Wednesday, December 31, 2008

Happy New Year

Wow. What a year. I have been relaxing and enjoying my family. Cooking collard greens and cornbread, chocolate fudge, baking butterscotch pies, and watching football and playing XBox 360. We've had a wonderful holiday season, and it was totally worth the bulge I am noticing around my waist. ~sigh~
I have good friends and a good sister, though, and they have somehow convinced me to make an effort at getting back at it. Monday I was suppose to run with Holly, but I sorta set the alarm clock for p.m. instead of a.m. Oops. I did make it out later that day, though, and Briar and I ran a fun 3 miles, followed by weights, abs and lunges. I felt like I was totally starting over. Last night, my good buddy, Don, convinced me to make it to his spin class. He preceded to nearly kill me, I tell you. But it hurt sooooo good. So good, that I am going to make it my goal to get to that class every Tuesday night. And believe it or not, I showed up to run with the group this morning at 6 a.m. They were running 10, and I ran the first 5 with them. You wouldn't believe how much fitness is lost in 2 months. A. Lot.



In other news, Christmas was everything it should be and more than it should be during the Great Depression #2. Having two boys, specifically my two boys, just makes the holidays magical. And...getting a new puppy a few days before Christmas doesn't hurt either. It wasn't something I had planned....I just had it in the back of my mind because the kids had decided they needed a puppy to love in order to quit greiving over Wrigley. I wasn't sure if it was a good idea or not, and I also wasn't very keen on spending $300 - $1000 for a golden retriever like they said they wanted. But on the Saturday before Christmas, I pulled into Wal-Mart parking lot and there it was -

"Free Puppies"

I didn't think too much of it...the sign said they were a lab mix...until one of them poked his head up out of the window. I decided to take a look, and I almost talked myself out of it because it wasn't a well thought out and planned decision, and then I said, "Oh, I'll take one." So I picked the one that poked his head up out of the truck at me, and we nervously went on our way. A trip to the vet, a very traumatic deworming process (you don't EVEN want to know), a good bath, and a few good days of TLC and all is well...

I have more Christmas pictures, Christmas video and more...I'll get it out here soon. Happy New Year, my friends!!! Here's to the best year ever-I almost hate to see it end!!! I love you all!

Wednesday, December 17, 2008

Jitterbug

I'm getting a little bit jittery. Staying up later and later...trying to find something to expend all this extra energy on. The laundry is caught up. The Christmas shopping is done. My house is clean. We've watched Charlie Brown's Christmas. And Fred Clause. I think I need a goal...

Monday, December 15, 2008

Living it Up

I haven't made it to the trails yet, but I did end up with 3 days in a row last week. Monday 5miles running, Tuesday spin class, and Wednesday 5 miles running with core work. Then it all went to...other things. I don't really remember why I didn't do anything on Thursday. Friday was a snowday, and I was just too dadgum tired to wake up early since I am not on a training schedule, and there was too much to do with the rest of the day to squeeze in a workout of any kind. We took off to Murfreesboro for 4:00 batting practice for the boys, and then Bo had indoor baseball practice from 5:00 - 7:00 while Briar did speed and agility class from 6:00 - 7:00, and we stayed after and worked a little more on defensive drills while we had an open cage. Baseball year 'round - is life good or what?! We ate dinner at Macaroni Grill (I ate mushroom raviolli since they were out of eggplant) and then made our way back home. After the kids went to bed, J.T. and I sat up late listening to country music and drinking wine...resulting in the domino effect which kept me from getting up early to run on Saturday morning. I did get up and out early enough to get started Christmas shopping around 11:00. I pretty much finished up all the shopping except for a couple of dirty santa gifts I still need to get. Staying up late is addictive...and it's easy to fall into the habit when you don't have a 4 a.m. 20 mile run that has to be done the next morning. But you know what, sometimes it's nice to just do what you want to do, too. I've been doing a lot of that lately.

I don't like to be caged up. That's how I felt at times while following such a strict training schedule for the IM. I am more of a free spirit than your typical Type A. I am a perfectionist, too, though. I do like to do well at whatever I am doing...I like to do it right, and I like to do it to the best of my ability. There ensues the conflict. And that also explains while I have no competitive events on my calendar as of yet for 2009 (Other than the Seaside Half Mary, but that will probably be running for pleasure and enjoying the beach more than going for a half mary PR). Like Jumper told me once, we are Type A-. So the verdict is still out as to what my '09 calendar will involve.

Sunday was Holly's birthday party and then the kids' Christmas play at church. SOOOO cute! Then I got a text from Tammie saying they were running 8 at 4:15 a.m. this morning. That sounded appealing, and I thought to myself, "I am going to do that." Until I stayed up until nearly midnight playing with Facebook and then mutilated my alarm clock when it rang at 3:40. I barely woke up at 7:15, and scared the whole house as we all rushed to get out the door in time for school and work. Barely made it.

It's Christmas. I'll get all this worked out after the new year. Life is too good to not be living it up right now...

Holly's Birthday!

Briar - white turtleneck on the back row

Bo the Shepard Boy

Tuesday, December 09, 2008

2 Days in a Row

Finally. I have worked out 2 days in a row. Yesterday I ran 5 miles at lunch with Holly (sub 9min pace btw - yay!) and then did lunges. Today I did spin class. I almost feel the need to start logging again.

But you know what I really feel the need for?

I feel the need for leaves crunching under my tires.

For cold air rushing into my lungs in an anaerobic state.

Layers and gloves and seeing my breath.

As I climb one of the many hills on the trail.

And then glide down it.

Mountain Biking...I think it's time.

I also think it's time to lace up the gortex running shoes and not only bike, but run the trails.

Peace and love...over and out...

Wednesday, December 03, 2008

The Deer Fights Back

I have never understood hunting for sport.I'm not knocking those of you who do; some of my best friends are avid hunters. I just wonder if the hunters ever stop to think about what it would feel like to be walking around in a world where snipers are hidden up in stands just waiting on you to unknowingly pass by...so that they can take you out and stick your head up on their wall and brag to their buddies. This deer actually got to fight back for a few minutes - check out the article:

Deer gets revenge after hunter shoots him

SEDALIA, Mo. – A hunter bagged a big buck in the second day of firearms season, but the kill caused him a lot of pain. Randy Goodman, 49, said he thought two well-placed shots with his .270-caliber rifle had killed the buck on Nov. 19. Goodman said the deer looked dead to him, but seconds later the nine-point, 240-pound animal came to life.

The buck rose up, knocked Goodman down and attacked him with his antlers in what the veteran hunter called "15 seconds of hell." The deer ran a short distance and went down, and died after Goodman fired two more shots.

Soon Goodman started feeling dizzy and noticed his vest was soaked in blood.

So he reached his truck and drove to a hospital, where he received seven staples in his scalp and was treated for a slight concussion and bruises.

Information from: The Sedalia Democrat, http://www.sedaliademocrat.com

Tuesday, December 02, 2008

Now What?

It's been just over a month since I became an Ironman. I bought the video for $15 even though I felt that it was quite the racket...



Ironman was an amazing experience. The event, as well as my body and mind, far exceeded my expectations. I walked around on cloud 9 for a couple of weeks before my feet ever touched the ground. I had a good week or two at the gym, showing off my M-Dot schwag and getting back to pumping some iron, and then I....sorta...just took a vacation. I went with mom and dad to Memphis for the weekend and got a little action in Tunica. I actually won a hold'em tournament at the Hollywood casino on the first night we were there. That makes two trips to Tunica and two cashes in hold'em tourneys so far. So, yes, I am the poker master...just ask me. Although you wouldn't know it just by looking at me at the tables. My hands quiver, whether I'm holding 7-2 or pocket aces, but the big egos just can't figure out how to read such a thing. When I sat down and paid my money this last time, the egos chuckled and informed me that "it's tax deductible." Ha...as if the first place money wasn't enough to get me fired up, now I had a real reason to win. You gotta love it. ;)

But the good times came crashing down when I got a phone call from Briar...hysterical...telling me that Wrigley had been run over by a car. Mmmm. That one hurt. It still hurts, actually. I don't think I ever realized what a part of our family he had become. He was mainly Briar's baby...Briar had begged for a puppy for years when Santa finally gave in and brought this one to both of the boys 3 years ago. We had grown accustomed to him greeting us when we got home, always loving and forgiving when we had to be gone all day or even all weekend, and most recently to the little sound of his footsteps on the new hardwood floors. At the time, I thought that sound was annoying. Now I know better. It was not annoying. It was music. Innocent music. And that, my friends, is a lesson for the ages. Lest I forget it, I ask you to firmly jerk me back into reality.

So when you get taken down a notch by things like this, you get reminded of what's really important. I don't think I ever made any bones about the fact that, while it's defintely a worthy goal to reach for, training for and completing an Ironman is but trivial in the grand scheme of things in this world. That thought has been reinforced, and I've been making up for all those mornings when I put myself into robot mode and went out for some crazy-long ride or run or swim or combination of the three, instead of holding on to whichever child had made his way into the bed with us...or even holding on to the Iron Widower who so quietly made that Ironman thing possible in the first place.

So how do you go from 4000yd swims, 100 mile bikes and 20 mile runs...to....a 5 mile run here and there? Well, just to be right honest, it's been no problem here. Which is a little scary, actually...that I'm not suffering from endorphin withdrawals or anything of the sort. I'm just enjoying the simple life...as simple as it can possibly get when you have a husband, two kids, a job and mounds of laundry that never go away. If I don't want to get up early, I don't get up. And it's been a month now. I haven't been on the bike since Ironman, and I've only been in the water one time, and that was to help Holly with her swimming.

I have no idea what I'll do in '09, other than the Seaside Half Marathon. I've tossed the idea around of going for a 1:45 there...but unless I start kicking some major asphalt soon, I don't see that happening. I'm just enjoying the lack of pressure. I put a lot of pressure on myself to make certain times and certain distances, and granted, it all paid off when I pulled out that sub-12 IMFL finish, but sometimes it's nice to just take a break. Perhaps at some point I'll come up with a goal that I can get excited about, but for now...

I'm cooking pinto beans and turnip greens, relearning some of that 6th grade math, holding on to the ones who mean the most to me, and making up for lost time...because you can slice it and dice it anyway you like, but it takes sacrifices from the whole family for one to become an Ironman.

I love triathlon, but I love other stuff too. I have goals outside of this sport, and I share goals with my kids that need more attention now that IM is over. Somewhere, I intend to find the balance of staying in good shape while pursuing other goals...or helping my family and friends reach their goals...and reading about you reaching goals.

I have more Ironman pictures to post soon. Until then, peace and love...over and out.