13.1

At the start, waiting to go...

At the finish, feelin' proud...

My hard-earned medal...

I did it.

I did it faster than I hoped, I ran more than I thought possible, I pushed myself harder than I've ever pushed myself. And I've seriously never been prouder of myself.

I can't wait to do it again.

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I can't post this without giving a shout out to my training partner and pal, Heather. I'm so incredibly impressed and proud of you, Heather. You are made of the toughest and most determined stuff and I'm so glad we did this together.

Teach a Boy to Fish...

It's Wordless Wednesday!

Countdown

Do you see that ticker over on the right? Only 16 days until the big race!! I'm getting SO excited about it. A while back I was a little apprehensive, feeling like it really was going to be hard and while I knew I'd finish, I feared that I'd suffer through it and the days after. I haven't been doing nearly as much walking as I should, or as I'd like, so I feared that the 13.1 miles really was going to be a challenge.

Last weekend my walking pal, Heather, and I set out to do our "long" walk. We'd been to a local running store for a clinic they put on about walking athletically. The talk was given by a gal that is a former national level race walker. She had some good tips and information about walking, stride, technique, etc. And on her advice, we needed to do our "long" walk soon. So we decided on Sunday. I picked Heather up and we headed to the local interurban trail, which goes 6 miles south down to a state park, winding thru the forest and past fancy houses that overlook the bay. There was a part of the trail that was actually more like hiking than walking: a steep narrow path peppered with rocks and tree roots, with hairpin turns and some serious elevation gain.

Long story short, we did it. We walked all 12 miles and though we were a bit physically tired (and hungry!!) at the end, we felt a real sense of accomplishment and felt confident that we could have easily gone on for another mile. We both agreed that the adreneline is going to help carry us along on Race Day, not to mention the other 24,998 people that will be with us.

The fear is gone and now I'm just super excited about the race, knowing that I can do it.

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"People become really quite remarkable when they start thinking that they can do things. When they believe in themselves they have the first secret of success." --Norman Vincent Peale

Flashback Friday

One year ago (tomorrow, to be exact) we watched as they broke ground for our house. It was the start of quite an adventure...

Sunny Days

The other night I was coming home around 7:45pm and was treated to this view. As soon as I walked in the door, I grabbed my camera. All around me was dusk, but the mountain was basking in the last rays of the day. It was stunning.

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I got a wild hair the other day and suddenly turned into the love child of Bob Villa and Ciscoe Morris and this is what I ended up with.

It all started a while ago when PW posted step-by-step instructions on how to build these garden boxes and since time was marching on and we were making no progres towards getting our shared garden in the ground, I took matters (and drill) in hand and did my own thing. Hubby helped me with the first one but then I decided one wasn't nearly enough space and built a second one the next day. We dumped in a bunch of topsoil and I got things planted and we are on our way. Next year when we get our big garden going, I can use these boxes for strawberries or my dahlia garden.

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The weather has turned unusually warm for this time of year and I am LOVING it. My housekeeping has gone the way of the dinosaurs because I'm too busy lolling around in the sunshine to care about the state of my floors or the availability of clean underwear. My mind turns to mush when the sun comes out and I am only capable of draping myself lazily on my lounge chair, intoxicated by the scent of suntan lotion. Seriously, it's one of those rare occurences where I am voluntarily still. I just hope we're not getting our summer weather now and will be freezing when it actually is summer. All the more reason to soak it up now, I say!

Good Times

Our Memorial Day Housewarming Party was a smashing success. It was a fantastic day and so much fun. My pulled pork turned out well and everyone brought something to share. My island was covered with food, as you can see, so no one went hungry.


I was a bit concerned that everyone would have a good time because we had a mix of people here: old friends, local friends and work friends. But, as I should have known, everyone got along fabulously, introducing themselves when I wasn't available to do so and mingling effortlessly. The kids raced around outside, inventing various games (usually Star Wars themed) and generally having a great time. It made my heart happy to see them all out there, laughing and playing. And wearing themselves out.

We started up a bonfire in the evening and, like moths to a flame, we all gravitated to it. When the sun started to go down, things cooled off and the warmth of the fire felt good. Even the smallest party attendee seemed to enjoy it.

My sweet chub of a nephew, Kieran.

It was a really nice day, one that Josh and I had been dreaming of when we were building this place. We imagined all our friends over, everyone talking and eating and laughing, kids racing around in the grass, and everyone gathering around a bonfire toasting marshmallows.

Turns out dreams do come true.

Party!

Happy Memorial Day weekend!

Today we're having a BBQ and get-together with friends who have yet to see The Big Red House. Should be a good time. We've got a keg of beer coming, 12 lbs of pork butt smoking on the grill, a ton of other food and beverages, and some of our favorite people coming. I get to love on my ever-growing nephew, Kieran, who is now 6 months old (my favorite age) and the sun is shining brightly. Woo-hoo!

It's gonna be an awesome day.

Hope you're enjoying your's too!