CHIPS, CHIPS and More CHIPS

THANK YOU ANDREA!!!
I love the chips that were sent to us.....my favorite are the Black Bean. My huband likes the margaritta lime.
I was pleasantly surprised on Wednesday morning when there was a knock at more door and FEDEX had dropped off a big box...inside were the CORAZONA'S Heart Healthy tortilla chips....several bags and a lovely display basket!
My family has enjoyed eating them, and My four year old daughter LOVES them too. Like I mentioned above my favorite are the Black Bean.

I work in the wellness field and we spend alot of time talking with our patients about the importance of FIBER and their understanding of the INGREDIENTS and NUTRITIONAL VALUE of food items. I think that Ramona Cappello and her Corazona's chips have helped to bridge a gap between the consumer and healthy choices. What other chip has this much FIBER, and as we know......we all NEED more fiber in our daily nutrition.

KUDOS to Andrea for making this connection.


Thansk so much!

Hi. My name is Shelley and I'm a Slacker

I can't believe I haven't posted for so long. I should be ashamed of myself, but the holidays have taken their toll on me. So there. No more excuses. Suck it up Shelley!

I can tell you that I thank God (literally) for my (almost) daily workouts during the holiday break for my girls' preschool. I have needed that "me" time more than ever over the last few weeks. The girls and I are just plain sick of each other. You know it is bad when one of your daughters says...

"Mommy, I'm tired of you."

Thanks honey. Now go to your room while mommy looks for the Excedrin.

Run-Burrr-Run-Burr-Run-Burr

At what point do you decide it's too cold to run outside? I know I harp about this all the time but this is my first winter with my new running hobby/training routine and I'm having a heck of a time with the weather. I can do cold (well, pretty cold) and I can handle rain but I can't handle wind. No thank you. Can't deal with running into the wind.

Today was pretty cold at bus stop time so I resigned myself to the fact that I was going to have to do my weekly long run on the treadmill...insert major groan and "Idontwanna!" whine here. On my way to the gym, I realized it wasn't as windy as it's been and that maybe I should make a go of it. I did and boy am I glad. Was it cold? Yes, it was. But I ran a heck of a lot further than I would have if I had been indoors. I got my longest run in yet - 11 miles! At this point, I'm thinking that as long as there is no snow and the wind is minor to non-existent, I can handle the winter. Maybe I'm being a bit to bold seeing as it's only January 4th, but we'll see.

On that note, I'm interested in hearing what kind of cross training you all do. Is there something that you love to do on those non-running days or just to dang cold to run outside days that you feel makes you stronger? I've got to get some leg strength because it is one of the major things that is holding me back a bit.
Happy Friday everyone!!

Edgewise, As in Word in

I wake up in the morning and the first question I ask myself is if I'm happy. I look around and then I smile. Because yes, yes I am. Subtract the last three years from the rest of my life and you can get a pretty fair idea of how miserable I've been.
But, Andrea, this will be a rockin year. And, Trice, that puppy will be the greatest trainer you've ever had. My dog gets an amazing pace from me, though she tuckers out at the end and I end up teasing her for it. She just kind of grins at me and keeps truckin' right along. I'm totally with...oh, it's been over a minute and my memory is thin...Crumbs (?) about the baby jogger, just check those tires! I don't know how many runs have been ruined by low pressure. I am happy to report that my husband so enjoys having a buff wife that working out is totally not an issue and I am so, so, so blessed for that. And eating? As long as I cooked it, I'm all over it. Ain't no one in this world can cook like I do. No one.

I love you, Ladies! Happy New Year!

How do you tie YOUR shoes?

I've started looking at shoe laces and giggling ever so slightly, for my laces are nearly always knotted on the inside of my shoe. Guess it's time to fit in some flexibility training.

Zooma Race-- Annapolis

I have been meaning to post this F-O-R-E-V-E-R!!! My husband and I had THE most fabulous weekend right after Thanksgiving in Annapolis to celebrate our anniversary. Why do I share this? Because that is the exact location of the Zooma Race kick off in June. First off, our plan was to take the haunted pub crawl through the historic district. We made hotel reservations, had the in-laws come into town to watch the rugrats, hopped in the car and headed out for our destination. Unfortunately, I didn't bother to check the schedule for the haunted pub crawl and well, it was cancelled for the Turkey day weekend. Not being quitters, hubby and I headed out on our own pub crawl. But, let me digress......we checked into the Westin which I believe is the hotel being used for the Zooma Race and it is FABULOUS!! I don't say that lightly. When we first arrived I thought they might be a bit arrogant about their "beds", there were pamplets and advertisements on how you could own your own Westin bed and/ or linens. "Really", I thought, how great could a hotel bed be? We got to our room to find it was beautiful; the decor, the lighting and Yes, the bed was inviting with the pristine white linen, down comforter, fluffy pillows to include neck pillows, but still, how great could it really be?? I didn't give it a try yet. We settled our stuff and noticed the coffee maker in the room, which in my experience with other rooms is less than desirable, it actually had Starbucks coffee and Tazo tea. Hmmmmm, we did bring our own supply of mini bottles to include baileys and Starbucks liquor, so why not give the room coffe a try. Certainly the alcohol could make most coffee exceptable. Well, let me tell you, it was AWESOME!! So, with a drink (or two) under our belts we set out on foot to explore historic Annapolis. We found great little boutiques, fun little pubs, friendly people but very few ghost stories. A previous visit a few years ago, took us to other establishments with more sppoky tales though!!
Summary of some of the places we visited:
**Our favorite pub/ restaurant by far was Stan & Joes. It had more seating, great staff, fun patrons and great food/drinks.
*Our least favorite was Fox Lair. It was small, and well, rather snooty.
*Everyone recommends Pussser's for seafood and we did end up there at the end of the night but was too tired/ full to eat anymore so just shared an appetizer.
*Another great place to visit is the Naval academy. Being Navy, I love this place. It is right on the water, has a visitor's center complete with movie; a beautiful chapel, an interesting cemetary.....I could go on....
*If you like breakfast, try Chick and Ruth's, this is a little nook that is full of personality. It is a second generation family owned establishment that is very patriotic. They even do the pledge every morning. They have a website to view also.

*Our last visit we sent on a 2 hour sailing trip which was alot of fun too and family friendly.

Many of the establishments have been there since George Washington and the other founding father's frequented them. It is a great place for family and /or adult fun. Basically what I am saying that besides running the Zooma, this could be a great weekend get- a-way for the family or just the girls or anything in between!! Lastly, in closing, the beds at the Westin are every bit they were cracked up to be. I couldn't believe it!! I didn't want to get up. I didn't bother to look at how much it would cost to have "my own", because I am sure they weren't cheap!!!

Sorry this blog is so disjointed! It took me three days. With four boys, it seems that lately I can't get 5 minutes to myself without one of them"needing" me!!
Happy New Year gals!

waiting. waiting.

Alas, my plan had been to wait until I had something really GREAT to post here (not sure what that would look like---but I was waiting none the less :)).

And I waited.


and waited.


And just now realized that this is pretty much it. Im a faithful reader and return here daily to snatch up some motivation and encouragement from my fellow bloggers so Ill toss at you what I have & return to WRITE when I have more.

we moved over Christmas (Im never NOT thankful to be Jewish but I was EXTRA thankful that we had the days off/no at-the-house festivities for which to prepare. it made for a FAST MOVE) and I guess my small victory was that I keep up with my workouts even given the craziness of life.

I know it is TRITE but it's also so true that we women tend to GIVEGIVE and neglect ourselves.

I always fret about my husband and try to sneak him as much sans-toddler time as I can so he can relax.

all that to say I gave myself the gift of SELFISHNESS this holiday season.

instead of saying "is it ok if I work out for 30 min?" I asked "I wanna work out for 30 minutes---YOU pick the best time!"

and it was amazing.

and energizing.


and stress reducing.


(oh, and I also gave myself the gift of an AWESOME new tattoo (2 years in the planning) which I may or may not share with ya'll later :))

hope your holiday was as relaxing and here's to a FANTASTIC 2008.

It's begining to look like 2008 is here

Greetings from the first snowfall in Kentucky! I am glad to stay all is well here and writing today will get me to the gym and on the treadmill. I've only had a few sporadic runs the past few weeks. I did however get for Christmas a new running partner. No, I've not turned the husband in, but we adopted "Chrissy" the Christmas puppy. She's a German Shepard and quite the busy one. I am out of my mind since my little one has only been sleeping through the night for a month. Now I'm outside pottying the dog every two hours. This is nuts. I think my kids need a dog, but I'm getting ready to move to DC next summer and already have my hands full. I did have a thought today that helps. Wear out the kids and wear out the puppy goes hand in hand with running. I make it a point to get us all out every day and just move. Now we all get to take turns walking her. Happy New Year.

Faster, Mommy! Faster!

Paula Radcliffe’s success at the NYC Marathon this past November, has brought a lot of attention to something that I have known for a while: kids can make you faster! It is not automatic, but having children and training with them has made me faster, stronger and more resilient. This can apply to anyone. I’m no Paula Radcliffe, but the great thing about running is that you are generally competing against yourself anyway. On most runs, you are probably either trying to beat your own time or beat that internal clock of your child(ren) that EXPLODES after 44 ½ minutes in the jogging stroller.

I have several hypotheses as to why there is so much anecdotal evidence for women getting faster after having children. In no particular order,

1. There is a physiological explanation such as the increased blood volume or lung capacity of pregnancy has some lasting effect.

2. There is a mental explanation. You are just so glad to “have your body back,” as they say, after your forced hiatus, that you expend a greater effort and therefore, see greater results. Such is the example of an injured athlete coming back stronger after an injury.

3. It is a matter of maturity as a runner and you would have gotten faster as you logged more miles and experience with or without the kids.

4. A little something called RESISTANCE TRAINING in the form of 70 pounds of children in a 30 pound jogging stroller.

I am certain that I improved my running at a much faster rate by training with my kids in the jogging stroller than I would have on my own. You get more anaerobic strength training going uphill, faster turnover going downhill, and you can bring all the water you want along with you. The hardest part for many people is how to get your kids to cooperate with these jaunts. That is what this blog is going to be about. My PR stroller run is 21 miles and my daughter still hops right into the stroller today, so I hope to share some tips and stories to help you get out the door WITH your kids in 2008. Happy New Year!

Happy New Year Tomorrow

I remember the pure joy of ringing in the new year. Especially when single and on the prowl or with a new boyfriend (or new husband) and cherishing that midnight lip lock!! I even remember celebrating midnight when I was a kid during one of my parent's big parties. It was so much fun sneaking into the kitchen to see if there was still a few drops of margaritas clinging to the sides of the blender!

It is 11:00pm EST. I have not been awake at midnight to "ring in the new year" in 5 years. Yes, 5 years! My youngest is 3.5, so I was lame about New Year's Eve before having kids. But I was soooo not lame in many other ways - so hush (okay, I was really going to type BITE ME)!

This year's Plan #1:
This year I was going to head to a dear friend's house and get in the spirit (if you know what I mean). Alas, my 1yo began puking last night. She stopped this morning after being up 4 times last night and covering us both with (well, I won't go into details). Poor little thing. It was so sad to watch. However, I decided it best to keep our germs to ourselves and forego the party.

Plan #2:
I was exhausted from being up all night. So at 6pm I headed out to get a triple shot latte!!! That should do the trick and keep me awake when the clock strikes 12!
Ate dinner.
Baby down at 7:30pm.
Hubby let me squeeze in a workout in our garage gym.
Toddler down at 8:30pm (with hubby who was supposed to stay up, drink wine, and play Scrabble - which we used to enjoy playing years ago).
Hubby fell asleep with toddler.

And here I sit with some dark chocolate (thanks Brae) and red wine (really, really good red wine - thanks Amy).
I began working on my laptop because my work has been piling up.
Chocolate is gone.
Wine is gone.
House is quiet.
My mind is quiet.
My heart is full and thankful for all the love I share.
Should I watch a movie?
Should I read?
Should I sanitize this germ-ridden house?

Nope, I'm heading to bed.
Signing off at 11:12 pm EST.
Happy New Year to someone somewhere OR everyone everywhere.
I will go kiss my kids and husband on the forehead while they sleep. (or maybe not - it might wake them!!!!)
Silence is truly golden!

Here's to a fabulous 2008!!!! This year is going to truly ROCK!

Gettin' Back in the Groove Post Holiday

So how did everyone do? I know we haven't made it past New Year's Eve yet, but most of the holiday eating-season is behind us. Wow. I, for one, am glad it's done! I am so tired of massive meals! I'm sure I'm like a lot of people who have to do multiple-celebrations...you know, one with the parents, one with the step-mom and dad, step-dad and mom, step-grandparent and other, um, grandparent....you get the point. My kids are over-gifted, I'm over stuffed and in need of some veggies!

I've somehow managed to keep up some running during the past week. Leading up to Christmas was hard because of all the errands but once we got to the big day, getting out for a run was a huge stress reliever for me. I got in my longest run ever just before the holiday of 10 miles! I'm pretty pumped about that one still. I think knowing that I was able to do that helped me stay active through the following week and was able to do another 10 mile run and then some. I'm still amazed at what getting out for a run can do for me mentally, not just physically. I truly am a better wife and mother if I'm able to get that me-time in especially knowing that it is time spent making myself better physically and working for that big overall half marathon goal. I think that is something that some day, my kids will be proud of. Happy New Year to you all!!

Space Coast Half

Although I trained for and ran a marathon last January, and although I have kept up a somewhat respectable training routine since then, I completed my first official half-marathon last month. I was timid, mostly because my left foot had been aching; a mysterious soreness that seems to alternate between my plantar and my achilles. Basically, I feared that a long run at race pace might knock me out of the sport for a while. No one has ever confused me for being Kenyan, so it wasn't a huge shift to slow to a 12 minute mile.

I drove up to Cocoa for a warm Florida race that unveiled a new theme this year: Space. From the countdown of the Space Shuttle on the jumbotron at the start, to the alien costumes running past me, the excitement was in the air. I even saw dolphins twice along the Indian River route. Without the lust for a PR, I was able to pay attention to the moment and really enjoy running for running's sake. After feeling fine at the turn-around, I started to pick it up a bit. By the last 5K, I was full of energy and inspiration. I was passing people left and right, even skipping my intervals with little effort. All was well, I had made up lots of time and was ending up a little faster than predicted.

When I came around the corner of the public park, the crowd went wild. Not only did I have the regular race photographers snapping away, I had video cameras surrounding me. People were clapping and yelling "Looking good!" I felt like a million bucks....until I heard a bicycle approaching from behind and a man yelling "Get out of the way!!!!!"

Thirty-three year old, Ezekiel Ruto, was hurtling towards me and quite possibly would have mowed me over had the "Lead Runner" biker not come through. Ezekiel was completing the full marathon just about the time I was finishing the half. Still, it was a great race. And basking in the winner's glory for 25 seconds was nice, too.