2011 Revolutions

Resolution can be defined as "the condition or quality of being resolute; firmness or determination." And revolution can be defined as "a drastic and far-reaching change in ways of thinking and behaving." So, for 2011, I have decided to resolve that I will make revolutions in my life. I want to be determined to reach my goals and I want my goals to reflect a drastic change in the way I think and behave.

For the year 2011, I intend to aspire to the following goals...

- Improve my running form, speed and skill

- Work towards increasing my strength in my upper and lower body training sessions.

- Run 6 half-marathons. (I have already chosen 4 for next year and have them split to three at the beginning of the year and 3 at the end of the year)

- Spend more quality time with family

- Continue working towards my weight loss goals

- Be more diligent with my nutrition on a daily basis

- Pay down our debts

- Encourage my husband to pursue his dreams and goals

- Plan an outing each week that involves being active (hiking, trips to the beach, etc....)

- Get at least 8 hours of sleep each night

- Make time to connect/reconnect with dear friends that I do not get to see often enough.

- Make more time for reading

- Give blood at least every 60 days (you can donate whole blood every 56 days).

- Continue to find ways to serve others in our community

- Improve my shooting skills

I think it's a pretty well-rounded and fair list. Some goals are more specific than others and I am certain I will come up with more throughout the year. But I intend to make the most out of 2011. I will live this life to the fullest and spend more time enjoying what I have been given!

Learning to Shoot

So, I have a bucket list...well, not exactly a bucket list, but a mental list of things I would really like to experience in life. One of those things that I really wanted to experience was learning how to shoot a gun. I had never actually held a real gun until about 3 or 4 weeks ago at my friends' house. It was then decided that I was going to have to go shooting.

This past weekend was my outing :) We made a stop at the gun store first and Ann and Charlie got their anniversary gifts....Charlie got a new Walther P22 and Ann got a Walther PK380 with a laser sight. Then we went out to Charlie's parents' house to go shoot. Ann is fighting walking pneumonia right now so she was not going to be able to shoot with us. So, it ended up being Charlie, Chuck, Gramps (Wayne) and I shooting.

We walked back out to their area and grabbed some old 6x6 tiles and lined them up and started shooting. Of course, I had to shoot first. So, Charlie picked a gun, loaded it and showed me how to shoot and got me started. My first shot, I was so nervous and I was shaking. I could hear my heart beating in my ears. I aimed and pulled the trigger...the sound of the shot made me jump a bit. In fact, after a couple of hours of shooting, I still jumped a bit whenever I heard the gunshot.

I didn't think I was very good. But I was shooting down at 6x6 tiles...I had no idea that normally targets would be bigger, so for me to be hitting the targets was actually pretty good. I shot several different guns...a Ruger 9mm, Walther P22, Walther PK380 with laser sight, a 12-gauge shot gun with pistol grip, and a Smith & Wesson 22. My favorites were the Walther P22 and Walther PK380 with laser sight. After shooting for awhile, I got pretty comfortable with the guns.

I really enjoyed shooting more than I thought I would. I would love to go out and shoot again. I am thinking once I get more comfortable with it, I would like to own my own gun. Out of my two favorites, I enjoyed the Walther P22 the best! So, I definitely intend to head back out to Gramps' place and shoot again.

I was not the only one shooting though. I was with 3 men who shoot very well. Gramps was pretty awesome. Charlie was a great shot too! And Chuck was impressive. I had great teachers :) And I had a blast hanging out with the guys!! I felt like I was getting back to my country girl roots!!

So, what's next on my experience list...I don't know. But I do know that I do intend to live life to the fullest and experience all that it has to offer. I don't want to miss out on anything. Life is way too short to let other people tell you who you are and what you ought to do. So, for me, I am going to stop pleasing others and start enjoying life!

Post-Thanksgiving Fitness Challenge

Okay, so after the gluttony of Thanksgiving, I have decided to challenge myself next week and thought I would pass this along to my other fitness friends!!

I usually strength train 3-4 days a week. This coming week, I will be doing 4 days of strength training. And I try to get an hour of cardio in 5-6 days a week. So, my challenge for the week to burn off some extra calories is two-fold.

Step One....This next week, I have to be 100% perfect with my nutrition which means no cheat meals at all. (I think this is doable because the thought of eating anything unhealthy makes me want to vomit!) It means, I have to do everything according to plan without any variations...all of my meals, snacks, supplements, vitamins, etc.

Step Two....Since I normally try to do an hour of cardio every day, I am going to try doubling up at least two days next week. This means that I will be getting 2 hours of cardio in. Now, this doesn't have to be done all at the same time. I plan to try getting some morning cardio and some afternoon cardio in. Honestly, I am thinking that if at all possible, I am going to shoot for getting 4-5 days of double cardio. I think I can do this and I really want to just kick my butt this coming week and get myself out of the rut that the past few days have put my fitness in.

So, fitness-minded friends, what do you think? Are you up for a challenge?? Can you handle it??? Go forth and be healthy!!

Where Does the Time Go...

Wow...it's hard to believe it has been a month since I last posted anything. Life has just been so very busy and there is so much to do and so little time to sit and write. Some days that is a good thing but other days, it becomes a frustration.

So, what's been going on?? I am still working at Staples part-time. And I am still keeping Jacob and Jillian at least one day a week. I do so enjoy our time together. I love their sweet spirits and have a blast playing with them!!

I have a new trainer now. Tye accepted a job elsewhere and I had to try out a new trainer at the gym. Luckily, I adore my new trainer, Tripp. I admit I was very skeptical at first. I was nervous that he would not be what I needed. It turns out that I was very wrong because he is exactly the trainer that I need right now. I love his enthusiasm and I love his wisdom. He has given me some amazing advice in regards to nutrition and supplements. And his workouts are just plain awesome. I am reaching muscle failure quite often and I am finding myself sore for a few days after our workouts. All in all, I absolutely think this change was a good thing. (And for a girl who is not fond of change, that's really saying something!!) I find myself even more excited about training than before. My time with Tye was precious and we did great work together. My time with Tripp is about learning new things and pushing myself further. I cannot wait to see how things progress!

I am relearning things in regards to running. It has been so frustrating having to rethink the way I used to run and having to relearn the proper form and improve my running. But I am thankful that I have the opportunity to do so. I am also thankful for my friends who run that help me to continue to push forward and continue to work on improving my running. They challenge me and keep me going in so many ways. I just did a 5k this past week and now I can see some things I need to work on in order to improve. Every race, I learn more about myself and my running. Some days and some races, I get frustrated and want to quit, but I persevere. I am not a quitter. I have to keep pushing.

I have also been spending lots of time with my friend, Ann. I have enjoyed helping her with several projects at her house. I love being able to use my talents in the art of organizing as well as painting to help others out. And I have really enjoyed the quality time that I have been spending with Ann and her hubby, Charlie. I do love the both of them...they're so much fun and so awesome!!!

And I got a brand new tattoo this past month. It's a 13.1 with flowers to represent each of the half-marathons I have completed. I LOVE it!!! So awesome!! It's totally different from what I was looking at getting, but I am so thrilled with the concept that Matt Terry (my tattoo artist) came up with!! I cannot wait to run more half-marathons and add more flowers!!! And I love the fact that this tattoo is a one of a kind piece of artwork!!

Other than that, life is just keeping my quite busy. It's been a strange year, but I really feel like I am growing into myself and learning even more about who I am and who I want to be.

What's in store in the next month or so...to be quite honest, I have no idea. I am just trying to stay in the here and now. I do know that I will be looking for another half-marathon to run at the beginning of next year. As for anything else, I am up in the air.

Myrtle Beach Mini Marathon Race Report

I had a great weekend and enjoyed getting to race with Cathy again. I love starting out with her. I know I cannot keep up with her because she is faster than me but I enjoy starting our race out together! She also gives me that nice kick in the butt I need on race day (literally!)

I have to admit that I started this race out once again stuck in my head. Lately, this has not been a great place to be. I continue to struggle with whether or not I want to keep racing, much less running. I also worry about this repaired hip and when and if it will ever be back to 100%. And for some reason, I keep fixating on whether or not I will be able to finish when a race sets a time limit on it!! Ugh!! So, going into a race with these thoughts churning around is not a great feel. Luckily, I also remember my friend, Ricky's last e-mail about my 10-k and his encouragement and I worked on re-focusing!

Saturday morning, I decided to focus myself on a thought from a good friend...”Shut up and run, woman!” LOL! It was a good focus. The morning was perfect for the run...great temperatures and a great course. I was running with a brace on the left knee and a knee strap on the right knee because I had been fighting a little bit of knee pain. I was a bit concerned since I had not run with either of them on before but I had worn them prior to the race to get used to them.

I was on my own for the first 4 miles...I ran as much as I could and then walked in between and kept a really good pace. I refused to look back to see if there was a shuttle following because I knew there was nothing I wanted behind...my medal was at the end of the race and ahead of me. So, I kept my focus on a couple of ladies who were running a similar pace to mine. The first 4 miles were mental for me again. I struggled with just giving up and accepting defeat around mile 2. Somewhere around mile 3, I remembered that I have everything in me to complete this. I have done my mileage and my long slow distance days. The only thing I needed to do was get out of my head and in to my run. So, I decided to kick my own butt. It was also around that time I saw a shirt that read “Dead Last Finish is better than Did Not Finish” So, I knew that I was in it to finish no matter what.

Around mile 5, I ended up running and walking with the ladies that I was following. Of course, I enjoyed some great conversation and made the miles and the time pass quicker. I started feeling some real pain in my left hip around mile 8...I started walking a bit more at that point but did not slow my pace. I also started to feel some blistering happening on my feet. And of course, I felt the urge to pee early in the race. I decided unless the urge became overwhelming that I would not be making a port-a-potty stop since every time I passed one, there were lines. One of the ladies decided to pick up her pace, so the other lady and I continued our race together. It was a good choice because it was her first half and she was struggling. So, we encouraged each other.

I could have left her around mile 12 but she started to really struggle around then and I wanted to help her cross the finish line. She kept looking backwards, so I re-focused her and then we began pushing each other to the finish line. When I finally saw the finish line in sight, I knew I was home free. I had reserved a little energy for my finish. I wanted to make sure I could run across this finish line! So, I took off and finished it strong. I was sore crossing the line but my knees and my hip were not dead.

There were about 4000 people registered for the race. So, I feel pretty great to be one of the 2699 runners to finish the race!

I learned a lot too. I know that I am not 100% recovered from surgery yet and cannot expect to repeat my best time just yet. But I was thrilled to finish this race in 3:16:11 since I finished Nashville this year in 3:19:25. So, with a repaired labrum in my hip and a lot of hard work, I knocked 3 minutes off my time. I figure there is only a matter of several more months and training and I will be hitting under 3 hours since my best time was in Columbia (February 2010) at 3:07. So, I have a goal in mind and that gets me more focused.

In the next couple of months, I will be working with my friend, Chuck, to improve my form in running. Before I tore my labrum, I was on the track to running better. And now, I am struggling with overcompensating for injuries and I am back to square one. Now that I have a good half under my belt and the confidence to head towards my goal of under 3, I will get some great training in and some refocusing and my next half I will be pushing myself even harder across the line!! And I will be reminding myself yet again, that I am so not done with running or racing.

Overall, I felt that they did a great job with the race. Absolutely no safety concerns while running. The police kept the roads clear and I didn't have to worry about being run over. There was also plenty of water and gatorade on the course (and not red gatorade! LOL!) It was a pretty flat course too. I really enjoyed it and am considering running it again next year. I hate the technical shirt...the design was just dull. The volunteer shirt looked much better. But the medal was huge and really heavy! So, I guess they spent their money on the medal. All in all, I felt it was a great race and will likely do it again.

Doing What I Can....

"Do not let what you cannot do interfere with what you can do" -John Wooden

Love this quote that I just found. And it is so fitting for where I am right now in my running. I admit that I don't like the fact that I have had to start over in my running. I liked where I was prior to hip surgery (minus the pain/frustration with my hip). I was becoming a much stronger and better runner then and injury really has completely sidetracked me and forced me to start all over. Ugh! But with a repaired labrum in my left hip, I have to be careful about overdoing it and I need to challenge myself too. It's a strange predicament to be in! I mean, seriously, how do you challenge yourself without pushing yourself a bit further? That's where I am and what I am working on though.

I did get a really cool present for my birthday from my dear friends, Cathy and Robert...a Nike Ipod Sport kit. Here is a pic of the sensor that goes in your Nike shoe or if you are like me and have another brand, in your shoe adapter that attaches to the front of your shoe by the laces. There is another piece that you plug into the bottom of your iPod and you use it when you run.

You start your workout. As your run or walk, the sensor sends information to your device, tracking your time, distance, pace, and calories burned. If you choose, real-time, spoken feedback can even alert you to milestones throughout your workout. Then you download the information back to the Nike website and it gives you all your workout details. You can track all your info. At the website, you can set up for coaching for certain goals or races. You can also join challenges or set goals for yourself. All in all, I am pretty impressed with this. I have used it multiple times and it is such an awesome tool to aid me in my return to running!

I will also be getting another new tool in my training. Tye informed me this past week that he will be leaving the gym for a better job offer. I am so happy for him and very excited about his opportunity. However, I am terrified about what this means for me. I still have 4 months of training left. I am going to try a new trainer out on Friday and feel him out and see if it is a good fit. I really hope that it is, because I would prefer to not have to cancel my training contract early. I already knew I was not going to renew when it was over, but I wasn't prepared to lose Tye this early. So, I will keep you posted on how the new trainer and I work out. I have always said that choosing a trainer is similar to dating, if you don't get a good feel for the trainer, then you are not going to work hard for them. I am very apprehensive, but I also feel this may end up being a positive thing too. So, for now, I am reserving judgment. We shall see!

Today, Cathy and I got together for our long slow distance day. The original plan was to shoot for 8-10 miles. We ended up doing 11.5 miles. And some of those miles included some insane hills!! I felt pretty good about today. I worked hard not to overwork the hip but also challenged myself too. This week, I am hoping to get 3 days of running in with about 3-4 miles each day. And then on Saturday, we will be doing another long slow distance day and our goal is going to be 12-14 miles.

And after our mileage today, I was a good girl. I did a long period of stretching to help ease up the muscles. Tonight, I am icing the hip and my knees to relieve any stress and inflammation. And I took some Advil to ease the irritation. Hopefully after a good night of sleep, I will be recovered and ready to hit some more mileage in tomorrow.

Anyways, my new goal for the half in Myrtle Beach is no longer trying to beat my times from previous halfs. I am no longer stressing over time or trying to compare myself to my pre-surgery running. For now, I am relearning my love of running and rebuilding my endurance. Any other races that I do this year will go in the same category. The past 10k and 5k, I pushed myself harder trying to compete with my pre-surgery running and it didn't work as well. So, I decided to be more realistic. Also, Chuck has been coaching me some on my running and has finally beat that into my head! I am relarning running strategy and building endurance. And I am excited about Myrtle Beach at the end of the month! Now, I just have to get my mileage in every week and plan for some recovery miles each week too!

Well, it's been a long weekend and I am so ready for bed!! Time to let the body get some recovery in!!

Happy Birthday to Me :)

So, Monday was my birthday. Those who know me well know exactly how old I turned. For those who don't know me that well, my birthday cake had candles for my age and they read "25". LOL :) Anyways, it was a pretty great birthday this year.

I woke up to many, many Facebook birthday greetings, phone calls and text messages from friends and family. Jason treated me to a great breakfast at Cracker Barrel. It was delicous :) Then I chilled at the house for awhile and got myself ready to go pick Chuck up for the celebrations that night. I drove out to Chuck's parents and picked him up. We were supposed to meet Jason for lunch but got a later start than we intended. So, Jason had to grab lunch without us so he could get back to work. Chuck and I went to my favorite Mexican restaurant for lunch. It was so yummy (as usual!!!)

After lunch we headed back to my house and hung out. I had to be at the mall to see my Clinique consultant, Charity. She promised to do my makeup for dinner that night. So, I enjoyed having my makeup done and she did an amazing job. She is such a perfectionist but my makeup looked amazing!!

We headed out to dinner at Outback. I was blessed to have my dear friends with me to celebrate. Cathy and Robert, Jess and Josh, Meghan, Chuck, Jason and I celebrated with delicious dinners. Then, my birthday cake was a New York style cheesecake with cherry topping. I made it on Sunday because I could not find exactly what I was looking for at any of the local bakeries. It was so good. Wow...I cannot even recall eating a more delicious cheesecake and I am not saying that because I made it. It was perfect and looked pretty perfect too!! The cheesecake didn't crack at all :) It was so good that I had to send all the leftovers out of the house!!!

I enjoyed my birthday dinner. I ended up the day with several episodes of True Blood. It was a pretty awesome day and I really had a blast!! All in all, I felt pretty special and it was great :)

Here's a pic of me with all my friends after dinner!

Biggest Loser 5K Myrtle Beach Weekend Recap

Don't compete...just complete. That was the motto of the Biggest Loser 5k that was run and walked by about 2600 people on September 25, 2010 in Myrtle Beach. Jason, Chuck and I headed up to Myrtle Beach on Friday afternoon to get registered and enjoy some beach time. Chuck and I were able to get in and out of registration pretty quickly and also picked up Cathy's registration since she and Robert were heading in later.


After we picked up registration packets, Jason, Chuck and I headed down to pool and then the beach. The sun had gone down and there was a chilly breeze out by the pool area. So, we headed out to the beach where the sun was still shining. I cannot recall the last time I played in the ocean. I had a blast jumping in the waves and being knocked around by the waves. Everything was going pretty well. We were all enjoying our play time. Then, tragedy struck...Jason was stung by a man-of-war. The first sting was apparently just a small one on his back where the tentacle just grazed his back. The second sting, the tentacle attached itself to his elbow.


Jason ran out of the water. In fact, I cannot recall ever seeing him move that quickly! By the time Chuck and I reached him, he was standing under the outdoor shower area trying to remove the tentacle from his arm. I recalled that his mother had mentioned that a couple years back his nephew had been stung and they peed on him and it helped relieve the irritation. So, we went back up to the hotel room and we peed on him. I say "we" because Chuck peed in a cup and I poured it on him! LOL...I know it's pretty special! Then, Jason got in a really hot shower and washed it with soap. It was still bothering him quite a bit, so we went to the grocery store and got some vinegar. Jason almost passed out when we poured it on him the first time. It started to look worse, so we decided it was time to head to the ER.

This is what it looked like at the ER.

So, we gave the ER all the details. There was much laughter about us following the wives' tale and using pee on his sting. The doctor who saw Jason said that this was called Maximum Marine Envenomation. Basically when Jason went and put fresh water on the sting and the tentacle was still attached, every stinger that had not fired, immediately fired on him. The pee didn't help out at all and neither did the hot water and soap. The vinegar would've been great had we used it first. So, they marinated him in vinegar for about 45 minutes. They gave him Zantac, Solumedrol (a prednisone), and Benadryl through an IV. After the ER, we picked up prescriptions and then went searching for dinner.

We all wanted pancakes...we saw several pancake houses earlier in the day and we really started craving pancakes. So, we drove around looking for pancake house and found one that opened at 10 p.m. After searching for others, we finally ended up back at the one that opened at 10. And we enjoyed our dinner!!! Then we went back to the hotel and everyone went to bed.

Chuck and I met up with Cathy around 6 a.m. We walked several blocks to the start line. We chatted and waited around and finally lined up at the start line. Finally Bob Harper arrived and he spoke for a few minutes and then he had to speak again because apparently the filming crew did not get exactly what it wanted. So, we endured that and waited for the start.

Finally the race started. It was the slowest start I have ever had because it was so congested and the area was so narrow. It was hard to even get into a running rhythm. I also had trouble finding holes to get in and out and around people. I know the plan was not to compete just to complete. However, I was competing against myself and really wanted to do my very best.

I ended up doing a lot more walking due to some horrible shin splints and just a slight inability to get going when I needed. I jogged as much as I could when I could. I ran in some very strange ways...alot of sideways running which was a bit painful on the hip. But I muddled through. It was hard completing a race with so many people who did not know race etiquette. It didn't matter if you hollered "on the left" or not, people just didn't move. Then they had the bright idea of letting the 1 mile people start in enough time that they could complicate the finish line towards the end for those finishing up their 5k. This was the first time I ever got pushed as I was crossing the finish line. I was not very happy at all about my finish. I had plans to beat my best training time, but it didn't happen. Part of my problem was that I was also racing like I would a half-marathon...reserving something for my last mile. In shorter races, that is not good strategy.

So, for my next 5k race, I will be in a more competive race :) But seriously, I will plan a bit better to try and keep a steady pace the entire race and maybe leave a small amount in reserve for a push across the finish line!

I forgot to mention, during the race, I had the opportunity to high five Bob Harper and he told me "Keep it up! You're awesome!" It was pretty cool. I also got a high five from Sherry from last year's show. I did not stay to get a picture with Bob Harper because Jason was at the hotel and I wanted to check in on him and make sure he got his breakfast and medicine. We ended up heading out of Myrtle Beach after Chuck and I both got showers and breakfast.

All in all, I am relearning my running strategy and basically starting over again. It stinks, but I have to relearn my old running patterns and maybe even some new running patterns so I can prevent injuries and be a better runner. It's all learning for me now. I am hanging in there though and continuing on.

Dam Run 10K

Okay, here it is...my race report from my first race post-hip surgery. This is the race that almost didn't happen...for real. I got a stomach bug two weeks before the race which kept me from doing any mileage at all prior to the race. And to be quite honest, my mileage prior to this was pretty low each week. The stomach bug drained me and left me feeling pretty weak and tired. Not to mention, there is a great deal of fear that I have been dealing with since surgery and it all came to a nice frenzy on Friday!!

Friday morning, I was all out of sorts. I was terrified of the race and of my hip and of everything in general. I had read earlier in the day that if you did not clear the roads by 9 a.m. then you would be picked up by the shuttle and not finish the race. I was very nervous because I did not want to not be able to finish my race. I needed this finish to give me a bit more confidence about my other upcoming races. So, I ended up getting extremely teared up during training...enough that we had to stop training so Tye could go into pep talk mode. He understands where I am since he had surgery on his shoulder last year and has had some struggles trying to regain where he was prior to surgery. It was a good pep talk but still not enough to calm my nerves. I picked Chuck up and he promised me a nice kick in the butt for Saturday. Cathy also promised me a good kick in the butt too. But mentally, I was not ready for this race. I was a bit paralyzed by fears. My goal for race day was simple...finish the race. I wanted to finish this race and finish as strong as I could.

Saturday morning came too quickly for me. I did not sleep well. I got up and got myself ready. I tried to make sure that I had everything together and prepared for the race. I stretched and I kept trying to psych myself to where I knew I needed to be. This was much harder than I thought it would be. Cathy arrived and the three of us headed down to the dam to get our timing chips for the race and get ready for the start.

Before the Race
The race started at 7:30 a.m. We got in to position early. However, Cathy and I had expected there to be a strip for us to run over that would start the timing chip for accurate timing. There was not a strip so the fact that we started back further makes a difference in our times. I wish that I had worn my watch so I could have had a more accurate time. Anyways, we all started off and I had a pretty nice rhythm jogging from the beginning. It didn't take long before my shins and then my hips started to feel aggravated. I slowed my pace and then started walking. This was the first time I had ever thought of not finishing a race and I had not even moved past the first mile. This was not a good start for me. I was tired and mentally drained. I was hurting and I actually considered letting the shuttle pick me up sooner rather than later.

After I came through the 2nd mile and got my first cup of water, I was feeling a bit better but still worrying about the shuttle bus and where it was. I refused to look back and see what was behind me. I focused myself on the person directly ahead of me and trying to keep up with her (as much as was possible). During mile 2, I caught sight of both Chuck and Cathy ahead of me. They were doing awesome and I was excited for them! I had a little renewal of spirit and knew that I had to do the best I could because they would be waiting for me at the finish line. So, I continued to push through the doubts and fears and continued looking forward. At each mile marker, there was a person reading out the time to you...which was a huge help because I had a decent idea of where I was in my time. And I was so happy to see those water tables at mile markers 2, 3, 4, and 5!

As usual, I found a couple kindred spirits and chatted with a few of my fellow runners/walkers along the way. There was a woman who kept running ahead of me and then turning around and running back towards me. After the third time she did this, I stopped her and asked what she was up to. She was actually trying to get mileage in for a full marathon that she is doing in a several weeks. I also spoke with a young lady who had a similar stomach bug two weeks before the race and was feeling the same as I was about her endurance level. And then there was the lady behind me with the Garmin who was keeping a slower pace but fast enough to finish before the shuttle would have to pick me up. I then knew I had to stay ahead of or with her in order to avoid the shuttle.

Mile 5 was the hardest for me. I was hurting and aching and tired...so tired. I was pushing myself to keep moving but not pushing myself. I was holding a slight bit in reserve in order to actually finish. I knew that I would have to have something left to run across that finish line. So, I kept a reserve. I did not give this race everything I had but it took everything out of me. Once we got close enough to the finish line, I started running faster. I heard Cathy and Chuck cheering me on and knew that they were there, so I pushed as hard as I could to finish. I finished strong.

Me, Chuck and Cathy after our post-race breakfast at Cracker Barrel

I needed this race and this finish. I know several things now. 1. I am not ready mentally or with my mileage for my half-marathon in October. 2. I am still able to push through the pain and mental crap to finish my race. 3. It is time to kick mileage into gear and ramp up training to get me ready for the half.

Even though this was a difficult race, it was an important race for me. It was the race that told me that I still have it. I am still able to compete. I still have what I need mentally to continue on this journey. And I know that I am not ready to give up running yet. I may be starting all over again, but I will fight to keep in this sport. I will work smarter and harder to prevent future injuries, but I will continue to run and continue to compete. I am looking forward to my 5k next weekend. I am going to get some more mileage in this week and work a bit on my endurance and speed. And I have a goal in mind for next weekend, but I am ready...at least mentally.

This race reminds me of a song that I listened to repeatedly when Dad was sick and I was traveling back and forth to VA to help out. It's called "Stand" by Rascal Flatts. The particular lyrics that stuck out to me were "Cause when push comes to shove, you taste what you're made of. You might bend til you break cause it's all you can take. On your knees you look up, decide you've had enough. You get mad, you get strong. Wipe your hands, shake it off, then you stand. Then you stand." I am still determined and motivated, no matter how afraid I might be, I am still facing the challenge and standing strong. I finished my race and finished strongly and I will continue to keep pushing and fighting.

Pushing Through...

So, I finally feel like I am making some headway in my workouts and in my return to my normal training intensity. I had several great workouts this week with Tye. Monday, we did shoulders, biceps and triceps....and my arms were killing me most of the week. I wasn't sure if it was because of the fact that I gave blood that day or the workout, but OUCH!! Wednesday was our leg day and it was awesome. My legs were wobbly as I was walking out of the gym that day. It felt great. We haven't had a leg day like that in awhile. And Friday was chest and back with some abs.

Yesterday, I headed out for my talk/walk/jog/run with Cathy. Depending upon the way my hip feels and the terrain is what determines whether we walk, jog or run. Yesterday, we were at the Harbison State Forest. I am not much for trail running because I am just pretty clumsy. So, I am more cautious there. We generally just get some good hiking in...6 miles of it! There are lots of hills and twists and turns...not to mention, there are tons of rocks and roots and things to trip over. We did do a small amount of running yesterday, but I was experiencing a little bit of difficulty with my ankle. It was weird because the day before I had some trouble with my shins but that was on the treadmill. I decided to take my friend Chuck's advice and tape my ankles for my next run...which will be this afternoon with Cathy!

After my time with Cathy, I came home and spent about 30 minutes trashing my abs. And I do mean trashing. Last night at work, I could already feel some tenderness there!! Wow! Who knew that I could pick ab exercises that would just kill me!! I got a couple exercises from my new magazine that I subscribe to...Fitness. The other exercises were ones I remember from Cathe Friedrich's workout. After abs, I spent some more time stretching. I wanted to make sure I got a good amount of stretching in. Also, I iced the hip last night and took Advil. I want to run with Cathy today so I am hoping that all my extra work will pay off in my running today!

With several races upcoming, I am getting more and more nervous about the running. I admit, fear is setting in deep. So, I am trying to work through my fears! I have been blessed with several good friends who have been helping me. Cathy and I have a regular running date on Saturdays. She challenges me but also keeps me mindful of my hip without making me feel bad if we have to slow down or stop. And Chuck gives me great advice on how to improve my running and technique so I can endure longer runs. I have yet to run with Chuck yet but mostly because he is so much faster than me that it intimidates me! But we will be running together soon. And I will have to keep in mind that I have to run at my own pace. I cannot try to run someone else's pace whether it be in my training or in my races. And Chuck would never make me run his pace because he knows I am rehabbing the hip still. I was also told by one of the trainers at the gym that is studying to be an athletic trainer (and has physical therapy experience) that it would likely be about a year before my hip would feel normal again! I am thankful for Cathy and Chuck who both understand that I am rehabbing a hip and don't push me past what I can do, but also challenge me to improve.

Tye has also been a great resource. He understands my fears since he has experienced an injury that changes his workouts some too. His shoulder is still not back to normal after surgery over a year ago. It takes time and patience to get back to your former patterns. So, I have hope to get where I want to be!

I look forward to continuing to push past the fears or reinjury or other injuries and the fears that I will never run the same again. My next few races may not produce any amazing times, but they are starting points for me to work back into and hopefully improve as I go. And I am okay with that. I want to get back into my sport and will take what I can get, even if that means I will be doing a whole lot more walking than I intended to!

I am also going to start working on some tips from trainer, Bob Harper. The first one I am woking on is to take one or two of my cardio sessions a week and double the time. This should be interesting because that means I would spend 2 hours on cardio!!! Of course, it doesn't all have to be done at one time but all on the same day. I have also been doing his challenges that he posts. Yesterday was a yoga challenge. It feels good to challenge myself!

Lessons Galore....

So, a couple of weeks ago I decided that I wanted to learn some self-defense maneuvers and asked my friend, Chuck, who is a black belt in Kook Sol Won, to teach me. I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I asked Chuck for this favor. Apparently, I cannot start off by learning ways to beat the crap out of an attacker. The first lesson is learning how to fall! Yes, that's right...learning to fall correctly. And there are about 8 ways to learn how to fall.

On Tuesday, I was instructed in two of those eight ways to fall. I learned how to fall forward and how to fall backwards. I have to practice these and get them down better before I can go to my next lessons. I never thought it would be so hard to learn how to fall. I mean, I am a clumsy and completely uncoordinated person, so falling for me is like second-nature. Then again, my natural instinct is to keep myself from falling down which is where the difficulty comes in. Let's just say that it was interesting trying to figure that out...especially since I had given blood the day before and my arm was killing me!!! Now I get to practice this for a few more days before I see Chuck again and he checks my progress and I get lessons on some of the other 6 ways to fall.

I also learned how to form a fist correctly so I can punch better. I generally form my fist in a way that I would end up breaking my thumb or my wrist. So, I need to practice forming fists with both hands so that I can do them with good form. And I learned one kick...well, it's more like a knee to the groin-kind of thing! I am actually pretty good at that and feel pretty confident with that one. However, I will work on practicing that too!

There is also much to learn in my running. Chuck is a fellow runner and I have been picking his brain on improving my running. He used to be a runner who liked to run fast also and had to learn some techniques in order to become a better endurance runner. He is definitely a much faster runner than I am and that I might even become. However, his thought-process and methods of improving are sound. So, I will start relearning how to breathe now. LOL...that means when I am running I will actually be more efficient in my usage of air. If I use my air more efficiently, then I will be able to run for longer and run better. Also, he gave me a plan to get my hip back on board for running. I told him how frustrated I was about not being able to run the same as I did before or feeling comfortable when I run. So, he gave me a couple tips to increase not only my speed but also my mileage.

I really feel like I learned a lot this week. It was really helpful to get some tips and learn ways to improve my techniques. The next few days I get to practice my lessons and continue with my regular routines. Tomorrow, I hope to be able to get some running in after work.

I have enjoyed having the last couple of days off too. I learned some lessons there too. Having a few days to spend time with some friends and some time for myself is a good thing. It's also something I need to do more often. De-stressing is always a good plan! I had fun and I enjoyed my days off.

The rest of the week is back to the usual. I go back to work and see how things managed while I was gone. I feel pretty confident that the guy I trained to be my back-up probably did a great job. So, I am not too worried and if it all went well, then I may actually get to start taking some time off every once in awhile! And I am really looking forward to Saturday. Cathy and I will be heading out for some more mileage!!

I Love Productivity :)

It's been a busy weekend here for me. And not my usual kind of busy, where I am hurried here and there and can't seem to get everything done, but the productive kind! Yesterday, I was supposed to run with Cathy in the morning. However, we were unable to go because she was feeling under the weather. So, I crawled back into bed and caught a couple extra hours of sleep. When I got up I decided to fix some lunch and then Jason wanted to head over to his Mom's to help her do some rearranging. I declined going because I really, desperately wanted to get some major cleaning done in my own house. Normally, I would've gone along with him because I have such a hard time saying "No." However, I knew that if I went I would regret not getting my own house in order. And I always feel better when my house is cleaned!

So, I spent my entire afternoon super-cleaning the house! I vacuumed the rugs and I mean vacuumed...I am not sure there is any dust left in the carpets at all :) I scrubbed (on my hands and knees) the kitchen floor and got all the dirt out of the grout! I swept and mopped and scrubbed to my heart's content! I got all the laundry washed and dried and folded and hung up. I got all the dishes cleaned! I dusted. And overall, I was tired after I was done. But I felt accomplished because I finally after months of spot cleaning, got an overall deep cleaning on all the surfaces of the house! Then, Jason and I went out for dinner so I could keep the house clean for just a few more hours!

Today, I headed out to visit at my friend Jay's church. He was preaching this morning and had invited me. Jay is a great guy and very positive and encouraging to be around. I have heard him preach before and I have a couple of his sermons on CD and they are very good and thought-provoking and on point. So, I was happy to get the invite to come here him speak again. He and his wife, Jennifer, are the worship pastors at their church. Let me tell you...this couple is equally matched in their amazing talents. They complement each other so well. In all things you can tell that they were meant to be together. I love participating in their worship services because it is such a joyful and meaningful experience and what worship should truly be. And the sermon this morning was exactly what I needed to here. Jay was discussing atmospheres and how we need to guard our atmospheres and to not let other things control our atmospheres (at home, work, in our marriage, etc.) It was a great message for me to hear since lately my stressful work atmosphere has been taking over everything.

So, that was the start to my day and it was pretty awesome. I feel refreshed and renewed. Then, I called Cathy to check in on her to see if she was feeling better. We agreed to grab lunch together and get a walk in at Riverfront Park. Lunch was delicious and we had a great walk and talk. I also saw Tye today when he came over to pick up the mattress and box springs we were getting rid of. He also handled a spider problem in the backyard for Jason. Then, I fixed up a great dinner and tonight, I am going to pick a movie and we are going to just chill before I head to bed.

Tomorrow, I am looking forward to training with Tye in the morning. Then, I am headed to a blood drive to donate blood. Then lunch with the hubby and picking up Chuck for a visit. It promises to be a busy but great day!! Hope everyone has a great week!

Me + Motherboards = Epic Failure!

Okay, I have no idea what exactly it is that I do, but I have actually killed 6 motherboards in 10 years now. Now, I don't think I deserve the credit for the one motherboard that was fried by a roach crawling into it and committing suicide, but it did happen to me! Yesterday morning, after I finished typing up a document for work at Staples (and luckily got it e-mailed out), my laptop chose to die. It was not a slow or a pretty death either. Ugh!!!

Now, I will admit that it had been having some issues and I kept telling myself that I needed to back up my documents and photos since I had not done that in about 6-8 months. However, life has been crazy and backing up my computer was always on the back burner. So, yesterday morning when my laptop died, I had hoped that it would have one last boot in it so that I could quickly back up my information and then take it to the Geek Squad. Alas, it did not have a last hurrah in it.

Jason had figured that it was a good possibility that it was the video card since it almost booted up and would post. (LOL, I almost sound like I know what that means!) However, when we took it to the Geek Squad, the agent (LOL) informed us that it was most likely the motherboard! Ugh!! My curse continues!!! I was concerned about a few documents and photos that had not been backed up and he said for the amazingly low price of $100, we could guarantee that my hard drive information would be backed up. Could I justify that expense for some photos and documents....No. I am just really hopeful that my hard drive is not effected. Jason says he thinks that the agent was simply trying to get an extra $100 out of me since my computer has a replacement plan on it! Personally, I am just hoping the hard drive does not get damaged/has not been damaged.

So, for now, I am using Jason's laptop which just recently returned from the Geek Squad after having a motherboard replaced. And NO, I did not kill his laptop's motherboard! Of course, he has about 2 weeks left before his warranty is up, so who knows what I can do in two weeks to a motherboard. Just kidding! Seriously, I am just trying to not break any other electronics!

It was also kind of humorous that yesterday, I called a friend and was in the midst of talking with him, my cell phone decided to reboot itself! Ugh!! Seriously! And why was it that my technology issues didn't effect any of the electronics at Staples! I guess I just was not that lucky! Oh well!

So, I am trying to be nice to all of my electronics right now so that they will be nice to me! I would've thrown my laptop yesterday if I thought my warranty would cover it. However, I restrained myself. Am I doing anything differently...NO. I have no idea how I blew that many motherboards. In fact, the whole reason Jason got me a laptop was he figured I couldn't kill that motherboard! LOL...I guess I proved him wrong :) But at least, in my epic failure with the motherboard, Jason was smart enough to get the replacement plan and my laptop was thoughtful enough to have issues before that plan expires!!

Hope you have pain-free technology day :) Oh and if you have been praying for me to have more patience, now would be a good time to stop! My patience has been so tested lately and I am seriously failing that test! So, give me a break and pray for me to have wisdom or something else :) Thanks!

In A Funk!?!?!?!?!

If you are a Facebook friend, you may have noticed that I have been in quite a funk lately. In fact, I noticed this week, that several of my friends have been feeling quite similarly. Maybe it's the end of summer. Maybe it's how overly busy we all are. Who knows. Whatever it is, there's a lot of people out there who are just not feeling quite like themselves!

What does that mean for me? It means nothing feels quite right. I am not sleeping well. I am easily irritated (should be read as everything around me ticks me off!) My workouts don't excite me and usually are not up to my usual standard. My runs are trash...mileage but only because I have to. Generally, I am a whining and complaining mess. It sucks. And it sucks to be around me during these times too! Sorry dear friends, I love you, but I know I am a pain to be around when I am like this!

So, how did I get this way??? Well, you see, I did it to myself. I apparently am way too much of a people pleaser and have a very hard time saying No. Simple word, but so very hard for me to say. And what happened...I got way too overwhelmed and way too stressed out and pretty angry and felt slightly abused! Not good feelings I assure you!

A lot of it stems from my frustrations about my hip, work, weight loss, not getting pregnant, missing my family, etc. etc. The biggest stressor has been work though. I have not had much time off lately because I do not have a reliable backup to process while I am out. I have been trying for several months to get this one person completely trained but I can never finish his training. He is always pulled away when I am trying to finish things up. I have taken a couple days off in the past couple of months due to a visit with a friend and due to a death in my family and each time management was supposed to process and take care of my job. Each time, the whole process was all screwed up and a huge headache for me!! Ugh!!! I just want to be able to take a day or two (or a week) off of work and be able to come back and not worry about the disaster that I will have to deal with. I don't feel like that is too much to ask for!!! Oh well! I am trying really hard to get my backup completely trained in the next couple of weeks because I am definitely taking some time off and soon!

My hip is doing better. But I know that I am actually scared about reinjuring which causes me a lot of concern. I hate that I can train or run like I want to for fear of reinjury! I find myself being more timid in my workouts and my runs because I don't want to hurt. It sucks! So, in order to challenge myself further, I apparently agreed to run a 10k and 5k in September. I am already scheduled for a half in October and am seriously considering a half in December too. I guess that would mean, I need to get over my fear and just run. Luckily, I have some good friends who also run who have agreed to help me. Cathy and I get together every Saturday morning for hiking, jogging or running. We are trying to incorporate more running into our routine now and so far, it's pretty good. Also, my friend, Chuck, runs and he has agreed to try and help me out more. He told me that I need to start just running as far as I can for now (without pain) and try to keep increasing it. I like this plan. So, Monday, I jogged for about 1.5 miles. It wasn't too terribly fast but it wasn't bad either especially since it was after leg day with Tye! Tuesday, I had a bad run because my legs were still sore from Monday. Wednesday was elliptical day for me. I am hoping that if I feel up to it, I might get a good run in today...we'll see!! I am excited about the upcoming races but feeling slightly intimidated too. So, this shall be interesting. I will keep you posted.

And my sleep schedule has been so off this summer. I sleep but I don't think I get quality sleep a lot of the time. This week, I have slept in our guest room because I am tossing and turning a lot and don't want to keep Jason awake. I feel like I may have gotten a little bit better sleep most of the week. However, for some reason, last night, I went to bed at 11:00 p.m. and was wide awake by 2:30 p.m. I gave up on sleep at 3:30 p.m. and can only pray that coffee will sustain me today because it's another full day!!! I will likely sleep pretty well tonight though!!

I have had quite a few meltdowns on friends this week and last week. I hate that too. I try really hard to keep it all together because that's generally what everyone needs from me. But lately, I feel like I am falling apart. And I have fallen apart in front of a few good friends and I am thankful for them. I think being able to be real and cry through some frustrations is helping me to feel better and to work myself out of this funk. It's hard to pretend everyday that life is grand and wonderful. I hate when people tell me that you should just fake it and eventually it will be. Sometimes you have to be dead honest about your feelings...positive or negative. Sometimes you have to be 100% real. And lately, I have been holding back a bit too much. Don't get me wrong, I am still reserving a good bit of things (that's just me!) However, I am releasing some unnecessary frustrations too!

And this week, my lesson is to learn how to say NO. LOL!! Tye was preaching at me today about learning that. I am a people person and I like to help others. However, I have to remember that occasionally I need to think of myself first. So, if I have to say no to protect myself then NO is the answer. That's going to prove difficult, but also be necessary. From now on, I am going to be in charge of my own schedule again instead of letting others dictate my time. And I am going to make sure that other realize my time is valuable too. Yeah, that's right, I am going to take up for me!

Okay, now I feel like I am rambling. Don't get me wrong, I have had a great summer. It's been crazy busy, but some downtime is in order. A return to my normal schedule is necessary! A return to my positive and happy demeanor is a must!! Next time, you read from me, I hope to be completely out of this funk :)

Getting Into A New Routine

This summer has taken its toll on me and my routine. It didn't help that I started out the summer recovering from hip surgery. However, I am craving my normalcy...I want to get back into a regular routine. No, I need to get back into a regular routine. Before hip surgery, my work schedule was regular and so were my workouts. I knew exactly when everything was going to take place. But this summer has really goofed up the whole routine!

So, here is my current plan. I need to ramp up (safely of course!) my workout schedule again. My next half-marathon is in approximately 10 weeks. So, I need to get my butt in gear and start getting my workouts in and my cardio and my mileage again. Next week, Tye and I are returning to our pre-hip surgery routine of 3 strength training sessions a week. I am very excited about this and cannot wait to get started...just hoping my energy level vamps up enough to help it all out! In addition, I have decided that I want to go back to my routine of taking 2 yoga classes a week at the gym. I have really missed my regular yoga practice and now that I can start doing it regularly I want to start scheduling that.

As for cardio, I need to get my plan going. I generally trade off running days with elliptical or arc trainer days. So, since that is usually pretty successful, I think I will stick with that. Just time to start getting that implemented again.

As for mileage, I am now going to be training Jason to walk his first half-marathon in December. He told me today that he wants to join me and some friends for the half that I am planning to do in Charlotte. I am excited! So, that means I need to get him started now since he is recovering from foot surgery. We will start out slow. My plan is that every night after dinner this week, we will walk a mile. I want to work him up slowly to more mileage and this plan gives me plenty of time to do that. If I get him in a regular practice, I can start increasing mileage and get him ready to kick butt in December! Jason has no grand illusions about this. His goal is completion. He knows he cannot run it or jog it due to injuries he has sustained in a car accident in 1993. However, I am so thrilled that he wants to try this out. I told him I was going to start giving him supplements to help out with some joint issues...fish oil and glucosamine chondroitin and a multi-vitamin. I think he will do awesome. My hope is that Cathy and Robert can work out their schedule and join us. That way, Jason and Robert can walk and Cathy, Chuck and I can run without feeling bad. If Cathy and Robert cannot work it out, then Chuck and I will walk with Jason and all cross together. Either way, it will be awesome!

And I will be continuing my new stretching routine...even though I missed a couple days this week. I am going to try and stretch every night for at least 30 minutes. I want to make sure I start getting the whole body stretchy and ready to go. The more stretching I do, the better my body recovers.

On Saturdays, Cathy and I have been getting together and walking/hiking for a couple hours and then grabbing breakfast together at Cracker Barrel. (Don't freak out...we are eating rather healthy when we eat there! It's a wholesome breakfast...egg beaters, turkey sausage, blueberry muffin, fresh fruit and yogurt with granola...delicious!!! And under 300 calories) I love our time getting together and walking and talking. We have a great time and get a great workout in!

Things are about to get crazy here. I am going to start adding some ab workouts in to work on strengthening my core and helping out the hips. And all of this means, I will need to get my sleep schedule back on track! Lately my sleep has been off and I do mean really off. With Jason being out of town this past week, I didn't sleep well at all. In fact, a couple nights I got very little sleep at all. So, hopefully, I will be able to get back to trying to get at least 8 hours a night in.

I cannot wait to get into a good routine and making it all a reality. Lately, I feel like I have been letting my life run away with me instead of me running away with it. So, this is my attempt at getting things back on track. So, if you don't see much from me for a little while, it's because I am crazy busy with my training schedules for myself and Jason. No worries though, I love to blog...so I will carve out some time in my schedule for it at least once a week!!!

Oh So Tired!!!!

It's been another long week. I am tired. That seems to be how I feel all the time now. I am not quite used to that, but lately I am not getting enough sleep. My goal for this coming week is to try and get at least 8 hours of sleep every night. I am not sure how well that will work out for me. Jason will be traveling to Vermont for the week. I never sleep well when he is traveling. So, hopefully I can manage to get 8 hours of good sleep every night while he is away.

I did not have a stellar workout week this week. I did an upper body workout with Tye on Monday. I was experiencing a bit of hip pain so I begged off of having leg day on Monday. Turns out this was a smart plan for me. I admit last week I was not a good stretcher. I tore my legs up too. I saw Jeremy Monday afternoon and my legs are all out of sorts. I have tight adductors, abductors, hamstrings, and glutes!! Lucky me!! I am overcompensating due to injury and causing my right side to be out of whack. And I just totally screwed up the lower body by missing my massage for 3 weeks and by not stretching properly!!! All I can say is ouch!!!

And that is exactly what my hip has been saying since last Sunday. So, I am on a mandatory plan of stretching for at least 30 minutes every day. I took it easy Tuesday and did not engage the hip any more than necessary. I woke up Wednesday feeling really sick, so I cancelled my appointment with Tye. My hip was also not improved. And I did not do anything strenuous on Thursday to give my hip a rest. Friday morning, it was feeling a bit better. So, I went for a short walk with Chuck. And then I remembered Friday night that I can ice my hip when it is bothering me...duh!!! So, I have been stretching every day for at least 30 minutes since I saw Jeremy. I started icing it since last night. I really hope all this extra work is going to ease out the pain in those too tight muscles!!

This morning, I went out with Cathy and we walked the dam. I had hoped after walking a bit that my hip would warm up enough for some light jogging, but it seemed to be a little tender. So, we stuck to just walking. I am hoping this week that I can reincorporate some jogging back into the routine...and most definitely some cardio and strength training!!! We'll see!! I see Jeremy on Monday to find out if the extra stretching is helping. And to be honest, if it is not helping, I think I will go crazy!!!! I have not missed a day of stretching since he told me to, so my body better not tell him otherwise!

Other than just normal life, I am just really tired. I am heading to bed in just a bit. I need to get up early and get Jason packed in the morning and off to Vermont. Here's hoping for some good rest this week and maybe someone to entertain me while the hubby is away!!!

Reflections

Have you ever had a dream/desire that has been with you so long that you wonder whether it's truly what you want? Lately, I have been re-examining my dreams and desires and I have really been questioning some of these that have been lifelong dreams. I wonder whether the re-examination is being led by God or outside forces. I am not saying that I am changing dreams or even giving up, but mostly that I am not really clear whether the dreams I have had are the ones that God wants to fulfill for me. I feel like I need to open my mind and especially my heart to other possiblilities, even if that possibility means that it's time to give that dream up.

No worries...I am not giving specifics right now because I am not really sure where or how I am being led. And honestly, I am physically and mentally exhausted right now. I am so tired and just feel pulled in so many directions. My mind and my heart are just overwhelmed. All of these questions could be a result of just being tired. So, if you think about it, please pray for me. I know what I have always wanted but I am not certain that it is the life that God has planned for me and I certainly want to be open to what He has in store for me. Above all else, I want to be in His will for me!

What a Week!!

Seriously, I just had a pretty amazing week! I always enjoy spending time with friends and this week has been filled with visits from friends!!!

Monday afternoon, my dear friend, Laura, got here with her 3 precious daughters! They arrived about the same time a crazy rain and thunderstorm did!! It was insane. I wasn't sure they were going to make it from their car to the house!! And then just to welcome them to our house, the storm decided to take the lights out. It wasn't too bad at first, but the older girls got bored and it started to get hot in the house! Luckily, the power was restored and we were able to enjoy some time with Laura and the girls.

I am afraid that I don't quite have a house babyproofed for a 9-month old! I felt bad for Layla who was crawling everywhere that we had to keep blocking her. She was such a sweetheart! Annagrace is so smart and funny. She kept me laughing. I really enjoyed talking with her too. She is so bright!! And Madalyn and I had fun...middle children unite :) LOL!! She is a very spirited child and also very smart! I really enjoyed meeting the girls and spending time with them! And it was really awesome to see Laura and hang out with her again!!!

We had a great visit! Tuesday, we headed out to the zoo and spent quite a bit of time there checking out all the animals. It was so hot out!!! I felt like we were all melting!! Then we headed over to Build-A-Bear so the girls could make bears to remember their trip! On Wednesday, we hit the gym and did an upper body workout and some cardio. The girls enjoyed playing in the kids' area while we got a workout in. And after getting all cleaned up and having lunch, we headed to EdVenture, the children's museum. This was my second visit to the museum and the second time I was disappointed. The museum is pretty expensive and on this visit, a lot of the exhibits were broken or just not working. The girls had a pretty good time in spite of it.

It was a great visit. I am definitely going to have to head up to visit them this fall. Jason and I were both sad that they had to leave because we truly enjoyed having them visit!

Thursday, I picked up my friend, Chuck, so that he could hang out with us for a few days! I had asked him to come and help me take down a branch on our cedar tree that had fallen during the storm on Monday. Jason was unable to get it trimmed with his foot still healing. So, Chuck agreed to help me out.

I also went to see my orthopedic surgeon on Thursday. I got great news. Dr. Ekman released me back to my regular routines. He is very happy with my progress. And he told me that he wanted me to continue slowly getting back to where I was and that if I had pain while doing an exercise that I was to stop doing it. From now on, pain in my hip means stop doing that. I can try it again later, but I need to be careful and listen to the hip!! I was so happy to get a good report!!!

Jason also got a good report on his foot on Friday. He got the stitches out and is now able to drive again! Hooray!!!

I got to train Chuck on Friday. It was leg day and I ended up having a pretty great one!! I was able to lift a set on leg press that is the heaviest that I lifted prior to my injury. And I also was able to move from the small box to the medium box for box jumps!! I felt very accomplished. I tried to work Chuck pretty hard too. I felt like I didn't give him too great a workout until Saturday when he started telling me how his legs hurt :) Mine hurt too :) So, yay for great leg day!!!

So Friday night, we celebrated. I invited Cathy & Robert over to join us for dinner and hanging out! We watched a couple episodes of Top Gear and then we watched a movie. It was a great night!! Saturday was a long day...but it ended up being fun. I will give you details about that at a later date! Let's just say that I am happy with the results of my Saturday!

This morning, I got up early and Cathy and I headed out to Harbison State Forest for some hiking. We actually ran into my physical therapist, Daniel, and chatted for a few minutes. I assured him I was not going running but walking because as we all know I am not all that coordinated :) We had a great walk and talk. The weather was not too sweltering and it was overcast! Afterwards we grabbed breakfast at Cracker Barrel!!!

So, it's been a pretty great week for me. I am tired, really tired...bordering on exhaustion to be quite honest. But it's a good tired. I enjoyed all the guests this week and spending quality time with my friends! I am headed to bed early tonight! And I think Jason and I will enjoy some quality time until he heads out to Vermont this coming weekend.

I am looking forward to a great week. Tye is back from vacation so I get to train with him again. And I will get to spend some quality time with Jacob and Jillian :)

I'm So Excited...

...and I just can't hide it :) LOL!! Tomorrow, my friend, Laura, who was my matron of honor 9 1/2 years ago is going to be coming in to town for a visit! I have not seen her since my wedding but we have kept in touch over the years. She is bringing her 3 beautiful daughters with her. I cannot wait to meet them! Annagrace, Madalyn and Layla are so beautiful! Jason and I are so looking forward to having them here!! We are going to have a blast!! I'm sure we will have lots of pictures to share of all the fun stuff we'll end up doing :)

Speaking of having a blast, I had so much fun yesterday spending the day on the lake celebrating my friend, Jess, and her husband's birthday! It was awesome!! Lots of time floating in the lake. Lots of time talking and laughing!! It was so much fun hanging out and spending time with everyone!

And Cathy and I enjoyed our Girls' Night Out on Friday. We went shopping but ended up not really buying alot! It was one of those nights where we didn't really see a lot that we had to have. We did enjoy hanging out while the guys were doing their thing!

Well, I am headed to bed shortly...I have a few errands to get done tomorrow before Laura and the girls get here :) Hope everyone had a great weekend!

What's On Your Playlist?

I LOVE music! When I was a child, I used to make up my own songs while I was playing or doing chores. I was always singing. I pick up lyrics to songs after only hearing them a couple of times. Music is a pretty integral party of who I am. I love singing and I love to have music around me on a regular basis. And frequently, you can find me singing in the car or around the house or in my office at work.

Music is also a HUGE motivator for me in my cardio workouts. I confess that during strength training (unless I am on my own and have my iPod), I generally don't pay much attention to the music playing in the background at the gym. Frankly, the times I have noticed it, it's generally because they are always playing the same thing or it's something so terribly inappropriate for a family facility that it disturbs me. Gyms realize, however, that music is a huge motivator for working out too and they generally try to tailor their music to the crowds. (Occasionally I think they do a pretty poor job of this!) But at least they try!

My taste in music varies quite a bit! I am constantly adding new music to my playlists and a lot of times there is music on there that would surprise most people. For example, one of my guilty pleasures is that I happen to like some of Miley Cyrus' songs. Yeah, I will admit to it! There are lots of artists on my playlists that would cause others to make lots of jokes and laugh out loud! But, it doesn't bother me. Music is an outlet for me. So, if it's something I like, then I go with it!

Here's a sampling of some songs on my current running playlist:

Your Love Is My Drug by Ke$ha
Live Like We're Dying by Kris Allen
I Wanna Be Sedated by The Ramones
Step Up by Drowning Pool
The Distance by Cake
Stronger by Kanye West
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner by Iron Maiden
The Promise by In This Moment
Highway to Hell by AC/DC
Born to Run by Bruce Springsteen
Pressing On by Relient K
When Your Heart Stops Beating by +44
Unstoppable by Rascal Flatts
Kicking and Screaming by Miley Cyrus
Here I Am by Skid Row
Best I Can by Queensryche
Lose Yourself by Eminem
Not Afraid by Eminem
Thnks Fr Th Mmrs by Fall Out Boy
Whataya Want From Me by Adam Lambert
Hey Soul Sister by Train
Get Back Up by Toby Mac
Through the Fire and Flames by Dragonforce
Get the Party Started by P!nk
Party Up (Up in Here) by DMX
I Am Free by Newsboys
Sexyback by Justin Timberlake

And that is just a very small sampling. I change up my playlists every month or so...that is usually about as long as I can stand to listen to the same music over and over again. But I do occasionally add back songs later because I know they motivate me and if I add them in with new songs, it's pretty great.

The really great thing about my workout mixes is that certain songs will really push me to push the edges of what I think I can do. I may set goals during my workout based on songs, for example, I will run at a certain speed for the length of a song. That occasionally gets me in trouble because I am notorious for picking a 6 minute long song to run at 7.0 mph! But it also teaches me to endure and persevere!

So, what's on your playlist? Are you motivated to work harder when listening to music?

Busy, Busy Week!!!

It has been super busy around here this week!! So busy that I have barely had time to blog and there have been several days I didn't even update my Facebook status (Horrors!!!)

Training has been pretty great this week. We were able to do legs on Monday and Wednesday. My legs hurt so badly on Tuesday that I knew that I had DOMS (delayed onset muscle strain)! Ouch!! I also got some more interval jogging in and was able to reduce my walking time some this week! I felt pretty great about that. I have not changed my speed much yet or the time. I am sticking with only 20 minutes of jogging for a little while to give my hip a slow return to running. And I have hit the elliptical rather strongly this week!

Jason had a good check-up Tuesday morning and they allowed him to be fully weight-bearing. We go back next week for stitch removal and see where things are then. I am hoping for another good report!

Wednesday night, I drove up to Charlotte, NC and met up with my friend, Julie. We have not seen each other in I would say about 12 years. It was great to see her and meet her friend, Amanda. Julie has lost 150 pounds and she looks amazing!! It was a great visit! We had dinner at McAllister's and then headed over to Concord Mills and window shopped!!

Thursday night, our friend, Chuck, came to stay with us for a few days. Chuck is a great friend and we enjoy hanging out with him. I had forgotten that Thursday night we also had a friend of a friend coming in to demo the Rainbow vacuum. Of course, I had no intention of buying a vacuum that cost over $2000!!! They asked me to vacuum my areas with most traffic with my vacuum and then with theirs. Their vacuum didn't really pick up a whole lot more stuff, so I really wasn't impressed. And frankly, even if I was, I wouldn't be paying that much money for a vacuum!!! That's insane!!!!

Friday morning, Chuck hung out for a bit with Jason after taking him to work. We, then, went and had lunch together and I ran out for a massage appointment! After a great massage, where I cracked Jeremy up by asking if I had to stretch muscles that I really didn't work that week? LOL, I was trying to get away with the fact that I hadn't stretched the upper body much...he laughed and I laughed too! My muscles felt pretty great after we were done!

I headed home after the massage and got changed. Chuck and I headed over to Harbison State Forest for a walk/hike. I let Chuck pick the trail because I almost always do Firebreak Trail. So, we ended up doing Midlands Mountain Trail with a small portion of Firebreak added on to it. Neither of us realized we were putting ourselves through 5.8 to 6 miles of a hike!! Towards the end, I was having some issues with my hip. It was starting to having a little bit of pain but nothing that was too intense! After the hike, we went to the grocery store and grabbed some stuff to grill.

After an amazing dinner, we settled in to watch a television show that Chuck really loves, Top Gear. It was pretty funny! I enjoyed it more than I thought I would. Basically, there are three guys and they are challenged to buy vehicles and take them cross country. (At least that's what happened in the three episodes we watched...Botswana, North Pole, and Amazon. The shows were pretty humorous and to be quite honest I am not all that into cars, nor do I understand much about any of that technical stuff.

So, today, I am feeling a bit tired! I do have to go in to work a little later tonight, but for right now, I am just resting and recovering from such a busy week! Tomorrow is going to be busy too!!! But busy is good!

Book Review: She's Gone Country by Jane Porter

First off, let me say that I absolutely LOVE Jane Porter. I love the way she writes. I love the way she takes her characters and opens them up so you can see every aspect of them. I love the reality in her work and that her writing is as real as she is. She writes from the heart and her characters are authentic. Ultimately, Jane rocks and her books are amazing!! I was very blessed to get an advanced reader copy of this book from a contest on her blog. She loves her readers and is always doing contests and sending out goodies! She is such an amazing woman and her books are awesome!

Here's my review of She's Gone Country (which I read in just a few hours and couldn't put down!)...

Shey Darcy has had a rough several months. She was once a top model for Sports Illustrated and Vogue, with her own television show and ran a successful modeling agency. Her marriage of seventeen years has fallen apart because her husband has left her for someone else. Her brother has recently committed suicide. And she and her three teenage boys have now moved back to the family's ranch.

Moving back home brings drama all it's own. Her family is eager to help her and give her advice on how to put all the pieces of her life back together. From her religious mother to her older brothers, she is not lacking for advice. But Shey has to do this her way, which includes dealing with everyday issues with her teenage boys, her work, her self-esteem and her life.

As if her everyday life were not complicated enough, Shey's first true love, professional bull-riding champ, Dane Kelly, enters the picture. Their relationship never got off the ground because she was shipped off to boarding school at the age of sixteen. However, Shey has never forgotten him and her feelings for him are as strong as ever. Now, they are both single and Shey is conflicted on whether or not to explore those feelings.

This book touches on many areas from family drama to romance to parenting issues. The characters are so well-written that it's very hard not to get caught up in the story. It's a story of change, growth and acceptance. It's a story about life.

To quote Jane, "Life isn't pretty and shiny and tidy. It's chaotic and ever changing, sometimes intense, sometimes damn boring. And someimes just perfect, which is pretty incredible when you consider how imperfect we are."

I highly recommend this book to be on your must read list! In fact, if you haven't picked up any of her other books, I suggest you do! She's Gone Country will be released on August 23, 2010.

True Friends Are Priceless

If you're alone, I'll be your shadow. If you want to cry, I'll be your shoulder. If you want a hug, I'll be your pillow. If you need to be happy, I'll be your smile. But anytime you need a friend, I'll just be me. ~Author Unknown

Yesterday's post made me think alot about my friendships and my dear friends. I am blessed to have some amazing close friends. I am more than blessed to have several close friends who let me be exactly who I am without any restraints. Some friends wouldn't be able to handle the full extent of my insanity and luckily, I always know which ones can handle that! And when that is the case, I also know that I have a partner in crime :) Someone who is just as crazy or more crazy than I am! It's pretty awesome!

And I am really blessed that I married my best friend. He is a great sounding board and a true soul mate. He keeps me on my toes with his odd jokes and strange comments at times, but he makes me laugh too. Jason is probably one of the most patient people I have ever met...and he needs it too, in order to put up with me! He walks beside me in all of my journeys and supports me in all endeavors. He's the best and I am glad he is mine!

To my dear sweet friends, I cannot thank all of you enough for the love, encouragement and support you have given me! Whether we've been friends forever or just a short time, you are all so dear to me. I cannot imagine my life without my friends who have each helped me along in my journeys. You are true treasures and I love you all!!

Here are a few quotes that I love on friendship...Enjoy!!

A true friend is one who thinks you are a good egg even if you are half-cracked. ~Author Unknown

A friend accepts us as we are yet helps us to be what we should. ~Author Unknown

It is one of the blessings of old friends that you can afford to be stupid with them. ~Ralph Waldo Emerson

When we honestly ask ourselves which person in our lives mean the most to us, we often find that it is those who, instead of giving advice, solutions, or cures, have chosen rather to share our pain and touch our wounds with a warm and tender hand. The friend who can be silent with us in a moment of despair or confusion, who can stay with us in an hour of grief and bereavement, who can tolerate not knowing, not curing, not healing and face with us the reality of our powerlessness, that is a friend who cares. ~Henri Nouwen

I value the friend who for me finds time on his calendar, but I cherish the friend who for me does not consult his calendar. ~Robert Brault

Oh, the comfort, the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with a person, having neither to weigh thoughts nor measure words, but pouring them all out, just as they are, chaff and grain together, certain that a faithful hand will take and sift them, keep what is worth keeping, and with a breath of kindness blow the rest away. ~Dinah Craik

A true friend unbosoms freely, advises justly, assists readily, adventures boldly, takes all patiently, defends courageously, and continues a friend unchangeably. ~William Penn

Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some stay for a while, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never, ever the same. ~Flavia Weedn

Piglet sidled up to Pooh from behind. "Pooh!" he whispered. "Yes, Piglet?" "Nothing," said Piglet, taking Pooh's paw. "I just wanted to be sure of you." ~A.A. Milne

Just One of Those Days....

Have you ever had one of those days when you wake up and you don't want to crawl back in bed, but under it? When you want to call in dead? Or you just want to forget that you even exist (even if it's just for a few minutes!)? That is how I have felt the past couple of days.

I admit, that it's my own fault. I got way overwhelmed, took on way too much and frankly, should just learn to say NO! But, if I did any of that, then it just wouldn't be me, now would it?

I normally don't sleep well the days leading up to any type of medical procedures that Jason has. I worry about him all the time, but when I know he is going to have to undergo a procedure, it sends me into overdrive! I love him so much that I would spare him any pain by taking it myself. He's been through so much in his life that it hurts me to think of all that he has endured in his short life and things that he may have to endure later on. So, the past several days leading up to his flexor tendon release surgery, I didn't sleep well. I had a lot to do and did it all on very little sleep. And the sleep I did manage to get wasn't particularly restful!

Jason's procedure went well. He has had some pain but no more than expected. He had a little bit of nausea but I was able to help that with some anti-nausea meds. Mostly, he has just been really, really tired. So, I have let him sleep as much as he wanted because I know his body needs that in order to recover.

Add on top of that, our friend, Chuck, flew in from Korea last night and had asked me to pick him up at the airport. He spent the night with us and may be bunking out here off and on for a little while. If you don't know this about me, you might be surprised but I take on the role of hostess and my desire is to make sure that guests feel completely welcome...like a home away from home. So, of course, this week I was busying about getting things ready for his arrival. And then, I worried yesterday as I left Jason for a little while to pick him up. Luckily, I used my brains and called our niece, Katrina, and she stayed with Jason for awhile which definitely made me feel better.

And perhaps, I should've requested some time off from work since Jason was having surgery. Perhaps that would have been intelligent to do. However, things at work are crazy...as always! Our last audit didn't turn out the way I would have expected for my office and I am very unhappy. Granted, the reasons points were deducted were things that I had no control over and no way of knowing about. But, still, I am angry and I like to run a tight ship. So, I am being even more vigilant than ever when it comes to my office. I have the audit information and I am bound and determined that it will not happen again! I refuse to have points deducted when our next audit occurs in two to three months. (Yes, I am that stubborn!) So, I left Jason this morning for awhile to go into work and will have to leave him for a bit tomorrow to work as well. I feel guilty about it, but he slept the entire time I was gone. However, my mothering instinct is gnawing at me saying I need to be present at all times.

The great thing about today, in spite of the craziness, was that I had a massage scheduled. Now, I know you're probably thinking I am a very selfish wife. I will say Jason insisted I keep my regularly scheduled appointment and I was only 10 minutes away if he needed me. And for the first time ever, my phone was audible in case he needed me. Balancing it all, he was dead asleep thanks to anti-nausea meds and pain meds for the time I was gone. So, with all those precautions and some guilt, I went in for my regular appointment. It was good. It was necessary. I have no regrets about it.

The reason I have no regrets about it is that I would not be functioning right now had it not been for that appointment! My massage therapist, Jeremy, is my friend. I figure after about a year of massage therapy with him and lots and lots of good conversations, I can absolutely say he is more than just my massage therapist. I can tell him things like I would a psychologist (maybe I should give him more money! LOL!) So, today, when I walked in and said I was fine...he called me on it. I told him what was going on...vented for a few minutes and then, as usual, he distracted me from life and all it's insanity and made me laugh...A LOT! I have learned much from him over this year and I appreciate his insights and the way he knows me. He keeps my head clear and refocuses me when I get too caught up in something. And a lot of times, I walk out of our appointments with some profound wisdom that he has given me (and sometimes it can be something others have told me). Maybe it's the simple way that he explains things to me or the way he mentions things without ordering me to do something. Or maybe it's because he knows how to get through to me. I don't quite know, but what I do know is, that today I needed a friend to talk to and he listened and advised. And he is a good friend!

And my aching muscles got some relief because we were finally able to start back to our normal routines since I am no longer in physical therapy. While I was in physical therapy, the surgeon didn't want anyone else doing joint mobilizations. So, now we are back to that. I don't know if that is a good thing or not because after hip surgery I have become really nervous about my hip. I trust Jeremy and that says a lot about him. I respect him and I know that there are days I make his job difficult because I am such a control freak. But this hip injury has me intimidated. I know without a doubt that he would never do anything to hurt me. So, I have to remind myself whenever my hip is involved that he is there to help me and wouldn't ever dream of hurting me. And of course, as I predicted to him, I did much better on the right leg than the left. I am sure in time that will cease to be an issue for me...but I hate that I am reacting like that! At least, he understands and that helps! And hopefully it will be better soon!


So, in the midst of one of THOSE days, I was blessed to have a friend to listen to me and clear my head. I am blessed to have a sweet hubby whom I love more than anything and who knows what I need. One thing is for sure, I have found during my journey that true friends are quite simply a treasure. Finding someone who not only gets you but also allows you to be exactly who you are is priceless. And having friends who can tell when you are not being completely honest and call you out on it is just too awesome for words. I am grateful for the dear friends that fit in these categories. I am blessed that God has placed these people in my life. And I am more than blessed to have God who always knows exactly what I need and provides even more than I can ever imagine! Hope everyone has a great weekend!

Ready to Make A Comeback...

Today's workout was pretty awesome for me! I can't say that I lifted fantastically or that I was intense, but I can say that I was pretty soaked from all the sweating! Today was an ab, glutes, and back day. I came in a little sore from attempting the Insanity Fit Test yesterday. I did my best not to focus on it and to ease into the workout. Tye actually asked how I was feeling this morning and I just told him that I was a little sore and why. We both agreed that the Fit Test was not a good judge of my level of fitness right now and attempting to actually do it well at this point would be a bad idea and possibly cause me to re-injure myself.

Anyways, it was a pretty good workout. After a few sets of some of the exercises, my hip warmed up a bit more and I was able to do a little more than I expected. Also, we were doing one of the ab exercises and I got really nervous because at about 10, my hip started to pinch a bit and by 15 it was hurting a little more. So, that first set made me nervous. At which point, Tye also got a little more nervous. We agreed that we didn't want my pain level to go any higher than 5...so we'll stick with pain levels between 2 and 5 and that way he can continue to safely push me without pushing too hard.

After I finished with Tye, I headed to cardio cinema with my iPod for some cardio. I decided to do a little more interval jogging and ended up getting a nice rise in my heart rate and quite a bit more sweat! Then I finished up with some time on the elliptical. My cardio is where I applied some intensity today. I wanted to really keep my heart rate elevated and get a good burn in! And when I walked out of cardio cinema, my entire body was glistening with sweat! It was the first time in two months that I have walked out of the gym after training and cardio and been completely soaked! I cannot even describe how awesome that felt today!

Ultimately, I am starting to feel a bit more normal! That's a pretty great feeling for me!!! Thursday and Friday will be primarily cardio days this week but I think I may try out one of Insanity's ab workouts tomorrow. We'll see how that goes!!

Then tomorrow afternoon, Jason goes to have a flexor tendon release done on his fourth toe of his right foot. We'll be doing the procedure in the doctor's office if all goes well. Jason is a little worried about getting a local block to do the procedure but I think he will do fine. The recovery time for him is about 6 weeks. So, he gets a new chauffeur! LOL! I pray for his sake that all goes well tomorrow for him. It seems like just as I am healing up, Jason will be starting the healing process. I pray he heals quickly so that we can enjoy a semi-active summer :)

Over the next few weeks, my goal is to continue slowly getting back into my old workout routines. I hope to work my jogging up into running before my next appointment or at least be jogging at a better speed and for a longer amount of time. And I really hope to start putting some more intensity into my training with Tye!!! And well, there is Insanity!!! I cannot wait to be healed up enough to do the Fit Test and the rest of the workouts, but I am pretty pumped to try out the cardio and core sections :)

So, I would definitely say a comeback is on the horizon for me...and honestly, I cannot wait!!! Life is good and God is awesome!!!

Tired, Oh So Tired

Today, I am just exhausted. I am not really sure why. I slept well last night but this afternoon, I have kinda crashed. Sadly, my busy day was not the reason why I am so exhausted.

This morning, I headed over to physical therapy and dropped off a huge bowl of fruit and a thank you card. I know that if it were not for them, I would not be as far along in my progress. I certainly would not have been released this soon from therapy without their help! And running...I think it is unlikely that I would be able to do that yet! They were so sweet! I got hugs from both Amy and Christy and Daniel congratulated me on my return! I promised to stop back by and visit but hopefully not to return as a patient! And I promised to report back to them in October after my half-marathon!

Then, I headed into work. I was there for a very long time on Sunday, so today was a short day for me. I was in and out within an hour! I got to enjoy a nice lunch with my hubby!

Then I came home and looked at the Fit Test for Insanity. I did some of it but not anything I will record at this point. To be honest, I think I may have to wait to attempt the Fit Test for a few more weeks so I don't reinjure the hip. All of the moves were very difficult and hard on my hip, so I opted to play it safe. I think for the next couple of weeks, I will focus on the workout's abs and cardio portions. I knew when I ordered this that I would have to mold it to fit what I can do right now, but that Fit Test was not something that I could alter to work with my hip! Hopefully, I didn't overdo it today! I am a little sore right now and just kinda tired.

So, my plan for tonight is eat some dinner and then be brain-dead until bedtime :) And bedtime will be sooner rather than later! Tomorrow is training day with Tye and I suspect he might make me jog again. Even if he doesn't I know he is going to wear me out, so I need a good night's sleep to prepare for that!

That's about all that my brain can put into words for today.