A New Blog

I was having a hard time coming up with mostly running posts so I have moved my blog here.
Hope you still enjoy what I have to say about all things in our lives :)

A slow day

Yesterday was a crazy day...we went to Ashley's Mini Team practice and was asked if she could be moved up and do the Youth team as well- oh yeah and the first competition is tomorrow(HA). So she stayed at Dynasty from 9-2 for the double practice and she also has practice Monday from 12-4 and then the competition that night. I am so proud of her but my day did not go the way I thought it was going to.
This morning I got up and ran a very SLOW 6 miles by myself. I really enjoyed the quiet time and was proud that I mentally could run without talking to anyone for an hour :)
When I got home all my kids were coughing so I utilized a new feature at our church called http://woodlandlive.com. I was able to watch church while keeping my kids home and in bed how cool is that. Here is what Pastor Tim's message was about I hope you enjoy what I learned :

CREST
Connect-Reach-Equip- Service-Trust
Living on top of the mountain
Top, side, in the valley- god wants us to move toward the crest of the mountain
Reaching with good news

God Loves you and wants to be a part of your family
Everybody wants to be loved
God’s purpose has not changed
Isaiah 61:1; Luke 4:18-19
Luke 19:10
Poor are people without spiritual things- people that need the good news
Jesus came to seek and to save the lost and that should be our purpose
1. It’s a Spirit thing.
Anointed with power from the Holy Spirit- set apart because we have the good news.
He gives us power.- stronger the presence- the stronger our witness
Help the brokenhearted. (Disappointed )
Blinded by living for the wrong things
Speak of freedom from living the roller coaster life
Peak happiness- pleasure when pleasure goes down
Peak joy find in Christ
Life is dependant on being loved and I am loved by god
He motivates us.
Acts 4:31
Pray- fill-speak (boldly)
When holy spirit fills us we automatically speak boldly the words of Christ.
We need to be filled in every aspect of our lives by the holy spirit

Prayer Spirit Speak


The more filled with spirit of god the more I speak for God.
Need to charge our batteries through prayer.
Find the things distracting us from God then let prayer attack that thing to zap it out of our lives.
Need some spiritual shocks!!!
When shocked in life you stand up and are bold with God’s message and you look like Life
He teaches us.

Don’t speak because afraid….more concerned about people’s opinions of you.
Afraid because you don’t know what to say
Matthew 10:19-20

People don’t need to hear YOU they need to hear GOD!! So don’t be afraid to share.
Our problem is putting ourselves out there- do we trust him to help us.
If spirit filled take the steps to speak anyway- through trusting in God.
Takes the excuse of the not sharing of Christ- use your story to help change people’s lives.
When we do that- that is when we reach others.

Happy Running!!

Baby it's cold outside- still

This morning I got up bring and early at 5 to go for a 5 miler of course. I put on my cold weather clothes ( really need to buy another jacket) and headed out by myself with my faithful ipod. I really am enjoying the morning. I was going to try to run with the Lakewood Ranch Running Club but my options were run from 4:30-6 a.m. or 6-7 a.m. and one was too early and the other too late for me to get home and get the kids ready. I planned on going at a slower pace and I did not disappoint myself. I really wanted to roll back over and stay in bed but I am working on the mental aspect of pushing myself when I don't really want to do things so out the door I went. I passed 2 runners on my way back in and we each did the obligatory wave. By the time I got home I had run 5.16 on the trusty Garmin and I was still cold.
I am really excited for the weekend and the reappearance of running in my shorts. Oh how I am missing my shorts!

Happy Running!!

The road to good intentions

Did I mention that I live in Florida? Did I also mention that the temperature has been consistently below 40 degrees for the last 2 weeks? Did I mention that I have been running consistently in weather under 30 because I usually run before the sun comes up to avoid the wind? This has been my crazy running life and I do not know how people up North or anywhere the temps stay cold do any long distance exercise outside. My run times have been quicker than normal because I guess I have been trying to run faster to avoid being outside. Luckily I have had my FIL here to watch my kids so I haven't had to push them in the jogger for some time. I do know however, that those days are coming to an end but I also think that the cold weather is coming to an end too. I am not quite sure exactly how many days until the Princess Half but I do know that as long as I stick to my plan and don't get hurt that I will be just fine.
Bad news is M broke her knee cap so sadly she will not be running it with me (she did break it falling while running). This just means that mentally I need to prepare to running alone. I did an early 5 miles alone this week and it went really good. I think I am also becoming a morning runner since cheerleading is taking up every evening during the week.
My plan is usually to get up around 5 a.m. and depending on the plan- running, then coming home getting my kids up and ready for school, and then being the bus driver I am the rest of the day, until cheer practice hits at 5:30 and we usually don't get home until 8ish, then bed routines with meals interspersed throughout the day. So the morning it seems is the only time that I have to be able to get my miles in and if I don't BEWARE of the cranky mom!

This weekend is mandatory cheer practice because Monday night Ash has her first CHEER competition. If you all remember from earlier, I was not too thrilled to be forced into this new role as cheer mom and I don't really think I make a good one. Well this will all be getting tested this coming Monday at the Manatee County Fair. Yes, I said the fair- you know with livestock and carney rides and weird people. Why wouldn't I want to parade by beautiful daughter decked out in her short cheer uniform in front of these strange people. Did I mention my daughter is 6? Needless to say, I have already told Ashley that I will not be letting her out of my site during the entire time that we are at the fair and that as soon as we are allowed to leave - we will be! I know, not the best attitude going in -but I am working on it.

Ryan's birthday is in about a month and we are throwing him a party at the local bounce house place. I feel that he gets the short end of the stick sometimes so we are going all out for my boy to turn 4. He really has no clue that he is having this party (it's not a surprise) but he really doesn't care about things like birthdays, presents. If you were to ask him what he wants he will probably tell me something like he wants a ball or something silly like that. I love my boy and am so sad that he is growing up.

Alexis- oh my lord the child can get into some trouble. She usually warms up to people pretty quickly BUT not my FIL. It has taken her 2 full weeks to not cry when he is in the same room. That also has contributed to my 5 a.m. running since I couldn't leave her with him crying for an hour straight. She also is now walking everywhere and she has given up on baby food for good. She shakes her head NO when trying to feed her anything with a spoon because she feels that it is baby food (even when it isn't). She gets into EVERY cabinet in the house and the nail polish I have under my vanity is her favorite thing to bang on the floor ( and she did break one when I was with Ashley at cheer and I left her with my FIL!) She is also the smiliest baby I have ever had and her little giggle cracks me up.

That is what we have been up to lately I WILL be better at updating- I WILL!!

Happy Running!!!

2010 - wow

So, I am a blog slacker- sue me (but please don't)! It seems as though as each day passes the busier that i become. Being a stay at home mom is a crazy job. Winter break is almost over (HALL-E-LU-JAH!!!) and my kids will be going back to school in 2 days. I have survived visits from every member of our immediate family and have come out of it almost unscathed. We have had people in our house for the last month and we have at least 2 more weeks of our last visitor so running has been my saving grace these last few weeks.

I have found that if people start to really bother me I can leave my kids with them and run out all of the frustration then come home and be the loving family member that I am.

Lexi started walking this last week and although I am sad about it, I am also happy that I do not have to lug her around everywhere. Ashley has her first cheer competitions this month and I still don't think that I am ready for it. Ryan is COMPLETELY potty trained- no diapers at all which is pretty impressive for me right now.

I am training for the half-marathon at Disney on March 7 and training is going extremely well. My goal for 2010 is to be more consistent in the things that I choose to do and blogging is one of those things, so keep coming back because I can guarantee that there is going to be a lot of fun going on here this next year!!

Happy Running!!!

Jingle Bell 5K

It was first and foremost a lot of fun!!
There was a lot leading up to this 5k because my parents were not able to come and watch my kids and I DO NOT leave them with people I don't know. So then M was going to watch them for me and that ended up falling through too. So there I am with a race and 3 kids. T worked it out so that I could leave Ashley with her parents and kids during the actual race and we decided that I would run pushing the baby jogger. At the time the thought of pushing the jogger wasn't too bad (although I dislike pushing the jogger under normal circumstances). Of course the circumstances became not normal when the temperature dropped to 55 instead of 85 and I started having mommy guilt over pushing my munchkins in that temperature.
I decided to just go and have fun. I went to good old Target and got hats for my kiddies brought a blanket to wrap around them and we were ready to go.
What I wasn't prepared for was the amount of people involved in this 5k. The first mile I spent trying to dodge walkers (yes I said walkers) and not hitting those who took off to quickly and felt the need to just STOP in the middle of the street. Mile 1 was fun to run but not to race and definitely not easy with the jogger. Mile 2 was along the street that was covered in Christmas lights and then went along the river. It was windy and chilly but the kids thought it was so fun. We couldn't even actually cross the finish running at Mile 3.1 because everyone had stopped and were chit chatting and I did hit the lady who just STOPPED right in front of me ( i apologized).
T and I ran the whole time and finished in 33 minutes which considering the jogger and maneuvering the masses I thought was pretty good. Did I mention that it was fun?
I would love to run it next year-minus my kids (i love them but i don't like pushing them).
Happy Running!!

Yes, I took a break :)

Mostly I just took a break from blogging because I really had nothing interesting to say. We have been in crunch mode around our house. Dave had foot surgery so instead of taking care of 3 kids I have been taking care if 4 kids- haha! I have been running and I actually went for a 10 miler tonight with T. It was so much fun for me (don't know if T thought the same). It was only supposed to be 9 but we got a little lost (really need to just buy the garmin) and ended up doing 10. We have Ashley's first cheer competition this weekend. I am so extremely nervous for her and since I honestly have no clue how she does the things she does I am also so proud. So after this weekend I am going to start blogging a little more consistently again. Dec 14 officially starts training for the half marathon but I feel like I could do one next week so I am just going to enjoy following a plan again and enjoy running with my buddies.

Thanks for being concerned about me but I am doing really good.

Happy Running!!!

Remembering...

I have wanted to sit down and write this post for 2 days but I didn't have a second to myself (which I think was a good thing). On October 30, 2008 I went into labor and I staying in labor for 3 weeks. I remember that day as clearly as if it was yesterday and in many ways to me it feels like it was only yesterday. I was 33 weeks pregnant and enjoying my day. I picked up Ash from kindergarten and started having contractions. I came home and laid down, drank some water, but they were getting closer together so Dave and I shuffled the kids to our emergency people, called my parents to come get them and went to the hospital. If you had told me then that I would have to stay there I would have laughed in your face. I figured we would go in, get a shot, maybe be admitted for a day and go back to my life until Lexi was ready to come out. Soooo not what happened.

I did go in and get the shot, many of them but the contractions were still there pretty hard but not painful and they were not stopping. I remember the nurse telling me they were going to put me on MAG and that I would want to die for 3 days and then I would feel better. Dave asked how long I would have to stay and she said "you may be here for 2 weeks" and we chuckled.

They started the MAG and they have to get you in a "theraputic" and yet not "toxic" range. First bolus put me in the "toxic" range. Oh yeah did I mention it makes you REALLY HOT (I still think I am recovering from this). I could not lift my head because it makes you really dizzy, I felt like my skin was being burned off (which it was from the heat coming out of my pores) I could barely function and I honestly don't remember much from those 3 days. I was violently ill and scared that any sudden movement would cause my water to break. The weird part is that I was never worried about Lexi. I knew that she was fine because I had daily ultrasounds for the next 2 weeks during my stay. I had really great nurses who always tried to talk with me and would let me know my options (although leaving was never one of them). I had contractions for the next 2 weeks at least 12-15 maybe more an hour but my body didn't feel them. I was on an antibiotic which apparently I was allergic too which no one figured out until I went into labor. I stayed on the dreaded MAG for those 2 weeks. My body was HOT but they kept my room at about 50 degrees. People would visit me in parkas and I would sit there in my gown and no blankets.

AND I CHANGED

it is really hard to explain how. I felt guilty for not being home with my kids and husband. I think that was the worst part of the whole ordeal was that I was stuck there. I often said it felt like prison to me because I could not leave. It was probably the hardest thing I have ever had to go through and I was lucky. My Lexi was healthy. She was active and growing and when she graced us with her presence at exactly 36 weeks she was gorgeous.

and look where we are today...

I am thankful for her and I am still a different person than I was on October 30, 2008. A friend told me that there are scars and there are but what a great prize right?

Oh and one of me and the brood :)

Happy Running!!

Tower of Terror Recap

I loved it!!! my M not so much :(

Dave and I drove over Saturday morning and checked in to the Gaylord Palms ( favorite hotel ever!) and then went to packet pick up at the Wide World of Sports. At this point we found out that we could buy tickets to the post race party so Dave could see me finish and I think this is where I became really excited to do the race. Earlier in the week I didn't think he would be able to be at the finish so after we bought his ticket I was so relieved that he wouldn't have to waste an hour and a half in the parking lot that I just vowed to relax and enjoy.

We met up with M and J and their significant others and went to Wolfgang Puck for lunch at Downtown Disney.

*I definitely had a nutrition goal for my pre-race and it went wonderfully.

I had the best pumpkin ravioli and some bread for lunch- it was seriously so good. M and J went to packet pick up and then we went back to the hotel for naps. Yes the naps that didn't happen because I could not turn my mind off and I kept going over the course in my head. Well my body was able to relax I guess which may have helped too. We went to Columbia for dinner and I had more bread and a salad. At this point it was getting close to 7 and we had to be at the park by 9 p.m. (normally in bed by 9)

We went back to the hotel to get dressed and I had a major dilemma- what to wear. I had my outfit picked out but it was a little cooler than usual, about 67ish and I didn't know if I should wear capris or a shirt over my running tank. Decided to just run in my original outfit and my Zensah leg sleeves.

WE got to the MGM parking lot and waited for J to arrive. I really had to use the restroom so I ate my hammer bar, kissed my hubs goodbye and told him i would see him at the finish and went to meet J at the start . I was still not feeling as nervous as usual but excited. Asked someone where the porta potties were and they said we had to use bathroom by MGM. So we walked that way then were told that those bathrooms were closed (in a rude manner) and that we needed to go back the way we just came from. By now I really had to go so I wasn't in a joking mood with the Disney workers. Finally found the potties which were right next to the starting line. Not the best place for the porta potties because it created a big mass of people right where we were supposed to be corralled for the race.

I used the potties and stood in line in the corral with J and M. WE all had our ipods in case they had to drop back or if we got separated. I was planning on staying with M to the end unless she had to stop but I am getting ahead of myself. At 10:30 the fireworks went off and we started, well we walked to the start because there were A LOT of people lined up WRONG and that was a tad annoying. We started and I already had gone over the course so I knew were every mile marker was. My plan was to take 2 chomps at the start, 1 at mile 4, and 1 at mile 7 to get me to the finish. Miles 1 & 2 were just getting out of the crowd of people and at 2 we had to run down a dirt path leading back into the Wide World of Sports. Miles 3 & 4 was running through Wide World of Sports fields. We were on the sidewalk running and then ran around a track, at this point J decided that she was going to fall back which was cool. She did a great job! At mile 4 we took out chomp and M said she felt ok. I knew that from mile 4-6 it was the MOST BORING part of the whole course. We were on the main road leading to MGM and we had to run up and down the ramps. M started to hurt about this time and I was trying to encourage her to do what she felt she needed to. Mile 6 was right outside of MGM and we had just run this 2 weeks ago. I was feeling really good still but M was not. She told me to go and that is just what i did.
I felt awesome so I picked up my pace and I had the BEST 2 MILES EVER!! I was running faster than I ever have and I was having so much fun. I was passing people left and right and I just kept picking it up. I got to mile 7 and took my chomp and I did my last mile in 8 MINUTES!!!!! There was a hill leading up to mile 8 but I was totally mentally prepared for it and was having so much fun that it might have been flat ground for all my body knew. I flew up that silly hill saw the 8 mile marker and knew I was only a turn from the finish. My endurance was definitely built up because I wasn't even tired. I crossed the finish smiling because my watch said 1:24.01 and Dave was there taking my pic and telling me great job!! I really feel like I could have ran 5 more that night. I have never felt better running than during the 13K. M came in at 1:35 and J at 1:39. M was having knee issues and could barely walk so we went back to the the hotel and I had to take Dave to the airport the next morning but since I was still on my running high not sleeping wasn't much of a problem.

M is taking about a month off but I ran today and realized that I still love it. I love running 3 miles just as much as I did the 8.

They aren't doing this race again but there is a replacement and I will definitely be signing up for it when registration opens Nov 16th.

Happy Running!!

Tower of Splendor

AWESOME RACE
Full report coming soon but i finished the 13K in
1:24.01
WOO HOO!!!

Race Across The Sky- Leadville Trail 100

Am I ready?

Well, today was my last long run before the 13K- what is it with all the K's anyways and why when you get to a half does it finally go to miles- ok off topic. So the race is 8.01 miles. Today I ran at 11:45 a.m. and I did 7 miles by myself no M or T to run with me. I have NEVER ran anything over 5 by myself so this was a big deal for me. My hubs decided that he would ride the bike with Ry and Lexi and keep me company as I ran.
I was not going to turn down extra motivation so we decided that I would run and he would ride. When we originally talked about this plan I thought we would be going around 8:45 a.m. but Dave had a meeting with the chief so we didn't go until 11:45 (ugh!) We live in Florida BUT we are having a cold front (ha! I think it was in the mid 70's) so I was really nervous about running in the middle of the day. I usually do long runs at night (after the sun goes down) but I got my wonderful Nathan belt out, filled the water bottles, got my GU Chomp to take for a little boost at mile 4 and we took off.
It was so odd to be by myself but not alone. I say this because although Dave never left me, he isn't chatty like my girls. Usually we just talk and all of a sudden the miles are over. Not so today! Dave would talk to me for a while then fall back and then come up and talk to me some more. Once we hit the half way mark, I took my GU chomp and I still felt good. My endurance is definitely ok for the distance, I just hope that my legs do not rebel on me on Saturday. So we were to mile 4.5 when I heard this loud noise behind me and then what comes bounding out of the woods? 2 DEER!!! A doe followed by a buck with big horns. I literally stopped in my tracks because they freaked me out so bad. Dave thought it was neat and our kids loved it but it made my heartbeat soar which wasn't good for my last 2.5 miles. Plus I stopped running which is No-No for me. So since I was walking I drank some water and started running again. This was also the first time I ever ran with the Nathans Belt. It was a little uncomfortable at first but after the first few miles I really didn't notice it anymore. So, I started running again and Dave was riding along with me. It was a nice running with my family. Once I made the turn towards home I knew that I could do it. I knew that I was going to have run the 7 miles. I ran it at about a 10 minute pace which I was totally ok with seeing as I had never done it without gabbing before.
I am also glad that I was able to show my hubs and kids what I can do.
So, am I ready? I think I am . I am looking forward to Saturday knowing that it will be at night (no sun) and lots of people running around me (if not with me). I think that mentally I am confident that my body is ready. I will be wearing my one Zensah, which I have worn on my last 3 runs because my leg felt like it needed the extra support. I am hoping that M will be able to run the race with me but since she still has a groin injury it is doubtful that if she does race that she will run. I am going to run! I have been training and I know that I will be fine on my own if that is what happens.
Well, gotta do some Mommy Duties.
Happy Running!!

The difference between day and night

Thank you for all of your encouraging words about the eating. It is going well this week and I am treating it like training :)

I ran last night with T. She has wanted to run without the joggers and if finally worked out on a night. We met at her house and took off around 7:40. It was such a gorgeous night. The temperature was about 65 and that is the coolest temperature that I have ever run in. We took off ran down to the gate and it didn't open so we did a little adventure racing and shimmied under the gate (funny sight). We kept running and all of a sudden it there were no more street lights and then the sidewalk ended...so we turned around and had to rethink our course. We were only supposed to go five but we ended up doing 6 and walking a half to cool down. It was so much fun.

I was supposed to run a long run with M tomorrow night but she still has some groin pain from the 10K and we have the 13K this coming Saturday so we will see how she feels but T might run with us too. It is supposed to be in the 50's so pray that my Florida self doesn't freeze while running-ha!

I am really looking forward to doing the Tower of Terror 13K this Saturday. First because it is at night...a little late with a start time of 10:30 and my goal is to finish before midnight- which to me is a generous goal. Whether or not I finish in that time I am really going to try and enjoy this race. They won't be doing this one again because they added the Wine and Dine Half Marathon next October. I will be signing up for that as soon as registration opens- super excited about doing a half at night (remember I am not fond of mornings!)

Congrats to all of you who had races this weekend!! Hope you have a great week of recovery.

Happy Running!!

p.s. we went to the pumpking patch this weekend and my little pumpkin is 11 months old today

:(

Scared and Emberassed

I just received the link to the pics that were taken at the 10K and I am emaciated. Honestly when i look in the mirror I do not see that skeletal person that is me (i guess). It also scares the crap out of me! I have looked way worse (scary thought i know) but I have. At my lowest I weighed 10 lbs less than I do now and I didn't exercise. It was not a good time and I was trying to find something to control and my weight and eating habits fit the bill.
I wrote in a previous post about balance and I am NOT balancing very well I guess.
If you follow me on twitter I made some very nice comments about my talk with the scale (haha) and then I see pics of myself and I totally get slapped in the face. I really am struggling and I do not want to give up running at all but eating more isn't helping.
I haven't written about my runs this week (although I have ran every day) but I am making a conscious effort to put on the lbs. It is so hard, even though I know it is best because I do want to be healthy and I think it will make me run better too.
The people closest to me have been true encourager's and I appreciate them so much. After I saw the first pictures (that I took) I was upset but now I am just really sad. I am sad that this matters to me so much and I am MAD at myself. So.... operation put on 10 lbs is officially on.
This is my marathon!!! It is going to be hard. People say "just eat" but I feel like I have been so we are going to try something else I guess.
I am still going to be training for my half in March but I am going to HAVE to solve my nutrition issues and quick because I WILL NOT look like a skeleton in those pics. I want to be proud of them.
Happy Running!!

Race For the Taste 10K

Let me start by saying thank you to M, J, and Becky for making it a really fun weekend. It was the first time since I got married that I have gone ANYWHERE without my husband and kids. I did realize however, that I missed them immensely and will probably have them with me at any and all future races. We left of Saturday around noon and got to Wide World of Sports for the packet pick up and expo. Once again SOOOOOO disappointed with the Disney expo. You would think that because this is a race at Disney they would have something. I bought absolutely nothing because there was nothing to buy (sigh). We didn't get shirts either but we did get a beer mug (which my husband has claimed for his own). We had planned on going to Giordano's for our pre-race dinner and I have to say that I was not let down. My usual pre-race meal of choice is pizza and Giordano's did not disappoint. Becky and I shared a pizza that looked like this:

it was soooooo good!!! Then, we went back to the hotel, looked around and went to bed.

I was under the impression that the race started at 7:30 BUT it started at 7.

I DO NOT LIKE TO GET UP EARLY!!!!!

We had the wake-up call come in at 5:30 but M & J were up at 5. I ate my cliff bar (so didn't like it but forgot my hammer ones :( ), got dressed and off we went to the Wide World of Sports for the start of the race. I was a little nervous because we usually do our long runs at night but I must get over this because most races start in the morning (ugh!). We missed most of the crazy traffic and got there about 6:15ish. M met up with her brother and we took some pre-race pics

Of course I had to go use the porta pottys and the lines were CRAZY!! I probably stood in line for 30 minutes and then it was time to line up and start the race. Now, I knew that Becky would leave us and that was ok. I totally expected her to do awesome. She has been running for 2 years and is in the middle of marathon training. She did great and finished in 57:45- SO PROUD OF HER!

So we started Becky, took off and so did J. I am a slow and steady person so I don't sprint at the beginning because I knew we had 5 more miles to go and I wanted us to enjoy it and finish in our time not anyone else's. M and I just kept running and the 1st mile went by so fast. I think that was because we were running on 192 and there were so many people in such a small space. Before I knew it we were running into Hollywood Studios. We ran awhile with M's brother and then we just kind of enjoyed running behind the Light's, Motor's Action set. We went out the back side of Hollywood Studios and 3 miles were done. At this point I knew the rest of the course because we walk it ALL the time when we go to Disney. Around mile 5.5, my legs started to feel a tad heavy and I my tummy wasn't too happy about the cliff bar. I actually felt like I was going to be sick which has never happened to me before. Note to self: REMEMBER your HAMMER BARS!!! The best thing about running races at Disney is that most of them end in the same place. I knew once we passed Space Ship Earth that we had .2 left and I knew that no matter if I lost my cliff bar that I would finish strong and we did. We finished in 1:02.02. It was 2 minutes longer than I wanted but honestly I am so proud of the time we finished in. We ran and we had as much fun as 2 moms could have. We finished and I went and got my complimentary diet coke and all was well in my world. We got our medals, took tons of pictures and I was bummed that my hubs and kids weren't there.

I am so proud of my running girls. We have Tower of Terror 13K to look forward to in 2 weeks and it is at night (HALLELUJAH!!) It will be my last longer distance race before I begin training for the half next March.

Can't wait until Oct 15th when they announce how they are changing the races at Disney for next year! Hope everyone else had fun while running this weekend.

Happy Running!!

The trials of training and the glory of accomplishment

I won't lie- training for a race of any length with kids is tricky, especially if you live in Florida and the average temperature between 9a.m. and 7p.m. is 95. I started my training for a 5k (yes already passed but on to that later) on August 1st. At that point I just found a training schedule and began running. I remember the day that I started ,I went 2 miles and I felt pretty good at the end. I figured that since my 5k wasn't until September 26th that I would not be last and that I would have a great time with my husband and I would enjoy being able to run. About a week later my sister in law asked me if I would sign up for a 10K with her that was 2 weeks after the 5k. I signed up and then she said she may not be able to go. HUH??
This was something that she wanted to do, not me, but since I made a commitment, I figured that I may as well train for the 10K and then do the 5K as a training run.
I printed out my schedule (intermediate seemed doable to me), put in on my refrigerator and followed it as best as a mom with a husband who works weird hours could.
Let me say this too...I LOVE RUNNING.
I always have enjoyed it but it really has helped me to have that certain time a day that I focus only on me. I focus on my breathing, moving one foot in front of the other, and not getting hit by cars :) Running has given me confidence again and I just love lacing up my shoes and going.
I made running a priority every day and everyone around me knew- that I was training and what I was training for. Eventually M started running with me and I have found a great peace in running with someone else. I find comfort in doing something I love and not doing it alone.
So we trained, rain or shine, in mostly HOT weather. I started running in the mid-morning (although I love to run at night, even if it isn't quite safe), running with my jogger (ugh!), and simply enjoying being able to run.
When people ask my why I run, I always tell them the same thing- because I can.
So this morning when I crossed my last 2 mile run off my training schedule and the next run I am supposed to do is the 10K, I am proud of what I have been able to do. I am giddy because in 2 days I get to run 10K with M and Becky (she decided she could make it after all). Some days I don't think that I am a "real" runner because I don't honestly care how fast I get there. Miley says it best when she says, "It's the climb!"
I enjoy the training as much as the races. I enjoy running with my girls and running alone. There is always going to be another race, I am signed up for 2 more after the 10K but to me this one is special because it is the first that I have trained diligently for and I am going to enjoy it (and hopefully finish under and hour :))

Happy Running!!

8 miles and a recantation- HA

First off I have to let you know I had to return the Brooks- sniff. I really did enjoy them that first run BUT I exchanged them this morning. I went into my trusted Fit2Run and told them that my knee was killing me 5 or so miles into my run. Oh, your IT band that is common. IT band? what? my knee hurts! Well this is what I found out about IT bands.

Jeff Gallaway's website says:

Where does it hurt? Almost always on the outside of the leg, from the knee to the hip. The pain from I-T band is most often felt on the outside of the knee, slightly below the intersection of the two leg bones. For some, pain may be centered just above that point. In rare cases it may hurt on the outside just below the hip, and occasionally the pain may radiate up and down the outside of the leg, at various times. We will concentrate on the most common site, the outside of the knee.

It says to treat it do this:

1. Take enough time off to get the healing started (usually 3-5 days) 2. Take vitamin C. When I have an injury such as I-T band, I take 1000mg of Vitamin C, 3-5 times a day. Consult with a sports nutritionist for further information about vitamin C and other nutrients which can speed healing. 3. Stretch the tendon. The I-T band is one of few running injuries that is helped by stretching. Start with the stretches recommended and experiment to find ones that reduce or eliminate the pain. You can stretch before, after, and during a run‹and even in the evening, or while sitting at your desk at work. Stretching primarily reduces the tension on the tendon so that it doesn't hurt for a while. By keeping the I-T band flexible you also reduce the continued pulling on it, and may help it to heal to some extent. Experiment with different stretches for the area. The best ones are those that release the I-T band at that time, giving you instant relief. Compare stretches with other I-T band sufferers, but very few runners will use the same stretch routine. You will find that different stretches help at different times, even on the same run. 4. Ice massage. Freeze a paper cup and every night, rub the ice directly on the area of pain until it gets numb (usually about 15 minutes). Be advised that there's usually no healing effect from ice in a plastic bag, towel or frozen gel pac. It helps to ice the injury immediately after a run, but even if you miss this opportunity, ice it well at least once a day. 5. Run on level surface. Uneven surfaces will fatigue the muscles and tendons and increase the chance of I-T band irritation. A road that is slanted can cause I-T band problems on one run.6. Get the right shoe and possibly an orthotic. Even the perfect shoe (whatever that is) will lose support from the midsole, usually without any outward sign on the shoes. To run on these shoes usually aggravates the injury. Shoe experts, (such as the ones in really good running stores) can advise you in finding current shoes which can give the support or cushion your foot needs. Overpronated floppy feet show some shoe wear on the inside of the forefoot and benefit from motion control shoes. You'll have to give them feedback how the shoes feel and whether there are any discomfort areas. The shoe should be an extension of your foot without any extraordinary pressure or tension.

So... I bought these instead

On to the 8 mile recap. I feel enduarance wise I am in GREAT shape. The actual distance didn't bother me. I actually enjoyed running for an hour and a half. About mile 5 my knee started hurting which was most likely due to the shoes not giving me enough support (or so says the shoe lady at Fit2Run). I am taking today off to rest this IT band thing and hopefully can run my 4 miles tomorrow in the new shoes to test them out.

The kids are all feeling better and look at this cutie

she is going to be 11 months old soon. AND she is calling me now :)

Happy Running!!

What?!? The stomach flu? (a very LONG update)

I am sorry that I haven't posted but if you follow me on twitter you would know that we have been battling the stomach flu here in Kyleland since EARLY and I do mean early Wednesday morning. I woke up around 1:30ish to someone running around the upstairs. I thought it was Ryan so I got up to investigate and heard someone crying. So I ran up the stairs to find Ashley who had been in her bathroom got tummy sick and RAN to Ryan's bathroom to thrown up (i know my kids are a little odd). So I cleaned up the mess, got her in clean clothes, places towels all over her room, and gave her a bucket (so she wouldn't have to run around). Then she and I both went back to sleep. Ry came down around 6 which was when Dave proceeded to follow in Ashley's footsteps- without all the switching bathrooms. He said that if Ash felt like he did to keep her home from school. At this point Ryan wasn't showing any symptoms of being sick AT ALL so I thought they had gotten food poisoning since Dave and Ash had been out the night before for cheer. So, I take Ry to school and bring Ash home for a little rest. She is still getting sick at regular intervals and can not eat or drink ANYTHING. She takes a nap and then Dave calls to tell me he is coming home from work because he is too sick to be there says his Deputy Chief. This about the time I was going to pick up Ry and I had an epiphany. If Dave was home and Ash and Ry were napping I could go for a short run with Lexi.
HMMMM! Maybe not my best idea!
Dave comes home, Ash and Ry are sleeping and I take off with Lexi. It is about 1:15 or so by now so it has already been a pretty long day. I had a pretty good run but was feeling a little guilty about leaving my sick kids with their sick daddy, so I only ran about 2 miles. I walked in the door to Ryan's bedding which he had gotten sick on-YUCKY!!! and my little boy sitting on the couch looking so exhausted. Dave was feeling better at this point but this was the beginning of my 4 days FULL OF LAUNDRY. I honestly think I did about 15 loads total of sheets and towels and I was tempted to run to Home Depot and buy one of those blue tarps that they sell during hurricane season and lay all of my family on those to not have to wash more sheets.
So, by the end of Wednesday everyone was feeling a bit better and I was feeling pretty confident because I still felt ok. I decided to sleep on the couch so that I could hear the kids better during the night.
DeJaVu! Ry came down and slept on the floor next to the couch and then around 6...ummmm...i didn't feel so hot and I layed on the couch for the next 18 hours. I only got up 3 times to use the restroom. During those 18 hours I SLEPT!!! WHAT?!?! 18 hours of sleep- I guess my body was trying to tell me that it was tired. The worst part for me wasn't the tummy problems it was that my bones hurt so badly. I just kept telling myself that there were people out there with real diseases that wouldn't be gone in 24 hours like my pain would be. I was finally able to take some Tylenol to help break my fever and when I woke up about 6:30ish I felt better and ate a bowl of Cookie Crisp (ha!)
I have to say that Friday and this morning all I have done is Lysol toys, wipe surfaces, and do more laundry. The kids seem to be feeling much better and that is a blessing in itself. I am trying to rest up because tomorrow night I have a date with M to run 7-8 miles and I am looking forward to it but am so nervous at the same time. I know that we can do it and I honestly don't really care about the time I do it in just that I do it. So, say a little prayer for me that my body is rested enough (come on 18 hours!) and that I feel strong throughout the run.
Hope you all had great runs this week and weekend. Those who had races I hope you ROCKED THEM! and Until tomorrow...

Happy Running!!

2 t-shirts and a long run

Wow- the run last night went so much better than I thought it was going to. M and I decided that we were going to run 6.5 last night and since I am ALWAYS up for a run we decided to meet at my house for a 7:15ish start time. Since my birthday just passed I had received money from my MIL to get a new pair of running shoes. So, yesterday I packed up the "littles" and hubs and I went down to our local running store Fit2Run to buy me a pair of Brooks Glycerin 7's. I have never used Brooks shoes before but my SIL and hubs raved about them so I figured I had a 30 day switching policy so why not try them. I came home with these:

Aren't they pretty? Well they are also workhorses. Last night I ran ...7.94 miles in BRAND NEW SHOES. Usually I would say that wasn't a very good move, but it went amazingly well. I still like my Asics but I am seriously in LOVE with the Brooks.

And did I mention that I ran 7.94 MILES?? We were supposed to run 6.5 but we had to keep running across the street to avoid sprinklers and deer and other weird things and then we ran that extra .5 miles around my lake and when we were done M and I had run WAY further than we had planned. We did it in 1:15:23. That is the longest and farthest that I have EVER run.

So after coming down from my high, M wants me to run the Tower of Terror 13K with her on October 24 and I think that I am going to do it :)

Then I get up this morning to 2 different e-mails letting me know that I have won giveaways. One was from Brooks (woo hoo!) I signed up for the Brooks Running Club on Facebook and the first 5 people to e-mail Meredith won a Run Happy tee like this:

Then I had a e-mail from Run U Mother and I WON a giveaway from Heather! I was able to choose one of their products and since I love me some tank tops I chose this:

Now, I have to go take care of my little cheerleader who is home sick from school. No running today since I don't want to take a chance of sickness in the jogger (ha!) I think I will do a little CardioX tonight.

Happy Running!!

Expedition Everest or Monsoon?

We had so much fun during our weekend . The weekend began early on Friday when I drove with all 3 kids to The Animal Kingdom Lodge. We had never stayed at this hotel before and we all were really looking forward to the new experience. We arrived and the “magically” had a room ready for me (score!) and when I got to the room my hubs and kids had a “birthday basket” waiting for me. Lot of CHOCOLATE- yummy! Then Hubs decided to take an earlier flight so our whole schedule was thrown off BUT we adjusted. We went over to the Wild World of Sports to pick up the packet for the Expedition Everest race and I was really looking forward to the expo. I shouldn’t have! It was the absolutely saddest expo that I had ever been to L
We then went to T-rex for lunch which was excellent as usual. Back to the hotel and then off to pick up Dave from the airport. Then we went to Animal Kingdom (which will be a theme on this vacation). We went out for my birthday dinner at Boma which was probably the best meal at Disney that I had ever had. It was seriously that wonderful.
The next day we woke up and went to MGM who had extra magic hours for Ryan to be able to go on Toy Story Mania. We fastpassed it and waited in line so that we would be able to go twice. Then we took the kids over to see JoJo and Goliath. I was extremely sad for this because I took Ashley to see JoJo when she was Lexi’s age. Then we went and picked up Auntie Becky and went to Downtown Disney. Ryan had a great time in the Lego store and we just enjoyed walking around. We decided to spend some time at the pool and rest our legs for the night ahead.
We arrived for Ashley’s race at about 5:45 and her race started at 6:30. We took the pre-pictures and went to the port a potties many times and then it was time for her to go. Because there were obstacles in this race and not just running parents were “encouraged” to run with their kids. SO- Ash and I lined up and off we went. She did great. She ran and then had to climb under a cargo net, go across a balance beam, over a wall, and then had a scavenger hunt in a baby pool. She conquered those obstacles with style and received her medal like the champ she is. Well at this point it was maybe 6:45 and Dave and I were in WAVE 10 to start our race, so we packed our kids off with Auntie Becky back to the hotel and soon we were really glad that we did.
Wave 1 began promptly at 7:30 and every wave after that went off 5 minutes apart. Like I said earlier we were in Wave 10-yes that is right I said TEN! I have no idea how they set up these waves but oh well…moving on. Our wave began at 8:15 and because I was running with Dave and very happy to be doing so, I went at his pace. His pace is fast at the beginning then slowing down, where as my pace is slow at the beginning and progressively getting quicker as the race goes on. So, we took off pretty quick and soon we were passing people that were in Wave 9 (Dave’s goal met) and we continued running through the parking lot for Mile1. Mile 2 went really well. It was the portion of the race that was out and back. People were screaming walkers to left the WHOLE time but we just weaved through when we were going to hit walkers. Dave has nerve damage in 3 of his toes and they were bothering him so we slowed a bit (not a lot) but really we were moving at a 9 minute or so pace. We got to mile 2.5 and the sky opened up and the rain POURED down on us. I do not mean a light sprinkle but a monsoon. We made it to the finish of the the 5k and knew the obstacle course was going to be sloppy. (Remember – I don’t like to be dirty) I sucked it up though and we did the obstacle course pretty quickly. The scavenger hunt was a mess!!! The book they gave us with the clues was completely useless because it fell apart. It was raining so hard there were lakelike puddles in the streets that we had to walk through. We started running again just so that we could finish, get our medals, and go back to the hotel. We did finish and the scavenger hunt wasn’t even checked because (duh) the books fell apart and we couldn’t even write on them but all in all it was a very fun experience.
I have 2 weeks until the Race for the Taste 10K and I am so excited to see what kind of fun that weekend holds.
Tomorrow I have 6-6.5 miles to pump out and I am looking forward to it a lot more than I probably should be.

Happy Running!!