Welcome back friends!  Sorry it has taken so long for me to write a post.  There’s been a lot going on over the past 2 weeks and well, I seem to have a bad case of writer’s block.  So please forgive me if this post is a bit rambling and not really focused.  I’ve decided the best way to get past my writer’s block is to well, just start writing…

So many carbs…and yes I ate 2 pieces of the chocolate, coolwhip thing!

2 weeks ago my Grandmother passed away.  Everyone asks was this expected and the answer is yes and no.  Grandma was living in a nursing home, but that’s for another post, and was doing reasonable well for her age and health conditions.  Fortunately for her and my mother she just went to sleep and didn’t wake up.  My Grandfather had passed back in March so I think she is probably where she really wants to be now.   Anyway, traveling to Oklahoma to help my Mom with the arrangements and then to attend the funeral meant a major disruption to my carefully crafted routine.   I love going to visit my Mom as I consider Fairview, the town where she lives, to be my adopted hometown.  And it was really an honor to be able to help plan the celebration of my Grandmother’s life.  I don’t mean to trivialize her passing at all.  Anyway, this is a community that believes in showing how much they care about you in times of trouble by feeding you.  We had an endless supply of food delivered to the house –  casseroles, 3 kinds of homemade cinnamon rolls, made from scratch dinner rolls, cookies, cakes, lasagna etc.  Never mind the family dinner that was served at the church following the service…  I ate like I had never seen a roll or a cinnamon roll before, I mean seriously how can you not try out all 3?  I did manage a few short runs that weekend but nothing close to the 14 mile long run that was on my schedule for that Saturday. 

I returned to Dallas late Sunday evening with a tickle in the back of my throat that meant one thing, I was getting sick – 5 year olds are cute but they are germ magnets…  I woke up Monday morning not feeling so great and decided on a few more minutes of sleep over my regular run, I made a feeble attempt at speedwork on Tuesday, decided to sleep in on Wednesday, and then did half the recommended distance on Thursday.  I am not an anal retentive person in general, but when it comes to a training plan I tend to want to follow it to the letter.  So it really was hard not to have done those runs.  What was worse was the 16 mile long run looming on Saturday of last week.  I’d missed both 14 mile group runs so how was I going to manage 16 miles not feeling well and having a serious drop in mileage that week?  Fortunately, I have learned with running and training for marathons that you have to listen to your body.  Sometimes its okay to adjust your training and scale back a little.  Lucky for me, through Runner’s Edge in KC, Daily Mile, and the Dallas Running Club; I have some extremely supportive running friends that kept telling me I could do this.  Come Saturday morning my decision to scale back earlier in the week and rest paid off.  It was an absolutely gorgeous morning, perfect for a long run, and I felt like a new person.  This turned out to be one of the best long runs I’ve had in a while. It really was a Sweet 16!

I’m not naming names, but one of these cute things passed her germs on to Aunt Jen – her mother knows who she is…

Sometimes we can be our own worst enemies – we either expect too much of ourselves (perfectionist thinking) or not enough.  We tell ourselves we can’t do that or that we aren’t smart enough, pretty enough, fast enough, skinny enough what Weight Watchers calls negative self-talk.  I was lucky enough to have people around me that just kept telling me I could do this and hearing it enough times I believed that I could and I did!  I am happy to say that I’ve had a much better week of running and eating despite possibly consuming one too many margaritas on Tuesday night, but I still managed my 5 miles the next morning and on a treadmill no less!

One of my favorite quotes.

So over the past couple of weeks I’ve been reminded of some important things about life:

1. Family is the most important thing you have, make sure you tell your family how much you love them and what they really mean to you every chance you get.
2. Sometimes it pays to rest and give yourself a break.
3. A good support system is hard to beat!
4. Running 16 miles in 60 Degree Weather is much easier than trying to run it in -1 degree weather and on ice and snow, (the last time I ran a 16 mile training run was in Kansas City, in February…)
5. Rules are meant to be broken.
6. Margaritas can make for good pre-run fuel.
7. I have some pretty amazing running friends and a truly awesome family.
8. It’s okay to get off track, just have a plan to get right back on track again.
   

   My amazing family

Oh and in other news I decided for many reasons to delay my state boards until Friday, October 11 so I’ve updated my countdown.  Thanks for putting up with this rambling post and the short hiatus.  I plan to get back on a regular schedule and to put a little more focus into my posts and hopefully find my voice.