R.I.P. Zoe the farm dog....

My Mom and Dad's last little Aussie/Border Collie mix farm dog, Zoe, passed away today. She was such a sweet little dog. Zoe lived to a good old doggy age of 14 and had a good life on the farm. I always gave Zoe a bath when I went home to visit in the spring and I will miss her this year.

Totally sucks that we out live our best friends... sorry Mom & Dad!

Ironman Edie, October & November

Again, I'm woefully behind on my personal blog. That has a lot to do with all my RC3 Running club activities. So first I want to say that if you want an October update, please see the RC3 blog about my pacing duties at the Javelina 100 (100 mile endurance run). In November I made a trip to Panama City, FL to "sherpa" my high school friend, Edie, in her second Ironman event. To preference the magnitude of physical and mental strength one needs for such an event, an Ironman triathlon is a 2.4 mile swim, 112 mile bike AND a 26.2 mile run. I've been lucky enough to reconnect with my friend Edie who I shared lots of high school time with on the basketball and volleyball court. I went out to Edie's house in July to just "hang" and we did a 9 mile training run. It kind of killed me then... but I think I'm better for it now.

Edie was always an all around athlete with a great deal of will and determination both in sports and academics. It was NO surprise to me that she would continue to be the awesome chick I've alway known her to be. Edie's spouse, Nathan, is in Iraq and when I learned she would be going to Ironman, Florida alone... I couldn't in good conscience let her do that. I know how important it is to have that point person to handle the minor details and provide support. I was happy to help her with that. A true friend pays it forward and I'm excited to say that Edie is going to pace me for the last 23 miles of my first ultra marathon in April (American River 50 mile endurance run). I can't ask for more. She knows from her Ironman experiences exactly what it takes to push through the mental and physical obstacles. She inspires me and thats the person you want to tell you to "Stop being a baby, suck it up and finish!"

That being said, I'd like to share a few Edie Ironman photos with you...

2.4 mile ocean swim. This is the only thing keeping me from doing an Ironman. Look how crazy it is! Can you imagine 2000+ people in the water with you?

The swim to bike transitions. They run through this stream of people and go through the "strippers" who peel off their wetsuits. Then they run to the bike transition.

Here is Edie on the 26.2 mile run. I sprinted in front of her to get her photo. I wanted to run with her, but apparently the Ironman rules penalize you as they feel you are "pacing" and that's considered outside help. So all I could do was be there to watch her run by on her out and backs and sprint in front of her snapping photos.

She finished with a PR! Look how great she looks after doing ALL THAT! Edie knocked off almost 3 hours off her previous Ironman time. How awesome is that??

Edie and I had a nice time sitting out on the condo deck area each night, chatting , sipping a glass of wine and enjoying some really nice sunsets. It was a thing of beauty until Hurricane Ida decided to venture into the gulf the day before we were to go home! We were lucky she turned into a tropical storm and had lost some "umph" so our flights could leave on time.

September Updated

Time to get my blog updated. Looks like there was nothing going on in September when in fact, lots went on in September. I'll start off with the quick weekend trip to Michigan for my cousin Katie's wedding day. The wedding was on September 5th. That morning I checked off my marathon training run. It was a nice long run from my parents house to my friend Audrey's house in Onondaga (15 miles). The weather was perfect and I started off at 7:00 a.m. There was a morning mist and the roads are very quiet out in the country. Matt drove ahead of me and took some photos as I progressed towards Leslie where Kayla (Audrey's daughter) met me for the final 8 miles. She's a FAST girl so I told her just to go on ahead. She came back for me for the last few miles. Matt met me at Audrey's and she made us a waffle breakfast (Yummy... Thank You Audrey!)

Here I am turning off of Fitchburg Rd.

This was about 5 miles from my parents house.

More photos on the RC3 Running Club blog.

Then there was the wedding that evening. I was very bad about taking photos this trip. However I did get this very nice photo of the Newlyweds.

Newlyweds Katie & Christopher Wolcott

Matt & I stayed at my Parent's house and the farmhouse I grew up in. I still love that old house with all the big trees, flowers and my Mom's awesome gardens. Matt just loves the sweet corn and he like the donuts that we picked up at Gee Farms to take to the after wedding, gift opening brunch at my Aunt Jill & Uncle Steve's house.

Brother, Alan, took this photo of the farm house that we grew up in.

One of the great things about growing up on a farm was that we were never bored as children. Especially with so many chores and things to explore. My brother and wife, Debbie, took their Grandson, Logan (I guess that makes me his Great Aunt—talk about feeling OLD!). Needless to say, the farm was a big, new world for Logan. He had a blast going on tractor rides, exploring the farm from corner to corner and getting his first up front and personal with the farm sheep.

Logan and my Dad feeding the baby lambs. More photos of Logan, family and farm can be found by clicking here.

The trip to Michigan was the highlight of September. I got home and immediately went on a HOT 16 mile long run the weekend after. It was incredible how difficult that run was after running a cool Michigan morning run. Luckily, those hot mornings are behind us now and I'm enjoying some of the same weather here. Next up, Matt and I are going on a weekend trip to Moab, October 16-19. Matt's going to do some mountain biking with some buddies and I'm going to run the Moab "Other Half Marathon" on October 18th. I'm looking forward to the run as it will be a nice training run with some beautiful scenery. Look for some photos for that soon.

Note: September was a big month for the running club I helped start. RC3 is now an official non-profit and we are a member of the RRCA (Road Runner's Club of America). We're now up to 50 women and still growing! I'm quite proud of all we've accomplished in such a short time. You will see most of my blogging about running by visiting the RC3 Running Club blog.

Age Is NO Excuse

It's been awhile since I've been blogging on my personal blog. I think it may have something to do with the fact that I've been so involved in establishing a running group and blog. I've been preoccupied but one thing always leads to another. I find that my personal blog is a place where I can be a bit more candid. Today my new found running experience is foder for personal reflection and thus here I am...

First if you don't know about RC3, the running club I helped start you can see that HERE. Currently we are very close to becoming a non profit organization and a member of the RRCA (Road Runners Club of America). The incorporation paperwork is at the Corporation Commission and we're just waiting on approval notification. And we are now introducing NEW women into our running group on a weekly basis. We are growing like crazy. Which brings me to today's post.

I can no longer use age as an excuse...
Today, a new runner joined us for our Thursday track workout. I make it a habit to run with the new people to get to know them and make them feel comfortable. Today it was the other way around. Our new runner, Susie Kramer (who just moved to Cave Creek a week ago from Pennsylvania) made me feel more comfortable. Susie and I ran around the track and I discovered—at a much slower pace than she is used to. I found out that Susie has been running all her life and runs 4 marathons a year. Typically in the sub 3 hour time range. She is my new inspiration. She ran without effort and talked to me and spoke encouraging words the entire time... even when I wasn't sure I could talk. I found that we had a lot in common in our personal lives. She is just a really good runner and I am still struggling to improve. Maybe it might have been easier to accept if she was younger than me. I've always found it convenient to use my age as an excuse when I wasn't running that great or was working through various aches and pains. Most of the girls I run with are 3+ years younger than I am. But not Susie. She is older and she runs like I hope to run someday. She has quite a few years of running behind her and I've only been running for a year. That gives me hope that you can get better EVEN as you get older. Now I have a whole new mindset. I'm never going to use my age as an excuse and I am going to keep running and get better. I look forward to the day where Susie isn't doing all the talking and I converse with her without being winded. I may never do a sub 3 hour marathon, but I'm not going to rule it out.

Thank you Susie!

Refined Felines

Thought I would share a few photos of the new kitty condo. It's very nicely made and sturdy. Looks like a little piece of art—especially with Sparky the cat model. Chili was on it as well, but then he got all belligerent when Sparky wanted on, so we had to pull him off and let Sparky give it a try. Needless to say, Chili is off trying to figure out our early demise.


Sparky is always the first one to try out the new stuff. He settled in as soon as it was assembled.


I like it!

Pepper & Sparky checking out the cubby and padded cushion.

Shameless Promotion...

A little promotion for the other blog I set up for my running group which is now becoming a club. We got to where we had 8-10 girls showing up to run and 20 on our e-mail list that were all actively participating. We were all thinking it and then I just said it. "We should just start our own running club". EVERYONE was on the same page. They just needed the suggestion...

I set up a new blog and we are on our way. Now we're talking shirts, events, and all the other things clubs do. I think it's fabulous. That being said check out RC3 (Running Chicks of Cave Creek).

Home Improvement Update-Matt's Office

Matt's office was the last room that needed some paint and flooring. I completed that task along with fixing a lighting issue by putting in French doors. I loved how this room turned out and I now think he has one of the nicest rooms in the house. The results are below.


Here's a photo that shows the paint colors well. It also shows the solid doors that were replaced.


A view of the floor and with the old doors on.


With the new doors. What a difference they make. My neighbor, Tom, helped me hang them. They were unfinished pine doors from Home Depot and cost $100 per door. Tom and I routed out the hinges etc (I now know how to use a router--which means I'll probably be doing some window sills next). I contemplated staining them but decided to just paint them white to match the other doors. We've had to go with round door knobs (you can see one of the old door knobs on the closet door) because our cat, Chili, can open up the lever type. He's still trying to figure out the round knobs as he is annoyed that he can't just get into the rooms whenever he likes.

Good Dam Run

This morning I participated in the Lake Pleasant, Good Dam Run/Walk/Hike with a couple of boot camp girls. Wow... what a beautiful morning it was. The weather was nearly perfect and the run was certainly a change of pace as a good chunk of the 7 mile course was through rocky washes, and over streams. It was a quasi trail/road run. We also got to run across the Waddell damn that is not open to the public. Really the run was called a run/walk/hike as it wasn't competitive. However, my BC instructor Jodi and husband Craig both came in first from the 4 mile course and they did give out medals to the first place finishers. I'm proud to say that Jodi kicks my butt at boot camp at least twice a week.

I did the 7 mile course with BC friend Heather. We certainly were not pushing it and enjoyed the hike/run. I have a long run tomorrow and so today was a perfect warm up for that. AND I made sure I took my camera this time (forgot it at the St. Paddy's Day run).

Kim, Heather, Me & Jodi

Mark (Kim's Husband), Kim, Heather & me again. Oh and what's with other people cutting off our legs in the photos....sheesh!

Bountiful Basket Morning

This is my second week participating in Bountiful Baskets. It's a produce food co-op that buys organic and/or conventional vegetables from the growers/distributors at deep discounts. For a participatory contribution of $15(conventional) or $25 (organic) you can get a basketful of produce. One would pay much more at the grocery store for the amount of produce received. Every other week they distribute the baskets to various Valley locations.

Below are a couple of photos of what was in my basket this week(I purchased the conventional basket). I had a friend that got the organic. She got beets, raisins, zucchini, kale, oranges, apples, peaches etc. I think I got a bit more in the conventional basket, but am going to go organic next time to mix it up. The fruits and vegetables vary depending on what can be purchased and what is in season. I was happy with my basket this week because I got strawberries and lots of bananas. I also got a huge bag of potatoes that I'll have to divvy up between the neighbors. Way too many for Matt and I. You can also purchase bread (However, you get 3 or 5 loaves and I don't have enough room in my freezer to store the extra loaves). They had rounds of cinnamon bread, a tuscan crusty bread and multi-grain. Something else to try but maybe after I clear some room in my freezer. At times they will offer extras like an "Asian Pack" with bok choy, green onions, snow peas and more. They had that the first week I participated and the next time they have it, I'm definitely getting one. It looked fantastic.

What I love about my Saturday morning pick-up is seeing all the different people that show up to pick them up. People really do see the value of eating healthy.







Sparky is our farm kitty. I think if he were still on my parent's farm he would be lying in the garden, all summer long, nibbling on all the vegetables.

Ragnar Del Sol Relay Run

Last weekend I ran Ragnar Del Sol with 11 other teammates. Our team, Adventure Boot Camp Dos, ran a total of 202 miles from Friday morning until Saturday afternoon. We started in Prescott and ended up in Mesa. There was little to no sleep, but lots of time either in our vehicle or running. Now that I look back on it—it really was a fun experience—even though I managed to fall during the night and skin myself up pretty good. I think we were all sore and thrashed afterwards.

I flew Kayla out from Michigan to run on our team. She was definitely the superstar in our vehicle and I was quite proud of her. She had her best run at night running 7.5 miles through Wickenburg in 55 minutes.

I thought I'd share a few photos and as I get more (I have none of our teammates in the 2nd vehicle) I'll post them. Click on photos for a larger, up close view.


Here is ABC Dos vehicle 1 runners at the start line. From left to right: Me, Heidi, Kayla, Nikki, Dave and Brianna


Heidi waiting at the start line.


Heidi on the first leg of the race.


Nikki halfway through her run to Skull Valley (near Prescott).


Kayla on her last run between Rio Verde and Fountain Hills (Note the two dudes she passed behind her).

Those Were the Days...

I borrowed a high quality slide scanner from a photographer friend to scan in a couple hundred old slides that my Aunt Jill had. Although a long process, it's a rewarding one. The slides come to life in nice big photos. I loved looking at the photos and feeling like I was there for the moment. In today's world of cell phones, computers and constant interruption, it's so nice to look back to simpler times. The photos made me happy and sad. Sad to no longer have my Grandparents but happy to see them when they were young and full of life with family. Please click on the photos to see a more detailed and larger view. I think some of the expression gets lost with the template sized photos.


Here's my Mom on graduation day (from High School). People always say I look just like her. This photo might have convinced me. I can only imagine how proud my Grandparents were. I'm a bit like my Mom as I'm not one to "shine" for the camera. Keep those things away from me! However, my Mom showed a sincere smile for this photo and it definitely made her shine.


Wow! I really love this photo. I'm not sure who was taking the photo. I suspect it might have been my Grandfather. I'm not sure that the double exposure was on purpose, but what a perfect mistake. Look how the baby's eyes (cousin Chris) are closed and in the double exposure they're open. It's as if the baby is dreaming about it surroundings. Look how the mother (Aunt Julie) is looking at her baby. One can only imagine all the thoughts... excitement, joy and worry of being a new Mom.


My Grandmother and my Uncle Tom. Grandmother was a great Mom and it just shows in the beaming face of Tom. I love how beautiful, young and vibrant my Grandmother looks. She was such a soft hearted person and I can't help but feel happiness when I see photos of her like this.


By the hammer on the deck of the raft, I suspect my Grandfather just completed this raft on Portage Lake where their cabin was. As a child, I spent a lot of time at their cabin as well as jumping off that raft. He built it to last like everything he built (including the cabin). Our family spent lots of time doing water activities in the summer. On the raft from left (in the striped t-shirt with short sleeves) are Aunt Julie, my Mom (Joan--in the large stripe 3/4 length striped shirt), Aunt Jill, Grandfather, Grandma, neighbors at lake, Isabel Snyder (lady in green sweater) and Irene and Dick Dressel (Dick is leaning over a boat motor and Irene is in the blue sweater).



The beach scene. See we really are a family that likes to be near water... even if it's freezing. I'm sure my Aunt Jill has the story. If she fills me in I'll update the caption. I thought it was a cool photo because I know my Grandfather was taking the photo with my cousin Tim in his arms. I'm sure the others were wondering why the baby wasn't in photo. From left to right, my Grandma, Aunt Jill, her little brother and my Uncle Tom, and Uncle Steve. Clearly, there were no such things as beach shoes.

The Spare Bathroom Completed

I admit it... it took me FOREVER to finish the spare bathroom. I think I gutted it over a year ago and then procrastinated for a very long time. I found it useful to use for a closet. I'm not sure my house guest in February would find that convenient so I started working on it in December.


I cut down the floor stone to make the shower border. If you buy the border separately, it's quite pricey. I saved big bucks by taking the extra time to cut the sheets of rock.


The new toilet is a Toto. I've never been into toilets but I have to admit this one is really cool. I love the half and full flush option (like in Europe) and it has a soft close seat. It's not super compact but the shape and design opened up the space a little.


We put in a mirror that can be tilted up or down. This is nice for personal preference and height differences. The towel bar on the pedestal is really nice. I put hooks on the back of the door and the "invisible" towel holder on the wall. That eliminated the need for a towel bar.

Exciting Day in The Valley of the Sun

Wow! Has this weekend been action-packed. First, the Cardinals are actually going to the Super Bowl. Matt went to the game, so I'm sure I'll hear all about the craziness when he gets home.

Then the East Valley (Phoenix, Tempe & Scottsdale) saw record numbers of runners for PF Chang's Rock-N-Roll Marathon & Half Marathon. Being amongst the crowd of runners, I can say that this event is just a little too big. Did it, got the shirt and I'm done. Before I even started, my heels got stepped on about 5 times. I think that was a sign of things to come. The water areas were slow and slippery. When I realized I wasn't going to meet my time goal (2 hours) I checked out mentally around mile 8 or 9. I decided not to beat myself up. I probably shouldn't have attempted a half marathon only 6 weeks after doing a full. I finished in 2:15 (unofficial--that's what my Garmin said). Considering my time was 2:08 at the halfway point of The Tucson Marathon (which I ran the full or 26.2 miles), it was not a good time for me.

The best part of the event was participating with some of my boot camp buddies. We had some good laughs. I'm happy the run is over and looking forward to getting the Cardinals game review from Matt over a nice dinner and a glass of wine.

Next up is the Ragnar Del Sol. I'm really looking forward to that event as it will be relatively short (but challenging) runs. My legs are a total of 18.2 miles.

Glorious Day...

The nice thing about being a pet in our household is every day is like Christmas. We spoil our pets rotten. Luckily, pets are pretty easy to please. Kobi is quite content this morning after having his Christmas egg and sausage for breakfast. It's rainy and cold today so he also got a dose of his prescription medication for arthritis. I can always tell when he is a little lame. He's doing pretty good for a 14 year old dog. He has no issues eating and he still sprints to the door if he thinks Matt is bringing him steak from Durant's.

The cats are happy to have a nice fleecy blanket to cuddle on when it's cold (Chili and Pepper).

Sparky lives up to his name each and every day. Here he is modeling Matt's snowboard.


Merry Christmas! May your holiday be filled with small comforts and great happiness.

I DID it! Check another thing off the list...

Last Sunday my running buddy, Heidi and I completed the Tucson Marathon. It was my first marathon and for Heidi it was her 5th.

First, I just want to say that it's an incredible feeling to have finished my first marathon and it was so nice to have Heidi there with me all the way. We finished together in 4:31 and a few seconds. I'm totally happy with that.

The day started out with a traffic jam of runners trying to get to the buses that took us to the starting line. Heidi and I had to bail out of the car (Matt was driving us to the buses) and walk to the buses for fear we weren't going to make it on time (they said the LAST buses would leave at 6 a.m. and it was 5:50 with traffic not moving). Luckily, we didn't have to walk too far and the buses were waiting because lots of participants were stuck in the jam. Then our bus driver wanted to drop us off at the half marathon starting point. Everyone on the bus was doing the full marathon and so the bus driver figured it out after people started freaking out. We made it to the start in Oracle 40 minutes before. We had enough time to stand in the porta john line and stretch out. We started on time at 7:30 a.m. It wasn't that cold so I took off all my throw-a-way layers right from the start. The weather was really nice for the marathon. A little overcast so we didn't have to worry about heat later in the day but warm enough that we weren't freezing at the start.

Then we ran down, down, down then up, up, up... down, up, down, up for awhile. Finally it flattened out between mile 6-11 until we did the Biosphere loop. That was mostly up with a little down. We were relieved to get done with that and I think that our best running was between mile 13 and 18.

Matt was a trooper and was at mile 18 (they didn't let spectators go to the start and there were no spectator spots until mile 18) with a nice sugary Coke for me. He also saw us at mile 20 and 22. I think we still looked ok then but our bodies were screaming bloody murder!

I took a peek at our times at certain checkpoints and we were running a 10 minute and under pace for the first 18 miles. In fact at the 15 mile we were running a 9:39 pace. However, that last 6 miles is everything it's rumored to be... We really started to slow down as our bodies were starting to really hurt and break down. We started stopping at every water break (They were our savor towards the end). Still with all that, there were lot's of positives. We passed people carrying batons (so we were passing the relay teams) and we really ran the whole marathon comfortably until the last 6 miles.

We learned that the Tucson marathon had as much uphill as it did downhill. My personal opinion (probably Heidi's as well) is that one cannot call the Tucson marathon a "downhill" marathon anymore.

Would I do it again? Absolutely! Now I know what to expect and how to prepare. Maybe there will be another marathon for me sometime in 2009.

Now my focus will be to recover and focus on the PF Chang's half marathon. My goal is to work on building some speed and getting the half done under 2 hours. During the marathon, I took note of our time at the 13 mile mark and Heidi and I were at 2:08. We were running conservatively so I think my half marathon goal is pretty reasonable.

Here's a few photos taken by Matt in between mile 18 and 22 and one at the finish.


While Heidi and I were getting started, Matt took a nice photo from our hotel room balcony. As you can see it was a nice overcast day and the perfect temperature for running a marathon.


Geesh... we look pretty happy here. I think we saw the water station! Matt took these photos so we had already run at least 18 miles.


The last part of the marathon we ran in a lane blocked off on the highway. It was kind of nice seeing all the people waving and honking in their cars. Towards the end of the marathon, any encouragement is greatly appreciated.


Just after we went through the finish line together. Huge smiles of relief. Please forgive my disheveled look and forgetting to take my goofy sunglasses off... after all, I did just run a MARATHON!

Home Improvement Update

After gutting our spare bathroom a year or more ago (I can't even remember when I did it... kinda scary.), I decided to get the ball rolling. My goal is to have it done by Matt's birthday (December 17) as he has suffered long enough sharing a bathroom with me.

My goal for this project is to make a tiny bathroom appear a bit more roomy. It previously had a vanity that took up one whole corner, a not-so-nice looking tub and fixtures that were a bit ugly. There's no natural light to this bathroom and we got a "no can do" from the Solatube representative. Apparently, because of how our roof is and the location of air conditioner there wasn't a way to feed tubes through and get direct light. Without natural light, the room is needing some light colors and fixtures that help brighten. To help make the room feel bigger we're opting for a pedestal sink and a more compact toilet.

That being said, in between all my other weekend activities, I've been taking a few moments to work on tiling the shower.
I did some grouting today and the results are below. Next up is tiling the floor and walls with perhaps a wall project (also below).


The border tile is actually my floor tile as well. Cutting down my floor tile saved me quite a bit of money and it will tie in nicely. I'm also waiting on an order of bullnose from the tile store. I can trim out the top and the sides a little. The tile looks a little darker in the photos than it is.


Here's a photo towards the back of the tub. My brother, Alan, made a box for me to insert into the green (or in my case, purple) board. It was very nice of him, as my carpentry skills are lacking. However, it was a bit tricky because how I had intended it to fit was not how it ended up fitting. I had already done the other walls and gone half way up to where I wanted the recessed box but I had extra inches because of the thickness of the box base and top. I decided to continue with my brick pattern and just cut out around the box. Framing it with one inch pieces would have looked awkward as some of the frame would have been thinner than other parts and I'd have 2 grout lines right next to each other. I put the soap box at the back so it wouldn't get wet and gooey. It also keeps shampoo bottles and soap off the tops of the tub. Plus a recess box doesn't take away room by sticking out.

And yes... I do realize there is an area on the side of the tub not tiled. That will be later when I tile the floor and the walls.


Sorting through my home project idea book (I clip out things I like and stick them in a home improvement file) I found this recessed shelving unit. I'm thinking this would look really nice in the wall. Instead of the glass shelves (which would require more cleaning), I'm more likely to put in a towel bar above the toilet paper holder and reading rack. I'm good at cutting out holes in the wall, so I think I may give it a go. I may even attempt to do the carpentry myself this time.