WAAAAAHHHHH!!!!!!

I went running yesterday. My Forerunner 305 quit working :( I haven't even owned it a full 90 days yet! Undaunted, I used the "stopwatch" feature on my phone & timed myself. I am SO bummed! :(

Then, I found out I'm going to be an aunt "again"!!!!! My younger sister is pregnant with her second child. She's kind of aimless; she wants to be married and have the happy family life, but she doesn't make wise choices. I'm pretty disappointed because I thought she had learned her lesson the first time around; her pregnancy was pretty risky and my nephew was born prematurely, but thankfully they both made it through. And, yeah, I'll say it: I'm jealous. It just doesn't seem fair. While I don't have my life together 100%, I know can be a better mother than she is. But, for whatever reason, she's going to bring another life into the world & it seems I'm never going to get the chance. In the meantime, I'm a very cool aunt. My nephew & I adore each other.

Enough of the pity party. I'm going to make jambalaya.

Alexa Jovanna is here!

Here she is, all 6 lbs and 9 oz of her! My first niece :) She looks just like my brother Craig. Jovi (my sister in law) is doing great! Craig says all she (AJ) does is sleep & she's so mellow & laid back & not too loud, either. Wonder how long that's going to last?? Hopefully, they'll be home tomorrow. Between telling me about his precious new daughter's entry into this world, my bro just had to give me more marathoning tips. Like the wearing the right shoes, starting off slowly & not worrying about speed. . .

I missed running yesterday & just relaxed & enjoyed the holiday. Might hit the pavement today, though. Happy training everyone! :)

Pain, Pain Go Away. . .

It was HOT yesterday! Did 5 miles in about 1 hr 7 mins. The tendonitis in my left leg is acting up again. It comes & goes. Does anyone ever have those aches that pop up & go away as you keep running?? With me, it's the pain behind my left knee, calf & Achilles; then it's the right ankle. They always show up the 1st 10 mins of the run, go away, then come again, then go away.

The dreaded "toe cramps" got me yesterday. They cramped even worse when I got into the tub of c-c-cold water. Ugh. Will gave me a nice foot massage after I was done. :)

There would be days like this, Mama said. . .

After church I head to the "Y" to do XT. I'm driving along, in a mellow mood, when suddenly, a small beige colored Toyota Carolla is stopped in front of me. The driver (a little old lady about 80, dressed in a cute red suit) proceeds to get out of her car & is coming at me, swearing like I had just called her an ugly name. All this in happening in the middle of Capitol Street! I didn't know what the heck was going on; I asked her if she needed help & she kept cursing me out! Between curse words, I figured she thought I was tailgating her, but only when she slowed to 20 mph. I assumed she was slowing because she had engine trouble. Now, had I been the hellion I used to be, I might have switched the truck into four-wheel drive & rolled over her little car & kept going about my business as if nothing was wrong. I simply shrugged, got back in my truck and went on to the "Y". Eventually, she drove off, too.

I get to work Monday and my boss sent me an email from an agency that gave us $170K--back in 2004 with a little comment of "Kim, handle this." So, I pull the general ledger and it took me a little while but I managed to complete the report. Was feeling pretty good until the NEXT day when she sends me an email saying she needs RECEIPTS! What th'????? On top of that, I had an auditor to deal with. Was so glad for Monday's run. Did my usual 5 miles in 1 hr 5 mins.

Anybody want to hire a disgruntled, uncertified accountant??

Lovin' This Weather!

I shaved 4 minutes (yes, 4 minutes, ladies & germs) off my 9 mile time from last week. It was so nice running along the Rez--very scenic!!!! I'm feeling invincible right now, which is a dangerous thing. Must stick to the schedule, though. But, c'mon, a little speed training can't hurt??? Ok, forget I said that.

It's audit season at work *sigh*. I have one last auditor coming Monday & hopefully, she'll be done by the afternoon. Our big annual audit is still in process, but the auditors are done with the field work and the previous audit (worker's comp) did not go so well at all. I won't get on my soapbox about how insurance companies are bloodsucking leeches (oops, did I say that?? Apologies to anyone in the insurance industry).

After church, I'm going to the gym for the first time in weeks! Enjoy the rest of your weekend, fellow MMers! :)

Run, Baby, Run

I finished running 5 miles in 1 hr & 3 mins, which is 2 minutes faster than my previous fastest time. Go me! :) What made the difference?? Hydration! I drank a liter & a half of water a few hours before, when I normally drink just a liter. On the other hand, the biggest difference was yesterday's cooler temps. It was quite simply a perfect evening to run!

Hopefully these temps will last until Saturday! See y'all then. :)

Mama's Girl

Tried 3:1 intervals yesterday. Felt like I had lead in my shoes. Was it the humidity??? My fastest pace was 7:53, but I finished 5 miles about 1hr, 6 mins, which is a minute slower than my fastest 5 mile time. Also, my right calf muscle was "tight" & cramped a little. I did stretch before I ran.

We went to visit my family for Mother's Day. Even though I'm nearly 40 years old, she still fusses over me as if I'm a baby. They're having an addition put on to their house and she showed me the guest room under construction and told me that Will & I just HAVE to come there & spend a weekend (after the room is complete). Now, if we lived an hour away from them, sure, I wouldn't mind. But only 20 minutes!?!

If it doesn't rain, I'll be planting tomatoes for XT. One of these days, I hope to get to they gym again. Happy Training Everyone! :)

Missed that Left Turn at "Albuquerque"

Anybody remember "Bugs Bunny" saying that?? I kept missing the first hydrating station! So I had to make up the distance. It wasn't too bad. I finished in just over 2 hours. My legs feel OK. Still have some minor Achilles tendon & calf issues--nothing stretching and a cold bath can't fix. I bought some more socks from Fleet Feet & a beaded necklance for my sister and went to Everyday Gourmet to do some more Mother's Day shopping. Saw Suzanne (?) there buying wedding gifts. Please forgive me if I got your name wrong!

Think I'm ready to move up to 3:1 intervals now. Have a good week everyone!

Rambling on, maybe a little too much. . .

I ran 5 miles Monday & Wednesday. Including Saturday's run, it'll be 19 miles! Getting closer to 26.2! The aches are still at bay. Guess my body is finally getting adjusted to the extra distance. The speed training looks intriguing. I would like to complete Chicago in 4 hours. At the rate I'm going, it's going to be closer to 6 hours. I'm just so afraid if I do any extra running outside of the 3 days, I'll get hurt.

How many 10K'ers were there total?? The number I had said "86" (the year I graduated high school, which is how I remember it)? Not bad for my first 10K! \o/

Changing paragraphs a bit, I've been considering a career change. Reading Matt's blog kind of prompted me. I'm nearly 40 and my life plan hasn't come together as well as I wanted, but in some ways, better than I expected. Not being able to have children has been a challenge to me. Often I cry out to God, just asking Him , "Why??" Especially after I hear about children being abused, abandoned, & neglected. Ok, back to the career change: I had considered being a writer or an elementary school teacher. When I was a little girl, I wanted to be a nurse, but couldn't stand the sight of blood & guts, then I decided I wanted to be a teacher, but later decided I wanted to make more money. So, it was the business field for me, namely accounting. It's useful work and I've always been gainfuly employed, but, it's unfulfilling. Do you ever get the feeling you were destined to do something great, but have no clue as to what it is??? That's how I've felt, much of my life. Hopefully, I'll have more clarity this year. :)

Ok, enough of that. See you all tomorrow bright and EARLY at Fleet Feet! :)

Baby, We Were Born to Run

Counting Saturday (which was only because I was with you guys & other encouraging non MMers) and yesterday, I had 2 good runs! I'm not in pain anymore--it DOES get better, YAY! Maybe next week I can up my intervals to 3:1. Today will be a yardwork day. Our lawn looks frightful--may need a machete to chop through the backyard. And, I still have yet to ready my tomato bed. I really like homegrown tomatoes!

Haters???

It never ceases to amaze me that people would want to rain on someone's parade. I was floored after reading Mark's post about the "runner snob" (who's also created in the image of God) and hearing Shelley's comments confirm that. What a sad existence she must lead! I would have looked on this boisterous, exuberant, determined group with awe because that they're undertaking something many of them have NEVER done before! Too bad she didn't get it.

A friend of ours asked to use my marathon training as an illustration in his sermon about encouragement/paracleits (apologies--my Greek is bad). The point he made was that we need to be encouraging to each other because sometimes, life gets hard--just like marathon training can be difficult sometimes. So, he made the parallel with MM & the church. It was a good sermon.

That's the most important thing I've learned from MM--to be more of an encourager. It's not easy when you're so used to insults & judgmental thinking. As the youth say (I feel so OLD when I talk like that) "Don't hate, congratulate!"

It's SUPPOSED to Hurt

Well maybe not, but long ago, when I was doing only about 3 miles & calling myself a runner I didn't get the kind of aches & pains I'm getting now. The only training I got this week was a little over 5 miles on Monday. Then, along came illness. If I hadn't preregistered for the 10K Cannonball Run and remembered that "I AM A MARATHONER" I would have stayed in bed. Almost overslept, though.

It was nice running with Christa, Kayra, Kelvin, & Shelly (hey y'all!) The Raymond countryside was just gorgeous! I grew up near this area so it brought back many wonderful childhood memories. Seeing the Confederate & Union "reenactment guys" in their period uniforms and campsites added a nice historical touch.

I think I have tendonitis in my left leg which is why it's been giving me such fits. It wasn't too bad today--guess this week's inactivity helped. But, I don't want to miss any more training days so I can get stronger & faster!