2011 in Review

Better late then never...

2011 in Review
Jan = Sick...and that's all I have to say about that!

Feb = Bought House - ok, bought property where the house would eventually be built.


Mar = Injured

Apr = Face of America


May = Lake Anna 70.3

June = Training - Almost every workout!!!

July = Musselman 70.3 - I didn't post a race report but it was hot, I did worse than last year, and spent most of the post race at the hospital with Patti. Friends - when it's hot, take salt tablets and hydrate!!!!

Aug = Training - Again, almost every workout!!!

Sep = Work...and that's all I have to say about that. Oh, and training during the week stopped.

Oct = Work, Move, and Charlie-Poo adopted us




Nov = Work, Unpacking, and Ironman


Dec = Work, Holiday, and Eating!


Happy New Year!!!

House...

Last we spoke (yeah, yeah, yeah...) the footers were about to be started. Well, July 1st that happened.



Around July 9th we got basement walls:


Then I went to a race and on vacation so I missed two weeks of visiting. Next thing you know, it's July 30th and viola:


We have a house! Here's a room by room...
Entry:


Office:


Living Room:


Kitchen:


Sunroom:


Master Bedroom:


J's Room:


Basement:


By August 7th we had windows:


Around August 19th plumbing and electrical was done. Those would be boring pictures, so here's the huge master tub:


August 28th showed they were prepping to start the stonework outside:


And by August 31st the stonework was almost done:



The insulation was also done, but I don't have pictures of that.

And finally, by Friday, September 2nd, the drywall was 100% installed:
Kitchen and Sunroom:



And the started the siding:


We were told it would most likely be done mid to late October...PERFECT with my training schedule!!!

Oh, and I can't write a post about the house without mentioning my backyard:


CAN'T WAIT!!!

Organized Randomness

1. Living Arrangements:
I was filling out some paperwork and had to list my address and whether I Own, Rent, or Other (Explain). So I checked Other and I have to come up with an explanation. Living in Sin? Freeloading wench? Live-In Cook/Lover?

2. New House:
At last look, my neighbors should be moving in any day now. That may be an exaggeration but last week they were putting shingles on and they have windows.

3. New House:
I still have dirt. But the footers are allegedly being put in today so the “real” construction should start soon.

4. Triathlon:
The other day I was asked what is my favorite part of triathlon. I use to quickly say running (ok, I use to say transitions which is still true), but the favorite sport was running. Not so much anymore. My calf is pretty much heeled but it still flares up and my back just hurts... All. The. Time.

5. Triathlon:
That said, it’s official, my favorite part is cycling. (And even as I type that I said ICK!)

6. Food:
I’m going to try a new nutritionist next week. Her name is Shelby and she works primarily with athletes. Her website is shelbykfitness.com – check it out.

7. Food:
I’m getting wishy-washy on the veggie delivery. It’s great in that I try new things and we are eating healthier but it’s darn expensive! I can't wait until I live next to Wegman's!

8. Life:
I’m going to see Mamma Mia at Wolf Trap tonight and I’ve had the song Dancing Queen in my head all day.

9. Life:
You are the dancing queen, young and sweet, only seventeen
Dancing queen, feel the beat from the tambourine
You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life
See that girl, watch that scene, dig in the dancing queen.

10. Life:
Just try to get that song out of your head now!!!

11. Work:
3.5 day weekend couldn’t come soon enough!!!!

12. Work:
I rarely mention work here (or anywhere electronically) so I’ll say a lot by saying a little:

AAAAARRRRRGGGGGHHHHHHHH!

13. Work:
If you choose to add expletives in there, that’s your choice.

Positive Attitude…Activate!

1. A dear friend is going through a health scare and I am scared to death of the results. To make matters worse, she’s not here so I feel helpless. I know she is where she needs to be to get the best medical care/attention, but I’d give anything to go to these appointments with her. And in typical “Es Fashion”, I tend to make jokes when talking to her but my heart breaks when I think about what she’s going through and the fact that her support system is hundreds of miles away.

2. The same weekend I found out about her, I found out another friend was in the hospital because his pancreas was essentially giving up. He was in a coma for three weeks and thankfully he’s rallied and is back home now. He has to make a major life change (no alcohol) but I hope he realizes there is more to life than his dear Miller Lite. Right now he swears he will never drink again. I only hope this fear of death sticks with him for the long haul.

3. All this worry and fear about my friends has made me realize that Life is Good! So, if you recall, I want this year to be more c’est la vie, less Type A so here goes! POSITIVE ATTITUDE…ACTIVATE!

4. After a three week hiatus I am back to exercising!!!!! My calf is 90% healed so I am run/walking. I took Penny for a ride on Tuesday, muy happy! And I’m back in the pool (and was told twice in one practice that I have a beautiful stroke).

5. So here’s a picture of our house from March:



And from this past weekend:



Wait, that’s the same picture. But if you were to go there today it would look EXACTLY the same. Word is they will start late April. Right now they have a promotion going on that says houses will be done in six months. Since we signed a contract two months before this promotion I HOPE our house will be done within six months as well!!!! That would give us an end of October move in which means Recovery/Taper period. That would work!!!

6. On Sunday, Dude, J, and I hiked the property. We spent about an hour along the lake shore and didn’t come near the end where it opens up into the “big lake”. It is beautiful, peaceful, and right in my backyard!!! Sooooo excited about moving!

7. As for my townhouse, the kitchen has a new look - I got new countertops, sink, faucet, and drawer/cabinet pulls installed. Final cleaning and de-personalizing is in the works and it will be back on the rental market soon!

8. This week, Dude and I were supposed to start our “diet” – more protein & veggies and fewer (but better) carbs. Unfortunately I’ve been busy. Next week I’ll be out of town thru Wed, then have Face of America ride Fri – Sun. I guess diet starts 18 April. Still trying to drop 10 pounds before IMAZ!

9. Face of America in next weekend. We had a fabulous Happy Hour at Glory Days last Friday – raised $1,100! And if you eat at ANY Glory Days in the month of April, give me the food receipt (not the credit card receipt) and Glory Days will donate 10% of food purchases to Team Steel Wheels! Or you can DONATE HERE!

10. This getting up at 4 AM to make swim practice is tough. I always feel incredible until about noon then nose dive into exhaustion. Any ideas on how to extend the post exercise energy? Since I’m thinking about starting to run 4-days a week, maybe a lunch time run might do the trick.

11. Dude and I are heading to Colorado this weekend. We will be spending the weekend with my BFF and her family. I’m planning a meal for Friday, we are hiking Saturday then joining her family for dinner, and then Sunday Dude and I are on our own. We may go to Boulder to see another friend or may just goof around in Denver.

12. Hmm, if the government shutdown happens I’ll be in Colorado. Can you say darn-it!


13. Don’t forget to check out my cooking blog - Tri To Cook! Oh, and just so you know, I’m a little behind on blogging on that one as well.

13 on time!

1. Weight – I’m going the wrong way. I was thinking today that I lost a lot when I first joined Team Z, and the next year when I was training for Ironman. Then I realized I was working out six days a week, often twice a day. Maybe that is why I lost weight.

2. Exercise – See above. My run this weekend was slow and steady. Issues with my calf/ankle/Achilles and now heel and back pain cut my Monday run short.

3. Injured?! – See above. Now this whole calf/ankle/Achilles/heel/back pain (I think it is all related) is cutting into my swim. Only lasted half of practice this morning before my back was hurting too bad to continue. Time to see Dr. Tara and get this fixed!

4. T.E.A.M. Steel Wheels – Letters and bribery went out yesterday and I’ve raised $340 in 24 hours. 70 emails went out last night – wish me luck. So far I have 2 dinners and 2 baked goods to make. DONATE HERE!

5. Personal Hell at the Office 1 – It’s raining. A LOT! And apparently my window leaks. When it hits the windowsill it splatters to the back of my neck. FUN!

Then there’s a car parked outside my office where the alarm goes off ALL F-ING DAY! Oh, it shuts off and I start to think joyful thoughts, then within 60 seconds it starts again. We have NO IDEA who owns this car. I swear they’re stealth!

6. My Back – is KILLING me! And Dr. Tara’s office doesn’t open until 3, then I have to make an appointment. Fingers crossed she can squeeze me in today.

7. Musselman – House is booked! Looking forward to a relaxing weekend on the lake. Oh, and the Half-Ironman. And goofing around at the Micro-Mussell (watch out Iron-Cat)!

8. House Update – Sunday is our full day at the “This is What You Get” Center. I mean Design Center. I’m thinking Bailey’s in my coffee, a liquid lunch, and maybe some Vicoden is required to survive this trip.

9. Rental Property – My place is on the rental market. I’ve had four people look and one is semi-interested but she doesn’t want to move in until the end of May. At this rate, it may still be available!

10. Personal Hell at the Office 2 – The cafeteria is at the other end of the lobby from where I sit. In the morning I get to smell bacon – salty, wonderful bacon. About an hour before lunch they start baking cookies – sweet decadent cookies. It takes ALL of my will power to not succumb to these temptations!

11. Vacation (I mean very important work meeting) – I’ve arranged a business trip to Denver next month. I love having employees out there, especially during the end of ski season. I mean Performance Review time.

12. Netflix – Dude found Netflix streaming. I’m afraid we will never leave the couch again! We’re in the middle of Season 3 of the show 24 (I didn’t start watching until the final season). It’s hokey…but strangely addicting.

13. New Blog – Tri To Cook! Check it out!!

Thursday Thirteen on a Tuesday

This use to be so much easier – I just don’t know what my problem is these days. I started writing this two weeks ago so I figured I’d just post it today….

1. Weight Goal – It’s time - I have to slim down for Ironman and to feel a little better about myself. I’ve said it before I obsess about my weight. I know I’m not fat, but my knees and feet will thank me if I could shed some pounds. On the plus side (no pun intended), I look better now then I did in my previous life at the same weight - more solid. Guess you could say this endurance training base has its perks. Without further ado –

Current = 150
Goal (by Nov) = 140
For Reference:
Air Force days (91-97) = 130 – 140
Marriage (96-06) = topped out at 178
Officially Divorced (07) = 160
First marathon (Feb 09) = 141
Ironman (Jul 09) = 147
Fall 2010 = 154

2. Exercise Goal – I’m back on the "paying myself" $5 for each workout and I’m sadly already behind the power curve. I hate the bike trainer, I hate 5 am swim practice, and I hate that it gets dark so early. On the plus side, it’s staying light a little longer and soon outdoor cycling will start. Penny will be excited to come off the wall for the first time since November. And as for 5 am swim practice, I just need to suck it up and get it done!

3. Money Goal – Big things happening this year (keep your pants on, I’ll spill the beans in a sec) so the goal this year is to SAVE MONEY! That means no crazy Ironman spending (I cringe when I look at what I spent for Ironman Switzerland), postponing my Girl’s Weekend to celebrate my 40th birthday (gulp) until next year, and watching my pennies every chance I get. That includes limiting my 7-11 coffee to days I swim and Fridays (because I’m still buying my lottery tickets).

4. Eating Goal – As part of the weight/money goals there will be changes in my eating/drinking habits. The big one is no beer until after Ironman (caveat - one beer the night before each big race is tradition). As far as eating, far less eating out! I'm a darn good cook it's time to do it more often.

5. 2012 Goal – One of my personal goals is to be a tad less Type-A in 2012. Less obsessing, More Moderation. I want this to be a “c’est la vie” year and just enjoy living without the indecision, second guessing, worrying that I usually go through. Wish me luck – this is soooo not me!

6. Red Nose Race #1 Recap – This was a 14 mile Team Z “race against the clock” race. I was not officially timed because watches were not allowed and I wore mine. In my head I predicted 2:45 and I finished in 2:43. I ran the first 10 miles with Dennis and Sally at about a 11:30 pace then Dennis and I ran the last five and somehow managed a 11:18 average pace. Felt good and I really liked the trail we were running on.

7. Freezin’ For A Reason “Race” Recap – This is an easy recap… After being sick for a month I thought it best to NOT jump in a freezing lake on an already cold and wet day. I did donate my registration money since it is a FABULOUS cause. Next year!

8. October 70.3 Race Pick – Set-Up Events introduced a new race series and quite conveniently they have The Waterman 70.3 in Maryland on 8 Oct. This means that aside from Musselman and IMAZ all of my races are within two hours of home so I’ll be able to cut a lot of the travel costs from my Ironman Prep budget (See #3).

9. “Run Faster” or “Damn you Iron-Jason” – I met Iron-Jason for dinner last Wed and we discussed training strategy. His advice – “Just run faster” - as if it’s that easy. Sunday was Red Nose #2 Race and I planned on running 14 miles. I got there late so I started 11 minutes behind everyone else. About ½ mile in there was an ice patch that seemed to last F-O-R-E-V-E-R so I quickly decided I was just going to do 5 miles then leave and go run on the W&OD. Just past the 2 mile mark Dennis was heading back so I turned around and ran back with him. Overall, I’m guessing I did just over 4 miles at around 11:30 pace. I went to the Vienna W&OD and started heeding Jason’s advice. The first 5 miles (miles 5-9) were ~ 11:00 pace. Mile 6-8.5 (or miles 10-12.5) = 9:30 (!!) pace, next mile at just under 10 min and the last was just over 10 min pace. I did it, I “Just Ran Faster” but OMG I could barely move on Monday. Damn You Iron-Jason!

10. T.E.A.M. Steel Wheels – I’m falling behind on raising money. I need to do my email letter writing sooner then later. I also need to send Thank You’s to those who have donated money. Want to know how you can help? Go here and make a donation! As a team we raised $750 dollars in 24 hours Superbowl weekend. $500 was automatically contributed when we sold all the squares then Coach Ed and Becky Fulkerson also donated their winnings to Team Steel Wheels. How cool was that?!?!

11. Change to Race Schedule – To continue to save money, my race schedule is changing. I’m only doing the big races. Wilderness ride and the Super Double Top Secret Olympic Distance are not going to happen. That still leaves me with a marathon, three 70.3’s, one 100+ mile ride, (possibly) two fun rides (depends on #12), and of course, Ironman.

12. Oh, and Dude and I are buying a House – A year and two months after the big announcement that we were going to move in together we are REALLY doing it. We accidently went house hunting a couple weeks ago – the sign for a Model Home reeled us in – and two weeks later, we have an agreed upon offer on THIS Richmond American Home. In addition to moving in with Dude, getting a brand new house (and my gourmet kitchen), there's a WEGMAN's less than a ½ mile from my house!!! How freakin’ awesome is that!
Here's a pic of the property (you can see Lake Manassas between the trees.



13. Hold Me Accountable – OK, so the goals have been stated so now I ask that YOU hold me accountable!