Workout Recap & Preview

Mon - 4 miles @ 5a. Took mileage easy this week since I had a race on Saturday.
Tue - Skipped because I went to the dentist and my tooth was really hurting.
Wed - 4 miles @ 5a. Again with the easy mileage.
Thu - Spycling. This was our last indoor class. It's all up to us now.
Fri - Went to a party for a friend who got recalled to the Army and may leave April 5th.
Sat - Half marathon did not happen. Race officials canceled the race due to weather. Ran 10 miles with my running group instead. BTW, the weather didn't hit until 9:15am and the race would have started at 7a. It would have sucked for the marathoners since it was about 32-34 degrees and raining with some pretty strong winds. The snow didn't start until 1p or 2p.
Sun - Brunch with friends, Stacie, Jean & Megan, to celebrate my engagement.

Now it's crunch time. I can't screw around anymore. I NEED to swim, I NEED to bike (outside) and I NEED to keep up the running. I'm starting to get a little nervous about the race. I want to do well, but I have fleeting moments of doubt.

I plan on running 16 miles on April 4th, 13.1 for the rescheduled half marathon with 2 after and 1 before. I may try to PR. Today the weather is looking pretty good, of course, that can change in a heartbeat.

I have a 56 mile pre-race bike to do on April 18th that I need to hurry up and get some serious mileage in for and the very next day I plan on running another half marathon. I don't think I'll be trying to break 2 hours at this one, but we'll see how it all feels that morning.

I have a 4 mile race on April 26th that I'm hoping to bust 32 minutes in. I'm currently in the second wave and I'd like to move to the first wave in my lifetime, but I have to be able to run this 4 mile race in 30 minutes or faster. YEAH! My best is 32:29 (8:07/mile pace) and a 30 minute run would a 7:30/mile pace. YIKES!!!!! Maybe IF I just concentrated on the shorter distances I could get close, but 2½ minutes is A LOT to take off.

Another Snow Day

***UPDATE: Mr Snowman's health started to go down hill about 13 hours into his life. He's still hanging on, but has lost his sight, speech, sense of smell and his equilibrium is waning. 3/30/09***

***Mr Snowman lost his battle with the elements the evening of March 30, 2009. He lived 48 hours. 4/1/09***

Meet Mr Snowman. Born March 28, 2009 at 7:30pm.

All Things Wedding

OK, first order of business......a change of date. It's been moved up two weeks.
The new date is......

March 20, 2010

This is due to the fact that April 4, 2010 is Easter. Oh yeah! My wonderful timing or is it whatever calendar determines when Easter is. Why can't it be the same time each year? Well, I guess I should have checked that out first. Of course, we'll probably now run into March Madness, but Easter is more important to not interrupt than basketball. FYI; April 24, 2011 will be Easter.

We had a date for an engagement party, but I was informed last night that there is a conflict. Why wouldn't there be? So far, it seems any date we pick there is a conflict and we have to rearrange. Maybe it's a sign that we should just go to Vega$. Right now, I'm not feeling really good about this whole wedding thing.

On a lighter note:
I have looked at one wedding shop for a dress and found 4 that I want to try on. I have also picked a color for the bridesmaid dresses (that could change), but I haven't found a dress that I really like. Of course, I will consult with my bridesmaids. I do have a few cake people in mind, but we haven't talked about a DJ/band, florist, caterer, photographer, etc. I'm sure it will all come together in time. My bridesmaids are going to be a huge help and I'm glad that I have them.

Workout Recap & Preview

Mon - Ran 5 @ 5a.
Tue - Rode 18 miles outside. Didn't get on the new bike because Tim couldn't get my clips (pedals) off the old one. He tried again after our ride and finally took it to the bike shop to have them take them off. The bike shop peeps had a hard time getting them off too.
Wed - Ran 5 @ 5a.
Thu - Lazied. I didn't feel like doing anything, so I cooked dinner and stayed in.
Fri -
Sat - Ran 10 miles with my running group.
Sun -

I have a race this coming Saturday, so we'll see how that goes. It's also the last week for spycling, so I'll be going both nights.

All Things Wedding

At this point it looks like Tim and I have set a date. Drum roll please.........

April 3, 2010

We reserved a place, but can cancel it if we decide to go a different route. Tim is really into the destination wedding idea right now. When I first mentioned it he poo-pooed the idea yet when other people put the idea in his head he really liked the idea. HUMMM!!! I guess this is what it's going to be like. I need to start telling all my friends my ideas and have them tell him then they might happen. LOL!

Just for Fun

A few weeks ago I visited a friend, Karen, and her son, Joaquin. We had a good time shopping at Costco, reading and playing around the house. Karen adopted Joaquin from China 6 months ago and he's the sweetest boy. His laugh is adorable! I just couldn't stop tickling him because I had to hear him laugh. Karen took this photo of JCG and me and I wanted to share it.

Isn't he just adorable??!!

Happy St. Patrick's Day

If you don't know how the day came about, to learn the history of St Patricks Day click here.

Hope everyone has a great green beer day.

Workout Recap & Preview

Another lazy bones week for me.

Mon - I overslept, so I didn't get the run in and I had a meeting after work therefore no run that night.

Tue - I did go to cycling. My tush was kind of sore from the 30 miles on Engagement Day, so it wasn't pleasant.

Wed - I did get up and run 5 @ 5a.

Thu - Spycling again. This workout was T.O.U.G.H. I really thought my legs were going to give out and I would fling myself over my handlebars. OUCH! We went to dinner with a bunch of peeps after, so that made up for it. : )

Fri - Oh when will I ever swim again. Not this day.

Sat - I ran 6 miles with my running group, then did a 4 mile St. Patty's Day race and a 1 mile cool down. The race went very well. I didn't go into it thinking I would "race" it, but I kind of did. Could I have gone faster, maybe. Did I want to go faster, not really. I got 7th in my age group out of 98, so that was pretty cool. After the race we hung out with a bunch of friends at a couple of the bars and had lunch and drinks. Well, they all had drinks. That night Tim and I went to his sisters engagement party. She and her fiance' got engaged just before Christmas.

Sun - Was a day of fun stuff and no working out.

Hopefully this week will be better. I've already run this morning, so it's off to a good start.

Adoption Update

What I now know......

It has been confirmed that the JCICS will be hosting a 9-member delegation from Vietnam from March 24th through April 2nd. The delegation, led by Vice-Minister of Justice Dinh Trung Tung, will attend the JCICS conference and Institutes, meet with adoptive families and participate in a planned series of meetings with leaders in the U.S. child welfare and government agencies. With a goal of advancing the relationship and understanding between the peoples and governments of the US and Vietnam, this visit will include an exchange of information on the Hague Convention and child protections along with discussions on key elements of and opportunities for an interim agreement.

The delegation will arrive in the US on March 23rd and spend a few days in San Francisco before going to Indianapolis, IN for the conference. After the conference, they will fly to Washington DC on March 30th and spend several days there before returning to Vietnam. The goal of JCICS is to provide a social forum where adoptive families can offer their important perspectives, discuss the challenges unique to adoptive families and demonstrate the positive impact of inter-country adoption. The details and schedule of the social forums have not been fully developed but they will occur in Indianapolis IN and Washington DC.

This is a very positive step towards a new agreement being reached however; we still can't get our hopes up that the delegation will return to Vietnam and sign an agreement with the US. Yet, this is a very important step towards that goal.

There is a hope that VN & the US will open up adoptions for special needs children, but I'm not counting on it since there needs to be a clear statement from VN on what special needs will be allowed and the US must approve it. The last time VN closed special needs adoptions were allowed however; as soon as the new agreement was signed each side halted all adoptions until all the US agencies were licensed and VN officially re-opened. So, that could happen again given that VN will be voting on adoption laws May 2009, September 2009 and then again March 2010. More than likely nothing will be settled until the 2010 meeting and then it'll be 6+ months beyond that before things get rolling again, but if they allow special needs in the interim there is always the chance that the laws will be approved before 2010 and then adoptions would be stopped again.

Anyway, it's all still up in the air and a big 'ol crap shoot, but a least there is a glimmer of light at then end of this very long tunnel. I'm hoping that it doesn't get extinguished before it has a chance to really shine through.

......That's what I know.

Stuttering

I just had to share this. I thought it was too funny.

A teacher is explaining biology to her 4th grade students.....

'Human beings are the only animals that stutter,' she says.
A little girl raises her hand. 'I had a kitty-cat who stuttered.'

The teacher, knowing how precious some of these stories could become, asked the girl to describe the incident.
'Well', she began, 'I was in the back yard with my kitty and the Rottweiler that lives next door got a running start and before we knew it, he jumped over the fence into our yard!'

'That must've been scary,' said the teacher.
'It sure was,' said the little girl. 'My kitty raised her back, went Sssss, Sssss, Sssss' and before she could say 'Shit!', the Rottweiler ate her!

The teacher had to leave the room.

Workout Recap & Preview

Mon (run & yoga) - TOO cold to get up early and run (2 degrees with the wind chill), so I took Lulu for a short 3 mile run through the snow after work. She is a machine! She doesn't stop except when her collar slips off or if I slip on the ice and almost bust my butt.

Tue (cycle) - Absolutely. Good workout.

Wed (run) - Up early and ran 5 @ 5a.

Thu (cycle) - Nope. Took the dogs for a long walk since it was GORGEOUS outside then went to a hip hop class. All I can say is..I'm a white girl and not really made for hip hop. It was fun and I'll probably try it again.

Fri (swim) - Nope. Took the puppies for another long walk. Did I mention that the weather was INCREDIBLY nice? I also picked up my new bike.

Sat (run) - 10 miles with the group. In the afternoon Tim and I drove to Ottawa with our mountain bikes to ride part of the Prairie Spirit Trail (if you're a geocacher they have two on this trail). We did 30 miles round trip of this 100 mile round trip trail. It was an awesome day! We packed some sandwiches and stopped along the way to picnic. I wish we had taken the dogs. I think they would have had a great time although we need to get one or two of those baby bike cabs because the poor pups wouldn't be able to make it that far without a lot of rest. Two would be best because Audrey would take up one by herself. LOL! Read about the day here.

Sun (??) - Rested because Saturday was very active.

This week will look like the past weeks. I am going to try to get to yoga before next Monday. I don't think I'll make it tonight and I can't Wednesday either, so it'll probably be Sunday. I do have a 4 mile race on Saturday and that should be a good time. It'll be the first road race I'll have done since December.

Just for Fun

I keep forgetting to post this. I thought is was so cool. Central Market in Dallas has these veggie/fruit sculptures that sit out front. Thought they were neat and would have loved to gotten a picture of them all, but I settled for the eggplant. BTW, it is a REALLY cool grocery. They have others throughout Texas, but this is the only one I've been to.

Engagement Day

You read it right. I didn't start out as engagement day, but that is how it ended.


Tim and I got up and ran 10 miles then we went to Ottawa to ride a Rails to Trails trail called Prairie Spirit Trail. It's a crushed limestone trail that runs from Ottawa to Iola (50 miles). We rode 15 miles south into 20mph winds, stopped and had lunch on the trail then headed back. The ride down was HARD! I do not do well against the wind. The way back was a cake walk. About 5 miles (mile 20) into the ride back we stopped to take some pictures at a bridge we saw on the way down and that's where Tim got down on one knee and asked me to marry him. I, of course, said YES!


Here are some pictures from the day.




These are the bikes we rode. The top one is mine and the bottom is Tim's. He got to carry the backpack with supplies. : )

Our stop for lunch at mile 15. I was wiped out from riding into the wind.

The view from the bridge were we stopped and Tim proposed.

We stopped at mile 25 we stopped to take a picture of me with the ring and then I tried to take a good picture close up with the camera and the cell. Neither were great, but this one from the cell was the better of the four.

I LOVE the ring. It's perfect! I'm very happy! No date yet, in case you wanted to know.

My New Ride

Here she is....




Isn't she a beauty? A Trek Madone 5.2 WSD. I love the turquoise tape. It really makes the bike POP.

I can't wait to ride her. We have all day plans tomorrow, so if Sunday isn't too wet I may try to get out and enjoy a good ride.

Snow Day

I'm a little behind, but we had 6 inches of snow on February 28th. The dogs, Tim and I had a great time playing around. Here are some shots from around the house as well.


Front walk or lack there of.


Deck after I shoved so the dogs could get through.


The driveway after I shoved just enough to walk around the car and knock off the caked on snow.


Tim playing keep away with the gloves from Lulu.


Lulu and me with Audrey's head.


Tim and Audrey fighting over the glove.


We live in Kansas, so it isn't complete unless you have a picture of yourself on a bike with a little dogs in the basket. Audrey wasn't supposed to be in the photo, but oh well. "I'll get you my pretty and your little dog too."

Snow Day - Part 2

Lulu getting ready to chase me from one side of the yard to the other (2nd day).


Audrey & Lulu having a blast the first day of the snow.

Each dog and the way they enjoyed the snow....

Tramp from the sidelines.

Audrey with her nose.

Lulu with her entire face.

Workout Recap & Preview

I was better this week, but not great.

Mon (run & yoga) - I did run my 5 @ 5a.
Tue (cycle) - Great workout!
Wed (run) - 5 @ 5a. Was going to do yoga, but didn't.
Thu (cycle) - Skipped for dinner with Tim and his boss.
Fri (swim) - Skipped for a Tri Club Party and B-Day Party.
Sat (run) - I was supposed to run 14 miles, but we had a real amount of snow fall (first this winter) and I bumped it down to 10. It was a hilly course anyway, so hills mixed with 3 inches of snow and still falling sounded like a better plan.
Sun (??) - Nothing. Hung out with my ex-neighbor instead.

Should I bother giving a preview of what I'll do the current week anymore? It seems to be the same anyway.

Mon (run & yoga)
Tue (cycle)
Wed (run)
Thu (cycle)
Fri (swim)
Sat (run)
Sun (??)