Twenty Five Months

I have to say it was really weird coming up on August 5th and not taking a "monthly photo".  I am not exactly sure how well I will keep up with monthly updates without that constant reminder, but here goes.

A summary of the month:

* First time bowling thanks to kidsbowlfree.com and a rec group was there, so it ended up being glow bowling.

* Likes to imitate working out using the pink 2 lb weights, and he likes to push on me while attempting to do the pushups.

* Second year sleeping in a tent without a pack n play or nursing was not very easy.  

* Some of his latest words or phrases: "I coming", "this way", "leash", "collar", "who else?", "how about...", and has also started to say please without having to be prompted.  

*Will have time-outs usually because of hitting friends in frustration or hitting the dog.  Have to be with mom right now or in the high chair, because he won't stay put

* Evening walks in the stroller and with Sage around the neighborhood.  We typically go twice, so he will say "one more time?"

* First trip to an amusement park when he could actually ride some of the rides - Canobie Lake Park 7/14

* First trip to Tumble Tikes open gym with lots of our little friends 7/19

* Made a trip to Bangor for a visit and went to Cole's Transportation Museum for the first time 7/25

* First trip Blueberry picking with our little playgroup.  It went much better than strawberry picking, because Braden loves blueberries 7/30

Couldn't Have Done It Without You!

I am not a runner.  I have said this before - it is not something I enjoy doing nor do I feel am very good at.  But, I like to set goals and push myself to reach them.

A year ago September, I set a goal to finish a 5k race.  This was only 10 weeks after Braden was born, so I knew that I would have to walk some.  I prepared myself as much as possible, and it was difficult, but finishing and celebrating the accomplishment with family and friends was amazing!  

The following spring my mom and I set out to tackle another 5k race on Mother's Day - the goal this time was to run the entire way!  We were both very proud of achieving that goal & improving our times.  

Unfortunately, I did not keep up with the training through out the summer.  So, when Katie asked me to run two races with her in the Fall I was a little worried.  I did as much training as I could and set a secret goal of trying to finish in under 30 minutes.  The first race I came so close, but I just slowed down too much in the last mile and couldn't reach my goal!  Quite frustrating - I had given up on myself.  

1. Race For The Cure -  34-35 minutes (B-tag didn't register the info)

2. Mother's Day 5k - 31.46

3. Great Island 5k - 30.46

For the last race Braden ended up joining us, so knowing that we would have to push the stroller along I had given up hope of reaching my goal.  But I should not have!  

We started off really strong - Katie pushed Braden for pretty much the entire race (thank you!).  We some how weaved the stroller through the beginning crowds, waited in line for the water, dealt with a wobbly stroller wheel & barely survived a huge hill towards the end!  When the last 1/2 mile came up and I wanted to slow down (give up) Katie was right there encouraging me and breaking down the minutes - telling me I could do this!  I really could not have reached my goal with out her support both in pushing Braden and encouraging me to keep up the pace.  

Of course the only photo they had was taken in the 1-2 minutes that I was pushing Braden.  Katie did all of the hard work!  I couldn't have done it without you - THANK YOU!

4. Great Bay 5k - 29.42

I am proud to say that I have continued running (although it is getting colder out, so may not last much longer).  I have begun the Bridge to 10K, so we'll see what goals will be set for the Spring!  

Mother's Day 5K

Before the race

Slugger & his Mom

My mom and I successfully completed the Seadogs Mother's Day 5k race in Portland!  The main goal for both of us was to run the entire race, which we both accomplished!  As a result our times were much better than the first race we did (in September) and we felt much better after this race.  It was also helpful to have Jon, Mike & Braden along the route to cheer us on.  They were able to make it to two different locations.  

The great thing about this particular race was that they had photographers in different locations, so we enjoyed searching through the photos!  I had fun celebrating my first Mother's day by accomplishing this goal with my mom.  We spent the rest of the day hanging out at home enjoying some lunch, playing games & taking Braden on a wagon ride.  Now, I just need to get back out there and keep up the running routine.  I might just have to sign up for another race to keep up the motivation...

The starting line - the two of us together!

Mile 2

The finish line

My Finish line video @ 5:30

Mom's Finish Line video @ 2:00

Sharon's Mile 2 video @ 14:33

Mom's Mile 2 video @ 4:21

Jump! Jump!

Reaching Your Goals

     As I have mentioned in a few of my previous posts, I do not consider myself a runner.  I have NEVER liked running/jogging, even in high school when getting ready for a season.  But, two summers ago I found the "couch to 5k" program and decided to try it.  Whenever I attempted to do the program I would make it to about week 3 before stopping, either due to injury or lack of motivation.
      This summer my sister posted on Facebook that she was signing up for a 5k race, so I decided I would join her.  My thought was that having someone else to race with and actually signing up for the race would be the motivation I needed.  This of course all happened BEFORE I had Braden - what was I thinking?!  As a result, after my recovery period I really only had 4 weeks to train and get ready for the race.

     I was really dreading the race, because I did not feel like the training went well and I did not run or walk the week before the race.  But, I am happy to say that it went much better than expected.  I was happy to have completed the race and I was able to run more than I had to walk.  I am very proud of our little racing group.  We all accomplished the goals that we set for ourselves and it was awesome to share that with our little cheering squad: Mike, Braden, Jon and Eva!
     The only downside was that 15% of the B-tags did not register (which included myself).  So, my name and results were not able to be posted!  Call me crazy, but I guess I am just going to have to sign up for another race!

  

April Vacation

April vacation is finally here!  It was a wonderful feeling to wake up this morning and not have to go to school.  I don't really have any major plans, so I will be hanging out in Scarborough working on a few little projects/errands.  Here are a few of my goals for the week, and I'm sure I will come up with a few more along the way.

* Finish the guestbook
* Set up a new walking/gym routine I wouldn't call it a "routine" yet, but I have a plan & hopefully I can stick to it!
* Complete a few sewing projects
* Fix the ceiling/paint job in the bedroom
* Stain the deck (with Mike's help)
* Car registration & license renewal
* A few lunch/dinner dates with friends
* Read at least 3 2 1 book(s)
* Think about/plan out possible garden
* Get all planning/correcting done before Sunday!
* Clean the car inside & out!

One Season Ends & Another Begins

The Marshwood field hockey season if FINALLY over (3-2-6)! It is always a bittersweet feeling though, because I truly enjoy working with the girls, but the season just drags on. We had a terrific last game, we ended up winning 2-1, against Kittery. It was a really competitive, and close game! We had a successful team celebration at Smitty's in Sanford - took 50 girls along with a few parents to see Where the Wild Things Are. Here are a few of the team photos from this year. I have to hand it to Tami (7th grade coach), because she had 30 girls alone on the 6th/7th grade team and she was able to get all of them in to each and every game! It was not an easy job! But now, I am looking forward to having my time back after school to prep, plan or just head home if I want to. Just a few more uniforms to collect and then we are completely done!

8th Grade Team

On the same day that my Marshwood season ended, my adult league at Seacoast United started. We had an 8:30 game, which is late for me (especially when I have to drive back to Scarborough afterwards). We played pretty well considering we hadn't played since April/May. But, I am sooo out of shape and I am still a little sore today (shins/legs especially). Now, that I have some more free time I need to get my butt to the gym, so that I am not in pain for a week after playing Monday nights.

Hopefully there will be more opportunities for blog posts now that coaching is over with. We shall see...

"When are you going to realize I am NOT a runner?"

This was my exact response to Mike last night when he said something to me about taking Sage for a run. Whenever he brings up running, my immediate response is "I don't run!". It is one of those things that I am not good at. It is uncomfortable (sometimes painful), and I just really do not enjoy it. Even with my involvement with sports in high school I always dreaded the long distance running days or the mile run for PE. Mike on the other hand, ran cross country and would often go for runs through college. As a result, I would never even dream of going running together - much too intimidating and not my idea of fun!

That is why I thought it was very ironic that I started a training program for beginning runners today. I just had open my mouth and give that response last night! The story is that I wanted to participate in the Weight Watchers Walk-It Challenge, but when I looked over the training it seemed too easy. As I mentioned before I have been walking on the treadmill, which is more of a workout than the "challenge" WW offered. So, I decided to look at the beginning runner program instead. I thought, why not give it a try and see what happens. Today's workout was not too bad, but the problem is that it involved very minimal running (7 minutes out of 31) and I was still in a lot of pain. I just never feel comfortable and relaxed while running. But, I am not ready to give up yet, and we'll see how things go. Maybe Mike's wishes will come true, and I will have to take back last nights statement (I have my doubts).

I Think I Can, I Think I Can.

I have finally decided to face my FEAR and get back on the treadmill! I have been trying to get back into a gym routine and being more active. On Monday nights I have indoor field hockey, Tuesdays a dance aerobics class, and I try to go to the gym on the other days. But, I am getting bored with the same routine all of the time. So, I found this walking boot camp that I want to try - but I just can't motivate myself to go outside in the cold. Yesterday, I convinced myself that I could and would be okay on the treadmill. This was the first time I had been on a treadmill since middle school/freshman year of high school. Which brings me to the whole reason I am terrified of them.

Around my freshman year, I went with Sarah to visit her Aunt & Uncle in Waterville, ME. For some reason I decided to listen to her when she said to get on the treadmill and see how fast I could go. As I was walking along she would slowly increase the the speed. I eventually had to start jogging, which turned into a run, and then very quickly became a full sprint (which I could only do for so long). The end result was that the treadmill did not slow down fast enough and I fell. However, t I did not want my face to hit the track and get burned or scraped. So, I decided that the next best thing to do would be to hold on until Sarah could get the track to STOP! Unfortunately, while I was holding on my knees were touching the track and the treadmill was still going, until FINALLY it slowed down enough so that I could let go. I ended up with REALLY bad, painful burns on both of my knees. The good news was that they were not on my face!

Sarah and I proceeded to go upstairs to find Nancy (who is a nurse) to find out what to do. Unfortunately, the answer was to pour peroxide on the wounds, which was VERY painful. Then for the rest of the day I tried to stay still as much as possible. Getting home was another adventure, because I couldn't really bend my knees to walk around, let alone sit in a car for 45 minutes.

Since then (about 13 years) the scars have slowly faded away, and have avoided going anywhere near treadmills. That is until yesterday! I decided to try it out. I was very hesitant to increase the speed at all, but I thought it was a huge accomplishment to even try. I can't say that I really went as fast as I possibly could, but we'll get their someday (maybe). If the speed even went above 3 mph you better believe that I was holding on for dear life! We'll see if things improve as I go through this boot camp! Hopefully it will be worth it!