Tuesday, October 18, 2011

bah humbug (christmas photo card giveaway!)

still not running.
(that's slightly a lie--i ran once this month and went on one walk. your pr's better watch out!)

still ok with it.

sorry i have nothing exciting to talk about. (did i ever?) maybe one day i'll have some sort of explanation for what's going on. i've been 'out' for almost three months and i don't even have an injury.

since that's all still -whatever it is- how about a christmas card giveaway!

bah humbug

to all the grinch's out there, yes i realize it is not even halloween yet, but if you're like me you probably need to order your christmas cards now so you can start thinking about addressing them and maybe even send them out before 12/24. maybe.

paws and lights

last year i received 50 christmas photo cards from shutterfly and they were a hit. in fact, some friends still have them hanging on their refrigerators (and if you don't well shame on you, you're not getting one this year). i learned that i need a lot more than 50 cards though.

holly frame
the design i used last year

shutterfly's website is easy to use for designing holiday cards and there are many designs/layouts to choose from (i've sprinkled some of my favorites throughout this post). there are even a few hanukkah cards, though the selection is not as varied. you can also create calendars and other photo gifts, but i personally have no experience with either of those. my christmas cards turned out well last year so i imagine the other stationary and gifts are well made too.

hanukkah

the goods:
shutterfly wants to help make sure you send out cards on time this year and have offered up 25 free holiday photo cards for three (3) lucky winners!

to enter: leave a comment on this post.
for a bonus entry: visit shutterfly's collection of holiday cards and tell me which design is your favorite (leave a comment).

entries accepted now through november 1st.
three winners will be chosen at random.

note to bloggers!
are you a blogger? want a chance at 25 free cards this holiday season? register here.

peppermint christmas

disclaimer: i will receive 50 free christmas cards from shutterfly in exchange for hosting this giveaway.

Monday, October 3, 2011

september 2011: clemson

september 2011
total mileage: 31.25
(weekly mileage: 8.5, 11, 9.25, 0) oh yeah, you're impressed.
time spent running: 4hrs 59min
other exercise: 5k on the erg (24:57) and 10 weight sessions
days off: 15
avg temp: 70°
trip of the month: clemson!

running down the hill
the most exciting 25 seconds in college football

storming the field
clemson 35 - florida state 30

i took josh to his first clemson football game and it was an exciting one. clemson had recently broken into the top 25, and it's not unusual for them to choke and slide back out of the polls. it didn't happen for this game - we took the lead early on and just held on in the final moments to win.

and yes, they lower the goal posts after a game to prevent students from tearing them down. they had to upgrade those shortly after we beat #3 ranked florida state my sophomore year.

september baking
i tried my hand at making carrot cake (cupcakes and a 'loaf') from scratch for one of the guys at work. i need to work on my presentation, but they tasted moist and delicious.

overflowing cupcakes
i overloaded the cupcake wrappers and they exploded in the oven

cream cheese icing
delicious cream cheese icing - only 4 ingredients!
(1 box cream cheese, 1.5 sticks butter, 1 box powdered sugar, 1 tsp vanilla)

carrot cake
carrot cake "loaf"

after wrestling with the cupcakes, i poured the rest of the batter in a loaf sized pan to save time and energy. i'm not sure why it sank so much in the middle? perhaps you more expert bakers could help explain this. it worked out though, i did not mind the ratio of icing to cake.

later in the month, i made "tiger tails" for a goody (/food grazing) day at work. very easy to make and it appears well-liked as there were only two left (i couldn't eat them, so i can't vouch for how good they were/weren't). these would be great for tailgating - just use your team's colors, and don't call them tiger tails. unless you're lsu or auburn. (speaking of, how 'bout that trifecta of tiger victories on saturday?)

tiger tails