Was Your Weekend Busy, Too?

GNO.  Friday night was Girls Night Out and we enjoyed a nice little meal at Sweet Melissa’s.  Our food was great and Meg even tried tempting me by reading the beer selections off the chalkboard.  When she read “Lagunitas” out loud, I thought I was going to have to cover my ears! I had a very busy Saturday planned, including a long-ish bike ride, and didn’t need a drink (or two!) to slow me down.
 
Cycling.  That darn learning curve is huge!  I am glad I had such a good cycling partner and friend, Karen, to ride with Saturday.  Here is a sampling of things I added to my list of things I did not know:
 
1.      You don’t need to look at the person behind you while talking.  It’s hard to stop doing this because I’m all about eye contact.
2.      If you go off the edge of the road (and you will), don’t jump back quickly.  Find a gentle spot to re-enter. 
3.      Don’t shift to an easier left side gear until you go to the middle tension of your right side gears.  I did this and it looked like my chain had parted because I was spinning air.
4.      Tucking in saves you effort.  It’s not a natural feeling position for me, but worth the “saved” energy.
5.      Damn good cycling shorts are worth the investment.  Your ass and girly parts will thank you.  And hello chamois cream!
6.      It’s good to have a go-to friend who will indulge you in all the endurance events craziness.  Thanks, Karen!
 
College Visits.  Meg is a senior and until Sunday wasn’t sure of where she wanted to go to college.  She had narrowed down her choices, but was finally able to rank them as of 4:00 p.m. Sunday.  Greg and I have laughed that, when these visits first started a year ago, she didn’t want to go to a small, quaint school. She preferred large, urban settings.  Funny what a difference a year makes.  Now, her top 3 schools are neither large nor urban.  So we’re crossing our fingers that she gets in to her top 3 choices!
 
HBBC Progress.  The weather here in Northern Ohio dampened my outdoor workout attempts, although I did manage to fit in a very wet 3.5 mile run during lunch Thursday, a beautiful long bike ride (before another flat tire happened!) on Saturday, and 3 strength training sessions during the week.  I think that gives me 12 points for the week.
 
Phew, what an exhausting three days!

Out of the Mouths of Babes

When you think about it, your children reveal alot about you. Whether you were a tough love parent. If you babied your kids. Do they have a good sense of humor and coping skills. Or did you allow technology to let vital skills slip from their fingertips. I am guilty of all these. But this week was especially comical...

Case in point #1: I was working with Bridget on what letter does a word begin with. She brought me in a leaf (I have more leaves in my house than the Metropark has!). I asked her what letter does LEAF begin with? I then sound it out - la, la, la, la. To which she replies, "it begins with a song?"

Case #2: Megan is putting together college applications and requests for recommendations. These requires a stamped envelope. She looks at me and asks for confirmation, "the stamp goes on the top right?" At first I was stunned, but then I realized that she is the queen of texting and probably hasn't personally sent snail mail.

So there you have it. Parenting at it's finest! Have a great weekend!

Sunday's Race

LOCO Racing put on the Stowe8-miler race. They are the same group that organized (loosely worded) the Maine Half Marathon race I ran back in November. Thank goodness, from my past experience, I ran this race with my hand-held water bottle. The race started with temps in the low 80s with little to no shade and they didn't have the first water stop till almost 2.5 miles into the course. When I arrived, the few volunteers announced that we runners needed to take only what we need because they were almost out of water! Are you kidding me? It's not that hard to plan liquids for 1,000 overheated runners. Sadly, this was the first race that I saw 2 runners being treated for heat-related issues mid-course. I slowed my pace down by 30 seconds per mile and still felt the effects of the sun. The finish line was disappointing, consisting of warm bottles of water, half bananas, and sample bags of Bare Naked granola (which I do like). The redeeming part is that the town of Stowe is simply amazing. We cannot say enough good things about the wealth of activities, shopping and dining that can be found in Stowe as well as the incredible hospitality of the town. So a big YAY that Vermont is done!

Saturday's Race

I will knock off our 24th state tomorrow morning by running the Bill Luti 5-Miler in Concord, New Hampshire. I chose this race after I read about who Bill Luti is. He helped organize this race in 1968, which is now known as one of the oldest foot races in New England. Bill coached the Boys' Cross Country at Concord High School from 1957-1982, winning 13 state championships and 4 New England titles. He returned from retirement to bring more state titles to the girls' cross country. He will be the official starter, will give the 2-mile splits, and present awards to "Luti Alums". I look forward to this local race in the morning! Best of all, it will be another wonderful morning with my girls!

New Hampshire and Vermont Here We Come

Looks like a "girl's weekend" has been confirmed! Me and my little princesses are heading out to New England for a little girly fun, which includes watching Mom run. On the plus side, this little weekend jaunt will also include lots of fun, food, shopping and giggles! Can't wait! I've never been to Vermont and I'm looking forward to having some Ben & Jerry's (in their home state).

So I will leave you with some fun Vermont facts (who says traveling and running can't be educational, too?!):

1. Montpelier, VT is the only state capital without a McDonald's and, until 1996, VT was the only state without a Wal-Mart (I'm loving this state more and more).
2. In ratio of cows to people, VT has the greatest number of dairy cows in the country.
3. And my favorite fun fact: Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream company gives their ice cream waste to the local Vermont farmers who use it to feed their hogs. The hogs seem to like all of the flavors except Mint Oreo (really? I love Mint Oreo).

Now, we can't leave out New Hampshire:

1. In 1833 the first free public library in the United States was established in Peterborough (I love the library).
2. Levi Hutchins of Concord invented the first alarm clock in 1787 (can't say I'm a fan of alarm clocks).
3. New Hampshire adopted the first legal lottery in the twentieth century United States in 1963 (looks like I have to buy at least one lottery ticket while there).

Road trip here we come! Time to put together the iTunes playlist!