tempo run, hair colored & xmas cards ordered

in the busy season i hope to be as productive as i can each and every minute of the day.

today i was thrown a curve ball with the little one being bogged down with her allergies and a bad cough. i was ready to stay in for the day with her and forgo all hopes of accomplishing anything.

however, after a relaxing am and her meds she begged to go to karate, so i took her. She was heading out after that with a friend, so I was free. I had to get back in the game. Did my tempo run of 35 minutes and was feeling good. pushed myself which i need to start doing more. heading right from the run to get my greys covered and a new cut ...wooot woot. after that was straight to pick up....never had so many compliments on my hair !!!

I had been fiddling with the xmas cards on line for a while, finally sealed the deal and ordered them up.

oh and when i was ready to stay inside for the day - i figured i should start cleaning and organizing the rooms that (NO JOKE) are in shambles. I cleaned our laundry room and I was quite darn proud of myself.

now go move the elf

tis the season

busy
busy
busy

and on top of the normal holiday stuff, i am training for a half marathon that i will run on jan 29th, and i am hosting a swedish christmas smorgasbord the weekend before christmas, and my kids have 4 bday parties to attend between now and christmas. I have bought 2 presents so far and that is it. When I think of all the teacher/sitters/aide presents i get overwhelmed. I believe the best way to make sure I get things done and don't feel stressed is by trying to stay organized. So I will be making lists on top of lists. In order to host the party I need to finish unpacking from our move in May.

How do you stay on top of it all during the holidays ??

thankful

i am thankful.
for my husband.
for my girls.
for my family
for my home
for my friends
for my husband - yes he deserves a twice thankful
for hugs
snuggles
running
love

i am blessed, thankful and grateful

Clothing that worked for tough mudder

One of my big concerns regarding the tough mudder race was what the )(&(* to wear. I mean you are running for 12 miles, but you are also climbing mountains of dirt, as well as submerging yourself in freezing cold water. What to do ?

Well here is what I did and it worked for me.

First up - I used my Brooks Cascadia Trail Shoes. They were brand new and they are fine, I just washed them off. They were great, I noticed that one of my teammates would have a hard time making it up the dirt/mud hills, but i was fine, I owe that to the grip on the trail shoes. NO blisters.

SOCKS - mucho importante. I was told to get think socks, even though I think about freezing cold and want nice warm socks. I listened and went to Roadrunners, and asked for thin socks. The salesperson suggested the elite RR brand, again no blisters and somehow my toes were fine at the end of the race. I thought for sure i would have that numb frostbite feeling for a good day. NOPE.

Next up - I wear orthotics which I did not want to ruin, so I used a pair of Superfeet orthotics and they were perfect. My arch does not hurt

Clothing - we (my team) all wore under armor cold gear compression gear, both pants and a mock turtleneck top. I was amazed and how great this product is. I was warm and after jumping in ice cold water I was actually ok. It dried quick. It really was amazing.

Gloves - I wore a pair of gardening gloves. I picked them out on my own b/c they looked like they had a good grip and would keep me warm. The brand is mud glove. I was happy with them. They did the job.

I wore a buff around my neck and that helped going thru the fire to help me not get the smoke in eyes/throat. Lastly, I used a bathing cap once we jumped off the 15 feet plank into the cold water and that sucker stayed in my head the rest of the race, i swear it kept me warm.

Also, I would like to thank my extra body fat that I am normally upset about b/c clearly that insulated me and I was able to perform and not get hypothermia. So body fat, I thank you.

I am ......

a TOUGH MUDDER

seriously i jumped off a plank into the freezing cold water and then had to swim across. i climbed over walls, cargo nets, i crawled in mud, drainage pipes, i run in mud for about 5 miles up and down muddy hills. i did it. i looked at things and said NO way, then i did it. i proved that i am tougher than i thought. i also proved i never have to do that again.

photo story

My spanking new trail shoes that I won for free from Roadrunners. Finally tried them out, they are Brooks of course !

 The trail I ran on....

This was the second pack of female lead runners......it was a great day in nyc !!!

great weekend...

sat. am ran 5mile race with the group of ladies we are coaching....i helped one lady make 50 even for 5 miles...a pr.....

then sunday watched the NYC marathon on 90 n first and got to see 2 friends ....amazing !!! nothing better than the NYC marathon, best day in the city for sure.

NYC marathon week !!!

I have a very good friend running for her first time and I am beyond excited for her. I will be in major cheering mode in NYC on Sunday am !!!

I did a great boot camp work out sat. am. finally felt strong !!!

6 mile run tuesday - felt good

hill repeats today

tough mudder next weekend - lord help me