Marathon Madness

 

This is madness! I just signed up for the Fargo Marathon. I have never even run a half marathon although I have run plenty of 5k's and a couple of Ragnar Races. Still...I think I must be crazy! I do know I am really scared. It took me a month of soul-searching to finally register.

So now I am into week four of my training. I found a training plan for marathon rookies that I am following. I'm also doing Yoga on one of my rest days. When the weather finally starts to warm up here and the snow melts, I'd like to bike on one of my rest days. I've also got some exercises from a personal trainer to help strengthen my core. Am I going to be faithfully doing all this? Heck,yeah. I want to be in the best shape I can be for that race.

But still...I'm 59 and in a few months I'll be in the next decade. Can someone this old (who really only started running at all 5 years ago) actually run 26.2 miles? I have to run 10 this Saturday and I'm having a hard time wrapping my head around that!

My inspiration have been my daughters. Lacie ran the marathon last year and  is the expert I go to for answers to my questions (what are compression socks, how to fuel while running, are there porta potties along the way?)and motivation to keep me going. She was kind enough to run with me last Sat. even though I run at a much slower pace. My daughter Rana, is also an inspiration to me. She just started running--mostly on her own and she just completed her first real 5K last weekend in the snow. These two women runners rock!

So I guess it is madness but I'm sure hoping on May 18 that the madness is also fun. (Maybe all the butterflies in my stomach will help me fly down the course!) I have a picture of a jubilant gal crossing the finish line on my desktop to look at when I need to. I also have this picture to keep me going.

 

Puking, crying, pain, blood...what did I get myself into?

"Now if you are going to win any battle you have to do one thing. You have to make the mind run the body. Never let the body tell the mind what to do. The body will always give up. It is always tired in the morning, noon, and night. But the body is never tired if the mind is not tired."
- George S. Patton, U.S. Army General, 1912 Olympian

Let's hope that's true. Stay tuned for more updates as I continue the madness!

Wordless Wednesday

Cheap Way to Organize Your Cupcake Liners

I love me a cute cupcake which means I have a ton of cute cupcake liners.

I swear they were starting to creep out of my cupboards at night! How to get them organized? I saw somewhere (sorry can't remember where and didn't pin it) that you could use storage containers to store your liners. So I went to my local Shopko store and bought a couple. They work well but they are kind of expensive and I have a LOT of liners.

 

What to do...then I noticed I had a few empty Ball canning jars that seemed to be the right size.

 

 

 

I grabbed some liners and tried stacking them in the jars. The fit perfectly!! Cheap and I kind of like the "kitcheny" look to them. Now had I saved my receipts for the storage jars I think I would have returned them. As it is I'll just keep them since my liners are feeling at home in them. (You'll notice in the containers I also have some thin colored straws in there. It's fun to cut those in half and use them in decorating my cupcakes.)

 

 

 

P.S. Jill from jilllynndesign.com helped make my signature.

 

Wordless Wednesday

More snow coming...sigh.

Ah...Chocolate

Who wasn't thinking chocolate last week with Valentine's Day? I will admit that I do know two people who really don't care for chocolate but I think they are probably the only ones! I LOVE chocolate--not just to eat but to use in skin care. Crazy? I don't think so.

Not only does chocolate kick up the feel-good juices in our brains, but chocolate is loaded with anti-aging vitamins and minerals. Plus, the caffeine in cocoa is said to help reduce the appearance of cellulite. Bring on the cocoa!

  Here's what you do:

Combine the ingredients in a bowl. Use whenever chocolate cravings hit by massaging into skin and rinsing with warm water in the shower. Store in an airtight container up to six months.

You'll need:
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup canola oil
• 1/4 cup powered cocoa
• a few drops of chocolate and/or raspberry fragranced oil     

Cleanse your body as usual before the scrub but hold off on any shaving that day, as some scrubs can irritate just-shaved skin. Start with about two tablespoons of the scrub and rub it gently over your skin in a circular motion, working up from the feet and legs to your body and arms. Some people prefer to use a loofah, using upward strokes and working toward the heart. Whether you use your hands, a loofah or a massager, don't hesitate to use more of your favorite scrub, especially over the particularly dry skin on your heels and elbows.

Be sure to rinse and wipe away all of the scrub when you are finished.

A rich body lotion (Gathered From The Garden's Satin and Silk Shea Lotion is perfect!) or oil afterward moisturizes your newly exfoliated skin and will make your new soft, supple skin glow.

 

 

 

Sweet Hearts

Last Minute Valentine Idea

Oh boy, I am never this late getting valentines for the grandkids. It's not for a lack of ideas either. (see this post)Time just got away from me! I've been working on a few projects and trying to learn more about photography and apparently haven't looked at a calendar lately. So here I am today putting together some sweet treats for the kids for Valentine's Day. Here's what I made using...

 

I saw this idea on the Making Life Whimsical blog but they had used red peeps. I sent hubby out to find them but he could only find these white ones at Target. They worked out fine I think. I put together 2 peep hearts, 1/2 a Hershey's bar and one full graham cracker broken in half.

 

 

 

Then I made a little bag topper in Microsoft Word that says, "You make my heart melt". I put all the ingredients into some little treat bags I had and stapled the bag topper on. I think the grandkids will get a kick out of making their s'mores in the microwave. (Actually the little guy will probably eat his peeps before they ever get to the microwave!)

 

 

The red heart box was left over from last year.

 

Hopefully, you've got your special ones covered. But in case you're like me, these are a simple but cute treat.

Wordless Wednesday

Free Valentine Printables

 

 

Liz from the Hoosier Homemade Blog has gathered 22 free Valentine printables for you. (Thanks, Liz).We are supposed to get a snowstorm tomorrow (we are in MN and going to have our own storm) so I'm thinking it will be the perfect time to hunker down and make Valentine crafts with the grandkids. If you're looking for some Valentine fun check out all of these fun printables. Hopefully, you'll have time to do crafts, not shovel snow!  

The Light That Shines

I am very blessed to have a family of healthy females. Only one has had to endure the burden of breast cancer. None of us can really understand what it means to have breast cancer unless we have walked the walk.

Sue Bryce and Hailey Bartholomew have put together a wonderful video about a gal named Jill Brzezinski-Conley and her fight with breast cancer. When Sue found out that Jill was now fighting terminal bone cancer and wanted desperately to share her story, she decided to fly Jill to Paris along with a talented team to document this incredibly special photoshoot. It is a truly moving video that I urge you to watch and share.

Please note: Parts of this story do depict Jill’s scarring in a way to help educate women about the importance of breast exams.