Tuesday, December 22, 2009

2010 Races....

I personally think that planning which marathons you are going to run is just as exciting as running them!  I guess this is where I can be considered a Type A personality.  I am pretty certain that Ken is tired of hearing "if I get into the NYC marathon....", so hurry up March, I need to know! 

2010 Marathon Schedule

I will be running the St. Louis Marathon on April 11th with my friend Laura.  I have run this half marathon the last two years and love the course.  St. Louis is only four hours from home and I can stay with Laura or in a corporate apartment courtesy of my employer.  This equals a super inexpensive trip, which is a huge plus!

I am also planning on running the Chicago Marathon on October 10th with Laura.  Laura has run this race a few times and loves it!  I was registered for this marathon in 2008, but walking out my front door proved to be too much of a task and my broken foot was proof.  I am super excited about this marathon.

Of course we all know about my desire to run in the New York City Marathon on November 7th, pending lottery acceptance of course.  I have convinced Ken that if I do not get into the NYC marathon this year, to take me to NYC in December.  I am just dying to go to NYC and just do not think I can wait until 2011.  As you can probably guess, I am anxious to start planning a NYC trip and would like to know which month I will be visiting!  Of course I do not want to make the Lottery Gods upset, so I will be patiently waiting for the next few months.  Oh please, oh please do not reject me three years in a row.  Please let 2010 be my year!

Those are my plans.  I am disappointed that a few of the half marathons I like to run have changed dates and now interfere with marathons.  Oh well, I guess I will be saving the entry fees by not running them!  More purses for me!

Happy Christmas Week!

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Ramblings....and More Wedding Pictures

So my blog has been pretty boring with no pictures.  Here are a few pictures.  They are mainly wedding pictures, actually, they are all wedding pictures.  I feel like showing them off, since wedding pictures are expensive and because you are only considered a newlywed for so long.

I did run 6.25 miles on the treadmill last night.  It was not too bad either.  It is suppose to a little warmer tonight, so I am going to try run outside.

This picture is becoming one of my favorites.  I love making Ken bust up laughing.  This is such a reflection of our lives on a daily basis.







He threw me in the water first so I had to pay him back.

This looks mean, but it was so funny!




Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Brrrr....

Sorry if it seems like I have been complaining about the cold a lot lately, but it is sooooo cold!  I ventured out around 2:00 yesterday afternoon for my first long run after my marathon.  I ran on my hilly route and it was great.  Yeah, great if you consider a 20 mph wind blowing in your face most of the time and a dropping temperature.  At least I was not on the treadmill! 

I could not believe how cold it started to get during my run I could feel the temperature dropping and the wind picking up.  I ended up running 10 miles, which is the longest I have run since the Gobbler Grind Marathon. 

I ran four easy miles on my treadmill in the basement last night.  I had a weird booty leg pain going on before the run, but I think it is gone.  I stretched a lot and ran pretty easy and the pain has disappeared.  I guess it was more soreness than pain, but it seems to be gone.  Thank goodness!

I am heading to the gym as soon as I leave work!  Oh, does anyone have a suggestion on which brand of arm warmers to purchase?  I am wanting to add a pair to my Christmas list and am not sure which brand I should try.  Any suggestions are appreciated!

Friday, December 11, 2009

Oranges...

Would you believe that I tried an orange for the first time ever last year?  I drink orange juice all of the time, but it was not until last year that I tried an orange.  We have oranges sent to us around the holidays by one of our vendors.  They always smell so good whenever everyone else eats them.  I always wanted to try one, but never could work up enough nerve.  In 2008 one of my friends at work told me that oranges are really good if you get a "good one".  Hmm, I thought, I hope if I ever try one that I get a good one.

I bought a few at the grocery store.  Just so you know, I do not frequent the produce area of the grocery store.  I view it as a walk thru area to the good stuff.  I sometimes go the back way to avoid walking thru it all together.  Anyway, I have never quite figured out oranges.  I am not good at peeling them and just do not understand a good way to eat them.  I always end up with too much outside peel on them and they just do not like appealing.

One of my co-workers was eating one of the oranges that we received from a vendor.  It smelled so good!  I walked over and asked her if it was good.  She told me it wa delicious!  I looked at the orange after she peeled it and it looked good too.  I decided to try one.  Yeah, I still cannot seem to peel them.  I had orange juice squirting me in the eye, pulp all over my hands, and one ugly looking orange.  I took a bite of it, but still think there was too much peel and I could not stomach eating it.  I ended up trashing it.  It smelled good though.  Is it really that hard to eat an orange?  Do they teach this in elementary school and I just did not listen because I did not eat oranges (or any other fruit or vegetable for that matter)?  Does it take years of practice and I am just behind because I just tried an orange at the age of 28?

Well, I have been treadmilling it all week.  I was hoping to get outside last night, but figured it was not worth a broken foot just to be outside and not on the treadmill.  Hopefully, all of the ice and snow will be gone so I can run outside on Saturday.  I did get bundled  up with Ken to take Kya on a walk.  Geeze Louise, it was cold!

Have a good weekend!

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Hello Winter...

I knew you would arrive eventually!  Wow, it went from 60 degrees to freezing so quickly.  The forecast is for a wintery mix today.  I was slightly disappointed when I woke up and saw that there was no snow on the ground.  I was really hoping to work for home today!

I will officially be running on the treadmill during the week and outside on the weekends.  Since it is dark when I get home and cold, I cannot make myself get outside.  Running in the cold when it is light out does not seem as bad.  I am sure I will still sneak in a few weekly runs outside every now and then.  As long as the wind is not blowing a Kansas wind, it is not too terrible every now and then.

Last night I went to the gym and ran on the treadmill.  The funny thing is, I hopped on my treadmill in the basement and hopped right off.  I was so not feeling it and knew I needed to get to the gym to get a quality run in.  And what a quality run I had!  I warmed up for three miles and then ran two faster miles and then ran two miles to cool down.  My first fast mile was completed in 8:40 and my second was in 8:25.  I am really going to try to focus on speed this month and then in January, I am going to start training for the St. Louis Marathon!  My friend Laura and I ran the half marathon last year and this year we are both going to run the full!  I am so excited! 

Trying and stay warm everyone!  That includes you too Tina!  I cannot believe how cold it was in Houston last week!  And snow, oh my!

Tuesday, December 1, 2009

November Totals...

Wow, is it time to wrap up November already?  I love November.  It is my birthday month and I like to consider the whole month a celebration.  Oh well, at least it is the holiday season and Starbucks is serving their iced gingerbread again.  Oh, they also have Carmel Brulee lattes this year.  Can you say yum!!!  These definitely give Pumpkin Spice Lattes some competition.  Okay, I could ramble forever about food and November back to the totals.

115.15 miles during the month of November.  I was hoping for 125, but I had knee trouble all last week and I was a little under the weather.  Plus, I think I just needed you know, rest! 

I am not sure of my plans for 2010.  I would like to run a Spring marathon (hint, hint Laura), but I am not sure.  If I do not plan anything else, I will most likely run the St. Louis Marathon (hint, hint Laura). I am planning on running the Chicago Marathon this year.  Ken's work has always kept me from running this race, and I have decided that I am running it this year and if he cannot go, it is no big deal.  Two of my friends are planning on running it, so I can always hang with them and their families.  And of course, there is always the New York City Marathon.  I am begging and pleading that I get selected this year.  The race is three days from my 30th birthday for Pete's sake!  How fun would that be???

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!  The weather is getting ready to get COLD here.  I guess we cannot complain, it is December afterall!

Gobbler Grind Marathon Race Report...A New PR!



Alright!  I am back.  On top of finishing the marathon, I have had so much drama at work and then I ended up getting sick.  I am so glad that I got sick after and not before!  We have had so much drama at work, that I had to work the day after my I ran the marathon, which was not my plan.  Maybe that is why I ended up getting sick over Thanksgiving...

Well, I did not hit my goal of 4:00, but I did manage to get a new PR.  I finished in 4:15.  I will take that!

My friend Melissa was running the 5K, so she was going to drive me to the start so that Ken could drive me home after the race.  I know, I am such a sweet wife for letting him sleep in on marathon day.  He will repay me when I finally get into the NYC Marathon when he has to wake up to have me at the ferry at the crack of dawn. 

The race started at 8:00, so I was able to sleep until 6:00 am.  I had my toast and peanut butter and a cup of coffee for breakfast.  Melissa picked me up at 7:00 and we were off.  Two of Melissa's friends were also running the 5K, so we met up with them for a quick picture. 

While I was waiting in line to go tinkle, I ran into a girl that used to live at the same apartment community as Ken and I did.  I could not believe that Hope saw me waiting in line!  She and I used to talk up at the gym and I knew she ran, but did not know she ran marathons.  We ended up chatting the entire time I was in line and she waited for me and we walked to the start together.  It was so nice to see her and I am sure we will be meeting for a running date soon.  She is a little faster than me, but I think that will help!

We started and ran in Corporate Woods for the first three miles and then we were off on the Indian Creek Trail.  The course is pretty flat except for a pretty large hill around mile eight.  I did get stuck behind slower people on two bridges on the trail, which caused me to have 9:40 minute miles around miles five and six.  At mile 10, the 200 people running the full marathon broke away from the half marathoners and ran on the trail, which was pretty secluded.  I had anticipated this, but it was still a little harder than I imagined. 

I was on pace at the half way mark, but I just felt tired around mile 15.  I stopped for a moment and stretched and felt a lot better, but I never good get my pace back.  I started having knee issues somewhere around mile19 and would have to walk a quarter of a mile during each mile.  It was so weird.  What is funny is that it was not the same knee that bothered me after the San Francisco Marathon.  I guess I am just getting old. :) 

I still ended up passing a lot of people during the final miles, which was nice.  I caught up to one guy around mile 23 and he told me how tough he thought I was.  I am not sure why he thought I was so tough?  I talked to him for awhile and thought he would finish with me, but I ended up finishing ahead of him.  He was a super nice guy and I enjoyed talking to him.  Thanks Jeremy! 

I saw Ken and Kya right before I crossed the finish line.  Kya was so excited to see me that she stepped out on the course so I could pet her.  I was so glad to be finished.  My friend Melissa stayed the entire time and hung out with Ken.  She snapped a few pictures for me.  What a great friend she is!

I drank some chocolate milk and we headed off to the car.  Just as I was thinking that I am finished with running marathons, Ken looks over and me and tells me how proud of me he is.  Wow, it was all worth it just to hear that!

Picture Time!

Marci, Stacey, me, and Melissa.  I never realize how short I am until I stand with other people. 

At mile 17


Obsessively checking my Garmin

Ken and Kya playing.  This girl loves to play.  People always want to pet her too.  I told Ken that if he were single, Kya would totally be a chick magnet for him!  Glad he is not!


Here I come!


My girl was so excited to see me!  She is on her leash and is not running wild as it appears.  You can tell how small of a race this is.  Kya would never be able to get this close to me in a large race finish area.  Ken said that he preferred this race to a larger race.  The Memphis Marathon is still my favorite. 


Stopping my watch.  I am so finished at this point.  Seriously.


Melissa and me

Blah, Blah, Blah...

What have I been doing since Halloween? Well, my girlfriends and I went to Hermann, MO to drink wine, I turned 29, I got to see Wicked, and I ran a marathon. Basically, that was November! I have pictures to post, but unfortunately I cannot post them from work. I will leave you with two of my favorite photos from our Hermann trip.


What, don't you pose with drunk/passed out men while traveling via train?



And just because every girl needs a Carney. We officially make strange friends anytime we travel.