10 miles of Awesomeness

Today was my first day of no work. Friday was my last day and it was just as emotional as I thought it was going to be. Who cries on the last day of their job? This girl does. Well it started with one of my coworkers crying as I said by to her and I'm the type of person that will start crying as soon as someone else starts crying haha. So then I was kinda avoiding my boss's office cause I knew the water works would start as soon as I walked in, and I was right. We were both in her office crying and laughing and reminiscing on the good times. It was a great company to work for and though it had its up and downs like any job, the friendships I made are irreplaceable. I got an awesome photo book though with most everyones pictures in it and they signed it so that was awesome. I also got a 6 pack of Reese's candy bars. Though my coworkers are awesome they are also evil and know my weakness.

Trying not to open it so I don't get tempted to eat them. I wonder who has a birthday coming up so I can re-gift them?

Ok enough about that lets talk running...

I had to do my long run today cause I couldn't yesterday. I decided to run from my home, to the waterfront and back. Which means I had to run down then UP 30th Street Hill aka Satan's Spawn as dubbed by Amanda from 5 Miles Past Empty (I love her blog! Click HERE and follow her if you don't already).

The run started out cold and a bit windy. I wore my Run to Remember shirt and my Portland Finisher long sleeve over it and felt fine when I finally warmed up. I ran down 30th and headed towards the waterfront. It was a cloudy day and I never saw the sun but it was still peaceful to be near the water.

I ran the first 5 miles without music cause I wanted to focus on my breathing and form and just really didn't feel like listening to music at that time. The water sounded nice. I ran towards the end of the waterfront cause I wanted to see the new part they have been building.

It was really pretty and looks like it's going to be awesome once they completely finish it.

Then it was time to head towards 30th. I knew what was coming so I prepared myself by taking off my long sleeve. I knew I would get hot running up it!

Here I go!

My quads were burning and I couldn't control my breathing. I think it was a little too cold cause my lungs were burning too. I stopped 2 times at the cross streets so I could catch my breath but I stopped for less than 5 seconds. Does that still count as running up it? I never walked up at least :)

I got the sh*t scared out of me though cause some garbage truck drivers thought it would be funny to honk their loud horn at me. They stopped to pick up some garbage and one was laughing and said something but I ignored and kept my focus on running up the hill.



I reached the top! Well to the top of the street I need to turn on.

I took my head phones out after I reached the top cause the songs were annoying me and I didn't feel like tracking back to the songs I wanted to hear (Like Whip My Hair)

Overall the run felt great! It had been a while since I did a run over 8 miles so it was nice knowing I could still hit the double digits and feel good.

I think I like this running during the day thing! I usually had to run after 5 pm when I got off work.
And I love my Spibelt. I had some shot bloks and my camera in it and I never felt them or the belt.

I whip my hair

Today was a quick run of 3 miles. It's all I usually have time for on Tuesdays and Thursdays. So my short  runs are Tuesdays and I usually do some speed work on Thursdays. My little man has swim lessons for 30 min those days so while he's swimming I run around the track at the YMCA. Running around a track for a few miles isn't for everyone but I prefer it sometimes over running in place on the treadmill.

Anyhoo, I downloaded some new music and I kept repeating the same song on the last few runs. It's called "Whip My Hair" (you can watch the video HERE). It's one of those songs that you either like or you don't cause it pretty much just repeats the chorus, like a lot. Only problem is it makes me want to whip my hair back and forth. I tried not to do it today as I ran around the track cause I didn't want people to think I was crazy or having a seizure or something.

And for the record I was whipping my hair before this song came out, here's proof.

I just don't have a famous dad that can pretty much get me anything I want, like a record deal for singing about my hair.

Goodbye's are never easy...

So a week from today will be my last day at my job. That make me a sad. Sad cause I really like all the people I work with. I consider a lot of them my friends not just co-workers. Especially my boss. I've shared many conversations with her. I don't think any other boss I have will let me be in their office for an hour talking about anything and everything but work. I was grateful I had her as my boss because we had a lot of things in common. Her husband is also in the Army and she has been through the moves and deployments. She was a great support person for me when my 1SG was deployed. She shared many tears with me. It makes me tear up just thinking about those times. She let me have the 2 weeks of when he was home on leave, she said it was her way of paying it forward. She also understands my love for Sephora and has got me a few gift cards there :)
I'll also miss another co-worker, Anita. She is the most sweetest person I know. Always asks how about my son and even decorated my desk for me after I ran my first marathon.

It should be an interesting week. My replacement will be starting on Monday so I will slowly be handing over all my duties to her. It does make me feel good knowing that everyone at work feels the same way I do... well at least I think they do cause they keep saying they are going to miss me, maybe they'll have a party after I leave cause I'm no longer there haha.

I still have about a month between leaving my job and when I will actually be moving to Idaho. And then i'll have another round of goodbye's with all my friends, well more like family too me now. But that post will have to wait till that time is closer.

It's funny, I remember when I first moved to Tacoma in 2008 I was sad I left Idaho and couldn't wait to be back, now I'm sad I'm leaving WA. This is where my running and racing adventures started. But I'm happy to continue them in Idaho. I love Idaho. It's my home and where all my family is and my bestie is there and my sister who wants to run her first half marathon with me this year. I've even inspired a friend from high school to run her first half marathon this year.

I definitely will be running on my free time which will start next Friday! Enjoying every minute I can of beautiful WA. I guess you could say I got used to the rainy weather haha. I plan to run the same route I did my first 10 mile run, that was one of my most memorable runs.That and my first 16 mile run where as I was running I told my self  "You're freakin crazy Cynthia, why would you want to run a marathon, what's wrong with you?" And then I went shopping a few hours after with my friend Tiffany haha. And I WILL run all the way up 30th street hill before I leave, even if I'm huffing and puffing and my quads are on fire. And hopefully the weather will get a little better before I leave so I can run over the Tacoma Narrows Bridge again. Or maybe i'll just convince Tiffany to run over it with me on the way to her soccer game again so it can start pouring down rain as we get to the soccer complex in Gig Harbor... that's what happened the first time we ever ran over it last summer haha.

I know I'll be back to WA to run more races. It's only an 8 hr drive or a 1 hr and 20 min flight away!

Here are a few of my fav running photos!

Aflac Iron Girl 2010

I guess I need to work on my tough face

Over the Narrows 10 mi Run

I promise they didn't carry me through the entire run

Does this shirt make my butt look fast?

I got to shout out to Tall Mom and TMB that I love their blogs on a turn around in this race :)

Everyday should be a birthday! (minus the getting older part!)

Go shorty, it's your birthday, we gonna party like it's your birthday! (50 cent wrote that line specifically for me didn't you know?)

Today I walked into work to this

I'm pretty much their fav ever! People would ask me if it was my birthday with all the decorations, I just told them no it's in my work contract that they have to decorate my desk once a month and buy me awesome gifts.

Later in the day I got this delivered to my office from my love. Yea I love him too :)



I was told I had to wear these glasses all day, which was ok cause they made everything look pink.

I tried to sit at my desk and stalk blogs work but these kept calling my name saying "eat me, eat me, I taste like yummy peanut buttery chocolate goodness"

After work I went home and decided to play handbag model for your viewing pleasure so you could see the cute new purse my boss gave me!

Then it was time for my birthday dinner at BJ's Brewhouse that my friend Tiffany put together for me! I started with a yummy Berry Mojito and ordered the mini BJ's Classic combo pizza that was yummy even though everyone else got there food before me. We were laughing and said I couldn't eat I could only watch everyone else eat. The waitress somehow forgot it :/

We ended the night with these delicious chocolate cupcakes Tiffany made

Yummy frosting

A couple of my friends after my fabulous dinner

The day was AWESOME. The only part missing was my love. But I take comfort in knowing this is the last birthday we will have to spend apart.

Twenty five plus three... I think I'll stop adding age after this birthday :)

Hope you all had a great day too!

I Love 3 Day Weekends!

I love 3 day weekends! A great time to get caught up on house work and also just to relax!
Saturday started with sleeping in! Then went to an early dinner at Red Robin with this little guy...



I'm surprised he smiled for this pic during his fav show WWE Monday Night Raw


After dinner we went over to Best Buy so I could pick out my other birthday present from my love who I miss like crazy and can't wait till we are back together and in the same state for good.

He spoils me when he doesn't need to, works harder than any one I know and supports me in my crazy running adventures. What more can I ask for?

I got a Nikon Coolpix S3000 camera that I love!! It's little and perfect for me! Here's what it looks like

After dinner and shopping I came back home and snuggled with this little guy
 

He likes to stand like a meer cat.

and watched Dinner with Schmucks and The Social Network. Sunday was a lazyyy day. I love lazy days! I watched Despicable Me with Z and just hung out at home all day.
Today I was more productive and I cleaned the entire house. Both upstairs and downstairs, every room and bathroom and did laundry. I also went grocery shopping and finished the day off with a 5 mile run on the treadmill. I really don't like running on the treadmill. But I'm grateful I have one in my garage so I don't have to go to the gym when I want to run and it's too dark outside or the weather is crappy.

These were my split times:
Mile 1 10:00 min pace - warm up
Mile 2 9:30 pace
Mile 3 9:05 pace
Mile 4 8:49 pace
Mile 5 9:50 pace - cool down

Total time 47:48 with 1% incline

I hate running in place for an extended period of time and I always get so over heated running on the mill so I decided to run each mile faster than the last so I could be done quicker! I was a hot sweaty mess when I was done but it felt good. I'm glad to be back to normal and not sick anymore! The 9:05 and 8:49 pace actually felt pretty good... that makes me excited! I can't wait to see what kind of speed I can get out of my little legs!

Tomorrow is back to work... but it's also my birthday YAY! I can't wait for my birthday dinner! I'll post pics tomorrow!

I leave you with another pic of my puppy Dash cause I know you were dying to see more of him.

He loves his new kong toy.





And now he is tired from playing and curled up next to me while I write this post :)



Don't mind me I'm just coughing up a lung...

I'm alive!! I have been sick since Sunday and finally starting to feel better. I had to leave work early on Tuesday and stayed home on Wed. Was in my pajamas allll day. Only left the house to take Z to school and pick him up.  I started getting my appetite back yesterday too. I had only been eating once a day and that's cause I made myself eat chicken noodle soup to give me a little bit of energy. I tried to run today, but could only manage 3 miles before I thought I was going to cough up my lungs! I'm sure I had some looks from people on the track haha. But it felt good to sweat a little. Good thing I have a 3 day weekend after tomorrow to feel better and get some miles in hopefully!

For now I leave you with these random pictures that have nothing to do with me being sick...



Crawling in the mud is fun! Right?



Isn't it normal to pose like this when your covered in mud?



The Weekend!

This weekend was a lot of fun. I went down to Portland for a company banquet. They do this every year to go over the previous years numbers. It's actually a big production and so much fun. We stayed at the Portland Marriott Downtown Water Front. It starts with a 2 hour meeting where they go over numbers and top sales reps. The reps always put on some kind of act. Last year they made a Michael Jackson "Beat It" parody video, this year were Asian drummers and were up on stage drumming bongos as a team (them this year was Teamwork) . Then after that we all went up to the bar/grill in the hotel to watch the Seahawks beat the Saints. I'm not normally a big football fan unless its my Boise State Broncos!! After that I went up to my hotel room to get ready for the banquet portion. I love dressing up! I didn't have anyone to take a pic of me so the I only have this crappy one I took with my phone with really bad lighting! The dress is so much more beautiful in person. Its a navy blue strapless with a grey ribbon in the middle. I also wore it with a cute dark grey headband that had a flower on top. Here's the really bad pic...

The banquet was a lot of fun and also in the hotel. We had a salad and rolls to start with. Then the main course was a veggie option of raviolis or steak and salmon with mashed potatoes and asparagus. I had the meat option. It was actually pretty good. (yes I'm a bad blogger I need to take pics of things, but I need to get a new camera since mine is broke :(
For dessert they served different types of chocolate candies. I had one, it was ok and not the best dessert. Oh and you also get 3 tickets you can use to get drinks from the bar. I'm not a beer drinking a prefer more fruity drinks so I asked the bar tender what she recommended. She made me a mixed drink that had vodka, peach schnapps, cranberry juice and OJ. It was very yummy! She said it didn't have a name so I asked her what her name was, and told her we will name it after her... so for the rest of the night I would go up to her and ask for the Whitney.
After the dinner portion the President of the company goes up to talk and announce the people who were nominated for Presidents Award. They each get an extra week of vacation! That would be nice! After that they DJ starts playing music and we talked and danced the rest of the night. It was a lot of fun and I'm sad this is my last year banquet with them. I have to quit my job since I'm moving :( I really made some great friends and enjoyed my 2 years working with them.

On Sunday I woke up feeling like crap! My throat, head and sinus hurt so bad. I had to make the 3 hour drive alone and it was horrible! I got home and the sitter dropped off my son soon after. I then snuggled on the couch for the rest of the evening with my puppy and watched movies with my son. Only getting up to make dinner. I was actually sad cause I had all the intentions going out for a run and using my new Garmin watch I got as an early birthday present. But my body just wasn't haven it.

I'm still feeling even more crappy today but managed to make it into work. There are so many people sick here I think i got it from one of them! My body is really aching today and my voice is not sounding so good, I don't think a run is in the cards today either :( Hopefully tomorrow at the YMCA track while my son is in his swimming class.

Run to Remember

If you haven't read Feb issue of Runner's World. You should! There's a very powerful article entitled "Moving Comfort"  You can also read it here.
My bf was the 1SG for A Co. 1-17 IN. CPT John Hallett was his Company Commander. I've worn my blue Run to Remember shirt to races and training runs. Trying to do what I can in helping keep the memory of our heroes alive. This article doesn't even scratch the surface as to everything Lisa does. But its a beginning to getting people remember our fallen and to remember those that are still serving. If you ran Seattle Rock & Roll Marathon or the Seattle Marathon in 2010 you may have noticed 41 flags along the course. Those flag represent each and every one of the Soldiers lost in Afghanistan from 1-17 IN 5/2 SBCT. I plan to share the pavement with these amazing women for the 2011 Seattle Rock & Roll Marathon.

Life is precious. Cherish every moment you have with your loved ones.

I heart him



Running Out Loud & A 2010 Recap

After many months of stalking following many blogs out there I decided it was time to start my own. I currently live in Tacoma, WA and will be moving to Boise, ID in a month or two so I want some way for my friends here to know how my life is going, but also a place to keep me accountable for my marathon training until I find some new running buddies in Idaho. And what better way to start off a blog then by a 2010 recap!

My 2010 goal was to run a half marathon. But before that I decided to run a local 5k in March. It was the St. Patty's Day Run. A couple of friends and I all ran it and dressed up for it. It was so much fun and a great first race ever!

I finished the race in 29:02

For my half marathon I ran The North Olympic Discovery Half Marathon from Sequim to Port Angeles, WA. It was a very beautiful course (full and half start in different locations). The last 5 miles are along the shores of the Strait of Juan De Fuca! This really was when I caught the running bug! I had such a great time running it. I think I ran off adrenaline the entire race! I had two friends run it with me and also had some friends there supporting us that made us some awesome posters! I finished in 2:03:14

  

Some of the other races I ran in 2010 were:

Tacoma Sound to Narrows 12k (finished in 1:09:31)

Over the Narrows 10 Mile run in Gig Harbor (finished in 1:31:42)

Aflac Iron Girl Seattle 10k (finished in 57:37)

Tacoma You Go Girl Half Marathon (finished in 2:05:12)

All of that lead up to running my first marathon on 10-10-10. The Portland Marathon. This day is one I will never forget. So many things happened that day. It started with the fire alarm going off in our hotel marathon morning at 2 am. Waiting outside for about 30 min before they let us back in. Only to have my alarm go off not much longer after that. It rained non stop during the entire race! My knee started hurting at mile 16 which forced me to run/walk the last 10 miles. But this race I not only ran for myself, but I ran representing the group Run to Remember. Running in the rain with a hurt knee is nothing compared to what these families face. Run to Remember is a group of women who are a living memorial for our fallen Soldiers from 1-17 Infantry Stryker Battalion based in Fort Lewis. We wear blue representing the units color and the name of the 41 fallen Soldier's on the back.

I finished the marathon in 4:48:22. I was happy I finished and new as soon as I crossed the finish line, soaking wet, limping to the medical tent, I had to run another marathon. Yes I'm a little crazy. But I knew this wasn't a normal marathon experience... or is it? That's the adventure in it!

I finished the year with another local 5k. Santa Runs Tacoma 5k. This was also a lot of fun and my racing partner and I dressed up as snowflakes. I finished the race in 27:53. I ran this race with the no finish time in mind I just wanted to have fun. I ran it without an ipod or anything to track my time so when I crossed the finish line I was excited to see a new PR!

So this is my 2010 journey of running through life, dreaming big and laughing out loud. And I just know 2011 will have so much more in store for me!