Christmas Fun & Signing Up for Races

It’s almost Christmas! Christmas has always been my favorite holiday, and not just because it’s my birthday (yes, this is true and yes, it does kind of suck in some ways but I try to look on the bright side like the fact that I always have the day off of work and I always get to spend my birthday surrounded by my family!). This year has been extra special because we have Siena to celebrate with! Although she’s totally oblivious to the holiday season, I like to think she’s enjoying how festive we’ve been.

It started earlier this month when we took Siena to a breakfast with Santa event put on by our friends Amber and Kirk’s real estate agent. Amber and Kirk had their little girl, Kairi, just 17 days after Siena and I meet up with Amber regularly, therefore Kairi has become Siena’s best friend! Both of them weren’t too impressed with Santa, but it made for some cute photos. That night we made it a big day by taking Siena to the Encinitas Christmas parade. The parade is probably Encinitas’s biggest event and all the largest organizations and pretty much all the schools in the city have a float. We met up with our friends Vicky and Kelly and their little boy Cam for the parade. Siena didn’t love the noise though and is terrible at napping in the Ergo so we ended up only staying for about an hour but it was festive!

The next week Siena came with us while we picked out our very first Christmas tree. Mike and I used to live in a tiny apartment near the beach and we didn’t have room for a proper tree, so despite spending five Christmases together, this was our first tree! Siena also slept through this but she stayed awake for the decorating, which took place 2 nights later because we prioritized sleep over decorating. The very first ornament was the one I had custom made for her, and we started our family tradition of letting her put the star on last!

Since then, I’ve been keeping Siena in the Christmas spirit by singing her Christmas Carols (she gets equally excited when I sing the ABCs) and dressing her in festive fleece Christmas sleepers.  We decided not to spend a lot of money on gifts for her this year given that she has nearly everything she needs and won’t know the difference, but I did wrap up a few gifts, including the Elf on a Shelf that I got at my work Christmas White Elephant exchange.

Another exciting thing that happened this month is that I signed up for TWO races! Yes, two! the first is the Cardiff Kook Race which is held on Super Bowl Sunday every year. The race is essentially the same as the Turkey Trot we just did. I chose the 4 mile “kook” distance which uses the kook as a turnaround point. I’m excited for an automatic PR on my first race back!

I also am excited to announce that I’m an ambassador for the inaugural San Diego Craft Classic Half Marathon! The race will be on July 17th and is a point-to-point and ends at one of the best breweries in San Diego, the Green Flash. A delicious craft beer is included in the entry and sticking around to indulge in more wonderful beer is highly encouraged. If you’d like to join me, use code FITNESSFATALE for $10 off the half marathon or $5 off the 5k. Prices go up on January 1,  so hurry!

Do you celebrate Christmas all month long?  Do you want to join me for delicious craft beer and running next summer?