Countdown to the Flying Pig

I have 11 days until I will attempt my first ever half marathon... I'm literally "running out of time" in my training schedule. I'm thinking of all the workouts I didn't squeeze in, all the weights I didn't lift, the hills I didn't run, did I do enough core work? Is it like a test? Do you think you can "cram" for a 13 mile run?? I'm telling myself that I'm over thinking it all, but it doesn't help that the "nerves" and "butterflies" have set in so far ahead of the actual run.

I have to stay at a different hotel than my sister, who I'm running with (she is in charge of dragging me over the finish line in the event that I pass out, need to crawl, trip and fall and land on my face, etc...) and I'm worried about getting over the bridge (my hotel will be in Kentucky) and to the race and finding her somewhere near the starting point at 6 in the morning. I don't really want to carry my cell phone, but I want to make sure I find my motivational, strength, pacer, and support partner for this event! I also have a friend riding with me and need to find her at the finish line.

And then there's the matter of my shoes. I went 2 weeks ago to get new ones because my old ones were giving me black toe nails, this started happening after my training had led me beyond the 10 mile run mark. I figured a month to break them in would be plenty of time. However, I let the sales lady "convince" me that the Asics fit my high arches better and made me run "more neutral" than the Saucony brand that I had been wearing (with no problems other than the black toe nails, and that was only after 10 mile runs - anywhoo...). I HATED them. I returned the first pair for a second pair, different style, and still hated them. Went yesterday and exchanged them again for the Saucony ProGrid Ride 2, but I just wore them today for a 6 miler... Do I keep wearing them for the next 10 days and for the half? Or should I just play it safe with my old ones? The toe nail is already black at this point...

There are issues of "Race Etiquette," which I really know very little about since I've ran one 10k. I do know to step towards the right when someone yells "on your left." But there seems to be a whole slew of race jargon and rules that I don't know about. I need to find the book, "Running a 1/2 Marathon for Dummies"... I would buy that. Do you think they make signs that say "newbie - I apologize in advance for breaking any race rule that I claim to not be aware of" to stick on your back? I'd buy one of those, too!

Then there are the little things. Like what to wear? I need an outfit with enough pockets to hold my ipod, my sportbeans, maybe my cell phone. If it's a bit chilly I can wear my jacket and I'll be good, if it gets to warm, the jacket will be out of the question. I could unzip the sleeves of the jacket, but then the zipper rubs on my armpit and causes a great deal of discomfort. Maybe I should just buy a vest so I don't have to worry about zippers on the arms. Should I by a hat? A visor? I don't really like running with sunglasses - I sweat way too much. I'll probably pack like I'm going for a week, for one little run. Gloves, hat, pants, long-sleeved shirt and jacket in case it's chilly at 6:30 am. Shorts, tank, vest, in case it's warm. Then there will be the in-between layers. Short sleeved shirt over the tank? How many layers will I feel like stripping off? Just wear the minimum and hope it warms up quick? So many decisions... and I'm running out of time!

Time to Reflect...

So I had tears in my coffee this morning. It wasn't from the lack of sleep, getting up at 5:30 to run 10 miles, or the 10 mile run itself. They were "good" tears. The "good" kind you get from those inspirational moments that really make you stop, reflect, and think about your own life. I was reading this blog: What Have You Got to Complain About - if you have time you should definitely read and watch the video.

What do I have to complain about? I thought, prior to watching this video, that my grumblings of receiving my 60 day letter within the next 30 days, and facing my office relocating out of state, was justified. I thought whining about my sore knees after running 10 miles was justified. I thought that complaining about my son having knee problems was justified; and, I thought venting about my crazy busy life was justified as well.

However, after watching this video. I have not a single complaint about my life.

God has given me a job that gave us a full YEAR's notice that our office was moving. They didn't walk in unannounced and start handing out termination letters. And, in this state of economic upheaval, myself and my husband have had steady jobs this whole time. When I do get my 60 day letter, I also get a severance package that will allow me to be at home with the kids this summer if I choose.

God has also blessed me with athletic genes. I took up running at age 33. At age 35, I will have worked my way up to my first 1/2 marathon in just 16 days from now. The fact that I have knees that still work, legs that can run, and a body that keeps up with it all is a blessing in itself. God has also blessed us with this little brown pill called ibuprofen, and these handy little plastic baggies that hold a substance called ICE. I have no reason to complain about a little knee pain.

God has blessed me with three beautiful, smart, intelligent, athletic kids. They have all kept 4.0's, they are all athletic, they are all well-behaved, and they are all HEALTHY. Having a minor knee problem at age 13 is an inconvenience for my son who really might be doing three sports at once during any given season. But, he is capable, refer to the ibuprofen and ice in the paragraph above, of pushing through the pain. So even though this knee problem won't go away until he stops growing, at least he can continue to do the sports he loves. He also has no complaints, and even though he hardly ever mentions it (we have to force those little brown pills down his throat when he's limping around), if he was to complain. I would refer him to the video above, even though I already made them watch it this morning.

Finally, God has blessed me with a husband and family that are incredibly active. I myself take on hobbies that I probably don't have time for - just like running for 90 minutes, or my weekend scrapbook adventure this weekend, on top of 2 soccer games and a wrestling and track meet.... Yeah, life is crazy, life is hectic, but God has blessed us with time, money, friends, family, and the ability to juggle it all.

I know we've all heard it before, "Count Your Blessings," but this morning. After being monumentally inspired by this video, I have thanked God again for the Blessings in my life, and there are so many that I cannot even count them all. Have you counted your blessings today?

First 10k

I finished my first ever 10k this weekend! My sister ran the Martian Meteor 10k with me - she was my pacer. I was hoping to be under an hour for my first one and at a 9:30 pace. However, we (my sister and I) finished with a 55:50 and a 8:59 pace! I was ecstatic to hit an under 9 min pace time! We were 34th (her at 55:50.04) and 35th (me at 55:50.09) in our age group of 203 runners. It ended up being a beautiful morning for a run, it was a bit cold when we got there at 6:30 am, but was almost perfect by the time we started running. And the best part, I wasn't a bit sore, I felt really really good afterwards. Which probably just means that I should shoot for an 8:30 pace the next time.

Life Is Meant To Be Lived...

"Some people measure their lives in pulse rates and sit-ups.
Far better to measure yoursin licks of ice cream,
well-told jokes, mad dashes to be first in the water, belly laughs...

And, when you die, it won't be an erratic shift in your heartrate,
it will be an overdose of mirth, fun poisoning, death by laughter."
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Things happen so quickly in life. I just received a prayer request from my instructor, her little sister has cancer, and it sounds like it has spread rapidly. My cousins just lost their grandmother. Another friend lost his father. On the news you see all the horrors of car wrecks, killings, crimes, etc... And all of a sudden I just want to stop, take a step back...

Life is hard. Life is tough. We work at work, we work at school, we work at staying healthy - being fit and eating right, we work at teaching our kids right from wrong, and we work at making ourselves a better person. But when all of a sudden you realize that tragedy could be around the bend, work seems less important. Life should be lived, and we all have to work, but we all need to take time to work on enjoying the work that we do. Work on enjoying the two minutes that our six year old wants to ramble about pokemon; enjoy the ten minute drive home with our teenagers while you have them secluded in a vehicle and they "must" answer all questions including the too often forgotten "how was your day"; enjoy the few moments of alone time with our husband; and enjoy the beauty in the world around us that we rush past, speed through, ignore, forget and too often take for granted.

Living life means a lot of things to a lot of different people. But me, I want to live my life with no regrets. I don't want to regret not making paper airplanes instead of reading my book; and, I don't want to regret watching the sunrise and set and feeling that loss of "where did this day go?" I want to live my life before some unknown tragedy hits. I don't want to wait until time is too precious. Time is too precious now, we just need to stop and realize it more often. I want to remember the silly, precious, seemingly unimportant moments in life. I want to look back and remember laughing at nothing with the most important people in my life. I want to look back and know that I didn't waste a moment worrying about what to do next, but just took the leap to walk outside and throw a ball around, plant a tree, ride bikes, run through the sprinkler,  pick dandelions, and dance in the kitchen. Those are the briefest, yet most memorable times, and we must take advantage of them when they are given to us.

The easiest sentiment... Live, Laugh, Love. But really, really do it, with all you are go out and Live each moment, Laugh whenever you can, and Love not just your family and friends, but the world and the life that you have been blessed with.  

Calm Between Storms...

That's my current state of life. I'm in the calm between the storms of sports seasons! Wrestling is done, indoor soccer is winding down, and we (after this weekend) will have TWO full weeks until it all picks back up again with outdoor soccer for all three kids and track for one. I'm a bit sentimental on spring sports though. I remember playing ball for what - 10 years - in the spring. When you play spring sports in Michigan, it means you play in a little bit of sunshine, in a lot of rain and mud, in a little bit of snow, then throw in some early morning fog, high winds, and lots of thunderstorm cancellations. Then every once in a while, you'll get a beautiful 80 degree spring day for an early taste of summer.... Ahhhh... of course now, it means sitting in all the above weather conditions, which is a bit tougher than playing in them.

Since I've started running, I've grown to love spring all over again. Running outside in spring time means seeing the grass turn green, the flowers push their way through the dead grass from fall, the trees start to bud, new baby cows in the fields, birds all over the fields and trees, and of course allergies along with it, but, I love it just the same!

Spring time is cleaning out, sorting through, throwing out and starting fresh for the year ahead. I'll have a lot of that to do this year, both personally and professionally. I can't wait to see what life and summer bring to me and mine. While I wait, I'll enjoy life's new beginnings, while I strategize my own new beginnings on all these spring day romps, out in the fresh countryside air.... Welcome Spring!

Springtime

The weather has been beautiful here in lovely Southwest Michigan lately; however, the beauty is only fair game for the release of all kinds of little allergens that make my sinuses go batty. I woke up Sunday feeling like a train ran into my face. It hurt to open my eyes, and the bones under my eyes across to my ears throbbed like someone was bouncing a ball off them. It was horrid. Thank the Good Lord for lots of sinus meds! Nothing makes it go away, but the meds took the worse of it away. I actually even managed my personal longest run to date yet! 9 miles Sunday afternoon!! And, I only had to stop and use the kleenex that I stuffed in my pockets about 5 times....

Of course the next step in the sinus progression is usually losing my voice... every spring and fall it hits in the same way and the final step is no voice for a couple days. We'll see.... I have wrestling on Saturday and Sunday, I might just be cheering my son on in my head.

Other than that, work is super busy, and super close to being done... just over 30 days till the dreaded day. School is going... Financial Management class. Think crash course in business accounting. Can't wait to see how my head hurts after tomorrow night and working and cash flow statements. Running is amazing! 9 miles Sunday and my first ever 10 miler coming up on Saturday morning!! I never thought I'd be a runner, but I love it. And right now, I'm loving the weather on top of it. It's so nice to be able to run outside without the gloves, hats, triple layers, and watching where you step to avoid the ice.

Anyway, Happy Spring!!

Laugh and the World Laughs with You...

Laugh and the world laughs with you. Screw up and your real friends will laugh at you, and they will laugh so hard, to the point that they are crying...

I just had a thought today that it is really nice to know that I am comfortable enough with my friends that they will feel free to laugh at me, and I at them in return. It's always nice to bring laughter to somebody's day, even at your own expense on occasion. I had a roommate in college who was great to laugh at and with, and she loved to laugh at me. I remember falling on the ice one time and she was laughing so hard she was crying and about to wet herself. After she quit laughing so hard that she could actually speak between gufffaws of laughter, she did manage an "are you okay?" And then she continued to laugh... But if we can't laugh at ourselves, our friends, the world around us, then what fun is life?

I am a firm believer that on some days, God sticks that invisible stick out there as we trip over nothing walking thru the store, just to humor himself for the time being. Just like when my son was flat on his back in the mud puddle, and mom was bent over laughing, I think God got a kick out of that as well. What better than to know that people are out enjoying the beauty of the day and getting muddy at the same time?

I'm to the point and age in my life that certain "friends," you know, the ones where you always feel you have to watch what you say around them, just aren't worth the effort. Not that I don't want "friends", I do, and I'm a nice enough person that I'm not going to be rude and just unfriend them, but if I can't be myself, is it really even a friendship?

Glorious Sunshine and a Fabulous Run

Today is a beautiful Michigan, almost, Spring day! The sun is shining; the snow is melting (slow and steady); and the roads are clear of ice. Which, in my new running world, equals a great day for a lunchtime run!

I love the fact that running is now something I can't wait to do. Waiting for my lunch today, I was like a little kid waiting to go on carousel. The cool (yet much warmer than last week) breeze, the splashing mud at my feet and the smells of spring were completely arousing as I ran down the road. My challenge was to do an (as in ONE) extra hill sprint. I sprinted up the hill on the way out, sprinted up the other side on the way back, and the turned at the bottom and got in that extra sprint back up, and then with "Lose Yourself" focusing all my attention, I sprinted up it again! For a total of 4 hill sprints, and three miles, and a lunchtime that was exactly what I needed to energize myself for the remainder of the workday, running kids around after work-day, and homework filled evening.

Ahhh.... Now, it's time to go eat something yummy that I earned for lunch!

A Great Day for some Mud Fun...

My two oldest kids had a youth group "thing" after church this morning, so I promised my youngest some fun time outside. He learned last fall how to ride his bike without the training wheels, and with all this snow he hasn't been able to ride. So, we decided to brave the open road! We live in a rural area, and there's a nice long stretch of road (this is also where I run). Robby wanted to go to the "hill" not up the big hill, but to it, and then come back. This is about 1/2 mile down and another 1/2 mile back. We pulled his bike out of storage, brushed off the cobwebs and hit the open road.

          

We made it past the driveway before the first "wipeout" happened. Don't worry - he gracefully fell to the ground in a dramatic fashion as I caught the handlebars - his helmet is packed away somewhere with all our summer stuff, so I walked along with him. Robby wanted to know if he looked like "roadkill".. he was definitely posing in this photo after his graceful fall to the ground. A couple of times he steered off into the snow banks and gracefully fell into the snow... All the biking and falling made him thirsty, and we were only about 1/4 mile down the road!

 

   

After we turned around at the half mile mark, he really had the hang of it riding home. He did great, and only "purposely" went down one other snow bank. He didn't fall once on the way back - until.....

He asked if he could ride through the mud puddle at the end of our driveway, and being under the full affect of "spring fever" I told him go ahead (what was mom thinking?). So he speeds up to make a splash and before I could get my camera out, he fell smack dab in the middle of it. Being the terrible mother that I am, I doubled over in laughter, and then made him turn around to get a good picture!

   

So we have laundry to do, his shoes need to be washed and dried before school tomorrow! But it was fun, and he keeps asking when we can go again. He wants to try and ride up the hill (and I would like to be able to sprint up it as well - it's a good size hill though!) I told him when he gets stable enough he can be my new running partner - he can bike while I run - but he'll have to be able to make it up the hill!

Unstoppable

I'm always looking for new music to play on my ipod while working out (see last weeks blog: Let Me Count the Reasons). This week I found a new song by Rascal Flatts, the Olympic Mix of "Unstoppable". So I just had to share.

So, so you made a lot of mistakes

Walked down the road a little sideways

Cracked a rib when you hit the wall

Yeah, so you didn't do your best

Pulled you down faster than a sunset

Hey it happens to us all

When the cold hard rain just won't quit

And you can't see your way out of it

You find your faith has been lost and shaken

Here's your chance and it's worth taking

Get on your knees and dig down deep

You can do what you think is impossible

Keep on believing, don't give in

You've got the strength to race, to win

Remember what one dream can do

You are unstoppable

You, you can weather any storm

Don't you know that you were born, to win

Oh, you find a helping hand when you need it most

A lighthouse shining on the coast

That never goes dim

When your backs against the wall

When you stumble, when you fall

You find your faith has been lost and shaken

Here's your chance and it's worth taking

Get on your knees and dig down deep

You can do what you think is impossible

Keep on believing, don't give in

You've got the strength to race, to win

Remember what one dream can do,

You, are unstoppable...