Moving to a new blog

I have started a new blog, Widow Running, for posts dealing with my running mostly. I do not have time to spend with the "frugal" aspects these days and plus I find it easier to manage some blog features using wordpress (a program I blog with for my job)

Keep hoping to get past this wall

Well I signed up for the Godparent 5K which occurs this weekend. I am hoping to run the entire time and hopefully finish in under 40 minutes. I seem to be back at hitting the 2 mile wall again--like when I first began running over 2 years ago. My mile times are so slow (12-13 min)these days. I have had a dickens of a time squeezing in runs and trying to enjoy them since most runs have been on the treadmill or in the afternoon (ran this afternoon and don't like even the 75 degree heat-yuck) I may end up walking especially if I am pushing the jogging stroller with the combined weight of my 2 boys which is about 100 lbs. Needless to say these extra grief/stress pounds on me that I have gained and struggled to shed DO NOT HELP either.

Over my spring break I got to enjoy 3 morning runs---how I miss those AM runs. I like the coolness, lack of traffic---and I just have more energy in the AM. I feel better for the rest of the day when I get to run in the AM. I even got in 2 "long" runs of 4 miles. Two years ago my long runs were 8-10 miles...sigh. I am slower and I cannot wait for running to be a joy again instead of a chore. I have to keep racing or I might give up running. I have to make myself have a goal. I am vaguely toying with the idea of a half marathon in the late fall. I have got to have a challenge to keep me striving and pushing forward.

On a brighter note, my eldest son seems to like basketball. He played in a short winter session through the YMCA. If he can master getting his limbs to work together, I think he can be quite good at basketball. He and I have been getting in some play at least once a week--I am not exactly a brilliant coach or even a good player--I can somewhat dribble but I am a poor shooter---but I did attend UNC and that should count for something----success by association maybe? He is also starting to like baseball more. Last year we made it to a Cardinals' game at the beautiful Busch Stadium and this summer we are planning to catch a Braves game in Atlanta. We go to the local minor league games and now he hangs out on the right field sideline hoping to catch foul balls. He is getting a good handle on the stats associated with the game. He has a mathematical, problem solving mind which is also apparent in his improving chess strategies. I am proud of him on so many levels. He is a good kid.

Struggles

I continue to have computer problems, therefore, I am composing this long overdue post on my phone (so please forgive typos).

I am struggling to get my miles in each week. Whereas I used to run early in the AM logging 20 miles per week, now I struggle to get in 8 miles a few afternoons a week. My long run is nonexistent at this point as all my runs are only 2-3 miles. I struggle with lack of time, hating to run on the treadmill and 15 extra lbs (not that I was even at goal weight b4).

I long for the old days. I am not giving up...I just can't figure out how to set goals, get over this slump and come up with a doable & enjoyable workout plan.

PS...doing more posting on my other blog (motherhoodandmore)

Back to running - Godparent 5K

In some ways the past 5 months have seemed like both a few weeks and a few years. Thanks to a running pal, whose daughter has and will watch my boys on race days, I am getting back to running. After not really running for almost two months, I am struggling but making some progress. Today I ran in the Godparent 5K with a time that was 1.5 minutes slower than my time in this race last year. The 2008 Godparent race was the last 5K my husband saw me run in. I always enjoyed having my family come to races but they found the waiting a boring endeavor. They came out for the 10 miler last year. I do miss Andy, it is hard to think about those times - sometimes it seems so long ago.

I am still working to get in more than 9 miles running each week. If I can pick up my time, I can get in more miles. The afternoon heat is another thing I am having to work through and the weather is still fairly cool in perspective. I was looking back at my times in races from last year and I did one race in just under a 10 minute mile pace. My goal is go get back to that as I work to drop the 20 pounds I gained as I grieved by eating.

Postings

I am posting on my other blog for a bit---through my journey of grief.

Andy

I am not ready to write of this yet. On his blog our friend, Scott, wrote a loving tribute to my husband.
Like Andy, Scott has a beautiful way with words. Thank you Scott.

Grief

Thank you for your prayers. I am still in shock that Andy is gone. The obit will be in tomorrow's newspaper.

Celebrating Christmas without any money

Here are some of my favorite links for celebrating this joyous holiday with little or no money:

Goshen College -wonderful Advent devotions - subscribe to have them emailed to you daily

How to celebrate Christmas without any money

39 Frugal Tips for Saving Money at Christmas

Dollar Stretcher –Christmas articles

Toymaker –lots of free beautiful Christmas printables along with printables for other holidays & toys

Homemade Christmas Cards

How to make a 3D paper snowflake

Free and Low-Cost Christmas Gifts-Homemade Christmas Gifts that Won't Break the Bank

My Frugal Holiday: Clue Gift

Christmas Gifts that don't cost a dime - Dollar Stretcher

Giblet Jog

Thursday morning was quite a bit colder(22 degrees) than I had planned and actually a tad bit colder that I like for running but after the first 1/2 mile when the numbness in my fingers wore off-I rather enjoyed the experience. I ran in a local Thanksgiving day 5K which was held on a small town high school cross country course. It was not easy, but it was enjoyable. There were less than 150 people running which I liked and it was a beautiful morning on an interesting course. I enjoyed the after race chit chatting and I met some nice runners and their families.

I finished in just a few seconds past 34 minutes. I do not know my official time yet and I forgot to turn off my watch for several minutes after finishing. This finish was not a personal best or even a great time by my own standards. However, considering I had just recovered from an 48 hour intestinal virus earlier in the week and I had not been able to exercise at all for the 5 days prior, I was happy with just finishing in under 35 min. I will probably not run another race for a while now because there are not that many in the winter and to save on cash. I will continue running through the winter as I do love running best in 30-40 degree weather. I would love to do this jog again next year.

Thrifty and simple holiday -freebies from Oprah

This Wednesday on her show, How to Have the Thriftiest Holiday Ever, Oprah has some great suggestions and freebies. (Click here for the link to get to her site about this show.) She has a free holiday album that you can download for the next 24 hours-HURRY--along with a CD cover and label. Among many other ideas she has downloadable notecards for making gratitude notes for loved ones. I love this idea-take the time now to tell those you love what you love about them, what you are thankful for and for what you wish for them! Thanks, OPRAH!

late 11/28/08 UPDATE: The free album is no longer available but you can still get the free notecards for gratitude box gifts.

Hummus - a toddler's delight!

My toddler is a picky eater but he LOVES eating hummus. Making hummus is one way I ensure that he gets enough protein and at least some green veggies. He calls hummus, "Thomas" and he has been known to eat 3-4 servings! (I love it too! If it were less points, I would eat half a batch myself.) We serve it on crackers, pita bread, raw veggies like cucumbers or carrots, or as a spread for sandwiches. Hummus is high in iron and vitamin C and chickpeas are a good source of protein and fiber.

Hummus is SO EASY to make and you can adapt it to add whatever flavors you like. We like it with spinach, but I have used roasted peppers or dill.

Hummus with tahini & spinach
POINTS® Value: 3
Servings: 8
cost when using dried peas: ~ $1.35 per batch, ~ $ 0.17 per serving
cost when using canned peas: ~$1.55 per batch, ~$ 0.19 per serving

Ingredients:
* 2 cup(s) cooked chickpeas
(I use 5 oz of dried chickpeas-see prep note below, but you can use a can of prepared chickpeas to save time.)
* 1/4 cup(s) water
* 1/4 cup(s) lemon juice, canned or bottled
* 4 clove(s) garlic clove(s) minced
* 1/2 tsp table salt
* 3 tbsp canned tahini
* 1 tbsp dried parsley
* 1-2 cups fresh spinach
* 3 tbsp olive oil

Instructions:
The day before soak the dried chickpeas in water for 8 or so hours. Then cook for 1 hour or so until tender. I soak them in the crockpot with the pot turned off and then cook them for a few hours in the crock pot.

Place all ingredients in the food processor or blender and puree to a fine consistency. Add more liquid if necessary. Serve with pita bread, crackers, or fresh crunchy veggies.

FRUGAL / SUBSTITUTION NOTE: To pinch pennies or if you do not have tahini on hand you can use 3 TBL. of peanut butter instead of tahini. It does change the taste. My toddler doesn't seem to care which version I make.

Peanut butter version is
POINTS® Value: 3
Servings: 8
cost when using dried peas: ~ $1.10 per batch, ~ $ 0.14 per serving
cost when using canned peas: ~$1.30 per batch, ~$ 0.16 per serving

Family, healing, Thanksgiving Day race & budgeting

I have had an odd week. My husband has been very ill and I have needed to take sick leave all week to care for him and our toddler. I am thankful I have the days to take and I am praying that he is healed SOON!

I just registered for the Giblet Jog instead of the Turkey Trot. Some gals from Weight Watchers are running in the Jog and plus I did not feel like facing the hills of the trot. At this point, I am just hoping I can make it to the race since my dh is not recovering at this point. Also, I am out of the training loop with being in the house mostly. I have tried to do some workout videos but it is just not the same as running.

Also, I regret that I am going to have to end my membership in Weight Watchers due to budget constraints. My last meeting will be the one after Thanksgiving. I could not have made it thus far in my weight loss journey without my local WW unit. Our Saturday leader is the MOST wonderful teacher and a positive influence. She inspires me to continue. I love the WW e-tools (point tracker, recipe builder, etc.) Maybe sometime next year I can rejoin.

Long recovery, new race

I have had a dickens of a time with recovery since the 10 miler. My hamstring continues to bug me and I just feel like I am running so sluggishly. I am planning to run in the Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving day. I have not prepped for this race like I have others I have run. I can't seem to get into a regular routine of running with the cold temps, rainy weather, and since the time change. I have not been getting in miles each week like I was doing a month or so ago.

I have gone to the Y on several occasions in the last week or so to do speed drills on the treadmill and also to do work on the elliptical to give my knees a break. I still feel sluggish. This past August when I ran my last 5K before the 10 miler, I was pleased with my mile pace of just under 10 minutes. I am just hoping to get even close to that for the turkey day race. (esp. since the upcoming race seems to have a fair number of hills.) I think I just lack a little race "fire" and drive for competition---or maybe I just need some good old-fashioned Jamie Summers/Bionic Woman "music" when I am running!

Exercise and thriftiness

A friend of ours repaired and tuned up my bicycle. I have gone out several times in the past week or so to try it out. This area has lots of nice bike trails and parks. In addition to biking for leisure, I plan to begin commuting 1 or 2 days per week to work. I will combine cycling on the roads and a short distance on a bike path for a total of about 9.25 miles each way. I have done trial runs on the commute breaking it up into 2 halves for the purpose of testing it out.

This will save us gas. I can cut out the driving to the YMCA for the 2 days a week. I had been going to spinning classes. Plus I will save by cycling instead of driving the car to work 2 days per week. I used www.fueleconomy.gov to figure out that each day commuting by car costs me about $3.50 in gas. By commuting 2 days and not driving to the YMCA to "cycle" we can save almost $10-12 a week. This may not seem like much but we are pinching every penny and this will mean about $40-$48 a month. That is a week's worth of groceries!

Plateau ~aaarrggh!

For the past few months now I have been on a plateau and struggling back and forth with the same 5 or so pounds. Last weekend and this weekend when I weighed in at Weight Watchers, I was disappointed to learn that in these 2 weeks I have gained a total of almost 5 pounds. I am considering switching to Core but I am apprehensive because I feel like I need the accountability of Flex with point counting plus I need to study up on Core a bit.

I am perplexed as to why I am having these difficulties. It maybe it is because Mack has been totally weaned for 3 weeks now (I have adjusted my points accordingly.) or maybe it is because I am only getting 4-6 hours of sleep a night (too many tasks to get done at home and for work). I think I also need to get back to strength training to build more muscle mass. If it is not one of those I will have to do some serious reflection.

Lentil Soup ~ Tasty, Healthy & Frugal

This is one of my favorite recipes to make especially on chilly days. It is originally from the 1st edition Moosehead Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. I have doctored it a bit to make it thriftier.

Servings: 8
Points per serving: 4
Cooking time: all day
Cost per serving: Less than $ .40
Goes well with: Grilled cheese sandwich(see recipe below), any sandwich

Ingredients & Directions:

Simmer for 4 hours covered:
1 lb raw lentils, rinsed
8 cups of water or stock
2 tsp kosher salt

Saute in 2 tsp of olive oil. Then add to simmering lentils.
2 tsp garlic, minced
1 c. onion, chopped
1 c. celery, minced (I substitute celery leaf or even celery seed if I am out of celery.)
1 c. carrots, chopped

Add these last ingredients about 30 minutes before serving:
black pepper
1 can of diced tomatoes (or use fresh tomatoes--sometimes for a change I use store brand "rotel" tomatoes)
2 Tbs lemon juice
1.5 Tbs brown sugar or molasses
1 Tbs wine vinegar

Hints: Thicken it up by decreasing the liquid slightly or by letting it simmer longer. I cook this all day in the crockpot.

2 Point Grilled Cheese Sandwich
2 slices of nature's own double fiber bread
1 slice Borden 2% cheese (counts as one milk serving)
Spray bread with nonstick spray and grill!

Personal note: This soup was part of the first meal I fixed for my husband when we were dating. I was a strict lacto-ovo vegetarian back then. My body was used to the amount of fiber, but his was not. We ate this meal together, then he got in his car to make the 2 hour commute back home. We dated long distance for that first year. Needless to say it was a bit of a painful drive home for him that trip. :)

Frugal posts ~Stretching a dollar

My friends have been persistent in their requests for how I save money. My husband has threatened to start sitting at my side and taking notes so that he can answer their questions. Therefore, I am going to begin trying to post on this blog some of our frugal practices. My future posts on this blog will include:

1.) my running and training, (It IS my addiction that gives me energy to do everything else!--If you are not a runner, just skip these posts.)
2.) my couponing practices,
3.) grocery shopping techniques,
4.) frugal, healthy recipes,
5.) my CVS mega savings scenarios, and
6.) other general frugal practices.

Back to normal ~ Recovery

This week I finally feel like I am back to "normal" with running. The first week after the 10 miler, I had numerous general aches and pains and my legs felt like they were made of lead which made running more of a chore than a joy. That week I could hardly get in 10 miles total. The following week we celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary with a get-away trip. Between the get-away (which was delightful and made me wish we had days and days alone together-but that is another blog entry in itself) and the rainy weather I did not get to run for several days---to boot I forgot to pack my running shoes.

With a delightful 7.5 mile run this beautiful, autumn morning, I am back up to a little over 25 miles for the week --plus 2 cycling classes. I feel refreshed and invigorated again. Running and exercise is truly an addiction for me. I feel grumpy and slow when I miss my workouts. Physically,I am still struggling with a tight left hamstring which I have not been able to shake. Also, speed seems to elude me a bit, but working back in speed work in the coming weeks in order to cut my 5K times is my goal. Plus, I have been battling the same 5 pounds off and on since APRIL!

I had hoped to reach my weight goal by taking off my last 30 pounds by now. I considering switching to Core with weight watchers...I just haven't figured what to do yet. It does not help(calorie wise) that we are weaning our 2 year old. Weaning this time is tough for me, since I want to hang on to every last bit of babyhood with our last child. If money was not an issue I would love to have 1 or 2 more ~ plus having a girl would be nice. Children just grow up so fast. ~sigh~

Not last!

Race finished....not last....mission accomplished! The 10-miler was more and less than I expected. There were many more participants than I had envisioned. Starting a race with more than a thousand people was something I had never experienced before. It was humid, it was hard, but I did it. I finished in 2 hours, 2 minutes and some change.

I met my goal of keeping my own pace in the beginning of the race and I managed to not get caught up in the excitement of running with others faster than my pace. As it turns out, my beginning pace was the pace (about 12 minute miles) I maintained throughout the remainder of the race. I was not fast by any stretch of the imagination. I had hoped to finish in under 2 hours --but now that's my goal for next year's race.

I expected to have to pull out all my reserves in the last 2 miles of the race but unexpectedly I struggled between miles 1 and 3 as well. In training, I enjoy getting into a groove on longer runs and getting lost in thought, however, this is hard to accomplish when there are so many other people around and bands playing loud music every few miles or so. (I like my own MP3 selections.)

The spectators and volunteers were great! There were more groups than I could count. I saw quite a few familiar faces and for once I was not concerned with what I looked like as I passed by them.(frazzled, exhausted, red-faced and sweating like a pig) One of my coworkers, who is a perpetual cheerleader in life, was on the sidelines encouraging me onward both times that I passed her on Rivermont Avenue. The students in front of Randy Mac were awesome. One group formed a line and high-fived me as I passed by-I needed that at the 6 mile mark!

My favorite encourager by far was my 6 year old son. He stood just inside the barricades, a few yards before the finish line. Before crossing the finish line, I went over and high-fived him....I wanted him to run with me across the finish line but I wasn't sure if that was against the rules.

I had victory in finishing and reaching my goals. (Also, I had victory in the last 1/4 mile as a gentleman, who I surmise was in his 70s, started to pass me and I gathered every bit of strength I had left to "sprint" and keep ahead of him--my husband referred to this man as my "Octogenarian nemesis." My husband blogged about the 10-miler from his point of view. I could not have gotten this far without my husband's support and encouragement--he is truly my greatest cheerleader!

My legs felt like lead for the rest of the Saturday and Sunday. They were sore when I ran a short 3 miles this morning....but the addiction continues.

My goals for next year's 10-miler:
1. Finish in under 2 hours
2. Train for heat and humidity
3. Lose 30 lbs

My goals for the next 6 months:
1. Work on mile times to work towards 9 minute miles
2. Do more speed work
3. Run in some 5Ks to work towards goal #1

No rain delay - running in the rain

When I heard that the remnants of hurricane Hannah would bring us rain, I saw it as an opportunity to try my first run in the rain. Although this was my first "rain run" it was not my first foul weather run. When I was in Boone this past Christmas, I enjoyed a 2 mile run on the Blue Ridge Parkway in the sleet and snow.

I ran the 10 miler course again today with the temperature in the mid 60s and a nice, steady rain. The first 4 miles were not bad at all, although I warmed up more slowly because normally I am warmed up 1 mile into a run and today it took 2 miles. I added only a visor to my regular running attire. I did make sure to wear my smartwool socks, knowing that wool wears better than cotton when wet. (I learned that lesson backpacking in downpours in the back country in Denali Park.) I also applied vaseline to known and predicted friction spots.

Things I learned today:
1) My rain soaked shorts "grew" longer after 5 miles.

2) My inner upper arm is a friction spot --I will remember next time as pain creates change.

3) I prefer running in the rain to any running on days with temps over 70 degrees.

4) Trying to avoid puddles is not worth the extra effort especially after 5 miles.

5) Running in the rain requires less water than hot days but more nutrition. Although I drank 2 liters of fluid (1 propel & 1 water) after finishing, I was jonesing for food after 6 miles.

6) I missed my MP3 player, but it was not as bad as I thought.

7) Running with a partner is a good practice in rain or shine.

8) I ran slower in the rain.

9) It is best not to run until there is at least some daylight.

9) I can do this!