Rainy Days

So what do you do on a rainy Sunday afternoon?  Why, the promised scrapbooking with your daughters.  I have to admit that although I love that they want to do this sort of thing with me, and I am well aware that in a few years they might not … it would be easier just to do one page on my own 😉

One rainy afternoon, one sketch (from here) = the resulting three scrapbooking pages –

This is my one  (Josh when he was about 3.5yo – he was soooo cute back then!).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Charlotte’s page (for her little 8×8 scrapbook)

 

 

 

 

 

 

and Rhiannon’s one – we need to print out the pictures to finish it off – they are from her trip to Kapiti Island earlier on in the year.

 

 

 

 

 

All in all, a pretty good days work 😉 One of my missions this year is to do more scrapbooking, and trying to keep up with the sketch each week, is a good way to start.  The goal also includes using up lots of the papers and other “way too much stuff” I have!

Abide with Me

In the late 1950s, in the small town of West Annett, Maine, a minister struggles to regain his calling, his family, and his happiness in the wake of profound loss. At the same time, the community he has served so charismatically must come to terms with its own strengths and failings–faith and hypocrisy, loyalty and abandonment–when a dark secret is revealed.

Tyler Caskey has come to love West Annett, “just up the road” from where he was born. The short, brilliant summers and the sharp, piercing winters fill him with awe–as does his congregation, full of good people who seek his guidance and listen earnestly as he preaches. But after suffering a terrible loss, Tyler finds it hard to return to himself as he once was. He hasn’t had The Feeling–that God is all around him, in the beauty of the world–for quite some time. He struggles to find the right words in his sermons and in his conversations with those facing crises of their own, and to bring his five-year-old daughter, Katherine, out of the silence she has observed in the wake of the family’s tragedy.

 

I’m still not sure about this book, as I started it I found it difficult to read, it was written with a very “proper” or “flowery” narrative – you know, the sort of narrative you really have to concentrate with, not my best attribute when it comes to reading 😉 Once I got used to the style of writing it was a compelling tale, but with hidden depths which could be missed quite easily.  The 1950’s way of life and way of thinking came through strongly, I feel sorry for women who were trapped in that way of life, where image was everything, and a seemingly happy, perfect, home was so important – I know I would have struggled and felt trapped in that sort of environment! I’m not sure it was a book with a strong storyline as such, but did provoke strong feelings about that way of life.  I’m not sure I really can say I enjoyed it while I was reading it, but it did leave me thinking – so I would definitely say it was a good read, and well worth picking up.

 

110km … up and down … repeat 3 times

The details – if you’re interested 😉

The things I do for fun!  Later last year (obviously when I wasn’t blogging!) I bought a road bike … earlier on in the year after the London Marathon I got to thinking about my next challenge and couldn’t decide between the Auckland Marathon and the Taupo Challenge (160km cycle around Lake Taupo) – and got to thinking, well, why not both?  The Cycle Challenge was just four weeks after the marathon which meant training for both at the same time … but both were endurance so I decided that wouldn’t be a problem.  Anyway, I did indeed do both (Auckland wasn’t the best – 4:44 with lots of walking, Taupo was windy and a bit slow – but a great achievement – especially doing both!).

Anyway, I’ve enjoyed the cycling and plan to keep doing it, definitely plan to train for Taupo “properly” this year.  Next race I want to do is around Mt Taranaki (150km) on the 28th of January (probably won’t know until the 20th whether finances are going to allow it!), so I’ve been kind of training for that while I get my running up and going again (long story – lots of injuries, a break to strengthen the body etc).

So Tuesday’s cycle ride was a long training ride – probably the longest I’ll do before the 28th.  This is a great training block, big, steep hills and well, a block, which is always preferable (to me anyway) than an out and back, or loops here and there.  I’m still not the fastest cyclist around (need to work on that) but I’m pretty strong, I make it up all the hills … I’m a wuss going down and hang on to the brakes for dear life, need to do some training DOWN hills, rather than up 😉

This was a great bike ride though – its still holidays here so there was no rush to get home for anything (husband is still off work), it was a nice summer day, but a southerly so not too hot, traffic wasn’t too bad.  I added the Blue Mountain part to the normal “block”, and biking through Whitemans Valley was just bliss, slightly downhill, no cars, sun shining, lovely quiet farmland … just wonderful!  There are times like that that I wonder why I took so long to get off the couch and getting active and realise what I was missing out on 🙂

Today I’m planning on a shorter, faster ride – with a mile run straight after, I’m doing a couple of fun duathalons in the next couple of months and need to practice the getting off the bike and running thing.  I also insanely signed up to running a mile a day in 2012 – I already didn’t run on Tuesday (didn’t know about it then and I did the big bike ride), but I’ll just ignore that little detail!  But today’s mile will work in nicely with the bike ride.

In keeping with this being an “everything” blog – I’ll be back later with a photo of the card I made yesterday for a good friend’s 50th Birthday 🙂

 

 

 

One Summer – David Baldacci

 

It’s almost Christmas,

but there is no joy in the house of terminally ill Jack and his family. With only a short time left to live, he spends his last days preparing to say goodbye to his devoted wife, Lizzie, and their three children.

Then, unthinkably, tragedy strikes again: Lizzie is killed in a car accident. With no one able to care for them, the children are separated from each other and sent to live with family members around the country. Just when all seems lost, Jack begins to recover in a miraculous turn of events. He rises from what should have been his deathbed, determined to bring his fractured family back together.

Struggling to rebuild their lives after Lizzie’s death, he reunites everyone at Lizzie’s childhood home on the oceanfront in South Carolina. And there, over one unforgettable summer, Jack will begin to learn to love again, and he and his children will learn how to become a family once more.

 

I’ve looked at this one in the bookshop a few times and thought about buying it, got to the library (as I’ve been trying to more often, rather than spending money on too many books!) and it was in their Best Seller section, so I grabbed it.  Pleased I did, the $4.00 for the Best Seller fee, was probably a much more comparible price than the $20-30 for a brand new book!

It was a good read, but nothing startling.  I definitely enjoyed it and there were a couple of nights I was flicking forward to see what would happen when I was too tired to read much further, but I wouldn’t call it a fantastic read.  There is the reminder there about being “present” with the kids, something I’m trying to work on – so not a bad reminder!

 

 

 

New Year – New Goals

It’s been a while … but then again, what better time to make new goals, new resolutions – including actually keeping a blog updated?

I’m not big on resolutions … but I am on goals – the difference to me being a resolution is more of a statement without anything behind it – a goal is an end point, with lots of little goals and a plan to make it to the end bigger goal.

I have a few, which I can hopefully break down.

Goal 1 – to finally get to my end goal weight, I’ve been talking about it for two years – the good thing is, I’ve kept to my top (WW) goal range for two years, but to run better, and to be just a little bit healthier … I need to lose that last 5kg (or 7kg, or 3kg … it fluctuates ;)).

• Three Meals a day, and if I’m really hungry and need something inbetween – make it fruit – or a protein drink (depending on where my training is at).
• No eating after dinner.
• Weighing once a month … no more obsessive (more than) once a day weighing.
• Try to consciously up the protein and lower the “bad” carbs.

Goal 2 – To be more organised – housewise, planning, Stampin’ classes/workshops, training

• Tidy/pick-up every morning – even if it is only 10 minutes!
• Less wasting time on the computer.
• Run before breakfast wherever possible.
• Aim for 1hr a day spent on stamping – whether getting ready for classes/workshops or my own scrapbooking/cardmaking.

Goal 3 – Stay injury free

• Stick to cross-training (wisely).
• Stick with physio/strengthening exercises.
• Listen to body!!

Goal 4 – Pay off Debt

• Wherever we can, start hammering at our debt … this one is kind of reliant on Husband earning the money – but no excuses, less spending, more paying off stuff!

… and be a good blogger – I want to keep track of my crafting finishes, what I’m reading, and general family stuff – what better place to do it than here?

Room, Separate Beds, Sisters

Now, that makes for a funny title!  It’s actually three books, yes, I’ve read three books since I last did a review … obviously been reading more than I have been blogging!

Room – Emily Donaghue
The story of a mother, her son, a locked room and the outside world

Wow … this has got to be one of the best books I’ve read for a while.  The narrative is from the little boy’s point of view, it really makes you think about the world we live in.  I don’t want to say to much and give away too much – but if I recommend any book to have as number 1 on your reading list, this would be it. 

I call it a “lingering” book, it lingered within me for days after I’d read it.  Fantastic.

Separate Beds – Elizabeth Buchan
Annie and Tom’s marriage is in mid-life crisis. They seem to have everything – a lovely home, rewarding jobs and three healthy grown-up children – but, beneath the surface, all is not well. Beneath the surface lies a secret guilt which ensures that whilst they live under the same roof, they sleep in separate beds.

This was definitely one of my typical, fill in time, have to be reading something books.  However, some of it did get inside and mess with my head a bit.  A lot of it was very close to home, no we don’t have separate beds – but middle age (*gulp* – really, I’m not sure I want to admit to that!), husband in kind of job crisis mode, while wife quite happily getting on with her’s, yeah, just a bit too close to home! It was an okay book, not a huge got to turn the page to see what happens next – but a pleasant (and for me a bit thought provoking) read.

Sister – Rosamund Lupton
What would you do if your sister disappeared without a trace? This is an emotionally fraught and at some times terrifying story about two sisters and the strength that binds them.

Another great book! Just a month or so ago I was getting rather sick of the same old, same old story lines and books out there.  I love to read, and tend to read pretty light books – poor brain just can’t handle absorbing much more.  So its been great to have picked up two good books in the last couple of weeks (this and Room).  This had lots of twists and turns and was definitely a wanting to read just a little bit more before I put it down kind of book!  I’ve got five sisters, so I understand the closeness and differences, and could relate to the relationship of these two sisters.  This was more of a mystery/thriller than I’d expected when I picked it up – thoroughly enjoyed it and was sad to finish it!

Week 3/18 Auckland Training & Week 3/22 Taupo Training

Saturday, 9  July 2011

Rest Day

Sunday, 10 July 2011

Happy Birthday to Josh, my big 17 year old (where does time go?)!

The weather was awful, with really high winds, including a tornado and hail/thunder/lightening storms the day before so after lying bed listening to it for a while I decided to hit the gym for a spin class rather than the planned LSD bike ride, and then do my 5km on the treadmill.

Spin Class: The usual, good sweat, good fun, class.

5km – Easy: On the treadmill – nothing exciting to say – I did add a bit of speed for the last couple of k because I was bored stupid, but otherwise just a nice slow, easy 5km.

Monday, 11 July 2011

11km Hills:  Up the Maungatooks, and over the top.  Still windy, and got hailed on heading back … good excelerating run though!
1:12:03 (6:29/km)

Tuesday, 12 July 2011

LSD 40km Bike Ride:  To make up for missing Sunday! Windy, some rain, yucky weather … but done!
2:10:47 (Pace – 19.6/km)

Wednesday, 13 July 2011

Personal Trainer session – Yeah, he made things hurt again 😉

Thursday, 14 July 2011

11km – Marathon Pace: Hit the pace, and felt good – went down the river for a change of scenery, its always a bit harder to stick to the right pace off road, but I managed it, wind and all 😉
1:05:13 (5:49/km)

Friday, 15 July 2011

13km LSD: Cut back week this week – so just a “short” one, felt good running slow and easy.
1:20:32 (6:09/km)

All in all, yet another good week.  I had a fiddle with my diary and training programme today to make sure I was going to fit in the time needed for the LSD bike rides as they reach the 3-4-5hr mark, scary stuff!  One day … one week, at a time 🙂

Paula Radcliff and Me

First of all … phewwwwwww … this week has been busy! I worked extra hours on Monday, during the day, went out to dinner with a friend that night and feel like I’ve been playing catch up ever since!

On Friday I got the first of my five FREE issues of Runners World in the mail (I won the subscription as a spot prize at Wellington a few weeks ago – great prize!), timely that it came on Friday, because one of my favourite things each month is to pop out of the office while doing my Friday evening shift and go over to Borders, get a nice hot chocolate and the latest Runners magazine and then go back and have my break and enjoy both … so it was a very nice surprise to have it fall in my letterbox just before I left for work (and probably good for the calorie count as I didn’t feel the need to go out and get the hot chocolate;)).

So me and Paula Radcliff? Well obviously she is my soulmate – not just because she is an amazing marathon runner and therefore a huge inspiration … but also because mentally we’re obviously on the same page 😉 … there is an article in the latest magazine from her about the mental side of running and wow! She counts, like me! She said she knew when she counted to 100 3x that she should have run about a mile (something like that, I’m paraphrasing) … when I am tired, or bored, or struggling, I count to 100 3x … only difference is that covers a km for me, not a mile (1.6km) – ha ha .. funny that!  AND the biggest thing, I’ve described to people before about that magic feeling where you walk out and just “know” that it is going to be a good day, I had that amazing feeling when I won my gold medal at Oceania (shooting, not running) and I had it before I ran the Rotorua marathon – you just can’t describe it, but if you could bottle it, it would be worth millions.  Paula Radcliffe had a wee bit in there about a race back in (2004, I think – I haven’t got the magazine in front of me) about how she just knew she was going to win that day, that she just felt it – I know exactly what she is talking about.

With that – I’m off to bike 20km … and dream about that amazing “spiritual” feeling that just seems to come, I wish I could work out how to turn it on whenever I wanted it!

Wind, Rain, Hail, Tornados …

Wild Weather

Tornado

It has been wild here, I’m positive that growing up, tornados only happened to people like Dorothy – in lands far far away … definitely not in little New Zealand, and definitely not a few minutes away!  I suppose, just like earthquakes always happened, and we always felt them … but that “big one” everyone talked about was just folklore, but gosh reality by way of what must be a very angry Mother Nature has sure hit us this year.

Sunday morning (after Saturday afternoon/evening’s stormy weather) I lay listening to the wind and rain and decided that I was better to skip my long (40km) bike ride and short (5km) run outside and hit the gym for a spin class and 5km on the treadmill, which I did – but with the promise to myself that I’d do the 40k bike ride on Tuesday (instead of the usual spin class).

S0, yesterday, being Tuesday … I sure did go out and do it.  When I left it wasn’t so bad and I was congratulating myself for swapping days … I did two loops of 20km, first 20km wasn’t so bad, was definitely way too windy, but manageable … second 20km, the storm started picking up again, it got windier, and windier, and windier and a few minutes from home the rain and hail hit again – just enough to make me wet.

I sat at home and had lunch watching the weather get worse, the wind get windier … and knowing that I had to go out on my bike to do my delivering no matter what the weather (I’d worked at my “real” job the day before, so had two days worth to get done!).  By the time I left, the rain had stopped but the wind hadn’t.  It was wild, but not so bad … until about 3pm when the heavens opened, again.  Lasted about 10min, enough to well and truly wet me, and then the sun came out again.  Still windy, and at times I nearly got blown off, and biking home I wondered if I should just get off and walk, because there were times I was hardly moving! But done!

So yesterday = I covered about 70km, 5hrs on the bike … in the windy storm weather that is our reality right now – gosh when I finally get my road bike, and the weather gets better … it will be easy peasy to bike 160km, right?

 

 

Week 2/18 Auckland Training + Week 2/22 Taupo Training

Saturday, 3 July 2011

Rest Day – Rest day was a crazy busy day with the kids’ sports! But then again, that is why I switched my days around – to allow for that.

Sunday, 4 July 2011

5km – Easy: Another easy 5km, took it a bit easier than the week before, because, well – its supposed to be an easy run.  Had a reflective moment thinking about how hard 5km was to run a couple of years ago, and how it feels pretty comfortable now.
29:41 (5:51/km)

30km LSD Biking: 10km further than last week – the programme I am using is a beginner’s programme, which is based on 15 weeks, and builds up from 20km to 120km, at 10km each week.  I’ve got 22 weeks, so I’ve got a few extra weeks to take the intensity off, or to fit in running races, or long runs.  Hopefully it will work!  30km today was pretty good going, tried to ride at a comfortable pace, and it seemed to work.
1:30:49 (20.3km/hour)

Monday, 5 July 2011

11km Speed Intervals:  Physio tomorrow, so made sure I did the Mon/Tues run today.  Really didn’t feel like doing it at all – but forced myself out.  Managed two quite good km at “speed” pace, then did the third km faster, but not quite at “speed”.  Pretty happy with the overall workout, always feels good to have it done!
1:00:37 (Km 4 = 5:04/km, Km 6 = 5:05/km, Km 8 = 5:14/km, overall 5:40/km)

Spin Class: Should be my Tuesday work-out, but it wasn’t going to work on Tuesday, so I did it Monday night instead.

Tuesday, 6 July 2011

Physio Appointment:  Still working on the hamstring/glute issue – some more exercises to do, talked about making the glute work harder rather than the hamstring doing the work – so more glute exercises as well.  For now he reckons I don’t need to completely (no running) rest it – but “active” rest would be good (less running, easier running).  We’ll see 😉

Wednesday, 6 July 2011

Personal Trainer session – hard work this morning, came home too late after a meeting last night, and 7.00am came around to fast to get to the gym at 7.30am for the session.  Once its done I’m loving the new time – it gives me a lot more time to get things done what is always a busy day around here!

Thursday, 7 July 2011

11km – Run: No goals for today, just a run!
1:01:45 (5:42/km)

Friday, 8 July 2011

18km LSD

1:50:28 (6:09/km)

Was a bit nervous about this one – I’m still testing/pushing the body when I put two days in a row together, so a hardish run the day before and then a long one the next day, I’m always a bit nervous about how its going to react.  I took it slow and easy, tried to keep the heartrate to about 150 (went a wee bit higher, but not bad).  All went well!  and best thing – my body seems to have coped really well.

Week 2 – done!