Monday, April 11, 2011

Shamrock Shuffle 2K11

Yesterday hubster and I ran the Bank of America Shamrock Shuffle 8k. This was our second time running the shuffle. Last year when we ran it, the weather hit 32 degrees and it was raining. I nearly froze my behind off and it took hours for me to thaw. Speaking of thaw, this year's shuffle had a unique tagline, "Spring Thaw". The Shuffle is the unofficial kickoff to running season in Chicago and I think it's really creative that they created the Spring Thaw tagline. This year, the weather was HOT! The weather was already at 70 degrees at 9am. Personally, I think it was hotter yesterday than when I ran the Chicago Marathon last October. The heat killed me yesterday. I was dying of thirst on the course and the 2 water stations were simply not enough. I suppose you can't blame the race organizers. The race is usually held in March, but they pushed it back to April this year. Usually April does not hit 80 degrees, but it did yesterday.

I admit, I'm out of shape. The 4.97 race got the best of me and I did not improve my Shuffle time from last year. I'm not really all that disappointed by it either. I know I'm out of shape and for only putting in 2 mediocre runs before Sunday, I did an alright job. At least I finished.


The sun was a little too bright for my liking, but we never took another photo. This is our Shamrock Shuffle 2k11 memory... so be it.

Thursday, April 7, 2011

Eclair Cake

Last week a tried a new dessert recipe at the request of my mom. I found a great recipe on allrecipes.com. I ended up choosing a recipe called Eclair Cake and it was delicious! It was so easy and only takes about 30 minutes to prepare... no baking required. 


I've made this recipe twice; here are some tips: 
   1. Do not use skim milk. I bought a small milk jug of 2% so I didn't have to buy an entire gallon (I usually drink skim). 

   2. Let the cake set in the fridge for at least 3 hours (minimum). The longer it sits in the fridge, the softer the graham crackers become (it's key to the recipe). 

This has become my go-to dessert recipe. Everyone loves it and there's never any leftovers. Enjoy! 



{ mix together 2 packages of vanilla pudding... do not use skim milk. Opt for 2% for the richness } 


{ fold in 1 tub of Whip Cream } 


{ mix the pudding and whip cream mixture for 2 minutes } 


{ grease a pan with butter, add one layer of graham crackers, layer 1/2 pudding mixture... repeat these two layers and finish with a third layer of crackers } 


{ heat unsweetened coco powder, sugar  and milk until smooth... remove from heat and add butter & vanilla... pour on top } 

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Oh my my!

I love everything about brunch. I love that you can mix and match breakfast and lunch items with the option of sipping on an adult beverage of your choice.  I prefer to dress up comfy-cute in the spring and whimsical in the summer. Seriously, brunch is perfection.

While I was in Baltimore for a conference last week, my co-workers and I grabbed brunch at our hotel restaurant with a view of the inner harbor.


I enjoyed a waffle, fresh fruit, and a pineapple shooter (among many other delicious items). Doesn't it look fabulous? 

I haven't been to brunch in Chicago lately, but the streak will come to an end next weekend. Hubster and I are running the Shamrock Shuffle 8k next Sunday and we're grabbing brunch after our hearty 5 mile (ish) run. Can't wait!