Update on the hip

First of all, thanks for the well wishes about the hip, I really appreciate the kind words! 

So, I used the elliptical again yesterday for another 5 miler.  The hip doesn't seem to hurt during the workout and even feels okay afterwards.  However, by the end of the day, I am limping around because it hurts to step down on my right leg.  I think this is partly due to the workout, and partly because I have been spending the rest of day playing with the kids (rather than sitting in an office or in meetings all day).  We've played putt-putt golf, we've taken strolls around the neighborhood while they've used their new scooters from Santa, etc.  Either way, this is not encouraging.  At all.

I e-mailed Coach and she told me to take the next couple of days off.  Completely.  She thinks that the hip doesn't hurt while I am working out, because it's warmed up.  So, no spin class and swim for me today and no 12-miler on Saturday (not even on the elliptical).  I am seeing the doctor on Tuesday, but that seems like an eternity away.  I feel like I've wasted over a week stretching and seeing what happens.  Even with the stretching, the hip isn't getting any better...but, at least it isn't getting any worse either.  I've googled every hip condition I can think of and can't seem to find quite the right description of what I am feeling.  Sigh.  This is extremely frustrating.

On a  happier note, we are taking the kids to see Phineas and Ferb this afternoon...that should be fun!

We're planning to have a really low-key New Year's Eve tomorrow.  The Hubby is on call, so we're staying close to home and hanging out with the kiddos (which probably means playing Wii!).  Hope everyone out there has a wonderful New Year's eve and day!  I will be back with a post of my New Year's goals in a day or two.

What are your plans for New Year's Eve?  Big party or low key like us?

No Rest for the Weary...

Almost as soon as I made my decision to do both the Houston Marathon and the Texas 70.3, Coach sent me a link to my training schedule. Yikes, my 3 weeks of rest and just random running was over! Sunday the training was starting for real! But first, we had Thanksgiving weekend to get through.

Thanksgiving weekend went a little like this...

Wednesday - I had the day off from work. I still woke up at stupid thirty to run 5 miles, then showered and went back to bed until the kids woke up. They're early risers, so the nap was only about 15 minutes long! Next, I made the kiddos pancakes (and an omlet for me) and we hung out in our PJs for awhile. Then, it was time to see the new Muppets movie...I have never liked the Muppets and after seeing this movine, I still don't. But, the kids LOVED the movie and that's what matters, right? Next, we stopped at McDonald's for lunch. The weather was gorgeous, so I suggested that we take our lunches to a nearby playground....what did the kids want? To play in the germ-infested thing that is called "McDonald's Play Land". Ugh. After lunch, we headed home, packed our suitcase and headed downtown to a hotel for the night. This is our Thanksgiving tradition...stay downtown and wake-up to watch the HEB Holiday Parade. And, the tradition is not complete without a stop at our favorite local Pizza eatery!

Here's the Munckin checking out the pepperoni (sorry, my cell phone camera is crap!)

Here's the Kiddo enjoying a hot slice of cheese pizza, yum!

Thursday - As I mentioned before, the kids are early risers, so we were at breakfast by 7 am. Next, we headed outside to watch the parade. In years past, the weather has been downright cold, so we've watched from the 2nd story window of the hotel...this year, it was in the mid-50's so we decided to watch the parade outside. The kiddos loved every minute!

Bring on the floats and bands, already!!! The kids waiting for the parade to start.

Next, we headed home so I could make my infamous sweet potato dish before heading to my parent's house for Thansgiving lunch. And, it was also the Kiddo's actual birthday, so we had a small cake and some gifts for her. I didn't do too bad with the meal, but still felt pretty stuffed afterward. Later that night, the hubby and I folded laundry while watching the A&M/UT game...pretty exciting, I know!

The Kiddo and her cake...don't worry, she had a much bigger one at her birthday party last weekend. And, check out the Munchkin, he has the "no I didn't just swipe some icing" look!

Here is the kiddo with one of her birthday gifts...it was a very Bieber birthday, sigh.

Friday - After a quick 3-miler, we packed our bags and headed to the in-law's house in San Marcos (about 3 hours from Houston). We arrived, ate lunch and did some visiting before heading to the outlet mall. I scored some new Saucony shoes and a couple of cute outfits for work, the Hubby scored some Under Armor shirts. And yes, we did actually buy a holiday gift or two.

Saturday - Still at the inlaws, it was a super lazy morning. We hung out, played games with the kids and watched movies all morning. After having a late lunch with the in-laws, we headed back to Houston.

Sunday - Let the training begin! I started the morning with a 12-miler. The temps were much, much cooler (around 40, but a "feels like" temp of 33 thanks to the wind!). I wasn't sure what to wear for this weather, but eventually decided on a pair of Nike capris, my long sleeve "Ten for Texas" shirt and some knit gloves. Turns out that it was the perfect outfit. About the time I would start to get warm and push up the long sleeves, I would turn the corner and be blasted by the cold winds and be thankful for the long sleeves. Overall, it was a great run. Later that day, the hubby and I started the task of decorating the house for Christmas. We're almost done....but not quite.

So tomorrow is my first "2-a-day" workout of the 70.3 training - 3 miles easy, 1400 yd swim. Let the fun begin!!!

So, how was your Thanksgiving???? Gobble, Gobble!

Weekend Re-Cap

The hubby and I both had the day off on Friday. I had some errands and family stuff to tend to, but once that was done we took the kids to see Cars 2. We’re big fans of the 1st Cars movies, so we were looking forward to the sequel. It was a cute movie – it had a much more complex plot than the 1st movie, was longer and focused more on Mater. There was some violence that I’ve heard parents complain about – yes, the bad guys had a ray gun that could blow up some of the race cars and the bad guys did capture the good guys – but in the end, the good guys won. I am sure we’ll eventually buy the dvd and be forced to watch this over and over and over and over…

I started Saturday off with a 43-mile bike ride with tri-buddies, Jen and Kelly. It turned out to be a great ride – a little warm and humid, but overall we all felt strong the entire ride and felt as if we could do 10 more miles! But, we’re starting to realize that riding the flat roads with protection from the wind (thanks to all the trees) is not doing us any favors. Kelly is training for next year’s IMTX race and that course does have some rolling hills and very little protection from the winds that we often have here in the Spring. So, in the coming weeks we will be alternating our rides between the more open roads and our nice little “comfort zone” rides. However, it might be wise to cut back the mileage a bit the 1st week just to get acclimated….we’ll see! I spent the rest of the day cleaning out the kid’s closets as well as my side of our his / her closet. I am an organization nut, very Type A, but I just haven’t had time to dedicate to getting organized in a long, long time, so this was very long overdue! This is just the beginning of my “get ridiculously organized” project going on at home.

Sunday was a rest day, but I spent the day finishing up the closets and pulling weeds in our flowerbeds. Exciting, huh?

Also, I have changed my plans for some of the races on my Calendar. I had to re-evaluate a few things thanks to my stupid broken toe (maybe I should just refer to it as SBT?). I will not be racing Shadow Creek Ranch Tri in July. I only have 3 weeks to train and I don’t think that’s enough time to make significant progress with my running after being out for 6 weeks. CB&I was such an awesome race with a big PR, I don’t want to go into Shadow Creek underprepared. Instead, I will be riding the Katy Flatlands bike ride. I’m undecided on the distance, but I am thinking something in the 50 – 60 mile range. This will only be my 2nd organized bike ride…my 1st was Tour de Pink back in 2008.

Finally, I decided to register for the Houston ½ Marathon lottery. Probably not the smartest move, since there’s a very good chance I will be doing the Goofy Challenge the weekend before…but, I registered with a group of friends and figured I’d just have fun with the race and not really race for time. Kind of a waste of a race, but at least I’ll be among friends! The good news - we found out Monday that our group did make it in! The bad news – my hubby, who registered for the lotto solo, did not make it in. Stupid lotto!

Spring Break 2011

Sorry for the hiatus! It was a busy week for this runner mom - the kiddos were on Spring Break and I took a few days off so that we could have some quality time together. Fun times!

Day 1
It was rainy and nasty with a cool front coming through. What else is there to do besides head to Chuck E. Cheese? The Munchkin hasn't been there since he was about 18 months and the Kiddo loves the place, so I figured I could endure a few hours of torture fun. Afterwards, we colored and played with Play Doh - perfect indoor activities for a rainy day!



Day 2:
All of my stay-at-home-Mom friends swore up and down that they'd NEVER take their kids to the zoo on Spring Break because of the crowds. Unfortunately, us work-outside-the-home-Moms, don't have a choice! And you know what? It wasn't that bad. We arrived at the Houston Zoo about 15 minutes after it opened, and I'll admit I was a bit freaked out to see so many cars already there. But, we parked and got through the gate and saw everything we wanted to see with no issues at all. It was fun! My favorite part was watching the kids feed the giraffes at the new exhibit - it was awesome being that close!

Here's the Munchkin getting into the African spirit at the new African Forest exhibit:


Here are the Kiddo and Muchkin waiting to feed the giraffes:


Here's the Munchkin right after feeding the lettuce to this guy. The Muchkin let out squeals of delight when the giraffe took the leaf!


Yes, you really are that close to the giraffes!


After feeding the giraffes the kids decided to practice on each other!


And no, I don't support child labor, but hey, he wanted to pull the wagon. Who am I to object?


We ended the day on the train. Other than standing in line for tickets, then standing in line for the train with two tired, cranky little ones, this was my favorite part of the day. The ride is relaxing, the kids are quiet (for the most part) and the views of Hermann Park are spectacular. See, Houston really is a pretty city...





The Munchkin was totally in awe of the engine on the little train...we sat up near it and when we were leaving he wanted to stop and just stare, lol!


Day 3:
The Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo is a time honored tradition in Houston. In February of every year, traffic is stopped on main thoroughfares for covered wagons and horses that participate in the annual trail ride. It's the one time you can actually call in late to work because of horses blocking traffic, and your boss will actually believe you. :-)

The rodeo is kicked off with a 5k/10k race, followed immediately by a huge parade. Then, the fairgrounds open and each day for 3 weeks there's carnival fun, the livestock show, tons of scholarships for students and concerts - this year it was everything from Kid Rock and Kiss, to Alan Jackson and Jason Aldean.

I'll admit, I don't usually attend. To be honest, it's a whole different sub-culture that I just don't "get" - the boots, the wranglers, the country music, the cows and horses - it's just not me. But, I don't want my preference to influence the kiddos and their judgement, so the hubby and I decided we'd spend a day on the grounds - experiencing the animals at the livestock show and enjoying the rides and games of the carnival. We all had a great time, so yes, we will be back next year!

Here's the Kiddo on a big tractor. Yes, she's even sporting a cowboy hat...she has pink boots too, but they aren't comfortable for all the walking we'd be doing!



Here's the Munchkin on his very first amusement park ride:


Here's the Kiddo on the kiddie roller coaster. Yes, she is hanging on for dear life, lol!



The Kiddo and I enjoyed a ride on the ferris wheel...glad she's like me and knows how to enjoy the spectacular view! You can see by the picture on the right how huge the rodeo carnival is...and this is just one section of it. We also had an amazing view of downtown Houston from up high, but I didn't get the best pic with my cell phone camera...


So that was it. It was so much fun! On Thursday and Friday, the kids went back to daycare and I returned to work. :-( I will update you on my workouts next...not that there were many of them during spring break!

Catching Up (with pics this time!)

So, my last post was a quick summary of what I've been up to. Now, here it is in pictures...

As you might know, it's been freaking cold here. Let me clarify: that is cold as in S. TX cold...I know you guys to the north of us think we're pansies and that's okay. But, it has been FREEZING! We even had a "snow day", which ended up being nothing more than a bunch of ice. But, I did get to work from home...as in on the sofa, in front of this:

This is about the time the Hubby introduced me to this product, which he refers to as "coffee crack" and it's great for these FREEZING temps:

The nice thing about FREEZING temps, is that we have plenty of time and zero excuses to work on school projects. This little doozy is the Kiddo's island...yes, that Amazon stick figure to the right is supposed to be me. :-)

And when the projects are done and it's still FREEZING, we just play...I think we need some more cars and trains, don't you?

And when the kids are bored from all the projects and playing and it's STILL FREEZING, they tend to get creative. Sitting in a plastic box is oh so fun and entertaining for a 6 year old....I told you we needed more cars!

I did run the Houston 1/2...naturally, it was the one weekend that it was not FREEZING. Yes, I am still a little bitter about the warm temps and rain. But good swag can usually make up for it.

Oh and cupcakes! Cupcakes make up for a lot too (even when it's FREEZING) . In fact, I am sure we would have world peace if every meeting of world leaders started and ended with one of these...

When it's FREEZING in TX, you wait until mid-day to take your long bike ride so that it's warmer. But, dressing for cold weather on the bike is soooo different than dressing for cold weather for running. As you can see, I haven't quite figured it out yet...nor do I have bike clothes that match - that's me in the pink with the blue on top. Don't hate, I know it's trendy.

And, last week I was educated on what FREEZING really feels like. I went to Denver where I was greeted with a temp of -7. When I texted my husband with this information, he responded "-7 or just 7?". No babe, that was negative seven - FREEZING. It did warm up to a blustery 12 degrees before I left though.

And, we finally had a weekend that was not FREEZING...in fact, it included highs in the 60s without any rain! This is good, because it also happened to be the weekend of the Kiddo's 1st soccer game! We got our butts handed to us, but the kids had fun anyway.

So now you are completely caught up...have a great day!

Long Run and Crappy Weather

Saturday is supposed to be my long bike day and Sunday is supposed to be my long run day. But sometimes Mother Nature is a witch and decides not to cooperate. Saturday and Sunday were perfect examples of this...

My tri buddies and I were planning on a 7 am bike ride - 30 miles. We're gradually upping the mileage. At 5:52 I received a text message from tri buddy, Kelly, asking if it was raining at my house. Apparently, it was raining at her house. Even though she only lives about 10 miles away, it wouldn't be the 1st time it was raining at her house but not at mine. But, I went to look out the front door and sure enough, rain. Drats! And, since it was 45 degrees, a rainy bike ride would not be fun. We decided to postpone the ride, especially since it was supposed to rain off and on all day. And, Sunday's forecast looked even worse - 100% chance of rain. All day. Ugh.

By 8 am, it looked as if the rain was going to let up a bit. I decided that I should go ahead and get my run out of the way, especially after seeing Sunday's forecast. I'll be honest, I really didn't want to run. I am used to being done by 8 am, so to start my run at 8 am...well, it was just weird. But off I went....around the neighborhood. It was in the low 50's and I totally overdressed - Nike Capris and a long sleeve Under Armor shirt. I know better. I started out feeling awkward and stiff. It took seveal miles to really feel good. It seemed like I felt every bit of those miles. I made it back to my house at 8 miles, used the bathroom, changed into a short-sleeved shirt, grabbed some Gu and headed out once more. Finished 4 more miles at a much faster pace that the previous 8. Overall run - 2:04, or a 10:21 pace. Not too bad considering I had no intention of running, did not want to run and was pretty damn negative the entire 12 miles. If I maintain this same pace for the 1/2 in 2 weeks, I'll have about a 5 minute PR. Now let's just hope the weather cooperates!

Sunday, it was a nasty mess all day- about 58 degrees and non-stop rain. Yuck. I should have gotten out my trainer for a long bike ride, but I opted to watch movies with the kids instead. Lazy. We did get out to get the kid's haircuts taken care of and had dinner with my parents. I am so used to this being Houston Marathon weekend, that it seemed weird to be having birthday dinner with my parents without being able to celebrate running. Oh well...two more weeks! And the Golden Globes are tonight...can't wait! Hoping that Mad Men and The King's Speech pick up a few!

Stupid, Stupid, Stooooopppppiiiiiddddd

Tuesday, 1/5 - 48 minute treadmill run with intervals
This was a crazy day for us, because it was the day that the Munchkin was getting tubes in his ears! The procedure itself is no big deal – they make a small incision in the eardrum and insert a teeny, tiny little tube that will let all the icky stuff drain out. Nasty, I know, but like I said - no big deal. It was the general anesthesia was what worried me. Scary stuff when it’s your 19-month old. Luckily, things went great! The kiddo did great at the hospital before and after the surgery. By the time we made it back home, he was all ready to play just like normal! The Dr and nurses told us he’d be ready to go to school the next day, but I wasn’t quite sure. It was true!

As for the running….obviously it’s taper time. This was very apparent in Coach’s schedule this week…this week’s interval workout was 10 minute warm-up, 3 minutes easy x 1 minute hard (do 7 times), end with 10 minute cool down. Yeah, usually it would be 3 minutes hard x 1 minute easy, lol. Overall pace was 10:32.

Now what was stupid about this? My legs and arms were sore! Remember that “Jullian Michael’s 30-day Shred” video I bought and then did on Sunday? And, remember a few weeks ago when I had some quad pain? Yeah…the 1st exercise was a total quad killer. I felt the pull, but of course I kept going. On Monday, I didn’t notice any pain at all. Then again, that was an easier run. On Tuesday, I felt it. Not horrible, but still…It did seem to subside as time went on, so I was able to finish the run. I was kind to the quad after the run and iced it. Hopefully, it will be a non-issue!

Wednesday, 1/6 - rest day
Decided to rest the sore quad. Cleaned house instead…does that count as workout?

Thursday, 1/7 - rest 20 minute treadmill run
I know 20 minutes doesn’t sound like a lot of time on the treadmill, but originally I didn’t think I was going to get to run at all. You see, I invited a few of my favorite running peeps over for dinner and a movie. What movie, you ask? Why, Spirit of the Marathon, of course! Well that and we watched some of the Kona 2010 coverage. Good times!

Anywho, I had completely forgotten that I had a work training in the afternoon. This training was only 15 minutes from home, so no 5 pm rush hour to contend with. And, the training let out early, so that means I had time to run! Not much time obviously, because I also thought it would be fun to surprise the kids by picking them up from school too. But, I had enough time for a quickie 20 minute run…I knew I would not be eating my usual healthy dinner, so I needed to burn at least a few calories. Every little bit helps!

Friday, 1/8 - rest day
Brrrr, it's frickin' cold out there! Highs today in the 30s today and tomorrow with lows in the teens!

I didn't get a workout in, but I did head over to Tri On The Run during my lunch break to try on wetsuits. Lemme tell you, there is nothing more humbling than trying on a wetsuit! The guys at TOTR are awesome, but they suggested I try on a small suit first. Yeah, sorry, I know I am not large...but I am not small either. I have some, um, curvy legs and hips....a size small has never fit in those areas. At least not since grade school! I did find one I like, but I wanted to sleep on it. I actually have an opportunity to buy a used wetsuit too, so I want to check that out too. The good news is that TOTR is trying to get rid of all their 2009 suits since the 2010 ones will be in soon....50% off on some! Too bad the ones that fit me are close to $600. Ouch! I can't wait for the arctic front to move on so we can get in some OWS practices!

Bad girl

I've been a bad girl. No blogging for an entire week? Bad!

So here's the lowdown on my past week:

Thursday, December 31 - neighborhood run, 50 minutes
I took advantage of my day off and ran around the neighborhood for 50 minutes. My run was supposed to be 70 minutes, but as usual, I was short on time. The weather sucked. It was nice and cool (around 50 if I remember correctly), but it was foggy, humid and dreary. Yuck! I started to get bored around 20 minutes in, so I threw in some intervals - run hard for 3 minutes, easy for 1. After about 5 rounds of that, I was almost back to home base. Good run!

I went to see Nine with running peep, Katie. The movie was, well, okay. Such an amazing cast, such a mediocre movie. I was expecting something more along the lines of Chicago. Nine definitely didn't live up to those expectations. Kate Hudson and Fergie delivered awesome musical performances, but the rest of the songs weren't as entertaining and the plot was non-existent. Then again part of me wonders if my taste in movies has changed...in my life B.C., (that's Before Children) I had my group of movie girlfriends and we'd see everything - artsy, foriegn, independent, low budget, mainstream blockbusters - you name it. Maybe 6 years ago I would have liked this movie. But not today. Today's movie girl just thought this movie was incredibly slow. Seriously. Wait for the dvd and go see The Blind Side or It's Complicated instead.

Later, we headed to my Sister-in-Law's house for awhile with the Hubby and kids...we were home by 10 pm and I was asleep by 11...way to bring in the New Year!

Friday, January 1 - rest day - happy new year!!!
Friday I spent my rest day hanging with the Hubby and kids. The Kiddo and Hubby went to see Alvin and The Chipmunks: The Squeakquel and I took down the Christmas decorations while the baby napped. Joy!

Saturday, January 2 - Frosty run - 10 miles
I had another rare opportunity to run with my peeps again. We did 10 miles at a 10:47-ish pace. It was around 29 degrees and because we were running most of the run in the moonlight, everything around us had frost on it and the world looked like an beautiful, amazing winter wonderland! Great run!

Later on Saturday, the Hubby and I took the Kiddo to see Disney Playhouse Live! while the Munchkin hung out at the Grandparent's house. She had a blast and we enjoyed the family time with her.

Sunday, January 3 - cross training - Jillian's 30-day Shred
On Friday, I ran to Wal-Mart for new Rubbermaid storage containers. While browsing, I saw Jillian Michael's 30-Day Shred dvd on sale for $9. I tend to be an impulse shopper, so naturally I bought it. I did the video and what can I say? It's only 20 minutes, but it's tough! Within the 1st 5 minutes of the actual workout, I was wishing I had some smaller hand weights.

The Hubby and Kiddo lucked out and managed to get some free Aeros tickets, so they headed off to the game while I had some more bonding time with the Munchkin. Do you see a theme here? The Kiddo has to be the luckiest girl around...3 awesome activities in 3 days. Fun times! Unfortunately the Aeros lost, but the Kiddo and Hubby still had a great time.

We also had fun watching the Texans come from behind and win their final game of the season. I hate football, but I had to admit it was a great game. Congrats to the Texans for their 1st winning season in franchise history!

Monday, January 4 - treadmill run
The taper has definitely begun. Only 30 minutes EASY on the treadmill. I managed a easy, peasy 10:43 pace.

That's enough for now. See ya tomorrow!

Happy Holidays!

Hope everyone had a great Christmas!

We had a great time on Christmas Eve seeing Riley perform with the children's choir at church and then celebrating with my in-laws. Seriously, we had soooo many new toys from my sister-in-law and her family, not to mention from my mother and father in-law, that I was concerned. Concerned about where in the hell we were going to put everything! Santa still had to come and we still had to celebrate with my parents! My dining room looked like a fully stocked Toys R Us. No joke! As usual, my parents overloaded the kids with toys on Christmas Day (as did Santa)...now, we have some serious purging of the old and organizing of the new to do!!! I'm a total type A, so seeing all the clutter and mess in the playroom is driving me crazy already. :-)

Two runs to report...

Thursday, 12/24 - 70 minutes 40+ minutes
Yeah, I was a bit of a slacker on Christmas Eve...I was scheduled to run 70 minutes, but seriously, the kiddos and hubby were at home, my in-laws we visiting and I had a gazillion things to do. I had pretty much talked myself out of running the full 70 minutes before I even started my run. Then, as I started, it felt like one of those heavy legs, no gusto kinda running days. One of those days where I don't like running very much. That sealed the deal. I ran 2 of the 2-mile loops around the 'hood and called it a day. It was chilly (around 50), but not cold. But there was a lady out running geared up in long tights, a jacket, a cap and gloves. And there I was in a running skirt and short sleeves (and sweating). I thought she was crazy, and I'm sure she thought the same of me. I'm not even sure of my pace or time, because somewhere along the way I must have accidentally bumped the button on my watch and turned off the stopwatch. Doh!

Saturday, 12/26 - 12 miles
Saturday I was lucky enough to have running peep, Katie, as a running partner. Katie and I trained for the 1/2 with Woodlands Fit last year and this year, Katie is doing the whole enchilada (the Houston Marathon). I was in luck, because her taper started this weekend with 12 miles and I wanted to get in one last 12-miler before starting my taper.

We had an out and back though The Woodlands, starting at the Y. There were a few inclines sprinkled in, but nothing too terrible. It was pretty chilly when we started (34 degrees), so I layered with a cap, short sleeved technical tee, long sleeved shirt, NYC Marathon jacket (it's light) and full tights. Around mile 2, I decided to get rid of the cap...my head was too warm. Somewhere before the turnaround, I shed the jacket too and tied it around my waist. I really need to learn how to dress properly in this weather. I used to have no problem, but for some reason since having kids, I tend to get much warmer during my runs.

As we were finishing our run, I realized that I felt really strong. As in, "wow, I feel like I could run a few more miles with no problem" strong. Then, Katie told me our pace - 11:30. Hmmm, that might be why I felt like I could keep running. It was about 45 seconds slower per mile than my most recent long run pace. I guess that's not a bad thing, but I am seriously questioning my ability to run the 1/2 at a 10:30 pace. Maybe running the Ten for Texas at a 10:30 pace was just a fluke? I hope not. Of course, I also realize that I will need nice cool temps, the wind at my back and the planets to be aligned on race day too. :-) Certainly couldn't hurt!

Another Weekend Recap

Friday, 12/18 - Too busy to run day!

Friday was a crazy, crazy day! We started with the kid's Christmas pictures...trying to get your 5 year old and 1 year old to smile and look at the camera at the same time, with natural smiles, is IMPOSSIBLE!!! Here's what we ended up with:



Next, we headed to the ENT. The Munchkin has been having reoccurring ear infections since May. In fact, we've been to the doctor 17 times since that time...yeah, add up those co-pays!We've decided to move forward with tubes, so that will be happening in the next week or two.


Finally, we ended Friday with a "Girls Night Out". A friend and I took our 5-year old daughters to see "Princess and The Frog", then we headed to dinner and ended the night with a carriage ride (very princess-ish). The movie was great and the girls had a blast!

Saturday, 12/19 - 11-miler

I met running peep, Karen, in The Woodlands for a run. The weather was chilly (39), but finally seeing the gorgeous blue skies after a week of dreary weather was awesome! Karen originally planned a 9.6 mile route that included some "hills", but while standing in the cold on Friday night, I started to have some strange muscle pain in my left quad. I remember feeling a strange pull there the day before when I was getting the kids out of the car, but dismissed it. I requested a non-hilly route and Karen was nice enough to oblige. We did 11-miles at a 10:47 pace. Not too shabby! A huge thanks to Karen for being a great running partner...it made the miles pass super fast! I had 2 small oranges pre-run, plus a pack of Gu Chomps during my run. I also drank 12 oz of Gatorade and 4 ounces of water.

After the run, I headed home where I made the family some breakfast and then headed to the grocery store. Later that night, the hubby and I headed to a Christmas party. I am sooo proud of myself for not over indulging. I didn't snack before the meal at all and I had a 1/2 glass of wine with dinner. Plus, I only had a little taste of a dessert...normally, I'd have a larger helping or two.



Sunday, 12/20 - rest day

Jeeze, only 5 days til Christmas!!! The family headed to church on Sunday...we're getting better at attending regularly (finally). Afterwards, we decided to take the kids for their annual visit with Santa. We grabbed a Starbucks and headed over to a local shopping center where Santa would arrive in about 40 minutes. Fortunately, the weather was perfect and we enjoyed just hanging out in the sunshine while we waited. When we finally got to see Santa, the Kiddo gave a great smile just as instructed...the Munchkin, on the other hand, had a total and complete meltdown, lol. I pretty much expected that, since he's a total Momma's boy. Poor Santa. Later on Sunday, after washing mountains of laundry and watching Toy Story 1 & 2 with the Kiddo, the hubby and I had one more holiday party to attend. It was much more difficult to eat healthy at this party - hot wings were the main entree! Ugh, but I think I did pretty darn good with my meal. I guess I'll see when I weigh in on Wednesday.

What we've been up to...

Seriously, you wanna know why I haven't been blogging so much lately? This is just a sample of what we've been doing over the past month....

The Kiddo went to see her 1st musical - Mary Poppins


The kiddo's musical theater class performed "The Wizard of Oz". As you can see, the kiddo is a Munchkin, lol!


The Kiddo had her 5th birthday party...yes, it looks like someone threw up Barbie at our house now!


The kiddo worked on her 1st Advent project at church.


Of course we made time to have some outdoor fun!


Thanksgiving morning - watching the parade from our hotel window in downtown Houston (our Thanksgiving tradition)


Spending Thanksgiving afternoon at our cousin's house.

The day after Thanksgiving - we went to breakfast with our cousins from Florida!

Waiting patiently for muffins to bake!

And then there was the Kiddo's holiday dance recital...I haven't even had time to download those pictures!