An Experiment...Of Sorts

Wow!  It has been longer than I thought since my last post.  I will have to get y'all caught up on what all has been going on in the state of Washington.  Just not right now.

Yesterday, I removed the microwave from the house.  I have been wanting it out for a while now.  So, yesterday, on a whim, I got up and asked Chad if I could do an experiment.  He said yes without even asking what it was I wanted to do, which is a good thing for me (I get away with a lot more that way).  So, I told him I wanted him to remove the microwave from the house.  My request didn't come as a surprise.  I had discussed it with him a few weeks ago.  Microwaves are convenient, but the physical ramifications of using them has always concerned me.  Besides how lazy are we that we can't reheat something on the cook top. 

Anyway, the plan is to not use it for a week and see how it goes. But, I knew if it stayed in the house the kids would find a way to use it.  So, out it went.  I didn't tell the kids what I was doing, and I knew that Cody, more so than the others, would not be happy about it.  Her go to meal at lunch is a baked potato with a cup of sour cream and just as much butter and cheese.  And it drove me nuts.  On the way home from her classes (that will be in an update post) I told her what I had done.  And, I was right.  She wasn't happy.  She is an instant gratification type of girl and did not want to wait on cooking a potato in the oven.  You know what she did.  She made a healthier lunch, a burrito with steak, cheese, sour cream, and a few fried potatoes.  I know it doesn't sound much different, but she used WAY less sour cream and cheese and added way more protein.  I say a win for both of us.

Earlier, when Noah found out about the microwave he was upset.  Why?  The only thing he will make for himself is a tortilla with a slice of lunch meat and cheese, throw it in the microwave and that will be breakfast or lunch.  Not possible now.  So, I showed him how to make one on the cook top.  You know what?  He said it tasted way better then in the microwave, more like a quesadilla.

Yesterday, I reheated oatmeal on the cook top.  I survived.

Today, Jessica had to reheat her tortellini in a cast iron skillet on the cook top. She lived.

So, why do we feel a microwave is a necessity?  Before microwaves came along people did just fine living without them.  Besides, this kitchen is small and I feel like I can't function well in it.  I don't have much counter space in this kitchen and all the space I can get is helpful to my sanity.

The only time I have felt a tinge of guilt about removing the microwave was when Chad's coffee became a bit chilled and he wanted to reheat it on his way out to work and couldn't.  But...that tinge of guilt quickly left when I remembered that I had purchased some very nice travel mugs for him to use.  You know, the kind that keep drinks insulated for hours.  The same ones he leaves at work everyday.  His coffee would still have been quite warm had he used one of those, so my guilt quickly left.

I am not saying the microwave will stay out forever.  But, I do love the idea of more counter space and the fact that the kids have to put more thought into what they will eat.

Curse You Thomas Kemper!

Recently Ryan and I decided we would do the local yarn tour, a shop hop event.  After visiting our second shop on a list of 20-30 shops, and realizing that it was the knitter's version of going to Costco on a Saturday, I asked Ryan if we could forgo the other shops.  She didn't want to since she had been looking forward to the yarn tour with great enthusiasm.  So, I did what any great mother would do, I bribed her.  I told her I would take her to a restaurant called Seeds which sells my favorite pie, chocolate peanut butter pie.  She agreed and off to Seeds we went.  When we arrived I was a bit more hungry and pie wasn't going to cut it, so we ordered a wrap to go along with our pies.  I had my usual iced tea and Ryan ordered a root beer.  When our drinks arrived I started to read the label on Ryan's root beer.  It had a little bee on the label.  Odd.  I look closer and the label states "made with pure cane sugar and honey".  Honey?  I wonder if you can smell the honey?  Hmm, not really.  I wonder if you can taste the honey?  Sip. Sip. Drink.  Drink.  Gulp!  Gulp!  Gulp!  And, I was done for.

Five years and soda has not passed these lips, not one drop, not even by mistake.  That is, until Thomas Kemper Root Beer.  It was good.  Really good!  I found some at the grocery store and brought it home.  Then I found out that Costco sells it, by the case.  A case full of yummy nectar.  Why am I cursed to want something I shouldn't have.  Why am I tortured so!  Alas, our short love affair wasn't meant to last.  The guilt of drinking soda was too much.  But, I will never forget those few weeks we had together.

New Shoes

Today dad took me to get new running shoes. They look exactly like his, well, maybe not exactly like his. Mine are white not black, and they do not have as much orange. They do however have the same sparkly laces. We tried about eight pairs on before I tried on these.  One pair that I tried on are the exact same ones as Jessica's.  They were to tight in the toes. We traded shoe for shoe, each with a problem.  My heel slips, I can feel the stitches that held the Nike, Brooks, and Mizuno symbol, or the one problem that happened too many times, the rubbing of my ankles.  I love the shoes that I picked and want the same pair when these are too small.

Evening run

We have been running every night. Last night we met one of my coworkers for our evening run at Safeway in Anacortes and ran the Tommy Thompson trail. Nick, the guy on the left, is the champion water rep at the refinery. Keep running nick!

On our run, we passed a brand new boat, fresh off the racks. I wonder what new boat smell smells like? It was something to see!

Kwina Mile

This past Tuesday we took part in the Kwina Mile (pronounced qui-nuh).  It is a race put on every year by the Lummi Indians.  It is a quirky race for several reasons, the only distance they have is the mile, it always takes place on a Tuesday, and it is always at noon.  People take off from work to participate and the kids get out of school and are bused in for the event.  There were runners, walkers and skate boarders.  They ran in running clothes, shorts, or jeans, one even in a tutu.  Some wore running shoes others wore Vibrams, vans, or big clunky "skating shoes" (that is what the kids call them, the kind skate boarders like to wear).  The Lummi firemen ran the mile dressed in full gear (masks and all), one even carried one of those heavy hoses.  I was told they usually have 300 to 400 participants.

They provided a sack lunch and gave all participants shirts.  Your choice of short or long sleeved and either white or orange.  Best of all, the race this year was free, shirts, food and all. 

Joel, G-ma, and I promised Noah a dollar if he beat Ryan.  Ryan purposely let him win so he would get the three dollars.  Next time there will be some stipulations about getting the money.  Jess came in second female by about a second.  Ryan and Noah came in under 8 minutes.  I don't know Chad's time and mine was 9:24.  Joel said if I ran 9:12ish that he would get me a hoody from the college he is coaching at.  I think 9:24 is 12ish.  He disagrees.  I think I should get it anyway since the first half of the race was all up hill and there wasn't much of a down hill on the back side of the mile.  Cody didn't run.  She was home dealing with a migraine.

It was a fun race and one we will gladly do next year. 



That's a Sasquatch on the back of the shirt (in case you didn't know). 

Breakfast at "The bridge cafe"

We took G-Ma to our friends', the Adeylottes, business, The Bridge Cafe. I had biscuits and gravy...yum.

G-ma made it. Dinner at Red Robin

We picked up G-ma at seatac and finally made it out of Seattle! There was a ton of traffic. Plus, when the traffic should have let up at Marysville, there was road construction. Needless to say it took awhile.

The Wait is Over...Almost

     G-ma will be here today!  Everyone has been so excited, and we have been counting down the days for a LONG time now.   The countdown didn't become consistent until the first of May.  "Twenty-three more days until Grandma gets here", then one less day everyday since then, until, "Grandma is coming today!"  I am excited because, well, it's my mom.  The kids are excited because, well, its their grandmother.  Chad is excited because he gets home cooked meals.  His words.  He makes it sound as if I don't cook.  Okay, lately not so much.  But, the kitchen here isn't very big and a small mess multiplies like tribbles and I just don't function well in a messy kitchen.  It went from a one person chore to a multi person chore, and still takes forever to clean.  And, yes, we clean it everyday multiple times a day.  But, I digress.
     We are now down to counting down the hours until her plane lands.  Yep, mom is flying.  That is a testament to how much she misses us and wants to come visit.  She is scared of heights and hates to fly.  She takes buses when she goes back East to visit family.  We talked her into taking a flight instead.  What she doesn't know is that it is raining here.  I didn't mention it because I didn't want to make her more nervous than she already is.  At least we don't have lightning and thunder storms here.  Just rain.  Anyway, she will be here for about two months.  We can't wait to show her around.  Did I mention she is scared of heights?  Just about everywhere we go we have to cross bridges to get there.  The kind that are over water not roads.  This will be very...interesting for her.  The kids have decided that it is their job to help her overcome her fears while she is here.  You might want to pray for her.


PS I have a secret.

PSS Chad wanted me to mention that "tribbles" is a Star Trek reference.  I thought it was obvious.

Why I Haven't Blogged in Awhile

Well, the truth is that I was too lazy to update the blog.  Now that the truth is out, I am actually going to blame it on knitting.  There is some truth to that and it leads into me getting to show off what I have been doing.  Let me just say, that, all I wanted were pictures of the kids standing there wearing the hats.  Thats all.  But for some reason that point was lost on the kids.

The hat Cody is wearing has a black stripe in it.  Yep, I am that good now.  I made Jessica's hat but she put the pompom on it.  Yep, she's that good.

I had to throw in the front and side view so you can tell that the hats Cody and Ry are wearing are a different style.  The blue one Noah is wearing is the one I made for him.  Ryan is wearing my hat, it's my favorite.  Just so you know, Cody's hair is up in the hat.  Jess said it makes her look bald.  Her hair has actually grown out quite a bit.  The girls have also knitted hats.  They made some for themselves and for the neighbor boys that they hang out with.  The girls and I are now making a felted bag.  I will post a picture of the bags when we are done.

I can now knit with circular needles, double point needles, add stripes, and take it back when I make a mistake.  I know that probably doesn't mean anything to you, so I will put it in simpler terms.  I have gotten awesome at knitting!  Okay, I still knit a bit tight and I have a lot more to learn.  But, let me tell you who is awesome.  Ryan.  She gets it.  When I make a mistake and can't figure out what I have done wrong, she can look at it and not only tell me what I have done wrong , but she can fix it.  She will decide she wants to do something and figure out on her own how to do it.  She put diamond shapes in the hat she knitted.  No pattern or help, she just figured out how to do it and did it.  She catches on to new stitches and such quickly too.  And, not just with knitting either.  She will decide she wants to make something and will do it.  She made me an apron for Christmas.  She didn't have a pattern just an idea of what she wanted it to look like in her head.  Is it perfect? Nope.  But each time she tries something she gets better and better.  She had a skirt that was way too long, so she took it and made it shorter.  She did a good job on it too.  If you have looked at the pics on Flickr that Jess took you have seen it.  Knitting and sewing seem to be Ryan's thing.  Anyway, just a small update.

Gullible

Jessica read on the Internet that if you place your headphones up your nose that it acts as a speaker.

By the way, If you say "gullible" real slow it sounds like "orange".


.

Knitting Class

     Back home our Pastor's wife, Miss Jean, taught the girls and me how to knit.  We had a blast spending the day knitting and eating all the good food Miss Jean would prepare for us.  That woman cooked...a lot!  We would joke that we were like Hansel and Gretel and that she was trying to fatten us up.  But, we loved every minute of it.  We would sit around all day knitting and talking.  Just not at the same time.  I could knit or I could talk.  I couldn't do both.  Some days I got some knitting done, others not so much.  I like to talk. 

     Last week Chad went to the auto store to pick up a piece for the van.  I think it is offically on its last tire.  Anyway, I went with him and I noticed that accross the street was a yarn store.  I told Chad I would be back in a minute and ran to the store to see if they held any classes the girls and I could attend.  The answer was yes and that there would be free time for us to come in on Thursdays to work on anyway project we wanted.  She said some ladies come in and knit and others come to just sit and talk, but that we were most welcome to join them.

     So lastnight, Jess, Ryan and I went to the class.  Cody had caught my cold, flu, or whatever it was and she decided it would be best for her to stay home.  Chad needed to pick up another part for the van, so I told him just to drop us off and pick us up in a couple of hours.  The lady who had helped me the week before helped us get the needles, yarn and pattern we needed for the hat we wanted to make and we all took our seats to get started.  The girls and I began to cast on the yarn when the lady (I never asked her name) stopped us and said she was going to show us a different way to cast on the yarn.  Um...Yikes!  You have no idea what it took for us to learn casting on and how to knit from Miss Jean.  The woman is amazingly patient.  REALLY patient.  I didn't want to irritate this lady the first day we met her so I tried to pay close attention to what she said and what I was doing.  Remember, I can't talk and knit at the same time.  When I sat down in the tiny store I had sat down with my back to the door.  I was concentrating on my new way to cast on but I could tell that more and more women were entering the store for this knitting night.  The more women came in the louder it became.  I just couldn't concentrate on what I was doing so I tried to tune the women out.  I have no idea how many women came in nor would I recognize them if I were to see them again.  If I looked up I was going to mess up.  But, you coudn't help but to hear what they were talking about, and the subject of husbands came up.  I am sure you can see where I am heading with this, so let me remind you the girls are with me.  Anyway, one woman started talking about how she was going to take a vacation without her husband, even though he wanted to go with her.  She just told him this is what she was doing and she was doing it on her own.  What?  I would love to take a vacation with Chad.  Another went on to say if she wins the lottery she has already decided that she is divorcing her husband, but she would still "stay" with him.  She will give him half of the winnings to do with as he pleased but that he would not get any of hers.  The reason for the divorce?  He couldn't touch her half of the money.  And on it went. More women would enter and the conversation would continue.  Until, I heard the door open then silence.  Before I ever turned around I knew Chad had walked into the store.  I looked up and sure enough there he was.  The girls and I gathered our things up, I paid, and we left.

     When we left the store I told Chad about the women's conversaton.  He said he could tell when he walked in something was up becuase he had noticed the instantanious silence on his entrance.  I told him I thought that I had better get him out of there before the women went and got a noose for around his neck.  We just laughed as we climbed into my newly fixed van and went home.

Birch Bay 44th Annual Marathon Run

This past Sunday the whole Red Dirt Lovers clan participated in the Birch Bay Marathon.  Chad ran the marathon, all 26.2 miles.  He did so without ever walking, although, he did stop to talk to us for a minute or two as the rest of us manned an aid station.

Our volunteering for the marathon actually started on Saturday.  Joel put on the Birch Bay marathon and half marathon race (for those of you who have short term memory loss Joel is Jessica's running coach).  Joel was a bit stressed, and we, being the good people that we are, decided to help Joel out.  So Saturday morning we drove to Birch Bay and helped Joel with the packet pick up.  Then drove back out the next morning for the race.   Since Joel was stressed we headed right on out to the Sandcastle Hotel to meet up with him.  No one was there.  Come to find out everyone was meeting at two to get things ready.  Joel forgot to mention that so we had to fill up two hours with eating and sight seeing.

Saturday night while handing out packets a man came up to Chad and asked him if he had run the race for the shirt he was wearing.  Chad looked down and saw that he was wearing his Mother Road 100 race shirt.  Chad told him yes and come to find out that the man had run the race as well.  We found his name on the the back of the shirt and Chad had him sign and date his shirt.  Mr. Shaw is marathoning his way through all 50 states.  Jess took a picture of the two of them.

Sunday morning Chad helped us set up our aid station which supported both the marathon and half marathon runners. Then I drove him to the starting line three miles away, with five minutes to spare, before the gun went off.

Saturday it rained all day and Chad was really hoping that it would quit before Sunday.  It did and the weather was perfect for the runners.  Not so much for the volunteers.  It was in the low 40's that day and we froze.  It didn't help that the wind was blowing either.  Hats, gloves, layers of clothes, coats...it didn't matter we froze!  It was our job to fill the cups with water or Gatorade and have them ready for the runners.  We also picked up the trash, handed out the GU and held on to the clothing that the runners were throwing off from being too hot.  If only the kids and I had that problem.  The kids kept asking to go sit in the truck and I kept telling them no.  I finally relented and sat in there myself.  We would trade off every 15 minutes or so.

Our aid station was located at an intersection where the marathoners would pass us three times and the half marathoners would pass us twice.  We were considered the first and last aid station. Anyway, since we were at an intersection we had people directing traffic.  Hopper was the guy on our intersection directing traffic.  If you don't know who Hopper is check out my previous post.  Hopper took his job seriously and stood out there the whole time along with a sheriff.  They had to be freezing.  The sheriff didn't even wear a hat.  Anyway, towards the middle to the end of race when there was a space between runners, Hopper would come over and visit.   We had a good time talking to him and it made the time go by faster.  He is very open about his past issues.  He doesn't hide it and was willing to answer all of our questions about his injury and drug use.  He loves wrestling, which you could see on his face as he put Noah into a Full Nelson.  He got a kick out of how the kids pronounced "wrast-ling" and would laugh when they would say it.  We also got to meet Paige who is Hopper and Joel's sister.  Jess teamed up with her Saturday evening to hand out the men's marathon packets.  I think they did more talking and laughing then anything else.

Saturday, while waiting for Joel to show up, we met Joe Gray, who was running the half marathon.  We found out Joe attended Oklahoma State University and ran for them a bit so I liked him instantly.  We were able to see him fly by us early on and got to see him towards the end of his run as well.  I swear his legs were longer then Jessica.  Joe set a course record with a time of 1:09:41. That is a 5:19 mile pace, which, for 13.1 miles is just amazing to me.  I could totally do it!

Then we met 78 year old, Mel Preedy.  He has been running the Birch Bay Marathon for the past 20 years, not the half marathon but the full 26.2 miles.  His first year he ran Birch Bay he won the race.  Not so these days.  His body not being what it used to be he more waddled then ran the 26.2.  He took the early start and by the time he finished the other runners had already left and the finish line and timer were gone.  But, he completed the race none the less, 7:43:50.  We chose to stay at our aid station until he passed us then went to cheer him on as he finished. Mel already had other marathons lined up for the coming months.

 Ryan wants to run the half marathon next year. I told her I would run it with her.  The thing is I love volunteering for things like this.  The different people that you meet are inspiring and make you want to get out and run.   But, if I just showed up to the race and ran I wouldn't get all the fun and inspiring stories that I hear when I do volunteer. 

Oh, I forgot to mention.  Chad's time was four minutes off of his qualifying time for Boston.  He shouldn't have stopped to talk!

PS.  when Jess gets the pictures all spruced up I will post them.

Jim and Hopper

I have told you before that our coach, Jim, is a streaker, having run at least a mile everyday for over 40 years.  Joel, our other coach, who happens to be Jim's son is also a streaker.  Well, so is Jim's son, Hopper.  Hopper is his nickname, just so you know.   Anyway, the local news station ran a piece on Jim and Hopper recently and I thought I would share the link.
http://www.king5.com/on-tv/evening-magazine/42--Year-Running-Streak-139398578.html

I met Hopper yesterday and had the chance to work by him today, but that is a story for tomorrow. 

January Running Stats

January was our first month of the whole family getting back into running, some more willing than others.  Jess had to stop because we wanted her to get her leg healed up.  She is slowly starting to run again.  Ryan and Noah are usually spotty about running, and, of course, are having to be forced to get out and do it.  Mean parents I know.  Cody has been running with me a lot, again, not because she wants to, but because I make her.  She doesn’t complain anymore, but she isn’t exactly happy about it either.  Since she has been running she has lost about 3 lbs., so that helps to get her out running with me.  Chad has only missed one day of running and his runs are usually longer than ours, 4-8 miles a day.

Since I started running on January 1^st, I have not missed a day yet.  My shortest distance is a mile, which is the minimum you must run to be considered a streaker, and my longest distance is 4.04 miles.  There are some “Aha!” moments that I have learned this go around about running.  One, it is okay to focus on distance and not worry about speed.  I am slow and I know it and as the years have progressed I have gotten even slower, going from an, almost, 10 minute mile to 13:30 mile.  I embraced and lived by The Penguin’s mantra of “No need for speed”, which will make this next statement a bit odd.  Even at a 13:30 mile I was still going too fast to be comfortable enough to finish the mile.  I was killing myself to run it and just felt dead in the end and hated it every time I had to run.   I didn’t feel like I was getting any better.  Before practice one day Jim told me to slow down.  He told me to focus on the distance and speed will come later.  I listened to him and slowed down even more.  When I ran near the house I would run at a slower pace and stop when I felt tired.  I didn’t even pay attention to my Garmin and since I was running when it was dark I really couldn’t see it anyway.  One day, I ran until I became tired and I had run four miles.  Lately my knees have been bothering me so I have cut my mileage down to 1.25 miles.  Since I have been keeping track of my mileage and time here is what I have found out.  I was running a 12:30 mile that decreased to somewhere in the elevens and decreased more into the tens.  Last night I ran a 9:58 mile.  Not bad for someone who began this running adventure in the thirteens.  And, I did it by focusing on going the distance and not worrying about my speed.  Hmmm, I feel a Cake song coming on.  Two, I CAN run in the cold and rain.  Back home if it was cold or rainy I wouldn’t run.  I mean who wants to be cold or wet, especially while having to run.   I even said to Jessica’s coach, “You mean you expect us to run in the rain!”  He laughed at me and said, “Of course!”  I thought he had lost his mind.  But, I bundle up head out into the cold and by the end of the run my neck gator and gloves have been shoved into pockets and my jacket unzipped because I am too hot.  And as for the rain…I gripe before I leave the house and don’t even notice it while running.  Okay, in Oklahoma, when it rains it pours.  Here It is more like a misting or dripping, but you still finish your run wet.  Three, hills schmills.  Okay, I still don’t run hills.  I purposefully make my routes as hill less as possible.  Unfortunately, that is difficult to do here, so I still get some.  And, it is totally unavoidable if you run the trails, which we do.  I just go back to focusing on the distance and before I know it I have reached the top of the hill.  That is not true.  I know it and feel every step I take up that hill.  But, I do try to focus on the distance and not worry about my speed (meaning I slow way down), and I really focus on that downhill coming my way!  Love the downhill. 

Okay, our distances for January:

Chad:  180.42

Tammy:  60.67

Cody:  35.13

Noah:  48.59

Ryan:  42.77

Jess:  26.3  that she marked down

Which leads me to this disclaimer.  I did not put in all of the kids’ miles.  I became lazy and February is even worse.  I haven’t put any down.  I will have to do better.

So, What is an Evening Like in the Red Dirt Lovers’ House?

Well, I can tell you that it is rarely dull.  What did we do the other evening?  We sugared.  Is that the correct word?  Sugaring?  It is similar to waxing but you use sugar instead.

Jess found a recipe online and wanted to try it out.  I don’t know what made her decide to look it up.  She asked if she could try it out on me.  I, being the good mother that I am, said, “Sure!  Why not?”  Far be it from me to hinder my children’s curiosity.  Who knows, someday one of them may make millions all because I let them cut my hair or put some sugar concoction on my legs and rip off the hair with a piece of fabric.  Okay, the real reason I let her do it?  Anyone who knows me knows I don't like to shave, and this seemed like the easy way out of having to do it.

But, it wasn’t just me.  Ryan wanted to try it out, and after Ryan, Jess did it.  Then I had to force Cody to do it.  I told her it was a “rite of passage into womanhood.”  She informed me she didn’t want to be a woman.  None the less, we talked her into it.  Next was Noah.  Jess did his back.  Then… Chad.  Check out the video. 

Noah took the video so the quality is not the best and is quite shaky.  I also must mention that what you see on Noah’s back is the sugar mixture not an oozing sore.  Also, the next day I went and shaved.

A Conversation in the Truck on the Way Home From the Gym

Chad: ( A lengthy dialogue on the GOP candidates, what they stand for, and who he would vote for, but really is too long to type word for word here)

Jessica:  You know since we moved here I no longer have any idea what is going on in the world.

Me:  You mean you don't know what is going on in the world since we left Oklahoma and you are no longer forced to watch Fox News all day long at Grandma and Grandpa's.

Jessica: (laughing) Exactly!

Chad:  You know, you could go to Fox News on the Internet and read about what's going on in the world.

Jessica:  Nah, that's too much work.

Gym Day

I made a little video of us at the Gym!!! 

The exercise we did at the end is called Flexed Hanging Arms. You hold yourself up as long as you can until your arms are fully extended. It is a killer. In the Marines the best you can do is 70 seconds. My goal by the end of this year is to surpass that.



Here are our times for the Flexed Hanging Arms:

Me: 43 seconds

Cody: 15.52 seconds

Ryan: 3 seconds :)



Ooh we want to have a contest on who had the best face during our Flexed Hanging Arms......... Let us know!!!

 

Check It Out...We Got Snow at 75 Feet Last Night

Yes, it did snow last night.  The kids are out playing in the snow with the neighbor boys a couple of houses down.  The snow at our elevation excites me because that means there is alot of new snow on the mountain.  We hope to make it up this Saturday.  BTW, check out my new skis.  They are last years model.  The guy I bought them from said he needed larger skis.  All I need now is a pair of boots and I'll be set.  I was told that the upper lodge at Baker will sell used rental boots for 40 bucks.  I hope that's true.  See ya on the slopes!!!!!!

The Challenge Update

Okay, week one in The Red Dirt Lovers Runners' Challenge.  How did we do?
     I know we discussed putting up our results at the end of each month, but anyone who knows me knows that I can be pretty impatient (especially when it comes to something I am excited about).
     I have to admit that this has been a little hard for me.  I went from not running at all to running and working out at the gym, which I hadn't been doing either.  I was sore and my legs always felt "heavy", but I did it anyway.  Chad has a good work ethic, one that he learned from his father.  When something needs to be done you just get up and do it!  It is just the way it is done when you live on a farm.  That is a great attitude to have and one that I actually love about him, but not when it comes to running.  I am tired and sore and his attitude is just get out there and do it.  "You can run 3 miles no problem.  It's just one foot in front of the other."  All I want to do is stop and rest.  On the other hand is Coach Jim, a very laid back kind of person.  Even while showing his excitement.  During work outs all he says is "Good job."  Every once in a while when Jess is done with a work out he will come up to her and say, in a quiet gentle voice, "Rah, Rah, Rah," while pounding his fist in the air.  We know then that she had an excellent work out.  So, yesterday while we were at the track with Coach Jim, we were discussing what I would run.  At first it was going to be three miles with two breaks in between.  I just felt tired and wasn't sure I could do it, although I had done it the week before.  Jim then said to run 1 mile, 2 half miles, and 4 quarter miles.  I asked him if that was actually going to help me get into better running shape.  His reply was simple.  "What did you run three weeks ago?"  Me, "Nothing." "Then you are already improving."  He went on to tell me that all we are doing is trying to cover the distance and to take it slow.  Speed will come later.  So I went out there and did it.  Hmm, Chad is right (I, Chad, wrote that last part :).  After further discussion with Tammy I have discovered that its all in the presentation.  I guess I should be more gentle or kind in my encouragement, Ha Ha).  By the way, I, Tammy (not the guy trying to steal my blog post), ran everyday last week.
     Cody is now less argumentative about running, although, she still fights us on it.  Jess is still battling her leg injury.  Ryan has improved a lot.  She just gets out there and does it.  The other day she was running with Jess during a two mile run and they were just jabbering away as they passed me.  Noah still fights us about running and is always trying to find away out of it.  It hasn't worked yet.  The other day he did tell me that running the two mile route was getting easier.
     And speaking of routes...I think it was Wednesday, I was running while Ryan rode her bike.   I stopped at my usual stopping point, the marina.  As I was resting I turned to look at the boats that were docked and there was a seal swimming in the water.  He came up out of the water and dove back in two different times and continued to swim around while we talked to him.  Now, you don't get to see that on your runs in Oklahoma!
     Okay our totals for this week:
Chad:  49.32
Tammy:  16.03
Cody:  12.72  (she missed a day because of a migraine)
Jess:  22.3
Ry:  14.72
Noah:  19.31
     Total:  134.4

Up Mt Galbraith

Today I ran up Galbraith Mountain with Emily and Jess.  It was awesome!   Total we ran 6.77 miles and climbed at total of 813 feet.  We didn’t set any land speed records with an avg pace of 10.37, but it was fun none the less.  The run reminded me of the runs we would run with Jason, Jennifer, Mason, Mattie, and Mora back home around one of the local lakes.  We would run the horse trails to the back side of the lake.  Our prize?  Oranges and granola bars atop the sandstone boulders at the end of the trail and the opportunity to get a glimpse of the eagles that had built a nest in the tall cottonwood tree that is growing on the detention lake dam.   Yes, we do have eagles in Oklahoma, and yes, they’re bald.  I have noticed a difference between Oklahoma eagles and Washington eagles.  For one, the Washington eagles are much bigger.  I would say the mature Washington eagles are almost twice as big.  Secondly, they are not as shy as Oklahoma eagles.  If you get a chance, check out the pic of the eagle on Jess’s Flickr page.  She walked right up to the bird and snapped her pics.  Anyway, check out the pics and videos of today’s run below.

A New Baby for the New Year!

I am Officially a Great Aunt today.  Congratulations Dawn!  My niece just gave birth to her daughter a few hours ago, 19 inches, almost 8 lbs and a full head of black hair.  I am so excited.  I just love little babies. I love you both.

A Challenge

Okay, dad, I have a challenge for you.  You other people reading this continue on, some of you are next.  Okay, the challenge.  Dad, this is the start of a new year, so I challenge you to walk 365 miles this year.  Some can be on the treadmill, but only if the incline is on 2.5 or higher and most of the walks have to be outside.  One mile a day that's all I am asking.  You don't have to walk every day, just 365 by the end of the year.  You can keep track of your mileage in a running log.  My favorite is http://thinnmann.com/runlog.htm.  I will help you set it up if you choose to take the challenge.  In return I will run 365 miles this year.  You don't have to do it, but I am putting the pressure on making it public :^)

Mom, you can go with him.  365 miles.  You can do it too.  Mr. Ugly can go also.  We don't want him fat.

Jennifer, my friend, I know that you can run and run a lot longer distances than me, so you have to at least double my 365.  730 is awful close to a thousand.  I say go for the thousand.  I know not fair that I only run 365 to your 1,000, but like I said, you can run a lot longer distances than me.

Michelle, in 2011 you ran your first marathon and I remember your excitement at Chad running his ultramarathon.  So I challenge you to run an ultra.  Remember it doesn't have to be a 100 miler anything over 26.2 is technically considered an ultra.  But 26.3 I think is cheating, so at least a 50K, 31 miles no biggie for you.

Okay, anyone else want to join in leave a comment below.  For those of you I challenged...  Well,  Jessica says,"Git-R-Done!"