Gratitude - February

Hard to believe it is the end of February! Fun to look back on this list from the month and remember all the things that make life good :) 

2/1/16 - Sam and I went for a walk around the block after getting home tonight, and no headlamps or reflective gear were needed! Love it that the days are getting noticeably longer!

2/2/16 - Nice to get in an early morning run down to the river with John - snow was surprisingly solid when there was snow ;) Otherwise, a mix of ice, bare ground and water kept us on our toes.

2/3/16 - The best thing about birthdays these days is hearing from family and friends. Always makes me feel so loved! Of course, there was this too ;)

2/4/16 - A great, warm, spring-like extra day off today spent running and hanging out with my good friend, Amy! Very grateful!

2/5/16 - Nothing like living in Maine to make you appreciate Mother Nature in all her varieties. From 50 degrees yesterday to a snow day today...

2/6/16 - Love being able to get out and enjoy both the ocean and the woods in one day. A run down to Simpson's Point this morning with Amy, followed up by a late afternoon snowshoe hike down to the Cathance with Sam and Ryan. The snow-covered trees were beautiful today!

2/7/16 - Sam has a bit of a cough and cold, but happy she had enough energy to get out this afternoon to enjoy the sunshine and snow. She had a lot of fun sledding and making a snowman!

2/8/16 - The kiddo was home sick today, which is never a good thing, but grateful I have a flexible job and an understanding boss who was cool with me taking the morning off and just coming in for a few hours in the afternoon after Ryan got home for Sam duty!

2/9/16 - Glad Sam made it through the school day today, and grateful once again for my job flexibility - there was a two hour delay today, so I didn't get in until 11:00, and then I left at 3:00 to pick Sam up instead of sending her to aftercare. I'll be glad to return to our normal schedule but for now, happy to be able to help Sam get a bit more sleep and rest to get over this cough/cold.

2/10/16 - Happy Sam was able to make it through a full day of school today and her swim lesson!

2/11/16 - After three days of not running due to a sick kiddo and the ensuing sleeplessness that comes with listening to coughing all night long, happy to have finally gotten up and out for a morning run. Beautiful morning with a glorious sunrise casting a pastel glow on the snow. So pretty.

2/12/16 - Sam got two Valentine's Day cards in the mail today - one from each set of grandparents - and she said, "I am so lucky to have Neenie and Pip and Grammie and Grampie. They are such great grandparents. Oh, and I really have to thank Pip for sending me $5!" Ha ha ha! Love it.

2/13/16 - Love having the snowshoe race RDing be a family affair :)

2/14/16 - Thankful for these two. I am a lucky lady!

2/15/16 - Fun to have a chance to spend the day with Ryan while Sam is at vacation week camp! We got in a fun 13 mile run and lunch together!

2/16/16 - Love reading with Sam at night before bed. These days, she reads to me :) Tonight was 'where the wild things are.' "Let the wild rumpus begin!" :)

2/17/16 - Driving home with Sam at 5:02 pm and the sky is pastel pink with the large orange orb of the sun still setting through the periwinkle clouds. Light after 5:00 pm, truly still light, I love it!

2/18/16 - Ok, so trail conditions suck right now but it was light for my morning run! Horray for that! Left at 6:05 and used the headlamp for a bit but mostly so I didn't bite the dust on the ice :) 

2/19/26 - This.

2/20/16 - Despite sketchy conditions, always fun to spend time on the trails with friends!

2/21/16 - When life gives you lemons (or in this case no snow and 48 degrees on a late February day), make some lemonade (or go on a hike through the woods down to the ocean)! :)

2/22/16 - Well, we succeeded in getting back into routine, even if we forgot to brush Sam's hair before heading to school this morning ;) She was happy to be back at school, but wiped out! All this learning is hard work!

2/23/16 - Thankful to be able to get out for a run late this afternoon. Trails were part bare ground and part glare ice, and therefore a bit of a challenge, but I got to see a few pigs at the farm along the route and it was good to get in a few miles!

2/24/16 - Grateful our school district did not delay or cancel school today! Sometimes it's the little things ;)

2/25/16 - Enjoyed a homemade lunch courtesy of Ryan at work today! Always nice to eat a lunch I didn't have to make myself :) 

2/26/16 - Fun muddy run exploring new to me trails with Keri at HVNC!

2/27/16 - Good company and good Oreos on this morning's 18 mile road run this morning with Amy!

2/28/16 - After a morning run to shake out the legs, spent the day with the kiddo while Ryan got in his run. We went out to lunch and gelato together and then got in some trail exploration to make for a fun Sunday! 

2/29/16 - The newest member of the extended family! So happy for Meg, Chris and Gavin! Welcome little Cameron :) Sam is excited to have a new baby cousin!

Making Lemonade

Somehow, I managed to squeeze 50.5 miles out of this week. I suppose running one extra long run - Monday's 13 miler with Ryan - will do that! Of course, last week I only managed 27. But if you take the last four days of last week and add in Monday's run with Ryan, I ran 40 miles over those 5 consecutive days. That leaves 37 miles this week, run over the past four days. So whatever way you split it, decent mileage for me, especially at this time of year.

Honestly, prior to last year I would never have thought I could pull a 50 mile week off *a little bit out of nowhere* without it being a big deal, mentally if nothing else. But if last year taught me nothing else, it's that my body can handle a lot more than I ever would have imagined. I'm not saying all my runs this week were perfect or that I felt awesome for each and every mile but overall, I felt solid, I got in some good hills, ran some fast-ish miles during my 16 miler, and today's 4 miles around the Heath, while bit creaky initially, were decent considering the variable spring-like conditions and my legs really didn't feel especially heavy or tired. I never intended to run 50 miles this week but hey, sometimes you just take what you can get (or what you make of it) :)

And in the same vein, when life gives you lemons (or no snow and a 48 degree day in late February), you make yourself some lemonade and enjoy it (or in our case, head out for a hike down to the ocean)!

Our destination was Wolfe's Neck. Apparently, many others had the same idea as we ran into a lot of people out there, but it never felt crowded. The trails were a bit icy to start, but some careful footwork was all that was needed. We wound our way out through the woods, and even got in a bit of running, at Sam's request, on the bare, dry stretches. It seemed to be an extremely low tide, and with no wind and some lovely late afternoon light, we enjoyed checking out the water's edge, and trekking far along the shoreline, farther than I think we've ever been able to explore before. We saw two pairs of loons out in the still waters, found clams and mussels and oysters living in the mud flats, and saw many large, beautiful scallop shells along with many horseshoe crab exoskeleton pieces (no whole ones, Amy, sorry!).

A lovely way to spend 2 miles and 2 hours (probably only a little more than 1 hour spent actually hiking) :) And a good a way as any to enjoy this wacky weather we've been having!

Headed out

Bog bridges

Leading the way

So little snow...

Little kid, big rock

Goofy girl

Stomping in the mud

Squish

Oops! ;)

Beautiful light

Big scallop shell

Humming to the periwinkles along the shore

Late afternoon light, low tide

Along the shoreline

Winter light

Clam shell!

Hummmm....

Looking for treasures

Shoreline exploration

Mockingbird Lane

It was raining as Amy and I headed over to Val's this morning. It was raining when we started running. It was raw and damp, and we ran through sloppy fields, with rivelets of cold water throughout. The powerlines trails across the street were a mix of mud and ice and bare ground and hoar frost and little streams and a section of unbroken, soft, mushy snow out in the woods. It was a mixed bag of conditions, that's for sure! While there may not have been much enthusiasm for the conditions or the weather, it is always fun to run with friends and there was some good laughter and smiles and stories along the way.

My original intent for the day was to run 8 miles, but in the end the out and back lollypop was around 5.5 miles. I stopped with the group at the end of the first lap and seriously considered going inside. In fact, so much so that I stopped my watch and saved the loop. Ha :) Then of course, everyone started to head back out, so I hemmed and hawed for a while and then figured, oh what the heck. Ran with Keri and Bob, and as is almost always the case, glad I got out there. Oh, my feet were soaked and I was tired, and I didn't think I was going far so I didn't eat or drink anything in between or along the way, but got in a good slippery, slidey, mucky, cold, wet 11 miles. Fun in the craziest way with a good group of people! :) 

Today's miles made for a solid back-to-back for the weekend. Now to continue the momentum!

Road Running

When I told Ryan what I was planning to do last night , he was like, what, you running VT? Well, no, I don't need roads for Grayson but I do need hills and I don't feel like my run being half walk gingerly across ice/take a million hours/sucky. So hilly road run it is! I had pondered a route from home but kept getting creepy vibes from one stretch I've never run before so aborted on that plan and headed over to Brunswick instead. If you choose the right route, you can actually find hills to run over there, so I parked on Baribeau and headed up Pleasant Hill. Strava has a segment along here called 'unpleasant climb' - ha ha ha! - as there really are some decent climbs headed out to Freeport .

I stayed on Pleasant Hill until it intersects Flying Point and headed back that way, making a Lollypop of it by cutting across on Highland back to Pleasant Hill. The running was decent, it was  bright and sunny, the sky was blue, and the route was nice but jeez, I guess I'm really a trail girl at heart! I was keeping a solid, steady pace and felt really good until the final few miles when I started dragging a bit, but the pavement was killing my feet and I was just bored. So much endless pavement!!! 

I did get to see a pair of bluebirds out on Highland, which was very cool and the highlight of the run! Saw a red tail hawk out in the fields too, but not much else out there.

Anyway, ended up with 16.5 miles at just under 9:00 pace and am happy with that,  but get me back to those trails ;)

Stopped to get this for lunch on the way home. Yum! Guac, roasted sweet potatoes, chicken, beans, a bit of rice and crunchy lettuce. What's not to love?!? Perfect post-run deliciousness.
 

The rest of the day was a blur of chores before picking Sam up at camp to come home, eat dinner and hang out for the evening. Tonight she read us 'Izzy the Ice Cream Fairy.' Love this kid :)

Humph

Despite my trepidation about what I would find this morning, I figured I'd check out conditions. Went out at 6:05 am donning in my screwshoes and was happy to find it almost light enough even then to not need my headlamp. Hurray for more daylight! But given the ice, I kept the headlamp on as greater means to ensure I didn't bite the dust or break my a** out there ;) Trail conditions are a bit iffy to say the least. 

Ran up and over Mt A, trying to avoid the black ice on the uphill. The groomed trails have become widely variable, from nice firm snow to ice to bare ground. Ran holes 1 and 2 and then headed across to hole 9. No go there. Too unpacked. Back up to hole 3 and then across to the bottom of the Heath. Sketchy. Ran up along the Quarry and took the back dirt road in, which was partial ice and partial frozen, uneven mud. Took the high road on the powerlines for the final stretch as it was bare ground, and ended with a random 5.3 miles for the morning. 

So, let's be honest and say trail conditions kinda are really not the best right now. Plus, it is just not normal to have so little snow on the ground mid-February. Shoulder season shouldn't be here yet. I do hope we get more snow but I'd prefer it sooner than later. Am I asking too much?!? Ha! Can't change the weather, I know, but that doesn't mean I can't complain about it ;)

Hitting the pavement tomorrow for a long, hilly run. 

President's Day Half

We signed Sam up for vacation camp at Riverview this week, and then realized that both Ryan and I had today off. Well, what the heck? Might as well send her to camp and do something just the two of us, a chance which doesn't happen very often! Of course, what else to do but go for a long run and out to lunch? Sounds perfect to me!

I dropped Sam off around 8:45 and then the two of us eventually got ourselves out the door. Neither of us was rushing, as the thermometer was still reading below zero ;) We drove over to Brad and headed out onto the snowmobile trail in our microspikes. Temps were in the low single digits and it was a cold first mile, but I warmed up quickly. And man, between the fat bikes, the snowmobile groomer, skiers and the snowshoe race, things were packed pretty nicely for the first few miles. Once we reached the park boundary, things were a bit looser, but still in fine shape.

Out on the powerlines

Once out on the powerlines, with the wider trail, things were a bit more uneven and softer, and we were exposed to the wind. Conditions were decent though, although I thought the snow felt a bit funny underfoot, very styrofoamy if you will, with some soft spots and icy spots and bare spots too. The river was definitely frozen, but man, I really do not like crossing it.

I had been feeling good for the first 6 miles or so, but dragged a bit through the middle miles, and was especially unenthused out by the electrical transfer station, where the wind had done a number on things. I just let Ryan lead and kept on chugging. As neither of us was really up for a full Beautiful Loop, we kept to the left and turned off on the Connector to get back to the park. I really do love that stretch of trail, so beautiful. Fairly nicely packed too although a bit slower being singletrack.

Pretty trees, with snow frosting tucked along the branches

Happy to have been able to run all of the hills, with the one exception of the first section of Boundary Trail we hit once we reached the park. That stretch was a bit sketchy with icy rocks and definitely had to be hiked. Out along the back stretch of the Boundary we found a lifesize snowman. Very impressive! Although we can't take credit for his creation, we had to stop and take a photo :)

Snowman with a snowman

We ran up to the summit and then took the Switchback down, for a total of 13.2 miles. A good 2 1/2 hours out on the trails with Ryan!

Edna & Lucy's was closed, so we headed back to Brunswick and tried the new burrito place that went in when Flipside closed. Yum! Perfect post-lunch food. Then home to clean up and relax a bit before picking up the kiddo at camp. A pretty good vacation day if you ask me :)

Chillier

Lovely burst of arctic air the past two days. Woke up to 0 degrees yesterday, and while it warmed up throughout the day, the wind picked up too. Brrr. Sam and I went to swimming and Frosty's while Ryan was out marking the snowshoe course, then we met him over at Edna & Lucy's for lunch before heading home so I could get in my run. A trundling, windy, chilly, post-lunch lurch, would perhaps be more exact ;) I was layered up quite nicely so I actually ended up being pretty warm, though, honestly! The snowmobile trails had been churned by the machines and really weren't all that fun running, so I turned off at Highland Green Road and ran the main loop, with a short 1.1 mile Cathance loop thrown in the middle. Trails were pretty well packed, and pretty as always, down along the river. Got in 6.1 miles for the afternoon.

Later that evening, Sam helped me decorate the race prizes for Valentine's Day ;)

When I headed up for bed last night, the thermometer was already reading -3. Wowza! This morning, it read -9 and the "feel like" temp was something ridiculous like -32 due to the whipping wind in Pownal when Ryan arrived around 8:00 am to prep for the snowshoe race. Um, yeah. That is damn cold! Sam and I didn't get there until around 10:15, but after about 2 minutes of standing outside I was already cold despite 4 layers under my jacket and 3 under my snowpants. Luckily, Keri and Tyler had brought their two girls, so the three girls alternated playing in the snow and sitting in the warmth of Tyler's truck eating and playing, and I was able to sit in the car with Mindy and Val for a while too to keep warm. It worked out well for everyone, and there was no complaints about the weather from the kids, which might be more than you could say from the rest of us ;)

I was apparently so cold, I went up in smoke! ;) Ha!

Despite the temps, 52 hardy souls ran the race, and Ryan came in 3rd overall and looked good doing it. Way to go, Snowman! In his element, I guess :) Sam and I boogied out of there as soon as awards were done and although I warmed up slightly in Edna & Lucy's, I kept on the majority of my layers! Brrr. I did manage to haul myself out for a run around 3:00 pm once we got home, but funny enough, no one else was in the Cathance lot when I pulled in, even though it had warmed up to "feels like 1 degree"! ;)

Since I was running all trails, I decided to test out my new Hillsound Free Step 6 microspikes. Despite being an XS, they don't quite hit the heel of my shoe so there was a bit of clanging as that portion shifted around as I ran along, but were otherwise quite comfortable and stayed on well. And, I must say, they certainly did offer more traction than the screwshoes, and any slipping that did occur was mainly when I slipped off the side of the narrow packed singletrack and/or hit an uneven spot. I ran around the Heath first and then out on the Barnes Leap trail and along the river. The first two miles were nicely packed but farther out in the system, it was a bit more uneven and sugary, making the final two miles a bit slower going. Still, a lovely, snowy, chilly afternoon four mile jaunt.

We capped off the day with dinner out. A fine evening with my big and little love :)

Chilly

This has been one odd winter. Or maybe it is just that it has been inconsistent. Needless to say, the cold spell we are currently having seems extra chilly after the long stretches of warm winter weather we've had recently. Brr! Only 3 degrees when I headed out, and that was at 9:00 am after dropping Sam off at school. Easy day to run more miles than degrees, at least ;)

I had a laundry list of things on my to do list and was volunteering in Sam's classroom this afternoon, so in my mind, it made more sense to stick around here and run, versus driving over to the Brad, so I decided I would try for a little "speed" and run roads today. I parked over on Pennelville Road and headed out from there, enjoying the crisp cold air, the brilliant sunlight, the sparkling ocean views and the bright white snow cover along the fields. The roads were quiet with little traffic and in surprisingly decent shape. I was able to run comfortably without my screwshoes; there was only one stretch of road in the shade with a bit of snow/ice coverage, otherwise I had good bare pavement to run on. The early miles went by easily at a solid clip, and then I had to focus a bit to stay there, but it felt good. Finished up with 10 miles in 1:26:59 for 8:40 pace, and happy with that.

Rough

A rough start to the week here. A sick kiddo in Monday and a two-hour snow delay on Tuesday meant a few half days at work, and the ensuing coughing overnight meant little sleep, and therefore no getting up in the early morning hours to run. Sigh.

Thankfully Sam is on the mend and we were all able to get some sleep last night, and I finally got up and out for a run after there days off. I headed out around 5:50 am out in the powerlines. The snowmobile club had rolled the trails out to Homeplace; the snow was still pretty soft but if I ran right down the middle where things were the most packed, it was decent. Out on the back of the loop, the trail was packed by a machine or two but not rolled. 

The woods began to lighten as I ran back along Lover's Lane and I was able to turn off my headlamp. After cresting the hill by Rt 24 and the rest of the way home, I was able to see the sun rise. Truly beautiful, especially as the sun crested the horizon and began to cast a soft pastel glow on the white snow. 

Got in a lovely 7 miles for the morning at a mellow pace and very happy to have gotten out!

Slow but Beautiful Cathance

After yesterday's snowshoe tromp out in the Cathance with Ryan and Sam, I knew exactly where I was headed this morning. It was just so beautiful out there. Beautiful this morning too, but much softer and slower than I had been anticipating, and I managed to slip off one of the bog bridges and jam up my left ankle. All the slipping and sliding around in the soft snow left it feeling a bit wobbly. Glad to have a Dr. Jamie appointment this week.

But really, hard to complain, as I had the trails to myself out there this morning, the sun was shining, the trees were still snow covered and the river was roaring. Got in 7.2 miles to round out the week at 36.1 miles, and am certainly happy with that.