Sorry the blog has been down a lot lately, Hostgator support staff assures me this issue is now resolved.
We finished our first 5k of the year in about 32 minutes. Slow, yes, but we ran the whole thing and it was FREEZING so I am actually still proud of myself! I also completed a 4 mile run on my own recently, which is a new record for this lazy bum.
We may squeeze in another local event before we head out to Kings Island on the 22nd. There is actually a 6K in Chicago called the Dow Run for Water, which is intriguing. The date for that is April 17th.
So, the hubby and I have finally committed to getting into shape, for real. We’ve decided to do this by running. In the past, we’ve had various “spurts” of running activity, doing a race or two here and there, but not for a couple of years and not for any prolonged period of time. This time around, we hope to increase our chances of long-term success by using running as an excuse to hit up various midwestern destinations that we enjoy. Bonus: running a Saturday morning 5k will leave us ready to eat more great food!
Here are the races/trips we are considering at this time:
Late March, 2010 – local 5k race (signed up)
May 22, 2010 – For a Kid Again 5k Run/Walk (At Kings Island near Cincinnati, OH) (signed up)
June 5, 2010 – Sunburst 10K Run (South Bend, IN)
June 26, 2010 – Binder Park Cheetah Chase 5K Run (Battle Creek, MI)
July 24, 2010 – Sausage 5K Run/Walk (Milwaukee, WI)
August 1, 2010 – Rock n’ Roll Half-Marathon (Chicago, IL)
August 14, 2010 – Blueberry Festival 5k (South Haven, MI)
October 1, 2010 – Twin Cities Marathon (Minneapolis, MN) (signed up)
As you can see, we have a fun list! Obviously we probably won’t be doing all of these events, but we hope to make our way through a good bit of this list! After about six weeks of training I’m currently up to running 3.5 miles straight (hey, you have to start somewhere!) and about 10 total per week. I’ll keep you posted about our racing/traveling adventures!
We don’t usually venture out on Valentine’s day weekend, but circumstances require us to be out of town this year. After waiting until the last minute, we (unsurprisingly) had trouble snagging a dinner reservation. If you’re in the same boat, don’t panic – opentable.com still shows availability for a party of two at quite a few of my favorite midwestern restaurants.
Act fast, as these reservations won’t be available for long! Keep in mind that some of these places may feature a “special” (i.e., limited and extra expensive) menu, so be sure to call ahead to avoid disappointment.
1. Scholar’s Inn - Indianapolis, IN – February 13th and 14th, availability from 8:00 p.m. onward.
2. La Scala – Lafayette, IN – February 14th only, scattered availability between 6:00 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
3. Kil@Wat – Milwaukee, WI – February 13th, availability from 9:30 p.m. onward; February 14th, scattered availability all evening.
4. 1913 Room – Grand Rapids, MI – February 14th only, availability at 6:00 p.m. and from 9:00 p.m. onward.
5. Cielo Restaurant – St. Louis, MO – February 13th, availability at 5:30 p.m. and from 9:15 p.m. onward; February availability from 8:30 p.m. onward.
6. Rhapsody – Chicago, IL – February 13th, availability at 6:00 p.m. and from 8:30 p.m. onward, February 14th availability through 7:45 p.m.
In the alternative to venturing out for dinner, you can always do what we usually do and curl up on the couch with a pizza and some movie theater-sized boxes of candy! One year we even went to McDonald’s, and it was a blast.
Happy Valentine’s Day!
While I’m not a ballet person in general, I love the tradition and festival associated with The Nutcracker. I haven’t seen it live in years but as part of my vow to do so this year I’ve done a little research and come up with ten places in the Midwest where you – and I – can see this holiday production.
In no particular order. . .
1. Chicago, IL – The Joffrey Ballet’s The Nutcracker at the Auditorium Theater – December 11-27, 2009
2. Minneapolis, MN – Moscow Ballet’s Great Russian Nutcracker at Murat Theater – December 11-12, 2009
3. Fort Wayne, IN – Fort Wayne Ballet’s The Nutcracker at Fort Wayne Performing Arts Center – December 4-13, 2009
4. Cleveland, OH – Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet’s Nutcracker at Playhouse Square’s Allen Theater – December 10-13, 2009
5. Witchita, KS – Ballet Witchita’s The Nutcracker at Century II Concert Hall – December 12-13, 2009
6. St. Louis, MO – St. Louis Ballet’s The Nutcracker at the Touhill at Touhill Performing Arts Center – December 18-22, 2009
7. Grand Rapids, MI – Grand Rapids Ballet Company’s The Nutcracker at DeVos Performance Hall – December 11-20, 2009
8. Madison, WI – Madison Ballet’s The Nutcracker at Overture Hall – December 18-20, 2009
9. Des Moines, IA – Ballet Des Moines’ The Nutcracker at Hoyt Sherman Place Theater – December 11-13, 2009
10. Lincoln, NE – Lincoln Midwest Ballet Company’s The Nutcracker Ballet at the Lied Center for the Performing Arts – December 19-20, 2009.
I rarely step foot out my door for a weekend getaway without heading to each of these five sites in search of a great deal.
1. www.sidestep.com – Sidestep doesn’t offer any deals of its own, but instead aggregates the offers of others. With one push of a button, you can search for and compare prices offered on Travelocity, Expedia, Hotels.com, and even hotel websites and lesser known cut-rate travel sites. Sidestep will then display the best price with a link to send you to the website of choice. Even if you find what you believe to be a great deal elsewhere, it’s always a good idea to double-check it at Sidestep to make sure you are really getting the best price. Unlike some of the other sites listed here, Sidestep works just as well in small towns as in large cities.
2. www.hotwire.com – While many sing the praises of Priceline, Hotwire’s instant gratification makes it my blind-booking site of choice. Purchasers bid on a hotel based on its location, star rating, and amenities. The name is provided only after a non-refundable purchase is made. This may sound scary, but the addition of Tripadvisor aggregate ratings for most major cities makes it less so. Anything with at least a 3 star Hotwire rating and a 3.5 star Tripadvisor rating is almost certainly just fine.
Hotwire is only truly useful in large cities where competition leads to low prices. We’ve gotten the Drake in Chicago for $129 (regularly $300+) and the Omni in Indianapolis for around $80.00 (regularly $200+). If you like nice hotels but don’t care which one you stay in, Hotwire is the way to go. Still, Hotwire is not for the inflexible or the risk adverse, so don’t bother if you must have a pet-friendly hotel or a location in a particular neighborhood.
3. www.otel.com – I stumbled upon this site by fluke while looking for an Orlando hotel over New Year’s and discovered jaw-droppingly low prices on many highly-rated properties. For that particular stay, Otel’s price was literally a third of its competitors for four night’s at the Peabody. Otel does not always have the lowest prices, but occasionally you can get a ridiculously good deal and the rates offered seem oddly unaffected by holidays. For some reason Otel doesn’t typically show up on price aggregators like Sidestep or Kayak, so you will need to go to this site directly to check rates.
Otel is unique from most other discount sites in that has a pretty decent loyalty program. Each purchase results in a number of rewards dollars which can be applied to a future stay. This means spending just $100 or so will give you $7 or $8 off the already-discounted price of a future room.
4. www.marriott.com – Out of all the major hotel chains, Marriott has the best on-site deals, mostly reserved for those with a AAA membership. The discount available for a single night’s stay may be worth the price of the card! You are practically guaranteed to receive at least a 15% discount, and I’ve seen rates as much as 40% lower. I also love this website’s ease of use, particularly for those with a Rewards account.
5. www.travelzoo.com – This site is best for travelers with flexible plans and a lot of patience. Occasionally, though, you may be able to find a great rate for exactly when and where you want to go. A search for a particular city will bring up hotel deals in that city, flights to and from that city, and the occasional sports game or concert discount ticket. We’ve gotten a great Omni for $99 (regularly $200+) and I see they are currently offering some nice downtown Chicago hotels in the $120 range for summer weekends. If nothing else, typing in a nearby city may give you some ideas for fun local activities.
