Hard to believe 2011 is gone, seems like I was just wrapping up 2010. My plans today were pretty laid back – 4-mile run, start the not-so-fun task of putting away the Christmas decorations, and an early movie and dinner with hubby before welcoming the new year at home watching movies, playing games, and relaxing with our pets in front of the fireplace. And reflecting on what an interesting year it’s been.
Running – This year I completed two half marathons, the Shamrock’n Half, which was an interesting challenge with me not feeling 100% and dealing with a time change.
Somehow I was still smiling after 13.1 miles and PR’d, can’t complain about that!
Also I completed the Urban Cow with another PR.
I’m not sure how many races I’ll be doing this year. They were great to get me into a more regular running schedule, but tough to train for with work and so much else going on in life. I think I’ll be focusing on maintaining a regular running schedule, tackling new running challenges – like trail running, and covering 700 miles or more in 2012.
Events – It was a fun year for events with mini-road trips and weekend getaways. Like meeting Ani Phyo at the Sunset Celebration Weekend.
And getting rained out all day from a freak week of rain in the area.
The Capay Tomato Festival was also a great time.
We got to explore and picnic in the orchards and lush farm land that our organic produce boxes, and most of the produce at our local Whole Foods, comes from.
We also made it to the Raw Health Expo again and was pleased to see it’s grown a lot since the year before!
I got to watch one of my favorite raw chefs in action, Cherie Soria.
And I can’t wait to see what the expo offers in 2012!
We also experienced the Living Light Institute in Fort Bragg.
And stuffed on some amazing raw vegan dishes in the cafe.
And, of course, there was the Foodbuzz Blogger Festival in San Francisco.
With lots of eating and drinking!
And meeting wonderful bloggers.
While there seemed to be more vegan sample and appetizer options this year, the vegan options for the gala dinner were a serious let down. Hopefully that’s not the case next year.
Movies – I did make time to see two movies that had a serious impact on me, Forks Over Knives was a huge one and it seemed like to took forever to finally make it to a local theater in Sacramento!
Too bad it didn’t get a wider showing because it’s a fascinating and entertaining documentary that everyone should see whether they agree with the content or not. It gives hope that we have a lot more control over our health through diet and lifestyle than maybe once believed and a shocking revelation that doctors aren’t nutritionists and people really should seek advice from nutritionist as well as a doctor when dealing with sensitive health issues and reducing a dependency on medications.
I also finally saw May I Be Frank when it made it to video.
Another great movie that documents the emotional journey of conquering addictions and the effect unprocessed emotional baggage can have on diet and lifestyle.
Recipes – I didn’t get as much time to experiment and create recipes as I would have liked in 2011, but oh well. I did become obsessed with making raw date balls as pre-run energy snacks and healthier desserts.
Apparently it was also the year of quinoa with Vibrant Lemon Quinoa.
And some other great raw recipes like Hemp Seed Alfredo
I also really stepped up my game in sprouting.
We also adopted a new family member.
And he’s been an absolute joy since bringing him home just full of constant energy and always happy. He’s also great with my nieces and nephew which I love.
A serious low this year was losing my grandma after a tough emotional roller coaster month of hospital visits.
We thought about her and missed her a lot during our family holiday gatherings. She was such a smart and amazing woman who I’ll always look up to.
Wow, it’s actually been quite a year and I’m looking forward to what 2012 has to offer. More on that tomorrow! Tonight I hope everyone is having a wonderful New Year’s celebration.
Love the recipe recap
Date balls
Quinoa recipes
Awesome sauces in the Vitamix…
Those are things that you are really great at! Love the memory refreshing on some of those!
And running, rather than running/training for a race, is great. Just running without worrying about training plans is nice…and that would be the kind of runner I am these days.
Love this post and reliving the year with you…as I remember what I was doing in my own life when I Read each of these posts the first time around. Fun!
Happy 2012!!!!
Happy New Year!
Happy New Year!!