Ruby say's: It's time to get WET! ..and Bootleg recipe..a virtual smorgasbord post.

Ruby has declared it is indeed time for some fun in the water. She isnt a big swimmer yet; Since she is a rescue dog and is already 3 yo it is obvious she had never been in the water before. She LOVES the sprinkler and thinks the hose is the best thing since..her ball. Swimming is awkward for her. ( Ahem I mean I think i can relate) but she seems to be more interested in going in the lake than she was a month ago.

As for my water pursuits, I did my first OW swim this summer sans wetsuit = sans floaty that made me want to hurry it up at the buoys instead of bob up and down and chat.


Here are some smiley folks after the swim. The water was so warm, and the air, was so NOT warm. Steve and I then headed out for a long run after the swim. Square Lake has a great route around the lake and since we needed to do a 90 min run we just added on to the route used for the Square Lake Tri. Hills and wildlife were abundent. And we finally got our legs back and warmed up. Sadly my 1st non wet suit swim meant my tri suit cut into my tummy and my neck, so no wearing that again. ouch. Sunscreen felt oh so good before the run. not.

Life is clipping along. Jen has loaded me up last week since the race and thru sunday am before i board a plane to Vancouver for our Alaskan Cruise. I asked for it, but I am tired but know that the cruise awaits. Marit was nice enough to give me some good "must see's" and some hikes while in port to keep my legs active. Thanks Marit!

And on another fluid based tangent, here is the recipe for Bootlegs...
Ingredients:

Mint: 100 spearmint leaves

Limeade and Lemonade: 1 can each


Seltzer/Club Soda/Mineral water/ vodka or gin or bourbon or whatever you like..



Blender...
1) wash and chop up mint in blender till it is small-ish. Up to you how small, it sure doesnt have to be dust size, i kinda like a pesto type look, and if you have women that are squeemish about getting stuff in their teeth tell 'em to chill.

2) Add the lemon and lime ade to the above chopped mint.

3) Now take 2 parts Boot ade mix and add 1 part chosen liquid ( if you choose it) vodka goes nicely but i know people who have had these with rum or gin as well and serve in a tall-er glass with ice.


4) Top off with seltzer or mineral water.

Now know you can surely do these without any alcohol.
You can also store the leftover Boot ade mix in a gatorade container or something like that in the freezer and other than the mint getting less vibrant, they still taste fine. Basically it is sugar- ade and you are watering it down with seltzer and booze should you choose.

Enjoy and tho they are sorta like a mojito(I dont really like mojitos, so go figure) it is more like lemon lime margarita without that tequila taste. ( or the after effects, IMO)

PS: how do you spell smorgasboard anyways?? :)

Milestone

I dont usually post mid-week but this needed some air time. I just got back from the Derm and am officially 2+ years CANCER freeeeeeee!! woo-hoo! I wont turn this into a PSA or post pics of nasty skin lesions ( you are welcome) but it just is so WEIRD to me to think that just 2+ years ago I was outside from about 9am-2pm or even 11-4pm sans visor, in my fun cool Prince sponsored tennis clothing...loving every second of it. Sun was good! I used to take the side with the sun in my eyes so my tennis pupils didnt have to squint. I sometimes made them serve into the sun to practice, bc you gotta do that in a match so you had better practice your toss.
And SPF, sure. I wore it. But i didnt think too much about re-applying or anything...

And today, my Derm, who is the sweetest most porcelain skinned goddess I have seen..reminded me this isnt about "never getting color again," but about "delaying the overall sun exposure." That makes me feel pretty good. Since I cant imagine hiding in a wetsuit all summer long, or not going to Mexico in January or riding with arm warmers /skin coolers all summer long.

So despite still having this habit of buying SPF spray on EVERYTIME I go to Target..Serious problem I think. I like to try them all. Kinda like having a different color of socks..My go-to is Neutrogena SPF 45+ or 60+ with Helioplex. IT just has that "brand authority," must be better.
But now Target has their own brand so i get that sometimes as well. I like Bert's Bee's, and that face stuff stays on thru ANYTHING. It is like a caked on layer. Good in some ways.

Ok so before I turn this into a blog on sunscreens and what is the best, my freeflow update has a few more bullet points on it:

* I miss my J.R.A Junk miles. I miss em in the hot weather. Sometimes I wish i didnt have any goals other than to rack up miles. I seriously think i could go back to JRA and just bike racing again. But not yet.

*I am sick of chicken. Already. The grillling season has barely begun. And tho i like Brats sometimes, I think i like the pickles ketcup and mustard the best. Salmon on the grill is my favorite still but when you are at a BBQ or you are entertaining it isnt that easy since I hate to just buy some salmon and freeze it. Black Bean burgers are ok but I dont really need a grill for those.

* Open Water. I love it. But lately it has been a stressor ( sorry Jen) bc If i cant find peeps to swim with I am stuck in what i call the "holding pen" swimming laps for an hour. Still good, and the lake i swim at has a LONG holding pen so back and forth is about 300 yards. Not bad. But the open water and the buoys call....instead i can go back and forth 500 x in our pool.
Love it:) but not for laps.



* Bootlegs, yes that is MINT. We have a crop so big I could host a party for 100 people and you all would get a bootleg.


I need to do a bootleg post. The bad thing is that if i make bootlegs I must have them. and That makes me want a G and T and that makes me want a Skippy..and...extra blog points if you know what a Skippy is. And this brings me full circle to the first topic i covered. Tennis.
Clay courts..late afternoon doubles...some bootlegs and skippys...ahh..summer.