if you are interested in supporting our race to find a cure for Crohn’s , just go to my fundraising page. The CCFA is a great organization, which uses 84 cents of every dollar donated for research, outreach and support programs. And did I mention that your donation is completely tax deductible?
Thank you for donating – every dollar brings a cure closer!
Filed under: running | Tags: balloon, beer tasting, ccfa, crohn's, event, fundraising, peggy, vino 100
Recommittment is this week. I’m on the fence, but I feel obligated to recommit.
In light of that, plans are in the works for another wine night at Vino 100 in Wauwatosa. Nothing is definite at the moment, but we will hold a raffle with all proceeds going to the CCFA.
Peggy is having a free car wash this coming Saturday, at Mo’s Southwest Grill on Capital Drive in Pewaukee, from 11am to 3pm. All donations go to CCFA. (Peggy needs volunteers to wash, so if you have some time, please come help!)
Also, Peggy has organized a raffle for a hot air balloon ride! Hot Air Balloon ride for 2, by Winddancer Balloon Company out of Waukesha – $10 a chance 3 for $25. Contact me for tickets.
Some team members have put together a beer tasting, which will be on May 30th. Tickets are $30 each, and include 10 beer samples. I don’t remember much else about that, but it will be in the Third Ward. I’ll try to get more details for all that are interested!
That’s just a little bit of what’s coming up in the next few months, before the race on July 19th. Time flies when you’re having fun!
That’s what I’m up to right now! This morning marked my fifth day in a row of running, -with no walk breaks-. This is a huge accomplishment for me, and I’m not sure where it came from, but I’ll take it.
All of my runs usually involve walk breaks. But since the half marathon, I’ve been trying to go without them, and succeeding. My goal, of course, is to run the Napa half marathon entirely, slowing down to walk only at water stations.
I would also like to run 60 miles this month, which I am on track to do. My mileage really suffered (and rightly so) in April, and while I don’t intend to push myself to “make up” that month, getting back on track would be nice.
So that’s what I’ve been up to. I have some photos that I want to put up at some point too, but I haven’t taken the time to download them off the camera. A few are from the weekend of the race, after which we went to the cabin. Another one is of the HUGE BUMBLEBEE that threatened to eat me after I came home from a run this week.
The Lighthouse Run is Saturday, June 20th, and I will be there! Denise and I are registered for the 10-miler. (No, we are not attached at the hip. Really.)
It’s nice to have another race on the schedule, between now and Napa. Ten miles at that time will be nice preparation for the slightly longer distance in wine country.
Filed under: running | Tags: group training, milwaukee adventure boot camp, recovery, running, team challenge, training
Since I was up this morning at 6:30, I decided to go for a small run around the block. 1.15 miles, just enough to test the waters, so to speak. In reality, I could have gone for more probably, because that distance felt just enough to be a warm up!
But I completed the one lap and came home as planned. I feel good now, and I want to stay that way! I do have a second blister, on the underside of my right big toe, that was giving me some trouble yesterday. It appears to have popped, and then reformed last night.
I’ll be taking the remainder of the week easy still, with Team Challenge training coming up on Saturday. Also, there is a session of Milwaukee Adventure Boot Camp earlier on Saturday morning, that I’d like to try out. I’ve been looking at it for a couple months, but haven’t committed yet.
Filed under: event, race, running | Tags: Denise, race, running, wisconsin half marathon, wisconsin marathon
Friday:
I left work a little after 1pm, and picked up Denise at her house. We headed for REI to make sure we had all the fuel we needed for the race, and then to the spa at the Pfister for express pedicures. Pretty toes after the race take preparation before the race! 
The drive to Pleasant Prairie was uneventful, and we found our way to packet pick-up in the hotel. My race number was 1915, easy to remember. Once packets were picked up, we checked into the hotel, found our room, and made ourselves comfortable. I sent text messages to Scott and Carrie, and Denise and I experimented with our own sleep number beds. Those things are loud!
Soon, Carried called to say she and the fam were on their way over to packet pick-up. We met them in the lobby, after Carrie got her goodie bag and marathon race number. 33! Someone registered super early! The six of us went off to dinner at the attached Chancery. I thought her boys were so very cute and well-behaved for their ages, and it was a pleasure to meet her husband, whom I’ve heard and read a bit about.
After dinner, it was off to Walgreens for a quick errand. I had forgotten my ibuprofen, and other emergency supplies were needed. My body hates me, I tell you! Back at the hotel, we each prepared for the next morning: attach race number to shirt, make sure it’s not too high/low; choose fuel, pack hydration belt accordingly; lay out all needed clothes; attached timing chip to shoe; pack bags for quick deposit in car before shuttle leaves. I think that was about it. We had the TV on for a bit, but not too late.
Denise and I finished the half marathon! I got a PR along the way as well! Injury free and ready for more!
(Better race report later!)
Saturday is just around the corner, and I am as ready as I’m going to get to run another half marathon. I went for two small runs on Tuesday and Wednesday, and it felt pretty good to get back into a rhythm.
The Wisconsin (half) Marathon will be my first half marathon in the state, and I’m looking forward to being close to home, relatively speaking. The only travel I’ll be doing is driving with Denise to Pleasant Prairie tomorrow afternoon. The plan is to relax, hopefully meet up with some friends, and get some good rest before being on the shuttle at 5:30 Saturday morning!
I just need to remember to avoid the onion rings for dinner Friday night! (They did a number on me before the Napa half last year.)
This may not be my best showing, but I’m feeling optimistic anyway. This will be my third half marathon, and I’m getting more comfortable with the distance, mentally. Let’s hope any rain in the forecast holds off until 11am, just to be safe, though.
Filed under: running | Tags: ccfa, crohn's, fundraiser, team challenge, update
The past three weeks have gotten away from me. I haven’t been writing, and for the most part, I haven’t been running. That’ll make the half marathon next weekend verrrry interesting.
I wasn’t mired in work, or overwhelmed with training. I was pregnant. Then I was scared, because the last two pregnancies didn’t work out too well, so I decided to take it a little easy. I ran with the Team Challenge group, nice and easy pace, and that’s about it.
Last Monday, the 13th, I went in for an ultrasound, to check on things and date the development. I should have been 7 weeks, 5 days. Instead, the embryo was dating at 6 weeks, 3 days. And no heartbeat. Another ultrasound on Friday, the 17th, confirmed that there was no growth, no heartbeat.
Though this wasn’t a planned pregnancy, I was crushed. Since I had no signs of trouble, I had hope that this one was going to make it. It would mean giving up the July race, but it would be worth giving up for a successful pregnancy. I even began to clean out our third room, which we use as an “office” of sorts now, but was always going to be the nursery, when the time came.
The hardest part is watching the ultrasound, eyes glued to the screen, hoping, searching for that little blip that signifies a heartbeat. And finding nothing. Again.
I had my third D&C on Saturday, the 18th. Many thanks to Deanna for being with me for the day, and taking care of me. Scott had business he couldn’t reschedule, out of town, and I was advised to have the surgery sooner than later.
It’s been a rough week, but my friends have been so very supportive and comforting, and their displays of love and care have rendered me speechless (not that you can tell in this post). I’ve also tried to focus on other things, such as work, and Team Challenge.
This Saturday is the date of my fundraising event at Vino 100 in Wauwatosa. Silent auction items include a month of boot camp from the Milwaukee Adventure Boot Camp (which I may just bid on!), dancing lessons from Fred Astaire Dance, a private shopping party from Magnolia in Tosa, and several other items. I’m definitely looking forward to getting out there tomorrow and talking about the program and raising some money for such a great cause.
Then, it’ll be time to focus on running.
From 11am to 5pm, Vino 100 in Wauwatosa will be host to a silent auction to benefit Team Challenge and the CCFA. Denise and I are working to get a great variety of items for your bidding pleasure; some already include a sampler pack from Oro di Oliva, and a private shopping party from Magnolia!
We’re hoping to get in touch with some wine distributors as well, to arrange a tasting of wines for the day. The theme ties in perfectly with the Napa to Sonoma race that is the culmination of all this training and fundraising!
Add it to your calendar, and we hope to see you there!
I don’t know if the 2 mile run earlier was invigorating, but at least it’s done. Of course, the rain starts up when I got outside, and the string that tightens the hood on my jacket snapped. It was good enough though, to keep me dry for the duration of the rain, which thankfully wasn’t long.
Fairly windy though, and a little cold. Not cold like the winter, and I did remove my gloves about halfway through.
Good result though – the 2+ miles tipped me over the 50 mile mark for the month, and the 150 mile mark for the year! With the mileage scheduled for the remaining seven days of March, I’ll be well into 60 miles on the month, which is very exciting for me.
Of course, many thanks to Carrie for pointing me towards Buckeye Outdoors. Without Buckeye, I’m sure I wouldn’t be nearly as motivated as I am. Seeing the mileage add up, and all the associated details of my efforts, is a reward in itself, even before the finish line.
Why is it, that the shorter the run, the longer I can put it off?
Anyway, I’m off now, I promise. It’s just two miles, despite the rain and damp and ick. I have my rain jacket to keep me dry, I’ll be fine.
When I get back, I’ll tell you have fabulous and invigorating it was, I’m sure. While I devour my warm chicken noodle soup to help bring me back to a decent temperature!
Filed under: event, fundraising | Tags: ccfa, colitis, crohn's, flat top grill, fundraiser, team challenge
Thursday, March 26 - Crohn's Fundraiser at Flat Top Grill
Filed under: ccfa, crohn's, event, fundraising, running | Tags: ccfa, crohn's, event, vino 100, wautwatosa, wine
Denise and I have started working on this year’s Vino 100 fundraising event for Team Challenge and the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation!
The date is almost certainly April 25th. The rest of the details will be hammered out over the coming weeks, but we are organizing a silent auction and a raffle, and of course there will be wine! I’ve sent out dozens of letters to area businesses, and Denise and I will be visiting the Wauwatosa Villiage area to ask businesses to donate items for auction.
Last year’s event raised about $1200 for CCFA/Team Challenge, and we hope to increase that amount this year. Over 82 cents of every dollar raised goes towards disease research and programs to support those who suffer from Crohn’s and colitis. It’s a great organization and one that I’m happy to be involved with again.
So please, mark your calendars! If you can’t make it, but want to help, please visit my donation website or contact me to make an offline donation.
Also, I’ll have another event announcement shortly, so stay tuned!
Over four miles today, and my best split was 11:10. I averaged 11:28 over 4.4 miles, which is about what I usually do. I felt slow today, sluggish. Maybe it was the cold temperature (20*F) or the 15-20 mph winds, or possibly the busy streets I ran next to (Mayfair Road and Burleigh) and the stopping for traffic that slowed me down.
Anyway, I’m feeling pretty good (despite the cough that will not go away), and I’m definitely looking forward to my rest day tomorrow. In the morning I have a PT session with a trainer at InStep, about my lingering groin injury, and then tomorrow night, a shoe clinic at the same location with Team Challenge.
