Mai Can Hula Hoop

I can't convince Mai to wear another shirt UNDER this brazen belly T - She says if ya got, flaunt it :o)

She is just so very delicate and coordinated...
just like her mom - HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!

I see a great future for her in the Talent portion of Beauty Pageants ;o)
Whoops, just realized I posted the 2 minute video instead of the 18 second one. Aw well, ain't reloading it to Blogger. Watch until you're bored to tears.

Jack's Torture Machine

CLICK ABOVE FOR CLARITY :-)

I'm sore.
A lot.
I make my poor little children walk on my back daily. Don't get me wrong, they enjoy doing it, for about a minute.
But...
I like them to do it for about 10 minutes. Then when they get tired of that, I make them karate chop me and punch my back. They like this for about a minute also. I need about 6 more kids to rotate through.

Alas, Jack has solved the problem. He got his engineer's brain working yesterday and created the above machine. He figures that some rope, wood, glue, and some metal should be all he needs to turn his design into an actual working creation.

Do you see him at the rope controllers? There's ol' me on the left getting the beat down. I love that kid!!

41/4 Bobble

26APR09

What a great week! I ran my long run on Wednesday this week due to prior commitments that kept me out of our Saturday group run. I decided to do this run out around the golf course for it's nice soft trail. It's a 2 mile loop so it got a little boring at times, but the fat squirrels and the funny ducks kept me amused...by chasing me down for food! Those critters out there can sure be pesky!

13 miles was on the schedule but I only got 10 in before I ran out of time. I've been working on my shin splints with ibup, lots of stretching and lots of icing. It seems to be helping :o)

We met at the Lucky Lab for our recommittment brunch on Saturday. Everyone else ran together first, but I was at soccer games. Although I really missed running with the group on this special occasion, I definitely was the best smelling teammate around for brunch ;-)

The kids went with me and it was nice to see everyone so excited about our last two months of training and fund raising.

Today had a 50 mile bike ride scheduled and most everyone else was doing an organized ride either down in Salem or in The Dalles, so being too cheap to sign up for either one, I ended up riding by myself. I had planned to do 5 loops around Hagg Lake and then a 5 mile run on the soft trails, but a phone call from Mai at about mile 40 got my mama heart all in an ache, so I cut a loop off my ride. I was feeling great, though! I really nailed my nutrition today and felt strong on the uphills and the DOWNhills, too.

Got the bike packed in the truck and headed out for about a 4 mile hobble/hike/jog before calling it a day. My shins really were feeling "ok", I could hear them talking, but they weren't screaming. What was really screaming were my feet - bottoms, outside, inside - everywhere but on top. So instead of a "brick", I'm calling today a "bobble" - for bike followed by a hobble.

Lots of ibup and icing again today - hoping for several great runs this week!

"So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half asleep, even when they are busy doing things they think are important. This is because they're chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning." - Mitch Albom (Tuesdays with Morrie)

TRUE THAT!! Thanks, Mitch, for your words of wisdom. Definitely something for me to think about this week. Julie

I Wish Everyday Was A Monday...

I wish everyday was a Monday...if Monday's were more like yesterday turned out. Tons of sun, in the 80s, I only had to work for 3 hours and the rest of the day was spent reading in the sun, putting on our swimsuits and playing badminton in the backyard, and Ladies golf last night. What a perfect night at the golf course. Tracy was working the wine table, so we got to spend a lot of time talking ;o) She also had the best skewers of perfectly ripened strawberries, pineapple and melon. Mmmmm. It was a smallish group last night, so lots of individual attention at the driving range.

I returned a phone call from a woman who responded to my ad in the on-line church classifieds asking for garage sale donations for my TNT fundraiser. She's not even a member of my church yet, but has visited and she saw the ad and thought she would call me. She just moved and she has a ton of stuff for me to sell: a hutch, chest of drawers, new mattress/box springs and lots of other stuff. She said she had also already called some of her friends to see if they could donate anything!! What a nice lady! To top it off, she has run 26 marathons!! and 4 of them were with Team in Training. She lost her mom to Leukemia about 10 years ago. Anyways, I always just get so excited about the niceness of strangers. I want to be one of those strangers!!

So, I plopped in bed at 9pm and was out like a light. Now I'm up nice and early and if I can drink this coffee a little faster, I think I'll be able to get to the gym and back for a swim before the wee ones wake up.

Have a great Tuesday!!!

Climb

Saturday was our first brick of the season. A 25 mile ride out at Vancouver Lake followed by a 5 mile run. The weather was PERFECT and the ride went well. I was a little disappointed that I only managed to knock off about 6 minutes from last year's ride, but we did have quite a headwind on Saturday, so maybe that accounted for it. But, I felt good about the ride itself. Then we got to the run portion and it sucked. I was only able to go about a half mile or so before my shin splints became unbearable. I said goodbye to Sheryl and headed back to the truck...walking.

I've got myself on a week long stretching, icing, ibuprofen treatment and then if there is no improvement, I'm off to a specialist.

Yesterday had a 40 mile hilly ride on the schedule. There was a rebel ride out in Hillsboro. Every weekend we have a TNT team ride or run and then someone usually coordinates a "rebel" ride or run. On these rebels, you usually don't have a coach there and no one really sweeps the back to make sure no one gets lost, etc, so they can be somewhat of a pain if you get lost or you blow a tire because no one is really keeping track of you. HOWEVER, riding with the group beats out riding by yourself every time. I woke up to an e-mail from Ilana with the cue sheets and realized she had added a 60 mile option. Hmm...not a good sign for me. I figured most of the people doing the ride would opt for the 60 instead of the 40 because they are all crazy people who are either doing a 1/2 ironman in two weeks down in Cali or they are training for a full ironman. What happened to all the normal people, huh? C'mon...let's just go 40 and have a good time ;o)
So when I got to our meeting place I figured I was in for 60 miles and a tough climb back up Logie, which we go screaming down at about mile 13.

So the plan was 60, but as we finished our first big...long...drawnout hill, I heard the angelic voice of Sheryl say, how 'bout we skip Logie? YES!!! I'm in! Hooray. My heart AND LEGS leapt with joy! hehe. We'll save it for another day.

We headed to Pumpkin Ridge and boy what a difference from a few weeks ago when all we could see was rain and fog and our bodies were frozen. This ride was completely different. The sun was bright, we were getting a little sunburn, we could see for miles and miles and miles and miles and miles....oh yeah!

As we grinded up to the top, the view was all worth it! We waited for a few minutes and the rest of the group joined us with lots of high fives as each person reached the top. What a great way to spend a perfect spring morning! What a great way.

I don't think I know one single Miley Cyrus song, but I heard this on my way out to meet everyone yesterday and I loved the chorus as I prepared for my "hilly" ride. That song set the mood and these people who love to ride and love to make a difference and who love the rush of doing something out of the ordinary on a weekend morning, really hit my spot!

I can almost see it.
that dream I'm dreaming, but
there's a voice inside of my head, tellin'
you'll never reach it
every step I'm takin'
every move I make
feels lost in no direction,
my faith is shakin'
but I gotta keep tryin'
gotta keep my head held high

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
always gonna be an uphill battle
sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
ain't about how fast I get there
ain't about what's waitin' on the other side
it's a climb

The struggles I'm facing
the changes I'm taking
sometimes they knock me down, but
no I'm not breaking
I may not know where, but
these are the moments that
I'm gonna remember most
I've just gotta keep goin', and
I gotta be strong
just keep pushing on, but

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
always gonna be an uphill battle
sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
ain't about how fast I get there
ain't about what's waitin' on the other side
it's a climb

There's always gonna be another mountain
I'm always gonna wanna make it move
always gonna be an uphill battle
sometimes I'm gonna have to lose
ain't about how fast I get there
ain't about what's waitin' on the other side
it's a climb

Keep on movin'
keep climbin'
keep faith baby
It's all about, it's all about
the climb
keep the faith, keep your faith

Trail Putty...or poop in a bag

As I mentioned, I'm giving up my Clif bars and gels for a bit. I did the PB&J on white for my 11 mile run on Sunday and it was oh so good. For all of you, and I do mean all of you, because I'm sure white bread isn't passing any of your lips...I enjoyed it immensely for you, too!!

I went shopping on Monday and got all the ingredients I needed to make up some trail putty. I first tried this "putty" last year at the RAAC ride and I loved it!! I made two batches this week. The first pic shows the Almond Butter batch. It's rolled in a shaved chocolate easter bunny. It looks exactly like the poop bags I bring home from runs with Ki. Mmmmm. So good.

The second batch is made with Adam's all natural peanut butter and rolled in...
COCONUT!! To. Die. For.

So here's the recipe if anyone is interested. Just take it in a baggy on your long runs/rides and dip your finger in and shove it in your mouth when it strikes your fancy.

• 1/2 cup of peanut butter
• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 1/2 tablespoons dried non fat powdered milk
• 1/2 cup raisins(I skipped these).
• Roll into a log, then roll in coconut or chocolate.
• Chill and then wrap in plastic wrap.

Things are just going really good. I loved reading PDL through Lent and I also thoroughly enjoyed The First Easter by Peter Marshall. I will probably read PDL again in a few months. Right now I want to read a book that is based on my current women's bible study going on at church...which by the way is AWESOME! I'm loving these women in my group and all the thoughts they offer. The book is Hadassah - One Night With The King by Tommy Tenney. Once I finish that, I want to really focus some time on the two book I got from Pastor Wayne Codeiro.

Training is going good. After my awesome 11 mile run on Sunday I felt sure that my leg pain was gone for good, yet here I am hobbling around again. I was feeling a bit grumpy and mad and defeated, but screw it! It's just a little leg pain - not much to worry about in the grand scheme of things. It will get better or it won't, but as I told a good friend this morning about her own situation "it is what it is". We can worry and get nowhere or worse- somehow move backwards, or just accept that there are always going to be problems and situations and "stuff" so just keep on the path. Keep moving forward. Don't be so determined to escape from our current "stuff", 'cause more "stuff" is around the bend.
So...I'm keeping on the path. Face up. To the sky. To the sun. To our Father.

Trading in my Clif Bars

I'm really tired of Clif bars and Powergels and the GI trouble they've started to give me, so I just bought my very first loaf of white bread in like a gazillion years and I'm going to try PB&Js and PB&honey sandwiches during my next couple training rides. For some reason, they sound really good...and easier to chew on classic white (do you think?). I'll let you know how it goes.

Today's training can be found HERE . Just scroll down to 4/11/09.

Dog Days of Summer

Yes! Spring has just arrived and we are already looking forward to these months of allergies to be over and for the dog days of summer to be here...like NOW! Nothing better on the early morn of a hot summer day than to hike to find some nice waterfalls to cool off by, so we've started working on our Waterfall Journal for this year. We'll update you with our adventures as we aim to find at least 20 waterfalls to fill our pages about.

My allergies are killing me! I get to help out at pre-school today and for once, I'm sure I'll have the runniest nose in the room.

Workouts are going ok. I didn't make it to the gym this a.m. for RT, but had a nice swim on Monday. I had a minor mishap when I actually hit the wall in the pool full on with a bunch of people standing on deck watching me. I tried to act like nothing happened. What a fool. Ouch!
Forgot where I was and what I was doing- just swimming swimming swimming and forgot there were boundaries. I can't wait for open water swims to get onto the schedule!

Did a 6 mile run yesterday with no shin splints!! This weekends long run will tell the truth, though.

Ok, off to blow my nose and try not to scratch my eyes out.

Inspiration close to home...kind of...

My workout partner...( and I use that term loosely. We've worked out together for over 4 years but really not at all since last Spring when I started all this triathlon nonsense and tried to escape the gym) has a sister...
and her sister is HAWT. See above! She just did her first comp!! Now, I am inclined to believe she brought her ALL to the table!! No second guessing if she got herself lean enough, dontcha think?

I don't think it's fair

I don't think it's fair that women who have carried children in their womb should be subjected to the horrors of allergies of the...

...sneezing variety.