The Extra Mile

Happy Halloween!!

Running and Halloween don't go together, right? Wrong! I can't tell you how much more energy I've had going around with the kids trick-or-treating these last few years since I started running! (Too bad for Aaron I didn't have the running mojo going on when they were little enough to need to be carried! That was aallllll him!) While the trick-or-treat energy isn't a reason I run, it sure is a great bonus! Whee!

I'm totally looking forward to tonight, but, to get there, we first have to start the day! Here we go!

How cool to start off Halloween morning with a full moon!
Very appropriate. And, a little weird.

It was a brisk morning (in the upper 30s), so we took off! Just
look how fast Elly is going with Jacques!! She was totally into
character as a thoroughbred race horse!

And, now, she gives her best Winner's Circle pose.

Check this out ... ahhhh !!

Someone's mums have survived the overnight chills and
morning frosts!! How pretty is that?

And, would you really expect to see and sniff honeysuckle on
Halloween? I wouldn't. Oh, and I couldn't ... my nose was full
of running runs. I'd sniiiiiiiff, and nothin'. I couldn't break the
barrier. Oh well. I also wasn't paying very good attention today
because I didn't even see my turn-around point and went an
extra mile. Yeah, you say good for me, but it kinda hurt by
the end if I'm being honest! Eh, whadda ya do.

Oh my gosh ... could it be?!?!

Score! Finally! It's been a while! It's funny how finding money
goes in phases. I'm hoping this is the beginning of the finding
season!

Elly took that 5th mile in stride! I was
so pleased. She was, too; it was an extra
mile of sniffin'! Her nose didn't get stuffy.

She did get the running eye booger, though. See? And, I just
love how she appears to be a little afraid of Jacques. That, or
she is plotting his demise. Jacques is not intimidated.

My mind was entirely somewhere else on that run (hence the overshoot), but it was a good one anyway! The cold kept me physically invigorated while my mind wandered! And, Elly? Well, she smelled all sorts of things, annoyed me quite a bit and had a stare-down with a dog across a street while they marked their respective paths. It was such a, "Take that!" moment between them. So very tough of the leashed dogs, don't you think?

Be safe if you're heading out tonight!! And, I have to agree with what I heard Al Roker say this morning on the Today show: "Those little candy bars are not fun sized!" Ha! They are fabulous, though; I'll take chocolate any size! See you after the morning run!

Bigger Than a Breadbox

Can you guess what this is?

You totally know what this is ... we're allllllll getting them!

First, let me tell you what it is not ... it's not a new issue of Runners World which is totally what I thought it was when I saw the mailman put the contents in our box. I was all excited to go get the mail. Imagine my disappointment when I opened the mailbox.

The big ol' stack is one part mass coupons, one part political ads. Political ads. C'mon, people, getting a flyer amidst the other crap I recycle without reading is not going to get my vote. Just. Sayin'.

In an effort to not thwart the spirit of Rest Day, I snapped the pic, tossed the stack in the recycle bin and went back to work on the ol' Halloween costumes. Once again, arts and crafts is the calm in the storm.

One more week of campaigning!! We can make it through together! In the meantime, I very wise man (check out who) once said:

Thank you, Mary Engelbreit calendar.
This is an excellent sentiment!

Tomorrow's a day to run! Start your day out how you want, and I'll see you after the outing with the pooch!

He's Baaaaa-aaack!

Good Monday to you!! For me, the day starting off in lower temperatures takes the edge off it being a Monday! So, you know it being 35 degrees when we set out to run this morning was fab-u-lous over here!

Check this out for a Monday, too!

Like I needed another reason to side-step or otherwise blow off stretching and warming up! Well, needed or not, this picture is now going to be burned in my brain for my daily dose of excuse to just set sail and go where my feet take me (at least until I'm back in the double digit miles again!). WooHoo! I know it wasn't your intention, I <3 To Run Facebook page, but I'm running with it anyway!

Before we get to today's adventures, let's do some house keeping ... I have to report on these little buggers:

The unanimous (that's hard to do!) household verdict: Snap, Crackle, DELICIOUS! Never again will we roast boring-old-plain-with-some-salt seeds ... these are fabulous !! I used just enough sugar to taste in the background, but I went heavy with the cinnamon. It doesn't look like I did, and here's why (story time!) ... Aaron approached me with his newfound sugar-cinnamon idea for the seeds. I was in a bad mood, so I snarled (a) because it sounded disgusting, and (b) because I said I didn't feel like putting any effort into doing that. For real. Sprinkling some sugar and cinnamon on some seeds I was already roasting sounded daunting. What a whiner.

Fortunately, my being-a-human-being tendancies kicked in, and I said I'd make two batches, one his way, one the now-boring way. They came out of the oven, I tried his and immediately dumped my boring ones into his delicious ones and mixed them all together. I'm sure it diluted the yummy a bit, but they're still wonderful!! We highly recommend!

In case you care ... Pumpkin seeds: high in calories but chock full of protein, vitamin and antioxidant goodness. Even better with cinnamon and sugar, just sayin'.

Okay, the other order of house keeping ... Remember when I asked what this ...

... has to do with running? It's a good thing there really was no prize involved for the correct answer because Aaron would not have won. His answer: "I guess you sewed up your running shorts or pants." As if. That's too (a) true, but I did that two weeks ago (c'mon !) and (b) obvious.

The answer ... drum roll, please ... rat-a-tat-tat-tat-tat ...

Jacques is back!!!

You might recall our new addition last year ... by the end of his running season in January (he's not just a jockey, you know ... he also becomes Jingle Jacques!!), he was in need of some TLC ... one of his hands disconnected from the saddle (of course seeing as he's all about going faster and faster and he has to control his ride!). One of his boots also detached ... clearly a function of the ol' side kick for the puppy turbo boost. And, upon further inspection yesterday, he's rear needed a little reinforcement to the saddle. He doesn't like to talk about that, so let's move on.

When I got him off of his perch yesterday, Elly had a very clear, "Could it be ?!" look on her face. She's lazy, so Rest Week suits her to a point, but by the end, she's ready to get out into the world again. When I plopped Jacques on my lap instead of on her back, she got the message. When I picked him up this morning, however, it was a whole different story, and the let's-go-let's-go-let's-go dance began! I didn't take any pictures because they would have been too blurry. But, we did get one good one today:

Well, good enough. Jacques is hiding. He's tired from all of
that riding and bouncing.

Elly only cooperated with that one because it was after our run. She's good about the celebratory pose, but she balks before then because she has important things to do. Like GO ...

Off they go! There's really nothing quite like the amount of
rubber-necking that happens when people see these two. And,
when Jacques gets his jingle on, it's even better!

... and, be annoyed that I've stopped for any reason whatsoever:

Elly, might I remind you this detour was
so I could throw away your poo? So,
happy up, pup, and give your mama a smile!
Orrrrr ... not.

It was a great get-back-out-there run today. I saw cool last-remnants of Fall ...

There's not much left out there!! What's there is cool, though.

... and, I couldn't help but be suprised that we actually had to dodge this:

Elly saw the sprinklers on and crossing the sidewalk before I
did. She had no intention of going through them ... she never
does, but today would have done her in for water if we'd gotten
hit! Don't mind my surprise .. it was 35!!

Out and back, we're back in the saddle (a nod to Jacques!)! Tomorrow's a scheduled Rest Day, so I'll see you then!

'Tis the Enjoying Season!

Today has been chock full of getting-ready-for-Halloween goodness. In fact, this is the kickoff to my very favorite time of year!! You can't beat the October-November-December trifecta in my book, so this was a great way to spend the day!

It was full of this:

This will make more sense on Halloween ... for now, know
that craft time is awesome time!!

And, this:

Not only are the Crewers hard at work, but they have two
supervisors ready to help!

TBR (To Be Revealed)

And, this:

Mmm ... pumpkin seeds ... Aaron found an idea on the Web
to sprinkle them with sugar and cinnamon, so one of the
batches has that. Report tomorrow.

This time of year more than any other aligns the perspective I have on my life -- not just because it's winding down the year, but because Fall and Winter are truly that wonderful to me! (Um, besides, my birthday is in there, too! Yahoo!!)

So, with the house a-buzz with holiday goodness, I came to a sneezy-easy decision about my running goal for the rest of the year: Just Run.

Truth be told, it's good for me to have a goal, and, given how far I've come in the past four years, I like to have one that pushes me just a little. As it turns out, I will complete 100 miles more this year than I did last year on my current track, and that's a heck of an accomplishment in my book. The arbitrary "shoot for 800 miles" doesn't really mean anything, so, I'm going to let it go and be done with it.

And, you know what? As soon as I realized it was okay to just drop it, I felt free. I am now free to go out and just do what I want to do and enjoy it. I remain committed to my schedule, and I do have a minimum each week carrying me through the end of the year. But, from there, it's all about what I want. That is a great feeling!!

I think I get caught up in the, "What else can I do" feeling that envelopes me post-Half. It's happened after each of them where I somehow feel like dropping down in miles isn't something I "should" do. But, I've also proven at least twice that trying to maintain that training schedule in my life is not only looney, but, it also doesn't work. I've hit the wall 100% of the time I've tried. So, how 'bout I learn something from that and start with what I know works ... and, enjoy!!

Specific training can go to the wayside until late January/early February (I haven't yet mapped that out for April's Half ... nor do I yet have to !). In the meantime, 'tis the season to enjoy!! Elly and I will be at it together tomorrow. She's very excited about it!

By the way, if you can tell me what this has to do with running ...

... you get a prize! (Okay, that's a total lie; I have no prize. Unless you call being fantastically brilliant a prize, then you will earn the braggin' rights!) We'll see you from the road to start off the week tomorrow!

Aaaaand, Down!

Let's start by saying this:

It's not that I feel like quitting at all, but the girl is tiiiiiiirrred today. So, this little reminder from the Run the Edge Facebook page was well timed for me!

I also think it's cool that I am so tired that I used another's sentiment to speak for me. Seriously. Sleepy!! I hadn't yet had a crash-day after the Half (which usually hits me about 3 days after the run), so I knew this was coming. Two naps later, I think the swell of excitement, work and big day finally caught up with me. Whew! Nice to get it overwith!

I'll see you tomorrow on the last day of Rest Week with a plan for the rest of the year and, hopefully, a renewed spring in the ol' step. (Tired!!)

Yummy Mummy

(What does that title have to do with running? Not a thing! Whee!!)

While I made no active effort today to work out my upcoming running schedule, I did keep waking up throughout the night running the numbers. In truth, it was kind of annoying. The one thing I did roughly conclude is that revising my end-of-the-year goal lower might be in order. I'd be okay with that if that's what I settle on because my roughly formed plan B still puts me 100 miles more than last year. I wanted to challenge myself, not let all of this take me over, so a new goal might be in order. Okay, I'm certain a new goal is coming, I just haven't been one with the brain and the calendar yet. I'll get it figured out by Sunday since it all starts up on Monday!

In the meantime, I just saw someone outside running in the dark. We were on our way home from the store buying ingredients to make these:

How cute are those? A tip of the hat to the American Girl
magazine for the idea ... and for it being Rest Week to indulge!

The dichotomy of activities makes me laugh.

More from Rest Week tomorrow!

Simple Math

After each Half Marathon I've run, I've rewarded myself with a Rest Week immediately following. By and large, that week is chock full of thinking about anything but running in my future and lots of time reflecting on where I've been. And, realizing that run was a very long way. And, wondering if I can (or should or why would I) ever do that again. It's like during that week my body says, "Continuing to run would be really good for me" while my mind says, "Shut up, body". It's an intriguing mental state.

This time, my mind and body seem to be in sync: "Yes, we'll get back out there, but, No, we won't do so until Monday. As planned. Leave us alone until then."

So, the only thing I did today was some simple math:

• As of today, I'm only 31 miles short of the miles I ran during the entirety of last year. (629/650) Score!
• My goal for this year is 800 miles. (Just because.)
• I have to divide 171 miles into 8 or 9 weeks (depending on scheduling in any break around holidays).

And, then the math made my head hurt. So, I stopped.

"It hurts my head, too, mommy. So, stop it."

I think I'll think more about this tomorrow! And, if I'm motivated, I hope to have a plan or two for the kitchen to share, too! See you then.

Pre-Race Goodies Galore!

One of my very favorite things to do when I go somewhere new is check out the gift shop! (I know I'm not alone there!) So, putting together an event where there's a big, ol' Expo to investigate is enough to blow my mind!

The Rock'n'Roll folks knew how to put a great pre-race event together, so come check it out with me!

The Scene
Right after picking up your bib and shirt, you rounded the corner to the countdown! (Du-du-duuu!) It was exciting and a bit nerve wracking all at the same time, so I checked out this year's finisher medals on the unfortanately lacking-lower-body mannequins (ironic for a running event, don't you think?) and passed on doing the math with the clock!


Enter ... the vendor zone!

That guy is totally saying, "Please don't make me check out the
sport bras with you." At least, that's what I think he's saying.

All Things Shiny
I blew through the first round of shirts and shoes (cha-ching-stickershockgasp-cha-chiiiing) and decided to investigate the many forms of glassware ...

From steins to tumblers to magnets, they had it all!

... and, jewelry ...


Loved it, hated the price. But, so cute!

... and, things to keep you visible in the dark ...

... and, even Christmas ornaments!

The Apparel
The second (or more) round of apparel is more novel than the stuff we saw first, and I always like browsing and reading. Oh, yes, reading the shirts takes time because there are fun ones! Like this one ...

See?! I'm so not alone in this sentiment!

... and, this one ...

I don't even like rum, but it was funny!

... and, this one ...

LOVE that one! Because I feel awesome!

... and, my favorite ...

Aww ... perfect!

There were plenty of accessories, too. I love looking at the headbands even though I don't wear them. (Go figure.) If I were to buy one, this would be the one:

Elly and I would totally match. I'm not sure if that's good or
bad, but it would be fun!

GAMES!
There were a number of interactive stops throughout the Expo. The Lottery was there. They were set up so you spun a wheel and received a scratchers ticket worth the same as the number you landed on ($1 ticket, $5 ticket or $10 ticket). Aaron received a $5 ticket, and I received the Grand Poobah $10 ticket, but if you can believe it, our tickets were not lottery winners. I know, I was shocked.

So, we played other games. At a Vegas table, I won a deck of cards while Aaron won these stylish glasses:

It takes a special someone to pull those
off. Or, at least to ever put them on!

Another vendor had a game where you looked at two pictures to find the differences, and he had us play in teams. Our round was boys (Aaron and PC#3) vs. girls (me, PC#2 and two other women). I'd say our team won because we were so brilliant, but we did have numbers on our side. (Or, did we ... to be honest, I didn't contribute even one answer!) Anyway, here are the boys working hard for that travel-sized sunscreen that they didn't win!

The vendor guy thought he was fabulous. Frankly, he was a lot
of fun, so this picture totally cracked me up!

The Cuisine
Good golly, it was a packed day! Makes you work up an appetite, don't you think? (Um, no ... but there were still samples a-go-go!)

Remember this face?

That was caused by sampling a Snickers Marathon Energy Bar. Its taste was most unfortunate. Here are the kids about to inflict it upon themselves, too:

Don't believe the nice lady!! Don't do it!!!!

If I'm having a Snickers, it's going to be the real deal!

It got better for the Crewers down the aisle ... remember in April how they kept getting beef sticks at that Expo? This time, they had to work a little bit for one in the form of making signs to support the runner!

Quick sign = beef stick. Awesome!

And, then there was the hands-down winner of food samples ... Avocados From Mexico was there (food truck style and all!):

Their stuff was goooo-ooood!!

Never would I have ever thought to pair avocado and pineapple.
But, they did, and it was deeeeelish!!!

Here's the recipe ... avocado season isn't too far off, so you bet'cha we're making this!

They also made these gazpahco shooters. It was super yummy,
but they didn't shoot. At all. And, two pretzels wasn't enough to
get it out. But, we managed because it was so stinkin' good!

Sound good? NO! Taste great? HECK YEAH!!!

I can still taste those samples in my mind ... so yummy!

We were also treated kinda fancy at this drink station:

Chilled water in fancy dispensers with all kinds of fruit to add.

My blueberries fell below my ice which made eating them really
difficult. My second visit was with an empty cup that I filled a
third of the way full of just blueberries, then I ate them the next
morning pre-race. (Well, I ate the ones PC#3 didn't eat first. Note
to self: Don't ask PC#3 to hold something he likes to eat while you
are in the porta potty line without giving explicit instruction to
hold, not eat.

The Tutorial
Did I come here to learn? I think not. But, this set-up was very cool. They had a view of the course from a car camera! It was sped up, of course (Can you imagine ... start the viewing after entering in your anticipated finish time, then sit. And, sit. Aaaaaannnd ... sit!). I took pictures within each mile because I thought it was awesome to do so. Here's the start ...

I actually remember that part of the course!

... and, here's close to the end:

Pretty funny how that's the one that turned out the most shakey.
It's kind of how Mile 12 often feels ... By the way, the fun of
watching this took a dive when Aaron pointed out the elevation
view at the top in red. *gulp!* He meant well, sweet man!!

These Are a Few Of My Favorite Things
Anyone who knows me knows I've never outgrown my love for stickers and magnets!! So, you know this was enough to make me salivate just a little!

Ahhh ... fabulous!

I picked up a couple of fun things including my new Runner Girl for my car!

I like her a lot because we have similar hair.

I LOVE THE EXPO!! Big events do these right, and they're just fun!! They're also a stimulation overload from all of the things you see to the pump-you-up music they blare, so I'm usually a bit wiped out after! It's totally worth it, though, and a really fun part of the whole race package!

We were also sent on our way with a fabulous message from the organizers:

I was ready to rock! Now, I'm still diggin' the Rest!! See you tomorrow on this continuation of Rest Week!