Starting the Taper

It's been a long time since I've tapered for a race. As in Western States 2019. 😂😁😉 And while I'm not quite sure what 24 hours at Hamsterwheel on November 6th is going to bring, I'm setting my hopes on 100 miles. So with that, I definitely need to taper, whether I've put in enough training or not. It is time!

Monday, Ryan joined me in Bath for a walk during swim practice, which was a nice treat! We veered off my typical route, enjoying the William Zorach Spirit of the Dance sculpture in the middle of the pretty garden outside the library and walking down to the water before heading back uphill to the Y. Bath is an interesting city. Fun to explore a bit more than usual. (2.4 miles walked)

In typical fashion, I did not get up and out the door into the darkness on Tuesday morning, so instead I got in a late afternoon run down to the river and back before getting dinner ready and sending Sam and Ryan off to swim practice while I did a few things around the house. Overcast and breezy, with the more muted and subtle tones of autumn that appear after the showy maples leaves have dropped. (6.0 miles)

Wednesday I didn't mage to get out of bed, nor did I get up Thursday morning in the darkness. Oops. Does the excuse of being woken up by one of the cats puking at 2:30 am right next to the bed work? Gah. Was working from home, so started work a bit early, dropped Sam off at school and then headed out around 8:00 am. Ran the Highland Green loop and was back at the computer by 9:00 am. Cool and overcast. (6.0 miles)

Rain the early morning hours on Friday and incredibly heavy, humid, muggy and soggy when I headed out at 8:00 am. Ran the powerlines and out around the dump pond. Hip flexors are feeling a bit cranky. (10.0 miles)

Ryan headed over to Chalk Pond on Friday after lunch for a boy's weekend, with helping Neal take the dock out as the excuse but we all know it was mostly just to hang out, 😉😊 and I took Sam to swim and headed out for a short walk around the Bath block during the first half of practice. (1.8 miles walked)

Then, Sam and I went over to mom and dad's for dinner. We were excited to try the new noodle place in town, but were a bit disappointed. Ah well. 

I told Sam I'd wait until she woke up to head out for my run on Saturday but she was still asleep at 8:45 so I left her a note and headed out. Overcast and a bit cool. First run of the season in tights! Ran down to the river and back. Things are browning up out in the woods, but there are still some nice hints of the color, and always love the blueberry bush leaves turning red! Sam finally woke up around 9:25! (6.0 miles)

We did a few errands, picked up lunch from Wild Oats for a treat, and then went for a walk around the block before I dropped Sam off at Anne's for a sleepover and Halloween costume making. Breezy! (1.7 miles walked)

Mom and Dad had invited me over for dinner, so I headed that way around 5:00, only to unfortunately receive a phone call that Anne had a sudden onset migraine and the sleepover was not in the cards 😢 Poor kiddo! 

Sunday morning dawned cold and clear. 39 degrees - brrrr! It was pretty cold in the house so I turned on the heat too. No reason not to be comfortable! I dillydallyed a bit but finally headed out around 7:30 for my run. With the colder temps and a breeze blowing, it was tights and gloves today! Ran the roads around town. Did a lot of stretching, rolling and found some new activation exercises, and the hip flexor felt much better. Decided not to push it and add on more miles. I would ideally have liked to have gotten in a shorter-long run this weekend, but oh well. 5 more miles Friday or today won't make much difference in the long term, even if it might feel better to get in 15 vs. 10. Bright blue sky and the moon above. Pretty out there. (10.0 miles)

Ryan got home just as I was headed to drop Sam back off at Anne's. She was feeling better and the girls really wanted to finish up their Halloween costumes! Once I got back, we headed across the street on the powerlines for a walk. Cool and breezy, but nice to have the chance to catch up on the weekend happenings! (2.0 miles walked)

And just for fun, a few cute cat photos 😻

Pretending not to like each other, but holding hands anyway 💗

Awww 

Fall

As an aside before I start this week's post, I feel the need to note that I neglected to mention in last week's post that Sunday was our 22nd anniversary. Perhaps it is apropos that I did so, as aside from our time at the aid station in the morning, we probably spent about 30 minutes together all day 😂 and when I arrived at 7:30 and gave Ryan a kiss and said "Happy Anniversary," his response was "Oh yeah, that. I forgot about that." 😶 Ha ha ha. I guess you can tell anniversaries are celebrated heavily around here! 😉😆 But seriously, our day is often overshadowed by Sam's birthday, inevitably, but this year there was just so much going on that we pretty much forgot about it completely. Maybe we'll be able to get out sometime to actually celebrate 😁😂😉😊 Love you, Ryan! And truly, there is no one I'd rather go through this crazy whirlwind of life with 💖 and honestly, probably no one else who would put up with me like he does either 😆

But enough of that, and onto the week!

Monday was a holiday and a day off for all of us, which was most welcome after the three prior full days. We all slept in, or at least spent some time relaxing in the early morning in my case, and I finally headed out to run around 8:30. It was a beautiful morning and I headed down to the Cathance for a meander. Muggy with five deer seen with some nice foliage and still a lot of mushrooms. (7.1 miles)

It was so nice out in the Cathance that I suggested it for our afternoon walk, and so later in the afternoon, we met up Mom, Dad, Kristen and Morgan and took a nice walk through the woods and along the river. Other than Mom taking a spill of some slippery rocks and getting soaked with mud and water, it was lovely! 😱 Poor thing! She was a trooper though, and thankfully nothing was broken, just a bit banged up. So pretty along the water with the trees starting to turn. (1.9 miles walked)

 

😂😂

💗💗

Such cuties, and so nice to see them together!

Tuesday was back to reality, and as Ryan said, it felt slightly like being on a fast moving treadmill after the long weekend and trying to get caught back up. So, it was pretty much all work all day with not much else for excitement. Sam had picked up a bit of a head cold so we didn't take her to swim and after a quick goodbye to Morgan and Kristen who were headed home on Wednesday, we just relaxed on the couch and headed to bed early, which was actually kind of nice!

I was planning to run Wednesday morning, but as is often the case, things did not go according to plan and I did not get myself out of bed. So instead, I headed out mid-morning for a wander out on the powerlines. The con was that it is always a bit stressful to run during work hours, but the pros were the beautiful sunshine and warm temps! I think I'll call it a win for the day. Really pretty out there. (6.1 miles)

Sam was still feeling less than 100% on Wednesday and Ryan was feeling kinda crappy too, so we skipped swim again and headed out for a late afternoon family walk around the block. Nice to get out and chat while we walked. (1.7 miles walked)

Friday was overcast and muggy as I headed out into the Commons. Pretty colors along the old skating pond, with leaves crunching underfoot. I ran out into Pennelville and looped through Coleman Farm to take in the marsh view. Always a lovely route. (10.0 miles)

But the highlight of the day was that Sam got her first Covid shot! Hurray! We are officially on our way to being a fully vaccinated family 🎉 We celebrated with a few Wild Oats Halloween themed cupcakes and cookies! Yum! 😋🎃

Rain overnight and into the morning hours on Saturday, so I waited until the storm had passed before heading out for my run. It didn't end up mattering much though, as it was so humid out, I got soaked anyway, and there were so many puddles that staying dry wasn't really an option! 💦😂 Skies were overcast, but there was some nice color out there, even if a lot of it got knocked down by the rain. Hip flexors a bit tight, I was feeling tired and I'm definitely feeling like I am ready to taper. Can't quite decide if I should try for one last long run next Friday or not, but either way, Hamsterwheel is coming up in three weeks!! Equally excited and terrified by the thought. I guess that is about right 😉😜 (10.2 miles)

There were about 100 canada geese in this pond! Wow!

Aside from a sore arm, Sam thankfully didn't have any side effects from her Covid shot, so despite her best efforts to simply stay put on her bed and on her phone all day 😏, she and I got out for a late afternoon walk just as Ryan was getting back from his long run. Always good to get in a walk and talk with the kiddo 😍 (1.7 miles walked)

More rain overnight and I was still feeling a bit creaky and tired when I woke up on Sunday. Stretched and rolled as much as I could before I headed out, but it still took a bit to warm up. Another muggy, overcast morning and the cart paths were quite soggy to say the least! Decided to hit the roads after I got off the cart paths and ended up doing the Foreside loop. Some nice color en route plus one blue bird and one eagle seen, but a bit too much traffic for my liking, even on a Sunday morning, and I could do with a wider shoulder along Rt 24! 😁 Legs were definitely not the happiest with me, probably due to the road miles, but it is what it is! 40 miles over the past three days, and while I haven't put in any really high mileage weeks during this build-up, I'm hopeful that my various three day blocks and all the 50+ mile weeks will count for something out there on November 6th! 🤞 (20.0 miles)

Eagle in the pine tree

After lunch, Sam and I headed over to Mom and Dad's for a walk down to gelato and back. Always a good incentive to get Sam out for a walk 😂 It was windy but bright with blue skies, and very pretty crossing the swinging bridge. (2.25 miles walked)

And just for fun, here are a few Gigi and the pumpkin photos 😻😹 Such a silly kitty!

I love how wide her eyes are here 😹

Sam Is 12! Plus Some Other Fun Stuff

Another busy week, but thankfully it was mostly from fun family stuff and not work stuff this week! 😎

Monday, I took Sam up to swim practice and got out for a nice and very needed walk around the block. Pretty afternoon and fairly balmy. The maples are starting to change along Rt. 1 on the way up to the Y, always lovely. (1.78 miles walked)

Didn't manage to get out to run this week until Wednesday. Eek! Good thing it's was a down week! Beautiful cool morning with a gorgeous glowing sky. Ran a road loop down onto the bike path and back across the green bridge. (6.0 miles)

Thursday morning was a cart path run. Started early enough that the majority of the run was with a headlamp. One pair of glowing eyes and two deer seen, plus a very pretty sunrise in the final mile as I hit the powerlines. (6.0 miles)

The to do list was long this week so both Wednesday and Thursday nights, I was busy getting things done while Ryan took Sam to swim practice. When I finally sat down to relax on Thursday evening just before they got back from the Y, I was joined for a few minutes by these two 😻

Friday was a day off for Sam and I, and with Morgan and Kristen in town, the plan was to head up to Boothbay to the Botanical Gardens later in the morning. I also needed to bake Sam's donut cake, plus the cupcakes for the beach birthday party on Saturday, so I was up early getting things ready. The donut cake takes a bit of work, but it is delicious and looks so pretty! 🍩🍰🎂

I managed to JUST finish up the cake, cupcakes and house cleaning before the rest of the clan arrived at 10:30 to pick us up, but I hadn't yet managed to change out of my PJs 😝😜 After a quick change, we were on our way! It was a gorgeous day and so fun to get up to the gardens in the fall. I think I like spring up there best, but it truly was lovely. We walked around enjoying the fall foliage and flowers and finding all the trolls and brought sandwiches to eat. (2.8 miles walked)

💗

Kids 😂

Of course, we had to stop for ice cream as we drove by Fielder's Choice! 🍦

And then it was onto apple picking at the orchard! 🍎🍎

Irene and Dana came up later in the afternoon to join Ryan for a drink at Moderation and then home for pizza for dinner. To wrap up the night, the girls helped me frost the cupcakes. A full day indeed!

I was determined to get in a run on Saturday morning before all the birthday festivities commenced and headed out around 6:30 am onto the powerlines for a nice loop. Overcast and cool. (11.0 miles)

Then it was home for birthday pancakes and presents! Can't believe that Sam is 12! We love you to the moon and back 💗 Now, stop growing please 😉😊😎😍

The hit of the day was the Croc jibbitz (and also, how is that a word?!)

The plan this year was a bit of a redux with a Covid 2.0 beach day party at Reid State Park again to celebrate Sam and Anne's birthdays. Honestly, it is such a great place to celebrate and so fun to see the girls enjoying their time together. We are so lucky that Sam has found such a great group of friends 💕 Although it was overcast at home, the sky was brighter out along the ocean's edge, and it was a really pretty afternoon to be out wandering on the sand and the rocks with family and friends.

Fun in the waves

Morgan decided to join in...

...and maybe have gotten a bit wetter than she anticipated! 😮😅

After we dropped the girls off, we headed to Mom and Dad's for japanese food and cake. It was great to have everyone join us in celebration! Sam is one lucky kid! 

There was a bit of rushing around on Saturday evening after all the party fun to get ourselves organized for Sunday, as it was Big Brad day and Ryan was, of course, manning the aid station all day, while I was taking a 7:30-12:30 morning volunteer shift. We said goodbye and thank you to Irene and Dana before we went to bed, as we knew we'd be sneaking out before they woke up.

I had originally hoped to get in a run before heading over to the park, but honestly I needed the sleep more, so after a quick stop for breakfast sandwiches at Dunkin Donuts, I headed right over to the aid station. Ryan and I took first shifts out at the road crossings. It was a chilly morning but so fun to see so many friends out there on the course! And so great to catch up with those volunteering too. Always a good day!

I drove over to Wolfe's Neck after my shift ended, changed into my running clothes and got in rather hurried, tired run on the roads before changing again and heading to Wolfe's Neck State Park to meet up with the Raymond clan for a walk. Nothing like cramming it in! 😜 (7.0 miles)

It was a nice, meandering, chatty walk on the trails with a few stops down at the water's edge for photos, and to enjoy the two eagles who were hanging out on the osprey nest! Very high tide, so there was no beach walking though. (1.4 miles walked)

After the walk, it was back to Mom and Dad's for Indian food, cake and laughter. So good to see everyone!

Overall, what a great week filled with fun, family, friends and celebrations! We sure are lucky! 💖