Day 13... Poppy Fun all day Long!!!

Day 13 .... I left for the RedPoppyRide by 6:45am.

(Sunrise)


I hadn't registered yes, so I wanted to get there early to. I get there in plenty of time. Ride start time is 8am and this is NOT a race just a supported ride with entry fees going to Scholarship Fund for GeorgetownISD .. I like that.


Before the start...

After we head out this is one of the fun riders we saw...


This is so super cool and this dog was a HAPPY DOG!!

At mile 31.. we rolled into the first "REST STOP"

While at the rest stop... It's time to eat some pickles.. This is a total "ROADIE" thing and I think it's great.. Keeps the salt in and cramps out.


This was pickle #5 for me..

Off we go.. Pam is riding strong..

AND she got a sweet new Carbon Bike!!!Wilier..NICE!

At about 50 miles into the ride I was feeling like this..

Then it passes and I get my second wind. We hit our next "REST STOP" and they had some yummy homemade cornflake concoction..that ROCKED...that's the smile on my face after I ate that treat!!

Time to go again... On our 3rd rest stop we actually had bike holders.. THAT was COOL too!!

We had major wind the entire ride at some points it was so mental you just put your head down and pushed through.

At this point we had about 25 miles to go. This was the usual spread... Cookies, oranges, Bananas, PBand J, Pickles, and water and gatorade.. NICE!

Time to roll... we were almost done!!!!!

and into the FINISH... we ROLL!!!




We hopped off our bikes and Ed and I went straight into a 25 minute run. I was done and thirsty and in a bit of a hurry at this point. I was meeting Rob and the kids at the Georgetown Red Poppy Festival!!

I again changed clothes in the car, thank you for wetwipes, with no shower.. this would have to suffice. We parked and went to meet the kids.

On the way.. OMG this is what we ran into... SWEET CORVETTES!!!!
Corvette video Below:o)




After that car adrenaline rush.. I got a super loving greeting from my kids. They missed me and it was time to play. We went straight to the bounce houses.. I waited in line for Kettle corn, Snowcones, and Cotton Candy.. Nothing like a festival.

COOL ART!!

AND.... THE BISCUIT BROTHERS!!!!I am going to add all the video footage in 3 clips.. I love these guys probably as much as the kids.. SO, Here you go...

and now... for the Biscuit Brothers...OK... The Video of the Corvettes and Biscuit Brothers are taking forever to load.. So, I will try again tomorrow.. on this same post. I am getting ready to call it a night.

After the concert we play on a John Deere tractor and stopped for a couple pictures for fun!!

John Deere!!!  WooHoo!!

Just some good fun pictures for your enjoyment. 

We head to a park to play for a bit and then to the car to head home.  I NEED CAFFEINE...

We get home and I actually start cleaning house then head outside to plant more flowers... HUH?? you'd think I was done by now. 

6pm.. I head inside to cook dinner and download pictures from today.  Rob is still out riding and we are just hanging out. 

6:30 Rob comes in and kids go out to play.  I go down to get them a few minutes later.. time to get ready for bed...

It's now 9:45 and I am done... Today was Super FUN!!!

iSwim,iRide,iRun,iPlay... iNeverStop...

Day 14...Moving Forward...Full Steam..

Day 14... Pancake stack again... and it seems it's well like by others as well, so at the end of this blog I will try to add a recipe by the day.. I normally wing it and season to taste but, I will do my best to give you some good ideas.

7:15 Cameron is off to school Annie Ant project in hand.

Morgan and I get home and I start getting some more cleaning projects done. First, mow... rain is coming and I actually like to mow wet grass, keeps all that crazy dry stuff from blowing up my nose. Second, hose down the upstairs deck. Third, hose down front porch from hosing down upstairs and washing all outdoor furniture. Now, that was some work.

11am.. time to run some errands and pick up shoes that have been donated for the FortytoForty countdown collection for the ShoeBank as well as financial donations.. Thank you Jen Smith.

I also want to thank Karen English for all her shoe donations. I will be collecting until May 01. If you are in Austin please go by Anytime Fitness on Anderson Mill, for a shoe donation you will receive a two week membership as well as a fitness consult. Michael Bland is the contact. Also at VO2 Triathlon and Cycles.. 10% discount on new shoes. http://www.vo2tc.com/

So, back to the day. I get back from errands and finish up.

Morgan and I are going to pick Cameron up and head straight to the pool to swim.. Today I called, they are open. I tell Cameron and he is thrilled!! We head to the car quickly.

We get to the gym, and I see no lifeguards so I inquire with the 1 staff member I see. She tells me Family Swim is inside..YUCK. I tell her both my children can swim and I will be outside swimming laps can we please swim outside.. She is OK with that so we go outside and I swim a very easy 1000, which is 40 laps..Cameron and Morgan play.. Then Cameron films me swimming in the rain. At this point it's raining pretty good.


This water feels AWESOME!!!



I am done with my swim and it starts to pour down rain. We head inside now for Family Swim and join the other... families. I sit down to actually work CORE pool side and the kids are happily playing with other children.

Morgan and her bag of watermelon. Yummy!!

4:45 time to head home, I have dinner to cook. Tonights menu: Turkey Tofu Meatloaf, Brown rice and Mixed Veggies.

My favorite cutter in the world....

So the recipe for this yummy dinner and might I add one of Rob's favorites:

1.25lbs ground turkey
1 med onion
garlic(I use about a table spoon of that mince garlic in the jar)
3/4 cup organic bread crumbs
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 box Silken MoriNu Light Tofu(Firm)
1TBS soy sauce
pepper(fresh Cracked preferred)
1 egg, lightly beaten.

1.Saute onions and garlic.. Can add mushrooms if you want(rob does not like mushrooms)I use just a touch of oil.

2. mix all ingredients in bowl...
3. Bake uncovered in loaf pan for maybe an hour.
and..... here you go... I hope you make some of my recipes and...ENJOY!!!

Let me say, while all this cooking was going on, Cameron was having a fit that his eyes were burning.. Milk is a cure, so we put a tad of milk in his eyes. He was so tired at the kitchen table eating dinner, this is what happened..

He was head bobbing at the table... I was cracking up. He never actually ate his dinner and Rob carried him to bed.

Now for the finished dinner..Time to eat!!!  Both kids are in bed and it's only 7:30..Woohoo!!  I still  have a bit of work to do but, I am hoping nothing to dramatic.  Tomorrows ride is about 85 miles and I have a full day following.. We'll see you then!!

iSwim,iRun,iRide,iPlay...iNfinity...

Day 15...Frolicking FUN!!!

Day 15... WOW, everyone was up bright and early. They wanted pancakes for breakfast. 6:30 I start the pancake making process and we take turns adding the ingredients. ALL organic Flour, baking soda, sea salt, sugar, butter, egg, and milk, mexican vanilla, and a dash of cinnamon. Cameron thinks I have the market cornered on the world's best pancakes.

I use my favorite Pampered Chef pan..and here you go, yummy pancakes for breakfast.

7:15 time to go. We get in the car and it's kind of drizzly. Morgan and I walk Cameron in, blow kisses and head back to the car.

Now it's time to get Morgan ready for MDO... I am planning on heading straight downtown to run the Barton Creek Greenbelt. I get all my stuff ready. She is wanting to take a bag stuffed with toys today. Fine, let's just go.

I drop her off and head downtown. I am pretty excited, I have never run this trail before.

I get going, and I am kind of happy for the overcast skies and drizzle. Keeps me cool. After about 1/4 mile I hit a canopy of trees and I am running parallel to Barton Creek. It's just beautiful back here and I can hardly believe in the 4 years I have been here I have never run this trail. Shame on ME! It's beautiful, the sounds are amazing and so is the fragrance of the flowers. It is LUSH with green.

These are some of the pictures I stopped to take along the way.

I can jump in the water at any point actually.

after quite a bit of running through the trail, I manage to get myself lost. I try to avoid trail shootoffs, but somewhere I made an OOPS.. I also knew at this point I had no time to waste, I had an hour to get back.



Finally I found the trail back... I remembered some of these rocks, they were tough to get over the first time.



This was a bit of a challenge and definitely not RUN -able. I make it back to the car...
2:04:40..there is Waldo "40"

 with plenty of time to take a dive in the Barton Springs Pool!!! YEAH!!! I head down but, there is a problem.....

They are closed!!!  DRATS!!!Back to the car!!   I was hoping to get an icey dip in Barton Creek... Divers and all, they are cleaning.

  Back to the car.. I dry my sweaty legs off with a towel and hop in my car.  I'm hungry, but no time to stop.  Thankfully I have a snack.  My favorite True North cranberry almond crisps..YUMMY!

I pick Morgan up and we head home. 

 I need a shower.  In and out, then off to get Cameron. 

  Cameron and I head to the store, today is EARTH DAY and so far I have spent most of my day enjoying the beautiful outdoor.  I think that's pretty cool.  At HEB if you bring in plastic bags today you get this..

Free Earth Day bag for me!!  WooHoo!!

My next plan is to ride at 4pm.. Weather is grey but it's not raining. I text out, RIDE IS ON.  Great... We are all in.

Cameron and I get home and we start working on his Leaf Cutter Ant model.  I stop to go outside, it's 4pm to get my bike ready.. IT'S RAINING.. Ride is off.. I sent texts.  It's just to slick and dangerous. 

So, Cameron and I finish his project...Yes, I made him a little grassy spot.  We never do anyting half way 'round here.  It's a girl... googly eyes have eyelashes.. HAAHAA! Annie Ant. 

Now it's time for me to get on my trainer since our outside ride was cancelled.. I watch cartoons with the kids and read until it's time to do my climbs...

 Then it's all focus.. 45 minutes later I am done and in the kitchen cooking dinner.

Of course I was still in my riding clothes, I do what I can.  Dinner's done, kids are showered and in bed and I am going to catch up on American Idol.  I am still on the 9 competing.. and yes, I know who already got kicked off, but I still like to watch.. Bowersox and Lee Dewyze are my FAV!!! I really don't care if either win or not, they are both awesome and I will download their music.  I'm a FAN!!  Allright so until tomorrow..... iSwim,iRide,iRun,iPlay and tonight iSing....

Day 16... Sweet 16

Day 16 ... Almost started with drama, but after the 1 second I took away TV privileges I totally got the "I was just trying to make you laugh mommy, I was only playing."  uh-huh.. We'll then, it was funny, now go get ready.  Morgan stayed home, so it was a nice and speedy drop off session.

Wednesdays are clean house day for me, so I get started right away.  Floors to mop, sheets to wash, laundry to fold.. and so on.

By noon it's time to get on my trainer.  I am quite fatigued from racing 2 times in one week so, I'm just riding an easy 60 minutes.  Nothing fancy.  I am actually reading a magazine (Triathlon) and riding away.  I am contemplating my training in the process, as well as the athletes I coach.  I usually will try new things out on myself before I decide I think they would benefit the athletes I coach. 

After I am done with my spin, I start working on my Xterra Athletes training.. I am getting way more detailed because I have a better plan of attack now that I have seen the courses per say.  This type of training is completely different from road racing.  Constant Heart Rate fluctuation, and mostly breathless on the climbs.. So, it was time to throw in some super details. 

2pm.. It's time for me to get ready to get Cameron and we are going straight to the pool!!We get to swim outside today!!  YAY!!  Morgan and Cameron can play in the big pool while I train in the lap pool.

Morgan and I get Cameron and he's excited to swim as well.

We get to the gym.. DRATS!!!! Family swim is 11-2. UGH!!! Total BUMMER. They want to leave, so I have to sit them down for a pep talk, because I still want to swim. I can still swim but, no lifeguards for the kids.  They are extremely dissappointed but they do enjoy playing in the kids gym.   After a little coercion they fold.  I promise Cameron he can run 3 miles when we get home.. Yes, for him that is a reward.. hum.. think he's my son or what? 

I take them in and I hurry to change.  I go outside and stick my foot in.  It's a tad chilly but, the sun is shining and it's just beautiful to be outside.  I dive right in!!!

Does that not look LUSH!! 

I did everything on 40's 1x40, 4x250(10 laps) then 10x4(100s).. There is Waldo:o)  I felt pretty good.  I shower and get the kids. 

10 minutes out Cameron starts planning his run/walk.  I tell him he's gonna go with his daddy.  Mommy needs to cook dinner.  He's bummed because he has to wait for daddy to get ready.. He is very impatient to get going.. Again, like his mommy. 

Daddy is finally ready...

Off they go for their run... I smile and go inside. 

I am actually meeting Ed tonight to discuss his training for the next 6 weeks.  He's here at 5:30 and we talk training for about an hour.  In between all that, as usual I have my daily intake of the children in the 'HOOD in and out my front door and eating all the snacks in the house, letting my dogs out.. Typical after 5 afternoon at my house.

Rob mows the lawn and I cook dinner.  Kids are fed and I send Cameron upstair to Daddy's office to work on Project Leaf Cutter Ant for school with his daddy.  I smile... More time with his Daddy.  Project due Friday but, I want him to learn procrastination is not good, so we start early and are ready ahead of time. 

Cramming never works in my field.. If I don't plan my training ahead of time and think I can do well by waiting until the last few weeks, I'd never be successful in my racing.  Plan, Prepare, Execute.. Get it done. 

So, as exciting or not as my day is or was, it's almost 10pm and I'm going to bed.  I am done a little early and I need some rest.  I am again excited about running tomorrow.  I am planning a new route, wait til you see what I have in store, it's somewhere I've never run before:o)  I hope it's fun!!!

iSwim,iRide,iRun,iPlay.... iLIVE

Day 17... Seriously..You've got to be kidding...

Day 17.. As you read my blog, you will understand my title for today. Cameron...7:15 in Car.. Check. Cameron.. Drop off at school.. Check. Morgan ready for MDO... Check. Drop Morgan off... Check. So far so good.

After this I am deciding my run for the day and I want to change it up a bit. I decide to head downtown. I feel like running Town Lake, it's so beautiful today. So, I hop in the car with all my gear and still really don't have a plan. But, I have plenty of time. I park under the bridge by Lake Austin where Run-Tex is located. 

As usual I take pictures and video for you to enjoy... So here goes.

Actually first let me say, I had a slight trail detour from the lake which was kind of cool... Bridge construction.. I run out about 4 milesI turned around about 1 mile past I-35 to head back and do my Up and Over on the street West of Congress.. Don't know the name so let's just for my sake call it... Up and Over Drive. But, before I got to UaO Drive. I filmed Congress St. Bat Bridge.

Austin is home to the largest Bat population in the United States and they mostly live under the Congress St Bridge. They are called the Mexican Freetail Bat and eat millions of tons of bugs each night.. They are not vampire bats.. So don't be afraid.. BUT do not ever touch a bat, they can have rabies. So, here in Austin in the late summer and early fall our skies are black by the bridge at dusk, as all the bats come out to eat all those pesky mosquitos.. It's a very cool sight to see. Time for run on Up and Over Dr.





Now for a few Photo Ops along the way. First my water stop by the Dog Park..

Nice cold water..

Down a bit further, the Stevie Ray Vaughn Memorial.

Then I head towards the Barton Springs but, make a right and cross over another bridge.

So far all is great!! Headed back toward Zilker Park and then a cross over/under the bridge towards by car.



I cross and then decide to run up a hill 40 seconds (there is my 40) sort of like finding Waldo today,and back down, for that... one to grow on thing I like to do. Total was a bit over 9 miles.

Now it's time to head to the car and LUNCH.. Pita PIT!! YUMMY!!!! I use to go to Pita Pit in Hermosa Beach, CA once or twice a week when we live in California.. I love this place!!

I even have the FBC.. Frequent Buyer Card..

Fresh Grilled chicken, or whatever you want. Then the build!!

See that shredded lettuce, I could eat that whole container!!!

Everything is still going great!! Here is my yummy pita being built, and then eaten.. My fine driving and dining experience..

Now I am in a bit of a rush to go get Morgan and I'm all sweaty.. Great.. I pick her up and back home we go.

We get home and I let the dogs in. Jackson is having a problem sitting down and it looks like he's hurt. Everytime he sits, or lays down he has a painful bark kind of yowl. I hurry and get in the shower so I don't smell when I go to get Cameron, still very concerned about Jackson. I leave to pick Cameron up and get home only to see that Jackson is worse.

He is salivating, and just looks like serious pain. Something is wrong with his tail. Now I am getting stressed. I am doing a Splash and Dash Race at 6pm and it's 4:20 at this point. I need to get hime to the Dr.

Remember how I said one of my kids gets sick or something random everytime I race. Now, it's my DOG??? What the_____? I call the Vet and they say bring him in. It's just up the street, they actually have to give him a shot for pain so they can take X-rays. I leave to trade cars with Rob, he is going to meet me at Pure Austin for the little race.

5:45, the vet calls. Jackson has dislocated his tail, seriously? You've got to be kidding me. Nothing they can do but, he needs pain medication, it's kind of like jamming a finger. I go pick him up and I get the bill... $300 .. What??? UGH..Seriously, you've got to be kidding. Whatever, let's go. I'm just glad he's all right. I have NO IDEA how he did that.

Next... Kids, hurry we need to leave. I arrive at Pure Austin with plenty of time.

Splash and Dash is a series held at Pure Austin and is approximately 750m swim and a 3k run. Super fun and my kids and another couple Steve and Kenda had their kids out there playing so it was great. We also had a ton of people that did the Xterra out there this weekend here, so it was super cool.

The race was super short and super fast. We take off for the swim, and then head into shore. I rush to get out of my wetsuit and was super dizzy finally getting it off and get my running shoes on, I take off.. 3 loops and I am done. 26 minutes.. Sweet. I chase down another friend at the finish Ruben Reyes and made him sprint to the finish. Glad he enjoyed that:o)

Here are a couple pictures of Morgan and me hanging out by food area

We are hanging out and I see a great friend from high school, Keith Eddleman, he lives here to and does triathlon as well. He is the mastermind behind my website; http://www.irunitri.com/

Me and Keith.

This was a ton of fun, I don't know how I did, they didn't actually have my time.  Seriously?? You've got to be kidding me. I was so fast, I disappeared..LOL They are working on it though. I'll let you know tomorrow.  Really, it's not a big deal, but let me add that the race I won on Saturday.. Same thing. This morning I get a text saying I need to contact Xterra, there is No Race Time for me. Seriously? You've got to be kidding me. They called me but, a press release had already gone out. So after a few phone calls this morning, and a few emails, I received a  revised Press Release.  Whew... I wanted to make sure that didn't fall under the radar.


So, just when you would think that after all this stuff.. I would be going home and to bed. NOT!! I have a Birthday Party to go to (baby shower) actually.. Meeting a group of friends to Celebrate our new baby boy.. Kaari is due in a few weeks, my dear friend Kaari, the one that is also moving back to New Braunfels. So, I head to Mesa Rosa. I change clothes in the parking lot. I have been swimming, and running and my hair is a mess. I am glad they are good friends. My shorts are wet because I put them on over my swim suit and I am freezing.

Please tell me some has a jacket. The fiasco with Jackson left me totally unprepared. Going home and showering etc.. would have cost me like 30 minutes. I just sucked it up and thankfull Jen had a jacket. I was turning BLUE

 We finished our celebration and headed out for the evening. 

                                                

I get home and Jackson is passed out from painkillers

Poor Baby.

.. I'm pooped.. It's been a full day.  Whew...I fit it all in somehow.  iSwim,iRide,iRun,iPlay... Non-Stop, Allday!!!