Running for My Life

Well, here's a post I never thought I'd write, but it's been a long time coming!

I run on a path along this stream

After 20 + years of being mostly sedentary, I've actually started  running.  Running wouldn't have been my first choice of exercise, mostly because I've had joint problems in the past.  That and I couldn't run a block without being winded. Running did not sound fun.

But.  Sue runs with her kids, and it made me realize how important it was to be an example to my kids about exercise being a normal part of a healthy life.  I just didn't like to exercise, so I didn't do it.  Not the best example, and not good for my health.

But I started thinking about it.  God sent me a few other IRL friends that run, and I started wondering if this was possible for me.  How can you tell the difference between a reason and an excuse?

Here's what physically worked for me:
-Good (motion control) shoes, and running on level paths turned out to be the key to running without joint pain.

I needed good shoes!

-Using a Couch to 5K running app is what made running in an ongoing way possible.  It's an objective way to see improvement.

Here's what mentally worked for me:
-Separating my intention to exercise (and be more fit) from my intention to lose weight.
-Listening to music (it energizes me and makes running fun)
-Discovering that doing a little works better than doing nothing.


Seriously!  The App is theoretically an 8 week plan where you run 3 times a week.  I started in mid-September and I am in the middle of Week 5!  I often can only fit in a run once a week (and occasionally less), and I often have to repeat a day or week, but I've just kept going, and it's enough- enough to feel better all day and enough to run farther.

I started running 30 seconds at a time, and I can now run for a mile and a half (with a walk break half way through).  I have a lot more energy, and I just feel better than I have in a long time.

And Mxyl, Klenda, Zorg, and Oob run with me!  I like to think they are extra encouraged by the fact that they all run faster than I do. I don't mind.  I run slowly, but faster than I would if I were still on the couch!

Wordless Wednesday: Sugarloaf Hike

Wordless Wednesday: At the Horse Farm

Traveling

 As you can see, we have been off traveling.  This particular mode of transportation is known as a surrey.

We actually try one every other year that we go to the beach, but this was the first year where we had 6 people who could actually pedal and only 2 seat warmers.

 Wow!  What a change from 2 pedaling with 4 seat warmers!!!

The Emperor did an excellent job getting us to pedal up hill together by encouraging everyone to yell, "Oooooh!  Aaaah!  Oooooh!  Aaaah! Paiiiiiiiin!  Paiiiiin!"

That was more fun than it sounds, as well as providing endless amusement to passersby.

Mxyl commented that he would need a new pair of shoes after that ride.  I commented that I would need a new pair of legs... But, actually, it was the first time we've ever done this without my legs being sore afterwards!

That being said, I think we'll keep Blue Streak a little longer.

Horsing Around

Our dear friend invited us to her barn to let the kids do a little bareback riding - how fun!

Mxyl shows off his balance.
Choclo and Oob were a little less stable, so to speak, but they loved it!

For the rest of the day, all I heard about was their love for Pumpkin Pie (the pony's name).

He was the most sweet and patient pony ever.


Zorg and Lena rode Chico.

I think Leena's smile says it all!






Klenda and Mxyl rode Sugar.

Klenda's doting grandmother gave her riding lessons for Christmas and is sending her to a riding camp in a few weeks. I think the lessons are paying off already, she looked really comfortable, even without a saddle.

Thank you so much Becky!!!

The Slackline

One thing we acquired over the summer was a slackline. Klenda saw it at REI, and it was love at first sight. Not only was she was willing to pay half, she was willing to talk a brother and sister into paying the other half.

A slackline is like a tight rope, except it's slack instead of tight (there's a lot of bounce in it) and it's a line the width of packing tape instead of a skinny rope. It's generally strung up about 2 1/2 feet off the ground.

Appropriately, it's made by a company called Gibbon.

Several things have happened since we've gotten the slackline.

1. It certainly keeps our monkeys busy!

2. It keeps the neighbors amused. (I think it's because it looks a lot like a police line, but I suppose they could be laughing at us...)

3. The Emperor is getting more exercise.

4. Everyone is getting a better sense of balance. We still look like klutzes on the slackline, but after using a bouncy, wiggly strip of fabric, a regular old wooden balance beam is amazingly easy! (Myxl's Boy Scout leader recently declared him a "ninja," best in his troop, for being able to casually walk not just 1" beams, but also inclined and declined 1" beams!)

Some day:




4. My favorite thing about slack lining? It's not parkour. Parkour looks amazing, but the slack line seems less likely to involve death or serious injury. (I should warn you that you don't want your kids to see this video - oh, it's not "inappropriate" in the usual sense, but seeing the videos makes me want to go do it. My kids went nuts!)

Camping, Round 2

I knew beyond any shadow of doubt what the girls' reaction was going to be when I told them that Daddy and both of the older boys were going camping for the weekend, so I decided to head it off with the announcement that I would be taking the girls camping when the boys got home.

There were only four small problems with this strategy.
1. I've never been camping and I'm a bit hazy on the details.
2. We were incredibly busy that week.
3. The campground was infested with Lyme disease bearing ticks (as in, we knew two people who had gotten Lyme here).
4. It was 98 degrees.

The solution to #1 was to be my usual foolhardy and overconfident self (how hard could it be?).
The solution to #2 was to set up the tent in the afternoon, come back home to do Grammy's birthday party and then return to camp in the evening.
The solution to #3 was to spray our clothes and tent with permethrin and apply DEET at high concentration over the rest of us. We also hiked along the paved roads instead of the woods. We also prayed! We got this strategy here. It worked! Even though we saw three ticks while setting up the tent, we didn't get any on us!
As to #4, we got hot and sweaty, but it cooled off some overnight.

We actually had a very nice time. Keeping it to one overnight was key (unless I can learn to build a better fire). But we hiked, talked, played games, sang, cooked, roasted marshmallows and ate S'Mores. I think that was the extent of our "Things to Do While Camping" checklist, so we were all quite satisfied.

Camping, Round 1

Round 1 was the Boy Scout Camp and Fish and Hike and Do Cool Stuff Extravaganza. This was Zorg and the Emperor's first time doing the scout camping thing. I should be clear that this was all over one weekend, the actual week long camp will be in August!

I should also point out that I didn't go, so my commentary is second hand (or perhaps third rate!).

They camped out by the fish ponds and boated and fished.
Despite their best efforts, no one fell in!

They then cleaned, cooked and ate their catch.

















They also did quite a bit of fun hiking - scrambling over rocks and stuff. They found this interesting plant. We looked it up and discovered that it is Indian Pipe (AKA Corpse Plant!). This is amazing (Biology Geek Alert)! It has no clorophyll! It's a parasite on a particular fungus and tree symbiote!


They also found this recently used turtle nest. Those white scraps near the hole are the egg shells. It's a bit weird to call them shells when they are more leathery, but there you are.


They also made a side trip to an Amish farm. The Amish boy in the picture was raising an abandoned fawn and let Mxyl and Zorg pet it. How fun is that?