Catching Up

I haven't posted in a while because things have been nuts!  I just realized I only have 8 weeks left until the Colfax Marathon and I am in the thick of the training.  To catch up, here's been what's been going on:

• A few weeks ago my son broke the 2 major bones in his wrist.  He was a trooper about it, but it was a hard day nonetheless.  He had to be put under anesthesia to reset the bones and some hardy pain meds for the first couple nights to help him sleep.  Honestly, I am surprised at 6 this was his first broken bone because my son is a monkey.  If he isn't climbing, jumping, kicking, or running, he is asleep.  

• Each week since he broke his arm, I've been in doctor's offices and hospitals getting him x-rays and casts.  Yes, that is plural, he needs 3 different casts and over 30 x-rays by the time this is over.  So the good news is, Ethan may become his own night light soon.

• My youngest son, Owen, graced us with the stomach flu.  I'll leave out the details.

• I crossed the 50 mile barrier.  I thought balloons would shoot out of the ground or something, which made it anticlimactic when I decided to take a nap instead.  

• A friend hired me as an assets photographer for a building company.  Normally, I do portrait photography so this was a whole new world for me, but I embraced the challenge.  For the first time in years, I got up way before dawn, drove downtown and waited for the sun to rise while I sat absolutely still.  I froze my butt off, but I loved every minute.

• I bought a new winter running jacket.  It is the Nike Element.  I LOVE this jacket.  It even has a built in face mask and mittens for crazy cold days that fold back into the jacket when you don't need them.  My husband thought those details were silly and unnecessary considering we own a treadmill but I like the idea of them.  It was on sale at the outlets from $275 to $50. 

• My husband and I saw Jim Gaffigan live this weekend at the Temple Buell Theater with some friends.  I laughed so hard, my abs were genuinely sore for three days after the show.  "Hot Pocket!"

• I've seen 4 different men running along my neighborhood streets wearing their Colfax Marathon shirts from last year.  I want to yell at them, "You rock!"  But I just smile and drive on.    

• Not feeling well throughout my Sunday 10 miler, I decided to take Monday off.  I am fighting a small head cold.  However, Tuesday was a great day for speed work as I decided I would sweat the little virus right out of my system.  Today, he fought back again as I froze my tail off in 11 degree wind chills.  Tomorrow is a tempo day, I'll kill him then.

Well, that's about as random as it gets.  The race still feels very far off, but I am 17 weeks into this training plan and into the thick of the mileage.  I am trying not to look to deeply into things right now as it makes me so much more exhausted to see where I am headed.  Balancing daily life and saving enough energy in the tank to get through the rest of the day is the trick.  Some days I feel really good and I think, "I could push a lot harder than this!" But I have to practice some restraint, following the plan closely leaves energy to play with my boys and get up again the next day.  Marathon training round 2 has taught me patience. 


How is your week going?  
How do you keep up with training and kill a virus?
What is your favorite cold weather gear?

~Roadburner

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