Words cannot even begin to explain how crazy busy/stressed I’ve been the past 6 weeks or so. There are several reasons for this, but I’ll spare you all the details.
The good news is that things are starting to look up! I’m beginning to feel less and less like every moment of my life must be geared toward completing a list of tasks. Relaxation time is slowly re-entering my life, and I like it. Not to mention, as my to-do list dwindles, the amount of time I spend blogging can increase!
Exercise
Today was the first time I’ve felt like I had a proper workout in about a week. Instead of heading down to my apartment complex’s crappy workout room with intentions of completing my exercise in the shortest amount of time possible, I drove to a local trail for a change of scenery.
I ran 6 miles in about 63 minutes. Not bad since I had to stop a few times and walk through a few rough patches in the trail. (After twisting my ankle a few too many times while hiking, I’m painstakingly cautious when it comes to rough terrain.)
Weekend Fun
We had a great weekend together. Sadly, Stephen’s spring break is over, and he has officially gone back to Charleston. 
Friday
After a long 3 1/2 hours of suit shopping, we were both too exhausted to cook. So we headed to Bangkok, one of my favorite Thai restaurants.
We both agreed they served some of the best Red Curry we’ve ever tried. And we’ve had a lot!
Saturday
We had a late lunch at my parents’ house on Saturday.
My mom began the meal with an appetizer of baba ganoush.
It looks not so appetizing, but it was actually really good!
Basically, baba ganoush is pureed eggplant and tahini – very similar to hummus, but with an even crazier name.
For the main course we had sautéed veggies and some very classy frozen pizza.
After our filling lunch, my mom, Stephen, and I took advantage of the beautiful weather and walked around the neighborhood.
We came back to the house and indulged in some tasty peanut butter cookies adapted from Vanilla Sugar. The recipe will be posted later this week. (Spoiler alert: it includes White Chocolate Wonderful peanut butter!)
Not the prettiest! But definitely one of the best cookies I’ve ever had. I ate 4 in a row, and I generally have a will power of stealth when it comes to baked goods.
And of course, I couldn’t help but post a Beattie shot. She loves to chill in paper sacks.
Sunday
Sunday was a special day in Lily’s Health Pad history – my first blogger meet-up! Introducing some fabulous ladies: Katie, Katherine, Carla, Christina, and Christina’s sister Veronica. (Did you know Katherine and I are actually long lost friends from college?)
Any other SC bloggers out there?? I want to meet up with you too!
We decided to meet up at The Bohemian, a small restaurant located near downtown. The brunch menu was filled with Southern favorites. After carefully reading the description of each item, I decided on the jalapeño pimento cheese sandwich. It was served with homemade potato chips. I didn’t realize those were part of the deal.
True story: I have never liked plain flavored potato chips. The smell of Lay’s grossed me out as a child, and I’ve been conditioned to dislike them ever since. 
Mmmm…pimento cheese!
The blogger meet-up was AWESOME! I had such a great time talking with these ladies. I was fairly nervous on my drive the the restaurant: I felt like I was going on a date! But once I got there, I realized there was nothing to be worried about. Bloggers never have a hard time making convo with each other. 
***
After a busy weekend, it’s back to the grind! I have a lot to do this week, such as completing my final graduate school presentation. I have to give it on Friday (my birthday), and I haven’t even started yet. Oops!
Speaking of birthdays…look what arrived in my mailbox all the way from Alaska?
A birthday card and an adorable book titled Oats! from my grad school bff Cathy! She knows me too well. (I knew Cathy and I were destined to be friends when I found out she has a cat named Beatrice too!)
Cathy, I miss you! Please stop signing contracts in Alaska and come back to SC soon!
Question: How do you remove yourself from an exercise rut? I’m fairly certain I’m dangerously close to entering one.
I’m glad the crazy stress is starting to dwindle
Baba ganoush is…dare I say it…better than hummus?! At least I think so
I’m looking forward to the cookie recipe!
Yay! Nice to see a post again
Hehe at your cat – my cats have a thing for bags too – plastic, paper, it’s all good…cats are so weird :s
I was in an exercise rut the other week – I had zero motivation! So I kinda embraced it, had 10 ‘easy days’ of no running, and now I’ve got back to it I feel refreshed! I’ve also discovered some new routes, so it’s more fun. SOO I’d say my advice – have a short break, then try something totally different!
Good luck
I think exercise ruts are common…I usually give myself some time off, and then I try to get back into it slowly. I just always remember how hard it is to get back into it once you’ve been out.
I have never been to a blogger meet up…so jealous!
Exercise ruts? I try to change up my workouts every 4-6 weeks…that goes for lifting and cardio, too.
Happy Belated (or early??) birthday to you!! I love that card, it’s great.
I’m sorry to hear you have been stressed. It must be this darn month of April because it’s been CRAZY busy for me too. I almost entered a serious exercise rut too, until I reminded myself that by NOT exercising, I’d likely be even MORE stressed. You know? It does make me feel much better, and happier
I think it’s a great idea to always try new things, such as what you did by walking on the trails. Mixing it up always keeps me motivated.
Have a great Tuesday Lily!
Blogger meet up!! Jealous! Everyone is so pretty!!! and nice looking!! Anyways, I’m sad for you that his spring break is over but I’m sure you’ll see him again in a week or so! BTW your mom always makes you pimento cheese sandwiches so i can’t believe you ordered one
Anyways, I need to step up my exercise…right now I’m leaving soon but instead of working out…I chose to go to the grocery store. 
OH MY!
ahh exercise ruts are SO common and usually can happen if there is some overtraining going on, usually if I have no motivation its because I have beenn over training a bit, so I step back and take a few days off!!
love the pics what a fun meet up!
An oats book?!? Perfect!
Blogger meetups are always a little nervewracking. I remember when I first met with Ashley, and it was just the two of us. Luckily, we really hit it off and had a lot to talk about. I think at least meeting in a big group of people makes it a little less intimidating.
Hope you get stress free soon, girl!! Remember to breathe!
hooray! this was only my third blogger meetup and i totally agree that they’re like blind dates. except blind dates where you know what the person looks like and pretty much everything they eat… which only makes it weirder.
good thing it’s always fun!
Hey hey pretty lady! Looks like a fun week! Whenever I feel like I am about to enter a rut I spice it up and try new forms of exercise. That might help!
It was so great to see you again! I had the “blind date” jitters too, and I hate that I felt so icky – we need to do it again soon on a weekend I’m behaving!! PS – I think I should’ve gotten the pimento cheese sandwich…your lunch looked much more appealing than mine!
I liked yours! I wished I had gotten it instead of mine!
I am so jealous 1) of the SC blogger meet-up and 2) of your stealth willpower around baked goods. Who even has that? Are you super human?
I know I will be visiting SC this summer because my friend is moving to the Bluffton/HHI area, and I know we’ll be doing Savannah a bunch in the fall when the tourist season dies down. Y’all (see I’m totally becoming a native) should come to Jax — there are at least three of us here!
so glad your stress is dwindling, I’m feeling the stress creep up towards the end of the semester and I need to tackle it
I love blogger meet ups even though I’ve only had one. It’s like talking to someone you’ve always known for years! Getting out of a rut is first listening to your body and seeing if you may really need a break, but if I just need some motivation I think about how good I feel afterwards and just go for it!
Oh I’m so glad you posted about this!! I’ve been in a bit of a workout rut lately….. I haven’t been to the gym in about 2 weeks and today is the day I’m going back!! I feel that I needed the break to refresh and really want to go back.
Looks like a great blogger meet up!!!! And great looking cookies too, can’t wait for the recipe!!
I love blogger meetups. I don’t ever really feel awkward since anyone I’ve met has been someone I feel like I already know so much about anyways and vice versa. They sure are fun!
Glad to hear your stress is starting to wind down. That is great. And for exercise ruts, I always try something new and switch things up to get me out of them.
So good to hear that the crazy stress is lessening, that can’t have felt good. It really looks like you have had a packed, but amazing weekend! I just love the time spent with Stephen and your mom- the cookies truly sound mouth watering delicious! White Chocolate Wonderful!
I’m also so impressed with the pimento cheese sandwich! Looks dynamite! Blogger meet ups always seem like such fun, I’m going to have to organize one!
I think exercise ruts can be cured by either pushing yourself out of your comfort zone and trying a different exercise- a group fitness class does wonders, or taking a short break from exercise altogether. Sometimes a few days away from it can really restore and renew your motivation and vigor!
oh i am glad to hear you are coming back…..sorry you have been so busy. it is amazing what a good 6 mile run does for you…..looking forward to reading more posts!
I’m happy the hectic life is beginning to slow down for you! The picture of Beatrice made me smile. I’m so jealous of all the blogger meetups..wish I lived closer to other bloggers. Looks like a fun time though!
When I’m in an exercise rut, I mix it up a little by taking new classes at the gym or cutting out workouts from magazines and trying those…or new workout DVDs. There is always something new and exciting to try.
Hi Lily! I’m glad to hear that you are getting to relax a bit. Relaxing is essential for me! So jealous of the meetup- looks like tons of fun!
Exercise rut…. good question. I’ve been feeling a little lost exercise-wise since things have been so crazy. I’ve been exercising but I feel like I don’t have a purpose since I don’t have a training plan. I need to get my act together since my Ragnar Relay is a month away, eep!
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Your meet up looks fun.
When I’m in an exercise rut, I usually sign up for a race, or do a new class, like yoga or pilates or just switch it up somehow.
Lily, you are good with goals and targets, so for the exercise rut, I’d advise – picking a Marathon and beginning the training schedule. I would be glad to be your “second” at another.
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