Lighten up.

I'm back among the living. But before I tell you all about that, let me get to some good news: The Gotein winner!

Thanks to everyone who entered. The winner (chosen using random.org) is Heather from The World Through My Eyes. Congrats! Send me an email at felicehalf at yahoo dot com and I'll send you your goodies!


*     *     *

OK, so, back among the living. Yes, indeed.

For the past week or so I was going bonkers with business writing. Spelling rules (i before e except after c . . . ), punctuation (the apostrophe is for possession and contraction only, not for plural . . .), the use and mis-use of PowerPoint. I've covered it all. And now I am done. Deadline met.

And just in time for the long holiday weekend. Phew!

I still made time for some runs and plenty of fun with my boys because, after all, that is my job. The fun with the boys part, that is. I can only wish that running was my job. Maybe someday.

Speaking of which, I contemplated taking the RRCA coaching course that is going to be offered in NYC in September but it sold out just. like. that. Coaching dreams on-hold for a while longer.

Sigh.


Anyway, today I am taking a leap and heading out to my local Fleet Feet to grab up some light weight racing shoes. Racing flats? Probably not that light but I am looking for something lighter than the shoes I wear right now. I have plans people and my biggest one right now is to get my half-marathon time down to around 1:45 (my current PR is 1:49). Lighter shoes could help. So would giving up ice cream but do I really want to do that?

Nah.

(Do not judge.)

We'll see how it goes with the lighter shoes. I love my current running shoes -- my dear Somnios -- but I think that for speed work and races, lighter will be better.

Do you race or do speedwork in lighter shoes? Do you like them? 

Have the lighter shoes made a difference for you?

I'd love to know.

Off to get speedy -- and, hey, I just happen to have speedwork on the schedule tonight. Running serendipity!

Have a great day!

~ Felice

Trippy run.

It was a near catastrophe.

Yesterday afternoon, I went for a 9-mile run. It was a typical "mom" run in that I wasn't able to plan when I could get out there but just had to squeeze it in to my day. Owen had been away camping so I had to wait for him to return. Since he was camping where cell phone reception is spotty at best, he couldn't call to give me an ETA until he was pretty close to home. Then, I had to nurse the baby before I could hit the road. But no matter, I got out there around 12:45.

It was a terrific run. For the most part. You know, except for that near catastrophe.

I was powering along my hilly route, running at a strong pace and feeling great. About 8.2 miles into my run, though, I saw a BIG, SHARP, POINTY, EVIL rock right where I was about to step with my right foot. Fortunately, I was able to step quickly to the left and avoid the rock.

UNfortunately, I didn't see that there was another BIG, SHARP, POINTY, EVIL rock right in my new path. And, yes, my right foot did hit that rock and, yes, I did trip. And, of course, as I was falling, I saw MANY OTHER BIG, SHARP, POINTY, EVIL rocks.

But! Some how, some way, as I put my hands out in from of me, my left foot managed to jut out in front of my body and stop me from falling. Then, my right foot followed and, before I knew it, I was back running, almost as if nothing had ever happened.

My heart was racing, for sure, and my arms were all tingly. And my toes kinda hurt from where I stepped on that rock. But, other than that . . . catastrophe averted so I was fine.

If I had landed on any of those BIG, SHARP, POINTY, EVIL rocks, I surely would have cut and banged up my legs enough to possibly put me on the shelf for the rest of the summer. I kid you not. That's how evil those rocks were.

Trippy, trippy . . .

In the end, I finished my 9-mile run in a solid 8:40 pace. Today, I feel great. Bring on the Boilermaker!


Have a good week, everyone!

~ Felice

PS: Don't forget to enter my Gotein giveaway!

Distracted.

Exhibit A that I have too much going on and am far too distracted these days:

A friend called to invite me to go strawberry picking today but the timing just wasn't going to work out with naps and such. Once the baby woke up, though, I decided I couldn't resist fresh strawberries so I took the boys by myself. It was great. Conal loved picking the strawberries, we ran into one of Owen's friends, and we all got some sunshine and fresh air.

Our bounty (after we ate about a dozen or so berries each):

Delicious!

So, I put the strawberries in the back of the car, put Niall in his car seat and helped strap Conal into his booster.

What I didn't do is take my wallet off the top of my car before I left the parking lot.

So, yeah. Two minutes after pulling away, I looked in my rear view mirror saw a whole bunch of wallet-type cards and papers bouncing off the road. I immediately knew what happened.

It was my wallet and everything that is normally inside it, sprayed all over the road. I slowed down, pulled into a driveway and turned around. I had to try to get it and the items -- you know, like my license, credit cards, etc., etc. -- so when I got to the scene of the Great Wallet Drop I turned into yet another driveway, flicked on my flashers and ran along the side of the road picking up an appointment card here, a receipt there . . . it was about as embarrassing as it gets. For real.

Here's what I gathered:

Nice, right?

Yeah, I think I have a little too much on my mind these days. Good thing it was only the wallet that I forgot to put in the car!

Fortunately, the big project I've been working on is due on Monday so once that is done and submitted I shouldn't be quite so distracted. At least I hope not!

Until then, I have an easy run on the schedule for tonight and a 9-miler this weekend. Have a great weekend, everyone! Don't lose your wallets . . .

~ Felice

Gotein! Review and giveaway.

I am a sucker for word plays and clever names so Gotein -- "protein to go!" -- basically had me at, well, at Gotein.

Gotein is a powdered protein drink that comes in handy little stick packets that make it very portable. You pour the powder into your regular water bottle and voila! instant protein drink. Actually, there is another step -- you need to drink about 1/3 of the bottle of water before pouring the Gotein powder in, to get the mixture right. Or, if you prefer not to use those plastic water bottles, you can just pour Gotein and about 11oz (cup and a half) into your regular re-usable water bottle. Voila! Instant protein drink -- again.

Each packet has 16 or 17grams of protein, 5 or 6grams of carbs and 100-110 calories. You can read more about the nutritional information HERE.

So, OK. Gotein is easy to use and gives you lots of protein. And it tastes surprisingly good. I always expect drinks like this to taste chalky and I didn't find that with Gotein at all. Gotein comes in three flavors: Vanilla, chocolate and strawberry. My favorite -- by far -- is the vanilla flavor. My least favorite is the strawberry and the chocolate was right in the middle.

I took the Gotein out of the water bottle, though, and tried it in my smoothie. I normally add chia seeds or chlorella granules to my smoothie but I've tried vanilla whey protein a few times and enjoyed it. The same was true of the Gotein. For my smoothie, the strawberry worked really well, as did the vanilla. I didn't try the chocolate.

To buy:


You can buy Gotein directly from the company HERE -- a box of 12 packets is $24.95 -- or you can find a retailer HERE.

To win:

I have a sampler of three packets of Gotein (one of each flavor) to giveaway. To enter, leave me a comment letting me know you'd like to win.

Additional entries:

As always, you can gain extra entries. Remember, though, you must complete the required entry first! (Leave one comment per entry for the additional ones to count):

• Follow this blog, or let me know that you already do (leave a comment)
• Become a fan of The Happy Runner on Facebook, or let me know that you already are (leave a comment)
• Link to this giveaway from Facebook or Twitter (do as often as you'd like, just leave a comment each time)
• Follow Gotein on Facebook (leave a comment -- tell them The Happy Runner sent you!)
• Link to this giveaway from your blog (leave a comment)

This giveaway will run through Wednesday, June 29 at 11:59pm EST and the winners will be announced on Thursday.

Good luck!

~ Felice

Review/giveaway disclosure: I was sent a sample package of Gotein to review. I was not otherwise compensated and the opinions expressed are my own.

Moms need fun, too!

My friend Bridget had some of our girlfriends over last night for a fun night of (lots of) food, drinks, laughter and complete goofiness.

It was great to kick back and relax:

and spend time fireside with good friends:

Janis, Bridget, Noelle, Monique, me, Karyn, Kara, Jen and Stacey.

and then just be as silly as we want to be:

Why not?

It was a great night! Just what every mom needs.

Today, it's dreary and rainy but I plan to run this evening, rain or shine. And the forecast is definitely calling for rain. I can take it -- and the Boilermaker is in 2.5 weeks so I have no choice!

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Felice

Moving up. And we have a winner!

Today was my son's moving up ceremony at preschool, his last day in the 3-year old class. It was a cute little event:

Yup, big things around Happy Runner-ville! And, now, BRING ON SUMMER!

*     *     *

Speaking of big things, I have a WINNER for the Chobani giveaway! Thanks to everyone who entered. I used random.org to pick the winner and it is . . .

Kim at FinallyFit2011!

Congratulations, Kim! Send me an email with your address to felicehalf at yahoo dot com so you can get your yogurt!

Weekend fun!

I hope all the dads out there had a nice Father's Day. We had a good one here. For the second year in a row, we had my family over for a bbq dinner and then went to the ValleyCats (a minor league affiliate of the Houston Astros) baseball game.

They lost, but it was still a good time.

Owen with the boys!

Little tongue guy.

Yay!

My little guy sporting his new summer haircut, sitting with my brother and my dad.

I was also able to get in two solid runs, which was nice after having such a bad cold last week. My lungs felt a lot better after giving myself the days off but I still felt like I couldn't go 100%. My plan called for a long run of 9 miles this weekend but I didn't have that in me. So, I ran 4.6 on Saturday and 5 on Sunday, both at my long run pace. They were fine.

I should be back to the regularly scheduled training plan this week. Hope so -- the Boilermaker is creeping up on me!

Hope you all had a great weekend and nice start to the week! Don't forget to enter my Chobani giveaway HERE (ends tonight at 11:59 EST) -- and stay tuned for another giveaway this week!

~ Felice

Back to boosting.

I ran with my girl Bridget last night and helped her kick some major hill booty.

We're running the Boilermaker 15K in July and we've heard there will be hills. Now, my neighborhood is Hill Central so hilly courses have nothing on me. Bridget, however, doesn't run the same sort of hills on a regular basis so she wants to train on them to be better prepared for what she'll face in the race.

Last night, she wanted to run up a certain hill ten times and, since this would be her first venture into hill repeats, asked me to run with her. Sure thing!


We started out at 8:00, so the temperature had fallen a little, giving us a break from the heat. We ran a short warm-up and then hit the hill. I told Bridget that for this first session it was more important to focus on steady effort up the hill rather than time. And that's what we did.

After two times up the hill, she asked whose big idea the hill repeats was and shook her head at the thought of finishing all 10. After five times up the hill, she shook her head at "only" being half-way done. After six, she asked me if I was even tired. I told her not to compare herself to me, because I run hills all the time -- with hills, the more you run them, the easier they are. She was getting down on herself because she was breathing hard and really working to get up the hill. To me, that meant she was getting something good out of the workout. Pushing herself.

After eight times up the hill, I gave her a cheerful, "Just two more left!" and she groaned. We finished out the last two and I could tell she was relieved, and maybe a little proud.

Ten times up, ten times down.

I'm  happy that she finished the whole thing: She set a goal of running ten times up the hill and that's exactly what she did. Did she want to stop? Maybe, who knows? The important thing is that she didn't.

Way to go, Bridget! 

It was fun for me to be back in the booster role. I haven't been running with others much lately and certainly not in the same capacity as I did when I started the new runners group last year when I was preggo. Last night was reminiscent of those runs last spring. I enjoyed it.

Unfortunately, today was not quite as kind to me as last night was.

I woke up with a crummy cold and it has knocked me out today. I was supposed to go out with a few friends, including Bridget, tonight and had to cancel. Grr . . . It's my own doing, I know. Too much going on, not enough rest, repeatedly forgetting to take my vitamins. I'll get back on track after I kick this cold -- and that had better be tomorrow because I certainly don't have time to be sick!

I have more hills to run.

What about you -- do you enjoy hills? Or do you dread them? Do you tackle hilly courses? Or are hill repeats your thing?


I welcome hills. With pumping arms.

~ Felice

PS: Don't forget to enter my Chobani giveaway!

Local Love: Chobani Greek Yogurt review & giveaway

If you know anything about me, you know I love yogurt. Plain yogurt, fruity yogurt, yogurt in my smoothies, yogurt in my dips. I love it all. And I save some of that love for Greek yogurt, which is relatively new to me as I've only eaten for the past year or so.

Some Greek yogurt I've liked, some I haven't. Some has been smooth and tasty and beyond creamy, some has been bitter.

Fortunately, when I was testing out Chobani Greek Yogurt for this review it fell under the "smooth and tasty and beyond creamy" heading. It is, in a word, delicious.

I was sent a sample package of Chobani yogurts -- a variety of flavors including pineapple, strawberry, vanilla, pomegranate, etc. I put them all to the test: I ate some, my son ate some, even my husband tried out the yogurt. And we all agreed: Delicious! Owen eats yogurt fairly regularly but he had never tried Greek yogurt until he tried the Chobani. Unsolicited, he told me that he likes the Chobani Greek yogurt better than the regular stuff. It's thicker, creamier, more substantial. Conal just went for the flavors.

I liked the taste and consistency, too, but I also appreciate the health benefits. Greek yogurt has more protein than regular yogurt and lower sodium. You can learn all about the health benefits of Chobani and some other good stuff HERE. (For the record, my favorite flavor is pineapple, followed closely by the vanilla. The pomegranate was eh but all of the others that I tasted were good!)

I also love that Chobani is produced right here in upstate New York. And that's why they are part of my Local Love feature. There are many wonderful companies producing high-quality products right here in New York State and Chobani is definitely one of them. You can read an interesting article on Chobani and Greek yogurt in New York State in this article. Go ahead, check it out. It's good stuff.

Or, as Chobani would say, "nothing but good."

I believe it. And I plan to keep loving this local yogurt because not only will that support business in my state but it will also support enjoyment in my meals. Nothing but good.

To buy:

Around here, Chobani is available in Hannaford and Price Chopper supermarkets. You can search for retailers on the Chobani web site "Where to Buy" page. You can also snag some coupons on the site while you're there.

To win:

Who wants to try out some yummy Chobani? You might just be in luck. To enter to win a sample of Chobani Greek Yogurt, leave me a comment and let me know that you want to win!

Additional entries:

As always, you can gain extra entries. Remember, though, you must complete the required entry first! (Leave one comment per entry for the additional ones to count):

• Follow this blog, or let me know that you already do (leave a comment)
• Become a fan of The Happy Runner on Facebook, or let me know that you already are (leave a comment)
• Link to this giveaway from Facebook or Twitter (do as often as you'd like, just leave a comment each time)
• Follow Chobani on Facebook (leave a comment -- tell them The Happy Runner sent you!)
• Follow Chobani on Twitter (leave a comment)
• Link to this giveaway from your blog (leave a comment)

This giveaway will run through Monday, June 20 at 11:59pm EST and the winners will be announced on Tuesday.

Good luck!

~ Felice

Review/giveaway disclosure: I was sent a sample package of Chobani yogurt to review. I was not otherwise compensated and the opinions expressed are my own.

17.5.

Before I get to the 17.5, let me say this: A morning well-child doctor's visit, complete with three shots and a certain 4-year-old freaking out beyond all measure of imagination at the mere mention of those shots, followed by several hours at an amusement park for a preschool end-of-the-year picnic does not equal an easy day. Oh, no. In fact, it equals an exhausting "is 5:00 too early for bed?" type of day.

Yeah, that was me trying to leave the amusement park, pushing my 8-month old in the stroller with one hand while carrying my 41lb screaming 4-year-old football hold style with the other hand.

What a Monday.

Anyway . . . prior to today's exhausting events I got in three awesome runs. Not all in one day but, hey, they were great. On Friday, I ran 4.5 easy miles. The weather was sketchy on Saturday so I almost skipped my run but then headed out for 5 fast miles. My long run for this week of my 15K training cycle was 8 miles and I ran them in a straight 9-min pace. This was my longest run since the half marathon in April (training for the 5K, my longest run was 6.5 miles) and, fortunately, I felt terrific. I could have kept going!

All told, 17.5 miles from Friday evening to Sunday afternoon.

Which means that today is a rest day. Too bad because I really could use a run -- 4-year-olds can do that to you (especially the tired and sore-from-shots 4-year-olds!).

I'll settle for early bedtime instead.

Have a good night!

~ Felice

Five things Friday.

1. Lightening running and all, I'm full-on into Boilermaker training. It actually started with my recovery run an hour after my PR race at the Freihofer's Run for Women on Saturday. I'm kinda psyched to be training for a longer race again.

2. For this race I'm adding in more cross training than I did for the FRW. Since I focused on distance for the half marathon and then speed for the FRW, I think that continuing to maintain those bases and adding in the cross-training will help me best prepare for the Boilermaker. I've had a few sessions with Jillian and her Shred and my butt has been kicked!

3. I recently started writing book reviews for the BlogHer Book Club and I have a few that are up, including this one for Jean Kwok's Girl in Translation and this one for Deborah Harkness' A Discovery of Witches. No, the books aren't about running but they have been interesting and being part of this program has given me the opportunity to learn about and read books that I otherwise wouldn't have picked up. If you're interested in either book, go check out my reviews!

4. I am once again having daydreams of training for another marathon. And once again plugging race times into that oh-so-addictive McMillan calculator. Must stop . . .

5. We're catching a break from the really hot weather of earlier this week. The weekend should be really nice, which is good because I have an easy run on the schedule for this evening and then an 8-miler either Saturday or Sunday.

Have a great weekend, everyone!

~ Felice

Lightning run.

When you're a runner, the weather matters. You need to know what's coming to best prepare for your runs and races -- what to wear, how much to drink, when to run (or not), etc., etc.

Yesterday, I should have paid a little more attention.

It was hot. And humid. And then there were storms. And, of course, one big ol' storm rolled in right when Owen got home, my regular running time. So, instead of heading out for a run I made a quick dinner and we ate early and I figured I would run after putting the baby to bed.

Which is what I did. But before heading out, I checked the radar and it appeared to me that I had an approximately 30-40 minute window before another storm would roll in. So out I went.

I made it about a mile in to my run when the sky went black, I heard thunder and started to see some lightning.

Yeah, I turned right around and ran as fast as I could, fingers crossed that I could out-run the lightning. So, what had started out as an easy run on the schedule turned into a little less than 2 miles of speed work. Fast speed work. Fast, uphill speed work.

And still, I got pelted by sheets of rain and some hail.

I really need to fix my treadmill. Sigh.

In other news, I had a little playdate party for Conal's birthday on Monday. It was a lot of fun. I kept going with the Dinosaur Train theme, per his request. I pretty much called upon every ounce of creativity that I have for the decorations and the cake. Since I'm more of less lacking in the creativity department, I was pleased with the results. Here's some of my handiwork:

Dinosaur Train characters welcomed the kids.

Dinosaur Train cake!

Yay for 4!

Thanks for stopping by. Have a great day, everyone!

~ Felice

Feelin' all right: Freihofer's Run for Women 5K race report.

Ladies, let me give you some advice: Do not fear post-baby running. It rocks. Here's my post of proof.

On Saturday, on a course that is known to be a tough one for setting PRs, I ran an awesome race. I ran my fastest 5K ever. Ever.


People, my baby is not yet 8 months old. I just turned 41. And I ran my fastest 5K. Ever.

I was a ball of nerves before the race but, fortunately, I was riding with friends and we had planned to get to the race early.

Me, Bridget, Janis before we left for the race.

Good thing because the race, the Freihofer's Run for Women, had a record number of registrants this year -- almost 5,000. It's the area's biggest race and it draws many elite runners and thousands of locals who want to be part of a big, all-women event.

Hope, me, Bridget, Janis, Kara, before the start of the race.

In other words, it is crowded. But, we got there in plenty of time and I was able to hit the bathrooms a few times before lining up in my section. I had some big goals for the race so I tried to stay focused at the start. I told myself over and over that I could do it, that I had trained well, that the day was perfect for a PR run. I planned to run 7:25 for the first mile, hang on and then speed up as much as possible for the last quarter mile.

The 5K starts uphill so the first quarter mile or so is usually slow going. I did a good bit of weaving through the crowd and I found that I really couldn't get a good breathing rhythm for much of the first kilometer. It was just off and I worried that I was going to have a crappy race.

Right around the first kilometer mark, though, there was a band. Now, let me remind you of something. Last week, on my birthday actually, I wrote a little bit about a song that my college lacrosse team used to listen to on our way to games. Feelin' All Right. You know the song. Well, hey, the band was playing that song. So, as I made the turn from Madison Avenue into Washington Park, I heard it. Feelin' All Right.

At the time, I was feeling anything but. I was desperate to get my breathing pattern right and it was making me feel all discombobulated. But when I heard that song, it all changed. I was feeling all right! I took it as a sign that this would be a good day and even did something incredibly uncharacteristic, something I never do in races: I gave the band a triple, high-in-the-air fist pump. Who am I?


Right afterward, I passed the 1K mark, exactly on pace.

I knew it was my day.

As I ran through the park, my breathing was good, my legs felt great and I knew that I just had to keep my mind in the game. If I could stay focused, I could break 23 minutes.

At mile 1, I was ahead of pace.

I took a cup of water at the water station and geared up for the hills on the south side of the park. They're not bad, really, except when you're gunning for a PR. I took them on and ran strong and before I knew it I was out of the park, heading up another hill on South Lake Ave (I think). There was a woman cheering loudly there and I wanted to give her a high 5 but I couldn't get to her so I mustered a "thanks!" and kept going.

At mile 2, I was still ahead of pace.

But I had 1.1 miles to go. And for just about that whole distance, I told myself "you can do anything for 8 minutes," "you can do anything for 7 minutes," "6 minutes left," "5 minutes left," and on and on. I didn't want to do it but I had to count down for pretty much the whole last mile.

Once I saw the sign for 400 meters to go, I tried to really pick it up. I didn't have much left in the tank but I used what I had and I ran strong to the finish. My A goal for this race was 22:59 or better. I ran 22:51.

I am still super happy.

Post-race, I was super sweaty:

Shweaty runnah.

Here are my stats:

Mile 1 -- 7:15

Mile 2 -- 7:24

Mile 3 -- 7:17

last .1 -- 6:16 pace

Official (net) time: 22:51

Age group (40-44) place: 16/550 

Overall place: 202/4142

So, really. Have a baby. Get older. No worries. If I can do it and run a PR, well, forget it. Anyone can.

Have a great week, everyone!

~ Felice

Bengay Cold Therapy winners!

Thanks for entering my Bengay Cold Therapy giveaway. I used random.org to pick the two winners and they are . . .


J from Morning Runner

and

AmyLauren from I've got a couple dents in my fender, got a couple rips in my jeans

Congrats to both of you! Send me an email at felicehalf at yahoo dot com with your mailing addresses and I'll get you hooked up with your Bengay!

~ Felice

New PR!

I beat my A goal and ran a new, all-time PR (take that aging!).

Freihofer's Run for Women 5K

Official time: 22:51

Needless to say, I'm excited.

Race report to come . . .

Enjoy the rest of your weekend, everyone!

~ Felice

Winner! And race goals.

First things, first. Thank you all for entering my OnlineShoes.com/Saucony giveaway. You all really need some new shoes, huh? Too bad I could only pick one winner, but that's the deal. And the winner is . . .

Mel from Melissa Dishes!

Congratulations, Mel! Shoot me an email at felicehalf at yahoo dot com and I'll get you hooked up with your $100. I feel like Santa Claus!

Let's hope I don't feel like him when I'm racing tomorrow.

Yeah, my race is tomorrow and I have goals. I also have history. I was checking out my race times for the Freihofer's Run for Women and I noticed that this year will be the 10th time that I have run this race! The first time was shortly after I moved upstate and started running. Here's what I've done in this race over the years:

2001 -- 25:58
2002 -- 23:37 (my course PR)
2003 -- 24:37
2004 -- 25:11
2005 -- 24:58
2006 -- 24:58
2007 -- didn't run because I was busy having a baby
2008 -- 24:16
2009 -- 23:47 (my post-baby course PR)
2010 -- 27:11 (almost 6 months preggo)


We know I definitely want to beat my preggo time, that's for sure! But I have more specific goals, as always. Using my recent training and races (including that 5K that wasn't . . .grr . . . ) my goals are:

C Goal -- 23:59 or better (7:43/mi pace -- gets me under 24)
B Goal -- 23:36 or better (7:35/mi pace -- beats my course PR)
A Goal -- 22:59 or better (7:23/mi pace -- gets me under 23)

I am going out there racing for my A goal, certainly, but I will be happy meeting any of the goals. Now I just need to do it!

Maybe I'll just think of this smiley face when I'm pushing to the finish:

Have a great weekend, everyone!

~ Felice

Cupcakes and races.

The Freihofer's Run for Women is in two days. Sure, it's "just" a 5K but it happens to be my goal race and I really want to run well. So I'm nervous. And have been. Because that's what I do: Get all kinds of freaked before my races.

But I also have the multiple birthday celebrations that are de rigueur these days with the preschool set. My little guy will be turning 4 (4!?!) so today was his preschool birthday party.

Dinosaur Train cupcakes were in order:

OK, yeah, the green doesn't match Tiny
(the pteranodon for those of you who don't have to watch the show over and over) but I tried.

An army of Buddy and Tiny!

Goofing out.

Conal had been asking for a Dinosaur Train cake for his birthday so I went for a modified version for the preschool party and did the cupcakes. I printed out about a million copies of an image that I grabbed from the infonet, cut them out, lined up two back-to-back and then taped them together with a toothpick in the middle. Viola! Instant (two hours later...) decoration!

The cakes for his next parties will be a different story. I really need to get on that . . .

In the meantime, though, I have a race to freak-out about prepare for. My last pre-race run is tonight and then I'll firm up my goals tomorrow. Woo hoo!

Have a great day, everyone! Don't forget to enter my two giveaways -- Onlineshoes.com/Saucony ends tonight and Bengay ends Monday.

~ Felice

Race week and May recap.

May was a pretty good month. I ran a fast 5K that wasn't, had a nice Mother's Day, got a new big freelance project after months of no work, ran some speeeeeeeedy intervals, had a fun Memorial Day weekend and finished up the month with a great birthday.

Lucky, lucky me! Here's some pics from the weekend:

Hiking the Indian Ladder Trail.

At the Indian Ladder Trail with Conal.

My two little guys!

Good times with great friends!

And now, back to the running. May was good running-wise. I had a treadmill accident so late-night or nap-time runs are out for me, for now. No problem -- the days are long and the weather is warm so I can run outside as I please.

May stats:


Running (miles): 90.5
Cross training (sessions): 4

I'm pleased with my overall mileage, considering that I am focusing on this little 5K coming up on Saturday. There were two workouts that I had to skip but, no matter. I'll be fine.

June should be interesting, as I ramp-up the mileage for the Boilermaker 15K in early July. And then I'm planning to run a 5K in August and I signed up for the Adirondack Half Marathon in September.

Keep on racing, I say.

And you, my friends, should keep on entering and voting!

OnlineShoes.com Saucony giveaway HERE!

Bengay giveaway HERE!

Voting ends TODAY!! Please show me some love and vote to keep me in the Top 25!!

AND . . . Check out my list of five fabulous bloggers HERE! They rock. For real.

Thanks for stopping by, everyone. Here's to a great June!

~ Felice