Busy Week

A busy week this week. Swim practice for Sam started back up, Ryan headed to Nashville for a work conference on Wednesday and was gone through Sunday, I captained the start/finish aid station at Riverlands for 8 hours on Saturday, we did some dress shopping for Sam's 7th grade dance next week and I even managed to get some decent running in too. Not much sitting around this week, that's for sure!

Monday was the return of the swim walk with swim practice for Sam starting back up again. Really nice afternoon, sunny and warm too. Lots of nice blooming plants and trees as I walked my loop through the Bath neighborhoods. (2.0 miles walked)

Waited until Tuesday afternoon to get my run in, and it was definitely warm out! Ran the cart paths, in reverse this time, and enjoyed the carpet of bluets and violets in the grass, plus the vibrant fringed polygala and the hobblebush in full bloom. Legs didn't feel super spry but it was good to get out. (6.0 miles)

The hobblebush has progressed a lot in a week!

Wednesday was a beautiful day but it ended up being a zero day. I even sat inside in the bleachers for the full swim practice, which is totally fine, as I was taking Thursday off from work and knew I'd be getting out for a run! Forecasts were calling for things to warm up significantly in the latter part of the week, and I could definitely feel it on Thursday morning as I headed out from the field house at 8:30 am to run up on the Crystal Spring Farm trails. It was a bright, blue sky kind of morning and I saw a lot of things blooming trailside. Always so fun! Wild oats, goldthread, wood anemone, blue bead lily and the first few ladyslipper leaves starting to unfurl. Out in the fields, the blueberry bells were coming out too. The legs weren't quite on task and felt a bit heavy, but otherwise a lovely morning, and as I had the day off, I can hardly complain! (10.0 miles)

Blue bead lily

Ladyslipper unfurling

Love the trail through the blueberry fields

The rest of the day was filled with my typical day off sort of errands and getting stuff done around the house, and then it was up to the Y for swim practice. Couldn't stand to sit inside for a second day in a row, so got out for a mellow and very warm afternoon walk on the streets of Bath. Walked down to the library to check out the park and Zorach's Spirit of the Sea. The pond around the sculpture was not yet filled, but she looked regal nonetheless. (1.8 miles walked)

Friday, I headed over to Bradbury after dropping Sam at school. Foggy and very humid out, and when the fog burned off and the sun came out, the bugs came out too! Didn't feel super spry but it was a pretty morning to be out in the woods. Ran out onto the connector to the powerlines and everything was so green and so much was in bloom! First ladyslippers of the season plus a pretty patch of dwarf ginseng, indian cucumber, bunchberry and much more. (8.0 miles)

Foggy summit

Green carpet

Dwarf ginseng

Ladyslippers 😍

Sam had her 12 year check-up after school and she is now officially over 5 feet! 5' 1/2" to be exact 😉😊😆 After the doctor's appointment, we headed over to Mom and Dad's for dinner and Sam spent the night, since I was headed out early on Saturday to get up to Riverlands for my volunteer shift during the 100. 

I actually managed to get in an early run on Saturday morning, enjoying the calm, quiet morning along the Androscoggin as the sun rose. Very pretty, with bird chirping and the sweet smell of flowering trees in the air. (7.0 miles)

Then it was off to pick up donuts for my volunteer crew and up to Riverlands for the day where I was aid station captaining for the start/finish aid station from 8-4. Although it was nice out in the early morning hours, the day warmed up quickly and it became seriously hot! Nothing like going from typical early spring weather in Maine to 90 degrees without any sort of acclimatization for the runners. Whew! It was a tough day out there, with a lot of runners dropping and many slowing down significantly from their original goals. And honestly, even though we were under the tents, it was uncomfortable just standing around. Whew! 

Despite the crazy temps, it was great to chat with friends, help and cheer on the runners and just enjoy the race atmosphere. Always good to be able to volunteer and give back just a little bit to the community we are so proud to be a part of! Putting on this race is a huge labor of love and it is amazing to be a small part of it. 8 hours of standing around sweating in a parking lot, helping sweaty runners, talking running, cheering on and consoling runners, and giving out lots of water and ice - it was a fun if tiring day! Huge props to those who suffered through the heat and took on this challenging course, even if they didn't make it the entire 100, and to those who did, congrats, you are seriously tough cookies!! 

Where I hung out for 8 hours for fun on a Saturday 😂😃😎

While I was melting in a parking lot, Mom, Dad and Sam headed down to Five Islands for lunch and then over to Reid for a walk on the beach. Sounds like a good way to spend a warm May day to me!

Grateful to Mom and Dad for hanging out with Sam for the day and for feeding us dinner once I got home. I definitely needed a good meal after only snacking all day! Then it was home for a very early bedtime. 😴😴

As I had put off my long run until Sunday, I did have to get up and out early so that I would be back in time to pick up Sam's friend Lily and take the two of them dress shopping for their 7th grade dance. And so it was that I was up and out at 6:30 am, running the cart paths and down to the river and then out along the powerlines. Felt surprisingly decent, especially given 8 hours of standing on my feet on Saturday and after having felt not the best on my runs on Thursday and Friday. Temps had moderated, and it was a nice, misty, relatively cool if muggy morning to be out wandering around on the trails. First rhodora and jack in the pulpit of the season, plus a pair of canada geese with goslings 😍😍(15.0 miles)

It was a quick turnaround after my run so that we could pick up Lily on time for dress shopping 👗💃 It was cute to see the girls shop and try on dresses together. 😊 They had a lot of fun, and thankfully both of them were able to find something at TJ Maxx so that was even better! And of course, we couldn't drop Lily back off at home without stopping for ice cream at Fielder's Choice 😋🍦 A solid Sunday morning!!

Happy Mother's Day!

Monday was a mellow afternoon family walk on the powerlines. Always nice to get in a bit of movement at the end of the day spent at the computer. (1.9 miles)

Tuesday, I got out for a run through the Cathance in the afternoon. Always nice to get out in the woods. Things are greening up out there, but there is still some ice left in the snowhole! (7.0 miles)

Trailing arbutus

So pretty

Still some ice in there!

Wednesday, the forecast was calling for rain all day and I didn't get out early enough to miss it. Dropped Sam off for late start at 8:45 and then headed out onto the cart paths shortly after. Wore my new UD raincoat, which was pretty sweet. Saw two deer, one broadwing hawk and some hobblebush beginning to bloom. (6.0 miles)

Didn't feel super energetic on Friday's run but it was a gorgeous morning to be out. Ran the cart paths and went down to the river and back. Swallows were flitting about along the golf course, two hawks flew overhead and I spotted a painted turtle in the vernal pool. Also first goldthread and fringed polygala of the season! I do love this time of year when the wood floor comes alive 💗 (8.1 miles)

Hi there!

False hellebore and ferns coming up along the riverbank

Goldthread

Beautiful fringed polygala

Spent the rest of the morning and early afternoon getting errands done and doing some things around the house and then we headed out for a family walk before dinner, despite much protest from the kiddo who would much prefer to stay on her bed and on her phone all afternoon. First wild oats coming up in the Mt. A. woods! (2.2 miles walked)

Saturday morning, Ryan joined me for a run out through the Commons, Coleman Farm and the Landing, which was a nice treat! All the daffodils and trout lilies are in bloom out in the Commons, plus some nice patches of wood anemone. In the Commons, no signs of  the ladyslippers just yet but some lovely sections lined with goldthread. We did a bit of extra exploration out in the Landing, taking one of the side trails I hadn't been on before, which dead-ended but did lead us to a rather random and cool find - an old Town Commons marker off in the woods. Neat, and interesting to see that the Commons once stretched across the road out into the old naval air station property! Bright, cool morning. (10.4 miles)

Always love these Coleman Farm daffodils!

Trout lily - a classic spring ephemeral

Town Common marker

Once we got home and had a bit to eat we tackled some of the "spring cleaning" chores on my list - cleaning the windows, washing the door mats, trimming back some bushes and mulching the back garden. With the three of us working on things, it didn't take too long to get it all done, and then it was off to meet up with Mom and Dad for a walk into town for gelato. The May flavors - key lime pie and lemon cream cookie - were delish! 😋🍨 (2.3 miles walked) 

The tulips out in front of Mom and Dad's house looking lovely

Then it was home to sit on the couch for the rest of the day! 😂

And so it was that Sunday morning, I finally tackled my long run for the week. Which worked out perfectly, as I said all I wanted for Mother's Day was to run, take a family walk and not have to cook dinner. Easy, right?! 😉😊 Nice morning to be out on the trails, and I felt decent, which was even better. Wandered down to the river and then out on the powerlines. One deer, one great blue heron, swallows flitting about out at the dump pond, ferns coming up along the riverbank, and wild oats, wood anemone and trailing arbutus seen trailside. (15.0 miles)

Later in the afternoon, we picked Mom and Dad up for a walk out on the Otter Brook Preserve trails. A pretty loop through woods, along the creek, and through a field. Some lovely patches of goldthread, wood anemone and trout lily. And always so nice to get in a walk with Mom and Dad 😍 (1.7 miles walked)

Then we wrapped up the day with dinner at Mom and Dad's followed up by the blueberry pie Sam and I made before lunch. Yum! The perfect end to a nice day. And Happy Mother's Day to all my favorite moms out there 💗

Windy

I feel like the constant backdrop to these past two months has been the wind. It has been relentless this spring! 

Monday, I took a solo afternoon walk because Ryan was planning to run and Sam straight up just didn't want to join in. I walked up over Mt. Ararat. Sunny, but windy. I mean, what else would I have expected?! (2.24 miles walked)

Tuesday, I got out for an afternoon run down to the river and back. It was spitting rain and I was tired, but glad to get out. (6.0 miles)

Ryan headed over to NY/VT for a work trip Wednesday and Thursday, so it was just Sam and I. On Wednesday, I had hoped to outwait the run, but alas, the early forecast was incorrect and it might have just been raining harder by the time I headed out around 3:00 pm after I had picked Sam up from school. Oh well! 😂😉 Ran the Highland Green loop. (6.0 miles)

Azaleas are starting to bloom out front!

Friday morning, I headed north for a run up in the Camden hills. Had to pick up soup from Keri for Riverlands so might as well get a run in while I was up there! 😊It was cold enough that I was back in winter running gear and the wind was whipping quite strongly - I mean, seriously April?! - but it was nice to get back up in the hills. I ran a fun little figure-eight loop over Bald, out to Cameron and back in on Sky Blue. Good ocean views, a good mix of singletrack and packed gravel road and some nice quiet time in the woods. Not a whole lot of greenery yet, just a few false lily of the valley and starflower leaves coming up and one patch of yellow violets in a sunny spot on Sky Blue. (7.36 miles)

It was nice to catch up, even if briefly, and get a hug from Keri and Tyler at Moose Crossing during the soup pick-up, and then it was off on the back roads to Val's house, with a minor detour to Applewald Farm for donuts, jam and a whoopie pie 😋 Delish!

Dropped off the soup and beer at Val's, and chatted outside in the sunshine with her and Rick for an hour or so before finally heading home. It was a full day and a lot of fun to get in a nice run and see a few friends along the way too 😍

Then it was off to take Sam for her Covid booster. Hurray! Especially with cases continuing to climb, I'm definitely grateful that she now has that extra protection of the booster. 

Saturday morning was yet again cool and windy. I mean, at this rate, maybe I should just stop mentioning the wind and assume it's implied?! 💨💨😖😖 Ran roads around town. (10.0 miles)

The original plan was for the three of us to head north up to Jamie and Kate's for an afternoon birthday celebration for Jamie, but Sam wasn't feeling great from her shot, so in the end, we sent Ryan off and the two of us stayed home. I was sorry to miss out on seeing everyone, but hopefully we can plan a summer trip to see them! And so with that, it ended up being a much quieter afternoon than intended, with Sam spending most of the day on her bed. We did get take-out noodles for dinner and settled in on the couch to watch Gnomeo & Juliet, which was a cute and rather amusing animation of what else but Romeo & Juliet, so that was fun but not much else to report.

Sunday, I had a leisurely morning sitting on the couch with an extra cup of coffee and then finally headed out for a run around 8:30 after Sam had woken up, feeling much better thankfully! I headed out on the powerlines and enjoyed the beautiful morning! (9.0 miles)

Then after lunch, we met up with Mom and Dad for a walk out at Curtis Farm Preserve in Harpswell. Bluets, violets and some wild strawberry flowers blooming in the upper field plus a lot of false lily of the valley and starflower leaves coming up in the woods. Enjoyed skipping some rocks down in the cove and spending some time in the sunshine! The wind was a bit chilly, but it was still quite nice. (2.0 miles walked)

On the running front, things are coming along slowly but surely, with a few longish runs run and some decent, if not enirely high, mileage. Onward!

April wrap-up:
187.69 miles run
28.18 miles walked
4 full zero days

YTD:
661.6 miles run
91.9 miles walked
9.3 miles xc skied
17 full zero days