We are already to FRIDAY! Brooke and I are heading to California this afternoon for her to visit her dad and then we will be back home Sunday afternoon!
Yesterday morning I was on my way to go run but decided to go vacuum my car first (which I never do)… I am SO glad that I did because I ran into a friend that I haven’t seen in FOREVER. We hung out and caught up on life for a solid 30 minutes at the car wash and it was excellent. Car washes bring people together.
I then set out for my run and did a new-to-me 7.5 mile loop that was beautiful.
Turns out I need to clean the lens of my selfie camera:)
Tis’ the season that I start planning my runs to go near grocery stores so that I can run in for a quick drink. I also really wanted to dive into their salad bar but I didn’t bring any money so I ran back to my car instead.
We hung out at my mom’s house for a while and they chased her around and she chased them around… they get quite the workout in over there.
It was lunchtime and my dad was already on his 5th serving of veggies for the day. He walks once a day, does strength training each day, has completely changed his diet and LOVES his veggies… he told me today he has never felt better! This was his butternut squash, butter and pepper mix.
Turkey burgers with avocado, salad and bbq sauce are the meal of the week around here!
The kids had a soccer game last night and it was a hot one…
Knox requested a back rub during his first break.
I’ve got TEN FRIDAY FAVORITES that I wanted to share with you today! There are a few Amazon affiliate links include fyi.
1. The Magic Box. This was Andrew’s but somehow I’m slowly taking it over… it’s just a little speaker (that has really great sound) that is wireless and connects to your phone. It makes cleaning/laundry 423% more enjoyable.
2. I was driving home yesterday and decided that I needed a chic-fil-a lemonade. I got to the drive-thru and ordered and then they let me know about their latest frosted strawberry lemonade… I always get sucked into the upsale offers and so I ordered this plus the lemonade. It is delicious in case you are wondering. It might be a summer staple for me.
3. The kid’s current favorite song is ‘It’s A Hard-Knock Life’ from Annie… must be cleaning their room that’s so hard right now;)
4. Leaving for a run without having to first prepare for the run by putting on 40 different layers, hand warmers and having to find where the heck the kids hid my gloves.
5. My Nathan Hipster Belt (sorry I’ve talked about this before)… it has just made running so much easier. It fits my huge phone in there, whatever else I randomly decide to bring with me and it doesn’t move in the slightest. I’ve always used the thin fuel belts in the past and they either bounced around a little bit or cut into me but this thick band has changed things for me…
6. Andrew bought me this Dakine backpack for me for my birthday this year. I didn’t think I would use it as much as I do because I already had a backpack (that was tiny and fit nothing) but I use this one ALL of the time. It is the best.
7. The amazing job TINA is doing at bringing awareness to amenorrhea… she said goodbye to running (she is a 2:36 marathoner) to get her period back after not having one for 9 years. She is building a 5-star baby hotel right now!
8. 16 Ways People at the Gym Know You’re a Runner (I think 95% of these were ME)!
9. I’ve put this maxi on my summer need list for church:)
10. And my Friday least favorite thing… that I’m missing my favorite half marathon this weekend. I talked Andrew into doing it with me on our third date… and he came. It was fabulous. Just one of those times to remind myself there is ALWAYS another race and next May I’m going to blackout this weekend for anything but the race;)
—————————————————————————————–
LOVE all of your amazing running accomplishments! Thank you so much for sharing them with me and if you want to be featured please send them to [email protected] !!
—————————————————————————————–
Kim!!! “Last Saturday my eight year old daughter and I ran our first 5k together. We spent nearly two months training together for this race. There is no way for me to explain how much our training time together has meant to me. Running partners are always close friends, right? There is nothing you wouldn’t tell a runner partner, a running partner sees you at your best and at your worst, a running partner encourages you like no other, and a running partner understands the joy of finishing your goal race better than anyone. Imagine sharing all of this with your child…. Talking and telling each other anything during our time running was the most special time we have ever spent together and it brought us so much closer. She even gave us a team name, “QU Running Girls”, because “Q & U always stick together” (my daughter’s suggestion). Being able to watch my eight year old get stronger physically and gain confidence mentally was more rewarding than I can explain. When race-day arrived and I saw how nervous she was, I felt terrible, while my husband said it was actually a good thing because it would make her happiness and satisfaction even better once the race was complete (he was right). We had trained with a one minute run and one minute of walk and planned to do the same during the race. We had a ‘race plan’ and we stuck to it. We took it easy for the first half of the race (which was downhill) and then ran and walked harder for the second half. We passed lots of people on the last uphill and then ran steadily for the final five(ish) minutes of the race. We crossed the finish line holding hands, I was crying tears of joy while my daughter was screaming shouts of joy! We did it, we finished the race and it was, without a doubt, the best running experience of my life. -The bonus of the day was that our finishing time was good enough to earn my daughter 2nd (and a medal) in the under 18 age group. We are still on cloud 9 and already talking about our next race!”
—————————————————————————————–
CD!!! “I ran a half a few weekends ago and finally got a sub 2 hour finish! I’ve been wanting to run a sub 2 hour half for awhile, but I hadn’t really put in the time like I needed to. Not only did I get a sub 2, but I PR’d on the race. I finished in 1:49:35 with a pace of 8:22. It felt SO good and it also hurt! But now I know that I am capable of more than I thought. The last half I ran was in May of last year. I finished it in 2:00:48 with a pace of 9:13. I write about my running, meal prep, and school on my blog HERE!”
—————————————————————————————–
Megan!!! “Completed my annual pikes peak 10k. I ran with my aunt and finished in 46 minutes. It wasn’t a PR but it was perfect weather and a great run:)”
—————————————————————————————–
Clark!!! “So after my first marathon in late 2015 I thought I was ‘one and done.’ But April 30th I proved myself wrong with the Big Sur International Marathon. I set an A) goal of 4:46 on a tough course (my debut was 4:20 on a very flat course in Michigan). I ran with the 4:45 pace group past the brutal and infamous Hurricane Point halfway and on to about 21. I had some struggles with the unusually high temps- esp. after winter training- and then my hands were going numb. So I backed off and enjoyed the sights and walk-ran leisurely to the finish for a B) goal (5 hrs) finish at 4:56:06. But I was still very pleased and I’m recovering much better than last time. I ran with Runner’s World VIP, which is a great program, and met some awesome people including Bart Yasso- who told me I did the right thing in listening to my body- Bud Coates, and CNN correspondent and author of My Year of Running Dangerously Tom Foreman. It was a great time and Big Sur is the most beautiful 26+ miles in the world.”
—————————————————————————————–
Gabi!!! “On Saturday, 29th of April I finished my 10th marathon, and it was my first trail run, at the Innsbruck Alpine Trail run Festival. Muddy trails after a snowstorm the day before, more than 1000 meters in altitude uphill and 1400m downhill trashed my legs and I am sorry for what I said to the woods at km 33… Since I am a slower runner I calculated at least 6.5 hours, but was surprised that I finished this OMG veeery challenging race in 5:42. Despite much needed walk breaks, talk breaks with other runners from the 65k distance and dawdling at the last aid station (I wanted to stay there, but they chased me away….) I was SO happy to see the finish line! I did it! Pain is temporary, quitting is forever, right? This and many other things I have learned on Janae’s blog. Best wishes from Austria and keep running!”
—————————————————————————————–
Any favorite things this week.. I’d LOVE to hear!!!
Missed a race? Why?
What are your weekend plans? Going anywhere? Relaxing?
What meal did you eat the most this last week?
35 comments
Lynn @thenotdeadyetblog
The person who ran a 5k with her 8 year old…that’s awesome! My 7 year old (almost 8) loves to run, and I’ve been thinking about taking her with me and doing a shorter run and see if she likes it. How do you start? When I started running I couldn’t even do a full mile. But she’s in much better shape, because she runs around the playground a lot, but I don’t want to stress her out or hurt her body. Does anyone have experience with running with young kids?
Kim
That was my daughter and I :) Kids are always in better shape than adults! they run or skip everywhere they go so they should be! But for my kids, it’s an all-out sprint and then a really really slow walk. -My goal for my daughter in doing the race was to help her to see how much fun it can be to run. So, with that in mind, I started with a one minute run, one minute walk. When we first started we did that for about 2 miles and over the course of time I added distance and topped out at 4 miles. I tried a few times to increase our run time and decrease the walk time, but each time I did that the run became less fun for Lena and seemed a little like work. There were a few times I tried to use the garmin, but that didn’t work out. There were also a few times when I tried to push her a bit more, but then she seemed to act like it was work -as in, not so much fun… My daughter loves it when I post a picture of her on social media and so I told her that every time we went for a run, we’d take a little break and pose for a picture. The picture became a really fun part of the run too. Anyway, every kid has a different ability to work hard and to push themselves mentally. My thought with daughter running was that it had to be fun first and then hopefully it will be a lifetime of love… then the second thought was that she could gain a wonderful feeling of accomplishment. I built up the accomplishment of a 5k and now, almost a week later and my daughter is still talking about how fabulous our race was. -We loaded all our picture onto insta feel free to check it out if you want. -really it was all about fun and spending time together :) Have fun with your daughter!
Julie
Kim, your running accomplishment brought tears to my eyes as I read it. I loved everything about it! And how clever/adorable that your daughter came up w/ the whole QU thing. <3
Natalie
LOVE that dress from Called to Surf! And I saw a sign for that frosted strawberry lemonade and want to try it for sure!!
Weekend = definitely relaxing. It’s been a very draining week. Have a great trip to Cali!
Hollie
The magic box sounds really intriguing. I’ll have to look into it. I always enjoy reading about readers accomplishments. It’s always motivating to see runners! It baffles me about younger runners being so quick. LOL, I guess it’s because I got into running later in life and was terrible during grade school.
meredith (The Cookie ChRUNicles)
I’m missing the long island half this sunday after running it 4 years in a row! I’m due for my period first thing sunday morning (I’m like true clockwork) and I refuse to run a race under such conditions (I have fainted in the past during my time of the month). Ah well, there’s always next year!
sally @ sweat out the small stuff
This week i took my first yoga class and loved it. I’m going to class #2 tonight. It’s a power flow vinyassa type class and so challenging. I’m looking forward to benchmarking my progress in balance, strength and flexibility. Running has given me endurance but the other things are definitely lacking.
So far this year I missed 2 half marathons. The Philly Love Run in March and NJ Half this past weekend. I’m really hoping I’ll be able to run the Brooklyn Half on 5/20. The good news is I feel ready to start running again after almost 7 weeks since the toe injury. The bad news is that only gives me 2 weeks until race day and I’m not sure I’ll be able to get my mileage up safely since i lost ALL my running fitness.
Busy weekend. Boyfriend’s 13 year old has a choir concert tomorrow and his 11 year old has her gymnastics states championships meet on sunday. Plus we’ll probably go hiking with the dogs and catch a movie.
I have been eating big salads of romaine, spinach, cucumber, tomato and onion with vinegar and oil. Then I have grilled cheese with it. Sometimes I stick some turkey bacon on the grilled cheese.
Joanne
I love the “16 Ways People at the Gym Know You’re a Runner” HA! Luckily my gym has a track so I’m not *always* stalking the treadmills ;)
I’ve got an activity-packed weekend planned, so hopefully it doesn’t wipe me out too much. I’m running a 5K tomorrow — my first race since Thanksgiving eeek — with my boyfriend and on Sunday I plan to take him hiking up at a state park by Lake Michigan. Here’s hoping for warm-ish weather! A weekend without work obligations is a rarity for me, so I’m excited!
Enjoy your trip!
Carrie this fit chick
Congrats to Tina!!! Baby on the way- so exciting! I would’ve gone for the upgrade too– strawberries and lemon is a killer combo! I have family in town this weekend and I have very fun plans for a vacation!! WOO!
Emily
I also have the Magic Box and it’s great! It’s usually parked in the kitchen and hooked up to my Amazon Echo to play music for me while I cook, but I’ve also taken it camping and to the park. Great sound for such a little speaker.
Nina
I’ve missed 3 races due to injuries. I wanted to do my favorite 10K but my sister-in-law’s baby shower is the same day. ah well.
We don’t have a Chick Fil A right near me and when I am near one it’s usually a Sunday so they’re closed.
I’ve eaten Carrot Cake Oatmeal 4 out 6 mornings this week. My husband thinks it’s odd that I add shredded carrots but the combo is so good. walnuts, molasses, spices, dates, and a little coconut butter – yum.
Audrey
That new running trail you found looks amazing! Looks like it’s spring in Ut finally.
https://jonandaudadventure.wordpress.com/
Laura
Thank you so much for sharing that link to Tina Muir’s blog. Wow. I wasn’t familiar with her, but what an incredible piece of writing. I also struggled with hypothalamic amenorrhea after the birth of my first child (and I don’t even run full marathons!) and struggled to get pregnant a second time, so I relate to so many of the things she mentioned. Fortunately, I was able to get pregnant by cutting out running and with the help of a fertility drug on our first try. But what an incredibly difficult decision that must have been for her.
Our weekend will be pretty low key. It’s supposed to rain all weekend long and we have some housework and errands to get done since we just got back from a 3 day stay at a chalet with family. It was a great time, but looking forward to a slower pace this weekend!
Katelin
Answering two questions in one – weekend plans include my goal marathon… that may be cancelled due to flooding. So much unknown right now! Thankfully there’s a marathon in another city nearby (assuming it doesn’t sell out), and worse case a third one next weekend that is also nearby.
Question – do you happen to know what size your Nathan belt is? I’m hoping to order one for myself but the sizing is tricky!
RR
I have that Nathan belt and I LOVE it. I wear a size 4 leggings at lulu, 5 ft 4 in, 115 lb, and I have an XS. It is perfect. Hope this helps.
Katelin
Soooo we are pretty much the same person! That’s super helpful. Thank you!
The Hungry Runner Girl
HEY!!! I have a size small!!! Let me know if you get this belt and how it works for you!
Michele at Everyday Snapshot
Favorite thing is today and Sunday. Today I’m volunteering at the school Reading Carnival. A carnival they have to reward kids for all the reading they’ve done throughout the year. The last few years I was assigned the Pie Your Teacher in the Face booth, and the Snow-cones. This year I got Cupcake Decorating. They have so many fun games, photo booth, facepainting, bouncy house….and prizes of course. The kids absolutely love it.
It’s a fog what my family ate this past week, and no runs are walks happened. The week of my period I get horrible headaches. A 3-5 day long solid headache. Doing my own research to figure out how to catch a break with this. Hey – any readers here with similar problem and/or cures?
My daughter is having a friend over tonight for a sleepover. Then we are off to the campground Sat. night. First camping of the season. Can’t wait !!!! Supposed to be gorgeous weather. 68 and Sunny.
April
Favorite things – iced coconut milk macchiatos from Starbucks, so yummy!
when my daughter cuddles with me or gives me a kiss or hug without my asking <3
I had to miss 3 races this winter due to illnesses, it really stunk but I am back in it now! :) One time I had hand foot and mouth and it hurt to walk so there was no way I was going to run. LOL
I am doing a brunch run this weekend, 4 miles followed by omelettes and cinnamon rolls. :) Also going to spend lots of time outside with the family.
Have a great weekend!
Christina @ montessoriishmom.com
This is our only weekend in town this month so we’re planning to do lots of relaxing / hanging out in the sunshine at our favorite places :) Have a great time in California!
Alyssa
So I’m not a big lemonade person but I LOVE Chick Fil A frozen lemonade. Sounds like I might need to try that new one!
I’m SO excited to sleep in tomorrow!!! And I’m hanging out with some old roommates tomorrow night that I haven’t seen in ages.
Safe travels to and from California!!! Xoxo
Ashley G
I hate missing my favorite races! I am missing the AF Canyon run this summer so I am determined to do it next June and kick butt! My weekend will be filled with food and family! My mom is coming from Colorado to visit so I use it as an excuse to eat out A LOT and eat all the desserts! ;)
Also, I think I need that magic box! Music definitely does make all the chores more enjoyable.
Have a great weekend!
TRacey
You have so much time available. You are so lucky to have time to chat at a car wash.
Juliette | Namastay Traveling
They have a strawberry frosted frozen lemonade now?? Need! It’s going to be a rainy one here in DC this weekend so I’m planning on catching up on some books and taking some photos for my new yoga sequences!
Denise @ AnAcademicAthlete
We’re going to visit my parents this weekend, which is always fun. At some point I have to run 8 miles and bike 35 miles. This last week I was obsessed with sweet potatoes. I tend to forget about them and then “rediscover” them–I have had one for dinner 3 days this week! :)
Nathaly @NathyCure
I just finished my graduate program this week, so that’s my number one favorite thing. My second favorite thing was yesterday’s trail run. Love them so much.
My weekend plans are just relaxing with my boyfriend. We’re planning to do tacos for tomorrow, post cinco de mayo celebrations:)
Loribeth
I am going to miss a race this year :( I was planning on running the marathon I have run every other year for the past few years, but due to schedules I won’t be able to. I did find a half marathon a week earlier that I am excited for, though, and I hope to do a full marathon next spring.
I tried the caramel m&m’s……….I was so excited for them……………but I was disappointed. I wanted it to be creamy caramel, but it was really chewy :(
Marissa @ Run Riss Run
So many fun things on your list and I definitely need one of those speakers!
Favorite things this week: my kiddos are doing an all nighter with our church tonight and I am super excited for them! I also got to meet a lot of my incoming cross country runners and that is always super great!
I am heading to San Diego as a chaperone (for 3 kids) with the hubs this weekend for a design challenge. It’ll be fun to hang out by myself ;)
The meal I ate the most this week was a spinach, chicken, strawberry, walnut, and goat cheese salad! So good!
Jamie
My favorite meal this week was my breakfast on Monday and Wednesday – I pan fried some potatoes with some seasonings, butter, mushrooms, and chicken bacon (it’s all I had in the house), topped with some cheese, drippy eggs and avocado.
SO GOOD!!
Have a great weekend!
Kelly
I la la la looooove you.
Meesh
10k on the menu this weekend! Hoping for decent weather and a decent race! I don’t think I’ll beat my time from last year at the same race, but I’ hoping to come close.
Kathy
So jealous of your running routes! Beautiful!
Favorite things- Baby rolled over and cut a tooth. Big week!
I’m missing another race for a murder trial. I swear I can predict when big trials are by when I register for destination marathons.
I have a half marathon on Sunday at a winery! Yay!
Indian butter chicken. So many leftovers.
Dynise
I’m so jealous of your Utah weather :) I love Tina’s blog and her honesty.
kelly
I may have a woman crush on Tina Muir…just saying! I wish her all the best and my gosh, does she look so amazingly glowy and healthy now?!
Going to have to look into that fuel belt-I need one for backup as not all my shorts and skirts have acceptable pockets!
Eva
Congrats to Tina!!! Baby on the way- so exciting! I would’ve gone for the upgrade too– strawberries and lemon is a killer combo! I have family in town this weekend and I have very fun plans for a vacation!! WOO!
xx
Eva