I've run an average of 0.114583 per day this year!

I just looked at my daily mile stats, and so far I've run a total of ... wait for it ... 11 miles in 2011!! Haha! That is hysterical. It feels like more than that. Oh well. At least I've run 6 of those 11 miles during this week alone!

Ok, so less than a week until the 5K. Two things that are bugging me:

1. I think I might be starting to get a little bit sick. The plus? I don't feel too much worse today than I did yesterday, and in fact I think I feel better this morning than I did last night. Good sign. So far, I've just got a teeny scratchy throat, dry cough, and feeling fatigued. No other cold symptoms yet. Derek has been dealing with an awful cough, though, for what seems like weeks now. Actually, it's been a little over a week. Ugh, I hope I don't get what he had. And I also hope that Lorelei doesn't get it.
2. It's supposed to rain next weekend. While I've not only run in the rain (sorta fun), but also raced in the rain (really fun, but really hard), it's not the best opportunity for my family to stand outside to cheer me on. That kinda sucks, because mom and Jack are coming in on Thursday and part of Saturday was going to be them coming to the race. Well, I guess I'll look online at the course, and see if there's a nearby store they can wait in until I pass by, or until I finish.

Other than that, it's just another day here in the Cleve! Oh, except that I recently made a decision: we've started to supplement Lorelei's diet with a little bit of formula. As I agonized about in great length in another post or two, it's really kind of ... sucking the life out of me (no pun intended, lol). So I am still breastfeeding, but also giving her up to 2 ounces or so of formula per day if she is still hungry soon after nursing. This gives me a physical and mental break, and it also takes the pressure off to pump if I have to be away from her for a few hours at night -- something that I seriously need to do once in a while or I'm gonna lose it! So since we started this (last week), I have been feeling a lot happier in general. We're using Gerber Good Start Gentle Plus, and it's worked out great. No weird reactions, no refusing a bottle, etc. Great relief.

Oh, another thing: I'm going to start reviewing the ABC Family show Make It Or Break It on Mondays/early Tuesdays from now on! If any of you watch the show (or even if you don't, haha) feel free to check it out at CliqueClack TV's website.

How is everyone's Monday going?

Recap

Ok, once again, sorry for being out of the loop.

Some recent news:

1- I got an offer to tutor kids after school part-time. Yay! Still looking for more work, but at least this is a start. First training session begins October 10.

2- Sent an email to a principal in the area offering to volunteer at her elementary school. I figure it's a good way to get exposure, help out, etc.

3- Also sent volunteer requests to Shoes and Clothes for Kids as well as Team in Training (alumni)...should be great!

4- Been baking/cooking even more now that mom got me that Martha Stewart cupcake book...good thing I'm marathon training!

5- Signed up for yelp and have been writing lots of reviews. I'm trying to figure out how to link them directly here, but until I do, you can click on the right-hand side of the page on that little yelp map and you can read the reviews. I've done mostly Cleveland places, but I did touch a bit on NY pizza places and one place in Madison so far.

I also started reading New York Magazine's "The Cut" Blogs again, now that Gossip Girl, as well as the Hills and the City, are back in full force. You may keel over laughing if you read this article about last night's Gossip Girl!

What else?

Not much.

Training this week is as follows:

Mon 9/28 - 4 miles, Towpath Trail @ Canal & Rockside
Tues 9/29 - pilates
Wed 9/30 - 6 miles, Steelyard Path
Thurs 10/1 - 6 miles, TBD
Fri 10/2 - Off
Sat 10/3 - 20 miles!!!!!!!!!!!! Last one!!!!!!!!!
Sat 10/4 - Off or an "easy 3" (By the way, love those T-shirts that say "On the seventh day, God did an easy 3.")

And then, thankfully, the taper begins. I felt so strong today though, and I am ready to conquer 20 once again. And then 26.2 in exactly 4 weeks from Sunday!!!

Also, next weekend (Oct. 11) I've decided to run the Towpath Half Marathon with Claire. Good times!

Kristin came to visit last weekend, which was wonderful, and we went apple picking at Heavenly Hill Farm in North Royalton. Here are some of our photos:




On a final note: made some buttermilk biscuits with this recipe by the Food Network's Tyler Florence....one thing: there MUST have been a mistake on the recipe because it calls for a full tablespoon of salt. Blecch! I am annoyed that these were pretty much ruined...but still fun to make. :)

17 Again...Again?

So, few of you know this about me...but I love Zac Efron. This really started when I saw 17 Again in the theater a few months ago, but of course has reemerged today when I saw the commercial for the DVD. Aaaah, he is cute. So I hate to admit this, but I may have to buy it, or at least watch it again. I justify this by saying that the movie also has Matthew Perry (semi-funny) and Leslie Mann, who I really like even though she is a bit screechy.

Speaking of being (and acting) 17, I need to introduce you to a not-so-recent obsession of mine, the Gilmore Girls. These ladies got me through a lot of weird, lonely summer days and nights last year after I first moved to Madison and Derek was working at his internship in Minneapolis. Yup, as in "I don't have a couch yet so I'm sitting on the floor on pillows watching Luke and Lorelai flirt and argue over coffee and pie." Or, "I'm organizing the front closet and need Paris's bitchiness to distract me so I won't be annoyed I'm doing chores." Or, "Man, what I wouldn't give to just fall into a hot cheeseburger and steaming cup of coffee at the end of a really horrible day."

Not to mention that I love Carole King, who sings the theme song "Where You Lead." One of my old music students (well let's face it, she's more of a friend/"Lil' Sis" to me), who I'll just call K for privacy's sake, was also obsessed with the show and we would always talk about it. We even sang "Where You Lead" as a duet at the Spring Recital. Yeah, we're dorks.


Anyway, the show is on TV as I write this, and it's the one where Jess comes to town for the first time. (Would it be gross to mention that I also have a crush on him? But in actuality, Milo Ventimiglia does not qualify as a "baby," even though he did play a highschooler in the show -- he's like 33. So there. I'm not too gross.) Well, Lorelai has this great line in this episode, when she's out on the porch with Jess reprimanding him for mouthing off to her, that goes something like this:

Wow, there have only been a few times in my life when I have wished I had one of those cream pies to smash in someone's face, but this is definitely one of them.

Ha ha. This is what makes Gilmore Girls so amazing. Instead of saying something uber-pretentious and unrealistic back (a la Dawson's Creek) or getting all dumb and violent (a la Real World) or sarcastic and catty (a la Gossip Girl), it's goofy and classic, and just gets the point across. I love the writing on this show.

(So does Derek, by the way...all the DVDs are his, not mine. OUTED! And also...because Amy Sherman-Palladino did not continue on with the show in its seventh season, that is the one season Derek does not own -- a sort of strike of sorts. Personally, I liked the season and even thought it was one of my favorites, but the writing did seem a bit different with David Rosenthal.)

Well, on another note: I love the Fastwtich sneakers! They are great, with a snug but comfortable fit, and enough support for my overpronation/low arches. After this trial run (an abbreviated speedwork session: 4 miles with only 1 x a mile @ 5k-fast pace), I will definitely wear them for the Patrick Joyce Scholarship 5K this weekend! Maybe I'll break 30...well, anything can happen. I will definitely wear the new, inspirational necklace my mom sent me in the mail. It is a silver plate with "Fearlessness" etched in Sanskrit. Awesome!