All the fun!

It is Spring Break here in upstate New York and that means we're having tons of fun!

For me, it started Saturday morning with a 6-mile run with Bridget, Elisa, Janis and Janis' sister-in-law, Caitlin. Easy run with good friends -- such a good way to start the weekend!

Then, Saturday night, we had Bridget's birthday bash! It started with a little pre-party at her house:

Cheers! (that's me, Bridget and Janis)

And then the actual party was at a fun local bar.

Happy friends celebrating Bidget's 40th!

It was an A+ party, for sure.

On Monday, I took the boys on a "big adventure" to the American Museum of Natural History. I'd planned the trip with my cousin and she and I took our four boys there for the day. With all of the travel and the time at the museum we were together for 12 hours -- and the boys had a blast!

The boys -- ready to go!

Conal, Sean, Ian and Niall hanging out with Theodore Roosevelt.

My boys and the lions.

On Tuesday we were wiped out so we had a hang-out-in-pajamas-and-play kind of day.

Then, Owen's cousin asked him if we wanted to go to the Yankees game on Wednesday. Well. I had to think about that. The boys had never been to a game but it was going to be chilly and we'd had -- and planned to have -- a lot going on this week. Did we need another trip to NYC?

Another big day?

Another day of full-on fun?

Of course we did!

So, we said yes and we had a spectacular day.

Outside the stadium after a fun train ride.

The family at the game! It ended up being perfect weather -- we were so lucky!

The ride home -- the boys were BEAT.

What now? Well, we're going to keep on having all the fun. Why not? Spring Break isn't over yet!

Hope you all are having a great week! Thanks for stopping by.

I am THAT runner.

It occurred to me on Monday -- and some of your will guffaw and think that it should have occurred to me long, long ago -- that I am, truly, that runner.

That overly-excited-about-all-things-running runner.

That probably-super-annoying-to-all-non-runners runner.

That holy-cow-she's-insane runner.

That runner.

So why did it suddenly occur to me on Monday? Well, I was planning to run with Elisa and Bridget, 4 easy miles from Bridget's house at 9:30. Owen was taking the boys sledding, leaving the house a little after 9, so I asked him to drop me off at Bridget's on the way.

As we drove down our street, Owen turned to me and asked if Bridget knew I was coming over. "Of course," I answered. "We made a plan to run."

"I mean, does she know you're going to be there early."

"Oh," I said. "Well, you're just going to drop me off and I'll run around her neighborhood until it is time to meet."

He gave me a look.

"What?" I asked.

"What. That's normal. You're just going to run around her neighborhood, waiting for her to come out. . . "

And we laughed. And then he dropped me off and I did just that -- I ran around her neighborhood until 9:30 when she came out of her house and Elisa drove up.

To me, it was perfectly normal. I mean, why not take advantage of the extra time and get in a little extra mileage?

But it got me thinking. Thinking of all the ways I am that runner. And there are many. How could I have missed the obvious clues in all of these that runner things that I do, like . . .

• wearing smelly running clothes because my running has outpaced my laundering;
• finding myself with 35 extra minutes before pre-school pickup and filling those minutes with a 4-mile run;

• becoming ridiculously happy when a friend decides to take up running;
• feeling a pang (or several pangs) of envy when I see others out running -- and it is a rest day for me;
• savoring Every. Single. Page of each issue of Runner's World magazine -- even all those pages that don't apply to me at all;
• having Facebook/Twitter/Instagram feeds full of runners, especially Paleo-eating, crossfit-dabbling runner mothers;
• knowing just what to wear for a run, but being sorta clueless about what to wear otherwise;
• feeling almost more joy for fellow runners' running accomplishments than for my own;
• owning multiple pairs of all the key types of running socks, including compression socks, toe socks, no-show socks, extra-lightweight socks, and heavier winter running socks;
• remembering marathon training with a tad of longing;
• packing running gear -- every trip, no matter what;
• getting giddy about new running shoes -- especially running shoes that match, serendipitously, my favorite running capris;

• strapping YakTrax on to my running shoes to head out for a run on snow-covered streets;
• gabbing about running until, I'm sure, the people around me wish to put a cork in me!

I could go on and on. The examples are many. Writing this blog is probably one of them.

But, yeah, I am that runner. Oh, well. I am who I am!

Are you that kind of runner, too? What clues do you have? 

Thanks for stopping by!

 

Delight.

These weeks leading up to Christmas have been packed with delightful days. Not as much running as I would like, but definitely as much fun!

Here's a look at these delightful days of December:

Santa visit at preschool.

Gift from my little guy.

Dancing elf!

Aunt Claire's visit from Chicago!

Shepherds in the Christmas pagaent.

Two gingerbread-house-making parties means we have a gingerbread neighborhood!

 

Happy boys happily waiting for Christmas day.

And, while I'm at it, I might as well delight in the fact that this weekend I had two great runs. On Saturday, I ran 6 miles with Bridget and we both rocked the capris for our moderately warm first-day-of-winter run. Then, yesterday, the 60 degree temperature called for shorts. Shorts! For a run the second day of winter. In upstate New York! Awesome.

Now, the boys and I are enjoying the holiday break -- kicking off the week with some rollicking indoor hockey.

Thanks for stopping by -- have a great week!

 

Happy Thanksgiving.

In case you were wondering 'bout them 'taters . . .

 

I couldn't resist! 

Have a happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

 

 

Gone to the mountains.

This past weekend was a wonderfully refreshing one. On Friday, I headed to the mountains -- Jiminy Peak, where Bridget's cousin has a condo -- with four great friends. It was tons of fun!

Saturday morning, Bridget and I got up and went for a 6 mile, very hilly run. Then the five of us went out to lunch and took a ride on the scenic chair lift to the top of the mountain.

Here we are -- all smiles! -- riding up to the top:

Made it! It was such a pretty view, even though it was freezing and cloudy up there:

Kara, me, Janis, Lisa, Bridget

The rest of the day was filled with relaxing, laughing, eating, drinking and just and overall vibe of fun.

Oh, and a flat tire.

Oops!

After the ride to the top of the mountain, we drove over to the little store and when we got there someone told us that my front right tire was flat. I went outside to check it out and, yup, totally flat. We had no idea!

So, there was some flat tire hoopla that turned out fine in the end but forced us to bag our plan to drive into Williamstown for dinner. Instead, we stayed put at the condo and chowed down on our snack food.

Sunday morning I went out for a solo  run that was just what I needed after a night of fun.

It was a super-duper time!

Now, I've got to get on with the week and it will be a busy one at that. Thanks for stopping by -- have a great week!

 

Vacation week!

Yay for vacation week! Schools here are closed for the week and that means my little kindergartener gets to hang out with Niall and me all week. 

We kicked off vacation with a fun visit from some of our Long Island family over the weekend. My boys loved playing with their cousin! There was a lot of train track building, some outdoor play and a fun day at the NYS museum.

They had a great time!

For the rest of the week, we're jam-packed with playdates with friends we rarely get to see. If everyone stays healthy, it should be tons of fun!

As for running, well, I'll be fitting it in as best I can. The treadmill is my friend, for sure!

Have a great week, everyone!

Get Moving Today!

If you have kids and you'd like them to move a little more, then I have a great resource for you: The Get Moving Today Activity Calendar!

This calendar is put out by the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (AAHPERD) and National Association for Sport and Physical Education (NASPE) with the goal of getting kids -- and their parents -- moving. 


The calendar is chock-full of creative suggestions for getting active, with a different activity for every day of the month. Have a look at today's activity:

"Roll up a t-shirt into a lasso and swing it over your head. Try using your other arm. Add some galloping."

Lasso. Huh. Honestly, I wouldn't have thought about doing that with my kids and yet, what a good workout for the arms!


The calendar is very easy to access. Each month is listed separately and you simply click on the month you want to view and that opens a PDF. Print it out, hang it on your fridge or wherever, and you'll never be at a loss for how to get active!


May is hanging on my fridge right now. This activity calendar is right up my alley and, folks, I think it will be right up yours, too.


Enjoy!


~ Felice


Disclaimer: I was sent a link to this calendar but was not compensated for this post in any way. The opinions expressed are entirely my own.

The glamorous runner.

So . . . way back in 2010 when I was very pregnant, I entered HealthyLife magazine's search for cover models. (The magazine is published by the Albany newspaper, the Times Union.) 

I had to submit a photo of myself doing something healthy (a sent in a running photo -- of course!) and write an essay about my healthy life. I wrote about how I was running during my pregnancy and how I started the new runners group to train several non-runners for their first 5K.

Whatever I said, worked, because I was chosen! I had my photo shoot in September and "my" issue came out last week. Here's the cover:

That's me!

I feel like such a glamour girl!

The whole thing was a ton of fun. I was pampered at a local salon where I received highlights, lowlights and a new hair-do. Then I had a few fun outfits picked out for the shoot. The day of the shoot I had my hair and makeup done at that same salon (thanks, Kimberley's Day Spa!), and then spent all afternoon being photographed. I've never had so much hair spray in my hair, nor have I ever spent so much time in front of a camera!

Like I said, it was fun. I even got to wear some kickin' high boots:

Yeah, I need a pair of high wedges!

And a lot of clothing that I could never, ever wear in my current day-to-day life. Can you imagine what would become of this white coat after living just one day with a toddler and preschooler?

Yeah, there's no way I could keep that clean!

Anyway, if you're interested in the article you can check it out HERE and HERE. You can even see a few "behind the scenes" photos, like me getting my makeup done. Ooooh, exciting!

One thing I will say is that I wish the article included more about my running while pregnant. I really wanted to convey how important I think it is to stay active when you are pregnant -- and I wanted to show that running is not something pregnant women should be afraid of. It's so healthy to keep running during pregnancy (provided, of course, you were running before getting pregnant and you don't have major complications). But, the article did touch on it, so I'm happy about that.

Overall, it was a great experience. Now, back to my real jeans-and-fleece-pullovers life!

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Felice 

White Halloween?

Happy Halloween!

After the freak snow on Thursday -- this is what we woke up to Sunday morning:

Yup, lots of snow. Fortunately, Sunday was a warm-ish and sunny so we were all able to be outside a lot and actually enjoy the crazy October snow. And, even more fortunately, lots and lots of the snow melted.

But, not before Owen and Conal made a cute Jack O'Snowman:

He lasted maybe a hour or two and then he melted and the poor Jack O'Lantern that they had carved came crashing down and smashed into pieces. Bummer.

Today, we have the Halloween parade and party at preschool and then trick-or-treating and pizza with friends this evening. We've been getting together on Halloween with the same group for three years or so and it has become a nice little tradition.

What isn't a tradition, however, is having snow on Halloween. White Halloween? That's a little weird. But, it's all cool. Conal has informed me that the roads and front walks are all clear of snow, so we shouldn't have any problem trick-or-treating. He's pretty excited about Halloween this year because he knows what to expect a little more than he did last year.

He was also really excited about being "Boo'ed" by a friend then and "Boo'ing" one of our neighbors. Saturday evening we were Boo'ed -- one of Conal's little pals dropped off a bag of goodies, rang the doorbell, and ran. This was our first time being Boo'ed so it was all new to my little guy. Yesterday, we made up a Boo bag and walked up the hill to one of our neighbor/friend's house and Conal was giddy the whole way. When we got to their house, we set the bag in front of their door and Conal did a great job ringing and running.

I just hope I haven't set him up for a future of pranking. Yikes!


Anyway, it was a nice weekend and we're looking forward to a fun day.

Do you have fun Halloween plans? 


Enjoy the day! And remember to enter my Rudi's Organic Bakery giveaway if you haven't already. It ends tonight!

~ Felice 

And then I took a break.

 . . . from just about everything, except some great girlfriends and FUN.

That's right. Last weekend I left my husband and two boys and headed north to Lake Placid with nine of my wonderful friends. We had a blast! Words cannot describe the fun. For real.

We ate. We drank. We laughed. We danced. A lot.

Seems the only thing we didn't do much of was sleep. But who needs sleep when you're having that much fun? Not us, apparently.

This was us, Saturday night when we hit the town:

Someone -- not us -- had a huge limo.
We thought we were pretty hilarious posing in front of it.

 

Everyone has to have a "caught by the paparazzi" shot, no?

All of us!
Bridget, Monique, Lisa, Stacey, Kara, Karyn, the bartender (!), Gina, Janis, me, Jen

It was . . . worth it. Worth everything. To get a away with good people and have fun moment after fun moment is one of the best things ever. This weekend was the first time I'd ever been away from Niall for any extended amount of time and I admit I was nervous. But, he had stopped nursing on Tuesday and had done well with Owen putting him to bed on Wednesday and Thursday so I had hope that everything would be fine.

And, of course, it was. My guys had a good weekend together without me. That's important, too. Boys need long periods of time with their dads -- without mom butting-in all the time. Ha!

Oh, and, yes. If you're wondering, I did run. Saturday morning Bridget and I went out for a nice little run around town and Mirror Lake. It was beautiful and the smell of pine trees was invigorating. This happy runner can't possibly go out of town and not run! Just doesn't happen.

*     *     *

On another note . . . thank you all so much for your comments on my Lyme-ish post. I really appreciate all of your kind words. I tried to really put that whole situation out of my mind while I was away and I mostly succeeded. Sure, all of my symptoms are bugging the heck out of me now but, again, the weekend of fun was worth it all.

I hope you all had a great weekend, too. Giveaway tomorrow -- check back!

~ Felice

Summer, summer.

I've been away.

For 5 nights and 5 days.

We drove 550 miles by car.
I ran 21 miles on foot.
We enjoyed lots of sand, sun, and beach-rific fun with cousins, aunts, uncles, and Grandma.

What a great start to July! My boys loved it:

Except for when Niall decided he'd had enough, that is:

Eh, it happens. Sorry, kid.

The rest of the week is all about catch-up, last minute prep for the Boilermaker, and tons of race weather obsessing.

Enjoy the rest of your week, everyone!

~ Felice

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

Cross training, kiddie-style.

* Or, the real reason I skipped my run yesterday.

It was H-O-T out yesterday but my son had a) new sidewalk chalk b) a new soccer ball and c) a new whiffle ball bat so . . . we were outside. For hours.

We played soccer. Then I pitched and he swung and I chased the balls that he managed to hit. Then I drew the "biggest chalk hopscotch in the whole wide world" on the driveway and we hopped. And hopped. And hopped some more.

My son's favorite hops? The one-legged kind. So that's what I did. Hopped on one leg from square one to square 30 -- over and over and over and over.

After that? It was back to soccer. With maybe a little nursing the baby in between.

So that's why I didn't run yesterday: Because I was beat from all the Preschool Cross Training. Hopping on one leg, repeatedly, is hard work. And soccer? Holy cow. My knees aren't used to all that twisting and turning and my quads and hammies are feeling all of that starting and sprinting and stopping and starting all over again.

You use a lot of different muscles playing outside kiddie-style for hours. Let's hope all that cross training helps make me faster!

What about you? Do you do any unconventional cross training?

Today I've got 4 miles on the schedule. Looking forward to them! Happy Wednesday, everyone!

~ Felice

Welcome back, favorite!

Like many runners, I have my favorite running socks. What's more, I have my favorite winter socks, favorite shorts-weather socks, favorite racing socks and favorite long run socks. Hey, socks are important!

My favorite shorts-weather and racing socks are my low-cut, thin Drymax socks. For the longest time, I had two pairs and I was always so happy when I would open my socks drawer and they would be clean and ready for me to wear.

And then I lost one. You know how it goes. One day I had two pairs then, after doing the laundry, I had one pair and one lone sock. It's mate had gone missing.

I kept the lone Drymax with the hope that I would someday find the mate, but really thinking that if ever I were to lose one from the working pair, I'd have a spare.

Well. Last night I found the mate!

And I have to tell you how.

Sometime around October every year, I switch the sheets over to flannel and I wash and pack away the crisp summer sheets. Then, in the spring I switch back. I've been back to the summer sheets for about a month now, but I've been mostly using one set. Don't worry, I do change them frequently but I just wash them and put them right back on the bed.

Yesterday, though, I put the sheets in the wash in the afternoon and, because I went out with some friends for dinner, forgot to put them in the dryer. When I got home at 10:00 it was too late to get them dried and back on the bed. So, I went in the linen closet and took out another set of summer sheets.

And what did I find, tucked inside the fitted sheet? Yup, MY SOCK!

Friends, that sock has been gone since last fall and I cannot tell you how happy I am to have it back! I mean, I'm back to two pairs of my favorite socks! Everything is right with the world!

Ah . . .

Well, today's Friday and I'm looking forward to a three day weekend! Have a great day, everyone -- and if you're looking at a three day weekend too, enjoy it!

~ Felice

PS: I'm giving away a $60 gift certificate over here!

Wonderful weekend.

Happy Monday!

It was a wonderful weekend here in Happy Runner-ville. We had a lot going on, much of it fun, and we were all able to get in some outdoor time to enjoy the perfect late-winter (almost spring!) weather. My guys went to an RPI hockey playoff game. Owen collected sap from the maple trees he had tapped and boiled it down to make maple syrup. We had dinner with friends. Conal made a rain gauge at the (free!) Home Depot kids workshop. We cleaned and organized. And -- yikes! -- we moved Conal out of his crib and into a big boy bed.

Oh, mixed emotions . . .

Best of all, though, I had two gr-r-r-r-reat runs! A 5-miler on Saturday and, because I am just that exciting, a 5-miler on Sunday. It has been a long time since I have felt too warm on a run and this weekend I did. I ran in capris but would have been better off in shorts and a lighter top. Oh, well. The runs were energizing. They felt like spring.

They were also trashy. Since I extended my runs to the "main road," I saw a lot of trash: Beer cans, empty potato chips bags, coffee cups. It was gross. I wish I had been carrying a plastic bag so I could have picked it all up. I grabbed a beer can close to my street but that was all I could do. I may be an anti-litter kind of gal but I just couldn't run with hands full of trash. Plus, I didn't really want anyone to drive past me and think that my running beverage of choice is a nasty Coors Light.

Ugh. But now, of course, I'm planning when I can get back out on the road with trash bag in hand. Man, litter really gets me! I mean, it is really, really easy not to litter. Why do people do it? Ugh, ugh, ugh.

OK, enough ranting. I hope you all had a great weekend! Fun runs in the sun? Races? Trash pick-up? Yeah. Hope it was fun!

~ Felice

Three things Thursday.

1. I'm not doing a Five Things Friday tomorrow but I'll still have a Cans for Comments post. It will be my last one so stop over some time between tomorrow and Sunday to help me increase my donation to the food pantry. Thanks!
2. After three days of cross training instead of running, I am SO looking forward to hitting the roads this afternoon for a leisurely run. (And I hope to run tomorrow, Saturday and Sunday, too.)
   
3. Tomorrow will be a great day in Happy Runner-ville! We're having my parents and my siblings over for brunch and to exchange gifts in the morning. In the afternoon, we'll head to my parents' house for dinner. My mom's whole family will be there (she's the oldest of 6) so there should be about 32 of us for the delicious sit-down dinner. Can't wait!

Have a great day, everyone!

~ Felice

Wicked!

OK, not writing about running today because I just couldn't resist: Some friends and I went to see Wicked last night and it was terrific! Man, oh man. What a great show!

It started out with dinner at a burrito place across from the theater. Four mamas, chips 'n salsa, margaritas -- yay! We were a little dorky at the start, barely able to contain our excitement at being OUT! We had lots of laughs and some good conversation. Unfortunately, two of the four dinners were pretty lousy and then there was a whole thing where we never got the check. The waiter told my friend he was too busy! Who doesn't give a table a check? We had to figure out what we owed and leave that. It was just crummy and we ended up having to rush to the theater. But there was no way we were going to let any of that mar our experience!

We shouldn't have even worried. From the start, the show was just awesome and we forgot about the not-so-great dinner immediately. Wicked is the "untold story of the witches of Oz" and it is a great one. The story was fun and the show was a real spectacle. (You'll never look at the Wicked Witch of the West -- or Glinda -- the same way after seeing this show.) All four of us left the theater thinking that we just wanted to tell everyone to go see it. We liked it that much. And, no, the margaritas had nothing to do with that! Ha!

Here we are at intermission:


Such fun! If you haven't seen it and have any interest at all, I say do it! It's a great time!

So, with all the excitement of last night, I did not get to run. I did get in an afternoon workout, but no run. I hope to get out there today! Remember, longer days starting today. Woo hoo!

~ Felice

Sunday bits.

Today marks the beginning of National Volunteer Week. Volunteers rock! If you don't have time to volunteer or just aren't sure what to do, an easy thing is to donate some healthy food to your local food pantry. Food pantries are in desperate need of food and healthy food is best. Just make sure it is non-perishable.

Also this week, Wednesday is Earth Day. I'm celebrating by hosting a toddler playdate (with 7 toddlers!) where we'll do some earthy crafts. And I'm going for trash pickup. If I start this week, I figure I can make it a habit and before you know it I'll be dubbed The Trash Lady and litter as we know it will be a thing of the past. Too optimistic? You don't think that me picking up trash in the 10 or so square miles that I walk/run/travel will have an effect on the world at large? You could be right. But, I've got to start somewhere.

So, OK, maybe you'll pick up some trash, too? Maybe just a piece here and there? It will help expand my reach . . . thanks!

You know what else is going on this week? Yes! The Boston Marathon! I will be glued to my computer, watching the race on Universal Sports. You can access the coverage here. Woo hoo! Go Kara! And go running blogger friends! I'm rooting for you all.

Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

~ Felice

A time-out for love.

I had a big time-out this weekend in the form of my brother's wedding. With all of the activity, I didn't run on Friday or Saturday. I did get to run 4 miles outside on Sunday, though, which was a real treat.

But let's talk about the wedding. Do you love weddings? I do. Love the whole package. Love the dressing up, love the ceremony, love the "I dos." I love the cocktail hour, the open bar, the dancing, the photos, the toasts, the whole thing. Love the love.

Sigh . . .

Weddings are such happy times and my brother's wedding was no exception. So, I thought I would share a few photos with you. You know, to share the love!

The happy couple:

My two brothers, me, and my sister:

(Yes, I am the oldest and the shortest! What gives?)

The hubby and me:


(I'm the older and shorter one there, too!)

That's it, folks. Hope you all had a great weekend and you're enjoying a nice start to the week!