Home Again

It is good to be home. There is nothing like sleeping in your own bed. It is bad when you need a vacation to recover from your vacation. I have no idea how many miles we walked but it seemed like a lot. Last night after we got home and had dinner I went to the "Y" I did 30 minutes on the treadmill and then swam 300 meters. This morning it was back to school for the kids. Ethan wanted to take a couple more days off. He was very disappointed that he had to do school. Of course it only takes him about 2-3 hours to complete so he gets off much easier than if he was in regular school.

Here is a picture of me coming into the finish line of the Pumpkin run last Sunday. The picture was taken by the times union

Link to Picture 

Thanks Laura for sending me the link.

M&M World

So today we went to M&M World. We looked all around, then we went into the bathroom and they had a small stall with feet sticking out. 

Here is a picture of Ethan. It looks like this M&M is holding his head.

Here is Tami, Samantha and Ethan standing in front of the Green M&M.

We also went to Wonder World today and had a great time there. It is a hands on museum. They have a Roller coaster simulator. Tami went on it with the kids. This thing spun all around and even went upside down. I was surprised when Ethan went on it and actually had fun. Tami said she had fun as well. And she rode it about 6 times with the kids. We went to Outback for Dinner tonight and then back to the hotel. Our legs are still trying to recover from all the walking. 

Disney

Yesterday we went to the worlds largest gift shop. I mean Disney world. We had a good time and stayed at the park all day. We stayed till the fireworks show. When we were getting ready to leave they were having trouble with the trams. It was quite entertaining. We rode a lot of the rides and did a lot of walking around. We rode the Pirates ride and the jungle cruise. We went on the Carousel of Progress. The kids really liked that. We went to Buzz lightyear's and Stitch Great Escape. The Monster's Inc. Laugh Floor, was a lot of fun. We rode the magic carpet and went in the Swiss Family tree house. We rode Goofy's roller coaster and Ethan even liked it this time. We did the Mad tea cup's and the and we all rode the Carousel horses. We were pretty tired when we got to the hotel. This morning we woke up to cold weather. We really got lucky on the weather. Today we are going to go to the Wonder Works museum 

Pumpkin Run Race Day

This morning I ran in the Pumpkin Run. It is a large race there were probably 800- 900 people there. I did the 5k (3.1 miles) portion of the race. They also had a 10 mile course. The race is held at Evergreen Cemetery . It is a large very old cemetery. We were able to run the whole race on their property. Of course it was a couple of loops around. But that just let me see the leaders of the race a couple times.

I am standing right in the middle smiling. I was pretty far back in the pack waiting for the start. When the gun went off everyone started working their way to the start line and then running once they got a little room. 
Here you can see one of the pumpkins that was lining the course. There were lots of them around. And they were giving them away after the race. I even saw one guy carrying one out on the race course. 

I was really close to the finish line at this point. I was very happy to see the line. The weather was kind of cool this morning. Of course I warmed right up as soon as I started running. Tami and the kids came out to support me in the race. Tami took all the pictures. This was the largest race I have done so far. I had fun doing the race and was very happy to complete it. I was very impressed with the people who did the 10 mile course. We were sitting at the 6 mile mark watching, Most of the racers looked to be doing very well. I have quite a ways to go to get to that point. First place sports ran the race and they did a very good job. They even posted results for the race about 15 minutes after people were finishing. Everything was very organized. They had trophies that were passed out about 20 minutes after that last finisher. 

Morning training Run

This morning kicked off the Half-Marathon training.  I got to the "y" early and they had a check in and then you got your book and training log and a shirt. After some brief speeches we went for our run. We ran along the St Johns River on the river walk. It was a little breezy and misting slightly. The city was shrouded in low clouds so you couldn't see the tops of the buildings. There were a few boats on the river. It seemed the city was just waking up.  We only ran 2 miles this morning. A month ago 2 miles would have seemed like a very long way to run. This morning I was actually able to run and talk most of the time. For this program (Galloway Program)we Run for a minute and then walk for a minute. This give the body a chance to recover during the run. The program has a 90% injury free rate. I am all for that. I am still getting into the swing of things. Next week they will divide us up into our pace groups. I am looking forward to doing this program and I have already signed up for my Half Marathon to support the Donna Hicken Foundation

Pumpkin Run

Today I went to pick up my race package for the Pumpkin Run on Sunday. This race is run in a Cemetery and they have pumpkins lining the course. I will be running in the 5k (3.1 miles) part of the race. They also have a 10 mile distance. I will have another post after finishing the race. Anyway in the package was a t-shirt more race flyer's a sample of coffee, an energy bar and an energy drink mix. As I was leaving 1st Place sports with my packet I thought, "I am a runner now." I have completed my first race and signed up for my second. I know about how long it will take me to complete the course. I have been doing training runs. And I am training for a half marathon in February. In fact I have a short 2 mile training run tomorrow morning. Of course the distance builds each week until we hit 14 miles in January. The most I have ever run so far has been 6 miles. I can't wait till we run double digits. 

Ear Plugs

So 2 weeks ago I was doing a wood turning demo at the Home and Patio show in the Woodcraft booth. The guy from across the aisle came over and asked me if I could make him some ear plugs. I said, "I have never made those before but give me 15 minutes and I will make you some."  I ended up making him a set and a set for his girlfriend. So the next day we go to Tijuana Flats for lunch and 2 of the girls that work there have then. I ask for the dimensions and go home and make them each a set. As it turns out the day I am going to deliver them is Jamie's birthday. (pictured left) She was very happy to get them. Since it was her birthday I even put them in a small turned box. These ear plugs a fun to make and don't take much material. I am planning on making some more and have some designs in mind. The hard part is the measuring they have to be an exact size. Every one has different sized holes and Jamie's are different on each side. Of course that is the good thing about making them custom is I am able to match the wood ad make them any size needed. (Photo Credit: Ethan)

Running and Riding

Tonight I went for a ride with the kids and the neighbors. We did a mile at a slow pace enjoying talking to the neighbors. Then We dropped them off and the kids and I did another mile. Then I dropped them off at home and did another mile by myself at a faster pace. I then went home and put on my running shoes and shorts and did the run/walk thing for another 2 miles. So in all I did 5 miles around the neighborhood. It was a nice evening and as I was running the full moon was coming up. It really made for a nice evening. I got home and did a little stretching. I was thinking I only ran 2 miles tonight but a month ago that would have been a lot. Now it is just a short run. I am hoping to get a spinning class in tomorrow and then run again the following day :-)

First Race 5k

This morning was the day of my first race. I ran a 5k(3.1 miles) Me and about 1,000 of my closest friends. There were a lot of fast people running. My goal was to finish and get a time. I am training for a Half marathon in February. So based on my finish time I will be placed in a pace group for the rest of the training. Tami and the kids came out to cheer me on. Then nice thing about this  race was it looped around the shopping center. I was able to see them a couple times during the run. 

This is me at about the half way point and also finishing. My official time was 39:04 but my elapsed time was about 30 seconds less. Because so many people were ahead of me at the start it took a little while to actually make it up to the start line. There were actually people behind me when I finished so that was a good thing as well. 

Hurt Shoulder

Today I went to the doctor to have my shoulder looked at. He said I had torn a small muscle in my shoulder. This is going to cut into my paddling for a while. I have to do some Physical therapy to strengthen the surrounding muscles. The weather is just starting to get good for paddling. Also I had wanted to start swimming more.  I will have to wait and see how the therapy goes to see what I am able to do. My Running and Cycling are going good. I will just keep at it. 

New Cycling shoes

Yesterday I went to the bicycle store to look at some shoes for spinning classes. They had these Nike shoes that I liked. I did try on 3 other pairs of shoes and liked these the best. Then the guy told me they were on sale 40% off, well that decided the issue for me. They even installed the clips on the bottom of the shoes for me. Today was my first chance to try them out in a class. They clip in without too much trouble(I am sure it will take a little practice) To release your foot you just turn your heel out to the side and it pops free of the pedal. The soles are very stiff which supports your weight. And since your feet are attached to the pedals. Your foot is able to push down as well as pull up on the pedal. So you can get a full stroke all the way around. I need to play with the adjustment of the clip on the bottom of the shoe. It is pretty close to being in the correct position but I think a little further back might be more comfortable. 

2 pair of new shoes in a week. I currently own more shoes then I have ever owned at one time in my whole life. I currently own 8 pairs of shoes. Most of them I only wear for certain activities Like my work boots I usually only wear when I am using my chainsaw. Running shoes, Riding shoes, my Keens and Teva's for around the water. My flip flops  and my slippers to keep my feet warm in the winter and my old tennis shoes. Plus I have a pair of dress shoes that are too tight so I try not to wear them too much. 

riding in my neighborhood

I decided I needed some pictures of me riding my bike. I got Ethan to bring the camera outside and had him take a bunch of pictures of me riding around in a circle while he took pictures. A few of them actually came out. You gotta love digital. My bike is a Anodized Red 3 speed townie kind of beach cruiser. You sit up nice and straight so it is pretty comfortable. The bike is not built for speed. One of my favorite blogs call this style over speed

I am wearing my flip/flops which are always comfy I just love riding along wearing these. Of course the shorts and t-shirt are nice for October weather. 

Training Run

Last night I went out for my 30 minute training run. My goal was to do 2 laps around the neighborhood on the 1 mile circuit. I am still doing the run/walk thing. I was able to finish in 26:14 or about 13 minute miles. Not an earth shattering time but it was my fastest so far.  I have started training with a group. We are doing a long run this weekend. We are getting ready to run a 5 k in two weeks so they are kind of tapering down off the training. I may have a class on the day of the race that remains to be seen. Fortunately you can sign up the day of the race. If I am unable to do that one than I am planning on doing to Pumpkin Run. I may still sign up and do that one as well. I will have to see how the training is going.