10 For 10

Today is National Running Day. Are you going to run today? Tell me what your plans are!AND, it's my 10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY!! Woah, did that ever go by fast! Hawkeye had an awesome idea for me to run 10 miles, one for every year of our marriage. But not only that, he suggested I think about each of those years during each of those miles! BRILLIANT! It was a great run and fun to think back on so many memories. Here are just a few I thought I'd share with ya'll:

1 ~ We started off with a beautiful wedding and outdoor reception. Our first apartment was TINY! I loved our long drives visiting family. Hawkeye bought me a piano for our first Christmas!!
2 ~ We decided to start a family. We traveled to Seattle to celebrate my Great Grandmother's 100th birthday {our baby girl would be named after her}. Hawkeye went surfing for the first time & got into kayaking. I started teaching piano lessons.
3 ~ Baby girl arrives! We move twice this year, the second was our first home! Find out we're expecting baby #2!
4 ~ Baby boy arrives! Hawkeye is laid off and starts snowboard rental business, takes time off of school to focus on employment. That was a hard year!
5 ~ Expecting baby #3! Hawkeye enrolls back in school, changes jobs.
6 ~ Baby boy #2 arrives. Start building new home.
7 ~ Move into new home. Hawkeye graduates from college. Hawkeye surprises me with a violin for Christmas!! Start lessons immediately!
8 ~ Expecting baby #4! Hawkeye and I travel to Hawaii for 10 days of pure heaven! Come home to big promotion at work. Baby boy #3 arrives!
9 ~ Make big lifestyle changes as a family, lots of exercise. Remember how much I love running and races... I'm hooked.
10 ~ Sell our home. First big family vacation: San Diego and Disneyland! Accepted into the US Army's officer training program. Long weekend get-away to favorite ski resort, celebrating our engagement!

Obviously there are a million more memories from these last 10 years. We have had some difficult times and we've had some out of this world moments. We have worked hard and have seen so many of our dreams come true. This run was such a fun thing and I'm thinking I just might have to make it a tradition!

I love you Hawkeye! Forever & Ever babe!

Ultimate Protection

The sun and I aren't exactly friends. I love the sun and all but I swear he's out to get me! I get burned so easily and when I burn I REALLY burn. I get so sick. I'm wiped out with headaches, I'm nauseous, ugh... it's. awful.
Mother nature has been playing a nasty joke on us around these parts. This entire Spring has been freezing, sporadic snow storms, constant wind... not fun. But I'm hoping that June will warm up just a little bit! With that comes the SUN!

I found a great website {the Melanoma International Foundation} that talked about the benefits and importance of sunscreen. Go HERE for the full monty! But here are a few things to keep in mind this summer {and always}.

* Even with sunscreen you should also use NATURAL sun protection, like seeking shade, wearing hats and other protective clothing and limit time in the direct sunlight. "Sunscreens should not substitute for sensible avoidance of excessive sun exposure. They should not be used simply to increase your sun-worshiping hours."

*The SPF measures the ability of a product to reduce the amount of UV-B radiation penetrating the skin. A sun protection factor of 10 reduces UV-B penetration by 90 percent, SPF 20 by 95 percent, and SPF 30 by 97 percent.... {I use the highest SPF I can find.

*You should apply your sunscreen at least forty-five minutes before going out into the sun, to allow for better bonding to the skin. Reapply sunscreen after going into the water: rarely will the protectant maintain its efficacy after you've been swimming.

*Reapply every 2 hours!

*Most people apply 25 to 50 percent of the amount of sunscreen used to determine SPF. So make sure to REALLY lather the stuff on!

This year I am determined to lather up with sunscreen EVERY time we go outside!I will not forget my face.Nor will I forget my kids; truth be told I don't forget to put sunscreen on them, but sometimes I forget to REAPPLY! So I will be making sure they get more than one dose of it!I would REALLY like to get myself a sassy & sexy sun hat! Is there such a thing?

Thank You

Memorial Day has always been an important day to me. We always go to the cemetery and the local American Legion puts on a small program ending with three volleys of shots fired in honor of the deceased veterans. I am proud of my military heritage and now with my husband joining them in just a matter of weeks I am even more proud of him. I hope that you take a moment today to remember those who have sacrificed for our freedoms. Here are a couple videos that I love; the give me chills, make me cry and warm my heart.




Thank you to all our veterans and current military men and women.

Good Ole Lance

Smell Like a MAN, man!

I hate the SMELL of working out! I hate B.O.! I hate that I can't stand the smell of me after a workout and I pity anyone within 5 miles of me at this point. EEWWW!! Today was no exception by the way.

I do, however, LOVE the smell of Old Spice!!

After Hours is my current favorite. Oh. My. HECK! This is what my man smells like! I wish the computer screen was scratch and sniff, then you'd totally know why it's so awesome... and I'd spend too much time glued to the computer screen!Today I totally used his body wash instead of mine! Sometimes smelling all fresh and flowerie has absolutely NO appeal to me. I want to smell clean, tough {cause I AM tough} and this is just that! LOVE IT!!!

And how can you NOT love this ad campaign?!! You just can't!




So as funny as it sounds, this is one thing I stock up on for my personal spa! What's on your list of must haves?

Sandal Etiquette?

So someone asked a question in Runner's World {I know, I'm on a kick} and I'm not sure I like the answer. Question: I've lost a few toenails thanks to running. Is it impolite to wear sandals around nonrunning friends? Answer: Are they new nonrunning friends? If so, yeah it's kinda rude. If they're friends who know you {and your gross habits} all too well, it's fine.

Now. I have a really gross toenail. I'm pretty self conscious about it actually. I cover it up with fingernail polish but it doesn't REALLY cover it up. I've been REALLY debating having it removed permanently. I still wear sandals though... ALL summer. So this posed question makes me wonder if I have been "RUDE" by doing so. Not that I care one way or another, I sure as heck am going to keep wearing my sandals around anyone and everyone... regardless of whether you're a new friend, old friend or total stranger!

So what's YOUR opinion?

What's Up Doc?

I haven't spotlighted a veggie for quite awhile; my bad! Sad considering how much I love them. Seriously. Love. Them. So I picked one of my all time favorite versatile vegetables. The carrot.
We have always told our kids that if they eat carrots they will be able to see in the dark! It is true that carrots help eye health. Have you ever noticed that a sliced carrot resembles an eye? I found a fun little website that had a lot of info on carrots. Go HERE.The FDA says this about the nutritional value of the carrot: fat free, saturated fat free, low-sodium, cholesterol-free, a good source of fibre and high in vitamin A.

No other fruit or vegetable has as much carotene as the carrot does, your body takes that carotene and converts it into vitamin A. Vitamin A is essential to strengthening the immune system, keeping the skin, lungs and intestinal track in order, and promoting healthy cell growth! And because beta-carotene is fat soluble, add a little butter when cooking and it will actually help the body make the best use of the nutrient!

The greens ARE edible and are full of vitamin K.

Aren't they gorgeous?!!
I LOVE bottled carrots! I love being able to throw them in whatever I am cooking and not have to wait for them to cook! I usually plant rows and rows and rows of carrots in my garden just for this purpose. Bottled gold!
A big favorite in this house is apple/carrot juice. We have an old Juiceman Jr. that we've had for years and year. It's AWESOME! Take a few Granny Smith apples and juice them and then add the juice from 2-4 carrots. Stir well. It will turn a funny brownish green color but it is SOO good! My kids BEG me to make it for them!

Just be careful not to eat TOO many... they will turn your skin orange!

Runner's World Mag

I got my first Runner's World magazine in the mail yesterday. I used to LOVE when this baby came in the mail but I haven't subscribed to it for YEARS. I was so excited to see it grace the inside of my mailbox and I couldn't WAIT to flip through the pages. I thought I'd share a could things that BLEW MY MIND!

Marathon Records:

Zac Fredenburg has the fastest time pushing a stroller {with his 10 month old son}. 2:32!!! WOAH BABY! His PR sans stroller is 2:21:40!

Someone { I don't know who but I must find out} ran it BACKWARDS {as in THEY ran backwards, not running the COURSE backwards, hehe} in 3:43!! Yes way.

Fastest marathon while bouncing a basketball is 3:48

Michelle Frost "ran" a marathon on STILTS in 8:25!

Michal Kapral ran 26.2 while juggling three beanbags!

The fastest marathon finish by a team of five runner linked together is 3:38.

It's amazing what people can come up with to set a record but truth be told, I'm impressed by ALL of these!

Field Day

Today I spent the day at my kids' school helping with their annual field day. I was SO excited to help because Field Day was one of my favorite days! Second only to the day we ran a timed mile, it was by far my favorite day, but that's a different post. I remember running and jumping my heart out for field day. I remember that everyone did. Every time I see Anne of Green Gables, when she goes to the picnic, after being found innocent in the "falsehood" about dropping Marila's amethyst brooch into the Lake of Shining Waters... whenever I see Anne and Diana beat all the boys in the three legged race, I fondly remember back to my third grade year and how my best friend and I absolutely dominating that same race! I love that memory.

I really was excited about going today and seeing all the kids have as much fun as I did. I was looking forward to seeing my own kids "compete". I encountered a different Field Day than I expected. It was this morning that I realized that there really are more overweight kids now than when I was a kid. You can OBVIOUSLY tell which kids are active and PLAY outside vs. those who don't. My heart went out to those who fell into that second category; for those few minutes they were at my station I tried to encourage them as much as I possibly could. I desperately wanted to see any spark of enjoyment. It's hardly possible to help a child love fitness in that minuscule amount of time but I was determined to be positive and encouraging.

There was something else, this one had me red in the face! There was a boy who was "chosen last" and ended up without a partner. At the last minute a girl came and joined the group so they were paired together. In the next group over I hear some smart-alec kid yell "girl's name! I feel SO SORRY FOR YOU!" And he yelled it over and over and over again!! For some reason that just ticked me off. I went right over to that boy {SO NOT LIKE ME} and said something like "Knock it off. That isn't nice. Why would you say something like that?" Sugar coated, like I'm afraid of some lame 3rd grade snot of a bully. Maybe it's because I remember being chosen last and I hated it bitterly every time. Maybe it's because I know this boy {no he isn't my son} and I had some kid of surrogate mama bear episode. I hate bullies.

On a good note though. The sun decided to shine for at least HALF of the day. But at least it wasn't FREEZING {we are still getting SNOW}. We got to have a fun family picnic. My kids had a blast and did great. It seemed like most of the kids had a blast running around and being kids. Today and tomorrow are the last days of school for my kids! And we're going to have a FUN summer!

Need Motivation?