Mother Knows Best

It's Hot.  It's really HOT!  Factor in a WHOLE lot of humidity and you have all the fixings for me to be one tired runner.

I just checked the forecast and there really is no reprieve in site. Instead, today is the 15th day in a row with temps over 100 degrees.

Our local meteorologist just assured me that there is a cold front coming along next week and by the looks of this, I just better break out the parka and thermal socks! Hallelujah!!

In meteorology terms, 'cold front' is code for 'a bunch of malarky!'

There's no telling the negotiating I'd be willing to do with Ms. Mother Nature if I could just get one day of some cool relief.

"Oh please Ms. Mother Nature, this heat has put me in some very precarious situations", I'd plead with her. 

"You see, earlier this week I wore khaki pants to work, went to lunch and when I returned I had sweat stains in spots that I'd rather not discuss, but let's just say, nothing says professional like a big 'ol sweaty crotch.

Then today, during my long Saturday 14-mile run, someone dumped some ice cubes on the ground, near the dog park, and I didn't even hesitate to pick up a handful that was probably a covered in some kind of fecal matter and shove them down my sports bra for relief."

Mother Nature would blush in embarrassment for me.

"Oh dear! I simply cannot change the course of nature for one individual's convenience", she'd reply.

"BUT YOU ARE NATURE!  YOU ARE MOTHER NATURE!" I would shout.

After being slightly taken aback by my verbal lashes, Mother Nature would simply explain.

"I know this weather is taking it's toll on you and your attitude, but it is only making you stronger.  You're running a marathon in December, right?  All this summer training may be a physical beating right now, but when the time comes for you to run 26.2, you'll be an efficient running machine.  And didn't you say you wanted to qualify for Boston?  No one ever said it's going to be easy."

I would sigh in anguish, wishing she was just feeding me a bunch of malarky.  "Why is she ALWAYS right?"  I'd ask myself.

"Just stick with it, endure the tough runs, get lots of rest and before you know it, I'll be stopping by again to bring you those cooler days," she reminded me.  "But until then, my dear, let's stick to black pants, I can't do anything about that hormonal issue, you'll have to talk to Mother Estrogen for that."

This post is part of the WOW!

ACTs and Curious George

I'm anxiously awaiting the start of the school year as the summer comes to an end.  With fall on the horizon, school commencing is an exciting beginning for me, a fresh start and a new chapter into my life as a mother of a high school senior and first-grader.

The end of summer is a difficult pill to swallow to LulaLola, who's cherishing every last moment spent with her boys and for Dr. Mom, whose end of summer blues has her relishing in the anticipation of alone time often overlooked by many mothers of young children.

The start of a new school year is an exciting experience for me.  This year most likely will bring more joy and sadness than I've ever experienced.  The next nine months will involve a complete spectrum of challenges to my parental skills.  I'll try to somehow try to find a balance between the preparatory planning of a college-bound senior with the foundational structured learning of my first-grader.

This year has all the expectations to be a very memorable one.  I feel like I need to take a big...long...deep...breath.  I'm going to relish in every page of Keelan's final chapter as I eagerly open a brand new book for Jackson.

This school year means preparing for final ACT and SAT tests and college applications to Keelan and packing superhero backpacks and Star Wars lunch boxes to Jackson.

This school year means Friday nights packed with football and marching band to Keelan and Saturday afternoons packed with organized soccer chaos to Jackson.

This school year means taking Senior pictures and driving a my car to Keelan and drawing stick-figure self-portraits and riding a bicycle to Jackson.

This school year means girlfriends and break-ups and texting and talking on the phone all...night...long to Keelan and teacher crushes and boo-boos and calling Grandma on the weekend to Jackson.

This school year means planning for graduation to Keelan and learning to become a successful reader to Jackson.

This school year will be be an emotional roller coaster ride for me and prideful joyride to Ced.

I can't wait for school to start and to see my boys flourish.  I love to watch them together and to see how they learn from each other despite being 11 years apart in age.

Perhaps I'll learn more than anyone this school year. 

Wholesome Dinner

I love Whole Foods.  Whenever I enter the store, I feel completely 'whole'some and that makes me happy.

I really could go on a crazy spending spree, buying up everything from gluten free waffles to stress-relieving breath mints. Without a list or definitive plan, the seductive pure naked coconut water will lure me its way and before I know it, I will succumb to the temptation of organic goodness.

I was on mission to make a healthy, protein packed vegetarian dinner tonight.  With that in mind, I made my way in and out quickly buying only the few items I needed to make a perfect salad for a HOT summer day like today.

This week's recipe is: Mediterranean Garbanzo Salad (compliments of Whole Foods of course)

Ingredients:
Makes one serving (you can easily double or triple)
5 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
1 small zucchini or yellow squash, halved lengthwise and thinly sliced
½ (15 oz.) can garbanzo beans, rinse and drained
2 Tbsp. roughly chopped parsley
1 Tbsp. prepared balsamic vinaigrette or Italian dressing
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
Ground pepper to taste
2 or 3 lettuce leaves, torn into large bite size pieces

Toss together all ingredients, except lettuce, in a large bowl.  Arrange lettuce on a dinner plate and top with bean mixture.  Simple, wholesome, fresh!  Serve with some pita chips or whole grain crackers on the side and your meal is complete at less than 350 calories.

Turning Dreams Into Goals

I’m a firm believer in setting goals. I’ve done some research lately on how much more effective you become in achieving your goals if you physically write them down. Until you write them down, your goals are just a dream.

So let me take this opportunity to write down a very personal goal to me. It has been a dream of mine for as long as I've been running, although I felt it has always been somewhat unachievable. That is why today I am putting my my dream to paper and am setting my mind up to achieve this goal.



Qualifying to run the Boston Marathon is one of those bucket list items that most distance runners have.  Not just anyone can sign up to run Boston. That is the prestige and history behind the event. You must qualify by running under a certain time in another marathon. Your qualifying time is based on sex and age. The best part is that the older you get, the slower your qualifying time. Yet, another perk of getting older!

I turned 35 this past year, so I was granted an additional five minutes. Thank you marathons gods and goddesses! In other words, I have to run it in 3:45 or less. Or to all you running junkies, that’s an average 8:34 pace spread out over 26.2 miles. Writing it down is the easy part, implementing it is the challenge!

In the past, I guess you could say I had the goal to finish my marathons. Qualifying was not on the top on my list of goals. Even though I had that magical qualifying time looming in my head, I NEVER wrote it down and though I was successful in finishing all three times, I didn’t come close to qualifying.

I’ve given this some long, hard thought and I have envisioned every possible scenario of crossing the finish line in December.  Each vision has me finishing, arms in the air, with the magical time in bright lights blinking above my head. 

This is my year! If I’m good at one thing, it is working really hard on a physical level. I know my limits and love to go beyond them. I love to see what I can achieve when I set my mind to something.  The gratification of checking another item off ‘my list” is a moment I always cherish.

I just took a brief look at my closet and the very obvious fact remains that I run. And I’ve run a lot.

This is just the shoes I currently wear and those with sentimental value I simply cannot let go. 
It doesn't factor in the numerous pairs that have made their way to Goodwill.

I was going through some old running things and came across this checklist that I probably got at some race expo along the way. I didn't even know I had it.

 

But I would say I'm pretty good at following the rules.

Why would I invest so much time and money into something that I love so much and not ever give myself the opportunity to do the one thing that most runners dream to do?  I'm going to make my dream a reality.

What are your goals? Do you write them down?