Nashville Half Marathon Recap

Right now is exactly two days after I ran the Nashville half marathon. I saw pictures of myself running & crossing the finish line this morning – I look miserable & distracted. I was definitely both at moments during the day. I do not know what the organizers used my $115 for, but I do know that it was NOT for toilet paper. I did not prepare for this race – Scott was signed up (we thought – more on this later) & I thought that it would be much more fun to run the race than to watch the race. After all, I am usually stiff & sore after running around from mile marker to mile marker anyways. I decided to experience the race instead of being a spectator.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We both remember many details of signing Scott up for the race. I was in the office & he was getting ready to go to sleep. I input his estimated time for his corral assignment & then said, “OK, you’re registered!” I am absolutely certain that I signed him up. Somehow though, he was not on the official list & our credit card wasn’t charged.  His registration is probably in a pile somewhere in Nashville with all the missing toilet paper.

We waited in quite a line to get into the Expo. As we were walking in, we saw one of the YSA’s who had lived in Greenville for a while. She is such a fun person & it is such a miracle that we ran into each other. Once we figured out that Scott’s registration was missing, we stood in the “Solutions” line & signed him up at the Expo. The Expo was great – lots of vendors, lots of freebies, good shopping. (I have to recommend Moving Comfort bras – my life will never be the same.) Scott won a t-shirt at the Brooks booth. We talked to the Garmin rep & tried to get my (almost) NEW watch repaired. Scott was uncharacteristically calm.

The race started at 7 a.m. and traffic getting to the stadium was like rush-hour in Atlanta. Miss Moneypenny (our British GPS voice) abandoned ship halfway through the adventure & was replaced by her American counterpart (name suggestions?). The GPS did finally get us to the stadium. We were so frazzled when we arrived though that I did not pay attention to where we parked. After the race, I tearfully lawn-mowered the parking lot for 1.5 hours (90 minutes!) in the hot sun after the race with a dead cell phone. I was in good company – there were LOTS & LOTS of very lost people wondering where on earth their car had been moved.

This is a BIG RACE!! Kajillions of people!!! 4,083 people finished the full marathon. 21,944 people finished the half marathon. I was trying to explain to my mom how many people there were & finally decided it’s like when you watch the Fireworks from the cool vantage point on July 4th & then smash together with people to get out of there. Massive.

Scott did not have a great race. He was feverish & coughing the night before. (I should have been suspicious when he wasn’t totally stressed out the night before the race.) He said that there were two moments that he enjoyed – once when someone gave him an orange & another when he was under a bridge in the shade. I totally missed him at the finish line by 10” because I was sure that he had already finished. Hopefully he will share a few more thoughts & I will post them here.

I don’t remember every moment, just flashes & impressions. I think I disassociate & go to some happy place. It must have been pretty happy because in spite of slow walkers in massive groups in front of me, serious tummy woes, & feeling that I was going to quit because of the heat, I ended the day feeling happy with my achievement. My first mile was 8:51. I had a few very slow miles (broken Garmin so no specific facts) but overall I enjoyed the ride. You can see my pictures & video at this link: http://www.asiorders.com/view_user_event_video.asp?EVENTID=75416&BIB=19846&LNSEARCH=1

I felt very unprepared for this race. I ran a few miles here & there, but nothing really gave me the “I can do it!!” feeling. The toughest teacher at the gym gave me a good piece of advice, “Just run three miles, and then three more, and so on.”  The night before the race in our hotel room I re-read the psychological stuff in the Non-Runner’s Marathon Trainer. I made little notes to keep in my iPhone case for times of trouble. I picked out specific problems that I knew that I would have & decided how to re-frame them. Here are my notes:

“Attitude has nothing to do with facts, and everything to do with perspective.”

I am glad I can run. I am chasing the life of my dreams!

“…but it doesn’t matter!” The book talks about thinking about pain in an accepting way. I don’t believe this means that you continue to train through an injury, but a little pain is normal. Scott has really adopted this saying… “My ankle hurts, but that doesn’t matter.” “I am tired, but that doesn’t matter.” As long as you don’t try to figure out what really matters on the race, it’s a good little mantra. And as a bonus, if you do try to figure out the whole meaning of life & running & the universe, the miles will pass by as you ponder in a run-induced-weird-state.

“Oh hello, Pain! Come & run with me!” I was feeling a bit lonely as many people were running with friends. Just then, my hamstring started feeling tight.

“It’s not important that you finish, only that you do!”

A to Z gratitude: Think of one thing for which you’re grateful for each letter of the alphabet in order. For me, every single thing that I am grateful for is FOOD (apples, bananas, chocolate, dogs…). It’s all I think about for the duration of the run. One day I thought of people that I know & where they live for each letter of the alphabet. Eventually, I forget that I’m playing this game, but it is very useful for passing time.

Best Run Video: Make a short film in your mind of your best run ever. What were you wearing? What was the temperature? Who were you with? What made it the best? Play this film in your head over & over again. Your mind will eventually believe that you’ve had all these amazing runs. (My best race? The Reedy River 10K a few months ago.)

Positive thoughts:

I am a runner! I am a half marathoner. I run 15-20 miles per week. I am getting stronger & healthier every day.  I will not quit. I like hills because they add variety & are fun. I like crowds because they pull me along & give me energy.

The 15 miles per week deal didn’t really work for me. I started protesting – who cares if I run 15 miles a week? I am running 13.1 miles in one day!! I had to change that to something like “I am strong & I workout at least five times per week.” Much better.

In the book there was an inspirational story about a runner who was paralyzed but eventually learned to walk & then run. He completed 15 miles on the day of the race – a true miracle. His quote: “You never know what you can do until you try. If you listen to others, you may not try at all. If you listen to your body, you may quit too soon. What your mind believes, your body believes. Your mind is the key.”

If I would not have experienced last Saturday, I may not have believed in all the psychological stuff for running. Now I must say that it is the biggest factor for me. My body is pretty strong. I can run a half marathon without too much trauma (regardless of what the pictures might lead you to believe). When people say, “I could never do that.” I always think, “I bet you could.” Once I got past 5 miles, it was mostly mental. Of course it will hurt at some point along the way, but usually it will go away. Each of my five half marathons have taught me lessons. This race – really an after-thought – taught me maybe the longest lasting lessons of all.

One of my best friends from high school shared this quote with me on the day of the race... "The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy, or unfulfilled. For it is only in such moments, propelled by our discomfort, that we are likely to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or truer answers." -M. Scott Peck

Sunday School teacher

(Almost) every Sunday for the last four years I have taught the YSA Sunday school class. Sometimes the weeks get really busy & I don’t prepare my lesson as early in the week as I should. Except this week. I made a commitment on Sunday to prepare in advance – especially since I am running a half marathon on Saturday & my brain will be mush. The lesson is about the Good Shepherd. What a great concept – aren’t we each shepherds for each other?

Okay, so why the blog post? Because I just realized tonight that Sunday is STAKE CONFERENCE!!! Hahaha on me. Instead of our normal meetings, we meet together with other Latter-day Saints from the area & listen to our stake president & other leaders speak. NO SUNDAY SCHOOL!! The weeks that I prepare early are the weeks that I don’t have to teach. Silly.

Spring Break, part 1

The kids’ spring breaks did not coordinate this year between the elementary/middle schools & the high school/college. Bummer. Chris and I had a whole week to hang out, go to the gym, and write a college psychology paper. We did make one attempt at having fun – we drove to Charlotte – actually HE drove to Charlotte. (BTW did you know that you can’t cross the state line with your learner’s permit? Now I know.) There was only one truly harrowing moment & otherwise we both survived. We went to IKEA, REI, & Nordstrom’s. I guess it wasn’t that much fun for Chris, but at least he was able to hold on to the steering wheel for a few hours & give me a few more grey hairs. (He is getting better!! He started driver’s training & should be able to take the test soon.)

In addition to our grand adventure, the kids have all spent a lot of time playing basketball. We pondered giving the kids a hoop for Christmas but skiied instead. One day while I was driving home early on a Saturday morning, I noticed that our neighbors had their hoop for sale for $50!!! I said, “We’ll take it!” I had to set time limits because they like to play so much. ( 9a – 9p) The kids also play baseball in the backyard, darts in the basement, & chess & Risk. Chris & Ryan were even able to go paintballing last week with a bunch of kids from church & school.

What’s happening?

Time is passing swiftly by. Mainly so I don’t forget … life is really hectic these days!!

Family

• Ward Temple Day – the temple is 1.5 hours away in Columbia. We all drove down & enjoyed spending time together as a family & with the ward. Scott, Chris, & Ryan went early & did baptisms. Jared & I came down later & stayed outside. I took pictures while Scott did an endowment session.
• We still enjoy our frog Pacman. He likes mice called “hoppers”. They are rather cute, but he is very satisfied after eating one.
• See the compost? We’re trying to enrich our garden. Lesson learned? Hamburger buns have so many preservatives in them that they do not break down, even after a full month! Yuck.
• White chocolate cupcakes – Jenna made cupcakes with a friend for EV’s baptism. These were not your ordinary cupcakes - they were delicious!
• I am totally in love with The Food Nanny Cookbook. Every single solitary recipe that we’ve ever tried has been wonderful. In fact, they are always best in class. I love the idea of sitting down to dinner with our family each night. We are not perfect but we are really trying.
• We hosted the semi-annual General Conference Sunday morning breakfast. I was delighted that Sunday came when I realized that I was never going to make curtains out of the fabric that I bought 7-8 years ago. Instead, I made tablecloths by cutting 6.5’ lengths of fabric! You cannot see the new tablecloths – just the round Christmas cloth. (We like giving every holiday an equal opportunity all year long.)

Scott

• Busy at work with the same project.
• Seemingly refreshed from a longggg weekend skiing in Utah with friends
• Traveling to Clemson a few times a month for church meetings
• Helping at Ryan’s & Jared’s baseball practices
• Preparing for the Nashville Marathon at the end of April
• Getting lost on a long run & ending up near the airport.

Jenna

• Trying to clean off the desk, finish taxes, & drowning in paperwork
• Exercising – step aerobics, spinning, Pilates reformer, running, whatever sounds good that day
• Contemplating the Nashville Half Marathon – swinging quickly towards not doing it because I haven’t gone much further than 6 miles since early March
• Running kids to school x 3, baseball practices & games x 2, piano lessons, Cub Scouts, young mens, etc. (Scott helps A LOT!)
• Jared’s team mom – concessions schedule, snack schedule, etc. Not hard, just one more thing.
• YSA Sunday school , family night, & dances.

Chris

• Homework, homework, homework.
• Multi-page paper for college psychology
• Running – mostly finished up physical therapy (except he didn’t get the t-shirt) – bruised meniscus – hip seems better too
• Taking the ACT – math was easy (lots of TRIG)
• Starting drivers training – doing much better. He drove to CLT with me during spring break. It was quite the adventure!

Ryan

• Baseball, baseball, baseball. He is playing on a travel ball team with his team from last summer.
• Piano lessons  (begrudgingly) – he plays well enough that sometimes Pacman (the frog) sings along.
• BASKETBALL – we bought a hoop from a neighbor & the kids play A LOT!
• Getting taller & filling out. He is getting very muscular.
• Running – not as much since we got the basketball hoop. However, he ran a 50 second 400-meter lap at school. The teachers were so surprised that they asked him if he had cut across the middle of the field. He is speedy.

Jared

• Injured his arm. He was vacuuming inside of Scott’s trunk the other day when he happened to get his arm smashed by the trunk. I was pretty sure it was broken – it just looked misshapen & even felt crooked. We went to the ER, got in a room right away, & watched Toy Story 2 & Happy Feet until we got the results. His arm is still bruised but he is much better.
• Playing baseball for the Rattlers. He likes to play 2nd base & catcher. His coach gives him drills to help him with his hitting.
• Totally into reading the Percy Jackson series. Currently on The Titan’s Curse. They are a little difficult but he really enjoys them.
• Teaching himself how to play chess & playing checkers & chess with his brothers whenever they are nice enough.
• Pinewood Derby – came in 2nd place to his best friend Cody. He was a great sport & was happy that Cody got an award too.
• Cub Scouts – his troop went hiking at a local lake. He has wonderful scout leaders.
• Sweet, happy, smiley – a joyful little boy.

Happy life!

General Conference: Memories and Waffles, Egg Casserole, and Salad

 

Every April and October, our church gathers together, literally (in Salt Lake City) and digitally (around TVs, radios, & the internet) to listen to living prophets deliver messages of counsel & encouragement.

For a 2:33 explanation on why conference matters.

We happily stay home in our jammies & watch BYU-TV. Another tradition associated with general conference is the breakfast. Scott’s family had this tradition for a long time & we have carried it on with our kids and our YSA’s. I did not take a picture every single year, but here are some that I found.

 

    

This weekend we have spent eight to ten hours watching General Conference. It’s been great! Except that when all is said & done, we are tired from sitting so much. I tried Tried TRIED to stay awake yesterday but must be fighting off something. I slept most of Saturday. The boys did better than I and watched almost every single speaker without complaint.

This morning, we invited the YSA’s over for our semi-annual tradition of conference breakfast. We had waffles, strawberries, whip cream (in a can!), turkey bacon, egg casserole, & orange juice. Scott is a speedy waffle maker.

Conference Waffles or Pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 eggs

2 cups buttermilk (or 1-1/2 cups milk plus 1/2 cup Greek yogurt)

1/2 cup milk

1/4 cup butter, melted

In large bowl, combine flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In a separate bowl, lightly beat the eggs, the buttermilk, and milk. Add the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients all at once, stirring just to blend. The batter should be slightly lumpy & quite thick. Let the batter rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

Heat a lightly oiled waffle iron or skillet. Cook until golden brown. Slather with butter & (if your name doesn’t rhyme with Tina) drizzle with syrup. (bleck, bleck, bleck!)

 

Bacon, Egg, and Cheese Casserole

18 eggs (3 cartons liquid eggs)

1/4-cup milk (optional)

2 cups mozzarella cheese

1 cup sautéed onions

8-10 slices bacon, crisped & broken into pieces

Put onions, bacon, & cheese in 9x13-inch pan. Pour eggs & milk over. Sprinkle with salt, pepper, & Old Bay Seasoning. Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until cooked all the way through.

 

After Conference Salad

1 Aidell’s Chicken and Apple Sausage, grilled

1 oz. goat cheese, crumbled (I used Trader Joe’s individual serving)

Salad greens (spring greens plus spinach)

Tomato

Snap peas

Blackberries

Salad dressing: I think this would taste good with honey mustard or raspberry vinaigrette. I just ate it plain.

Everythings Amazing & Nobodys Happy

Fat and Happy – not me!

Today, I went to the pet store & bought two little mice for Pacman to eat. And then as Scott was running out the door to go help a friend, he came back in squealing with delight. (Really SQUEALING!) He had caught a frog on the front porch & threw it in the cage with Pacman. He gobbled up the poor little frog before he had a chance. After two mice, we did not think he would go for more food… but obviously, he is hungry. I expect that he will be lazy for the next little while.

Speaking of fat & happy – we tried a new Italian restaurant that some friends recommended. The stromboli looked great!!

Dough you love me? Flax Seed Whole Wheat Bread

I love homemade bread. I know that it’s not the best thing in the world for me, but I LOVE IT! Back in the day  [when Christopher was a baby!], Costco started carrying a new-fangled gadget called a bread machine. My sweet husband bought me one for my first official Mother’s Day.  Now, seventeen years and hundreds of loaves of bread later, my Hitachi Automatic Home Bakery II is still spinning out great loaves of bread. A few years ago I decided that I wanted prettier & newer & bought a fancy-schmancy one from my favorite kitchen store. After making one loaf of bread (maybe two), I returned it to the store because it could not mix as well as my old-fashioned Hitachi.

 

I have wanted to find a great bread recipe for sandwiches. It seems like they are frequently too crumbly or the holes are too big or… I tried this a few weeks ago (& it’s waiting to come to life in the bread machine right now) and it was perfect. I am worried tonight because it’s rainy & that changes the way the bread works.

 

 

FLAX SEED WHOLE WHEAT BREAD

1-1/2 cups water

3 tablespoons canola oil (olive oil)

1/4 cup honey

2-2/3 cup bread flour

1-1/3 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup nonfat milk

2-1/2 tablespoons flax seed

1-1/4 tablespoons gluten

1-1/2 teaspoons salt

2-1/4 teaspoons SAF yeast or 2-3/4 teaspoons bread machine yeast (SAF yeast is better)

 

Place ingredients in the pan according to the manufacturer’s directions.

Now, I will teach you a little of what I’ve learned about using a bread machine. Start the bread machine & open the lid. (It’s okay! It’s not against the rules in the beginning of the dough cycle.) If the dough is not forming a ball, add a few tablespoons of water until everything starts to come together. If it’s too wet, add a few tablespoons of flour. Adjust until the dough looks like dough. I use this step even when I am delaying starting the bread. I let the first spin happen & make sure the dough will be right & then turn the machine off, set the timer & let everything bubble a little. My fingers are crossed for a beautiful loaf of bread at 5:35 a.m.

One of my favorite bread books, European Breads from your Bread Machine, encourages using the bread machine as a place to hold partially processed dough to help develop more complex flavors. The method is similar to making a sourdough starter, letting it sit on the counter, & then proceeding with the loaf of bread.

Part of making homemade bread is getting over the fear of it not working out. The bread machine helps by making the environment just right for rising. I guess I have some funny ingredients in my cupboards, but they seem normal to me.

Good luck & let me know if it works.

 

Update: I made this bread last night & added too much water. The dough looked a little more like cake batter than bread dough. But the taste? Still yummy. Our spread of choice? Nutella, of course.

REEDY to run… I think

I am running a 10K this morning – and guess what?! It’s downhill. Results forthcoming.