Posts Tagged ‘crazy weather’
Looking forward to spring
We’ve had a lot of crazy weather this year here in Chicago. First it is cold. Then it is hot. Then we got almost a foot of snow that melts that same weekend. Now, this weekend we are going to get snow and it will be arctic cold.
That is why I am looking forward to spring. My kids are ready to get one of those new wooden playsets. They love to play outside. I personally wish I had enough room for this:
Tell me if that is not the coolest looking wooden playset you have ever seen! You can even get that really awesome rubber mulch to put underneath. I personally am a fan of the stuff, because when the kids fall, it really cushions them. We know people who have it and swear by it!
That pirate ship I found at Caroline Playsets. I love that they feature and promote American made products manufactured with American lumber (usually southern pine) and offer high quality outdoor playsets at very competitive prices. We personally like buying American made things. Plus, they deliver and install, so I don’t have to worry about getting a playset and then waiting on Bill to put it up.
I’m off to spend the rest of the afternoon to see if I can find something that will fit better in my yard!
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Keeping Warm and Fashionable
Man, did it get cold here in Chicago. Our weather cannot decide what we are going to have for weather. Let’s see — we got over ten inches of snow on Friday. We had thunderstorms on Sunday (with thunder and lightening) which melted the majority of the snow we had (so glad I spent 2-3 hours snowblowing us out!). Now, it seems like we have some arctic cold now. If you can believe it, it is warmer in the morning when I drop the kids off than when I pick them up! The wind here has been beyond brutal.
That is wear things like polo neck inserts come in super handy. You can wear those and still be super stylish. The inserts give an extra layer of warmth without weight. You can wear a stylish sweater and not be afraid of showing off a little more than you want. Plus, even here too many layers can look bulky and not good. It is just nice to be able to stay warm (and not too warm!) and be fashionable at the same time!
Have you had crazy weather where you live? Is it hot? Cold? Crazy weather swings?
Apolo Ohno, Me, and a $25 Subway Giveaway!
I just realized that I never posted about this! I got to meet Apolo Ohno! I also got to ask him a few questions too. I asked on Twitter and Facebook what people wanted to know, so here are his thoughts, ideas, and ramblings (and some of mine).
First, yes, he is just as cute in person as he is on TV. He is one of the most real and one of the nicest celebrities I have met.
Food
Apolo’s favorite Subway sandwich (for those of you who don’t know, he is a celebrity spokesperson for them) is Honey Nut Bread with Double turkey, chedder cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, pepper, spinach, oil, and vinegar. He also is trying to get Subway to add some gluten free menu items. His favorite splurge item is ethnic foods.
Life Lessons
He believes in balance — everything has to be in balance.
His one piece of advice: There are many life lessons to be learned through sports.
In 1998 he didn’t make the US team. However, that gave him the drive he has today. Everything happens for a reason. We don’t control if we win or lose, but it is how you handle that.
Running/Athletes/Sports
His favorite running weather? Crazy weather! He likes to run when it is crazy hot or crazy cold.
His opinion on why athletes seem to do so well on DWTS (Dancing With The Stars)? Athletes are very use to being coached. They are use to schedules and training. Hollywood celebrities — not as much.
He runs 40 miles a week.
His nutrition changes depending on what sport he is doing. While training for the marathon (he just ran in Chicago’s), he gets to eat more carbohydrates. When skating, he has no to low carbohydrates. His normal weight is 160 lbs. However, his race weight is 141-142 lbs.
He only started training for marathon running in June. His goal time is 1 hr 45 minutes for the half marathon.
In speedskating, his longest race is only 2.5 minutes. So yes, marathon running is completely different. His training had to be customized to him. His trainer had to retrain him. He had to learn that “it’s okay that people pass you”.
What surprised me the most is how Apolo told us how sports saved his life. As a child, he did swimming, basketball, football, and boxing. In 1992, he saw speedskating in the Olympics. He tried it and thought it was fun, and he happened to be really good at it. At 14, he was recruited for a program. At that point in his life, he said he was a “bad” kid. He hung out with bad kids and did bad things. (And if you don’t believe people can change, I hope his story changes his tune). Now, this program he got in, they had made a special exemption to let him in. His dad dropped him off at the airport. Instead of getting on the plane, he called one of his friends and lived on his friends’ couches for around 2 weeks. The program then called his dad and were like “where is he?” Needless to say, his dad tracked him down and was not a happy camper. He then drove him to airport again, walked him to the gate, walked him to his seat, and flew with him. He made it to the program that truly saved him. He said it wasn’t easy. However, speedskating completely turned his life around. At 14 years old, he was #1 in US. 15 years later (at the 2010 Olympics), 70%-80% of the judges were people he has skated against over the years. (Now, how weird would that be?)
I had such a great conversation with him, so I have teamed with Subway to give one of my lucky readers a $25 Subway gift card. Here’s what you need to do:
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