February

In the month of February, things got crazy busy for us. I don't know quite what it was that made things so crazy: increased administration tasks at work, a bunch of yearly check-ups and dentist appointments, Aaron suddenly working more because of the short-term class. But, whatever caused it, things got nuts.

I was grateful, therefore, that I had selected a fairly straightforward project and had purchased the materials already. Because of this, I was able to get right to work.

In February, I did a project for Project Linus, which gives blankets to children in need, such as poorly newborns or those who have been put in foster care.

For this project, I serged the edge of four fleece blankets (as per their instructions on their website about what to do with fleece). Each blanket was sized for a crib blanket, so they will probably go to babies. Here's a picture of my blankets (it includes the white behind, which was a blanket):

This was a fast project, but very satisfying. I hope they help to warm the hearts of the children who get them!

If you wish to help out Project Linus in your area, or if you wish to find out more about this amazing organization, please click here: http://www.projectlinus.org/chapter.php?StateKey=CA

January Project

So, things have gotten a bit busy and I haven't had the opportunity to update on my January project.

In January, I worked for Empower Women in Africa, where I made 13 different feminine hygiene pads and 40 different inserts. Each pad requires 3 inserts to make it a "complete set," so I had to do many more of those than the actual pad. Still, for this I broke out my serger sewing machine for the first time and, voila, it was pretty much a snap from there.

Well, actually it took me nearly 3 hours a night for three weeks to complete all the cutting, pinning, and sewing, but I was really proud of what I did. Here are some pictures of it:

Each girl gets 3 pads and 9 inserts, meaning that I helped 4 girls in Africa get a complete set with the work I did here. I LOVED doing this project, and I felt wonderful being able to help my fellow sisters have a more comfortable monthly experience.

Plus, now that I know how to make them, I'm tempted to make several for my 72-hour kit. After all, they're washable, reusable, and practical. Who could say no?

If you want to learn how to make these, or to help out, just click here to get more info: http://empowerwomeninafrica.com/get-involved/

Better :)

I got up "early" this morning, meaning earlier than usual. After last night's blahs, I decided what I really needed was a run.

I was right.

I went to the gym and ran. In fact, I ran for 22 minutes straight - NON STOP. I do believe that's a record.

Or not.

I don't know. But, I felt like it was a record. So, I'm counting it.

And I want to say, "woot! woot!" without capitalizing them. Which is weird, as an English teacher, but there you go.

And now I feel awesome, like I could do anything.

So, maybe I will. After I eat breakfast, and after I shower.

I love being a runner.

A Break

So, I've sort of been taking a break from running the last few weeks. Don't get me wrong, I'm still exercising, but not running as much. Here's why:

Two weekends ago my family bought last minute tickets to San Francisco for the weekend. So, we rented a car (for super cheap, actually) and drove up to meet them. While there, we went to Alcatraz, Ghiradelli Square, the Wharf, Lombard Street, and the play Wicked. We also ate some really good Thai food, with Pumpkin Curry (YUM!).

Then, my mom came back to Fresno with us. She spent a week with us, mostly relaxing, reading, and napping while we slaved away at work (tough life for her, eh?) ;).  It wasn't all play, though, we went for a morning exercise walk together several times, and she helped me completely reorganize my kitchen so it is, now, a functional space. It's much more intuitive to use now, and I LOVE IT!

After she left on Saturday, we went to a friend's house for a movie marathon, then came home and quickly cleaned before we babysat some cute kiddos (three of them, ages 5, 2, and .5) from 5-10pm.

Sunday I had a great morning run. It was difficult, though, mostly because it was SO HOT outside. I started running about 8:30, and by then it was already in the 80s. Way too hot to run. That night we did homework, because our ox was in the mire, and then we were back to the grind on Monday.

This week has been busy, too, what with house preparations for the family coming into town this weekend.

But, today I finally went running again: 5 minute walk, 21 minute run, 5 minute walk, and it wasn't even hard. In fact, my knee pain was non-existant. The thing about this, too, is that I was having knee pain last Sunday when I ran outside in the heat. Then, based off a recommendation in Runner's World magazine, I started to lengthen my stride to its fullest. I dug deep, ran fast and hard, and stretched my stride out completely. I was FLYING. And, the best part was that my knee immediately stopped hurting.

So, today I ran faster on the treadmill. I kept the pace for the entirety of the 21 minutes.

WOOHOO!

The best news in all of this is that, despite my busyness, I haven't lost much of my fitness. I've only lost training time - a week and a half of it. But, hey, it was TOTALLY worth it, and I'd do it all again!

Saving Ta-Ta's

Today, I ran a 5k race

in 36:25.

That's my fastest time, ever.

Not too shabby, not too shabby at all.

It was a sunny, cool day. I ran with my sister, my brother-in-law, and my two nephews. The atmosphere there was AWESOME. People were all dressed up in crazy fashions, and running/walking in support of someone with breast cancer. There were over 18,000 people there today, running & walking. Many of those were wearing shirts in dedication to people who had been diagnosed with the disease. It was humbling to realize just how prolific breast cancer actually is, and it was inspiring to see so many out there running to honor the memories of those they loved, and to support those now suffering from it.

For me, the run wasn't entirely easy. At one point I was really struggling to run, so I had stopped to walk. I was feeling a bit discouraged because, at that point, my nephews had completely passed me up. Just then, a bald woman started to run past me. She was wearing a pink survivor shirt and bib. I picked it up and started to jog next to her. I asked her if I could run with her for a bit. She said yes. We trotted along for a short distance, and chatted. She said she had been a runner before her diagnosis, and that she had, prior to diagnosis, arranged to run a half marathon next week. She said, "When I was diagnosed, I thought about quitting the half, but then I decided I wasn't going to let cancer stop me from running it."

Her name is Kim, and she was my inspiration today. Particularly because, even with cancer, she completely outran me. When I stopped to walk, she turned and said, as she ran ahead, "I'm going to see how far I can keep going. I want to keep going."

I hope she keeps going, too. I'm praying for you, Kim, wherever you are.

One of my favorite parts of running today was the t-shirts people wore. Here are a few highlights:

"Save Second Base"

"Tammi's Rack Pack"

Shirt worn by two men: "We stare because we care."

Shirt worn by a survivor: "Of course they're fake. The real ones tried to kill me."

Hilarious. I don't think I've ever laughed so much through a race.

I felt awesome; I felt proud of the kids; I felt happy.

I feel happy.

What an honor that my running can help raise money for such a worthy cause.

This is Why I Run

6. Risk

Do you ever look at yourself in the mirror, and wonder what you're doing? I do. I look at myself in the mirror and I have all sorts of thoughts:

• I can't believe that more than two years have passed since we moved to Fresno, and more than three have since we moved from England.
• Where do I want to be in three months? In six? In a year? In two?
• One thing's for sure, I don't want to be 30 and childless.
• I want to run marathons - not just one, but many.
• I want to write a book that's good enough it doesn't end up on the "has been" shelf of the library.
• I want to laugh more, sleep more, and still work enough that I don't go stir crazy.
• I want to be paid more than I am for what I do.
• I want to have a Ph.D. so I could work in non-private schools doing what I do, which I love.
• I want to have muscles that look like, and work like, Tatyana Pushkareva's - that woman is a machine.
• I want to bake more, and eat healthier.
• I want to love hiking.

Erica Jong said, "If you don’t risk anything, you risk more." Running is a risk for me, and I love it. I want to actively seek, and find, peak experiences in my life: experiences that define who I am, and fill me with satisfaction and joy.

Pouring Success

Today I have never been so grateful for the gym in my whole life because it is absolutely chucking it down with rain. Buckets, and buckets, and buckets of rain. Thankfully, I didn't have to run in it. Instead, I went to the gym, determined to do my "Long Run" today. I had a break from running yesterday, and I will have another break tomorrow, so I figured this was the day to try running longer/farther this week. I was determined to.

And, I did.

In fact, I ran for 15 minutes STRAIGHT with no walking (hooray!).

I have never run so far, nor so long. In fact, when I finished running, the voice of Lance Armstrong (yeah, that famous guy in the photo on the left) came on my Nike+ and congratulated me on my long workout. Thanks, Lance!

I feel very proud of myself, and extremely happy about how the run went. Best of all, my body feels strong and I am not having any pain in my knee even though I ran over 3 miles (longer than a 5k, which has caused me knee pain in the past).

Basically, this has turned in to an all around FANTASTIC day, even if it is pouring rain outside. Thank heavens for the gym!!

Mental Preparation

Today I didn't exercise. I worked instead - a grueling 12-hour day of teaching. So, I told myself that I didn't have time to run and I didn't. Plus, yesterday I ran further and harder than I have in months. My body probably needed the break for a day.

But, I thought about exercise and then remembered a dream I once had.

I once dreamt about running. That was it. The whole dream.

The only thing is that at the time I was not a runner. I didn't even want to be a runner. I HATED running. At the time, the closest I got to running was when I was rushing to classes. Nothing could have possessed me to run. Nothing.

In the dream I ran through the familiar streets down by my old junior high school. What stood out most of all, though, was that I kept running and running and running and running and running. In the dream, I didn't stop because I didn't need to stop. My running was second nature, like breathing, and full of joy!

Several times since then I have wondered what that feels like, to run without needing to stop and walk. Running like that, filled with the exhuberance of one's body, always makes me think of animals. They run for the pure joy of it. They run because they love the feel of their bodies moving, and the world rushing past them. They run for fun. When I see them running full out like that, I wonder what that feels like to have the wind rushing through hair and a body moving like the perfectly built machine I know it can be.

It makes me hungry to run when I think about it because now

I AM A RUNNER

and it's a liberating thing to be.