Fun Run in Washington, D.C. for Research Down Syndrome

You all know that I love to run.  So when I heard about Research Down Syndrome (RDS) starting a new runners program, I was thrilled that I could combine two passions--helping people with Down syndrome and running my guts out.

I emailed the lovely Kate from Trial Run, who I knew would love the Down syndrome/running combination as much as I did, and she took it a step further and convinced RDS and the National Down Syndrome Congress(NDSC) to host a 1-mile fun run during the NDSC national convention in Washington D.C. in July.

How awesome is that?!?

RDS is trying to figure out the level of interest for the fun run, so PLEASE email them at rdsrunners@researchds.org and let them know you think it is an amazing idea and you would like to come join us and get in a little exercise the morning of July 21st in Washington D.C.  The full details are still being worked out, but the more of you that let them know you will be there, the better the run will be.

You don't even have to be a runner to join in the fun--just come walk and hang out and eat some muffins and wear the cool shirt.  The more the merrier!!

All proceeds go to help people with Down syndrome--it's a win-win all around!!

So go ahead, email rdsrunners@researchds.org and let them know you are in!

P.S. If you want to blog about this or share the info on facebook, twitter, message boards, etc; that would be fabulous--let's get the word out!!

Roots N Blues Half Marathon

By now you should all know that I can't stay in The Village for very long before I get the itch to travel and Dr. C and the rest of the family end up on a quick road trip--even just a day trip--to somewhere.  I think this road-tripping habit of mine (coupled with the fact that we've never lived anywhere for longer than 3 years) is turning us all into modern-day gypsies.  My kids now routinely ask where we are going over the weekend.

Last weekend, we didn't disappoint them as we headed up to St. Louis to meet the fabulous Kate from Trial Run.  While I'm not usually an internet stalker, Kate's blog is funny and insightful and entertaining...and when I learned she lives near my parents, runs half-marathons, and has a daughter with Down syndrome, I figured we were kindred spirits.  And then when we discovered the Roots N Blues Half Marathon to run together, Dr. C agreed to another one of my gypsy-like weekends and we drove the seven hours to meet Kate and her family on Friday night and run the race Saturday morning.

I'm so bummed that I didn't take ANY pictures of Kate and I (or our kids) together--honestly it was such a pleasant evening and all the kids were getting along fabulously that I didn't even think about it. 

Thank you Kate and Matt for being such gracious hosts and making the random Internet-friend from The South feel welcome in your home--we had a fabulous time.  (Oh, and my kids want to play with your kids again next time we are in town!)

As for the race itself...it was my worst race EVER. 

I broke my #1 Race-Day Rule of "No Walking".  Ugh!

I originally broke the rule to help some fellow runners pushing a large man in a wheelchair up a monstrosity of a hill (it took all three of us pushing to get the guy to the top) but unfortunately I hadn't been training on long, steep hills...and I definitely hadn't been training pushing heavy wheelchairs up long, steep hills.  My bad knee protested against the added strain and didn't give up protesting for the rest of the race.  Which meant I had to stop and walk again and again, which completely deflated my confidence. Add to that the fact that the water stations kept running out of water right before I got there and my worst-race-ever fate was sealed.

(Yes, I am currently in the process of nursing my knee back to health and looking for a "Redemption" Race to train for and make myself feel better.  I'll keep you posted.)

Later, I felt slightly better when T-Man overheard me telling my dad what had happened in the race--how I'd stressed my knee pushing the wheelchair and how I payed for it for the last 8 miles.  T-Man interrupted and said, "But you did the right thing Mom; that's what Jesus would have done."  Awww.

It was a fast, fun quick trip--about 36 hours total--just enough to get the gypsyness out for at least the next month or so (until we go on our next trip to San Antonio!)

Many thanks to Kate for letting me run with her and for sharing her home and an evening with us.  And to the rest of her family for hanging out with us and letting us crash their family time!  We think you all are fabulous.

And many thanks to my dad for watching T-Man, Fearless, and Miss B by himself on Saturday for many, many hours while Dr. C and I were at the race.  Love you, Dad!

Check that one off the bucket list.

We did it!!!

We ran 26.2 miles on Saturday morning.  A full marathon.

It was AWESOME.

 

Here we are before the race--we are smiling in the picture, but really I was pretty nervous I thought I just might throw up.  Thankfully, I didn't.

Our families were there to cheer us on around mile marker 21...my hardest miles were 18, 19, and 20--so it really helped to have Dr. C, T-Man, Fearless, and Miss B there cheering for me.  After that, I felt great and the last 5.2 miles were a breeze. 

Dr. C got some more pictures of us as we came around the bend to the finish line.  What an amazing feeling!  My SweatSister said she heard somewhere that only 1-2% of the population are marathon runners...and now we are part of that group. 

Holla!

Things I lost during the training and marathon:

• 28 lbs.
• 5 toenails (3 during training, 2 during the race)
• My keys (which were eventually found)
• Lots of hours of sleep
• A few water bottles
• Half my wardrobe because it was too big (YAY!!)

Things I gained during the training and marathon:

• My amazing SweatSister who is a great friend and let me convince her to 1) run at 5:15AM five days a week; 2) run a marathon; and 3) is willing to consider a Triathlon next (but no more full marathons)
• A healthy respect for my feet
• An intimate knowledge of the streets of The Village where I live
• Lots of running clothes--there are probably more running clothes in my closet than regular clothes
• Lots of water bottles
• Greater respect for Dr. C, who trained for and ran a marathon while working on his PhD
• The desire to run another marathon sometime soon!

Confidence Restored!

On Saturday, my SweatSister and I did our longest run yet--21 miles.  After our horrible 20-miler a few weeks ago, I was a little bit worried that we would flop again.

But it was fabulous!

We were tired and sore afterward--but we did it!!  We ran the whole thing.  Yay!

Now we know that know we can do 21--I am confident that we will be able to run the whole 26.2 miles of our marathon.  We have one more long run left--a 22-miler, then the rest of our runs are only 14 miles or less.

Seven more weeks until the big day!!  I can't wait!

Hitting The Wall

From Running Planet:

"The wall is a somewhat intimidating term that is commonly used to describe the devastating feelings of fatigue and sometimes confusion that can occur in the final miles of a marathon. The wall is hard to describe to a non runner. It’s something that you need to experience to really understand. Jerome Drayton, winner of the 81st Boston Marathon, said it best: “To describe the agony of a marathon to someone who’s never run it is like trying to explain color to someone who was born blind.”

I hit the wall this week.

Saturday, my SweatSister and I were up for doing a long run in our marathon training--20 Miles.

Last week, we did 18, and I was tired and sore afterwards, but it was a good run and by the end of the day, I was feeling good.

This week...not so much.  Originally, we had planned to have this week be a short recovery week with next week being the long run.  But my SweatSister's hubby was going to be out of town so on Thursday we decided to move the long run up a week to Saturday so we could run together.

I think I must have gotten a little over-confident after our good 18 miler, so I didn't mentally prepare for 20 miles.  And I didn't eat well.  Or drink well.  Or sleep well.

So pretty much I just assumed I could just hop out of bed and run 20 miles...no big deal.

HA! 

The first 10 miles were fairly uneventful (except for the big dogs that wanted to chase us.)

I did okay for miles 11, 12, 13.

But by mile 14, I starting to feel pretty crummy.  Our pace started to slow...and slowed...and slowed till we trudged into our water stop at mile 15.

All confidence went out the window.  All desire to keep running was also out the window.  Negative thoughts crept in: Why the heck was I out running 20 miles in 100+ degrees in the South on a Saturday morning?!?  THIS IS CRAZY!!!

We limped along through miles 16 and 17.

One foot.  Other foot.  One foot.  Other foot.

At this point, I was not quite coherent and I honestly couldn't even think "left foot, right foot".  It was more like "move that thing that feels like lead and then move that other one."  My vision starting getting spotty and my hearing would come and go.

By mile 18, we did something I swore we wouldn't do.  We broke my number one long-distance running rule.

We walked.   (Oh the shame!!!)

And once that mental resolve was broken, we walked again.  And again.  And again.  Until we were running short spurts and walking longer distances.  In the end, we probably ended up walking a whole mile.  Ugh.

Side Note:  Any non-runners out there probably won't understand this perspective.  But to me, walking during a run is  a sign of weakness. A failure.  I can walk through water stations and of course take short breaks at designated stops, but to walk in between the predetermined distances just because I am feeling tired, is unacceptable. Please note that this is not a judgement on anyone else's exercise style or ability...there are lots of very good reasons for people to walk.  This is simply my personal standard for MYSELF.  Nothing more, nothing less.  For me, if I don't set this high of a standard for myself, I would walk ALL THE TIME and then never reach my goal of RUNNING a marathon.

It was miserable.  And disappointing.  And definitely put a damper on my enthusiasm for being able to run the 26.2 miles of our upcoming marathon.

We finally finished--stopping a little bit earlier than we usually do.  We were exhausted.  We were beaten.

We were humbled.

Lessons learned:

• Dehydration is not fun.  Make sure to drink plenty of water the day before.  (Duh.  I KNOW this, but chose not to follow it.  Not the brightest decision of my life.)
• Eat a good carbohydrate meal the night before.  Eating only a small ham sandwich on a white roll, 3 slices of cucumber, and a couple of pieces of broccoli at a party the night before a long run is a BAD, BAD idea.
• Stay humble.  Remember that I'm not hot stuff.  Even though I've been training consistently, I still have a lot to learn and a long way to go.  Maintaining a healthy respect for the long runs will make me mentally prepare better for the long haul so that I don't break my no-walking rule.  It will also force me to make sure I take care of myself physically so that I don't literally collapse from exhaustion and dehydration.

Now that I know what it feels like to "hit the wall", I am determined to avoid it as much as possible.  In 3 weeks we have a 21-mile run that will hopefully go much, much better than the 20-miler.  Wish us luck!

The journey of 26.2 miles begins with a single step (Take 2)

One of my New Year's Resolutions to run a marathon.  I started training for one in 2008, but I got a stress fracture after a half-marathon and then I was pregnant with Miss Banana and then life was too crazy to commit to a marathon.  I probably should have stuck with it--it would have been a nice stress reliever--but I didn't, so now it's time to try again!

I pulled out the treadmill tonight, pulled the year-and-a-half-old-brand new running shoes out of the closet (I got them right before my stress fracture) and did my first 3 miles of training. 

And it felt SOO good!  I can't wait to go outside for some nice road runs!

Running, my dear friend, I have missed you!!

New Year's Resolutions

I know we are already a few days into 2010, but the holidays (and my birthday!) are a bit crazy, so I never have time to sit and think about what I really want to accomplish the next year until a few days after the whole shebang calms down.  This year I have a lot of going back to the basics to do.  Last year I didn't even attempt to make New Year's Resolutions because there were so many unknowns--would Dr. C find a job?  Would Miss B be living?  How would T-Man and Fearless handle a big move? How would they handle a new sibling?  How would they handle starting school?  What would daily life be like after our child with Down syndrome is born?  It as really just too overwhelming (plus I was pregnant and hormonal!) so my goal for last year was just to survive.  Just ride out the waves and crawl to the finish line.  And that's pretty much what I did.

I'm done with that though--just surviving gets pretty boring after awhile and I feel the urge to move upward and have those Hallelujah! times and to THRIVE.  I've been thinking a lot lately about the things to do to feel happy--and I keep remembering a talk I heard by Dieter F. Uchtdorf called Happiness, Your Heritage.   I specifically like the part where he talks about our need to create, he says:

The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. No matter our talents, education, backgrounds, or abilities, we each have an inherent wish to create something that did not exist before.
Everyone can create. You don’t need money, position, or influence in order to create something of substance or beauty.

You may think you don’t have talents, but that is a false assumption, for we all have talents and gifts, every one of us. The bounds of creativity extend far beyond the limits of a canvas or a sheet of paper and do not require a brush, a pen, or the keys of a piano. Creation means bringing into existence something that did not exist before—colorful gardens, harmonious homes, family memories, flowing laughter.

With that in mind, I wrote my list of New Year's Resolutions.  I'm sharing them with you all because I do much better with following through if I know other people are keeping tabs on me.  Someday I hope to have better internal motivation, but until then, ask me how I'm doing. :)  Some of them I have already been working on and I just need to tweak or be more consistent about, some of them I used to do but just couldn't over the past year, and some of them are totally new to me. 

Here they are, in no particular order:

• Read the scriptures every day
• Say personal morning and evening prayers every day
• Write in my journal at least once a week
• Run consistently again, complete a 1/2 marathon and a full marathon
• Go to bed by 10:30PM (this is probably going to be harder than finishing a marathon!)
• Be five minutes early for all appointments, meetings, church, etc. (also harder than a marathon!)
• Complete one sewing project per month (I finally got a sewing machine for my b-day and Christmas--I'll post on my new little love later!)
• Complete one craft project per month
• Write down one thing I love about my husband and one thing I am thankful for everyday
• Perform one act of service for someone else everyday
• Laugh more, scold less
  

I think they should all be attainable, but it is going to require work and effort on my part.  Wish me luck!

What about you?  What are your goals for 2010?  What are you going to do to make 2010 the best year ever?  Let me know and we can help keep each other motivated!

P.S. In the "create" mode, I'm also adding a new blog list of blogs that inspire me to create something--and that have instructions on how to do it.  Let me know your favorite blogs that inspire you to create so I can add them to the list!

My running dreams for this year are over

A lot of you already know this, but for those of you who don't--I've had to say a sad, sad good-bye to my marathon hopes for this year. Remember that half-marathon I did? Well, I bought a new pair of shoes a week or so before that, and apparently they were defective (shoes can be defective?!??) and after putting 50-60 miles on them, they created a stress fracture in my shin. Nice, huh? The upside is that my foot has healed from the foot-smashing incident. Downside? The doctor said there is nothing I could do for this except give it 6-9 months off of any sort of impact sport. What a letdown! I had been working really hard and consistently and now I don't have anything to show for it. Who knew something that was supposed to make you feel good could be so depressing?

Ouch Update

Me: Doctor, is it broken?
Doc: I think no, just badly bruised--it looks like it just missed the bone.
Me: Can I run on it again then?
Doc: No, you need to give it two weeks
Me: Are you sure?
Doc: I recommend two weeks off, but it's up to you.
Me (silently): Yes! I'll go on Monday!

Ouch!

I've already been having right leg problems--so running this month has not gone so well. After staying off it for a week and getting new shoes, I went out running yesterday and then had a hard time walking afterwards. So I couldn't run today either--what a bummer!

I was still planning on going out tomorrow though, but apparently I am not supposed to. I was getting the big roll (heavy!) of newsprint out for the boys to paint on when one of my precious darlings pushed it over and it fell right on the edge of my right foot. OUCH!! The side of my foot is totally swollen and very painful to the touch. So I am left with two questions--When can I run again? and Is it broken???

Fourth of July Fun

We had a crazy-fun Fourth of July. It all started at 4:30AM when we rolled out of bed and headed to Brownville, NE for their Freedom Run. I did my first half-marathon with a time of 1:52:00 which was 8 min. faster than I was hoping for. Dr. Corn and T-Man ran/walked the 5K with Fearless in the jogging stroller. T-Man did the whole thing...which I think is pretty good for a 3-year old! He did a great job!!



T-Man and Fearless especially enjoyed the post-race snacks and "Gata-gator"--Fearless's word for Gatorade. T-Man thought he was pretty hot stuff wearing his medal around. Here we are at the end of the run...what a great way to start our morning!


Next, we drove home and took a quick shower and nap, then headed out to our friend's cabin at Horseshoe Lake. Their cabin is right on the lake and they have a little sandy beach for the kids to play on, a paddleboat and lots of water toys. We ate some great food, played in the lake (I even went down the big inflatable slide in the middle!) and just enjoyed the afternoon and evening. We all had a ton of fun--Dr. Corn and I decided that we will have to get a cabin like that--it was a blast!



After dinner we decided to head to Nebraska's 4th of July City--Seward. We stopped at a little firework stand to get sparklers and poppers for the boys, then headed out to see the big fireworks. We didn't know where we needed to go, so at the firework stand some other guys there said we could follow them (I love midwest hospitality!) they just didn't mention that they had to stop and buy beer first before they headed to the park! We finally got to the place and settled in to watch the show. We decided that Seward must be known as the "4th of July City" for some reason other than it's fireworks display though, because the fireworks were okay--after listening to the hype about what the Lincoln fireworks were supposed to be like, I think we picked the wrong city's display to watch! The boys still thought it was great though, and by the time we pulled out of our parking spot, they were sound asleep. All in all, we put 230 miles on our car and did just about everything we could have. I think by the end we were all funned out and exhausted, but it was a great day!

The next 100 miles

I think I have entered the "This Hurts!" phase of my training--the injuries are starting to set in---Ouch!!!

Havelock Charity Run

Dr. Corn and I did the Havelock Charity Run 10K last Saturday and it was great! Dr. Corn did fabulous--especially since he hasn't run consistently since last fall. It was nice for us to be able to run together and fun to have Dr. Corn's parents, T-Man, and Fearless there to cheer us on. What a fabulous way to start a Saturday!

P.S. I was about to post the pictures, but after seeing the red-faced, sweaty look I was sporting, I think I'll spare you all and just keep those for the scrapbook!

The second 100 miles

Another 100 miles have come and gone...things I've learned:

• You do finally get used to getting up early.
• I am still not a Runner, I'm just a "person who runs". I think true Runners look forward to their runs; I still look forward to the run being over!
• It is soooo much easier to run with someone else--Thanks Andrea!

This and That

Things have been quiet on the blog front lately and here's why:

We decided to start potty training Fearless...after 2 days, 3,864,982 tries, we had 2 successes and 10 accidents. For my sanity's sake, we put it all away and will try again when the last package of diapers runs out in a couple of days.

I ran my first 10K race a little while ago--and I did okay. My time was 57:47--so a 9:18 pace. Which is still slow, but both of my 5K splits were faster than the 5K I ran a month ago, so that is an improvement! As an added bonus, I'm beginning to get used to my alarm--that or else I'm just so worn out by the end of the day that my body doesn't have the ability to worry anymore; it just wants to sleep.

We planted some heirloom tomato seeds to get started for our garden. I was so excited for all the little plants to come up! I put them outside thinking sunlight is good for plants, but apparently not. They all completely fried and withered up and died. What a bummer! Luckily, some of the seeds hadn't sprouted yet, so those ones came up the other day...but they also died when T-Man decided to pick all of their leaves. You'd think with my husband's agriculture background and upcoming PhD, we'd be able to grow some simple tomato plants, but I guess when the boys and I undo all his hard work, it's a lost cause!

Those are our highlights for the last few weeks. Of course there has been the day-to-day utter craziness, but all of that is just normal--or at least I think that it is. There is some sort of oxymoron in saying that being crazy is normal, isn't there?

The first 100 miles

Today, my cumulative miles add up to over 100! With my new 100-mile wisdom, these are some things that I have learned:

• Good running shoes are a must.
• Running in rain and snow is not bad, it's the Nebraska wind that is killer!
• Waking up to alarm every morning causes me severe anxiety, which is leading to my current problem of insomnia. For the past three and a half years, the boys have been my alarm. Now that I am getting up before them to run, I am scared to death of the alarm going off (I think just b/c I'm not used to it?), which causes me to start waking up at 2:30AM, fall back asleep around 3:30, wake up at 3:45, fall back asleep around 5, then wake up at 6 and lay in bed waiting for the alarm to beep. It makes me feel like I am taking crazy pills! For those of you who get up every morning to the the sound of heart-stopping beeps, and still sleep well at night, I salute you.
• I get some sort of sadistic amusement out of running up quietly behind squirrels, then when they notice me, watching them jump 20 feet in the air and take off running as fast as their little legs can carry them. I don't know why this never fails to make me smile; maybe I think it's some sort of payback from them eating my tulip bulbs.
• My cross-country coach in high school was right; running is 90% mental, 10% physical.

Those are my insights for now...103 miles down, 780 to go before Indianapolis!

Follow-ups

Because I'm new to the blogging world, I'm still learning how to do everything. I did figure out how to move the pictures to where I wanted them, (Thanks Kristy!) But I still have no idea how to respond to people's comments, or, do you respond to people's comments? Or is it just understood that you don't? I have no clue, so in my effort not to offend anyone, here's my follow-up post.

My marathon training is going well. Last week, I did 17 miles +warm-up and cool-downs which is my highest weekly mileage for long time. I did more than that before I got pregnant with Fearless, but I was also running twice a day then, which is completely not feasible at this stage in my life! Last week I did all my miles on my treadmill while the boys were sleeping, I know it's not the same as road runs, but because Dr. Corn is gone a lot and we only have a single jogging stroller, I have to do what I can. I'm going to start running with my running partner, Andrea, again tonight, so we'll do more outside runs when our schedules and the weather allows. Andrea and I were thinking about doing the St. George marathon, but because Dr. Corn will have to be in Houston the day after that one--we didn't think we could work out those logistics. (Sorry Abi!) So, we're planning on either the Indianapolis or the Kansas City marathon that is on October 18th. Plus, that will give us a few more weeks to train, which is always a bonus.

As for the brownies, according to T-Man, toothpaste on brownies is NOT a good thing--he was very suspicious of them and only had a few bites. I guess the gourmet aspect of the brownies was lost on him. Dr. Corn, Fearless and I really like them though, so I would recommend them. Here's the recipe:

Bottom Layer:
1 cup all-purpose flour (about 4.5 oz)
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 tablespoons water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, beaten
1 (16 oz) can chocolate syrup
Cooking spray

Mint Layer:
2 cups powdered sugar
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 tablespoons fat-free milk
1/2 teaspoon peppermint extract
2 drops green food coloring

Glaze:
3/4 cup semisweet chocolate chips
3 tablespoons butter

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. To prepare bottom layer, lightly spoon flour into a dry measuring cup; level with a knife. Combine flour and salt; stir with a whisk. Combine granulated sugar, egg substitute, 1/4 cup melted butter, 2 tablespoons water, vanilla, eggs, and chocolate syrup in a medium bowl; stir until smooth. Add flour mixture to chocolate mixture, stirring until blended. Spray a 9x13-inch pan with cooking spray, pour batter into pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 23 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center come out almost clean. Cool completely in pan on wire rack. (My tip: make sure this is totally cooled before you do anything else, otherwise, it's hard to spread the next layer on. The bottom is supposed to be like a rich, fudgy brownie, so check it carefully at the end to make sure it doesn't overcook and dry out. I had to cook mine a little longer than 23 min., but my oven is also circa 1922, so that was probably why.)
3. To prepare mint layer, combine powdered sugar, 1/4 cup melted butter, and next 3 ingredients (through food coloring) in a medium bowl; beat with mixer until smooth. spread mint mixture over cooled cake. Refrigerate bars for about 10 minutes. (My tip: Don't make this until the bottom layer has cooled and you are ready to put the mint layer on, otherwise the mint filling gets a little stiff in the bowl.)
4. To prepare glaze, combine the chocolate chips and 3 tablespoons butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl. Microwave at HIGH 1 minute or until melted, stirring after 30 seconds. Let stand 2 minutes. Spread chocolate mixture evenly over top of mint layer. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve. Cut into 20 pieces. Enjoy!

The journey of 26.2 miles, begins with a single step

So today is the day. I decided that I didn't have enough things to every day already (HA!), so today, I am officially beginning my marathon training program. Dr. Corn ran in the St. George, UT marathon last fall; so this year, it's my turn to run a marathon. While 26.2 miles may seem daunting, I say, BRING IT ON!!!

Thought for the day: "Focus. Speed. I AM Speed." --Lightning McQueen (CARS).