It's a very slow process - two steps forward, one step back - but I'm inching in the right direction. - Rob Reiner

April 22, 2014

Tons of Stuff Tuesday

Man, blogging seems like it is becoming harder and harder.  I have stuff to share, I just can't seem to find the time to sit down and write it.  So here's what's going on with me...in a nutshell.
The dress I finally decided on

1.  I turned 40.  Yep, the dreaded 40.  I had a lovely Birthday party surrounded by friends and family.  It was perfect.  I had wanted to do something "epic" for 40...but just never really got around to planning some big thing.  No big deal, the Birthday party was really quite perfect.  I stressed over my outfit for weeks.  I bought four dresses before finally deciding on one.  We ended up getting some bad news shortly before the party, and then Jim had a flat tire on the way there and I was late to my own party.  It was stressful and I was having so many mixed emotions...but everyone was so great.  It's times like these that you realize just how important family and friends are.

2.  I ran a half marathon a week and a half ago.  Nothing big to report.  It's the Rock the Parkway half marathon here in Kansas City.  It is my half marathon PR (3 years ago)....and I haven't been able to touch my time since.  In 2012 I ran a 2:23 (PR), 2013 a 2:34 and 2014 a 2:32.  So I guess I was 2 minutes faster than last year, but still my finish time is somewhere around my "average" for a half.  I'm usually between 2:30 and 2:35.  The weather was nice though a bit warm at the end, and we did have some strong winds, which you had to fight the entire 6.5 miles back.  I went out to fast.  I had a good 8 or 9 miles and then totally crashed at the end.  But it was fun...as always.
The finish line at Rock the Parkway
3.  I have another half marathon this weekend.  This is my 2nd in a series of 3 over 5 weeks.  It's called the Heartland 39.3 series.  It includes Rock the Parkway, Garmin, and Running with the Cows.  All fairly local though different areas of the city.  You get a special shirt for running the series and then *I think* you get a special medal at the end.  They've been doing the series a few years, and the stuff you get only gets better if it's your 2nd or 3rd year or whatever.

Me & Jim at my Birthday
4.  I withdrew from the Boulder 70.3 race last week.  As I said above, my family got some bad news about a week ago.  I was in the critical part of my training with only about 8 weeks to go and I knew I couldn't miss a workout and needed to be mentally "fit".  With everything going on, I realized it would just be too much.  Plus I'll probably be taking at least one or two week long trips over the next month or so that would keep me from being able to train pretty much at all.  I've had to drop out of races before and I've always been pretty upset by it, but this one I'm totally at peace with.  It's the right thing to do for me and my family right now.

5.  I finally rode my tri bike again.  If you've been following my blog for awhile, then you know I purchased a new tri bike last May.  On basically my first ride I had a very near miss with a car and threw myself over the handlebars of my bike breaking my wrist (among lots of other scrapes and bruises).    I have been a big chicken about getting on it again.  Honestly, I have felt so dumb, but I have been scared to death. On Sunday, I finally put on my big girl pants and went for a ride.  I only rode about 30 minutes, but I survived.  It will take a little getting used to but I know I'll be fine.  I just need to get over the mental part of it.  Now that we are finally having warm weather, I should be able to get out for more rides this week.
Jim took this picture this weekend of one happy dog enjoying the warm weather.  I guess we all love Spring!
That's probably enough for now.  How are you????  Anything new and exciting going on in your world?

20 comments:

  1. Hi girl! Sorry to hear about the news - you take care of the people of things that matter most, the races can wait. So can blogging. Happy Belated Birthday as well and can I say, you look absolutely stunning! Missed you around these parts, but I'm happy to hear that you're enjoying the outdoors and that you're taking inspiration from your dog. He is one happy fella in that picture. Keep smiling! Xoxos!!

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  2. Happy late Birthday! 40 ain't so bad!!! Sorry you got bad news, hope all is well.

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  3. Happy Birthday! You look smokin' hot in that dress. Good choice! 40 ain't got nothin on you!

    I'm sorry to hear about the bad news with your family. Hugs to you!

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  4. Happy late birthday! Our birthdays are only three days apart (16th)., and I also turned 40 :)

    I hear ya about finding time to blog. Its getting tougher for me as well. Sorry about the bad news. Hope all is well.

    And good luck on your upcoming halfs.

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  5. Sorry to hear about hard times in your family, but congrats on turning 40! That's an exciting birthday! And you look freaking amazing for 40. Seriously.

    And good luck in your races coming up :)

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  6. Happy Birthday! Welcome to the 40's they are awesome! Not quite as awesome as the dress though!! Sorry about the bad news and you are smart withdrawing from the 70.3, better to focus on your family.

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  7. I'm sorry you guys got such bad news, but I'm glad that you made the changes to your schedule that you needed to do to be mentally at peace. So many times we try to stick with everything and it's just tooo much.

    And I said it before, but you looked phenomenal in that dress. Great choice!!

    I hear you on the mental side of the bike. After several crashes on Saturday, I was very nervous about riding again on Monday, and I didn't have nearly the bad experience that you did. But you're right...the only way to get your head right about riding is to go out and ride. I just gave myself permission to take it easy and didn't put any pressure on myself and it got better. Not all the way back to where I was, but better.

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  8. First, happy birthday! You look gorgeous in your birthday dress. Second, I'm sorry you are dealing with tough family issues..I'll be thinking of you. And I admire your putting racing aside for family; the right choice!

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  9. I hope everything's okay now.

    Nice dress. You look amazing in it!

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  10. Sorry to hear about bad news :( I hope things improve, but it sounds like you always have the right family/friends surrounding you :) You just know when you need to pass on a race or other stuff sometimes.

    I'm having similar challenges w/ writing in my blog. Between work, running, and everything in between, someitmes just too tired or just feel like I can string 2 sentences together to create anything meaningful.

    Hang in there!!

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  11. P.S. 40 is SO not that bad!!! First, you look amazing! And second, 40 is the new 25! Trust me, I've been practicing my 40's for 7 years now :)

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  12. I'm sorry about the bad news! 40 isn't that bad, lol, being a few years away from when it happened to me. lol Happy thoughts about getting back out on that bike!

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  13. Hey-Happy Birthday! I also live in LS. I'm a freshman at LSN. I ran Rock the Parkway too. It was my first half!

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    1. Congrats on your first half! That is awesome!!

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  14. Happy to hear you Rocked the Parkway. (I was there too.) You certainly Rocked the Dress!

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  15. Happy B-Day

    Kevin
    HalfTRIing.blogspot.com

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  16. First of all, Happy Birthday!!!! Any day you get to dress up and have cake is a great one! ;) Sorry about the other issues & having to bow out of Boulder :(

    And seriously, you look fabulous in that dress! 40....it's just a number.

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  17. Happy birthday, belatedly!! That is a great dress and you look lovely. I do hope everything is ok now.

    Also, three half marathons in five weeks - gosh that's tough.

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  18. Happy belated, you look beautiful! Hope everything is ok!

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  19. You are gorgeous! I'd never ever guess 40. But what does that even mean? lol So much incredible stuff happened during my forties. I wish you all the happiness life can hold :)

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