How Do You Beat the Heat?

When the heat index is over 100 and you are a Siberian Husky, there is not much that you can do for entertainment.  Running, walking, and pretty much anything else that is deemed as fun is out.  So how does Miss Kya have fun during a heat wave?

She hops in the car with her rear air conditioning....

...and goes to Sheridans for ice cream!  Isn't that what everyone does? 

While Ken is Away...

Ken is out of town this week, so I have been entertaining myself. Here is what Monday night looked like:

Back to Normal...

During my eight weeks of no running, my candy dish in my kitchen looked like this:

Empty and very sad

This dish is always filled with candy.  It houses three types of M&M's except for at Easter when it is filled with all of the yummy pastel goodness that I consume.  I mean, my friends have come to expect candy at my house.  I decided to refill it since Ken, the guy who does not eat candy, demanded M&M's.  What kind of a wife would I be if I did not please my husband?

There she is, in all her glory.  This picture would not rotate for some reason.

Michelle, please tell Rob to rest assured, the M&M's are back!

It's a Low Carb Thing...

I tried.  I really did.  I tried to switch over to a low carb lifestyle.  I made it one week.  One week.  That is all I could handle.  We will not go into the reason why I thought I could go low carb.  It really sounded like a good idea at the time.

The first few days were actually pretty easy.  I guess I was excited and I wanted to see if I could really do it.  I was a good girl, counted my carbs, ate my cheese and almonds.  I even had a little wine the first few days.  My goal was to keep my daily carb intake below 100.  I had even figured out that if I was really below on a few days, I could use the extra as a cheat for dessert over the weekend.  Huh, sounds like it is going to be rough.  I mean, not even a week in and I find a way to cheat the system.

I knew I was in trouble on Independence Day when I pretty much ate nothing all day just so I could have a red velvet cupcake.  It was worth every single bite by the way.  Still, I pressed on.  I went to work and I could have killed someone.  I mean I was snapping at people left and right.  My boss thought I was insane, but wanted to seem supportive.  At home, Ken was dodging me.  Yeah, he did not want to be around his low carb wife. 

I knew it was going to be tough when I found myself going to the grocery store to buy more cheese and almonds and I was just hanging out in the ice cream section.  Yeah, I was walking by the ice cream and saying hello old friends, I miss you all.  I was checking all of the carbs in the ice cream bars and realized that the Klondike Bars could indeed be something that I could sneak in as a snack.  Of course, this meant skipping a meal, but who really cares when you can eat a Klondike Bar.  I blame this on Ken because he was the one wanting the Klondike Bars. 

Despite hanging out at the grocery store in the ice cream aisle, I thought I was on the home stretch and then my boss brought in bagels on Thursday.  Really Randy?  I mean, you know I am a bagel lover and you bring in bagels.  I kept my composer and did not strangle him on the spot like I wanted to.  I even managed to keep the cursing to a minimum when he said "bagels are low carb right?" - really Randy?  Do you want me to close line you when you walk out of the bathroom?  A few threats later and he decided it was best not to speak to me for the rest of the day. 

Thursday was not only bagel day, but it is also a running day.  I got home from work and Ken called me.  Apparently my tone was less than stellar.  He told me to forget the low carb thing and just to go to dinner with him.  I told him that would be quitting.  We had an exchange of words and I proceeded to pout.  I am sure that is shocking.  He came home and I was sitting in my chair pouting.  He told me how silly he thought this diet was and that I should quit.  I decided to just go running.  I was pissed.  Guess what I found myself singing over my Ipod?  What would you dooooo for a Klondike Bar?  I tried to tune it out.  I called myself all sorts of names and told myself to man up.  I tried to sing with Britney when she came on, but I could not resist singing What would you dooooo for a Klondike Bar?  At this point I would have killed someone for a Klondike Bar.

So what do I do?  Finish my three mile run, walk into the house dripping in sweat, not speaking to Ken and grab a Klondike Bar and go to town. 

I enhaled that Klondike Bar in under a minute.  Best thing ever.  And with that, I quit the low carb lifestyle.

Sedona Day 3 & 4...

Day three started off with a little bit of hiking.  We ended up doing a total of eight miles.  It was beautiful, but my booty had a pain in it, that was not Ken.  :)  I guess hiking 45 miles will do that to you.

Cathedral Rock

The rocks almost look fake

Ken's signature pose

A picture for my dear friend Heather, aka HT

Ken was making fun of me because my booty was sore.  Actually, he was taking a video of me when, wait for it, he backed right into a cactus.  Yep, I had to help him pull cactus needles out of his leg.  Remember Ken, do not mess with Keri and the cacti!

When the photo is enlarged, you can see the blood on his leg.  I know, I should not laugh, but he was making fun of me!

A local on the trail

See, he survived the cactus attack

Bell Rock, or as I like to call it, Rolo Rock

Always an adventure

What do we do after hiking eight miles?  Have pizza, fries, and beer.

After lunch, we went to the pool for margaritas and sangrias or if you are Ken, more beer

Ken taking my picture across the pool

Another drink?  Yes please!

Ken loves the pool

I love the pool too

After the pool, Ken wanted to take me on a hike to watch the sunset and enjoy a bottle of wine.  Well, it did not go as planned.  It was a wonderful thought, but the bugs were awful.  I was getting attacked and could not handle it.

My sweet husband.  It was the thought that counts.  Sorry Ken.

I look pathetic here trying to keep the bugs out of my wine

Ken told me to give him my best fake smile before we could leave.  Well, here it is.

On our last day, we walked around the shops to buy a few things and then headed to get a few photos of the chapel that is built into the rocks.  It is gorgeous!

Ah, we had a wonderful trip!  I was so excited to get back home to see my hooligans!  Thanks Ken for a wonderful time! 

Our Time in Sedona...Day 1 & 2...

After all of the hiking, Ken and I headed to Sedona for a few days to relax.  We arrived on Tuesday and left on Friday.  On Tuesday, I felt awful.  I think that hiking 45 miles took more out of me than I thought!  We spent Tuesday resting and went out for appetizer and then for ice cream and just walked around downtown Sedona.

On Wednesday we went to Jerome for a little shopping and wine tasting.  Jerome is a very interesting old mining town that was once known as the wickedist town in the west.  It is a very odd but cute city that sits on a hilltop with a lot of art galleries and unique shops.  We visited this town three years ago and I was just dying to go back for some reason.  We enjoyed our time wandering around and enjoyed a little wine.

After we left Jerome, we ended up at Paige Springs Cellars, a winery we visited in 2007.  We decided to buy a bottle of wine and some snacks and enjoy an afternoon down by the creek in the shade.

Enjoying the wine and the scenery and time with my husband

Part of the vineyard.  We obviously remembered that we have a black and white setting on the camera!

Syrah is one of our favorites!

I return with our meat and cheese.  It was delicious and the perfect afternoon snack!

My handsome husband enjoying his vacation

After our time at the winery, we went back to our room, hung out at the pool and went to a lovely dinner.  We also prepared for you guessed it, more hiking.  You cannot go to Sedona and not hike!