Week in Review & Monster turned TWO:

Wow, so I really let this week get away from me. I had a busy week celebrating my baby girl's birthday!

I did not go running last Sunday. I talked about it in my last post. I went to bed early and set my alarm - but when it went off, I could not make myself get up. I regretted that decision throughout the day.

Monday morning, the hubs had to head into work extra early so I slept in. We planned on doing a family run when he got home. We had changed clothes and were in the process of wrapping things up and heading out the door when our weather radio went off - alerting us that we were under tornado watch. It started pouring rain shortly after that, so we did not exercise. Instead, I stuffed my face with pasta. Take that.

Tuesdays are jam packed days for me! I have Bible Study in the mornings and have to drop the monster off at church beforehand. I go to lunch with a good pal of mine, pick up the baby, and we both come home and nap. I get up, shower again, and get ready for work. Then I work a glorious 14 hour shift during the night. So, getting up early enough to run before the hubs leaves for work on these days should be applauded. Ha! I thought about skipping out on lunch with my pal that morning to get a run in. But, when I checked the weather, it was supposed to be a 100% chance of rain throughout the mid morning to early afternoon and it was only a 60% chance of rain that morning. I took my chances. And I ran in the rain. And it was sunny all morning and afternoon. Go figure.

Side note: someone needs to invent a rain resistant jacket that doesn't make you so HOT!

I took my Aussie with me that morning - I got sad because she can't keep up like she used to. I know she's getting older - but she has been my bestest pal for years now. I got her before I started vet school. She has been through all of my biggest life changes with me (minus leaving home to go to college in the first place). I was very emotional throughout the day just thinking about losing her one day. Sad face. But, the hubs reminded me that she has been a couch potato since late spring (it got hot very quickly this spring) and she was really out of shape. Fine. I'll give him that, but I'm still allowed to be emotional because of my pal. Anyway, it was much less scary in the darkness and light drizzle with my friend with me. She's an extra set of ears and has been known to be very protective of me. I'm looking forward to our next run together!

Tuesday's details:
3.34 miles, 35:37
Raining, around 70 degrees, pre-dawn
Arwen definitely slowed me down a bit (seriously, you're a girl, must you pee on everything??)-- but she was worth it!

I ended up staying late at work on Wednesday morning because of a last minute surgery. It would have been a perfect morning to run - the first day of the cold front! I stuffed my face with Chick-fil-A instead. I'm sensing a trend this week.

Thursday is typically my long run day. I had to post pone it on Thursday due to my Monster turning the big TWO! I took her to church, came home, finished her adorable cupcakes (pictured below), and took them to her class at lunch time. Wow, those kids are cute. I loved being able to be there and see her interact with them! So stinking cute. There's no other way to describe them.

The hubs stayed home today to celebrate the monster's birthday and have some family time. I got up early this morning to do my long run. Of course, when I got up, the first thing I noticed was that there was very dense fog. Naturally. My last long run attempt had me running in 90%+ humidity, I got the chafe of a lifetime, AND I was unable to finish!

Today was a much better run. I left my car at my friend's house and ran on some trails in PTC. I had absolutely no close calls with any golf carts and I did not die of heat exhaustion. I did stop back by my car at around 8.5 miles and refill my water bottle, change shirts (I was soaked and was afraid to repeat a chafing episode), and realize that I had left my chews at home. Crud. The hubs had some peanut butter crackers, so I ate a couple of those and went on my way.

I was happy when it was over but felt like I could have kept going! I loved my hand held water bottle. But, I'm still not sold on the NUUN tablets. I stopped at Starbucks (yum). I stretched a bit when I got home - my hips were tight after being in the car - and I felt great all day. I didn't even take a nap! However, my legs did feel a bit tired this evening when I was standing in the kitchen making delicious food.

Speaking of, let me tell you - I found this recipe for spiced green apple and butternut squash soup. Uhm, hello, what? It was SO GOOD.

Today's run:
12 miles, 2:20:53
70%, humid/foggy, PTC golf trails

So, the good news is that I only need to shave off about 20 minutes and add another 1.1 miles. HAHA! I'm only kidding - I know I will run a bit faster when I'm with all those other people and I should at least be able to shave off another 10 minutes. I will really have to pace myself so that I don't go out TOO fast.

I was going to buy a glorious Garmin watch before my first 13.1 this season. BUT - I had to fund a pretty expensive repair on my car. Sad face. I hate being an adult. When I said I wanted to grow up, I didn't realize it meant I'd have to pay my own bills!