Drama Queen!

ARL has always had a love of theater.  Most people hate getting up on stage in front of crowds...not our daughter. She has danced since she was 3, plays violin, sings in Chorus and has just performed in her third play. 

Here are a few pics from her recent performance in Philadelphia.  She played King Henry in "Robin Hood".

10 miles! 1:45!

What a lovely day for a long run!

In two weeks, I have a 10 mile race! I think I will 11 next weekend so that the race feels shorter to me. My goals for the upcoming 10 mile race are:

1. Beat last year's 10 mile race time of 1:51
2. Come in under 1:45

Alright all you runners...I know I'm going to hear the arguments for starting to taper tomorrow and resting next weekend.  Bring 'em on...give me 3 good reasons not run 11 next weekend and maybe I'll listen.

Since 2:10 today....

I have been alone in my house. It's delightfully quiet. These last two hours have been wonderful....

I worked out.  I showered.  No one interrupted me.  I even got to shave my legs!  The only noise was the peaceful sound of the water.  No TV, music, or yelling.

I began my prep work for dinner.  Our neighbors are coming tonight.  I cut fresh herbs, chopped veggies, and set up all my serving platters. 

Now, I'm blogging.  I'm sitting in my quiet office catching up on reading my favorite blogs. 

It's been so nice.  Just what I needed to recharge.  Did I mention how blissfully quiet it is? 

Who knew alone time could be so great??  

9 miles, a smile, and a product review...

Friday's weather was perfect! I escaped for a 9 miler and felt really great afterwards. In fact, you couldn't wipe the smile off my face all day. Nothing hurt post run...and the miles really came easy.  That's my kind of day.  I will head out for 4 tomorrow to bring my weekly total to 17 miles.  My 10 mile race is just around the corner (see race schedule at right).

The kind folks at Tostitos gave me a free coupon for their new Artisan Recipe chips.  All I needed to do was let you guys know what I think of them.  I picked the garlic & blackbean.  Our whole family dug in and here are the comments;

ARL (age 9):  Yumm, these are good
JAL (age 6):  I am not eating these...I hate black beans.  You can't make me, Mom.  (watch everyone else dig in).  Hmmm...these chips are good.  Really good.  And, I don't even like black beans.
ML (age over 40):  Good...but I like my Doritos better.  Disclaimer:  The man can eat a whole bag in one sitting...he is quite the fan.
Me (age 36):  Better than plain tortilla chips...not too salty. You can definitely taste that there is more than just corn in the chips.  I would buy them again for sure.

Check them out!

75 tomorrow!

75 incredible degrees tomorrow. WOO HOO! I cannot wait. I can tell you that the sun roof will be open and the windows down while I'm out at clients!

It's been another crazy busy week and I'm so looking forward to the weekend.  Not that there will be much relaxing going on...but I need it just to catch up on some sleep!

Hubby ran a 1-miler tonight...8:23.  Nice job!  He did it for the free Guinness!  Happy St. Patrick's day!  I have a 9-mile run to do this weekend.  Looking forward to the alone time!

My wonderful weekend...

Wow...what a great weekend!

Friday night we saw ARL perform in a Lip Sync contest. While she didn't win, she did great and was proud of herself.

Saturday, I went shopping. Just my Mom and I. I got a boat load of new things all for $200. My favorite was a Ralph Lauren dress that looks great on me...It was only $30! Saturday night my Mom and her friend Pat cooked a delicious Italian dinner for a whole bunch of us (Hi, Edo). We feasted on pork, ravioli, spaghetti florentine, veggies, homemade biscotti, apple tart, yummmmmmmm.

Yesterday, I rocked an 8.7 mile run in 1:27.  Seems like I can hold the 10 minute mile on the longer distances.  YEAH!  I would love to break 1:40 in my upcoming 10 miler.  After my run, we went to my inlaws for March Birthday dinners.  It was another fabulous meal!  We also found out that ARL scored the lead in a play on stage in Philly!  So proud!

I'm headed off to work now and then out to dinner for Sushi.  Today's my 36th...so far, so good.

So proud of my kiddos....

Today was truly a great day.
 
JAL was recommended for the gifted program.  His testing wrapped up last month and we've been anxiously been awaiting the results.  We are all so proud.  He was smiling ear to ear tonight! 


ARL went on her first "real" audition tonight.  She has auditioned for parts before....but these were all in theater schools. This was a real audition in a real theater.  She had to sing and read lines for Guys and Dolls.  I give her so much credit for getting up there in front of 31 other people who were trying out.  It takes bravery and courage! 

I keep telling her what I keep telling myself about my upcoming marathon...


"Don't congratulate me on finishing....Congratulate me for having the courage to start!"

Happy Weekend!

Why I love weekends:

• Taking a break and reconnecting with kids and hubby after an insanely busy week
• No alarm clocks
• Great wine, good food, and conversations with friends (impromptu Friday night get together with the neighbors, friends coming to dinner tonight, and seeing my college room mate and her 3 kids tomorrow)
• Runs (and recovery naps)

What's on your agenda for the weekend?  Do you love weekends as much as I do?

A long week...and 7 miles tomorrow.

Phew...am I glad this week is over.  It certainly seemed longer than the rest of them.

Highs:  GIEP meeting for my daughter, 1st chiropractic adjustment, really good week at work
Lows:  Worked a lot of hours, missed some workouts (cross train), missed some sleep, and got in a fight with Air Tran, Expedia and my credit card company.  Why can no one "find" my refund???

7 miles tomorrow should calm the mind and provide the much needed mental break from the stresses of the world.  Looking forward to a weekend of good food and good friends.

Crazy Busy!

I am not just busy...I'm Crazy Busy! Between work (huge wins this week) and home life, it's a struggle to get everything done!  Yesterday I spent so much time on blackberry on conference calls that the battery died mid-day.  Today I have calls again all morning.  The good news is that it is all new work for us!!

I will try to get 5 miles in on my lunch hour.  I could really use the run to decompress and mentally prepare for tomorrow.  Tomorrow I have a kick off meeting at 8 am at one client, several other meetings, and then a kick off meeting at 3 pm at another client. 

Oh yeah....one other thing....we are securing quotes for a new roof.  All you local readers, any recommendations or horror stories to share??