Everybody's workin' for the weekend..

It doesn't get any easier, as we age, to make it through a rough work week.  Just like Loverboy went from wearing tight red leather pants to this, my life is such that Monday morning starts with me feeling energized and ready and ends Friday afternoon on life support.  TGIF, yeah, yeah, can you get me another cup of coffee?

Saturdays should be for sleeping in, but since we have an active toddler, no one sleeps late anymore.  Instead, you can find me training with Austin Fit for the February half marathon.  If I can't sleep, I might as well work out.  And, oh man...it is so hard to get moving on Saturday morning.  I know I need to exercise.  I know I need to dump some more pounds.  This isn't rocket science.  But maybe rocket fuel would be the perfect assist in getting me out of bed and on the road.  (Note to self: invest in Espresso Love Gu).

It's ironic that the two days when I have time to relax are the same two days that Jaime is rarin' to go, get out of the house, go somewhere, do something.  I'm thinking about a bottle of wine, the couch and a dvd and he's gazing outdoors with a rapturous look on his face.  Of course, I'm not the adult in the family who's main source of Vitamin D comes from the sunny side of the playground, either. 

We've compromised this weekend.  After my 6.5 miler in the morning (carrying my iPhone in case I need to call a taxi) we will indulge in some R&R before spending the afternoon outside.  Specifically, we'll be helping to celebrate The Draught House's 42nd birthday.  Delicious craft beer is the one thing guaranteed to get me off the sofa.  The fine men of BeerTownAustin have a delicious list of the brews to be had at Draught House's celebration.

I am excited to see my standby favorite (512) Brewing's Double Pecan Porter, but I'm super thrilled to try Jester King's Commercial Suicide and Southern Star's Pro-Am Smoked Porter "primed with agave syrup with chipotles in the cask".  What what?? Oh, those cheeky Conroe brewers!  Four 6.5oz pours are your's, with a glass, for $12 (if only it was BeerTownAustin's moustache glass).  Happy weekend, indeed.

A healthy glow

Those of you who know me well are familiar with my milky white skin, a hue so light if I was any paler I might actually go transparent.  Thank you, Dad, for the great genes that make me look younger than I am, but could you have at least let Mom give me her Mexican-American olive tones that instantly brown in the smallest amount of sunlight?  Seriously, I tell people I'm Latina and they probably think I meant to say "I'm studying Latin".  If you'd dust me in ultra-fine glitter I'd sparkle like one of the Twilight vamps. Well, no more, folks!  I've found the answer to the problem, the solution to me blinding Jaime when I pull my shirt off and it is awesome! 

Yes, the picture above says it all, airbrush is in, tanning beds are out.  Super friendly Laurie, the owner of Healthy Glow Mobile Airbrush Tanning Service stopped by my house one recent Saturday afternoon and worked a small miracle.  Carefully airbrushing me, Laurie turned this anemic-toned chica into a lightly bronzed woman.  The effect was natural and flattering.  In fact, it was so natural looking that when I visited with a friend later that day she remarked that my half marathon training was leaving me looking sun-kissed.  Little did she know, it was a faux tan. 

Laurie's set up is a simple one, fitting into one medium sized case. Handy, because she will come to your home with her equipment.  Even better, you can claim the hostess with the mostest title and throw an airbrush tan party.  You supply the friends and beverages and she'll come in, pop open the airbrush tent and get to work.

Please, no comments about the cardboard in the background. It's hard to indulge in picking out window treatments when you are on a fixed income. Besides, that window overlooks a brick wall, so unless you are a really, really good Peeping Tom, we're not worried about drapes.  Ahem, back to the subject.  Most women will wear their bathing suit, but I wanted more of an all over tan.  Laurie was okay with me going au naturel, but I opted to wear small undies and a strapless bra.  The spray will show up on light fabric, but washes out easily.

Laurie had me stand in the tent while she explained the process, starting off with blowing air on me so I could feel how cool it was (colder than I expected). Then she began airbrushing me, methodically and smoothly.  I leaned this way and that, held my arms up then down, inclined my head to each side...you get the picture.  When she was done, Laurie explained that the bronzer would darken slightly over the next hours but asked me to make sure I was happy with the color.  I could've asked to go darker but the shade she chose for me was perfect.  Laurie blended my farmer's tan from my running shirts so that I was one even shade from the top of my shoulders down to my hands.  The entire process took less than twenty minutes.

I'm so satisfied with my tan that I've already asked Laurie to airbrush me before my wedding next month.  I followed her instructions on body care pre-tan: exfoliate paying close attention to problem areas like elbows, knees and feet, shave the day of or before and moisturize well in the days prior to the airbrush session.  You want as smooth a canvas as possible.  You can't wear deoderant or makeup for your session or have freshly lotioned skin.  After-care is easy, too.  You want to wait about 8 hours before bathing (plan ahead!), moisturize, moisturize, moisturize, take warm, not hot baths and avoid shaving your legs as long as possible.  The tan lasts between 7-10 days, dependant upon how much your skin naturally exfoliates. 

I'm thrilled with my Healthy Glow airbrush tan, and want you to experience it, too.  If you book an airbrush tan party with Laurie and three friends get tanned, your's is free.  Laurie charges only $35 (remember, she's coming to you, that's a steal!) for a full body tan.  If you live outside of Austin, she charges a nominal $10 fee for mileage.  You can contact Laurie through her Facebook site for Healthy Glow or call her at (512) 573-1106.  Now go get your own healthy glow!

In keeping with FTC regulations, I am disclosing that Laurie was generous enough to tan me for free, something that was greatly appreciated and resulted in this happy blog post. Satisfied, Big Brother?

Beer...sleep

What I really want to talk about today is beer.  Beer in all its beautiful, beery goodness, like 512 Brewing Pecan Porter pictured above (apologies for the dismal quality photo), Oaktoberfest from Live Oak Brewing, and Oktoberfest from Shiner.  All of these are recently quaffed, greatly enjoyed beers.  I love this time of year because it means a good number of seasonals from local breweries.  I tend to be somewhat ADD in my beverage choices, zinging back and forth between lighter flavors and deeper ones.  October is a beer month that completely plays into my drinking style.  I have a list of more beers to sample, but if you have a "must drink" local brew, please let me know in comments so that I, too, may partake of its deliciousness.

Alas, I am too exhausted to write about beer.  I need sleep.  I need sleep like an armadillo needs to be spray painted glow-in-the-dark neon colors.  What?  Obviously, this will give the armadillo a competitive edge when crossing a dark Texas highway.  I believe it may also reduce drunk driving, since if I left happy hour and saw a neon green armadillo streak across Hwy. 71, I would damn sure pull over and call a sober friend to pick me up.

Sunday night I had action dreams all night long.  I enjoy a rambunctious movie as much as the next woman, but dreaming of running around in the dark with my task force of fellow vampire killers (with ultra cool automatic weapons equipped with UV bullets) meant waking up worn out.  I dragged through my very busy work day and ended up with the caffeine shakes in the late afternoon.  I was determined to go to bed early Monday night.

My hope of getting a solid night's sleep died a little after midnight, when Ryder woke up with a tummy ache.  At least we think it was a tummy ache...can't quite tell when you're dealing with a child who's most advanced word is "door".  He tossed and turned and cried out and grunted and, after a dose of Mylicon, made a few other loud noises, all of which were repeated at 3am and 5am.  At the barest crack of dawn, Ryder decided he was up for the day, smiling and happy.  Of course.  Meanwhile, I'm trying to find out where I can buy a case of 5 Hour Energy and dashing off an e-mail to Uncle Billy's telling them that the breakfast crowd would love their Insomniac Coffee Stout.