Three Thing Thursday...Celebrations

1. Mom and Dad are home! Yea!!!!!! After just shy of 10 weeks in the hospital,  I picked them up at the airport yesterday. It is oh so good to see them back in Denver. While mom will still have some work to do on getting back to full strength she can now do it from her own home.

2. This guy turned 18 yesterday. Wow unbelievable how fast the time goes. 

 Prom this past weekend

Senior picture

3. Not quite as important...I got new shoes! I went with the men's to see if the wider width would be better. So far I think I like them, but I've only got a few miles on them.

 

Glad that’s done....Platte River ½ Marathon Race Report

I’m going to keep this short, none of you want to hear me whine, and I could (and have) believe me.  The race and packet pick up is well organized and smooth, and although this is the 2^nd time I’ve run this race  I’ve yet to participate in any of the finish line festivities. The only positive about my race is that I got to see some friends.

 Jill and I (I was as thrilled to be there as I look)

 

Kathleen , me, Meg 

As you know I went into this race very under trained. Now while some people might have the fitness base to carry them through it...I obviously do not. It hurt. Yes other races hurt, but not like this. Miles 1-5 were not too bad, I have no idea what my times were as I walked out of the house without my Garmin, miles 5-10 were tolerable. Some running some walking, by miles 11-13 I was pretty darn miserable and most of my time was spent walking. The wind had picked up and at times felt like you were being pushed backwards. The temps dropped and there were a few sprinkles here and there. Everything hurt,  I felt like I was dragging my left leg along for the ride, it was kind of a strange sensation.  The last mile was ridiculous. There is a bridge over the highway, while it’s not a huge hill it is a hill, really the only of the course, and the bridge seemed to go on forever and ever,  thank god for the fence on the side of the bridge because the wind gusts were so strong they were literally blowing us over. In the end I achieved a personal worst of 3:02.

The only other thing I have to say is that I will never go into a race of this length feeling so completely under trained. 

Now it is time to get down to business....when I stop hurting.... :)

What's for Dinner? Couscous Confetti Salad

This is not a great photo, but trust me this was really tasty! To make it more of a meal I added chickpeas and it was great! I liked it slightly warm after first mixing the hot couscous and I really liked it cold. I did heat it one time too and didn't care for that as much.

 Couscous Confetti Salad
Makes about 8 1-cup servings
Couscous is pasta from northern Africa that cooks almost instantly and makes a beautiful and flavorful salad. Whole-wheat couscous is sold in natural food stores and some supermarkets.
1 ¹/₂ cups dry whole-wheat couscous
2 cups boiling water
3 - 4 green onions, finely chopped, including tops
1 red bell pepper, seeded and finely diced
1 carrot, grated
1 - 2 cup finely shredded red cabbage
¹/₂ cup finely chopped fresh parsley
¹/₂ cup golden raisins or chopped dried apricots
1 juice of 1 lemon
¹/₄ cup seasoned rice vinegar
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon curry powder
1 ¹/₂ teaspoons salt

In a large bowl, combine couscous and boiling water. Stir to mix, then cover and let stand until all the water has been absorbed, 5 to 10 minutes. Fluff with a fork.

Add green onions, bell pepper, carrot, cabbage, parsley, and raisins or apricots.

In a small bowl mix lemon juice, vinegar, oil, curry powder, and salt. Add to salad and toss to mix. Serve at room temperature or chilled.

Well...glad I got that out of the way for the year

Yep...I fell over on my bike (and I hope that it is the only time this year!) I tried to make a really sharp turn while maneuvering thought these bumpy things and the next thing you know... boom.  Jill managed to contain most of her laughter while I'm sure being very thankful it wasn't her. It could have been worse, and it didn't stop it from being a beautiful ride and as always a great time. The weather here in Denver has just been crazy warm. 80's both days this weekend! It will be interesting to see what the rest of spring and summer brings us.

Week 2 of 70.3 training brought still no two- a- day workouts, but another week of 6 workouts. 4 - runs,  1- swim and 1 - bike.  Still not where I need to be but luckily there is plenty of time for improvements. I did have more miles running this week than I have since last spring. Although I was close to this mileage at the end of my 70.3 training last year. That is not to say it was good. I had only 17 miles, not near enough with a 1/2 mary in two weeks. Today's "long" run of 7 miles was slow, really slow and in fact was mostly a 2 minute run 1 minute walk.  Lucky for me those I will be doing it with have had as many issues as I and are no better trained. :) I think it will just be a fun run/walk with friends. This weekends "long" run will likely be my last before the 1/2. Not because I need to taper :) but because  I'll be heading to Florida for a long weekend visit with my Mom and Dad. I'm excited to see them and with any luck it will help them to have a different face around  for a few days. Mom seems to be improving slowly but steadily. I'm hoping that this week will bring no setbacks and lots of gains! I told her I would like to see her out of bed and walking some when I get there.