New Kicks Times Two!

I found it something of serendipitous that I was driving home from yesterday's run to hear an ad on the radio about a sale on Asics running shoes. I perked up big time; I have tried to refrain from complaining about my need to replace my shoes, but, suffice it to say, I've needed to replace them for at least a month. At least. And, while I've been poking around trying to find a new pair, I have been running into the large mesh issue -- the very one that's not strong enough to restrain my wicked-strong big toe.

Remember that crap after only having them three weeks or so?
'Twas very disappointing!!

There aren't as many options out there right now without this design that are also affordable (another key issue), so I've been taking my sweet time looking all the while going forth with my Nikes that have certainly held up well. But, they're no Asics to these feet ...

And, then I heard the ad. Asics -- that I love and have missed terribly -- normally $100 for $60? I had to check it out! I have to admit, 5 years ago, there is no way I would have paid $60 for shoes. Shoot, I wouldn't have done it 2 years ago. It has finally sunk in that I'm serious enough about this that, perhaps, spending a little more on quality shoes is worth it!

So, after a shower and a bagel (of course), Aaron and I were there. And, they were beautiful ...

Can you hear the angel chorus in the background? I CAN!!

Tighter mesh, totally friendly and knowledgable sales dude, guarantee of recourse should my toe go through (which will stun me if it does) and they're beautiful? That's the triple threat of awesome!! Oh, and they felt great!! Have you ever heard your feet sigh? I heard mine at the store ...

So, I bought two pair. Yes, indeed, I hope to spare myself and others of shoe angst for quite some time!

NOT TO MENTION they totally go with the shoe strings Pit Crew #2 bought me for my birthday!!

The coordination is way more clear in
person and when not distracted by the
display of what I'm really wanting to do
most mornings ... be in my jammies and
slippers on my way back to bed!

This was a serious score perfectly timed after just completing my year's goal! Also perfectly timed in my world is tomorrow's virtual evening run amidst the Christmas lights!! I'm looking forward to both that and the after!! The new shoes, however, will make their debut in January. I don't want the Nikes to feel like they've put in their sweat, tears and time only for the Asics to swoop by and put in the last piece of the puzzle ... which is a whole different way of saying I'm not mucking up the brand new shoes in the Wintery mix slop that's been handed to us!

PC#3 and I will see you after the evening run!

Nine Hundred ... and Five.

Today’s Numbers: Nancy's Days Run: 191 Nancy's 2013 Mileage: 905 Elly's 2013 Mileage: 457.2 Money Found For Food Bank: $2.96

This was the moment we hit my 900th mile this morning:

A stop for a photo had to be done. Duh.
And, look! Elly already had running
boogers!! She's one of us now ...

And, this is the cash stash I found very soon thereafter:

I really do need to check on that tetanus status of mine ...

And, this is the final bank for the Bank count on my personally historic day ... times two ...

More miles than ever and more money in one run than ever!
Double the reasons to celebrate!

And, this is the result of the doggie running just after a mess of snow melted but before the ground was again dry:

She took it for the team today ankle deep in mud at one point!
Wait, she didn't really take it for the team as much as with the
team ... suffice it to say I was thankful for both not having
newer shoes on and for piles of snow to clean off my feet ...

... Elly got her feet cleaned not just in the
car but also with a special spa treatment
at home. And, by "spa" treatment, I mean
a lot of individual attention and extra hugs
while I used a ton of baby wipes on her.

Oh, but look at her from the very last moment of our run:

YEAH I made this one big!! SO CUTE!!!!

It was a great run. All the way around.

It's time to cruise to the end of the year with a handful of runs, Rest Days and new goals to look forward to! I'll check in tomorrow and show you how the celebration was accidently punctuated! In the meantime, I'm soooo looking forward to sleeping in ... see you after dragging myself out of bed!

Sneaking Up!

So, it's already the 19th of December, and I've hardly even mentioned the upcoming virtual cupcake run that Pit Crew #2, virtual running partner extraordinaire Mary Kate and I are doing on SUNDAY!!

HOW'D THAT SNEAK UP ON US!?!

Well, I'll tell you ... In part, it's the time of year, amiright ?? There are a lot of extra details floating around right now, so keeping everything together kind of has to mean keeping everything together today, I'll strongly consider tomorrow, and the rest will come along in order! So, there is that. The other factor in not really talking about it (speaking for myself) is that we decided to reward our hard work this entire year with a virtual 5K, and that requires very different planning and training than does a longer distance. In fact, that run is shorter than 2 of my other runs during the week. I call that a sweet, sweet gift to myself!!

The medals will arrive after we're finished (just happened that way), but here's the pic of what's to come:

Mary Kate's husband will also be joining us (yeahhhh!!!), so we four will set sail in virtual fashion amidst Christmas lights!! Here's to hoping we don't get rained on! But, if we do, that'll just make the lights all the more twinkly!!

In the meantime, on this Rest Day, I was going to show you a picture of my friend's Nativity scene made up of little wooden moose. Seriously. Everyone's a moose. And, it's totally adorable!! But, I got to her house only to find my memory card was at my house. Grrr!! So, instead, I share with you this:

I have Peanuts Nativities depicted in many forms including
the gels, ornaments and statues. You just can't go wrong.

Oh, and it's not just about the Peanuts peeps, it's about them being gel clings!! I love me some gel clings!! See?

Big enough to stretch across the sliding doors?! Yes, please!!

And, these are my fave:

I hope it snows again soon so I can take this with a white
background (probably should have thought about that for the
past week ... whoopsie ...). Anyway, if gel clings are wrong, I
don't wanna be right ...

By the way, if you think it odd to be enamored with Nativities of moose and Peanuts, add to the list the Nativity my college roommate and I created ... we had Muppet Babies (that I'm pretty sure came from Hardees ... but, I can't remember) that went under our tree in our room. See?

There was an additional doggie to represent one of the sheep,
and Baby Jesus was a pink koala. Of course. Duh.

Apparently, someone defiled it one day and then took it upon himself to write down what I said:

Not very Christmas spirity, I know. I own it, though. Don't
mess with my Muppet babies!!!!

I still have mine that go under the "kid tree" in our house, by the way:

ANYWAY ... There's a chance for freezing drizzle in the a.m. (whuuuuuuuut ??? Noooooo !!!), so we'll see where that run takes place!! Will I be oh-so-pleased to be out in the fresh air, or will I again be thankful for the DVR?? I'll let you know the verdict tomorrow ... See you then!

One More ...

Today’s Numbers: Nancy's Days Run: 190 Nancy's 2013 Mileage: 899 Elly's 2013 Mileage: 451.2 Money Found For Food Bank: $1.92

I think someone was excited to run today as she positioned herself right in front of me when I was about to walk out the door. You know. So I wouldn't forget her:

I think she was suspicious, though, seeing as her ears were back. That's her "getting ready to be disappointed but not giving up hope" look. In truth, I had no plans to take her because I suspected there was still quite a bit of ice along today's route. I was going especially after yesterday's 6 on the gross treadmill, but I was not going to look out for four additional feet while working to maintain my uprightness. I finally broke it to her:

"Aw, crap, ma!!!"
Don't worry. She got over it.

My suspicions were completely correct (unfortunately for me) ...

OR was it actually a little bit of awesome because I could take
walk breaks with the perfect excuse to do so? I'll never tell ...

The above was actually tame compared to some of the areas (like the glare ice upon which I skated ... necessary as it was through a drive-thru, just sayin'!), but there were plenty of stretches completely clear. Those are the same places I found money today. Boo.Yah.

You may or may not have noticed that today's route brought me within one mile of my year-end goal. That's right: One. I tinkered with routing options on mapmyrun.com to go ahead and finish four, but almost every option I designed fell short by a few tenths or went way over, and, you know what? It just didn't matter. I decided to stick with my plan, carry on with my day, and punctuate the goal on Friday with not just hitting it but exceeding it.

I think that plan is outstanding.

Also outstanding was seeing this today:


You just don't see that every day on a run!
I love it!

The best part of today was being outside. The best part of tomorrow is it's Rest Day ... perfectly timed right before a big milestone! I'll see you then ...!

Drudge. For Real.

Today’s Numbers: Nancy's Days Run: 189 Nancy's 2013 Mileage: 896 Elly's 2013 Mileage: 451.2 Money Found For Food Bank: $1.85

I cannot think of anything more boring to discuss than today's run given I did my six miles on the treadmill. Peeeeeee-uke. Seriously. But, not literally.

Why the treadmill when I've been out and about? The snow is melting but not very fast. So, what melts during the day refreezes overnight. Last night, we were out and about near the same area I was to run, and the ice ruts and stretches were just too abundant. It's going to be a tricky few days while this round of snow and ice disappears. But, at I am thankful for having an option. And a lot of things on the dvr.

While I was inside, apparently this is what was happening outside:

And, it did get done, so I should be pleased with that. It definitely fell under the, "There was a time that wouldn't have happened" category, so I'll go with the success of it. Here's to hoping tomorrow is an outside option ... I'll check in and let you know!

Never Would Have Guessed

There was a time I would have never guessed I'd find running to be easier and more peaceful than so many other things I do with my time. But, that time has come. And, specifically, that time is called Mondays. More  specifically, that time is today starting when the retailers I encountered this morning had absolutely no holly jolly in them at all and going all the way through the moment when I almost purposely burned the motor out of the very, very contrary sewing machine because there seemed to be no reason for the attitude it was giving me. Everyone lived through that incident, by the way, both human and machine.

I was intrigued that at every point where I felt a twinge of angst, I immediately thought, "But, tomorrow morning, I get to run."

Wow, how 'bout that?! 'Never would have guessed ...

"How 'bout my stress, mommy? Let's see ... I got in trouble for
pulling trash out of the garbage can when you were gone, and I
had to share couch space with Lizzy even though I was there
first, and then she tried to steal the doggie treat I'm sending
to my cousin, but she didn't get in trouble and I didn't even get
the treat ... Lots. Of. Problems!! C'mon, mommy ... tomorrow's
a new day with makin'-yellow-snow visions in my head!! That'll
show 'em ... whomever that is!!"

So, you know what happens from here ... Tomorrow, we run!! Ahhhh ... Cannot wait!! I'll check in after and let you know if it lived up to the promises in my head!!

What's Good Is That I Didn't Want To Go Fast Anyway ...

Today’s Numbers: Nancy's Days Run: 188 Nancy's 2013 Mileage: 890 Elly's 2013 Mileage: 451.2 Money Found For Food Bank: $1.85

Okay, because I'm a complete tool, I didn't even realize the Jingle Bell Run yesterday was cancelled!! I honestly thought the show would go on! Everyone signed a waiver and all ... I know it was a good call, I just didn't know it happened, so I was bummed on behalf of the runners who were looking forward to it!!

Given the footing conditions on my run this morning, it was definitely the right thing to call that race off. While there are some completely cleared spots, you have to puddle jump to get to them. The streets are a patchwork of ice that a car can handle, but a runner? That's a different story.

I heard a plow go up and down our street sometime after midnight, but you could just hear how it wasn't doing much good while the blade bumped over the ice. I appreciated the effort, though. But, Elly did not. After the plow passed twice, she was right next to my side of the bed staring at me with her ears back. I think someone got scared in the dark!

And, this morning, her fears were totally behind her while my determination to cover some miles outside (vs. on the treadmill) was just as strong as yesterday. I knew it would mean being on high alert and walking through some areas, but that beats running inside any. day.

It was 18 degrees, but the wind was minimal making it tolerable for all involved including Aaron who double-triple hates being cold! It sure can make things pretty, though, see?

A perfect amount of ice to make things beautiful but not
dangerous!

Nothing is prettier than this, though ...

Love. Her.

I knew before heading out that today's mission was just to get some movin' miles. Mission accomplished with the added bonus that human nor beast fell down. We cruised along stopping only a couple of times for Elly to do her part in keeping the "don't eat yellow snow" statement relevant. Good doggie ...

And, tomorrow? We rest! Well, we rest from running at least! I'll check in then ...