True Embarrassment and Blogs for YOU to read!!

It had been a while since our last run together and my leg feels back to normal again (the slightest sign of an injury and I freak out because injuries are the worst) so we went out for 8 miles @ 8:12 average pace.

I originally went out with a jacket on and once I felt how nice it was I went back in to leave my jacket.  Andrew and I drove over to our favorite trail and saw an airplane go right over us.

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After our talk yesterday about how we hold our hands while running I started to really pay attention to what I do.  I found myself doing this with my hands but I wonder if I do that out of habit now for winter running… trying to protect my thumb from freezing?

Shelly said this, it was perfect and it is going to help me a lot!  “My sister took a running class with the NYC Runners Club, and they stressed how important it was to have loose hands- for the final run they gave everyone a Pringles chip for each hand and the goal was to not have crushed it by the end of the race!!! When I’m running and feeling like I’m getting tense I automatically picture holding a chip and loosen up my grip.”  I’ll be picturing Pringles today during my run.

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The kids have been saving up their dollars and working hard on some chores each day to earn the money.

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They were very excited to make it to the $1 store to pick out what they want!

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On the way home we also picked up Andrew’s favorite cinnamon roll to bring home and we all shared it.  Donuts > cinnamon rolls but it was a fun change.

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That afternoon something random happened.  I was driving along and noticed that my mom’s car was right in front of me.  So I just followed her until we got to Costco:)  Don’t mind my eyebrow area… I just had them waxed so they were bright red:)  My mom and I hung out and talked for 30 minutes in Costco, it was the best.

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While I was hanging out at Costco with my mom, Andrew sent me this picture of the kids at BYU with Cosmo.

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Last night Andrew’s family had a birthday celebration for him so we hit the road to go up north.  Below pink pony from the $1 store, it was as though she hit the lottery when she came across that gem.

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Cousins were over and Brooke is usually good at the Spot It game.  She beat her older cousins and she has definitely beat me a time or two.  My brain doesn’t work that fast.

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The below picture just makes me think summer is here.  The cantaloupe was so good.

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Andrew requested burgers and sweet potato fries for his dinner.  The grilled onions made the burger.  They also made the special In-N-Out sauce to put on the burgers because that is Andrew’s favorite.

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Funfetti cake for dessert!  Just like our wedding cake… I think that was the last funfetti cake that I have had.   Brooke did a great job helping him blow out the candles.

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We are off to California today!  Brooke is off to see her dad this weekend and Knox will be with his mom so we will be kidless.  I kind of want to do things in the Bay Area that we’ve never seen or done and be all adventurous… have any recommendations?

We will also be dogless this weekend and it was a hard goodbye:)  Beretta is staying with Andrew’s mom and dad.

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If you have a running accomplishment that you want to share, send it on over to [email protected] !! Keep on being amazing!

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JULES!!!  “Last year I ran my first BQ of 3:33 at the Sugarloaf marathon in Maine.  I was so happy but unfortunately missed getting a number for the 2017 race by 18 seconds.  Right away I decided I would try again and signed up for the Napa Valley Marathon which also happened to be my first marathon in 2015 (3:42).  Friday I flew from New Hampshire to aCalifornia in hopes of getting another BQ.  I had trained harder than ever but never expected to do as well as I did.  I crossed the finish line in 3:20:15, securing myself a spot for Boston in 2018 and with a PR of 13 minutes!! My last mile was also a 6:58.  I never thought I would be able to run that fast, and now as I recover I am thinking of even bigger goals because I know I can accomplish so much.”  Check out her blog here!!!

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Linda!!!  “In the past month of February, I made it a goal to run 3 hours a week: it doesn’t matter how I distribute it throughout the week so long as I get it done.  The longest run I’ve done this week was 90 minutes all at onece- my feet were getting lots of calluses but I’m so proud of them because they make my accomplishments as a runner.:)  I’m looking for ideas for what goal I’d make for March currently and I’d love some ideas from your readers!”

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I’ve got a few new blogs for you to check out!  If you ever want your blog to be featured, just email me!

The Runner Mom!  Ashley has the most beautiful pictures, the cutest little girl and great tips for running!  Loved her recent post on ME TIME!!

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ARE DONUTS PALEO?  Of course I love Stephanie’s blog for the donuts and she also loves This Is Us:)  She motivates me to get my strength training on and eat delicious food!

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Mountain Mantras!  Aimee has the cutest dog (Mr. Teeps) and has awesome meal ideas and recipes (pumpkin muffins!!).  She shares all about her love for yoga and running!

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I came across this below and it took me way back…

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Do you remember your very first email address?

-Mine was [email protected]

Parents reading… what do you do with chores, allowance, ways for kids to earn money?  I’m always searching for new ideas!

What’s your long run this weekend?  I want to hear who has a spring race!??!

What would you request for your birthday meal?

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71 comments

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Donutssssss. There’s an amazing donut shop where we live now so I’m definitely going to request some treats from there for my birthday breakfast!

My long run is pretty short this week. Just 4 miles, I’m working on slowly building up my mileage again after some time off.

Happy Friday!

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I still use my first ever aol email address! I’ve had it for so long that I just can’t give it up.

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Me, too! I’ve had it for (gasp) 18 years!

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My comment is all over the place, but I guess that isn’t new.

I think your blog might be the only one I’ve consistently read since starting my own 6ish years ago. Crazy stuff.

I love the photo of you running with the plane in the background, it’s awesome.

I feel like cantaloupes often get a bad rap. They are honestly one of my favorite fruits, so I’m always sad when people say they are their least favorite!

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We do chores for money, and I also do a star chart. A certain number of stars gets a dollar. The chart has things like brush teeth, ate vegetables for dinner, etc. I haven’t started giving them an allowance yet (my girls are 7 and 4). I think when I was a kid, my parents started at 10, so I’ll probably do that too.

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Oh my gosh, when I was a kid and used to go up north to visit my grandma my favorite thing EVER to do was go to the dollar store with her! She always gave us $5 to go spend there and you’re right – it’s like my sisters and I had won the lottery. We always picked out so much junk that our parents probably hated having to take home haha.

My first email was [email protected]…..fantastic.

I think that Andrew had a pretty darn good choice for his birthday meal. Mine would probably be my mom’s lasagna, mashed potatoes, a chopped salad, Costco bread, and some sort of berry pie for dessert.

Have the best weekend ever and a great time in California!!

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That’s a great email…

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I love Brooke’s donut shoes!! I could really use a donut right now.

I think my first email address was [email protected]. I think true embarrassment could also come with AOL Instant Messenger screen names (for those old enough to remember AIM). :)

My birthday meal would probably be burgers, too. There’s a place called Scotty P’s that I don’t live near anymore, but it is SO good. And froyo. There MUST be froyo!

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I don’t remember my first email, but yes I bet it was embarrassing!
I just did my spring race (I sent an accomplishment email, see donut socks in the photos!), but I have a summer half (crazy, right?!) in early June, then hopefully will be training for a November full marathon.
We didn’t get allowance as kids…………I was kinda bummed at the time, but we turned out ok!
And if we were eating at home, I would request tacos or nachos with a whole bunch of veggies and you assemble your own nachos! Eating out this year we did California Pizza Kitchen. It. was. amazing!

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My long run should be 18 miles this weekend (training for Big Sur on April 30) but am battling my own injury so will forego this one and rest. Its a mental struggle to take time off when you are in the middle of training for an upcoming race but I keep telling myself that a few days off from running wont derail my progress thus far. I’ve been putting miles into my running “bank” and those wont magically disappear after a few days off. Instead, I will focus on foam rolling and core work to keep my strength up.

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[email protected]….cringe.
As far as chores, we never really did the allowance thing but chores did earn/take away privileges. I couldn’t go to practice if I didn’t do the chores and if I was copping an attitude, I would be assigned a really tough one (aka digging my basketball hoop into the ground to make an in-ground hoop).
Birthday meal is either gumbo or pancakes. Never together. That is just wrong! (or, is it right?) Funfetti cake is SO good, nice choice! My dream wedding cake is a pan-cake. Like, a bunch of pancakes, making a cake with like, nutella or something in-between.
Have a great weekend!

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Brooke looks so much like Curly in the Spot It pic!

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My first email address was [email protected] hahah!

My long run was set for 5 miles, but I’ll be running the Get Lucky 7k on Saturday. My cousin and I started running this race in 2013 so this will be our 5th year running it together!
I’ve got 2 spring races on the calendar. I’m in the midst of training for Goldy’s 10 Miler in April and the Lake Minnetonka 1/2 in May. I’ve been running more consistently this year so far, so I’m hoping for a nice big PR to be able to share! :)

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This might not work so well for young kids, but when my daughter was older I made a list of all of the weekly chores that could be done for pay. I attached the money to the list each week. All of the chores added up to about $20-$25 depending on the week. She could do the chores and get paid for it and if she didn’t then I did the chores and paid myself – which hardly ever happened. What did happen was several of her friends started coming over and helping her and then they would split the funds. One year her friend didn’t have money for a prom dress and so my daughter and her friend cleaned my house several weekends in a row and my daughter let her friend keep all the money for her prom dress. I was so proud of them both. My house was so clean back in those days!

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I like Andrew’s choice for bday dinner – exactly what I would have requested too! I hope you all have an awesome time in Cali. I bet the weather will be beautiful!

I think my first ever email address was justinsync81@hotmail because I was obsessed with Justin and NYSNC! Of course 1981 is his birth year which is why I selected 81 haha!

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My birthday was Monday. I have had a couple different celebrations this week. I requested a Japanese Hibachi grill on my bday and had Pad Thai Wednesday when my girlfriends took me out and tonight we are having Mexican when my sister arrives from out of town.
We started doing Dave Ramseys Financial Peace University Junior. They have chores they do because they are part of this family and then they have extra chores where they earn commission. They love it so far and my son is using one of his chores of lawn mowing this year to polish his skills in order to open up his own business next year. He is 9 so it will be good practice. My daughters rotate dishes and cleaning their bathroom. My goal is to teach them skills on how to be independent and prepared once they leave the house one day.

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Hi Janae! If you happen to be in SF, would love for you to do a reader meet-up, or run! :)

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Andrew’s birthday meal looked awesome! We were in San Francisco a couple of weeks ago visiting my sister. While at Golden Gate bridge I noticed that when we crossed the bridge, looking to the left there were some awesome looking trails going up some huge hills that people were running up. It looked crazy but I bet the view on top was awesome! If I hadn’t been on a tour with the family I would have definitely given it a try. Other than that we just did the usual touristy things.
Have a fun trip!

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This is my favorite off the beaten path thing to do in SF … it’s near Pier 39, but you wouldn’t find it unless you know it’s there.

http://scomas.com/

Best seafood I’ve eaten in my life. Their fish cleaning facility is right in the water and only 10-20 feet from the restaurant. If you love seafood, definitely make a reservation!

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I would also love to hear what other people do with respect to chores and allowances. My daughter is 5, and while we don’t give her a weekly allowance, we do definitely treat her with rewards from time to time (small toy, treat, special outings, etc). I want to motivate her to help out with chores regardless of the reward, so that she will understand the idea that helping others is the end goal, not the money. So we reward her sporadically for her help, but I’m not sure she really understands yet. I also like the idea of a sticker chart and might try to adopt something like that. Her jobs are to clean up her toys (though we definitely struggle with this, haha), putting away some of her laundry, setting the table and helping to clean up after the meal.

Saturdays are an off day for me, and I think I might skip my long run on Sunday in favour of a HIIT workout. Feeling like my body needs a bit of a break from running.

Birthday meal request for me is usually pizza. Pie and ice cream for dessert, always.

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I’m running the San Diego Half this weekend! I’m super excited because I live in Indiana, so it’s been cold and very wintery lately–southern California will be a nice change! :)

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LOVE finding new bloggies– thank you!! Hah $1 pony- easily pleased. I love the dollar store— so many fun finds and great for themed parties! I ain’t no long distance runner, but the longest I ever did was a half mary!

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I hope you have an amazing time in Cali, Janae:)

That fruit salad looks absolutely beautiful with all those colors. I’m sure the taste must have been incredible. I think my food request for my birthday will be a BBQ with lots and lots of steak, grilled vegetables, salad, bread, and endless cake.

My first email address was: [email protected] lol, not too bad.

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Thanks for sharing my blog Janae!!

Long run this weekend will be a family trail run :) Nothing too crazy, just enjoying some family time doing what we love. I think we’re also going to go skiing and have some friends over for dinner.

Funfetti cake, in my humble opinion, is the BEST cake. Save a slice for me!

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My first email was [email protected]. HA! Still have no idea why I chose that.

I am just getting back from being sick, so haven’t decided what my long run is, but i have a spring race in 2 weeks (live in AZ and it’s already in the mid to upper 80s). I am running the Phoenix Pride Half Marathon and can’t wait! It’s my second half, but I don’t have any time goals since I was sick and my training was messed up a bit.

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My birthday supper would have to be a fat red-meat steak on the grill cooked rare, baked potato on the side with butter and sour cream and green beans and roll. We don’t eat this way often, just for special occasions or a nice summer supper. I love meat! Beef and pork for sure!! My birthday was in January and my husband got out in the cold and snow and smoked baby back ribs for my birthday. Yum! He is the best when it comes to the grill or smoking meat. It was the best birthday supper I had had in years.

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My birthday meal would have to be a burger and fries. I also ask for an ice cream cake (my birthday is in January), and I have since I was young enough to remember.

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Back in the early ’90’s, my high school cross country coach told our team a story that always stuck with me. The national girl’s XC champion the previous year held a potato chip in each hand during her races. Her coach told her she would know she ran her best if she finished without breaking the chips. I’ve remembered that story for over 25 years now, and passed it on to my daughter when she started MS XC this past fall. I’m not sure if it’s an urban running myth or a true story (Google was obviously not a thing back then). Regardless, your post brought back good memories of a great coach & happy times!

I’m very excited to be running the Boston Marathon & Big Sur in April. I’m going to Boston with my husband & 3 kids & will be hitting Big Sur with just my husband over our anniversary!

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I think for the last few birthdays I’ve requested Indian takeout. I love Indian, but I usually only get takeout a few times a year so I really enjoy it when I do have it.

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Hurt the Dirt 4/29/17 is my spring race! I ran it last year on an injured Achilles and only running 1-2x a week. This year I’m following a more rigid training plan and hoping for a PR. It’s a single track trail run and you can either choose from a full, half, or quarter marathon. It’s super fun and challenging.

If our girls want to earn money for chores we tell them it has to be above and behind the normal household chores. Normal house hold chores include helping with dishes, cleaning up after yourself (toys, bedrooms, crafts), making beds, and putting away their own laundry. Extra would be helping with barn chores (we have a horse), helping mom mop floors, dust, wash windows, and clean bathrooms. Since we have a lot of outdoor space there is always an abundance of sticks to pick up too. As they get older the normal chores change since some of it in my opinion is just part of being a family and helping each other.

Fruit Pizza (my mom’s) is the only thing I ever want for my birthday! Absolutely delicious. I could eat the entire pan!

Oh, and the pringles comment made me think of what I was told for holding my hands during running, “chip grip hammer down.” Lightly hold the chip and don’t let your arms cross the front of your body.

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Heading to Fruita this weekend for some mountain bike shredding (and hopefully a trail run!). Just going to pretend that it is summer for a few days! ;)

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What a beautiful day to celebrate your leg feeling better with a run!

I would (and often do…) request that my husband or Dad grill for my birthday (preferably salmon), definitely followed by funfetti cake and ice cream! My birthday is in July, so perfect for grilling.

Have a wonderful weekend!!

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I still use my hotmail address I created in 1998! I think I had an aol address back then as well, but I was going back to school and needed an email address I could check at school and I couldn’t do that with aol back then. My mom still uses my parents original aol (and yes, she still pays for aol!)

Glad you are feeling better. Injuries freak me out!

Very jealous of you being back to tanks and shorts. We haven’t seen the glimpse of 70s in over a week. Snowing now (this is in MA), going to be almost 0 this weekend, and a potential Nor’easter (ie lots of snow) for next week!

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The weather is great in the Bay Area this weekend! Go hiking on Mt. Diablo (Danville entrance) and then go walk around Downtown Danville (tons of cute shops and restaurants). Frozen yogurt at Yogurt Shack and you can walk across the street to the candy shop for travel snacks ;)

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Thank you SO much for featuring my blog–it truly made my day! :)

My long run this weekend will be 20 miles (my first 20 mile run, ever!). I’m nervous/excited… pretty much having so many emotions about it!

My favorite birthday meal, or any meal for that matter, is PIZZA! I love it!

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My brother lives in the bay area and the next time I go, I want to visit the Remington Mansion. Have you heard of it? I’m kind of obsessed about it after I saw a short documentary about it. Pretty fascinating!

My favorite birthday meal always involves anything from the restaurant Oregano’s!! I LOVE that place!

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I haven’t heard of that! I’m going to have to look into it! Thanks Lisa! I hope you are having a great day and Oregano’s is MY FAVORITE!!!

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It’s in August, but I am excited that I got into Joan Benoit Samuelson’s race in Cape Elizabeth, Maine, Beach 2 Beacon. That race always sells out in a manner of minutes. Due to technical difficulties this morning it took 10 minutes to fill 4,000 spots!

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I would choose a steak or pasta meal, or something like Red Lobster for my bday meal. I am totally on the chore train for the kiddos. Mine is 9 and we’ve been doing chores or odd jobs since she was 3. I think kids today get too much handed to them, I think earning money or prizes or whatever, is healthy for them. And sets them up better for the teenage years. Mine also loves the $1 Store !! If she brings money to Target and she knows she doesn’t have enough but really wants something, she stars out “I have a really good deal for you….” Basically she wants me to front her the money and she’ll work it off at home. Which I always agree to, because she’s offering to work for it still. It’s a huge deal and treat when we buy her something she didn’t have to work for. We do anything for chores: tidying up, helping with dishes or laundry, sweeping, raking, pick up sticks,set the dinner table, clear the table, she loves garage or outside help, loves landscaping or gardening help. Of course, it changes with age. We have a chart on the fridge so she can see her earnings adding up. We used to use stickers to represent each chore done, now it’s a whiteboard with check marks.

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For chores during the school year, their only chores are to read 20 minutes and put their pjs in the hamper because we want their focus to be on school and play when they’re not
doing school. During the summer they have way more chores and get paid more. They’re pretty basic, though, like take your dishes to the sink, make your bed, play outside (seriously, this is a chore for them because it is not their favorite thing to do).

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I don’t have kids but I think its a good idea to have kids do chores, because I didn’t never really did cleaning chores growing up so now I suck at cleaning my apartment..
Happy birthday to Andrew! that funfetti cake sounds delicious !

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Our kids (ages 10, 8, 6) have set chores they do each morning – part of the getting ready for school routine. They do those just as being a part of the family and helping. After years of not having a system, I can up with the chart and it helps SO MUCH! They clean the bathroom sink, vacuum a room, sweep, etc. We then have a list of extra chores they can do to earn money.

Birthday dinner – crab cake appetizer and then smoked salmon (my husband can smoke up an AMAZING salmon on Our Green Egg grill!), roasted brussels sprouts and maybe some bread. But I’d be set with the salmon and brussels sprouts!

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My birthday is in five days and I’ve been dreaming about fish tacos (with this amazing chipotle sauce + red cabbage slaw) for about 3.7 months. That is my birthday meal request and I can’t wait to enjoy it ;)

Since I am building mileage back up right now, my ‘long run’ is four miles tomorrow! Can’t wait. I’m hoping to run it outside if it isn’t frigid out. Have a great weekend Janae!

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I still use my first email address…. that is not embarrassing, that is an indication that I was in my late 20s or early 30s when email became widely used.

12 miles for my long run this weekend.

My birthday is next month – so I need to start thinking what I want now!

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My long run this weekend will be 11 miles. I have my a half marathon in two weeks. Can’t wait!!!

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AHHH I am so so excited for your half marathon in two weeks… let me know how it goes and go rock those 11 miles this weekend!

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I live in the Bay Area and here are a couple of suggestions for the weekend, it’s supposed to be beautiful here this weekend. I would recommend heading out to the coast, Santa Cruz is amazing (must try the restaurant burger. seriously the best hamburger of your life). Check out Capitola, even take a tour around the UC Santa Cruz campus, it’s just an awesome town. On the way there stop at Psycho Donuts in Campbell, totally crazy donuts concoctions.

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My birthday meal request is always a giant bowl of spaghetti with marinara sauce -it’s so simple no one ever believes that it’s my choice so I have never actually eaten that on my birthday -I always sit down to a very special homemade lasagna instead -someday everyone might learn that they could save a ton of time if they would just let me have my bowl of pasta!

My kids are a little older now, but when they were little I had them wipe down a lot of things: the bathroom, floors, counter tops, baseboards, heaters, etc… I also had them feed the pets, set the table (as much as they could once I brought it all to the table).

My “long run” this weekend is with my 8 year daughter -we’re training for 5k together and we plan to run (with walk breaks) 3 miles for the first time this weekend.

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Wow, Kim, that’s awesome that you and your daughter are running together. Good luck with the 3 miles!

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My age is showing. I still have a Yahoo address ;) But at least for my blog, I have a gmail address. I think my first adddress was [email protected]

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pretty sure mine was something like [email protected]. dumb!

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HAHA I love it:)

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I had a teacher help us set up our email addresses so I think mine was [email protected].

Our kiddos are older than yours (9, 11, and 13) but they help with poop patrol, unloading and washing dishes, sweeping, emptying and taking out trash, wiping off the table.

I have an all down hill race this weekend!

I have a really difficult time just picking one food that I love. There is a place in town that has my favorite salad and the absolute best chocolate cake, so I might have to go with that.

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Go hiking in the redwoods! Or go to Santa Cruz. And get ice cream and lunch at the Picnic Basket.

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LOVE both of those ideas… thank you Lauren!

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My first email was definitely a prodigy account address. Thankfully, I no longer remember it and it no longer exists.

My spring race is a triathlon, before a fall marathon, so my weekend long runs have turned into bikes then runs. Going to be cold and snowy in the Northeast so likely a long time on the trainer/treadmill.

The last five years or so my bday meal has been homemade oyster mushroom po boys and the chocolate dump it cake from NYTs.

Have a great weekend!

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For my birthday meal when I go out, it is usually a Mediterranean type dish – The salad at Spitz or Mazza. But when we have dinner with my family it is usually salmon and veggies and most importantly DESSERT!

My first email was [email protected] hahahaha. So ridiculous.

Enjoy your weekend! Sleep lots and eat lots.

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Birthday menu- cinnamon rolls or french toast, with strawberries and bacon. Maybe that should be an and, not or. Do not combine cinnamon rolls with french toast because the result is less good than the starting options.

I have a race this weekend- 10k. It’s my first race back post baby. Goal- finish under an hour.

I’m excited to hear about chore options, too!

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I grew up in a rural area and didn’t have the internet until I was about 17. At the time I was dating a guy who always called me “Babu” (don’t ask, lol) so, naturally, my email address was [email protected].

No running or racing for me for a while. :( However, I am planning on starting the 30 days of yoga by Yoga with Adriene!

My husband’s fried tacos for sure! They are my favorite meal of all time.

Suggestions for the trip – we LOVED renting bikes and riding through Golden Gate Park. We rode over to Amoeba Music (the world’s largest independent record store) in the Haight Ashbury and also stopped by the botanical gardens. It was one of my favorite vacation memories.

We also drove over to Cliff House (my husband’s name is Cliff) and watched the sunset over the Sutro Baths. I’ve seen some amazing sunsets in my life, but none have topped that one. Hope you guys have a blast!

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Golden Gate park is great. The botanical gardens are beautiful, as is the Japanese garden, and the Academy of Sciences is fantastic

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I never fail to want donuts after reading your blog, and after reading about apple fritters a lot I finally tried one. Also I’m back again with another question for anyone who is willing to give me some advice. Okay. So I want to run a 5k in May (my first race), but I have very little time to go somewhere to run due to school and work and I don’t feel comfortable running in my neighborhood. So I was wondering if it would be not exactly the same, but still helpful to like run in place (which sounds really stupid to me, but that’s all I can do) for 30min a day (and slowly increase the time…I like using paranthesis a lot). Or if it would be better to just wait until I can actually go outside and run. Again, this is directed to literally anyone. Thank you!

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If you guys will have a rental car, I recommend taking a little day trip across the Golden Gate Bridge to Mill Valley and Sausalito! There are some really great hiking trails all of varying lengths and difficulty at Mount Tamalpais (aka “Mt. Tam”) that you can’t go wrong. My favorite hiking trail there is the Steep Ravine Trail. Afterwards, there are a lot of really good food places around and cute little shops in the downtown Sausalito area! The weather is supposed to be nice too :) Have fun!!!!

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Ooh, my first email address… [email protected]. Haha, fortunately I realized fairly young (8th grade, I think) that I needed an adult email address, i.e. one that was just my name and didn’t end in hotmail.com.

I got in a solid 20 miles this morning. It feels so good to be running injury-free after weeks of battling ITBS, so like you, I’m instantly frightened by any faint suggestion of pain.

I never really want any specific meal for my birthday. I’m just all about the cake. I made myself a grapefruit honey cake this year, and it was one of the best things I’ve ever baked.

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You’re coming just in time for a gorgeous weekend in the Bay Area! I would head to the coast, can’t go wrong there. Go for a run on the Monterey trail or Santa Cruz and hit West Cliff Drive. Then you can walk around and people watch.

I actually don’t do allowances or chore money for my kids. I figure they get enough stuff and they should do chores because they help make the messes! Maybe I’m a mean mom lol.

For my birthdays I usually pick somewhere with good seafood cause that’s my favorite. Cake can either be chocolate, lemon or carrot cake. Yum!

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I can’t remember my first email address. We are always trying something new with allowance/chores. We used to do a dollar week in the amount of their age. So my 4 year old got $4. They are now 7, 9, and 10 so I decided that is just too much money. Right now we are big on paying for yard chores and cleaning out cars. We have lots of pine trees so picking up pine cones and sticks are favorites of my kids because I usually pay 1-3 cents each. They have been known to rack up to $20 on those. While we struggle with the method, I think it is super important for kids to learn to manage money.

I did my long run today. 12 miles is a cold, windy rain… I’m running the Shamrock Half in Virginia Beach next weekend. Super excited but glad I get to take it easy this week because Virginia is supposed to get snow this week.

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I definitely do NOT have loose hands when I run. I grab my headphone wire. It’s comforting for me. I don’t really know why. I never knew I was supposed to have loose hands… I’ll be much more mindful of that the next time I head out! Have a safe and fun trip this weekend! :)

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Hike through the Muir Woods in the Bay Area. It’s where they filmed one of the Star Wars movies!
We also really loved exploring Sausalito and Tiburon up there. The drive is gorgeous, and the little towns are fun to walk through.

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First email address was [email protected]. I cannot remember the provider – they don’t exist anymore.
As for chores, we try to go by the old school Montessori age appropriate chore chart: http://i1.wp.com/www.flandersfamily.info/web/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/Age-Appropriate-Chores-for-Children1.png?resize=640%2C821
We have found it to be fairly accurate in terms of what the kids are able to handle, or not. We haven’t started paying for chores or for helping around the house. No one has asked yet.

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I had to share: I am reading this SUPER DUPER sleep deprived and when I read the part about holding hands while running I immediately thought you meant you and Andrew. Lol. I was like “that’s cute, but how..???”
I looove the Bay Area.. have fun! Oh, races – I am nursing a hammy strain, so I bowed out of my spring race, but plan to do a couple halves between spring & summer. So, next full is NY marathon. Can’t get here soon enough! :)

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Yay!!!! So glad you liked the tip- hope chip holding hands works for you :) Long run this morning through a canyon for me- 8 miles that started with fog and ended with sun-it’s always good when a run includes some sun! Hope you are having a fantastic weekend!

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Such awesome views to run with!

Check out and follow my blog if you’d like :)

http://www.gjseth.org

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