Hooray, hooray, I just finished my 30th sheknows.com column for March. I didn't think I could do it, honestly. Hopefully April will go smoother (and I'll procrastinate less!).

The large chunk of items I just turned in will be hitting the web soon, in the meantime, here are some other recent pieces to peruse:

Fitness tips for future brides

Pick-me-up foods to boost your energy

The dangers of anesthesia: Are you at risk?

Sideline sunburn when working out

Getting a sneeze-free grip on allergies

Get fit with Gyrotonics

Monday, Monday

It's a gloomy, chilly morning here in Hoboken, making me wistful for the warm, California sun. I'm hoping spring hits us soon as I'm really itching to spend more time outside (without the heavy coat, scarf, and hat!).

The weekend was, for the most part, a working one as I was sidled with a whopping 15 columns to write for sheknows.com. That's what happens when you squeeze half a month's worth of daily columns into one weekend. Lesson learned. Tomorrow, I start fresh and vow to write one item a day throughout April and all ensuing months. It's the only way to maintain my sanity! On the plus side, a couple of my pieces are now being prominently featured on the sheknows.com home page, so that makes all of the stress and late nights worth it.

Otherwise, we just hung around home, grabbing our almost-weekly Saturday brunch at Turning Point (joined by Patty and Rick) and catching up on NetFlicks (Gone Baby Gone and We Own the Night). I ran with Urban Run yesterday, then met Keren at the gym, then lunch at Chelsea Market. It was so great to see her and hear all about her training for the NYC Tri. (she's doing Team in Training). I wish I could be training alongside with her...next year!

A column calls, so I better get on that. Hoping to finally see Leezie and Bec (and Sam and Speed and Ula if she's around!) today, too.

Pics from Cali

I've posted some pics I took in Lemoore below, there's lots more for you to check out in this album. Enjoy!

Easter in Lemoore

Our spread!

Easter bliss!

Easter picnic with mama

Lucy in her Easter Dress

The girls with their neighbors/BFFs, Katie and Cory.

Easter Sunday, in the park

The finished products

Lucy offering a helping hand with the eggs.

Sissy and Sophie get to dying some Easter eggs

Mum and Lucy explore the shores of Cayucos, CA

Hurry up, Lucy!

the girls on the pier (don't worry, we made sure they held on tight!)

Sophie, on the pier in Cayucos

Back

After a redeye flight from Vegas last night, I'm back on the east coast, a bit wearied but otherwise still rested from my great trip to CA! Jetlag got the best of me yesterday and I floated through the afternoon on a hazy cloud; but a lovely lunch and afternoon walk around the West Vill with my mom and Sam helped me perk up before the Urban Run. It was so nice to see them and hold Sam, who has gotten even bigger--and cuter! After a yummy Indian meal with Mark (who'd so dearly left me a beautiful arrangement of tulips to greet me upon my return), I managed to cull enough energy to stay up superlate--still on pacifc time, I guess--and finally finished up a whopper of a story that had alluded me for about a week.

Today, I'm hitting up a New Balance event at Tavern on The Green and then hitting the office (Chelsea Piers, Mojo, what have you) to continue the catch up game. Hopefully, I'll have time to post the many pics I took in CA.

Latest Columns

Even though I'm on a pseudo-vacay here in CA, the writing/work continues. Here are some of my recent items (note that my time working for Lady Foot Locker in Lakeforest Hall served me quite well for one of them!)

Born to run? Best shoes for you (this is currently featured on the sheknows.com homepage!)

Catching up with Carrie Tollefson (outtakes from a profile I wrote on her for NY Runner)

PUMP-IT-UP WITH A PODCAST

Understanding endometriosis

8 Fertility Treatments Explained

Today's my last day in Cali...boo hoo. I've had such a fun time with Sissy, Sophie, and Lucy, and have been LOVING this gorgeous weather. I haven't seen a cloud in the sky since I arrived. I wake up to the birds (um, pigeons) chirping and the sunshine filling the room...can't get that on the east coast for at least another month!

We had a great Easter yesterday, complete with an egg hunt for the girls and a traditional meal of ham, turkey, sweet potato caserole, asparagus, deviled eggs, salad with apples, walnut, blue cheese, and apple vinagrette, spinach dip, and key lime pie! We had Sissy's friend, Janelle, over with her adorable 9-month-old, Jack, and after chowing down, took a nice walk around the neighborhood. The girls like to run ahead of us to check out all there is to see in the 'hood, from the neighbors on their bikes to the cars parked in the driveways. They are really too cute.

In the morning, we took a trip into Hanford (after an ill-fated attempt to get into a very crowded church) so the twins could frolic around in their adorable Tar-J easter finest. We hit up a duck pond with some ugly geese lording over it, and had about 1,000 heart attacks trying to get the girls away from the mud, killer geese, and gross pond water! Fortunately, we made it out with only some muddy socks and shoes and no confrontations with any wild animals...

I have lots of pictures to post, which I will as soon as I have some downtime at the airport before my red eye back to Newark.

BTW, my phone is still out of service, so I'll be out of touch from about 8 pm PST to 8:00 EST tonight and tomorrow...

Broke Down Phone

My phone literally just broke in half, so if you need to reach me today, please get me on Sissy's cell phone!

California Dreaming

Just thought I'd check in from Cali! Not to rub it in to those east coasters out there who are currently battling icky, rainy weather, but it's sunny and warm here! Sissy says this is the best time, weather-wise, for Lemoore, and I believe it. Tomorrow (Thursday), we're heading west and checking out the coast. I didn't bring my bathing suit, but I do plan to dip my feet into the Pacific.

Latest Columns

I'm dedicating these next items to Bec, winner of Sunday's Nevis ITU Triathlon Pan American Cup! Not only does she serve as an inspiration through her amazing athletic prowess, but she also gave me at least two of these ideas to write about.

Eat Green for Your Health

The Buzz on Royal Jelly

To the Max: Two ultra-distance events that really go the distance

What you need to know about Reiki

Snaps from Sheryl!

Karl and I had a great time at the Sheryl Crow show last night! Even though we drove a total of six hours for a two-hour event, it was well worth it. We got to see a beautiful new restuarant, saw some of Baltimore's wealthiest spend lots of money, and rocked out to Sheryl, who sang about 9 songs. My faves were "Strong Enough," "All I Wanna Do," and "The First Cut is the Deepest." She played a few other oldies and some off her new album, Detours. We hung out with the IronGirl crew and nibbled on some yummy tapas before heading back up the turnpike for the long drive back to 'Boken. But like I said, worth every second! Thanks to Karl for scoring the tix--and inviting me along!

Here are two shots of us at the show, plus some of Sheryl below. We weren't too close, but had a great lofted view on the second floor of the restaurant. She's awesome.

A day at the links

Well...not really the links in the true definition of the word...Rather, on Saturday, Mark and I hit the lovely driving range that's nestled somewhere between Newark and Jersey City (can you say armpits of the country?) to knock off some balls. Despite the range's less-than-attractive environs, it's cheap to play, and practically empty (wonder why?). I had fun whacking away and watching my balls barely make the 50y sign, while Mark was driving his way out to the nets. He's getting really good! Hey you golfers out there, how's my form?

Mount in the News

For such a tiny school, it's rare that the Mount makes the headlines. But this week it did--for both a very happy and a very sad reason. First, the Mount's men's basketball team made the NCAA Tournament after their NEC Conference win over Sacred Heart. Mark and I were watching the game and noticed they were chanting something at the end, but it didn't sound like the typical "MOUNT SAINT MARY'S"...last night, Mark heard that the students were actually chanting the name of a student who at that point was in critical condition in Baltimore Shock Trauma after falling ten feet from a landing in the A-Tower apartments last weekend. The student died early Thursday morning from his injuries. Sounds like he was sitting up on the railing and simply lost his balance and fell over (I'm assuming he had been drinking. It is the Mount, after all).

This is all truly tragic, especially since he was a senior and seems like such a great kid. He was on the track team, and part of the "Mount Maniac" crew who attend every game (kind of like Duke's Cameron Crazies, but on a much smaller scale!). So the b-ball team had dedicated their win to him and I assume will do so again when they play in the tourney.

My heart goes out to all of those kids who are dealing with this right now. Here's the news story about the incident.

Friday, Finally

This has been quite a long week with a lot of work packed into what feels like a limited amount of time. I have a few more things to get out the door today and tomorrow, and then I am going to allow myself to relax a bit! For starters, Karl and I are going to see Sheryl Crow concert on Sunday in Baltimore. She wrangled the tix through her connections withThe Ulman Cancer Fund for Young Adults, and we'll be part of a small crowd of lucky folks who'll get to see Sheryl perform an acoustic set in the intimate setting of Pazo Restaurant in Baltimore city. We're driving down just for the evening--a bit of a schlep, but I know it'll be worth it!

And then bright and early on Tuesday morning, I'll be heading out to the west coast to visit Sissy and the twins! I'm very excited abut this trip...and happy to help Sis as she continues her recovery from ACL surgery last month. Unfortunately, it looks like it won't be "all play" in CA as I have a bunch of deadlines looming, but I'm sure we'll manage to squeeze in some fun!

Speaking of fun, I had a great time watching Sam yesterday. I took over for M as she and D sadly had to head out to Long Island for Mr. Kobilinsky's funeral. It was my first solo babysitting experience with him, and I couldn't have asked for a better charge. He smiled, played, bounced on my lap, slept, ate, and all of the other sweet baby stuff. We took a walk to Washington Square Park, and he promptly fell asleep for an hour. By the time I got back and fed him, the 'rents had returned and my stint was over. The rest of the day was spent lounging in Leezie and Speed's apartment, getting a little bit of work done, and then being treated to an amazing meal by Speed. Everyone but Bec (who is in Nevis for a race) was there, so it was quite the party! Bec, we missed you!!!!

Baby News and a new Blog!

Amidst my diatribe about the state of the world today, I realized I neglected to report some very HAPPY news. We found out on Friday that baby Flynn (Fineaus Flannery Flynn AKA Finn Flan Flynn or just F as we've been joking around with these days) is no longer an IT. HE in fact is a BOY! We are so excited!

Anyway, some people have asked about my bump, so to keep you posted, I thought I'd add yet another blog to the mix. Introducing Here Comes Our Baby. I've been keeping this up for a few weeks and was at first hesitant to share any pictures of my stomach with the rest of the world. But now that we're almost to the half-way point, I figured what they hay. So check it out, but be warned: My paleness may blind you!

Oh, and now that we know it's a boy, we're even more focused on names. Aleta had a great suggestion in asking all you out there for your ideas. So, post 'em here or on the other blog. I'd love to hear what you have to say!

I've been quite disturbed by a lot of things in the news this week. First, there's the whole Spitzer scandal which, as Julianne Moore so succinctly put it, is "A f---ing embarrassment" (I'm ashamed I voted for him last year). Then, there is the announcement by the CDC that 1 in 4 teenage girls have an STD. As I'm sitting here writing a quiz for girls of that age for Girls' Life, building up all of the romantic notions of Summer Love, I'm wondering if I shouldn't just be writing about protecting yourself from chlamydia instead. Finally, the whole thing about traces of prescription drugs being in our tap water was rather horrifying. In fact, I was moved to write a service piece about it for my column. (I'm sure one about the STD thing will follow. And I'm not sure how I can work anything about high-end prostituion into a health and wellness item, so I may have to avoid the Spitzer story all together. Good riddance!).

Anyway, sorry for the rant! Here's the water story. HEALTHIER, TASTIER H20: Four Tips to Treat Your Water

More columns

RESET YOUR INTERNAL CLOCK (How to deal with Daylight Savings Time)

TWO NEW WAYS TO YOGA

TIPS TO GET A BETTER NIGHT'S SLEEP

CHIA SEED DOESA BODY GOOD (Thanks to Bec for the tip on this one!)

Moving up and on and on

Congrats to KARL for her big career move today! I'm sure she'll provide more details later on, but I must say that I am very proud of her! And excited for all of the things to come...and that she'll finally be surrounded by people who appreciate her for the awesome, smart, hardworking, special person that she is!!

Weekend Home

We had a great weekend at home! Since I'm usually obligated to do the Urban Run on Sundays, it's hard for me to get out of town these days. But I decided to take this one off so I could meet up with Ashley, Erica, Michelle and their husbands in Emmitsburg. Meanwhile, Mark got together with Mike, Chuck, and Frank and they toured around the Arlington area playing at Top Golf and checking out Chuck's new house.

It was so nice to see everyone--Ashley is about 29 weeks pregnant with twins and looks great. You'd never know she was pregnant from behind, she's all belly. She also brought Jack to lunch at Ott's, so it was fun to see how much he's grown and how cute he is! He's a true combo of Joe and Ashley.

Everyone else is doing well; we went over to Michelle and Chris's afterwards and played some Wii and just hung out. I loved being with them and hope it won't be too long before we do it gain!

Afterwards, I scooted down the road in our new Scion (did I mention we got a neeeeeew car??) and met up with Mark and the guys at Mike's. They were eating pizza and watching the basketball game, so i was happy when Regina came over for some girl interaction! We hung out there before getting back in the car to spend the night at University Towers. There, we got "guest suite" services with a luxurious bed (Jeanie and Uncle Phil's brass bed) and a yummy omelet, hash brown, bagel, and donut brunch! We hit up the Wheatone Tar-J for before heading back on the road. We got home around 8, just in time to watch the series finale of the WIRE. Pretty good, much better than the Sopranos ending!

Leap Year Mile

Here are some shots from Friay night's Urban Run Leap Year Mile. We ended up having about 15 runners total, which was deemed a "huge" success by the folks at CP. Everything went off great--with the exception of the distance being measured incorrectly by a gym staffer, making it about 1.1 miles. Some of the runners complained, but I tried to chalk it up to the Leap Year--Hey, you're only doing this every four years, why not go for a unique distance?! As I predicted, Karl handily won the women's race, charging to the finish line in 6:04 (about a 5:30ish mile). She took home a pair of adidas sneaks and a 50-minute massage for her first podium of the year!

No more meat!

Mark may have been all smiles prior to munching down this massive sandwich, but afterwards he was groaning, No more meat! It probably didn't help that soon after the decadent meal, we walked over to Lincoln Center's IMAX theatre to see U23D. The movie was amazing, but sitting still for a couple of hours is not the best antidote for indigestion!

Super Sandwiches

After all of the St. Patty's fun, we ventured into midtown. First Stop? Carnegie Deli, home of what can easily be described as the world's biggest sandwich. Maureen and Mark, as brave as they are, challenged themselves to some of the heftiest selections on the menu. Each could easily feed a small country. They both did the Flynn name justice and put substantial dents into each sandwich. If we're going to let these pictures be the judge, I'd say Maureen wins the prize for clearing her plate. (And we'll just ignore all of that leftover deli meat in our fridge right now...hee hee.)