Way Too Long…

So it has been way too long since the last time I blogged. It seems that everyday I think to myself, “I need to put that on our blog,” but it never gets done. So, here is a quick update:

Jake carved another big mac pumpkin this year. He went for a Mickey Mouse this time. It looks awesome!

One night when Jake and I had to work, we put the dog beds in the garage for them to sleep. The next morning, we saw that Alfie didn’t want to sleep in the garage. He had pulled his, and Nico’s, beds out of the dog door. I wish I could have seen him.

I started running again. Boy is it hard. I’m starting slow but almost enjoying it. I use almost very loosely.

I’m starting up my Mary Kay business again. I sure love doing it. I had just been so busy that I kind of slacked off. Well, not anymore. I am going to make gift baskets for Christmas.

Next Monday-Wednesday, Jake and I are going to Las Vegas for our 3 year anniversary. I can’t believe it’s been that long already!

Jake and I went to check out a cutting horse trainer in Camp Verde. I’d like to start cutting on Soda Pop. I think she would be great at it. I wanted to start last week but I got a cold/the flu and then a respiratory infection so I haven’t been riding at all.

Jake met me at work the other day and surprised me with a date night. We went to Phoenix and had dinner at the Old Spaghetti Factory then went to a Phoenix Coyotes hockey game. It was so fun!

Well, that is pretty much the long short of it. I’ll try to be better at blogging on a regular basis! Until next time…

My first LONG run...

Uh oh. In preparation of our Ragnar Relay, I have agreed to go on my first long run tomorrow at Lynx Lake with some friends from work. I'll take Alfie with me and maybe he'll inspire me to keep going. We'll see. I'll let you know.

Too Much to Do!

After reading Sara's latest blog entry, I was inspired to go pink and as you can see, I changed our blog to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month. And as my cute little sign says, don't forget to "Feel Your Boobies."

Jake left for California today to help his folks bring some furniture out here to AZ this weekend. He left early so he could get an oil change in the truck before the long drive. I woke up as he left and started my chores. I vaccumed and dusted and did a little laundry. I still need to mop the tile (if you've been to our house you know that is almost the entire place!) and clean the bathrooms and then go grocery shopping.

I went running this morning as well. Starting October off well, I went about 2 miles today. Mr. Nico went with me. I think 2 miles is about his max. It was starting go get a little warm and he was pooped. Maybe I'll give him a bath later.

I also need to go and pick up some hay for the horses. We're almost out and that would be a bad thing.

Wow, I sure have a lot of stuff to do! Bummer.

Goals

I've come up with yet another plan. I am going to set goals for myself each month and keep you updated on how I'm doing with them. My goal for October: Run 6 miles per week. I'm going to follow The Couch-to-5K Running Plan help reach my goals. I'll keep you posted on how I'm doing.

A Kabillion Stars

Out of the last 60 hours I have worked 24 and I'm kinda tired. Jake had to work tonight and I was half asleep on the couch as he was getting ready to leave. Nico was bouncing off the walls with energy. He would run outside, run back inside down the hall, slide on the tile, turn around and run and almost attack us. He was a little hyper. I felt really bad for him and I really didn't want to play. I did, however, suck it up and put on my running shoes. Nico and I went for a quick little run at about 8:15 tonight. Our street is pretty dark and I was amazed at how many stars there are. I swear I could see a kabillion! I forget how relaxing it is to just stare at them all and think about how far away they are. It really made me appreciate that Nico got me out to run tonight. Thanks buddy!

Inspiration & Info

While Jake and I were flying to the east coast, I was reading a magazine and there was an article in there about a couple who travels the nation to compete in 5K (3.1 miles) races. This way they get to compete, stay fit, and visit wonderful places across the nation. While in NYC, I heard that there was a breast cancer awareness event called "Race for the Cure" happening soon. This was a 5K race through Central Park. I was thinking that there isn't a much better place to run than Central Park. I would love to travel the nation raising money for wonderful charities and staying fit at the same time. I know that I originally wrote a post saying I was going to train for a 1/2 marathon... yeah, never happened... surprise, surprise... but 3 miles seems very obtainable. And at my 10-minute-mile pace, that is still only 30 minutes! I can do that! So I've decided, just this minute I am going to find a local 5K and start training for it and compete in it. So if it's for charity, expect me to email, call, or write you requesting donations so be ready to pay up 'cuz I HATE RUNNING but if it's for such a good cause then I can do it. I'm going to put a link to 5K races on the blog so check it out! If you want to join me and train together, or even keep each other motivated from a distance, please let me know! I'd love a buddy or two, or ten!

With that being said, here is some health information I pulled up. Very interesting!

Did you know that September is a very busy month for cancer awareness? It is. Here is a list of which month is which for the rest of the year. I'll put a link for the whole thing on the blog so you can stay up-to-date on which month it is!

September
National Ovarian Cancer Month
Childhood Cancer Month
Gynecologic Cancer Awareness Month
Prostate Cancer Awareness Week (Sept. 14-20)
Prostate Cancer Awareness Month
Leukemia and Lymphoma Awareness Month
Take a Loved One for a Check-up Day (Sept. 16)

October
National Breast Cancer Awareness Month
National Mammography Day (Oct. 17)
International Brain Tumor Awareness Week (Oct. 26 - Nov. 1)

November
Great American Smokeout (Nov. 20)
Coaches vs. Cancer Classic® Weekend (Nov. 20-21)
Lung Cancer Awareness Month
National Family Caregivers Month
Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month

As I was reading my October Shape magazine I found some interesting facts on disease prevention called "MIND YOUR MOUTH, SAVE YOUR LIFE." These are things you may not have though of:

First, keeping your teeth and gums healthy can lower your risk of lung, bladder, and pancreas cancer by 14% They recommend brushing twice a day for at least 2 minutes and flossing at least once a day. "The ideal oral hygiene routine: Brush, floss, then rinse with mouthwash."

Second, gum disease can double your chance of developing insulin resistance (a precursor of diabetes).

Third, Tooth decay and gum disease can up the amount of oral bacteria that enters your bloodstream, leaving you vulnerable to infective endocarditis, and infection of the heart valve that may increase your risk for a stroke.

Pretty interesting how just 6 minutes or so a day can save your life!