'Tis the season... to be running!

I think fall is marathon season, but spring has no shortage of races for us this year. We signed up for a couple of races in the Bellingham Trail series and I think it's only proving that I enjoy road racing more than trail, but hopefully it's at least making me a better runner. I learned from the winter series that it's better for me to the shortest distance they offer, but unfortunately, that means some half marathons for this upcoming series.

We started with Fragrance Lake up in Larrabee State Park. It was chilly, but sunny, so I was able to enjoy some views of the water as I powered up the long hill in mile two. I only ran the 10k, so I was able to wait for Dustin at the finish of the half marathon.

A few weeks later, Dustin ran the Lake Sammamish half marathon and got a new PR of 1:24:06!

It probably had something to do with all of the delicious food I've been making lately. Ok, it really had to do with how hard he'd been training.... but I did try some fun things including peanut butter chocolate chip waffles, vegan benedicts, shepherd's pie, and some amazing copycat thin mint girl scout cookies.

The cookies don't look like much, but they're delicious!

The week after the Lake Sammamish half, we both ran the Stewart Mountain half marathon. It was raining at the start, but wasn't too cold. I had take my jacket off after a few miles because it was warm enough even with the rain while we were on the lower half of the mountain. Somewhere in the fourth mile, we started the climb to the top of the mountain and we had about five miles to get there. We were going up a service road and it was much more exposed to the wind. With the rain and the wind, it got cold, and I was slightly miserable in those last two miles. At least there were others there who were miserable with me and we just have to laugh it off. There weren't any views at the top because of the weather, but I was too excited to turn around and get down to care. It didn't seem to bother Dustin as much... he took 2nd place!

The next day, the rain continued. Dustin and I had volunteered to cheer on runners from the Brooks booth at the St. Patty's Dash. Dustin and a few others were dressed up in blow-up Leprechaun suits and the runners really seemed to enjoy their spirit! It was so fun, we didn't care that we were all soaking wet by the time the race ended.

 Just another week later, we both ran the Mercer Island half marathon. It was my first time running it and I actually really enjoyed the course! I was expecting it to be a lot of hills, but it honestly felt like a lot of downhill too. It was a beautiful day for running, and such a nice change after all of the rain the weekend before. I finished in 1:53:18 and Dustin in 1:24:18.

We celebrated the run by going to VegFest! There were a lot of the same vendors as last year, but we also got to try some new things and renewed our membership to the Vegetarians of Washington group. I know, nerds!

I took a cooking class at PCC with Mirra. It was a hands-on class and we got to help prepare what she was teaching us to make (two soups and two salads - all vegan) and then they served us the food. Everything was really good and I even learned a new way to cut an onion!

Dustin signed up for a one-day writing conference in Portland so we went down there for a weekend. I dropped him off on Saturday morning and then went out for a day in the city. I walked to what they call the "vegan strip mall" even though it's only three stores, and enjoyed a peanut butter cinnamon roll and a hazelnut milk latte at Sweetpea Baking Co. Then I walked next door to Herbivore, a little store with clothing, jewelry, books, etc. There's a grocery store next door and I picked up a few things to try that I hadn't seen before and my favorite Bee Free Honee... all flavors!

As I left the strip mall, I saw a woman running with Leeks in her hands. And she wasn't running like she was in a hurry, she was just out for a run! I love Portland.

I walked back to downtown to Petunia's and enjoyed a vegan pot pie which was incredible! The crust was so flakey and soft, and followed it with a cookie. I also bought a donut and a cupcake for us to try later. The chocolate donut was ok, but the cookie monster cupcake was delicious!

I walked off my lunch at the Saturday Market, where I found all kinds of great things to buy. I should not be left unattended there.

Then I met up with Dustin and we cranked out a 10 mile run along the esplanade before heading to The Bye & Bye, a pretty cool bar with great vegan food. We shared some pretzel bites enjoyed a meatball sub and the cornmeal tempeh sandwich. It was a cool spot and I'd definitely go back.

Sunday morning we went for a run. I only did six and Dustin ran 20 and met me at A.N.D. Cafe for brunch. We sat at a little table outside and enjoyed some sunshine, as well as a burrito, hash, and a mushroom melt waffle. All were delicious!

I also picked up two other things to try from Back to Eden Bakery (it's becoming my mission to try every vegan place in Portland). We tried a pistachio donut, which was very cakey and I didn't love the frosting, but the carrot cake cupcake more than made up for it! It was a dense cupcake with deliciously creamy frosting. I'm ready to move to Portland....