Urgh, this is embarrassing...

I'm ashamed of myself.

I'm embarrassed.

I can't believe I'm actually going to say these words. But when you have a problem, it's important to admit it...

My name is The Little Honey Bee, and I love Twilight!

Urgh! I never thought I'd say those words. I have made fun of this series for months! They are absolutely ridiculous books. Ridiculous. The writing is terrible. Just really really bad. I roll my eyes while reading them. I often want to smack the characters. Their conservations are repetitive. And painful. But despite all of this, these book are addicting! Once you start, you can't put them down! They take me back to my pre-teen V.C. Andrew days.

So if you're looking to indulged in a little guilty pleasure and want a (VERY) easy read, consider picking up the Twilight series. But be warned, you may hate yourself for it!

The San Francisco Treat

My friends and I had a BLAST in San Francisco. We ran a marathon(!). We went to Alcatraz. We toured the Napa Valley. And we ate. We ate a LOT. San Francisco has some amazing restaurants. And we certainly enjoyed a few. Here are some of the great places we enjoyed ourselves at:

John's Grill - A friend of Sonia's recommended this steak and seafood restaurant. It was the site of our first official meal in San Fran, and did it ever get things started off right! With so many fantastic menu options, it was really hard to choose, but I eventually opted for the broiled halibut. Incredible! And the portions were huge! I couldn't even finish mine. John's Grill also has a great wine list. We ordered a bottle of the house red and I have to say, it was one of the best bottles of wine I've ever had!

Tartine Bakery & Cafe- I heard about this place from my weekly Goop newsletter (thanks Gwyneth Paltrow!). When we arrived Saturday morning to this small cool Mission District spot, the line up was out the door and down the street. We knew this place MUST be good! Thankfully the line moved quickly and we were soon inside and able to make our selections. Lesson learned: traveling with people who like good food as much as you do is the BEST! We each ordered the quiche (p.s. BEST quiche EVER!) and something extra. My something extra was an almond croissant. Heavenly!! And totally justified as pre-race carb loading!

The Slanted Door - Following our race it was time to celebrate! And the very hip Slanted Door is where we went. I recommend going with a group of people and ordering several dishes, as things here are served family style. We had beef, chicken, lamb, halibut and tofu. Not to mention a couple of appetizers to start. But the best was the Confectioner's Plate we had for dessert. The peach cotton candy was incredible - and super fun!

The Plant Cafe Organic - The day after our race we were feeling a little gross. Not from the large amount of food the night before. But from the large amount of Gatorade, Gu, and sport beans consumed during the marathon. We needed something fresh. Thankfully Sonia had spotted The Plant while we were out the previous night. This place was just what the doctor ordered. Super fresh breakfast burritos (I'm a sucker for anything with avocado) and a large glass of their Body Cleanser raw organic juice and I was feeling like a new woman!

Pier 23 - My parents and I had seen this place on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. It looked like a casual fun spot, so we decided to check it out. It was a little dead on the night we went (it was a Monday night), but no doubt this place is hopping on the weekends. The Zinfandel and ceviche I had while we sat on the heated patio were delightful! This place was also the site of one of our funnier conversations ;)

American Cupcake - It was quite the hike to get to this place (literally, walking the streets of San Francisco is liking hiking!). But it was well worth it! Now, sadly they were out of the Red Velvet Fried Chicken we had heard about, but we still managed to enjoy waffle fries, club sandwiches, mini pulled pork sliders, and mac-n-cheese. Then it was time for dessert! Not content with just getting one cupcake, we decided to get a cupcake and whoopie pie (each)! This place is very fun and girly. Rainbow coloured lights dance along the ceiling while 80's tunes flow out the speakers. Definitely a good time!

So as you can see, we ate a LOT while in San Francisco! What made things so great was that we did all the research and planning before hand, so every night we knew we'd be getting a great meal! And for my last bit of cheesiness, the best part of each meal was the company - Sonia, Kathleen, Katrina and Sam were fantastic dining companions!

If you're going to San Francisco...

Be sure to wear flowers in your hair. Or at least that's what the song says to do. We opted not to do that, and instead booked some fabulous tours. Now that the marathon was done, it was time for us girls to have some fun!

First up was Alcatraz. Also known as The Rock!. I had heard good things about this tour before we went. People who had been had raved about it! And with good reason. It's a REALLY well done tour. You take a boat out to the island and can walk around a bit once you get there. When you enter the prison cell building make sure you pick up the free audio tour guide. Now I'm not usually a fan of the audio tour. I rarely get them when I go to museums. But this audio guide is a MUST. First of all, there was not much written info offered before hand, nor were there many signs or fact on the walls (like you get in a gallery or museum). The audio guide is narrated by former prison guards and prisoners (ekk!) who direct you around the building and tell you stories about it's history - the battle of Alcatraz, the famous escape from the Rock, famous prisoners, and life on the island (guards families with young children lived there?!?!). While walking around outside you also get fantastic views of San Francisco and the surrounding area. I personally went a little photo crazy! The whole tour only takes a couple of hours and should not be missed. But be sure to book your tickets in advance. The tours sell out everyday, so if you just show up on the day you want to go, you'll likely be S.O.L

The second tour booked was the one I was REALLY excited about. A wine tour through Napa!! A comfy shuttle bus picked us up in the morning we drove us out to wine country. Once the morning fog cleared we got to see that Napa is unbelievably beautiful. Miles of mountains, and vines with the warm California sunshine beating down on us. We got to visit four wineries - Domaine Chandon, V. Sattui, Whitehall Winery, Franciscan. The sparkling wine offered at Domaine Chandon had me quickly feeling a little tipsy (and it was only 10:30am), so you knew you were in for a fun day! A picnic lunch by the vineyard and a fabulous tasting at V. Sattui soon followed. Whitehall Winery had us walk through their processing area (very cool to see), and at the Franciscan we sampled wine among the vines, picking the grapes to try with it. The day was absolutely perfect! By the time the bus dropped us off at the dock for the ferry boat ride back to the pier, I was seriously considering a career change. I'd happily move to Napa and pick grapes for a living!

My First Marathon - the good, the bad, and the ugly

It's hard to believe it was only a week ago today. A week ago today I ran my first marathon! I'm not officially a marathoner!! Not to be a major cheese ball, but it was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my life.

The Good - The course was absolutely stunning. San Francisco is a beautiful city! After making our way out of Union Square, we ran up to the waterfront where we were greeted by a gospel choir and cheerleaders. Past the Embarcadero we made our way up to Fishermans Wharf. After this the hills began. First small, and steep. Then LONG and STEEP. No amount of hill training could have fully prepared me for how tough these hills were. But the views along the way were incredible. At the top of the hill we could see the Golden Gate Bridge. Golden Gate Park soon turned into beautiful residential neighbourhoods. And more hills. But now we had views of the ocean, the beach, waves crashing into the shoreline. Amazing. I began wishing I'd brought my camera along for the run. Never before had I seen such inspiring scenery.

The Bad - Things remained good until about the half way mark. The weather had been good. Cool and overcast. But somewhere around mile 12, it started raining. At first only lightly. It was actually nice, helping to cool us off a little. It was also around this point that the half marathoners separated from us full marathoners. We went from being surrounded by tons and tons of people to only a few dozen. It was a little hard. Knowing that they were almost done, while we still had 14 more miles to go. At mile 16 we started making our way along the Great Highway. From here it was about an 10 mile out and back. It was also at this point that the rain and wind picked up. Mental fatigue was also starting to set in. We had been running for a LONG time. I really just wanted to be done! Slowly the mile markers continued to pass us by.

The Ugly - We'd been running for hours. Several bathroom breaks and a tougher then expected course had squashed any hope of finishing in our predicted time. (After the first 6 miles we decided to ignore of watches and just run for fun) The rain and wind were now coming in fast and cold. While the ocean view was gorgeous it seemed never ending. I just wanted to get to the finish line! Then finally... there it was... Like a mirage... The Finish! I forced my now very tired body to push itself over the finish line. Now the fun stuff! The tuxedo wearing firemen handing out the Tiffany necklaces. I was close to tears as a very cute fireman handed me my little blue box. Then my bubble was burst. An event coordinator came up to me "honey, we've run out of the necklaces for this year. This one is from another year. We'll mail yours to you". I stood there in shock for a minute. WTF!? They RAN OUT?! How is that possible? The race had been sold out for months! They knew how many people would be running. I was now upset and freezing cold. I asked a volunteer where the heat blankets were, and was informed that they had run out of those as well. Meanwhile, volunteers were walking about with 2 of them wrapped around themselves. WTF!? Now I was just shocked. Frozen. Shivering. I managed to stumble over to the bag check pick up, throw on my dry sweat shirt and quickly get on the shuttle bus. It was on the bus that I discovered my necklace was not only from the wrong year (2008) it was also slightly tarnished. Great. Thankfully after a very long hot shower back at the hotel I was able to polish the necklace back to an acceptable state. A couple days after the race I received an email from Nike letting me know that my necklace would be mailed to be in 10-12 weeks. 10-12 weeks! Grrr....

The Conclusion - It took a couple of days to process that days events. Yes, I was disappointed by the finish line issues. But I decided not to let that take away from what I was able to accomplish. I ran a freakin' marathon!! My first! And while my finish time wasn't the greatest, the point was that I finished! I ran 42.2km of a very tough course. And better still, I'd consider running one again (not any time soon mind you!)

And I can't finish this tale without giving a BIG shout out to Kathleen and Sonia (the "we" I've been referring to). We travelled down to San Francisco together, and I wouldn't have been able to do it without them! Love you girls!!

Leaving on a jet plane

EEEEKKK! Well dear friends, today is the day I leave for San Francisco. The marathon is on Sunday. Where the heck did the time go?! I remember signing up for the lottery to this race back in April, and now I'm less than 48 hours away from actually running it! I'm nervous. Excited. Anxious. Did I mention NERVOUS? Oh la... the idea of running 42.2 km is starting to sound a little crazy. But there's not much more I can do now. I've put in the work (at least I hope I have), now it's time to just enjoy the journey.

BIG thanks and much love to my family, friends, coaches and fellow training mates for all the support and encouragement these last few months. I can say without question that I would not be able to do this is if we're for all of you guys!!

Fingers crossed the race goes well!! And good luck to everyone running the Toronto Goodlife race this weekend!!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I have SO many things to be thankful for. And thankfully I'll be spending the day with my fantastic family. I hope everyone has a great day. Happy Thanksgiving!!

(now I'm off to eat some turkey!!)

Absolutely Gourd-geous

Well Fall is finally here! You can feel it in the air! No literally, it's in the air, the temperature has dropped... I couldn't be happier, as Autumn is my favourite time of year! The weather is cool and crisp. The leaves are change colour. Food offerings become hearty and comforting. And decorating ones home becomes a snap! My friends and I are obsessed with mini pumpkins and gourds. Some much so that last year when my dear friend Lindsay got married she decorated her wedding reception with them. They come in all colours, shapes and sizes and add an instant touch of festive Fall to any room. I like them in little groupings along my window sill. The tiny white pumpkins are a particular favourite - so cute! Perfect for decorating your Thanksgiving table this weekend - and they'll last until your ready for the Christmas decorations!

Easy listening

So this just might be the BEST album EVER. Ok, I might be a bit biased (as I do know these guys). But the new Bedouin Soundclash album Light The Horizon is dope! Do people still say "dope"? Whatever... The album is unbelievably catchy. And while just about every song is my favourite, I really Really REALLY love Chance of Rain (which you can download for FREE here - aren't these guys generous!), Rolling Stone, and Brutal Hearts.

Bedouin will be playing in Toronto at the Sound Academy on Nov. 19th! I've got my tickets, be sure to get yours!!

I'm also sorta (majorly) in love with the album We Are Born by Sia. A little pop, a little folky, and little soul. Like Adele meets Lenka meets Amy Winehouse. The song Be Good To Me has my wishing I could sing, and the piano/vocal version of I'm in Here is hauntingly beautiful.

I dare you to listen to either of these albums and not dance. Go ahead, just try! I dare you...