Weekend Getaway Retreat

Thursday, November 14, 2013

I'm completely smitten with the little hideaway we found on HomeAway! If you were to talk to me in person about our weekend trip this week, you would certainly hear excitement come through in my voice. It was completely perfect in all the ways that I was hoping. It was isolated, in the woods, charming, simple, and close enough to home that if Hubster was called in to work, we could have driven separately. We were also close enough to a few small cities for gas stations and grocery stores when we needed them.



The cabin's backyard!!!!

To give you an idea of our seclusion, the dirt driveway that took us back to the nestled cabin itself was 1/2 mile long. Oh yes! And one night, the road and ditches were lined with deer galore.

The property came with a grass airport landing strip, which we were allowed to roam, and miles' worth of walking trails. Ponds, abandoned buildings, assorted birds, animal tracks, deer trails and all kinds of things greeted us on our hikes.





abandoned outbuilding




The cabin itself was the cutest little log cabin. We slept up in the queen-sized bed in the loft while Peanut camped out on the pull-out couch. We had a small kitchen at our disposal and a little bathroom. Just enough creature comforts while still feeling like we were truly getting away from it all. Just imagine the smell of bacon and eggs on the hot plate every morning...

View up to the loft

Loft ladder

Our queen-sized bed and skylight

Cutest little rustic details

Small cabin kitchen

Even the 12WBT series that I'm participating in had many recipes that were suitable for microwave or hot plate cooking, which was all we had, and all we needed. Turkey dogs, sandwiches and eggs with mushrooms were on the menu and completely 12WBT approved--and approved by my guys!

I soaked up hot chocolate and woodpecker watching on our balcony...I mean seriously, a balcony off of our loft bedroom! Can we get any closer to heaven?




Can you spy our two little birdie friends? I was laughing
watching them play through the birch trees like teenagers.

We even had a little screened-in side porch with a fireplace, grill and table that seemed so ideal for a summer barbecue. We didn't bother getting the fireplace going though. We just kept toasty warm with the space heaters inside the main living area.

Although it's easy to grumble about the lack of Wifi in this day and age, I was happy to be completely unplugged. Even though I don't spend a whole lot of time on social media and surfing the web, aside from work-related stuff, I do feel so replenished from not constantly thinking about what I should be accomplishing or uploading or taking care of online.



Bright spots of color in a leaf-less forest

We had a little flatscreen TV with a handful of channels, but we hooked up Peanut's protable DVD player and snuggled in for a few movies each night, then bedded down with our books until it was light's out. So peaceful. Soooo what I needed.

The owners live on the same property as the cabin, but they were great hosts and not imposing whatsoever. It really felt like we had the place to ourselves, but that they were nearby in case we needed anything, which was quite reassuring.

They also had a small jungle gym and the most adorable play treehouse with toys in it that Peanut was allowed to soak up.


This boy sure enjoyed the place


Sunday, Peanut and I were up by 5:30, so we took in the sunrise together, wrapped up in a knit vintage blanket.

Backyard sunrise

This past weekend was Hubster's birthday weekend, so we were celebrating him along with building upon our own fall family tradition. I explained a little last year about this tradition. As a kid, we used to go to a big family reunion at a cabin in the woods with all the food you could ever want in the world--turkey, ham, fish, mashed potatoes, and every other side you can think of. We would walk the trails and peek into the abandoned trailers and campers on the property. I remember the leaves were always changing and the cacophony of colors could make a person cry, they were so beautiful. Those weekends were hands down the best memories I have from childhood, so warm, so full of love, so relaxing. Due to family illness and other things, the reunions stopped one year and that was it. I miss that so badly!

Celebratory birthday spirits



Then, I thought, I can either be all "those were the days" nostalgic about the past or create my own family tradition to carry on since this was something I knew my heart really needed. Hence, the fall getaway weekend was born. This little hideaway nearly replicates those reunions with its rustic charm, tucked away location, room to roam, captivating scenery and relaxation factor. This year, I think we found our landing spot!

I have not edited this photo in any way. Gorgeous!

Small weekend trips have always been enough to completely recharge me, and this trip was no exception. We have no more travel plans until long after the holidays, but I plan to do a lot more of these small getaways next year.

If you'd like to read about how we travel so often on a budget, check out this post. I think I would add a bullet point about trying sites like HomeAway too for a good deal.

How was your weekend? Do you have any longings for the woods like I do?

Weekly Workout Rundown

Tuesday, November 12, 2013

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Monday:
  • 45 min 12WBT cardio and abs in the AM
  • 25 min incline interval walk, 1.51 miles

Tuesday:
  • 50 min 12WBT total body tone in the AM
  • 30 min mod walk with mom at lunch

Wednesday:
  • 50 min treadmill interval run in the PM, 3.43 miles

Thursday:
  • 50 min 12WBT total body tone in the AM
  • 30 min moderate walk at lunch

Friday:
  • 25 min run at lunch
  • 50 min 12WBT yoga stretch in the PM

Saturday:

  • 50 min 12WBT cardio and abs


Sunday:

  • Active rest, 45 min nature hike

Well friends, I am just coming back from a short little 3-day weekend vacation. I will have much more on that tomorrow, but I must say it feels so good to have had that time away. We stayed active and even though I didn't track my food, I managed to maintain my tiny bit of weight loss so far on the 12 Week Body Transformation program.

This week I knocked out every part of the 12WBT plan and then some. My lunch workout partner and I are still working out at lunch, which means an extra sweat session for me. I try not to go overboard though to prevent overtraining. For example, Monday I just walked on the treadmill, but I had the incline up to 10%. I wasn't on the route to overtraining but I wasn't working out for naught either. I'm still walking at lunch with my mom the other days at lunch too, actively combating sitting disease.

I have to say I'm pretty impressed with the recipes on the 12WBT. I'm definitely going to save these for the future and start incorporating more for variety. They're mostly pretty clean and pretty darn easy. There have been only a few references to ingredients that I've never heard of, but it's easy to make a few simple substitutions if the ingredients aren't available. I'm still adding a few calories to the 1200 daily calories recommended to stay alive, and it's still working. Only two more weeks left to go! The US Sneak Peek version is only available for 4 weeks right now on a trial run, so I just think it's neat to be part of the very first US tester group. And I'm learning a whole lot about training others by watching Michelle train us;)

How did you work out this week?

Fall Family Traditions

Thursday, November 7, 2013

It's important to me that our little family establishes memorable traditions that extend our love for one another and our desire to make meaningful connections throughout our sometimes harried days. I like to pull out small little things that we can together enjoy either once a year, once in awhile or once per season. One day, I hope my son will remember some of these with fondness when he's all big and grown and perhaps even carry some of them on.


Whenever someone completes an accomplishment in our house, we make it a point to celebrate that person. It's not enough to just "high five" and "atta boy" each other. This past week, by some foreign-to-us luck, Hubster landed the position at work that he's been hoping for for over a year and a half. It was quite by miracle that he got it, but I can just see on his face how happy it makes him. So, we had a lunch date at one of his favorite Chinese restaurants. I think he liked it:)



Aside from that lunch, Hubster and I have made a concerted effort lately to have more date nights. We've had a few celebratory gift cards come our way that make it possible without the guilt. It's imperative to keep connecting on just a you/him level because it's way too easy to become two separate people with two separate lives. We want a partnership, so we choose actions that hold us true to that partnership.


Halloween harbors some other fun traditions for our family. On this holiday, I always bust out an Edgar Allan Poe tale or poem. Sure, the stories may be a little sinister at times, but I think it's a fun, intelligent way to end the night. Plus, I was an English major, so I thinks it's neat that we can slip some classic literature into our family traditions.


Aside from that, we also do the whole trick-or-treating thang too. Even in the rain, as we did this year. We grabbed a giant umbrella and hit the streets shortly after sundown. My feet were utterly soaked by the time we made it home, but you absolutely can't steal this tradition from a kid. Even one who's scared of trick or treating;)

Costume #1: pirate for Boo Fest

Costume #2: Batman for school

What are your favorite family fall traditions? 

Weekly Workout Rundown

Monday, November 4, 2013

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Monday:
  • 45 min 12WBT cardio and abs in the AM
  • 25 min LiveFit legs at lunch

Tuesday:
  • 50 min 12WBT total body tone in the AM
  • 30 min mod walk with mom at lunch

Wednesday:
  • 50 min 12WBT Tabata cardio in the AM

Thursday:
  • rest

Friday:
  • 25 min run at lunch
  • 50 min 12WBT yoga stretch in the PM

Saturday:

  • Rest


Sunday:

  • Rest



Well, I ran myself down pretty good this week. I had to skip workouts on Thursday and Saturday because I was feeling really rundown and sick-like. I came down with a cold, but the effects were widespread and I was pretty much out of commission. There were many naps and curling up in blankets involved. The weekend was kind of a bummer, but I'm feeling much better today. And Hubster and I were able to sneak in a secret breakfast date on Sunday morning because we were up so early with the time change, so not all was lost.

The 12 Week Body Transformation is so great, aside from the restrictive calories. Just to show you how restrictive, I followed the food to a "T" a few days, and Tuesday night I went to bed feeling hungry and ended up not being able to fall asleep for quite a long time because of my hunger. I finally went downstairs and ate some cottage cheese and then slept like a baby. Those 1200 calories are definitely not enough to live on with that kind of activity. I wore my HR monitor, and we're killing like 800 calories with these workouts. 1200-800=400 calories to live on. Not enough!!! I am however really loving the workouts and the new recipes. The forums and myriads of motivational videos are really inspiring. The 12WBT crew is quick to answer any questions you might have, which is like having personal trainers and nutritionists at your beckon call.

This week, I plan on easing back into the plan a bit, doing more of the beginner moves than the advanced ones. I'm still stuffy and recovering, and I don't want to feel like I did toward the end of last week again, that's for sure.

Next weekend, we're heading out on a small weekend trip to soak up the last of fall here in Wisconsin. We're staying at a little cabin relatively close to home and it's Hubster's birthday weekend. We're planning on doing a whole lot of nothing. And by nothing I mean, some casual hiking, picture-taking, apple roasting, movie-watching and partaking in some other comfy fall pleasures. This fall trip is meant to be a yearly tradition of going away. We went to Crivitz and visited waterfalls last year. You can read the story of this yearly tradition there. Can't wait to share the weekend pleasures with you next week!

How was your week?

Six Great Fitness Articles This Week

Thursday, October 31, 2013

I stumbled upon some great reads this week that were far more than worth sharing, they're worth practicing! Grab your pumpkin spice latte and have a read in between trick or treaters:

1. 25 Ways to Learn to Love Running
2. Top 10 Sources of Protein
3. 5 Global Fitness Secrets to Steal
4. Proper Running Form 101
5. 26 Reasons Not to Run a Marathon (a good follow-up to my popular article, It's Ok to be a Runner and Not Race).
6. Marathons Can Damage the Heart of Less Fit Runners (I keep seeing this report pop up all over the internets, a nice follow-up to the above)

Enjoy!

***P.S. I had to come back and share an amazing workout site I just found with tons of free workout videos: Fitness Blender. You're welcome! :)

Our Pumpkin Patch Weekend in Pictures

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

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This past weekend, my amazing workplace sponsored a day at a local farm,  so we took them up on the offer. We hijacked a couple of our nephews and took our family on a short trip. It was a sunny afternoon, but a bit windy and crisp, so we didn't linger quite as long on the activities as we usually do, but we sure made some memories:


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There were hay rides and pony rides

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Chicken and turkey catching

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Our star chicken catcher

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And the star turkey wrestler

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Cluck Cluck


Cow Milkin'

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My baby cow photo PA262148_zpsab6f0a02.jpg



Tractor Ridin'

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Tiny lovin'

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Baby bunny

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Where we spend the most time: with the kittens!

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He grabbed one and two more jumped up

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Cheer up, kid!

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The inside of the jacket is the best spot in the house

Pumpkin pickin'

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Trying to find just the right one

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I found mine!

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Tom-foolery

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Wheelbarrow ride to the pumpkin field

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The goat climbing stump



And a general concensus that we had fun

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