Happy Birthday, MOMMA!

 Last year my mom had to share her birthday post with my Weekend Wrap Up. Lucky for her, this year her birthday falls on a Tuesday. (Just kidding, Momma!!!!!!!!!)

I am 32 years old. By the time my mom was 32 years old, she had three kids- 8, 7, and 5. I can't even imagine that. Especially since at least once a week, Paul and I look at each other (as we lay on the couch watching Jeopardy) and say, "I'm so glad we don't have kids!" But that's what my mom wanted. So in a way, my mom and I are extremely different. But in some ways we are sooooooo the same. And I am glad! I got some of my best qualities from my mom! And here they are, in no particular order...

1. My laugh. Or should I say, my cackle. You will know if I am in the room due to my distinctive laugh, in which I totally inherited from my mom!

2. My determination. The only reason I can think of that I can be so determined is because of my mom's example. It seems she always had a project- whether it was opening a clothing store, running for mayor, or crocheting 1,000 hats a week.

3. Being my own person and not caring what people think of me. My mom taught me that. I was a little weird in middle and high school. Okay, a lot weird. But my mom always told me (whether it was through her words or her actions) that it was better to be ME and if other people didn't like it, then TOO BAD.

4. We talk REALLY loud. It is what it is.

What qualities do you have in common with your mom?

Weekend Wrap Up!

Well, I'm going to do this post a little different than usual. I didn't do anything super exciting this weekend, so I am sensing the best way to wrap everything up is with a list. So here ya go!

1. Friday was such a blaaaaah day. I was sick and feeling lousy, so I took the day off work. I needed to get my energy back, and the best way to do that was to do nothing. The majority of the day was spent watching Survivor All-Stars. Yes, that season is from 10 years ago. Can I just tell you how much I hate Rob Mariano as a Survivor player? He says the meanest things about people in his confessionals and he is so arrogant.

2. On Saturday, I picked up a sweet puzzle at Good Will. It is called "Candy Shop Kittens".

3. I also had a great run on Saturday. I was feeling 100% and resting the day before really did me good!

4. On Saturday evening, I remembered I had a blog, and that I actually had to write some content for it. So I spent a couple hours getting some posts ready for the next week. My creativity was lacking, but I hope you enjoy the posts coming up.

5. I dyed my hair this weekend. The only reason I dye it is because I have a TON of greys. Yup, 32 years old and my head is FULL of them. Not just grey- WHITE. Anyway, every time I dye my hair, it burns my scalp. Ah, chemicals. They are probably seeping into my brain right about now.

6. I hit up the gym on Sunday morning. I was scared to do so. I thought it would be crowded, but luckily it wasn't and I could get to all "my" areas when I wanted to. I lifted back. I needed to. Plus I had recently read Rachel's blog and it inspired me to go to the gym and lift something HEAVY!

7. Sunday was wonderful because my parents got back from a super long vacation to the West Coast. They took the train there and back. (My mom is afraid to fly and my dad works for Amtrak, so it is a match made in heaven.) My mom's birthday is on Tuesday, so we had a party for her at my brother's house. I love my family!

Mom (Nanny!) and Clementine

Ellie dominates the lemon meringue pie. Just like her Auntie Megan.

When do you write the majority of your blog posts?
Do you dye your hair?
What were you up to this weekend?

Some wonderful (or funny) thoughts for you this morning.

I hope you have a WONDERFUL Sunday!!!!

Weekly Workout Recap!

Thank you everyone for the kind words of wisdom yesterday. I really appreciate your support. I feel like when I am happy, you are happy with me, and when I am sad, you have all the right things to say in that situation. I really appreciate it. :)

Here are my workouts this week... Despite my lack of sleep, they DID happen.

3/21- Moore's Mountain Madness run! I hadn't run hills in quite a long time...

3/22- I was feeling extremely lazy so I lifted back in my PJs while I watched Dateline. I did get a good workout in, though.

3/23- Coooooold morning 5 miler. Garmin was wonky so no picture.

3/24- Another 5 miler at an oddly slow pace. This is what happens when I get no sleep, apparently!

3/25- Chest at the gym. Some guy started heckling me while I was doing shoulder press. I was scrunching up my face trying to get the last couple reps out, and he was heckling me! This is how the convo went, to the best of my recollection:

**I am standing in front of the mirror doing a set of shoulder press with 25lb- the max I can do at this point. My face was scrunched up and it was taking every mental effort I had to complete the set**

Guy: Awwww I haven't seen you in awhile, where have you been?
**I continue to do my reps.**
Guy: (noticing I am struggling) You see, now I am catching up to you!
**I put my weights down as my set is complete.**
Me: I have been working out at home.
Guy: Ohhhhh....
Me: Yeah, I have some weights and a bench there. It's nice to be able to watch TV and workout in my pajamas if I want to.
Guy: Haha.
Me: Although some people come here in their pajamas... who knows, maybe someday that will be me?
Guy: Hahahahahahaha.

And that was the awkward conversation.

3/26- 8 miles before work. I just felt like it. I felt a weird pain on the side of my knee at mile 7.5 but it went away. I am going to be super cautious and take a couple days off of running! I mean, it could have just been a random pain, but it was pretty significant so I am not messing around! It was weird how it just BOOM popped up with no build up that I noticed.

3/27- Rest day. Was feeling sick and lousy.

Are you proud of me for not being snarky to the guy heckling me? Give me a ZINGER for the next time it happens!

Hey, I ran 27 miles this week! That's kind of a lot for me!

When was the last time you had a weird pain that just popped up out of nowhere?

Life Lately...

Well, I wrote a post that was really complain-y about how I have been feeling, both physically and mentally. But I deleted it. I simply could not publish it. Because no matter how crappy I feel from time to time, I have no right to complain. I have a great life. And it took turning on the news Thursday afternoon to smack some sense into me. Maybe writing out the post and getting my feelings out was also cathartic in a way, but essentially I just needed a reminder that while my life is far from perfect, I have so many things to be thankful for and complaining would be asshole-y.

I am reminded of the song from Annie Get Your Gun....

Got no diamond, got no pearl,
Still I think I'm a lucky girl.
I've got the sun in the morning
And the moon at night.
Got no mansion, got no yacht,
Still I'm happy with what I got.
I've got the sun in the morning
And the moon at night

Sunshine gives me a lovely day,
Moonlight gives me the Milky Way.
Got no checkbooks, got no banks,
Still, I'd like to express my thanks.
I've got the sun in the morning
And the moon at night.
And with the sun in the morning
And the moon in the evening
I'm alright.

Actually, I should change the lyrics to....

Got my Chrissy, got my Paul, 

and with my Jelly I've got it ALL

I've got the sun in the morning 

and the moon at night!

Seriously, if I have Paul and the cats, then life is good. And I have more than that. So life is really good.

Tell me something WONDERFUL about your life!

Negative Nancy- Things I am Not Enjoying Right Now

**I feel like I owe yas all a "life" update tomorrow. I have been struggling... Lack of sleep, stuck in a rut... maybe that's why I am feeling so negative lately. I don't like it, though!!! I need my old positive outlook back. Anyway, I will check in with ya tomorrow. But for now, things are getting NEGATIVE here on Meg Go Run...**

I'm about to get really complain-y, so go ahead and skip this post if you don't want any negativity in your day!

~*~THINGS I AM NOT 

ENJOYING RIGHT NOW~*~

1. Blogs with ads that fly down in front of your face and make you close it before you read content. I realize some people use their blogs as income. I have nothing against that. But isn't the point of a blog for readers to read your content? How am I supposed to read content if I have an annoying ad hovering over top of it? It just really irks me. I've only been blogging for about two years... is it too early for me to be complaining about something like this?


2. Really long and/or slow lines at the store. I try very hard not to look annoyed when there is a cashier that is just taking forever. I realize it is not always that person's fault. The store could be understaffed, the computers may not be working... But I still get pissed that I am slightly inconvenienced. And it always happens when I don't take my pod casts with me.


 3. Pick up trucks that ride your ass. I get it. You have a big truck. It is bigger than my little red car. Congratulations. But I'm still going to drive the speed limit.


4. People who are significantly late and seem to think it is no big deal. The older I get, the more I realize there are two types of people. No, it's not people who are on time and people who aren't on time. It's people who care about being on time and people who don't care. People who care about being on time generally are on time, and if they aren't, they give the person they are meeting a heads up as soon as they know they are running late. It is just common courtesy.


5. Busting your butt and feeling unappreciated. I'd love to go into this topic more but alas I have to be vague. But yeah, it makes me feel like a piece of shit.




And just to balance it out a little... something I am enjoying A LOT right now! Seriously, if you have cats, you must check out the link below....

The 100 Most Important Cat Pictures of All Time

Tell me something you are not enjoying right now!

Junk Food I Love

I love food and I love to eat. I feel my best when I eat healthy most of the time. However, never, ever eating junk food is just not in the cards for me. And I will never pretend otherwise. I love my chicken, broccoli, sweet taters, and quinoa... but I also love JUNK. And most of the time, I can eat it when I crave it and not feel any ill affects. 

Let me tell you about some of the junk I love...

1. Baked Goods. We're talkin' cake. We're talkin' cupcakes. We're talkin' pie. We're talkin' cookies. I LOVE IT ALL! And it's even better if it's paired with...

2. ICE CREAM! I will love ice cream, always and forever. None of the "half the fat" shit. And I don't want my ice cream sweetened with Splenda. I eat the full fat, 190 calories per half cup serving ice cream, and I enjoy every minute of it!

3. Fried Chicken. Okay, this is one I barely ever eat. But I want to eat it. Sometimes, when we pass a Popeye's or KFC, I say to Paul, "Someday, we should just go there and get all the fried chicken and biscuits we want!" But we never do.

4. Wine. I don't care what people say about the health benefits of wine. Wine is not going to keep my heart healthy. Running and lifting is what is going to keep my heart healthy! However, I do enjoy a glass each night while we play cards or I do a puzzle. It is a very nice way to relax and unwind... which I guess maybe is healthy!?

5. French Fried Onions. You know those things you put on top of green bean casserole? A dream of mine is to eat the whole can. Dream big my friends.

Tell me about your favorite junky foods!

Helloooooooo Hills!

This past Saturday, I ran a beautiful 9 mile route that I hadn't run since summer. It is an extremely hilly route, and I hadn't run hills in many, many months. The weather was gorgeous and I had all the time in the world, so I decided to give it a go!

Here are some thoughts about my run...

1. First of all, one of the reasons I hadn't run this route in awhile is because it involves driving about 10 minutes away and running a huge circle in the middle of nowhere. For the past few months, I have not felt comfortable running so far from home in case Paul needs me. I prefer to be a 5-10 minute sprint away at the most. But on Saturday, Paul spent the day with his family so I felt like a free woman!

2. I was apprehensive as soon as my feet hit the pavement. It was "only" 9 miles, but it was 9 HILLY miles. Could I do it? How would my leg hold up? How would my joints hold up? It sucks not being in prime running shape due to a nagging injury.

Wharf Road

Moore's Mountain

Hills never look as steep in pictures as they are in real life...

3. Before I had even run a mile, I realized that I should have brought water along. It was warmer than I thought, and I was going to be running between 80 and 90 minutes. What was a thinking? What kind of trainer am I to be so cocky and think I don't need water on a 9 mile run?

4. Central Pennsylvania truly is beautiful. To my blogger friends who live nowhere in the vicinity of PA, I wonder what you think of the state I live in? I hope you know that there are some very beautiful views!

Conewago Creek

Sawmill Road

Looking down from the top of Sawmill.

5. At mile 3.57 I realized there was still some fresh, clean snow on the ground and I could easily use that as hydration. So I had some. The snow tasted exactly the same as I remember snow tasting. When was the last time I ate snow? 15-20 years ago!? (I used to eat sand as a child, so snow is nothing.)

This is what happens when you don't bring water.

6. My pee spot was gone! I hadn't run this route since summer, and since then, all the trees around my pee spot were cut down and a housing development was going up. COME ON!

7. The most daunting hill on the route was Moore's Mountain Road. I haven't had to stop and walk up that dang hill in years, and I was determined not to stop and walk on this day. Even though I ran up it at a pace in which I could have probably walked, I still did it!

8. I felt invigorated after my run. But how comes my heart rate was higher while trying to put on my compression socks than it was when I was trying to run up Moore's Mountain?

This should be more difficult than putting on compreshies. (That's what me and Paul call compression socks.)

9. I felt proud I completed my good 'ol hilly 9 miler, even though it was about a minute per mile slower than I ran it when I was in "hill running shape". Oh well, now I have a goal, right!?

10. Knee/IT band update: It felt great during the run and great after! It was not aching or pulsating so that is good. I was trying to focus on using my glutes a lot, and I have a feeling the hill factor maybe worked in my favor?

Have you ever had to do something, um, creative when you didn't have water?

How often do you run hills?

What do you think of when you think of Pennsylvania? Be honest!