Well since I last wrote I have...
*Competed in Ragnar Florida Keys...GO RAGTAILS
*Got and passed 2 MAJOR Kidney Stones (one while running Ragnar (yes I am a beast!) and one the week before running the Princess Half)
*I have had kidney stone surgery (for the one that got stuck while running Ragnar-boo!)
*PR'ed at the Princess Half with a 2:07 finish and my hope for a sub 2 will be attained at the Disney Wine and Dine in October
*Signed up for the Tower of Terror 10 miler the day after my birthday and the 2013 WDW MARATHON!! woot woot!!
*Started my own Mary Kay Business
*Have been a super mom with kids activities EVERY NIGHT of the week
*Started working at Dynasty Elite Cheer All-Stars
and much much more.
My goal right now is to blog more consistently about all of the crazy things going on so that I can remember them.
Stay Tuned because the best is yet to come...
Tuesday, April 10, 2012
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Ragnar Nation
All my bags are packed (jammed full!) and I'm ready to go...
Ragnar Florida Keys starts tomorrow and we are leaving for Miami later this afternoon. To say I am excited would be an understatement but I am also nervous with leaving my kids (great friends and a wonderful husband does help with this!). I will be tweeting throughout the race so check me out at CrazyKyle5 for all the Team Ragtail updates and pics.
21 miles for me 200 for my team...
Bring it ON!!!
Ragnar Florida Keys starts tomorrow and we are leaving for Miami later this afternoon. To say I am excited would be an understatement but I am also nervous with leaving my kids (great friends and a wonderful husband does help with this!). I will be tweeting throughout the race so check me out at CrazyKyle5 for all the Team Ragtail updates and pics.
21 miles for me 200 for my team...
Bring it ON!!!
Tuesday, December 20, 2011
Jingle Jingle all the Way
Last year this was Ashley's first 5K, so naturally when the time came to sign up for this years event we didn't even hesitate. After we signed up with a team from Ryan's Tae Kwon Do school -Team Just for Kick's, I looked at the date and realized it was the day before my sister in law's graduation to get her Masters Degree. Never once did it cross my mind to not do the race- I figured we would just work around it. Then my non- running friend Kerri signed up to run it as her first 5K ( I love when my friends start running!!!)
We showed up to the race and Ashley and I were talking about her goals. (I guess most people don't do this with their 8 year olds???) She said that she wanted to do better than her last one (the boo run in October 36:33) and I told her that if she did I would give her $20 (doesn't everyone bribe their kids to exercise?)
There were so many people at this race, 3000 registered. We met up with out TKD friends from Carpenters ATA and took some pictures. Then Ashley and I found Kerri and went searching for another friend Laureen. It was much harder to find people than I expected. We had a really hard time finding Laureen but somehow we did and made our way to the starting line.
The horn went off and NO ONE MOVED. I am not exaggerating when I say this...there were just so many people that I felt like we were at the start of a Disney race. We were able to cross the street and Ashley and I settled into a nice pace. She seemed to be doing ok and when I asked her she was smiling. We had just run this route in October for the Boo Run so I knew how to pace her better than I did then. There were still A LOT of people and they hadn't been able to close down the road, so we had to all keep to one side of a cone (very difficult to do). We got to the one mile mark and I looked at my watch and it said 10:45...ummmmm....we need to slow down was the first thought that crossed my mind. Our goal was to beat 36:33 and at this pace we would be 3 minutes under that. She still hadn't asked to walk yet but I KNEW that was quickly approaching. We made it to the 1.5 mile mark where they had people handing out water, I told her to grab one and we walked through it, partially because she wanted to walk and partially because I haven't really met anyone who can successfully drink from a cup while running. At this point I knew I had to start getting her mind off of what she was doing plus just be silly and help her to realize that what she was doing was FUN (my major goal!!) She was beginning to get more tired so we started doing a bit of the run/walk until we reached mile 2. I just kept trying to tell her what a good job she was doing and how many adults she was doing better than (whatever works!!). When we were about .5 from being done she really started to fade. We were still going to beat her 36:33 but I didn't know if she was going to just want to walk the rest of the way. I don't really know how to motivate an 8 year old, especially mine. She is highly competitive so I was trying to just let her run if she wanted to and not say much if she wasn't (so so hard for me to do!!)
She started running again, on her own and we made the turn so that we could see the finish line and then...we got stopped at the light because the town couldn't stop traffic for a race. WHAT?!?!?
I know that this is a fun event and a family friendly one at that but it is still a 5K race. Most runners want to try and do their best. The man who stopped us and other runners actually said "now we are doing this for fun not PR's" and on most occasions I would have agreed with him and totally not cared but this wasn't for me, it was for my Ashley so the fact that they stopped us really, really bothered me. Once the light changed and we were able to start again I told her that we were going to meet her goal and that she should be extremely proud. She finished her 3rd 5K in 34:27 :)
I am so proud of her- she could have quit but she didn't and that is all that matters. I then handed her a 20 dollar bill to fulfill my part of the bargain :) It was a fun event but they need to work on the traffic situation and they need to have people handing water out at the finish as well, not just cases sitting on the ground, a quarter mile from the finish.
I would do it again, after all it is tradition. Happy Holidays!!!
We showed up to the race and Ashley and I were talking about her goals. (I guess most people don't do this with their 8 year olds???) She said that she wanted to do better than her last one (the boo run in October 36:33) and I told her that if she did I would give her $20 (doesn't everyone bribe their kids to exercise?)
There were so many people at this race, 3000 registered. We met up with out TKD friends from Carpenters ATA and took some pictures. Then Ashley and I found Kerri and went searching for another friend Laureen. It was much harder to find people than I expected. We had a really hard time finding Laureen but somehow we did and made our way to the starting line.
Carpenters ATA Group
She started running again, on her own and we made the turn so that we could see the finish line and then...we got stopped at the light because the town couldn't stop traffic for a race. WHAT?!?!?
I know that this is a fun event and a family friendly one at that but it is still a 5K race. Most runners want to try and do their best. The man who stopped us and other runners actually said "now we are doing this for fun not PR's" and on most occasions I would have agreed with him and totally not cared but this wasn't for me, it was for my Ashley so the fact that they stopped us really, really bothered me. Once the light changed and we were able to start again I told her that we were going to meet her goal and that she should be extremely proud. She finished her 3rd 5K in 34:27 :)
I am so proud of her- she could have quit but she didn't and that is all that matters. I then handed her a 20 dollar bill to fulfill my part of the bargain :) It was a fun event but they need to work on the traffic situation and they need to have people handing water out at the finish as well, not just cases sitting on the ground, a quarter mile from the finish.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Running in the Dark
If you have kids, planning a running schedule is tricky. Many days I run either before the sun comes up or long after it sets. I try to be as careful as I possibly can because I know I have 4 very important people that count on me and if I get hit by a car it would really hurt- ha!
USUALLY I try to run on the sidewalks BUT lately I have become a bit less "rule follower" and a bit more adventurous. My first run on Lorainne road I was scared to death. You are supposed to run against traffic in the bike lane which in theory works so you can see all the cars coming at you. With all the technology and people texting while driving...this is SCARY!!! I run as close to the side as I possibly can, and I have noticed that the women drivers are usually the ones who almost hit me (even when they can move to the other lane!!)
So after practicing this (for Ragnar) I decided to take a nice 9 mile run and practice running on the street, using my flasher things...you know all the things that I should already be doing when running close to dusk.
I headed out onto Lorainne (busy road around 5 p.m.) and as I started running against traffic -my headphones broke and I could only hear every other word. I was only a mile into my run but I kept going. My body knows my pace by now so I was trying to just coast- while cars came flying by. I don't know what is so difficult on a 4 lane road to move over if you see someone running/biking. I think maybe some of the people just want to take some perverse pleasure in scaring me but I did make it down the road without being struck by a car.
At this 3 mile mark I turned into the Lakewood Ranch Country Club for the next what I "thought" was 3 miles (turned out to be 5, just around the loop). I was kinda getting used to hearing the music through what sounded like water and I got A LOT of dirty looks as cars passed by. When I realized that this loop was much further than I thought- oh no! but I had fueled pretty good yesterday and I was feeling really good.
About mile 7, I realized that the sun had gone down and I needed to turn on my flasher things. The funny part about them is that they never flash at the same time so I look a bit like a police car with my blue and red lights flashing. This is also about the time that the sprinklers in Lakewood Ranch decide to turn on- UGH!! At mile 8 I was now done with my loop and time to get back onto Lorainne for the run back home.
It was completely dark now and the streetlights are not very close together. My own shaddow scared me a few times (I have seen too many movies where people jump out of the bushes). Thank goodness there weren't as many cars by this point driving down Lorainne because even with my flashing lights I don't think I am easy to see and the sidewalk really wasn't an option unless I wanted to smell like the sewer and get my beautiful orange Newton's all wet. (Priorities People!!)
I did not follower runner ettiquitte on Greenbrook Blvd as I ran with traffic (it was only a mile!!)
When I was done though I had a renewed sense of confidence in knowing that not only will I be able to run the distances I have to for Ragnar but I will be able to do it with a cool and calm head becuase I can run in the dark :)
Tonight it the Jingle Bell 5K with Ashley :) Stay tuned because I'm sure that post is going to be pretty funny!
USUALLY I try to run on the sidewalks BUT lately I have become a bit less "rule follower" and a bit more adventurous. My first run on Lorainne road I was scared to death. You are supposed to run against traffic in the bike lane which in theory works so you can see all the cars coming at you. With all the technology and people texting while driving...this is SCARY!!! I run as close to the side as I possibly can, and I have noticed that the women drivers are usually the ones who almost hit me (even when they can move to the other lane!!)
So after practicing this (for Ragnar) I decided to take a nice 9 mile run and practice running on the street, using my flasher things...you know all the things that I should already be doing when running close to dusk.
I headed out onto Lorainne (busy road around 5 p.m.) and as I started running against traffic -my headphones broke and I could only hear every other word. I was only a mile into my run but I kept going. My body knows my pace by now so I was trying to just coast- while cars came flying by. I don't know what is so difficult on a 4 lane road to move over if you see someone running/biking. I think maybe some of the people just want to take some perverse pleasure in scaring me but I did make it down the road without being struck by a car.
At this 3 mile mark I turned into the Lakewood Ranch Country Club for the next what I "thought" was 3 miles (turned out to be 5, just around the loop). I was kinda getting used to hearing the music through what sounded like water and I got A LOT of dirty looks as cars passed by. When I realized that this loop was much further than I thought- oh no! but I had fueled pretty good yesterday and I was feeling really good.
About mile 7, I realized that the sun had gone down and I needed to turn on my flasher things. The funny part about them is that they never flash at the same time so I look a bit like a police car with my blue and red lights flashing. This is also about the time that the sprinklers in Lakewood Ranch decide to turn on- UGH!! At mile 8 I was now done with my loop and time to get back onto Lorainne for the run back home.
It was completely dark now and the streetlights are not very close together. My own shaddow scared me a few times (I have seen too many movies where people jump out of the bushes). Thank goodness there weren't as many cars by this point driving down Lorainne because even with my flashing lights I don't think I am easy to see and the sidewalk really wasn't an option unless I wanted to smell like the sewer and get my beautiful orange Newton's all wet. (Priorities People!!)
I did not follower runner ettiquitte on Greenbrook Blvd as I ran with traffic (it was only a mile!!)
When I was done though I had a renewed sense of confidence in knowing that not only will I be able to run the distances I have to for Ragnar but I will be able to do it with a cool and calm head becuase I can run in the dark :)
Tonight it the Jingle Bell 5K with Ashley :) Stay tuned because I'm sure that post is going to be pretty funny!
Monday, December 12, 2011
A blessing??
Two years ago, we decided to put Ashley into cheerleading. She had begged us for awhile and I knew some friends with kids that went to a local gym so we decided to give it a try. We had already tried soccer, which was a complete disaster (her favorite time was water breaks). We had our trial class and she was hooked. It feels like our lives have revolved around it ever since.
Ashley is EXTREMELY focused and I am not just saying that because I am her mother. There are many days when I wish she wasn't so determined and she didn't want to go to the gym every day. I do feel blessed though because through Dynasty Elite we have made wonderful, lifelong friends. Every year there are new people and Ashley gets to experience new opportunities. She has mastered many skills that I never would have imagined she would be doing 2 short years ago. I am so proud of the athlete that she is and I look forward to seeing what else she can accomplish.
Friday, December 9, 2011
An Update
The cookie exchange went wonderfully. I am not a person who really enjoys going out without my family. Usually all 5 of us do things together or Dave and I, occasionally I run with friends (wish I did this more often) but "going out" like dinner doesn't usually fall under priorities to me. I do have some awesome friends that pull me out from under all of the things I have to do and just have a good time together. When Ryan was in preschool 2 years ago I met some great friends and to my shock we have all continued to make the effort to get together (usually once a month). We all have kids that are the same age and it is really nice for me that they are all mom's of kids Ryan's age. Ashley gets SO much being the first born that it is really nice that Ryan has some friends that he has known since he was 3. This year when the kids went to kindergarten, we requested that our kids were in the same class (which they did) and now if I forget something (which is ALL THE TIME!) for class one of my girls just shoots me a text and all is well. So last month while at our brunch Kelly thought we should do a cookie exchange party for our monthly get together. We all had to make a dozen cookies for each person to take home and a dozen to share at the party. I guess we all failed math because for weeks we kept saying we needed 7 dozen cookies when we actually only needed 6 :)
I looked on Pintrest and I polled my Facebook friends and Twitter followers about which cookie that I should make. My husband outranked everyone and asked me to make Raisin Puffs, which are a family tradition passed down from my Grandma Williams. She however makes them for her church and makes TONS so her actual recipe makes 10 dozen cookies. So, I took some time on Wednesday morning to make my cookies. I ate more than a few and felt a bit queasy but at least I got them all baked and boxed with ample time to spare.
I showed up at 6 o'clock with my 6 dozen cookies and I hadn't eaten much all day, knowing that cookies were on the menu for dinner. Let me also say that I am NOT a big drinker!! I don't have a any problem with people that do, I just don't like how it makes me feel. Kelly and I had talked the day before the exchange and she had gone to Total Wine and asked the worker what a "girly" drink she could make for the party. She decided on Limoncello and Champagne. Did I already say that I didn't eat much before I went to this party. First thing I get handed is this drink and since I don't want to be rude, I start sipping it and after about 5 sips I stared to get a bit dizzy. I thought if I ate a little bit that it might help, so I had a plate of pizza dip and bread (loved this!!) and we had vegan nachos, which were very good as well. Since I continued to sip the drink while I was eating, it didn't really help with my dizziness. So I tweeted about it and took some funny self pics (what am I 18??) Anyways, we then moved on to the cookie portion of the evening...I made the Raisin Puffs, Shannon made Thumbprints, Laureen made Peanut Butter Blossoms, Kerri made Chocolate Truffles, Kelly made Magic Cookie Bars ,and Lauren made Chocolate chocolate cookies. I only ate 3 cookies BUT I have 6 dozen here if anyone would like some. After I ate the cookies and we sat and talked for a while, I did start to feel better (guess the alcohol started wearing off) and I had so much fun just being me with people who know me and like me anyways with all of my flaws and crazy running :)
Yummy Dips and Bread
Me and Kerri (a little too Limoncello)
Laureen, Lauren, Kelly, Kerri, Shannon, & Me
Great times with great friends and I ran 8 Miles this morning to balance out my cookies eating :) Love the holidays!!
p.s. my floors still aren't finished :(
I looked on Pintrest and I polled my Facebook friends and Twitter followers about which cookie that I should make. My husband outranked everyone and asked me to make Raisin Puffs, which are a family tradition passed down from my Grandma Williams. She however makes them for her church and makes TONS so her actual recipe makes 10 dozen cookies. So, I took some time on Wednesday morning to make my cookies. I ate more than a few and felt a bit queasy but at least I got them all baked and boxed with ample time to spare.
I showed up at 6 o'clock with my 6 dozen cookies and I hadn't eaten much all day, knowing that cookies were on the menu for dinner. Let me also say that I am NOT a big drinker!! I don't have a any problem with people that do, I just don't like how it makes me feel. Kelly and I had talked the day before the exchange and she had gone to Total Wine and asked the worker what a "girly" drink she could make for the party. She decided on Limoncello and Champagne. Did I already say that I didn't eat much before I went to this party. First thing I get handed is this drink and since I don't want to be rude, I start sipping it and after about 5 sips I stared to get a bit dizzy. I thought if I ate a little bit that it might help, so I had a plate of pizza dip and bread (loved this!!) and we had vegan nachos, which were very good as well. Since I continued to sip the drink while I was eating, it didn't really help with my dizziness. So I tweeted about it and took some funny self pics (what am I 18??) Anyways, we then moved on to the cookie portion of the evening...I made the Raisin Puffs, Shannon made Thumbprints, Laureen made Peanut Butter Blossoms, Kerri made Chocolate Truffles, Kelly made Magic Cookie Bars ,and Lauren made Chocolate chocolate cookies. I only ate 3 cookies BUT I have 6 dozen here if anyone would like some. After I ate the cookies and we sat and talked for a while, I did start to feel better (guess the alcohol started wearing off) and I had so much fun just being me with people who know me and like me anyways with all of my flaws and crazy running :)
Our cookie table
Great times with great friends and I ran 8 Miles this morning to balance out my cookies eating :) Love the holidays!!
p.s. my floors still aren't finished :(
Wednesday, December 7, 2011
Floors and Cookies
I am feeling a bit overwhelmed and unorganized.
We are putting hardwood floors in two rooms of our home- two weeks before Christmas and the carpet was torn up two weeks ago- ewwww! I have started wearing socks around my house- AT ALL TIMES. I think that today may finally be the day that my bedroom no longer has concrete floors.
I also have a cookie exchange tomorrow night. So instead of being able to clean up all this dust, I just added to it with the amount of flour it took to make 10 dozen cookies :)
Am I the only person who over schedules themselves over the holidays?
I think this is enough of a rant for now... pictures to come soon of the floors and cookies :)
Maybe I will be able to get another run in tonight- priorities people!!!
We are putting hardwood floors in two rooms of our home- two weeks before Christmas and the carpet was torn up two weeks ago- ewwww! I have started wearing socks around my house- AT ALL TIMES. I think that today may finally be the day that my bedroom no longer has concrete floors.
I also have a cookie exchange tomorrow night. So instead of being able to clean up all this dust, I just added to it with the amount of flour it took to make 10 dozen cookies :)
Am I the only person who over schedules themselves over the holidays?
I think this is enough of a rant for now... pictures to come soon of the floors and cookies :)
Maybe I will be able to get another run in tonight- priorities people!!!
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