Running again...

So a few weeks ago, I had something every night it seemed, and while most events (like me going to the gym) were after the kids went to bed, I still felt guilty and decided to reevaluate my running schedule for the fall half marathon. And with soccer/dance for Audrey and cheerleading/dance for Ashley this fall, our schedule gets a little crazy. That, and cheerleading is 2 nights a week from 6-7:30pm, and I just signed up to help out on the Tuesday night practices. Because as my friends would say, I can't say no.

That and last night on our night-run, it was pretty darn dark when my friend and I finished. There is a trail that is pretty short, maybe a quarter of a mile, that runs between Ashley's elementary school and our street and it goes through the woods. We hit that trail at 8:45pm last night and it was scary. Dark, scary, and we had just finished up a conversation about snakes. So needless to say, I was worried about stepping on one. So I think our nightly runs will have to take a backseat, or just run at the gym.

My running schedule which officially starts on August 23:
Mondays - speed work at the gym on the treadmill where I can concentrate on my pace
Wednesdays - morning run or lunchtime run (I work from home on Wednesdays)
Fridays - run at lunchtime at work (I did this in the winter)
Saturdays - long runs in the morning

So it will only be one night a week where I am at the gym at night. Last week I ran 20 miles for the first time ever in a week, but this training cycle I will get up to 30 miles in on week. Pretty scary!

Running and exercising with kids

I don't boast fast times when I run, nor do I run 30-40 miles a week. I try to hit 20 miles a week, and at best, I come close (although my new training plan that starts this month for the half marathon in November and the full in February have me running 20+ miles each week). I work full-time, have 2 kids, and I could go on with the list of other things I am involved in, but I would just bore you to death.

I do try to keep my workouts at night after the kids go to bed or incorporate the kids into my workouts (Ray takes the early morning shift running). Like yesterday. I took the girls to see a movie, then we went back home where all they wanted to do again was watch TV. Since for the first time in 2 months it wasn't 90+ degrees outside and I needed a measly 2.5 miles to get my 20 miles for the week, I took the kids to a local track at a middle school. Ashley biked, Audrey biked and ran/walked. I ran and the girls had fun watching me for my last 2 laps.

I also wrote for a great website, Diets in Review this past weekend. You can check out my article here....

Quick Recap

Ashley's birthday party was a success. I took her and some of her friends to see the Ramona and Beezus movie on Saturday. Great movie for girls (Ray was utterly bored with it) but warning, it has some sad parts in it. Audrey was sobbing at one point over something that happened and Ray had to take her out of the theater for a few minutes.

Her present from us and the Grandparents was a new bed. I found one I liked on Ikea's website, and it was even available to order online (or so I thought). The closest 2 stores to us are in Charlotte, NC or Woodbridge, VA (both 3 hours or more away). So I went to order it Sunday and I could add the bed to my cart, but then when I went to pay, it said the bed was not available online. Nor was it available at either close store.

Next option - a discount furniture warehouse place nearby. I found the perfect bed, and the price was $399, but it said "any reasonable offers accepted". So I offered $299 and got it. Ray was pissed as he of course thought I could have talked them down to $250, but I am just not good at that stuff. New bedding from ebay has been ordered, and now she just needs to pick a room color, and her new-ish room makeover for her birthday will be complete.

I did get a run in Saturday morning with Ann again on the Tobacco Trail. We only did 6 this time, and it went by fast. It made me realize that training for the Austin Marathon in December and January by myself is going to SUCK A$$. I might have to pay people to run with me.

The Heat is Going to Kill Me

Last night I met up with my friend Wendy to run 4 miles at a new trail (new to me anyway) in a neighboring town.

When we started at 8:00pm, it was 95 degrees outside. When we finished about 45 minutes later, it was still 91 degrees out.

I was soaked. We made it 2 miles (and up 2 hills) before I needed a quick walk break. I felt like I couldn't catch my breath.

I am not normally a wimp in the heat, but running in it sucks. Twice on the trail we had runners fly by us. So I guess it is just me who sucks running in the heat.

Yesterday

Ashley turned 7 yesterday. I know! Seven!

And I didn't write my usual post dedicated to her and this past year. I just couldn't bring myself to it. Every time I started writing, I started crying. I know every parent says this, but I really can't believe she's seven.

See? I am crying just typing that little bit. So Happy Birthday Ashley. From your pathetically emotionally Mother. I am pretty sure on your wedding day you may as well set up an entire barricade of tissues around me. That or sedate me, either one.

So for her birthday, we let her pick her dinner place. I was thinking she would pick Red Robin which is the only restaurant Ray truly hates. Worst case I thought she would pick McDonalds.

She chose The Pit, you know, the downtown Raleigh restaurant that has been featured on the Food Network a few times. Yea, that place.

She loves their mac and cheese. And you can only imagine how good the mac and cheese is there. To.die.for. Yummy stuff.

Our friend's daughter's birthday is today, so they joined us for dinner too. We successfully stuffed ourselves, and then ordered dessert.

This was after I took Ashley cupcakes at school for lunch. And the celebration continues this week. Ray is taking Ashley golfing after school this afternoon. Tomorrow night we have a pool party to attend (not one for Ashley, but playing in the pool with free food and drinks will be fun). And then Saturday is her birthday party. We are taking her and 8 of her friends to see the new Ramona and Beezus movie and then back to our house for dinner and cake.

The other good news is that Ray doesn't have to work his open houses this weekend, so Sunday we actually get to go to the pool as a family, instead of me taking the girls by myself. And considering we are on target to hit a record number of days in a row in the 90s (seriously, last night driving home from the restaurant at 8:00pm is was still 91 degrees out...), the pool is a must on the weekends here.

The Pool

I am going to say my streak is still alive considering I carried Audrey up the steps to the top of the slide at our pool once on Sunday. Which that is an accomplishment as I seem to have caught some sort of stomach thing where my stomach is pretty pissed at me. As soon as Ray got home from working his open house last night, I raised my white flag and went to bed.

So the pool. Audrey loves the pool now. She wears her life vest and will go down the slide, jump in the deep end, go off the diving board, have fun in the lazy river (yes, our pools in our neighborhood ROCK).

But yesterday she decided to fight her sister over a sea noodle Ashley picked up out of lost and found, despite the fact that she didn't need it to keep her afloat. So at break time, she threw a fit which included her hitting me. So we left (and lucky for Ashley, her friend was at the pool and her family said she could stay with them so I could take Satan child home). I carried a screaming Audrey out of the pool and to the van. At that point, she realized what was up, and completely calmed down and said, "I am ready to go back to the pool now. I calmed down."

I told her hitting and having a temper-tantrum (my friend who has a 4.5 year old right now is going through the same temper-tantrum stuff with her son)(I still say and this is proof that the halves are worse than the wholes) was not acceptable and we could go back to the pool another day. Which of course this brought on more crying until we got home. To which she decided as we got out of the van that she was going to walk back to the pool (about 3/4 of a mile, or more, I forget). I go inside and watch her through the front door. She stands there, acts like she is going to walk down the steps, then she peers back into the front door. And then comes in, saying sorry.

She was tired and hungry. We both got changed, and she hung out with me on the couch. She may be small, but no one is ever going to mess with this kid. She can throw one heck of a tantrum....

I am not flexible

Last night I did the P90X Yoga DVD. Well, okay, I didn't do the whole hour and 32 minutes of it. I had children that decided 8:00pm was not a good bedtime and continually called me to their rooms. I think I did about 45 minutes.

And I am sore today in my upper body - my back, weird spots on my arms, core. And really, I am so not flexible. I know that and accept that. I will never be able to bend over and touch my toes.

I was going to get up and do the Ab Ripper DVD prior to work, but I slept all night on about a 2 inch patch of my bed due to the fact the sleepless children decided that the only way they were going to sleep last night was in our bed. So it was me, Ray, Ashley, Audrey, and Tootles. Audrey is the type of sleeper that you scoot over to get away from her, she just scoots closer. So I continually lost prime bed real estate all night long. And really, I should of just gotten up and gone in the guest room, but that would have been too much effort. And then about 5:59am (right before my alarm was going to go off), Tootles fell off the bed. She was fine, but it was funny. Poor dog.

So tonight, ab DVD to keep my 30 day challenge to myself alive. Then running in the morning with my blogging friend Ann at the Tobacco Trail tomorrow morning. She has 12 on her schedule, I am going to try and hang on for 8 miles. I haven't done anything over 5.5 miles in over a month. I really need to build back my endurance for the long runs. I am about a month out from starting my half marathon training for OBX.

Let's Go Hokies!!