Running After Violet

Virtual 5k for Coffee!

2011-08-17T08:54:00.000-07:00

Head over to my new blog for details!!

new blog

2011-08-07T08:43:00.000-07:00

my blog has moved to www.bugsbees.blogspot.com!

Audrey!

2011-07-10T10:35:00.000-07:00

At my appt. Thursday, I was 6 cm dilated which was "dilated-enough" that themidwife didn't want me to drive home before being admitted to the hospital. I was unprepared. How can someone dilate to 6 cm and it be a surprise?

After being admitted, I sat in bed on an IV and 3 hrs later at 230p I did not dilate any more. Cue the pitocin. At 4p, no change. Cuethe suggestion of breaking water and the promise of a fast progression to transition, then pushing. Cue remembering how awful transitionwas with Pitocin. I couldn't "ok" having water broken knowing what was next. So I sat there with O for 5 hours lamenting and I finally allowed my water to be broken with the understanding that I could get an epidural if it got too intense. "Epidural" had never entered my thought before. But frankly, I was afraid and 20 months is not enough time to really dull the memory of my previous labor.

At 9p, water was broken @ 7 cm. Instantly I was in transition. Oliver was a superstar. I know labors happen all the time and that these nurses see it so much that it loses any sort of direness that it may have had their first month on the floor, but it would've really nice if they could do something other than smile knowingly when I tell them that I feel like I can't handle it. So, at 930 or so I got the epidural. It doesn't work right away. In fact, I felt the rest of transition (though they say the contractions were shorter) and at 1015p Audrey was a +2. 14 minutes later and 6 pushes later, Audrey was out! It was awesome.

She got an 8 then 9 on APGAR and was 8 lbs 13 oz, 21.25" long. She has nursed like a champ from the beginning. She looks like Vi, so she looks like O, but she has a lot of Mom Genes. It is strange to look at someone so small and see proof that your DNA is replicable. Granted, she is only 2 days old and she will change a ton even within the next month.

EDD.

2011-07-06T12:06:00.001-07:00

Today is my due date. Today I am still pregnant. On Saturday, I got the latest issue of Runners World and I am totally jazzed about getting back into it. It is going to be so awesome. It was probably a big help that the cover story is all about running fashion for the ladies. Soooo pumped.

Hopefully, the next post will be of a easy-peasy baby birth. :)

6 More Weeks, and Shoe Recommendations?

2011-05-23T12:12:00.000-07:00

So, I have 6 wks left of being pregnant. Sadly (?), it's probably going to be the last time that I will ever be pregnant so I'm not trying to wish it away, but I am looking forward to running again. I had a wonderful dream where I was running a half marathon. It was nice and smooth (funny how efficient your muscles can be while you are sleeping) and I was so happy. And so disappointed when I woke up and found myself in a five foot long toddler bed. Alone (Violet had relocated herself to the big bed and left Mom to sleep on the mattress with the crinkly mattress protector), curled around a Winnie the Pooh, with a binky smashed into my cheek, and aching from the awful position I had put myself in.

Anyway. We bought a B.O.B. Dualie Jogger so we are set. I still love the B.O.B. Revolution and the thought of not having a double jogger that I loved as much as the single didn't make much sense. It is put together and in the living room because I can't get it to fit down into the basement. It fits through most doors, but not every door in my house. I don't really get that, but whatever. It's a jogger, and I don't really plan on taking it to Old Navy or wherever people take their joggers and complain about not being able to fit through doors.

It's an eyesore. I mean, it's a beautiful stroller, despite being without its rear tires--it donated a rear tire to the Revolution after an unfortunate event involving a single jogger parked behind a car that would, at some point, be thrown into reverse (no worries, the new axle is on its way). The double jogger is just huge. HUGE. So huge. And orange, which is tied with green as my favorite color. Violet likes it. She tries to climb it and likes to buckle the straps. So, basically, I have a bright orange giant reminder that the day I can start running again is only "Labor Day" plus 6 wks postpartum-recovery away.

I need new running shoes. Slightly (ha!) far removed from the running community these days, are there any new shoe recommendations? I have only ran in Asics. I was thinking about Nike Free or another minimalistic shoe. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I never get to finish a complete thought when I

2011-04-09T19:06:00.001-07:00

So I haven't been blogging, obviously. I hardly have time to brush my hair (I haven't seen a hair brush in 3 days--thank goodness for buns), never knit (a pair of leg warmers that should have been finished 3 months ago are still ankle warmers), or do much as far as "hobbies" right now. What am I doing? Of course you'd ask. I am still growing a human inside my uterus (3rd trimester, baby). When not working, I'm hanging out with Violet. When I'm not hanging out with Violet, I am at the gym trying to keep up my cardio and my upper body strength (here's hoping to no post-partum chicken wings). When Violet is asleep, I try to have conversations with my husband in which we celebrate every completed sentence and/or thought that we get to express to each other that is not done via text or email. Any other time that I have, I am cleaning the house. If I start to think about yard work, I hyperventilate just a little. This is because we have 4 dead trees up front, 6 dead trees in the back, and ground cover that is determined to take over anything that isn't moving.

I bought a chainsaw. If I knew that Oliver wouldn't have a meltdown at the thought of his pregnant, exhausted, clumsy wife being outside at 1015pm at night with the thing, I'd have all those GD trees pulverized into tiny little chunks by midnight. And then, just to show the trees how pissed I am that they had the nerve to 1) get sick and 2) pass the disease all around the yard and then 3) die, I would probably set the pile of sick tree chunks on fire and cook hot dogs over it, and then throw the hot dogs away. Because that is how ticked off I am.

I am not running right now but plan to do a Spring 2012 Half. That way I'll have enough time to hopefully regain my core before I dive back into the world of long runs, tempo runs, and Gu. I feel so removed from the running world (cue the sad face) that Gu could have been discontinued and I'd have no idea. That could be a totally dated remark. Someone with their finger on the pulse of the running world could read that and think, "Oh, really, Grandma? You are going to use Gu? Are you also going to drive to the start line in your Delorean?"

The pregnancy is going great. It's going so fast, honestly. Monday is my glucose test and then I've got 12 more weeks til show time. Or more. I remember the Due Date Bus totally skipped my stop last time and Vi was a week late. So, not holding my breath on that one.

Library Day!

2011-02-04T18:40:00.000-08:00

I took Violet to the library for baby story time and she loved it. We sang songs (she danced), we read books, we played with the other little babies (birth to 18 mos). It was a blast. She gave out hugs like they were candy, petted babies hair-dos, shook her shakey eggs and cried when it was time to leave.

Observations: she's a tall-y. she is good at sharing (for now). isn't shy. didn't hit anyone or throw anything at anyone.

So, I think it was a success.

Baby Business

2011-01-18T09:52:00.000-08:00

I really don't have much to report about this pregnancy. I feel pretty good, I am staying active. We find out the gender next month!

Vi is a superstar. She's down to one nap and one bottle--all within the last two weeks. She's such a little kid; hardly a baby. It's fun but a little sad to see her grow up so fast!

Pregnant!

2010-12-23T17:58:00.000-08:00

O and I are expecting #2 to arrive in July! I'm in my 13th week right now and when the next one arrives, Vi will be 20 months old! So, that's why I haven't been running. Or blogging. Or doing much of anything except sleeping and taking care of Vi! Now I am out of the Ambien-like pregnancy coma phase, so hopefully I'll be able to do a little more of everything.

Zumba.

2010-12-12T21:21:00.001-08:00

Things are nutty here at the Dings.

Besides that, I've been going to Zumba, which is a blast. I think it's interesting the number of people who seem really interested in trying it but won't go by themselves. I don't get it. I guess it's so they don't feel so silly? Or self-conscious? I'm the exact opposite. If I am going to feel like a fool, I would rather be the only one I know in the entire room. But, I think I've grown out of being self-conscious years ago. It just holds you back and you miss out on a lot of experiences.

I'm in the middle of my now-annual running boycott. Is it the cold blahs? Is it fatigue? Is there a deep, mysterious factor? Perhaps. But for now, I'm enjoying not running, though I have the twitch to see if there are any 5ks up in January.

Break is over.

2010-11-29T21:11:00.001-08:00

I went to the gym and ran a mile and did upper-body weights. It was very nice to do all that after a month of not doing anything at the gym. The idea of going to the gym totally sucks, but you forget that it can also be pretty rewarding and isn't so bad once you are there (sometimes).

In other news, Vi is gigantic. She's spouting teeth all over the place (in her mouth) and looks like a kid. Not a baby. She's independent and funny and is an absolute joy to be around. Highlights? She started signing "more" this week, which she uses along with pointing aggressively and grunting, strained look on her face. Personally, I think she prefers the sassiness in the latter.

But anyway. Things are great!

Hi, ticker.

2010-11-16T19:46:00.001-08:00

So, Vi's ticker says Congratuations! that she made it to 1 year old? Doesn't it start over? Or was the ultimate goal that she turn 1?

Anyway. Things are nutty here. I'm not running right now. I'm making pies on occasion and reading and hanging out with a walking, jabbering Violet and a drawing, jabbering Oliver.

I'm not running for a few reasons. 1) my motivation is totally gone. 2) I hurt. I don't know exactly why, but my hips and feet are on revolt and I think I need to revisit the restorative qualities of yoga for a bit. I ran my 2nd half marathon this year, so I feel accomplished and not that I am missing out on much. I am enjoying the walks with Vi and Wex and am trying to get as many of those in as I can before the weather turns completely bitter.

Things are well here. Very happy and enjoying my family!

Craziness.

2010-11-07T16:48:00.003-08:00

Things have been crazy at the Dings lately--I'll be back to blogging soon! Please check back! :)

Couponing and Running.

2010-10-25T19:24:00.000-07:00

The two things in my title aren't related in any way.

Running:

I was signed up for a race that happened on Saturday that I didn't do. I didn't do it for a few reasons, but the main one sounds like "Didn't feel like it". I am sure that I could have ran the half, but sometimes (most times), spending time with the family seems like a better idea. So, that's what I did. We went to the park and had a blast.

Plans? Well, I don't know about doing any immediate upcoming races. Usually when I pay the race fee and then don't follow up and run it, I take a running hiatus. That seems to be the trend. I may run the Annual Ding Thanksgiving Day Race instead of signing up for the giant Cincinnati race. I know, I know. I made such a big deal about missing the 100th Thanksgiving Day Race last year, but at the same time, I really don't want to mess with the crowds.

Couponing:

Fellow couponers, are you sitting down? I mean, really? Good.

I lost my coupon binder.

After a minor meltdown and an every-nook-and-cranny search, I decided it was lost for good and that hopefully some poor old lady found my wonderfully-organized binder and was able to use it and save some money. Mostly, I was livid. I threw together a shitty replacement (envelopes+ tape + hastily-written labels) and fumed. Then, I found a Target coupon for a $5 Target card with the purchase of Viva towels.

I use towels. A coupon binder wouldn't cost more than $5, would it?

So I went to Target on my way to work. I picked up the towels (which are super-expensive), but figured I technically had a $5 off coupon so it was okay. At the register and with a line of people behind me, the cashier points out that I needed two of the towel packs to get the $5. Rational Casey still had not been roused from her slumber with sufficient tea at that point, so I decided to get the 2nd towels for the $5 card, which I used to get my coupon binder. $30 worth of paper towels and a "free" coupon binder later, I recognize that I failed at couponing today.

This is Oliver, Violet and I at the pumpkin patch. I am cracking up at the absurdity of the "patch", which was really just an empty plot of field where some pumpkins were scattered. There were no vines. Were these pumpkins bought at Kroger and we were duped into paying $8 for them?

New Things for Violet.

2010-10-19T19:39:00.000-07:00

On Sunday, she made this:

and using her "shopping cart", wheeled around my parents' living room where she took a couple of steps!

ErgoBaby Review.

2010-10-14T07:44:00.001-07:00

Violet grew out of her Baby Bjorn and we were so so sad. That thing came in handy like you wouldn't believe! I set out to find a replacement and I found the ErgoBaby Carrier. I love love love it. You can use it on your hip, back, or chest carrying and it holds children up to 4o lbs. It has nice soft straps (think: backpack), chest straps, waist straps for weight distribution. There is also a pouch that has a hood that snaps to the straps in case of windy, wet, or too sunny weather--not to mention a roomy pocket for stashing things on the go! I love it.

I use it a lot when I go out with Vi. We used it at the Renaissance Festival this weekend and I have also used it at a few museums. She does great. It also is essential for unpacking groceries and doing laundry when it's just me and the lady!

Here is the link: ErgoBaby! This is seriously the only carrier you need. For small infants, they have a newborn insert to use until they are of a certain weight--Vi is way past that! Ha! Anyway--this is a great gift idea for any moms-to-be!

Today at the grocery I saved $35.73 on an original total of $106.15--which is nearly 1/3 off of my total bill! Totally awesome. I was that lady at the register with the fist full of coupons that held up the line. Sorry, folks.

I seriously just cracked the code on couponing.

2010-10-08T18:18:00.000-07:00

For real. And I am going to share my secret with you guys! This is not a hoax. In just 10 easy steps, you can be a Couponing Master.

1. Meticulously cut out coupons in a frenzy in the few minutes you have while your daughter naps and you aren't folding laundry or unloading the dishwasher or fishing discarded binkies from the various houseplants.

2. Get a nice little accordion binder and arrange the coupons by genre, ignoring the fact that there is a gray area as to whether q-tips belong in "bathroom" or "pharmacy" or "baby".

3. Before shopping, review your coupons and compare your list to see how you can save money this trip. Move those coupons to the 2nd divider, labeled "take to store". Curse when you find an awesome coupon that expired last week.

4. Shop. Look at coupons. Do quick math while keeping baby from standing up in shopping cart to see if the coupon is really a deal or if you would save more by going with a different brand.

5. Move "good" coupons to divider labeled "take to register". Give some "bad" coupons to your bored baby / shopping assistant to make coupon confetti.

6. Hand coupons to teenage cashier who is flirting with the goth bagger.

7. Save $20 with coupons.

8. Feel smug.

9. Realize that you accidentally handed the cashier the large stack of the un-shredded "bad" coupons for things you didn't buy and that they all went through fine and that you saved WAY more with the "bad" coupons than you would have with the "good" coupons.

10. Make a mental note to be a little less meticulous.

500th Post. Young Adults and Sugar Rush.

2010-10-07T06:20:00.000-07:00

To celebrate this, my 500th post, I am going to put together a list of 500 things all about me. Just kidding.

I have been reading a lot lately. I am on my 13th book since May (How do I know this? I have written down every book I have read since 2004. That's 84 books since then). It's really not that great of a series--it's the House of Night series by P.C. Cast. I'm on the 3rd book. It's one of those young adult books that is so immaturely written ("parents" are referred to as " 'rentals") that I am gritting my teeth, but the story is interesting-enough to keep me reading. It would be perfect for it's primary target audience of 12 to 13 year olds, so I should just shut my mouth. Well, obviously I don't hate it or I wouldn't be reading it. Regan has gotten me totally sucked into the young adult reading world (she's the one that hosted Violet's first vampire-series viewing party at her apartment).

Are you guys reading anything good at the moment?

Speaking of Young Adults: I really have to stop eating like one. Since Vi's birthday party, I have been living off of leftover soft drinks, cupcakes, cookies, pizza, and devoured a lone tub of cotton candy (does anyone want to confess to bringing that? because it was wonderful). I knew I was in trouble when candy corn tasted "refreshingly sweet" when in the past it has been so horrifically sugary that I could only handle 3 or so pieces. For an entire season. So, today marks the beginning of my week without added/refined sugar. No candy. No baked goods (shedding a tear). No soft drinks. Fruit and natural sugars are ok. I'll let moderation be the key after this week, but I have got to reset my palate to not loving refined sugars.

Do you have any dietary weaknesses?

PS Check back--I will be launching a giveaway towards the end of the month!

Vi + Wex = BFF

2010-10-06T15:05:00.000-07:00

Violet and Wexley are BFFs. Real BFFs. Not like the best friend relationship that he and I have where I tell him I love him and he hurls his little 6 lb body at me, snapping all the way (exaggeration, most days). Last night, Oliver and I talked about all of the similar likes and dislikes that Vi and Wex have. Here are a few gems:

Likes: playing all the time.

Dislikes: being interrupted

Likes: not wearing clothes.
Dislikes: getting dressed.

Likes: fish.

Dislikes: green beans.

Likes: loud noises.

Dislikes: loud noises.

Likes: Wexley's toys.

Likes: Violet's toys.

Likes: sticks and rocks.

Dislikes: buckles.

Likes: meeting new people.

Dislikes: meeting new scary people.

Likes: Having head pet.

Dislikes: having nails cut.

Likes: snuggling

Dislikes: being woken up.

Hopefully they will get along just as well once she's running through the house.
---------

Off to do a three miler! Race day is 17 days away!

Next Purchase: Compression Shorts? Ick?

2010-10-01T18:22:00.000-07:00

Alright, so I have another half at the end of this month and I do not want a chafe repeat of this past race. I am thinking of getting some compression shorts. Is this dumb? Is there anything else that you have tried other than Body Glide? That stuff works and all, but it might be nice to have something a little more heavy-duty for races. Opinions?

Anyway, on Tuesday, I was walking like a cowboy and was working with a patient when I went to sit down on a rolly stool and missed. I fell. I feel like anything serious that I said in the 4 minutes prior to me getting a back massage from the file cabinet and floor were negated by whatever facial expression I could have possibly had mid-fall. The end.

Math Time and Injury Photo.

2010-09-27T17:53:00.000-07:00

I ran an 11:00 min/mile pretty much consistently during the half. That's also my 5k pace. And my 10k pace. So. I should be going faster than this for my other races, shouldn't I? Or do I have just one mode?

Here it is: my chafe mark. There's one on each leg. If you click on the image it will take you to a larger image that is a little smaller than actual size. It feels as good as it looks.

State-to-State Half Marathon Race Report.

2010-09-26T17:47:00.000-07:00

I will keep this totally short and sweet, because we all know that no one really reads the mile to mile splits that everyone spends so much time compiling. :)

The most interesting thing happens at the beginning of the race, but that comes later.

I got up at 530 and left at 6a. My directions to the race (which started and ended at Miami University and ran across the border of Indiana) had me take Colerain Ave all the way there. That's like 30 miles of country road. Insane. Somehow Google Maps wanted me to bypass the fastest and convenient expressway, but whatever.

I got there at 730a, the race started at 8a. I had no idea where I was or where I needed to go once I parked. I asked the people nearby and they said that I couldn't miss it. I had no idea what direction to even begin to go in, and they couldn't articulate it. Thank goodness the race provided a shuttle.

I got my race packet and number but no pins. I asked for pins, and I was handed one. Some poor sap left his/her pins on my table so I used them. Big apologies to you, whoever had to Gorilla Glue the race number to his/her shirt/flesh.

At 8a the air horn went off and I crossed the start in like a minute or less. Not a huge crowd. Everyone was running their "it's kinda chilly and I'm not even sure I want to be doing this now" pace when we heard the train at about .4 miles in. The crowd let out a collective "oooooooooh noooooooooo" and surged up the hill where the tracks so conveniently crossed our path. We were all sprinting to make it across the tracks before this gigantic train cut us off for who-knows-how-long. I made it across but not before the gates started to inch their way down (I am pretty sure the gate wasn't on it's way down when I started across the tracks). A few people made it behind me. If I had to do it again, I would probably wait out the train. I don't really like the idea of a speeding train being a factor in a street race.

That is the most exciting thing of the race.

A few other notables:
Mile 5: Remembered I forgot to put BodyGlide on.
Mile 5.5: Certain my legs are bleeding.
Mile 6.5: Crossed into Indiana.

Chip Time: 2:25:12. It's only 4 minutes slower than my previous half. So, go me.

As I was running, I was thinking, "Oh, I hope Violet will do this at some point. It's such a rush. --is it? Is it a rush? I'm exhausted and want it to be over." Interesting insight from my exhausted running self.

So now I am sore. Besides sore muscles, I have 2x3" raw chafed rug-burn areas on my legs which makes me walk like a cowboy. Totally unattractive and inefficient way to promenade. This is by far the worst case of Good-bye Thigh Skin that I have ever seen/had, ever.

Vi at the Beach.

2010-09-24T13:20:00.000-07:00

Gu.

2010-09-24T05:31:00.001-07:00

Vi and I went to Dick's Sporting Goods yesterday to get some Gu for Sunday. We wandered around a bit and checked out the clothes. I was drawn to some of the nice tech shirts, she was drawn to the hangers and pegs. I can't believe how expensive running shirts are. I run in cotton (gasp!) because the tech shirts are always too short for me, and I thought I'd give a good look and see if I could find a longer one. I tried on one (Vi sat on the bench and waved my shirt around like a flag) and it was still too short. No tech shirt for Casey, but that's ok.

Vi picked out Blueberry Pom Roctane, Vanilla Bean Gu, and I got two packs of Sport Beans. No, I'm not going to eat all of that mid-race, but I like options. We had to pry the Gu out of her baby vice-grip at the register. Has anyone tried the Roctane? I have not. I have a stomach of steel so I'm not concerned about it being weird on race day.

So, that's that. Two more days.

Taperitis.

2010-09-22T14:07:00.000-07:00

So, I thought that since I didn't really plan on this race on Sunday that the taper would be a breeze. I mean, I have only known about the race for a week and didn't really train specifically for it, so I thought that maybe all the fun things associated w/ tapering would not be an issue. You know, like phantom pains, injuries, etc. Well, no. Not really the case.

Taperitis has hit Casey with new knee and leg discomfort. My foot feels like I kicked a wall. Yep. Typical case of Taperitis with associated hypercondriatica. But that's all it is and I am moving on.

What is the difference between this race and the Pig? Why do I feel suddenly ready to take on a post-baby half? Maybe I'm insane. But maybe I just feel like I am more mentally ready for it. I mean, I don't have any delusions of PRing. I don't think I'll come close to my last half time (2:22). It just sounds like fun. Perhaps I am not giving the distance the amount of respect it deserves--or maybe I am on my way to demystifying the half. To be determined.

9 Mile Long Run.

2010-09-22T10:55:00.000-07:00

Vi was there for part of my long run this week. I took her out in the jogger for 4 miles. She loved it. I think that she likes her stroller pretty well. I'm already really sad that we won't need the jogger forever. Isn't that insane? Considering how much easier it is to run without it. Then, I dropped her off for a nap and then I was on my own. I did 5.36 miles on the beach for a grand total of 9.46 miles.

Vacationing with a baby is not really like vacationing at all. It's fun and different, but I would definitely not say that this week has been relaxing. Gone are the days of reading a book by the pool, sleeping on the beach, staying up late talking. I told Oliver that maybe after the next decade or so, we can be lazy beach sloths again. I'm sure that decade will be gone in a flash and we will long for the vacations that weren't vacations.

Hope everyone is enjoying their week!

Taper Week!!

2010-09-20T07:01:00.000-07:00

Yes. That's right. Today is the first day of my taper week. Boy, that seems pretty sudden and out-of-the-blue, doesn't it? The race I am training for isn't until the end of next month. Almost seems as though someone just impulsively signed up for a big race next week. Yep. Certainly does appear that way.

Gulp.

Adventures in Vacationing.

2010-09-20T06:07:00.000-07:00

I'm on vacation and it's the week of Sept 12. I am scheduling these to post a week late so any psychos won't pull a David Letterman and move into my house while I am gone. (.4% of me thinks this is a possibility, but seeing how chaotic and weird things can be, I'm not taking any chances)

We are in Kiawah Island, SC w/ the Dings. Violet did phenomenal on the plane. She did. It was amazing because I didn't think that it would go so hot since I have always had trouble with my ears on planes.

She also loves the beach. We sat her on the beach at the water's edge and she played and loved the water.

The pool is pretty much awesome, as well. The good thing about going in the off-season is that you can take the diaper off and she can go Violet-dippin', which is EXTRA fun.

Only bummer: I was getting ready to take a photo of O and Vi on the bike and my camera slipped out of my hand and plopped in the river at high tide. I had a minor meltdown, seeing Violet's first plane ride and Erica's bachelorette party photos dissolving to nothing in the muck. At low tide (6 hours later), O and I went back to the river. Oliver spotted it and me with my Teva's and a long-handled net/walking stick, mucked through the sandy mud, avoiding razor-sharp oyster shells the best I could and retrieved my camera. It was not a pretty sight. Though, once back to the cottage, we checked the memory card and the photos were all on there! Total score. I don't even mind too much that I have to by a new camera.

Vacationing: Then and Now.

2010-09-17T18:06:00.000-07:00

Then: Getting up "whenever we wake up!" to head to the beach.
Now: Getting up at 645a every morning to someone sitting on my hair, looking down at me while she smacks me face, sweetly smiling and saying "mom-mom-mom-mom-mom".

Then: Throwing on the bathing suit and sun block in 5 minutes.
Now: Putting on half of my bathing suit while juggling a squirmy Violet while Oliver helps put on the swim diaper. We couldn't set her down because she was absolutely entranced by the sharp-corner-at-Vi-eye-level entertainment center. In the sunblock frenzy, we end up with a weird mix of baby block and other block smeared all over us. Half-way to the beach, Violet looks great and I realize that I forgot to rub any of my block completely in. Time from beginning to beach: 45 minutes.

Then: Reading on the deck at night.
Now: Reading on the couch 4 feet away from the baby monitor that is set up directly outside Violet's bedroom door. I admit, this was probably overkill.

Then: Riding the waves into the beach.
Now: Sitting on the beach and playing in the sand and not really worrying about how much sand will accumulate in either bathing suit.

Then: Eggs and bacon for breakfast.
Now: Leftover baby oats and sweet potato breakfast washed down by ample amounts of coffee. Eating breakfast will take too much time from the three hours we have before morning nap!

Then: Relaxing shower to wash off the sand.
Now: Screams in the shower because someone thinks that shampoos are far worse than a little bit of sand in her hair. We let her win this battle two out of three times. It's funny that among plane rides/sand/ocean/pool

It was a really nice vacation with the little lady. She dealt with being super-overstimulated pretty well but started to get a little tired the last three days. So Vi and Mommy had some quiet cuddle days. I think she'll be happy to see Mr. W (Wexley's code name while we've been away--we didn't want her looking for him since they are BFFs)! After a big afternoon of playing in the waves and pool, the walk back to the cottage with Violet hugging my neck was priceless.

Adult Running Baby Walking.

2010-09-16T11:01:00.000-07:00

When doing long runs, you aren't really supposed to tweak the intensity/speed. I wonder if that counts using a jogger?

Vi is on the brink of walking. I just know it. She's independent and willfull and I know she's frustrated because she can't do it yet. She stood by herself in the middle of the bed three times and balanced there for several seconds. I think it will be before her birthday. And if not, she's just going to be a little frustrated for a few weeks. :)

Cult of Excess.

2010-09-07T18:15:00.000-07:00

My birthday was Sunday. 28. A totally awesome birthday with the fam. It's amazing the difference a year makes, though I really have a foggy memory of 2009. Being pregnant and exhausted and going to bed at 8p just about every night doesn't make for that many memories so I feel like it's still 2009 and that I am still 26. I am totally not lying at all. But, here we are, 2010 and I have a 10 month old daughter and a husband of 3 years to share my 28th birthday with.

Lady Vi and I packed up on my birthday to go run at the airport. Someone (not me) had a meltdown mid-drive so I took the next exit and thought I would "just find somewhere to run". So I did. I parked in some obscure medical office lot and started out. It was one of those weird little medical communities built around a hospital and it being a Sunday, was totally empty. Kinda eerie. I had my mace, though, so I felt pretty good about things.

We zigzagged through lots until we got to the main road and then we found ourselves in this strange little subdivision smack in the middle of Doctorville. Little, it was, though the houses were not. These were gigantic houses--ones that miserable people live in. That's really not fair, I suppose. These people could be perfectly happy. Anyway, these houses were gigantic. I ran by a house with a bubbling, beautiful fountain in the front yard, blissfully splashing away and not a single person was home. Hello, wasteful. Each house was bigger than the last. Fancy, shiny cars lined driveways leading to empty garages. It was like everything was on display. Look at me! Look at me! Adding to the weirdness was the fact that I did not see but 3 other people in that neighborhood of at least 40 gigantic mansions. Just me, Vi, and the smell of burning cash.

Perhaps this neighborhood was built pre-economic woes. Perhaps it wasn't. Either way, it was strange to see. I am so not a "stuff" person. I really am not. I don't like having multiples of things and I don't like things sitting out, though living in the world requires at least a little bit of materialistic things out and about. It's hard to imagine having on my to-do list "install fountain" and "pay astronomic water bill". But maybe that's what makes these people tick. Who am I to judge? I probably looked like a loon running in this desolate strip of medical village on a Sunday morning with a bright orange jogger. That probably doesn't seem like much fun to about 90% of people. So. Different strokes and all that jazz.

Goodbye, Friend.

2010-09-02T05:24:00.000-07:00

My Garmin Forerunner has officially died. It will not hold a charge and I am very sad. It is past its warranty. Short, causal memorial service to be held today as I unceremoniously drop it into the filing cabinet drawer where I put all electronics that have fizzled out, in hope that a cure is found at a later date.

You will be missed.

Vi's First 5k Race Report!! Photos!!

2010-08-30T18:11:00.000-07:00

Yesterday started with a flurry of action at 7am. I woke up late and jumped off the futon (yep, still sleeping on the futon) and got ready. At 715, Ms. Vi woke up so I changed her and put her immediately in the car: we were on our way to the race!

Parking was non-existent so we parked @ the Assisted Living Community down the street and walked a bit to pick up our number. Half a jar of bananas later, we were ready to start!

Banana jar and spoonie: check!

I assumed I'd start with the walkers as I am not skilled in the ways of the jogger, yet. Though, today they had separate starts for runners and walkers. My intention then was to trail behind the runners, but as I was starting to move, this wall of walkers got in front of me and stopped. Wall-o-Walk. Just standing there. Not trusting my jogging stroller skillz, I waited. As the gun went off (near Vi's head, yikes) the guy said, "Now remember, walkers: no running! We've got age group awards!" Well, I was a registered runner, but none of these bozos knew that. So. I walked really fast until I was out of their sight and then ran.

Vi was a champ. After trying to jump ship at mile 1, she grabbed her feet and/or kicked her way through the race, shouting "Heugh!" at all we passed. We crossed the line (she beat me by 1 second) at 37:29, which is only like 5 minutes slower than my worst 5k ever, so I'm happy considering we walked the first mile and the extra bit of weight with pushing the jogger. Even if we wouldn't have finished in an hour it would have been a great time. :)

Post-race. We shared the banana.
PS: she's blowing a raspberry under that binkie--it's not a genuine grimace.

Racing Team Ding! One of us (probably the one in the green shirt) is ready for a nap!

The Beginning and a Giveaway.

2010-08-25T00:48:00.000-07:00

Happy 5th Birthday, my relationship with running! Here's an excerpt from the journal I kept when I first started running. This is the first entry:

August 25, 2005

On vacation, August 13-18, I bought two fitness magazines: Shape and Fitness, and they made me want to join a gym. Once I returned, I realized that w/ all the money that I am currently spending on yoga school and trying to save for the future, it wasn't doable. So, I decided to take up running.

Yesterday, I bought a pair of Asics 2100 from Footlocker (O's giving me half for my birthday) $89 and decided to try them out. Cov Cath has a track, but the gates were locked and I called and left a message w/ the school. They called back this morning to say that you can always get into the track. So, I left and went to the nature park on Highland. I was the only one, saw it was more of a "hiking trail" and left after slipping on some rocks.

Today, I ran at Central Park. I think I did 1.3 in 10 minutes. They are kind of vague on which trail equals what mileage.

I know I need to do more than that if I want to ever enter a race. Babysteps. I drove around the area by the apartment to come up with a sidewalked running path. I've got this (crude drawing of streets). To and from the end of the sidewalk is 1.2 miles. I can always add more when I'm more comfortable with the area.

We've come a long way, bud. Though, sometimes I still think you are a big fat jerk.

Send me a story about your first days running and the best story gets a illustration of your story mailed to you, drawn by me. No promises on how awesome/unawesome the illustration is. Send the stories to: cassandrameinerdingATyahooDOTcom, with STORY! in the subject line. Stories due by Sept 4 at 11:59p.

How I ended up at Urgent Care with wax on my legs.

2010-08-23T19:25:00.000-07:00

Friday, I drank nearly a pot of coffee and to the cacophony of Oliver and Violet's snores, I found myself pacing the house randomly straightening up. At midnight, I decided to wax my legs. Keyed-up and overzealous, I pulled too quickly and a giant wax strip hit me in the face. Next round, I didn't apply enough oil and hit a snag: the wax wouldn't budge. At all. At 1230a and waxy scissors later, I was wondering how much wax I could leave on my body and still function. There was a little blood.

The wax wasn't too noticeable so I went to the gym the next morning. Granted, my running shorts stuck a little funny while I ran, but I was a trooper. I did 2 miles.

When I returned home, Vi's left eye was swollen. The pediatrician wouldn't wait for us to get to the office and recommended Urgent Care. I hate Urgent Care. They are morons and I hate it. So we went to a little clinic in Walgreens, but they only see babies 18 mo and older, so we had to go to Urgent Care. The nurse took her temp and it was 98.5. I told her that her temp usually runs 96.7 and the nurse told me that you don't want your temp to ever run that low. Hello? Mine runs 97.3. So she had a slight fever (plus Vi was pissed about her eye so she may have just worked herself up). The doc rx'd omnicef, "so her cold doesn't turn into bronchitis". Ugh. We told him her cold was on its way out, but that's all he focused on. I just wanted something topical to relieve her irritation. When I sat up from the paper-covered table at Urgent Care, some paper came with me. I was too mad to care. We didn't fill the antibiotic. The pediatrician called while we were at the Urgent Care and said to use Benedryl, so we did and it helped. Now her eye is fine. Who knows what it was.

I had friends over for the annual Girl Party (swapping all sorts of products in a big pile) and it was a blast. I was getting ready to dig in the pile and I felt a sharp twinge on my thigh. The wax stuck to my jeans and came off, taking everything with it. So: wax problem solved.

3 Mile Run and Class Reunion.

2010-08-18T20:14:00.001-07:00

Today I ran 3 miles outside and saw a DirecTV blimp. Isn't that weird? Yeah. Totally weird. Something about blimps freak me out. I don't think I can blame it entirely on the Hindenburg, though I think that event should be enough to make anyone a little "uncool" with blimps. I think it just seems so ridiculous. It's basically a tiny bus attached to a giant balloon.

I ran at the airport and it was a cool 80-something degrees. A very good run, in my opinion. I definitely need some new running shoes. I should go get fitted for running shoes. The Asics still work well, but I wonder if a new brand would be better. My body has changed, only in those minute little ways that a body can change during the course of gaining and losing 35 lbs while growing a football inside the body and then expelling it out into the world.

Speaking of which, on the way home I passed Riverside Gynecology. The logo had a mermaid on it. This was disturbing because 1) mermaids don't live in Ohio 2) the Ohio River (especially near the industrial part of town around the airport) is dirty and any mermaids in that river probably are evil and are half-gigantic catfish. 3) Mermaids obviously do not have vaginas. We've all seen them practically naked and they only wear shells on top and no pants. So: Rethink your logo, there, Riverside Gynos.

Anyway.

Saturday was the 10 Year Class Reunion. I went with Josh (who flew in from Oklahoma) and O stayed home with the lady. Out of 200 something graduates, not too many came to the reunion. We pretty much just danced all night and caught up. Here's a pic:

That photo pretty much sums up the night and my high school experience--Josh and I in the back laughing our asses off (I'm in the green bubble, he's in the purple). I'm making the exact same face that I am in our senior group picture. I had a blast. I hope we do it again soon. A 15 year check-in would be nice.

Just Kidding.

2010-08-14T12:14:00.000-07:00

I feel totally lame not saying what my goal was, so here it is: The Inaugural Cincinnati Half Marathon, 10/23/10. Fast and flat, local, fall race, and the first one ever. I think I'd feel like a doof missing this one.

Tonight is my 10 year High School Reunion. Yep. Class of 2000: Last Class of the 20th Century. Here's hoping to a fun night!

New Tactic.

2010-08-13T19:21:00.001-07:00

I have a goal and I'm not sharing it. That's the new tactic. I'm going to work at it and then BLAM! I'll surprise you all with an accomplished goal. Take that.

In other news, we had some apples that were going bad, so I sat on the floor with Vi and peeled them.

Then, I sliced them and boiled them and we have tons of baby apple sauce. And a jar of apple juice for little girls who are kinda learning how to use the sippy cup.

Snotty Roboty: Violet's First Cold.

2010-08-10T17:53:00.000-07:00

It started with a frown when she woke up on Saturday and the day was punctuated by little whines. Teething was my first guess. We had the gnawing, the runny nose, but then yesterday we had a RUNNY NOSE at Grandma's. Last night was epic.

We went to Walgreens and got her a vaporizer and hooked it up next to the futon. I fed her bedtime bottle which was a huge challenge since she couldn't breathe through her nose. Afterwards, I held her and she fell asleep in 10 minutes flat. Usually, I transfer her to her blanket and all is well. Not last night. She wanted to snuggle, which was fine by me. Though, every time she was good and asleep, she'd wake up instantly once I laid her down, even if she was propped up on pillows. So, I held her. We took her temperature and it was normal, but her little hands were on fire. While holding her, I had my thumb on her chin so her mouth would open and she could breathe. We'd fall asleep and she'd wake up every 15 minutes or so. This went on all night. I don't really remember last night, except being so exhausted that my lazy eye was large and in charge and feeding her mashed bananas on the futon at 3am. Next thing I know, I wake up and all four of us are asleep on the futon. I have no idea how that happened, but it lasted til the alarms went off in the morning.

It was such a bizarre night. I am hyped up on caffeine and sugar, thanks to the MIL and the 3 pieces of cake she sent out the door with me this morning, "to keep up my strength!" per the FIL. Pretty awesome. It worked, by the way. Though, my pancreas is probably ticked.

After work, she fell asleep immediately in the car and slept during the duration of my health food store shopping trip where I got some elderberry syrup. I diluted it in water in a fancy stemless wine glass for the princess. She loved it. I don't know if it was particularly soothing to her, but she was in a much better mood.

Now she's snoring on the futon. I hope she sleeps better tonight!

Back in Town.

2010-08-08T10:58:00.001-07:00

I got out of the car in our driveway and my sinuses were instantly pissed. It's amazing how the weather can be so different with a two-hour drive that I can go from feeling fantastic to feeling like someone is embroidering my initials on my brain with an ice pick in no time.

There's too much to talk about re: our weekend trip so I will bullet it for you:

Vi was pumped when she got to the hotel bed. She sat and twisted with her arms stretched out wide and hugged the pillows for about 30 minutes.
We went to the Children's Museum where she learned how to play with trains by watching the little boy next to her. She had a blast and kept it on the track about 10% of the time. The rest of the time, she made the motions, so that counts. :)
I never realized how difficult navigating through doors while shopping with a stroller could be. I'm a door-getter and assumed most people were. Wrong. I got stuck in the foyer of a Borders with the stroller and the three people in there with me just watched. A lady from the sidewalk helped me out. Insane. It's almost like people are afraid to jump in and help, as if I am handicapped and would view the help as demeaning.
Vi had a bite of my homemade banana bread and loved it.
Oliver made some good contacts which will hopefully turn into illustration work for him.
Vi started teething on Saturday: she was warm, snotty, coughy, and kinda unhappy but kept her composure. Thank goodness for teething tablets, Children's Motrin, and a sock monkey Aunt Clare gave her--the legs and tail made a perfect teether for Vi.
Vi was super-pumped to get back home. She smiled and grunted at Wex. And then emptied out her bookshelf.

Anyway, the weather was fantastic and the city was clean and nice. It's the city that Cincinnati wishes it could be, for real.

Indianapolis and a Running Says "Hello!"

2010-08-07T15:02:00.001-07:00

The fam is in Indy this weekend. GenCon is going on and Oliver is here showing his portfolio and trying to get illustration work. Our friends Joe, Ada, Jon, Jaz, and Chris are here too, which is nice.

While O is at the convention, Vi and I have been touring the city--thank goodness for the internet specifically Google Maps. I swear, it's a Godsend. I plot out what we are doing for the day, write some sort of crude directions on hotel stationary, and off we go! I really hate shopping. I do. I hate it. I like online shopping because I am a big fan of comparison shopping and not a big fan of crowds. But my jeans got soaked in baby shampoo during the drive up so Vi and I hunted for the mall.

There were so many people wearing the convention-issued lanyard that I wonder what the city must look like when these cons aren't going on.

Vi seems to really enjoy the newness of it. She loves the hotel bed (we've been on the futon for 5 months, remember?) and the stroller is pretty fun for her. She's been in good spirits this trip, though today I think she may be teething. She's stuck to her nap/eat schedule pretty much to the T and it's awesome because our hotel is right in the center of town--so easy to find even for the directionally-challenged like myself. It's next to a Starbucks and an Au Bon Pain (read: pastries and coffee for Casey) and lots of restaurants.

Anyway. Today we got up and went to Au Bon Pain for some pastries in the square. The road was blocked and there was live music which seemed odd for 8a. There were people milling about with half-eaten bananas and wearing unfashionable attire. Honestly, at first I was like, "What are these weirdos doing?! It's 8a on a Saturday morning and there's live music and the road is blocked. How inconvenient," and then I realized that I had stumbled upon a race. Instantly, I was disappointed. A 5k or 10k started and finished 20 feet from my hotel room and I didn't know about it. I was doubly-bummed as I had all my running gear packed (just in case, I guess) and my jogging stroller with me. Then I was even more disappointed because I doubted I could have completed the distance as I've been on a running hiatus since June.

So, I have to get back into it. I have to. I felt better when I was running and whenever the next pregnancy falls into our lap without warning (jk, as if it would be that simple) I want to be fit. Granted, it's not like I've been sitting on a couch this summer stuffing my face full of Krispie Kreme, (more like a futon and a coffee with a dash of yoga thrown in) but I can be more fit. How to do it? I have no idea. Right now, my time is totally crammed and the only real "me" time I have is spent catching up on laundry and maybe a yoga class. This is going to take some serious planning.

It's been really nice to get away for a bit. We've had a lot of fun, though Vi's naps have somewhat limited the amount of time spent with friends (she took several 2 hour naps this weekend, which shows how much her little brain is processing all the new stuff).

Coffee and Jelly.

2010-08-02T20:16:00.000-07:00

I am seriously addicted to coffee. It's getting way out of hand. I'm eating like crap and living off of coffee. Driving to work this morning, after finishing a cup of coffee w/ my Mom and Vi, I was already planning on when I was going to get my next cup of coffee. It involved a perfectly-timed stop at lunch that depended entirely on short lines at DSW. The probability of there being short lines at DSW (I had a return) were pretty much nil, but I was game. Illogical. It didn't work out, by the way. Anyway, I am getting mean when I don't get my coffee so I need to back away from it. So. We'll see how that goes.

I am actively mourning the total consumption of Oliver's fantastic pasta dish that he made for lunch this weekend: linguini in a light cream sauce w/ spinach, leeks, and locally-grown corn. It was absolutely wonderful and I shed a garlic-scented tear as I finished the last bite today at lunch. It was such a delicate, light sauce that to call it an "alfredo" would be akin to calling drawn butter a "buttercream icing". The leftover cream has been a nice upgrade to our coffee that we usually lighten with skim. Hopefully, he will make more ASAP.

I bought Vi a set of toys that I would called "balls" but what the Children of the Future Today call "Roll Arounds". Fisher-Price makes them and they make noise (with beads or bells, etc.), or have stimulating visual patterns, or even have little animals inside. Well, she loves them. She grabs one in each hand, says "Heh!" and flings them around. She looks for them and crawls after them and this whole thing can go on for about 20 minutes. It's hilarious.

Oh, and today I did a mad dash to the fair grounds to enter 3 jelly/jams to be judged. I had to get there before 4p or they were going to charge me $8 admission. Craziness! So, I seriously (not seriously) slid through the gate sideways, tires squealing at 3:59p. I didn't make eye contact w/ anyone and just acted like I knew exactly what I was doing and went through the gate where the money collectors were not standing. And then I waited in line in this giant barn and sweated my ass off. I had 3 jars. 3. I read the catalog which had an outline of the categories you could submit items to, and I knew that mine were all kosher and able to go in those categories I picked. Lady with the 40+ jars did not get the memo, because I stood behind her for 30 minutes as she decided which pickles she was going to enter as she couldn't possibly submit all of them to the same pickle category. This went on so long. And then the guy after her had 20 jars that he had to pick through. I had my three, I knew my categories, and bam, I was out of there.

So, judging is tomorrow, but I won't have a chance to stop by til Wednesday (before 4p, of course). Wish me luck!

Also, if you are looking for an interesting blog, check out Regan's Blog.
It's all about YA reads and I am so on the bandwagon. Enjoying a good book at the moment, The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong, reco'd by Regan and I am loving it. Check her out!

Mom Life.

2010-07-29T11:53:00.000-07:00

If you were to ask me how different life is now compared to a year ago, I would quickly say, "Oh, it's not that different," because it feels completely normal. I think when I imagined what it would feel like to be a mom prior to being a mom, I imagined it to be so weird and different. It's so normal, though.

Normal then vs. now:

Working Monday through Friday vs. Working Monday through Friday, with Thursdays "off" to spend with Lady Vi.

Relaxed cleaning on Saturday mornings vs. Cleaning whenever I can possibly squeeze it in, often between the hours of 10p and 11p, or with a baby strapped into a harness on my chest.

Laundry through the week vs. Frenzied laundry loads, sorted into two piles: Reds and Not Reds and no loads have any fabric softener in case something of Violet's were to make its way into the load.

Coffee as a leisurely beverage vs Coffee as a way to make it through the day to the 10p Clean-a-thon.

Sleeping in bed like normal humans vs. Sleeping like hillbillies on a futon in the basement because it's the coolest place in the house and where we lay Vi down for sleep at 8p. Even with a monitor we don't want to be far away from her. Then I join her at 11p and then Oliver joins us in the early hours of the morning. We sleep like sardines and I've had a stiff neck for four months.

Being grossed out by poop vs. Not minding too much if poop gets on my shirt. I'll be doing a load of laundry at 11p, anyway.

Cleaning up dropped food vs. "Wexley will get it."

Watching a movie at the theater vs. Watching a movie in 20 minute segments while I rock Vi to sleep throughout the day. We have 20 minutes left of "Jaws".

Pony tails for busy mornings vs. Brushing hair for busy mornings.

Waking up to an alarm vs. Waking up to a 4" foot kicking my throat.

Thinking about what I'd want to do in 5 years vs. Thinking about what Vi will want to do in 5 years.

See? It's totally normal in every way and I am having a blast! <3

What's up with stuff?

2010-07-23T20:45:00.001-07:00

I don't get out much these days, but today I put on some earrings and went to Jamie's surprise bday party at Bucca di Beppo's (thrown together by Will) and had a blast. It was seriously super fun. Met a lot of nice people. It's always nice to see that one of your buds has a really positive support team to encourage him/her along the way!

Also, the candy store owner called yesterday. She said that my jellies are selling and that she wants to set up a whole shelf full of them. So, I guess I've got to get to work! I've gotten quite attached to the box of jars, though. I also do not want to part with my sweet hot pepper jam, in particular. Is that weird? It's like I'm planning on just eating it all myself or something. Truth be told, I'm actually very burnt out on jelly. I know. Such a sad day. I have this jar of peanut butter that I tote around with me to work "in case I get hungry". I also have a bag of bread in my office at all times. I haven't been able to enjoy a sandwich because the thought of eating jelly makes me want to hurl. Man, I'm a great at promoting myself, aren't I? "Buy some of my jelly, 'cuz I sure ain't gonna eat it!"

Anyway. Busy weekend ahead.

Here's the birthday card I made Jamie:

Vi.

2010-07-22T12:13:00.000-07:00

Violet, Ms. Violet.

Kicking her squishy feet

Pulling up, sitting down

Eat eat eat

Violet, O Violet.

Banging pots on the floor

Making sounds, laughing loud

More more more

Violet, Ms. Violet

What secrets do you keep?

Breathing soft, tug my hair

Sleep sleep sleep

No Impact Man: In Conclusion

2010-07-21T12:11:00.000-07:00

As mentioned before, this was a super extreme look on what sort of small changes
you can make to make a difference in the planet. After the experiment, the
couple picked what changes they were willing to keep. They welcomed back
electricity, thank goodness.

Then, his new friend who grows local produce pointed out that all of these
changes are well and good, but his wife still works at a magazine that is
responsible for the demise of who knows how many trees. That's when I felt bad
for the guy. He's just trying to make a point and even his local farmer's
market friend crushes his spirit.

Anyway. Although I pointed out the irritating points of the movie,
I've taken a few things from it.

1) You don't always have to buy. You can borrow, rent, or repurpose things.

2) You can do without lots of things.

3) Local is best if you can swing it. Better for the planet and better for the
farmers. And most likely better for you!

Check it out if you haven't seen it yet!

Second Thoughts on No Impact Man.

2010-07-15T14:43:00.001-07:00

I got the chance to watch a good 40 more minutes as Vi was particularly "not into" the whole "nap thing" this afternoon.

The wife has been pilfering ice from work. Is this transgression "less bad" than simply allowing herself some coffee (which she hasn't had)? I don't know.

The family went without electricity and then the next scene shows him and his 2 year old daughter stomping on laundry in the bathtub to clean it. The water, of course, is freezing because they aren't using the water heater. It was a bit of a shock, but then I remind myself that it's an "experiment" and I was okay with it. But not with the daughter stomping on clothes.

If I was trying to do w/o electricity, or thought that I would be doing without at some point, I probably would have tried to find some sort of solar panel before the project kicked off. I'm sure that they could have found a used one on CraigsList.com.

They've gone w/o toilet paper and are using washable rags.

In the midst of this, there's relationship drama as the husband does not want to have a 2nd child, which is what the wife wants. Why throw this in? It's depressing and sad and it makes for awkward scenes. I was just waiting for the husband to say something about the impact adding a human to earth would be. It hasn't happened. Yet. If it happens, I will lose it.

To be continued.

First thoughts on No Impact Man.

2010-07-15T09:19:00.001-07:00

I'm only 20 minutes into this movie which is about a guy and his family who try to make no environmental impact for a year. This means they go without making trash, buying new things, etc. I will only be able to watch this in 20 minute segments because I only really get to watch tv while I am rocking Vi to sleep. I've still got a bit to go with this movie.

Anyway. First thoughts.

1) I think this is a really difficult project, and major props to trying it.

2) He gets really mad at his wife for not being 100% on board. She likes caffeine. If it makes her easier to live with, I can see past her drinking coffee from Starbucks (coffee isn't grown locally for them so it should technically be taboo). It is, after all, his idea and she kinda got roped around with it.

His attitude about this, btw, is why good ideas fail. He's trying really hard to do a good thing, but he's also forcing his family to do it. Forcing and guilting people into doing anything makes them not really into whatever it is you are trying to make them do. This can be seen with such avenues as church-going and asking favors.

3) He's super extreme, but I guess that's the point. After a year, he says he will pick and choose which non-impact facets he will stick with.

4) Right now, I think he's irritating. He brings up good points, though.

5) He visited a local dairy farm that is non-organic. He asked why they aren't organic, and the farmer says that if a cow of his gets sick, he can't treat it with antibiotics. The cow would just die. Any sort of antibiotics, etc. makes them non-organic. So, that's interesting. And you can tell that this farmer really cares for his cows.

Organic is great, you think it would have less impact on the environment. However, the fossil fuels it takes to transport, the infamously poor working conditions for the farmers (esp. those out of the country) and now the care that is not given to the animals make it clear that organic is not always the best. Local does seem more important and of course that's the most difficult.

Anyone who's seen this movie, please feel free to chime in!

Hardcore.

2010-07-14T18:19:00.000-07:00

Today I was talking to someone and I said that I am a runner. And I realized that it was a huge lie because I haven't ran since the last weekend in May! I could have sworn it's only been 2 weeks. Anyway. I am not a liar, so I went to the gym and ran. Then I went to yoga. By the time I was finished, I was famished and inhaled two bowls of jambalaya and countless cookies. Because I am THAT healthy and hardcore, I don't have to count cookies. If you don't remember how many cookies you ate while you ran around the house straightening up, it's practically like you didn't eat a single cookie (except for that tell-tale crumb of chocolate that lingers in the corner of your mouth, waiting to drop without a sound onto the pristine white towels that are fresh and warm from the dryer).

Also, I perused a Staples today. The whole time I was studying for the Certified Ophthalmic Assistant test (COA), I would piece together the last good pages of a notebook because I never had time to buy a new empty one. Well, it's back to school time already (yike!) so they've got some deals. Let's just say I'm set on paper and pens for whenever the next certification exam decides to show its ugly face.

Crazy.

2010-07-11T16:43:00.000-07:00

Things are insane these days! Vi is nearly crawling and she's down to two naps a day vs. the three we've been used to. She's saying "mama" and "dada" and is a gem. It's gotten really hard to find time for anything! Anything! I still do yoga once a week but I should be doing it more. And that's the extent of my exercise. But things are great and we are happy!

click on image for full view

It's okay to look ridiculous sometimes.

2010-07-04T16:37:00.000-07:00

Cracking up at my husband during a baby party @ Finn's house.
(Vi is wearing a dress I made her out of her grandma's pajamas)
Photo by Jaz.

Clafoutis.

2010-07-03T08:31:00.000-07:00

It sounds like a disease, doesn't it? Well, it's not. It's a French pastry out of Mastering the Art of French Cooking. It's everything I love, and everything O hates as it's technically a fruit flan. He hates things that taste like eggs (?) and cherries, which was my fruit of choice. It's basically a egg custard w/ fruit in it. This is the 2nd thing I've made out of the book. Don't judge me--I've made the Potato Leek Soup like 6 times. Both of these things are so simple and wonderful, it should be a crime that not everyone on the planet knows how to make them.

This post is long overdue.

I haven't ran in a month. It's too hot and I am a baby. I have to figure out my plan as I'd like to run in the 1st Cincinnati Half Mary coming up in October. It's hard to find time.

I've been doing yoga once a week and I love it. Though, as Wednesdays are the only day that I get to have alone time (and the only day I can really commit to yoga), I usually get sucked into getting caught up on laundry and dishes and maintaining a moderately-clean house. So, last week that overtook my yoga time. Bummed out.

As a personal protest for the drama with the oil, I vowed to eat no meat until it was resolved. I lasted the entire month of June. This really isn't a big deal. I was a vegetarian for 6 years previously but my aversion to soy kinda made things difficult. This time around was better, but I need compact protein sources. It gets difficult to find time to eat at work and when I'm watching Vi (which I'm doing either one or the other at all times) and I started to feel kinda bad. I lost like 5 lbs. So. The oil spill is still going on and I had chicken last night.

Violet has two teeth--the second popped through today!

Yesterday and today she has been saying "mummummummum", which I'm going to count as her saying "mom".

Oliver and Dad have been slaving away for a week and a half on the deck rails, which will be so nice for when Ms. Vi is playing out there.

My friend that I was raising money fore met with her 3rd fertility doc and she has to have some sort of test where they see if the fluid backs up in her tubes before they go ahead w/ the IVF. If the test comes back positive (ie: her tubes are closed), then she will have to have her tubes removed. But, either way, the doc is fully optimistic that the IVF procedure will work. I told her I'd help with her shots, though I've never done it before.

I think that's about it.

Oh, does anyone have any idea how Oliver and I both can go back to school simultaneously and still work and have a family life?

Teef.

2010-06-17T09:14:00.000-07:00

Princess Vi has a tooth! It's small and perfect and is just starting to peek its way out of her bottom left gum. I think she feels pretty proud of it. Photos later, as right now I can only tell that she has it via spitty knuckle. I found her tooth on Monday. 7 months old and she has a tooth. And she's sitting. And she's trying to figure out crawling. So much stuff at once! She's so fun!

Violet Being Awesome.

2010-06-11T19:23:00.000-07:00

Wexley owns all sticks.

2010-06-11T18:22:00.000-07:00

Julia Child's Potage Parmentier.

2010-06-10T17:16:00.000-07:00

I made my first Julia Child soup today: Potage Parmentier, or Leek and Potato Soup. It was amazingly easy. Easier than any other potato leek soup I have made. Basically, 1 lb potato, 1 lb leek, 8 c. water, 1 T. salt. Simmer for an hour, mash w/ a potato masher. Season how you like. Ladle into bowls and add a blop of cream or 1 T butter per bowl. Not having cream, I did 1 T butter and a bloop of skim milk. Not a blop, a bloop (which is a bigger quantity, as there are more "o"s).

I thought it was going to be too light to be a meal, but so far (5 minutes after eating) I feel pretty happy.

In other news, Vi and I had a great day. She took a big big nap, despite the deck people working overhead. Wex had a meltdown as they dismantled his lookout, but after having himself a good nap, he was more open to there being sawing and hammering for the duration of the day. Vi's big big nap overflowed into swimming w/ Jaz and Pen, so we had to cancel. When she woke up around 1p, we went to the park where we had an amazing time watching the other kids play. And our bench was really rad because she decided to pull herself up to standing today by facing the back and hoisting herself up. After 20 rounds of that, she was tuckered out and we called it a day.

Yogurt.

2010-06-04T07:30:00.000-07:00

Yoga is going well. It's not an easy activity to write about. Goals are set and attained but not in the way that running goals are achieved. A bad day in yoga doesn't really leave you frustrated because it's only bad for the duration of whatever pose you are holding, and only difficult until you figure out how to make it work for you. And then you move on to something else. Kind of a nice metaphor for life, yeah?

I've lost my nerve for inversions. I used to do handstands all the time around the house--getting pregnant throws off your center of gravity so I quickly abandoned them. Mentally, I still feel like I am holding a beach ball in my gut. I really don't like supported forearm stands (Salamba Sirsasana). They cause me to crank my lower back and I really dislike the feeling of pressure on the top of my head. Granted, it shouldn't be there to begin with, so I do dolphin and other shoulder strengthening poses while people are getting their Salamba on.

We did an interesting balance in class. Started out in Prasarita (standing wide-leg pose w/ hands below face on mat) and then wrapped one arm around the back to clasp other hand that was wrapped around a leg (it's a bit of a twist). And then the leg that you weren't wrapped around straightened and you stood on it, and then tried to stand all the way up. It really opens up your shoulders.

So, anyway. There's a trail race coming up a couple of Sundays from now. Unsure if I will do it after my last Runs w/ Avatars Trail Race experience. ;)

Wex is still my buddy, BTW.

Baby Foods.

2010-06-02T14:41:00.000-07:00

Someone asked me about Ms. Lady's foods and if I made them from scratch. I make about 50% of Violet's foods. Her favs are bananas, sweet potatoes, apples, plums, and jury is still out on my peas (though she loves jarred peas). Besides the bananas, which I puree as soon as they start to get ripe-ripe, I just chop everything up, boil it in a little bit of water til it's soft, and then puree the water and fruit or vegetables to a consistency that's about the same has her jar food, adding water as needed. Then, I put the pureed loveliness in a Teflon cube tray (I use one by Sprout) and slide in the freezer. When it's frozen, I pop them out and put them in a freezer bag, label it, and then, voila! An ounce serving of baby food that just needs to be nuked for 10-15 seconds to thaw. It's really not a big deal and takes way less time than you'd think.

When it's time to eat, I take a cube or two (okay, more like 3) and nuke it in a ramekin, adding water if necessary to get the right consistency. Sometimes I add more water if I am going to add her cereal to it, which right now is Happy Bellies Multigrain w/ DHA (bought in bulk from Amazon). She loves it.

As far as jarred food, we are using Earth's Best (organic--available at our Kroger and health food stores) and Organic Gerber. Some of the other brands are fine, too, but I have been appalled at some of the ingredient lists on some of of their products. One makes a mac and cheese for babies Vi's age. Hello? She doesn't need to get hooked on that crap already. You should see the ingredients for it. But if that's the only thing your baby will eat, you gotta do what you gotta do.

I totally want the Beaba Baby Cook. It steams and then purees your fruit/vegetables however you want it. You just hit start. It's like a bread maker for baby food. It's totally pointless now. I wish I would have thought of it while I was pregnant, but Vi will be out of this stage in a matter of months and I have my own little system down. But, Future Mommies who are intimidated by cooking: check it out! ~$150, but it will pay for itself eventually.

This is Vi. She's kind of an authority when it comes to eating.

ps: she's wearing this creepy bib we got when she was born. It says something like "love me, never shake me." On a bib. I think the people who would ever shake their baby probably aren't the sort to think that a bib was necessary. For those people, they should put that slogan directly on babies, a decal that won't fade away until the child goes away to college. Or are big enough that they can shake the parent.

Hot and Sour!

2010-06-01T15:27:00.000-07:00

I just perfected my hot and sour soup recipe. So perfected, in fact, that I wrote it down on my recipe card and stored it away under "soups/sauces". I am pumped. Benefits of this hot and sour soup are:

1. One pot. That's it.
2. It works totally well without the tofu. Or any meat.
3. Protein source is egg.
4. It took seriously like 20 minutes to make.
5. Red chili flakes as a garnish are pretty much the bomb.

Despite not having the green onion I would have liked to have had or the fresh ginger (I think you remember that story from a couple of weeks ago--so I substituted dried), it's my favorite thing I have in the house right now to eat.

Totally Trite.

2010-05-27T11:24:00.001-07:00

I love to cook. Did you know that? Well, I do. And you should know that.

Since last summer, I've been reading Julia Child's "My Life in France". Yes, it's taken me a year to finish it. It lived on my Kindle which I read when I was doing the elliptical while pregnant. Back off. Naturally, I was interested in her cookbook, "Mastering the Art of French Cooking". Anyway. I looked for it @ Half Priced Books and it was gone. The clerk was like, "Well, because of the movie.." That movie! It never occurred to me that people would want to learn French cooking because of a movie. Immediately, I wanted nothing to do with the French Cooking Upswing of 2010. But, secretly, I wanted the book. I wanted to own the original edition. I wanted an edition that was yellowed, falling apart and had grease stains from love and use. But sadly, love and use increases the price of such things exponentially and I could not shell out $300 for a cookbook. So I bought a 14th printing from Sept 2009 off of Amazon.

And I love it. Even though it came with a Julie and Julia movie insert.

I love it and I'm going to cook out of it and I am going to be so irritating because of my two-classes-or-so-short-of-a-French-minor French experience, I am probably going to insist on calling everything by it's French name. I may start talking about beurre and fromage and potages et soupes (and look! it's already starting! I've just snuck an et in instead of an and!) I may talk about les oeufs poches and then be really snotty to you when you ask what that means. Just kidding. Not everyone has the opportunity (like I did, thanks to my generous parents) to dabble in so many classes and fields during college because they can't figure out what they want to do--because some people (you) realized before me that you never really do figure out what you want to do so you get a degree in the field that makes you money. Not, say, art history, for example.

But I digress. I am going to have a blast with this book.

OBC 5k Race Report.

2010-05-26T18:33:00.000-07:00

The 5k was Saturday. It was a nice morning and was the first race that I haven't had to commute to! I stepped out the front door and I could hear the live Bluegrass/Cover Band playing. At 745a. The start was 1.5 miles from my house. I'm sure those living, oh, across the street from Start probably didn't appreciate it.

There were maybe 200 people running on Saturday. We all kinda meandered where we thought the start was and then at 9a, we were off. It's my "route", so I felt like I was cheating the whole time. I knew when to go fast, I knew when there was a hill. These people didn't, but I guess they could have always studied the elevation chart. Anyway. I ran past my parent's house, my aunt's house, and the house I lived in during high school. Totally bizarre.

I finished in 28:30, 5th in my division . The best, best part was having Oliver and Vi at the finish, though. They are my buds and that was enough to make this my favorite race this year.

Hot Yoga. Ginger vs. Garlic.

2010-05-24T04:21:00.000-07:00

I took a hot yoga class on Wednesday. It's the first one I have taken at this particular studio, the hot classes previous to this one have been Ashtanga yoga where the room is about 98 degrees and you do cardio Power Yoga. You sweat a lot.

This yoga class, I didn't know what to expect. I took my mat to the back of the room and started to sweat. Just sitting there. Sweating. Then, class started and we all turned and suddenly, I was in front. With my sweaty mom-butt in yoga pants, center stage for all the yoginis behind me. It wasn't what I would call "cardio yoga"--my muscles did not hurt at all after class. It was more of a a stretchy yoga. Being center stage, I was able to see the thermometer which read 116 F. I kid you not. People we sweating their faces off. Literally. A guy's face just melted off. Hopefully, they will refund his class fee. This other guy, I really thought he had just poured a cup of water down his face because of the running fluid and splashing going on two mats down. Maybe he did. Who knows. But the fact that I am unsure should be a testament to how hot the room was.

It was a very neat experience and I'll probably do it again this week. Though, I did miss the cardio Ashtanga class.

In other news, Miss Vi rocks. She's sitting like a champ and eating all sorts of fruits and vegetables. We are on the cusp of crawling. At the doctor for her 6 mo check, she weighed 21 lbs. The new girl who measured her did not straighten her leg, but the measurement was 26.5", which was the same as last month.

Speaking of 'new girls', I went to the grocery w/ Vi (first time in the big-girl cart seat--Boppy-clad, of course) and bought ginger. The new check-out girl threw it away. I said, "I was going to buy that."

she: Oh, I thought it was just something. Do you want it?
me: Did you throw it in the trash?
she: Yes.
me: Then, no. But I would like someone to go get me another one.

so the bag-lady goes and gets me more ginger. 5 minutes later, she arrives w/a clove of garlic.

me: That's not ginger.
new girl: Oh. (puts it on the scale to measure it for me)
me: I don't want it. That's not ginger.
new girl turns to bag-lady: she doesn't want this. (throws in trash)

It was insane.

A Short, Ridiculous Trail Race Report. And a flattering photo.

2010-05-18T16:59:00.000-07:00

This is a true story.

So. The trail race was Sunday. I signed up for the 10.8, which was a 5.4 loop ran twice. There was also another race that covered one loop, but on my schedule I wanted to run 9 to 10 miles as a "long run" this week. I was pretty happy find a race that fit in so perfectly, seeing that long runs have seemed tortuosly boring as of late.

The weather was good. I arrived in time to get my number and survey the crowd. Trail races must attract the super sleek Avatarian runners, so I let all of them go ahead. And there I was at the back before the gun even went off. I was treating it as a long run, not a race, so my goal was to not get injured and to have fun. Starting in the back helped to dissolve any sort of competitiveness that could possibly arise in a race setting. The gun went off and off we went.

There were two girls behind me who quickly passed as I stepped off the trail to address my headband that shot itself off my head. Then it was just me. Me and the dirt and the plants. I walked, I ran. I got lapped after 31 minutes. That was fine though, I was enjoying myself.

I would walk/run on my own and then be lapped. Everyone who passed asked if I was alright. While nice, I found it infuriating that I couldn't just stroll in the woods and enjoy myself. And then I remembered that I was in a race.

So, an hour later, and about 502 poison ivy encounters behind me, I neared the road where the finish was. My plan was to call it quits and sneak off to my car and drive away because I really didn't want to be the last last last person to cross the finish and, let's face it: I would be. But that wasn't my main thing, I just didn't want to be gone from my family for another hour. I plotted. I thought. I walked. People cheered me on, "You are almost there! Pick it up!" Surely, they must have thought that someone walking at this point would never sign up for the 2-loop 10+ mile race! Surely, no one would be treating this RACE as a LONG (albeit casual) RUN. My one opportunity to skulk off undetected to my car was thwarted by well-wishers encouraging me to "keep at it! you are doing great!" So I kept on.

I rounded the bend and there was giant, clapping crowd and a finish with three branches. One side was for the short race, one side was for the long race, and one was for the beginning of the second loop. I ran, unsure of what to do. If I finished in the short race finish, I would have had a 15-minute deduction from my time as I was given a 15 minute head start as part of the 2-loop race, which would be wrong. I debated taking the fork to start the second loop and then going off-trail to my car. Before I could even consider ending the race in the 2-loop finish, I got passed by a man and the crowd went wild. "We've got the first finisher for the 10.6 mile race coming in!" and then they saw me stutter-step and someone thought that I was possibly in the running (ha, pun) to win the 2-loop race. Realizing the crowd thought that I was vying for 2nd place, I quickly shouted, "No! No! I QUIT!!" So, this guy's finishing picture is him all "Woo!!" and me all "Meeeeeeeh, QUIT!!" and making the appropriate faces.

The guy at the finish was like, "It's okay. It's a tough race." Thanks. That really, really is awesome of you to say.

So, technically, it's a DNF (did not finish), but according to my Garmin, it was 1:06 for 5.8 trail miles.

Me, about to get lapped by an Avatar.

----
Also, I am still trying to help my bud w/paying for her IVF. She's still $9k away from her goal. The last knit hat/jelly sale raised $300! I've got three things going on:
1) Any jelly sold between now and Saturday will go to her Baby Fund. To do: purchase a jelly via the button in the upper right of my blogger page. If you have questions about available flavors, send me an email: cassandrameinerdingATyahooDOTcom
2) As narcisistic as I feel doing this, I am having a silent auction for a signed book of mine, Loose Knits. To do: email me your bid by Friday, 11:59p. Highest bid wins and gets the book and sends me the moolah. :) Shelf price is $11.95. email: cassandrameinerdingATyahooDOTcom
3) Or, if you don't want to mess with that and just want to buy a book, go to HERE! and purchase a book. Let me know you bought one via email. For every book sold, I will donate my royalty. email: cassandrameinerdingATyahooDOTcom
4) And of course, if you just want to donate, send me an email at the above.

I feel like such a tool that all I have to offer here is jelly and a book. I wish there was more I could do but I don't have the time right now to knit. :/ Thanks for everyone's support in the past with this project! (ps: she's meeting for a 3rd opinion mid-June, so hopefully they can get the ball rolling as soon as their funds come in!!)

Is it weird that I want this?

2010-05-13T05:34:00.000-07:00

It's a cake pan that makes sandwich-shaped cakes. It comes with a recipe for a peanut butter and jelly pound cake recipe (seen above). It's so bizarre!

Mental Endurance Challenge.

2010-05-12T18:15:00.001-07:00

I ran 8 miles today. On a treadmill. Yes. It was awful but I figured, "Hey, if I can handle this, I can surely handle the next few weeks of races."

Despite:

1. Not having a hairband to pull my hair back (seriously the first time I have ever ran without my hair in a ponytail)
2. The fire alarm going off 4 times (is it really a good idea to desensitize your customers to the sound of the fire alarm?)
3. When it wasn't going off, the fire alarm silently blinked like a strobe light for the duration of my gym stay and I honestly thought that it was going to cause someone to have a seizure
4. Some creepazoid three machines down running WITHOUT HIS SHIRT ON. Come on, son, who are you trying to impress?
5. And it being 8 miles,

I was able to keep it together and finish this run.

And then I came home and had some cupcakes.

Vi on Mother's Day, with her first mommy-knit scarf AND first time in a high chair at a restaurant!

Upcoming Races.

2010-05-10T07:37:00.001-07:00

I have a few races up my sleeve--signed up for them and everything. Here's the plan for the next few weeks:

Wednesday: 8 mile run planned.
Sunday: 10.6 mile Trail Race. Already paid for. I just have to show up and half the work is done, right?
Next Saturday: 5k past my house. I have to do this one. How often is a race routed next to your abode?
Memorial Day: Half Marathon. That's right, folks. A half-mary. AND it's a Destination Half, so the hotel is booked, I am registered, and O and Vi are coming with me. Can't exactly back out of this one. Well. I can. But I'd be short registration because I can't switch to a 5k.

So, that's that. I think not doing the Flying Pig Half was the best thing for my running. And I think that not doing the running group is also a big help. I can fit my runs in as needed, there is no pressure. Vi can come along with me and as long as I am aware that she's going to probably eat/pee/poo/need a nap during the run, we will have a splendid time covering the miles together.

Well, off to work, now. I had a filling done this morning and my face is dreadfully numb. I was hoping that I'd not be so numb by the time my half-day started, but it looks like crooked smiles and gnawed cheeks are in the forecast for today.

I Counter That.

2010-05-08T14:04:00.000-07:00

In response to my post about technology, I have to counter (against myself) with some thoughts and points I have thought if in the past few days.

1. The internet kept me sane during the countless hours of pumping. I got to connect to people I couldn't see in real life because I couldn't leave the house, and oh yeah, it was 3 or 4 in the morning.

2. I shop almost exclusively online. Big convenience points. Plus, I can shop around for prices.

3. I don't think I'm concerned with technology taking up jobs. It happens, but I never thought of that as a point to eschew it. I suppose I figured that with every job lost to it, another job was created by technology. I was thinking more about manual and social skills being lost to the past in the grand scheme of the world.
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Epic Walk.

Vi and I took an epic walk on Thursday. It was 5 miles long and was punctuated w/ a diaper change, a bottle stop, a few decisions to be held while we still pushed the stroller and a nap. Vi took the nap, not me. Then we went out for another mile to make it an even 6.
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Neighborhood 5k.

I just signed up for a 5k that runs by my house. You know how well I do when I am running loops at the park and see my car... It will be interesting to see if I will have the willpower to resist laying down on my lawn. Just kidding. I think I can handle it. Unless the race is routed by my house half a dozen times.
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Amazing BBQ Sauce.

I have a flipping amazing bbq sauce recipe to be jarred. It will be available in pint jars for $10. A couple of people have "pre-ordered" for Father's Day, if you'd like to store that idea in your noggin as a gift idea.

I will be changing my prices for jelly and etc. to reflect the postage increase that takes place this week. Postage will be included in the price. If you do pick-up, I will reimburse you for the pre-paid postage. So, for any order of 2 jars or more, shipping will be $10. It's normally $6 a jar, but if I use a flat rate USPS box, it's $10.60, regardless of how many jars you order (max 8 per box).

A bizarre picture. I am looking SUPER pumped about Vi wearing my 5k finishers medal, while Vi seems to be staring at a spot on the carpet with poorly-veiled concern.

Jam 8.1 Blackberry Jelly.

2010-05-03T16:32:00.000-07:00

Mrs. Annie ordered a batch of blackberry jelly, so I worked on that this weekend. It's a messy process, in general, and my kitchen looked like a crime scene when I was finished. But all went well and I have some pretty deep-purple jars of wonderful seedless, chunk-less (per Annie!) blackberry jelly ready for a home. It's beautiful and I love it.

New Topic. I am only going to say this once because it does not good to ruminate on things, but I am so ticked that I couldn't get it together to run the half. That's all. I'm saying it. It's out there. I'm not going to say it again. There may be another chance coming up but I don't know if I'm in that zone right now. It's kinda like waiting in line for a roller coaster and then chickening out at the last minute and then when riding home, you are so ticked you didn't just get on. That's all. Moving along.

Flying Pig 5k Race Report.

2010-05-02T05:53:00.000-07:00

I switched to the 5k from the half and felt pretty good about things. I never like to set goals and then not carry them out, but I think it was best to rejuvenate my running with a low-stress race.

It was very stormy and wet yesterday in our area, as you could have seen if any of you watched the Derby. So, Oliver and Violet stayed home. It was a bummer, but there will be other races. So, I parked across the river and saw that I had15 minutes to get to the start. Not a big deal, right? Completely wrong. Those bridges were long and I was walking to keep my legs happy til the race and I got passed by two people who were running to the 5k. I figured they knew something that I didn't, so I ran too. After asking a cop and asking some people who ran the 10k where their start was (surprisingly, the people who just started and finished the 10k were fuzzy on where they started) I knew I was at least going in the right direction. I saw the Start and the corral and was on the wrong side of the divider. I was NOT going to jump over a slippery, wet metal divider so I kept running along it (all this is at faster-than-race-pace, mind you, at least for a good mile or so from the bridge). Finally, there was a gap WAY at the beginning. When I got there, I kid you not, I had two minutes to spare before the gun went off. I was mashed in between people with camcorders (not running) and people with race numbers.

Then, the gun went off. Of course, my big complaint with races other than half and full marathons, is that they don't line people up according to pace. This is probably the most highly-organized 5k on the planet and it was still an issue, so I'm going to file that one along with everything else in the "Things That Won't Change" folder. I passed people in jeans and plastic bags as impromptu rain deflectors. I passed arms-linked walking buddies that seem to be at every race on the planet, though I'm convinced that they are multiplying at an astonishing rate because there were hoards of them yesterday. The walkers didn't clear out til mile 2. That means I'm slow OR there were a ton of walkers.

Mile 2 to 3, I settled into my groove. Nothing hurt, except a weird pain in my ankle. The rain eased up and it was a pleasant run. I finished, crossing the "Finish Swine", feeling much better than I did the last time I crossed it. Collected my finisher's medal and some goodies and was good to go. I forgot my Garmin and I thought that I finished under 30. I got my time today and I finished in 29:59, so Go, Go Gadget Intuition!

Vi likes the medal. She won it by being awesome.

Anyway, I feel rejuvenated. I feel pumped. Lots of shorter races coming up and I'm going to have fun with them this season.

Digital Nation.

2010-04-29T10:33:00.000-07:00

Oliver and I, being the huge nerds we are, watch a lot of documentaries. That may be more fault than his as I am the one in charge of the Wii remote while he's painting or drawing. Anyway. I put on "Frontline: Digital Nation". It's all about how wrapped up in technology everyone is. Some key mentions in the documentary:

1. The IBM office is mostly empty of employees. They can work from home and "meet up" in virtual office meetings hosted by "Second Life."
2. There are rehab camps in Korea for kids who are so hooked onto the computer that their social/education/health aspects of life are failing.
3. As mentioned before, they are doing away with teaching penmanship in schools and are focusing on computer skills.

Look. I know that "things change" and yadda yadda. But seriously. Education in the days of my parents and myself were not too different. We sat in stuffy rooms and read from outdated books, took notes while we listened to lectures. Computers were there, but mostly for typing purposes. We weren't allowed to use them for research. By my senior year in high school, they did away with the card catalog in the library and we had to learn to use the library search engine. When I was in college, we were able to email our assignments to the professors in some select classes. Some classes had specific message boards that you could log in to in order to ask questions about assignments, etc. I didn't start texting until I was 25.

Life, universally, has changed dramatically in the last decade. I cannot even begin to wrap my brain around what sort of changes are going to occur in the next 10 years. I find it really scary. Face-to-face interactions are going to become so few and far between at this rate. I don't want Violet's only social outlet to be via the computer screen, but if all of her friends are online and connecting through whatever social networking site is up and running at that point, NOT being connected would just be synonymous with social isolation.

Someone seriously needs to start a Back to Basics movement. One that embraces and encourages a mostly-unplugged life. Will this happen?

You may say I am a hypocrite. Ranting about technology while I am blogging on Oliver's laptop, talking about watching a documentary that was digitally picked up by the Wii. I'm as much as a hypocrite as the environmentalist who orders shoes made of sustainable resources but are flown across the Atlantic to his store. Technology has its place, but I think we need to be super-careful about it before it swallows up the manual and social skills that we have cultivated before this lithium-battery fueled boom we are currently amidst.

Running and Jamming.

2010-04-26T14:37:00.000-07:00

I made some jelly yesterday w/ organic grapes. The jelly, itself, cannot be called organic as the sugar and pectin is non-organic. But there you go. Non organic jelly made w/ organic grapes. It sounds so boring, but I tell you, grape jelly is the best. It's a comfort food. And the best part--I miscalculated jars so I had enough jelly for two more jars after all of them were filled, and now O and I have a giant Tupperware in the fridge of purple sugar heaven.

I went to the candy shop up the street w/ my jellies. She wants to do them on consignment, which makes sense from a business-owner's view. So, I left the three (grape, apple cider, and banana strawberry) there w/ her to either sell or sample. I am to check back later this week and see what is up and how they did and if the price needs to be adjusted. Now, they are $6.50.

In other news, I am going to go to the expo on Friday and I will switch from the half to the 5k. You may think it's lame, but I am pumped. It's a ton less pressure. And I may just negate my prediction, especially if I run w/ the group on Wednesday as planned. They are doing 3 miles. That sounds doable. I know I could run the half, but I think that missing the 11 mile long runs really messed me up and the confidence with distance isn't there right now. Maybe later. Or maybe this will be the year of short races and trail races. Who knows.

Jam 8: Sweet Hot Pepper Again. And a prediction.

2010-04-25T09:31:00.000-07:00

Oh, I have a working button on the right of my blogger page for those interested in buying some jam.

Yesterday was Vi's 2nd play date w/ Finn (8.5 mo) and Penny (22 mo). They (and their lovely parents) came over for some food and some baby time and it was a blast. She really likes to watch the others play. I was always that kid that was happier watching than being in the center of it all. I wonder if she'll be like that or not. We'll see once she gets more mobile. :) I laid her in her crib for some quiet time and she rolled over and went to sleep in under 8 minutes. That is not how Violet does night time, so it's safe to say that she had a blast and was worn out from all the absorbing.

After the festivities, I made Jam 8, which is another re-do. I sold all but 2 of the other batch so I figured it would be a good one to make again. This one is a little bubbly--which only happens when it thickens too much before being jarred. So. That stinks, but affects nothing. So I need to relax about it.

My prediction: this is not what I am planning, but what I'm pretty sure is going to happen.
1. I am not going to run for a week.
2. The race is going to come and go and the day or two after the race, I am going to be like, "Oh, how I miss running. Gosh. I wish there was an upcoming race or something I could participate in."
3. And then I'm going to get all annoying with my plans and goals and everyone's going to be like, 'Yeah, yeah. We heard this before and you're going to suddenly get burnt out again two weeks before the race."

So. That's what's going to happen. I apologize in advance.

New Stories to Share.

2010-04-22T15:34:00.000-07:00

So. Vi and I, celebrating Earth Day and not because we do this every SAHM Thursday or anything, took a walk on the windy, woodsy path to the new coffee shop up the street. I was thinking this was a good activity because I wasn't driving and using fossil fuels to feed my caffeine addiction. I also thought this was a good thing to do because I was beginning to get concerned because my will to run has been nil. Nil. How convenient for this to happen 9 days before a race? I needed to think some things out about that as I am not mentally prepared to take on the distance today. Maybe tomorrow. Anyway. We arrived at New Coffee Shop and there is a sign that says "Be back soon! Sorry!". Yeah. Not as sorry as me.

So we returned home. I installed Vi's new big girl car seat. Dad came over w/ a new activity center for Vi (which she loves). Hours later, I thought that it would be a good idea to try out the new car seat. So we got back in the car after a good few minutes of figuring out the straps (one of us got really really mad because the other was moving too slow) and went back up to the coffee shop. We walked into the store and it sounded hollow. Hollow. There was nothing in there but a few tables, a counter and a man sleeping by the electric fan. That man was wearing an apron, so I was pretty sure that man would be the one making the coffee. Vi just stared. I turned on my heels and sneaked out and went next door.

Next door is an also-new store, this one being an ice cream store/candy shop. I got a scoop of banana split ice cream and sat in the sun w/ Vi and enjoyed it. Then, a light bulb went off. I went back inside and told the lady about my jams and jellies and she wants me to bring a few in to sample so hopefully (hopefully!!) she'll want to carry them in her shop! Whoot whoot! :)

Jam 7: Pineapple Banana. Jam 7.1: Secret Special Order Batch.

2010-04-20T18:26:00.000-07:00

My current diet would be a utopic diabetic diet, if all diabetics had working pancreases. I have so much jelly and jam. SO MUCH JELLY AND JAM. I haven't even been keeping a jar out of all of the latest batches for O and I because we have far too much and one single human family does not need to have as many jars as we do floating around. I have been ladling out maybe a few ounces from each batch so we can try it, but that's it. I've been trying to whittle down the supply. I buy a bag of bread and a half gallon of milk each Monday on my way to work and subside on peanut butter and (you guessed it!) jelly/jam and toast with (everyone together:) jelly/jam for my lunch/breakfast/3p sugar crash. So much sugar. I buy two to three bags of white sugar every time I got to the store. Nearly an entire bag of sugar goes into each batch. It's amazing.

So, anyway. Jam 7 is Pineapple Banana Jam, which I am naming Pineappblana Jama. I think the title explains it.

2.75 c. banana
1 c crushed pineapple
5 c sugar
1 t ascorbic acid
1 pk pectin
1/3 c. lemon juice.

It has actually turned out awesome. The fruit is suspended and beautiful! I hope that since these last two jams have turned out as they should that the Floating Fruit Phenomenon is a thing of the past.

Jam 7.1 is not a jam. It is a secret. My friend ordered a batch of something for his/her friend/neighbor. Sorry it's vague, but it has turned out beautifully, as well and I am not going to spoil the surprise. Check back later for details. ;)

4.11 miles tomorrow is planned w/ the group. I guess I'm just going to ignore the fact that I did not do a very long run during this training and hope for the best.

Jam 6: Sweet Hot Pepper Jam.

2010-04-19T19:04:00.000-07:00

This is my newest favorite. For real. Where else do you get to have a breakfast/lunch/snack date with both sugar and habaneros? See? It's awesome. While I was cooking the peppers, I took a whiff and my throat started to burn. I am not even lying. That's when I knew that this was going to be a phenomenal jam.

It's a beautiful color. A nice pretty sunset gold with flecks of crushed red pepper so expertly suspended (hooray!) in the gel. It's awesome. I had a ton on Tostitos and just on plain bread slices. It's a hot one. But the sugar balances it. Even Oliver, who is super-picky and not into super-spicy likes it and has declared this to be one of his favorites.

I apologize for the lack of photos--I will post a pic of all of them once I am finished.

Next jam? Perhaps a banana pineapple?

Dear Casey,

2010-04-19T18:42:00.000-07:00

Quit being a baby.

Sincerest regards,
Running

Jam 5.1: Cranberry Juice.

2010-04-16T17:25:00.000-07:00

Obviously not a jam, but I made some cranberry juice and jarred it for my grandma. Her birthday is on Sunday. Ever since I was little, I've associated cranberry juice with her. That and those little tiny cans of pineapple juice.

40 oz of cranberries
2 c. sugar
8 c. water

Heat cranberries and water over med-high. Bring to boil. Reduce to a gentle boil for 15 min @ 190 degrees, until all the berries have popped. Remove from heat. Let soak for an hour. Ladel pulp into a strainer and set pulp aside for muffins. Pour pulp-free juice through a jelly bag twice, rinsing fibers from bag. Let juice sit for several hours. Ladel from the top of the container, allowing the sediment to sink. Do not disturb sediment, unless you aren't particular about cloudy juice. I am. Put back into a stock pot and heat to 190, add sugar and stir until sugar dissolves. Sugar can be adjusted for preference. Pour into jars heated to 200 degrees. Apply two-piece lids and process @ 200 degrees for 20 minutes.

I have two pending canning projects. One, a friend wants to purchase an entire batch (6 jars) of jelly and two, I really want to make some super spicy hot pepper jam, to be Jam 6. I bought the habeneros yesterday. Those suckers just look hot.

I saw Jessica yesterday. We met at the Comet for some wonderful burritos. I asked for a fork and the cook handed it to me while gripping the tines with her hang-nail bejeweled finger. The same finger that was all up in the rice in the burrito, no doubt. Vomit. I gave Jess some Mandarin Sunrise Jam, which adhered to her "anything without seeds" policy. Hey, if you get some floating fruit in your jam and it looks pretty, call it a Sunrise. Solved.

AND I saw the Boone County Fair Rules posted on their website. There are only a eight canned fruit categories, not counting preserves:
apple jelly, grape jelly, blackberry jelly, other jelly.
apple butter
peach jam, blackberry jam, other jam.

That stinks. And you can't submit more than one to the "other" category. Do you like how I've made the Boone County Fair Home Ec Competition a big deal? First place ribbons earn you $3. You'd think that you won $300 with how competitive I've gotten with this. So, I've pretty much made something for every category so far, minus apple butter and blackberry jam/jelly. I'll work on that after the 25 Master Jam Challenge, which must be completed by June 1. I only have 20 to go. Eep! O was like, "It's your challenge. You can change the date." No. I can't.

As far as running, I'm skipping out on running group Saturday to participate in a MS Walk w/ my friend Jamie. It's a 3 mile walk and Ms. Vi is going to come, too. And then Sunday I do believe I am going to tackle the 11 mile long run again. That's the duration of a movie I will be spending out alone running. Glark. I need a good reward.

A Letter to Running.

2010-04-15T07:59:00.000-07:00

Dear Running,

Hi. I know we aren't on the best of terms right now. I said I was going to met you for 11 miles and only did 5 or 6--on two occasions. That isn't very nice of me to do. Frankly, I am burnt out. You are demanding so much of my time. The race is in less than 3 weeks so I am trying to keep our differences aside and stay focused, but you are really on my last nerve. Between the time commitment and my foot and chafing, I am going insane. You requested that my longest run be 11 miles, but you may have to just be happy with 9 because I don't see how I'm going to fit in 11 miles with you between now and Sunday, before the taper begins. I will do my best to make this work as long as you keep the inflammation down to a minimum.

Thanks,
Casey

Jam 5: Mandarin Jam.

2010-04-13T18:26:00.001-07:00

3 c. mandarin oranges and juice
1 pk pectin
1/2 t. unsalted butter
5 c. sugar
2 T. lemon juice

The flavor is good, the floating fruit, sadly, is not. I don't get why it's floating. I am following these recipes to the T and the fruit floats. Well, that's not entirely true. I followed the recipe except I used mandarin oranges and not the Valencia that it called for. I'm sure it matters. Really. The acidity/sugar/pectin balance has to be perfect and it varies from fruit to fruit. I was a free-thinkin' jam maker who couldn't be oppressed by the squareness of my cookbook. Anyway, it's a great-tasting jam and would be one of my favorites if I hadn't already met banana rum jam.

Running news. Oh, running news. Two weeks until the Half. I have to run 11 miles between now and this Saturday. I would do it at the park, but obviously I cannot handle loops. I would do it in my neighborhood, but the way the streets are laid out in this area only allows for you to go 2 miles in any direction before having to turn around. It's a strange anomaly. I would let you see what I am talking about on a map, but I'd hate to have to mace you and show you my mad elbow throwin' skills. So the plan (get ready to cringe with me): treadmill. Me. Treadmill. 11 miles. Tomorrow. Ugh.

Pros:
1. I get my long run of the training season in without getting UV exposure.
2. I am 20 feet from a bathroom no matter how far I've gone.
3. I don't have to worry about pesky scenery.

Cons:
Er...we all know the cons. No need to lay them all out here. Just know that for every 15 Cons, I've got one powerful Pro. Yep.

11 Mile Fail.

2010-04-10T20:12:00.000-07:00

I woke up late and decided to do 11 miles on my own. Instead of doing a logical 5.5 miles out and back, I decided to go to the local park and do a 1 mile loop 11 times, passing my car at each mile. Needless-to-say (so why say it?), I lasted 3 full loops before I left. And then I found a yard sale on the way back. And a 50-cent purse which was tucked unapologetically next to a stack of used bras. So. Big Fail in terms of running, Major Win in yard sales. Bonus points for not purchasing a used bra. Go me.

Vi's Surgery.

2010-04-09T18:56:00.000-07:00

Today started early at 530 or so. Vi had to be NPO for 6 hrs, and instead of waking her up at 3 to feed, we let her sleep. She was so tired and was such a good sport about it all. She had a tiny little hospital gown and everything. It was so sad. But, she was a trooper and did great! We went back to her recovery room as she was waking up. Apparently they had trouble finding a spot for her IV since shes "kinda chubby" and had to stick her 6 times! The nurse was rocking her as we got there which was sweet. Anyway, both sets of grandparents were there and us--she had quite an entourage. They will send the spot of tissue they removed from her cheek to be biopsied and then we will hear back on Tuesday.

For the rest of the day, she's been a little groggy but her appetite is good. She's smiling and laughing and it couldn't have turned out any better today.

PS: at her preop appt, she weighed 18 lbs 10 oz and is 26.5" long! So, we have to move up to the big girl car seat!

Tomorrow is the first of two long runs before the race. 11.something at 8a. Glark. I don't feel mentally prepared for it. One, I've eaten nothing but sugar and Chipotle today. Two, it's 11 miles and this week has been crazy stressful. And Three, Wednesdays run didn't go so fantastic for me. But whatever. I'll deal.

Hope you all have a good weekend!

7 Miles.

2010-04-08T04:59:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was my first day back running in two weeks and I felt it. The weather was balmier than in previous runs and my neuroma hurt for the fist three miles. After that, it was just fatigue. Mile 5 was a great mile for whatever reason. There was a storm a-brewin' all evening so it was really beautiful out and we ran along the flood wall across the river from the Red's Stadium. It was packed with cheering people in red clothes. The side that faces the river is cut out so you can see in.

Not my photo. I am not that much of a giant!

Jams 3 and 4: Banana Rum (again) and Strawberry Banana.

2010-04-07T13:33:00.000-07:00

I've made two more jams. Banana Rum is a repeat, but I figure that if it tastes that good, then only 5 jars from a batch is not nearly enough. So now I have 10. What do I do with 10 jars of jam? I take all the screw rings off and look at the tops of the jelly from the side of the jar. The flattest one with the less bubbles and with the closest-to-1/4" headspace (that is, the space between the top of the jam and the jar) goes in my cabinet with the others to be submitted to the fair. Then, I try to find the worst one, and that one goes to us. Then the rest of them go in a box. When that box is full, it goes downstairs. I'm thinking I'll try to sell them at my next yard sale. I currently have 60 jars of jam floating around the house if anyone wants to adopt one. I cannot ship them unless you want to pay for the $5 shipping. I just found that out. I can buy a flat-rate box for $5 shipping and fit about 4 jars in there, so if you
want anything shipped to you it would probably make sense to buy more than one jar.

Jam 4 is Strawberry Banana Jam. I named it Strawbana Jama because I'm super clever. Anyway.

2 1/2 c. de-hulled, crushed strawberries
1 3/4 c. smashed bananas
7 c. sugar
2 T. lemon juice
1 pk pectin.

It turned out great. Except the fruit slightly floated. I was waiting for it to cool and I had an internal arguement. I was telling myself that I have to follow the directions exactly or it won't work out. I countered that I always let the jam cool for the instructed 5 minutes before filling the jar and that it would float, still, so I should just follow my gut and pour it when I felt it was good and thick. I argued that waiting too long would cause air bubbles which is just as unsightly as floating fruit. In the end, I compromised and waited 5 minutes plus another 2 minutes, but not the entire 10 that I wanted. I slightly followed my gut and now have slightly floating fruit. It looks beautiful if you can get past that.

Running news: today I go back to running. Too bad it couldn't have been last week when our Wednesday run was a paltry 3.5. Today we are going 8.5 miles and Saturday is 11+. Gulp.

I read last month's Runners World and it discussed the mileage threshold that everyone has before they get injured. Some people can run 40 miles a week before they get injured. Some can run only 11. Mine is apparently anything that exceeds 20 miles. The first time I ran 20, I injured my hip. The last time I ran 20 (actually 24 miles--yike!) my neuroma filed a complaint. So, adios, 1000 Miles in 2010. A. Di. Os.

Tomorrow is Violet's pre-op physical before her procedure on Friday. I'm a nervous wreck. Does anyone else have prior experiences w/ granulomas? My nervousness probably explains the increase in jelled-goods this week. Next on the agenda: Mandarin Jam.

Jam 2: Banana Rum Jam.

2010-04-03T11:22:00.000-07:00

Bright and early this morning, we took Vi to Children's Hospital to meet with the ENT. He was in the room with us for under 5 minutes and we were ushered to the surgery scheduler's office to sign consents to have a granuloma removed from the inside of Vi's cheek. That is scheduled for Friday. Her pre-op physical is scheduled for Thursday morning. It's been a crappy morning.

Us at the doctor's office before we saw the doctor.

I started to do dishes to keep myself from dwelling on all of this, and before I knew it, I was chopping bananas up for a jelly that I planned on making next, but not today. Vi watched for 75% of it and seemed to enjoy herself. The songs about banana-nana jam may have helped.

4 c. banana
5 c. sugar
6 T lemon juice
1 t citric acid
1 packet of pectin
rum extract to taste.

I think this one is a winner. The fruit seems to be evenly-distributed throughout the jar and it tastes great!

Jam 1: Onion Garlic Jam.

2010-04-02T21:38:00.000-07:00

Apricots, as you may know and as I know now, are not available at the grocery at this time. So, my 2nd option for the first of 25 Master Jam Challenge was the Onion Garlic Jam. I know that the title may be a turn-off already. Onion Garlic = ok. Onion Garlic + Jam = what the what? So, it's basically just a spread. Crackers. Sandwiches. Don't think of it as a fruit spread or you will be sorely disappointed.

After Vi went to sleep at 10p, I took 3 lbs of onions down to the basement living room to spend time w/ O. Chopping onions in the same room as someone who is reading an illustration book sounds like quality time to me. These were some strong, strong onions. Cry, cry onions. 5 finely chopped onions later and I was starting my jam at 11:15p.

I sauteed my onions in olive oil and vegetable oil. Added 1/2 c. sugar and 5 t. of chopped garlic. Sauteed again. Added more sugar, and 2 c. white wine. To those who are unfamiliar, there are 4 c. of wine in a bottle. 2 of those were spent in my jam. 2 of those needed a home. More of a dry red wine fan, Yellow Tail Chardonnay was a remarkably easy drink.

Jam-making being all about timing and this being my first try at it after two disastrous failed attempts, I was horrified to find that I was slightly buzzed by the time it came to the nitty-gritty. I caught myself daydreaming about the prospects of tailgating before Cirque du Soleil and brought myself back just in time to stir the pectin at a rolling boil for no more, no less than a minute.

The recipe is supposed to make 6 half-pint jars. The pot looked amazingly-full as I was stirring. After the minute of pectin-stirring, I removed it from heat and set it aside to cool a bit before filling the hot jars. This allows the chopped fruit/vegetables in jam to be evenly-distributed throughout the jam. This was the downfall of my first jam. I ladled it into jars when it was still too warm and the strawberries were at the top. To make light, I called it preserve/jelly, because it was essentially preserves on top and jelly on the bottom. But inside, I was seething.

So, at 12:51a, I removed my 9 jars of jelly (3 extra, how that happened I have no idea--kinda like my underwear tag, perhaps). They are to sit, undisturbed for 24 hours. The house smells deliciously of garlic and onions and my entire family is asleep.

Hopefully I don't reek of onions and garlic the whole weekend.

Onion smash.

25 Master Jam Challenge.

2010-04-02T15:16:00.001-07:00

I am confident that I have mastered jelly. I'm not being a braggart, but I have. I got the straining down, I got the cooking down. Jams, however, have been a source of uncertainty for me. I have made two in my canning career, and zero have worked. One, the strawberries floated. And the other, well, the other was just wrong. It was cantaloupe. It sounded like a good idea, and probably would have worked had the cantaloupe been more ripe. But, that's neither here nor there. It didn't work.

Jellies are my go-to. It's a time commitment, not just some easy project you can accomplish in 30 minutes. I've been willing to put in the time because I fear that I am incapable of jams. No more, my Preserve Friends. No more. I am going to master these jams, once and for all. The plan:

25 Jams in 2 months.
Starting today.

First Jam:
Apricot. As long as they are available at the grocery. If not, Garlic Onion. Report tomorrow.

My biggest expense is the jars. If anyone has any of the small jars floating around their house and would like to give them a home, send me a note at cassandrameinerdingATyahooDOTcom. I will pay you in jam. Naturally.

Oh, I'm still training for the half in May, btw. This is just something extra to do because I have apparently lost the ability to sit still for any amount of time.

M-M-M-My Neuroma and Other Weird Events.

2010-04-01T13:35:00.000-07:00

Podiatrist appt today. Foot is not broken, no stress fractures. I have a bone spur on my L. ankle and a neuroma, which has been giving me the troubles. Remedy: shot of Kenalog in the foot. I asked if it was necessary, and he said yes. I don't really do well w/ needles. I'm doing better with them, though. I have to say that accupuncture needles in the feet is way more uncomfortable than getting a shot in the foot to chill out a cranky nerve. He said I can run again next week, so that rocks. I have to come back in 2 weeks for another shot, but I can do it again. It wasn't that big of a deal.

Driving home, I had a thread on my arm. I pulled it and it was attached to my underwear tag. The thread went out my door. I pulled over and was horrified to see that the tread went all the way down the length of my car and wrapped around the rear window wiper. My underwear tag had completely unraveled. How did this happen?! I have no idea how this happened. This means that I had a sizeable thread coming out of my pants all day and I know I checked myself in the mirror before I left and that wasn't something that I noticed. Maybe it was on a kamikaze mission and shot itself out of my pants at precisely the correct moment and grabbed onto my rear wiper. It's not everyday I get to write a paragraph about underwear tags and rear wipers.

Then, confident that I wasn't going to break anything by using my feet, Vi and I went on a 3 mile walk. It was a beautiful day.

Jelly Sale!

2010-03-30T16:08:00.001-07:00

I have a podiatrist appointment on Thursday so definitely no running until then. In the meantime, I am keeping busy making jelly. I have made three batches in three days: grape jelly, pineapple jelly, and cinnamon apple cider jelly. If you would like to purchase some freshly-made jelly, please visit the shop in the upper right hand corner of my blogger page! Thanks!

Pan Handlers and Spin Class.

2010-03-28T10:23:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was the expo for the race I didn't run today. I like expos, so O and Vi accompanied me downtown to the Duke Energy Center for the Mini Marathon Expo. We had to pay the meter, and we weren't sure if an hour would be enough time, so O added a few more quarters so we'd have enough time to poke around. Well. Let's just say one quarter would have cut it. We were in and out in about 20 minutes. I'm not sure why the expo sucked so much this year. There weren't crowds of people, there weren't very many samples. It was pretty much a tiny expo in a too-big room and at the end of the "vendor" maze, I got my shirt.

Walking back, the three of us, one of us being pushed in a stroller, got hit up for cash by a "down and out" guy who has been "out of work for 6 months." He had all these tattered bills that he needed help paying. He followed us for 5 minutes telling us his story. O was like, "I don't have any extra cash and the money I have is going to my new baby." What a moron. Hitting up a young couple with a baby. We never go downtown. We were outside for all of 20 minutes total.

Anyway. Today I went to spinning, to keep my mind off of not racing in the race I was looking forward to today. I was sick of always getting to the gym when it opens and the class being full. So, I got there 15 minutes early and there were tons of cars out. There were 2 people in line outside the doors, so I got out too. It was freezing. For real. And raining. I was determined, however, to not let that get me down because I wanted to work out this morning and I was not going to step foot on an elliptical. And treadmills are out for another week.

Spin class was an Endurance Ride today. Basically, just a seated ride at a steady cadence. Pretty much like running, though the spinning regulars hated it. I guess that's why they like to spin under normal circumstances. So, I didn't have to worry about all the different positions w/ the spinning since we just stayed down the whole time. My first (and last) spinning class three or so years ago was with this horrendous teacher who knew her stuff but belittled me for not knowing the proper hand positions. It's given me a mental twitch when it comes to learning them.

Hopefully, I will be back to running ASAP. I wonder if I need new shoes? Different shoes? I've been w/ the Asics GT series since the beginning and since everything else has changed since being pregnant, I wouldn't be surprised if I need a different shoe. Fingers are crossed to get back Wednesday, but I will not push it.

A True Convo From Todays Visit to Urgent Care

2010-03-27T07:30:00.000-07:00

Dr.: That's a big foot.
Me: It is.
(after a prodding foot exam)
Dr.: Hmm. You should not run for 2 weeks, and then resume once you've lost 10 -15 lbs.
Me: Do I need to lose 10 to 15 lbs.?
Dr.: No. It would be nicer for your feet if you decide to start running again if you are 10-15 lbs lighter though. But your weight is fine. I mean, you are extremely tall. You are a giant. How tall are you?
Me: 5'11".
Dr.: Stand up. Let me see the height.
(I act like a giant monster getting up from the exam table. Dr. feigns fright)
You are taller than 5'11".
Me: When I say I am 6', no one believes me so I round down.

The doctor hands me a fistful of prescription-strength Aleve and a podiatrist referral to call if it doesn't get better in 2 weeks.

Thanks, Urgent Care.

And my pulse was 43. Take that, Lance.

Stress Fracture.

2010-03-26T20:24:00.000-07:00

I've been dealing w/ some pain in my left foot for weeks. Happy it wasn't my hip, I ignored it. So, Wednesday was an easy 5 mile run and I almost had to call Oliver to come get me because my foot hurt so bad. I'm starting to wonder if it's a stress fracture. It certainly sounds like one. I am planning on going to have it checked out tomorrow morning. Regardless, I'm counting on not running my 15k on Sunday. Sad face. And if it's a true stress fracture, I'd have to stay off of it for 6 weeks. Major sad face. Well, we'll see what the doc says tomorrow. And depending, we'll see what other doors will open because of this.

Trenta.

2010-03-24T19:08:00.000-07:00

I love Starbucks. I do. But at this particular moment in time, Starbucks has made my stomach churn w/ their test-size of 30 oz for the iced coffee drinks. Granted, I often don't get the iced coffee because it's so diluted with ice. Granted, the 30 oz would probably even that out. However, I would feel like a hoss ordering a Trenta. Today. Right now. Maybe, if it's around for a year or two, a Trenta will be just what the Mommy Brain orders. I think what has actually sealed the deal for me not liking the 30 oz off the bat is that this article I read mentioned that it is Starbucks way of competeing w/ McDonald's 31 oz Iced Tea for $1. Not to be a jerk, but I don't think that the same people who like sweet tea from MickyD's will want an Iced Mocha Frap for $2 more.

Also, can anyone direct me to a website where I can read about the new health care plan in it's entirety and in jargon a non-barrister would understand?

In other news, 5 even miles tonight after a 1.25 mile walk w/ Wex. Legs feel a little leady after my 8 mile run on Saturday. Feeling a little intimidated by the 15k on Sunday, but I'll deal. I'm going to get a finisher's medal for Vi if I have to crawl on my bleeding knees the last mile.

I love my Jerky Malerky Wexley.
(ps: it's been well over a year since I got my lips bitten off, so no worries)

Miles Miles Miles.

2010-03-21T19:05:00.000-07:00

This weekend the running group met ~1 hr away to run 8 miles. I kept hitting snooze and even had a dream that I was running late. Dream Casey decided that 8 miles on a Saturday was unnecessary and went about her Saturday with the family. Real Life Casey woke with a start and sleepily did the math and figured she could still get there on time, give or take 15 minutes. 5 minutes into driving, I realized that was faulty thinking and decided that I was on my own for those 8 miles. I went to Kroger to get something akin to Sports Beans, but settled on Black Forrest Gummi Bears and this gem:

I was appalled that these are even out there for people to buy. Maybe I'm insane. But I can probably think of a few better names for these.

Anyway. I went to the super flat (super boring) trail and decided to slog away the miles. It was a weird run. I am so used to running with people (albeit silent people) that my pacing was all off. I talked myself into walking several times. Who cares though. I was running and admiring the lake at one point, and was surprised that the lake had encroached on the trail 20 feet ahead of me. I don't know how people were bypassing it. It basically swallowed up the entire path and then the grass all around was marshy. But, there were people up ahead. I turned around. My plan was to turn around, anyway, but not at that point. I wasn't at the 4 mile mark yet.

My legs started to chafe. It was like I had a 1st degree burn on my thighs. Horrendous. So, I walked more than I wanted. Regardless, I finished my 8 miles.

Then, it was such a beautiful day, the three of us walked a sock over to Mom and Dad's. She wore a hole through a sock I made her, I repaired it, and delivered it. 10 total miles for Saturday.

Today, Vi has been kinda cranko so I took her on a walk and waited for the storm to arrive. It never did. 4 miles for today. She really enjoys her walks, especially since I converted the BOB into the "big girl seat" vs the pumpkin seat. She would just fall asleep in it, and now she is able to look around. She has been talking a ton this weekend.

Tiring.

Other things:
1. I finished another hat for Ms. Codi. Mailing it out tomorrow, if the morning goes well.

2. I decided I need a pressure canner. I will never graduate from jellies and jams to preserving non-acidic vegetables without it. I am getting my stuff together for a massive yard sale sometime this June and will be buying one then with some of the earnings. That works out great as the farmer's market will just start to be hoppin' around that time.

St. Patrick's Day ensemble for our running group run.

Hills and Jelly.

2010-03-18T19:12:00.000-07:00

Last night, it was 63 degrees and sunny, and we did a mountainous hill workout that went along the river. It was a nice, nice run. The good thing about this was that the hilly part was the entire first half. The first half would be steep, steep hills, and when you think there'd be a downhill, it would just be a flat for maybe a block and then be up again. It was pretty rad, though, because the second half pretty much was down hill. I had my Garmin, and I'm unsure of my actual pace as there were stop lights. I know I can program it to stop timing when I stop moving, but I like to know how long I have actually been out. I don't know why. I guess so I can have a more accurate idea of what time it is without having to switch over to the clock view. Anyway, the one mile I ran w/o stopping at a light was a 9:50. 6.5 miles in 1:08.

Today, being my off day, Vi and I went on a 4.25 mile walk around the neighborhood. It was an amazing weather day and she talked a ton. Babbling about whatever it is that babies babble about. And then I came home and made grape jelly while she napped. First batch of jelly for the season!! I hope to have several varieties to submit to the fair this year (you may or may not be aware that I submitted apple cider jelly and orange-clementine jelly last year and got 2nd place with both in two separate categories).

This was a pretty good day to kinda round out the blick that has been piling up this week. Three car repairs, owing a ton of taxes, scheduling Vi's consult with the ENT because of her salivary mucocele cyst. Ugh. I've been so stressed out that I have been unable to think. I don't get like that very often, thank goodness.

Hopefully, it will be a better next week!

Ms. Vi.

2010-03-17T13:55:00.000-07:00

It's been busy around the Ding house lately! Ms. Violet has started eating sweet potatoes! She only eats a third of a jar at a time, but it's amazing to watch her learn. The first time I gave them to her, she was all tongue and most of it, of course, ended up sliding merrily down her chin. Now, she's actually opening her mouth for it and making impatient grunts when the spoon is too slow.

Yesterday, I put her whale tub in the big bath and prepared to give her a thorough wash-down after a especially explosive poo. The water was a little chilly, and she balled up her fists and frowned at me. So, I turned on the warm water and pushed the tub closer to the faucet. Well, the big tub has a textured bottom and it made a scary sound so she immediately was upset. She cried and kicked a ton. I hugged her and she calmed down, but realized how fun it was to kick, so our bath time got incredibly more fun and exciting. Lots of kicking. Lots of laughing. Lots of splashing. Every time she'd kick, the tub would inch closer to the faucet, which she thought was awesome. So. Bathtime rocks even more, now.

Then, last night was the first night that she slept in her crib the whole night. She's such a big girl. I miss having her in with us, though. :(

Sweet Patoots are a hoot.

Mucocele.

2010-03-11T18:37:00.000-08:00

Yesterday we ran the bridges downtown. It was like 64 degrees, so I was pumped to wear shorts and a t-shirt. People were actually wearing their tights and tech shirts and head bands--as if they were running in 30 degree weather! It was insane. I can't imagine how they felt at the end of it all.

We ran by a drive-thru liquor joint. Why would anyone need liquor so quickly that they couldn't run into the store to get it? I would say it was because of the novelty, but I have a feeling that novelty isn't the buying-force behind ghetto customers. I could be wrong.

We also ran by the circus. There were people everywhere and it smelled like elephant. I don't think elephants were put on the planet to entertain fat Americans. If they are going to put animals in the circus, it should be deer since there seems to be so many of them around. There doesn't seem to be a surplus of elephants. At least from what I can tell.

Anyway. 5 miles of hills yesterday.

Today was Violet's 4 month check. She's 17 lbs 12 oz, and is 25 3/4" long. The doc commented on how strong and advanced she was, as she was practically sitting by herself on the exam table. We got the OK to start rice cereal and then go through the stage one foods. We'll see how it goes.. The doctor noticed a cyst on her gum/lower cheek, called it a mucocele cyst. Apparently it's a baby-thing, probably caused by getting some tissue caught between her gums while sucking on her bottle. She said that if it doesn't go away that it would need to be removed. Sometimes they rupture on their own, but if they don't they can cause a hard permanent bump on the gum. Has anyone had any experience with this? She wants us to wait a month and see if it goes away, otherwise she'll refer us to an ENT.

I have my friend her check on Monday. She was really surprised and cried. Thank you to everyone who donated! I still have the button up on my blogger page if anyone wants to order a hat or jelly, still. :)

Vi's first trip to the Cincinnati Art Museum

Running, Makeup, and Shelly.

2010-03-05T17:38:00.000-08:00

This outfit just may be a little too small.

Wednesday's run was pretty awesome. It was a 5 mile run and it just so happened that I started with a too slow group that helped me not start out too fast. When they dropped away after the first mile, I saw the next pace group up ahead and just made it my goal to meet up with them. So, for the next mile and a half I slowly inched closer and closer to them and caught up to them. I was doing about a 9:30/mile which is pretty fast for me. The last mile, I pretty much was gassed. This sounds really cornball, but I thought of all my friends and family who aren't at a point where they are able to run and how much they would probably enjoy the feeling of running along the river at night, across bridges, through deserted parks and it be safe because of the quantity of people running together. My last mile was a 9:20.

Tomorrow is my first race in 15 months. It's a 10k and I think it will be a pretty fun time. We are having a little bit of a warm up here in Cincinnati so I'm hoping Saturday morning is a pleasant one. I think we are planning on taking Ms. Violet to the art museum too. Fun weekend for the Dings!

On a non-running-related note, I have to talk about makeup. I am seriously low maintenance. I probably could stand to step it up a few notches, but for some reason, I will splurge on good makeup and shoes. That's pretty much it. If I am doing a new hairstyle, I'll go to my arm-and-a-leg stylist, but that happens rarely. I just got a trim at Super Cuts for like $20 and I haven't had it touched since last July. Before that it was last February.

My favorite mascara of all time was Clinique's Long Pretty Lashes. I've used it since I was 15. Well, I went through this phase last year where I wanted to find a good drug store brand of mascara, so when I ran out of it I bought that stuff in the pink and green tube. And then I bought some other. And some other. None lived up to my expectations, and the money spent on the crap brands that didn't work could have bought me a good tube or two of my LPL. I saw the error in my ways so on Sunday, I put a Sephora order together of my essentials: Benetint and Urban Decay eye shadow. To my horror and dismay, LPL has been discontinued as of January of this year. I just searched for the best-selling mascara, which ended up being Christian Dior DiorShow. It arrived yesterday, and I have to say that it is the BEST BEST BEST mascara on the PLANET!! It is. Not a single clump, not a single smudge. It looks like I have a trillion eyelashes. It's just a very very amazing product. Totally recommend.

What are your makeup must-haves?

PS: I need your emails if you participated in the virtual race so I can send you the cake recipe!! email me at cassandrameinerdingATyahooDOTcom!

-----------------------

Here are the questions that Mrs. Shelly answered for me. She ran the fastest split in the Virtual Marathon Relay and as a reward (?!) she got to be subjected to my random questions. She was kind enough to play along. She's an inspiring lady, and you should definitely check out her blog!

1. When did you start running? I started running when I was young teenager. Why? Honestly, several reason. 1.) I had rheumatic fever as a child after having undiagnosed strep throat. The rheumatic fever effected the large joints of my body and my heart. I even went through a period of time where I was unable to walk. For many years to follow I was on antibiotics and iron (due to severe anemia). With each doctor appointment my parents were told to limit my physical exertion. I didn't take gym class at school. I was a member of the 4-H Swingers (yeah when you live in the country and grow up in the 70s - 80s square dancing is a pontenial pasttime!) I was even made to sit out at practices so that I wouldn't get over-heated and strain my heart which had suffered valve damage as a result of the rheumatic fever. I listened for a while. But then I got tired of sitting and watching. And I just started trying. I realized I could do WAY more than I was being allowed without my heart "fluttering." (When my damaged valve was stressed it caused my blood to not oxygenate completely and I would have heart palpations, lightheadedness, dizziness and potentially fainting spells.) I found that I could feel when my heart was saying, 'okay back off a little!' and I just learned to listen but keep doing. I started walking and then doing exercise tapes (yeah, that would be jazzerise back in the day!). I just kept trying more. I walked further and faster. I started jogging. I went from that beginning to working at two local gyms teaching al kinds of fitness/areobics classes and personal training (until I getting married and having my children). After kids running and racing just for me was all I could fit into life (along with working a grown up full time job). 2.) I love being outside. I love nature. Everything in it. I love trees. Seeing these things by the energy of my own two legs is a humbling experince. Running is often a personal spiritual time for me.
3.) I also run because of a personal belief that human beings (Americans certainly) unestimate what they can do, what they are doind and what they should do with their physical bodies on a daily basis. I believe that regardless of how active you think your job keeps you a person needs to engage in daily physical exercise to enjoy a long and healthy life. I want to show by example that each person can accomplish more than they probably THINK they can IF only they push themselves. I don't think everyone can run a marathon but maybe they can if they start doing a little more each day. I want this for my family. I want this for my friends. I want this for the guy I passed on the way to work this morning who smile and wave at me.

2. You seem to keep a pretty quick pace. Have you always been speedy? Or have you spent time trying to become faster? I don't keep a speedy pace. I am all over the charts. My husband will say that I NEED speed work to get consistantly faster. It's true. I perfer to run tons of miles and by do so I get faster because I am able to run faster for longer and longer distances. Of course, this has taken me years to do (like 2 decades)! I used to do speed work with my hubbs but since his injury I have be pretty much on my own. I typically run between a 8 - 9 minute mile. That is about my comfort speed for road running. Again I have been running for a long time. I know that is NOT where I started at all! And there are loads of runs when I am much slower simply because I don't want to work that hard or the terrian is unfriendly. I like to TRY and remember that I run because I love being outside and seeing my surroundings from the soles of my feet.

3. What's your big running goal for 2010? The 50k on Saturday is the start of seeing is I can handle a 50 mile trail run this fall (October). It is the start of enjoying my running more and worrying about place and pace less. I have nothing to prove anymore. I have BQ many of my 12 marathons. I have taken second place (womens div.) in a marathon. Now I want to remember that I simply enjoy running. I simply enjoy being outside. I hope that my love of running and being active will help those around me to want a little more from themselves. (And show them that they can!)

4. What's you big non-running goal for this year? Our family has lived partially separated since 9/11. This was to only be for a little while however, all these years later the situation still exists. I hope this year to have the courage to move away from my birth family and friends, take our kids away from the only home we've ever shared and start our lives together again as a family.

5. Have you had any trouble getting in your runs during this winter? It is a challenge to get out there when you have to arrange for a child too big for the jogging stroller and get one situated in the jogging stroller (keeping them warm for however long) but most days I can do it. I am also fortunate enough to have a treadmill at home. Another reason I have been so successful lately is because of this amazing bloggy running community that I have been so warmly welcomed into! I can not count the times that I would have just run a little or not at all but then I think about what I told all my bloggy friends I was going to do! It is wonderful to be a little more accountable. Plus my kids help to keep me doing what I say I am going to do. ;-)

6. How's Army Son? Army Son is great! Due to the fact that he is going into a sensitive area of the military. I have been instructed to not mention much about what he is doing. However, I can say that he is doing amazingly well. It is so rewarding to see him find something that allows him to be so successful. He struggled with finding a real purpose for himself. He felt lost with his friends all having dreams and goals and concrete interests that they wanted to pursue. In what he is preparing to do now, he excels. I pray that it continues that way. He is loving his new journey! As his mom, I could not be more proud and I am happy to remind him, that I kept telling him there was someone amazing inside of him and I knew that he would discover that person one day!

7. Do you have any advice for newbie runners? Don't get up. Set goals. Even if the goal is from one run to the next. Set a goal of running X distance and then don't allow your self to stop until to do. No matter how fast or slow. The next run set another goal. I believe it takes 21 days to create a new habit. And in the beginning running is a habit. After a habit is formed, a love for running can grow. Consistency is a big part of getting there. Whether you want to be a fitness runner or a competetive marathon runner, it all still simply takes choosing each day to put "One foot in front of the other"!

8. What's your favorite pre and post run snack? Do you Gu? I am a naturalist when it comes to running. I rarely ever Gu-ed before joining this bloggy running world. Now I do sometimes. I simply get up, go to the bathroom, brush my teeth, grab my clothes and lace my shoes and run. I rarely eat before runs. Before my first probably 5 marathons I ate toast with honey. That is as fancy as I get. After a run, I don't have a regular thing I eat. In the summer I usually reward myself after a sweaty run with a popsicle. Yeah, great fuel I know but it is a wonderful thing to look forward to sharing with the kiddos as we go for a walk after my run.

9. What role do you think the running blog community plays in motivating you? I kind of touched on this already in previous questions but to restate; the bloggy running community helps to keep me accountable and encourages me. In the rural area I currently live in, I don't have running groups or people to get together with who are running the kind of distances I run. I could meet up with a small group of people who run in town but I wonder why they want to deal with traffic lights and think their running is more about talking at intersections then it is about running, so I am on my own. I look forward to reading other runners' experinces in all kinds of different races and training runs. It helps to have found people who seem to understand how embedded running is within me. How very much running is Shelly and Shelly is running. I know that it honestly makes me partly who I am today. I can't thank my followers and constant commenters enough for they honest thoughts and opinions!

10. Do you have anything you want to share? :) As much as we are all the same in this one vein of our lives we are each individuals trying to help eachother along the way. I hope that we each get teach eachother something and learn something from eachother. Enjoy the journey!

Caffeine.

2010-03-02T15:02:00.001-08:00

Thank you for everyone who donated money to help my bud pay for her IVF! I'm going to give her the check the next time I see her. If anyone is still interested, I'm keeping the donation button up, just moving it down my sidebar.

Ms. Violet is 16 weeks old, and will be officially 4 months old next Sunday! It's insane. Her little milestones are piling up practically daily. She's starting to laugh really hard at things and is still sleeping through the night. She's interacting with things in her little activity center and is very observant. Oh, and she's getting pretty good and pulling out her binky and putting it back in. She's great. Mom and Dad think she'll be left-handed like me. She does use her left hand a lot, but I think we may be grasping at straws to find some sort of hint that she shares any bit of my DNA. Her next checkup is on Thursday. I also have an appointment with Tax Man on Thursday.

Vi's penchant for napping is waning. She's fighting sleep as best as she can at this moment by talking and flailing, eyes shut.

Anyone have any thoughts on the plans of the USPS cutting out Saturday delivery and increasing post rates by 25%? I am bummed. The USPS had a leg-up on the other parcel delivery companies. Now with that cut and price hike, I wonder how long the postal service will be around.

I read today that the Chilean earthquake knocked Earth off it's axis by 3 inches and has resulted in days being shorter by a microsecond. In other words, nothing's changed.

On my way home today, I stopped by Starbucks because I had a raging caffeine-withdrawal headache. Why do we do this to ourselves? Why do we start drinking coffee? Or once we start, why do we let ourselves be without it long enough to get headaches? The employees in the drive-thru were having a blast. They were laughing and having a great time. I remember when I worked at the health food store and we'd laugh and laugh. And it was perfectly okay. We didn't have to whisper and laughing wasn't interpreted as not working.

No running today or yesterday. Or Sunday. I feel like I need to be super-cautious about overuse injuries. It's going to be getting warmer from her on out and I would be ticked if I hurt myself before then. I'm looking forward to walking w/ Violet. Hopefully this weekend, when it gets up to 50+!

Oh, if those who participated in the virtual race could email me with "race!!" in the subject line, I'll send you my cake recipe. Finding your emails seems very daunting at the moment. Thanks!

The Results!!

2010-02-28T05:28:00.000-08:00

So, I revamped the teams to make up for some of the racers who were unable to participate this weekend. I also only got one game face, so I'm omitting that aspect of the scoring, but thanks RunninAround! :D

Team Blues Brothers 2000
Shelly 2 legs 1:14:42 (37:21/leg)
RunninAround 2 legs 1:40:56 (50:28/leg)
Casey 1 leg 56:18

3:51:56

Team Legally Blonde 2: Red, White & Blonde
Sarah 2 legs 1:52:00 (56:00/leg)
Casey 1 leg 56:18
Suzanad 1 leg 1:04:35
Barbara 1 leg 56:53

4:49:46

Team Addams' Family Values
Megan's half time x 2! 2:58:48
= 4:56:36

Team Parent Trap II
MCM Mama 1 leg 50:04 (x3 = 2:30:12)
Heidi 2 legs 1:36:00
=4:06:12

Congrats to Team Blues Brothers 2000! Shelly, congrats to you for having the fastest leg! As a reward (?!) for you, I will email you a bunch of questions and post them on Friday. :) Everyone else: you all did fantastic, so you all are winners, and I will send you all a copy of my super-secret (ha!) healthy chocolate cake recipe!! :D Thanks, ladies!

I hated bridges today.

2010-02-27T14:33:00.000-08:00

**Thanks to Mrs. Katie for donating in exchange for a copy of my book, I am two hats away from my goal! ...anybody? ...anybody? Anyone need a knit hat? Click donate and tell me what yarn you want!!** thanksthanksthanks!

Running group met today. It was snowing and 2oish degrees out and on the agenda was 7.5 miles. I really wasn't mentally prepared for this run. I don't have very much luck with 7-milers. We went over a ton of bridges today. I hate running bridges. I really do. Especially when it's snowy. I keep picturing someone slipping and going over the edge into the river 100 feet below. Those rails just come up about waist-high.

So, we left NPT and ran into Cincy and, of course, it was a ghost town. It's weird running through downtown and there not being anyone out. Even the prostitutes were still asleep. I stopped at a different running group's water stop. I overheard them talking about their 12.5 mile run today, so that was their midpoint or so. No matter that I had only gone 1.25 miles at that point. I was thirsty, goshdernit, and I had already hit a my first mental wall. Seriously. Not mentally prepared for this.

I fantasized about laying down and giving up. I looked longingly at benches. I saw cabs drive by, unoccupied, money jingling in my pocket (only 3 quarters, but that's just a minor detail). I slogged on. I heeded the traffic lights, except when a questionable person was at the corner. Then I sped up, which only made me more tired. I got stuck at one crosswalk too many and I found myself alone downtown. So alone, in fact, that I felt like I was the only one running downtown. I found myself thinking, angrily, "I am paying these people so I can run by myself in the ghetto?!" I really had no idea where I was so I got out my sweaty route map and tried to figure it out.

Those few minutes gave the people behind me a chance to catch up so we figured it out together. Everyone was frustrated in the lack of coaches and pacers. There's no reason why newbies (as many of them are) should have to figure out their paces and navigate downtown, when I know many of them have probably not spent much time down there, as this running group was created so people wouldn't have to drive "all the way to Cincinnati to run." (I do it because it's close, but I'd do the Cincinnati group if it wasn't available.) Plus, many of them are running in gym shoes and sweatpants. They haven't gone that step to purchase anything running-specific because they've been running only 6 weeks. So, many don't have Garmins to pace themselves or to know when to turn around when the instructions said to "go .5 miles and then turn around."

But anyway.

7.87 miles today.

Oh. And when we got back to the store, the let us know that we are all participating in a 10k next Saturday as our run.