Today I’m going to recap my Mt. Snow ski weekend in Vermont and tell you about my healthy car snack options. I’m recapping everything but races lately and I’m quite ok with that. =)

I’ve got races coming up in March, April and May so indulge me for the next few weeks with these recreational winter fun posts =)

Friday morning Mr SOTSS and I headed up to Vermont with a quick stop to drop off Duncan at my friend Nicole’s house. 

doesn't matter if it's 1 hour or 6 hours. He just lays on my lap the entire time

doesn’t matter if it’s 1 hour or 6 hours. He just lays on my lap the entire time

napping in the car

napping in the car

Waiting for us to pack up the truck

Waiting for us to pack up the truck

This ski weekend was a gift from Mr SOTSS for Christmas. He gave the same gift last year only we chose a different bed and breakfast this year. I love traveling, especially road trips. There’s something so enjoyable about spending the long hours in the car listening to tunes and talking about so many things we never seem to get to talk about normally. Road trips aren’t complete without snacks because, let’s face it, I can get really cranky if I don’t have access to food. Usually I make poor choices for snacking when traveling but I had just been online reading about healthy snacks at nuts.com and then saw this cool “snack hack”:

nuts_new_year_snack_hack_v02I was so inspired that I packed up some healthy stuff like apples, almonds and cranberries, a granola bar and some pretzels.

unsweetened applesauce, apples, raw almonds and dried cranberries, pretzels, and fruit and nut bar

unsweetened applesauce, apples, raw almonds and dried cranberries, pretzels, and fruit and nut bar

As we approached Vermont it started to snow. It was exactly the way it should be when you’re driving up for a ski weekend. So picturesque!

Welcome to Vermont

Welcome to Vermont

We checked in to the bed and breakfast just before sunset and I forced Mr. SOTSS to take some pictures of me for the blog. He is so tolerant.

me and the sign

Welcome Weary Travelers. HA!

 

Me and the sign and the actual inn More »

I celebrated the final training run with some shopping yesterday. I hardly ever buy anything other than running gear lately but yesterday I picked up a couple of pretty tops and a pair of cropped jeans at Macy’s.

I got this very summery Free People top:

Free People shirt

Free People shirt beautiful model not included (photo from Macy’s website)

But I bought a purple cami to wear underneath instead of the one in the pic above. It’s a great style for my shape (apple!) No bargain here though 🙁

I also got this sheer, floral, long sleeve Lucky top.

Lucky floral shirt

Lucky floral shirt…god i love her hair! (photo from Macy’s website

Again, no bargain…but I LOVED how it tied in the front. Sometimes tunic style tops overwhelm my short 5′ 3″ body and I don’t like dressy button down tops that have to be tucked in because they get wrinkly and fussy. So this will be great. I’m going to wear this today so I’ll post a photo to my instagram later.

And to round out the bottom, I got these Tommy Hilfiger cropped jeans:

tommy capris

tommy capris- (photo from Macy’s website)

Then I went to the grocery store to get my pre-race fuel stash:

Super Pretzels

Super Pretzels and some fresh flowers just for kicks

I picked up these pretty carnations too. Don’t they look so pretty on my table?

carnations

fuscia and celery green carnations.

Then I got suckered into the half price Easter candy at the register.

half price easter candy

half price Easter candy balanced out with organic spinach!

But I evened out the sugar with my “family size” container of organic spinach!

Tonight when I get home from work I’m taking this boy for a little shopping spree too!

Duncan and Sally

Curl overload!

Well we’re just going to the pet store for poop bags and dog food but I’m sure he’ll score a treat at the register.

Hope everyone made it throught the week ok.

Question: What are you doing this weekend? Anyone have a race?
Last chance to suggest inspiring songs or quotes/mantras to me….

T.G.I.F!

I was sent two new Luna Protein Bars to try. I’m not a big “bar” person. I probably haven’t tasted a Luna Bar in at least 3 years. But since they arrived at my doorstep I figured it was worth a review! (They were sent to me free of charge but all opinions are my own).

The new flavors are Lemon Vanilla and Chocolate Coconut Almond

Luna Protein Bars

Luna Protein Bars

They are gluten-free, but not soy-free. As a matter of fact soy is the main ingredient which is what makes them high in protein. So if you have soy intolerance these aren’t for you.

Let’s start with the Chocolate Coconut Almond stats:
180 calories • 7 grams of fat (4 of which are saturated due to palm kernel oil.
This is a negative in my book.) • 12 grams of protein • 21 grams of carbs • 12 grams of sugar •
3 grams of fiber • and 140 mg of sodium

photo 5

The texture is great….very much like a dense piece of fudge. I swear I felt like I was eating an Almond Joy! The flavor was spot on. I had one for breakfast and it kept me full for a while. Paired with my coffee…..delicious!

And the Lemon Vanilla stats:
170 calories • 4.5 grams of fat (3 of which are saturated due to palm kernel oil.
12 grams of protein • 21 grams of carbs • 15 grams of sugar •
3 grams of fiber • and 160 mg of sodium

photo 2

Texture was just as good here too. The outside coating was quite lemony and sweet but again, I enjoyed it. (Only took a bite of this one so far.)

So tomorrow’s my last official long run before the NJ Marathon. I’ve only got 7 miles to cover. I’m meeting my peeps Lisa and Mike in Brooklyn where I’ll catch up with them for the second half of their run. And we’re strategically finishing our run at Whole Foods! YAY! I’m making a fruit salad to bring with me on Easter Sunday so I’ll get all my produce there. Tomorrow marks a special date. It’s the 15th anniversary of my husband’s passing. It just seemed right to be running with Lisa since  she’s the one that got me into running in the first place.

Hope you’ve had a (good) Friday!

Catch ya later.

Question: Are you a “bar” person? If so what kinds do you like? Granola? Fruit and nut only? Protein? Kit Kat? =)