Fundraising conquests

Kaitlin, my eight year old daughter and I went out today to fundraise around town. It went surprisingly well! I am now going to be doing a car wash at Wendy's and a scrapbooking crop at Scrapbooks and Things here in town. I am looking forward to this. Hopefully it will help make a good bit of money for my Team in Training fundraising goal! I enjoyed spending the time out with Kaitlin, as lately, I feel like all I ever do is get after her. For an eight year old girl, she sure is moody and opinionated. I can't wait until she is a teenager. Luckily she is cute! I think she enjoyed going out with me today to fundraise and felt like she was doing something worthwhile. I hope that as I do this fundraising and training, I am teaching my kids to care about others!

A few things learned

Today, while out on my group run with the team, I realized I need to make sure I know where I am supposed to be running BEFORE heading out. I thought I knew, and I had the directions in my hand, but apparently that didn't matter. My 6 mile run ( and walk) was definitely a bit longer, as I backtracked, took wrong turns, and flat out got lost. Who knew there were so many side streets in Jacksonville!
I also learned that hills are hard! We ran two of the bridges today, and my hips are sore now.It was definitely something my legs aren't used to. I have to say though, that today, I really enjoyed myself ( minus the getting lost part.) I felt I pushed myself a bit harder than I have been, and I liked it. It seemed less tedious.
I bought an ipod today, and can't wait to fill it up with music to keep me motivated while I run. I think it will also help the monotony. yeah!
I also realized today, that I hardly ever see Bill, my husband, on Saturdays. Today consisted of me leaving the house at 6 to go run. After I ran, I didn't do the usual socializing with everyone afterwards. Instead, I hurried to a used homeschool book sale, and got the majority of our books for next school year. I saved alot of money though! After that, I hit the homeschool book store, because they were having a 20% off sale, so I got some more of our books . Then it was off to soccer sign ups, where I sat until 2. I then had to go get my new ipod from the person I bought it from, hurried home, took care of the horses, and hurried out so that we could take Will, my 6 year old to BMX racing. Unfortunately, by the time we got there, it was rained out, so we went out to dinner instead. That was nice though. Bill spent the day with the kids at our "home" BMX track working on it and fixing damage from storms. What a busy day!

I stink at updating!

I am not very good at remembering to update this blog, and frankly, I am always so busy its tough! I have gone through so many different updates in my head, but actually getting to write them down, is much harder. A couple of weeks ago, I had my first chance to run on hills when we were at a pony Club thing for my daughter. Hills are hard! Jacksonville doesn't have hills. San Fransisco is going to kill me! Our team was supposed to start running bridges last week for our practice, but practice got stormed out. The same thing happened again this week. Talk about frustrating!
My training is going well, but I have got to get an ipod. Running can get quite dull, but if I am listening to music, or a book on tape, it will make it alot better. I am still waiting for the runners high people talk about. I guess you have to go faster, or run more for that to happen! I love the fact that I am getting exercise though, that definitely helps me enjoy it more. I also love the fact that I am training for a good reason. Every time it gets tough, I think about WHY I am doing it, and it doesn't seem so bad.
My knees don't always agree. When I told my mom I was going to train for a marathon, after laughing, she predicted that my knees would be blown by September. I sure hope she is wrong! I am determined to prove her wrong! They hold up to six miles as long as I don't run it all. Hopefully they will continue to get stronger. Wish me luck!

Shoes, training, and colds

It is amazing what a good pair of running shoes can do. I went to a shoe clinic put on by Team in Training, and learned how to look for a good pair of running shoes ( as opposed to the cheapest pair Target has!) The difference in my knees is amazing. Of course the difference in my bank account is too. I have no problem spending money on horse shoes, but I had a hard time doing it for myself. So far though, it is paying off. I don't hurt when I am done running.
My training is going well. Unfortunately, I have been hit by a miserable cold, so running in 90 + degree heat is torture. I kept my poor husband up last night by coughing so much. I feel miserable this morning from coughing all night. At least I got an ab workout, I suppose.
Last night was the first group training run I was able to go on with the team. It was nice to run with other people, and also to run in a different spot! I think I am going to enjoy this. It is hard to believe though, that I will be running over 20 miles in just a few months. Okay, I'll be realistic running and walking.
On another note, I went to my first horse show in five years this past weekend, and had a great time. I showed my moms horse and got a couple of good ribbons. Maybe before he goes home, I can do some bigger horse shows.