It’s gorgeous out today. I am sitting on my back deck catching up with blogs, email, etc. The sun feels fantastic.

About a week ago I wrote about a few things that were on my mind. I was really pleased to receive such honest comments on the post. I thought I would revisit the topics as to where things stand today.

• Easter was full of candy as I expected. My mother actually fit entire Cadbury eggs into those little plastic eggs she used for the Easter egg hunt! There were also Reese’s Peanut Butter Eggs and M&Ms. Seriously! I wanted to scream. Why can’t she at least put junk I dislike in the plastic eggs like Starburst and Skittles. I managed to unload the Cadbury eggs on another guest. The rest came home with us and went directly into the candy bowl high atop the pantry shelves so Carlos couldn’t get into it. It should have been put in a locked safe that only my husband could open.

• Sugar – my food demons and I met head on this week. The demons won! I caved amidst a big bowl of acquired Easter candy, bake sale cookies I just had to sample before sending them off and PMS to boot. Yikes a recipe for disaster. I felt so weak and powerless. It was as if one bite led to more intense cravings and so on. I felt guilty and guiltier with each bite, yet I didn’t stop when I should have. It’s officially over now though. I haven’t quite hashed out all my feelings about the episode, but I know for a fact in years past I would have thrown in the towel completely. All bets would have been off and before I knew it I’d be praying that I didn’t get rid of my jeans in the next size up. Not this time. My pants still fit fine actually. In exchange for the sugar I’ve turned to fresh fruit and vegetables while my body recovers. I hope between now and the next time I will have found better coping mechanisms when confronted with an excess of the sweet stuff.

• Grad School – my meeting with the Assistant Director of Graduate Studies went extremely well. I let her know up front of my intention to start the program next year and she was very supportive of my decision. She outlined the program for me. We discussed my goals and future plans. She also mentioned the possibility of incorporating one of our vacations to Mozambique into a potential practicum experience for me. There is the potential for tuition reimbursement if I decide to run clinical groups for their undergraduate nursing program. I left feeling rejuvenated and enthusiastic about continuing my education and much more sure of my decision to postpone my plans for a year.

In other news I had the most incredible run yesterday even though it wasn’t quite as long as I planned. I will discuss it more in my training post.

On Monday I am heading to Boston to watch the Boston Marathon will my best college friend. We haven’t seen each other in ages. I’m so excited about spending some time with her while cheering on all of the amazing runners. Carlos will be going to the Red Sox game with my sister while I’m at the marathon. Lucky duck!! I’m a teensy bit jealous that my 5  year old with experience Fenway before I do. I will finally see the famed Green Monster in person when my husband and I go to Fenway for a game on his birthday later in the summer. I have seen the Red Sox play only once before and it was at Yankee Stadium. I do not recommend this if you are a Red Sox fan. It was brutal.

On Thursday we went hiking at a new location not far from home. The Arcadia Wildlife Sanctuary is part of the Mass Audobon Society. It was so tranquil and beautiful. The park offers 5 miles of hiking trails, mostly flat and along the Connecticut River. They were running a special deal on Mass Audubon Memberships so I joined. I’m looking forward to exploring the area more and also visiting other Mass Audubon locations across the state. They even have these really cool “Nature Quests” you can print out from the website and follow along to find a hidden treasure. Carlos is going to love that! (OK who am I kidding I’m super psyched about the Nature Quests too. I’m also dying to go Geocaching!! When did I become such an outdoorsy girl?!)

Have a wonderful weekend!!