my favorite things.

oprah has a list every year.

i'm not nearly as big as oprah. i'm about as big as my frame of 6 feet ;) or as big as my audience of about 30 toddlers every week allows me to be.

but here's a few of my favorite things.

cheers ~

*woodwick candles: they crackle like a real little fire as, like the name says, the wick is wooden. nice scents too, not wholly overpowering. i'm a big fan of the 'sheer woods' flavor in the Fusion line.



*christmas lights and window boxes: i have mine all done as of today. not a lot of decor for our little home, but enough to make it feel festive ~ i have mainly all red & white lights going on, with a few more colors interspersed on our little tree ~


*snow at this time of year. especially the *first* snow of the season...and seeing it up on lake superior and then a mere days later in my own backyard is pretty great :)


*the grinch: who couldn't love cindy lou who, max and the green guy who's heart grows two sizes by the end?


*even in snow, i run. i run in these babies..: asics gel nimbus 10s. the 11s should be out in january. shoes are good for about 6 months or more depending on mileage. but i'm true to these shoes and they'll likely carry me through my first marathon next june...


so, julie andrews, i do love whiskers on kittens and big wooly mittens too, but i also love those things above in addition to many more that won't fit on the blog at the moment :)

peace and joy to the season of snow, good cheer and all of that~ jd

of all people...

to tell me i need to update my blog, it's my husband.

for someone who has his own website that he updates, oh, every *year* or so, i find this a bit ironic ;)

there's not too much to report, so i don't update the blog when the news is meager. (i post really mundane things to facebook instead...isn't that what it's for? :)

i recently started a new waitress job. yes, job #3. i also recently charged a ticket to visit Gram in maui from jan 22-feb 2. so adding one more job will help me pay off that ticket sooner than later, and will keep me busy while mark endures a crazy singing/retail season from now until early february.

the new gig does make me feel like my "new girl" crown is very much on display, but i hope i'll fit in within a few weeks and that i won't feel so freaked out..

turkey day is in a mere 5 days.

my mom is coming up to visit for the first time in 6 years.

haven't seen her in almost 2 years, which is embarrassing to admit, but it's just how it's been. fwiw, i *have* invited her up each summer to go enjoy the northern part of our state or even wisconsin, but it's never panned out.

so on wednesday, she and ron will head up hwy 61 to lutsen, and later in the day, mark and i and the 2 greyhounds will follow...our first family vacation with the dogs.

it'll be a short trip, but any time i can visit the mother lake, i am a happy girl. i don't care what date or season it is.

i love it especially when the water is 'angry'...big waves, winds, gray skies?? bring it on. it's still as beautiful to me as a calm still summer day when the clean water is a deep blue...

things i am thankful for?
*the love of my husband

*the love of my friends

*the love of family across the miles

*having a roof over my head

*a stable and wonderful career (or two)

*my furkids

*wine, coffee & running (in no particular order)

may you all have a wonderful week of giving thanks for whatever it is that makes your own world's go round...~jd

perspective...

it's sunday night. about 10:30...

this will be my earliest bedtime in about 4 days....

i spent the weekend with the runner girls at friend kim's family cabin about 100 miles north of here.

no, it wasn't on the north shore. yes, i love the north shore, but i do love exploring *different* areas if the situation arises....

there were 8 of us up there total most of the weekend, but ally, kim and i enjoyed the pleasure of heading up there on our own on thursday night, and everyone else joined us between friday & saturday evenings....

we had much girl bonding...(no, sorry, no pillow fights ;) including talk about running, next year's races, and more than anything *RELAXING*. we knitted. we watched 7 movies over 3 days. and yes, we ran. some of us a few miles more than others depending on how we felt. I got in almost 11 miles in, and for all the bitchin' and whining i did about it before hand, it went pretty darn well....(i can get whiney...is that a shocker?? hahaha~)

i am very very close to making it official that as of january 15, 2009, i will register for grandma's full marathon in duluth on june 20, 2009.

but i'm not quite there yet. i still can't put my head or mental prowess around just how long and taxing both mentally and physically that will be.

and, seriously, i have to talk to the workplace about this. training for a full 26.2 race WILL affect my work schedule, and for all practical purposes, i have to talk to the bosses about how to make this possible. if they say it just won't work, well, then i'm out...

i had an amazingly laid back weekend with the girls, and after all of the miles, sweat & tears we shared over the past 9 months of training, traveling and racing, it was soooooo welcome to just be together hanging out, talking, eating, drinking and being together (outside of a workout or two). i did miss mark, and it always feels weird to not have him around, but this weekend it was all girls all the time, and i counted my blessings to have such amazing friends in my life. not just in running, but on many fronts.

there's not a whole heckofa lot to blog about lately, so stay warm as winter descends upon us and if anything blog worthy pops up, i'll post it. but until then i think i might start a new diet of sorts...and limit my time online. believe it or not. happy november....~jd

a 55 degree difference...

last sunday?

mark's birthday. gorgeous. 70 degrees. walked the dogs...indian summer.

this sunday?

windchill (yep. that word is back..) makes it feel like 15.

yes, *above* zero, but still...

this is what our yard looks like in the past week. due to our neighbor's ginormous silver maple that likes to wait to shed late in the fall...


yep, there's lots of grass under the carpet of leaves. but until it is *warmer* and dry (it's rained and snowed some the past few days too making leaf raking today one of the least desirable chores ever) the yard will look like this...



not much news around here. heading down to see my friend David for an overnight visit tonight, and then heading to my friend kim's cabin in a week with the runner girls to have a celebratory retreat after all of the running we did the past 8 months.

birthday is wednesday and really don't have any plans other than getting a run in (one of the few days this week i can do that). I did order myself a birthday present this week, and successfully sold some dansko clogs on eBay to help pay for my present. (yep, more shoes).

i can't believe thanksgiving is a mere 3 weeks away.
well off to nap on a lazy sunday afternoon....hope everyone is well. ~J

i look forward...

to the next 4 years.

and am proud to be part of u.s. history tonight.

and missing my native home town just a bit as our president elect speaks in a beautiful park.

what an amazing day...

indian summer

(cora on the trail...in her pumpkin finery...)

we've had stunning weather the past few days. 70s, sunny, very un-november-like.

mark turned 40 + 1 on Sunday the 2nd. We took the doggers for a really nice long walk to a local lake and back (even tried to stop and see a family who lives nearby; sorry Jeremi :( we missed you!)

So a few photos...


my other half and our version of kids...


late autumn on lake mccarron's

when we got home the dogs were f-l-a-t (yes, even more than normal!) almost immediately.

remember, greyhounds are sprinters, and these guys took a leisurely almost 2 mile walk. so they were tuckered out. (after that we wine-bar-hopped (dh's idea, which was great!) and visited three local wine bars for appetizers and wine that we had never been to. good times...) anywho...

our 'third' dog joined cora on the new beds...


have a good first week of the 11th month, and let's hope tomorrow's election brings the right results for once...

~jd