My M&Ms...Mayhem & Minion

                                      

Minion & Mayhem

Well, it's official. I am owned by two sweet little shih tzu puppies. I have been thinking about getting a dog for awhile now. When I was working at the nutrition store, I knew my crazy hours would be too stressful on a dog, so I decided to table the idea until later.

Over Easter, I saw my Mom & sister's daschund puppies and thought they were adorable. I even went so far as to ask if they had any brothers or sisters left at home. They did not. I then got a phone call on my way home from my friend Ann, who told me that her shih tzu's mom in Virginia had another litter. Ann knew that I had fallen in love with the breed. Her dog, Nani, has been such a little sweetheart and I adore her!  So, I told her to check and see how much they wanted for a puppy. Their cost was a bit more than what I was thinking, especially since you have to factor in travel to VA, shots & vaccines, etc. So, I started looking online and found these two sweet little darlings.

I immediately contacted the owner to see if they were still available and was pleasantly surprised that they were and she accepted my offer for both of them. She agreed to hold on to them for me a little while longer than she had intended because I had a half marathon to complete and couldn't pick them up until I came back. It would've been too much stress to have to take them to my friends after  only a few days of being with me.

So, when I got back from the Outer Banks, I was able to pick them up that night and took them back to my friends' house for their first night. We spent the next morning playing with Ann's shih tzu, Nani. She was so sweet with them, herding them, playing with them, checking on them. I felt bad taking them home without her with them.

We got home a little before Jason got home from work. When he came in, I introduced them and he was surprised how small they are and I think he kinda fell in love with them too, though I am not certain he will admit it. He has been good at helping me with them so far. In fact, he was watching them last night for me while I was watching the Verner children.

Minion

Mayhem

They went to the vet on Thursday. I absolutely loved their vet, Dr. Blaes. He was super informative and so helpful. And all the staff at the Banfield Hospital at PetSmart on Harbison have been awesome. They took awesome care of the girls while we were there and were even helpful when I came back in yesterday because Minion had been way more stressed out and was barely eating and up whining quite a bit. They helped me find a food to give Minion to get her eating and reduce her stress. It worked. She ate like a champ and they both slept well last night too :)

Mayhem Napping with the Froggies :)

Minion Napping

I am totally in love with the girls and would not trade them for the world. They were seven weeks old yesterday. So far, they have done pretty well adjusting. They occasionally use the training pads and not the floor. We get lots of play time and they are super spoiled :)  I am enjoying being their Mommy :) And I think they are pretty happy with me because when they heard my voice when I came in last night, they both ran to greet me with lots of kisses and cuddles :)

Well, time for me to get off the computer and enjoy some quality play time followed by some quality cuddle time with my girls :) All this cuteness is just amazing!!

Sleepy Girls :) It's Bedtime!

Flying Pirate Half Marathon 4/22/2012

When I planned out my races for the beginning of this year, this race was not included. In fact, I only intended to do two this spring. However, when I got an e-mail from my friend Laura's weight loss group leader about participating in this race since it would be Laura's first half marathon, I decided I had to be there to support her. And since I did not just want to be on the sidelines, I decided to make this one of my long distance runs in preparation for my half in May.

Thank goodness I decided that it was only going to be a long distance. Earlier this week, I got the news from Laura and Joanna that it was going to rain...100% chance of rain! Yikes!!! And I also for some reason when doing yard work determined that I needed to drop a brick on my foot. Ouch! What in the world was I thinking! My poor foot has been killing me all week! Since Jason had already taken off time for vacation and we had already paid for the hotel and the race, there was no backing out. And have I mentioned that my youngest nephew, Trent, chose this medal as his own! So, come rain or shine, pain or injury, this race was going down in the books as finished. Trent needs his medal!

I did my best to prepare for rain. I tried to prepare for blisters since I have been having issues lately on my longer runs. I got new socks to try which were a bit more cushioned. I even put moleskin on the areas that I have had problems with. I went to bed very early only to be awakened by some arguing bikers in the next door room. Joy! Thank goodness they either resolved their issues or the phone call to the front desk put a stop to it.

I got up a little after 4 a.m. and got started getting ready. With breakfast eaten, phone in a plastic bag, iPod in a plastic bag and everything else ready to go, I headed out to pick Laura up about 5:15. We headed over to parking and then got on the very first shuttle to the start line.

The shuttle to the start line let us out within short walking distance to the start. We headed over in the rain and hit the port-a-potty lines (okay, so with the rain there were no lines!) Then we headed to the covered building to wait for the corrals to line up. We got into our corral and waited for the race to start. It was still raining and I was pretty damp.

I wished Laura luck as we started out. With my foot already bothering me where I dropped a brick on it, I had made the decision to walk before we started. So, I headed out at a pretty good pace. Somewhere around mile 2 both of my feet started giving me issues. I knew it was my toes and I knew it was likely blister issues. I was trying to stick it out but at mile 3, I stopped at the medical station with the intention of checking the foot that was giving me less problems. When I pulled the shoe and sock off, I knew I was in trouble. I had blood and not just a little. The blister had popped and was bleeding. I got a bandaid on it and some moleskin and decided to check the other foot. It was much, much worse. We got it cleaned up as well and I put both shoes back on and headed back out on the course because the lady at the medical tent said she didn't think it was TOO bad.

So, I got back on the course and decided to slow my pace quite a bit more to lessen the intensity of the pain. I also decided that I needed a good distraction. So, I found two fun people to enjoy the lovely torrential downpours with! I really enjoyed Jennifer and Chantelle. Chantelle was originally from South Africa and her husband had told her that a half was only 10 miles, so she didn't train for her first half. She was pretty ticked by mile 10 and had come up with many ways to torture him for it! LOL. Jennifer was on her fourth half. We chatted and complained about the non-ending rain for quite awhile.

Little did I know that we would enter the neverending forest for the longest 4 miles of my life! It was a creepy little area and we were certain there were serial killers lurking about around there. Definitely should not have been at the end of the race! I would have preferred starting there than finishing there for sure!

The continuous rain and puddles were not a great comfort to my very sore toes. Every time I hit a puddle the toes that had blisters stung so that was not helpful at all. I continued on and prayed for the end of the forest multiple times. I grew irritated at the volunteers on the course who gave tons of misinformation about mileage and water stations and medical tents. Mostly, I was seriously drenched, no drowned, by the rain and I was tired and I was ready to get off my feet and take the shoes off!

But I soldiered on, helping Jennifer and Chantelle along. They were definitely a comfort to me in that I would have been way more focused on the pain had I not found them! So, when it came to the point we were finally finishing, I had gotten a little bit farther ahead and I stopped, turned around and waited for them to catch up to me, so we could cross the finish line together. After 10 miles together, we ran very slowly our finish line.

I was greeted by Jason and Laura. We headed over to the tables and picked up post-race snacks and then headed to the car to get out of the rain! I have never been so happy to put on warm, dry clothing in my life! And taking the shoes off was awesome, but my poor feet are so sore and so torn up right now, I think I will likely be off of them for awhile!

I was happy with the course right up until the forest. Since I am not a trail runner and not a huge fan of trail running, that made me pretty miserable. However I am so super proud of Laura for finishing her very first half marathon and doing it in under 3 hours. She did amazing and I am glad that I was able to be here with her!

As for me, I am calling for at least a week of rest and recovery for me and my feet and then I will be back out to get some more mileage in to get ready for Myrtle Beach next month!

I Love My Kids...

Okay, so I did not give birth to them and I am not raising them, but well, I am going to claim them anyways. I absolutely adore my sister's kids! There, I said it! This past weekend I was able to spend some good quality "Aunt Lissa" time and it was nothing short of awesome!!!

When I arrived at my sister's house, I had just pulled in and opened the car door and was greeted by my favorite 6 year old, Trent, running across the yard to me. He jumped into my lap and gave me the biggest hugs and kisses ever!!! It was by far the best welcome that I have received ever!! Talk about feeling completely loved and adored!! I asked Trent where his siblings were and he informed me that the others do not love me as much as he does and that is why he was the only one to run to greet me! I found that completely adorable :)

After my amazing greeting from Trent, I did receive several hugs and kisses from Trevor, Tyler and Kelsey. I also got lots of quality talk time with the kids. Friday night, Trent crawled on top of me on the sofa and looked through the pictures on my phone. He talked to me about my half marathons, lifting weights, and medals. He even picked out specific medals that he really wanted :) I love that kid!

Trevor and I talked about running and reading and a couple other things. He is big into football and also loves watching wrestling, so I got to hear about that as well! It's hard to believe how much he has grown up. I can barely believe that he is going to be 12 this year, but he is. He is so mature.

Tyler had lots to tell me. He usually does. He is a wealth of information both useful and useless...he chatters on like a chipmunk :) He is a good kid and has a good heart. He told me all about the fun that he has been having with their new puppies, Roxy and Rusty. We also talked about his Flat Stanley that I will be mailing back out to him.

And Kelsey, my sweet princess, and I had some good girl talk. We talked about manicures and pedicures, dresses and being a drama queen (her Tervis Tumbler says that and she found it awesome that I was drinking my coffee out of it!) She told me about her dance recital that is coming up. She is taking tap, jazz and ballet and she is really great! She is all legs and I look forward to seeing the video of the recital so I can see her dance!

My sister got married on Saturday in Virginia Beach. Her new husband is a great guy and a very welcome addition to our family. He also has a son, Brok, who is a great kid. I look forward to getting to know him better over the years and letting him know that Aunt Lissa loves him too! He and I talked a bit as well. He is very polite and also a very welcome addition to the family!

Aunt Lissa got a bit more quality time with Trent and Kelsey since they spent the wedding night with me in my hotel room. The two fought over who was going to sleep in the bed with me and I decided that since Trent was younger that he would. Kelsey accepted this but when it came time to go to sleep, she got a bit upset. So, Aunt Lissa decided to move the two double beds and make one really big bed so we could all sleep together. I couldn't bare upsetting either of them, so it worked out really well! I did however get to sleep in the crack for awhile and then both kids are such wild sleepers that I ended up getting smacked and kicked quite a bit throughout the night! It sure is a good thing I love them :) LOL

Anyways, I really enjoyed my time with the kids. I may not have any children of my own but these are definitely my kids. They have my heart and soul and I am completely wrapped around their fingers. Aunt Lissa would do anything for them.

When I was driving back Monday, I missed them so much. I also started thinking about when I could visit them again or if I could possibly convince my sister to let them come to stay with me a bit over the summer. I really hope that I can talk her into that one! Either way though, I need to get more time in with my kids!

Aftermath of my Double Workout

To say that I possibly may have overdone my workouts on Monday is to say that I was my normal self. LOL. Yes. I managed to get two workouts in Monday. I hit the gym early for a killer upper body workout with Tripp. Of course, he managed to pick my most hated exercises to focus on for that workout and multiple sets and reps later, I was completely and totally trashed and still hate them (mostly!) Then, he gave me a workout plan for my lower body workout with Lindsay. He wanted me to KILL her in 30 minutes and then put her through about 12 minutes of cardio.

Well, I am not certain if I killed her. I almost made her puke and to be quite honest, I almost puked multiple times during the workout. So. I think it was a pretty killer workout. In fact, my poor quad cramped when I went to show her walking lunges and I was not sure I was going to be able to get back up! And my legs were so very sore Monday night and yesterday and they are just plain miserable today!

I was so exhausted physically on Monday that when Tuesday morning rolled around and it was time to get up, I was still dreaming. I dreamed that someone was in my house. I could hear noises just as if someone was in the house. My subconscious reminded me that the alarm was set and since I had not heard it go off that I was indeed home and safe. However, my mind was struggling to wake me up and get me to move my body. I could not open my eyes or move a single muscle in my body in the dream. I struggled with the idea for a few more moments until my mind said screw it, the alarm is set, just sleep. I woke up a short time later and realized, I need better dreams. And probably more sleep!

I will probably hit another double workout in the future. Two-a-days are quite insane but I know I pushed myself to the limit and held nothing back. That is a good day and a great workout. Now, I have several very busy days ahead to the weekend and I am looking forward to enjoying some chill time over the weekend. Then next week, I will likely put in at least one two-a-day and see what next week holds.

I actually signed up to be a race marshall at the Palmetto Half Marathon which I think will be fun and interesting. It will be my first chance to see it from the view of the spectator/side lines/cheerleading sections. I am psyched that I decided to volunteer. I have no idea what my duties will entail, but I guarantee you that when the runners pass by me no matter where they are in the pack, they will feel encouraged!!!

Anyways, lots to do. So, I am going to head to bed.