Running Goals

This comes from an old 2004 Nike ad and it totally rocks! Here's hoping it speaks to you too!!



No one runs in my family.

I am not built like a runner.

My bones aren’t weightless.

My legs aren’t gazelle-like.

As a child, no one ever said,

“Now that one…she’s going

to be a runner.”

I am not a marathon runner.

But, I know that no one

is a marathon runner until

they actually run one.

I love this. Sometimes I get embarrassed when someone who's super athletic or skinny finds out I'm exercising and running. I mean, I'm definatly not in "runner's shape" right now. I'm still overweight so I feel like I might be getting the whole up and down look along with the "hmmmm..." response. It's probably mostly all in my head.

So maybe I'll never run a full 26 mile marathon. BUT I will run a 5k. I'll probably run a 10k. I might even try a half marathon. And to me, that means I'm a runner, even if someone else doesn't agree. I'm setting goals and meeting them so cheers to that!




I've actually met my personal goal of being able to run 3.1 miles without stopping!! My time is about 34:20 so I'm by NO means the fastest chica out there for sure. I've got LOTS of room for improvement. However, I'm very pleased with myself for now. Hopefully by time the fall rolls around I will improve my time and not be the last one to cross the finish line at my first official 5k! And you know what? Even if I am so what?! I will have actually ran one!!

Roller Girl

Here's one reason why "Go Roller Skating" is on my goal list for 2011. How fun does this look?





Yeah, that's my little roller girl on her first roller skates. How cute is that? She had so much fun and is actually really good! I remember how much of a good time I would have as a kid skatin' around. Good times!

STATUS UPDATE: I deleted my Facebook! (GASP!)

Instert ditzy blonde voice here

OMG I cannot believe I totally deleted my FB!

Okay enough of that

Yep, I took a major step back into the early 2000's and I must say it feels refreshing!

Prepare yourself for a Facebook rant!

The whole competition on FB of who's life is more perfect, who has the cutest kids, the sweetest husband, blah blah blah...I couldn't handle it anymore!! No, I don't care that you are at the mall with your brother and you're going to lunch later. No, I don't care that you did 40 loads of laundry today and you're tired. If you want to talk about your day moment by moment- start a blog! Don't indindate my homepage with lame status updates!! Don't get me wrong, FB is great for staying in touch with family or seeing what long lost friends are up to, but in the end- I feel like it's turning into junior high or something. Maybe it's just me that's had this experience with FB, maybe not. Maybe that's why other media outlets such as myspace and friendster went down the tubes. They became an annoyance to most of their users. Some told me- "just don't go on it anymore." But I'm weak and if it's there- I'm gonna log in a few times a week. I ended up just rolling my eyes at people's posts the whole time.
Also, did you know when I deleted my FB page, it said it would "save" my previous info, so if I changed my mind about cancelling, I could sign up again with my same account ID and password and all my stuff would be there like I never left at all!! That's creepy! They've got all my personal info archived somewhere and there is nothing I can do about it. It's like my mama says, "There's something to be said for having your own little corner in the world", and I totally agree. Also, my blog had been seriously neglected. I guess it was time to choose between one or the other. The blog won!! (Which I can delete at anytime I want and it will be wiped off the face of the Earth. Now isn't that better?)

Okay, so that is that. Hopefully I didn't sound too bitchy and crabby. And if so, I'm sorry. Go post something on your FB status about it!!

The Lucky Ones

The Leprechans snuck into our house on St. Paddy's Day this year and fun was had by all!
When Parker and Callie woke up, they realized we were hit! :) First off, a bunch of the furniture was turned upside down, toys were dressed up like them, and the biggest trick of all- their shoes had been stolen!! (yeah, just learned that that's a thing- lephrechauns steal shoes??!!) The Leprechauns left a note for the kids sending them on a scavenger hunt all over the house looking for their shoes. While on the hunt they noticed those darn little guys even turned the toilet water green!!


Eventually the clues led the kids to the fridge where their shoes were found with gold coins. Callie wasn't too sure about these tricky leprechauns!!

The table was decorated and they had clover crazy staws left on their green plates. We then had breakfast with Lucky Charms cereal and green milk.



Next up, the kids colored lots of pictures of rainbows, lephrechauns, 4 leaf clovers, and all things St. Patricks Day. They were just coloring pages I had printed off the internet.
After that, we of course had to wear our green. I didn't tell them about the whole pinching thing yet. That would just end in tears! We then headed out to the park for some fun and on the way home stopped off at McD's for a Shamrock Shake. Ms. Abby also had to come along!

When we got home Auntie and the cousins came over to make cookies and Irish Bread. They were mostly interested in playing outside though, so I did most of the work. They enjoyed the eating part afterwards though!!

For dinner we had cabbage and sausage..trying to say with the Irish theme and all. The kids had a great day and loved St. Paddy's Day. For the next couple days they kept asking me if the Lephrechauns had come back and taken their shoes. I told them no, but they always come back every Spring so keep an eye out!!
I hope you had a fun St. Patrick's Day as well and are blessed with lots of rainbows and pots of gold this year ;)

2011: The Year I Started Running

I'm loving this year so far! Maybe it's all the freaking running I've been doing because the endorphins are a-pumpin! I'm training for a 5k people! Forever I've always admired runners. It started out as a vanity thing..I mean, come on..runners have amazing bodies. Toned arms, flat tummies, long lean legs. Who doesn't want that?!
But then I tried running and failed miserably and I realized, not only do I admire their bodies, I admire their determination, their motivation, their mental strength..So last fall I started the couch to 5k program. I only made it to week 6 when the weather turned cold and the holidays came. Yes, I know..excuses. I also hit my highest weight ever (other than being pregnant) and was pretty bummed about the way I was looking.
I also always had a personal goal that before I turned 30, I was going to run a 5k without walking. It seemed like such a crazy goal because I've never been a runner. Not even close. Although I played sports in high school and worked out at the gym in college, I could NEVER run a mile straight. I could barely run for a minute! So, I jumped back on the running bandwagon with the new year. I started walking on the treadmill for only 20 minutes at a time 3-4 times per week. My endurance was low and I needed to build my muslces and lungs up. This guy has become my new best friend: THE DREADMILL!!!
After working my you-know-what off, I'm now able to run a mile without stopping! In fact, the other day I ran a mock 5k on the treadmill and finished in 36 minutes even. That's basically an 11:30 mile for you number people. Yes, I'm slow! But slow is faster than not moving at all, right? I only had to walk twice for about a minute. I'm hoping to improve my time and speed and will run my 'real' 5K in the fall this year. I've also lost about 13 pounds over the past 2 months which is icing on the cake! Only 7 more pounds and I'll be Pre-Parker weight!!
It's been crazy how much meeting these small running goals have changed my attitude about me. Running is hard for me. It does not come naturally. But I'm pushing myself. Going outside my comfort zone. And to me, that's awesome because I like my comfort zone. Who knows, maybe it's true what they say about getting older...The Best is Yet to Be!