Colorado, here we come

At the wise age of 28 years old, I am comfortable enough with myself and that I can admit two things I pretty much suck at:

1. Packing for a trip... no matter how hard I "try," I procrastinate until the day I am supposed to depart. Procrastination further exemplified by this blog post, which I am doing when I really should be packing.

2. Unpacking. In this case, specifically unpacking my camera cord. I have no idea where it went after our recent move!

That's a damn shame since I've got a ton of great foodie photos to share with you. I guess they will just have to wait.

It's Midnight and I leave in 18 hours for Colorado Springs, CO. My sister lives there and is graduating with her Masters Degree in Psychology. Here's a recap from my last visit to CoS. And here's recap part 2. And some photos, why not?

Sisters atop Palmer Park overlook

Annie, contemplating the meaning of life (or is she pretending to be in a CREED music video?)

Baaaaad riding posture. Awful. But a beautiful ride.

A meester, blogging companion extraordinaire

See? Actual food on my alleged 'food blog.'

This would be a salad with vegan buffalo wings at TRiNiTY. Yeah, this was good.

Cowboys, a classy establishment which I hope to visit again this weekend.

This time, Zak and my parents are along for the journey, making it our first official vacation as the whole family. Awww :-) Plus, I haven't seen my sister since January 2nd so it's about time I meet up with her!

New Tonight:

Can I get a "heck yeah" from all of those food bloggers attending the 2010 Healthy Living Summit in Chicago? I bought my ticket tonight, can't wait to meet everyone and spend the weekend with you!

At long last, a breakfast cookie

I finally did it... I tried out The Fitnessista's fabled breakfast cookie, known throughout the foodie blogosphere as a must-eat. And it was... DELICIOUS.

In the mix: 1/3 cup rolled oats, 1/2 scoop chocolate 'frost' protein powder, 1 tbsp chia seeds, 1 tbsp peanut butter. Stirred together with 1/8 cup or so of soy milk. Prepared for overnight refrigeration:

Then, the morning comes:

Topped with strawberry greek yogurt and fresh berries. Sooo good, the texture was chewy just like Gina promised it would be. Will repeat for Monday b-fast, for sure.

I am off to the farm for a quick horseback riding session, then to Zak's bro's graduation. Congrats, Colin!

Help for Nashville

In case you haven't seen or heard, there are devastating floods in Nashville, Tennessee.

It's totally scary how much damage has resulted. At least 20 people have been killed. Homes, businesses, cars flooded out and roads swept away. The damage is estimated at over $1 billion, which seems like an unfathomable amount of money.

I am a big fan of Nashville, the vibe of the city is so friendly and rich in musical history. I ran through Nashville's neighborhoods in 2007 for its Country Music Marathon, and more recently visited last October. Zak and I stayed at Gaylord Opryland Resort, parts of which are now submerged in 10 feet of water. It is just crazy that there is so much damage and destruction.

My heart really goes out to those who lost their homes and property, not just in Nashville but in all of the neighboring areas.

Donate $10 to the American Red Cross by texting "REDCROSS" to 90999, it's simple and will be charged to your mobile phone account.

Zak looking over the Cumberland River, October 2009

More on the Nashville Flooding:

The Tennesseean: Where to volunteer, make donations and more

YouTube: Opryland Hotel Floods with Water

NPR: Musicians Lose Millions in Gear in Nashville Flood