725

this morning was a GREAT morning for a run! i did my own 4K route bright and early, using a walk 1/run 3 schedule.

total time 33:33 with 25 minutes of running.

if that number is right, i think i've taken a minute off my 4K time from the turkey trot!! and *that* is a very good thing!! i might try to do a "long run" tomorrow (not entirely sure yet what that will mean.)

and i guess it's about time i actually attempt to run a full mile without walking?!?

existential crafting

so, pink christmastime is here.

i worked on my pink christmas project over the thanksgiving holiday, and i'm pleased with the results. i'm just not quite sure it's finished.

i've had plenty of time to get ready, of course. (kind of like those final papers in college...) give me all the time in the world, and i'm still going to wait until the last possible minute. that's a big part of who i am.

creating homemade gifts is something i look forward to, and something i dread at the same time. i love the imagining, the planning, the searching for the right project. i often falter with the actual creation, fearing that it won't turn out exactly as i planned (perfectionism *is* a treatable disease, no?) that's also a big part of who i am.

i spent a good portion of the weekend looking at the gift, wondering what it needed. was something missing? was i looking at a final product, or was there more work to be done?

my family spent a good portion of the weekend looking at the gift, too. (they couldn't help it - it was sitting right there on the kitchen counter.) finally, matty said, "it doesn't say *lelly* anywhere."

and he's right. it's missing a *lellyness*. the minute the words were out of his mouth, i knew he was right. in the oh-yeah-these-socks-DON'T-match kind of a rightness.

the thing is, i don't know what my crafting "stamp" is. i know what my writing "stamp" is, the choice of words, the rhythm of the sentences. when i read something i've written, i know that it embodies my very being. can i find that same reflection in a craft project?

so before the wrapping, before the sending, i will likely spend a few more hours with this gift, searching for a part of me to share with it's recipient.

happy pink christmas to all of you creative people out there! may you find a little more of yourselves this season!!

727

did my *almost* 4K route this evening, and the running was good! a little stiff when i started out, but i really found a groove in the second mile. i'm still on walk 1/run3, which i did for 6 repetitions, then managed a walk 1/run 6 when i was almost home!!

total time 32:06, with 24 minutes of running. woo hoo!!

the thing is, i think it's quite possible that i am running slower than i walk?!?

spt

i couldn't resist doing this challenge again. there is something so appealing about late autumn sunlight.



i was intrigued by my shadow superimposed over jack as he (in a very jack-like manner) scrambled to finish getting ready for school this morning (as i waited ever so patiently *a-HEM*). i am so thankful for this boy, and i want to think of this photo and remind myself that i must always be a strong, steady, sometimes-silent-but-always-there presence in his life.



did you find your shadow this week?

729

pushing darkness again, so i went with the slightly shorter route, sans music (i figure i need to be as *in tune* as possible with the world around me when it's getting dark.)

it was the first day of walk 1/run 3. i did the 4 repetitions pretty handily, although, i wouldn't have been able to do a 5th rep yet. i walked for three minutes, then finished out with some walk 1/run 1. i even managed to do another walk 1/run 3 towards the end. that rep felt really good (slightly downhill maybe?!?)

total time 28:17, with 18 minutes running.

i run really slowly. but, i RUN!

38 presents to open

in celebration of what is to be in this new year of life:

1) i will be open to new experiences
2) i will be an open communicator with my husband, my family
3) i will be open to exercising my body in different ways
4) i will be open to being moved by the spirit
5) i will be open to playing with action figures, when necessary
6) i will be open to people who care about me
7) i will open my home to others more often
8) i will open my eyes each morning
9) i will open my heart for forgiveness
10) i will open all of the mail
11) i will remain open to all possibilities
12) i will keep the cookbooks open
13) i will be open to suggestion
14) i will not be intimidated to hit the open road for a vacation
15) i will open my mind in pursuit of learning new words
16) i will open up the sewing machine again
17) i will try to open at least one door i thought had been shut
18) i will stand with my arms open to anyone who needs a hug
19) i will open the shutters in my bedroom from time to time
20) i will pray with my heart and mind open
21) i will not ask open-ended questions when i need specific answers
22) i will open my ears, even when i suspect there will be whining
23) i will open my yearbook, and reconnect with an old friend
24) i will openly post my self-portraits
25) i will open up to those who want to help
26) i will open more books for leisure reading
27) i will open little memories, even when they might be painful
28) i will open a good bottle of red wine and share it with a friend
29) i will open the Bible more than i do now
30) i will open my front door if you come to visit me
31) i will try to have open discussions about difficult topics
32) i might finally open that can of elk meat in my pantry
33) i will try to keep my posture open and my shoulders back
34) i will wear open-toed shoes as often as possible
35) i will open pre-packaged food as little as possible
36) i will keep a journal open at all times
37) i will open the newspaper and follow the presidential election
38) i will continue to be open to my blogging friends, and those i haven't yet met

looking forward to a great year!! hope you'll be along for the ride.

spt - come out of the shadows

for the first time, i am officially carrying over last week's spt challenge. because i really, really think this is an important one for all of us to do!!

you can read the challenge here.

and then you can ready some early responses here.

[and then, if you still have time (and if you haven't yet read it) go over here and read jill's great post on lurking vs. commenting. why not pick this challenge to jump back into spt?]

take the time to do this one for yourself. it sure beats standing in line at the mall...

731

another crack of dawn training session, and i'm coming to believe that those might just be my favorite. it is soooo peaceful and quiet (and COLD!!)

off to a slow start - i really felt like i was shuffling, not running. but once i limbered up a little, i started to enjoy the pace. the run 2 segments seemed much easier than they did even just 2 days ago. i did walk 1/run 2 the entire route, which put me at a total of 20 minutes running time! THAT feels awesome.

total time 31:44

not the greatest pace, but i consider it to be one of my better workouts so far.

733

and here i am, one week into this adventure, this new chapter in my life, and with a race under my belt!!

this morning was the 3rd annual wilmington turkey trot, and i am proud to include myself among the finishers.



it was a beautiful morning, and i was slightly terrified. but, last night while i was training, i made a promise to myself that i would stick with my trainig plan. that meant i would complete this race on a walk 1/run 2 cycle.

i ended up starting off with a run 3, because i really, REALLY wanted to start off running. then i was back on my walk 1/run 2 to complete the first 15 minutes. after that, i started to feel tired during my running segments. (it was really hot and sunny out, too!) so i cooled down to walk 1/run 1 for the rest of the race, and that felt much better.

i ran across the finish line at a final time of 34:46. i was totally psyched that i finished under 35 minutes. i didn't really have a finishing time in mind, but since i've been training at *just under* 4K, i figured it would have to be close to my normal times.

and here i am with my totally cheesy t shirt, and blasted red face! it could not have been a better way for me to start this year's holiday. could not have been better...

734

i trained at about 5 pm - it was getting dark, but i really felt i needed to get in a *run* before the turkey trot tomorrow. i had thought maybe i would get it done in the afternoon... but it was 78 degrees out!!

so, continuing on with walk 1/run 2, i completed my route having run a total of 18 minutes! i was totally stoked with myself. and my pace was great, too. i really need to look into this whole pace thing, and how to properly track it.

total time 30:42

tomorrow is my first *big run* (hahahahahaha), but i am really looking forward to challenging myself to do it!

spt

Sometimes I think we're alone. Sometimes I think we're not. In either case, the thought is staggering. - buckminster fuller



here i stand, literally on the edge of the land, my back to the atlantic ocean. for now, i am alone, and it seems as if my tall, sturdy shadow can bear it all.

and i know that it can't. the sun will shift and the image will falter. the strong outline will blur, blending into other shadows, other lives.

today i am thank-full for all of the days that i have found solace, or spark, in this beautiful blogosphere. for the chance to cast my shadow out into the world, to share my *me-ness.* for the opportunity to blend with all of you.

happy thanksgiving!

735

last night, i didn't get to train until almost 6 pm, which meant it was quite dark out. so i trimmed my route a little so that i wouldn't put myself on scary juniper road in the dark.

this week, according to my *schedule*, it's walk 1 minute, run 2 minutes. i was able to walk 1/run2 for the recommended 5 repetitions, then added two more bursts of 2 minute running during the walk home.

total time 27:42 (slightly shorter route)

that's right!! i actually ran more than i walked!! by a whole 18 seconds!! woot!

736

didn't train at all over the weekend. early sunset is definitely going to be a challenge for me!!

overall, feeling pretty crappy about myself these days. i need to train - it seems like the only thing that moves the dark clouds out of my brain...

it looks like it should be beautiful weather for the turkey trot on thursday. i'm thankful for that.

fireside

to celebrate the end of godspell (sniff, sniff), we had a bonfire on the beach saturday night. the weather was perfect, the food was perfect, and the company was, well... perfect.



potatoes and sweet potatoes roasted in the bonfire...perfect


*tribal council* torches, used in the show, decorated by the cast members...perfect


sunset over the atlantic...perfect


fairy lights on the sand dunes...perfect

i'm still in that let-down time after a show ends. i've often said putting on a show is like raising a child and sending them off into the world, all within a 2 month span of time! it's pretty intense. now, with all the *free time* i'll have, i guess it's on to pink christmas and a thankful swap!!

random acts

on tuesday night, i skipped out of work a little early and dashed into walmart to pick up a few things i needed. i purposefully tried to get in and out before the true *after work* crowd hit.

our walmart has recently installed those rotating bag kiosks - you know the ones where the teller keeps spinning it around and around until you have 14 plastic bags filled (approximately one bag per item, as best i can tell...)

so i wasn't too surprised that when i got home, i found a bag that wasn't mine! the bag included some deli turkey, 3 of the smallest bananas i've ever seen, and a 15 pound brick of colby cheddar cheese. 15 pounds? could've been only 5, but still...it was a huge brick of cheese.

oh, i did not relish the thought of trekking the 20 minutes back to walmart (where the *after work* crowd was no doubt milling around like lost sheep by this point.) but, we just knew someone was going to be missing that cheese!

matty made the trip. and to his credit, he *encouraged* the aloof customer service employee to make sure that they would make some effort to keep the groceries cold in case their rightful owner came back.

i hope they came back for the cheese.

does this ever happen to you? you should share your random acts of kindness over here. it feels so good!

739

this morning i did my workout - it was 32 outside. but it felt oh, so good!



i did walk 1/run 1 for 13 repetitions, and walked the rest of the way home (with a final run to the driveway for good measure!)

total time 31:26

spt - me and my shadow

it is here.
that cinnamon-scented, pumpkin-flavored, amber-tinted time of year when we celebrate the harvest, the shorter days, the warmth of families. our cupboards are full and our tables are laden; the hearth is warm and alive! layers are layered, then shed, as we scurry from store to store, from house to house. tired, flushed faces beam from behind mugs of hot cocoa and soft snores come from the living room as football games carry on across the television screen.

a far cry from the pilgrims' days, for sure. for many, american thanksgiving has become a mere prelude to the insanity of a highly commercialized holiday season. we are busy traveling and cooking and eating (i had my *first* thanksgiving meal yesterday!). there are neighbors to greet and relatives to hug and parades to be watched! who has time to give thanks??

we do.

your challenge this week is to find a quiet moment. give thanks for all that you have been given, all that you have given in this past year. take advantage of a pocket of an afternoon when you can slip away and be thank-full. we can all make time for this very important date with ourselves, with only our shadow along for company.

What is life? It is a flash of a firefly in the night. It is the breath of a buffalo in the wintertime. It is the little shadow which runs across the grass and loses itself in the sunset. - Crowfoot



photo credit found here

740

yesterday i did 14 minutes of walk 1/run 1
then i ended up running 3 more minutes during my walk home. it felt good - but i'm cautious of overdoing it this early. i'm going to really try to stick with moderate, moderate endurance build-up.

i tweaked my route a bit so that it *should* be exactly 2 miles with no loops.

total time 32:46

oh, and i've decided to refer to the turkey trot as a *4K* - that sounds sooo much more impressive than 2.4 miles!!

741

yesterday i bought a pair of exercise pants that *hopefully* won't fall down when i run. spent less than $10.

booked rooms in the outerbanks for next november with the thought that i might try the half marathon there in '08.

took the day off from training*, following a very, VERY novice schedule.



*i like to call it training...

just signed up for a 2.4 mile *turkey trot* for thanksgiving day.



2.4 miles doesn't sound like anything, and yet, i feel totally intimidated!

one word

now i see the secret of the making of the best persons. it is to grow in the open air and to eat and sleep with the earth - walt whitman



education's purpose is to replace an empty mind with an open one - malcom forbes



may your walls know joy; may every room hold laughter and every window open to great possibility - maryanne radmacher-hershey



there is no end to the adventures that we can have if only we seek them with our eyes open - jawarhalal nehrue



one never knows what each day is going to bring. the important thing is to be open and ready for it - henry moore

i am finally open to my word of the year (for next year!). i'm getting a little jump on 2008, by putting my word into the forefront of my mind as i welcome this holiday season.

742

last night i invested in 1) digital watch with stopwatch functionality. spent less than $9.00 on it.

14 minutes of walk 1/run 1
16 minutes of walking (to get me back home)

i RAN!!

spt

last year, i invited my family to send me lists of their very favorite holiday memories.



this year, i hope to figure out what i want to do with them.

next year, i might have a finished project!!

i did start reviewing our Advent activities from last year, and spent a few moments planning this year's projects (of special note, i am so glad a made a blog note to myself that maybe it's a good idea to wrap up our activities the week prior to Christmas, before we all succumb to exhaustion!)




this past weekend, i remembered to buy one of those extension cord foot switches for the Christmas tree, to prevent having to crawl under the tree every night!

did you remember to do some pre-holiday planning?

743

743 more days until my 40th birthday.
think i can run a marathon before then???

spt - 3...2...1...

ahh, do you hear it? see it? smell it? those first hints of the holiday season to come...

you won't be surprised to know that i (of *pumpkin-spice-candle-day* and *orange-shirt-month* fame) have some pretty strong holiday practices: i love Christmas music, but can't listen to it before december first; i have never put up a Christmas tree on Thanksgiving Day; despite the best-laid plans, i rarely get my cards out before the week of Christmas. i have definitely made a concious effort over the past few years to simplify our holidays so that we get more out of them.

i invite you to visit my archives for a daily walk through last december. i adopted an idea from loobylu (oh, i miss you, loobylu) for a daily acitivity for each day of Advent.

the inspiration piece:


and mine:



our daily activities were a huge part of our holiday season. as you read through the posts, though, you will see we lost a little steam as we got closer to Christmas. so i'm tweaking a little bit for this year. this was a great project for our family, but it does involve a little advance preparation.

so this week's spt challenge is to take a few moments and focus on that special holiday *thing* that you are planning for this year. we are less than two weeks away from Thanksgiving. don't sacrifice your vision of a perfect holiday season by running out of time! give yourself permission to get prepared, and don't forget to snap a photo of you in that moment!

godspell-icious

a wordless wednesday for you, since i know you are all dying to see photos from godspell!

 

 

 

 

more to come!! wish you could be here to see the show...

spt

i voted this morning, bright and early. there were only three items on our local ballot, but they were all equally important.

my question is, though, when did the pollsters start stalking you as soon as you get to the election site? one of them just about opened my car door for me (good thing they already had my vote!)


ok, i just couldn't bring myself to spt in front of the other voters, so i sat in my car outside the polls (with a very serious voting face, i might add.) what is it with me?!? i have SUCH a phobia about people watching me take my own picture in random places. does anyone else suffer from this?!?


did you vote today?

faire thee well

a few weeks ago, i had the pleasure of chaperoning jack's field trip to the Renaissance Festival near Charlotte. jack goes to a montessori school, where he is a "first year" in the "lower elementary" class (grades 1 - 3.) there are seven first year students, and he has been with these kids since they all started the montessori program at three years old.

the lower el and the upper el (grades 4 - 8)all went on this field trip, so the result was about 30 kids with multiple chaperones. the kids and teachers all dressed up in costume, and it was obvious they had spent a lot of time studying the Renaissance before they went. i'm so lucky to have a great boss (me!) and i could take the day to travel back in time with them.




the lovely signs that awaited us.


knights in shining armor.


my favorite "authentic sign."


jack and his sweetheart.



and since it was a tuesday, i had to "spt" it!

spt - election day

If liberty and equality, as is thought by some are chiefly to be found in democracy, they will be best attained when all persons alike share in the government to the utmost. aristotle



this is a gentle reminder that tuesday, november 6th, is election day here in the U.S. while it's not a Presidential election, i'm sure there are some very important issues on your local and state ballots.

the responsibility and the seriousness of voting was instilled in me very early on. when i was a child, i always felt very important when my parents took me to the polls with them. now that i am *not* a child, i have come to appreciate my own right to participate in the process of government. they might not give my my "i voted" sticker again this year, but i'll be sure to spt that i was there!

(did i just make *spt* a verb?!?)

halloween - last minute style!

my son is the most adaptable person in the world.

he has wanted to be an star wars stormtrooper since we started talking about hallowe'en this year. you might remember i blogged about it here.

for so many reasons, we arrived at the morning of hallowe'en without a costume. (i even resorted to calling around to see if anyone had any of those, you know, store-bought varieties.)

i'm so glad they didn't.

with 3 hours to spare, one amazingly talented sister, and some *craft supplies* by Rubbermaid (TM), hallowe'en was on!

well, except for the helmet. an authentic-looking PVC helmet can be a very tricky thing to recreate when you have limited access to places like Hollywood.

and i tried. oh, how i tried. but even i had to admit that my sad attempts were just not going to fly for this boy.

so, what does the most adaptable person in the world do when faced with a seemingly unsurmountable problem??



he becomes "han solo dressed up as an imperial stormtrooper [episode IV: a new hope]."



i can take no responsibility for this amazing outfit. all credit goes to the girl who can do it all, my sister, jen. THANK YOU!!