to look up your number if you forgot to print the email (like us). From there you headed down to the arena floor to pick up your race shirt and check out the vendors.
Picking up our shirts was also pretty painless and they were really accomodating with changing shirt sizes. I had ordered a small thinking they were a unisex Brooks tech shirt but they actually did them in mens AND womens sizes. I probably would have been ok with a womens small but I like my shirts looser and happily traded it for a medium.
There were plenty of fun vendors to check out and we ended up purchasing a few things ourselves.
I got a new pair of Brooks Adrenalines. These are my FAVORITE running shoe and work incredibly well from me. I have worn them ever since I got fitted for new running shoes. I also got a pair of Zensah calf sleeves … which will probably come in handy for recovery since we will be in the car about 15+ hours this week driving to Savannah. I also got 2 pairs of Smartwool socks and Chris won me a Brooks shirt 
After the expo we headed to the airport to pick up a special someone …
My mom is in town to help us move and to hang out with the Emster tomorrow during the race. I am so excited that she will be spending the next 2 weeks with us!!
I laid everything out that I need this morning last night so as in my tired stupor I don’t forget something important … like my bib or Garmin which aren’t pictured but were added to the pile in time
Any-who … we are off to run 13.1 miles. No big deal I have athlete tracking set up to send out live tweets so make sure you follow me on Twitter to see them. You can also track my progress here. I am pretty nervous about the race but super excited to be crossing off one of my 2012 goals!
Are you racing this weekend?
Weekend Recap
| April 2, 2012 | Posted by Madeline @ Food, Fitness, and Family under Baby, Family, Fort Leonard Wood, Friends, Hubs, Weekend |
First things first, who won the Technogel pillow giveaway?
Congratulations Alec!! Email me at foodfitnessandfamily {at} gmail {dot} com!
HUGE shout out to my girl Lindsay of The Lean Green Bean for matching for her dietetic internship at Ohio State! SO proud of her
It is hard to believe it is already Monday. I am sure I am not the only one who feels like the weekend went by WAY too fast. Maybe because I didn’t accomplish everything on my “to do” list? Our movers come one week from today (gulp) so this week is going to be awfully busy. Luckily Chris is home from work today so I have one extra day with an extra set of hands This morning we have Emmalyne’s 6-month check-up … umm what?!?! There is NO WAY my baby is going to be 6 months old. I mean, I JUST had her right?? My mom wasn’t kidding when she said that this time flies. I am thankful that Chris can come to this appointment … he likes to see how much she’s grown! We also both have to get oil changes, hit the gym, and finish up some chores we missed from the weekend. Needless to say we have PLENTY to do!
Since this was one of our last weekends her in Missouri we tried to make the most of it. Friday night we went to our friend’s house for a BBQ and good company. Bob and Lindsay are off to North Carolina and Len and Sarah are staying here. One of the bittersweet aspects of Army life … just as you make great friends, you move.
Bob was the grill master and cooked up awesome chicken and burgers. We brought a side salad with homemade Italian dressing as well as some dark chocolate puppy chow. Why puppy chow? Because it’s AH-MAZING. I basically wanted an excuse to make it … and then eat my weight in it.
It was a great night with amazing company. I am thankful that Bob and Lindsay will be within driving distance of us. Lindsay has been my running buddy and has put up with me even when I had a bad run. Bob is Chris’ “battle-buddy” in class. We all spent the night having a few drinks, eating good food, and laughing a ton
Saturday Chris and I strapped Emmie up in the BOB and did a 5-mile family run. I love that Chris and I exercise together. It was one of the many things we have in common. Having a spouse who is as passionate about staying healthy as you are is truly a blessing. I am just hoping that it rubs off on Emmalyne also
After grocery shopping and spending the remainder of the afternoon doing chores we thought it would be fun to head out to Sweetwater BBQ, a local BBQ place that Chris has been wanting to try since we got here. Being that we only have 2 weeks left we figured it was now or never!
We were a little surprised when we walked in and it wasn’t what we were expecting. We were expecting it to be a traditional restaurant with service etc. but it wasn’t. You ordered at the counter and served yourself. I felt a little silly for getting dressed up but how often do I get to put on pretty clothes and look good for my husband? Not enough that’s for sure
Emmie is a big girl when we go out now. She sits in her high chair and plays quietly. She is seriously such an amazing baby I don’t have any problem taking her (almost) everywhere with us because I know the odds of her behaving are significantly in our favor.
One of the things we did appreciate about Sweetwater BBQ was how much food you get for your money. So much so that we came home with TONS of leftovers. If we go back we will for sure be sharing something instead of ordering two meals.
Chris got the BBQ ribs and I got BBQ chicken. We shared a little bit of both and brought the rest home. The BBQ sauce had just the right about of sweet to it. The chicken was SO moist and delicious! Chris and I both really liked the “fried spuds” as well. The potatoes were sliced super thin for frying and were incredibly crispy which is how I like my fries We really enjoyed our meal! AND we couldn’t resist getting a picture of Emmie on the pigs outside the restaurant
I also was able to convince Chris that it was necessary for some new daddy-daughter photos when we got home.
I {heart} them.
Sunday I went for a 7-mile run and then we took the dogs to the dog park. The rest of the day was all about chores and watching too many episodes of Frozen Planet on The Discovery Channel Overall it was a perfect weekend spent with 2 of the people I love most in the world!
How was your weekend? Have you seen Frozen Planet?
Lambert’s Cafe
| January 14, 2012 | Posted by Madeline @ Food, Fitness, and Family under Breakfast, Fashion, Fort Leonard Wood, Restaurants |
Chris and I escaped to civilization today! By civilization I mean Springfield, MO. It is amazing what the thought of a real mall, Sam’s Club, and a restaurant other than Ruby Tuesday will do for a girl’s spirit. If you are a new reader, welcome! Back story … the hubs and I live in Podunk Missouri at an Army base in a really small town. Springfield is about an hour hour so it is an easy drive but it is HARD to be that far away from REAL stores!
Breakfast
Egg scramble with mushrooms, spinach, cheese, and ham with some bacon and wheat toast with Trader Joe’s cranberry apple butter. Starbucks Breakfast Blend via my Keurig on the side
After breakfast we loaded Emmie up into the car and headed out. That sweet baby slept the whole way there! Score!
First stop … the mall.
A Slice of Pie
| December 4, 2011 | Posted by Madeline @ Food, Fitness, and Family under 0-3 Months, Family, Fort Leonard Wood |
Happy Saturday everyone! We have been enjoying having my dad, or as Emmie says Papa, in town! The hubs and I even got out last night for two of our friends’ promotion parties (big congrats to the new MAJ P and MAJ E!).
Today we visited a whole in the wall pie place in Rolla, MO. I have heard how amazing their pies are since we moved here. With my dad in town I thought this was the perfect time to check it out … and I am glad we did!
It’s the kind of place that if you didn’t know it existed you would never find it. ”A Slice of Pie” is tucked back in a corner next to a laundromat. There are about 5 tables to sit in there … complete with placemats and pre-set forks. I am pretty sure the decor hasn’t been changed in the last few decades. They had not one but two chalkboards full of pies to choose from.
Whole wow. The slices were HUGE! The hubs and I both got 1/2 slices and they were still massive! My dad got the American apple pie, Chris got oreo cheesecake, and I got chocolate silk pie. All three were amazeballsperfection. I highly recommend it if you are ever in the middle of Missouri I am pretty sure we will be stopping by several more times before we move!
The rest of the day we pretty much just hung around the house. My dad wanted to snuggle with the Emster as much as possible before he heads back to Phoenix tomorrow. It has been such a treat having him here!
Pumpkin Picking
| October 16, 2011 | Posted by Madeline @ Food, Fitness, and Family under 0-3 Months, Baby, Breakfast, Fort Leonard Wood, Lunch |
Happy Saturday everyone! Today was a fabulous day full of family, friends, and firsts
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| Tractor ride going down to the pumpkins |
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| Paul and Shannon |
Happy Saturday everyone! Today was a fabulous day full of family, friends, and firsts
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| Tractor ride going down to the pumpkins |
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| Paul and Shannon |
