10.30.2011

Heart Walk 2011

Today I walked with my mom in the Rutherford Heart walk in my town. This is year number 3 for me to do this walk that benefits heart disease. It was a great day for a walk. It was sunny and comfortable outside. We had a great time! My mom always has a good time wherever she goes. I hope to be as fun-loving as she is when I get to be her age.

We were also interviewed by a local news station, but I'm kind of hoping it doesn't get aired. I was nervous. But at the same time, it was pretty cool! We talked about why we participate in this walk and who we are walking for. We walk for my grandmother since she had heart disease.

It was a busy weekend with walking/running activities. My next event is on Thanksgiving day and its a 4 mile run. I did it last year at 1:10. I'm glad to have some time to train and hopefully improve my running pace. My official time for the Komen 5k was 46:55, which is about 3 minutes faster than the previous one. Woot! As long as I'm improving, I am happy.

I hope you enjoy our pictures!

I'm walking in memory of my grandmother, Lola.

warming up


Go Mama Go!



My mom, Joanne

We both got several FREE shirts at the event!

10.29.2011

Komen Race for the cure!

It's race day! I got up early and got ready for the race. Yes, that includes spraying my hair PINK!



We had to get on the road by 7:00 a.m. to get there in time to pick up my chip and the pre-race festivities. I was so proud that my husband went with me to take pictures and to be my personal cheerleader! Thanks babe!

It was a chilly morning at under 40 degrees and heavy fog. By race time it had warmed up some and it wasn't too bad. Of course, I'm dressed in layers so I actually got hot during the race.

There were over 20,000 people at the event - WOW! Most of them were walkers but I decided to run this time. I've walked this race 2 years in a row and felt ready to run. I was hoping to improve my 5k pace with this one. As long as I'm improving, I'm happy.

I finished mile one under 12 minutes - which is a huge improvement for me. I am usually around the 15 min mark.
Mile one!
I haven't gotten my official time yet, but I think it was close to 45 minutes. This is a new PR! The last race I did, I was around 49 minutes. I know to all the experienced runners out there, this must seem very slow. But for me this is good. I'm improving with each race I do and that is what keeps me going! I hope you enjoy my pictures from the race. This is one of my favorite events every year.


The people I run for!

I love this sign - not the REMAX one!

Ready to run!
It's great seeing the parade of pink march through the crowd during the pre-race festivities but my heart goes out to those who have lost members of their family due to breast cancer. I hope and pray a cure is found one day. Until then, I'll keep on supporting this charity and walking/running in honor/memory of those battling this disease and those who have lost their battle. Fight like a girl!

10.26.2011

Preparing for my next race-Komen Race for the Cure

Great news! My business trip has been postponed, so I will be able to participate in Komen Race for the Cure on Saturday. I am so happy about that. This is my favorite event of the year and am looking forward to it. The only thing I am worried about is that I haven't had much time to train, with all the grandma stuff going on this week. I'm hoping to get a good workout in tomorrow, rest on Friday, and have a great race on Saturday.

I guess its also time to watch my diet and eat foods that will help my performance. I hope I remember that. I received my race packet in the mail with my shirt and bib. I still have to pick up my timing chip either Friday evening or Saturday at the race. I checked the weather forecast and it looks like it will be a chilly morning. That's usually a good thing for races. I just hope its not too cold.

Komen Race for the Cure 2010


I hope to take lots of pictures this year to share. This is a very powerful event and draws thousands of people. It's great to see so many people come together in the fight for breast cancer. My mother-in-law, Nancy Sue Done died of breast cancer before I was able to meet her. I run in her memory.

I also hope to finish under 49 minutes, my last PR. If I don't, I won't be too hard on myself since I have been too busy to train. My last race was in September, about a month ago. I'm just thrilled that I'll be able to do this - regardless of my pace.


10.24.2011

I'm a grandma!

What a joyful day! My daughter had her baby on October 23 at 3:53 p.m. Phoenix Nevaeh has arrived! I hope you enjoy the pictures! I'm very thankful for this new chapter opening in my life. I still don't feel that I look like a grandma, but I'm happy to be one.

I am grateful that I can take a few days off work to be with my daughter and her beautiful angel. My most recent business trip has been put on hold. That is a relief! I'll be home for at least a week until I have to go out of town again. Life is good!






10.22.2011

Where have I been?

I'm still here but have been working out of town for the last few weeks. Sorry for the lack of posts lately, but my life has been pretty boring consisting only of work activities. An accountant's life isn't interesting blog material!

I have enjoyed working in Knoxville, but I missed my family very much. And I have been praying that my 21 year old daughter does not have her baby while I am away. Good news! No baby yet. I'm getting anxious to meet my grand-daughter!

This weekend my plans are as follows:
  1. Quality time with husband and daughters! 
  2. Get my house back in order - housecleaning, laundry and such
  3. Workout! I'm in desperate need of a workout since my time has been very limited lately.
  4. Make a desperate effort to NOT do any accountant work over the weekend.
I am going back to Knoxville next Friday, so I plan on getting prepared for that. I am a little bummed out that my next business trip coincides with the Komen for the Cure race on Oct 29.

I am very sad to say that I will not be able to participate this year. Luckily, one of my runner friends has volunteered to run in my place. She has promised to take pictures of the event for me. I love my friends! It won't be the same since I can't be there in person, but at least I may get a few pictures to enjoy. I will also miss the American Heart Association Heart walk on Oct 30. My mom is walking and I asked my sister to join her so she won't have to walk alone.


I'm thankful for my job, but sometimes it gets in the way of my life. Hopefully traveling with work will not last more than a few months so I can get back to the things I enjoy. The challenge: sticking to healthy eating and exercise while living in a hotel!

10.15.2011

Traveling and trying to stay fit

I'm working in another town for a week. Knoxville, TN. It's a very nice town and the people here are great. The trees are already changing colors. Beautiful!
But how does one stay fit while living in a hotel for a week? The facility I work at keeps bringing us sweets for snacks. I did bring a case of water with me plus some fiber one bars and juice. This morning I visited the hotel exercise room. I got a good treadmill workout in. I'm hoping NOT to gain weight on this trip.
I hope my family is doing ok without me there. I'm missing them!



10.08.2011

Walking to Cure Diabetes - October 8, 2011

My mom and I had a wonderful morning at the Walk to Cure Diabetes. We got there early to enjoy the pre-walk events. There was live music, healthy snacks to have, massages and lots of volunteers with free samples to share.  It was a 1 mile walk, but I did a second lap for a total of 2 miles. I wanted to walk slow with my mom on mile 1 since she is older and not in as good shape for longer distances. So, I didn't worry about my pace for today's event. It was more about being there to support my mom and enjoy the day. It was a fun day and I am glad I participated in it.

Here are some pictures of our day:


Mom - finishing up the walk

Enjoying talking to the volunteers

Post walk massage! Ahhh!

Welcome to the walk from Kermit Brown from MTSU

My mom - She is a superhero!
It was a great day for a walk. I was very glad to do this walk with my mom. She did a great job!

10.07.2011

Walk to Cure Diabetes

What's one more charity walk? I can do it! My mom recently became diagnosed with pre-diabetes. She found out that our town is doing the Walk to Cure Diabetes this Saturday and wanted to get involved. I decided to join her. The details of the event are here : Walk to Cure Diabetes

I'm very proud of her for wanting to do this. She is in her 70's and wants to be more active. Even though it's only a mile walk, this is a step in the right direction. I hope to post lots of pictures of our adventure!


It's been a very busy week at work so I haven't had time for posting. I have made time to get to the gym this week and hope to be able to workout in my hotel next week. I'll be traveling with my job for the next few weeks so I'm trying not to get stressed out about that. I hope to stick to my healthy eating and get some exercise every day.

What are your active plans for the weekend? Any races?

10.02.2011

October is here!

It's hard to believe another month has passed. October will be a busy month for me. I am doing the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure on Oct 29. This is one of my favorite events of the year. I am walking in memory of my mother-in-law, Nancy Sue Done. This makes year number 3 for me. This year I am running instead of walking. Hopefully I can beat my last 5k time of :49:24.

Komen for the Cure 2010


I am also preparing to travel this month with my job. I may have to go to Knoxville to work for several weeks. That should be interesting. At least my kids are almost grown so I don't have to worry about them. And I have several people available to check in on my teenager.

Goals for the month of October:

  • Keep training for 5k runs - go to the gym 3 times per week. No slacking off!
  • Eat healthy
  • Keep stress down and activity up
  • Spend quality time with my family
 Those are pretty simple goals and  I'm sure I can be successful with them!