Summertime!: Week #10

I'll admit that the level of anxiety, which had quieted in the earlier summer months, has risen for me again recently. Some of it is thinking about school in this age of Covid-19. I am most certainly glad that Sam will have the option to go back at least 2 days a week (and hopefully more if it can be done safely), but I can't say that it doesn't make me nervous as well. 😷

And my parents, who for years have been talking about moving up here, finally put their house on the market 6 weeks ago, got an almost immediate offer and now have sold their house (officially closed and everything packed up and moved out this week!) and have officially moved up here to Maine! This is super exciting and I cannot wait to have them nearby, but it also makes me slightly anxious as well, as we want to ensure we keep them safe and we want to make sure they find a good place to live up here! It was too quick of a turnaround and too hot of a real estate market for them to find anything in the past 6 weeks so that will be a focus once they arrive. None of my anxiety is at all their doing, it is just that they are my parents and I want the very, very best for them and to make sure they are safe and happy 💗

With the slight increase of anxiety comes the return of baking, which Ryan wholeheartedly approves of 😂 ...hurray for chocolate chip cookie bars! 😋... 

Yum!

...and a slight apathy towards running. I took the first two days of the week off and then ended up making this a down week. In the end, it doesn't matter much, especially with no races on the horizon and having some flexibility to adjust and relax about the miles is nice. I also know that just finally admitting out loud that I was feeling a bit anxious helped. Oh, and honestly, once I am out running, I know it is the perfect antidote! It is just getting out the door. Always that. 

So, onward and upward. Trying to let go of the things I cannot control, try to be present and appreciate the wonders around me and do some baking when that all doesn't work! 😉😊

Monday: Busy day at the office, errrr, kitchen table, but we all got out for a nice late afternoon walk to pick blackberries and enjoy the gorgeous afternoon. (2.0 miles walked)

Cabbage white butterfly on purple loosestrife. (I know the loosestrife is invasive but I love its color)

Cotton sedge

The frog pond has almost dried up completely. I hope it holds out! 🐸

Tuesday: Another busy day at work but got in a nice walk with Sam once I finished up for the day. We walked the road loop by the schools so we could check out the progress on the demolition of the old high school. Good to walk and talk with the kiddo. (2.1 miles walked)

Wednesday: Finally got up and out for a run and it was just what I needed. Grateful as always to be able to get out and enjoy the world on foot in the early morning to start the day off right. Beautiful morning with cooler temps, lower humidity, rising fog, a few end of the season blackberries to eat, viburnum berries turning blush pink and one red eft seen. (7.0 miles)

The fog and light on the fish pond out by the transfer station just looked gorgeous this morning!

Hi little guy!

Thursday: Started out with one route in mind and then ended up just doing a random mishmash. I ran out to the main Cathance trailhead hoping it would be open but alas the closed sign is still there. Sigh. I so miss running down along the river. Legs felt a bit clunky and my right hip flexor is tight. Need to work on that! (6.0 miles)

Mist rising over the Heath

My parents arrived in Maine Thursday night! Yay! We did a hand-off of dinner to go in the parking lot before they headed to their hotel. They still have to get a Covid test, so we couldn't do more than that, but so looking forward to seeing them for real once they have that set and done! 💗

Friday: Halfheartedly had been thinking of a longer run for Friday morning but when I woke up, I was like, nah... so ran some roads instead and chased after a few segments to keep it interesting 😉 If nothing else, the segments act as a bit of speed work for me. Ha! (7.1 miles)

Even when running roads, there is time to stop and pick blackberries! 

Spent the rest of the morning doing errands and cleaning, and then helped Sam on her cat puzzle for a bit later in the afternoon before we headed out for some fresh air. Really nice afternoon for walk to and from DQ! Well, really, it's never a bad day for ice cream 😂😋🍦(2.0 miles walked)

Saturday: Met up with Emma over at Pinelands to keep her company for part of her last long effort before Georgia Jewel next month. It was so great to see her and have a chance to catch up! And I always forget, Pineland really is hilly 😆 Relatively cool temps but humid! 💦💦 Several deer seen running through the woods. (10.4 miles)

Had a quiet rest of the day, with some time spent relaxing on the couch reading and an evening spent watching the 6th Harry Potter movie. In between, we all got out for a walk across the street with a sprinkling of rain drops and one monarch caterpillar seen (2.2 miles walked)

Sunday: Didn't sleep well and decided to just scrap the early morning run plans and get back into bed after feeding the cats to sleep a bit longer. That isn't something I do very often, and it was nice to have a mellow morning! Had a leisurely breakfast and then finally wandered out for a run around 9:30, way later than I normally would, but with no running agenda this week, it was perfect!

Ran the powerlines out and back for a mellow meander, with multiple stops for blackberries. One garter snake, along with a plethora late summer flowers and the early hues of fall seen en-route. (5.5 miles)

Many of these sweet flowers blooming trailside. Pretty sure they are slender gerardia.

Yum!

Sam had her friend Anne over in the afternoon for some biking and outside fun, which was a nice way to wrap up a fairly quiet weekend!