Happy Halloween!

I don't have any pictures of my little black kitten because she did NOT want to wear her costume this morning. Hopefully I can get some this evening, with a little bribery. It's going to be a busy evening of me picking her up from daycare at 4, rushing home to try to get her to eat some dinner, in her costume and then out the door for some trick or treating (praying it doesn't rain). I don't like it when Halloween falls on a weekday, not as much fun and I wish I could take the day off of work to do some fun things. I guess I should save it for when she's older.

I carved my pumpkin yesterday, it's a fish skeleton :) I'm proud of it. I have to admit, and I promise I'm not a weird o, but carving a pumpkin is very therapeutic. If you're stressed or angry, just take some knives and slice into that bad boy!

My husband went to freeze his butt off fishing yesterday and caught a bunch of trout and red fish.

Friday night my father in law shot a big 10 point deer. They already have one deer head mounted on the wall and many skulls, my mother in law is trying to figure out where this big head is going. It's currently in our garage freezer till my father in law can take it somewhere to get mounted. Out of sight out of mind.

There will be a whole lot of deer meat in our future because they like to share.

Actually I'm not a big fan of venison. Sure I'll eat some venison spaghetti and my husband likes the summer sausage but I think the meat is a little too tough for my taste. Although we did have a tenderloin once that turned out really well - we marinated it for like a day. My favorite though is the venison bacon. It's thick and salty (and lean).

My in laws do hunt and to be honest I'm an animal lover so the picture above disturbs me slightly. My husband says it's regulated (so you can't shoot Bambi and the deer has to be a certain size). He also says its population control.

I'm not a vegetarian and I do eat meat. I know that some meat processors in the US do not treat their animals right and therefore I try to get meat that I know the animals have been raised humanely. For me it's out of sight out of mind but I will never hunt and if Sophie or next child wants to go with Daddy when they get older then I won't stop them. It's just not something I would want to do but then again I just grew up differently.

Looking forward to some venison bacon though.

I am sore today. I did a very intense weight training session at the gym yesterday. I didn't run and for that I'm proud of myself because after 17 miles I know I needed to change it up.

So I did 15 minutes on the elliptical and 10 minutes on the stair climber.

Next I concentrated on legs, knowing that today would be a rest day. Then I did a bunch of upper body and some kettle ball.

My legs are not sore. My arms and back are.

Thankful for the rest day.

Happy Halloween!

Week 10 Recap

Day 1 - Sunday
Half Marathon - Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon.
My first race since April and I really wanted a sub 2 hour half marathon. My chip time was 1:58:06 woot woot!

Day 2 - Monday
Rest

Day 3 - Tuesday
4 miles, 34:07, avg pace 8:31

Day 4 - Wednesday

8 miles 1:09, avg pace 8:31
Lunch hour went to the gym and did 10 minutes on the elliptical and weights

Day 5 - Thursday
4 miles Rest

Day 6 - Friday
Rest 3 miles, 26:00, avg pace 8:30

Day 7 - Saturday
17.01 miles, 2:44, avg pace 9:41
Weather wasn't very good this morning, it was cool, windy and rainy. Luckily by the time I started running the downpour had moved on but there was still a drizzle for the first hour or so. On top of that I was getting smacked in the face by wind. Some of my miles were very slow because of that (or they were just slow but I'll blame the wind).
I was feeling good overall, I stopped around mile 7 at a gas station to use the restroom and then once at mile 12 because I started see spots. Got a little light headed and wondered what the heck is this about all about and realized that I was hungry! Weird, I ate breakfast earlier but apparently my stomach was telling me "more food please." The feeling passed and I continued on. Thinking maybe I need to run with a bar or something just in case.
I finished strong though and I wasn't cramping at all like I did a few weeks ago after my 15 mile run.
Some things I'm trying out:
- Drink a large gatorade before I run in the morning. Then during the run I have my handheld with water and Nuun.
- I started eating my Power Bar Energy chews at mile 5, mile 10, mile 12, and then one per mile till I finished. I tried the Raspberry (w/o caffine) starting out and I'm thinking these don't work for me, I need the ones with caffine. Gives me that little extra boost.
- I chugged some of my husbands gatorade right after I started feeling lightheaded so I'm thinking maybe the longer I run I need to ditch water and drink gatorade. Not sure about this, I'll see how next week goes.

I have to say I'm a Gatorade fan. I know it's loaded with sugar but it doesn't make my stomach hurt and I seem to perform well when I drink it. So I'll stick to it for now.

I have to admit that when I hit mile 7 I thought to myself "only 10 more miles to go." And then I laughed a little. 26.2 seems so long! Happy to report that my legs feel good and as they are a little tired I'm not very sore.

Total miles for the week: 45 - the most ever for me.

Pumpkin Bread Recipe

UPDATE*** Just wanted to add that in one of the loaf pans I mixed in some chocolate chips and let's just say Yum!

I'm in the mood for pumpkin so this weekend I'm going to make pumpkin pancakes and pumpkin bread. The recipe below is from my sister, where she got it from I have no idea so I'll just credit my sister for now. It's really good and probably not so healthy but sometimes you gotta live a little.

At least pumpkin is considered a vegetable? Fruit? Well it's gotta be some what healthy right?

Pumpkin Bread

Ingredients:

2 2/3 cup white sugar

4 eggs beaten

2/3 cup butter (softened)

1 15 ounce can pumpkin

3 1/3 cup flour

½ tsp baking powder

2 tsp baking soda

1 ½ tsp salt

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ground cloves

2/3 cup water

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350.  Cream butter and sugar thoroughly.  Add eggs, pumpkin, and water and mix.  Sift together flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices, then add to pumpkin mixture.  Pour into two loaf pans.  Bake at 350 for approximately 1 hour.

Issues

I woke up around 3:45 with a stomach ache. Not sure what that was all about but I got up to get ready for the gym and there were sharp pains. Not to be gross but it felt like trapped gas that couldn't escape.

So I went back to bed and curled up into a little ball and just laid there. Finally it started to go away and when I looked at the clock it was 5:00. I'm wide wake and cannot go back to sleep, even if I did I'd only get another hour.

Then I realized if I got up and booked it to the gym I could at least get a good 40 minutes in.

So that's what I did. I ran 3.1 miles and did just a few leg exercises and then I was headed home. I ran a little behind but still managed to get out the door on time, with a wet head and just a little powder dusting on my face - so yeah, I look a little rough at work.

But who cares, it's Friday!

Not sure what I ate that made my stomach so funky, sometimes it just hates me.

Vertically Challenged

I'm short. I say I'm 5'1 but actually I'm a little shorter than that.

The picture below is me, my mom and sister. I always thought me and my mom were the same height. Doesn't appear to be so. She's a shorty too. My sister is maybe 5'4? Still not very tall.

Short, shorter and shortest

In this picture it's my brother in law and nephews, me, my brother, Ricky and Sophie. My brother in law is very tall probably over 6 feet. My oldest nephew, Garrett, comes up past my waste. My brother is still not very tall, 5'6 maybe? Ricky is 5'9 (I think - everyone is tall to me so I can't really judge their height very well).

Shortest is always front and center. 

I don't really have too many issues with being short other than when I'm in crowds I feel like everyone's butt is in my face. I think that also makes me feel closed in and claustrophobic.

My biggest issue with being a shorty is gaining a few pounds looks like you've gained about 10. In my family our weight goes straight to our thighs and booty's. I love my upper body, hate the lower half. I also have a short torso so I feel scrunched and out of proportion.

I know everyone has their issues but mine is definitely my hips, thighs and butt.

I'm constantly told I look younger than what I am. I'm not sure if this is my face or the fact that many 12 year olds are taller than me (12? My nephew is almost 6 and he comes up past my waste. He'll probably pass me at 8). I was 19 for about 6 years and now I'm about 25. Yeah I know, when I'm 40 I'll probably finally look 31 (my age now). I used to, not so much now, get surprised looks when people card me. And then I get the "Wow, you don't look like you're 31." Never heard that one before!

Anyway this story doesn't really have a point other than I wish I were a little bit taller (enter that rap song - can't remember who sang it? Rapped it?)

I'm envious of taller runners. Their strides are so long and graceful. Mine are short and stubby. They are I can't help it, I think I have chubby legs no matter how much I run. I think that's just they way I was "built."

I always say my life would be so much easier if I were just a few inches taller. I could reach my cabinets and not have to get a step stool. It's the little things really. Actually I would love to have longer legs since I think mine are so short and stubby.

My only hope is that Sophie will get some height on her from Ricky's side. I don't know though, she's got little chunker thighs too. Sorry girl!

I'm just so glad my mom knows how to hem.

Tired and Sore = Rest Day

I slept in this morning. Meaning I didn't get up at 4 am but 6 am.

I could have gotten up at 4 but I was sore so I decided that I needed a rest day.

Plus I was so sleepy that when my alarm went off I groaned and could barely keep my eyes open. When I tried to roll over and realized that my arms and glutes were sore, that sealed the deal of turning the alarm off.

But it's never fully back to sleep because then I hear my husband snore. Loudly. So I have to nudge him, the dogs wake up and everyone sort of rearranges themselves and then we all go back to sleep.

My daughter is spending the day with her Grandma so I had a kid free car ride this morning. I thought about hitting the gym after work since my husband will be getting her from Grandma's but honestly I'm just not feeling it today.

I'll make it up tomorrow and then do my 17 miles on Saturday (which the weather is going to be perfect once again).

Today I'm not looking forward to 17 miles, sort of dreading it a little, which is why I figure I need a rest day. For me, sometimes the rest day isn't for the body as much as it is for the mind. In my case today it's both.

Tomorrow I'll probably be really excited about it.

A Quickie

Just returned from the gym and I'm starving!!!!!!!!! Left over post roast it is.

Did just a quick circuit consisting of legs, shoulders (my shoulders don't get much attention when I do arms), and abs. Also threw in two sets of dips and pull ups.

I was a member at this particular gym a few years ago when I worked for a different company. It was kind of the same membership deal, except they paid for half (bigger company). The gym still looks the same but I noticed there was some new cardio equipment.

I tried out the elliptical, it was....different. Much different than the Life Fitness I'm used to. Verdict is still out because I only got 10 minutes on it.

Matrix E7X Elliptical - www.matrixfitness,com

My all time favorite is Precor.

Because I sweat like a man I got a little stinky but not too terribly bad. It's bearable. My hair is wet but I brought some deodorant and perfume. It'll do for a couple of hours :)

I was rereading my previous post and I felt like a Negative Nancy. I love being a mommy and I love my daughter more than anything but I don't sugarcoat very well and motherhood is tough. There are moments when you question your sanity, yourself as a mom and a person.

It's the hardest thing I've ever done but I wouldn't change any of it for a minute, especially at this age when she can talk and tells me she loves me and gives me hugs and kisses. She really is a sweet girl, and smart too! But sometimes she can act like a brat. This morning was one of those times.

This evening she'll probably pitch another fit when it's time for bath (we like to torture her by washing her hair - we're terrible parents). And then she'll be sweet and cuddly for bed. She's two, this is what they do.

I can say though, I always thought I was going to be this "tough" mom who's kids towed the line. One look from those big brown eyes and I'm mush.

I Need A Tape Recorder

OK, so I take my daughter to school and pick her up almost every day. My office is 2 minutes away from daycare so it doesn't make sense for Ricky to go out of his way to take her when I'm driving right by. That's all in theory right?

Within the last few months I told my husband, more like insisted that he needs to step up and take and pick up at least once a week. I need a break. I need one day where I drive in silence. No noise, no screaming, no talking, no kids DVD's playing. Just me and the road (and traffic).

If I had a tape recorder and could have taped this mornings temper tantrum on the way to school, you would feel  my pain.

It's all you can do sometimes to keep your sanity.

It's times like these when I think "I want another one? I must be crazy."

And then like the snap of a finger....it's done. She's happy once more.

It doesn't even have to be anything for her to get upset about. Just one little thing escalates to full blown meltdown hell.

Sophie loves her daddy. She LOVES when he takes her to school. I'm always with her in the car so I think she gets a little sick of being with mommy and wants her daddy. It's only natural (I think....plus daddy lets her get away with way more than I do).

This morning she wanted to ride in "Daddy's truck." We gently told her that she could ride with daddy tomorrow but today she has to ride with mommy.

Ricky put her in my car kicking and screaming, literally. The gut wrenching scream that followed when we backed out of the driveway would make one think that I hacked off her arm. I mean you'd think I beat this child or something. I swear she loves me, she just likes daddy better some days.

Oh the joys of having a toddler.

So we're all good now, she was happy the last part of the drive and we were giggling, she ate some of her breakfast (yes, in the car). She gave me a kiss goodbye at school.

Tomorrow I get my day.

Now I'm headed to the gym near my office so I can get a weight workout in. I ran my 8 miles this morning so I don't need to do any cardio (plus I don't want to come back too stinky for my co-workers).

A Good Nights Sleep

Ever since Sophie was born she's been a horrible sleeper. I remember the first few weeks of maternity leave I was up almost every hour and a half with her (I breastfed) and I remember closing my eyes and just as I would drift to sleep I would hear her cry. And then I would cry and beg my husband to call in sick to work to let me sleep. Oh those were the good old newborn days!

The first night she slept through the night (and by sleeping through the night I mean 5 hours straight) I felt amazing. From then on she didn't ever really sleep well. There have been many a nights where I've stumbled to her room, gotten her from the crib and rocked her to sleep, falling asleep in the chair myself. We never did the co-sleeping thing until after she was a year - I was very paranoid about SIDS. 

After she turned a year we brought her into bed almost every night because she'd wake up and we had to get back to sleep as soon as possible. There was a period of time where my husband and I said very mean and vile things to each other. Anything that's said in the middle of the night when you're sleep deprived should not be held against you. 

Then she stopped wanting to sleep with us and then what do you do? You sleep on the floor next to her crib until she falls back asleep.

Is there a point to this? No, not really. 

Sophie FINALLY sleeps through the night. Pretty much this year she has started sleeping more soundly, however earlier in the year she started having night terrors. That's fun, let me tell ya. I got used to being sleep deprived, I functioned very well, looked like hell with bags under my eyes but I went to the gym, work, and did everything I normally do now.

Now that she's sleeping consistently it's harder to adjust on those nights where she does wake up. 

Sunday night she woke up crying for her daddy and poor Ricky didn't get much sleep (hey, I can't help it she wanted her daddy, I went in there and she started crying so of course I let him handle it). Last night she successfully slept through the night which means we both got a good nights sleep. Except for the one time I heard my husband snore and I had to nudge him.

My alarm went off and I got up to go to the gym. And I didn't even reset it! It's amazing what a good nights sleep can do for you. Not only that but I had a good run and I've felt good all day.

I ran 4 miles, 34:07, avg pace 8:31 (without Nike+ I'm done with that damn watch). This was according to the treadmill which I trust much more lately.

I did a quick weight circuit (quick is the story of my life) and headed home.

My company signed a corporate agreement with one of the area gyms. So if you sign up it's a payroll deduction and you get a discounted monthly rate, no contract, and access to any of the 10 locations. Didn't take as much convincing as I thought but my husband gave me permission said I could sign up. So now I have two gym memberships.

Why do I need two? Well because I will still do my morning runs at the one near my house. And I have the second one near my office so I can go at lunch or in the evenings if my husband picks up my daughter. I don't mind coming back to work stinky as long as my co-workers don't mind :)

It'll take some of the pressure off trying to get everything done in the mornings and give me a place to go during my lunch hour. If I don't use it like I plan to then I can cancel at anytime. 

I hope I don't scare anyone out of having kids based on my experiences with Sophie not sleeping. My co-workers son sleeps excellent and hardly ever wakes up. I would never let her "cry it out" so with next child I will handle it differently in hopes that they will not be so needy. But seriously you're not going to sleep much with a newborn that part is rough.

Tomorrow my mid week run bumps up to 8 miles so I have to make sure I get out of bed on time so I can get it done and not run late for work. At lunch I plan on hitting the gym and doing some weights. 

We've been putting off potty training because I just haven't had the time to take her to the bathroom every 15 minutes because we've been busy. So this weekend I'm taking the diaper off and we'll see how it goes. Monday I'm going to bring underwear to school and pray that she takes to it well. She seems to want to do what the other kids are doing and I think she's one of the last kids that hasn't started potty training (oops). I will admit this is the stage of life that I wish I could fast forward or pay someone to potty train.

Halloween is next week and I need to get cracking on Sophie's costume. She's going to be a black cat. I'm so original. 

Week 9 Recap

Day 1 - Sunday
Cross Train 15 miles, 2:23, avg pace 9:31
Had to switch my long run to Sunday due to my husband being on call. Ran on Folly Beach, weather was awesome, a few cars almost hit me. On purpose I think. I felt pretty good overall but miles 14 - 15 were tough. I wanted to stop and when I finally finished I cramped up bad.

Day 2 - Monday
Rest

Day 3 - Tuesday
4 miles, 34:47, avg pace 8:40. Weights.

Day 4 - Wednesday
7 miles, 59:07, avg pace 8:15. No time for anything extra, had to go home and get ready for work.

Day 5 - Thursday
4 miles Rest
Tired!

Day 6 - Friday
Rest 4 miles, 33:47, avg pace 8:26. Legs and arm workout.

Day 7 - Saturday
Rest 2.5 miles. Just a short run around my neighborhood to get the legs warmed up and ready for my race. It was chilly and because I run indoors so much I wanted to see how I would feel, how fast I would warm up, so I knew what to wear for race day. This helped because I found that within the first mile I was getting warm. Then it was off to Myrtle Beach, SC for the half marathon! And I will just say what a great way to start week 10.

Some Additional Results

Still on cloud 9 from this race. I wanted to hit the gym this morning and do some cross training but my daughter had other plans. She woke up crying about 12:30 and had a hard time going back to sleep.

My husband took the brunt of it as she didn't want me so much but wanted Daddy. So about 3:00 I heard her crying again and that was because my husband put her back to bed and she woke up again. So about 4:00 I was thinking about getting up when my husband finally came back to bed and then I felt bad getting up and running the risk of waking everyone up.

So I slept in which is OK, this morning was going to be extra and I guess I need to let my body rest some so it's all good either way.

I didn't get a chance to add this information in my post yesterday but here is where I placed in the race:

Clock Time: 1:58:45
Chip Time: 1:58:06
Overall Place: 688/2611
Gender Place: 225/1581
Division Place: 44/284

This week it's back to training. I have a 17 mile long run this weekend! Yikes! We're getting up there.

In 2 weeks I have another half marathon in Charlotte, NC. My husband is going to be running the 5k. Luckily my family lives in Charlotte so all we'll need to do is load up kid and dogs and we have a free place to stay. Need some hill training for this race. Charlotte has a lot of hills and I'm so used to running flat so this will be a challenge to keep myself sub 2 hours.

On Cloud Nine

This morning I ran the Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon in Myrlte Beach, SC.

I am on cloud nine.

I PR'd.

I'm so happy with my time.

I mentioned the other day as long as I beat my previous time of 2 hours and 7 minutes I'd be happy. I was secretly hoping to break 2 hours.

This morning, as we were driving to the start, my husband jokingly said that if I didn't finish in 1 hour and 58 minutes he'd leave without me. Ha ha, funny guy but in my mind I'm thinking that would be awesome if I could finish in that time. Heck, I wanted 1 hour 59 minutes.

It was chilly morning but I handed off my fleece to my hubby and got in the corral with a slew of people (I hate crowds so this made me nervous, just being right up next to random people). The Medieval Times actors put on a little presentation while we were waiting for the gun to go off. Then they rode out ahead of the leaders, when the gun went off, which was kind of neat.

Mile 1 - 9:19 (a little crowded starting out but happy with this starting pace)
Mile 2 - 9:02
Mile 3 - 9:08



There I am, the short one in black shorts and pink top

 Mile 4 - 9:11
Mile 5 - 9:21 (decided to eat a few of my Power Bar Energy Blasts)
Mile 6 - 9:07

At mile 6 we were running through Broadway at the Beach, which has Hard Rock Cafe, Planet Hollywood, shops, etc.

Mile 7 - 9:04
Mile 8 - 9:04
Mile 9 - 8:46 (getting faster! I think I ate another engery blast here but I can't remember).

From this moment on I was out of the 9's and into the 8's and I can't believe how good I felt!

Mile 10 - 8:41
Mile 11 - 8:29 (At this point I realized that I was going to be pretty close to beating 2 hours and just told myself to hold on!)
Mile 12 - 8:37

Saw my husband in the crowd sometime after mile 12 giving me a thumbs up. From this moment on all facial expressions are those of pain but I was still feeling good overall and happy inside.

Mile 13 - 8:38 and DONE!!



Best feeling in the world crossing the finish line.....

In under 2 hours!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Garmin:
1:58:08
13.20
Avg pace 8:57

Chip Time:
1:58 :06
13.1
Avg pace 9:01

That's one big medal!

I feel amazing right now. I wanted to break 2 hours so bad and I did it! I always say I'm not the fastest runner but I can hold my own.

Not only did I do it, I felt strong pretty much the entire run. Sure I started getting tired towards the end and wanted to slow down but the whole race I stayed pretty consistent and turned it up at the end.

The last half mile or so was right along the beach and I kicked it right at the end and could not believe that the clock said 1:58. I have to thank my husband for putting that magic number in my head. I actually passed a bunch of people and that always makes you feel good considering I live in the land of giants and most people breeze by me with their long strides.



The weather could not have been more perfect. I didn't feel over heated or dehydrated. Only thing I wish I had were my sunglasses, there were a few really sunny areas.

Some things I did or I guess I should say didn't do before this race:

- I did not rest the day before. I did a fast 2 miles around my neighborhood before I left, then we walked around half the day shopping.

- I did not eat breakfast before the race. My stomach was so upset due to nerves that I could not eat anything without feeling sick so I just decided to go with it. I work out a lot at 4:30 am without eating so I wasn't too worried.

- I did drink a gatorade on the way to the starting line. This made me have to pee really bad right before the race started (which I held it th entire time). From then it was water/nuun in my hand held. I ate a few Power Bar Engery chews before the race and several throughout. My stomach never hurt once.

Not sure if any of the above had any bearing on my race but like I said, I felt strong the entire run and I'm darn proud of myself.

So glad my husband didn't leave me :)

If there's a chance that I'm not having a baby this time next year, I will run this race again for sure!

Some more pics from the race courtsey of my husband:

Finish Line

Sunrise at the finish line

Beautiful morning at the beach

Feels Like Fall

Starting about Wednesday temps and humidity finally fell and we're starting to see some fall weather here in the lowcountry.

Sunday I'm running the Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon (aka half marathon). I'm very excited for this race for a few reasons:

1) Hubby and I get a night away, just the two of us! This rarely happens. My parents are driving down from Charlotte to stay with Sophie this weekend. They arrive tonight and then we'll head out tomorrow morning for Myrtle Beach. Actually we're staying in Litchfield Beach at the Litchfield Beach and Golf Resort.

2) This will be the first half marathon that I'll run where it's not going to be raining. The previous two I've run were both miserable. Kiawah Island was rainy and cold, Charlotte Race Fest was severe thunderstorms and humid. Actually the weather is going to be fantastic. A cool morning and in the low 70's for a high and sunny.

3) The medals are very cool. They are in the shape of a surfboard and also serve as a bottle opener.

This is what the website says about the event:

We Were Named the Largest Running Event in Myrtle Beach

Our 2010 inaugural event was the 5th largest running event in South Carolina and the largest event in Myrtle Beach according to the South Carolina Runner's Gazette.  Our race received rave reviews for amazing and entertaining course, most professionally organized event, best medals and perks and overall great experience!  Come join us and experience this race for yourself!  If you aren't ready for the 13.1 mile challenge, participant in our Coastal 5K benefitting the Grand Strand Humane Society! 

I think the last mile or two is along the boardwalk so you can look out onto the beach. The after party is on the beach. Sadly we'll only have like an hour at the after party and then have to hit the road so my parents can get back to Charlotte.

I don't really have any set goals for this race. I just want to run well and feel strong. Last week I was able to run 13.1 miles in 2 hours and 3 minutes so I'm using this as my target time. I would LOVE to run a sub 2 hours, even if it's 1:59:59. That is my secret goal but any PR will do.

Tomorrow we'll leave Charleston around 10:00, get to Myrtle Beach around Noon and we're heading straight to the Expo to pick up my packet.

After the Expo we'll head to lunch somewhere and then I'm going to get dropped off at Old Time Pottery (I LOVE this place). They have one in Charlotte and Myrtle Beach but no Charleston :(

While I'm at Old Time Pottery Ricky will be at:

Yep, while I'm drooling over decorations and stuff Ricky will be making out his fishing wish list.

That's one of many things I hate about living in Charleston. We don't have good shopping at all. Charlotte has both these stores plus many more plus an awesome mall (South Park Mall if you ever are in the Charlotte area).

We check in our hotel at 4:00 and then we'll hit up some place for dinner later.

This morning I did 4 miles, 33:47, avg pace 8:26. Did some legs and arms after. Tomorrow I'm going to do a slow 3 miles and then I'll be ready for Sunday.

TGIF!!

No More Mr. Nice Guy

Or Misses Nice Gal.

It's been almost a month since someone plowed into my rear end. OK wait that doesn't really sound right.

It's been almost a month since I got rear ended. I've done what I'm supposed to by filing a claim against the other drivers insurance (it was after all her fault).

I've waited patiently for the appraiser to come out and write up an estimate (that took almost 2 weeks after the accident - she didn't return my calls for two days). Finally get her to come see my car and she tells me that she'll send it to the body shop "right away" so they can go ahead and order parts. I should hear back from the adjuster with in 48 hours so they can go ahead and cut me a check for the damages.

Went out of town last week - did not hear anything from anybody. Call the body shop - they have no estimate.

OK. Still being cool, calm and collect I e-mail the appraiser and she says "oh but I've sent it to him, let me call him." I hear back the next day - "sending another copy to him." This was Friday's response.

Last week I call the adjuster wondering when they are going to send me a check. They're like "oh I'm not sure what the hold up is, we've received the estimate  - oops, we forgot to request the check." Steam coming out of my ears but I'm still being nice with a slight edge in my voice. They request the check and I'm told I should receive it this week. Fine, great.

Call the body shop today and he STILL doesn't have anything from her. You've got to be kidding me, now I'm getting pissed and tired of the run around.

I e-mail a not so pleasant e-mail to the appraiser (I email because no one answers their damn phones anymore). I ask her to send me the estimate (for the 2nd time) so I can send it onto the body shop myself.

I sit there and wait - not so patiently anymore and say to myself "screw this."

I call the adjuster and amazingly she picks up her phone (I usually leave a message and wait a day for her to call me back). I vent my frustration with having no check and no estimate. She kindly faxes me the estimate. FINALLY I have a copy. So I send it (fax and e-mail) to the body shop. Hopefully they have it because if I call tomorrow and they still me they didn't receive it I'm going to drive up there and punch someone in the face - and then give them the estimate.

I've worked in customer service before and have been yelled at, called names, you name it. I know how people can act and I know what people who work in customer service have to go through. So I try to be a nice person, even when frustrated. I treat others as I would want to be treated.

However, I'm tired of getting screwed and I have to lay the hammer down. I'm pissed and while I'm still respectful they now know that this is taking way too long and I'm losing patience.

Maybe I should have been a bitch first and foremost. Might have gotten my car fixed by now, or at least it could be in the shop by now.

Moral of the story: being nice gets you nowhere, sadly. Get a little pissed and all of a sudden people spring into action.

If nothing happens by the end of the week, someone is getting punched in the face. I'm kidding about the punching....or not :)

A Quick One

Just a quick post because between yesterday and today I have nothing exciting or life altering to share. 

Well if you consider me getting up and running 7 miles this morning life altering then I've succeeded at something.

Only had time for my run, which was OK because my legs are still sore from doing weights yesterday. 7 miles, 59:07, avg pace 8:26. Great run!

Debating whether to "sleep in" tomorrow or get up. I'm leaning toward "sleep in" and then on Friday I'll get up run and do some more weights. Then on Saturday I may do a short 2 or 3 miler in preparation for my half marathon on Sunday. 

Not sure about this yet, I may end up going tomorrow morning depending on how I feel.

Christmas is Almost 2 Months Away

Every year I tell myself around Summertime that I will start Christmas shopping early and be done by Thanksgiving.

And every year Thanksgiving rolls around and I haven't bought one darn thing.

So when I glanced at my calendar today I realized that after this weekend Christmas is 2 months away. Oh how time flies.

I'm not a very good shopper, in fact I really despise going into a store. I'd rather shop online, especially is there's free shipping involved. Mostly I hate shopping because I hate crowds and around the Holidays I refuse to go to a store at peak time. I'll get up and go early, like right when the store opens.

I started jotting down some ideas for Sophie. Ricky and I don't really buy anything for each other anymore. Something small to open on Christmas but at the age we are, if we need something and budget allows, we just buy it.

Same rule for extended family. We mainly buy for the kids now. In my family we draw names and buy a gift for that person who's name we drew. It works, I like it. I really would all in all rather Sophie get all the gifts instead of me or Ricky anyway.

So thinking back to Sophie, she's really into fake food. She has a little hand me down kitchen and a ton of plastic food she got for her birthday. So looking online at Pottery Barn Kids I found this:

I really want her to have this. I think she'd have a blast because right now she likes to "serve" us food. Also there's a company called Melissa and Doug that makes wooden toys and I've found several wooden food sets that would be great with this. It's also currently on sale so once Hubby gets paid I think I'm going to go ahead and purchase it.

Something else I think she'll love is a doll house. My mom kept the old Sylvanian Family I used to play with when I was little. It's basically a doll house with animals instead of people. At Toys R Us I found Callico Critters so I think I'm also going to purchase her this:

For a 2 year old I think this is perfect and as she gets older we can always add-on to her collection.

I also saw this but passed the idea onto my brother and sister-in-law because at some point I realize I can't buy her everything.

He he, it's pink!! If we ever have a little boy he's probably not going to want to play with a pink basketball goal. That's why there's spray paint.

Actually Sophie loves to play ball and I think this is something she'll enjoy. If she takes after her mommy then she's going to be a natural basketball player :) Gotta start her young so we can get the skills going, girl is probably going to need either a sports scholarship or academic scholarship.

Of course there will be clothes and other smaller items that she'll have to open from Mommy and Daddy but the one's above (Diner and Doll House) will be from Santa. I have to spoil her while I can, this might be the last year she's an only child.

At least I've got the list going and that's a start. I mean seriously it's not even Halloween and I'm thinking about Christmas!

Hello 4 am!

Wow, 4 am came mighty fast this morning. I was determined to make it up, so determined that my eyes opened and I looked at the clock at 3:45. Hate it when I do that! So I teetered between sleep and awake for about 20 minutes when I finally rolled out of bed. 

Luckily I had a great run this morning and surprised that my legs didn't feel as sore as I thought they would. Started out a little slow but then worked my way up to a nice steady pace. 

Once again Nike+ says I rocked it this morning with 4.72 miles, 34:47, avg pace 7:22. I'd really like to think I was that fast but it was more like treadmill saying 4.01 miles at 34:47, avg pace 8:40. Not sure what the deal with my Nike+ watch is. It was calibrated so well for a while. Last week it was slower than the treadmill so I calibrated and then this week it's faster than the treadmill. At least I know I am somewhere between 7:22 and 8:40 :) 

Most importantly I felt really good during my run. 

After the run I did weights. I concentrated on legs and then just did a few back and chest exercises.

I feel energized this morning, far cry from last week.

15 Miles and Sore

Yesterday I did my 15 miles on Folly Beach.

I started out feeling really good. Actually I felt really good miles 1-13.5. I kept a pretty consistent pace and was enjoying the run, weather, and scenery.

Since I have a half marathon on Sunday, I wanted to push this run some and see what my projected time would be for 13.1 miles. I ended up somewhere around 2 hours 3 minutes and 33 seconds. This would be a PR as the last half marathon was 2 hours 7 minutes. I hope I can pull it off on Sunday! I desperately want to get a sub 2 hour but I anything better than my previous time will make be happy.

Around mile 13.5 I started feeling tired, thirsty and ready to stop. My legs were starting to cramp and my pace slowed big time. I started to struggle mentally after the run wondering if 15 hurts this bad how can I possibly do the remaining long runs? I know this is the whole part of training but this was tough. I also have to factor in that I barely ran this past week and my calorie intake was reduced due to traveling and not eating as much. I can't forget that I felt great the majority of the run so it's OK that the last couple of miles were tough. I finished and didn't stop so I should be proud (actually I stopped at my car at mile 10 for some more water but that was only for like 2 minutes).

15.01 miles, 2 hours, 23 minutes, avg pace 9:31. I'm proud of myself.

This past weekend was the Lowcountry Race for the Cure on Daniel Island. I've run this race the last 4 years and was a little sad to have missed it. I was looking at the race results and saw that the 3rd place winner for my age group was like 23 minutes. I know that if I ran this race I could have either beat, or come really close to beating that time.

Then I started feeling like maybe I should abandon all this marathon nonsense and focus on faster, shorter distances. I'm not sure where this doubt is coming from. I'm not a fast runner, I'm slightly above average I would say (slightly). I want to be faster. I don't know if long distances are for me seeing as how spent I felt after just 15 miles.

One thing I'm not is a quitter so for now I'm going to follow through with my goals. However I'm trying to think of a short race I can run for fun and speed.

I guess it wouldn't be a big deal if I wasn't thinking about having another baby. Time is limited here and I don't want to put off baby plans. I know there's always after baby and I probably won't have time for long distances so I can focus on being fast! I just want that one marathon medal to one day show my kids.

This morning my legs are sore but not horribly. I wore my compression socks to bed last night so I don't really have any lower legs pain. My knees are a little tender and the inside of my thighs are sore but overall I feel good.

Week 8 Recap

I had good intentions this past week, running while traveling for work. I pack workout clothes, had the mornings all planned out in my head, pep talked myself. But only one day happened. One day and that's it. Traveling really kicked by booty.

Day 1 - Sunday

Cross training. I did not run this day. I wanted to but I didn't. Instead I did 30 minutes on the elliptical and the stair climber. Let me just say that I can run 14 miles but 10 minutes on the stair climber kicks my ass. After cardio I did some weight training. 

Day 2 - Monday

Rest

Up at 4:00 am to get ready and head to California. Flight left at 6:20 and arrived at 10:50 in sunny Orange County. From the minute my sales reps picked me up at the airport, it was non stop appointments and driving. I was back at my hotel at 7:00 pm (10:00 pm east coast time). I ordered room service and passed out by 8:30. 

Day 3 - Tuesday

4.08 miles, 34.22, avg pace 8:25

My eyes popped open at 3:45 am and laid awake until 4:30. I called my husband at like 4:15 because it's was really 7:15 at home and he was driving Sophie to school and heading to work. What a weird feeling that is. I made it to the hotel gym and ran my 4 miles. I didn't like the treadmill, it was at 0% incline but it felt like I was running uphill the whole time. Plus it had a TV attached to the treadmill which made me feel strange. I like looking out and over at something, not having it right in my face. So it wasn't an enjoyable run but got it done.

Day 4 - Wednesday

7 miles Rest

After another long day of customer visits, driving and not really eating a whole lot I was pooped when I got back to my hotel at like 7 pm again. I called my husband and I started nodding off on the phone. I slept all the way till 5:30 and by that time I had to start getting ready for the day. Plus I was leaving for home and needed to make sure I was packed up, ate breakfast and be ready to be picked up at 7:30 am so we could get in a few appointments before my flight. To be honest, I could have gotten up but I hated that treadmill so much that I didn't want to run 7 miles on it. I could have done 3 miles and something else but I was tired and I talked myself into being lazy. I knew it was going to be a long day, my flight didn't get into Charleston until 11:30 pm.

Day 5 - Thursday

4 miles Rest

Aww, my bed! I got home around midnight and by the time I got into bed it was 12:30. I was so wound up that I couldn't fall asleep right away. I didn't even attempt to get up and go to the gym and even when my daughter woke up and I went into get her, I was having a hard time keeping my eyes open. I went back to bed and was going to get up and go for a short run around the neighborhood before I went into work, but that didn't happen. I needed coffee and lots of it. By the time I started feeling "awake" I had to get ready.

Day 5 -  Friday

Rest

I was mad at myself this morning because even though I was tired I could have gotten up and gone to the gym and still functioned but I didn't. I laid in bed after my alarm went off and contemplated going. Next thing I knew I looked at the clock and it was 6:30! Oops, fell back asleep and then I ran late. Oh well. 

Day 6 - Saturday

15 miles 4 miles, cross train, weights

Had to flip flop days, couldn't do my long run until Sunday because my husband was on call and had to go into the office. No baby sitter for Sophie so we hung out in the morning and then I headed to the gym after lunch. My run felt good and this day I finally started feeling somewhat normal.

Not the ideal training week by any means and to be honest I got upset and cried on Saturday because I started doubting myself and got frustrated. It's only a couple of runs I missed and not the end of the world as my husband pointed out. Just need to make sure I'm on my A-game this week since I have my half marathon on Sunday.

What To Do Today

Because my husband had to go in the office this morning I had to postpone my long run till tomorrow. I slept in, a little, and hung out with my girl this morning.

As we were reading books and watching cartoons, I looked around and realized just how dirty my house has gotten so I decided to clean. I got most of the house dusted, some laundry, windexed the windows, sweeped the kitchen floor. I was busy. Saving the bathrooms for my husband. He shouldn't have to miss out on all the fun right?

When he got home around lunch time I headed to the gym (was going to run outside but it's about 80 degrees out). Ran 4 miles on the treadmill to "wake up" my legs after not running the last couple of days. I did 10 minutes on the elliptical and weights.

Now I'm back home and Sophie is napping. I'm going to continue cleaning but it's so nice out that I'm trying to figure out what to do when she wakes up. Drive to the beach? Maybe, but I do want to get some pumpkins so maybe we'll hit up the little farmers market down the street.

Dinner.....hmmm.....don't want to eat out yet we have nothing to cook. Will have to figure that one out.

I feel good today. Not as tired as I have been all week.

Getting Back to Normal...Slowly

Excuse my crazy ramble yesterday. I was exhausted and could not think straight, obviously. I don't travel much, let alone to the west coast, nor on airplane so my body is all out of sorts. Traveling takes a lot out of you, especially when it's 2 days, you don't get much time to relax.

I've been going pretty much non-stop all week so when I got home got some sleep and then had to come to work yesterday I was struggling to make it to 5:00. When I got home I was dragging ass and feel asleep multiple times throughout the evening.

I had good intentions to make it to the gym this morning, even laid out my clothes and everything. When the alarm went off I almost got out of bed. My mind was ready but my body felt tired and heavy. I laid there for a few minutes contemplating what to do. Next thing I knew it was 6:30 am. Oops! Fell back asleep, hard, and didn't reset my alarm. So then I was up and at it rushing to get ready for work.

I guess this week is just going to be my week that didn't happen as planned. I'm trying to be ok with it, to be honest I'm bummed that I missed my runs but it's still early enough in training that it's going to be fine. I think. I hope. I'm still doing my 15 mile long run this weekend. It's either going to go really well or really bad.

I run my half marathon next weekend so I need to get back into the swing of things next week. I'm feeling more rested today so I should be good to go.

The only thing that concerns me is that I really haven't eaten much this week. Because it's been so busy with traveling on planes and making sales calls we've put meals on the back burner. Had one or two good meals but all in all my diet has dwindled. I tried to eat more than normal at dinner last night but I got full really quick. So today I'm going to try and get some extra carbs in me so I won't crap out during my long run this weekend.

Luckily this is the only snag in my training. I won't be traveling for work any time between now and January. So I need to just roll with it, but I have such mental issues with missing any runs, I feel like I'm not going to do well. I know that's not really the case but I was really bummed this morning when I realized I had fallen back to sleep.

Hopefully this weekend will go well.

Home and Tired

Monday morning I was up and to the airport by 5:30 am for my 6:20 am flight to Houston.

From Houston it was onto Orange County (John Wayne Airport). My sales rep picked me up and for two days straight it was visiting hospitals, visiting customers and driving. Went to Newport Beach, Ontario, some area outside of L.A (Panorama City....), and various other places. We were suppose to go down to San Diego but that ended up not happening.

Yesterday it was back on a plane at 1:50 pm to Atlanta, GA. Landed at 9:00. Flight from Atlanta to Charleston was 10:20 - 11:15. Home by midnight and I am back at work today, exhausted.

I have never traveled to the west coast before and let me just say that because of the time difference I was in bed by like 8:00 and wide awake by 4:00 am.

So far I've only run once this week :( 4 miles on Tuesday at the hotel gym. I didn't like the treadmill. Too tired to run Wed. morning and this morning, well I could barely keep my eyes open at 6:00 am so I slept in till 8:30 and then had to get ready for work.

I hope to make it to the gym tomorrow morning but I'm not sure.

My 15 mile run has to be pushed back to Sunday because my husband is on call Saturday and has to go in the office. Not a big deal, this could work out for the better. Maybe I can actually sleep in Saturday.

I feel so out of it right now, the thought of running makes me sleepy. All I want to do is lay my head down.

Two full days of non-stop traveling is exhausting but it was a great experience to get out in the field with one of the sales reps to see the equipment my company sells in action. We sell washer disinfectors and sterilizers to hospital's sterile processing department. So after you have surgery all the tools they use have to get cleaned, washed, sterilized, and repackaged for the next surgery. That's what we sell.

This post is so random and makes no sense but I don't care. I will post something semi intelligent tomorrow. Hopefully I can make it up for my run tomorrow morning!

So happy to be home, can't wait to snuggle up with my daughter tonight, I missed her.

Did I mention I was tired?

Week 7 Recap

Day 1 - Sunday
Cross Train plus 3.07 miles, 24:48, avg pace 8:05 on the trail. Weights at the gym after my run and the elliptical. Gorgeous day weather wise! I'm happy that I was able to run that "fast" after my 9 miler the day before.

Day 2 - Monday
Rest

Day 3 - Tuesday
4 miles, 34:15, avg pace 8:33 weights

Day 4 - Wednesday
7.35 miles, 59:47, avg pace 8:07

Day 5 - Thursday
4 miles Rest

Day 6 - Friday
Rest 3 miles, weights, elliptical. I don't know what my time or pace was because I forgot my watch and I have a crappy memory so I don't remember what the time said on the treadmill.

Day 7 - Saturday
14 miles - 14.07, 2:18:30, avg pace 9:50
I didn't make it to the beach like I had planned. After not sleeping well and not getting up at the time I wanted, plus throw in a temper tantrum over socks, we were late getting out of the house. Since my mother in law is so kind to watch Sophie and had errands to run after, I didn't want to take advantage so I went to the trail instead. I'll save the beach for next weekend.
Temps were good, sun was shining and I felt good overall. It was windy and it really didn't seem to matter which direction I was running, the wind was in my face. There were times I felt like "heck yay, I'm doing good!" and I'd look down at my watch and the pace was like 10:06. Hmmm....not so much. Oh well, that's what training is all about and at least I hit my milaege. I did have to stop at my car around mile 13 because I was out of water and I could taste the salt on my lips so I know I was getting dehydrated. Chugged some water and finished the run.

Week 7 is done! This coming week will be interesting with my traveling so I hope to still get some runs in. I know I'm going to be tired when I get back. My flight home doesn't get in till 11:30 pm and I still have to go to work the next day (however I will be sleeping in).

Now it's off to enjoy the weekend, do laundry and pack, and spend time with my favorite little girl.

The Human Alarm Clock

Because I missed yesterday I wanted to make sure I got in some sort of work out this morning, whether it be running, weights, whatever.

My husband had to leave early again this morning to go to the same place to assist with a well point install. I have no idea what that is but it's something that has to do with water and it goes in the ground. Apparently they did not get everything done yesterday.

So I ended up getting out of bed at like 3:50 so I could make it to the gym earlier than normal, so I could make home before he had to leave. My clock is 20 minutes fast so when the alarm goes off I look over and it says 4:10 when really it's 3:50. Little ways I try to trick my mind.

I go to the gym, I do my thing and then I call my husband on the way home to tell him to let they dogs out (they go nuts when someone pulls into the driveway so we let them outside so they don't wake up Sophie). Well when I call he sounds like he just woke up. Um, yeah that's because my call woke him up and now he's going to be late getting out of the house.

Because I'm a light sleeper I often wake up to his alarm going off and then I wake him up so get out of bed. I guess since I wasn't there he didn't hear it and slept right through it. He must sleep like the dead because I hear mine the instant it goes off. I am many things for my family and now I can add human alarm clock to my list of responsibilities.

Luckily he's a guy and it doesn't take him long to get ready so in 15 minutes he was out the door.

This morning I decided to run a slower 3 miles on the treadmill. That started to get boring after the first 1/2 mile so I did hills with faster pace on the decline. After the run I did a few weights and then 10 minutes on the elliptical.

Tomorrow I have 14 miles on the schedule. My husband is fishing in a small local tournament so I will be dropping my daughter off at my mother in laws house for a few hours while I do my run. I hate to have to do that but Sunday it's supposed to start raining and tomorrow is the better day. It's only for a few hours so I don't feel too guilty.

I want to run somewhere that I haven't been in a while so I'm thinking of heading down to Folly Beach to do my run. Most tourists are gone so it should be fairly quiet. They do a half marathon on Folly so I should be able to get 14 miles out of the area.

http://www.follybeach.com/islandmap.php

It'll take me about 45 minutes to get to Folly from where my mother in law lives but I want some new scenery as my mileage starts to increase. I can only take so much of the same trail before it gets boring.

14 miles will be the farthest I've run so I'm hoping it goes well. Should be a nice and fairly cool morning but by the time I'm done it'll probably be in the 70's. Still  not too bad but I sweat like a man so need to make sure I have plenty of fluids with me.

TGIF!!

Frustrated

I did not make it to the gym this morning. As I mentioned on my last post my husband had to be out of the house early to go out of town for the day for work. Because that leaves me to get myself and my daughter up and ready, I decided to not go and give myself more time to do everything that needed to get done in the morning. I was bummed but it's OK. Apparently I was tired because I didn't even hear him get up and get ready, I was out cold. I could attempt to go tonight but he's not sure when he'll be home tonight so that, once again, leaves me to handle everything at home, make sure dogs are fed, make sure Sophie is fed, dishes, bed, bath. Doesn't leave me much time to get done what I need to get done. Just the way it is sometimes.

I could try and do some weights or P90X after Sophie goes to bed but to be honest at 9:00 at night I am exhausted and need to get to sleep so I can attempt to make it to the gym the next morning.

This has been a difficult week for me because I'm suffering from major PMS (sorry but I am). Ever since I had Sophie and stopped breastfeeding my PMS has been crazy. At first my hormones were all over the place and I felt crazy to the point my husband wanted me to get medicine. I am against self medicating so I told him to suck it up and help me through it. Really I was just a first time mom, sleep deprived and working full time and just a tad bit stressed. Unfortunately when it's PMS week it's all intensified.

Over the year I feel my emotions have somewhat stabilized but the physical symptoms are still so very extreme. I bloat. Not just a little water retention but like an extra 4-5 pounds! My pants are a little tighter and I feel like I have a muffin top. Sorry but I do. If I were to pudge out my stomach right now I would look 3 months pregnant. Seriously. It's very frustrating. My rings are a little tighter and it pisses me off to see the scale fluctuate so much during this time. My skin breaks out and I look and feel disgusting. I tried on pants the other day at the store and they felt tight and I almost cried. I refuse to be on birth control at this point in my life.

I go through this every month you'd think I'd be used to it by now. The thing is, I've gained a few pounds over the course of the year. Sure it could be muscle but I looked and felt better last year before I started doing more distance. Maybe because last year I was still having fun with running and this year it became a little more serious. Not sure but I feel an added pressure when I see the scale starting to go up. I feel like all this hard work is backfiring on me.

I eat fairly well. I try to make good decisions on what I eat now a days. We cook more, only ordering out on Friday's because, let's face it, who wants to cook on a Friday night after a long week at work? Not me!! Plus I have more time on the weekends to make a nice meal for my family. I still eat things that I shouldn't be. I love french fries, I love ice cream - any sweets really, I love a good burger, I love chips. Really anything that's bad. However I make good decisions more than I make bad ones. I am currently trying to rid our pantry of a lot of processed foods. I read labels more and watch the fat content and ingredients. I recently discovered that my beloved Jiff Reduced Fat peanut butter has zinc oxide listed as an ingredient. Zinc oxide is what's in diaper rash cream. That's just gross. So now I need to find an alternative to my Jiff.

I know what I need to do, I just don't (once again) have all the extra time in the world to do it, like various training exercises (track runs, temp runs, speed work, hills), I try to mix up my treadmill workouts but I can't quite make it to the high school track at 4:30 a.m. or during the week when the students are using it. I don't have time to make "from scratch" meals. I don't shop at Whole Foods or Trader Joe's because I don't live near one and the Trader Joe's that opened up in Mt. Pleasant is so crowded on the weekends (I'm letting all the hype die down before I go).

Today I read a blog and the girl said that running did nothing for her body but when she started mixing in kickboxing, yoga, and other various exercises her body started changing and the weight melted off. I think that's where I'm at right now. Maybe I run too much and my body is too used to it. I need more cross training. I will work on that.

I will also work on eating better. I have made great improvements over the last year but I need to do more. My daughter is turning into a picky eater and I hate that. Then again she's only two and one week she loves green beans, they next week she hates them. Eating better will help me lose this stubborn chub that I can't seem to get rid of.

Sorry for my brain dump, I blame the hormones :) Next week will be better.

October is a Busy Month

October is going to be a busy month. Hell, the rest of the year is going to be busy. Since I've had a child and become  a mom, I feel like time passes me by. I have no time to get things done anymore yet my "to-do" list and project list keeps growing and growing.....

There's so much I want to do but finding the time to get it all done is becoming very overwhelming. I've dedicated myself to this marathon training so if things get pushed back till after the race in January so be it.

October:
8th - This coming Saturday my husband is fishing in a small local tournament so he'll be gone all day Saturday. My mother in law will be watching Sophie while I do my 14 miles. I'll be doing this distance alone, no hubby to ride along beside me.
Sunday 9th - Was invited to a friend's beach house for the day to bring Sophie to play with various other children that will be there. Now that I have to fly out to California at 6 am on Monday I'm going to have to cancel because now I will have to run the errands I cannot do on Saturday and pack, get groceries for Ricky and Sophie so they can eat while I'm gone, spend time with my daughter, and try to get my house cleaned up.

10th - 12th I'll be in SoCal for work. I'm flying into John Wayne Airport and staying somewhere in that area but riding with my sales rep on customer visits those 2 days. I know that one day we will be in San Diego. Exciting, my sister was born in San Diego (when my dad was in the Navy) so she's a tad jealous that I get to go there. I get back really really late Wed. night, at like 11:30 pm which is going to stink because I'll be so jet lagged.

15th - 16th I need to attempt to get Sophie's Halloween costume since I won't really have time to do it this coming weekend unless I can try and squeeze it in however I have NO idea what she should be. Would love to make her a costume but that's just not going to happen. I have 15 miles on Saturday. I wanted to invite friends over for dinner Saturday night and we might still do that but honestly after being away for a few days I don't think I'll have the time to clean and go grocery shopping. When I cook for people I like to go all out.

22nd - 23rd  - My parents are driving down that Friday to stay with Sophie for the weekend while Ricky and I drive to Myrtle Beach, SC for the Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon on Sunday the 23rd.
I'm super excited about this race because the last few miles you get to run along the beach and the biggest bummer of Kiawah Island Half Marathon - no beach just big beautiful houses. After the race we'll drive home and there's the weekend.

Image from http://www.runmyrtlebeach.com

29th - 31st - I'm sure this is the weekend that Ricky will be on call this weekend which isn't a big huge deal only the fact that I have to run 17 miles and he'll have to go into the office for a few hours. Getting ready for Halloween as well, hopefully the house will be decorated by then and I can carve pumpkins on Sunday.

Of course any day during the week I'll be working.

I would love to be crafty for Halloween, I have so many ideas that I want to do to decorate the house. I love fall and fall decorating so we'll see just how much I am able to get done.

I also have to start getting things ready for Sophie's big girl room. Would like to have her transitioned over after my marathon in January and get her old nursery ready for new baby nursery (hopefully). I bought a headboard from craigslist and I'm to paint it white along with the bookcase I also found on craigslist. We have a dresser that's already white but I'm going to paint the drawers a different color and change out the knobs. Not to mention re-painting her future room. This is all very ambitious but I know I can get it done. Whether I can keep from getting stressed out remains to be seen.

On top of all that, I have a ton of little projects that are sitting in our garage waiting to be sanded and spray painted. I was not able to complete over the summer because it was just too hot and humid and the paint does not dry well.

I want to re-paint our mater bathroom because it needs it but this will be a "rainy day" project. Oh and not to mention our living room and kitchen - maybe this will be a day off from work project. My husband loves me :) Actually I've painted just about every room myself so I don't need his help. I'm the better painter anyway.

So yeah, I bring it upon myself and used to be very obsessive about things but since I've had a kid I've learned that if it all doesn't get done at the time I want it to get done....it's ok!

So far November is semi busy. We're traveling to Charlotte, NC twice this month, once for my 2nd half marathon on Nov. 12th, the Thunder Road Marathon and then for Thanksgiving.

I won't even get started on Christmas :) It's all good, bring it on!! 

Hump Day

Knocked out 7.35 this morning, 59:47 avg pace 8:07. Wasn't sure how it was going to go, my stomach was giving me a hard time when I was getting ready to leave the house but ultimately the run went great!

I am also happy to report that other than the typical school traffic, there were no accidents and I made it to work 15 minutes early! Woot! 

Of course I still have to make it home so I better not get too excited yet.

Tomorrow's run remains up in the air. My husband has to leave pretty early to head out of town for the day so that means if I want to go run, I have to get up a little earlier than I normally. Like I'd have to make it to the gym no later than 4:30 am, so I would really have to be out of bed right at 4 a.m. or a little before.

I'm not counting on it happening considering I've slept poorly the last couple of nights but who knows, weirder things have happened.

Not much else to report on this hump day unless you want to hear about quotes for medical equipment and stuff like that but it's really not that interesting.

My Main Problem with Charleston

As much as I love the beach and being near the cost, I'm not a huge fan of living in this area. There are many many reasons why this is but the biggie is where we live in relation to where I work. The traffic, most days, is a nightmare. To anyone who reads my blog, this will be a reoccurring theme. As long as I continue to work I will despise my drive.

Case in point this morning we are out of the house early, doing good on time, going to be early to work and school when I am heading towards the big bridge that I normally cross to get to work and it's jam packed with cars. Then I finally hear a traffic report that tells me left lane is blocked ahead, expect delays. Nice.

To make a long story short it took me 55 minutes to get over that bridge. So in total I spent almost 2 hours in the car this morning. What makes it all the more annoying is that when I passed the wreck all emergency personnel were standing around doing a whole lot of nothing. I think I even saw one of them laughing at something. They could have been working on getting the lane re-opened but apparently that wasn't high priority.

Borrowed picture from Wikipedia. The dreaded Don Holt Bridge. 

I've been doing this drive for the last 4 years and I will be the happiest woman alive the day I don't have to do it anymore which makes me almost ALMOST want to get pregnant like NOW so I can be done with all the nonsense.

OK that rant is done for now.

Woke up at 4:15 and ran 4 miles this morning on the treadmill and a short weight circuit after. 4 miles in 34:15 avg pace about 8:33. Legs were still a little sore from Sunday's weight workout but overall I felt good overall. 

It was hard getting up because we got woken up at 1:30 to a dog regurgitating his dinner on our carpet. That's always a lovely sound to wake up to in the middle of the night isn't it? So my husband cleaned it up and then it was to sleep, only I couldn't get back to sleep right away. Then the snoring started but eventually I nodded back off only to be woken up by my alarm a while later. Would have given anything to go back to sleep but I'm happy that I got out of bed. Of course it's currently 2:30 pm and I'm about to fall asleep at my desk but I'll make it.