More Tutu-Talk & a Sneak Peek

Happy Friday again!  Has it been a week?  I'm pretty excited as tomorrow I get to drive to Kansas City and run the 5K Glow Run with an old friend that I have not seen for years!  The light-up tutus are packed and ready to go, we're going to have a blast.  I'm sure there will be many photos. 

I ran an easy 2 miles on the treadmill this morning just to loosen up, I was pretty stiff after running 3 days straight and then resting yesterday.  I called it easy, but my legs dripping with sweat beg to differ! LOL

What I really want to talk about today is tutus.  Yep, here I go again!  I am wearing a store bought tutu tomorrow for the Glow Run and it feels SO comfortable.  It has a huge band of elastic and hugs my hips, I don't think I will mind it at all.   I thought I might want other tutus for my upcoming races, so I attempted to make one of my own.  I thought this might save a little bit of money, especially since a friend had a bunch of tulle she gave me.  I purchased elastic, read some online instructions and went to it! 

Things were looking good, although I noticed that it was going to take an ENORMOUS amount of tulle, so not much savings in the future if I had to purchase tulle.  

Here is the finished product.  I actually had to add another color b/c I ran out of tulle and STILL think there could have been more. 

Cute right?  Uh...well, cute sitting there, but there's a reason why I'm not modeling it.  It looks horrendous!  It's awful and even though I kept it short (10 inches) it's WAY too bulky & poofy.  Big fail!  Also, the elastic is not comfortable like my store bought tutu, it slips and feels like it would be all over the place when running.  

This wasn't the worst thing that could happen.  I admit I was a little pleased that this was a failure and I would just "have to" resort to purchasing my tutus in the future! ;)  I decided I really love the short & fluffy ones like my light-up tutu.  Not so bulky but still cute!  AND, even though the light-up one cost a bit more, the regular plain ones are only 12-13$ on Amazon.

I know, right about now you are amazed that I actually wrote a whole blog post of tutu rambling. That's just how I roll...and I'm not done yet! 

  So, if you recall, I had already been planning my Princess Half costume that I am going to wear.  Yes. 8 months in advance.  It's what I do.  Here is a little collage I put together of the elements and I am close to completing the look! 

After the tutu-fail, I immediately hopped on Amazon and ordered the light blue tutu by Legs Avenue that is just like the rainbow/light-up one I have.  I knew if I was going to wear a tutu, this was the kind I wanted.  So, here's a little peek at my Princess Half outfit! 

I know, the tag is still on my shirt, that's to keep me from wearing it.  LOL.  I LOVE it and I'm pretty excited to have it coming together.  I have compression socks that match and will be getting some white arm sleeves and a black velvet choker to complete the look.  Exciting, right? 

I was thinking today about how it might seem silly to others that I like dressing up for races.  I think it's really very similar to why I love Disney World so much. (stay with me here) 

 I never really let myself be a kid when I was younger.  I just wanted to be grown-up.  Now that I am grown up, I realize that I never just let loose and had FUN. When I go to Disney, I feel like a kid.  I wear matching silly shirts and mickey-ears, I ride coasters and take pictures with Winnie-the-Pooh.  

 Running is so challenging and I have gained so much from it, it only seems fitting to celebrate in similar fashion and have fun with it when the opportunity arises.  I know I don't have to justify myself to anyone and if people want to think I'm a bit crazy or don't take my running seriously, that's their choice.  I'll just be off running in my tutu anyway and won't pay any attention.  ;)

By the way, for those of you that don't know, Google Reader is shutting down Monday, you might want to consider using Bloglovin' to follow blogs, I really love it, I can just go there and see all of the blogs I follow and if any of them have posted anything new.  

Wide-angle Wednesday

Sharing another running shot that I took at my photo shoot on Sunday.  I was so excited when the mother of these children remembered that I had taken some previous shots of her daughter running and asked that I take some more! 

Lest you think I'm bias for running shots (ahem...since I am)  I take JUMPING photos too! ;)

 I hope everyone is having a nice week!  I'm trying to convince myself NOT to run this morning, I ran the last two mornings and I'm worried my body is going to revolt at some point if I push too much.  I was going to just run a couple times this week and then I have the Glow Run Saturday night, but I seem to be in a 

gotta-run-every-day-mode!  

I feel fantastic, but I am so paranoid about injury that I keep telling myself I cannot run daily because I might hurt myself.  Anyone else do this?  What do you think about running daily? Yay or Nay? 

That about says it all...

Yesterday I had a photo shoot and took some shots of this adorable little girl.   This morning I went out to run four miles and I was thinking of all the amazing words I might put with one of my favorites to explain how running makes me feel.  Joy, freedom of childhood, beauty...my mind kind of got lost in thought (which was a good thing because it was crazy-hot-and-humid! Shew!)  When I got home and went to add all my eloquent words, this came out instead...no more words necessary. 

 Hope everyone is off to a good start to the week!  Is it hot there?  This was the first really hot and humid morning and I felt it!

 

Happy Friday-Summer!

It's Friday AND the first day of Summer!  Yay! I hope everyone enjoys it.   For some reason, I ended up at the gym instead of a lovely first-day-of-summer run outdoors.   It was a bit muggy and Dallas wanted to run on the treadmill, so I relented and decided to make the most of my long run and enjoy zoning-out while running.   I love the lake pond view and watching the ripples in the water and the reflection of the clouds. 

So I was thinking (by now you should know this usually means a ramble...) about why THIS scares me so much:

 

The free weights area.  I have no idea what my dealio is, but I keep SAYING I'm going to cross train and do some lifting and then I don't.  A few reasons, I think.  The first and most obvious is that I'm obsessed with running.  I try to schedule cross training days, put myself in old sports bras and bad socks (trying to deter myself from running) and still end up running instead of cross training.  I KNOW I need to do it and that it will better my running in the long run, but I just don't wanna! 

*said in my best pout/whiny voice*

The second reason would be that I prefer the weight machines.  For some reason these are less intimidating.  I feel like walking over to that area and grabbing free weights puts me on display somehow.  I like my corner on the treadmill, facing out to the lake where I feel totally alone and can pretend no one else is watching.  Does anyone else feel this way?  Sigh.  I just need to schedule the days and DO IT.   *shudder*

So! Despite all my thinking,  it was a fantastic run this morning.  I wanted to get a longer run in before my weekend got crazybusy with petsitting.  I pushed just a bit to speed up my pace.  I did 5 miles in 53 minutes, which I think is one of my fastest 5 mile runs.  Felt fantastic!  I had to clean up my mess afterwards, I dripped sweat all over the place.  Yep.  I took a picture! LOL

am I the only person that sweats profusely?  I was seriously completely soaked.  I came home and enjoyed a big glass of chocolate almond milk.  YUMMY! 

Now I'm ready for the weekend, which means work...but it involves all sorts of furry-lovey-snuggly-pets, so I'm looking forward to it! I love my job.

I  hope everyone has a fantastic jump into Summer and a great weekend.  Any special Summery plans?  

Do you have trouble making yourself cross train?  Any suggestions?  What's your favorite cross training activity?  

Wide-angle Wednesday & a GIVEAWAY WINNER!

For those of you that are new to my blog, I'm a photographer as well as a runner, so every Wednesday I have Wide-angle Wednesday and I share one of my shots.  Today I announce the Rock City Skirt giveaway winner, so I found this shot appropriate. 

A bonus win today for the first person that can tell me WHERE in Disney World this photo was taken.  Let's see how many fellow Disney-lovers I have reading!  The winner will get a few running-fuel goodies from my stash. 

Without further rambling...(which you know is challenging for me! LOL)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

  Congratulations Katie Guymon Williams!  Check your inbox!  

So who knows where my mystery shot was taken?

Rainy Father's Day

Good Monday morning to you!  I hope everyone had a fabulous Father's Day weekend.  I'm a bit scatter-brained this morning, it was a fun weekend and ahem...I had a bit of whipped cream vodka last night with friends, so it may take a bit for me to put my thoughts in coherent order here! ;) 

If you are new to reading my blog, my husband Rey just recently went back on the road after being home recovering for eleven months with a rupturing a disc in his back.  It was hard having him gone again, but he came home just in time for Father's Day weekend!

 

 Savannah spent the night out for a birthday party, so it was just me and my guys yesterday morning.  We decided to go for a walk and realized only when walking out the door that it was raining.  Ah well, I love running in the rain, so walking in it works too!  It was a blast and I'm glad we didn't change our minds.  The dogs even enjoyed it.   Dallas & I had fun racing/sprinting up a few hills (you KNOW I cannot go out for a walk and not run just a bit!)

We were soaked!  I don't think you can see how wet we really were, but I eventually had to take my glasses off because I couldn't see through all the water on them. 

The rest of the day we spent playing poker and then had our good friends over for drinks and games last night.  It was a great day, although I'm not sure how my run will go this morning after having a few drinks last night!   Oh, and I'm excited to try Energybits this morning, I have been wanting to try them for a while, I'll do a  review after I see how they make me feel. 

I know, this was a pretty dull update, but they can't all be epic, right?  I'm actually a little nervous blogging lately, I have more followers than I really ever anticipated!  Thanks to all the new likes and followers.  If you want to know a little bit more about me, there are a couple tabs at the top of the page with info on my running story and why I chose the Princess Half for my first Half Marathon.

Don't forget to enter the  Rock City Skirt Giveaway  if you have not already!

What did you do for Father's Day?  Do you like to get out in the rain for a run or walk? 

GIVEAWAY! Who Wants Some Sparkly?!?!

I'm doing my first giveaway!  I'm pretty excited, I'm sure you cannot tell from the plethora of exclamation points!!!  I wanted my first giveaway to be something I really loved myself, so what better than a sparkly running skirt??!  Those of you that have been following me know that I have been collecting tutus and I'm forever planning my race outfits based on their sparkle.

Rock City Skirts has generously offered to give one of their sparkly skirts away on my blog.  Amy Maust, the owner of Rock City Skirts,  started making these skirts for herself to run in and her business grew from there.  I love that this company is  owned and operated by a runner.  Amy knows what the shape and feel of these skirts should be, because she's a runner herself. 

  I picked Cotton Candy because I didn't have anything pink yet in my running wardrobe.  (I know, you're shocked.)

Anyway, I have worn it a couple different ways, it's so versatile.   I can wear it down on my hips and it does not slip up at all,  but I also found that I really liked it up on my waist too.  I have not seen a lot of people wear them this way, so that's how I put it on for this shot.  I don't have the "typical" runners body and I think it's flattering to a variety of body types, I really like that. 

 It's super lightweight and does not interfere with my running in any way and the elastic on the waist is great, no sliding up or around, it reminds me a lot of my spibelt.  Every girl needs a little sparkle in her life, especially when she's pushing her limits and sweating gallons! 

Time to enter for your own!  This is also my first time using Rafflecopter, I think everything is in order, hopefully.  The Giveaway runs until the 18th at the strike of midnight (don't be late Cinderelly!)  I will announce the winner on Wide-angle Wednesday, June 19th. 

  a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Getting personal

First off, SHEW!  What a difference a day makes in a run (and my mood).  I don't normally run two days in a row but I just really wanted a do-over of yesterday's run.  I went out super early, the street lights were still on, and I just ran wherever I wanted.  I even tried out my new hat from Target, it worked really well!  (excuse the early morning grainy shot!)

 I wasn't running any faster or slower than yesterday, but I knew right away it was going to be a good run.  I just let everything go and ran. It was fantastic.  I ran out to my favorite path that always smells so good, there's tons of honeysuckle.  Pretty weeds flowers all along the path too! 

 So, what's so personal about that?  It was what was going on in my head that was personal.  

 I really let go of everyday life stuff and enjoyed the run.  At some point I had a little flash of a familiar picture in my head.  It's something that for years has occasionally popped in my head (do you have those kinds of things?  Memories of something pop in your head out of nowhere?) but more and more as I got older and started running.  I have never shared this with anyone, I don't think, so it feels pretty personal to put it out here...

When I was 12 or 13 I read a book.  I have NO clue what book it was (you can tell me if you  figure it out).  I have a feeling it was a Judy Bloom book.  I was very unhappy as an early teen, for lots of reasons, hormones and such, but probably what I allowed to effect me the most was my weight.  I was so consumed with what everyone thought of me, I'll take the blame for some of this, but being teased for years in grade school can take a toll.  

So, back to this book.  In the book, a girl, just like me, was teased and treated horribly by her schoolmates.   One summer, she decided she had had enough and went out into her back yard and ran in circles.  She ran and ran around her yard, all summer, dieted, and in the fall she was thin. (yes, totally realistic!  Sheesh.)  She went to a masquerade party with a mask on and no one knew who she was, but they all wanted to be her friend.  She tricked them, I remember that but not much more. The gist, she proved that she was still the same person and they were shallow, horrible people...or whatever. 

 I remember wanting so badly to do what she did.  I think I even went out and ran around my back yard once or twice.  I yo-yo dieted as well.  Ugh.  I  remember wishing and hoping I could show everyone how wrong they were to judge me.   I never did though.  I thought I didn't have enough willpower.   I struggled and my self-esteem suffered.

Obviously I didn't realize at the time how wrong the author was.  Sure, she was trying to point out that people are shallow and shouldn't judge, but I have realized something since then.  It wasn't that I didn't have willpower, it was that I was not only wanting it for all the wrong reasons, but I was looking in all the wrong places.  I was looking outside myself.  Looking to change just the outside for all the people on the outside. 

Those times when I realize I'm REALLY RUNNING and I'm really doing it, it's not for someone else.  It's not to prove anything to anyone, it's not to get skinny and have people like me.  It's for ME. It's inside, not out.  I feel strong, focused, and  accomplished.  Running isn't really about the outside, it's inside you, where you have to dig deep and push through.  I think I somehow thought if I looked the way others wanted me to, then they would see who I am, but I had it all wrong.  You have to find yourself  IN yourself and FOR yourself.  Oh geez, this is harder to put into words than I thought and I'm getting all philosophical.  

The bottom line is that I feel like I am more myself running than any other time and it has not a single thing to do with what I look like. (ok, that's a lie, I do love my cute running skirts and tutus! LOL) 

 When the vision of that girl popped into my head this morning I thought about how running is healing the hurt girl that I was.  I longed to run back then because I thought it would make me look the way I wanted to look.  It turns out that running is far more rewarding than I  had ever imagined. The way I look seems to only be a nice perk that doesn't mean much in comparison to the other things I have gained.

Has running healed you or made you a stronger person on the inside, in any way?  Did you ever think, before you started running, that running was such a "heady" activity?  

Wide-angle Wednesday

I sure do wish that I felt how this photo feels when I look at it. Funny tidbit, when I took it, I didn't see that tiny sweat bee hovering near the butterfly.  Photobomb!

Anyway, I'm just in a funk.  I have no idea why, it just seems a lot of stuff going on and none of it really good.  I went out for a run at the crack of dawn this morning and got in 4.28 miles.  I only looked at the Garmin twice to glance at my pace and just tried to "settle into it" (my mantra) but even going slow I had a stitch in my side the whole time and I got home and just wanted to cry.  It just didn't cheer me up like it usually does and if running doesn't cheer me up, nothing will.  

I'm sure things will perk up around here this upcoming weekend.  There's a light at the end of the tunnel because Rey is coming home!  I think three weeks is about my breaking point for him to be gone.  

Do you depend on your running to cheer you up when you are struggling in other areas of your life?  Have you ever had a time when it just didn't work?

There's no going back now!

It's official!!! *happy dance*

 

I'm registered for the 2014 Princess Half Marathon!  Bring on the tiara! 

Are you registered?!?!?!

Heart to Heart 10K Recap

 I did it! It was challenging, but I feel fantastic and it was a great race for my first 10K.  This is really long and I totally understand if you don't get through it all.  I just want to put it all down so that I will be able to come back and read it someday.  

  The morning started off VERY early.  I got very little sleep, I kept waking up every hour or so and then finally woke up at 3:45 after having a race dream where I picked up my bib and ice skates?? No clue about that!  LOL.  I had to get up so early because I had to go petsit first and then drive an hour and a half into Saint Louis to get to the race.  We aimed for 7:15 so we could pick up our bibs and go to the bathroom and we were there at 7am. 

I think Dallas was still half asleep!  

We had plenty of time to get our bibs and stuff, I was really excited when I saw the tech shirt!  It has a TREE!!!!  I kinda like trees, don't know if you noticed the huge one on my back. ;) 

My mom arrived at 7:15, I was excited for her to be at the race!  (she lives in St. Louis)

 On top of the awesome shirt, they were playing good music and although they had some cool looking booths around as well, I avoided them like the plague, I did not bring money to spend!

They had a lane blocked on the road, so I was pleased to see that, and since Dylan (my oldest) and Savannah came, I had a photographer to take a shot when we took off. 

Do you notice something about this course from the picture?  See that little hill on the horizon?  Uh...yeah...that was the smallest one I encountered.  LOL. 

The start was tight, it took a bit to get around people and find a comfortable pace.  I wasn't really running at a comfortable pace though, I was running too fast.  After giving Dallas so much trouble for taking off on our last 5K, I did it myself!  There were just so many people and I think I thought if I could just get through that first mile faster, it would clear up.  What I did not account for were the hills.  When I say that I didn't account for it, I mean that I found the race map WEEKS ago, did a google map and a ground/street level view, and "virtually" walked the whole thing on the map!  Guess what?  When the camera is on top of a car when they are taking the street level pictures, it doesn't show the severity of the hills from that angle.  I had even told Dallas that there were just a couple hills and it looked pretty flat.  Wrong! 

Before even the first mile, I was huffing and puffing, but at least everyone had spread out.  There was a water station before 1 mile and I passed it.  When I saw another before mile 2 I was really pleased and passed that one as well because I didn't need any yet and it looked like they were going to have a lot of water stations.  At this point the 5K split from us and we kept going a different direction.  Definitely lots of space now and I liked that.  Dallas was behind me until now, caught up for a bit but then we hit another brutal hill and he fell behind.  

I kept thinking that the hills would be over soon but each time I thought that, there would be another.  We ran through a lot of lovely neighborhoods.  Lots of shade from trees and no worries about cars.  When I spotted another water station a little before mile 3 I decided I better take my gel and get a drink.  I grabbed a water and kept going but was pretty unhappy when I realized it wasn't even a half a cup. It was gone and I wanted more.  I figured there would be more at mile 4, so I just kept going.  

I was pacing a few different women, they would walk on the hills and I would pass them and then they would run again and pass me.  At some point I actually tried to walk a bit on a hill and my knees immediately hurt.  Back to running! 

This race was really different, I loved it, but I also pushed myself more than I ever have when training.  I never really relaxed and ran my comfortable pace, I kept thinking if I could just push my pace just a little more than my norm, my time would be better. In hindsight I probably pushed a bit much for the distance of this race.  When the hills started to really slow me down I pushed even more because I knew that my time was going to suffer because of them.  

Dallas was behind me somewhere, and mile 4 arrived with no water.  I was perplexed but figured there would be another soon.  More hills and then finally a slope down towards the last neighborhood I knew we would run through.  As I entered the neighborhood, which we would loop through and back out, I noticed a water station...on the other side, where people were coming out of the loop.  Really?  I was parched at this point and if I didn't have to submit this time I might have run over to get water, but I was so determined and nearing 5 miles.  And another brutal hill.  

I walked a bit, trying to catch my breath, just as I started to run again, the theme song from Peter Pan song came on.  Up until this point I had almost tuned out my music, it was strange, I usually really get into my music.  Peter Pan is one of my favorite rides and to hear this song as I was struggling up this hill, determined to get this time to submit to Disney for my half, I almost cried and pushed more.  I had a horrid stitch in my side and my breathing was more labored than any of my training runs, but I told myself that I just had to finish!  

Then I nearly got run over by a cop on a motorcycle.  LOL.  He was driving up the neighborhood street right down the middle.  When I went to move over, he did too?  Finally as I got close enough he just stopped right in front of me.  For a second I thought I was in trouble or something but when he didn't do anything I just kept running.  One of the women who had been going back and forth with me, ran up behind me and said "what the heck was THAT???"  and we both laughed.  

What seemed like a year later and somewhere around 5.5, I finally got to the water station coming out of the neighborhood.  I grabbed three cups of water!  Dumped one on my head and chugged the other two down.  Water has never tasted so good. 

I turned out of the neighborhood and headed up the main street, knowing I had to be close now but my heart dropped when I saw what was ahead.  Another HUGE hill.  I  was looking at my phone and saw that I was at an hour and 2 minutes. (Dallas was using my Garmin)  I thought for sure I wouldn't even break 1:10, it seemed like so far to go still.  I turned the corner for the final road that headed to the finish and was slapped in the face with yet another hill.  WHERE did these hills come from and where were the down parts of these hills? We should be in the clouds at this point!  

I was starting to panic when I had to walk again for a few seconds.  I fumbled with my earbuds and yanked them out.   I was so stressed at this point, I could see the turn into the parking lot where the finish line was at the top of the hill, but it seemed so far away! Finally I was there, and even though it felt like I had nothing left in me, I sprinted to the finish.   My brain registered seeing the 1:08...and the picture of my face crossing shows it all.  The relief of being finish washed over me.  I love this shot. It's not the prettiest of race photos, but the look on my face is exactly what I was feeling.

I headed for the nearest grass and laid down for a second to catch my breath.  I was spent, my runkeeper was saying 1:08 and I knew that I gave this race every ounce of my being.  Relief, exhaustion, and happiness were all I was feeling.  I know, this sounds all so dramatic, but I really did give more than I thought I had to give.  I don't think I have ever pushed myself that hard for anything and it was a fantastic feeling.  

Naturally it took about 5 seconds for me to return to my former picture-obsessed-nature! Dylan caught me taking a pic of my medal to send to Rey.

So, my official chip time was 1:08:11.  Yesterday I thought it was 1:08:10...that's what the paper said that they had put up, but for some reason when I look on the website, it's 11.  I'm ok with that, I had a harder time swallowing the 6.3 miles that my runkeeper told me I ran (would that .1 have shaved my time more??) 

I'm really happy with my time, honestly.  I would love to know what my time would have been without those hills, but unless I move to Florida, all my races are going to be hilly, so I better get used to it! When I first started training for the 10K, my over-the-top-happy-time was 1:08.  I had only had adjusted that in my head after having ran 6.2 in training in less time than that.   Regardless, I have my time to submit to Disney and I'm proud of that time for my first 10K!  I can always try to improve it in October when I run my next 10K.  

Dallas came in after me at 1:11:01 and we sat for a bit, drank some water, and checked our times.  We headed to Starbucks for a treat before having to head straight back home so I could get to my mid-day petsits.  Dallas wasn't very pleased with his time, but still said he felt really good.  Ironically, he was the only Male 16-19, so he could have gotten any time and won his age division! We had a good laugh about that.  I came in 10 out of 13 in my age group (womp. womp.) and 89 out of 121 doing the 10K.  On the bright side, I wasn't last.  LOL. 

Really sorry for how long this was and if you read it all, you are a gem!  I had no pain running (except when I tried to walk)  but my knees are pretty sore now! 

Have you ever pushed so hard during a run that you knew you had given every last bit you had to give? 

Feelings Friday.

This about sums it up, LOL

Wide-angle Wednesday & National Running Day!

Happy Running Day!!!  Normally I giggle at all the National Days we have now, like National PB&J day or National cut your grass day (ok, I made those up) but today...well, today is surely a day to celebrate!  

Dallas and I planned our week so our last run before the race would be today.  A GORGEOUS 4 mile run.  I have stopped trying to take photos while running, but this morning I made an exception when we rounded the path and this is what I saw. 

Beauty.  I soaked it all up.  It was actually more lovely than this with the fog and the grass all sparkly, but it's a camera phone after all, I don't run with the dslr.  LOL.   I had another picture to share for wide-angle Wednesday, but this one captured one of the things I love about running even better...the beautiful parts of nature I experience! I feel a part of it all when I run.   

Did you get out and run for National Running Day?  Do you feel connected with nature/the world when you are running...or am I weird? ;) 

Tempo Tuesday

Another Tuesday arrives and no tempo run.  It's ok, this time it's because I did it yesterday!  Dallas & I decided to rest the whole weekend, I still have a little something-something pull in my left knee going on, and when we talked about our schedule this week, it worked best to run on Monday and Wednesday and then rest another two days before the race Saturday!  Ahhhh!  That means I just have one run left and then it's 10K time!! 

 

Me?  Freak out?  Ha!  Obsess is more like it.  It's Tuesday and I have my race outfit sitting on top of the dresser already.  Is that strange?  Not for me! I've been known to pack for trips and live out of a suitcase for 2 weeks before the actual trip.

In any case, I luckily have less time to freak and obsess because I'm crazybusyworking!  Summer is the busy season for my business (petsitting) and Savannah and I have been going and going from morning to night doing petsits.  

Fetch! 

There are actually three dogs at this house, but we could barely get one of them in the pic, and that was with me using my master-photographer-SQUEALING noises that usually work and Savannah  holding him just so he wouldn't jump all over. Hyper pups are the best...except when you want their picture! 

Even though my job has me running around from early early morning to late evening, it does afford breaks in the afternoon, between mid-days and evenings.  Yesterday we decided to take advantage and hit the pool for the first time this season.

Notice anything a little off?  How about how there are NO PEOPLE in the pool?  That, my friends, is because it was 69 degrees!  Yes, June 3rd and 69 degrees in Missouri.  Definitely not the norm, but I needed the sunshine, so we went anyway.  It was fine in the sun, I would have never thought it was only 69, but Savannah and her friend decided to actually get in the water.  Insanity!  When I got in up to my ankles, I thought how perfect this would be for an ICE BATH after a long run.  It was frigid! 

 

 They never did go all the way under, but we enjoyed our few hours off in the sun and now it's back to work! 

 Fine by me, less time to worry about the race.  I trained for it, I know I can do it, I just need to relax about all the unknown/unexpected stuff that can happen.  Nothing I can do about those things anyway! 

Anyone have any races this weekend as well?  Has the weather been seasonably cold where you are too?

Farwell May...Hello June! Monthly & Week musings

It's June!  How did that happen?  May was good to me, while training for my 10K,  I ran a 5K race for the first time in months and my monthly miles went up yet again.  I did the #Runfree4me, running free challenge (no Garmin on some of my runs),   my feet seemed to finally adjust and stop bothering me and I ran 65 miles in May, my highest to date.  I know that's not a lot for most runners, but it was for me.  I love looking at the graph on dailymile and seeing my mileage gains in the last few months! 

My knees are not quite adjusted though, I've been having some soreness and pain during and after runs, and have lowered my miles in the last week or so, hoping that helps.  This week I did a bunch of biking and some upper body strength training, although now my neck is tweeked from that somehow.  I swear, my body hates me sometimes.  I'll keep pushing it though, until it does what I want it to.  LOL. 

Dallas and I ran 5 miles yesterday, it was his longest outdoor run.  He's run 5 and 6 miles multiple times on the treadmill but seemed to have some sort of block running that far outside.  Yesterday I gave him the Garmin and told him that I was going to follow him this time.  Worked like a charm!  He paced himself at around 11 minute miles and finished strong.  I think it was a boost to his confidence and he seems to be looking forward to the race next week!  

I used the Nike+ app since he was using my Garmin.  It was a little off on mileage from the Garmin, but it worked well enough to give me an idea of my pace and miles. 

 (Contrary to what the Nike+ app thinks... I HAVE run farther and faster than this before. Just sayin' LOL) 

I am so looking forward to June!  I have my 10K next Saturday and I'm so excited and nervous about it!  At the end of June I am driving 3 1/2 hours to KS to see a friend I haven't seen in years and run the 5K Glow Run with her.  I'm really excited about that as well.  AND...ticking down the days/hours until June 11th when I can REGISTER for the Princess 1/2!!!  I cannot wait for it to be official! 

Do you have any special goals in June?  Any races you are looking forward to?  Are you registering for the Princess on the 11th or are you one of the luckies that has a Disney Visa or DVC and you are registering on the 6th? *jealous*