Move Slower…

13 Jul

Hey friends – I’m still definitely going to tell you about my trip to Alaska but just wanted to let you know that between getting back into the routine, catching up from vacation, being crazy busy at work and really enjoying weeknights that don’t have me running around like a chicken…

My posts are going to fewer and farther between than normal.

Right now, I just need my life to move slower. I need to rest, relax, and not feel like I “have to” do anything.

Even exercise.

I tried running the other night. It was weak and pathetic.

I took that as my sign that I need more recovery time. So that’s what I’m doing – with running, and life in general.

Instead of running, I’ll walk. I’ll stop to smell my neighbor’s flowers, harvest vegetables from our garden, watch copious amounts of TV, and go to bed early.

Dont’ worry – I’ll be back… I just don’t know when. 😉

 

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Alaska: Talkeetna and Denali

9 Jul

Hi friends! I’m back. Alaska was wonderful and so much fun but it’s good to be home. Now that we’re all unpacked with clean laundry and food in the fridge, I can tell you about our Alaskan adventures.

You’ve already heard about how the marathon went. 

After the race, we went and picked up our RV.

{at our first campsite}

We weren’t able to get a late checkout from our hotel so Travis and I ended up showering at the RV place. A little strange but it worked. After lunch at The Village Inn, we went grocery shopping (we cooked all of our own meals, except 3-4 that we had to eat out) and then headed north on our way to Denali.

We made it as far as Talkeetna and then settled in for the night at the campsite above. It wasn’t the most appealing campsite ever but we didn’t really mind as we were all exhausted from traveling and a long day in the RV (and me, running a marathon!).

Right away that first night, we realized how weird it was to have so much daylight. It’d be 11 at night and you’d think it was 5 because of all the daylight. Even when we went to bed at 10:30, it was bright outside, and whatever time we got up, it was light outside (it gets dark around 11:30 and light around 4 that far north). We ended up making a sunlight blind from a beer box for the upper bunk of the RV.

The next morning, we walked over to check out the small town of Talkeetna.

The water is so dirty because it’s glacial runoff and is full of silt. (I actually bought some soap in Juneau made with glacial silt and it’s amazing! It makes your hands feel so soft.)

After touring the town and doing a little shopping, we walked back to our RV and got on the road. We stopped frequently to take pictures and see the sights on our way up to Denali because 1) we had nowhere to be and 2) the mountains were gorgeous.

We stopped at the Veteran’s Memorial.

Saw Hurricane Gulch, which is pretty impressive.

After a very bumpy RV ride, we finally made it to Denali National Park.

We went to the Visitor’s Center, then ate dinner and fixed the air mattress that Travis and I were sleeping on (it had gone flat the night before!). After that, we took advantage of our copious amounts of daylight at 9:30 pm to go on a walk down to Riley Creek.

{Check out the giant blister on the inside of my right big toe!}

The next morning, we got up early for the 7 am Eielson Tour into the park.

 

{From left to right, Travis, Drew (our nephew), Matthew (T”s bro), Al (T’s dad), Beth (T’s mom), and me}

The first animals we saw were some caribou (reindeer) down by the water. They were pretty far away so you needed binoculars and a mega-scope on your camera to see them well.

And then 3 different times, we saw a momma brown/grizzly bear and her 2 cubs (at least 2 different sets, if not all 3). They were SO cute! The little cubs were bumbling along and playing with each other. It was very cool. They only have about 600 bears in the entire 6 million acre park, so seeing that many was really special.

We stopped a couple of times along the way (it takes 4 hours to get up to the Eielson Visitor Center – it’s 66 miles into the park). You’re allowed to hike around and get on another bus if you want but there aren’t any trails (you’d have to just bush whack) and it seemed fairly involved to get on a different bus. So we just stayed on our own the whole way. Our driver was really funny and knowledgeable too so it was an enjoyable drive.

Finally, we got up to the visitor center. It had been a sunny, warm day when we started out on the trip into the park but the closer we got to the mountain, the cloudier and colder it got. Apparently, Denali is big enough that it creates it own weather and when the sun melts the snow, it creates a lot of clouds and hides the mountain. All we could see up at the visitor center was fog (which is normally where you get the best view of the mountain).

On the way back, we were all tired and struggled to stay awake. We saw some more bears, eagles, a marmot, some more caribou and then we were back to where we started.

We had already “checked out” of our campsite so when we got back to the RV, we hit the road back toward Anchorage. For the night, we stayed at the Big Bear RV Park in Palmer (near Wasilla).

We finally had a campfire! Every other place we had been were selling little bundles of firewood for $10. This place had a bargain of $6 a bundle. Having a fire was a little weird though because it was completely light outside.

And that was the end of Day 4!

Coming up: Seward (whales!), Juneau and the ferry

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Men, women and dishes

5 Jul

{While I’m getting rained on in Ketchikan, Alaska, please enjoy these posts from the archives and random thoughts library of Life, Really.}

–Originally posted May 8, 2008–

This could go for just about any aspect of cleaning but this morning it happened to be involving dishes.

I typically get up about 30-45 minutes earlier than Travis. It takes me about 15-20 minutes to shower, do my hair and makeup, and get dressed (+10 minutes if I have nothing to wear). I then make lunches for me and Travis, eat breakfast, and possibly iron his shirt, make the bed, do the dishes, and maybe read the Bible.

Travis stumbles out of bed half-awake around 6:30. He takes a shower for 10 minutes, then shaves, then gets dressed. He eats breakfast and reads his Bible for about 10-15 minutes. Then he grabs his lunch, puts it in his backpack, brushes his teeth, and is ready to leave.

So this morning, as usual, I was running around after eating breakfast, trying to get my running stuff together, brushing my teeth, making the bed, etc. The sink was piled high full of dishes. I was going to ask Travis to do the dishes but he was reading his Bible. Dishes aren’t more important than God…(although, if he shouldn’t be bothered to do the dishes instead of reading the Bible, then why should I be?) so I let him be.

I was a little bitter that Travis was reading while the dishes obviously had to be done (you literally couldn’t fit much else in the sink). But I realize he’s male and I’m female. What I notice, he doesn’t notice. What I think about, he doesn’t think about.

Proof of this: When I saw the pile of dirty dishes in the sink after breakfast, I made a mental note, “Must do dishes before going to work.”

When Travis saw the pile of dirty dishes in the sink after breakfast, he wondered, “Where I can find a spot for my plate?”

I just have to laugh at him. Men.

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2012 Goal Update

3 Jul

{While I’m off in Alaska reeling in some red salmon (ha, just kidding, I don’t fish!), please enjoy these random posts from the archives and random thoughts library of Life, Really.}

It’s July! My favorite month because it’s when I was born. This year, I’ll be the big 2-9. Seriously, I can’t believe I’m almost 30.

Anyway, I thought that since 2012 is half over, it’d be a good time to give an update on my goals.

Which shouldn’t take long since I haven’t made a ton of progress (but somehow this post ended up being almost 700 words…). I haven’t made a ton of progress in the past few months because marathon training kind of took over my life at the end there. Now that that’s over with (yay!), I can get back to working on these goals.

…get pregnant.

The marathon is over and the plan is in motion. Stay tuned.

…run 700 miles.

If all goes according to plan, by the time I’m doing running the marathon, I’ll be somewhere around 488 miles. Looking good for this one (as long as I don’t abandon running altogether).

…finish writing my nonfiction book.

This is the one I’ve been failing at the most. Since the mornings are the only time I have to write, and they’ve been hijacked for the last several months by sleep and running, this has gotten put on the back burner out of necessity. But once I get back from Alaska, it’s back into the morning routine! I still think finishing it this year is doable. And during this time off I’ve had, I’ve still been thinking and journaling a lot and have a deeper understanding of what I want this book to be.

…read 27 books (one more than in 2011).

Before Alaska, I had read 9 books. Hopefully after Alaska, that number will be more like 15! And now that I won’t be spending every spare waking moment running, I hope this number will increase a lot faster. I mean, 9 books in 6 months? Who am I?

…consistently track my workouts so I have accurate totals on 12/31/12!

I have been doing this! And mapmyrun.com just updated their site with some cool-looking stuff so I might not be switching from them after all…

…grow in being a loving, supportive wife to my amazing husband.

Still a work in progress on this one. I am learning to more often speak my husband’s love languages – physical touch and words of affirmation. 

…………………

And for the monthly goals…

The months that have passed

January – Forego sweets for an entire month. Done!

February – Read or listen to the entire Harry Potter book series.

I am currently on Book 5 of 7. Getting there!

March – Try Bikram Yoga. Done!

April – Finish a memory book about our first 5 years of marriage.

Haven’t started on this hardly at all. But I’m still planning to do it. Now I’ll have a bunch of Alaska memories to add too!

May – Make a time capsule for our 5-year wedding anniversary.

I have a good start on this but haven’t finished yet.

June – Run a marathon… in Alaska. Done!

I’m writing this before the race but I’m being optimistic that I crossed the finish line.

………………….

The months coming up

July – Bike 50 miles in one ride.

I can tell you right now that this 50 mile ride isn’t happening in July. Maybe September or October but not July.

August – Climb a 14er.

We’re talking about climbing Pikes Peak with some friends.

September – Complete at least one big home project in preparation for moving in 2013.

We’re thinking about several of these, including refinishing our bathrooms, painting doors and cabinets, cleaning carpets and replacing our patio. 

October – Make Pull-Apart Cinnamon Sugar Pumpkin Bread with Buttered Rum Glaze

Mmmm… how could I skip this one?

November – Make our own Christmas stockings.

Say what? Who thought this was a good idea? Oh yeah, me who got sick of looking at $3 red fake fuzz stockings from Walmart. Luckily, I think this will be a pretty easy craft.

December – Watch the movie classic, It’s a Wonderful Life

Why didn’t I make all of my goals this easy?

………………….

And there you have it! Hopefully I’ll have a more encouraging update in September… or sooner!

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Resting in God for Life

1 Jul

{While I’m reading copious amounts of books in Alaska, please enjoy these posts from the archives and random thoughts library of Life, Really.}

–Originally posted January 15, 2011–

God is so faithful.

I had a rough start to this past week. Being back from Mexico, I was confronted with all of the problems I had left behind: namely, my struggle with what I’m supposed to be doing with my life. Again, I was stressed out. It felt like there was a heavy ball of anxiety sitting right on my chest. I felt paralyzed. I had nothing that I had to do and yet didn’t feel free to do anything. I felt like I had to be productive. Like that’s what a good model citizen does – they get stuff done. But I didn’t want to get stuff done. I wanted to relax and read.

Little by little, God has been inviting me to release the responsibility I feel for my life. At first, He showed me I could let go of being responsible for my sanctification. Instead of rifling through my own soul looking for sins that I needed to work on, I could trust God to convict me of the sins that He wanted me to work on.

He then showed me I could let go of being responsible for projects at work. Even though I don’t technically have a job right now, I am helping out at the church and as such, I feel involved enough to be held responsible for things succeeding or failing. But God says that I can release those projects to Him too. It’s not me accomplishing His work – it’s Him accomplishing His work through me. I wrote these points in my journal:

1. God knows what needs to be done and when.

2. I can trust God to guide my day and to provide the wisdom, inspiration, and motivation necessary. I can even trust Him to bring to mind things I need to remember.

3. I can leave unfinished projects in God’s care – this is His work after all. He will take care of it.

4. If and when I fail, I can run to God and He will help me fix the mess. He is a gracious, patient and loving God.

Finally, God showed me that I can let go of what I have perceived to be the things I needed to be doing to live the life I want to live. I had been creating my own religious rules about how to live but God had not empowered me to live those. I constantly felt like I should be doing more than I was doing. If I bought a coffee at Starbuck’s, I felt guilty that I didn’t donate that money to charity. If I spent time reading a book, I felt guilty that I was making myself happy instead of helping someone else in need. I was constantly questioning my motives and constantly feeling condemned by what I perceived to be the selfishness of everything I did. Even the good, thoughtful things I did for others were swallowed up in the notion that they were just drops in the ocean of my own patheticness.

But praise the Lord, He has revealed the truth to me! On Thursday morning, after feeling very discouraged and fed up with life on Wednesday night, God showed me that what had started out as a good desire – wanting to live above the status quo for Christ – I had turned into an end in itself. I was trying to make myself right with God by setting a high standard for my way of life. I only succeeded in making myself miserable. Because I can’t make myself right with God!

And I don’t have to. I don’t have to procure my own salvation because of Jesus and I don’t have to make my life count because of Jesus. For the longest time, I thought that surrendering control meant conceding defeat. Resting in Christ meant that I didn’t care if my life changed – it meant I was ok if I just kept on living the typical American lifestyle. But I did care! So I couldn’t, I wouldn’t surrender. I had to make my life what I thought it should be – because if I didn’t, who would?

I am in awe at God’s perfect timing. Just totally in awe. In the past month, I read 2 books that revolutionized the way I look at my relationship with God: Walking With God by John Eldredge and Soul Craving by Joel Warne. Both authors talk about listening to God, walking through situations with God, talking to God, communing with God. I had never before realized that such an intimate two-way interaction with God was possible!

Because of that new discovery, the idea of surrendering control of my life and my expectations and desires to God makes sense. Before, I didn’t understand how I could let go of control and expect things to still happen. I mean, after all, even though God is sovereign, He is not a puppeteer. I still have to act. So how would anything change if I gave up trying to change things?

I see now that change comes out of an intimate relationship with God. As I am walking with God, talking with Him, listening to Him, inviting Him in to every area and experience of my life, I am changed. I sense His Spirit’s leading. I see doors open that I would have missed before. I find courage to do what I couldn’t in the past. This is exactly what I wanted for my life and was so desperately striving after. But now, it is God leading me. It is God doing the hard work. Joel Warne writes in his book that our relationship with God is a responsive one. He leads; we respond.

Moreover, if there is something amiss in my life, something I should abstain from or do differently, I can trust God to reveal those things to me. I don’t have to obsess over everything and continually feel guilty. This has been the biggest relief of all. I can finally put in correct perspective all of the mundane, practical, trivial details of life. I don’t have to question everything anymore! I can live everyday life in faith that when God wants to change something, when He wants to move me, He will reveal that to me. And He provides the courage and grace for obedience on top! So now, instead of asking God to show me what He wants me to do with my life, I pray:

“Search me, O God, and know my heart! Try me and know my thoughts! And see if there by any grievous way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting!”(Psalm 139:23).

I cannot undermine enough what a revolutionary shift in paradigm this is for me. I feel like I had been going through the motions of life in black and white but now I am rejuvenated with vigor and eagerness to engage in life in Technicolor! Because my life is what it is because of God. And I can rest in Him for wisdom, guidance, sanctification. I can trust Him to do in my life what I have been desiring – because He desires it even more than I do!!

GOD IS AWESOME!!

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Tasty Tofu

29 Jun

{While I’m off whale-watching in Alaska, please enjoy these posts from the archives and random thoughts library of Life, Really.}

Tofu used to intimidate me (now tempeh does that). The whole “drain the water out of it before you use it” thing somehow seemed like a lot of work for something that Travis doesn’t really like eating in the first place. (But he doesn’t even like the tofu from Noodles & Co, which is beyond crazy if you ask me, because their tofu is delicious.)

But I finally overcame my fear and decided to try making tofu. The first recipe I used called for cubing the tofu, covering it in flour, and then sauteing it. I ended up with a slimy disgusting mess. Nope, not it.

Then I found a recipe that called for baking the tofu. That seemed more my speed. So bake I did and I’ve never looked back.

Here are my tips for baking tofu quickly – the whole process takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish (‘draining’ time included).

Tasty Tofu

I always buy extra firm tofu – the brand doesn’t matter (to me).

When I’m ready to prepare dinner, I preheat the oven to 425 degrees. While it’s heating up, I take the tofu out its water-filled package, place it on a cutting board, and use paper towels to ‘drain’ it. It takes quite a few paper towels (shhh… don’t tell the environment) but it works and it’s quick. Press firmly (but not hard, you don’t want to destroy it!) on every side of the tofu until your paper towels are no longer getting soaked with water. This is a guesstimate.

Then, I cut it into roughly 3/4 inch cubes.

I prepare a baking sheet by covering it with tinfoil (for easy cleanup) and spraying the tinfoil with nonstick spray. Then I distribute the tofu evenly across the sheet, spray it with the nonstick spray and sprinkle all of it with paprika.

Then I bake it in my pre-heated oven for roughly 15 minutes at 425 degrees. It’s done when the outside is just a little crispy. The inside should be soft but cooked.

This tofu goes really well with one of my favorite recipes of all time: Curried Couscous with Broccoli and Feta.

And that’s how easy it is to make tofu!

Now I just have to take the plunge with tempeh…

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Ten random observations of Colorado (by a Minnesotan)

27 Jun

{While I’m off trekking around Alaska, please enjoy these posts from the archives and random thoughts library of Life, Really.}

–Originally posted February 21, 2008–

1. The same street can have two completely different names. On one side of the intersection, it’s South Boulder Road and on the other side, it’s Table Mesa Drive. Makes it kind of hard to follow directions.

2. They never plow the roads when you need them to and they do plow them when the snow is gone.

3. They’re not very creative with street names. The same name, for example Arapahoe, is used in any combination they can think of: Arapahoe Street, Avenue, Road, Boulevard, Circle, Square, Lane, Pathway, Alley, Sidewalk, Gutter, etc.

4. They named the road in front of our apartment Table Mesa Drive. Mesa means table in Spanish. So technically they named the street Table Table Drive. ???

5. No matter what the temperature, Coloradoans always complain about it being cold outside. It can be 65 and sunny and they’re still complaining. Try living in Minnesota for a week. That’ll shut you up.

6. There are organic, overpriced grocery stores everywhere and they’re just as big as the regular grocery stores. There are literally four in Boulder alone. I personally have not yet stepped foot in one, anywhere.

7. It must be a hoppin’ auto market out here because I see more people driving around with the registration paper taped to their back window than I do people with actual license plates. (When you buy a car and are waiting for the registration to be processed by the DMV, you put the paper in your back window…we are one of those people.)

8. People regularly drive under the speed limit. This is unheard of in Minnesota. Absolutely unheard of. Are people just happier out here? More laidback? Or maybe their feet are lighter on the gas pedal because of the higher altitude?

9. Everybody loves to talk about how the weather is so great in Colorado. Except for this winter. And last winter. And the winter before that. Well, the weather is great in theory at least.

10. I love Colorado: 300 days of sunshine…………….5 days of winter.

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Race Recap: Mayor’s Marathon

25 Jun

{Sorry for the late update/recap – we’ve been in The Last Frontier with no wi-fi!}

Travel on Friday to Anchorage was a debacle – our 6:30 am flight to SLC got delayed enough that we would miss our connection to Anchorage. After spending an hour investigating options, the best choice was to instead fly to Minneapolis at 11:35 am, have a layover until 3 pm, then fly 5.5 hours to Anchorage, getting in there at 6 pm (Alaska is 1 hour behind Pacific Time) – meaning a 15 hour travel day for us. Travis’ parents were able to pick up my race packet, so everything ended up working out fine. Just not my choice of how to spend the day before the race.

Once we got in, we dropped our stuff off at the hotel, ate dinner at an Alaskan restaurant called Gwennie’s, and then passed out in our hotel room.

……………………

My alarm went off at 5:30 am and I popped out of bed. I had actually slept pretty well – I woke up quite a bit throughout the night but was able to get back to sleep quickly without lying awake panicking.

I slathered on Body Glide (not enough apparently because I got major sports bra chafe);  put on my 2XU compression tights, running skirt, new REI shirt, and 2 sports bras; taped my big toes; got my race bag together; packed my stuff; did my hair and makeup (just mascara and a little powder); and then went down to breakfast.

Everyone (Travis’ parents, brother and nephew, along with Travis) was up to see me start! I had coffee and water and buttered a plain bagel to eat closer to the race start. We drove over to the race start and got there at 7:00 – plenty of time before the race started at 8. I used the portapoo, stretched, took some pics, ate my bagel, found some Tums, and then used the portapoo again.

During this time, I was feeling relieved that race morning was finally here (no more worrying and wondering!) and excited – I was about to run a marathon! It was also the perfect day weather-wise: sunny, mid-70s, no rain. A gorgeous day. Finally, it was time to line up.

They played an Alaskan song, the National Anthem and then the mayor spoke. And then it was time to go! Travis and his family snapped some pics of me as I ran by and then I was lost in the sea of runners. There were about 1,000 runners again this year – from 48 states, 16 countries and a record number of Alaskan runners.

I tried to ignore the pace of the runners around me and just run what felt right to me. My legs felt good but the sun was hot – I could tell that it would get pretty warm out on the course. I had my Garmin set to show the average pace of my entire run and when I saw 11:20 for my first mile, I decided that even though it was faster than I said I would run, I didn’t feel like I was going out too fast. By Mile 3, my average pace was around 11:33, where it stayed for almost the entire race.

1 – 11:21

2 – 11:21

3 – 11:45

The first aid station was around Mile 2 and I grabbed a cup of water, stopped to drink it and then kept running – which was what I did at every aid station, although around Mile 10, I started grabbing 2 cups of water and an orange slice every time. I was So. Thirsty. There were times when I wished I had my Camelbak and didn’t have to wait until aid stations for water and then chug down 2 cups at a time. But overall, I think it was worth it to not have that extra weight/annoyance to deal with.

The first 4 miles, we ran along the busy highway, which wasn’t the most enjoyable but it had a nice view of the mountains. Then we crossed over the highway and got on to a county road, which was paved and rolling hills. I was very encouraged during the first 5 miles of the race – the hills that I had seen on the elevation map weren’t challenging to me at all! I sailed up almost every single one of the hills – there were maybe 2 in the entire race that I had to slow down to run up and got to the top breathing heavily but I didn’t have to walk any hill (except at the very end but even flat road was a challenge then!).

4 – 11:45

5 – 11:22

I ate my first packet of Honey Stingers at Mile 5, which is also when I started my iPod. Travis was going to join me for Miles 9 – 13, so I planned to listen to my iPod until he joined me. Well, it had other plans. Around Mile 7.5, it froze. The screen was on but it wasn’t playing music. I took off my headphones, stashed them in the pouch, and gave it up for dead (I handed it to Travis’ brother when I saw them at Mile 9).

After the rolling hills on the county road, we ran past a golf course and then got on the Oilwell Tank Trail, which was where Travis joined me. This was the gravel road that stretched from roughly Miles 7 – 14. I had been slightly apprehensive before the race about this portion because of reading about “baseball size rocks” and the possibility of twisting an ankle. And I’ll say – they’re not lying. There are some very decent size rocks out there and it was not at all like a well-maintained gravel walking/hiking trail. It was a gravel road. But I had known it was coming and I knew when it would end, so I didn’t mind it for the most part, though it was kind of rough on the feet.

6 – 11:44

7 – 11:32

8 – 11:13

9 – 11:34

There were a few steep hills on this part of the trail but we muscled up them. Travis peeled off at Mile 13 and I continued on.

10 – 11:41

11 – 12:14

12 – 11:18

13 – 11:26

Around Mile 14, though, we were funneled onto a single-track hiking path – like a true trail run! I was absolutely thrilled at this discovery. It was a lot easier to run on than the gravel, but we were running through the woods and even had to cross a couple of streams (on small bridges)! I was in heaven. I kept thinking, “This is freakin’ awesome!” Even though that part of the trail was the peak of the course elevation, it was less steep than previous parts. I kept running, though almost everyone else around me was walking.

14 – 12:07

Still on the trail, we started going back down. I felt great so I ran it at a strong pace and kept going when we got back out onto pavement around Mile 15. We kept going down for Miles 16 and 17. These were my fastest miles of the race. I knew that I still had 10 miles to go, so it wasn’t the time to get crazy, but I also felt I should take advantage of the downhill while I could. I ate my second packet of Honey Stingers here – I didn’t really want to eat them but I decided it was probably the smart thing to do if I wanted to avoid The Wall.

15 – 10:56

16 – 10:47

17 – 10:58

At Mile 18, which was along a main road in Anchorage, Travis met up with me again (and his family was there cheering me on!).

{nice sweat stain, huh?} 

Travis asked me how I was feeling and I said “Ok.” I still felt energetic and mentally excited to be out there but my legs were starting to make themselves heard. It was nice to have him there to distract me and break the race up into smaller sections – especially since I didn’t have my iPod!

18 – 11:40

After a mile or so, we left the main road and dived back into the trees on a nice bike path. The rest of the race was like this. I had been expecting this part of the race to have a city feel, but we were in such densely wooded areas that it still felt like we were out in the country! This was a pleasant surprise to me. The only thing not a pleasant surprise: BUGS. So. Many. Bugs. (I’ve gotten spoiled living in Colorado.) But the bugs were more just annoyed than actually biting me so at least there was that.

19 – 11:45

20 – 11:39

Around Mile 21, my legs felt great. I picked up the pace a little but then decided that probably wasn’t the best strategy, considering I did have 5 miles left, and they would be the hardest ones. So I slowed it back down. For the whole race, I had been eyeing my Garmin. My average pace had been hovering around 11:33 the whole time, sometimes getting as slow as 11:35 after an aid station stop, and getting as fast as 11:28 after my speedy Miles 15 and 16. I knew that I had to maintain an 11:26 average to come in under 5 hours. So I was trying to keep enough left in the tank to push it in the last 2 miles.

21 – 11:39

Travis peeled off at Mile 22 and headed with his family to the finish line.

Before he left, Travis encouraged me to continue focusing on enjoying myself instead of hitting a certain time goal (I told him that enjoying myself at that point would mean walking but I understood what he meant). As I ran along trying to maintain my 11:30 average, I realized that since my Garmin was measuring slightly longer than the course mile markers, my pace wasn’t accurate anyway – meaning I’d probably need a 11:22-11:25 average to make it under 5 hours. That wasn’t going to happen. There was no way I could speed up that much.

22 – 11:23

23 – 10:57

24 – 11:52

As I realized that, I also realized how much pain my lower body was in. I ran until the Mile 24 marker and then took my first non-aid-station walking break. Those last 2 miles were a combination of exhausted running and painful walking. My legs were so tired and sore from running but every time I stopped to walk, the pain was amplified. Such pain.

I let go of my 5 hour goal and broke out the mental game – “This is where the rubber meets the road. You trained 6 months for this moment. Don’t give up now. They didn’t say it would be easy, they said it would be worth it. This is when you show what you’re made of. How bad do you want this? Just think of the gallons of cold water waiting for you at the finish line. After this, you’re done – No more running! Can you believe that you’re actually at Mile 25 of a MARATHON? We’re actually doing it Harry!”

For each of my 4-5 walking breaks, I’d pick out a landmark a hundred feet ahead or so at which I’d start running again (or else I never would). And the parts I did run, I ran at whatever pace I had in me – “Just run it” I told myself. I grabbed water at the last aid station and powered up the hill, running most of it. In those last few miles, there were quite a few nice local people who had sprinklers/showers set up for runners to stay cool. Even though I was hot and SO INCREDIBLY THIRSTY, I didn’t run through the sprinklers… because I didn’t want to get my shoes wet.

25 – 13:06

26 – 12:55

FINALLY, I could see the finish line area. It seemed to stretch on for way longer than reasonable but I didn’t really care. I was almost there. I was almost done. I picked up the pace, mustering all the energy reserves I had left (for around a 10 minute pace) and crossed the finish line strong.

Gun time = 5:09:10

Net time = 5:08:24 (11:36 average – Garmin says 26.59 miles)

I was (and am) VERY pleased with the way I ran and how this ran went. I maintained a very consistent pace throughout the whole thing, my hill training definitely paid off, I had fun, AND I accomplished my B Goal of 5:10:00 or under. What more could I ask for?

After I crossed the finish line, I got my medal and shirt, chugged two cups of water, took some pictures and then Travis and my mother-in-law massaged my legs, which were in excruciating pain. I’ve heard other marathoners talk about the pain after the race and they are right. Holy cow.

We left the race and went to pick up our RV. I showered there, where I discovered a big blister on the inside of my right big toe (though I hadn’t felt it forming at all!) and the sports bra chafe. After that, we ate at The Village Inn (I had some delicious sausage and gravy crepes), went grocery shopping (I tried to take a nap while they were doing that) and then we headed out of town for Denali. My legs were pretty sore and painful that first day but Sunday morning, they were more of a good sore, and now on Monday, they just have a few twinges here and there but are mostly just exhausted.

I’d say the marathon was a success!

Thanks for all of your encouragement and advice while training for this race! It means a lot to me.

And now, I’m off to enjoy Alaska disconnected from the interwebs! Enjoy my random postings in the meantime and I’ll be back the week of July 7.

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The Cheap Way to Clean Your Wedding Rings

25 Jun

{While I’m off RV-ing around Alaska, please enjoy these posts from the archives and random thoughts library of Life, Really.}

Travis picked out my engagement and wedding rings all by himself. I told him that I wanted a diamond (as opposed to a gemstone) but he did the rest.

I’ll be honest – even though I loved it, it wasn’t what I would’ve picked. I had visions of a princess-cut diamond on a plain band for the engagement ring, and an eternity band for the wedding ring.

But I loved the thought that Travis put into the rings – he wanted to get me something that wasn’t really traditional (like what I was picturing) and went to about 10 different ring shops to find exactly what he wanted. He knew that I usually wear small, simple jewelry and wanted to get a smaller, high-quality diamond that would really sparkle, instead of a bigger, lower-quality diamond. He also told me later that he chose a round-cut diamond because apparently, they catch the light better than princess-cut. (Who knew?)

Travis actually bought my engagement and wedding rings together because the wedding ring is a ‘shadow band’. It looks exactly like the engagement ring, only smaller. Travis told me after we were engaged that he thought about giving me the wedding ring (with the smaller diamond) first as a joke, but then realized it probably wouldn’t be funny. (Good call.) And to this day, the cost of my rings is a secret.

We bought Travis’ wedding ring from the same jeweler (white gold, very plain band) and had our wedding date engraved on the inside of our rings (I figured that would give Travis an easy way to remember the date! just kidding). We also got ring cleaner solution with a handy little dipper thing – I could just put my rings (which I got soldered together) onto the dipper thing,  plunge it into the liquid, let it sit for 5-10 minutes, and voila! good as new.

Well, the first month we lived in Boulder, I ended up dumping that solution out all over our bathroom. I’ve looked for the same thing at Walmart and such stores but I’m pretty sure I’d have to go to a real jewelry store to get it (and actually, I think I have done that but they didn’t have the same thing). The jeweler that Travis bought the rings from will do free cleanings but they’re a local jeweler so no dice when we moved to Colorado.

With the design of my ring especially, it needs to be cleaned every couple of months, bare minimum. So what’s a girl who spilled her ring cleaning solution to do?

Use toothpaste. 

Seriously.

{Disclaimer: Some people say that toothpaste will hurt gold but I’ve been using it for 4 years and my ring looks fine. Other alternatives are dishwasher detergent or Windex.}

All of my old toothbrushes (before I got an electric one) became ring cleaning brushes. The toothbrushes work great for getting into the nooks and crannies of my ring and around the diamond, and the toothpaste makes the diamond sparkle like new.

Put a little bit of toothpaste on your toothbrush, add a little warm water and brush away.

Then rinse it with warm/hot water, dry it and voila! Good as new.

{Side note: In the picture above, you can see the aftermath of me slamming my middle finger in our closet door. It took a couple months for that to grow out!}

How do you clean your jewelry?

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Our Alaska Itinerary

21 Jun

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We leave for Alaska tomorrow! Little by little, the knowledge that I’m running a full marathon on Saturday is sinking in, but it still feels surreal. It probably won’t feel real until I’m running the race.

So what are we doing after the marathon?

Just about everything we can pack in. Here’s our itinerary:

Friday 6/22 – Fly into Anchorage. Go to packet pickup. Eat carbs. Sleep.

Saturday 6/23 – Run 26.2 miles.

Celebrate! Shower. Eat. Pick up RV. Sleep.

Sunday 6/24 – Drive to Denali State Park and check into campground. Hike, relax, see the sights for the rest of the day.

Monday 6/25 – Go on Eielson bus tour of Denali State Park.

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Check out of campground and start driving back toward Anchorage. Stay at a rest stop somewhere.

Tuesday 6/26 – Drive down to Seward and check into campground. Hike or relax.

Wednesday 6/27 – Take a Kenai Fjords National Park Cruise all day.

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Thursday 6/28 – Explore Kenai Peninsula. Drive back up to Anchorage.

Friday 6/29 – Fly to Juneau. Visit the Mendenhall Glacier.

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Board the Alaska Marine Highway (ferry) to Ketchikan.

Saturday 6/30 – Spend all day on the ferry – hopefully viewing marine wildlife and glaciers.

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Sunday 7/1 – Arrive in Ketchikan. Depending on weather, either boat out to family friends’ remote cabin or check out Ketchikan.

Monday 7/2 – Explore Ketchikan or fish. I’ll be reading books and napping.

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Tuesday 7/3 – Explore Ketchikan or fish.

Wednesday 7/4 – Explore Ketchikan or fish. Watch the fireworks set off from Pennock Island (I’m hoping).

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Thursday 7/5 – Explore Ketchikan or fish. Head back to Ketchikan if not already there.

Friday 7/6 – Fly back through Seattle to Denver. Cuddle with pooches!!

The first week of the trip will be a whirlwind of sight seeing and I’m sure, very tiring. The second week should have more time for relaxing and hanging out. A good balance. And we’ll have all day Saturday and Sunday back home to do laundry, recuperate and sleep before having to head back to work.

I am so excited for this vacation. It will be the longest vacation I’ve ever taken as an adult (and the most expensive – holy cow!) and after this past year of being so busy and feeling burned out on running and life in general, I’m hoping this trip will refresh me and bring me back ready for triathlon season!

………………….

As for the pooches, they’re being watched by friends the first week of our trip and then going to Camp Bow Wow for the second week. This way, we still get to save some money but they still get to have some fun with other dogs while we’re gone. Should be a good time!

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