Round and around and around we go!

I am about to head out to do 3 miles on this beautiful afternoon. We were supposed to do 5 together yesterday morning but it kind of fell apart at the last minute. Regina is still nursing her hurt knee/hip, Chyna sprained her foot on the last long run and is laying low and me.... well it was Disciple Now at our church this weekend. We had ten 7th and 8th grade boys at our house. They had to be fed by 8:00 a.m. Have you ever seen those shows where the animals descend on the fresh kill. That's what those boys looked like when I sat those homemade sweet rolls on the counter. What a good group of kids and a precious church we have!

I'm heading to Strawberry Park to do one of my last runs. Three today and maybe 2 on Tuesday and I think I'm done before the race. I've mentioned this park a few times and for whatever reason I just really like running there. I've done all kinds of different runs during the past few months. Out and back. Winding through the neighborhood. Around the cul-de-sac a hundred times. But lately I have had a preference for going in circles at the park. I know where I am in the mile. I can mark progress easily. I told Shane I was beginning to like just running in circles and he said that was good since our course is just one long circle. I prefer a mile-long circle but you know..whatever.

Anyway, I thought I would let you what the course looks like.

We start at Epcot and run to the Magic Kingdom. Between miles 5 and 6 we do what made me sign up for the race in the first place. We run through Cinderella's castle. This is what makes me run when it's 23 degrees outside. It comes at a good time for me in the race and I can not wait! I'm hoping maybe it will be like on rides when they take your picture and then you go and pay too much money for a picture of yourself looking goofy. We also run through Tomorrow Land (Space Mountain!) and Frontier Land (Big Thunder Mountain!) We then head back to Epcot past several resorts and enter Epcot and finish near the big golf ball at Epcot.

It is going to be a great race. The weather is shaping up to look great and one week from today I'm eating with Cinderella with good friends with a princess medal around my neck!

Life is good!

A shift in thought (and reading material)

I keep a stack of books and magazines on my nightstand. Mostly it's magazine because I'm not a casual reader. When I pick up a book to read it I become consumed by it. I have to read the whole thing in a day or two. I don't read well before bed because I lay awake and worry about where I have left the characters. Example:

Shane: "Where are you going?"

Stacy: "I'm sorry. I have to go read."

Shane: "Now?"

Stacy: "Yes! I left Angel stuck in the brothel and I have see if Michael finds her!" (Redeeming Love-BEST BOOK EVER!)

Anyway, there is generally always a stack of something to read or look at on my nightstand. I was making my bed this week I noticed something that again marks the fundamental shift in my life over the last 5 months. Here is what I found:

Nothing all that strange here.

*A Vicki Courtney book I bought When I was in one my moods where I begin to panic that my kids aren't going to turn out ok and I go by a book to tell me what to do. (This is a good one by the way.)

*A Pottery Barn catalog. I adore Pottery Barn!(Jenny has to use "super verbs" in her sentences for school so now we "adore" everything)

* A Betty Crocker Gluten Free magazine/recipe book. Just FYI-not worth the ten dollar cost!

* A Where Woman Cook magazine with The Pioneer Woman on the cover. This was an expensive magazine but had beautiful pictures of the kitchens of famous foodies cooking. I bought it as a gift but looked at it first. Very nice magazine.

And then on the bottom of the pile was this:

And not only was it just on the nightstand. It was at the bottom of the pile because I had already read it! This is not the first time this has happened to me. I caught myself reading one in a doctor's office awhile back. I would just like to repeat....

What is happening to me?!?!?!

10,9,8....

Let the 10 day count down begin!

I should be at the gym right now because I didn't get a run in today. But instead I am eating M&Ms while I wait for my hair color to "cure." I know I need to be in shape for the race but a girl's gotta look cute too, right?

For the past 5 months I have been in "I gotta run 13.1 miles" panic mode. Now I'm in "I'm leaving my family for 4 days" panic mode. I'm not one of those moms who just can't leave her kids. I don't have tons of guilt or feel sick at the thought. I know that they know I love them and I'll bring presents. I also don't leave very often so a few days away is good for everyone. I know I will miss them and I hope they will miss me.

My problem lies in my control freak tendencies. I don't want to leave even the slightest thing undone. I don't know why I think the 12 year old can't wash his own jeans or that Shane can't grab a gallon of milk (like he does anyway!)

In the 6 months since I quit my job I really have not been busy. Normal kid, church and home things, but it has been a quiet year and it has been so nice! However the busiest three weeks of this year are falling on either side of this trip. We've had valentine parties, are having Disciple Now this weekend, a middle school dance I'm coordinating the week after, and Jenny's birthday is the day after we get back with her party four days later. My list of things to do is 4 pages long. Whew!

I know that once that plane leaves the ground all will be well and what isn't done won't really matter. Between now and then I'm going to try to relax and soak up some hugs and kisses.

Now I have to go because the hair color is ready and...

I have to check the 10 day forcast!

Setting Goals

We had our last long run on Saturday. I have 2 short runs planned this week and a 5 miler with the group on Saturday and then it's race week. Man!

My goals for this race have changed over the past 5 months. I started out just wanting to run a mile. Check. Then 3 miles. Check. Then I had a goal of running 6 miles straight. No stopping. Not a check. But that's ok. I have a strategy for the race, and following that helps me have a better run rather than running till I think I'm gonna die and then walking, or actually crawling.

So, what is my race goal? First and foremost...to finish. There is still a lingering doubt that I can do this. The long run Saturday was good and strong, but 3 more miles scares me a little.

Next, my goal, assuming I finish, is to finish in less than 3 hours. I really think I can do this. Maybe even 2:45, but I'm saying less than three,

Lastly, my goal is to enjoy it! I think that the next time I do this I will focus more on time but this time, I want to relish the atmosphere and experience. I want to stop and have my picture made with Mickey. I want to soak it up!

I hope your Valentine's Day is filled with love! I am especially thankful for my sweet husband who has been so supportive in every way on this journey. I'm also thankful for my baby girl who got up on her own at 5:45 to set out Valentines for us. I'm also thankful for my almost teenage son who grunted "Happy Valentines Day" in my general direction this morning but really enjoyed his heart pancakes. I love you guys! You make my world go 'round!

Happy Heart Day!

Dropping Like Flies

Two weeks from right now I will be on my way to Disney world to run my first half marathon. I say first and not only because if I have learned anything over the last 4 months it's never say you won't do something.

We are down to the wire and I'm doing strange things like emailing the marathoners in my life and asking for advice. I'm reading online articles about tapering your runs and how to carb load gluten free. I've got a pile started in my bedroom of things to take with me.

I ran 5 miles on Tuesday and it was the best run I've had to date. The weather was good. I ran a good pace, I felt great, no aches and pains. I felt good when I finished. I was so excited.

Then it snowed. Again. What's up with that? It snowed once when I was a kid. Once.

Anyway, I finally made it back to the gym this morning and it makes me nervous to not be able to run at least 2-3 times a week. But I'm trying to remember that we are 2 weeks out and it's time to slow down. We do 10 miles tomorrow and then that's the last long run.

It is definitely time to slow down training because we are starting to drop like flies. There are 6 of us going. Among us we've had 2 possible stress fractures, some major hip issues and a fainting spell. It looks like we may all recover by the time we get there, but it's been an interesting few weeks.

I'm just hoping there is an elevator at Cinderella's castle, because....

I'm pretty sure the spiral staircase is out!

Blankie

This is my baby girl.

She is 3 1/2 in this picture. She will be 10 three weeks from today. She made sure we knew that at breakfast this morning. It doesn't matter though. When I look at her I see the little girl in the picture. My baby girl. Maybe thats why I still tie her shoes. Unless we are running behind and then I say "You are almost 10 years old- tie your shoes right now!" She'll probably need counseling.

My point in showing you this picture is not the precious chubby cheeks, or the curls in her hair or the crown on her head which she had made that day on her first day of 3 year old preschool. Oh my....excuse me. I'll be right back. Sigh!

My point in showing you the picture is the sweet pink blanket she has tossed over her shoulder. She came home from the hospital wrapped in that blanket and sshhh don't tell but she still sleeps with it today. It is not so sweet and pink anymore. Now it looks like this.

That gray wad on the doll's lap. Same blanket. We find chunks of it around the house from time to time. I found a piece in my bed this morning. I'm afraid its days are numbered. I can't even think about it.

The blankie has certain characteristics about it:

1. We are not allowed to poke fun about the state of the blankie.

2. It is kept in a certain spot each morning. It is either where you see it in the above picture, in the keeping room chair or on her bed. Always on the dolls lap. Always.

3. While the blanket used to openly accompany her to spend the night as she has gotten older it has taken a clandestine approach to sleepovers. It is always in her bag. She may look at it but only among the best of friends would it ever come out of the bag.

I have a blankie too. Here it is.

My Bed Buddy Microwave heat pack. I love this thing like she loves her blankie. I need it when I come in from a run. It warms me up. It soothes my aching hips. It brings me comfort. I lay across my lap on cold mornings in the car. I have been known to sleep with it when my legs are sore. It eerily shares many of the same qualities of Jenny's blankie.

1.It also has seen better days. You will notice the burn marks near the handle. It caught fire one terrible day while being heated in the microwave. Shane fixed it with plastic ties and all was right again.

2.It has a special place that I keep it. It sits on the shelf between my Samford sweatshirt and my scarves. Always.

3. I am nervous about how to take it on my trip.

My guess is I won't need it until the day of the race. Then I am positive my hips, and calves and thighs and knees and feet and everything else are going to be crying out for it. Should I take it? What if the room doesn't have a microwave? What if it catches on fire? What if my lugguage gets lost? What if Jill makes fun of me?

I guess I'll do like Jenny does and just take it with me, resting in the comfort that it's in the bag if I need it.

And just so you can see that my sweet baby girl is growing into a beautiful young lady here she is now.

Now I need my Blankie again.

To run or not to run....that is the question.

Jenny and I are reading through the Little House on the Prairie book series for the second or third time. We love those books. Not long ago we finished reading The Long Winter. This family endures blizzards every three days from October until April and then the train can't get through and they almost starve until Almanzo goes out into the blizzard to find wheat and saves the day. The end.

Actually my point was that I feel like we are in the long hard winter. My kids are wondering for what seems like the tenth time this year if we are going to have school tomorrow. Enough already!

I had decided to be brave and run outside yesterday morning until Shane came in from getting the paper and said "You could run outside if the wind wasn't so bad!" Well that was all the excuse I needed and I decided to head to the gym after carpool. But just after letting Will out of the car my phone binged with a text. " It's really not that bad. You can do it. You are awesome!". Well. I can't have my man thinking I'm not awesome so I head to Strawberry Park to knock out two miles.

There is a pond at the park and the track snakes it's way around it. I really like running there. There are lots of geese and ducks and a cute little chapel. It's pleasant. Yesterday morning when I drove up this little guy greeted me.

I think he's a duck but I'm not sure. He just kept sitting there staring at me. He was either asking me to put him in my warm car or wondering what the heck I was thinking.

I usually get out of the car and stretch and then visit the restroom and then stretch some more and then fix my music and then start to run. Not yesterday. I opened the car door and took off and didn't stop until 2 miles later when I jumped back in the car and texted Shane. "It is too that bad!"

In addition to my new friend pictures above I saw a couple of other interesting things on the frozen tundra yesterday. First, I saw a woodpecker. I'm not sure I have ever seen a woodpecker that close before. He just casually hopped across the path. He was so vibrant and pretty and it made me smile. On around the track, back in some trees I noticed the hind end of a large brown bird. I couldn't figure out what exactly it was until I was right on it. Then it turned and looked at me. It was a huge owl and it took off just as I ran past. And hanging from it's talons was a big ole squirrel! It looked so sad hanging there being taken off to it's demise. Poor squirrel. What a strange morning!

Im glad I ran yesterday though because it was inevitable that any conversation would turn to the weather. So when someone would say, "Wow! Can you believe how cold it is!" I would say back, "I know! When I ran this morning I could barely feel my legs!"

Is that obnoxious?