Juliana Moves

Good morning, and happy Sunday! I’m writing to you from the couch. After I finished my run last night, I noticed my throat felt a little sore, but I chalked it up to running in the cold. I tossed and turned all night and woke up feeling extremely blah. My throat was still sore, and I felt congested and uncomfortable. After sleeping and lounging a bit more, I made my way downstairs and to the couch. I did some spending tracking for the month (yay!) and enjoyed my cafe au lait. Eventually I’ll make it outside for a run. It’s so gray/white and frosty today! Patrick is trail running at Rock Creek and, while I do wish I were on trails today, I don’t envy him in the cold.

This week was very busy for me. Between the PATC Council meeting on Tuesday night and a very busy board meeting week at work, my brain was alert and working all week. I didn’t sleep as much as I would’ve liked either, but I think things are calming down for the rest of the year. 🙂 

Despite a pretty demanding week, here’s what I’ve been…

…Reading: Still trucking through Eyeliner and The Great Gatsby, but I also caved and started Death on the Nile by my girl Agatha. My hold became available at the library! What else was I supposed to do?! Just let it sit on my bedside table? No way.

…Eating: Lots of sandwiches. During a busy week, I find it extremely helpful to have sandwich fixings in the fridge. I had sandwiches for dinner, I could pack them in my lunch, and I was always satisfied. My hot take is that a cold cut sandwich is almost never complete without lettuce and tomato. I don’t care that it’s freezing outside and tomatoes aren’t in season! I need tomato texture.

…Wearing: Leggings – on the run. We pivoted from pleasant fall to winter really fast. I’m not necessarily complaining, but it’s almost always too cold for me to get away with shorts on runs now. Especially when I’m running in the dark. It’s odd for me because last winter was relatively mild and I think I got away with wearing shorts pretty often. Alas, the winter arc begins! 😉 

…Listening to: Stuff You Should Know Christmas Extravaganza episodes! Last year I listened to the backlog of all the holiday specials and really enjoyed it on my runs. Last night, I ran around looking at Christmas lights and finally started re-listening to the older SYSK episodes. I’m loving the holiday season this year!

…Trying: To soak up the holidays as much as possible! As mentioned above, I am really loving the Christmas season this year. Our coffee advent has been so much fun and helps me stay present and grateful for a daily task. We’re going to watch Christmas movies throughout the month (maybe Home Alone tonight!). The weather has been seasonally appropriate, and it even snowed this week!

…Thinking About: How nice it is to have a clean house. We held a small gathering yesterday, so we tidied up in advance. I don’t think we let our house get gross, but I can always notice the difference when we pick up and organize. Shocker! 

…Planning: Out my day. Here’s what’s on my to do list:

• Finish the laundry
• Put away all my clothes & remake the bed
• Run 10 miles
• Do my upper body lift
• Go to the library
• Meal plan and grocery shop
• Yoga/Recovery 
• Empty the dishwasher

I don’t mind some of these chores because it makes me excited and feel well-prepared for the week ahead 🙂 I hope you do too!

If you’re looking for a little bit of inspiration to lean into the holiday season this week, I’d suggest playing instrumental Christmas music as you get ready in the morning, making an extra cozy pasta dish for dinner, or finding a seasonal whipped cream to put on your morning coffee.

Love,

JN