Backpacktwang

Turkey Trot- Fort Dodge, IA Race Report

2011-11-24T12:53:00.004-07:00

5 miles. 47:02.

This was a great race because I have never done a 5 mile before. So, it was bound to be a PR. I was pretty happy with the time. The race was really small and informal (just like I like them) and the people were so nice! About 200 people ran (and a dozen or so dogs). No rules against ipods either, which is awesome since I run faster with music. The trail was soft (no concrete... all dirt and gravel) and flat and the weather was a little cool... in the 30s, but nowhere near the 11 degrees it was at the start last year. All in all, I would run this race again for sure for the flat course and the nice people. Fun times!!!

November 13 Training Update

2011-11-13T16:18:00.002-07:00

Last Sunday: 3 miles. 31:31
Tuesday: 6 miles. 58:09
Thursday: 4 miles. 38:24.
Saturday: Body Combat
Today: 5 miles. 47:57.

It is interesting looking at the times because the 5 miles I did today was the hilliest and windiest route of the week but it was one of the fastest. Go figure!

Another Thursday Afternoon Run

2011-11-03T20:48:00.002-06:00

3 miles. 28:00 even. Beautiful day... most of the snow on the sidewalks was melted.

This week so far...

2011-11-02T14:53:00.001-06:00

Monday. 3 miles. 29:29
Tuesday. 4 miles. 39:16

We got like a foot or more of snow last night (and had blizzard conditions this morning) so I am taking a rest day today.

Bolder Boulder 2011 Race Report

2011-10-30T19:36:00.004-06:00

This post was a long time in coming so I will keep it brief. I ran the Bolder Boulder 10K with my good friend Carolynn and my brother-in-law, Mike. It was Carolynn's first 10K and Mike's first Bolder. I ran just for fun and kept pace with Carolynn, but I beat Mike anyway. That will probably never happen again. As always, it was an extremely well-run race and we all agreed we will be running it again next year. Can't wait!

Saturday in KC

2011-10-29T09:20:00.001-06:00

5 miles. 48:05. I coughed pretty much the whole time but after a rest day I should be fine.

Today's Run

2011-10-27T20:52:00.001-06:00

4 miles. 37:37. Starting to get my speed back, yay!

Getting It Together

2011-10-25T20:43:00.002-06:00

After a long absence, I am hoping to get back to using this blog to chronicle my running and log training and races. I am registering for three winter races here in Denver as part of a winter distance series. It means I run a 10K in December and two ten milers in January and February. I want to PR at the 10K, and if I can stay injury free, I am on track for that right now. The 10 milers should be interesting because I have never run that distance (which means a guaranteed PR, yay!).

Cool New Swimming Website

2011-07-05T18:11:00.001-06:00

In light of the fact that I am considering a triathlon, my brother and sister-in-law's new website is pretty timely. Check it out at http://mydailyswim.com/

Rock N Roll Half Marathon Race Report

2010-10-30T09:34:00.005-06:00

You will notice that this is not a marathon race report. Unfortunately, EHL tendinitis kept me from running the full under doctor's orders. But a nice big cortisone shot in the top of my foot got me through the half and I am very grateful for that! :) There's not much to report about the race itself, except that it was a beautiful day and I am a huge fan of the Rock N Roll race series now. There were bands everywhere and it was so much fun!!!

Pre-race (Noah was tired!):Race start:Near the end:

Marathon Training Again

2010-08-02T08:41:00.003-06:00

I have decided to run the Denver Rock-N-Roll Marathon in October. So far, the training is going pretty well, but it has been tough building the miles back up from the injury-induced break. I did 8.5 miles or so on a trail outside of Crested Butte on Saturday and two days later, I am still hurting. This week's mileage is 3-5-3-11 (for a total of 22), so I'll see how the foot holds up to that. Acupuncture has really helped the Plantar Fasciitis so far... hopefully that will continue.

Yellowstone Trip Report

2010-07-11T18:27:00.011-06:00

For Memorial Day Weekend, we drove up to Yellowstone. I love that place and we have been wanting to take Noah there for a long time. So we left Friday afternoon and stayed at a hotel in Dubios, WY, to get some sleep before entering the park the next morning.

Once we got into the park, we had planned on camping, but it actually snowed that weekend so we stayed in the Old Faithful Inn. I highly recommend it!!! We only got a room there because of a cancellation... they normally book up way in advance.

Old Faithful Inn:

At the hotel restaurant:

Snow on the road to Yellowstone!

On our first day in the park, we saw Yellowstone Lake, Old Faithful (of course), and a bunch more of the geysers and thermal features. It was pretty cold, but we did a little hiking and then checked into our hotel. I think we saw Old Faithful erupt like six times while we were there because of where we stayed. It was awesome!

Old Faithful!Dan and Noah walking through steam from one of the thermal features in the park.The next day, we explored the west side of the park loop drive all the way up to Mammoth Springs. It was cold, but beautiful. Noah liked the mud pots best, I think. We also saw moose and tons of buffalo, of course. Noah completed their Junior Ranger program and got a patch!
Noah, Junior Ranger Our last day in the park was Monday and we mostly just explored the geyser basin near the hotel because we had a long drive back. On the way out, we drove through Teton National Park. I love that place and definitely want to spend some time there in the near future. So glad it's only 7 hours away!

Pictures From Noah's 4th Birthday (Way Late!!!)

2010-07-08T11:31:00.003-06:00

Time Flies... and All That

2010-07-07T10:00:00.003-06:00

I can't believe it has been over 2 months since I posted anything on here. I guess I should start with a run down of what has happened in that time.

1. Noah turned 4!!! I can't believe I have a 4-year-old child. He is the best and so much fun. I feel so lucky to be his mom. I need to post pictures of the party on here soon.

2. Noah finished up his soccer season and started playing tee-ball. Dan is coaching and he is doing a great job, of course!

3. We went to Yellowstone for Memorial Day weekend. I need to post pictures and a trip report soon as well.

4. School is out! Yee-haw... another year down and all the children are accounted for!

5. My stud of a hubby rode Elephant Rock 100 mile bike ride. Need to post pics of that one as well.

6. Debroah and Joel (our friends from Camp Buckskin) moved here from Australia with their two kids, Maysa and Emerson. We have been having a blast welcoming them to Denver and taking care of their gorgeous dog, Charlie, while they look for a house.

7. We just got back from 6 days in San Diego. Pictures are coming! We did Legoland, La Jolla Shores beach, Coronado, Disneyland (in Anaheim), and Sea World. It was a whirlwind but so much fun. I love staying in hotels!!! :)

8. I started doing acupuncture for my plantar fasciitis and it is working! I am finally able to do some decent running and I am kicking saround the idea of another marathon in October!

9. I am on my 4th class at JIU for my administration certification (and another masters to go along with it). It is business management for learning organizations and I have to admit, it's not really my thing. The teacher and classmates are great though and I am doing pretty well!

That's about all... can you see why the blogging has taken a back seat???

Magic

2010-04-27T18:47:00.003-06:00

I met a 4th grader at work last week. It was nothing unusual. The kid is having trouble with his behavior so they called me in. Basically, every time he gets frustrated, he has a meltdown, resulting in yelling, crawling under tables, and/or throwing himself on the ground. He is a cutie with some of the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen. He and I talked, I did a classroom observation, and I talked to his teacher. The kid said without reservation that he just can't take it when he is upset and he agreed to work with me on that. I didn't think much else of it until I called his mom on Friday. She said he was diagnosed with severe autism when he was 3. I couldn't believe it. Severe autism??? Like the can't-relate-to-others-flap-your-arms-don't-talk kind of autism? Yup. She even brought documentation of this fact to the kid's IEP meeting today. I asked her what kind of magic they have at her house because the kid appears to be your typical,average,everyday 4th grader until he has a meltdown. She calls him her miracle baby. When I looked through the records though at the amount of therapy this kid's mom set up for him, I tend to think that hard work and available resources are to thank for this magic. Either way, the kid is incredible and so is his mom. We had a great IEP meeting today to set up a program for him that will help him manage his frustration better and the best part is, I get to be a part of it! On days like this, I love my job!

Paris III

2010-04-12T19:01:00.008-06:00

I think this is my last Europe post. It is just now sinking in that I went to Spain and France. I am so freakin' lucky it's unbelievable.

So, on Thursday morning, we got up and walked over to Notre Dame. Here are some pictures form the walk over. It was our only beautiful day, weather wise, in Paris.

A Metro station (the subway):

Notre Dame:

The stained glass in Notre Dame is AMAZING!

After exploring Notre Dame, we did a little shopping on the Ile St. Louis (an Island in the Seine). Then we took the Metro up to Montmartre, a neighborhood on the north side of Paris proper. It is a bohemian artist colony type thing and it was my favorite part of Paris by far! Sacre Coeur, my favorite church we saw in Europe is there. Here are some pictures of it:

Here are some pictures from the rest of the time we hung out in Montmartre. We stopped at a bar and had a drink and a bartender was mean to Amanda so I kicked his ass. Just kidding. Seriously though, at that bar, they had the strangest bathrooms I've ever used. It was just a hole in the floor. Gross! But I managed. I just pretended I was camping. None of these pictures are from that bar. I would not want to give them the publicity. Email me if you are going to Paris and I will tell you where NOT to go!

A cool door:Sacre Coeur from the main artist's square in Montmartre. It is called Place du Tertre:La Maison Rose, Utrillo (one of my favorite painters) and Van Gogh used to hang out here:

One of the last few windmills in Paris:

Another one: The Moulin Rouge

Amanda modeling the jewelry she got on the Ile St. Louis:

Paris II

2010-04-11T17:59:00.012-06:00

The Louvre is boring. There, I said it. But at least they let you take pictures! I am not all that into classical art, so I didn't expect to totally love it. But even Amanda said it's overrated.

We got up Wednesday morning and went straight from our apartment to the Louvre (after some pain au chocolat from the local bakery, yum!). The sun was actually out! It was a nice walk over and it only took about 5 minutes! Even though I was bored with most of the art,the building itself is unbelievably beautiful (it used to be a palace) and the ceilings are absolutely incredible:Venus de Milo:Winged Victory:Sorry, but the Mona Lisa was totally lame. It is tiny and there are a billion people trying to see it.
The one part of the Louvre I liked was their African art:Cornholio!!!"Dum-dum, you give me gum-gum":

The Tuilleries (the park between the Louvre and l'Orangerie):

View of the Eiffel Tower from there:After the Louvre, we went to the Musee de l'Orangerie. I liked this one much better than the Louvre. They have Monet's Water Lillies paintings displayed in natural light and tons of more modern art as well. I had fun at this one and I highly recommend it.

Water Lillies:

Other Orangerie Art:

This one reminds me of the pig I saw in the store window in Alcala: Then we walked over to the Champs Elysees, another thing in Paris that is overrated. It's this ritzy shopping area, supposedly like the best in the world, right? And I am not a shopper. And there is a Nike store and a Gap and some other American stores alongside the frou-frou ones like Luis Vuitton. I might as well be back in Castle Rock at the outlet mall, right?

But at the end of the Champs-Elysees is the Arc de Triomphe. That was pretty cool to see!After the Champs-Elysees, we took the Metro back to our apartment to get ready for dinner. Then we went over to the Rue Cler area to have dinner. Dinner that night was easily the best dinner we had in Europe. It was incredible.Foie Gras! Yum:Dessert:This is one of my favorite pictures of my mom. She looks so young and pretty and happy!After dinner, we walked over the the Eiffel Tower. It is HUGE! Even bigger than I expected. We got to see the light show they do every hour and it was so beautiful.

Then we headed home and went to bed. What a fabulous and full day in Paris!

Paris: Where Water is More Expensive than Wine

2010-04-10T19:39:00.005-06:00

Paris: The City of Light

Paris: The City where no one will give you tap water and you pay 4 Euros for water and 2.50 Euros for wine.

Not that I'm complaining. It's really good wine.Anyway, on Tuesday, we got up and caught a flight from Barcelona to Paris. We had a driver meet us at the airport (we flew into Orly) and take us to the apartment my friend Yvette recommended. The apartment was perfect! Thanks Yvette!

In the car on the way to the apartment:The road leading to our apartment:Waiting for Crepes at a nearby Creperie:After we got situated in the apartment, we grabbed some crepes for lunch. YUM!

Then, we decided to walk over to the Musee d' Orsay. Our apartment was just around the corner from the Louvre, and Orsay wasn't much farther. Unfortunately, it started torrentially raining on us and it was so windy and cold that the walk was horrible. I felt so sorry for mom because she just had on this thin raincoat and her umbrella kept turning inside out because of the mad wind. Anyway it was worth it. Orsay was my favorite museum in Paris. It contains all kinds of more modern art (from about 1850 on ) including Monet, Toulouse-Lautrec, Degas, Cezanne, Gaugin, Cross (Amanda's favorite), and Renoir. One of the coolest things we saw was Van Gogh's "Starry Night." I loved it. You can't take pictures in there, so I took a ton on the way over (before the hurricane started) and on the way back.

After that, mom was ready to be home, so we went back to the apartment and went to bed.

Barcelona III

2010-04-10T09:29:00.013-06:00

There are many reasons why Barcelona is now my favorite city in Europe, and the Modernista architecture is not among the least of those reasons. Our third day in Barcelona was spent exploring the Gaudi sights and again eating amazing food and drinking great wine (even the cheap stuff is fabulous over there).

Casa Batllo, Casa Mila, and Sagrada Familia (all Gaudi architecture) were within walking distance of our hotel, so we went to all of those places.

Casa Batllo (Gaudi):We stopped and had some wine right in front of Casa Batllo:

Garden on the corner:Casa Mila (Gaudi):Sagrada Familia is Gaudi's great church. It is not finished and is not expected to be complete for 25 years! It is amazing anyway though.After that, we took a taxi to Parc Guell, which was my favorite thing I saw the whole time I was over in Europe. Parc Guell is a park on the north side of Barcelona that Gaudi designed. It is AWESOME!!

Barcelona II

2010-04-09T19:07:00.007-06:00

Sunday morning was Palm Sunday. While we were eating churros and chocolate for breakfast, there was a beautiful Palm Sunday procession going down the street on the Rambla. It was so cool! After breakfast, we went and explored the Barri Gotic (Gothic Quarter). It is basically the old city of Barcelona and it is full of tiny little labyrinthine streets and alleys, old buildings, and beautiful churches and museums. We went through the Placa Real: There are four lamp posts in Placa Real that are among Gaudi's first works: Eventually we ended up at the Picasso Museum. No pictures are allowed inside, but here is a picture of the entrance.

Another beautiful church:

Along the way there were plenty of tapas and good Spanish wine! I especially liked the olives. They are not like the olives here. They are less salty and have an earthier taste. Yum!Near the end of the day, I finally saw my first Gaudi building: Palau Guell. It gave me just a little taste of all the Gaudi and Modernista sights we would see the next day. I love that stuff!

That night, mom went back to the hotel and Amanda and I went out. We tried to hit this shot bar Amanda had heard about, but it wasn't open. We ended up having tapas and drinks two different places, and then we hit an Irish pub on the way home. By then I had gotten used to entering places and saying "Dos vino tinto por favor" (roughly, "Two red wines please" with bad grammar I am sure and even worse spelling). I said that to the Irish bartender at the pub and he just looked at me like I was crazy. They definitely spoke English there.

Barcelona I

2010-04-08T15:30:00.005-06:00

On Saturday, we got up and went to the airport for our flight to Barcelona. I was so excited when we could see the Mediterranean Sea as we were flying in and we actually flew over it for a while as we circled. Beautiful!!!

Barcelona is the easiest town to get to from its airport that I have ever been to. We took the Aerobus (runs every 6 minutes) and we were a 300 yard walk from our hotel in less than 30 minutes. We stayed in the Hotel Lleo which is very close to the action and very nice, even if the rooms are a little small. After we got all situated in the room and threw down our luggage, we went for a walk down the Rambla. The Rambla is sort of a cross between a big city street and a carnival. There are tons of street performers, booths selling everything from art to scarves, and LOTS of people.

The Rambla:We found a good looking restaurant and had "lunch" (they eat lunch at like 2:30 in Spain). Amanda had a leg of lamb as big as her head!After lunch, we wandered the rest of the way down the Rambla to the Mediterranean waterfront.We got to walk into the Mediterranean! There were a few people in bathing suits (and some totally naked) but at around 70 degrees, it was a little too cold for swimming (and there is no temperature at which most of those people should have been naked in public...ick!).Barceloneta: The "Beach Town"We hung out near the beach for a while and eventually wandered back up the Rambla, had a light dinner (including octopus tapas), and turned in early since we were all so tired. I love Barcelona!!!

Madrid

2010-04-07T16:26:00.008-06:00

The next morning, we got up (not too early) and had breakfast at our hotel. Yum!!! My favorite thing was the cheese (and, of course, the awesome coffee!). Amanda met us there and we took the trains into Madrid.

Mom and Amanda waiting for the train:

Madrid is awesome! Go there! I liked it way better than Paris. The first thing Amanda took us to was the Royal Palace. It is where the King and Queen "live." They don't actually live there, but kings and queens used to live there and the current King and Queen do state dinners there and special occasions. You can't take pictures inside it, but here are some of the outside.

The cathedral across the way:

View from the Palace grounds:The gardens outside:After we went through the Royal Palace, which was unbelieveably beautiful, Amanda took us to see Plaza Mayor.
Mom and Amanda checking out the art. I bought Dan a painting here. He loves it.

Next, we had lunch, and then we went to the Museo del Prado. It's an art museum focusing on traditional Spanish art. We couldn't take pictures inside of it, so I have none. But after that, we went to the Reina Sophia Museum. It was COOL, and we got in for free because we went later in the day. The Reina Sophia is mostly known for Picasso's Guernica, but there is tons of modern art and surreal work in there. It was my favorite thing that we saw in Madrid.

Outside the Reina Sophia:

Some of the art from inside:After that, we headed to the train station so we could go back to Alcala for dinner.

The greenhouse inside the train station:

Dinner was more yummy tapas and fantastic red wine. We didn't stay up very late because the next morning, we knew we were headed for Barcelona!

Alcala de Henares

2010-04-06T16:38:00.011-06:00

My mom and I arrived in Madrid at around 8:30 a.m. Neither of us slept much on the flight over, so we were pretty wiped out. Amanda met us at the Aeropuerto and we went straight to get coffee. Best coffee ever over there, even just at the airport. After that, we took a couple of trains to our hotel in Alcala.

View from our hotel window:

After checking into our hotel, Amanda took us into Alcala to get tapas and check out the town. I loved the place. It is beautiful, there are old buildings everywhere, great people, and the food and drinks are very inexpensive. It might have been my favorite place in Spain or France. We went to this great tapas bar where you pay like 2 or 3 Euros for a drink and get tapas with it. It was not difficult to stay on budget there!

Tapas bar:

We explored the main square of town:Check out the pig's head for sale:Amanda showed us her school:

What the heck is this? It is on the ceiling in one of Amanda's school buildings.

Some of the gardens around the school and around town are just gorgeous:

Then we got to meet Amanda's host family. They are some of the nicest people I have ever met. They put up with my crappy Spanish very well (they don't speak any English so Amanda translated a lot). They seem to just adore Amanda and I know she likes them a lot and feels like she is lucky to be in their home.

We also visited some of the Cervantes landmarks. He wrote Don Quixote and was from Alcala, so there is Cervantes stuff everywhere.

I don't quite remember where we ate dinner that night. I was fried and couldn't wait to get to bed. I slept very well that night and the next day, we went to Madrid!

A Very Late Happy St. Paddy's to Ya

2010-04-06T16:30:00.002-06:00

When I started going through my pictures from Europe, I found this one of our green dinner from St. Patrick's Day:

Back in Colorado

2010-04-06T04:59:00.004-06:00

Well, I made it back from Europe. It was a great trip, but I missed Dan and Noah tons and I am very glad to be home. I hope to start uploading pictures tonight so hopefully there will be more posts soon about Spain and France. It was really fun traveling with Mom and Amanda and Amanda definitely picked a cool place to live for a semester!

I am still totally jet lagged and can't seem to get myself back on mountain time. I am getting there, but not fast enough for my taste. There is so much going on! I was behind at work already before I left and missing 3 work days did not help that any, as you might imagine. Also, one of my admin classes ended while I was gone and another started up, so that is in full swing already. My new class is Strategic Planning for Educational Organizations. It sounds interesting and so far I like the professor.

Noah's soccer started while I was gone and I am the assistant coach, so that is fun but crazy too! I had my coaching debut last night and it was nuts! Those kids run all over the place. I was cracking up half the time and the other half, I was chasing either balls or children who had gone out of bounds. Noah's first game is a week from tomorrow!

Dan is a trooper as always. I don't know how he did everything while I was gone all by himself. He is amazing and I am so lucky to be married to him.

I started the Couch to 5K program yesterday. I know that sounds crazy, but I just think that with all of my injuries, it is better to start up running again really slowly. It is insanely easy, but maybe that is the point. I am going to pick a 5K to run in about 8 weeks and then hopefully I can get back to normal this summer. I am really getting my heart set on an October marathon (or maybe even Pikes if registration is still open by the time I am fully better), so I am focusing on injury prevention.

Watch for another post later today about my first days in Spain!

This Blog is Not Abandoned

2010-03-17T17:24:00.001-06:00

I am still here. Just too busy! My second admin class is just about to finish up and next week, I leave for Europe! I promise that once I get back from Europe I will do a better job of posting.

I love you, man!

2010-03-03T20:18:00.002-07:00

It's senior night in Lawrence. I soooo wish I was there. Sherron Collins is one of my favorite Jayhawks EVER. He came to KU from gangland, Chicago, after watching his best friend gunned down and look at him now. I will really miss him next year. Here's to the winningest player in Jayhawk history!

Life in the Slow Lane

2010-02-27T21:03:00.002-07:00

I suppose something about my life should force me to slow down; I just wish it wasn't running. As I have been trying to add mileage, my foot is giving me trouble again. A little over a week ago I was ready to give up and just not run anymore. But then something happened. I took a week off and the foot felt better. So, on Wednesday afternoon, I did a short slow run of 2 miles. Foot felt fine. So today I did a short show run of 2.5 miles. Foot is a little sore, but I would be willing to bet tomorrow it will feel fine. In between, I am riding my bike on Dan's new bike trainer, which rocks, by the way.

Anyway, as I was running today, I was thinking about what I've learned from this stupid plantar fasciitis thing. I have learned to slow it down. I'm not that fast anyway, so I might as well slow down if that is what will prevent injury. What difference does it make if I am running a 9 minute mile or an 11 minute mile? Nobody cares but me, and if they do, they don't have enough going on in their own lives.

So, I am slowing down, and I am enjoying the runs more again. Running only 2-3 times per week is also making me appreciate the runs more. Today was beautiful! Sunny and in the high 40s. Perfect running weather (ok, I would have liked warmer, but I'm not going to complain considering the winter we have had).

I am still planning on Pikes this year, but I am not going to push the speed. It isn't helping me and it's making my foot worse anyway. I am going to slow down and enjoy the run!

Happy trails!

Changes

2010-02-20T17:11:00.004-07:00

So our whole itinerary for Spain has changed since the last time I blogged. We decided that we were trying to do too much, I decided the Pyrenees weren't as necessary as I thought, and mom decided she really wants to see Paris. So, here is the new plan.

Day 1 Arrive in Madrid/ Alcala de Henares
Day 2 Madrid/ Alcala
Day 3 Fly to Barcelona
Day 4 Barcelona
Day 5 Barcelona
Day 6 Fly to Paris
Day 7 Paris
Day 8 Paris
Day 9 back to Madrid
Day 10 Go home!

I am completely obsessed with Barcelona at this point. I am especially obsessed with all of the Gaudi architecture we are going to see. To check out some of it, click here and here. I am fascinated by Casa Battlo, which is going to be within walking distance of our hotel!!! Paris will definitely be cool too, but I just feel like Barcelona is my kind of city. We have all of our flights booked and accommodation booked in both Alcala and Barcelona. Paris is almost booked... we are staying in an apartment rather than a hotel there and we are just waiting to hear back from the owner. It's a place my friend stayed in, so I know it will be perfect! It is literally 1 block from the Louvre, so I really hope it works out.

Update

2010-02-12T22:05:00.002-07:00

Me = So lame about blogging lately.

I just haven't had any time. I am now into my second admin class. I really like this one so far. It is about student conduct. If you know me at all, you know I am fascinated with behavior so it's a good one for me to be in. Right now, I am geeking out on Colorado student conduct law for a paper I have due tomorrow. I need to focus and just get it done.

Noah and Dan and Japhy are still wonderful. Dan really helps out when I have to work on school stuff and Noah is really a constant joy! Today he showed me the sign language for "beautiful," and after I praised him for it, he said, "because you are beautiful, Mommy." I had tears in my eyes....

Work is calming down. We have been down 4 people for about 2 months now which means more work for everyone. But we only have one more position to fill at this point, so things are getting much better. I got to be on the interview committee for 2 of the positions, which was a good experience for me. I did that a few times at my previous job, but it is good experience for whatever my next move might be.

My foot is getting better too. I am finally at 3 miles, 3 times per week. That may not sound like much, but I could barely run a mile 2 months ago without my foot feeling like I wanted to cut it off, so I am happy with that. One of Noah's friend's moms (who is a serious runner... like she has done Pikes 4 times) suggested that I do the St. Patrick's 7K in Denver with her, and I am considering it. I am so excited to be able to run races again, but let's face it, I've lost some fitness. The good news is that I've been watching what I eat, and I am down 5 lbs. since New Years (I had gained a little), so that should lessen the pounding my foot is taking.

Planning to Spain trip had gotten to be too stressful for me, so I let it go for a while. We have our plane tickets, so one way or another, we will be there! :)

That's all for now! Yay, Olympics are on! Go US!!!

Finally an Itinerary!!!

2010-02-05T22:28:00.002-07:00

I think we finally have our itinerary for our trip to see Amanda! It will probably look something like this:

Day 1: Alcala de Henares/ Madrid, Spain
Day 2: Alcala de henares/ Madrid
Day 3: Barcelona, Spain
Day 4: Barcelona
Day 5: The Pyrenees (and I am going hiking, yeah!), Spain, and maybe over the border into France since one of the hotels we are considering is only 8 miles from the border
Day 6: The Pyrenees
Day 7: Rome, Italy
Day 8: Rome, Italy
Day 9: Madrid
Day 10: Return home

I can't wait!!!

Bone Tired

2010-02-04T17:49:00.002-07:00

I am that ridiculous kind of tired today where your whole body just hurts, ya know? But it was worth it. Dan took me to Boulder for the KU-CU game last night. It was great! We dropped Noah off with my friend Kristi and then drove to Boulder for some sushi (and sake for me!). Then we parked and walked over to the stadium. It was nuts and there were tons of Jayhawk fans there, some with signs that said things like "Welcome to Allen Field House West." I was so freakin' excited to be there.

The game started off great, with KU leading by lots. But by halftime, CU was challenging their lead. In the second half, they closed the gap and with one minute to go, CU actually took the lead. I was freaking out. There was no reason that the #1 team in the country was having such a hard time with the third to lowest ranked team in the Big 12. I think it was kind of a "let down" game after struggling with #13 K-State in Manhattan last weekend. And they were pretty clearly struggling with the altitude, especially Aldrich.

Anyway, at the end of regulation it was tied, and then KU got it together in overtime and won! It was so much fun and so great to be able to see the Jayhawks in person. Thanks Dan! Best present ever!!!

One Down, Eleven to Go

2010-02-01T17:43:00.002-07:00

I am done with my first course towards my degree in Educational Administration. That means I have 11 left. I can't wait to have it all done. Should be just over a year, especially if I double up on classes this summer. My next class starts Sunday which means no homework for a whole week!!!

Pictures from Grandma and Grandpa's Visit

2010-01-28T14:20:00.003-07:00

Fun with Grandma and Grandpa!!!

Pants on the Ground

2010-01-17T16:51:00.000-07:00

Click on this link to see my new favorite music video!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wZb9znkboc

Triple Bypass

2010-01-14T17:01:00.002-07:00

My nut job of a husband signed up for this yesterday:

It's a 120 mile bike ride over three mountain passes. I think he is crazy!!!

Adios... See You Soon, Amanda!

2010-01-09T17:02:00.004-07:00

My little sister left for Spain today. She will be there for four months finishing up her degree. I am so excited for her! I am doubly excited because my mom and I are going to see her at the end of March! Check out her blog by clicking here. She will be in a town outside of Madrid called Alcala. I can't wait to go visit!!!

Finally Done

2010-01-07T18:15:00.004-07:00

We are finally done painting (at least downstairs...). We finished the kitchen/living area last weekend. Here are some pictures!

The colors are sage green on the top and and a darker version on the bottom.
Dan did the chair rail and I think it turned out beautifully!

Resolutions for Republicans

2010-01-05T07:05:00.002-07:00

Check out this great blog post from my friend Josh! Click here.

2009 Highlights

2009-12-31T11:28:00.008-07:00

A countdown of my 10 favorite moments of 2009!

10. Our August trip to Copper (where Dan rode the Copper triangle) and camping near Aspen with Uncle Mikey
9. Running the Denver Half Marathon with my friend Erika from college
8. Camping with Dan and Noah at Turquoise Lake
7. Randi and Sophie's trip to see us
6. Going to the Old Stone Church with Dan for dinner for our 10th anniversary.
5. The Inauguration of Barack Obama: It was during the school day so I went to my favorite school (Tetra Academy) and "worked." Really, they were showing the inauguration to the kids and I watched with them. The highlight of my school year for sure!
4. Finding out that Dan got his new job
3. Our trip to Utah, Bryce Canyon and Zion
2. Finishing the Pikes Peak Ascent
1. Snowboarding at Winter Park with the Intfens and Jim and finding out that Noah loves skiing!

Our Gingerbread House

2009-12-30T20:18:00.004-07:00

Our good friend Kristi gave Noah this gingerbread house kit for Christmas. If you click on the link, you can see how quaint and beautiful it is! I was really excited to decorate it with Noah, but we have had NO time at all!!! Today, I was home with Noah and Dan was at work, so we finally had some time. Noah and I got it all sort of glued together with frosting. It was a little ghetto because I am just not good at crafts (crooked corners, etc.), but I was pretty proud of it.

By the time it was all dry and ready to decorate, Dan was home! That was great since we would all get to decorate it as a family. I knew we were in trouble when he took one look at the jelly beans and said, "Wow, these will make great meteors." Needless to say, our house isn't quite as quaint and beautiful as the one on the box. It was a blast to decorate though. We just let Noah do whatever he wanted with all the candy and, let's face it, it's not like my decorating efforts were all Martha-Stewart or anything. Here is how it turned out:

Running Plan For 2010

2009-12-28T15:14:00.005-07:00

As my foot slowly (very slowly, too slowly, seriously, get better already) heals up, I am beginning to think about what I want to do running-wise this year.

The first thing I need to do is seriously follow the FIRST plan detailed in my Run Less, Run Faster book. I said I was going to do that last year, but I really wanted to run 5 times/week and not 3. Well, look where it got me... Plantar Fasciitis Island (PFI). In order to avoid PFI again this year, I will be running 3 days per week and cross-training 2 or 3 like the book recommends. I found a spinning class at our local rec center that actually might be as good of a workout as running, so I will be doing that twice a week to start off with. Right now I am only running one mile 3 times per week because of the foot, but as that gets better this will increase to 30-40 mile weeks (in 3-4 sessions per week).

The second thing I need to do is watch what I eat. I have always just been one of those people who just eats whatever I want, but let's face it, a true athlete would not do that. I need to get the eating thing under control so I can hit some more PRs this year.

Given that, I would like to run one of every distance I have ever run this year and try to hit those PRs. I only got one last year: the half marathon at 2:14, and I think I can do better. Here is my plan:

5K: probably a Turkey Day one in November (whether it's in CO, IA, or KS, I don't know yet)

10K: Gotta be Boulder Boulder in May

Half Marathon: Pikes Peak Ascent, of course, in August. I am addicted and I have 3 training partners this year who should help me beat last year's time. This is dependent on me sitting next to my computer for an hour in early March making sure I can get in before it is full.

Marathon: Either the Denver Marathon (which is a Rock-n-Roll this year) or Chicago. Both in October.

So that's the plan assuming I can avoid the hell of PFI again.

2009 Resolutions: Checking In

2009-12-27T15:51:00.003-07:00

Here are my resolutions from last year and how I did on them.

1. Spend more time playing with Dan and Noah and Japhy: Yes, but some parts of the year I did better than others.
2. Finish a triathlon: Nope, but I did do the Pikes Peak Ascent instead.
3. Finish a half marathon in under 2 hours: No, and as I read more about speed, I realized that this probably was not a realistic goal for me.
4. Spend less and save more $$: Yes! That is how we survived Dan's unemployment. I am so glad he has a job again now. It is so much more fun to have at least a little money to spend.
5. Drop 5 pounds to lessen the pounding my knees are taking from all that running: No, I weigh exactly what I did this time last year.
6. Increase my weight and resistance training...also to help the knees. Yes, I do significantly more than I did this time last year and my knee issues are pretty much a thing of the past. Now if I could just do something about this stupid foot.

Winter Park 2009

2009-12-26T10:14:00.020-07:00

For Christmas this year, my sister Crystal, her husband Eric, and their kids, Will and Kylie came to Colorado. We all spent a few days in Winter Park before coming back to Castle Rock to celebrate Christmas.

Our first stop in Winter Park was at the resort to pick up the ski rentals for Noah, Will, Kylie, and Crystal. Here is a picture of Kylie and Noah in the parking lot of Winter Park Resort:

The next morning we were all up bright and early to get on the slopes. I was so excited because Noah was finally going to learn to ski!!! At three, he is finally old enough to take lessons. Kylie and Noah must have been equally excited because they couldn't wait to get all decked out in their ski gear: Will picked up skiing so quickly I couldn't believe it. One day's lesson and he is ready to be on the mountain without an instructor. He even went up with Eric for a run at the end of the day. Eric said he was totally shreddin' it!

Kylie wasn't a huge fan of skiing, but after a kind of rough morning in her lesson, she really started to pick it up. She wanted to take a lesson with Noah on the second day, but because of their age difference the Winter Park people wouldn't let her be in Noah's class. That's ok, because she wants to try again when she comes back (hopefully next year).Noah was a little nervous when we dropped him off, but he had a great day skiing! His instructors said he did a great job for being so young and he passed 3 of the 5 skills for the next level. He did lessons for 2 days because he loved the first day so much. Needless to say, Dan and I are thrilled that he likes it and so proud of our little guy.

Noah's first ski run ever:Future ski racer:While everyone was doing their lessons, Dan, Eric, our friend Jim, and I went up and took a couple of runs (a few blues and a black or two). It felt great to be up there and I was happy to know I still remember how to snowboard even though we were only up once last year. When Crystal got out of her 1/2 day lesson, we all went and had lunch:Then we all went up the mountain to take a run with Crystal. She did great and she said she even likes skiing now!!!!! That is huge because she tried it before and did not like it. I am so excited that she likes it because now they will be out in Colorado to ski more!!! I love having them here. It was so much fun!!!She is practically a pro:

Noah was exhausted but happy when we picked him up from his lesson:
Oddly he didn't seem as tired when we got back to the condo. That kid has amazing energy: He calmed down after some nice time in the hot tub though:Dan, Noah, Eric, and I all skiied/rode the next day too. It was another fabulous day! I can't wait to take Noah back up there for another lesson. We'll probably go when Eric, Suzanne, Luke, and Kenny come out (hopefully soon!).

Christmas Pics 2009

2009-12-26T09:25:00.005-07:00

A few of my favorites from Christmas:

Noah and Kylie eating G.G.'s chocolate reindeer:

Kylie, Noah, and Will in the matching pajamas Aunt Crystal got them: Eric with Kylie's pink bunny (or bear or whatever it is):

Noah, Crystal, and Kylie:

Our family right before Christmas Eve church:

Will sledding:

Will shoveling our driveway:

Will and Noah playing with legos:

Crystal and I:

Noah and Kylie being silly:

Christmas Season

2009-12-26T08:32:00.006-07:00

I am so far behind on posting. School and work and family have kept me busy! I'm still not running much... stupid foot, but I am starting to think about races for next year. I'll post my thoughts later. Right now, I just want to get some pics up of the Christmas season. Here they are:

Making Christmas cookies:Noah's school Christmas performance and party:Visiting Santa:Our neighborhood Christmas party:

Yay Noah!

2009-12-16T15:36:00.001-07:00

Noah passed his second swim level! On to level 3 next time!

YAY Dan!!!

2009-12-11T20:28:00.000-07:00

Good luck with your new job! You rock!!! I love you!!!

Back to School...

2009-12-05T11:57:00.003-07:00

...for me! I start tomorrow. I know Sunday seems like a weird day to start, but I am taking online classes. Each class is 8 weeks, 3 credits, starts on Sunday and ends on Saturday. I just got done looking at my first course (Educational Theory... really? I've been teaching for 12 years). The first week includes 3 chapters, 6 articles, and 2 papers. I am really worried about getting it all done except for the fact that the first week is behaviorism. If I can't do that easily and well, something is wrong.

Anyway, at the pace my advisor said is realistic for me, I should have a master's in administration, and both principal and administrator licensure within 18 months. If I double up on classes in the summer, I may even finish sooner.

Wish me luck!!!

International Cookbook!

2009-12-04T20:32:00.003-07:00

My friend, Jocelyn, from college is selling cookbooks to make money so she can bring her daughter home from Ethiopia. Please buy one!!! The website is www.jocib.blogspot.com.

Thanks!!!

Today I Am Thankful For...

2009-11-25T09:24:00.001-07:00

...technology!

I am sitting here in our car driving down the highway at 80 mph and blogging! Don't worry, Dan is actually driving.

Happy almost Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Castle Rock Starlighting

2009-11-21T19:44:00.004-07:00

Tonight was the annual Starlighting Ceremony in Castle Rock. There is this gigantic rock on top of a hill right by downtown that is the namesake of this place, and they put a big star up on top of it like 74 years ago to be lit every Christmas season. It is pretty cool and they make a really big deal of it, with carriage rides, a Fire Station Chili Supper, Christmas carols, bounce houses, a live Nativity Scene and tons of other fun stuff. It was a pretty nice night (weather-wise), and we all had a great time. Noah said his favorite part was the hot chocolate!

Castle Rock:
Fire Station:

Getting hot chocolate with Dad:

I have no pictures from later in the night because the camera battery went dead, but the star is lit and it is gorgeous!

Plantar Fasciitis

2009-11-14T08:23:00.002-07:00

Plantar fasciitis is a common overuse injury that runners often get involving pain and inflammation of the plantar fascia, a thick band of tissue that runs along the bottom of your foot.

It sucks.

I have been barely running at all for almost a month now and it still won't go away. I want to get back to my regular running so badly but I know that will just make it worse.

So I have been riding my bike a lot and going to spinning class instead of running, but it just isn't the same.

Maybe I'll just do one mile this morning. That can't hurt, right?

Discipline Philosophy

2009-11-11T17:03:00.006-07:00

What is your philosophy of discipline?

Because of my job, I get that question all the time from my mom-friends. Maybe not in those exact words, but people often ask me for advice with specific situations and ask what I would do.

Half of the time, I am not sure what to say. That's because it totally depends on the kid. Of course, there are a few philosophies that I tend to recommend over others, just because they have worked for me with Noah and with the kids I have worked with over my career. It startles me to say that I have been working with kids for 18 years now, so hopefully I've learned something. Anyway, here are my 5 favorite resources to recommend to parents/ teachers and the philosophies I use on a daily basis, at home and at work:

1. Love and Logic, Jim Fay and Foster Cline, www.loveandlogic.com
I like Love and Logic because it works for both parents and teachers, so double bonus for me!!! Love and Logic has been very good for me because I tend to be high strung and this philosophy requires calm and caring delivery of natural and logical consequences. I love it!!!

2. Collaborative Problem Solving, Ross W. Greene, http://www.ccps.info/
Collaborative Problem Solving is a strategy I use more at work than at home right now, but I know that as Noah gets older I will use it at home too. I love how it teaches kids problem solving skills while at the same time helping them understand what works for them in terms of behavior and what does not.

3. Positive Behavior Support, George Sugai and many others, www.pbis.org
This is a practice of emphasizing the positive over the negative. Research bears out the idea that you have to have 5 positive interactions for every one negative interaction to achieve optimal behavior and preserve self esteem. Positive Behavior Support was developed for schools, but I use the principles with Noah. PBS involves having clear cut observeable behaviors that your positively reinforce and emphasize. You still address negative behavior, but you spend much more time praising the positive.

4. Classic Behavior Modification, BF Skinner, http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/col/behsys/behmod.html
Skinner first had the idea that you can extinguish an undesireable behavior and replace it with a desireable alternative behavior with the use of reinforcement (positive or negative or both). Your basic sticker chart is an offshoot of this. The stuff works, you can't argue with that!

5. My own commom sense and what I learned from my mom and dad, Ken and Mary McCullough, no website available unfortunately
Regardless of what the books and philosophies say, much of what I do to shape Noah's behavior comes from what my parents did. They raised four hard working, caring, wonderful contributors to society, and, well, you can't argue with that research.

I know this is way more info than anyone needs, but I needed to write this post to clarify the whole thing in my mind.

What is your philosophy of discipline? Leave it in the comments!!!

Friday Fun!

2009-11-06T21:39:00.001-07:00

Halloween at School

2009-10-30T18:07:00.007-06:00

Today was Noah's Halloween party and costume parade at school. I love his school! His teachers did all of these creative snacks... soooo cute! Here is a picture of Noah holding his orange jackolantern. His teachers hollowed out oranges and cut them into jack-o-lanterns for each kid. I can't imagine the amount of work that must have gone into them. Amazing!

Here are some of the other snacks they made: fingers (cheese sticks with a frito "nail" on the end), magic wands, bones (breadsticks with rolled up ends), ghosts, and pumpkins:

Darth Vader (Noah):

Other party pictures:

Lining up for the parade:

Miss Kacey tying on Noah's cape: Buddies:

Rock Chalk #1

2009-10-30T07:15:00.002-06:00

Look who is #1! Yeah, baby! (Lists are completely stolen from Suzanne's blog.)

AP Top 25
1. Kansas (55) 0-0 1,612
2. Michigan State (5) 0-0 1,515
3. Texas (1) 0-0 1,397
4. Kentucky (3) 0-0 1,372
5. Villanova 0-0 1,347
6. North Carolina (1) 0-0 1,320
7. Purdue 0-0 1,284
8. West Virginia 0-0 1,115
9. Duke 0-0 1,064
10. Tennessee 0-0 897
11. Butler 0-0 864
12. Connecticut 0-0 844
13. California 0-0 800
14. Washington 0-0 776
15. Michigan 0-0 578
16. Ohio State 0-0 465
17. Oklahoma 0-0 410
18. Mississippi State 0-0 393
19. Louisville 0-0 335
20. Georgetown 0-0 326
21. Dayton 0-0 318
22. Georgia Tech 0-0 301
23. Illinois 0-0 282
24. Clemson 0-0 217
25. Minnesota 0-0 172
Others Receiving Votes
Maryland 171, Siena 112, Notre Dame 107, Florida State 92, Vanderbilt 90, Syracuse 83, Oklahoma State 65, UCLA 63, Florida 53, Wake Forest 50, Xavier 42, Gonzaga 37, South Carolina 28, Kansas State 24, Brigham Young 21, Northern Iowa 16, Tulsa 16, Mississippi 15, Texas A&M 10, Missouri 8, Boston College 6, Pittsburgh 4, Western Kentucky 2, Utah State 2, Virginia Commonwealth 2, Old Dominion 1, Holy Cross 1.

ESPN/USA Today Poll
1. Kansas (27) 0-0 770
2. Michigan State (3) 0-0 732
3. Texas 0-0 676
4. North Carolina (1) 0-0 653
5. Kentucky 0-0 635
6. Villanova 0-0 620
7. Purdue 0-0 586
8. Duke 0-0 528
9. West Virginia 0-0 501
10. Butler 0-0 408
11. Tennessee 0-0 406
12. California 0-0 370
13. Washington 0-0 364
14. Connecticut 0-0 361
15. Michigan 0-0 279
16. Oklahoma 0-0 244
17. Ohio State 0-0 241
18. Minnesota 0-0 151
19. Mississippi State 0-0 149
20. Georgia Tech 0-0 136
21. Georgetown 0-0 134
22. Dayton 0-0 130
23. Louisville 0-0 123
24. Clemson 0-0 114
25. Syracuse 0-0 111
Others Receiving Votes
Maryland 100, Illinois 83, Siena 72, UCLA 59, Vanderbilt 38, Oklahoma State 29, Missouri 28, Xavier 25, Gonzaga 24, Notre Dame 22, USC 22, Pittsburgh 19, Tulsa 17, Kansas State 16, Brigham Young 16, Florida State 15, Florida 13, Wake Forest 13, San Diego State 8, Creighton 7, Boston College 4, Texas A&M 4, Southern Illinois 3, Utah State 3, Cornell 3, Memphis 3, Mississippi 3, UNLV 2, South Carolina 1, Northern Iowa 1.

Happy Anniversary to Joe and Sally

2009-10-29T09:32:00.002-06:00

Dan and Noah and I recently returned from Iowa where we helped Dan's parents celebrate their 40th wedding anniversary. It was great to see Dan's family and Noah had a blast with Grandma and Grandpa, for sure! Happy anniversary and congratulations, guys!

Another Snow Day Tomorrow!

2009-10-28T20:48:00.001-06:00

Woohoo! School is cancelled again. That's good because I have a big decision to make by 3:00 tomorrow and it will give me time to think with a clear head.

Snow Day!

2009-10-28T17:47:00.002-06:00

We had a snow day today. No school! Woohoo!! Dan and Noah and I had to go shopping this morning before everything shut down and get Noah a new coat, snow pants, boots, hat, and gloves because everything from last year is too small. Then, while Dan and Noah napped, I went on an epic snowshoeing hike by myself up in the hills where the bike trails are. Totally beautiful! After that, it was snow angels in the backyard with Dan and Noah and Japhy and now Dan is making chili for dinner. After dinner, the Monsters Vs Aliens Halloween special is on, so we will sit by the fire and watch that with hot cocoa. Can't think of a better day!

Denver Half Marathon Race Report

2009-10-21T16:40:00.007-06:00

First of all, this was the most fun half marathon EVER!!! I had so much fun, mostly because my friend, Erika, from college was here. She is such a blast to hang out with and even more fun to run with. I usually run by myself, especailly over long distances, so it was a nice change to run with people.

So, Dan and Noah and I piled into the car on race day and went into downtown Denver. It was an easy drive, Noah was really good, and we found Erika and her group easily at the big red chair with the horse on it near the Denver Library. Noah was wearing his skeleton jammies and refused to take them off the rest of the day, in spite of the fact that it was 80 degrees by 11:00.

We all headed to the bathroom and then to the starting line with 10,000 of our closest friends and we were off! Dan and Noah cheered us on, but the crowd was so big I couldn't even see them. They went to breakfast during the race and then watched us at the finish line, but I didn't see them there either. Poor Erika was freezing at the starting line so she had on a trash bag. Race chic!

The race itself was uneventful and really really nice up until about Mile 10. At Mile 10, it felt like someone was trying to hammer a big old nail up into my heel. It was the plantar fasciitis acting up again. I knew I was in for it because I didn't take enough time off running after Pike's, but I was hoping I could just get through this race and THEN rest. Not so much.

Erika was so nice. She coaches running teams and she totally got me through the last three miles. My foot hurt so freaking bad I just wanted to stop every second. But she kept me talking and we ran all the way to the end. The last three miles were pretty slow, but we made it! Our official time was 2:14:53. I was ok with that considering the foot.

After the race, Erika and I had a few beers. I took this picture of Erika through the fence that they had around the beer garden. I was joking that they wouldn't let her out because she drank too much. We both kept getting tickets for free beer (through no fault of our own, haha)!

Dan and Noah played by the stage (they had bands playing. Noah was very happy with a ball he got at the post race expo. He named the ball Scott.

I am so glad I ran this race. It is a great one. Next year it is going to be the Rock N Roll Denver Marathon, which will make it even better. Erika wants to make it an annual tradition and I am all over that! I may even be up for the full, depending on what I do for Pike's next year. If you are looking at running a half or full marathon, I HIGHLY recommend Denver. They had some great sponsors and everything was really well run.

Denver Half Marathon

2009-10-17T14:05:00.005-06:00

My half marathon is tomorrow. Dan and Noah and I just got back from picking up my race packet at the Expo. We met my friend Erika there (the one who flew in from St. Louis to run the race). She was cracking me up telling me that she can't breathe and doesn't know how she will run tomorrow. She is in great shape and I'm sure she will be dragging my butt along by Mile 10.

Flu Shots

2009-10-17T08:19:00.000-06:00

So, about a month ago, Dan made an appointment for Noah to get his flu shot at his primary care doc. They said the soonest they could get him in was October 22. Fine, not real happy about it, but fine.

Last week, they called to tell us they ran out.

Are you f*&%ing kidding me? My son has a history of respiratory issues, we made the appointment a month ago, and you are OUT? I was livid.

Luckily, Noah is a patient at the resporatory research hospital near us, so I called them yesterday and they can get him in for the shot on Monday! All's well that ends well. Next will be getting him in for H1N1. I wasn't sure if I was going to have him get it, but a former student from my previous school (who I didn't know) died from H1N1 last week. She had a history of major asthma related issues. Noah's aren't as severe as hers, but given that he has had the same type of issues, I am going to have him get it.

Broncos Throwback

2009-10-11T08:55:00.003-06:00

So my 4-0 Broncos play the Patriots today. "Battle of the Hoody Sweatshirts!" Should be a great game. I expect that the Patriots will probably win, but my guess is that the Broncos will put up a good fight, particularly on the defensive side, and that it will be a close game. Anyway, the Broncos are going to wear their ugly-ass throwback uniforms today. They are actually so ugly that they are cool. Here is a picture of Dan and our friend Jim sporting some of the throwback apparel.

Lame-O

2009-10-09T16:30:00.003-06:00

Here are all the ways I am a Lame-O right now:

1) I haven't posted here in nearly 2 weeks. That's pretty sad.
2) I haven't gone running in 2 days and I haven't had a decent run in about a week. My foot hurts.
3) My energy level is way down (probably a result of the lame-o running).
4) I have been eating entirely too much junk. That's not helping the energy level either.
5) I have been at work so much lately that I have barely had time to spend with Dan and Noah. This is the lamest one of all.

The good news is that the CDE audit at work is over and I will be able to spend more time at centers with kids. More importantly, it means I can leave at a decent hour and be home with Dan and Noah more.

Another happy note: Friends of ours are in Jamaica for their 10th anniversary. That means that their 2 awesome happy dogs get to spend some time here at our house with Japhy. It is so fun having 3 dogs around the house. Always something to smile about!!!

Rockin' Pass

2009-09-27T16:06:00.001-06:00

Maybe THIS is why Favre is still playing football! I could watch this all day!!!!!

Silly bathtub pictures.

2009-09-27T13:15:00.002-06:00

Check out the hair!!!!!

Church

2009-09-26T20:13:00.003-06:00

Ok, so I admit I am not the most consistent church-goer. And I also admit that I have often struggled with my Catholic faith because they seemed to promote some things that I thought were dead wrong, to be frank.

But I am really impressed with the Catholic Church in Castle Rock. Dan even likes it which is a small miracle (not because he is anti-church or anything... just trust me, it is a small miracle).

First of all, the thing that drew me into the place is that it is up on a ridge above Castle Rock. They have gigantic windows right behind the altar so that when you sit in mass, you have this gorgeous view of the mountains, including Pikes Peak. Now if that doesn't inspire you to thank God for something, I don't know what will.

Second of all, I like the people there. They are laid-back and kind... and outdoorsy. Some people even show up to mass in trail shorts and t-shirts or golfing attire, or whatever. Actually, that is one thing that I have always liked about most Catholic churches anyway. Clothes aren't that important in most places I've gone to...it's just important that you show up.

Third, I like how politically non-partisan this church is. In my experience, many Catholic churches show up on one side or another of the political spectrum. Here, in a conservative bastion of now-blue Colorado, I heard the following things just in the course of one mass:

1. All people deserve good health care.
2. We need to fight to end abortion.
3. Un-documented workers should be treated better by their employers.

Wow! I am impressed.

Anyway, it is nice to have a place that Dan and I both feel comfortable to take Noah to church. We are also going to the Lutheran Church here since Dan is Lutheran, but they don't have nearly the view... ;)

Overtrained

2009-09-26T07:26:00.003-06:00

I. Am. So. Frustrated.

I had a rough couple of runs this week. Especially Thursday's tempo run. I was supposed to run 4-5 miles at race pace to race pace minus 30. I made 2.

It is just feeling like I am running harder and I should be getting faster but I am getting slower instead. My foot hurts, my knee hurts, and my whole body is just achy and tired all the freakin' time.

So I did a little reading on the internet and consulted my running coach friend at work. The reading and the coach confirmed what I already knew.

I am overtraining and I need to take more recovery time. It's not like I'm 18 anymore, ya know?

Problem is, running is how I manage stress. It makes me feel good and it makes me a pleasant person to be around. I have found no other workouts that work quite as well. So, what do I do?

Option #1: Take a few days off and see how I feel. Let go of my 2 hour goal because I am apparently pushing myself too hard to get there.

Option #2: Go ahead and go hard for one more week and then start my taper for the race a little early and really take it easy. Again, I am probably going to have to let go of the 2 hour goal because continuing to push it clearly isn't working.

I guess it doesn't matter much which one I pick because either way the odds of a sub-2 hour half are pretty slim at this point.

So, what am I learning from this?

1. Take a week off after a long race. I didn't let my body recover enough after Pike's before I got into this 1/2 training, which I pretty much already knew.

2. Take even longer off before resuming speed work after a race. At least one day per mile. That means I should have waited at least 13 days before speed training after Pike's, probably more because of the nature of that race and I didn't even come close to that.

3. Take a rest day at the first signs of overtraining. I have been struggling with aches and pains and fatigue that I have been denying for at least 3 weeks, maybe a month. If I had taken a little more time then I might not be in this situation so close to race day.

My Little Beat Poet

2009-09-21T19:17:00.001-06:00

Remiss

2009-09-18T16:06:00.005-06:00

I have been completely and inexcusably remiss in my blogging duties over the last 2 weeks. I apologize to the two or three of you who check it regularly. So here is a little update on everything going on here:

Noah:
Still my amazingly talented-in-every-way-athletic-little genius! ;) He has gotten into playing the "guitar," which he made at school out of a shoebox, a pencil, and a few rubber bands. It is hilarious and I really need to get a video posted of him playing and singing. His school year is in full swing and they have started phonics, a little bit of writing, and Spanish! My kid already officially knows more Spanish than I do. Sad, I know, but I am just so proud I don't even care.

Dan:
He is finally riding his bike again, which is cool. He took a little break after his big race in August but he is glad to be back in the saddle again, so to speak. He is happy and cool as usual. When I married him, I had no idea how much strength that guy has and I am amazed every day at his positivity and his openness to whatever the universe throws at him. He rocks!

Japhy:
Annoying dog as ever...but we love him!

Work:
Well, let's just say that work is a big reason I haven't been blogging. I have never had a position that left me as drained at the end of the day as I am now. But it also has parts I absolutely love and I am not leaving, at least not today, hehe. We are in a situation right now that requires a LOT of paperwork and I don't like the amount of time it is taking away from kids, but it is temporary. And I treasure the time I CAN get with kids that much more! I am pretty sure that sometime before I retire (you know, when I am 101 years old), I will go back to teaching in a classroom. I don't care what anyone says, that is the most important job in education and it is the only place where you can develop that unique close relationship with kids.

Running:
Running is going pretty well, even the speed work. For my training plan right now, I have target paces for every run that will help me hit 1:59:59 in the half marathon. I have hit target pace for every run except for one (I would blame that on my watch because I messed it up in the middle of a 4 mile tempo run, but I know that is a cop-out.). My foot has been hurting and my legs are pretty sore, but other than that, it feels great to work on speed again. The only bummer is that I am not doing much trail running right now since I am working on speed (and because it is dark in the morning when I run now). I miss it, but I will get right back to it after the Denver Half. I have also added one day of biking/week for cross training and I am really liking the change from running.

That about wraps it up. It was my birthday last weekend so I am 37 now. I can't believe it. I don't feel 37. I feel about 24 most days (ask Dan... I still laugh at fart jokes). I even laughed today when my boss said "arrears." Hahahaha! She said "rear." Seriously. Good thing she is cool.

Back in Training Mode

2009-09-05T13:42:00.004-06:00

It seems like I feel lost these days without something to train for. Like my whole life is meaningless. Just kidding. But I did struggle with letting my body heal up after Pikes. I finally forced myself to take a week off. It lasted 3 days, but it worked. I am back to a full schedule of running plus one day of biking (thanks again to Dan for fixing my mountain bike!). So I am officially training for the Denver Half Marathon, which is only six weeks away. Yikes! I should probably get myself registered.

I am changing up the schedule though a little to add some speed work because I would like to finish this 1/2 marathon in under 2 hours. I am realistic though so I will be happy with anything under 2:05, and I can live with anything under 2:11. The 1/2 is October 18, so I have to be ok with the fact that there could be snow on the ground for it, or it could be sunny and hot.

My speedwork consists of intervals on the track on Tuesdays and tempo runs on Thursdays. So far, my paces are right on track with what MacMillan says I need to do to finish in under 2 hours. It's definitely different than the Pikes training I did, but it is nice to be running fast (or at least faster) again.

Writing Names

2009-09-01T19:11:00.001-06:00

This is what Noah showed me right before I left for work this morning!

My Little Artist

2009-08-30T09:52:00.002-06:00

Noah drew this earlier today all by himself!!!

I Have a Butt Problem

2009-08-27T16:13:00.004-06:00

But probably not the kind you are thinking.

Basically, I am pretty sure I jacked up a muscle (either my glute or my high left hamstring) by picking up running again too quickly after Pikes Peak. I probably should have waited longer than 3 days to resume running. The pain started last weekend when I bent down to pick up one of Noah's ridiculously large array of toys and I felt a twinge. That's when I told Dan that my butt hurt. Hence the title of this blog post.

Then I did intervals on Tuesday because I am trying to get speedier for the Denver Half Marathon. While running a 46 second 200M (a 200M PR for me), I felt the twinge again but this time it really hurt.

Yesterday I didn't run at all, which I think probably helped. But this morning I attempted a 3 mile tempo run and it went from bad to worse. As I was going up my first uphill, I saw that a dude running with his dog was gaining on me. Pride goeth before a fall. I know that is true because I really picked up the pace because I didn't want him to pass me. Big mistake. By the time I got to the top of the hill, the guy was passing me anyway and my legs were wasted. Now everything hurts and I am relegated to taking a week off of running.

The good news is that Dan fixed my mountain bike today. So I will be biking and maybe swimming for the next week instead of running. I am also due for new running shoes, so I am going to get those tomorrow. Hopefully by this time next week, my legs will feel better and I'll be back on track to my next 1/2 Marathon PR.

Uncle Mikey's Visit

2009-08-23T07:24:00.008-06:00

I am a little behind on my blog posts, but here are some pictures from Mike's visit. Noah had a blast with his Uncle Mikey. So did Dan (especially with the fishing!).

Yum: This is the first time Noah has held a fish: Fishing near Aspen:

Getting clean in the river. I will spare you the pics of Uncle Mikey doing the same:

King of the campsite:

Classy:

Breakfast:

I also have some pictures from the Maroon Bells somewhere. I will try to find them and post them sometime this week.

Last Pikes Post, I Promise

2009-08-18T20:54:00.001-06:00

Pro photos are posted and they are the best ones of any race I have ever run. Click here if you are interested in seeing them!

Pikes Peak Ascent Race Report

2009-08-16T09:26:00.010-06:00

Subtitle: Into Thin (and Thinner... and Thinner...) Air

On race morning, the alarm went off at 4:45. My first thought was, "Why is my alarm going off this early on a Saturday?" And then I remembered and I was up. Dan and Noah came with us to see us off (thanks, Dan!). Debbie, my PPA running buddy, showed up just after 5 and we were on our way to Manitou Springs by 5:20. The sun came up and the weather was absolutely perfect by the time we got to Manitou. Debbie and I picked up our race numbers and checked our gear for the top of the peak. We posed for a few pics and it was time to go!

I usually do my race reports by the mile, but you can't really do that for Pikes Peak because the miles are drastically different. Skyrunner.com has a Pikes Peak pace calculator that breaks it into sections and gives you times to shoot for based on your goal, so that is how I'm doing the race report. My goal times are in red. The first time was for a 4:30 ascent and the second time was for a 5:00 ascent. Here we go...

Ruxton: 5:56-6:36 This is the section that goes to the turnoff at Ruxton Street on our way to the trail. I finished this section in just over 4 minutes. I probably should have run it slower, but I was really excited. It is only a gentle upgrade.

Hydro Street: 17:01-18:54 From Ruxton to the turnoff at Hydro Street, you get your first taste of real uphill. I reached Hydro Street in approximately 15:30. I was still running a little faster than I maybe should have, but I was proud to be ahead of goal pace.

Top of W's: 54:16-1:00:18 The W's are one of the steepest sections of the trail and Matt Carpenter (a famous trail runner who has won this race a number of times) says that you really need to conserve energy here. I sort of did, but probably not enough. I about flipped when I looked at my watch at the top of the W's because I was still a full 2 minutes ahead of my dream time goal. I was actually a little frustrated by this section because the trail was really crowded with runners and I couldn't get around anyone because the trail is so narrow.

No Name Creek: 1:19:07-1:27:54 Running 3 minutes ahead of 4:30 pace!!! I felt absolutely great at this point and was running well.

7.8 mi to Summit Sign: 1:47:11-1:59:06 Still 3 minutes ahead. Still feeling great! I saw a few dark clouds move in and started praying for good weather. It pretty much worked because they rolled on out of the area!

Barr Camp: 2:17:10-2:32:24 Almost 4 minutes ahead of dream pace. They had the best aid station at Barr Camp. I was starving by this point and they had grapes and M&Ms and chex mix. I felt fabulous after that aid station!

Bottomless Pit: 2:37:08-2:54:36 Still somewhere near 2:34! I don't remember much about this section except for the fact that the trail started getting drastically steeper. My legs also started to feel tired.

A-Frame: 3:12:14-3:33:36 Here's where I started to really lose it. I hit the A- frame (a shelter near timberline) at somewhere around 3:18. I puked just after the A-Frame and then really started to lose time.

2 Miles to Go: 3:39:14-4:03:36 I don't even know where I was time-wise at this point. I quit looking at the watch. Too demoralizing. I think there was an aid station near the 2 miles to go point that had Skittles. I know I had some somehow that I was eating one at a time with a sip of water, but I don't really remember where they came from. I swear that candy got me to the top. Yay Skittles! It hailed at some point in this section, but I was too sick and tired to even care. Luckily, the hail storm was short-lived and there was no lightning in the area so they didn't have to turn anyone around.

1:Mile to Go: 4:02:11-4:29:06 No idea time-wise here either. I was essentially brain dead by now. I kept having to stop because I thought I was going to puke again and my head was spinning. I remember that with about 1/2 a mile to go, someone was handing out PBR beer. Just the thought almost made me hurl again.

Top of Peak: 4:30:00-5:00:00 Finish time (on my watch): 5:03:12 I was close, but did not quite hit my goal. Guess I'll have to run it again.

The top of the mountain was a trip, I guess. I don't really remember much of it because I felt so crappy. Dan said that people were crossing the finish line like zombies out of Night of the Living Dead. He said he'd never seen runners look so wrecked at the end of a race. I know I just sort of collapsed to the ground at some point and laid down for a while because my head was dizzy and my whole body was weak. I am not sure why. I have been up there a bazillion times and never had a problem with the altitude. Must have to do with the exertion I guess? A little later, I watched a dude at the finish try to put his warm pants on for about 10 minutes. He couldn't get his foot to go in the leg hole. You get seriously uncoordinated at that altitude.

Anyway, just after I crossed the finish line, I saw Dan and Noah and I just started bawling. Still not sure why except that I was so glad to be done. I forgot to put on my warm clothes right away, so I was totally freezing. I couldn't think straight. Dan took me into the shop at the top of Pikes and bought me doughnuts. I was too sick to eat them at first, but eventually they tasted good!

We waited at the top for Debbie. She made it too in just over 5:30!!! The cutoff for the top is 6:30, so we both blew that away!

I'm so glad I finished because I love the finishers jacket!!! The medal is pretty cool too.

The volunteers at the aid stations for this race are amazing! They have to carry all that stuff in! Also, Search and Rescue people were all over the trail... at least every 1/2 mile for the last 4 miles or so. I just have to send out a big thank you to them because they were so encouraging and it was nice to know they were there in case something went wrong.

At the top, someone asked me if I will ever do this race again. My answer was something along the lines of, "Hell no!" But on the way down in the car, I started thinking about how I will train differently when I run this again. Probably not next year...but someday....

It's Tomorrow

2009-08-14T20:26:00.002-06:00

I can't believe it's really here. Pikes Peak Ascent is really tomorrow. I am ready. My sweat check bag is packed, race day clothes are laid out, my carbos have been loaded, and my pee is exactly the right color: not so dark that it indicates dehydration and not so light that I am going to get hyponatremia. After freaking out for 1/2 the day, I finally read what can only be described as an optimal race forecast and started visualizing myself finishing strong. I have my desired splits all written out on a piece of paper folded up in the little pocket in my running shorts. I don't think there is any way I could be more prepared. The rest is up to fate (and a whole bunch of running). It's just a hill, right?

I Am Totally Freaking Out

2009-08-13T16:40:00.003-06:00

About the Pikes Peak Ascent. What was I thinking signing up for that thing? I am so nervous. But I am also so excited. In less than 48 hours I will be finished with the thing. I can't beleive it's finally here. Do you think I'll sleep at all for the next two nights? My strategy is to run the first 2-3 miles at a pace that feels slightly challenging. Then, into the "Ws" (a series of insane switchbacks), I am thinking about running the straights and walking the hairpin turns (about 20 seconds each). Then in the middle of the race, there is a 2-3 mile section that is "flatter" (at least not a 15% grade) that I am going to try to get done in a solid time. Then comes the zombie walk/run to the top. Goal time is supposed to be flatland marathon time +30 so I am thinking that is 5 hours. But I am shooting for 4:30 because my marathon was at 5280 feet. We'll see how it goes. Mostly I just want the weather to hold out long enough for me to finish. Right now it looks good.

P.S. I am way behind on blog posts right now because starting school has made my life crazy. I still have tons of pics to post from Uncle Mikey's visit. I will try to catch up next week.

Back to School

2009-08-09T08:51:00.002-06:00

Tomorrow is my first day officially back at work for the school year. I am both excited and no excited for it. I am not excited about going back to spending every weekday away from my little guy. But I am excited (and stressed) about some of the changes going on at work. I think some of them will be great for kids. But I worry that the highly charged political climate there is going to detract from services for kids for a while. I am definitely happy to be going back to work with a really cool staff though. They make it easier to deal with the work politics.

Copper Triangle Bike Ride

2009-08-06T09:25:00.003-06:00

Dan is a rock star!!! He rode 80 miles over 3 mountain passes. Fremont Pass, Tennessee Pass, and Vail Pass. He finished in great time and didn't even collapse at the end. Congrats, Dan! Here are a few pictures from the race.

View from the condo we stayed in:

Dan starting the race:
Early at the finish line:After the race:

Taper Time

2009-07-31T07:14:00.002-06:00

I am fully into my taper for Pikes. I do 12 today and that is going to feel so short after the 20 last week. After I am done, we need to pack up and get out of here. We are headed to Copper Mountain because Dan is riding Copper Triangle tomorrow. Go Dan!! Then, Dan's brother, Mike, is meeting us at Copper and we are headed out for a couple days of camping. I'll probably just do a couple of 5 milers up there. Should be fun!

Mom Things Part 2: The Resolution of the Fit

2009-07-30T20:26:00.002-06:00

When I was last on here, I wrote about Noah's bedtime story fit. I am back to tell you how we handled it. So, there we are, locked in our bedroom with Noah banging on our door yelling "I want another story!" After about 5 minutes of that, I went out, picked him up, carried him back to bed and told him that he had already had his story. I told him good night and left his room. The screaming and crying continued and he came out 2 more times and I just repeated the same thing. On the third time, I also told him that if he came out again, he would have to sit in the stairs (his time out place). That did it. He didn't come out again and he quit crying and fell asleep within about 5 minutes. It felt like forever though. Any other suggestions?

A Few Mom Things: Fits, the Grocery Store, and Going Back to Work

2009-07-28T17:25:00.003-06:00

Noah has been throwing fits. I mean crazy screaming, yelling, running in circles, throwing himself on the ground fits. Two nights ago, he didn't want to go to bed so he was yelling and screaming that he wanted another story. Dan had already set a limit of one story because it was late, so there was no way were backing down. So Dan basically told him "no" in a calm voice and left the room. Noah was screaming and Dan figured he would try to follow him, so he came into our bedroom (where I already was) and locked the door. Noah came running across the loft and started banging on the door and yelling and screaming, "I want another story." (Crystal, if you are reading this, it reminded me of a story you told about Will at this age). What would you have done at this point? I'll come back tomorrow and tell you what we did.

On a brighter note, I saved $18 with coupons at the grocery store yesterday. I couldn't believe it. I've never saved that much!!! More money saved for Spain!!!

In 12 days, I go back to work for the school year. I always have a difficult time adjusting. One of the hardest things is simply managing the new schedule: working, spending time with Noah and Dan, running/ working out, and keeping the house from looking like a tornado hit it. One of the biggest issues I am having right now is menu planning. I am trying really hard to avoid processed foods, but those are the easiest ones to prepare. Do you have any quick and easy recipes that use natural or at least unprocessed foods?

It's a Colorado Summer

2009-07-26T19:29:00.006-06:00

It must be. So much camping! Last weekend we went to the Dumont Lake Campground outside of Steamboat Springs. We drove up Friday afternoon so we were there by about 5:00. So we get to the site we had reserved... and someone else was there. Turns out that someone else had taken the site they reserved so they took ours. Just so you know, taking someone else's reserved site is seriously bad camping etiquette. Anyway, so we tried to get the campground host to work it all out (because of course all of the sites were full for the night) and he was nowhere to be found. Someone called the area forest ranger and I called the reservation system, but we never did get it worked out. It turned out that the people in our site were really cool and they had family staying at a different campsite, so they moved in with their family and gave us the site. Thank goodness they did because the campground host didn't show up until everyone was leaving on Sunday. We saw the ranger chewing him out on our way out.

Anyway, by the time we were actually setting up our tent, it was after 7:00 and the mosquitos were horrid. Luckily we had bug spray and we just ate, made s'mores, and went in the tent. The next morning, Dan and Noah went fishing. I took a little 5 mile run up the trail towards the Rabbit Ears, and when I got back, Dan took a long and strenuous bike ride down to Steamboat and back up over the pass. He is a crazy person, but I know it was a great training session for Copper Triangle, which he is riding this Friday!!!

Noah and I headed to Steamboat after his nap and got the picture of him riding the pass on our way. He is truly a badass!!!

We did a nice little hike around the lake that night. The wildflowers up there are incredible right now and it was just at that exact right time of the evening when the sun is setting and the colors get brighter. Beautiful!

On Sunday, we wandered around Steamboat for a while. We did a little shopping at FM Light & Sons (can't miss it if you go to Steamboat, literally) and had lunch at the Rio (some of the best Margaritas in the world). Then we headed home with a little detour for fishing at Georgetown Lake.

We are home this weekend, but we have more camping in store for next. Friday we are headed to Copper Mountain for Dan's race (staying in a hotel right in the Center Village - yay for the race participant rate Dan got) and then Saturday Dan's brother Mike is meeting us there. He is coming all the way from Minnesota so we are really excited to see him. Saturday night and Sunday we are camping at Bogan Flats which is out west sort of near Aspen and Crested Butte. Should be beautiful!

Ouch!

2009-07-25T12:59:00.004-06:00

My 20 miler is done as of about 2 hours ago. YES! I took a cold bath afterwards, but my feet are still pretty sore. My legs feel good, unless I walk down stairs. SO now it's time to taper, which means the longest run I will do in the next 3 weeks is 12 miles. YES! again. I had some new tunes for the run today thanks to some time spent on the internet googling run songs last night. Here are my 10 favorites:

1. Boom Boom Pow, Black Eyed Peas
2. Waking Up in Vegas, Katy Perry
3. My Milkshakes, Kelis
4. C'Mon C'Mon, The Von Bondies (the theme from Rescue Me)
5. Talk Dirty to Me, Poison (shut up!)
6. Stronger, Kanye West
7. Rehab, Amy Winehouse
8. Anytime, Eve 6
9. Sexyback, Justin Timberlake
10. So What, Pink

Most of this is stuff I wouldn't normally listen to, but it's great motivation/ distraction for running.

He Passed!

2009-07-23T19:56:00.004-06:00

Noah passed his first swim level last Friday! It's Swim Ladder Level 1 (I don't know how that correlates to Red Cross levels), but I am really impressed by the face that he knows front float, back float (both with help), and all the kicking and bobbing stuff. Ms. Gabby was great! Noah loved her and would do anything she said. I am so proud of my little guy. The other day at the pool, one of the other moms asked me how old he is. When I said 3, she said she couldn't believe how great of a swimmer he is!!! :) Here are some pics.

Take Your Kid to Work Day

2009-07-22T13:35:00.002-06:00

It's not really the official "take your kid to work" day, but I took Noah to my job today. I wasn't really supposed to work today, but someone asked me to help with some planning for next school year so I said I would. The good news is the extra pay! The bad news is that now I am exhausted! Noah was really good, but it is hard to entertain a 3-year-old and follow what's going on in a meeting at the same time. I am not planning on doing that again anytime soon.

6/100

2009-07-20T09:21:00.003-06:00

One of Suzanne's friends had this on FB and I though it was interesting.

The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books here. How do your reading habits stack up?Instructions: Copy this into your NOTES. Look at the list and put an ‘x’ after those you have read.

1 Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen – X
2 The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte - X
4 Harry Potter series – JK Rowling – X
5 To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee - X
6 The Bible (I have read most of it, but I can't promise I've read every word.)
7 Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte – X
8 Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell - X
9 His Dark Materials – Philip Pullman -
10 Great Expectations – Charles Dickens -X (Hated it, but had to read it in high school)
11 Little Women – Louisa M Alcott – X
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy - (Supposed to read in high school, didn't!)
13 Catch 22 – Joseph Heller - X
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare -
15 Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier – X
16 The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien -
17 Birdsong – Sebastian Faulk
18 Catcher in the Rye – JD Salinger – X
19 The Time Traveler’s Wife – Audrey Niffenegger -X (love this one!!!!)
20 Middlemarch – George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind – Margaret Mitchell -X
22 The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald – X
23 Bleak House – Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy - (tried...way too boring)
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams -X
27 Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoyevsky -(another one I was supposed to read)
28 Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck – X
29 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll -
30 The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame -
31 Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy -
32 David Copperfield – Charles Dickens - X (and hated every minute of it)
33 Chronicles of Narnia – CS Lewis – X
34 Emma – Jane Austen –
35 Persuasion – Jane Austen -
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – CS Lewis – X
37 The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini -
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin – Louis De Bernieres
39 Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden -
40 Winnie the Pooh – AA Milne - X
41 Animal Farm – George Orwell -X
42 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown – X
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez -X (hated it)
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney – John Irving -
45 The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables – LM Montgomery – X
47 Far From The Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy - X (hated it)
48 The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood - X
49 Lord of the Flies – William Golding -X
50 Atonement – Ian McEwan -
51 Life of Pi – Yann Martel -
52 Dune – Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons -
54 Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen –
55 A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth -
56 The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens -
58 Brave New World – Aldous Huxley – X
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night – Mark Haddon -
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera – Gabriel Garcia Marquez –
61 Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck -X
62 Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov -
63 The Secret History – Donna Tartt -
64 The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold -
65 Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas-
66 On The Road – Jack Kerouac - X (loved it!)
67 Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy -
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding -
69 Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick – Herman Melville - X (hated it)
71 Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens -
72 Dracula – Bram Stoker - X
73 The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett – X (loved it)
74 Notes From A Small Island – Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses – James Joyce
76 The Inferno – Dante – X
77 Swallows and Amazons – Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal – Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray -
80 Possession – AS Byatt -
81 A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens - X
82 Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple – Alice Walker – X
84 The Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary – Gustave Flaubert -
86 A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry -
87 Charlotte’s Web – EB White – X
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom –
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad - X (hated it)
92 The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint -
93 The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks
94 Watership Down – Richard Adams -
95 A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole -
96 A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers – Alexandre Dumas -
98 Hamlet – William Shakespeare – X
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory -X
100 Les Miserables – Victor Hugo

Well, I got 40, which might sound good, but I probably should have read more considering I was an English major....

Training On the Top of Pikes Peak

2009-07-17T10:03:00.004-06:00

My running buddy, Debbie, and I drove down to the peak yesterday to run the top part of the peak as part of our training for the Ascent. We drove to the top (beautiful, by the way) and it was SUPER WINDY! On the way up, we were delayed a little by cars practicing for the Pikes Peak Auto Climb which was this weekend. Dan and Noah would have loved to see all the cool race cars if they were there too. Anyway, so we started at the top of the Barr Trail and ran/walked down just over 3 miles to the A-Frame, a shelter that is right at timberline. Once we got off the top of the peak, the wind died down and it was really a beautiful day; literally there was not a cloud in the sky when we started. The trail up that high has some sections that are really rocky/bouldery, so we didn't run as much as we probably could have. Going back up was a different story. There were plenty of sections that I should have run that I didn't because I was dying from the lack of oxygen. But I did manage to run some of it, and it was a really good workout. I didn't bring the camera because I didn't want to carry it, but I took some pics on my phone that I posted on facebook if you are interested. All in all, we did 6.5 miles 12,000 and 14,000 feet, and we had a great time!

I Can Ride My Bike With No Handlebars

2009-07-15T13:55:00.003-06:00

OK, maybe he needs the handlebars, but he is definitely getting the hang of it:

Grocery Champ

2009-07-13T16:17:00.004-06:00

I finally did it! I am the most amazing grocery shopper ever. I remembered both the cloth bags and the coupons at the store today. ((Insert picture of me with the sun's rays shining down as if from heaven on my angelic head.)) Halleluia!

Of course, maybe it's because Dan was working from home today and I went by myself while Noah took his nap. Things that make you go, hmmmmmmm.

I'm Tired but Happy

2009-07-12T21:23:00.002-06:00

We have had an insane couple of days. Here's what they looked like:

Friday:

1. Wildflower hike with Noah
2. Swimming at our neighborhood pool
3. Park and flying Dan's model airplane

Saturday:

1. Farmer's market with Dan and Noah (found some great calabacitas, which I'd never had before and tamales!)
2. Noah's friend's birthday party
3. Castle Rock Outdoor Movie Night: Journey to the Center of the Earth. They had a band that played before the movie and Noah danced his little booty off. Dan has video that I will try and post. It is hilarious.

Sunday:

1. I helped throw a baby shower for a chick I work with who is having triplets. Yes, TRIPLETS. Spontaneous too. No fertility stuff. Can you imagine???

2. Good news: Dan made veggie manicotti for dinner. YUM!!!

In these three days, I also managed to get in 2 shorter runs (a 3 and a 5 miler) and a strength training session (30 minutes). Time for stuff to slow down.

Music in the Meadows: Dotsero

2009-07-10T09:37:00.007-06:00

Our neighborhood associations do about 4 concerts every summer and they call them "Music in the Meadows." Last Wednesday, the band was Dotsero, a Colorado jazz band that has been voted best in Denver for a ridiculous number of years. They were pretty good, but modern smooth jazz just really isn't my thing. I prefer that wild jazz, like Ben Markley, a dude I took Dan to see downtown for Valentine's Day. Anyway, it was a gorgeous night and we all had fun. Here are some pics:

Noah getting a baloon animal made: The show: Swinging at the park right by the concert: Noah with his cupcake:

I Like the Stairmaster

2009-07-07T13:56:00.003-06:00

Seriously, I do. I think it's because it's something different than uphill running on the dreadmill, which I hate. Anyway, today I did nine miles all uphill and three of them were on the Stairmaster (the kind with the actual steps that move). It felt like I could have kept going when I finished, but now my legs are super sore. Tomorrow will be a leg rest day (I'll still do about 30 minutes of core and arms, hopefully) and then Thursday I am doing my 18 miler. It is going to be insanely hot, so I am planning on getting up around 5:30 or 6 so I can get most of the miles out of the way before it hits 90. The race is in one month and 8 days. SCARY!

The Mad Shopper Strikes Again

2009-07-06T17:49:00.001-06:00

This week, I made it to the grocery store with my cloth bags, but no coupons. When will I get it together? Ugh!

More July Fourth Pics

2009-07-06T07:46:00.006-06:00

Noah playing a fishing game at the festival: Waiting for his turn on the bouncy slide:

Noah can put on his own clothes now. Notice the backwards jammy top:

Fireworks:

At the fireworks show:

Noah and I at the festival:

Independence Day

2009-07-05T21:35:00.004-06:00

No, we didn't spend July 4th blowing up aliens. But we did get to watch some stuff 'splode! We went to our neighborhood's Fourth of July festival and then came home for a nap. After that, we were going to go to Castle Rock's celebration, but it poured rain for like 2 hours. Luckily, it cleared up in time for the fireworks. Here are a couple of pictures from the day. I will post more tomorrow hopefully if this stupid computer isn't moving so slowly!

Swimming, For Real

2009-07-04T08:21:00.005-06:00

Noah is starting to swim by himself! He can totally go across the pool by himself with a noodle and he is starting to get it even without a flotation device! He has another session of swimming lessons starting in a week and a half and I am excited to watch his progress! Here are some pictures of him swimming with Daddy.