Wonderful weather, smoothie challenges and new shoes

We had the most GLORIOUS February weather this weekend.  It was a dream weekend.  Jeff had to work so it was just me and the girls.  The girls have been begging me to let them do a "smoothie" challenge.  I have no idea where they came up with this, probably you tube, but it involved them listing out ingredients, drawing random ones and mixing it all together in a blender and drinking it.  YUCK!


Chloe worked hard on her two categories: basics (liquids- milk, chocolate milk, Hi-C, Apple juice, etc) and then others (pepperoni, cheese, craisons, fruit, cottage cheese, yogurt, ice cream, etc).  Then the girls drew items for their smoothies, assembled the ingredients (I allowed them to use a tablespoon of whatever they wanted) and then I mixed it up in the blender. 


Chloe's smoothie: chocolate ice cream, strawberry yogurt, white and chocolate milk, pepperoni, banana


Bg's smoothie: apple juice, Hi-C, applesauce, chocolate pudding, craisons, chocolate chips and pepperoni  (I think Chloe purposely made Bg's super gross)


Both girls challenged each other to take 3 sips of their smoothies.  It was gross, but they both did.  Bg also tried Chloe's and said it was good.  Chloe refused to try Bg's.  They thought it was great fun.


After that, we headed outside.  We met friends at the park for an hour, came home and vacuumed the trampoline (lots of dead leaves and crud), cleaned out my car, the girls played dolls on the driveway, etc.  I took the girls to my IL's in the afternoon so I could get in a LOOOONG run.  They live in a pretty tiny town and I wanted to get in 8 miles, so I made lots of loops.  The fun thing about a town of 400 is that you know most everyone, so I got lots of encouragement.  I was passed by a tractor, offered a snickers and almost got wiped out by an anhydrous tank. 


The 8 miles was anything but easy.  It was about 30 degrees hotter than any run I have done in, oh, 6 months?  Usually it takes me 1-2 miles to get into my groove, but I just never got into it.  The entire 8 miles felt like the awkward warm up.  I finished my run at the park, where my girls were at.  My MIL said I was beet red and looked pretty wiped out.  The bad thing about ending my run at the park...I had to walk back another .75 mile!  Ha ha, the girls had ridden their bikes, so it was a slow cool down walk with Bg.


I am wanting to be able to get comfortable with a 9 minute mile for at least 10 miles.  This run wasn't a success on those standards:


I also got a piece of furniture delivered that I ordered back in September!  I wanted a cabinet for board games/toys for my living room.  I am in love with this!!









We went out for ice cream on Saturday night.  Isnt Bg cute?





Sunday was church.  I am trying to eat a little healthier (well, snack a little healthier), so the girls and I made homemade granola bites.  Powered almonds, oatmeal, p.b, honey and mini chocolate chips, rolled into balls.  YUM!  Chloe ruined hers by rolling in chocolate.  I know I am in the minority here, but the less chocolate usually is better.  I like darker, more bitter chocolate over milk chocolate.  The chocolate chips were plenty for me.





The girls had church choir practice at 6 and I am not directing this time!  I am being a bit selfish with my time (remember my resolution to say no!) and wanted a break from it.  So, instead of leading choir, I laced up my new shoes and took a run!  I have been nervous about trying my new shoes, but figured I would try an easy 4-5 miles.  The weather was MUCH nicer for running- about 30 degrees cooler.  I felt really good the first 3-4 miles.  I totally got lost in my head and am lucky I didn't get ran over.  I was in the zone and suddenly realized that not only was I going in the opposite direction I needed to go, I had crossed a street without realizing it.  I think I ran for about 2 minutes just completely lost in my mind.  It felt good, but is a little dangerous on dark streets!  About mile 4 I realized I was pretty sore from Saturday's run.  And to get back to the church, I had a lot of hills!  The last mile was tough, but I made it.  It also got dark fast!  I was wearing reflective pants, but I felt it was too dark for my comfort.  Needless to say, the first thing I did this morning was order some light up arm bands.  I am not sure how I feel about my new shoes (Brooks Pure Cadence).  They started off fine, but my feet were hurting by the end of the run.  I think it had part to do with the fact that I ran longer Saturday than I have in months and that I have a blister!  It's too early in the  year for blisters.  I have always had blister-y feet.  I was happy with my pace for an easy recovery run.





My gym moved into a newer, bigger facility with a kids room over the weekend.  I am so excited that I can finally take the girls back again!!!

Valentines and New Shoes

Making Valentine's boxes has never been fun at our house.  Chloe (although she slacks at homework) can be quite the perfectionist when it comes to art projects.  Most crafts at our house involve tears, tempers and meltdowns.  I do not look forward to each year when we have to make a box.  Luckily, we only had to work on one, b/c Bg's teacher had them make their boxes in class (bless you Ms. Pam!!).


This year Chloe wanted a minion.  She is slightly obsessed with minions, although we really haven't watched any of the movies.  And I have to say, this was the BEST year of Valentine's ever!  Now that Chloe can write and spell, she did all her Valentines on her own (it helps she only has 12 in her class) and there were zero tears while making the box.  And I have to say, isn't Chloe the cutest 1st grader ever!!!







Bg did Frozen valentines and worked hard signing her name on all of them.  Bg is a pretty tough name, ha ha.  The box she made in class was adorable!  It did have googley eyes, but they didn't survive the party.  And isn't Bg the cutest preschooler ever!!!





I am still very happy with my Asics GT 2000 running shoes, but they are starting to get a lot of miles on them, so I wanted to get a new shoe.  I also really like my Brooks Ghost for the gym and shorter runs, so I wasn't sure if I wanted to go Brooks or Asics.  I tried on several different shoes and tried on the Brooks Pure Cadence simply b/c I liked the way they looked.  And once I put them on, I LOVED the way the felt.  Super light weight and comfortable.  The lady at the store said they would feel quite a bit different, as the drop (or whatever technical term she used, I forget) from heel to toe is only 4mm, while most shoes are closer to 12mm.  It does feel different.  Not in a bad way but definitely different.  I have had them for 3 days and haven't run in them yet.  This is silly, but I am kind of scared too.  I cant really explain why, but just that they are different than I am used to and I don't want to mess anything up I guess.





I have been hitting the gym hard.  I can definitely see a different in my arms and shoulders.  Meghan says she can see a difference in my legs.  I know I am getting stronger and I am loving lifting weights.  Since it is still cold, I don't feel too bad about being in the gym more than on the road, but I know I need to start hitting up the miles.  I run my first half of the year on April 2, so in just a month and half!


The weather is warming up and was very nice yesterday.  We hit the park up.  The girls got hot, but I froze!  I had been super sweaty at the gym and the cold air just chilled me.












I am always torn if I want other kids at the park or not.  It would be nice for my kids to have someone to play with, but it never seems we encounter younger, nice kids.  It is always older kids that are borderline obnoxious.  Case in point- there was a group of kids there yesterday.  I am guessing age range 9-12ish.  Three boys and two girls.  The girls were roller blading and the boys were yelling out a few obscene things.  I heard the B word drop a few times.  The girls weren't upset and were interacting with the boys and my kids weren't paying any attention, so I chose to ignore them, but I never know what it best.  If those were my girls, I wouldn't want 10 y/o boys shouting those things at them but I just never know what to do.  Sigh...nice thing about living way out in the country- my kids are probably never going to be roaming around.


I am trying to improve my eating and increasing my protein so I can build lean muscle and burn some fat.  The trainer at the gym had me get this protein powder, but I am kind of at a loss as to what to do with it, ha ha.  I should just ask her, but don't want to look dumb.  I guess I will research, but don't know if this should be a breakfast replacement shake, a pre workout, a post workout?  A snack?  I do not want my girls to see me eating something different than them all the time and I don't want to go crazy with what I eat either, so I just really need to find the right mix.


And I probably would NOT have bought this if the trainer hadn't got it for me.  Simply b/c it has the words "organic" and "gmo free" on it.  I know that sounds backwards from what most health nuts want, but I think those words are a huge marketing gimmick.  I have no fear of commercially raised, GMO foods.  And since I have an ag degree and work in ag, I kind feel like I do have some knowledge on the subject.

First 10K and picture overload

Although I enjoy half marathons and 5K's, I never had any desire to run a 10K.  I feel like I push myself hard on 5K's and somewhat relax more on half's, so in my twisted way of thinking, I didn't want to push myself hard on 6.2 miles, but also didn't want to do them slow like my half's.  So I just didn't do them!


My running girls however, had a different plan and encouraged me to sign up for a 10K with them over the weekend (the Sweetheart Shuffle, awww..).  I will admit; I was nervous about it.  I knew I could DO the 10K, but I wasn't sure if I could do it hard.  I like to review results from the previous years races to see how my anticipated time lines out and upon review, I actually thought I stood a decent chance of placing (in my age group) third or so.


It was a nice, although chilly morning, but the whole family came to cheer me on.  There was a kid's short fun run before the race and Chloe got 1st and Bg got 2nd!  Future runners....maybe!


I told my friends my goal was 57 minutes, but secretly I had a personal goal of 55 minutes.  Meghan's goal was 1:15 and Somer's was 1:30.


The race started and I felt good.  My first half mile split was fast (for me) at 4:04 and I got a bit nervous I was going too fast, but I felt good.  I slowed down a bit and ran comfortably the rest of the race.  The 10Kers had to run the race course twice which I thought I wouldn't like, but I actually did, as I knew exactly what I had to face the 2nd half of the race.  I knew were the hills were and where the turns are.  We had some back and forth running, so I was able to see my friends multiple times during the race to shout a word of encouragement.  I was still feeling good at the start of mile 6.  I could see two women in front of me and I decided to go after them.  I knew the next mile of the course so I knew I could speed up for a bit.  I didn't know what age group they were, but I didn't want to end up with like 4th place and be upset that I didn't pass them.  As I sped up, the girl directly in front of me also sped up, but the girl in front of her was slowing down.  I was able to catch her, but just couldn't quite get the girl in front of her. 






Since my family was with me, I actually have several pictures!
So....I mighta placed in my age group....2nd place!!!!

This picture of me crossing the finish line cracks me up.  I look like death, but the lady behind me looks like she is just out for an easy casual stroll- hands in pockets, relaxed race.  She was a 5K walker but she makes it look a lot easier than me!

I run on Missouri Team Beef- which is a group that promotes the benefits of eating healthy beef in your diet.  We are advocates for the Beef Industry to help de-bunk all the myths concerning cattle farms.  Ask me if you have any questions or concerns about where your food actually comes from


Post race photos with my girls.  Guess what?  We ALL PR'd (ha ha, it was all of our first 10K's) and we all beat our goal times!  Meghan was 4 minutes ahead of her goal and Somer was 1 minute.  All that hard work at the gym is pacing off!  We need to make sure we aren't looking into the sun for pictures; everyone is a bit squinty except for me since I always wear sunglasses.  I need to get better race glasses but mine are awfully cute.

I was very happy with my splits.  I felt really strong at the end and think I could have actually gone a few more miles at this pace.  Mile 2 and 5 had the big hill (it wasn't really that big) but it made a difference.  This makes me pretty excited about my upcoming half marathons.  If I can keep this pace for 8 or so miles and then slow down a bit, I will reach my goal of under 2 hours!!


 




So, official race time was 54:27- under BOTH my goals! 

Fun at the creek and homework struggles

So, last night I knew Jeff was working late again, so I figured that since I couldn't run/go to the gym, I could make a short honey-do list for myself to complete last night.  It was pretty short- balance checkbook, girls laundry and work on Valentines Boxes.  All pretty manageable items.


I picked the girls up after work and while it was chilly, it was bearable, so I suggested when we got home to walk down to our creek.  We have an awesome creek bed.  The bottom literally looks like someone poured concrete through it.  And we have a nice waterfall.  We like to wade in the creek in the spring but it usually either dries up or gets really nasty in the summer with the moss and bugs and snakes.  But in the winter, it is perfect.  The water is clear, we don't have to worry about critters and there is usually lots of animal prints to see.


The girls love the creek.  They had fun digging up large rocks and making big splashes.





I have no idea why Bg was making such a silly face!


The waterfall:






We played outside a little longer than intended, so when we headed in, it was time for supper.  I tried to juggle making supper and folding laundry at the same time.  The girls have to put away their clothes, except for the shirts which I hang up (they cant reach).  I thought I did a good job of multi tasking, but I also realized I wasn't getting much on my to- do list done. After supper, I could tell the girls were tired and they wanted to sit down with me and watch a movie, so needless to say, only the laundry got done.  No Valentine's boxes or checkbook. 


I ordered two new books about running and they both game in yesterday.  Both sounded great and I had to do eenie-meenie- minie-moe to chose one to start reading.


The winner was Run Less Run Faster.  And during that movie, I read about half of it.  I am really intrigued with their running plan and definitely plan to start it next week.  It basically is only 3 days of running a week.  Day 1 is track repeats, Day 2 is tempo runs and Day 3 is long runs.  Based on your 5K times, it gives you a very strict pace to complete all your runs.  All sound manageable (I hope) and I hope to see great results in 18 weeks!





Jeff finally has a day off, so he is taking the girls to gymnastics tonight so I get plenty of time to hit the gym!


But first, I have a parent teacher conference with Chloe's teacher.  I am beyond frustrated with both Chloe and her teacher!  Chloe's teacher is excellent and very old school.  Chloe's school is the only school I know who assigns letter grades to 1st graders and Chloe's homework scores are going down each week.  Chloe is doing her work sloppy, rushing through it and not following instructions.  Chloe is a smart kid (really she is) so I want to find out she is doing in class instead of doing her work correctly.  But...the frustration with the teacher comes in how she grades Chloe's math homework.  Chloe loves math and can do some pretty hard problems in her head (like 436 minus 214).  But she is missing 5+2+? b/c she is writing the answer sloppy.  Even though the answer is right.  I understand 1st grade is about learning to write and doing your homework to the best, but I don't understand missing an answer for messy handwriting in math???  She also has marked some stuff wrong that Chloe actually has right.  I need to have the teacher explain to me how it is wrong (since neither Jeff or I can figure out why she is missing it) so I can help Chloe in the future.  Not really looking forward to this.

Spring weather in January

Wow!  What a BEAUTIFUL weekend.  The weather was in the 50's and 60's with nice sunshine all weekend.  This means we get outside a lot!


Chloe went to a slumber party Friday night at a friend from church's house.  Poor Bg was having 2nd child syndrome since Chloe ALWAYS gets to go to a friends house, so we invited a friend of hers out for supper with us.  She enjoyed her fun treat.


Speaking of going out to eat...backtracking just a bit, but I had to go visit a customer on Friday in a different town and there is a wonderful little restaurant in an antique shop that I love to eat at.  I got the daily special of cheese tortellini soup, Italian salad and all you can eat breadsticks.  It was wonderful.  I thought it was going to be a healthy lunch but those were seriously the best breadsticks I have ever eaten, so I may have eaten two. 


So, I have had trouble with really sweat feet lately.  I have always had sorta sweaty feet, but it has been ridiculous this past few weeks.  I don't know if there is some correlation between all the working out I am doing and the extra sweat, but you know it is bad when you cant even put on your socks b/c your feet are soaked.  Luckily Saturday's weather was nice so I wore flip flops until my feet dried enough to put on my running shoes.





A group of mom's from church wanted to get together Saturday afternoon to play at the park, so my friend Meghan and I got a teenager to keep an eye on our girls while they played and we went on a run.  We ran about 6.25 miles and then when we got back to the park, I challenged the kids to a half mile fun run.  The older kids enjoyed it, Bg whined and made me carry her. 


I said the weather was nice...it was warm enough for bugs and something bit my back while at the park! And yes, I have a tattoo on my lower back- it's hard to see, but it is a Jesus fish with a cross.





Since the weather was so nice, when we got home I got to work on my latest project- a medal hanging rack.  I bought this old window thing at an antique store and installed some hardware to hang my medals and bibs.  I may write something on the glass- maybe my PR's or something.  I haven't decided yet.





I am so happy with how it turned out and cant wait to add more medals!  I only started running abou10 months ago and racing 8 months ago, so I am pretty happy with the number of medals so far.  Hopefully I get two more medals on Saturday (finish and place!).


Chloe had a friend over Saturday night.  Whoever says boys are gross doesn't know girls.  These two tried to gross each other out all night and most talk centered around poop, puke, boogers and diarrhea.    Lovely girls.





They look like trouble, don't they?


Sunday was church and then Chloe went to a friends house after church (yes, she spent a lot of time with friends this weekend!).  I took Bg to grandma's so I could hit the gym.  Since it was still so beautiful outside, I did a two mile warm up outside.  I wanted to really push myself hard, but didn't realize how worn out I was.  I hit the gym hard last week, ran 6.75 miles on Saturday and finished my squat challenge and my gluts screamed at me the entire run.  I wasn't too happy with the time and how worn out I felt, but then I remembered it usually takes me two miles to get into the groove. 





I don't know what I was thinking, but I just threw on a pair of old tennis shoes before heading to the gym.  Even though I only ran two miles, I quickly remembered the importance of GOOD shoes.  The soles on these are so thin and offered no support.  I actually ran in these shoes for the first month or two of my running last year.  They are a good shoe, just not a good running shoe.  I like New Balances for the arch support, but love my Asics and Brooks for running.





I did a good chest/bicep workout at the gym.  Today begins a 30 day ab challenge- not sure if I am excited about that or not.


My personal trainer shared a new, very healthy recipe with me that I tried last night.  Chicken, artichokes (I LOVE artichokes), onions, carrot and spinach baked with vege broth.  It was good, but I felt it was missing something.  I think next time I will leave out the vege broth and dump a can of tomatoes in it.  Of course, no one else in my family would touch it, but that is fine with me.  Good leftovers for lunch!





If anyone wonders why the heck I have to keep getting people to watch my girls while I workout rather than having Jeff do it, Jeff is working a very demanding job with a very demanding timeline right now.  He has left at 6 each morning and typically gets home between 8-8:30.  He worked this same schedule all weekend as well.  I am ready for this job to be over.  He thinks today will be his last day on this job.