Cheyenne and Momma

We are enjoying this wonderful Monday. Earlier, we met up with Krista and Makenna for tea and playtime.

When we got back home, I had a chance to do some baking and cooking. Cheyenne and I are ready to tackle the week, full force...but first she needs to eat her granola and yogurt. Priorities.

21 Mile Long Run

Distance: 21 miles

Duration:  3:24:32

Average Pace Per Mile: 9:43

Weather: Cloudy. 46 degrees. NNW at 15 mph.

Breakfast: Two eggs with bell peppers and spinach on a whole wheat English muffin. We didn't have any bananas, so I had mixed berries instead.

Typically, I base my route based on the sunrise, but since I had a late start, I decided to change the route and in the process miscalculated by a mile. Instead of running 20 miles, I ended up running 21. It was a forgivable mistake.

Overall, it was a fantastic run. At first, I thought the wind was going to pick up, but it eventually calmed down. I consumed two vanilla bean gels, one at mile 7 and the second one at mile 15. I think I may need three to four on race day. Where am I going to put them? I'll just stuff my shorts or bra, I guess. Another thing, I'm concerned about carrying on race day is my water bottle. For most of my long runs, I train with a nike handheld bottle. I go back and forth, I'm going to race with it, I'm not going to race with it. I can't decide. I'm leaning more towards, not racing with it. I'll just have to stop at the water stations. I hate doing that. 

Lately, I've been troubled with blisters on my big toe. Yeah, just one toe. I literally have a blister on a blister, but I think they are turning to calluses. GOOD. It's strange because they don't bother me when I'm running, only when Cheyenne steps on my toe. It happens often. :/  Another bothersome thing is chaffing. My problematic area seems to be near my armpits. Last week, I meant to pick-up some anti-chaffing cream, but I never got around to it. Fortunately, Trey had some petroleum jelly and it seemed to do the trick. I was impressed. I wish I would've known sooner that we had that stuff in our linen closet, it would've saved my armpits weeks ago. 

I'm pretty sure this is the most mileage I've ever covered in one week. 44 miles. I'm surprised I'm not falling apart. However, I do have a mild pain in my right leg. So, it's three weeks until marathon day, which means a three week taper. I'm looking forward to it. Yay!

"I COLOR! I COLOR!"

She likes to yell, "I COLOR! I COLOR!" Over and over again, until someone acknowledges that she is, in fact coloring.

I colored a turkey hand and wrote, I love daddy and Chey 4 ever. Cheyenne wanted to contribute, so she scribbled right in the center of the drawing.

Spectators, This is for You!

Originally, I titled this post: Trey, This is for you! But after thinking about it, I realized Trey is a seasoned spectator. He knows what to expect. So, everyone else, this post is for YOU.

I habitually read Runner's World Daily Blog and recently there was a training post for spectators. So, if you've never been to a race and don't know what to expect, here is a how-to-guide...a training plan, if you will, for spectators.

An Excerpt from RW Daily: A Training Plan for Spectators

       Week 1: Base building. Especially if you're starting from zero — 

        i.e. you haven't done any real       

        spectating since, say, your college years — it's important to

        start out slow.

MON: 15 minutes standing around
TUE: 5 mins standing around; 5 mins clapping; 5 mins standing around
WED: rest
THU: posterboard sign drills — lift and lower a handmade sign 50 times; warm up and cool down with 5 mins easy cheering
FRI: rest
SAT: 15 mins standing around
SUN: 30 mins spectating fartlek — freestyle blend of standing around, cheering, clapping, and/or raising arms, as you feel. 

Me talking: I think Week 4 is my favorite!

Week 4: It's taper time. This week you'll drastically cut the quantity of your cheering and standing around, while maintaining quality. Remember to get lots of rest, and drink plenty of fluids. The day before your event, sip hot water with lemon and honey to really prepare those vocal cords.

By the way, this is an open invitation to come and be a spectator at Dallas White Rock Marathon, December 5th. You can come out and cheer me on to 26.2 miles and the best part, you can keep Trey company for 4 plus hours. You already have the blueprint to be an awesome spectator, so get to it! 

A link to the full article

DEWALT Miter Saw Stand

Trey has a new toy. (click on pictures for a better view)

Oh, that's nice!

Now, if we could only complete our bedroom remodel, that would be wonderful.

Trey is requesting this for Christmas. Can you believe it, Christmas already?!

Fun at the Park

I almost forgot, I recorded this clip of Cheyenne at the park.

Playtime at the Park

If I would let Cheyenne sit in front of the TV all day, she probably would. And if she had a choice, she would watch Dora the Explorer from sun up, until sun down. Yesterday, I took her to the park to get her outside and moving. She loved watching the ducks. In fact, she loved them so much she tried walking into the pond on more than one occasion.


It was a beautiful day to be outside.

We decided this was the cool duck. Afro-Puff Duckie!

Sweet face.

One of her favorite things at the park, the slide.

And if you're going to do it, you might as well go head first. Wee!

For the Past Hour

Literally, for the past hour, Cheyenne has been fascinated with a bag of socks.


Notice, she's not wearing any socks. No, she'd rather play with them, than wear them.

10 Mile Long Run

Distance: 10 miles
Duration: 01:39
Average Pace Per Mile: 9:53
Temperature: Around 40 degrees

I've had a sinus infection all week and this was my first run, since Monday. I'm so glad to be back. Having a long break like that was hard. I still have a cough that won't seem to go away, but other than that I'm feeling okay.

This past week the temps have been dipping down to the high 30's. Trey and I even busted out the heavy duty winter quilt. So, it was difficult to get out of bed this morning. Warm cozy bed or running in the cold? I eventually rolled out of bed and went for a run. I couldn't believe the training schedule had a 10 mile long run...that's it?! Here lately, my long runs have been 20, 18, 16....10 was a nice break.

Daylight Savings Confusion

It's that time of year again, when we change our clocks. We all know, spring forward --- fall back. For some odd reason, I mixed it up. Monday and Tuesday, I put Cheyenne to bed 45 minutes early, trying to prepare her for the time change.

I was putting her down at 7:15 pm, which next week would be 6:15 pm. Gee whiz. I don't want her falling asleep at the dinner table.

Sorry, Cheyenne!

I'll leave you with this video. We checked out another house that is being built in the neighborhood. Chey loved hearing her voice echo.

       

Roasted Chicken!!!!

Who will admit roasting a whole chicken seems like a scary, daunting, and gross task. Nobody? Okay, maybe it's just me. Growing up, beef was a staple in my home, not chicken, and especially not WHOLE chicken. Sure, I can bake a bird and all that jazz, but I've never learned how to roast a whole chicken.

Last week, I watched Oprah and saw the episode featuring Jessica Seinfeld.  She was promoting her latest cookbook. I believe this is the second time she's made an appearance on Oprah. The first time was in 2007. That show also inspired me to cook and I went out and bought that book. I'm so impressionable when it comes to Oprah. :0   Here is that post from way back when....

On last week's show, Seinfeld made "Seriously Basic Roasted Chicken and Root Vegetable." After watching that episode, I had a moment:  Yeah, I can make that! So, Sunday I made this for my family and my house smelt like lemon-rosemary-chicken. This meal was so easy to make, affordable, and most importantly it tasted great. I'm a fan of simple, whole ingredients, and it doesn't get any healthier than this.

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken (4 pounds) - I used organic Harvestland ($4.80)
• 1 Tbsp. and 3/4 tsp. kosher salt - Had this in my pantry
• 3/4 tsp. crushed black pepper - Had this in my pantry
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil - Had this in my pantry
• 1 lemon - Had this in my fridge, but what do they cost? ($0.25)
• 6 sprigs fresh rosemary - My rosemary plant is still growing strong
• 1 pound carrots , cut into 3-inch sticks - Organic carrots (0.99)
• 1 pound parsnips , cut into 3-inch sticks - I decided not to use this
• 1 pound small red potatoes , halved - Instead of using this, I bought what was on sale, a 5 lb locally grown bag of potatoes ($2.68)

For the full recipe with directions go here

Making a Meal Stretch and Spending Less Time in the Kitchen
Sunday Dinner: Roasted Chicken with Veggies
Monday Lunch: Chey enjoyed a chicken leg and potatoes, while I had a chicken pita with the veggies on the side.
Monday Dinner: We gave the bird a break and went with italian food.
Tuesday Dinner: Chicken and Cheese Quesadillas

We know how to make a meal stretch and we still have a few pieces of chicken. I'm really excited about this recipe and I have a feeling the next time I entertain, I will definitely consider making this. Who wants to come over?

Halloween Night! (2010)

I don't know about you, but I love how Halloween fell on a Sunday this year. It was like an entire weekend celebration. Friday: we went to the fall festival, Saturday: we meet up with friends to celebrate Chad's birthday, and then Sunday: we took Cheyenne trick or treating.

Here are some photos we snapped Sunday evening. Snow White and her prince. :)

Do you know how hard it was to get this photo? She did not want to take a photo with me :(
Trey finally convinced her and she forced a smile.

Look, the car from CARS!

We enjoyed walking our neighborhood. I'm telling you, our neighbors were unloading the candy! I guess, they didn't have as many trick or treaters as they anticipated.

Last night, Trey went through all of Chey's candy and organized it by category: yours, mine, give away, and everything else piles.

Wings and Football: FleaFlicker Get-Together

Sunday afternoon, Trey, Cheyenne, and I met up with friends at Buffalo Wild Wings to watch the Dallas Cowboys lose. We're in a fantasy football league with some of my co-workers. My boss is also in the league and Trey and her were competing against each other this weekend. Those two were doing some trash talking! Love it!

Here is a picture of Trey updating his roster, before the noon game. During the game, he would give us updates to tell us how our teams were doing. I'm so glad Buffalo Wild Wings have free Wi-Fi. 

Cheyenne wore her costume, most of the day. She was such a good girl and a good eater. It was nice chatting it up with everyone and eating some grub. We even had a chance to see Kendra and her family. She use to work with me at UTA.

What a great weekend! 

20 Mile Long Run

Distance: 20.3 Miles
Duration: 3:31:16
Average Pace Per Mile: 10:25
Temperature: 48 degrees
Wind: South at 6 mph
Power Song: Alec Eiffel by The Get up Kids

My overall pace was 10:24, that's without stopping my watch during bottle changes, video/photo breaks, and pit stops. My stopwatch pace was 9:54.  I wish there were race volunteers during my long runs. How incredible would that be? Or neighbors standing outside of their homes cheering me on? Or how about neighbors cheering me on with water?!

I stayed close to home, but once the sun came out, I ventured out to the lake. I stopped at one of my favorite spots and captured this short clip. 

The first 4 miles were tough, but somewhere around mile 8 thru 14, I kind of forgot I was running. Sometimes this is good, but most of the time, it's bad because I slow down. That's what happened, but I feel like that's what I needed for this run. The next 20 miler, I will try to be more aggressive with my pace, but gosh it felt terrific to run at a comfortable speed.

After I was done with the 3 hour run, I sat down on the sidewalk and caught my breath. I heard Tony Horton's voice, "Take in the fact that you just did that!" This is the second time I have completed this insane distance. 20 MILES! Tag on another 6.2 and you got yourself a marathon. Dallas White Rock is in 34 days. Bring it!

And this is what I ate to refuel after my endurance run.
Healthy nachos topped with greek yogurt!

Fall Festival

Yesterday, Cheyenne and I dressed up for Halloween and went to a fall festival. Cheyenne went as Snow White and I decided to dress up as a princess. I wore a dress that I wore to winter formal sophomore year of high school. The dress is beautiful. Honestly, I just wanted an excuse to wear it. :)

There were so many people at the festival. Crowds of people! Our church had a booth out there and Trey and I volunteered to work it for about 30 minutes. By the end of the night we were exhausted and I barely had enough energy to put Cheyenne down for the night, so Trey took over. Thanks, sweetie! 

I think Cheyenne enjoyed the lollipop too much! Or as she calls it, POP! 

The Princess Likes to Read

The only way I can convince her to wear this Halloween outfit is by telling her it's a Dora the Explorer princess costume.

I took these photos before heading out to a fall festival.

Pumpkin Eater

Mr. Pumpkin head is a mess and he appears to be eating himself. This might scare the trick-or-treaters. Is that mold growing in his mouth and eye?!?                                

                  

1-2-3

Sugoi Compression Socks

This past weekend, I went to Luke's Locker and bought compression socks. A wonderful sales lady helped me out. Those associates know so much about running and gear...OH, and they put up with customers like me -- After running over 15 miles in my new shoes, I realized I needed a different size. To my amazement Luke's took them back...Great customer service. Now, I'm a customer for life.

Back to the Socks: 

So, the lady showed me a pair and was giving me all the details on a particular brand. I wanted to save her time, so I interrupted and asked about the price. 60 $$! That was completely out of my price range. Good gravy, they are socks! Trey had to remind me they are special socks. He's right. Well, I did not walk out with the gold-diamond embellished pair, but I did walk away with Sugoi compression socks for half the price. I spent the rest of my Saturday afternoon, evening, night, and Sunday morning in them. Yes, I wore them to church. Oh, they were amazing. My legs and even my sore hip/thigh felt like new. 

I know some people don't buy into the whole compression recovery thing, but I'm a believer. Special thanks to @jerilee40. A while back she wrote a blog post that sparked my interest. I know that compression socks won't make me invincible, but I'm glad they will help speed up my recovery. 

Little Dancer