It has been a pretty amazing year!!

I've had a pretty awesome year! What am I going to do next?



I'm going to Disneyland!!! See you all in a week!

This will be a pretty amazing week - we will be going with my parents who haven't been to Disney since my 21 year old was around 4 or 5 and we will celebrate my birthday in the park on Wednesday!!

Folsom Turkey Trot!

So we decided to do the Folsom turkey trot for several reasons - but the main one was the crowds at the other run in town. This one was quite manageable and nice and family friendly. the only problem that I see they have was they had both a 10K and a 5K and the 10 K started 10 minutes before the 5K did and in the middle of the 5K the 10K runners were all merging in with the 5k'ers. I know I would have been upset if I was trying to do the 10K competitively and I couldn't due to the course.




This was taken at the end - it actually got pretty warm! Those are both my boys and my older son's finance who is looking mighty slim! She is doing weight watchers as well and totally kicking butt!!









This was taken around the middle of the course - aren't they adorable??

Book - Taken From Home - Eric Francis

Product Description From amazon.com Grand Junction, Colorado, 2001: When Michael Blagg’s adoring wife, Jennifer, and his six year-old-daughter, Abby, disappeared from their home, Michael led the charge to find them, even going so far as to make a nationwide appeal on Good Morning America for information. But seven months later, investigators found Jennifer’s remains in a Mesa County landfill, and things took a darker turn…

Jennifer had been shot in the head, investigators discovered, and Abby was nowhere to be found. While Michael, a respected prayer-group leader, played the part of grieving survivor, authorities became increasingly suspicious There was blood evidence in the back of the family’s van. Was Blagg a cold-blooded killer? A religious fanatic? This is the terrifying true story of what happened when Jennifer and Abby Blagg were…

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I made a quick stop off at the true crime again - It used to be all I read and something about this book grabbed me. I was very well written but hard to read due to the crimes.

Weight Watchers Weigh In!

So I lost .8 - It's a loss and I'm happy I lost - but the weird thing is I would have been much happier with .9 - that would have put me at 202.9 but instead I'm *still* at 203 something - I feel like I have been 203 something forever...

I had a pretty major non-scale victory this week though - on Thursday there was Marie Callendars Banana Cream pie at work and I resisted it all day! I didn't even have a taste!!

Sacfit Saturday!

What a wonderful day! Celebrations abound!! So many people did great things last weekend. I was feeling especially retrospective since today was my last run with the group for this season. I sometimes think about how far I have come and I'm shocked! I went from barely being able to get through my pace mile - to completing two half marathons! I think about all the people who have helped me along the way and I'm so grateful to them for seeing potential and believing in me when sometimes I didn't. I am really speechless - really - me speechless!! The only words that come to me is Thanks. Thanks so much. There are no other words to express my gratitude to Ken and the wonderful people who give of themselves each week to make great things happen for others.

Oh and I did run today - a nice easy 4 miles to top off my season. I ran with a very nice man with a very big heart (you know who you are if you are reading this...) that today gave me some great tips on how to give back in the next season as a pace assistant.

Book - Against Medical Advice - James Patterson

Product Description - From Amazon.com - Cory Friedman woke up one morning when he was five years old with the uncontrollable urge to twitch his neck. From that day forward his life became a hell of irrepressible tics and involuntary utterances, and Cory embarked on an excruciating journey from specialist to specialist to discover the cause of his disease. Soon it became unclear what tics were symptoms of his disease and what were side effects of the countless combinations of drugs. The only certainty is that it kept getting worse. Simply put: Cory Friedman's life was a living hell.AGAINST MEDICAL ADVICE is the true story of Cory and his family's decades-long battle for survival in the face of extraordinary difficulties and a maddening medical establishment. It is a heart-rending story of struggle and triumph with a climax as dramatic as any James Patterson thriller.

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Great book! I really loved hearing about this boy in his own words. Such a brave young man!

I've been tagged!

This was a cool trip down memory lane!

This was my little guys first day of Kindergarten!

Vicki so kindly tagged me...The rules…Find the 6th folder in your pictures directory and post the 6th photo in it.So here are the instructions:* Go to your sixth picture folder then pick your sixth picture* Pray that you remember the details ;)* Post it on your blog* Most people I would pick have been tagged, so I'm not tagging anyone.

Run the river Half Marathon - With Pictures!

Warning - I'm being brave and showing pictures that don't really show me at my best! Consider yourself warned!!

Here is my boy with his sign he worked really hard on. He was the first person I saw as I came around the corner towards the finish line - I heard my mom, she was yelling something and ringing a cowbell. Notice the people around him, dressed like they should have been for a race...

Here is me! Running across the finish line, really hot, my head was pounding and my legs were cramping really bad. Notice what I'm wearing - that would be a long sleeve shirt and long pants - I was prepared for it to be cooler and what the heck was I thinking wearing all black??

My dad so kindly took pictures of me in the medic tent. I only sat here for about 5 minutes. I just needed to catch my breath and let the leg cramps lessen a little, I had a nice cold chocolate milk and was told to walk around a bit to help the legs. The guy in the yellow jacket is Philmore - he is a coach with my running group and an all around great guy. He helped me from the chute to the medic tent. The lady in white was giving me my medal!

I was so through having pictures taken of me (the last three were taken within about 10 minutes of each other) and I had taken off my hat so my hair was out there - but this pic shows my angel pin my parents gave me and the necklace my hubby gave me. The necklace is a journey heart which represents the many journeys that we have in life. I will take a good picture of my medal and of my necklace and post it in a couple of days.

Run the River Half Marathon!

I wanted to put a quick update on the blog - I do have a new PR! 13 seconds faster than my last half marathon - the conditions though were really bad today - It was HOT! Who would have thought that November 15th would be so hot?? We had a high of 80 degrees and long parts of the trail there were no shade at all and at a few points I didn't think I was going to finish. I walked a lot of the last two miles and then sprinted across the finish line only to be overcome by leg cramps as soon as I stopped to take the timing thing off. I had to be drug to the first aid tent, where they worked on my legs a little and got me at least walking around and moving again. I don't feel bad anymore though - what I went through was repeated time and time again at the finish line. People who are very experienced runners were being overcome by the leg cramps.

At the finish line I was cheered on by my parents, both my sons and my hubby! I got a very pretty medal - I got an adorable little angel pin from my parents - and from my hubby a beautiful journey heart in silver and blue topaz. I will post pictures soon, but right now I just need some water and a nap.

Remember to breathe on the night of the big run!

So I should be in bed already - but I'm still getting things ready for tomorrow! I'm ashamed to say that I'm actually waiting for my pants to come out of the washer! Talk about not planning ahead! I have a new pair of tights, but they say nothing new on race day and even though they are the same brand, only 3/4 length instead of full length, I don't want to risk it. I got my race packet tonight and I'm bib number 93! I would take a pic, but again no time - I will take one tomorrow morning before wrinkling with with all the running!! I am pretty fortunate - my part of the race doesn't start until 8:30! The people who are doing 50K start earlier and then the people who are doing the full marathon start after them and I start last. I'm going to stay down there until the last people come in. I'm very excited! Hubby bought me a little something to commemerate the season and the runs I have done. I will also share that once I get back home and recovered! Well got to run! (pun intended!!!)

Book - Invisible Chains - Kristina Sauerwein

Book Review - From Publishers Weekly - Sauerwein, a former reporter for the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and the L.A. Times, delves into a puzzling kidnapping case with penetrating true crime reporting. She describes 11-year-old Shawn Hornbeck's disappearance from his rural Missouri hometown, while riding his bike in 2002. He was abducted by Michael Devlin, an innocuous-seeming pizza-shop manager who repeatedly sexually abused and tortured Shawn for four years. In a strange twist, Devlin also assumed a fatherly role and Hornbeck became his son; even given freedom to go out alone, Hornbeck never tried to escape. Shawn was joined by another kidnapped boy, Ben Ownby, four days before the police nabbed Devlin in January 2007. The unusual psychological aspects of Hornbeck's captivity and his failure to attempt to escape are explained, according to Sauerwein, by the Stockholm syndrome, which leads a captive to bond with his captor. An impeccable, on-target true crime narration, this book of loss, perversity and redemption illuminates not only the desperate pangs of a predator's sexual hunger but the steadfast love of two families for their missing children.

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I was intrigued by this case as was much of the world, so when this book came through, I had to read it. It wasn't easy to read in spots, but was very interesting.

Weight Watchers Weigh In!

So today I stepped on the scale and I lost .1 - yup POINT 1 - As I just told someone - a loss is a loss no matter how small - at least I'm going in the right direction and at least it wasn't a gain!

Sac Fit Saturday!

So today was a short run of only 5 miles. I can not believe that I will be running yet another half marathon in a week! I also can not believe that my season will be over after that run. The official end to the season isn't until Dec 7th at CIM - but I will be on vacation so I won't be taking part in that race this year. Next Saturday is my last goal race for this season.

Anyway - the run went OK - I ate things I should not have on Friday night and I didn't get enough sleep thanks to a very talkative 8 year old who talks to you whether you are awake or not. Those two things I will not repeat next week!

After the run the red group coaches all had brought breakfast fixings and we had a little buffet breakfast - it was so good and everyone was so generous!! We even had chocolate! Do the coaches know us or what?!?!?

The organizer has been asking around for people to be pace assistants next season and I have decided to take the challenge and sign up! I'm really excited to be giving back to the group that has given me so much! I'm very excited about possibly doing this and I need to master my Garmin and all of its functions and I need to try and maintain a consistent pace, but I feel with a little discipline I can do this. I can't wait to cheer others on and help them meet their goals.

Book - Dirty Little Secrets - Trisha Ashworth and Amy Nobile

Product Description From Amazon.com - Trisha Ashworth and Amy Nobile conducted interviews with hundreds of mothers while researching their best-selling book I Was a Really Good Mom Before I Had Kids. It didn't take long before these moms began to reveal their Dirty Little Secrets—surprising, thought-provoking, guilty confessions they hadn't told anyone else. Cringe-worthy moments ("I bit my daughter's finger trying to steal a bite of her cookie.") meet real insights ("I love my kids but I didn't always. It took time to fall in love with them."). These are the private thoughts that every mom has—and every mom can relate to.

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I read their first book and really liked it - this one was a quick read, only one confession per page so it only took me about 20 minutes to go through it. I was surprised I could relate to so many. But do you know what I really liked about the book? The cupcake on the front cover....

Book - Escape - Carolyn Jessop

Description from Wikipedia - Escape is a book by Carolyn Jessop and Laura Palmer. It discusses Jessop's difficult upbringing in the FLDS polygamist church and the division that took place in that church in the 1970s and '80s. According to her story, at age 18 she was forced into a marriage with a 50-year-old man, Merril Jessop, who already had three other wives.

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I found the book very scary and very eye opening. It is amazing that there are people in this world that are living like this. I was intriged by the group after they made the news. What she talked about in the book was about what I expected to hear, but there were still things that shocked me.

I should buy a lottery ticket!!

So when I won the gift card for the mall on Halloween I was entered to win the grand prize of two tickets anywhere Southwest flies. Well Pat and Tom the morning Dj's called me this morning and left me a message - I won!!! I'm not sure what we will use then for yet, but I'm thinking a nice romantic trip somewhere with the hubby might be in order!!

Weight Watchers Weigh In!

So today I ate breakfast, took Logan to school and then went to the park to run. It was beautiful out there, the new track is simply wonderful to run on and I did almost three miles!

Then I went to Weight Watchers and weighed in! I'm down 2.3 pounds this week! I'm very happy about how my Monday went!!

Officially Registered!!

So the family is doing a new family tradition this year - we are running on Thanksgiving!!

My oldest son wanted to go to his fiance's for Thanksgiving and my parents have been asking for years to go out for dinner instead, so I thought - I could sign up for a community fun run and Matt can go to his fiance's and we could go out with my parents for a late lunch.

Benefits? Activity points before big meal! Lunch instead of dinner - not as much food! No cooking, cleaning and leftovers! Showing Logan how runners can help the community (the run benefits the food bank)! In bed early and not feeling too stuffed to sleep! No heartburn from eating too much too late!

Matt and his fiance are even joining us for the run before they go to her parents house. I think it will be a lot of fun!

Here is the run - http://folsomturkeytrot.com/

Folsom is the town where my oldest works and it isn't too far from where we are. Sacramento has the run to feed the hungry, but with over 25,000 people participating it is a little big for us.

Sac Fit Saturday - AKA playing in the rain!

So on the menu for Saturday was 8 miles - I have not ran in two weeks due to some minor medical issues that I didn't want to make worse, so I was a little worried, but I kicked butt! Oh and did I mention it was raining? My very first run in the rain. Until mile 6 it was actually only misting and I even got hot with all the layers I had on - so I started taking layers off and even my hat came off (I love my new short haircut is looks great even when wet!) So about the time I got back to a comfortable temperature the skies opened up and I was too lazy to start putting the layers back on and I *only* had 2 more miles to go. I was so wet! I did eventally get my headband back on, but not because I got cold, it was to keep the rain from dripping off my forehead into my eyes. Back where we started we were greated with hot chocolate and tents to stay under. I had a great run! I felt great (and wet), several people told me I looked great (and wet) and I finished right on training pace (I think my pace got wet too). I would definatly run in the rain again, I think I rather liked it!!

Oh and passing us going the other way was people doing a 50 miler! Those people amaze me. They had bib numbers on and I passed one of their aid stations. It was marked "Only 26.9 miles to go!" Wow!!

A great and profitable Halloween!

So hubby entered the pumpkin carving contest at work and this was his entry. He won a 25 dollar gift card for Gas and also won the halloween trivia contest for another 25 dollar gift card for gas.

On the way home he called me and sarcastiacally asked me what I had won today - well obviously nothing right? I have a long drive home and during the drive they started a "count the music" contest on the country station I listen to and I'm thinking well if they only play a few songs before ending it then I might have a chance. So they stop the clock after 4 songs and tehy ask for caller 25 and I dial and dial and dial and it rings - I'm the right caller and I knew they played 4 songs! I got 25 dollars for each song in the form of a mall gift certificate. So I have to tell my huuby he needed to repeat his question!

Logan was sick and didn't go to school and we only took him out too about 5 houses before it started raining again, but here is Logan in his costume!!