Some Like It Hot

I love a good deal. Anytime I can save money, I'm all over it. Especially when it means trying out something that I've wanted to try. Enter Groupon. I saw an offer for Hot Yoga and at $19 for 5 sessions, it seemed too good to pass up. Of course, I'm never one to do anything crazy alone, so I quickly recruited Sam to join me. After obsessively researching the topic and hydrating myself to the point of drowning for five days I was ready for my first class.

Sam and I chose to start with a 90-minute Hot 26 class. From what I can tell, this is basically a Bikram class with a different name. Twenty-six poses, two times through. I'm not going to lie, the heat is intense, but I kind felt like a bad ass in there. There's something empowering about raising yourself off the floor in a Full Locust and seeing sweat pouring off your face. And surviving my first class? Priceless. I went to the same class yesterday and clearly wasn't properly hydrated because I was fighting blackouts during the first two segments. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate! The bright side was that I nailed a few of the poses I struggled with the first session. Camel Pose has my heart.

Now that I've attended a couple of classes (which by no means makes me an expert on the subject), here are my preliminary pros and cons:

Pros:
*I've finally become a water drinker and wonder how I've survived all this time as an athlete without it. I grossly underrated its value.
*It challenges me mentally and physically.
*The heat and sweating makes my skin glow for a solid 24 hours after taking the class.
*Muscle-toning benefits
*Yoga is great for runners

Cons:
*Unpredictable - but yoga has always been this way for me. There are days when I just can't find my balance but I wouldn't blame this on the heat.
*The heat can make you lightheaded and/or nauseous.
*Cost - it gets a little pricey when you figure the clothes, equipment, and membership. I consider it to be a good investment, but others may not appreciate the price tag.
*Grandiose claims of toxin release and calorie-burn may not be that accurate which is only a con if that's why you're doing it. Which I am not.

Hot Yoga is definitely not for everyone - some gyms have deals for first-timers who are unsure if it's something they would enjoy. My gym has 15 days for $15 and a friend of mine goes to a gym where they can bring a friend on Thursdays at no cost to the friend. These are both great options for Hot Yoga wannabe's to test the waters before taking the plunge.

Ruuuuuuning in the rain!

They're here. If you didn't read my previous blog you probably don't know who "they" are. I'm referring to my new running shoes: the Brooks PureConnect 2. After three days of tracking them on their journey across the country like Carmen San Diego, the UPS man delivered the precious cargo to my door late this afternoon. I was literally squealing with delight as I opened up the box. Are your sunglasses handy? You might want to put them on. Feast your eyes on these beauties:

Could you just die?? In their blinding neon glory, they were (and are) all I had ever dreamed of and more.....so much more. Is it just me, or do splashes of neon automatically make shoes look faster? Despite the fact that I was still in my dress and tights from school I laced up and ran to a mirror to check them out. I was quite a sight to behold, let me tell ya! The ridiculousness of my outfit was too much to bear so I quickly changed into my running gear in anticipation of a 2-mile rest run around the neighborhood - right after I waited for my phone to charge. Ugh. Of course, by the time it was charged, the rain from earlier had started up again. So I waited some more.

4:00 - still raining - perhaps a trip to Target for a new running shirt is in order.

4:30 - I went home empty-handed but the rain appeared to be letting up. Fingers crossed!

5:00 - IT STOPPED!!

I quickly put on the rest of my gear (it was dark by now so reflective additions had to be made - safety first!), leashed up Darcy, and out the door we went. The rain held off for ohhhh, the first 5 minutes. It started out as a light drizzle but I would definitely say it was raining by the time we finished the second mile. To me it actually felt really good - rain is refreshing when you're working up a good sweat.

So what did I think about the shoes?? Well.........

Hashtag: RUNHAPPYINDEED!!! It was love at first stride. If I had to choose three words to describe these shoes they would be light, speedy, and grippy. They are ridiculously light with a glove-like feel which makes you feel super-fast and despite the wet roads, they had great traction. I ran my first sub-9 minute mile in months which means that not only do I love them cosmetically, but I also love them functionally. Can't get much better for a first run straight out of the box!

I am so glad that Sam & Kendra encouraged me to try the PureConnects. I was sure I was going to be a PureFlow wearer for life but these actually fit/feel better to me. I hope I continue to feel that way during my training for the Special Kids 15k at the end of March.

Happy New Year - A Year Late

Today is the first Monday of the new year, which Kathy Lee & Hoda told me is the most depressing day of the year. Ya know, vacations and holidays are over and it's back to the daily grind. Were you depressed? I sure hope not. I certainly wasn't and I think that sentiment was shared by all teachers in Middle Tennessee. Our winter break was extended by two glorious "inclement weather" days and I'm enjoying every second. I can drink wine and watch The Bachelor guilt-free tonight. Yay!

Speaking of the new year, I am pretty sure that the word resolution is the most used word used in social media right now. Most people resolve to lose weight, eat better, give up this or give up that, etc. I prefer to take a goal-approach because, let's be honest, I rarely never manage to keep my resolutions anyway. Is the word "goal" really "resolution" in disguise? Perhaps, but we'll go with it anyway. My 2014 goals are:

*Become a faster, stronger runner. I ordered new kicks (Brooks PureConnect 2) yesterday and I'm literally twitching from excitement to hit the pavement in them (when they finally get delivered, of course)
*Be a stronger, more independent woman and stand up for myself when I should. I am not a doormat, after all. I did not do this very well in 2013 so it's something I want to improve on in 2014.
*Travel - with the exception of a lunch date with my dad in Alabama over Fall Break, I didn't leave Tennessee for a whole year! Unacceptable. Perhaps a destination race??

In addition to my goals, I saw an idea on Pinterest to write down all the good things that happen throughout the year - surprises, successes, goals achieved, good times, ect., - and throw them into a jar, or in my case, an owl vase to be read on New Year's Eve. I've already written a few down and tossed them in. Hopefully it will continue to heighten my awareness to the little things in life that make me happy :)

 

I hope everyone has a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2014.

 

Cheers!

Goodbye, 2012.

Sometimes I wonder why I keep a blog. I get on a roll of posting regularly and then somehow life gets in the way and I can't seem to crank anything out. It's the last day of 2012 so I thought I'd put up a short one to close out the year.

As I look back over the last 12 months, I realize a lot has happened. I ran my first (and second) half marathon, turned 30, hit my first deer, went back to teaching, and was shocked to realize that it had already been 10 years since my mom passed away. Oh! And the world didn't end. YEAH!!! It's been crazy and overwhelming but I learned a lot about myself and have had some amazing people come into my life. I have a lot to be thankful for. Of course, this would not be a true end-of-the-year post without listing some favorite moments - 10 of them actually - in no particular order.

1. Running the Country Music 1/2 Marathon - my first!
2. Getting an iPhone. Lame, I know but it seriously borders on life-changing.
3. Going back to teaching - dream come true :)
4. Margarita nights on my patio.
5. Spending Christmas at my dad's house. First time ever and it was awesome perfect.
6. Hitting my goal of running 500 miles in a year - couldn't have done it without my partner in crime Molly.
7. Canoeing on the Buffalo!! One of the best days - E-VER
8. Running a 5k (See Spot Run) with Darcy - looking forward to many more.
9. Darcy's 1st Birthday party! So much fun and I still laugh at the pictures.
10. The Color Run! Seriously the happiest 5k on the planet. Something about that sentence seems like an oxy-moron. Whatever.

I'm sure there are many other great moments that I've missed but these were what came to mind while I was sitting here.

Happy New Year!!

What a Difference a Year Makes

Last week on Facebook I saw a link shared by a friend from the RunnersWorld page about The 2012 Holiday Running Streak. The idea is to run at least one mile every day from Thanksgiving to New Years. I love a good challenge....especially when it requires me to stick to something for an extended period of time. I shared it on my page and said "I'm in!" I figure I can always knock out a mile each day no matter how busy, tired, or sick (yeah, I've been sick over Thanksgiving break, wahhh!!) I am.

After a three-week hiatus from running I finally got back out there a week ago for a two-miler with Darcy to loosen the cobwebs. It was painful. I thought I was going to die right there on the greenway. I can't begin to describe how discouraging that is when a mere 30 days before that I had run a half-marathon. Ugh. I took a break for a few days.

Despite the cold that was settling into my chest, I got back out there Thanksgiving morning for a 1.2 mile jog around the neighborhood. If I start getting sick, I find running to be the best medicine....usually. My cold got progressively worse over the weekend but I've kept the streak alive! My cold even seemed a little better today. We'll see how the next month goes - especially with a trip to North Dakota for Christmas. Brrr!!! Better pack the base layers.....and the middle layers...and the outer layers. Ha!

Anway, I'm totally getting off subject. The reason I wanted to post tonight was because I set a goal for myself of 500 miles this year. After tonight's run, I'm 20 miles away which is totally doable with 36 days left in the year. But looking at my stats reminded me of where I was at this time last year. Exactly one year ago (ok, technically one year tomorrow) I posted on here that I was at 229 miles and had a goal of 300. There were 37 days left in the year and I had 71 miles to go. I did meet my goal and even passed it by a few I think but I can't believe how far I've come in a year. I ran 200 more miles this year and did two half-marathons. Wonders never cease.

What should my goal be next year?

Rice Krispy Bars + Animal Crackers = A Delicious Fossil Lesson

This is not a teaching blog. It is not going to turn into a teaching blog. However, I came up with a lesson that I was so excited about that I just had to share it. Seriously. I scare myself sometimes.

This week in Science we are covering extinct animal species and fossils. I searched high and low for a "hands-on" activity to do with my kiddos and had half-heartedly committed to doing a chocolate chip cookie excavation in class. The idea was that the chocolate chips are the fossils and they had to excavate them with toothpicks. This seemed all well and good but I just felt like it wasn't realistic enough. I wanted something that would connect them more to the lesson and still involve materials of the edible kind. Because it's fun. And kids like fun.

I did an internet search and found a cookie bar (Rice Krispies treats) project where they had to dig out raisins and m&m's which seemed kind of cool but it still wasn't what I was looking for. Where is the realism in that? You're right, there isn't. Then it hit me: instead of raisins and m&m's, how about animal crackers?? They could dig through the Rice Krispy bars to find the broken up crackers and have to piece them back together to figure out what the species was - just like a paleontoligist would do. A fossil lesson that is not only (sort of) realistic, but also fun and yummy? Sounds like a winning combination to me. This activity was easy on my wallet and the prep work really wasn't that bad - just took some planning....and a little luck.

Let the "baking" begin! I went with the generic Zoo Cookies because they looked much more realistic than the traditional animal crackers..

 

 

 I mixed up the Rice Krispies treats and pressed half the batter into the pan so I could sandwich the broken pieces between two layers.

 

 

I broke up 20 animal crackers and pressed them into the first layer - I kept each animal confined to 1/20th of the pan so that when I cut them out and distributed them, there would (hopefully) be an entire animal fossil for the student to dig out (hence the aforementioned 'luck' component).

 

 

I pressed the rest of the Rice Krispy mixture on top. After cutting the pan of bars into 20 squares I put each one into a plastic baggie for quick distribution in class. I hate wasting time passing things out!

 

 

Digging away! The students were told that they could only use their hands to stabilize their "fossilized rocks" - no pulling the bar apart! They had two toothpicks to use to excavate the fossils.

 

The fossil pieces were piled to the side until digging was complete. At the end they had to piece together their fossil and identify it. Of course I forgot to take a final picture. Fail. They described and illustrated the whole process including the end result in their science notebooks.

 

My kids went absolutely bananas over this! They really got into their roles as paleontologists and made an effort to use their vocabulary words every chance they got. The bonus at the end was that they got to eat the Rice Krispy bars and I passed out the remaining animal crackers for snack.

 

I'd say this activity was a hit and will definitely use it again!

It's All Fun and Games.....

I had a feeling this would happen. I saw it coming a mile away and unfortunately I did it to myself. For over a year, I took Darcy with me to work every single day. Anytime I could take her somewhere, she came along with me. Now that I'm back to teaching, she doesn't get to go with me. Anywhere. Ever. After only a week and a half, she is putting her extreme distaste for being left home alone on display........and it isn't pretty.

After school I stayed and chatted with my team members for a bit and finally said, "Well, I better get home and see what Darcy chewed up today." I wasn't being completely serious and I was definitely not prepared for what was waiting for me when I got home.

As soon as I got the door unlocked and opened, Darcy bolted out to the back yard. I figured she just really had to go. And then I turned around. My living room floor was dotted with something that I couldn't identify from so far away so I walked through the kitchen (very slowly) to take a closer look. While I was at school today Darcy chewed: Three pairs of flip flops, one pair of heels, a ballpoint pen AND A PARTRIDGE IN A PEAR TREE!!! In my silent fury, I didn't even think to take a picture, although now I'm wishing I had so you could see it. I can only compare it to what it might look like if you put a bomb in the middle of the floor, piled shoes on top of it, and set it off. Shoe confetti! My "puppy-proofing" this morning was obviously an epic fail.

At this point, I still can't even look at her. I'm not mad anymore......just disappointed. But how do you convey that to a dog?? How do you show them the error of their ways?? She obviously knows she is in trouble because she is keeping her distance. It makes me so sad that she's acting out like this and it leaves me with no other option but to crate her when I'm not home. I don't doubt for a second that if I keep leaving her out, my sofa will eventually be strewn about the living room in the not so distant future. Shoes are easily replaced. Bedding is easily replaced. But a whole sofa? I shudder at the thought.

Party's over, Darcy. It's the crate for you :(