10 weeks until the Princess Half

I actually should have written this post on Sunday as it's now almost 9 weeks until the race. I'm feeling AWESOME and my training is going exceptionally well. I've decided I'm going to go for it and try to break 2 hours in the half. I've also decided that the key to that happening is to drop 10 pounds. That's 1 pound a week- definitely do-able. My starting weight as of last Sunday is 155.2. If I can get down to 145 it will be amazing!

Here are my workouts for this week:

Monday- 2 mile easy run

Tuesday-off

Wednesday- 7 mile speedwork on the treadmill (3x1600 at an 8:34 pace)

Thursday-off

Friday- 8 mile long run (Christmas Eve)

Saturday and Sunday-off (Christmas Day in PA)

I need to pick up a few more days of working out and specifically work on strength training. The running has been going really well and my plantar fasciitis is great.

As far as weight loss goes; my goal for the week is just to eat sensibly and drink more water. Let's be realistic- it's Christmas. I'm making 7 different kinds of cookies and moderation is the only way to go. I'll be at my in-laws for the weekend and obviously only have so much control over what I eat. I'm going to try to make good choices. Once the holidays are over I'll try to be more strict with my eating.

Go Shutterfly!

I posted previously about the promotion Shutterfly is having: giving away 50 photo cards in exchange for a blog about their holiday cards. I've spent some time looking at their website and the choices of cards they offer. Now, I may not be the most experienced card shopper out there. I admit, I tend to look on the cheaper side of things. Although my dream is to get creative with my holiday cards, I always revert to the old standby: postcard layout with a simple picture of the girls. I have to report that I an in Shutterfly dream-land. I am impressed with their cards (and not only Christmas photo cards). I've found some cards that I am in love with!

The first place I looked was here: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards.

And the first card I fell in love with was this one:

You just can't get any more classic than that. Black and white, red monogram accent; I love it! I've always loved black and white photographs. They are just so timeless. I love that the card has space for six photos. We are a family of six and we could fit everyone into their own space. Ultimately, that is what I ended up not liking about this card. I can't figure out how to arrange the photos. I don't like the idea of six individual pictures and the combinations of people don't work out equally. Although I love this card, I decided to keep searching.

Here is my perfect card:

I LOVE the colors, and the layout is perfect for our family picture. This is the perfect card for a family of 6. I have the whole thing designed. In the middle is a group picture of the six of us with individual pictures of the girls on the sides. That really appeals to be because I feel like you can get a better sense of their personalities through multiple pictures.

Although it doesn't have the classic feel of the first card, the colors are clean and crisp. The black and white pictures are a nice contrast to the colors. Even though I don't think I'll be using black and white pictures, I like that there are only two colors on the card. My color pictures won't make the card to busy. The pictures are arranged so as not to be distracting (I like the symmetry.) I also love that I can personalize the card on the inside. This is such a step up from our usual postcard type Christmas card.

To be honest, although I love sending Christmas cards, my hearts desire is to do a photo calendar for my parents and even myself. If I ever get organized and start planning for Christmas before December actually hits, this link has everything I need: http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars. While I'm getting myself organized, my goal was to get my tween daughter some "cool" writing paper for Christmas this year. It didn't happen. If it had, it would have looked like this: http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/notepads

http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/notepads/candy-bracelet-notepad?sortType=1&storeNode=60314

Oh well, I guess she'll have to wait another year to be cool. In the meantime I hope to enjoy my awesome Christmas cards!

Shutterfly promotion

I was surfing my sister's blog and checked in on one of her links I always read (Praying for Bennett) when I came across a promotion for 50 free Christmas cards for bloggers. "Wow," I thought, "I'm a blogger. I should check it out." Then I wondered about the definition of a blogger. I blog (occasionally). Don't get me wrong, I like to blog; I just have a really hard time actually sitting down and writing. But I do get there- sometimes. Which got me thinking; does the definition of a blogger require that someone actually read what your blog? That would disqualify me. Because no one reads what I blog. I'm really fine with that, but I wonder if I'm qualified for this promotion. Maybe I should wait for the promotion for 50 free Christmas cards for blogs. That's what I am- a blog. I like that; it fits well.

Anyway here's the link: http://bit.ly/sfly2010

Since I'm back in training mode and exhausted, I plan on checking out the website tomorrow. I hope I actually do qualify because with an unexpected car purchase and three December birthdays along with Christmas this month, I could really use some free Christmas cards!

I won a mental battle!

I woke up at 4:50 so I could get my 5 mile run in early. I was hoping to meet my running buddy but it was pouring so I knew I was headed to the gym. There is a tornado watch in effect so I was a little hesitant to drive, but I've been full of excuses lately so off I went. It is so surreal driving in the dark with leaves flying and rain pouring. There was a tree down at the end of our street so I was on alert all the way to the gym.

The workout today was a tempo run: 1 mile warm-up, 3 miles at a 9:10 pace and 1 mile cool down. The treadmills at my gym automatically turn off after 30 minutes so I knew I'd have to break up the run a little. The run started off a little rough as I had to make a pit stop after .25 miles. *** WARNING***(This is way TMI but my husband won't listen to anything that has to do with that time of the month. If you are reading this and are like him: DON'T READ ON! I tried to tell him I need to tell someone about my victory, but he said to call my sister. It's 7:20 AM and my sister's sleeping so, sorry I've got to tell it here. Let's just say I had an emergency where I had to jump off the treadmill and run to the bathroom. I could have easily left the gym at that point but chose to continue. That was a victory in itself! I was worried I wouldn't get the whole run in but I did and then bolted out the door back to my car.)

Anyway... back on track. I did the first two speed miles at a 9:05 pace but thought I was going to puke. My heart rate was over 200. It was time for the treadmill to stop so I took that as a natural break and recovered for .25 miles. The last mile I played a little game with myself where I held a 9:13 pace for 2 minutes, 9:05 for 2 minutes, 8:57 for one and then went the other way again (9:05 for 2minutes and 9:13 for 2). It makes the time go by so much faster. I finished my cool-down and I was done.

I felt so good for pushing through that workout! I'm so glad it's done! I don't know why I struggle so much with speed workouts on a treadmill. It is so mental for me.

I'm back home and it's pouring out, but I'm done with my workout for the day. My running partner is running a marathon on Sunday (she was supposed to run Philly but got the flu on Friday). I'm going to run the last 7 miles with her. I want to be running the whole thing, but I need to be happy about where I am. The plantar fasciitis is in a very good place and I'm running pain free. What more could a girl ask for?