Harvest 5K - A Family Run!

This was a running weekend!  

On Saturday, September 28th, my whole family turned out to participate in the first Harvest 5K in Stanwood, WA.  This race took place just minutes from our home at Klesick Family Farms that also happens to have a successful delivery business of Organic Produce. 

100% of sponsor fees from this event and runner registration fees went to CrossWay International, a non-profit ministry who will be drilling a water well in Ukundu Town, Kenya - home to 2,000 people including 200 orphans. Our goal is to raise $10,000 to cover the cost of the well.  It is amazing that a bunch of local people can turn out on a rainy Washington morning and raise enough money to change the lives of an entire village across the world!  Yeah!

My whole family participated in this event... it was a rainy and cold morning... my children had attitudes... all over the maps... my daughter was excited... my oldest son had to be convinced this was going to be fun (he still didn't think so at the end)... my youngest son was excited he was going to get to ride in the plastic covered stroller.  My husband was game to push the stroller and let me do my "running thing".  At least we were all there!

The whole family... Wyatt (9), Makenna (7), 

and Luke (5)... oh and that is me and my awesome husband Brian!

The weather was not great... drizzling and windy... as we waited for the race to begin most people were cold... but soon they were encouraging everyone to the start line and off we went.  My daughter loves to run... she was off... I soon settled into my "routine" and at about mile 1.5 my oldest son and my daughter started telling me to slow down (I am not super speedy anyway).  My 9 year old slowed to keep up with my husband and I took off ahead... never far ahead of my girl though.  This course was awesome... farm roads all the way... we freaked out a few herds of cows who chose to run along for a bit.  a few vehicles made an appearance (all farm trucks who more that happy to wait for the runners and walkers).

Here are few shots of the family at various places on the 3.1 mile course.

The weather held off enough to get it done but most participants left before the race organizers had a chance to hand out any awards.  Bravo to Klesick Farms for planning this first ever event!  It was terrific!  Below is a photo of some of our friends that participated as well... so much fun!

Excuses... I have a ton of them... well 3 to be exact. #motherrunner

Excuses... I have a lot of them.  An easy one to keep me from my running outside are my three kids... cute as they are (especially when they were babies) their mere presence can limit my running choices.  (I have included photos of them as babies below... to prove the cute factor.)

Wyatt - 15 months

Makenna - 17 months

Luke - 18 months

I noticed on my NIKE+ app (the way I track my running) that I had been quite heavy on the treadmill use lately. Now... the treadmill is nice... lots of advantages to my stage of life.  The kids can play and watch movies while I sweat it out with the A/C and fans blowing on me.  But... from time to time I do need to get outside... I probably should also mention that my awesome husband is a Seattle commuter... so getting up early most days is not really an option either because he leaves for work REALLY early... like East Coast early.    We live about an hour north of Seattle.

A few weeks back I had an idea... I could run at our church and let the kids play at the playground.  They are old enough now to be trusted when I can't see them the entire time.  It is a safe place to be for all of us... (no real strangers around).  It gets them outside for some exercise.  They can bring bikes and follow me for parts of my run.  Nice restrooms inside for all of us if needed... a win win.  All except for the repeated scenery for me and the killer hill that I would have to go up each time I rounded the back corner.  Oh well... I would just play Kelly Clarkson "Stronger" over and over if I needed to.  So I tried it out a few weeks ago and it worked great!  

So we went there again today.  This time though my kids were fighting more than normal and more than one time when I came down the hill from the upper parking lot I was met with one of them whining or crying that someone else had "wronged them" in some way and I needed to intervene.  UGH!  Really.  I lost it a couple of times and told them to work it out themselves.   One time I came down and they were no where to be seen... had to hit pause again on my app and found them inside hitting up the receptionist for chocolate.  Really?  More lecturing about obeying and staying outside unless someone had to use the restroom.

It is hard enough to keep a consistent running schedule and train for Half Marathons alone not to mention put 3 kids in the mix.  Don't get me wrong... I love my cherubs.  

We are blessed beyond measure... cup runneth over and all of that.  My older 2 will be back to school in 22 days but who is counting... that will make scheduling runs a little easier.   Not to mention my youngest will be in Preschool 2 mornings a week.  I remember stressing out last year when I had to use the treadmill more that I had expected and thought it would affect my Half training.  It was fine and I will be fine.  I have a 15K on September 14th, a Half on Sept 29th, and another Half on October 14th... so the running continues. 
  Sometimes it might have to be round and round at the church parking lot.  No excuses though... #getitdone !  There are a ton of other excuses I could have included here... rain, rain, and more rain... (I do live in the Pacific Northwest)... too dark, I want to sleep, too hot, too cold, I am lazy, I don't feel like it, I need to go to Costco... and more.

Click HERE if you want to see how many times I went "round and round" to get 6.2 miles in!

What things tend to get in your way when you need to plan a run?

For those of you that are parents... and don't have a full time nanny... how do you creatively solve the "I need to run" factor?

Virtual Runner - Run for the Familes - Remembering Sandy Hook Elementary

Today I completed a 5K distance as a "Virtual Runner".  Do you know what that is?  A Virtual Runner basically means that you register for a race and run the mileage on your own in honor of the cause of the race.  This enables anyone / anywhere to participate - wherever they are.

Logo courtesy of Hart Marathon Photos

 I also ran as a part of a team of Runners made up of folks that were able to attend the event and Virtual Runners - Team #Run3rd.  #Run3rd is a movement begun by Actor/Famous Person Sean Astin.  Basically it means... I run first for me, I run 2nd for my family and those that are the closest to me, and 3rd I run for YOU... Read HERE for more about the movement. 

Today's race was Sandy Hook - Run for the Families.  Over 17,000 people ran in Hartford, CT this morning.  I live in Washington State.  Basically that is on the other side of the country.  No way I was going to be able to be there in person.  Luckily they offered the "Virtual" option for people who otherwise would not have been able to be part of it. 

Photo courtesy of Hart Marathon Photos

I felt glad to participate and do something.  My daughter is a 1st grader.  This is beautiful her in the photo below.  I can't imagine the loss the families experienced that day and in these days that have followed.

 

Not a day has gone by since Dec 14, 2012 that I haven't thought about each of those families and what they did the morning of Dec 14, 2012.  They woke their little ones for school... they fed them breakfast and helped pack backpacks... They drove them to school or walked them to the bus stop... they hugged them goodbye... never thinking that was the last time.  I can't imagine the pain... loss... heartache.  I pray for them all - for peace and healing.

I was honored to run today for all of them.

Me in Washington State after my miles

Disney Movie Rewards and cashing in!

I have been a member at Disney Movie Rewards for a long time...  If you are not familiar with DMR then let me quickly explain.  Most Disney Movies you purchase have this inside...

 

First you need to set up an account at DMR (Disney Movie Rewards).  It is fairly straight forward and easy to do.  Then locate this paper inside each of your Disney movies and enter the "magic codes".  Then you begin to save up points so you can get lots of FREE stuff. (You do have to pay for postage so Freebie beware).  Being a member has other benefits as well... DMR often times has exclusive sweepstakes you can enter and coupon codes for newly released Disney movies.

 

 

Over the years I have cashed in a few fun things... mostly we get MORE movies.  My most recent Freebie from DMR is one of my all time favorites... not an old one but a classic!  ENCHANTED on Blu Ray! 

 

 

We already owned this classic on DVD but I wanted the Blu Ray to get the extra Bonus Features... (yes... I am a Bonus Feature Geek).  This Blu Ray has the addition of a "game" called The "D" Files.  When you select the game on the Bonus Features you basically watch parts of the movie and when references come up to other Disney movies the game quizzes you on what movies these references came from.  LOVE IT!  ENCHANTED is a terrific movie with references to LOTS of other Disney movies strung throughout! 

 

If you haven't ever given ENCHANTED some of your time - I strongly encourage you to give it a watch! 

 

DMR (Disney Movie Rewards) is worth it!  It takes some time and organization to get those codes and input them into your account... but Free is Free! Definitely worth it!

 

 



Wordless Wednesday...

Lots of Blogs I check out do Wordless Wednesday... thought I would give it a try...

Photo taken on Main Street USA... of course at Disneyland!

I am a runner...

I ran 9.08 miles yesterday - I am a runner.  Really?  A year ago I wouldn't have laughed at you had you told me that I would be running for 2 hours straight but I would have had a hard time believing that would be a true statement about myself and that it would be something that I could do!    I have had this goal in my head that I wanted to run a 1/2 marathon "someday" (maybe more than 1).   BUT - as far back as I can remember I have been told that I am not good at running,  I am not fast, and that I am not athletic.  So what do you do... you believe it.

 

Lets start before the running...four and a half years ago (2008) I had my 3rd baby... I gained A LOT of weight... because I could.  I knew he was my last baby (a surprise at 41)... we had trouble conceiveing the first 2 times and had paid lots of dollars to a fertility clinic to assist us in getting pregnant the first 2 times.   After my Luke was born I was miserable and needed to drop some weight.  I turned to Weight Watchers.  I had watched a few friends have GREAT success with WW.  I am a pretty focused person and if you put a goal in front of me that I believe in... get out of the way!   Controlling my diet and without much exersize  I was successful and dropped almost 70 pounds.  I reached my goal weight with in a little over a year and felt pretty awesome.  That lasted about 2 months and then I slowly started to put some of that weight back on.  I wasn't nursing my baby anymore and I hadn't really changed my major habits.  I knew that the answer was that I had to put some kind of exersize into my routine.  I dreaded it... I had no idea where to begin.  I had just sold my treadmill when I was pregnant and "nesting"... it took up too much room and drove me nuts.   I had 3 little kids and a crazy schedule.  How was I going to fit anything else into my routine?

Then sometime late in the summer of 2011 I saw this photo in a publication... 

I looked at this photo for a long time the first time I saw it... I have been a Disney addict since I was young.  I was born in Anaheim afterall - it was fate.  I love Disneyland and every single thing about it.  When I saw this photo and read the information about the Inaugural Tinkerbell 1/2 Marathon I wondered if that was something I could do.   Kudos to runDisney for this photo... I imagined myself running through the castle MANY times... not to mention also imagined that my legs would look just like this girl.  

I figured if you are going to run a 1/2 marathon... then Disney was the place to do it.  I looked up the runDisney website and realized I was too late... there was no way I could pull my training and the finances together to make the 2012 Tinkerbell a reality.  But I didn't forget about it. 

Then 2012 hit and into the spring and I decided... 2013 Tinkerbell was mine!  I begged my husband to be able to try.  So in the Spring of 2012 I laced up my shoes and went out for my 1st run.  I thought I would die... I don't think I went farther than a couple of miles that first day and I walked a lot of it.  As I dug a little deeper on the runDisney site I found Jeff Galloway and read about his run/walk methods.  THIS sounded doable.  So I bought myself a Gymboss intreval timer and off I went.  I decided to sign up for some local races.  Many of my cyber running friends said this would help me stay motivated and assist in my training.  So I did some local races.   We also went on Craig's List and found a used treadmill... I have 3 young kids... I knew I would end up on the treadmill a lot of the time.  That was okay with me... it is what it is.  I would also strongly recommend any one interested in serious walking or running to go to a good running store and get fitted for shoes... I did.  I went to Fairhaven Runners in Bellingham, WA.  They were awesome and fitted me with some good shoes.

 

This is me at the Fairhaven 15K in Bellingham, WA - Yes a 15K was my first REAL race.  I figured - if you are gonna dive in you might as well dive deep!  I finished in 1 hour and 59 min!  My time was a little disappointing and I thought I would die the last 2 miles... but I made it.  I finished!

Then I did another race - this time a 10K in a nearby town - Arlington - 1 hour and 14 mins... and my kids got to see me finish.  It rained really hard at the beginning of this race and it really affected the turn out... only about 20 people did the 10K... I was the LAST 10K finisher... but I still won 3rd place in my age division!  I wore my runDisney shirt that I had ordered to motivate me and remind me what my goal was!  I met a lady who had run the Wine and Dine 1/2 Marathon at Disney World.   She told me good luck and said that the Disney races would be a lifetime memory. 

 

I was feeling more confident and was losing some weight!  All big bonuses for me!

 

Then I did some more races...

 

 

 

This is me and my younger sister Heather at the Poulsbo 10K in Poulsbo, WA on October 14th, 2012. This was the first time I ran with someone else.  My time  - 1 hour 15 min and 16 seconds.  I felt great even if my sister ditched me at the end.

 

On December 8th, 2012 I actually ran a 5K at 8am (my time for the 5K was 39 minutes) and then went to a neighboring town and ran a 10K (1 hour and 17 min) all in the same day.  I had added a few minutes to my 10K time but hey I woke up and ran a 5K in the morning before it so that is my excuse for adding the few minutes.  CRAZY woman! (no photos from that day)

 

In the midst of all of this training and racing... I lost about 25 pounds of the weight I had gained back after Weight Watchers.  I was feeling so much better!

 

Then my BIG goal was right around the corner!  I couldn't believe it!  The Tinkerbell Half Marathon 2013 and I was so excited!  My husband and I planned the trip and decided earlier that the kids would not be coming this time.  We had just taken them in December of 2011 and finances just would allow for them to be there this time.  It promised to be really busy at the parks anyway - besides the Race Weekend it was also President's Day that Monday.  Crowded at the Parks!

 

I had made some cyber friends through a Facebook page for runDisney fanatics and Twitter.  I had learned about these amazing fan Meet Ups that runDisney holds at each of it's race weekends.  I HAD to get in.  I bought my plane tickets in advance banking that I would get in to this special event prior to the race festivities.  Turns out... I did get in!  I wrote about the runDisney Meet Up HERE.  Totally a dream come true!  That is me in the back row to Goofy's left - 3rd one in.

 

 

 

 

 

Then... I went on to run in the 5K and the 1/2 Marathon Tinkerbell Weekend 2013!

 

 

This photo is a little blurry but I love it anyway.

 

 

I am within about 5 pounds of my Weight Watchers goal weight (and have a goal to lose more)... I run about  3- 5 times a week depending on our schedule.  I have registered for some more local races this year and have plans to return to the Disneyland Resort to run the 2014 Tinkerbell 1/2 Marathon!  This time I am taking a couple of friends with me!

 

It felt amazing to accomplish this goal!  I would recommend runDisney to any one!  So amazing and fun!  I would encourage anyone that seems to find running too hard or something they could not do to look into Jeff Galloway's training methods.  His program is so user friendly to newbies and people who never thought running would be something they could be successful at.  (I even got to meet Jeff at the special runDisney Meet Up I attended).

 

 

 I have dreams of doing MORE Disney races - getting my Coast to Coast medal... but reality right now is we have a one income family and 3 young kids AND we live in Washington State.  It takes some funds to make the trip to Disneyland or the World.  I also don't want to deprive my kids from trips while they are still young.  So we will do what we can and the time will come later.  I will be back to run the Tinkerbell 2014... can't wait! 

 

For now I will live vicariously through my cyber friends who fly from coast to coast and run all that Disney magic! 

 

 

 

 



 



Keeping Disney in every day!

Keeping Disney in every day when you live far from the Magic of the Parks can be a challenge!

Unfortunately not every day do we get to wake up to this kind of magic!

(This is my oldest son on our trip in 2005 - it pays to have a Disney Visa and get to go to the Character Meet and Greet)

When we are in the midst of the magic one thing we love is the music of the parks and how that can add to atomsphere and really how we experience it!  All we need to do when we come home from vacation is turn on some of that music and immeadiately we are transported.  We have several cds that help with that but we have found something recently that is GREAT! 

Follow THIS link to Reedy Creek Radio and you can stream music from all 5 Disney parks right through your computer.  They play a variety of Parade, Park and atmosphere music that shuffles through.  I love how turning it on instantly puts me in a Disney state of mind.  I can close my eyes and almost smell the churros.  I can't believe we didn't know about this long ago!   I know they have an app for IPhone users (unfortunately I have an android).  We would encourage the folks at Reedy Creek Radio to get an app going for android users! We were a little curious where the "Reedy Creek" name came from.  We found interesting facts about that HERE.

Another way to access Disney Parks music is buying music.  HERE is a link to Amazon where lots of CDs are listed on that include Disney Parks music. Our favorite that we own is The Official Album of the Disneyland Resort that came out during the Happiest Homecoming on Earth (2005) - which was Disneyland's 50th Birthday year.   It is awesome and has a lot of music that is no longer "available" at the parks for listening.  So it becomes a bit of a walk down memory lane when we listen.

Another one of our favorites is a newer release - The Music of Carsland released in 2012.  Love this one!

It can be a challenge to keep the magic in every day - we have found that the music is the best way!  Other ways to bring the magic into your home and everday life - ... mickey pancakes, disney games (we have many - Disney Scene It, Buck a Roo, Disney Matching, Disney Rummikub, Disney Trivial Pursuit and many more) - Disney Snacks - we google up recipes online and try to recreate them.

We have even made up our own family Disneyland Game that we play around the dinner table, in the car or just about anywhere... it is called "What Ride am I on?" - Basically everyone takes a turn and describes the Queue (this is the name of the waiting area or line)  and then the actual ride itself and everyone else gets to make guesses about what you are describing.  Lots of fun and helps the kids and (and the adults) to remember details you might otherwise have forgotten.  Lots of fun!  Feel free to alter the game to suit those that are playing!

We wish you luck keeping that Disney magic in your every day. 

Wouldn't it be awesome if every day could be a Disney Day?!!!

Wow... school began yesterday. I now have a 2nd grader and a Kindergartener! How did I become the mom that has "big kids"? I am very involved with a local MOPS group and have been a member since my oldest was about 6 months old. We had a "Back to MOPS" Picnic the other day to get our new Fall program going... I saw the looks on some of the moms faces as some of us "other moms" unloaded our big school age boys. They quietly moved in closer to their much smaller 2 year olds and protected them like a mother hen. I remember feeling this way. Looking at those GIANT school agers and thinking they were secretly plotting to attack my 2 year old BABY! Now I am that mom... I have one of those school age monsters riding around in the back of my mini van. If you look really closely he still has that cute baby face... and he just told me last night that he will never love anyone more than me. I am going to hold onto that for awhile.