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Saturday, August 31, 2013

Training week 9, but not really a training week...

This week I took a break from all things biking and running.  Well kinda.  With it being my first week back to school, I wanted to focus on getting it together (my brain) and get some sort of idea of when biking and running will be happening this semester.  I successfully made it to the hospital on Monday with my bike!  (I know you were worried.)  I also had this little (BIG) race this weekend, and was looking to PR.

Sunday, August 25
Bike:  8 miles / don't know pace

We biked the route I'm going to take for school.  We did it twice trying to figure out the best way to get there and get back to the Jeep.

Monday, August 26
Bike: 4 miles  / don't know pace

I don't time these since I'm going to the hospital for clinical, I just get there as fast as I can.

Tuesday, August 27th:
Rest

Wednesday, August 28th:
Bike:  14.2 miles / 1:00:00 / 14.2 mph

This was on the trainer since it was pouring down rain.  I watched "Naked and Afraid" while I biked.   Oh! And I had the hubby to keep me company.

Thursday, August 29th:
Rest
This is my long day on campus.  7.5 hours there.  I did carry a backpack around campus that weighs somewhere between 30-130 pounds.

Friday, August 30th:
Rest

Saturday, August 31st:
RACE DAY!!!
Women's 4 Miler!!
Run:  4 miles / 33:39 min / 8:25 pace <---------PR!!!!!!!  PR!!!!!!!  PR!!!!!!!

I will have a post soon of the race.  I finally had a pretty decent PR.  Like almost 3 minutes off my time from last year.  Yeah.  I rock.  Oh and speed work, yeah, it does work.

Totals for the week:
Run:  4 miles <------ Race on nice rested legs!!
Bike:  26.2 miles  <------ I did a marathon on wheels!
Row:  None.  I slacked on that.  Oops.

Month of August totals:
Run:  69.5 miles
Bike:  107.4 miles
Row:  2.8 miles

If I would've realized that I was so close to 70 running miles, I would've put in the time!!  It seriously would not have taken me that long!  I need to keep up with those numbers better!

I didn't take any pics this week.  Epic fail.  I did take some pics of the race, but I'll post those on my race recap.

Tuesday, August 27, 2013

Tuesday Tidbits

I just started back to school, so I'm a little jumbled in my thought process this week, and it's only Tuesday...

Geez.

I got an awesome gift from an awesome fellow blogger this past weekend!!!  It made my heart happy!!  That she took time to get me a gift and a sweet card meant a lot!  And it matches perfectly to my road and mountain bike!  How did she know?!?!  Thanks Kim, you're super awesome!!!!


It's a pink bike chain!!

I successfully made it to clinical on Monday riding my bike!  How awesome is that?  It took me 9 minutes from the lot to the hospital.  I talked to the girls that rode the bus, it took them 25 minutes to get from the same parking lot to the hospital.  I'm awesome.

I bought some awesome shirts from this website here.  I cannot help but share them.  I seriously wonder what people think sometimes when I wear them.  I wore "Got the Runs" today!!  Yeah!




The peeps in my clinical group are awesome.  I mean seriously.  I joined this group in their second year, and they could not be any more welcoming to a newbie.  How awesome is that?  We will be together two days a week for clinical, so I'm glad I got some cool ones!  Not too shabby for not knowing anyone!!

Today was the first day of actual class.  I have to say, nurses are smart, but some of them lack common sense.  What part of "if you need further instruction on this situation, email me" do you not understand?  Shut up.  Seriously.  It was a simple question, with a simple answer.

In my quest of all things organized, I got a little crazy when I went to Target last week to buy tabs and they were out.  OMG!  I almost went crazy in the store.  Luckily they were in stock a few days ago so I could continue to tab the hell out of stuff...




Ahh....

Leaving school today I encountered the worst traffic ever.  It's usually pretty bad the first few weeks of school, mostly because people are new and don't know what they are doing, or they haven't dropped out yet.  So when I left today, I knew it would be crazy, but I did NOT anticipate this:

At least the views are nice!

There is only one way in and one way out of the college.  How stupid.  So there was a wreck at the bottom of the mountain, and it was backing up traffic all the way back into the parking lot.  It took me about 20 minutes to just leave the school today.  Sigh.

So that's been my week so far.  

Gotta go, I have lots of homework to do!  

How do you stay organized amidst all chaos?  

I have all things tabbed out here!  If it can have a tab, you bet your ass it does!!

Sunday, August 25, 2013

Training Week 8 & 9 combined

This week I did my week 9 because I have a race this Saturday that I'm dying to PR in, so in order to have rested legs, I needed to NOT run 10 miles this week.

Sunday, August 18th:

Speed work:  3.73 miles / 32:00 min / 8:35 pace
Row:  1322 meters / 6:00 min

This speed session wasn't too bad.  My legs were sore from the night ride we did the day before, but really my legs were fine.

Monday, August 19th:

REST!

I knew I had a long run to fit in the next day, I thought it would be wise to take the day off and relax.

Tuesday, August 20th:

Run:  10 miles / 1:45:00 / 10:32 pace
Bike:  5 miles / 22:46 min / 13.18 mph

This was one of the hardest and most painful runs I've had in a while.  Not painful like an injury painful, it was just horrible.  I never found my rhythm, I was hot, tired, and grumpy.  The highlight was J rode his bike with me.  He was my little cheerleader the whole way. I wanted to quit a million times and he kept saying how awesome I was.  I didn't quit, but it was not pretty.  I was hoping for a sub 10 pace the whole way, but I just didn't have it in me that day.

After my 10 mile run, he still wanted to ride!


Wednesday, August 21st:

REST!

I was sore and still mad about the 10 miler, so I needed a me day.  Since the kiddo started school this day, it was easy to get a me day.  I kinda missed that talkative little fella though!


First day of 7th grade!


Thursday, August 22nd:

Run:  5.1 miles / 49:48 min / 9:46 pace

This run was more like my kinda run!  I felt much better!

Friday, August 23rd:

REST!

Fridays are my work days, so I take them off.

Saturday, August 24th:

Run:  3.16 miles / 30:06 min / 9:32 pace

I got to run with my most favorite running partner, although he's a bit out of shape!!  It was a cool 55 out, so the weather was perfect for my four legged running partner!!  Gonna have to whip that boy back into shape real soon!!  He loved it, but by mile 2 he was tired, but we had to make it home.  I was his cheerleader!

After our 3 miler

Relaxing and watching Weeds

It was a hard day for this fella...


Totals for the week:

Run:  22 miles
Bike:  5 miles  <-----  I didn't even realize this!  How horrible!  Just 5 miles?!?!
Row:  0.8 miles

With my running miles increasing, it's getting harder and harder for me to do long bike rides.  I didn't realize until today that I only did 5 last week, but this week will be better since I'll be resting my running muscles for the 4 miler!  I think that wanting to run and bike all the time in the nice weather has been why my pace has decreased.  Of course it's been warmer than usual here too, so I'm sure that is part of it.

WHEN IS FALL AGAIN?!?!

I'm ready for cooler temps and faster times!

Wednesday, August 21, 2013

Anthem Moonlight Ride Recap!!




Last Saturday, August 17th, the family and I rode the Anthem Moonlight Ride in Richmond.  I get all the Sports Backers emails since I've done the half marathon a few times, and we thought the moonlight ride looked fun.  The boy has really gotten into riding, and we even bought him a road bike.

There are two options for the race, 17 miler and 8 miler.  We chose the 17 miler since we ride long most of the time.  Seventeen miles on a bike is way easier than a 17 mile run!!  The kiddo was on board, so we registered a few months back (before the increase of course!!) and then we started training.

The kiddo spent some time at my parents house this summer, so I was a little concerned with him being able to complete the ride.  I had nothing to worry about!  He did great (or so I hear...)

So the race!

Before!


For the race you are required to have a front and back light for your bike.  We all had back lights, so I picked up some front lights, no biggie right?  I assumed we'd be riding in the city, so just any light would work...yeah, not so much...

The race started around 8:00, and in waves.  We put ourselves in the "casual rider" category, so we ended up being in the 3rd wave, which was fine, but next year we think we'll be able to move up at least one.  People always seem to over estimate their abilities, which makes it difficult for others that are in that category.  Kinda frustrating.  I don't think it's as difficult when you're in a running race, but on a bike, it can be a challenge.

Another thing about the waves...

We couldn't really hear how to line up with our wave.  We didn't know where to line up and how, we just kinda started following people.  Not sure how they could change that, but it was hard to hear what to do!  We figured it out obviously.




About to get started!


Soon after we started, the boy and hubby were ahead of me, I couldn't catch up to them with all the bikes in the way, it was kinda frustrating.  The hubby's friend (M) was with us to, so we all tried to stay together.  I figured I'd keep the hubby and kiddo in my sight, and maybe we'd catch up later when it thinned out a bit.

Although the ride never left Richmond, there were not always street lights (this is something I find so weird in VA, no street lights, in the city!!!), so it got dark.  Fast.  I lost the boys.  I lost M.  I was alone.  I was only about 3 miles in.  In a matter of minutes, M was beside me.  I told him I'd like to stay together if we can, that way I have someone to talk to!  He agreed he'd stay with me.  Although I'd much rather have my son and hubby with me, I'd take M, at least I knew someone!

The course was awesome, so flat compared to what I ride here!!  I was in heaven!  A lot of the course was the half marathon course that I've ran twice, so at least it was kinda familiar, even if it was dark.  We rode through a park and they had the first pit stop, I think it was around 7 miles.  I don't know, I had to pee, so it didn't matter.  M and I pulled off, peed, got a snack, took some water and headed out again.

Seriously the BEST SNACK EVER!!!!!


The weather was kinda crappy, it rained on us almost the entire time.  I've never rode my bike in the rain, but it was kinda refreshing to have the rain.  Cooled us off for sure, we just had to be careful not to slip!

The ride was fun, and I'd like to do it again next year.  I wish I could've rode with my family, especially since it was J's first official organized bike ride.  The hubby said he did great, he never complained and had a blast the whole time talking to everyone along the way, just wish I could've been there to witness it all.  He was on cloud nine all night, and the next day.  What a huge accomplishment to finish a 17 mile bike ride at 12 years old!  I didn't even know about those things when I was 12!!

The after party was pretty awesome too!  They gave all the riders two pieces of pizza, drinks, ice cream, and beer for the adults!  We stayed and ate, chatted, then loaded up and came home.  We didn't get back home until midnight, but it was all worth it, we had a blast!  Thanks for putting on a great race Sport Backers!

After!


Things I will do different next year?

A brighter front light.  I didn't realize that it was going to be that dark in the city.  I mean seriously, I needed a spotlight in some places!!

I'll probably ride my mountain bike next year, or take the clip ins off the road bike.  I'm not an expert on clipping in and out, so it made me super nervous the whole time.  Of course, maybe next year I'll be a little more confident so I won't have to worry about them.

Have you ever done a night ride?  

It kinda freaked me out a bit!  I'll be more prepared next year!

Monday, August 19, 2013

One week to go...

I have 7 days until school starts again.

Ugh.

I've had almost 4 weeks off, and they've gone by way too fast!  I do feel like I'm well rested and ready for the next challenge, but then again, not so much.  I just want to chill and work one day a week.

Yeah right, like the hubby would go for that.  No school and working one day a week?  In my dreams!

So I've decided to ride my bike to the hospital on the days I have clinical and to get my pre-clinical paperwork, so three times a week I will be there.  I'm excited since I get to ride on those mornings and afternoons, but nervous about parking in my assigned lot, getting on the bike, making it to the bike rack, parking it, locking it up, walking to the site inside, and making it on time.  Big time stressing me out!  I going to do a practice run sometime this week to lessen my anxiety.

They have a free bus system that is offered, but I don't like riding a bus with strangers.  I can do what I want, I have to pay for parking, and we can't park on site, so I might as well ride my bike.  I feel like I would be more free and I could let out a little aggression if I need to.


Literally the bus


Doesn't look like much, huh?


I've got another full load of school, with new classes, bigger classes, and a clinical group I've never met, along with instructors I've never met either.  I have two in person classes, two online classes, two clinical days, and one chemistry lab day.  YIKES!!

I also have anxiety about clinical sites.  I'm doing a psych and med-surg rotation.  I don't care too much for psych, and my med-surg is the Thoracic Cardiovascular Unit (TCV).  I can deal with psych, but the TCV makes me super nervous.  I'm not even sure why.  I'm decent with the heart, but not confident yet (the first entire month of school will be on cardiovascular), so I guess that is why my anxiety level is through the roof.

Easy peasy...NOT!


I know it'll all work out and I'll be fine.  But with the parking, biking, school, and clinical, I may lose my mind...

And there wasn't much left after the summer session...

Last fall I had the same kind of issues, and I made it, and school was new to me.  I'm just hoping I survive the first month, because if I do, I'll be fine...

Wish me luck!

How do you deal with new stressors?  

I don't know how I deal.  I get a little grumpy I guess.

Sunday, August 18, 2013

Training week 7

This week was full of challenges!  I am tired of running on tired legs, but the weather has been so nice, I cannot help myself!!!

Sunday, August 11th:

Run:  3.72 miles / 32:00 min / 8:26 pace
Row:  1091 meters / 5:00 min

We returned from Knoxville that afternoon, and I felt lazy, so I decided I'd do some speed work and row, which actually turned out okay!

Dreadmill AND speed work, oh how I hate you...

Killer, it's been a while!

Monday, August 12th:

Run:  5.1 miles / 48:43 min / 9:34 pace
Row:  1074 meters / 5:00 min

This run was okay, I was feeling good for the most part.  I tried to get the kid to get up and bike with me while I ran, but he decided sleep was more important...

Before the run...

After the run...I have such a mean name for this piece of foam....


Tuesday, August 13th:

Bike:  12.5 miles / 56:23 min / 13.3 mph
Row:  1055 meters / 5:00 min

The kiddo and I rode together for 7.5 miles, I did the last 5 miles by myself, which I totally thought I PR'd, for the segment, but I missed it by seconds!!  (I had no one to draft on, gonna have to get the hubby to help me out on that one!!)

Seriously LOVE this kid!


Wednesday, August 14th:

Run:  8 miles / 1:19:37 min / 9:58 pace
Bike:  8 miles / 43:36 min / 11.01 mph

The run was uneventful other than the serious chafing I got!!  OMG!  I totally forgot about that!!  I had a wardrobe malfunction, which I didn't notice until mile 4 or so, and I was too far from home, so I dealt with it, decided to pick up the pace and get back to the house!!

Isn't it funny how when you get into the shower after a long run and you realize your chafed in places you didn't know?!?!  BURN BABY BURN!!!!!!!!!!  OMG!!!!!!!!

My legs were super tired, but I pushed through it, knowing maybe it'll pay off race day since I'll be on rested legs that day.
This was the starting temp for my run!

Along the trail!

That afternoon was a doozy!  The kiddo said he wanted to bike 5 miles, I agreed to go with him since the hubby is training, he (hubby) had to do 20 miles, so we rode the first 3 together and went our separate ways.  On the way home, the kiddo decided to take a detour, which takes us up a huge long hill.  I agreed to go, but I told him it would be ugly, especially since my legs were super tired.  I made it up the hill before him and decided to stop and wait, and I had my first fall with my clips.

Let me set it up for you:

The clips are new to me, I've had MANY near falls since I got them last month.  I knew it was gonna happen at some point.  I was about to stop and I clipped out of the left one (which I always do, it's my dominate), when I did, I realized the curb was on the right, so I clipped out of that one too, before I was all the way out of the right clip, I lost my balance (which I do often) and I fell to the right.  On the curb. OUCH!!  The curb went into my mid thigh, and the bike on top of me, which isn't a big deal.  I'm sure it looked worse than it was.  The kiddo sees it all unfold, speeds up and is yelling the whole way, "MOM!!!!  ARE YOU OKAY?!?!?!"  After he makes it to me, he asked if I was going to be alright, and that he'd call a taxi if I needed one.  I laughed and told him that was not necessary, I'd be fine.  The whole way home he kept asking if I was okay, how sweet is he?

Thursday, August 15th:

Trail Run:  3.19 / 40:25 / 12:41 pace <--------  Again, trail running is hard!!!!!!

I also had some serious indigestion on the run, we ate pizza for lunch and it did not agree with me.  My stomach is typically pretty easy to get a long with, but not this day!!  YUCK!

Start of the trail, it is not this flat, or this smooth!!

The boy waiting on dad to go trail riding while I run

Us, waiting on dad, we get bored easily...



Friday, August 16th:

REST!!!!

Saturday, August 17th:

Bike:  17.1 mi / 1:28:00 / 11.66 mph

We rode the Anthem Moonlight Ride in Richmond!!  It was so awesome, I'll have a post on it soon!!




Totals for the week:

Run:  20.1 miles
Bike:  37.6 miles
Row:  2 miles

Even with tired legs and a busy week, it was still a good one.  The highlight was the kiddo doing his first bike ride with others.  17 miles is the longest he's ever gone, so it was quite an accomplishment!

Do you ever run or bike on tired legs because it is sooooooo nice out? 

Yeah, I do!

Thursday, August 15, 2013

I'm in!!!!! Finally!

So after nearly a week, I finally got this today:





Woo Hoo!!

So let me back up...

A few weeks ago, the hubby was talking to another one of his friends about the New River Trail Challenge.  It's a 40 mile mountain bike, 12 mile kayak, and half marathon on packed gravel trails.  I said, hmm, that's cool.  Soon after that conversation, he came to me with an idea...

He could bike (which he's super awesome at!), his friend could kayak (which I've been told he's good at), and I could run the half marathon (I'm a decent runner, no doubt!)

I was like, "I'm in!!"

I was so excited, I've never been on a team before!!  (Other than when I was a cheerleader in high school, which I'm not even sure counts...)

We decided we'd ask the boys' company to sponsor us for the race.  And we waited.  For a week.  Then I told the hubby I'd ask my employer if they'd sponsor us, and we agreed if they didn't, we'd split the cost 3 ways, no biggie.

I went to work last Friday and asked if my peeps if they'd be interested in sponsoring myself, the hubby and hubby's friend for a race.  She said, "Sure" asked me how much, and wrote me a check on the spot!!  Schweet!!!!!

I mailed it on Saturday, and finally got confirmation today!  Woo Hoo!


Now you know, I'm a nurse at an OB/GYN clinic.  This caused some concern for the boys on my team.  A few of the team name ideas were:
Team Gyno
Team OB
And some others I should not mention...

I asked my boss if she cared what we called ourselves.  She said, "No way, just have fun!!"

Our team name is....drum roll please...

Dumb, Dumber, and a Runner...

Yeah, and I'm not the dumb one!!!!!  HA!


So this is the race I've been training for, a trail (mostly packed gravel) half marathon.

What I've been training on a local trail, which is a hard core trail (to me), like dirt path, tree roots, trees hitting you in the head, streams to jump over, and LOTS of hills, so if anything, this will make me stronger!

I'm sooooo excited to be part of a team!!  Of course there is added pressure to perform well, especially since we have a chance to place (we scoped out the comp from last year online), and well, my teammates are pretty awesome.  I don't want to let anyone down!!  And I'm the last to go...why is the runner always the last to go?  Oh that's right, because we are the AWESOME-EST and the most BAD ASS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have you ever done a team event?  Was is super awesome?!?!

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Nearly Wordless Wednesday!



Slight addiction, but notice the apple in the background!

This is what happens when we eat the above!

See Kim, I'm eating as many Oreos as I can!  I think with the family combined, we have eaten 200!

Monday, August 12, 2013

What happened to "Thank You" notes?



The other day we got a thank you note from the wedding we attended last month.

A hand written thank you card, no already printed words, just a blank card filled up with words from the bride and groom.

Granted the hubby was the best man, but still.  We bought them a gift, drove 12 hours, I skipped a clinical day, and we made the wedding.  But that's besides the point.  The card was hand written.

The card thanked us for the gift, coming to the wedding, making their day special.  It made me so happy to read those words.

Sometimes just knowing you are appreciated makes your day.

When I was younger, my mother always told me that you should always hand write thank you notes.  Send Christmas cards.  Send Birthday cards.  Send cards for no reason.  Treat people as you want to be treated.

Simple right?

Yes, but people don't do these things anymore.  The world we live in is full of text and email.  We don't even call people anymore.

Now I'll admit, I'm guilty of not calling people.  Unless it's my mom.  I call her ever single Sunday, again, something I learned from her, she called her mom every single Sunday after church.

I also make a point to send Christmas cards every year.  This year I sent over 25 cards all over the world.  How many did we get in return?  Three.

So what has happened to people being nice to people?

What happened to the simple thank you note?

Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I think these simple things are important, so I'm teaching my son the same thing.

Maybe people are still nice to other people, but I think we could be a little more connected, and not in an electronic way.

Do you send thank you cards?  Christmas cards?  Birthday cards?  A card for no reason?

I certainly do!!

Sunday, August 11, 2013

This week's training...for the race I'm doing next month...

So I'm going to attempt to write about my training weeks now, especially since I'm doing a race the end of next month.  I still can't say quite yet, since it isn't official.  (I haven't received confirmation of the entry since it has to be sent via snail mail...)

Sunday 8/4:
Easy 3.14 mile run before breakfast
28:21
9:02 pace

Monday 8/5:
Another easy 4.1 mile run:
37:07
9:04 pace

Tuesday 8/6:
Bike 15.2 miles
1:01:03
14.94mph

Wednesday 8/7:
Run 7 miles:
1:08:53
9:51 pace

Thursday 8/8:
Trail run 3.21 miles
40:42 total
12:41 pace  <-----  Trail running is HARD!!!

Trail running day!


Friday 8/9:
Rest

Saturday 8/10:
Drove to Knoxville to pick up the kiddo!!!

Totals
Run:
17.5 miles
Bike:
15.2 miles

This week went good.  I only took pics of my trail day, just because I was waiting on the hubby to get there.  Next week, pics, everyday!!!

I met a friend while I was running the other day on my 7 miler!!!!  Well she isn't a friend (yet), just someone who was running the same pace as me, so I caught up and we chatted for my last 1 mile or so, it was awesome!!  I asked her her typical running schedule, and we swapped training days, and hopefully I get to run with her this week too!!  Woo Hoo!!!!!

Trail running.  Yeah, that is hard stuff!!  I've been hitting the trails once a week for the past month, preparing my legs for the race I'm possibly doing.  My legs are so exhausted the next day.  But it's a good feeling, and I haven't killed myself yet!

We picked up our kiddo this weekend too, oh how I've missed that little fella!!!  That was the reason for no biking on Saturday!

So that's my week, I'm going to do better next week, maybe I'll have my confirmation, and I'll add a little flair with the pics!!

How did your training week go?



Thursday, August 8, 2013

I have a secret second profession...in case this nursing thing doesn't work out




A few months back we got an outrageous water bill ($120).  Like for realz.  I was like WTF?!?!  Who is sneaking showers???

At first I blamed on the kid.  I mean, he does stay in there a while.  He's 12, which I'm not even going to get into right now...but he constantly has to be reminded he needs to hurry up.

Then I blamed it on the adults.  We typically take two showers a day.  More the hubby than me since he does evening workouts and I typically do mornings, but this summer was crazy with school and clinical, so some of my workouts moved to the evening as well.  So there ya go, two showers per adult, per day.

Then I noticed the toilet.  It was making some noises.  Like the water was on...under the lid.  Hmmm, that got me thinking.

So what does a girl do?  YouTube.

We have those tablets in the toilet to help keep the bowl clean (blame it on me not wanting to scrub the toilet, I don't care, I haven't scrubbed a toilet all year).  When the tablet begins to break down, the water level is off, therefore the toilet gets confused, so it starts to "run".

So how does one fix this problem?  Easy peasy, take a screwdriver to tighten the screws on the top.

You're welcome.

The next month our bill was $42!!!!!  Looks like I won't need to work more hours to pay for the water bill.  Yay!

I was so happy, I shared the news with the hubby and he said he was proud of me, the little plumber girl.  He even shared my new profession at the poker game a few weeks ago.  How sweet is that?  (Weird, I know)

I'm usually the one that is hands on in the house, I fix everything.  I once fixed the faucet, well kinda.  My dad had to help me when he was visiting last year, but we got it.  But before he came I knew how to turn the water source off so it wouldn't waste water.  Is that weird?  The hubby is more tech savvy, which I am not.  I have called that poor guy upstairs a million times when my computer goes nuts.  He'll come up and click like one thing, and it's all better.

So are you handy?

I used to not be, until we bought our house.  If I had problems before I'd call the owner and she'd have it taken care of, now I have no one to call!!

Tuesday, August 6, 2013

Why do we dream what we dream?

Have you ever wondered why you dream about certain things?  Like when you wake up in the morning and think, "Where did THAT come from?".  I do it all the time.  More often lately though, and that got me thinking...where do my dreams come from?

Well according to scientific research AKA Google...this is what I got:

"Dreams come from your soul and are intended to help you progress along your life path.  In sleep the focus of the physical world and the body is on hold during this period your soul has a perfect opportunity to dialogue with your conscious mind...or so it would appear.  The problem here is that the subconscious never sleeps."

See full text here.

So that got me thinking, why do I have dreams about being pregnant, in a tornado, with my teeth falling out.  Not all in the same dream, but these particular dreams are regulars.

So lets start with the really crazy one.  Being pregnant.



Yeah.  I can't really have babies anymore, so I think it is weird I've been dreaming about being pregnant all summer, like 3-5 nights a week.  There are a lot of people I know that are pregnant, and I work in an OB/GYN office for goodness sakes!  But that's beside the point.  Why was I dreaming of such craziness?!?!  So I googled it (of course, I mean if it's on the internet, it's true right?).  Basically when you dream of being pregnant, it is not always because you want to be pregnant, but that you have a desire, goal, or a creative project that maybe you aren't fully aware of...yet.  Interesting.

See the full text here.

Tornados.  They scare the crap out of me, literally.  A long time ago when I lived in West TN, there was a tornado warning, then I had this overwhelming desire to do #2.  Really.  Like the tornado will come and kill me and I'd be on the toilet taking a dump.  It would be like the guy from Jurassic Park when the dinosaur eats him while he is on the toilet.  Anyway, I getting off subject.



So I dream about tornados very often too.  I don't ever die in them, but I'm always trying to protect my family.  I see it coming, the wind is blowing, and I'm getting everyone underground.  So what does that mean?  Well...

"Whenever a tornado appears in a dream, the dreamer should look to the previous day for times when the mind jumps from subject to subject, from one thought to another.  This can be an experience of the mind "running at 100 mph," or incessantly being fixated on a problem that isn't being solved by continuing to think about it."

See full text here.


And the teeth falling out.



I have these dreams, but not as often as I used to.  I'd dream of me talking to someone and I'd feel all these loose teeth in my mouth, and I'd spit and they'd come out.  Yuck!  I was surprised to find out the meaning of this one.  My husband was on his first deployment, so I can see why this one would be accurate.

"In the field of dream interpretation, teeth falling out are associated with loss and important life changes.  This symbol points to feeling of insecurity or vulnerability regarding a recent event that disrupted your life."


See full text here.




So here is the lowdown on my dreams:

Pregnancy:  I don't have a creative bone in my body, I am however, very goal orientated, so I could see this one.

Tornados:  My mind is always going 100 mph all the time.  I'm constantly thinking of things all the time, especially when I'm in school.

Teeth falling out:  I do notice this dream when things seem to be falling apart, or that things are getting out of control and I cannot do anything about it.



Do you look up your dreams?  Do you have reoccurring dreams?  If so, what are they?




Saturday, August 3, 2013

Love at first sight?

On June 18th, I found what soon would be named Cherry Limeade.

I didn't expect to find her at all, I wasn't even looking.  (Isn't that how it is supposed to be?)

She's is like the cool girl in school, like the one you wanted to be like, but didn't dare even talk to her, you know, 'cause she was so cool.

She has attitude, but not too much where it's annoying, more like a fun attitude.  Although she didn't get the real attitude until she was mine.

She is smooth, like a fine wine where it just goes down your throat and doesn't burn.

And this was just my first impression.

Then I was asked if I wanted to take her for a spin.  Of course I said yes.

That was when I realized we were meant for each other.

I rode her around the parking lot a few times and her gears were just sooooo smooth, her seat was perfect and did not vibrate - which was a good thing (oh my, that sounds a little dirty!!!)

I took her back to the store and debated.  Could it be?  Could I be in love...with a bike?

Yeah.  I was.

But I still debated.  I didn't really need a bike.  I had White Lightning at home, and she was great.  But this bike, it was like she was talking to me.

This one is carbon, women's specific, and just...awesome.  I had no idea the difference between a carbon and a "regular bike".  Wow.  Big difference on long rides.  Huge.  I'm typically a long rider, I hardly ever do anything below 10 miles on the bike, so having a carbon frame made a huge difference on my lady parts!  HUGE!

And then the owner, who knows my hubby and I very well, said he'd throw in pink tires -  for free.  PINK TIRES Y'ALL!!!  I was sold!

So there you have it, the pink tires were put on, and we took her home, along with the hubby's new Madone, but my Madone is wayyyyyy cooler than his.  I got a bike fit the next week, and they put on my green wraps, and that was it, Cherry Limeade was born.

After about 200 miles on her, I thought about getting clip in pedals.  I struggled with this, mostly because I was terrified of being "locked into" the bike.  I had a close call last year with a Jeep, and I fell pretty hard, so that scared me into not getting them.  This summer I kept thinking, "If I had more power going up hill, I could kill it", "If I had clips, I'd be more efficient".  So after talking with the hubby, albeit, ALOT, he convinced me it was worth a try.  I didn't buy the most expensive shoes, I didn't even know if I'd like it, so we went with a "mid grade" pair.

I can tell you, the difference was HUGE!  HUGE!  If you've ever considered getting them, DO IT!!  My power and efficiency is so much better!


The day I brought her home


Maiden Voyage


4th of July 33 miler


She even possessed me to buy these.


So do you name your workout equipment?  Cars?  Anything?  

I name just about anything.  I don't know why, I just always have.

Thursday, August 1, 2013

I'm Back!!!

After many "Wordless Wednesday" posts, I knew I was just too busy to write.  As much as I like to write, I was busy with school, and to be quite honest, I'm boring.  So I decided it would be easier to focus on school instead of worrying about keeping up a blog.

So what I have I been up to?

Well...

I bought a new bike mid June.  I wasn't planning on it, but I seriously could not leave the bike shop without her.  The hubby needed a new one, so I decided to get me one too.  Her name is Cherry Limeade, she's super fast, and super cool.  My most favorite drink from Sonic is Cherry Limeade, so I thought it fit, especially since I don't ever get to drink them anymore since our town doesn't have a Sonic.  (They are such tree huggers around here...)

Cherry Limeade before her 33 miler


Biking has rubbed off on the kiddo.  He got a road bike this summer too.  We are riding a family night ride in Richmond later this month, and I'm so excited.

The boy and his new bike


We went to Tennessee for my brother-in-laws wedding.  I actually had a great time, even though it was a short trip due to my school.  It was a drama-free week, and we had so much fun catching up with friends and family.  I rode on the back of my dads Gold Wing and on the back of my brothers Harley, I shopped with my momma, and ate with my two best friends.  It was a great time, really.  Just what I needed in the middle of the summer semester.

The best man and I

My beautiful niece Lana

The bride and I

This is how we really act

Prettiest flower girls EVER!

My sweet brother-in-law and his awesome wife!




My precious niece Layla, she could be my daughter!


After we returned from TN, the boy stayed with my parents, so it was time for me to buckle down and get this school stuff under control.  School was fine, I didn't do as well as I'd like on the first test (test anxiety got the best of me!), but I did fine on the second one.  With one more test to go, and lots of online stuff to do, along with clinical, AND studying every minute in between, I didn't have much time for anything else.

This is what I dealt with the entire summer


That's the thing about nursing school.  It really doesn't matter too much how well you do on the regular tests.  It's the final you have to worry about, it is worth 35% of your final grade.  You don't get a "cushion" where you can feel secure.  If you average B's all semester, and get a C on the final, you get a C for the class.  Is that fair?  No, not really.  So I studied and studied, until I couldn't study anymore.  I wore earplugs while I took the test to be sure what I learned didn't fall out.  (Okay, I wore them because it was noisy, but maybe they did help keep it all in)

So yesterday I found out I officially made it through the semester.  Only 3 of us made it.  We started with 8 in January, down to 6 by June, now we are down to 3 in August.  Wow.  I knew it would be hard, but I didn't think it would be this difficult.  Nursing school is hard.

Post exam...ahhhhhh


That's all for now, I have some more awesome news, something I've never done before, but I'm saving it...until it's official.

Now I need to catch up on all the blogs I've missed all summer.  And some other extra reading that does not involve ANYTHING medical.  Mindless reading, I can't freaking wait!

My reading material, along with my Kindle that has the 4th Game of Thrones book on it!



How has your summer been?  Crazy?  Wild?  Boring?

Mine has been all three, I'm ready for a break!