Trees in OK

Forty

2009-07-14T08:05:00.000-07:00

When you were a kid, what did you think forty years old looked like? What age did you stop aging in your mind's eye when you think of yourself? Are you startled when you look in the mirror?

I have a lot of freckles. Lots of them. Enough so that when I tan, I freckle and instead of looking tan, it's like my freckles sort of grew together to form a tan. It is worse on my shoulders, where I have huge sun spots. When I look at Nathan, I see that smattering of freckles across his cheeks. I know he get this from me. Nevertheless, I am always slightly surprised when I look in the mirror and see the freckles on my face. I do not wear much makeup, either, so they are quite apparent.

I am also startled when I see that crease between my eyes. Now, when gazing at the computer, I deliberately try to relax my face and not have that concentrated look. I would be a prime candidate for some kind of procedure, but I have never met anyone in real life who has had botox or anything else. Am I so concerned about my face and growing older that I would do this? I do not know. It's not really on the table for me. But, hey, if you have any experience or could recommend a good cream, let me know, okay?

Hands, skin - they still seem okay. It's really just my face. Oh, and those grey hairs that make me run to the hair salon every seven weeks. While I sat in the salon chair last week as my stylist was mixing the color, I had a chance to look at all the grey winding its way through my hair. There was a lot.

So, when I was a kid, I am not sure what I thought forty looked like. My parents were young - just barely in their 40's when I graduated from high school. They seemed young to me then - not their age, you know? Even now, I do not see their age when I see them.

When I picture myself in my mind, it is at about 32 / 33 years old. Not young, but not old. Just the perfect age where you sort of have life figured out, are comfortable with who you are, and have the means to do a little more than you did 10 years before.

Still, I look forward to forty and beyond. I hope I grow old gracefully.

Potty Training

2009-07-10T07:15:00.000-07:00

So, last Friday, I had the day off work, I had resolved that J has to be potty trained and I was going to do it in one weekend. Yes! Because I am superwoman, right? There is no earthly reason why she should not be able to be PT'd in 3 short days.

Day 1
Seven, maybe eight, maybe nine accidents. Panties, dresses, potty chair easily accessible. I bribed with M&M's. I poured water with a splash of juice in it down her throat all day. She did make it twice onto the potty. It was not a complete failure, but it was not a resounding success, either.

Day 2
4th of July. After the morning spent doing things similar to the day before, I put a pullup on her, dragged her out to my in-laws for hamburgers, homemade ice cream and lots of fireworks. We lasted 5 hours, then called it a night. I think any successes we had were undone by the pullup and taking her out of her routine.

Day 3
Slightly better than Day 1. Desperate call to my MIL. She gladly would take J on Monday and Tuesday and work with her.

Day 4 (MIL Day 1)
No successes, but MIL thinks she knows what to do.

Day 5 (MIL Day 2)
With the bribery of a lollipop (thank you, Tootsie Pop!), she went potty twice.

Day 6
Back at daycare for the day. She would tell her teachers she needed to go, then do nothing.

Day 7 (MIL Day 3)
Potty all day. No freakin' way. Success!

Day 8 (MIL Day 4)
Yet to be seen. I am both cautiously optimistic and slightly scared for the weekend.

Greeblepix Contest

2009-06-16T11:26:00.000-07:00

I am not a good photographer and my subjects usually include my kids. However, Greeblemonkey is hosting her monthly photo contest - pics on the fly.

This picture was taken in March with the only big snowfall Tulsa had this past winter. The kids were able to build a snowman that lasted roughly 6 hours.

My New Best Friend

2009-06-04T07:55:00.000-07:00

The squat.

Yes, it is my new best friend. After years of reading about the power of lunges and squats, sometimes incorporating walking lunges, back lunges, side lunges for months, but never ever considering the squat, I have begun to include it in my routine.

Wow.

I have been missing out! I feared my butt would get even bigger. I feared my thigh muscles would bulge and make it even more difficult to pull denim over them. No fear! It did not happen!

I have been including two sets of 25 squats in my arm / sholder weight routine, roughly 5x/week. I hold 20 lb dumbbells on my shoulders, feet positioned should width apart, facing forward, and just do it. I looked in the mirror this morning and my arse actually looks higher and smaller. Who knew?

I am very very happy and want to hear from you. Have you done something with surprising results - good or bad? What is your new best fitness tip?

I'm Back!

2009-05-28T07:12:00.000-07:00

Did you miss me?

I have essentially had nothing to say over the past few months. Or, that's what I thought. In reality, I think I had a lot to say, but little of interest to anybody. But, Aimee's post yesterday about why she started to blog, how she feels about blogging and how it has evolved for her has rejuvenated me.

I will try to keep up with it. No promises on frequency (or quality). But, it will be just me.

Problem Solved

2009-01-12T10:51:00.000-08:00

Thanks, Nat & Gretchen!

The reason I was curious about the difference between astonish and astound is that I tend to use astonish and a friend of mine uses astound, but rarely do either of us use the other word. Was one of us incorrect? Is it a matter of choice? What is the difference?

From Merriam-Webster's Dictionary:

Astonish: can imply a dazing or silencing or it may mean to surprise so greatly as to seem incredible or sometimes merely unusual

Astound: stresses a stunning or overwhelming emotional effect and usually implied so great a difference between what one believes possible and what one discovers to be true that one can find no precedent for it; thus

A piece of news surprises one when it is unexpected, it astonishes when one finds it hard to believe, and it astounds when one cannot account for it by an previous knowledge or experience.

Lesson complete.

Astonished? Astounded?

2009-01-09T08:15:00.000-08:00

Today's linguistics issue (I wish I was William Safire sometimes) is the difference between astonish and astound. Is there a difference other than personal preference? I do not know. It will be my goal to uncover the mystery. Report back on Monday.... What do you think?

The Plan (version 2009) & Other Musings

2009-01-05T07:22:00.000-08:00

I am going to follow Hal Higdon's Advanced training program for the half marathon on April 26, 2009. That means training officially starts on Feb. 2. I can always bump it down, but I cannot bump it up, if I start at the Intermediate level.

So, today, I am waiting on pins and needles hoping to have news from Gretchen. The news itself will have to come from her. So go bug her about it, mkay?

N is back to school today. Thank goodness! Major kudos go to W, who took off most of the last three weeks to hang with N. Early last week, we registered N for a 3 day, 2 hr/day soccer camp at the indoor soccer facility. It was good to get him out of the house and running every day. W was able to work 1/2 a day, I brought N to work with me, my FIL took him to camp, W picked him up, then they played the balance of the day.

So my QOTD for you is this - did you ever obsess over your child's milestones? Did you obsess over the second child's (if applicable) as much as the first child's?

Happy 2009

2009-01-02T08:11:00.000-08:00

My family has come and gone and, as usual with things that one obsesses over, it was smoother than expected. There was tension between my parents and my brother, but I resolved that it was between them and not going to ruin my holiday with my family.

Everyone left on Saturday - my parents early, my brother mid-afternoon. Although I would have been happy for everyone to stay longer, it was probably an appropriate length of time. We were able to reorder the house and have a day of rest before returning to work (me) on Monday.

My parents have actually just arrived in California to spend two months. I envy them that - it is so beautiful on the central coast and they have such good friends there. I know they will enjoy it.

As I look back on 2008, I realize the year passed too quickly and that I have much happiness in my life. I know it will continue into 2009.

I do not "do" resolutions. I generally put forth a running challenge for myself and I am pondering a half marathon goal finish of 1:50:00 for this year. Today, I do not feel like putting out a marathon race goal, but I enjoy the half marathon distance. It is challenging without being all-consuming. So there it is - thinking of the OKC Memorial Marathon - running the half marathon race for that weekend. Hopefully Anne and Gretchen will accompany me.

Insofar as other things, well, Jocelyn has to be potty trained before the end of August. I want her to go to a good preschool next fall. Ideally, she would attend N's school, but that requires application and testing. I just cannot see it happening for the fall.

Nathan is great, so I hope he continues to enjoy school and life and have the wonderful sense of humor he had.

Warren is great, too. I hope we can spend more time together and enjoy each other.

Happy Holidays!

2008-12-22T09:13:00.000-08:00

I will be out quite a bit this next week. My entire family is coming into town - a first - to spend Christmas. My parents arrive mid day tomorrow. My brother and his brood, including 17 year old foreign exchange student, arrive last Wednesday. My emotions run the gamut of excitment to dread. Dread mostly because I have never hosted so many people before!

I hope this time of year finds everyone in good health and good humor.

Muppets Rock!

2008-12-11T12:25:00.000-08:00

Yes, they do. I love the Muppets, as does my dad. One of the best things is sharing the Muppets with my kids. So, for your viewing pleasure, is REM & The Muppets.

They Rocked Us

2008-11-24T11:04:00.000-08:00

Some very good friends moved to New Orleans about 18 months ago. Our sons went to daycare together starting at about age 13 months. Our daughters shared a nanny for a bit. My daughter still wears some of Olivia's clothes. The mom is the one I could call to drop off my kids for 15 min or for 2 hours and she would ask that they stay longer. And vice versa.

They came to visit for a brief and fun filled 24 hours. This sort of encapsulates the time.

Hands-Off Parenting

2008-11-18T07:35:00.000-08:00

There comes a time in your children's lives when they have to learn the lessons the hard way. It sucks as a parent to have to witness this, to have to enforce it and to stand on the sidelines. But not doing so means that your son (in this specific case, I am sure J will have her own issues in time) will have to endure this same lesson several times before he "gets it."

A few weeks ago, N had to write a note to us about his behavior in science (showing the middle finger) and in before care (grabbing a friend's crotch). His teachers encouraged a consequence at home and they were doling out a consequence at school. At home, he was relegated to his room directly after homework, piano practice, and dinner for two nights. No interaction with us and his sister is difficult for my social child.

Yesterday, I had to Nathan to Kumon after school, then to scouts. Once home, I was going through his folder and found another note:
Dear Mom & Dad,
I was mean to J-M and said I was
licking his butt.
From,
Nathan

Nice, huh? There was a place for a parent to sign and date. I waited until N's father arrived home and we discussed it with Nathan. The consequence - again - was to be relegated to his room. Instead of two nights, it would be three nights. We decided that each time we receive a note like this, we will add a night. We had Nathan write an apology to his friend.

This is not fun. This part of parenting is hard. We want to spend time with him after school. We enjoy our child. He is funny and sweet (despite his tasteless words of yesterday). He has a super sense of humor. Warren and I wonder where he heard this. Well, we do not wonder, really, as we are rather sure who he heard it from. Yes, that same friend to whom he said it. This same child has been at our house multiple times and has said similar things. Does that make it right? Not at all. These are seven year old boys who think fart, butt, and funny noises out of your belly button are uproariously hilarious. On the playground they could say this and get away with it as long as no teacher was about. Is it okay? I am not sure. I remember many things as a child and thought they were funny and clammed up as soon as an adult's presence was known.

Do we teach him he has to be careful when he says this?
Do we teach him that it is not funny?
Do we teach him that even though his friend said this, that his saying it is not okay?
Do we teach him to avoid this friend because he seems to get in trouble a lot when they are together (and said friend seems to be very good at avoiding it)?
Are we (and the school) being unnecessarily hard on a seven year old?

Nathan's biggest problem with behavior is impulse control. We need to teach him to think before he acts or speaks. So, no, we probably are not overreacting. But this lesson is hard on us, too.

Route 66 Half Marathon

2008-11-17T08:10:00.000-08:00

On Friday, a coworker asked if I was running the Route 66 Half Marathon. My first response was no. I had planned on a few months ago (along with the Nike Women's Marathon, which I then decided not to run), but I had not trained for it. I have been running strong and have added two mid-week runs of 7 miles, so I have a very strong base, but not the distance. My weekends are so full with soccer games, TU tailgating, laundry, etc., that getting in a long run of more than 8 mi has not been happening.

I had such a great racing year in 2007 that it has been very difficult for me to be motivated to run. I even balked at the Tulsa Run 15k three weeks ago. I love that race.

But, I decided, why not? I can always walk part of it. She had a similar training background - only 8 mi long runs. We did not intend to run it together, but just standing beside someone else at the starting line helps.

So, yesterday, I wake up and head out. I call E as soon as I park. She had just arrived. We agreed to meet at the starting line in about 10 min. I arrive and cannot see her. I line up around the 9 min/mi marker, looking for the Fleet Feet pacer with the 2:00 balloon. As much as I would love to finish in 1:45, I do not think it is anywhere reasonable at this time. I never see E, but meet a young lady from Newton, KS, who is running her first half marathon. We chat nervously, trying to stay warm and anxiously await the starting gun.

It takes 35 sec to get to the start line, then it is slight uphill and right turn over the 21st St bridge over the Arkansas River. I hit 1 mi at 9:00 minutes. I hit 2 mi at 17:30. I continue this pace for 7 miles. I feel like I am on the moon! It feels great. But then the reality that I have another hour hits me. UGH. But, I am half way done, right? I can deal with that.

In my mind, I remember my friend Anne saying, you can do anything for 45 min (when referring to running, particularly on a treadmill). So I keep that in mind. About 3 minutes after the turnaround on Riverside, I see E running the other way. She is not too far behind and looks strong. Running Riverside is flat, but boring. Nearly every race in Tulsa includes Riverside and it also is part of the Tulsa Parks system, boasting a soon to be completed revamped trail system. If you train for a marathon in Tulsa, you very likely run part or all of your long runs along Riverside. Familiarity does not relieve one of drudgery.

Just before 9 mi, we turn east on 31st St, heading into pretty neighborhoods and hills. Yes, hills. At the end of the race. I walk through my first water stop at the top of a hill. Then more hills. More walking. I try to limit my walking to only water stops, but realize the liquid in my empty stomach is sloshing around and making me cramp.

At 11 miles, I think, thank goodness. I can run for 18 min or so. I do not need to walk any more. One more hill and I know it will be flat or downhill. Whew. I am right.

As I round the corner for the last 1/2 mi, I am hit with the odor of smoking meat at the finish line. Normally, I enjoy this. But not then. I want fresh air, unpolluted. I start counting my steps - 0 (right), 0 (left), 0 (right), 1 (left) - etc. This is my go-to technique for pushing through a hard part of a run or trying to focus on my breathing. One more curve and I see the finish line. I race under the clock at 1:56:00 clock time. Chip time is 1:55:22. I beat my previous PR (Denver 2007) by 24 seconds. I look to my right and I had crossed the finish line at the same time as my starting-line friend. She was beaming with pride - as she should! A photographer took our picture together.

Overall: 391/1633
Age division: 21/170
Gender division: 134/959
10K time: 0:53:11
12K time: 1:02:11
Net time: 1:55:22

Strangely enough, I saw on Facebook last night that my college friend, Vicky, had made a post-baby PR in San Antonio of 1:54:47. Way to go, Vicky!!

Back in the Swing

2008-11-14T12:26:00.000-08:00

I hope I may be back in the swing of things and out of a slight funk brought on my a minor personal drama and some major friend drama, coupled with work craziness and employee issues.

Nathan goes to the school library once a week to check out a book. He very responsibly keeps it in his backpack when he is not reading it. I enjoy opening his backpacks on Wednesday to see what he has borrowed. It can be a little insight into his interests. But like many things with my energetic son, I wonder if he simply picks up the first book he finds somewhat interesting rather than taking his time to peruse his choices, knowing he is limited to only one book at a time. Nathan is all about being fast and being first.

His tastes have run toward the military this year - munitions, artillary, swords. This past Wednesday, it was with some interest, but also dread, that I opened his backpack to see a book about cakes. Decorating cakes, really.

Ah. Yes. So, arms and sweets. Those are the interests of my son.

It's Been A While

2008-10-07T13:50:00.000-07:00

And I have not had a whole lot to say. It seems the longer I am away, the longer I can stay away and the less I have to share.

Anyway, I wonder if any of you are still checking in with me.

I have sort of stopped checking on some of my friends and I am sorry. Nat, I am going to go see what is up in your life. And I know I will be encouraged by your running and your attitude.

There are all sorts of things swirling around my head right now. But mostly, it's this:

Close friends are divorcing
Ran into one of my friends' ex-wife last week
Haven't seen her in over two years
Dammit, but she looks awesome
She is running Chicago Marathon in 9 days
Ever wonder how much more me-time you would have if you were divorced?
I do not think it would be worth it
My other friend's soon to be ex is giving her a scant $40/wk
They have two boys
Nan has to live with her parents now
$40 will not even buy gas
How do you tell your kids?
Which is better:
(a) remain married and your kids never see their dad
(b) divorce and your kids actually have a dad interact with them and take them places and has to finally take responsibility for them while under his care
There are compelling reasons either way - even outside the relationship
Imagine how hard it is inside the relationship
What is the straw that breaks someone's back?
What is the defining moment that makes you throw caution aside and verbalize those thoughts to your spouse?
No, I am not talking about me.
But it does make you review your own situation and wonder if all is as it appears.

See my stream of consciousness thoughts? Yeah. It's been whirling around there for some time.

School Mornings

2008-09-11T06:20:00.000-07:00

Usually I leave the house at 7:30 with both kids and have to pass two different school crosswalks on the way to the kids' schools. The two schools are within 1/2 mile of each other and they each have an older gentleman as a crossing guard.

The second school's crossing guard is an older gentleman with salt and pepper hair and a jaunty spirit. I have found my mood lifted upon sight of him and his wide smile and friendly wave to every motorist. I realized this summer that I missed him on my morning journeys.

So to a man who makes me smile five mornings a week and who likely has no clue that he has influenced my day, I say thank you.

The Calm After the Storm

2008-09-02T09:14:00.001-07:00

I am much more calm four days after the announcement. As Julie has said, my initial reaction was emotional. She has a good point - a very good point. I am not as insulted as I was on Friday, but I am vehemently opposed to this decision.

I could not agree more with a reader of The Daily Dish. This choice speaks less about Palin herself than it does about McCain's decision-making process. Or how much he had to say about the decision. In his world, I firmly believe that Tom Ridge or Joe Lieberman would be his VP candidate or choice. But since he is now exposed to the GOP puppetmasters, the man can no longer speak his own mind or make his own decisions.

His handlers need to let him be who he is. He needs to be the maverick he was eight years ago. So his pisses of the fundamentalists. So he upsets the party base. If they are that upset, they should have found a different candidate as their presumptive nominee. It is too late to not support the person who has ostensibly won the party's nomination. Try harder next time, okay?

How did the GOP get to this point?

Another thing - I thought "it's the economy, stupid" take two, but apparently it is the republican base and the Hillary-because she's a woman-voters. I wonder if either campaign was able to put forth a coherent economic plan, if we would be having these discussions about Palin or Obama or Biden or McCain.

Flabbergasted

2008-08-29T14:42:00.000-07:00

Irate. Incensed. Insulted.

These all describe my thoughts and feelings about the GOP's choice in VP. Let's get this right - it is the GOP's choice, not the presumptive nominee's choice. This move shows so many things: desperation, manipulation, pandering.

As a woman, as a voter, as a U.S. citizen, I am incensed. Just because I am a working mom with two kids does not mean I identify with this person any more than I identified with Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama. Just because I have a vagina does not mean I want the history making campaign to fall for the women over the minorities.

As a person, I want to be assured that those people leading our country are qualified and represent my interests - economically, environmentally, socially.

I am outraged that this move is designed to make me look at the GOP party in a new light. It makes me look at it with disgust. It made me firmly decide for the Obama / Biden ticket. I can be manipulated, but do not make it so obvious.

I have read on various sites that this is disingenuous, a hail-mary pass, a last ditch effort to appeal to the Christian right, to women, to middle America. But none of it is designed to appeal to my intellect.

This decision just became a no-brainer.

Updates

2008-08-21T07:13:00.001-07:00

It's been a while. What has been happening out there?

Vacation in Canada - fantastic, beautiful, cool weather, good time with the family

Return to work - crazy, busy, naturally

Kids and I visited my parents in Denver - love Colorado, saw Greeblemonkey and MotherGooseMouse and families and friends, spent some much needed time with my parents

First Grade - N started first grade on Monday. So far, no issues with behavior. He seems to be enjoying it. Back to School Dance on Friday.

Work - more craziness. I have openly admitted I do not enjoy managing people. Please help me.

This & That - Tuesday Ramblings

2008-07-22T08:17:00.000-07:00

Lots to catch up on today, I guess.

I was supposed to run 10-12 mi for a long run this weekend. Saturday morning, the alarm buzzes (or, really, my running watch beeps) at 5 a.m. and W tells me to get out of bed and run. I tell him he is being mean. I just wanted to sleep. And I did. That means I ran at 1 p.m. on the treadmill, after having pushed J in the stroller for 3 mi (1 of it running) as N, J and I went to the bookstore to let W sleep in.

Sunday, more of the same. Eight miles was the most I could do. Really, I have no idea how Gretchen started, not to mention finished, her marathon last year in temps close to what we have now. I am a cold weather runner. Anything over 70 degrees makes me whimper.

However, it had been two weeks since I had a day of rest, so I took one on Monday. I also forced myself to go to Ulta and Sports Authority yesterday at lunchtime and replaced my new shoes that were awful and have not been used (anyone need a pair of size 8 Asics Gel 3000?) with my tried and true Asics GT 2130s. But instead of the usual white / midnight / turquoise, I went crazy and selected the white / liquid silver / frost. Woo hoo! Living dangerously, aren't I? I also found a tres chic New Balance running skirt in a blue and a white sleeveless Under Armour top. Stylish running? Oh no!

Anyway, I decided I would try to have a couple longer runs (read: not 4 mi) during the week, so I recorded Bravo's latest reality show and hopped on the treadmill this morning. Seven miles later, I felt great.

We are headed to Canada this weekend for a vacation! Why Canada? Why the heck not? It is undoubtedly cooler in Jasper Lake Park and it is going to hot hot hot here. But as Nat suggested, if I run outside, I will be doing it with a bell around my neck.

And for anyone who went to BlogHer (Aimee & Julie, that means you), I am glad you had a fantabulous time! And Mayberry, I hope your little girl is better.

Where the Hell is Matt?

2008-07-18T09:07:00.000-07:00

Have you seen this? It's awesome.

Where the Hell is Matt? (2008) from Matthew Harding on Vimeo.

13 miles divided by 2

2008-07-14T07:45:00.000-07:00

I was supposed to run long this weekend - like 13 miles long. I did half that distance on Saturday. Somehow, I got off on counting back my weeks from the marathon. I thought I was supposed to run 10, actually, then came to work and realized it was 13 and that I did not accomplish my goal for the week. Not only that, but I only ran 4.5 mi on Sunday.

So what's a marathon runner in training to do? Do I double up and somehow try to get up to that mileage sometime this week? Do I simply go forward and keep on schedule and ignore my failings?

What have you done that works and doesn't work?

Honestly, I am going to move forward and relish my light week last week - only 28 miles total, following three weeks of 40 miles each. I am going to thank my body for forcing me to take a micro mini-break. Why? I feel refreshed today. I feel good. My legs feel strong, but not tired. My mental outlook is positive. I am on week five of the 18 week training schedule. It's time to make a hard push to the end, gaining each week. In reality, this is the best thing that could have happened to me. I have had my break. No excuses going forward.

So here's to the following good runs this week: 7 mi on Wed; 14 mi on Sat; 6 mi on Sunday; several short easy runs in between. I am mentally and physically up to the challenge.

Time Away

2008-07-11T10:59:00.001-07:00

Makes the heart grow fonder, right? Like Gretchen said, it's not you, it's me. The longer I have not posted, the less I had to say that was interesting, at least in my mind.

Life has been incredibly busy of late and may let up for a few days next week. I did manage to run 9 miles on Saturday and have 10 lined up for tomorrow.

N is going to the best camp this week - fishing, hiking, archery, BB guns, cookouts, making tie-dye shirts, etc. He has come home filthy and tired and happy.

J has impetigo, which her brother had about 4 weeks ago. Poor little girl. Otherwise, she is fine.

Nothing much else right now.

Riddle Me This, Batman

2008-06-30T07:28:00.000-07:00

Is 7 mi running + 35 min playing time of indoor soccer equivalent to 10 miles total? Would you count this as a 10 mi run?

I am wrestling with that question and leaning toward "no," but also think that I can stretch my way to saying yes, particularly given the two events were about 5 hours apart and the indoor soccer comprised a lot of sprinting.

Where would you end?

TIART: 13 words of running

2008-06-26T07:10:00.000-07:00

Runner's Lounge TIART challenge is to finish this sentence, "You are a runner...."

You are a runner when you make room for running gear in your luggage.

I think I finally knew that running was more than a way to stay fit when I would research running venues for work related travel and for vacations. When you pack running shoes, socks, and plenty of shorts, shirts, running bras, suddenly 1/3 of your luggage space is gone. Actually, the first thing I pack is my running gear. Then I know how much room I have to work with and how I then must select my clothes to minimize the different shoes, etc., that I pack.

When you find yourself on a curvy mountain road doing an out and back course, hugging the ditch, you are a runner on vacation to a friend's wedding in North Carolina.

When you find yourself running along Highway 1 up the central California coast and are excited to see mile markers to Hearst's Castle and you realize you can easily run your scheduled 14 mile long run while visiting your parents, you know you are a runner.

When you wake early in January to run in light snow in Salt Lake City so that you can make your 7 a.m. meeting at your temporary work site, you know you are a runner.

So for me, once I started including my running gear in my luggage, I knew I was addicted.

Kisses Sweeter Than Wine

2008-06-23T07:09:00.000-07:00

I heard this version of a classic yesterday on NPR and loved it. I must find out more about Pete Seeger.

The Big 4-0

2008-06-22T12:09:00.000-07:00

I hit the big 4-0 today. No, it is not my birthday. Although I am staring at that age in a little less than nine months, that milestone is not something I am celebrating today.

Today I hit 40 miles for my weekly mileage. I have not logged that mileage for 18 months, since I last was running over 15 mile long runs during marathon training. Even then, I did not sustain it for long.

Recently, I was reviewing my weekly mileage and determined that I increase it to 35-45 mi/week from the 28-34 miles/wk that I had been averaging. Since April and the advent of the Spring Training Plan, I have slowly been increasing that number. I feel good about it, too.

My plan is and has been to achieve a strong base from which I will launch my marathon training plan. Tomorrow is the offical start day of the 18 week marathon training plan. The twelve week base plan passed quickly.

As I look at the increasing length of the weekly long run, I am both excited and fearful. I fear my anxiety about running in heat and humidity will affect my overall performance greater than the actual weather. I fear I have deluded myself into thinking I have the willpower and strength to go through with another marathon. I am excited about meeting these challenges head-on and conquering them.

New Shoes

2008-06-18T05:41:00.000-07:00

I track my workouts and daily mileage on an Excel spreadsheet that I have adapted for use over the past 8 years. I suddenly realized last week that I my running shoes had 692 miles on them. Thanks to some fabulous insoles from New Balance, the usable life of my shoes were extended well beyond the normal 400-450 miles. But the situation had become desperate.

Saturday, I ventured to my local sporting goods store to try on various Asics running shoes. In the past, I have gone to the specialty running stores to have my feet specifically fitted with the perfect running shoes only to be wildly disappointed each time. I know that prevailing wisdom states to buy shoes 1/2 size larger. I don't like it. I have been fitted with various shoes - Addidas, Mizuno, etc. - and I have not liked them. Yes, I am resistant to change.

The last three or four pairs of shoes I have purchased have been Asics GT 2130. I have had good success with them. But I thought I might need a change. So, I grab roughly 6 boxes of shoes - and end up with the Asics Gel 3000. I should have done my homework. These are stability shoes. I have high arches and need some heel support for plantar fasciitis, but I do not need motion control or stability shoes.

I hate these shoes. I have run on them since Sunday and they are heavy. They make me feel like I am slogging through miles. They are not comfortable (for me). I cannot imagine trying to run 10 miles in these shoes.

I must find my way back to the sporting goods store and find my beloved Asics GT 2130 or purchase online, which is likely to be faster for me. Why did I think I needed a change? Hm? Yeah. Change. Now I recall why I am resistant to it.

Meet the Press - what happens now?

2008-06-16T10:32:00.000-07:00

What are your thoughts?

Here is some food for thought.

DH and I were talking about it and he would like to see Chris Matthews. I mentioned Chuck Todd or David Gregory. We both brought up using Tom Brokaw for a short time and we both liked the idea of Andrea Mitchell. And I personally love the idea of Gwen Ifill.

Tim Russert, RIP

2008-06-13T12:46:00.000-07:00

Tim Russert dies at age 58. I just heard this on MSNBC News, Tom Brokaw's voice breaking and gradually growing deeper, full of emotion. A journalistic icon has passed and he will be missed.

Short plan, long plan, plan plan plan

2008-06-12T07:49:00.001-07:00

Today's Take It & Run Thursday topic at the Runner's Lounge is "As you start your marathon (or half marathon) training, don't forget..."

To follow a plan - not necessarily to the T, but even loosely, a runner embarking on a distance of 13.1 miles or 26.2 miles will have much more success, more fun and more satisfaction if said runner has some sort of plan. I have "trained" with just a long run as my weekly have-to run, and I have trained with every day planned. Somewhere is between, but leaning toward the more planned side works best for me.

Sometimes people are hesitant to call themselves a runner because it may be the first time tackling a race of that length, he / she may be a back of the packer, or some other reason. But we are all runners - everyone who goes out there and attempts the distance in a running manner is a runner. As such, we all deserve to put ourselves in the best possible position for success. That means training the body in a variety of ways to make it stronger. That also means training the mind to withstand the various attacks from self-doubt.

For years, I ran without any sort of plan and I enjoyed it, but I never saw improvement and when it came to perform at longer distances, I inevitably fell short of my expectations.

About two years ago, I started to incorporate some speed work into my week. My pace gradually increased, then I realized I was pregnant with baby #2 and went into maintenance mode. After baby #2 was born, I started following a 20 wk marathon schedule and it worked well. Earlier this year, I felt like I was drifting, aimlessly running 4.5 mi or 6 mi or 3 mi, but without any sense of what I was doing, except for hitting a total weekly mileage goal.

Then I found the Hal Higdon spring training plan, followed by his intermediate marathon training plan, and I was in love. My running again has a purpose and a reason. When I run an easy 4 miles, it is because I ran 12 x 200 m repeats the day before. When I run hill repeats, I know it will make my legs stronger and prepare me for the hills in San Francisco.

There are a lot of thing to remember when you start training for a race - a 5k, a 10k, a half marathon, a marathon and I won't even go to the ultra distances. But to me, having a plan is the basic requirement.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-06-11T12:07:00.001-07:00

J.K. Rowling: Too Common for Harvard?

2008-06-06T08:02:00.000-07:00

I dropped off N at soccer camp, then made my way to the office this morning, QuikTrip coffee beside me, NPR on the radio. I had a good 20 minutes of windshield time and I was going to enjoy it.

Then I hear some snippets of Harvard graduates talking about J.K. Rowling making the commencent speech. Some liked it. Some did not. The ones who did not like it rubbed me the wrong way.

I get it. I was 21 or 22 years old, once. I thought I knew everything. I thought the world as mine and it would be handed to me. That I deserved it. That I was entitled to it. After all, I graduated from college. Not just any college, but a good college. An engineering college. So, you know, everyone should acknowledge what an amazing feat that is and cover my path with roses.

So to hear that J.K. Rowling, a self-made woman, a writer of children's novels - and, yes, I do not find them particularly well-written, myself, but you know what? The woman and her stories have made children want to read again. She has kept their imaginations alive for years.

She is not Bill Gates. She is not Kofi Annan. But she was a single mother who had a good story and parlayed that story into major success. Is that not an amazing story?

I think it was one student in particular who made my neck hairs tingle. It was his use of the word entitled. That as Harvard graduates, they were entitled to have someone better.

Maybe my nice little engineering college was better, after all. I shudder to think of the attitude I would have had if I had attended such an esteemed university.

TIART: Best of the Best

2008-06-05T07:19:00.001-07:00

TIART at Runner's Lounge is the Best of the Best.

The past year, I have had a number of good runs, good months, I would even call 2007 a great running year. October 2007, in particular, was a highlight. It started in late September with the Hurrican Run, then concluded in late October with the Tulsa Run. In between, I went to Denver and ran the Half Marathon with two good friends.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-06-04T08:31:00.000-07:00

Dad sent this to me today. Really, it's my second car. First car I ever bought for myself. Remember, this is 1985 here.

Weekend Recap

2008-06-02T07:11:00.000-07:00

In an effort to follow my own advice, I woke at 5:20 a.m. Saturday to run my 8+ miles before the heat and humidity would force me indoors on the treadmill. It was a nice 68 deg or so, cool-ish. The perfume of the flowers and the birds' songs accompanied my iPod as I ran 8.5 miles. I finished at home with an extra mile on the treadmill, two sets of arms and abs. Good workout!

After a shower and some time with the family, it was off to my son's first indoor soccer game of the season. It is a co-ed U7/8 league - only four teams - and the opposing team was comprised of girls a year older than the boys and at least a foot taller than most of the boys. The boys won, though, 3-1. Whew.

Next we headed to the soccer shop for new cleats for me. Our game was at 7:45 and I was nervous. Anne and I started - nothing like testing the newbies immediately. However, within the first two minutes, Anne had scored on a pass from me. My confidence increased immediately. It was fun and hard and great. I actually scored in the 2nd half and W did a great job as goalie. I guess we are playing next week, too.

I am slightly sore today! My calves hurt. I woke in the middle of the night to stretch them and I think that was a smart move or I would have been in severe pain this morning.

ACK! What Did I Do?

2008-05-30T07:32:00.000-07:00

My friend Anne just called with an exciting invitation. Would W and I play indoor soccer on a newly formed co-ed indoor team? First game is tomorrow. In this co-ed league, only women can score. W is to be goalie. We accepted.

Holy moley. Now I am simultaneously excited, scared, nervous, and cannot focus on work. It sort of feels like pre-race nerves. I have not played soccer - other than outside with my 6 yo son - in about 8 years.

So I am supposed to run 8 miles in the morning. If I run at 6 a.m., I should have just at 12 hours to recover before I running all out at soccer.

I also have to find a sitter for 2 hours.

TIART: The Heat is On

2008-05-29T06:37:00.001-07:00

This week's TIART at Runner's Lounge is running in the heat. I have lived in Tulsa for roughly 10 years, but lived previously in the relative cool and dry NW New Mexico / SW Colorado and Denver. So, I am a cool weather girl. I am accustomed to very low humidity and if it was 95 deg, it was really not that hot and I knew it would cool down dramatically once the sun set. I also knew I could drive 30-60 min and be at 9000 ft of elevation and 70 deg.

When I was in college, my boyfriend at the time was from a small town south of Lincoln and he would talk about "feeling the air." I have to admit that I had no idea what he was talking about until I moved to Oklahoma. With that in mind, my half hearted attempts at training during the summer here have met with little success. My goal over the past few years has been to simply maintain my fitness level, but not shoot for any gains. If the furthest I ran was a very slow 6 miles, then that's okay. I could knock those out all summer long, knowing I would ramp it up come late September. My races were always scheduled for October through April, allowing me to avoid the hot, humid, dripping days.

This year, my plan is different. I registered and was selected for the Nike Women's Marathon in San Francisco on October 19. That means I am ramping up my mileage and running my long runs in late July, August and September. The moment after the euphoria of having been selected, I immediately wished I had not registered, knowing the hell that I had just created for myself.

So, given my past, what am I doing different this year?

- I started looking at training plans immediately and hit upon Hal Higdon's intermediate 20 week plan, then I saw that he had a spring training schedule as well. They were designed to be used together and to prepare a runner for Chicago - it is also known as his Personal Best Training Plan. The idea was for to have a solid base of 8-10 mi long runs every week from which to start the marathon plan. I am currently on week 9 of the spring plan and it is going well. I have found it easy to stick to the schedule (so far) and I have tweaked it for my own use.

- I found a training partner for the long runs. One of my son's teachers runs and we have similar paces and similar goals and she volunteered! I typically run by myself, but know I will need the help of a parter to force me to adhere to my plan.

- I plan on running early in the morning. The earlier the better.

- I plan to incorporate water fountains, restrooms, bookstores, and cafe's into the runs. The Arkansas River runs through Tulsa, with a great trail system with water fountains at every mile. I will use this, which I typically avoid because the high traffic, but early in the mornings, it should be less busy.

- I am going to look to my friends and other resources to get me through. This is a new endeavor for me, but I am determined to do it.

This & That for the Long Weekend

2008-05-27T10:55:00.000-07:00

Tulsa's weather has been crazy and humid. It has rained - hard - every night and the mornings are lovely until the sun starts baking the streets, making all the rain steamy and the relatively nice temps feel much worse than they seem. I made a mistake of not waking early enough to run before the family rose on Saturday and instead ran at 5 p.m. Three miles outside convinced me to head home and finish on the treadmill. ACK.

N has impetigo and a double ear infection. The child had not been to the doctor since March 2006. He is generally extremely healthy and happy, but when he lays around all day Monday, napping off / on, we know he is truly sick.

Jocelyn loves to go outside and blow bubbles or play in the dirt. She cracks me up.

Warren and I discovered the wonder of a mojito last year in Florida and made them yesterday. Refreshing and yummy. It's my summer drink of choice.

One of Those Weeks

2008-05-23T11:36:00.000-07:00

Both W and I have had sort of hard, stress filled weeks at work.

Yesterday, I terminated an employee. I believe it was for good reason and not arbitrary. He believes otherwise. I knew he would think that, so I was a ball of anxiety all morning. I went home at lunch to run a few miles to just work it out in my mind.

Today, W had a very difficult discussion about closing one of our offices. It is the right decision, but it is nevertheless extremely hard.

Neither of these decisions, nor the other decisions he, I and the VP-Operations make are ill conceived or capricious. And the hard decisions often come with much gut-wrenching determinations. It is not black and white.

What we always try to remember is that even though we are the owners, we also employ 120 people and ensuring that those people have a good, steady income is one of our priorities.

Fortunately, we have each other to help us make it through these weeks.

TIART: I'm Just Not Into It

2008-05-22T07:15:00.000-07:00

It's Thursday, so that mean's TIART at Runner's Lounge. The theme is cross-training. As I have read some other posts about it, I find myself nodding in agreement to all of it.

I know I should be doing it, I know there are huge benefits, yet I just cannot get into it. My journey as a runner started as a soccer player and having to run a lot and finding that my conditioning between seasons suffered for lack of activity. So I started running to further my conditioning. It was a means to an end.

Then there was a hiatus of any activity except beer drinking at fraternity houses for a few years. The freshman 15 happened a year later for me - it was the sophomore 20 or so. Finally, I started running again, forcing myself around an indoor track on which 8 laps = 1 mile. I ran 2 mi/day every day in my 4th and 5th years. (you read that right, 5 years - I had fun in college...)

So for me, running over the past 20 years has been about keeping in shape, helping to combat the 5 - 10 lb that always creeps on and holds on for dear life. When I lived in SW Colorado and NW New Mexico, I did not have to worry about it as much, as my lifestyle was extremely active - hiking, mountain biking, cross country skiing. I also ran, but not daily.

Now that I have been in Tulsa for 10 years (ack!), running is nearly my sole form of daily exercise. I will walk with the kids, I may play soccer with Nathan, but it is the one thing that I can do anywhere, anytime, with minimal equipment. It also has the benefit of being the most efficient for burning calories.

I would love to take a yoga class. When? Where? What suffers in my life in order to do that?

I do not swim. I cannot swim. I sink.

Biking? I did take my bike to the local shop for an overhaul and will retrieve it this weekend, hoping to ride with my family. But I do not foresee a day when it will be more than a family jaunt.

Elliptical? I have one. I use it occasionally. I do not like it as much as I like running. My husband uses it much more.

Strength and core exercises? I have made these a priority. I have started doing about 15-20 min of core work with my son in the evening. I have noticed an improvement in my posture during longer runs. I have incorporated 10 lb dumbbells 4x/wk. My arms do not tire as much during longer runs. I know this is helping and it makes me wonder how much more yoga could do for me. But for now, this is going to suffice.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-05-21T07:01:00.001-07:00

Some Dreams Are Realized

2008-05-19T10:43:00.001-07:00

When I was 7+ months pregnant with Nathan and had stopped running, I walked 6+ miles/day. During the week, I would walk after work. On the weekends, I would walk for a good 2 hours or so. Obsessive? Why, yes. But I swear it paid dividends during and after birth.

While walking, I would listen to books on tape and I would dream about life with a baby, then life with a little boy, then life with a little older child. Some of those dreams included having my son ride his bicycle beside me while I ran. We could go anywhere, do anything and we would be doing it under our own power and it would be fun and athletic.

Nathan started riding his bicycle without training wheels last September. We have run / ridden a few times together, but have always left Jocelyn at home with W. Saturday, we ventured out at 9 a.m. We were headed to the park - the entire family - when W changed gears (figuratively) and decided to start preparing early for the neighborhood picnic that was to occur later that day. So, J, N and I headed out and changed our plans as well.

I had propitiously brought $20, but no water, no milk, no snacks. We headed to Borders. 1.5 mi later and about 20 min later, we arrived, split a doughnut three ways, bought a book for each child, then headed home.

On Sunday, we needed some fresh green beans and milk, so we headed to Whole Foods, about 1.25 mi away. We loaded up like yesterday. I pushed J in the stroller, N and W rode bikes. There is limited cargo space in the stroller, but we just barely had room. My return trip home was a bit more difficult, given the gallon of milk, loaf of bread, etc.

I went through an entire weekend without having to drive my car. My kids learned that running errands can also be fun and a good way to exercise.

I feel quite empowered.

Anniversary Trip in Pictures

2008-05-16T06:57:00.000-07:00

It's Instinct

2008-05-15T10:07:00.000-07:00

Runner's Lounge Take It & Run Thursday topic - It was sooo obvious....

I have been contemplating this for the past day or so. I have read other posts, nodding the entire time. But my own mind is empty. I have made many mistakes in my running career and I am sure I will continue to make mistakes, hopefully not repeating them too many times before I make the necessary adjustments.

Shoes? yup, been there, too many miles on my shoes
Too few long runs? sure thing
Too many long runs? Did that one, too.
Lack of stretching? ongoing battle with that
Flip flops? maybe I can blame part of my PF on discovering Teva flip flops last summer?

So I have been digging through my memory, attempting to recover some words of wisdom. I just know it when I do it. So maybe the issue I want to talk about is to trust your instincts. If you feel tired, you just may be tired. If there is an ongoing issue you are battling, seek some expert advice. If you are having a great run and have a little more time, then extend it a bit. Remember those good runs when you are struggling through a bad run, try to resurrect how you felt, how you held your body.

When I start second guessing a decision, many times I should go with it. Why did I wear untested clothing bought at the runner's expo during the marathon the next day? Sure it was cute, but it was chafe-proof, it was not washed (ew!), it was matchy-matchy, which is not normally my style. Why did I not wear my old faithful shorts and dry-fit top? I knew better. I just did not think.

So, think, trust, use your instincts.

Marathon Mania (6 Days Late!)

2008-05-14T07:28:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the lateness of this, but I was on the central coast of California, drinking more than a little wine, celebrating 7 years of wedded bliss with my hubby. But I did not want to ignore this one, as I am quite excited and somewhat fearful of my marathon plans for the fall.

TIART - Is Marathon!

A few months ago, I realized that the Nike Women's Marathon was in San Francisco, a place I adore, and the schwag is a Tiffany designed necklace given to finishers by firemen dressed in tuxedoes. What is not to like about such an event? With its proximity to Napa and wine tasting, I knew my hubby would be up for it. (sense a theme here?)

I discovered that it is a highly desirable event, so random selection entered. I had spoken with my friend Gretchen and she was going to register as well. Our mistake was not registering as a team. If we had registered as a team, we both would have been selected or we both would have been rejected. Unfortunately, one of us made it and the other did not.

Then it hit me. I live in Tulsa, OK. The date of the marathon is Oct. 19. That means my long runs are in July and August. In hot, humid, heavy air. Not a recipe for success. So I started digging around for some training plans and attempting to psyche myself up for it. I was not going to drop out of this race before I even started to train for it. That is too defeatist.

So I landed on the Hal Higdon plans, counted backward and realized I had 30 weeks to prepare. I have been working on the 12 week spring training plan to give myself a strong base with regular weekend runs of 8-10 miles going into the 18 week intermediate training plan, it is his Personal Best training plan. I am not good with strictly adhering to a plan, but I am doing most of this, plus a few more workouts.

I am on week 7 and doing well. I like having a plan and I like that this one is reasonable for me.

But I still have the long runs on July / August before me. I recently met up with the science teacher at my son's school. She mentioned that she saw I had run a good race a few weeks' ago and we started talking about running. We each had our 2nd babies within a month of each other, we are nearly the same age, and our paces are close. She offered - OFFERED! - to run my long runs with me. I cannot say how much I appreciate the offer and have already followed up with her to let her know that (1) I appreciate it and (2) I want the help.

I do not typically train with another person. Running is a solitary activity for me. It's my escape. It is the one time during the day that nobody requires anything of me, except myself. But running for over two hours? I need encouragement. Particularly this year.

You see, this will be my 6th marathon. My last one was Napa Valley in 2007. I was the most prepared for that one than I had ever been before, but I totally bonked during the race. Why? I think it is because I ate sushi for dinner the day before. I was still breastfeeding, so was pumping milk like mad. During the training, I was as thin as I had been in many many years. I think when it came time to deliver on race day, I had no reserves.

Another problem is this ongoing issue with my right foot. After running nearly 2 hours, my right foot falls asleep. I have been wondering if the plantar fasciitis had anything to do with that. If PF has been showing its nasty head for a long time and I simply ignored it. Oh, and new clothes I had bought the day before at the runner's expo. I was battling an empty tummy, a numb foot, new clothes that did not chafe, but were not comfortable, and simply wanted to finish. And that's exactly what I did. I simply finished. Not a bad thing, but not what I expected going into it. I had expectations. I had even set them with three different levels, depending on how well I felt that day. Let's just say I fell far below the lowest level.

So what am I going to do differently? I have inserts now that make my feet happy. I will be buying new shoes (at least 2 pair) this weekend. I will ensure I am adequately fueled the day before. But I know there is more. I know something will slip through the cracks and I will have to have a strong will.

In my humble opinion, the long run is not just to train the body for enduring the distance and the pounding, but it is to train the mind to handle 3+ hours of introspection. So to do this, I happily accept anyone who wants to help me through that.

No new clothes on race day. I can do that one.

Fueling during the race? I have never tried the gu or anything else. I am usually a water girl, maybe part of a banana midway, but I have never trained with fueling during a race or a long run. Perhaps I need to start adding that into my plans. Where to begin?

Update to TIART / Plantar Fasciitis

2008-05-07T12:01:00.000-07:00

I appreciate everyone's advice and input on plantar fasciitis from last week's TIART. I have been diligently stretching and I bought a pair of orthotics from the New Balance store on Monday. I used them in my running shoes this morning and my feet were oh so happy. It was a wee bit strange for one foot, but the other foot was fine. The result is that I am not struggling when I rise from my chair today.

I also stretch my foot through the day, simply tilting my heel back / foot up while wearing heels.

As an aside, the New Balance sales person was amazing. He was full of advice and did not try to sell me a pair of shoes. He stated that they have podiatrists train the staff and provide pointers so that they can better assist customers. He questioned me on various things, like what size shoe I wore, what type, wide or not wide, he measured my foot and determined I may need to go to a wider width, but if I did that, I might have problems with my other foot. (anyone buy two different shoe sizes for each foot?) I was impressed. That is truly knock your socks off service.

Good Things Tuesday

2008-05-06T10:25:00.000-07:00

Nathan learned to tie his shoes yesterday, thanks to one of the teachers in after-care. Thank you so much, Mrs. W! He even tied his own shoes this morning. I worried that he would not be able to do it this morning, we were rushed and I slowed myself down enough to let him have the time to do it right. And he did. And it was faster than anticipated.

I had a good 6 mi run this morning and a nice, easy pace, each mile faster than the previous, but not a speed workout and not a tempo run. Tomorrow is hill repeats. Yuck.

My parents arrive today to take care of the kids while I join W in Cali for a holiday / celebrate 7 year anniversary. He is already there for a class. We will be in the area of where we were married and I am quite excited. I am a wee bit anxious about leaving the kids and my parents having sole responsibility, but they raised my brother and me and they are a bit older, but they are also more patient now than they were then. All should be good. Nathan is quite excited as he loves gpa's pancakes and the fact that my parents play games with him.

Now, if only Indiana and North Carolina end up on Obama's side, I would have the perfect day.

Just Another Manic Monday

2008-05-05T11:58:00.000-07:00

The Bangles were oh so right, weren't they?

Thank you to everyone who has given me advice on plantar fasciitis. I have been stretching it, wearing shoes at most times (Heather, I wear my Keens like you wear Birks), and I am going to buy new shoes and the sock thing this week.

I ran a good 9 miler early Saturday morning and it was lovely. On the upside, I found someone to join me for my long runs this summer. She is N's school science teacher and I have seen her a few times at races, we have similar paces and similar goals, we are both moms of 2 kids, roughly similar ages and we live near each other. A perfect marriage! And, she offered! How great is that? Apparently, she has seen a recent race time of mine and she also has made a few comment to fellow teachers about a popular local race about 7 months ago. It's nice that someone noticed! And it's nice to know I am not the only one who checks out acquaintances finish times...

I just had a parent-teacher conference with two of N's teachers. While my child excels at math, he struggles in reading and appears to have a listening problem. Well, I knew about #3, but apparentely it hampers his learning ability. They recommended we check out a learning center that will test his cognitive learning ability and work with him to provide him the tools to help him. They did not believe ADHD was an issue as he has no trouble focusing on math.

And you know what? It just hit me. When his father takes N to school, he inevitably lets N have a doughnut and a cholocate milk. Not that too much sugar could harm a child's ability to process and learn, huh? Well... I may have ammunition for this to be the exception rather than the rule.

I did order N his first library card! An auspicious moment, no? I plan on enrolling him in the summer reading challenge to motivate him to read over the summer.

Take It & Run Thursday

2008-05-01T07:59:00.001-07:00

My questions for all the folks at Runner's Lounge:

Plantar Fasciitis - what to do? I am 99.999% positive this is my problem with my right foot.
Long runs in steamy, hot August - how should I prepare for this?
Do you really go with the 1/2 size larger shoe than you normally wear?
Anyone else like thin socks or would run sans socks if they could?

And for my workout this morning: 5 mi in 44 min on the dreadmill (hubby had already taken off for work); watched NCAA men's gymnastics competition (recorded on ESPNU); started at 6.1 and ramped it up 0.1 mph every 3 min.

Hill Repeats - Take 5

2008-04-30T10:12:00.000-07:00

Week five of the spring plan and it was hill repeat day. Last week, I ran hills on Thursday and a nice 6 miler on Wed. I am going to switch it this week (because I did not wake up early enough) and see how it goes. The Plan has hills on Wed. Of course, a plan is simply a guideline, right? Well, I am sure there is a reason for it.

Anyway, did roughly the same workout as last week: 3.5 mi; 5x0.30 mi hill repeats at 7% grade (argh! they were tough); time 34:00 min (one minute slower, if you are counting). I lengthened the hills to 0.30 mi versus 0.25 mi and shortened the recovery from 0.25 mi to 0.20 mi. It was good. But they still stink.

I found this good resource on running hills on the treadmill. I wondered if I was approaching it correctly and it appears that I am.

Tonight we have a wee bit of wine tasting in store, for the upcoming wine event that we are co-chairing. I have co-opted W's cousin to babysit the kids. I normally have a hard time finding a sitter on Wednesdays. These meetings must be moved to another day.

On a Roll

2008-04-29T11:22:00.000-07:00

My runs over the past few days have been superb and do you want to know why? Because I have a PLAN. I have mentioned it before, but I seriously have a good plan and I am going to stick with it. I am currently on week 5 of Hal Higdon's Spring Training Plan - Intermediate. I am adding runs to it as I run 6-7 days/wk. I do not enjoy taking a day of rest and I have rarely seen a big benefit to me for cross-training. Maybe I just refuse to acknowledge such.

Anyway, Saturday was scheduled 35 min tempo run, I did that, covered roughly 6.1 miles and made the decision to run 3 additional miles and make it my long run day as well. W and I had dinner plans and I knew I would be drinking some champagne, so I opted to run long on Saturday versus not running long on Sunday.

Sunday, I was not hung over, but was a wee bit stiff, so ran a good 5 miles.

Monday, ran 5 miles, 2 sets of weights, 2 sets of abs. After work, unloaded three pallets of rubber mulch for the kids' playground area. Oh my. That was good, hard labor, folks.

This morning, ran 4.5 miles.

Tomorrow's plan is hill repeats. They suck. But I have noticed they help.

Gotta love a plan.

A Runner's Thoughts

2008-04-25T12:01:00.000-07:00

Today's workout was good - I watched Workout on Bravo, courteous of the dvr.

Distance = 4.5 mi run + 0.75 walk
Time = 38 min for run / 49 min walk
Type = started at 6.0, ramped up 0.1 mph every minute, ended at 8.0, then went back down by 45 sec increments. This a great type of workout on the treadmill and has kept me from being incredibly bored during the week.

Tomorrow - 9 miles - I hope to wake before the family and knock it out before 7 a.m. We have two soccer games tomorrow and precious little time for running.

Do you feel like you can talk for hours about running and have nobody who shares your passion? Sometimes I feel like that. W always asks me how my run was, I generally give him more information than I am sure he wants, but he dutifully listens. I am not sure he is hearing me and understands what I am trying to say, but he nevertheless lets me talk.

When Vicky was here ealier this week, it was like I was able to talk as long as I liked about running - about the little foibles each runner has - what is the most comfortable pace for you / are you faster pre or post baby / what do you realistically think you can do for X race / what are the infinitesimal details about your training plan / how do you treat plantar fasciitis and how does it really feel / what about runner's trots?

Yeah - all those really boring details that consumes a runner's thoughts. If you do not have a friend, where do you go? With whom do you share these stories? What resources do you use again and again?

Take It and Run Thursday

2008-04-24T06:21:00.000-07:00

This is my first time joining the folks at Runner's Lounge and their weekly Take It and Run Thursday. In 13 words or less, share the best lesson learned about running. There are so many thoughts doing laps in my head, some are stronger than others, some are mere wisps of a thought. How many of them can be distilled into 13 words is unsure. But let's pick one. A good one, too. Hmmm. Quite the challenge, no?

Runners are everyday people with a superhuman addiction to training, endorphins and life.

So what does this mean? To me, it means that every person has the ability to be a runner. It's inside all of us. And even though we are normal people, we have extraordinary abilities to push ourselves beyond what we think we can do and beyond what we have told ourselves we can do. We have learned to push harder and we are rewarded for this hard work with endorphins - real or imagined - and a better life.

Today's workout: 3.5 mi; 5x0.25 mi hill repeats at 7% grade (argh! they were tough); time 33 min

Mid Week Update

2008-04-23T06:22:00.000-07:00

My college friend Vicky was in town the past few days. She came over Sunday evening, we made ceviche and had champagne and wine. Too much champagne for me, actually. I paid for it on Monday morning, but it was completely worth it. Yesterday, I played hooky for 1/2 day and we had pedicures, lunch and a wee bit of shopping. No purchases for me, though.

This morning, I woke early, determined to have a great run and a good start to my day. I was successful with a 6 mi run in 53 min and arrival at work at 7:59 a.m. PERFECT.

That's about all. I need to get to work!

Hillary as Anti-Feminist

2008-04-21T08:34:00.000-07:00

Camille Paglia's article in the Telegraph, Why Women Shouldn't Vote for Hillary is well written and well argued case of why women should not vote for Hillary Clinton simply based on gender. It does not address the issues of the candidates and whether Clinton's positions are meritorious, but it fully addresses the issue of feminism and the argument of women not voting for a fellow woman as a traitorous act.

More than anyting, I appreciate that I had to refer to the dictionary four times when reading the article. When was the last time you had to do that? To read an article that assumes I am intelligent is almost a novelty sometimes.

Sunday Round Up

2008-04-20T05:51:00.000-07:00

This weekend has been crazy busy. I went to a happy hour adoption shower for a friend who is adopting her 2nd child from Korea, a little boy his older brother had named Keegan. It was incredibly fun and lasted three hours longer than stated on the invitation. W texted me during it to tell me he had put J to sleep and that I should stay out as long as I wanted.

Saturday was fun. N's soccer game was at 11 a.m. and one of his teammates came home with us to spend the night. This child has endless energy. They rode bicycles to the park, to lunch, to the park, around the block, played soccer for hours. As soon as they were in a semi-horizontal position last night, they both crashed. J had fun running after them.

This morning is quiet so far and gorgeous outside. I have a very good friend from college who will be in town later today and is coming directly from the airport to our house. I have not seen her in nearly 2.5 years and am looking forward to it immensely. Between now and then, though, I need to squeeze in about 6-8 miles. ACK.

And, finally, one of my best friends is celebrating her birthday today!

Happy Birthday, Christina!!!!

Rocky Refigured

2008-04-18T13:34:00.000-07:00

Andrew Sullivan's Daily Dish brought this to my attention.

Barack as Rocky. Just hearing that song makes my juices flow.

It's a New Day

2008-04-18T07:27:00.000-07:00

I left work around 1 p.m. yesterday to go home and workout and maybe catch a few z's. This was not in the cards. The tree trimmers were at the house, all 8 of them with all sorts of equipment. My MIL and SIL were there, doing a deep cleaning of the house per our request. My SIL has a cleaning business, mostly doing some VA clinics around town, and she does a great job. It just feels quite wrong to have your SIL clean your house, kwim? And, PiePie, my dh's grandfather was there. Oh, and one of our carpenters was there to install various small things, like towel racks, etc., in the bathrooms.

After chatting with everyone, I decided I would run anyway. I knocked out 5.5 miles, which with my 2 mi jaunt in the morning, gives me a total of 7.5 mi for the day. I felt like a new woman. If the choice is between running and a nap, 90% of the time I will choose a run. I know I cannot nap if I have not run. Obsessive / compulsive? Yes, but only about running.

Little Miss J's sleep? Well, thank you for asking. Mucho better. I took the advice of friends and when she woke at 2 a.m. (she fell asleep at 8:10 p.m.), I changed her diaper, avoided snuggles and eye contact, and put her back in her crib. She was not happy, but I was firm. I closed the door, went into the workout room adjacent to her nursery and set my watch for 5 min. Well, what can you do in 5 min increments? Dumbbell workouts! Crazy? Yes. But it worked well. After the first 5 min, she was crying, I went in, did not say anything, patted her back, then left. Same thing after the 2nd 5 min. And the 3rd 5 min. Around the 4th time, she seemed to understand and she started to lay down and would cry pitifully for a bit, then be quiet. At the 5th time, I saw she was laying down and about to fall asleep, so I rubbed her back, then left. So, at 35 min total, 2 sets of arm workouts and 10 min of abs, Miss J was asleep and I was able to return to bed.

I am encouraged that it went well last night. I am also excited to have my arm workout done! So, tonight, if she wakes, I will go in at about 8 min increments or maybe 10 min increments. In the meantime, I will enjoy my day as I am well rested. Oh, and I am scheduled for a cut and color this afternoon.

Workout this morning - 3 mi in 26 min. I am going to run 8 mi tomorrow morning before the family wakes.

All Mixed Up

2008-04-17T06:28:00.001-07:00

Jocelyn's nights are terrible. She has been waking five or six nights out of seven for weeks. It could even be months. She will wake, I let her cry for a few minutes, the sound level increases, so I check on her, change her diaper, give her a bit of milk, she usually falls asleep and I lay her down. This process can take anywhere from 20 to 60 minutes.

On occasion, she wakes for more than that and wants to play. Last night was one such night. She fell asleep at 8 p.m., Nathan read and went to sleep at 9 p.m. Ah. Perfect. I can watch Top Chef and then go to sleep. Only she woke at 10:30. I let her cry for about 20 min. Sounds harsh, doesn't it? Well, so is lack of sleep. Finally, I rise from bed and stumble into her room.

At 2:30, she is still awake. I am exhausted and put her to bed, even though she is wide awake. She cries for 30 min. I rise, comfort her and she falls asleep in my arms. Finally, I crash.

So what is going on here and more importantly, what can I do about it? I am living on 4-5 hours of sleep most nights. My workouts are spotty because I sleep until 6:30 and then wake with a start, squeeze in 2 mi run, then try to get in another run some time during the day. I have gained 5 lb because of this (I swear, but maybe I am wrong about the cause).

Is she spoiled? Is she in the habit of waking and having me put her to bed? What would you do? I am desperate here. My parents have graciously said they will come and take care of the kids while I go with W to California. I cannot leave them with a 20 mo old who wakes every single night.

Tax Day + One

2008-04-16T07:48:00.000-07:00

On the day after tax day, do you wonder what your hard-earned income tax money is going to do for the country and your state? Do you wonder how this country is going to be able to afford everything that the presidential candidates are promising the people of the U.S., but are not explaining how these programs will be funded?

Clive Crook discusses this in the Financial Times' article The Fiscal Consequences of the Bush Administration. Good reading, but no answers, more questions. Questions that scare me.

Ants in My Pants

2008-04-15T08:30:00.000-07:00

Do you ever get to work and never settle down because your mind is jumping all over the place? The list of items that must be accomplished today is prominently posted near your computer screen and you ignore it because you cannot stand to sit still in your chair? You coffee cup is empty - twice - and you can barely stand to keep yourself from going to grab another cup.

I am antsy today. It's not just that taxes are due (or extensions, in our case) and 1st quarter estimates are due, but it is also that I did not get my regularlyl scheduled run in this morning.

Oh, I managed to squeeze in some sort of run, but not the one I wanted. So my mind is racing trying to decide if I go home at lunchtime and run 2-3 mi at that time, or if I wait until after the kids go to sleep tonight. The problem with option 1 is that I am out of the office for just over an hour, again not good for actually marking things off the list. The good side is that I may actually be focuse this afternoon. The problem with option 2 is that I am not sure I will actually do that this evening and it makes my legs tired for tomorrow's run. And of course I will not be focused at all, then.

So, here I am . I think I will go with door #1, please. Maybe a 2 mi run to complement the 2 mi run I did this morning. Hm. What do you think?

Everything & The Kitchen Sink

2008-04-14T07:13:00.000-07:00

This past weekend was an exercise in extremes. We had one of N's neighborhood friends overnight and the boys were great. Seriously, no fighting, no whining, no tears. Truly a good experience.

Saturday was filled with soccer, my long-ish run (on the way to being longer), more soccer, and N's school auction dinner. I have been fighting cramps from hell and was not necessarily in the best of moods to go, but I knew we had to go and that it would promise to be a good time. Also, my hair is three weeks overdue for cut and color and my eyebrows and upper lip need waxing. I was not at my loveliest by far.

The dinner was fun. The wine was free and generously poured. I lost every silent auction item on which I bid. W, however, won each of the live auction items, with the help of much red wine and encouragement from our table. We bought an Adrian Peterson - signed OU football, a case of wine and four tickets to the Indy 500 race. The football and the race tickets will be given out to employees, so it is a legitimate business expense (employee morale is 100% deductible, you know). The case of wine is for our enjoyment.

Had this been it, I would have been happy. However, there was a room party in the hotel. Yes, a room party. Something I have not attended since I was in college and we would have a party within a party at the Beta Theta Pi fraternity house. That, in fact, was the place to be at the house.

I must stop here and point out that (1) I was relatively sober, having stretched out two glasses of wine over a 2.5 hour period and (2) W was nowhere close to sober, having had many glasses of wine and little food and (3) it has been close to two years since we have fought.

On the way to the room party, the differing conditions of sobriety became glaringly obvious. W's use of the f-bomb increased, his words were slurred and his voice was loud. We were about to spend time with our son's friends' parents. I was more than a little wary of W's potential behavior, only to become downright frightened when he proceeded to badger someone, then when I tried to calm him, he said something to me that made me stand up tall and state very firmly, "You do not treat me like that. Ever."

Now the drama started. Oh my, there was drama. We eventually left the hotel together and found our vehicle, fought over who was driving, fought on the way home, he threw everything plus the kitchen sink at me, while I - for once - calmly volleyed everything back at him. It pays to be sober in one of our fights. Fortunately, all is okay and was resolved before we went to sleep and W is highly embarrassed (as he should be) and dismayed that he said that to me.

One couple deserves an apology, as they were the ones who heard him. I am thankful only they heard him and no others. We are both sad that we were not able to hang out with the other couples, but sometimes a person must stand up for herself and that was one of those times. It is very empowering.

Lessons learned: eat a bit more when drinking wine and alternate glasses of water with glasses of wine and have a clear understanding of alcohol consumption and expected behavior prior to an event. Although that kind of behavior should never be warranted, understand that W has been under tremendous pressure of late. It's not an excuse, but it is an explanation.

Sunday, fortunately, was a much better day.

Third Times a Cliche

2008-04-11T09:05:00.000-07:00

This is my third attempt at a post today. There are two other drafts that I am working on that need more time and focus than I have right now.

Adrift in a sea of responsibilities and deadlines describes my mental state. Responsibilities of having a family, a business and being a volunteer. A state of sobriety that threatens to drown the person I am and the things I like to do and the person I would like to be.

Summers when I was young, I would read anything I could get my hands on. I would ride my bicycle to the library and check out as many books as I could, return them within a week, check out more. I would read on the back porch on a lawn chair, legs propped on the wrought iron rails. I would read on my belly on a towel in the green bermuda grass. I would read in bed until the book crashed onto my face when I fell asleep.

Every now and then, I would do chores, but only between chapters of whatever I was reading. I would tell my mom or dad about what I was reading. They both professed to love reading and I knew my dad did. I had actually seen him read books. My mom would read the newspaper cover to cover, focusing mostly on the business section. She also professed to love books, but I can only recall one book I have ever seen her read - Mary Higgins Clark's Where are the Children?

I wondered how she could love to read, yet forsake reading? How could she choose to clean the kitchen or fold the laundry over an escape to another world? How could she watch Johnny Carson before falling asleep instead of reading a chapter of a fabulous book?

Now, as I have children and no time and no hobbies and nothing to set me apart other than running, I understand. There is simply not enough time in the day to do everything that you want to do. You have to choose and sometimes those choices are not what you would choose if you only took care of yourself.

Many Thanks

2008-04-10T06:56:00.000-07:00

To Aimee for redesigning my blog. It's amazing, isn't it?

The woman has skillz. Many of them. And she is generous. So tell her how fabulous she is, okay?

N fell asleep on the sofa at 6:20 p.m. yesterday. So J and I tiptoed around him, then kept ourselves upstairs in order to not wake him. He needed the rest. It was fun to have some time with J and I together, but I suspect J missed her big goofy older brother.

It's raining buckets here, folks. So much rain and potential for flooding that some schools have cancelled classes. Fortunately, N's school is open and so is J's daycare.

Morning run was challenging and difficult, but felt good.
Distance: 4.5 mi total - 1/4 mi warmup; 1/2 mi increasing increments of speed, starting at 7.5 mph, ending at 8.2 mph; 1/4 mi cooldown + 1/4 mi walk
Time: 36 min run + 4 min walk
Location: Treadmill
TV Viewing: SEC women's gymnastics

Hump Day

2008-04-09T10:34:00.000-07:00

Today I did hill repeats, as part of my spring training schedule. I live in a relatively hilly neighborhood, so when I run outside, I am guaranteed to run hills. It has seemed sufficient hill work that I never deliberately ran hill repeats before.

It was raining this morning, so it was treadmill running for me. On the behest of Mr. Higdon, I set out and did 5 x 400m hill repeats (or 5 x 1/4 mi repeats), with 1/4 mi easy run between. Started and ended with 1/2 mi. In all, it was 3.25 mi in 31 min. Not fast, but it wasn't about speed today. Incline was 5% and speed was 6.2 mph for repeats.

As I sit here, typing, I can feel different parts of my legs. It was challenging.

And, now, for something cute, because I have not posted a new pic in - oh, maybe a week?

The Training Plan

2008-04-08T08:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday, I scoured the internet during my lunchtime searching for the appropriate way to train for this new goal. I think I landed on the right mix. Hal Higdon, one of the marathoning gods, has a 12-week spring training plan and and 18-week marathon training plan, all set to run Chicago, it is in essence his Personal Best training plan. Well, Chicago happens to be one week before Nike Women's Marathon. PERFECT!

My first week of the 12-week spring plan was last week. I may tweak the spring plan here and there to better suit my life, stretching the longer weekend runs a little past the 8 mi or so, but I will adopt it for me. The idea is to build a strong base of easily running 10-12 mi every weekend before embarking on the marathon training.

I feel better about this undertaking. I have a plan. All a girl needs is a plan, right? I can implement a plan. I can work with a plan. I can look at it and see if I am meeting, exceeding, or falling short of The Plan.

Distance: 4 mi - 0.5 mi warmup / 3 mi tempo (at increasing speeds every mile from 7.1 mph to 7.3 mph) / 0.5 mi cooldown
Location: treadmill
Time: 33:20
Best song: Pump It - Black Eyed Peas (how cliche!)
Nathan came into the workout room while I still had 1.5 mi to run. He had already showered, brushed his teeth and was playing his Nintendo DS.

The Psyche Up

2008-04-07T08:35:00.001-07:00

Ever since I received confirmation of enrollment for the Nike Women's Marathon in October, I have been filled with dread. It is hard to explain how much I hate running when it is hot and humid. I can handle hot. I can handle humid. I cannot handle them together for 20 miles or more.

My mind is encountering a huge block of granite in trying to wrap itself around the concept of training for this marathon in an Oklahoma summer. I remind myself that if I train in tough conditions, I will find the actual race to be much easier. I have yet to own that idea.

Over the past 10 years that I have lived here (has it really been that long??), my mode of operation from June through August has been to simply maintain my fitness. I hold out no hope for any actual fitness gains. I know myself too well. I know how hard it is to slog through a run in 90 deg and 60% humidity. I know I cannot possibly train on a treadmill. I have done that. It sucks. It is mindnumbingly boring and awful, even with the best of television available. Even directly under a vent shooting out 67 deg air.

Yesterday was relatively humid here, but only 73 deg. I had several little running stints with Nathan while he rode his bicycle and I ran beside him - three times we did this for 17 min each. I added a 4 mi treadmill run later in the day and I perspired a LOT. Imagine that in another four months. Not a pretty sight.

I am trying to take heart from Gretchen, who ran her first marathon in Iowa in June. In 90 deg weather. Imagine that. I cannot. I know I would have dropped out. I am in awe of her accomplishment.

A friend told me of her awesome 2 hour run on Saturday morning - the first time she ever simply laced up her shoes, clipped her iPod to her waist and headed out the door for 2 hours. She was energized, excited and proud. I am proud of her, too.

And I am envious. I love that feeling.

Another friend told me of her revamped Sat morning workout - she was supposed to go for a 2 hour ride and run for triathlon training, but it was 45 deg and raining. Instead, she ran a 5k loop around a lake in the rain. I am proud of her.

And I am envious.

Running goes in phases for me. There are times when I feel like I am flying and light as a feather. There are times where I feel like I am slogging through water with heavy legs, achey feet and no motivation to move forward. These feelings can happen within the same week, but rarely do. I had an autumn season in which I felt fantastic, complete with several PR's. I have had a ho-hum winter season. I ran a 9K race with a PR three weeks ago. But now I feel sort of like I am wandering about.

I had hoped setting a marathon goal would help motivate me and lift my spirits to a return of that fantastic feeling. Instead, I am stressing over how to even set up my marathon training. I am intimidated and scared.

October 19, 2008

2008-04-02T07:43:00.000-07:00

The random selection for the Nike Women's Marathon is complete and I sit here with a positive selection, while my friend Gretchen was not selected and feels a bit rejected. I am bummed and I think next time we both go for a random selection we will register as a team. That way, we both are rejected or selected together. In the meantime, she is deciding upon Twin Cities Marathon just two weeks prior to mine.

Now, the selection of a training program is to be determined. 20 weeks has me starting a program at the beginning of June. Given the summertime temps and the prospect of long runs in August, I may increase that to 26 weeks. That would be the end of April. Just right, don't you think?

So how on earth am I going to run 20 miles in the middle of August here where the temps are in the mid to high 90's and the humidity is a killer? Why did I not consider this dilemma when I registered? Oh, yeah. I never thought I would be selected. I thought I would be safe. I thought I could wait and then register for a marathon in late November or early December.

So now I must think that the training is going to be worth achieving the finish line with firemen in tuxedoes giving out the Tiffany finisher's necklace.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-03-26T07:49:00.001-07:00

Second Floor Utility Room!

2008-03-11T09:44:00.000-07:00

Here it is at long last. The top two pictures is the existing basement - half finished / half unfinished. This is clearly the unfinished disgusting, dirty, somewhat dangerous looking side. I lugged dirty clothes up and down two flights of stairs into the dungeon for 5.5 years. Now I do not have to. Ah. Sheer bliss.

The new utility room is outside the master bedroom in what used to be the nursery, then W's closet, then a nursery, then a storage area. We busted through the outer wall and attached it to the new master, tore down the interior wall to the hallway at the top of the existing staircase and created a large hallway and this utility room. It's wonderful. I never knew such happiness. My clothes have never been cleaner.

I never considered clean clothes and accessible washer / dryer to be items of luxury. Well, they are.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-03-05T07:23:00.001-08:00

Kitchen Remodel

2008-03-04T13:53:00.001-08:00

Several of you have seen this already (and a few in person) but Jen is about to embark on her own kitchen remodel, so I thought she may like to see ours. I did not include complete "before" pictures, but the top row are sort of "before" meaning after the walls were demolished. If you can imagine, where the wood is for the new walls were the outside walls of the house before. The second row is sort of during construction view. The last row is the "after" and is my new, highly functional kitchen that I absolutely adore.

Happiness is...

2008-03-03T06:39:00.001-08:00

The ability to launder clothes using a machine located next to the master bedroom, not two floors below in a dingy, dirty basement.

Yes, folks, that is right. At long last, my 2nd level utility room is functional. I washed seven loads of clothes, sheets, towels yesterday and they are all folded and put away properly.

I am in heaven.

Pictures to follow sometime soon. You will marvel at the new space once you have seen the old.

Her First Oreo

2008-02-29T07:50:00.001-08:00

Morning Meeting from Hell

2008-02-29T05:29:00.000-08:00

I am at work at 7 a.m. to prepare for an 8 a.m. meeting. A meeting I fully expect to be quite confrontational. We are meeting with an insurance agency, who we informed last week that we are leaving to go to another agency. The agency we are going to was the agency we left four years ago to go to the agency with whom we are meeting this morning. The entire reason we left one to go to two and are now leaving two to return to one? CUSTOMER SERVICE.

Yeah. In terms of insurance and our company - we spend a crapload of money annually on insurance and not just health insurance for the employees, I am talking millions in general liability, umbrella, workers compensation, and most importantly, surety bonding - the most important thing (beyond price) is customer service.

It's ridiculous. These things come around. So, why, when we call to tell you that we are moving the account, and you then call back and we tell you point blank why and that these things have a way of coming back around, do you then insist on a face to face meeting to hash it out? Do you really want to kill any possibility of a relationship in the future?

I hate confrontation. I have been dreading this meeting for ten days. I need a drink already.

Wordless Wednesday

2008-02-27T06:26:00.001-08:00

Visiting an Old Friend

2008-02-26T06:28:00.000-08:00

I have been ruminating about my college friend Vicky, who will be in town for an SPE convention in April and will visit me.

Vicky's life and my life have had many parallels. Neither of us were the best students, but we did well enough to be hired. We were both women engineers who were first placed in the field working. I was in the Four Corners Region and she was in small town west Texas. Neither one of us had much of a social life with the men in those small towns. I was holding on to a relationship from college and she had a few flings here and there, but nothing of substance for either one of us. At roughly the same time, we both started running longer races. Shortly thereafter, we each moved - she to Houston and me to Tulsa.

She came to visit me soon after I moved and we ran the Tulsa Run together. I am convinced that Nathan was conceived the weekend of her wedding. In fact, I think there are roughly three babies who have Vicky's wedding to thank for their existence.

After I had my first baby, she came to visit and I remember pushing the stroller and running with her. She now has two children, as do I.

I used to travel to Houston nearly every other week and we used to see each other much more frequently, but it has now been about two years since I have seen her. The last time, we met in Dallas to run a half marathon together. My boys went down with me, but Vicky left hers at home. Nevertheless, we caught up for dinner and margaritas and it was like we had only seen each other a few days before. The next day, we ran the race together, neither of us running for time, but simply to spend 2+ hours hanging out together.

There is something to be said about immediately being able to drop into conversation with someone and knowing she will be there for you and understand you and support you. I miss her deeply and I am overjoyed that she will be visiting soon.

Take 2 - Language & Wine

2008-02-25T12:25:00.000-08:00

Gretchen - contrapuntal was used by the WSJ weekend edition (cannot remember regarding what) and I have read it no less than three times in the same novel about Eleanor of Aquitaine. It was used twice in less than five pages, somewhere in the last 85% of the novel.

Well - I did not actually open a bottle of anything. N was to go to a slumber birthday party, but the guests of honor were both afflicted by the 'flu, so he was home with us. Had he been elsewhere, we were going to have my inlaws watch J. Maybe next weekend.

Joansy - I would find a suitable reason to open that Opus One soon! However, it will age well if you do not.

As for us - I think we have a good reason to open a good bottle soon. I finished our preliminary financials for December. Preliminary only because I need to scrub all the numbers and estimates even more and I am sure I will have found some additional profit gains. I am usually ahead of the game, but not this. Nevertheless, we have had a good year and it does require a bit of celebration.

Language and Wine

2008-02-23T16:32:00.000-08:00

I have come across a word three or four times in the last 24 hours, I was not certain of its meaning, even within the context of its usage, so I decided to look it up on Dictionary.com. I am uncertain why I have suddently encountered this word frequently of late. Have you seen it used?

con·tra·pun·tal /ˌkɒntrəˈpʌntl/ Pronunciation Key - Show Spelled Pronunciation[kon-truh-puhn-tl] Pronunciation Key - Show IPA Pronunciation
–adjective Music.
1.
of or pertaining to counterpoint.
2.
composed of two or more relatively independent melodies sounded together.
[Origin: 1835–45; < style="FONT-VARIANT: small-caps" href="http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=-al" minmax_bound="true">-. See counterpoint] —Related forms
con·tra·pun·tal·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.

Now on to something more exciting. According to the WSJ Weekend Edition, today is Open That Bottle Night 9, "when all of us, world-wide, finally pop the cork on that bottle we've been saving too long for a special occasion."

Knowing that, use it! Tonight is the night! What will you drink tonight?

Details on Sunday (or Monday, if its a very good wine).

AHA! It's Evolution, Baby

2008-02-22T07:18:00.000-08:00

A few months ago, Nathan and I were watching something and Miss J was sitting on my lap. All of a sudden, Nathan makes a wise observation, "Mommy, apes look a little like humans."

AHA!

Oh my goodness. The moment I have been waiting for. The moment Nathan's father has been longing for. A chance to discuss evolution.

I searched my mind rapidly to find the words to discuss evolution in terms that a 6 year old could understand. And so we did. I even took out the laptop, found some great pictures and websites and we discussed it. Nathan understood the concept and thinks it very cool that humans and apes are brethren from years gone by. He found it fascinating that all life forms evolve. He asked questions about how it could happen, how long it takes, etc.

When his father came home from work - an out of town day, so it was late, I could not wait to tell him about our conversation. He was sad to have missed it, but excited that it happened.

As N and J grow, I hope we can continue to identify these opportunities for learning and not hammer it home, but instead engage our children in a discussion that challenges all of us to learn more about our environment and ourselves.

PBN's Blog Blast "Bringing Science Back, Baby!" was the inspiration of this post. You could win one of three $100 VISA gift cards, courtesy of The Zula Patrol. Tell me how you are introducing science to your kids.

All Hail the Wiggles

2008-02-20T06:05:00.001-08:00

Wordless Wednesday

I am mad as hell and I am not

2008-02-19T13:59:00.000-08:00

going to be able to contain myself any longer.

Freaking idiots. People are idiots. People are f'ing lazy.

I am seething with anger and it is directed at several people right now. If the frakking person who is making me redo work that had been sent to him to sign and simply mail (complete with transmittal, preaddressed envelope and prepaid postage) the f'ing documents I have sent him every six months for the past 3 years and that must be sent to the SBA, I would not have received a nasty mail message from said SBA. How much easier do I have to make it? Sign the damn things for him?

Yeah. I probably do.

Now you can return to the pleasure of sushi earrings.

Because I am in a Bad Mood

2008-02-19T08:35:00.000-08:00

I had to find something extraordinarily silly to put a small smile on my lips and to make me realize that I should not take life and myself so seriously.

The Drug Dilemma

2008-02-18T11:23:00.001-08:00

A very good friend discovered her nearly 16 yo stepson had been smoking marijuana and taking prescriptions, maybe for a few months. They have intervened, the young man seems truly relieved that it has been discovered and that he has come clean and that his parents and family are involved.

I literally just discovered that N's beloved after care teacher's 19 yo son died Saturday morning of an accidental overdose. How she is going to go forward with this is beyond me, except she still has a younger son about to graduate from high school.

I never really dealt with this growing up as I was very good girl. I was not curious, I was simply afraid. Afraid of my parents, of being caught, if what it would actually be like. This fear remained with me throughout college and even into young adulthood.

On the other hand, my husband was curious and admits to trying nearly everything under the sun except that which would require a needle. If it could be smoked, eaten, inhaled or snorted, he did it. And he can live to tell about it. And he is a wildly successful person, despite all of it.

So the dilemma with talking about drugs to our children, when the time is right, is what exactly do we tell them? How do we instill a healthy respect for drugs and what they can do and what others can do? How honest should one be with one's children?

Happy VD

2008-02-14T13:00:00.000-08:00

Question asked of me while I was making N's lunch for today: "When did you order that smoker?"

"That smoker" would be the Christmas / Birthday / Anniversary present that I promised W I would give him. "That Smoker" has yet be ordered.

I promised him I would order it today. Have I? Not yet. Instead, I made a deposit at the bank, and picked up the mail at the post office located at the lovely outdoor mall and had an "aha" moment.

I had ordered what I thought was two sets of four glasses of Reidel Sommeliers Cabernet for Christmas, only to see when W opened his first box that there was only one wineglass in it. One. I was simultaneously embarrassed and relieved because the glasses are obscenely large.

So, as I picked up the mail, I realized that two doors down was a Williams Sonoma store. I dashed in there, found precisely what I wanted. I picked up eight glasses, had them wrapped, and also bought a lovely, small, decanter. We have two crystal decanters already, but, honestly, they are not practical for everyday use. I had bought one of these same small decanters already, but I broke it in the transition from the old kitchen to the new kitchen.

Normally, W blows me away with presents for major holidays. We typically do not observe or celebrate Valentine's Day in any traditional ways. It was a good excuse for me to try to make it up to him.

Now, off to order "That Smoker."

Post Makeover

2008-02-13T06:15:00.000-08:00

Well, it really wasn't a makeover, but I did have my makeup professionally done for the first time in forever. I remember when I was 13 or 14, my mom and I went to the mall and had it done at May D&F (1957 -- May acquired The Daniels & Fischer Stores Company in Denver and renamed all its Denver stores May D&F). W and I had been invited to a video shoot for University of Tulsa's business school for a hush-hush promotional video.

I was excited. I looked great! The makeup artist airbrushed foundation on my to smooth out my freckles (I have a lot of them). My favorite part was my eyes.

Then I got home last night and the only thing I had to remove makeup is Seabreeze astringent. It took four cotton pads to clean my face. ICK.

Today I am back to my no makeup look. I am sort of disappointed. I have plans to go to Ulta and buy some makeup - my friends have been touting some wondrous new stuff - Bare Essentials.

The Betrayal of the Scale

2008-02-08T05:29:00.001-08:00

For years, I did not own a scale. I would disdainfully remark that I did not believe in scales, only how my clothes fit and as long as they fit well, I need not worry.

Rewind to last summer. I was pumping for Miss J, had successfully kept my weight at 10 lb below pre-pregnancy weight and I was thinking about the future. I wanted to ensure that I kept that weight off once I stopped pumping. So, I bought a scale. I started weighing every day. Every day. Religiously. Fanatically.

I stopped pumping in October. So far, so good. The weight has remained off as I have eaten a lot less than I did while pumping.

Until last week. Last week, the scale showed an increase of anywhere from 0.5-1 lb / day. Now, I know that is not possible unless (1) I am pregnant (nope) or (2) I am retaining water. Then I came down with the flu at the beginning of the week. Suddenly, on Wednesday, I am back down. Today, I am up 4 pounds.

Then it hits me. My little monthly friend is due to visit. I clutch that excuse and assimilate it in my head and suddenly, I'm okay again.

Now how is it that I functioned perfectly well for nearly 15 years without a scale and now, after having one for six months, I cannot keep myself off of it? Why am I - at nearly 39 years old - still looking for affirmation from it? What happened? Is it being 10 lb lighter and feeling better about myself than ever before? Is it my way of controlling the only thing in my life I feel like I have supreme control over?

What is the data of eating disorders in women my age versus teenagers? What is the data about women who were borderline anorexic 20+ years ago? Anyone know? Why, 25 years later, do I still look for my self esteem as a three digit number?

Feet, Toes & Calves. Oh My!

2008-02-01T06:06:00.000-08:00

Happy feet, happy toes and happy calves, that is. So much happier since I finally made the effort to leave the office at lunchtime and buy new running shoes. Shoes that were long overdue. Overdue by about 1,000 miles. You read that right. I had been running in shoes that I wore when I finished (note: I did not state "run") the Napa Valley Marathon last March. The shoes had over 1,400 miles on them. Shoes are supposed to be replaced every 400-500 miles.

I had noticed a problem over the past few weeks. My calves hurt. I had ripped a hole in the side of the right shoe. The sole was slick as it had lost some of its traction. My arches started to hurt. Then the kicker is when my toes started to bleed. Not a good sign, no?

Now that I have one pair, I think I better buy another pair to have on hand. I know better than to wear such old and worn shoes. But my lack of action is only attributable to my laziness.

That same laziness is now responsible for about five extra pounds. Good thing I now have new shoes to run away from that.

Words Cannot Express How I Feel

2008-01-30T07:46:00.000-08:00

I am sitting here at my desk in my office full of emotions today.

A good friend is just beginning her battle against breast cancer.
Another friend made one of the most difficult decisions a mother could possibly make about her child.
Another friend's husband has a severely degenerative disease and was fired without cause.
Another friend's boyfriend's daughter is fighting for her life while he can only attempt to make her comfortable.

The common thread is that all of these friends are friends via the internet. Imagine having the power and positive thinking of 60 women when you need it the most. Imagine that it is all via electronic exchange. Imagine that we have known each other for six years or more and that we all communicate as much or as little as our daily lives allow. Imagine that we have been through deaths, marriages, divorces, births, new jobs, celebrations and memorials for each other.

I wish I could be there in person for each and everyone one of my friends when they need it the most. I feel helpless that I cannot.

Why I Even Consider a Third

2008-01-28T14:50:00.000-08:00

Yesterday was a relatively nice day after the weeks of cold (for us) weather. We headed to the park in the afternoon to "blow the stink off" as my mother told my brother and me when we were kids. We played longer than anticipated, but it felt good to leave the house. It was one of those days that makes you realize you lucky you are to continue life through your children and to remember carefree days of swinging and playing and running full tilt.

When I Was 25....

2008-01-27T12:15:00.000-08:00

Aimee recently described five things her 25 year old self would not have predicted for her now 38 year old self and asked her readers to describe the same. When I was 25, nearly 14 years ago, I was living in Durango, Colorado, working as an engineer in the oil and gas industry. I had just bought my first home, a townhouse. I was on call every 3rd weekend, but the other two weekends, I could be found in the mountains - hiking, biking, backpacking, skiing. I was still seeing the guy I dated in college, only because neither one of us had any other options. We professed to love each other, but when push came to shove, it did not happen. Looking back 14 years, I think my 25 year old self would be surprised about the following things, most.

1. I live in Tulsa, OK. I used to swear that I would never live anywhere that did not have mountains. I am still a wee bit shocked that I have been here about 10 years or so. I still view myself as being a temporary resident here.

2. I am married with two children, contemplating a third. For as long as I can remember, I never wanted children. Never. I thought I was too selfish for children and liked my life just fine without them. I thought they were cute and that, but not for me. I suspect there are many of us out there.

3. I am part owner of a successful construction company. Back then, I wanted to climb the corporate ladder, but I thought it would be in Salt Lake City or Denver, as part of an energy company, not as head of finance in a general contracting company with seven direct reports.

4. I have completed four (or is it five?) marathons and am planning my next one. My view of running was the 3 miles/day that I logged in the mornings as a wake-me-up. I hiked nearly every evening, even during the winter. I needed no other exercise to stay in shape. It was part of my lifestyle to be in shape, I did not need anything else. But, living in hilly northeastern OK with a job and kids and no free time, I need to run every day and more than three miles.

5. Most surprisingly of all, I think it is that I now believe that global warming is real. As an employee for an energy company, I felt like it was my duty to poo-poo all talk of global warming and disregard thoughts of conservation. Ha. Today, I am planning on my next vehicle being a Toyota Prius, I have started recycling, we have switched all our lightbulbs, and I routinely go through the house and turn off the excess lights, unplug things that should not be drawing electricity, etc.

If you have not already, tell me some things that your 25 year old self would not have predicted about your life today.

Conversation with N

2008-01-23T05:29:00.001-08:00

Yesterday evening after I retrieved the kids from their respective schools, N was playing on his Webkinz and J was eating. Suddenly, N asks me a question.

N: Do you know who I am going to marry?
T: Coco?
N: No.
T: hm.... who?
N: Geni.
T: Two weeks ago, you told me you were going to save your money to buy a house for you and Coco.
N: Coco and I are still friends, but I am going to marry Geni.
T: Oh?
N: Yes. She has a Princess Leia costume.

Julie - Best Wishes!

2008-01-22T06:41:00.000-08:00

Julie at Mothergoosemouse is expecting her third child, a boy, after having two delightful girls. Mayberry Mom and Motherhood Uncensored have conspired for an online baby shower.

My little boy - not so little any longer at 72 pounds and 51 inches or so - was not necessarily "planned," much like your little one. But how does one plan for a child, anyway? Least of all, a boy so full of energy and love? One simply opens one's heart and lets the laughter ring.

Gosh. I am wracking my brain and memories to try to come up with some unique words of wisdom or a cute anecdotal story that is not trite. I guess the only thing I can say is that he is awesome. He can be challenging and exhausting, but he can also be the sweetest thing. When your son seems like he no longer needs his mom and he has grown incredibly independent, there will be a moment when he calls you "mommy" again and you want to hold onto that moment forever.

You Know You are in the South When...

2008-01-16T06:31:00.000-08:00

I never considered Oklahoma as southern. If I thought of it at all - beyond Grapes of Wrath imagery - it was as that state south of Kansas and full of oil. Well, that may be true for much of western OK, but NE OK is hilly and green and really rather pretty. And southern.

What makes a region southern?

Is it the accent? The slight droppin' of the "g" from "ing" words? The lazy way of speaking that makes y'all an acceptable term?

Is it the food? Grits - definitely southern. Okra - yes. BBQ - well, maybe. Sweet potato pie - yes. Black eyes peas - mhmm.

Is it the presence of sweet tea? Hell, yeah, definitely

Is it the ubiquitous references to Christianity? Well, to me, yes, it is.

When I first moved here, I worked for an energy company as an engineer. A few months into my tenure as the only female engineer in the department, a coworker nestled himself into the guest chair in my cubicle (nicely situated near the elevators) and asked me if I had accepted Jesus Christ as my personal lord and savior.

Dumbfounded, I told him I was not comfortable discussing such matters with him. I was astonished that such a topic would be raised in the work environment.

Over time, I have come to realize that this familiarity and assumption of all things Christian as acceptable to others is prevalent here. It makes me uncomfortable that it is automatically assumed that I attend church functions not once/week, but three times at a minimum - twice on Sundays and once on Wednesdays. It is assumed that I have accepted JC as my personal lord and savior and people are shocked and often uncomfortable to learn that I am agnostic.

While my hubby is adamantly anti-Christian, I am simply not a believer. I do not care that others believe and I do not find them foolish. But I find that when others learn of my lack of belief, they are nonplussed. They do not know what to do with me or what to think.

My MIL is a fine example. She is a strong believer and has more faith than nearly anyone I know. She and I have had interesting discussions surrounding this topic. On the other hand, she and my husband have emotional arguments about it, possibly explained by the fact that he was once a passionate believer and is now a passionate unbeliever.

What does bother me is when people use their belief to further their business; a businessman with a fish on his card; a car dealer with this posted on his billboard "Jesus is the reason for the season." It may be unintentional, but I find it loathsome. I would not buy a car from that dealer because it gave an impression of exclusivity.

I was raised in Denver and did not find this sort of blatant expressions of personal faith so prevalent. Perhaps it is more personal there. Perhaps it is the times and the rise of the religious right. I don't know. But, to me, this is one of the most southern things about where I live. And it makes me more uncomfortable the longer I live here.

Randoms

2008-01-14T09:10:00.000-08:00

If you never finished addressing and signing holiday cards, would you abort and consider Valentine's cards for everyone instead? There is still time for me to do this and make the actual date.

Ran 7.5 mi yesterday and it felt great. Should have gone 8 miles, but I thought, what's the difference with 1/2 mile? Today, of course, I wish I had just run 4-5 more minutes.

I am taking today off running. I looked at my log and have run every day since Dec. 12. Of course, I feel like a slug today, but I know my run tomorrow morning will feel easy with a day of rest. It also may explain the lack of my normal excitement towards running.

Mini kid brag - N went to a birthday party yesterday and one of the parents was taking an informal survey regarding each child's current level of Kumon Math. I knew N was in the top 5 or so. I think he is now leading the pack. Of course, I am thrilled, but also saddened because his reading skills do not mirror his math skills. But, as one of the moms said (and she is a teacher), it is only Kindergarten!

I think it may be T-3 weeks until I have a functional utility room on the second level of the house. Currently, the washer / dryer are in the basement. The basement is now gutted and the vent system is in the process of renovation. It's a mess. I grabbed a load of laundry Saturday morning, plunged myself down the stairs into the great unknown, only to find the dryer moved to the other side of the room and not installed. Well, W moved the dryer on Sunday morning. So I head back down Sunday afternoon, then loose a few choice words when I discover the 1/4 inch of dirt on top of the washer. I suck it up and decide I have no choice, so I try to turn the machine on. Water is turned off. I turn the water on, then see the dirt inside the machine. I decide to do a run with a few rags and use them to clean it all. It worked and my machine is cleaner than it has been in a long time. But, gosh, that forced me stay awake until 11 p.m. folding laundry because I know the HVAC guys are there today. Who knows what mess they will make?

So that leads me to a major vent. Why oh why can subcontractors not PICK UPAFTER THEMSELVES???? I mean, please, it's not that hard. Is this their passive / aggressive way of telling us they do not appreciate having to work around the fact that we have remained in the house during the entire renovation / addition?

Sir Edmund Hillary, RIP

2008-01-11T07:02:00.000-08:00

Sir Edmund Hillary died yesterday. He gave so much to the world and was a model of what future athletes should aspire to be by giving back to the world.

May his memory remind us all to reach for the seemingly unattainable.

Day to Read

2008-01-10T06:27:00.000-08:00

Today is Day to Read. Tell me about what you are currently reading - books, magazines, newspapers, cereal boxes, etc - and what you have in your to-be-read pile, whether that pile is in your head or on your bedside table.

I am currently reading two books - Blindness by Jose Saramago and Eleanor of Aquitane by Alison Weir - and have many many more on my bedside table. I am guilty of seeing a book out of the corner of my eye while at Target or Barnes and Noble or anywhere, really, picking it up to read the synopsis and deciding on a whim that I must read it. I may read it immediately or, more likely, read it within the next 1-3 years.

Since having J, I am not reading as much as I would like. My evenings are full and by the time I am ready for bed, I am sleepy. I honestly think it has been six months since I finished a novel. That makes me sad.

I have spoken before of my love for the NYTimes and it's weekly Sunday Magazine and Book Review. That is the other thing that I spend my time reading.

Additionally, I am a devout reader and follower of Runner's World. I have used many of its tips, running schedules and workouts and swear by the magazine. I think I have been reading it for nearly 14 years. It's been a long time. It is the one magazine I still order for myself.

My parents give us the Reader's Digest, which I do enjoy. For some reason, my favorites are Humor in Uniform and the fairly new column by Maria Bartiromo. Picking up a Reader's Digest often floods my mind with memories of my grandparent's house in Nebraska, with stacks and stacks of RD. Beside the RD were the classics. My grandmother was a high school English teacher, quite a strict person, really, but obviously loved the subject she taught. Some of my prized possessions are some Shakespearean plays from 1917 with her name written in the front cover in her handwriting.

Obviously, I love to read. I want my children to love to read. My husband enjoys reading, but not for the escape - it is a learning tool for him. Nonfiction is his choice. Typically, nonfiction about the history and / or theory of finance and economics.

Whatever your choice of medium - books, magazines, newspapers - and whether your preference is fiction or nonfiction, please take time today to read. Celebrate reading. Celebrate the written word.

New Schedule Is Amazing

2008-01-09T05:56:00.000-08:00

Since I am so far behind at work, W suggested that he take the kids to school / daycare and I go to work by 7 a.m. most mornings. It is day 4 of this new schedule and it is good. For the first time in our post-children lives, W has been responsible for taking both children to school on a regular basis rather than a once in a six-month timeframe basis. He knows what it is like to get two children clothes, teeth brushed, breakfast and a sippy cup of milk, backpacks, lunches, etc., into the car and to school in time to make it to work at a respectable hour.

When I do it, I usually make it to work anywhere between 7:45 (rare, but it has happened) and 8:25, with the average time around 8:12 or so. I have been tracking his time by what time he drops J at daycare - it is 8:10. That means he is in the office at 8:20. HA! And that is with me putting N's lunch in his backpack, making sure there is a sippy cup of milk already in the refrigerator, all homework and correspondence in N's backpack, both children's clothes and coats set out, and N's toothbrush ready for him with toothpaste on it.

I thought I would miss seeing the kids in the morning and I do, but I do not miss the stress of trying to get out the door with both of them.

Now, tomorrow and Friday, W has to go to job sites, so I will be back on task, but it is working out well so far.

The other positive is that W has been able to workout in the mornings. I am done by 6:15, I wake him and he works out for 30 min before he showers. I know it is something he has struggled to incorporate for the past several years and this may be the solution we both sought.

I pick up the kids from school and I have noticed that I have more patience in the evenings. I wonder if that is a result of not having been tasked with the morning duty?