me and the gym

So there is this machine at the gym that I'm maxing out on at 30 pounds.  Seriously though, it goes up to 305!  That's either saying something about me or really saying something about them!

color blaze 5K

 
This may have been the most fun 5K!  My sister drove down and brought a friend and we all ran in the race with the kids. Here's our clean before picture.

 
Bee and Lou were coloring people, even total strangers before the race.

 
We're covered and haven't even started. 

 
This race brought out a different population than the other 5K we participate in.  There were lots of families, lots of groups of friend, lots of walkers.

 
Lots of people brought kids and didn't bring a stroller or buggy. It was HOT.  They looked miserable a half mile in.  I pushed both kids at times in our bike trailer.  I looked miserable a half mile in. Some of the trail was off road.  I have never taken the trailer off road, and never will again.

 
Bee really did run most of the race, probably at least 2 3/4 miles.

 
We made my sister's friend a medal.  It was her first 5K and was a little disappointed when she learned there would be no medals.  She's also a teacher and stayed the whole weekend with us.  There was lots of teacher talk.  Poor hubby.   I wish I had another brother for her to marry, I want to keep this girl!

 

 

 

 
Post race, my sister entered a hula hoop contest.  She won.  She's multi-talented like that.

 
The dye stained our skin a bit.  Bee looked like a lizard for a few days.

The next day we took them all to the theme park and wore them all out again.

race day

My mom and sister came into town and joined us in a 5k. It was both of their first and Hubby's first too. The kids ran about a mile each and spent the rest of the race in the worlds biggest jogging stroller, which I pushed. 

and then it rained.  It poured.  At least it wasn't too sunny.  We're all already looking for our next race.  I told them they'd like it!

Edited to add:  The race facebook page, shared these photos:

Saturday run and a strawberry treat

The kids and I ran in a super fun race Saturday.  It was the colon screening awareness run and was the first race we all ran in just last year.  Several of my teacher friends and families from school were there, so it made for a good morning.  Our colon cancer survivor friend had a whole team there and we were so happy to be part of it.

I got almost exactly the same time I got last year in the 5K and the kids ran in the dash.  The man who gave me the bags in March was there and when I thanked him again and told him that I'd sent them off to Africa, he gave me more bags.  I'll have to show those this week.

We were supposed to go to a cook out that night, but we've been struggling with some behavior issues at our house lately, so we did not go.  I ended up with the treats we were going to take that just needed eaten. 

I made some very similar strawberries last summer for Bee's birthday.  To make these yummy treats you need to have pretty large strawberries.  After washing a drying, cut off the very tip of the 'point' of the berry, so that they stand well.  Cut off the green leafs and gently cut and hollow out the berry a bit.  Fill with the delicious filling  (8oz cream cheese blended up with one container of marshmallow fluff).  I use a plastic baggie with the corner clipped.  These are topped with blueberries.  Last summer I topped them with crushed graham crackers.  They tasted just like cheesecake.  I'm pretty sure that the fact that there's fruit involved makes them healthy. 

seriously

How did this happen? A tick! I walked Bee into her school building and came home. I ran on the treadmill and then noticed a tick. Yikes!  Lou helped me get it out.  I smashed him!  The tick, not the little boys with the tweezers.  All seems well with my poor ankle.   I was pretty freaked out, but the first thing I thought was, "I've got to take a picture of this!"

weekend- in a timely manner

I'm nothing if not punctual this weekend.  Perhaps it's all the spring forward business.  Here's something fun from this weekend, in a timely manner.  It was my first race for the season and a second for the kids.

Lou had refused to run until just moments before his race.  I was so glad he did change his mind.He has been very nervous about the whole pinching part of St. Patrick's Day and requested a shirt that said, "Don't Pink Me!"

Bee was pretty clingy that morning.  It was a big race and there were tons of people.  She stayed close... even during my stretching.

This 7K was a St. Patrick Day event.  That explains my socks.  I was one of the least festive people there.  There were people running in kilts and wool sweaters. 

This was a great race for me.  I was pleased with my pace and how well I felt during and after the race.  The kids were super pleased with their medals.  Bee was so happy that her age group didn't have to run a quarter mile like last time.

The rest of the day was spent enjoying the sunshine and trampoline.  Could we have worked up any more static?

run and a wash

Bee and Lou had their first race of the season.  They had so much fun last summer that they said they wanted to do several races they year.  I didn't run in this race because I didn't know what the weather was going to be like.  The kids were free, so if the weather had been snowy, we just wouldn't have gone.  It was rather nice out and I should have run!

Lou's age group ran 100 yards.  

Daddy had to run behind him.

Bee's group (she's in the pink coat towards the left)

 ran 1/4 mile.

I had to run with her.  I ran in a wool sweater.  I was not prepared.   We all have a race next month.  I will wear appropriate running clothes.

They got their medals and were happy. 

We got a car wash on the way home.  Hubby whispered to me, "watch Lou."  He was cracking me up.  He sometimes goes with daddy on a boys trip to wash the car.  He loves it! 

He just watch and smiled and giggled the whole time. 

Bee was a little scared.  She stays with me when the boys wash the car.

She made daddy narrate the whole wash.

Lou might get a job here he decided. 

me running the mini marathon

So, this is me running the mini marathon on Sunday morning. You may note that this picture does not include running shoes or appropriate running attire. There's no race number or other runners. Ok, so I'm not even in this picture. In fact, this photo was taken at my house and not along the 13.1 mile course. That's because that's where I was this morning... at home.


After the 10K I ran last month, I was really sick for the next two days. I've read it's called 'runners rot.' So I really slowed down on my mileage. It put me in a bad spot for the big race this weekend. About two weeks ago I knew that I either needed to really push myself for a few good long runs or... not. I decided that it just wasn't fun anymore... I have a few 5, 7, and 10K's on my list for the spring. As far as this Sunday morning: it was me and some homemade cinnamon rolls. I added some cream cheese in the icing. Good choice!

running and now blah

Saturday was the 10K run that is in the series of runs I mistakenly signed up for this summer. I did it on purpose, but now am not sure what I was thinking. The 5 and 10 K runs have been fine, but the mini marathon is approaching and I'm really unsure about it.

Hubby and the kids came out for it too. Both Bee and Lou had been upset that they missed the last race. Poor kids.... here we are a few minutes after 6AM. When I woke Bee up she asked,"Why would you wake me up so early on a Saturday?" Then she insisted on wearing her running skirt and shoes.

My plan had been to spend the first two or three miles getting to a good place in the pack. By mile three I decided that I was in a good spot and didn't need to worry about passing people anymore, just keeping pace. That worked fine, but about mile 5, I got a little burst of energy and sped up my pace a little. I was able to moved up a few more spots.


I finished with a time of 58.02. It's been my fastest time for a 10K so far. Unfortunately, the increase in speed seems have done a number on my stomach. I have had a crazy stomach ache today. I thought perhaps it was the flu, but one of my sisters suggested that the running might have done it. When I googled it, I learned that 30-50% of runners experience some GI issues after a race. There seem to be a number of factors including hydration level, pre-race meals, and breathing rates. Blah.