TGI (Almost) F

I hope you had a lovely Thursday, friends! Mine was a-okay.

It was a pretty darn easy day at work, as my students were completing state-mandated inventory surveys (or something) led by their grade-level counselor. So, I did a lot of grading, lesson planning, blog reading, meal planning, etc.

When the last bell rang, I corralled a bunch of students into my room for an informational meeting for See-Us Run Des Moines. I really, really hope all of the students I invited decide to participate in the program, as I think that they would get so much out of it. Speaking of SRDM, if any of you are in the Des Moines area and would like to participate in pretty much the greatest organization ever, please let me know. (Oh, and no running experience is required.)

After, I headed out on a run with my colleague/friend. He is on my Market to Market Relay team and does not consider himself much of a runner, so I put together a training program for him and said that I would be his running buddy.

Well, it turns out that his running pace and my running pace are quite different. Although, I tried really, really hard to keep up with him as much as possible because, let's face it, I was dressed to impress.

I was huffing and puffing like you wouldn't believe. And, I was sweating like crazy, even though it was somewhat chilly and raining. I pretty much thought I was going to die.

We ran two miles in 21 minutes. I know that that is not fast for most people. For me, however, it was really fast: I generally run that distance in 23-24 minutes.

But, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

After my run, I stretched for all of 30 seconds before speeding to West Des Moines for an appointment. (Hi, Mollie!) I'm pretty sure I was beet-red, dripping sweat, and emitting a lovely odor. (My apologies, Mollie!)

Then, I headed to Whole Foods -- in the middle of a downpour -- to get some random groceries. I had intended to make Pad Thai tonight, but I forgot to thaw chicken, and I didn't have any other sort of meat to make. While at Whole Foods, though, I decided what I really wanted: Paleo Oatmeal and Kale Salad.

So, I grabbed a few necessities and headed home to cook.

Interestingly, I wanted to make Paleo Oatmeal and Kale Salad because I didn't really want to cook tonight. Even more interestingly, those two meals actually involve some cooking. So, by the time I was done cooking and eating, I had to pretty much head straight out the door for yet another See-Us Run Des Moines meeting -- but this time for the adult mentors.

And now, at 8:00, I'm finally home and sitting down. I have a cat by my feet and one on my lap/computer as we speak; I think they missed me.

(Side note: apparently cats really like coconut oil -- or, at least a certain cat of the male variety in my household likes coconut oil. Whenever I cook with coconut oil, I always wipe off the spoon that I use with my finger. I then use that teensy bit as moisturizer, as it is supposed to be super good for your skin. Well, I did the same today after cooking dinner, and while I was waiting for everything to finish and was checking my email at the table, Charlie came over and started licking my arm; he wasn't just licking my arm as a nice little "I love you" gesture but was rather going to town. The more you know.

But for now, let's stop learning random facts about cats. Instead, let's get to the boring bit about the food:

Breakfast:

Today's breakfast was an oldie but a goodie: two scrambled eggs, one chicken sausage, one itty-bitty avocado, some mushrooms, and of course, a jalapeno.

Lunch:

For lunch, I had about one-and-a-half Jalapeno Chicken Burgers with a glob of guacamole. I also munched on apple slices -- half at lunch and half right before my run.

After my run, I ate a Larabar.

Dinner:

I was in the mood for something quick and easy, but as I already mentioned, this wasn't as quick and easy as I originally thought. I made a batch of Carrots 'n' Cake's Paleo Oatmeal (that I Whole30-ified) and a batch of Iowa Girl Eats' Warm Kale Salad.

Apparently my eyes were bigger than my stomach -- or, more likely, I simply forgot how much food I was actually making, as I wasn't super hungry (as has been the usual after runs lately). I ate all of the salad (nom nom nom) but only about one-third of the Paleo Oatmeal.

I hope you all enjoy your Friday! Check back tomorrow for a Five on Friday link-up -- and don't forget to join me and Aly in our very first link-up, Three Thanks.