Running and Pasta

I'm starting to see how this running stuff consumes people.  I did my Sunday run, but wasn't able to run Monday or Tuesday, so tonight I was back at it.  I went to the gym earlier than normal tonight to do a run before I had my late night workout.  Well, as soon as I walk in, late night workout buddy says, you need to go run 2 miles before the gym closes.  When I look at the clock, that's 17 minutes away!!  I run up the stairs and start running, and while I didn't quite meet that deadline, I did get two miles in in less than 23 minutes.  I know, no lightning speed, but good for me...last Monday I ran one mile in 11:44, tonight was 2 miles in a little less than 11:30/mile average.  It's funny, because I'm boderline miserable while doing it.  Tonight after I finished the first mile, I thought, I can't believe marathon runners do 26 of these, I can't imagine having to go another 25 miles, but now that I'm sitting on my couch a couple of hours later, I'm so glad I did it, and want to do it again.
Pasta... I was so hungry when I left work last night, but I had come across this recipe for pasta yesterday and I wanted to try it.  I am a pasta lover, any way you cook it with whatever you put in it.  I made a quick run to Publix for the tomatos and spinich and then home to start cooking.  I did add in some portobello mushrooms I had in the fridge.  It was super easy, and so yummy.  I took some leftovers to my mom today for lunch and she was loving it.  Hope you enjoy, too!

So, I did it today, ran 1.5 miles, no stops.  Why? Because it was part of my 5k program, but what pushed me thru to the end when my legs wanted a break, and I wanted to stop?  I wanted to send a text to my cousin, Emily, and tell her I did it.  You see, Emily, talked me into doing this program, then when I doubted myself for signing up for the run instead of the walk/run portion, Emily told me I could do it.  And three different times thus far, I've done it.  I've made my runs, I've pushed thru and finished, no stops.  I mean, I upped my mileage 50% today and got it done. 

It had me thinking tonight, why don't we encourage more?  Why do we let others discourage themselves, put themselves down and not push themselves?  Why don't we lift each other up, push each other harder, and be a blessing in others' lives?  Why don't we have more faith in ourselves and each other?

Without Emily, I'd be doing this program as a walk/run.  I wouldn't be pushing as hard as I could, and I'd let myself wimp out and take breaks. 

I'm blessed to have her in my life, hope you have someone like that in yours!

My Aunt

What a long, painful, awful week. Things started out fine, then my world was rocked on Tuesday. I was with my mom when she got the call that her sister had passed away suddenly. It was a shock, she had had health problems, but we, I, wasn’t ready for it.


My aunt was funny. The ladies in her bridge club that came thru the visitation line at the funeral home kept repeating that. They said how much they loved her stories, and how funny she was. And she was, a great sense of humor, and truly one of the best story tellers I know. She actually was the one who set my parents up on a blind date. I remember sitting up late with her on one of our family trips and her telling me the story. It was hysterical, she was hysterical. That’s what I’ll miss, talking to her. You know regrets, well, mine is that we didn’t have more talks, especially in the past few years. See, my aunt and I had several things in common, I was named after her, we both were first children (if you aren’t a first child you won’t understand, but that opened up a whole world of issues and commonalities for us to talk about), and we were numbers people. She was very smart, quick to figure things out. She was also a really good listener, something I want to learn from. It was said at the funeral her daughters said she was one to let you make your own decisions and not judge or give I told you so’s. I’d never thought about it like that, but that’s true. As I got older and she had more family, it seemed like we didn’t see each other as much, and definitely didn’t have as many talks, but I do remember a Veteran’s Day just a few years ago, when I ended up at breakfast with my mom, my aunt, and my uncle after a school program our little kids were in. It was the best breakfast, I got them all to myself, to talk, to laugh, to enjoy.

So what will I remember, and what do I want to mimic in my own life… her listening skills, her humor, and her love of family. I think each one of her brothers and sisters had a special bond with her. I think both me and my sister had a special bond with her. She had that ability.

First Run = Done

Today I started my No Boundaries program.  It's to start non-runners running, kind of like the Couch to 5K program, except with a group.  My goal is to run the 5k at the end, non-stop.  So today's first run for me was 1 mile.  I had so many doubts.  My cousin, whis is amazing, and my twice a week workout buddy, is one of the coaches.  I was telling her after I received my initial training schedule that I messed up in what I selected, I did want to run it, but I needed to start with run/walking that there was no way I could run the whole mile.  She somehow convinced me that I was in good enough shape to run the whole mile, that I could do it, just needed to push myself.  So, that's what I did, I started the run, convinced myself that it couldn't take more that 15 minutes, and I could run for 15 minutes.  I did it!  I was one of the slower (slowest) runners, but it happened.  One of the other coaches, also a friend of mine, ran the last 1/2 mile with me, which was nice.  Now comes the homework.  I have to run 1 mile two more times this week. 
After I left the gym, I went to the assisted living place to visit my grandmother.  When I arrived, she was playing Rook with some other ladies.  I ended up joining the game.  It was too funny, please understand I'm not making fun, but they were cracking me up.  The phrase "what color are trumps?" must have been asked 1,000 times, and "who played that", and again "what color are trumps?".  I was told how well I can shuffle and how agile my hands are.  It struck me how much I take for granted.  I admire these ladies for keeping their minds sharp and enjoying their time together.  I hope I'm playing Rook ath their age!
I got home and my run had me wanting a healthy dinner.  I broke out my bag of spinach leaves, my strawberries, and oranges, and half of a leftover chicken breast from what I had cooked the other night.  But, there is one thing I love on a salad, toasted pecans, so I found  a recipe online and went for it... Yummy!!!!!!  They were so good and added so much flavor, but one note of caution, I knocked one of them off right after I pulled them out of the oven...sugar burn...sooooo painful, it still hurts, but so tasty on the salad!

Weekend

What a gorgeous weekend!!  My highlight of the weekend was going ziplining.  It was so neat.  I have a slight fear of heights so I had to talk myself through a lot of it, but it was a really cool thing to do.  The rest of the weekend was spent with basketball and/or taxes.  There have been some awesome games with some crazy ending this weekend.  I love the way they are televising every game this time, makes me happy!  My bracket is shot all to pieces but it wasn't too realistic to begin with.  I did it the Weight Watchers balsamic checken and mushrooms last night, so tasty.  I was really impressed.  I was also going to do some Weight Watchers mashed potatoes, but I became so involved in the Butler/Pittsburg game that I let all the water boil out and the potatoes burn...bummer.  Hope you had a great weekend!!

Wednesday Win

As I've stated before, I've become addicted to couponing in the past year.  Today's wins were at Publix... I came home with free pasta, free rice, and free frozen veggies.  Total, I spent $24.32, and saved $19.51.  I don't usually count it a win unless I save more than I spend, but I bought at $9 pork loin so I'm still proud of the way today's shopping trip turned out.  I've started trying to eat healthier, thus buying lots more fruits and veggies.  They just don't seem to go on sale as much, but that just adds to the challenge.  I just finished a first run at some balsamic chicken for tomorrow.  Hopefully, it will be edible and tasty (my domestic skills leave much to be desired).  If it's good, I'll share the recipe. 

Top Two Tuesday

Top 2 Random Facts About You


1.  I've become obsessed with coupons.  I don't want to buy anything at full price anymore.  CVS is my new favorite store and the whole thing has become a fascinating challenge/game.

2.  Fall is my absolute favorite time of year.  My favorite events happen at that time.  FOOTBALL starts!!  And the trees changing and cooler weather coming just makes me happy!

What are some random facts about you?  I would love to know, so head on over to The Undomestic Momma and link up!

Tragedy

We all have those times don't we, when it seems like everything around is goes wrong, or is sad, or when the world seems full of despair.  Everyone has those times.  This week we've seen the pictures of the natural disaster in Japan.  There are estimates of 10,000 people dead or missing.  Now, there are reports of all sorts on what could come from the melt down of the nuclear power plants there.  It's all unbelievable, scary, especially in a country that is like our own, educated, wealthy, cultured.  But it can happen anywhere, tragedy can strike anywhere, both in mass, as in Japan, or with a divorce, the loss of a loved one, or depression of any sort.  What do we do with those feelings?  What do we make of it?  I've been reminded this week just how short and uncertain our time on earth is.  Whether it be a natural disaster, a sudden illness, or loss of life to depression, life can end so quickly.  So what matters?  Where we are going when this life ends and what we've done with our time here.  First problem solved easily, God tells us there is a heaven and if we believe in Him, in his existance and that he loves us and sent His Son to die for our sins, we can be in Heaven with Him for eternity.  Secondly, what have we done with our time here?  This is something I struggle with, how much time do I waste?  Lots.  Do I have to be out knocking on doors to spread the Gospel, no, but do I need to be building relationships with people I can tell about God's love, growing in my own relationship with God, and building relationships with others who can be encouragers and toe steppers for me, absolutely.  Life will end for all of us, some sooner than later.  That really doesn't scare me anymore, I'm don't want to live in fear.  God tells us in Timothy "For God did not give us a spirit of timidity, but a spirit of power, of love and of self-discipline." 2 Timothy 1:7
So in this time of tragedy, I want to remind myself how short our time here on Earth can be, and how I want mine to count, to touch lives, to be an encouragement to others.  That's what I'm called to do, not to be comfortable and not to be happy, but to be joyful, an encourager, and to plant seeds.