Monthly and Yearly Goals.

I had a goal at the beginning of the year to run in five states. And if you recall I surpassed that goal. You can read about it here. But yesterday I completed by tenth state for the year. So not only did I make my goal this year but I doubled it. I'm so proud of myself. And I know that I will add at least one more to the list this year. Here are my feet in the four extra states.

Dedeaux, Mississippi

Louisville, Kentucky

Bowling Green, Ohio

 

Orange Beach, Alabama

With Tina and Dawn completing Alabama.

Just me, getting ready to mark off Alabama.

I also made goals for this month. You can read them here. And I'm excited to say that I accomplished all of them with the exception of the daily crunches. The first weekend of August I got a terrible stomach bug that knocked me down for about three days. Out the window the crunches went for the weekend and then I forgot all about them. Sad I know, but oh well. Oh and my last race in Pensacola, terrible. I walked it because it was the same weekend I had the stomach bug. But at least I still did it. I could have not walked it at all. I did start my half marathon training and with it I started an on paper running journal.

How did your month go? What are/were your goals. Now to sit and think about next month's goals.

God Bless.

10 States!

I will write a longer post with a couple pics. But until then, I double my goal of running in five states tonight. I have officially run in ten states this year. Yay me! More about it later. I just wanted to make sure I posted it on the day it happened.

Hurricane Preparation

I'm not a native Floridian. I'm a California, born and bred (or as my Oiselle shirt says Born + Race in CA). So am I used to hurricane preparation? Not at all. Last year we had Tropical Storm Lee but all that did here in the Gulf Coast was dump some rain. We were much luckier than the North where Lee hit harder.

We are blessed though to be house sitting for a family that has a very nice home. We are equipped with a whole house natural gas generator and 3/4 of the house (only excluding some french doors and the sliding glass door) are hurricane rated windows. So water, food and cash are our biggest concerns. We have 25 gallons of drinking water so I think we are covered there. We have the fridge and pantry stocked. And we have a pool for bathing if it really comes down to it. Tomorrow I will move in all the outdoor furniture, the garbage cans and the plants.

We are praying that the storm does minimal damage and passes through quickly. Especially because our moving plans kick in next week. My second prayer is that this storm doesn't scare my three year old too bad. She is usually pretty good but I know thunder bothers her. We are also praying for comfort for those who have already been affected.

Will Tropical Storm (because he isn't a hurricane yet) Isaac affect you? And if so, how are you preparing?

Be safe.

God Bless.

My longest long run.

Today I jumped a huge running hurdle today. And I know hurdles, I once was a hurdler in both high school and college. But today, I made it through a run over 10+ miles, 11 to be exact. Before today my longest run was a 10 mile trail race. Now I can say that I have run an 11 mile training running. I'm prepping for a half marathon this November but I currently have the option to train with some friend who are working on full marathon training. But soon I will be departing my friends here in FL and moving to VA where my training will continue alone so I am soaking up all the running buddy time I can.

I started my morning with a Vanilla Accel Gel. I can't run with real food in my stomach so I opted for a gel instead. I have come to find that I really like Accel Gel, it sits well in my stomach. Then we set off on our run which we thought might get a little hairy due to lightening but the storm stayed a few miles away at all times. Around 45 mins in we were blessed with a sudden downpour that killed the humidity and cooled us off. Mile 5-6 presented us with a huge hill that meant when I got to the top I needed refueling. I opened another Accel Gel but this time it was Raspberry Cream. I was surprised by the flavor, it was not as tangy as I thought it would be. It was good. I don't think it beats out my favorite flavor of Key Lime but it's a close second.

Continuing the run meant 5 more miles after my gel. And I felt really good about it. I was totally surprised at how great I felt. In the end I was tired, I mean I should be I just ran 11 miles, but I wasn't absolutely drained. I was also excited to see that I had ran it a whole lot faster than I had planned. I ran in 1hr 50mins. That totally keeps me on track to run my half marathon in under 2hrs 30mins.

After the run we refueled with chocolate milk. Whoever did that study, bless you! I love chocolate milk after my runs, I just don't always remember today. Well today at the end of our run we ran across the street to the 7/11 and pick up some. What a great recovery drink that tastes yummy and is cheap.

I feel very blessed today to have the ability to run. I thank God that He has given me the endurance and courage to set out and meet my running goals. I'm also blessed to have a husband who supports me and has no problem making breakfast for our daughter while I am out on a long run. I'm a blessed woman and wife. 

God Bless.

Running and Reading Long Week 12 & 13

Last week for Running and Reading Long I screwed up and didn't post. My bad, totally my fault. We were supposed to post about Once A Runner by John L. Parker Jr. Well to be totally honest, I still haven't finished it. I'm struggling with this one. I haven't given up. I will finish it, hopefully this weekend. And then next week I will post my thoughts about it.

This week for Running and Reading Long we come to our last week of the group. Sad. I have really enjoyed this group. I have gotten into some great reads and met some friends via the internet. It's been great. 

I think my favorite book for the group was Matt Long's The Long Run. I just found it so encouraging and inspiring. I think it helps me remember that I need to try and push through all that life hands me. And I think my least favorite book (I will not judge Once a Runner since I'm not done) was Cami Ostman's Second Wind. It just wasn't my kind of book. I like reading about her running accomplishments but the rest of the book was too inner-healing for me. I'm a Christian and so I rely on God not myself.

My goal for this group was the half marathon training plan. I didn't follow the plan, it was too humid here in Pensacola and my half isn't until the fall so my real goal was just to stay in shape and add to my miles. I have done that and I am registered for my half in November. My real half marathon training will officially begin a week from Sunday. Though tomorrow I will be doing an 11 mile training run, which will be my longest run ever. So it's a good test for my training.

I think Running and Reading Long helped me set goals and realize that I can attain them. Some of that was due to the reads and some of it was due to the others in the group. It was really a great group. If I could budget for the books I would totally do it again. 

As the group ends and my training continues here are my goals for the rest of the year:
- Start Half Marathon Training
- Run in Ohio (visiting the in laws)
- Run in Alabama before we move
- Run the Color Run---September
- Run a Half Marathon---November

Thanks Laura for the group! I truly enjoyed it. And sorry I couldn't twitchat every week. Maybe next time.

God Bless.

One month til 28.

It's officially one month until I turn 28. Yes, I'm 27 and I still count down :) Here is my running related birthday wish list in case any wants to feed my addiction. All in good fun.

Moving Comfort Spring Long Sleeve, Small, Berry and/or Blizzard
Moving Comfort Momentum Short, Small, White Urban Stripe
Moving Comfort Endurance Capri, Small, Grey and/or Black
Oiselle Stripey Long Sleeve Scoop Neck, Small, Indigo
Oiselle Distance Shorts, Small, Black and/or Oiselle Orange
Oiselle Simplicity Tank, Small, Stripey 
Brooks EZ T Cupcake, Small Color #413
Brooks Nightlife Arm and Leg Bands, Small
Pacific Health Lab Accel Gel Key Lime
Honey Stinger Organic Stinger Waffle, Vanilla
Another Mother Runner This is the Easiest Part of my Day, Small

Ok, since all of the fall lines haven't come out I will end my wishlist there. Feel free to contact me for a shipping address :)

God Bless.

Playdough fun

My three year old loves playdough. But I hate buying it. I can't stand it when colors get mixed or when it starts to dry out. So today we made our own edible dough. I found the recipe here. We used dough recipe #1 because it required the fewest ingredients. 

Peanut Butter, Honey and Powdered Sugar.

And it was super easy to mix.

Yes, that's my little one holding the bowl.

I did find though that with humid FL it needed a little extra powdered sugar. But it came out great. 

And it tasted yummy!

I caught my daughter with a huge ball of it in her mouth. Well not huge, but a good tablespoon or so. It was a great treat. And I even turned it into a lesson. We used it to practice letter writing. 

Can you tell that's a Q?

I would totally make this recipe again. It was a fun morning experience for us. Have a great day.

God Bless.

August Goals

So I had this post planned for yesterday but I forgot to write it. I'm actually writing out goals for this month. Here they are:
- Run my last race in Pensacola (this weekend).
- Run in Alabama
- Run in Ohio
- Officially start my half marathon training plan.
- 50 crunches (at least!) every day.


What are your goals for this month running or non-running related?


God Bless.