Thankful

I saw the most amazing video today on You Tube. I think I cried the whole time I watched it. I know people have heard of the man you carried his son through a Marathon, a second Marathon, And then an Ironman!! To see this is truely amazing!! It makes me grateful and thankful for the things I can do!! I am so inspired by people like this man. Watch, you will too cry Im sure!!




Another note, Congrats to My coach Mary Eggers and Train This Teammate Matt Carbeau for Finishing the IMFL Strong!!! So proud of you guys!! Also to Kelly Covert over at trimommylife.blogspot.com for finishing her first 50K endurance trail run!! Awesome!

1 more day to take advantage of the Give Away! Tomorrow I will announce the winner!! Good luck to all

Friday Funday

Today at work I got a pleasant surprise while I was leaving!! Little did I know I would be receiving a Bonus check from my company!!! I have to say Merry Christmas to me!! See the last year has been very trying. We lost 2 physicians and the Physicians Assistant and I held the fort down for the last year. Stressful huh?? I thought no one cared. No one cared that we were busting our butts trying to keep the practice from going under. But today, the thoughts have changed a bit!

I also got my evaluation today and I have to say it was a good one and I will be getting my raise!! Woot!

On the other side of it, I have an interview in the ICU Next Thursday...BIG DECISIONS to make now!!

Enough about work!!

Tonight I was going to go get my swim on at my local gym. Let me tell you I cannot stand Friday nights mainly because they do not have day care open and they Close the Pool at 7PM!!! Little did I know the Pool Would be closed!! I was not happy when I got to the gym at 6:45 to see the pool would be closing in 15 min!! I hyperventilated, looked at the paperwork at the gym again like it was some mistake, looked around and said screw it Im leaving!!

I was so upset that I would be missing my swim because I feel like Im getting stronger in this aspect and really want to see how I nail those workouts!! Wed I did my 5X100s (meters) in 1:45!!! That is 15 sec faster than last week! I was feeling good so I ran with it! I love those days!!

I still got my Functional strength training in tonight. At least I got something in!!

Tomorrow I have a 1:15 ride on tap and According to the weather it will be either a cycling class or trainer ride as it is supposed to be wet and Snowy and I don't do well on my bike with that! Running maybe!!

**Dont forget the Great Giveaway I posted Oct 31st!!! ENDs this Sunday!!!**

Being Grateful

My daughter and I talked about Being grateful today. Somedays I just don't think she has any idea of what she should be grateful for!

We started with the Definition-

Grateful- warmly or deeply appreciative of Kindness or benefits received; Being thankful

Today after Gymnastics she started whining, Why cant Gymnastics be 4 hours long?!! Why is it only 1?!! Help me get dressed mommy!! Eh I cant tie my shoes!! You do it!! Why cant you do it?!! Sound Familiar?!! So I picked her up as she was whining and the last one out of the gym as always and took her outside with her coat off and her shoes off. Luckly it was still 50 degrees out she didn't get too cold.

What ever happened to kids being grateful for what they got?! I discussed this with her tonight and she has no clue that some people go without eating on a daily basis, some people have to walk everywhere because they have no car, some people have to wear the same clothes everyday because they have no money to buy new ones, Some people don't have running water, oh the list can go on and on. So this is what we talked about on the way home in the car.

I am grateful that I have a good job, I am healthy, I have great parents that taught me right from wrong, that I never got into alcohol or drugs, that I am me!!! I am so grateful that God gave me my little girl to teach these things too!!

Tomorrow my daughter will tell me what she is grateful for as I had her sleep on it tonight as it was late when we got home. Cannot wait to hear her answer tomorrow!!

"If a fellow isn't thankful for what he's got, he isn't likely to be thankful for what he's going to get." ~Frank A. Clark

Random Wednesday Humpday!

I cannot believe how quickly the weather has changed here! One day its 70s next 40s-50s. Thats what I get for living in central New York!

I want to say good luck to my COACH who is doing IM Florida this weekend! Good luck!! You will do so Awesome I know it! I will be following you online!!

Im thinking about apologizing to someone for the last season. It was just an awful mess and I hope we can get past this and move forward.

Last night I hopped on the trainer at 10pm, hooked up the computer next to me and watched the GLEE episodes I missed. I absolutely love that show!! I love Sue Sylvester, she cracks me up! Also the ditsy cheerleader!! Ba ha ha!! Did you know she is really a great dancer and was brought on the show to help all the other cast members? I thought that was pretty cool.

Im really beginning to see my running cadence be more consistent and I feel like Im running effortlessly...ok well maybe a LITTLE more effortless. Forward lean, check, Lifting knee, check, 45 foot strikes per 30 sec, CHECK!!!

Finally a Marathon was started in Syracuse!!! http://www.empirestatemarathon.com/

I have to swim today but got to confess, I just dont feel like it! I hope once I get there Ill change my mind. That always happens when I see the man in the next lane flailing like a fish out of water in his too tight Speedo!

I have been thinking about my 2011 race season and on tap....Musselman 70.3(which registartion opens next week!!!), Syracuse 70.3 and B2B Iron Distance race.. IronGirl, Lake Delta, and Possibly Cazenovia Olympic... Ill probably try to throw some cycling races, swimming races and running races in there if coach is ok with it. We will see

Im taking my daughter to Disney Next september and am already worrying about how Ill get my training in!!

My daughter dropped out of cheerleading already and is on to Gymnastics! Which I can say, she is very good at!!

OK thats 10!! Phew!!
In closing I give to you the greatest inspirational thoughts I found today!!!!

Allow Your Own Inner Light to Guide You



There comes a time when you must stand alone.
You must feel confident enough within yourself to follow your own dreams.
You must be willing to make sacrifices.
You must be capable of changing and rearranging your priorities so that your final goal can be achieved.
Sometimes, familiarity and comfort need to be challenged.
There are times when you must take a few extra chances and create your own realities.
Be strong enough to at least try to make your life better.
Be confident enough that you won't settle for a compromise just to get by.
Appreciate yourself by allowing yourself the opportunities to grow, develop, and find your true sense of purpose in this life.
Don't stand in someone else's shadow when it's your sunlight that should lead the way

Thats ALL FOLKS!! Dont forget the Great Winter Running Giveaway!!!! Ending November 7th!!

Tagged, Im it!!

I was tagged in a questionaire by Aimee. If you haven't seen her blog its a great one. I think I go to it everyday almost. LOL! Blog stalker me!! ;p

Ok well onto the Questionaire that I hope will not bore anyone to death as I am just focused so much on my triathlon lifestyle lately.

If you could Eat anything without any repercussions, what would your meal be??
Well, Im a lover of food especially carbs. Who doesn't love pasta?! I would eat a big plate of Lasagna, a loaf of Garlic bread, and down it with a Margarita!! For dessert I would have Chocolate Ice cream with fudge, peanut butter, Reeses peanut butter cups, Reese's pieces.

If you could meet anyone living or dead who would it be and why??
I think I would have loved to meet Florence Nightingale. I know I know. But Im such a sap when it comes to nursing. I would've loved to see how she handled the wounded soldiers and just thank her for all she has done for nursing.

Why did you start Blogging and what did you expect when you started
I started blogging as a way to be accountable to my training for my first 70.3, To give other people who are contemplating doing one what goes into training and family, and all of the mishaps of being a triathlete. I have loved sharing stories and seeing other peoples stories as well!!

What is one book you could read over and over again??
I could read I love you because you are you. Because I think it has meaning and I love reading this to my daughter!!

If you could travel anywhere, where would it be??
I would travel to France!!!! I want to watch the Tour De France so bad! Be right there in all the action! Then try and bike some of those hills myself. Wouldnt that be awesome?!!

If you could have a TV show on the Food Network what would it be?
Thats funny!!! Since Im not a BIG TIME cook. It probably would be Learning How to Cook with Kristin!! Ha ha!

What is the BEST meal you ever had?
 I know this is Cheesy but the BEST meal I ever had was with my honey after my FIRST Half Marathon in Lake Placid. We ate Garlic Pizza with Tomatoes and Onions and it has been our staple celebration piece since!!!

Who has been the greatest Influence on your love for food and Learning to cook??
Well since I dont cook very often, and my honey does, I think the Betty Crocker cook book has been the greatest influence for me!! Also my sister is one of the best cooks in our family! I love when she cooks and bakes because I know it will be an awesome meal!!

Phew!! I did it!!

Dont forget my Blog GiveAWAY! It will end on Nov 7th!!





Brueggar Bagel Halloween Fun Run 5K recap AND Giveaway!!!

First of all Happy Halloween-ie!!!! Ha ha!! I love saying that!!

Today was My chance to run with my Flashdance outfit!! Woo hoo!! I told you I like Halloween for the simple fact of not being yourself for one day. Where people wont make fun of you for being crazy. Wait did I just say that?!! Ok Most of the time I don't care what people think anyways.

Heres how the day went...

It was a dreary morning and I was really worried that it would be a bit chilly in my leotard. I bundled up in my costume and sweats. Ate a hearty bowl of Oats with raisins, had a Hammer Heed drink and was out the door 2 hours later. As I was approaching one of the intersections, I was greated by the most beautiful sight in the world. A rainbow. I thought YES it is going to be a beautiful day for a run!!

I arrived about an Hour early and Im glad I did. I still needed to pick up my race number and shirt, go to the bathroom, you know the usual stuff you do before a race! I found some of my local running buddies and chit chatted for a bit and did a warm up mile. It was a bit chilly but good because I get hot quickly when I run!! It was 42 degrees at the start. Perfect!!                                                                                                          

What I don't like about this run is they have you start in a wide open field and then as soon as the gun goes off you are bottlenecking into a trail. I probably should've mentioned that to my coach when she wanted me to run a 8:40 first mile! Ahhh was I freaking out!                                                                                        

When the gun went off of course I was talking and was in the back of the crowd so as we bottlenecked in I looked at my watch and it took us almost 3 min to get into the trail itself! and to top it off they start the timer

in the open field so you have to be in front or trample, kick, trip, people down to get to the lead. I would never do that so I politely said ON YER LEFT, On YER RIGHT!! It was kind of annoying when people didn't move out of the way. I thought about tripping people...naw that would make more work for me in the long run!! So I nudged a little and said sorry. Whooops!!        

THis was a beautiful Trail run with some bridges that were sinking and quite slippery!!

Mile 1- 8:50- By MY watch

Mile 2- 8:50

Mile 3- 9:10

Total time 26:50- my real time

On the clock, 29:43 or some boloney like that!! 

Afterward we snacked on Brueggar Bagels!! YUM!! But they ran out of water!! WHAT?!!!      

Giving a warm up to everyone....Ha Ha!!

AND NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY!! YEAH!!

I have over $50 worth of goodies for you to fight over!!

1. Manzella 360 degree Reflective Warm Gloves. They are M/L mens but I put them on and they fit me  

    perfectly and I am a size 61/2-7 glove.

2. Manzella WindTex Warm Hat. Also mens sizing but its One Size Fits Most  All.

3. Nathan Ankleband pair of reflective Velcro straps to keep you seen in the dark runs, bikes, swims...oh

    yeah swimming is OVER up North!! 

4. WigWam HIking/Outdoor Pro Socks! I love these socks on Cold days!! They are wool blend so they

     wick moisture away but keep your toesies warm!!

Over $50 in Goodies!!

                                                       

Ok so heres the Deal...

1. Be a Follower of My Blog

2. Tell me your Best Halloween Costume Idea

3. Tell me your most embarrassing Running, triathlon, Swimming moment...

Thats It!! Answer all three and you will have 3 entries!! 2, 1 you get the idea!!

I will end the Giveaway in 1 week and contact the lucky winner by email! Good Luck!



Halloween Dress Up and Dance!!

Today my daughter and I are having a Mommy and me Kind of day!! We both dressed up, me in my Halloween costume and her in one of her dance costumes and just let it all hang out and dance!

I love Halloween because you can do things you normally wouldn't do, like wear a leotard and leg warmers!! HA HA!!

I hate Halloween because, MY name is Kristin and I am a CHOCO-Holic!!! Yep! I admit it! M&M's...I hate you...Snickers...hate you too...AND Reeses Peanut Butter Cups...I DESPISE you!!! That is what Im telling myself. AND to step AWAY from the candy.

Heres some entertainment. Courtesy of me and my daughter!! Enjoy!!

My Halloween Costume

Also Remember....GIVEAWAY TOMORROW!!