Day 133: Friday, July 9, 2013- Am in complete running withdrawl : (

Day 133: Logged 24 miles on days 124-128, Miles to go: 171. On day 5 of resting my right hip. Was the same one that took me out of running for almost two years, so am trying to be cautious and not push too hard, too fast. Am going to try a small run tomorrow morning to see how it feels. If no pain, am ready to ramp back up to finish these last “few” miles. Am in running withdrawl and am anxious to get back out there!

In the meantime, though, here are some fun pics from my crazy, beautiful life…

  THUR night SMILE calendar shoot followed by our AUG wedding group meeting in Henderson at Worsham Hall (love this place!)

  FRI night SMILE calendar photoshoot along the river

  Junior League of Evansville Provisional fun with one of my besties Debbie followed by haircuts for sis and I at Impulse in Newburgh

 So excited to find my paper making screens while cleaning out the garage after my walk with Debbie Sunday a.m.

 Followed that up with pool fun with the kiddos

  Monday got to play group ticket distribution queen at Holiday World for our annual SMILE Trip

 Helped Nat design her business Facebook cover image and launch the page

 Finally finished the Buddy Walk brochure. Have sent off to the printer, and am now finally through the proofing and editing stage

 Announced Sapphire blue as this year’s Buddy Walk shirt official color

 Successful dance recital, and what Mommy wouldn’t be proud of this kiddo feedback?!?!

(click on image to expand)

Day 94: June 30, 2013- A three hour tour, a three hour tour…

Day 94: 3.05 miles logged, 327.44 miles to go… 3 mile run to start my day. My SUN 6am challenge gals aren’t available for a few weeks, but wanted to get a few miles in before our big canoe adventure. After my run and a shower, we headed off to the Wesselman Canoe Society guided tour of the Bluegrass Lake area with my dad, the kids, and friends Jen, Matt, and Mary. What a trip!

Gotta love my motley crew of canoers today! Learned a lot on the water with my dad, my kids, our guide Neal, Matt Walker, Mary Mallinak Rokicki, and Jennifer Gough Mabrey!

The weather was perfect in the 70’s. The lake was extremely peaceful, and it was GREAT workout! What I have come to realize, though, is that there are some things in life that I am really good at and others I am not so skilled at! Apparently, I am good at spinning a canoe in lots of circles and not paddling very fast, but I think Jen still had a fun time! I will also note that, I and her mom are both very proud of her for trying this new thing!!!

              

Took the kids to the movie with dad, and then did a movie night to end our evening. Could hardly keep my eyes open for the movie, so apparently wore myself out on the lake!

Day 87: June 23, 2013- And the weekend fun (a.k.a. me being REALLY busy) continues…

Day 87: 8.52 miles logged, 364.69 to go… 2.52 mile run at 6am, followed by a 6 mile SUN 7am challenge walk with Debbie (we pushed back an hour since we weren’t in a huge rush to get started after the girls spent the night). Made breakfast for the five us (Mia and I, Debbie and her two daughters), and then cooked a few meals for a friend and his wife who just had a baby. Took the three girls to the pool,

 

then dropped them off at Debbie’s. Dropped off the food, and then presented the Junior League of Evansville Signature Projects at the last of three summer recruitment events.

Picked up Mia, and then did a photoshoot for a friend and her little sister. Spent the rest of the night picking up the house, and working on my manuscript. Can’t believe how fast the weekend flew by. Looking forward to my dad coming in from Kansas next weekend!!! Hope this work week goes by as fast : )

P.S. on a funny note, just had to share the pic I found on my camera. Apparently my crafty little daughter decided to make a dog house for Mags. Loving the detailed flowers that she added in felt!

Day 85: June 21, 2013- Shade = good

Day 85: 8.04 miles logged, 376.21 to go… 4 mile morning run, 4 mile mid-morning run. Thought running at 10:30am would fun… turns out my route has no shade at that time of day, and the heat and humidity are rather unforgiving! Busy day at the office followed by fun night at the SMILE on Down Syndrome teen/adult L.I.F.E. event where Dr. Page, myself, and Gracie Bell taught separate classes for guys and gals on hygiene, personal care, and for the gals some additional makeup tips as well.

 

(and yes, as Lisa Vidal noticed, I did break out my pearls for the day!!!)

Grocery shopped, and then spent the rest of my evening preparing for SAT’s JLE board retreat and working on the canvases for Debbie’s living room.

Day 84, June 20, 2013- Pearls of Wisdom

Day 84: 6.02 miles logged, 384.25 to go… 4 mile morning run, 2 mile afternoon run. BNI morning and lovely evening at the Girl Scouts Pearls of Wisdom event. Late night of finishing up a bride’s album so didn’t sneak out for a late night run. Productive day, and happy to have gotten 6 miles in, though!

I have to tell you that I had so much fun at the Pearls of Wisdom event. Tracy Zeller has been talking about pearls lately during her BNI 60 second spots, so the point was really driven home at the GS event how lovely wearing pearls is. I was so inspired that when I went home, I went through my jewelry boxes to dig out the one strand that I have. Looking forward to taking them to TZJ to see if they are real when I head over there to have my rings resized (my wedding band and engagement ring literally fall off right now). Thanks Pat for inviting me to the event and Ashley for being my tablemate!!!

Day 79: June 15, 2013- Slumber party and late night movies

Day 79: 8.02 miles logged, 414.89 to go… 6 mile morning run and 2 miles walked at the pool. Spent the morning cooking at the United Caring Shelter

           

followed by hitting up Burdette Aquatic Center with the kiddos. Afternoon photoshoot then some fun family time with the Baileys.

Ended the night taking the girls back to my house for a slumber party while Debbie kept the boys as part of Julien’s birthday celebration.

Stayed up late working on engagement pics and a Chemo Buddy shoot while I watched Confessions of a Wallflower. Can’t believe the speed at which the weekends fly by!

Day 66: June 2, 2013- Day of Hope and Blondes vs. Brunettes

 

Day 66: 1:01 miles logged, 493.01 to go… What a day! Six hour drive home from LaPorte, home for a few minutes to grab my football gear, exhibited at the Chemo Buddies Day of Hope for two hours, and then off to Harrison High School for the 2013 Blondes vs. Brunettes match-up.

The power of the human spirit never ceases to amaze me. The Day of Hope was beautifully organized by Jill Kincaid and friends, and I feel honored to have been a part of the event. I know how devastating cancer can be to families, and I came away from the event appreciating the sense of hope that those afflicted have the opportunity to feel. Hope can be looked at in two ways… you’ll either get better, or if you don’t, going home to Heaven isn’t too bad of a consolation. The day was filled with survivors, care givers, medical professionals, and more, and the strength in numbers as well as the faith that some of these people had and shared was a touching experience.

 

Then when I got done with that, I had the privilege of packing up and heading over the football field to once again represent Team Blonde at the Blondes vs. Brunettes match-up for the Alzheimer’s Association. And did my teammates ever come through?!?! Oh my goodness, these women are amazing! Out of the 25k total raised, Team Blonde raised over 15k!!! We also came away with this year’s game trophy after a hard fought 37-33 victory. My new friend Heidi was a rock star, but all of the women who went out on that field deserve to be congratulated for their hard work and perseverance. The Brunettes played hard, and both teams should be proud of the effort put forth.

               

So, anyway, it was fun, literally “marathon” of a weekend. I survived it, and actually feel pretty great. The overwhelming excitement of the accomplishment of Saturday, the experience of being a part of Day of Hope, and the camaraderie of my teammates and coaches make me appreciative of good health and amazing family and friends. I am tremendously blessed! #1000MileMom2013

Day 57: May 24, 2013- Holiday World Fun and wedding albums

Day 57: 1.00 mile logged, 582.84 to go… Great day at Holiday World with the family. Stopped at McDonalds on 41 and I-64 along the way to check on one of my besties Kat Mykals and Rob while they did their morning radio show on the road! Had a blast, and Rob even let the kids hop on the mic to talk about their favorite rides… Love my dj friends!!!

 

  

Now watching a Once Upon a Time marathon while I work on a wedding album. Girls’ Night Out fell through, so I’m going to call it a night soon to get up early for tomorrow’s big run… wish me luck. This will be my final long run before next weekend’s big trip back home! More info to come when I can share what distance I hit when it’s all said and done…

Day 55: May 22, 2013 Gearing up for game day

Day 55: 10.04 miles logged, 577.81 miles to go- A bit bruised up from practice, but getting really excited for game day!

 Double rainbows = double the fun at practice!!!

Day 54: May 21, 2013- Swimsuits and self confidence

Day 54: 7.03 miles logged, 587.85 miles to go- Was pleasantly surprised how much easier my five mile hilly run went earlier tonight than my attempt from less than a week ago. Makes me more confident that the long run I’m planning to tackle on SAT should go smoother than I had hoped and that I might actually be able to run up all of Halleluiah Hill in less than two weeks. On a personal note, I think today was the first time that I have ever walked into a fitting room not absolutely terrified. I hate trying on clothes, but I was actually a little excited about finding a new swimsuit for our Holiday World trip on FRI. I found a cute one in a size I have never worn before, and for the first time in a long time, I looked at myself in that three way mirror and for once had a sense of peace. I have struggled with self-confidence and body image for years, but I am blessed to have an amazing husband and true friends who love me for the person on the inside. So while it’s really nice to be at my fittest body shape in my entire life, it’s more important to me that I am healthy and happy. Taking off the weight isn’t so much about being thin as it is about living a long and fruitful life with Bob and the kids as well as my family and friends. I am tremendously blessed, and I think the smile on my face when I caught site of myself in that mirror today reflected the joy in my heart. It’s kind of fun, too, to see the outer reflection of myself catching up with the inner me…  P.S. I’d like to give a shout-out to my friend Tony for his kind words the other day. I haven’t seen him in a while, and it was nice that he noticed the difference since I’d seen him last! I’m putting myself through a grueling physical challenge by trying these 1000 miles in 6 months (a schedule that I am trying to bump up to possibly 4.5-5 months because of a potential late summer timing conflict- anyone else trying this, I highly recommend stretching it out over a full year!!!!!), so it was nice to hear that the hard work is paying off!