Where's the AT-HOME in Stay-At-Home-Mom?

I'm going through a bit of a transition right now... becoming the SAHM I've never been, aside from time right around the births of the children. The current state of the economy has many of my clients deciding to make-do with older maps or more generic versions they can get on line. This made the last six months very good for scaling back as the contract income dwindled.

I started to worry a bit during the last couple of projects about what I'd do with myself when I didn't have to answer to clients or meet deadlines. Figured once the house was clean, I'd have big chunks of time each day for running, riding or studying. (My version of bon-bons & soaps.) Also figured it would be a great time to start figuring out what would be next. (Enrolling in school - either for personal growth or future dream career?)

Oops.

Turns out keeping myself busy shouldn't have been on the list at all. I don't think I've had a full day at home since the beginning of the school year.

First there's the move, and some changes in the family dynamics causing good deal of upheaval. (Some of this should be dying down soon, once the boxes are unpacked, the rain stops long enough to seal crack in basement floor, and the teen is enrolled in the HS down the street.)

Second, third & fourth, there's the three children in two different schools. (Next year, it will be three - ES/MS/HS.) Charter schools, which require volunteer time. One hour at one school, three hours at the other may sound like only four hours, but it's really a full day commitment, by the time you figure in travel time between, along with being in the right place at the right time for regular school pickup. Then there's the volunteer opportunities which pop-up unexpectedly. Once you volunteer last minute for a couple of different things, then you're known as being "flexible" about hours. Being "flexible" puts you on email lists.

Maybe all this running about is a good thing for making the transition. When things finally calm down enough that there are stay-at-home days, it'll feel more like a blissful mini-vacation, and less like a time to panic about losing a sense of purpose. Contemplating the future in a relaxed state of mind ought to make coming up with ideas more a creative process of figuring "want to do" without as much worry about what I "need to do." (MizFit's posts so far this week have me thinking about making those future plans with the What would you do if you couldn't fail? question in mind.)

That's the future. For today, I'm getting the fans and wet/dry vac ready for the next 24 hours of heavy rain. Tomorrow's cross training workout will be bailing out the basement and pulling carpet... should that count as cardio, or weights?

Packing Up: The Chaos

The new house is official. The final walk-through had been eagerly and fearfully anticipated, as I was terrified of finding the basement flooded, and having to put the whole thing off until after cleanup, or to start from scratch on one of the backup house choices in the neighborhood. Beyond a little bit of seepage through the door into the unfinished portion of the daylight basement, the house was high and dry.

Closing was Thursday. Beyond a snafu with the wire transfer, it went very smoothly. (Thank you, monster mega-bank, for noting that a large transfer of funds to a real estate attorney's escrow account is an "unusual transaction," and taking the extra precaution to place a hold on the "suspicious activity" until the next day. And an extra thank you for sending notification of the hold AFTER the day had ended for your customer service folks.)

With the movers coming on Tuesday, it's been crazy busy around here since this past Tuesday. Even with the packing, cleaning and closet purging, there's been time for a little bit of fun.

Friday:
DD attended a Japanese themed birthday party, in a beautiful vintage kimono we purchased on eBay.


Saturday:
B1's first 10k - the Big Peach Sizzler 10k. He finished in 58:24, and I'm super proud of him. (Plus, for beating my time, and breaking 60 minutes, $10.)

Sunday:
Will be heading over soon to the local festival, where B2 and I will be serving up lemon twists in the 5th grade booth. That's not so much the fun part, but wandering around after our shift and trying food from the different restaurant booths will be.

Then, it's time to pull holiday decorations from the attic, and make a trip over to the new house with the rest of the toys and games I bribed (frozen yogurt) the kids into packing up early last week. It needs to be out of this house, before they decide they need to open the boxes back up.

Where did the week go?

Between meetings with teachers about one child (yes, THOSE types of meetings), completely insane destructive puppy antics (4 months is apparently "normal" time for it), Open House at the HS, Parent University at the ES, and three-out-of-five family members spending a day or two at home with a cold, I just looked at the calendar and noticed tomorrow is Friday!

I know time is supposed to fly when you're having fun, but I'm not so sure the person who came up with that gem had this kind of fun in mind at the time. Think I'll choose another old saying for this week. Thanks to how quickly it ripped by, it was like taking off a band-aid.

I have a great set of photos to post from this past Sunday. By great, I'm speaking as the proud parent of the eight year old who is experimenting with angles, zoom and light. The photos are not as good as some of the shots she took at the Atlanta Botanical Garden last month, but that has a lot to do with being knocked about by a puppy who is quickly approaching her weight division.

Eek! I've exceeded my flickr uploads for September. Will have to add the pictures as a short slide show AFTER I sign up for the pay service. That'll be in the morning. Right now, I'm going to bed.

But before I do...
Waiting to hear the word about the last couple pieces falling into place on the house. Closing in two weeks, moving in three. Should Clifford and his canine equivalent of the terrible twos not be a thing of the past by then, we're all looking forward to opening the kitchen door and shooing both dogs outside for 20-30 minutes of Peter's favorite game. No name for the game yet, but here's the playbook:

1. Peter T. Dog runs as fast as he can in a circle.
2. Almost lets Clifford catch up.
   
3. Turns around and runs directly at the puppy.
4. Clifford stops short, and goes tail over head.
   
5. Peter leaps over him in a graceful arc.
6. Prance happily away, while Clifford looks around in confused state.
7. Repeat.

I can post a single photo directly to blogger, even if flickr hates my little batch of photos. With the larger, FENCED, yard, frequent intervals of the game ought to wear Clifford out better than the 1.5-2 mile walk/run or 10 minutes of tag on a leash.

Best laid (race) plans

That autumn schedule of races I'd carefully put together? Two or three events each month for September, October and November.

It's gone. Out the window. Kaput.

Most have been dropped due to B1's cross country schedule, which every Saturday but one filled through the first half of November. Two have been dropped because of new house and move plans. Both are extremely good reasons, so I can't complain. Wait. Yes, I can complain, but I won't. Except for a brief whine about one.

I'm not exactly thrilled about dropping the Midnight Flight 5k/10k off my calendar. (With all the last minute documents to find for the loan paperwork, the home inspection and contingency back-and-forth, it's just not a great idea to head out early on Friday for that first race on the schedule.) It's a fun night race, just far enough out of town that I have to spend the night and take Saturday morning to sleep in, soak in the tub, and take myself to a lazy brunch before the drive back to Atlanta. I'd planned to run the two races back-to-back, using the 5k as a warm up for the 10k. (The first mile or two of any run are always the blah miles, so I figured I'd be fully coordinated by the 11pm start time of the 10k.)

Depending on how the birthday parties, end-of-summer pool parties and requested sleep overs shake out over the next few days, I may still fit in a race this Labor Day weekend. The 10k Classic is on Labor Day, just a few miles from here, and is supposed to be a challenging, hilly course.

And, until something else pops up, here's the scaled back schedule. There may be a couple of 5k races added with the kidlets, during the off-week for cross country, or on Saturdays when B1's events are in the afternoon.

9/7 - 10k Classic (Maybe)
10/4 - Locomotive Half & 5k, Kennesaw
10/31 - Silver Comet Half Marathon
11/26 - Atlanta Half Marathon

A few hours over the next week will go into making a training plan with the October 31 and Thanksgiving Day half marathons as the main focus. The Locomotive HM on October 4th is going to be a practice run (in place of long run for the week) for the other two HMs. Treated Run the Reagan that way back in February, and it turned out to be a great race.

On a what the heck am I thinking? note, I took advantage of the discount for super-early registration for the ING on March 21, 2010. I signed up for the full marathon this time around. After all, I have 199 days, 22 hours and 14 minutes to prepare. What could possibly go wrong?

Back to school "fun"

The second week of school started today. Between all the BTS schedule adjustments last week, along with homecoming picnics, parent meetings and cross country practice, it's been all kerfuffle, all the time around here.

With this morning's stint in the front office at the high school, and children picking their afterschool activities (one per child) for autumn, I'm finally beginning to get things nailed down on the calendar.

Just out of curiousity, what would this image in a note from your child's teachers say to you?

Would it give you the idea that you shouldn't send peanut butter & honey sandwiches, and maybe try out some alternatives, like almond or cashew butter? Because that's what I thought. (I knew soynut butter was out, since it's more closely related to peanuts than the others.) Found an almond butter my picky little DD liked. She proudly packed up a small container with her apples, string cheese, whole grain crackers, dried pineapple and oatmeal cookies today.

Imagine my surprise at her almost tearful report on not eating her almond butter and apples today, along with a stern "NO MORE" from the teachers. It's not peanuts. If the child(ren) in her class is allergic to tree nuts, then the school has sent out the wrong note. And, if it's just because almond butter is a nut butter, and they're being super-cautious, then... well, actually, I understand that, but they still need to send out the correct information about which products are banned.

In the meantime, here's hoping the threat of bologna sandwiches can change my little girls opinion on sunflower seed butter. I refuse to send jelly-only sandwiches, which I understand some parents are doing.

Silver Comet to Chief Ladiga Trail

Rode the Silver Comet Trail on Saturday. Not my normal rides on the trail - rode the whole trail. The family was out for a short hike and a movie. (Ice Age 3 - something I really didn't have to be there for.) They were available for me to call in case of equipment failure - either bicycle or rider - but were planning to meet me at the Georgia-Alabama state line.

The first 20 miles of the trail are pretty well populated, but farther out, it gets to where you might go 10 - 20 minutes without seeing anyone. Didn't pull out the phone until I hit the point on the trail which had been my farthest point until Saturday.



Weather hot-ish, but not oppressive. Not very humid, and there was a nice breeze for most of the afternoon. Lots of stops along the way.

Picked up honey roasted peanuts and chamois butter at the Silver Comet Depot. (4.3 miles) So glad I did, as I'm not sure I'd be able to be sitting at my desk today - two days later - if not for the chamois butter.

Hopped off at The Chain Station in Hiram (14 miles?) for a break, and to grab more water. The breeze kept me from being drenched in sweat, but I'd gone through most of my first bottle. Had a talk with the bike shop owner about rentals while I was there. He has a city tricycle (think that's what it's called - upright, not the low to ground model) which he thinks he should be able to adjust from adult size to accomodate a 10 year old. Might be just the thing to get B2 back on the trail. He's refused to ride since the big wipeout last fall. If we can get him out on three wheels, maybe he'll get over thinking about which bones can be broken in a tumble.

Was extremely happy to roll past the 25 mile marker, between the Pumpkintown Trestle and Brushy Mtn Tunnel. At that point, it went from feeling like just another long ride out-and-back to exploring.

Coots Lake was the next stopping point, at 33-34 miles. Bought a big water to refill one bottle and top off the other, then enjoyed honey roasted peanuts and banana chips before heading back out. Am very glad I installed rear rack. Would have been a tougher trip without it.

Paused in Rockmart, to snap a few photos for sending to the family for my promised updates. (Supposedly to let kids in on the journey, but actually to reassure dad I was still alive & rolling.) They have a beautiful park along the creek (may be a river, but it's a small one), with shops and restaurants just off the trail. I can see this being a good turnaround point after stopping for lunch on future long rides.

Between Rockmart (39-ish) and Cedartown (51) there were remote sections and rolling hills. The trail zig zagged a bit when crossing roads, and this played a part in my "walk of shame" up a hill. Had to go up and over to follow the trail and didn't build up enough speed for the one and only big climb on the trip. Switched to granny gears, stood up in the saddle, and... lost my balance. Had to unclip FAST to get my feet on the ground. No way to get moving fast enough to clip in again, at least not for my clumsy riding style, so had to walk the last half of climb. Made the most of it by pulling out the vitamin water and the rest of the peanuts. (Ugh.) From that point on, it was rolling, so could build up momentum for each climb. Cedartown Train Depot was closed when I got to town, so sent a photo to the family, and kept pedaling west.

The section from Cedartown to Alabama was lovely, but definitely qualified as remote. I think I saw only five people during the last nine miles, and four of them were together. Rode through Gateway Park at the AL-GA state line a little after 4:00. Had gone about a mile down the Chief Ladiga Trail when I got a call from the family. They were back at the last Georgia trailhead. Was a nice lazy ride back to Esom though. Had a chance to snap a photo of Bloo at the Silver Comet Trail side of the gate, in addition to the Chief Ladiga.

62.77 miles in just under 4.5 hours, including breaks. Glad I did it, as it's good to know my legs can take it. If not for my sore seat, thunderstorms, and kids who wanted to play Monopoly, I'd have been out riding again on Sunday.

*Had a chance to listen to several podcasts I'd fallen behind on over vacation. Listened to Gardner Goldsmith's three part series on rights from Liberty Conspiracy (early June), and to the FreeTalkLive episode from June 20th with an hour of Walter Block. They were discussing Block's great book Defending the Undefendable, and it kept my mind quite busy, which probably helped distract me during the tougher part of the ride. Great discussion on "slumlords", in addition to a discussion with a caller about the self-ownership / ethical arguments for voluntary cannibalism. Yes, that's right. Voluntary Cannibalism. (Only something you'd ever hear from diehard libertarians.)

How I spent my Mommy Pool Camp free time...

You can lead a horse to water...

...then pop the trunk bag and grab a drink.

That's a 10 calorie Vitamin Water sticking out of the bag. I'm usually a water only person, but have to switch to alternating water and electrolyte beverages for the summer months. I'm not one of those women who "glisten" during workouts in the heat. I'm a completely-drenched-with-a-flaky-shell-of-salt-crust woman. The lemon and orange low cal vitamin water flavors are okay, but I prefer the Cherry Lemonade enhanced water from Whole Foods, as it actually tastes like cherry lemonade, and not just a chemical representation. (Fortunately, Whole Foods is not far from the house... great excuse for a ride.)

Next week's Mommy Pool Camp free time will be spent as plain old "Mom" (frequently said in exasperated tone, sometimes with eye roll), as I'll be going for a trail ride with the 15 year old. OMG - still can't get used to saying that number in reference to B1

Mommy Pool Camp = Best Idea Ever!

Okay, it's not the idea that going to solve world hunger and global energy issues, but it's really high on my list of GREAT IDEAS this summer.

One of the other moms came up with the idea a few weeks ago that it would be nice to get the kids together three hours each Wednesday afternoon. Between the four moms, we each take a day and provide snacks and our skills at waterlogged child herding, while the other three get some much needed time to think in complete sentences.

As a bonus, the children will be able to break into groups that don't necessarily include the siblings they're beginning to get sick of during summer break.

Today is not my day for herding, so I will be taking The Duchess out for a ride, and then visiting the bike shop to put together an official list of what I need to do to get her 38 year old frame & gears ready for a metric century this fall. Hopefully, it's doable. Though I'd be happy to take Bloo (road bike), I like the idea of doing my first metric century on the old Raleigh 10-speed, seeing as how she's my age, and this ride will be one of those milestone events for me.

Home again!

Took a detour on the way home from Colorado. Spent time in New Mexico and Texas, and took some extra time to wander an hour - or four - off the interstates.

I'm working through the mountain of laundry, restocking the pantry & fridge, and organizing photos. Will begin posting some of our "off the beaten path" gems (to borrow a segment from Slamdunk) in another day or two, along with regular topics. There's the best rootbeer float of my life, delicious BBQ, stunning scenery, cattle roadblocks... and more.

Until then*, here's a snapshot from Pike's Peak. We rode the Cog Railway up to the summit. Went from sunny summer to big old snowbanks in an hour. (iPhone photo, as I'm still sorting the images from the two cameras.)


*To be honest, I'm stalling. Haven't been on a run since the GOTG 10 mile over a week ago. It's been almost three weeks away from the bikes. I'm relying on the 15 year old and the Xbox 360 to keep the younger two busy tomorrow morning, while I go for a two hour ride. Love the children, but need the mental health break.
Will take them swimming or out for a hike after lunch, lest anyone think I'm letting them become complete couch potatoes.

Hi. My name is Joy, and I'm a Discovery Channel Addict.

And History, Military, Science, National Geographic and Travel Channels. I blame the oh-so-convenient DVR with dual tuners, which allows us to record two shows at once. In high definition. And the oh-so-wonderful Comcast HD OnDemand service.

It started a few years before the DVR, with the occasional special on ancient battles, siege weapons or metallurgy, with seasonal binges of Shark Week, ancient Rome or Egypt, and engineering wonders.

Then, we saw frozen chickens being fired from an air canon at plane windshields. Mythbusters became a family viewing event. The one night each week where we'd break normal school year bedtimes and pile in front of the television... picture The Simpsons opening.

Knowing there wasn't possibly enough time to follow everything, shows like Dirty Jobs, Survivorman, and Anthony Bourdain had to be limited to the times when viewing marathons coincided with rainy weekends.

With the advent of the dual tuner DVR, we could get those previously limited shows, and more, to watch whenever we want. The good news was that the kids didn't have to stay up late on a school night to see Mythbusters. The "bad" news was the growing list of programs we wanted to - and could - watch. Bizzare Foods w/Andrew Zimmerman, Cities of the Underworld, Man vs. Wild. Alaska Week was added to Shark Week for those seasonal binges.

And now... Doing DaVinci, Pitchmen, Out of the Wild, The Detonators, and as of last night:

Expedition Africa. One episode, and I'm completely hooked. Heck, with spitting cobras, crocodiles and Masai warriors, we all are.

Nooooo!!!! It's summer, so it's time for SciFi/BBC America series. Torchwood, Doctor Who, Eureka, and the new Warehouse 13 in place of Stargate Atlantis. I don't have that much ironing to do, unless I can convince the children to start wearing linen.

Oh. Lest I forget, Spike TV has a show called Deadliest Warrior. You know that close to friendship ending bout of bickering you could start as a kid by asking who would win a fight between _______ & _______, usually filled in with superheroes? Well, Deadliest Warrior fills in the blanks with warriors throughout history from all over the world, and answers the question. Weapons experts, biomechanical experts, emergency/trauma doctor, and a guy to crunch the numbers and run the simulations. Ninjas vs. Spartans? Shaolin Monks vs. Maori Warriors? William Wallace vs. Shaka Zulu? The first season played back to back Sunday afternoon, finishing with terrorist vs. terrorist - IRA vs. Taliban. I haven't watched it yet, but all four episodes we haven't seen are waiting behind the glowing yellow lights on the HD DVR.

I'm looking forward to Ninjas vs. Spartans. The kids are pulling for Vikings vs. Pirates to be the next episode we watch. Is it wrong to be watching the forecast and contemplating adding "one full day of rain each week" to the prayer list?

Settling into Summer

Who knew finding our happy place for the daily lazy summer vacation "schedule" would take so much work?

It's taken a week for the kids to get past thinking they have to try to stay up past midnight each night. The Exercise + Reading +Chores = Video Games is not something new, as it's in place each weekend throughout the school year, but it took few days of reminders that it still applies. The battles over helping with housework are coming to a middle.

The kids are getting adjusted, so now it's my turn. Been exercising, cooking, biking the grocery shopping and errands like normal, but computer time has been limited. There are a couple of maps to wrap up before my summer officially begins, so the available time has been for work, not reading and blogging.

Without the camp weeks which have helped keep mom sane in the past, I'm going to rely on a schedule. Nothing too strict, as long as general goals are met. These things, along with a good try at dinner, make evening movies, deserts, and video games possible.

• Up, done with breakfast, dressed, and beds made before cartoons or video games. This is when I run/ride.
• [Roughly] Two hours of reading and play - board/card games, legos, barbies, etc. This is computer time - work or otherwise - for mom.
• Music practice & housework help
• Exercise! Can be taking a packed lunch with us for an afternoon of swimming, hiking or general running about at the park. Yardwork, gardening and washing car and/or dog get to count for exercise, too. (If you've seen three children try to get an 85-lb dog into the outdoor tub when he'd rather be rolling in the veggie patch, and they're chasing each other with water guns, you'd see the exercise value.)

All bets are off in a couple of weeks, when the cross-country trek begins.

Summer is just around the corner

Survived both elementary school field days, normal reading times, 8th grade dance, early dismissal, baking 18 dozen cookies (Pepparkakor & Anzac Biscuits), cooked 160 Swedish Meatballs and several pounds of Lemon Myrtle Shrimp Salad. Even managed to get hot item to school hot, and cold item still cold... without spilling anything on the way.

This morning's clean up at the middle school marks the end of the busiest four "mom" days of the year. With next week being the final week of school, next Wednesday thru Friday should be just as insane. Will be enjoying a frosty beverage when I get home to celebrate the next two days, where the demands on brain power and time will be limited to immediate family.

Bike To Wherever Week

It's Bike to Work Week. I'm not going to be riding to a shiny office building this week, but I am cycling on my regular errands. Today, The Duchess and I had quite the outing.

1. Bank - Deposit - at the Drive-up window, of course
2. Little Thai - Lunch date - Basil Noodles & Roti
3. Vegetable Stand - Obvious reasons
4. Fleet Feet Sports - Small water bottle/strap, but ended up getting a Nike skirt and singlet, too.
5. Little European Bakery - Bread & 3 Beehive cookies for kidlets
6. Trader Joes - Regular groceries, including milk, 5-lb bag of flour, wine & flowers

It was a wonderful 2 hours. Beautiful sunshine, spring breezes, and not even a hint of stiffness in the rear wheel. Can't wait for Thursdays trip. The panniers are marvelous. Instead of being limited to the one front basket, here's everything The Duchess carried home:



Including today's 4.5 mile loopy route, this week's mileage so far:

Sunday -
Whole Foods - 3.9 (would normally be five, but there was the frozen wheel & rescue)
"Date" Ride - 21.5 (leisurely pace)

Monday -
"Hooray! It's Not Raining" Ride - 17.26 (16.6 mph)
"Oops - Supposed to be Running" - 2.3 (9:24/mile)

Tuesday -
Errands for the Day - 4.57 (lots of stops)
*Hill Run (when the teenager/babysitter gets home) - 3.7 miles

Total (so far) - 57.79 miles

It'll slow down after today, as there's Field Day, TAG End-of year Party, 4th/5th Guitar Concert, 8th Grade Dance, International Festival, all between Wednesday and Friday, followed by After-Dance Cleanup at the middle school on Saturday morning. Now that I think about it, the grocery budget is likely to be out of whack this week too, as one child volunteered me to fix fried rice for the TAG party and Swedish meatballs for the International Festival, though I haven't heard a confirmation from the teacher on that second batch of food yet.

Almost out of the weeds

I'm a bit overwhelmed this last week and a half. No bad stuff, just lots of regular stuff. Between having to completely redo everything about the medical and HSA account on the taxes at the last minute, two family birthdays, emissions testing & registration on vehicles, and volunteer time at both schools, there has been almost no time left after normal work and family activities. When I did manage an hour or so of me time, I chose to use it for exercise. Running/cycling out the crazy, I suppose.

I'm almost afraid to say this... but I think things will start to calm down over the next day or two. But for today, I've already used up 10-15 minutes of the one hour I've carved out of today's schedule. This afternoon, it's off to clean and pack books at the school media center, for next week's big move.

If I hurry, there's still time for about four miles of sanity.

Ironing out the wrinkles

A little steam and starch makes everything better. Sunday, the kids were in bed at normal time for a school night, after much complaining and backpack prep. The kitchen and house had been put back in order from the big Easter dinner with company. I spent a couple of hours with The No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency on HBO while ironing. (Can't tell you how much I enjoy that show. It's rare to see a show that is uplifting.) By the time I'd pressed the kids' uniform slacks, shirts and skirts and starched the shirts Dad would need to take for the week, my sense of peace and calm had returned.

Spring break was fun, but I am so glad it's over. I know that makes me sound like an awful mom, who doesn't want to spend time with her children. That not it. Summer will be much longer, and yet is always so much smoother than short school breaks. We need fresh air and exercise. Lots of it. The weather was actually worse for outdoor play much of last week than during the Winter holidays, which made for more bickering than usual. The age differences which don't matter during a hike, or a day at the neighborhood pool, or on a family bike ride become big problems when trying to get everyone to agree on a board game. Or a video game. Or a movie. Or which child(ren) should be responsible for washing out a big bin of Legos after "somebody" spilled hot cocoa in it.

At any rate, this morning is wonderfully quiet. I'm on my third cup of coffee, and have almost caught up with the email and blog reading from last week. And, after a couple hours on a map project, I'll be off for a run. It'll probably be raining, but I don't mind a bit. I won't have to worry about what's being broken while I'm out... and I rather enjoy splashing through puddles.

Guess you could say my Spring Break starts today.

*%!$@#@ Gas Shortages

I can't put gas in my truck. 15 gas stations near my home, and the only gas is diesel. The one gas station which did have regular gas, had waits of 30-45 minutes, a $50 limit, and was expecting to be out of fuel by the time I could have made it there.

I'm ticked. 

I don't put that many miles on my gas guzzler. I usually fill up every two or three weeks. I run to the post office. Ride the bike to the grocery store. I heard about the shortages, and the gas panic a few days ago, but didn't think much of it. I figured it would be over by the time I needed gas again, no problem. 

I was wrong.

Drove out to Douglasville to the orthodontist today for the regular bracket/retainer checks. I even combined appointments for multiple family members, to reduce the number of trips. My gas gauge dropped below 1/4, so it was time to refill. The five stations along my path back to I-20? All out. The gas stations after I got back to Sandy Springs? Empty.

Unless I check channel 11's website at 6 a.m. and find a gas station near my house with fuel, I won't be going on the big 61.5 mile ride for the opening of the final section of the Silver Comet Trail at the Alabama state line. My family was going to drive out and meet me at the state line for lunch, then we'd all drive back together. If I can't know we'll be able to either fill up the truck, or refill the car, no go.

My back up plan is to run my newest "longest run of my life" tomorrow. If  can't make the ride to AL, I'll be running 9 miles, and meeting my munchkins a little closer to home for a celebratory lunch at Slopes or KC Pit BBQ.

No walk breaks!

Am off to the dentist this morning, so I got up extra early to run. Stuck with the main roads for the street lights. I think I like this early morning thing. Almost a whole mile along a major street, and only one car passed me. Roswell & Abernathy were busier of course, but 6:00 a.m. busy is quite peaceful.

3.4 miles, 33:53, without a single walk break. That's a new record for me.

I'd throw a big celebration, by which I mean buy myself a giant latte, but will settle for loud music and an open sunroof on the way to the dentist. Old filling replacement, followed by a trip down the street to the Orthodontist for four months worth of torture devices for my lower jaw. (Invisalign)

Half Training, Week 5

Week 4 (8/4-8/10):
Monday: 3-miles, easy run
Tuesday: Rest (walking w/kids)
Wednesday: 12.5-miles, bike
Thursday: 4-miles, trail run
Friday: Rest
Saturday: Dinosaur Dash 5k (31:17 - P.R.)
Sunday: 6-miles, tandem ride

Total: Run - 10.1 miles; Bike - 18.5 miles

Was finally over the head cold last week , but found my time and energy used up in the back-to-school chaos. This week, with all the dentist trips, school shopping and registration completed, my training schedule gets back up to the recommended times and distances on the chart.

First Half

I signed up for my first Half Marathon. The 8th Silver Comet Half Marathon, October 25.
I started my official training schedule on Monday, with a Rest/Easy Cross day.
Tuesday: 3-mile run. Ended up being my fastest 5k time to date, as I ran the (5k) park trail while watching lightning streaks and counting the seconds until hearing thunder.
Wednesday: stretching. The 2-mile easy run was dropped because of another late day storm.
Thursday: 3-mile, plus 10 mins of rowing. (Should be run & strength training)
Friday (today): Rest day.

The Rest Day is killing me. I woke up this morning, wanting to run. Not long, not even particularly fast or hilly. Just a run. But Saturday is a longish ride; Sunday a 4-mile run. In the interest of not overdoing it, I swam with the kids, and spent some time spinning the smaller ones like tops on their floats.

I'm working my way into Hal Higdon's Half Marathon Training Plan. It's a 12-week plan, so I'm actually a couple of weeks early in starting. Between kids' back to school schedules next month, and pop-up thunderstorms over this month & next, I may need a few extra 'doh! days. You know - those days you slap yourself on the forehead because you totally forgot having scheduled a 7-year checkup at the pediatrician, a follow-up for the teenager at the orthodontist, and the dog's annual shots all on the same day.

Not that I ever do anything scatterbrained like that, though. I'd have scheduled at least two or three extra things, in a completely different part of town, thinking that XYZ day was sometime next week.

February Wrap Up

81 miles. Not the 100 hundred I'd hoped for, but better than 50 miles for January. The last week or so has been a bit hectic, both schedule and weather. Big storms and wild temperature swings, combined with finalizing a city map and school projects, meant shorter rides and runs. I still made it out most days. More than one planned 10-12 mile ride was shortened to a 2.5 mile trip to Trader Joes; a couple of five mile runs were cut to 30 minutes, so I'd have time to read to one of the classes, make a dentist appointment, or to pick up supplies at the fabric store.

Fabric store? Yes. One of the many school projects going this week was putting together a roman and/or greek costume for my 8-year-old's class musical "Dig It!". (Archaeology, with a catchy beat, and a bunch of 3rd graders in costume.) NO, I did not use a sheet to make his toga. I know it's the 'normal' way to do it; we're not normal though. So, four yards of 'really red' broadcloth, a few safety pins, and one silver buckle later:


Anyway, also have a history project in the works for one child, and baked goods for two.

I realized while running this morning, if this had not been February, I'd have made my goal. A run today, and a 90 minute ride tomorrow would have put me well over the 100-mile mark. Oh well. The 20-25 miles I rack up this gorgeous weekend will put me well on my way to hitting the mark for March.

Third time's the charm, right?