GW Parkway Classic April 23, 2017 1:36:13 Temp: High 40s to low 50s What I wore: visor, tank top, a half zip, a Skirt Sports Happy Girl, compression socks, and Altra Ones This was my goal race for the season. I knew I wouldn't PR, but I wanted to run a sub-10 pace. I worked hard in February and March to pick up the pace and did really well on some early season races. But then April happened and I added distance and I stopped doing speedwork. After last weekend's half marathon with a 10:25ish pace, I figured my goal was unlikely. The weather forecasts went from bad to worse and back again over the last few days. Finally, it moved from mid-40s and rainy to high 40s and cloudy. That was something I could work with, sort of. High … [Read more...]
Pampering myself with a few good books
I'm a librarian. I no longer work full time as one, but once a librarian, always a librarian. While I would never turn down a massage, my favorite way to pamper myself is to hide away from all my responsibilities with a good book. In fact, in recent years, my patience for lines and waiting has improved immensely now that I can open my Kindle App and read a book while I wait. It's like a mini vacation in the middle of chaos. So, for the Friday Five 2.0 "pampering" link up with Running on Happy and Fairytales and Fitness, here are five books that are currently on my (virtual) nightstand or my library hold list. (I'm a librarian. I pretty much only buy books if I can't borrow them. All Amazon links below are affiliate links. The more you … [Read more...]
Ragnar Relay and Scott James Jewelry
I know those seem like a random combination, but really they are related. ;o) I recently got chosen to be a Scott James Jewelry Ambassador. I love their stuff and have quite a collection of charms. I received a necklace a few years back that I used to commemorate my journey to Venus and I've also bought a few Ragnar charms. As I gear up to run Ragnar Trail Richmond, I've already picked out the charms I plan to get afterwards (see I told you the two topics were related.) Speaking of Ragnar, another ambassador and I hosted a Ragnar event at Mad Fox Brewpub last night. It was a lot of fun and we had several new to Ragnar people there asking questions. Having run Ragnar DC twice, I had plenty of advice - most of which boiled … [Read more...]
Lifetime Half #63, State #34: Riverboat Series (MO)
It's Tuesday, so that means it's time for Tuesdays on the Run. I know today we are supposed to talk about race day mistakes, but I'm still trying to recover from our long drive. Instead, here's my race report from state #34! Riverboat Series: Missouri April 15, 2017 2:20:24 Temp: High 60s to high 70s What I wore: visor, tank top, a Skirt Sports Happy Girl, compression socks, and Altra Escalante A few months back, it occurred to me that if I do the Heartland Series in May, I'd be left with a donut hole in the shape of the state of Missouri. Since I knew Beer Geek was not able to take the week of spring break off, I hatched a grand plan. I decided I would find a race in Missouri and I'd take the kids to St. Louis for spring … [Read more...]
Tips for road tripping alone with kids
Our spring break adventure is drawing to a close. We've had a fabulous time checking out some fun stuff in Ohio and Missouri and we have just a couple more fun stops planned for the trip home. I've traveled with the boys alone before, but never for this amount of time and never with this much driving. I'm happy to say that thus far we've had a great time (I've probably just jinxed our drive home.) Want to know how I survived? (Rule number 1 - don't forget the beer!) OK, here are the real tips... Be flexible. I had a list of possible places to stop on the drive, as well as back up hotel options. (Make sure you know your cancellation times.) I was able to push the boys a little farther one day, but barely made it to the first hotel … [Read more...]
Spring Cleaning with ZIPS dry-cleaning (+ giveaway)
ZIPS Dry Cleaners compensated me for this post and provided the giveaway. All opinions are my own. Spring has definitely sprung in Virginia. The weather is getting warmer and the days are getting sunnier (and everything is covered in pollen.) At this time of year I get two urges: clean my house and run every single day. One cannot resist the days when it's comfortable to run in a skirt and tank, but not be dying from the heat and humidity. It's also the time when I need to clean out the closets, match up the gloves, and dry clean the winter jackets. Since I was recently given the opportunity to try out ZIPS Dry Cleaners, I took the time to grab Beer Geek's work jacket, a few suits, and a bunch of shirts that needed washing. (I … [Read more...]
Boston Marathon Pipe Dreams | Tuesdays on the Run
The last time I ran the Marine Corps Marathon, I qualified for the Boston Marathon. Or I would have, if I'd been 70 year old. Yep, I just need to hold my current marathon pace for 25 more years and I'm in. Boston has not really ever been a goal for me, but our Tuesdays on the Run topic is the Boston Marathon, so here are my thoughts on it. I first heard of the Boston Marathon from a friend who has qualified and ran many times (17, I think). While I'm in awe of those who qualify, it's definitely not one of my goals. I doubt I could ever be fast enough, but more importantly, I don't have any interest in working that hard (and I'm not interested in running as a charity runner.) In fact, I'm going to be honest and admit that I … [Read more...]
Spring Break Road Trip: From DC to???
Saturday morning the boys and I loaded up the family truckster, I mean, Honda Pilot and hit the road. It's spring break and Beer Geek has to work, so the boys and I decided to take a road trip and see the the sights America has to offer. The first day we hit the Good Zoo in Wheeling, WV. The Good Zoo is a small part of the Oglebay Resort which includes a couple of museums, the zoo, a golf course, and gorgeous views. It's surrounded by mansions on huge estates, but for some reason, my GPS took us the back way on barely more two lane roads through the holler. Apparently that was faster??? The boys loved the zoo and the museums and it was a nice break in the driving. It was also prom night, so we were surrounded by tons of kids … [Read more...]
Beer and Running: a match made in heaven
You all know I love craft beer about as much as I love running. OK, maybe even more than I love running. When I get the chance to combine the two, I'm a happy camper. And lately the opportunities to run and drink beer in t he DC area are growing and growing. The number of breweries and brewpubs has exploded in recent years. Conveniently, many of them are near local running trails and many of them are hosting run clubs, which is basically code for run and drink beer. Since today's Friday Five 2.0 topic with Running on Happy and Fairytales and Fitness is beverages, I'm going to give you five reasons to run for beer (aka run with a beer related run club). Running with friends is always better. OK, maybe a beer run won't be your best … [Read more...]
Staying Hydrated on the Run | Tuesdays on the Run
The weather in Virginia is about perfect these days with high 50s/low 60s most days. I'm able to run comfortably in skirts and short sleeves, but not yet having to deal with the heat and humidity that will be here soon. (This is Virginia - who knows when exactly that humidity will arrive. We just know that it will. Soon.) Since today's Tuesdays on the Run topic is "hydration", I'm going to share my favorites for staying hydrated. My Sodastream - OK, I'm not out there running with what my kids refer to as fizzy water. Instead, I'm drinking this in the evenings the day before I have a hot run planned. I'm not good at drinking just plain water unless I'm really hot and it's really cold, so the fizzy water really helps me stay … [Read more...]
Wrapping up a busy week
Welcome, April! March was a rough month and I don't mind seeing it in the rear view mirror! Despite all the crazy things (car problems, sick cat, sick kids, snow day), I was happy to hit 100 miles (103 to be exact) for the fourth month in a row. I ran three races in March, but it was questionable if I was going to complete my goal miles due to a camping trip on the last two days of the month. On Thursday, Shoo and I headed out with his class for the 5th grade camping trip. I did this four years ago with Jones, so I knew what to expect. Which is to say, I knew I'd have fun, but that I'd be exhausted when I got home. The weather for the first day was supposed to be in the 50s, but the second day called for 40s and rain. I packed … [Read more...]
DuClaw Sweet Baby Java Virginia Peanut Soup
Thank you DuClaw Brewing for sponsoring this post and sending me the DuClaw Sweet Baby Java. All opinions and the soup recipe are my own. Welcome to the March edition of “Cooking with Beer”! Each month DuClaw Brewing sends me a beer and a friend and I create a recipe. It’s a fun time to think outside the box and try a new beer and new food. This month’s beer is “Sweet Baby Java”, an espresso bean infused version of Sweet Baby Jesus. Each month when I get my beer from DuClaw, my friend and I brainstorm ideas for the recipe. I knew which beer was coming this time and we were heading in the direction of a dessert of some sort. But then we got the beer. Now, I love Sweet Baby Jesus. It's one of my favorite of their beers and was the … [Read more...]
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