46

Not quite sure how it is that I am 46 years old as of Wednesday? 😱😜 Wasn't I just 19?! 😂

I knew it was supposed to snow on Tuesday so I pondered hedging my bets and getting in a run on Monday but alas it did not happen. I seriously am a running procrastinator... 😉 However, Sam and I got out for a walk after lunch at least. Always good to walk and talk with the kiddo, although it was a bit chilly! (1.7 miles walked) 

Then she went over to Mom and Dad's to help make birthday cake for Wednesday 😊🍰 

The snowstorm rolled in later in the evening, and it snowed and the wind whipped all day on Tuesday. Sam had an official snow day but Ryan and I worked as usual. The snow turned to sleet and hail later in the day, but I'd guess we received about 6". Certainly enough for it to look a proper winter out there!

Wednesday was my birthday and while I didn't have the time (or the energy, to be honest) to get in 46k or 46 miles, I wanted to run more than 4.6 miles or 46 minutes, so I compromised and ran 6.4 miles instead 😆 Perhaps a bit backwards but it works! At least in my mind...

It was fairly messy out there even on the roads, which wasn't a surprise given Tuesday's storm. I wore my screwshoes and did an out and back on Highland Green Road. The new cut through on Mountain Road is quite nice, as now getting over there doesn't necessitate having to use the powerlines. Waited to head out until it was just getting light and caught the end of the sunrise coming up over treeline on the return. (6.4 miles)

Then later in the afternoon, we stopped work a bit early to head over to the Kate Furbish trails for a family xc ski while the temps were moderate and the snow was new. We were pleasantly surprised to find the old wood road very nicely groomed. It was some decent skiing! Sam has gotten exponentially more comfortable on her skis this year, and was moving along so well that we decided to take the un-groomed, more backcountry style, twisty singletrack through the woods to hook up with the other side by the golf course. It was fun and Sam did great. The opposite side of the woods was a wide, groomed trail as well so we took that out to the end to the ocean view and then turned around and skiied back on the gold course. All in all, a wonderful hour-long ski and a lot of fun! There were a fair number of people out enjoying the nice weather and the fresh snow. (2.6 miles xc skiied)

After that, we got changed up and headed over to Mom and Dad's for thai take out for dinner and crazy cake birthday cake to celebrate year 46 😊 It was really lovely to spend the evening with family and the cake was delish! YUM! 😋 And all in all, a pretty good birthday!

I did not get up on Thursday morning, but I did manage to sneak in an afternoon run. Headed out around 3:00 back over to Highland Green Road. It was in the mid-30s and a lot of people were out walking so instead of doing an out and back on the pavement, I ran looped around on the back dirt road, which was slightly iced over but quiet. (6.6 miles)

                                                

Val has started up some of her fun winter TMR challenges again and this week it is TMR bingo. Found one square out there... 

Animal prints, identified. Deer in this case.

Friday, I headed over to Pennelville for a run out to Simpson's Point. It was a nice calm, overcast morning for a bit of TMR bingo and some ocean views. (8.0 miles)

Snowman.

Bud Light can.

Simpson's Point view

It started to spit snow and then rained later in the afternoon on Friday. That put a damper on my runs plans for Saturday, as the roads just before sunrise were coated in a thin veneer of ice. So I donned my Hillsounds and hit the powerlines. Blerg, it was rough out there. Trails had seen some snowmobile and other traffic but they were a rather uneven, semi-frozen, styrofoam-y feeling mixture that sucked the energy up out of every step and resulted in several ankle turns. Slow going. At least there was a pretty morning sky thought! (8.0 miles)

Dropped Sam off at xc ski lessons and then went to the farmer's market to pick up some goodies. As I was pulling back into the lot, Dad pulled in after me. He had been out and thought he'd come by to see Sam's lesson! Nate had taken the kids down on the field along the river to get in some skiing versus just drills and games, so we donned our masks and walked out there together to see if we could catch a glimpse of them skiing along. The fields had been groomed with a wide skate lane. It was quite crispy crunchy to say the least. We continued our walk on into the woods and finally found the kids just as they were turning back near the end of the river trail. Everyone was in good spirits and having fun, despite the rather icy conditions. Nice unexpected walk with Dad! (1.2 miles walked)

Then it was home for a bit of relaxation and lunch before we headed down to Harpswell for a short afternoon walk. Mom wasn't feeling great but Dad joined us, and we had a nice crispy snow walk out in the woods on the Wilson and Widgeon Cove trails. Lots of turkey and deer prints and some lovely ocean views. (1.4 miles walked)

I wasn't really feeling it on Sunday but I headed out anyway for a random wander on the roads around town. Rather overcast morning with a fair amount of ice on the sidewalks and the back dirt road necessitating a fair amount of tiptoeing throughout the run. Did collect a few TMR bingo squares en route though. And followed up the run with the last piece of leftover birthday cake to accompany my protein shake. That's recovery, right?! 😉😋 (12.0 miles)

Snow started to fall after lunch, and Sam and I made pretzels for Super Bowl snacks and pie for Ryan's birthday on Monday. A productive and fun afternoon in the kitchen, although it did mean no outside time for Sam.

Pretzels were delish!

And just for a fun, a few kitty cat photos 😻