Mid-March

Rain on Monday really knocked back the snow and ice. Went out Tuesday afternoon and decided to run on the cart paths. 98% clear but very squishy. No real signs of spring yet out on the course, but the crocuses are in bloom out front at work!! (6.0 miles)

Worked at home on Wednesday so took advantage of that, and headed out midmorning for a run before lunch. Looped through the Highlands and found some Witch-Hazel in full bloom🤩 Lovely! (6.0 miles)

Thursday, I got in an afternoon walk around the block after work. Dreary and misty. (2.0 miles walked)

Another day of rain on Friday. Kept it to a minimum and ran out and back in Highland Green after dropping Sam at school. Cold driving rain and deep puddles. Lovely 😜(6.0 miles)

Saturday, I got a few things done at home, went to the farmer's market and picked up donuts 🍩 and then drove Sam out to Harpswell to Lauren's for the afternoon to get ready for the school dance. On the way home, I stopped to do my run out through the Commons and Coleman Farm. First time back out to Coleman Farm since last April when I tore my hamstring out there in a fall. Took a while to work back up the courage which is ridiculous but true. Nice afternoon. Saw four bluebirds and a woodcock!!! 🤩🤩 (no photo though). Plus the first little right buds of trailing arbutus and skunk cabbage seen, plus winterberry berries. Windy but pretty afternoon. Just lollygagged along and enjoyed it. (8.0 miles)

Later, we met up with Nate and Shannon for dinner at 555. So fun to see them! It has been way too long!! Cheers!🍸🍷

And Sam and the girls had a great time at the dance, and don't they look cute?! 😍😎

Headed out around 8:30 on Sunday. Nice and bright but way too windy pretty much everywhere in every direction! 💨💨 Two deer, one bluebird, skunk cabbage coming up and a lot of squishy semi frozen ground underfoot. (14.0 miles)

Then later in the afternoon, I joined Ryan for a walk around the block. Still windy! 😆😛 (2.6 miles walked)

False Spring

Of course winter is not truly over, but this week it has most certainly felt like spring, with the time change, the return of the red-winged blackbirds 😍 and the melting snow. Plus Saturday and Sunday were downright balmy!

Monday was a day off from running, and the high school winter sports awards night. It was a small group of swimmers up on stage, but hearing all their accomplishments read out was quite impressive!

With the time change on Sunday, Tuesday morning it was back to darkness for my run. Headed outa t 5:40 for a run through Highland Green. Quiet, damp and calm, with some slick pavement due to thte temps and moisture. (6.0 miles)

Wednesday was a road run through town. Windy with a fair number of ice slicks to tiptoe around and across. (6.0 miles)

Thursday, I knew I wouldn’t have time to walk later in the afternoon so decided to go out for a morning walk. For some reason going for a walk at 5:45 am in the dark seems weirder than going for a run at 5:45 am in the dark 🤷‍♀️ 🤪 but good to get in a bit of movement. Cold, calm and dark with a cool moon above. (2.6 miles walked)

Friday, I met up with Val over at Bradbury for a run at 10:00 after getting some of my errands crossed off the list earlier in the morning. We weren't sure what we'd find for conditions, but honestly, it was better than I would have expected! Definitely some ice, some bare spots and soft in areas, but with spikes on, it was fairly solid. As always, fun to catch up with Val and a nice bright morning to be out in the woods! (6.0 miles)

Headed out on Saturday around 10:30. Nice morning, a bit breezy and warmer than I thought it would be. I was definitely overdressed! Found some witchhazel on the back dirt road that looks to be starting to bloom. Exciting! (9.0 miles)

 

Sunday dawned foggy and misty, so I took the lazy route and relaxed a bit on the couch, got some work done, did some chores around the house and finally headed out for a run around 1:00 pm. Yet another afternoon run 🤷‍♀️ Roads with some cart path and dirt roads mixed in to mix it up. Cart paths still not quite clear so there was some definite tiptoeing over icy patches. Still, fared better than Ryan who caught up with me for a stretch and pretty much slipped and fell right away after he found me out on the cart paths 😱😬 Oops! (11.0 miles)

In backyard news, the Birdbuddy bird feeder that Ryan and Sam got me for Christmas has been providing a lot of entertainment, and we have even had a few visits from some bluebirds thanks to the mealworm mix I put out! How exciting! And the redwinged blackbirds are now back. My Facebook memories had been reminding me that they typically have shown up around now and sure enough, when I got home from work on Thursday, a female and two males were out back feeding, and on Saturday, a gaggle of 10 blackbirds and 2 cowbirds touched down out back! Oh yes, and one of the fox is back, looking beautifully healthy with a thick coat. I do so love my backyard 😍

So Windy!

The wind, plus the heavy rain we had on Thursday which wiped out a lot of the snow, really put a damper on my enthusiasm this week. I am not myself if I can't run and I really do love it in my heart of hearts, but honestly when the weather is bad, I sometimes just struggle to get out the door. I still managed to run 40 miles for the week, and am hoping to hold at that each week for the rest of the month, but it was not all rainbows and candy out there. 

Monday was a walk around the school walk with Ryan after work as he was starting to feel alive again after his sinus infection. However, we cut it short as the sidewalks were pretty much solid ice, so that was not ideal. Cold but calm. (1.8 miles walked)

Tuesday was an afternoon run around Highland Green. Damp and overcast, and kind of warm but with a cold wind. (6.0 miles)

Worked from home on Wednesday so headed out around 9:30 am. A dreary, overcast, spitting rain kind of morning. Had a mid-run walk with a kind Highlands resident who helped me get through the maze of streets and sidewalks to get around a road closure, and had to walk a lot of the back dirt road as it was a lot of slick ice. (6.0 miles)

Thursday was a nasty day, and I was glad to not have a run on the schedule. Then, in the evening, we headed over to the school for Sam's swim team dinner. It was fun to celebrate all the kid's accomplishments, see all the kids together, have a chance to chat with some of the parents and coaches, and enjoy the good food everyone brought. I, on the other hand, threw greens in a bowl and cut up a few veggies for a very simple green salad 😆

The wind was roaring all day long on Friday. I did some work, got the errands done and procrastinated until 3:00 when I finally headed out the door. Tried to avoid the wind, mostly unsuccessfully 😂 The high route in the Powerlines is now free of snow and the back road is back to dirt. Bright and sunshiny, but man, that wind! One eagle overhead. (6.0 miles)

Saturday was yet another afternoon run. Procrastination station right here 🤦🏼‍♀️🤪😂 but at least I finally got out there! So windy. Had my spikes in my pocket but the trails were totally rotten, so after a short stretch I went back to the roads. Oh well. (9.0 miles)

This morning, Ryan headed up to Mt. Abram to ski and I headed out for a run around 9:30 am. Bright, sunny and definitely less windy, but not calm. Felt ok but definitely faded in the final few miles. Maybe I need to start carrying my pack again for better fueling? I did have a mini bottle in my pocket with approx. 6 oz of water and two gels, but probably not quite enough. (13.0 miles)

And look at Gigi, all regal and such 😻😹 Such a silly, pretty kitty!

End of the Month

A bit of a rough week in our house. Sam ended up at the doctor's on Monday and was diagnosed with a sinus infection. Ryan ended up at the doctor's on Thursday for his own prescription of antibiotics for his sinus infection. Aie! I managed to hold strong but I didn't get a lot of sleep as Ryan was so congested there was a ton of snoring and I ended up on the couch a few times. Also just feeling a bit heavy with all the chaos in the news. Sigh. 

Some days you just don't have it and Tuesday, I just could not get out the door for a run. However, I knew I had a 5:00 board meeting so I forced myself out the door for a short walk around the block to at least get in some movement. Very slick pavement! (2.1 miles walked)

Late start of Wednesday, and I didn't even need a headlamp! I decided I'd try out the trails as the pavement was very icy! Took the snowmobile trails for a stretch, which wasn’t bad but wasn’t great. Pretty calm mild morning. Also, possum prints!! (6.0 miles)

Just did not have the energy on Thursday morning to get out (see first paragraph of this post) but figured I could get out in the afternoon, not realizing it was going to snow and then rain and be incredibly nasty. Of course, I was capable of going out in the weather, but seriously, no thanks. Sigh. Such is life sometimes. 

Friday was a late morning slippy, sloppy, slushy, icy run through Highland Green after getting a bit of work and some errands done. (8.0 miles)

Then it was up to Colby after school for the final swim meet of the season - Y States! Thankfully Sam was feeing better after 5 days of antibiotics, although certainly not at 100% strength. But better than last week's high school state meet!!! Unfortunately, Irene was sick so she and Dana were not able to come up to cheer (so much sickness) 😕😞

Sam swam the 200 free, 500 free and did a 50 free in one of the relays. While Sam didn't have any PRs, she swam solidly and even better, she and her friends had fun out on the deck together, and it was a good wrap-up to the season!!

I'm most definitely slacking on my early morning running so far this year! Did some reading on the couch in the early morning hours on Saturday, dropped Sam off at Lauren's for Lauren's birthday party and sleepover, stopped at the farmer's market and helped Ryan wrap up the cleaning before I finally headed out for my run around 2:30pm. Warm, damp and overcast. Back dirt road was pretty much full-on ice but most everything else was melted out and was just wet. (10.0 miles)

We had planned to go out for dinner while Sam was at Lauren's for the night but Ryan was still feeling pretty poorly, so we enjoyed takeout noodles and sitting on the couch instead 😆😉 But the girls had fun!

Temps dropped down to the single digits overnight, so I was in no rush to head out for a run on Sunday. Got some early morning work done along with some reading (I am seriously obsessed with the Fourth Wing series, and can't believe I have to wait until next year for the 4th installment!) before picking Sam up and getting in an early lunch. Then it was yet another afternoon run. Ran out on the powerlines and on some of the Gone Fishing trails. I knew the trails would have hopefully packed out with the cold temps, and they were, but still very uneven. And while it might have been slightly warmer than the morning, it was still windy! (10.0 miles)

February seemed to fly by! Here's the wrap-up:

February:
141.93 run miles
7.21 walk miles
0.00 XC miles
3x weights

YTD:
306.17 run miles
23.37 walk miles
3.34 XC miles
8x weights

Vacation Week

Monday was a day off for me and the start of school vacation for Sam. Got out around 8:45 for a run on the slushy, snowy, messy roads and in the wind before we head north for Sam’s high school state swim meet. There is a lot of snow out there. Screw shoes worked well. (6.0 miles)

The swim meet was up in Bangor, and Sam's full cheer squad was in attendance. She is one lucky kid! 😍😊 She swam the 200 free, 500 free and the 50 free in one of the relays. Unfortunately, she'd been complaining of a sore throat and was feeling off, so she didn't have a great day personally, which is always hard, but overall it was a lot of fun to watch her and her team swim solidly and place 3rd overall! What a fun season, and so proud of Sam for reaching her goals of qualifying for the 200 and 500 free at States, working hard and having fun with her friends in and out of the water. It truly has been so great to watch 💗💗

Diving in for the 200 free (farthest lane)

These two 😍

500 free

3rd overall! Way to go ladies! 🎉🏊

Unfortunately, it became clear that Sam might have been sicker than we thought, and she was down and out the next few days. Silly germs! Man, she has had rough luck this year with sickness - poor kid! 

As for me, I took Tuesday off from running and then on Wednesday, didn't manage to get out into the "feels like -6 degree temps" before I headed into the office and then had a 4:00 meeting, so, you know... which meant that Thursday morning, I was up and out as the sky was lightening for a run in the single degree temps, but at least it wasn't windy! Cold and calm. Kept having to pick the ice chunks off my eyelashes and arrived home covered in frost 😂🥶(6.0 miles)

Sam rallied enough for me to take her, Lauren, Kylee and Rohan down to the mall for the day. It wasn't exactly what was on the top of my bucket list for my day off 😉😆 but it is always fun to see the girls together and they had a great time, so it was worth it! Of course, I spent a hour working in the car, joined them for lunch, took a full walk around the mall and then spent the rest of the day sitting on one of the couch's at the far ends of the mall 😂😂

Friday was yet another Highland Green run. Windy. (7.0 miles). 

Then it was off to get some errands crossed off the list before Ryan and I walked across the street for our booster concession volunteering shift at the wrestling state meet. Boy, did the gym smell bad 😜 A super busy two hours, and good thing we walked over as there was no parking to be found! (0.48 miles over; 0.45 miles back)

Saturday was a late morning wander from home. Bright, sunny and breezy. There had been some snowmobile traffic on the Powerlines so did a short stretch to test it out, but needed more traction and for things to firm up for it to really be worth it, so back to the roads for the rest of the run. (13.1 miles)

Sunday was Val's Fat Ass up at Riverlands. Emily picked me up, which was nice as it meant we had a chance to catch up en route! It was a nice morning, warmer and calm at the start. We all made our way down to the ice to set up our aid station and then headed out as a big group for the first few miles. The conditions on the snowmobile trail was not good at all - very soft - but once we got on the river it was definitely better. And really pretty out there on the ice! Still, when Emma decided to bail to the roads as the uneven surface was bothering her knee, I was more than happy to join her 😂 We did some extra miles on a nice, quiet back road. Emma kept going as she was getting in her long run, but I headed back to the ice after one out and back to hang out. As always, so fun to see everyone! (9.0 miles)

Dead things 😆