What a Crazy Week!

How busy is one suppose to be?

I had to book my own pedicure, manicure, make an appointment for my coiffe AND have my stylist bring in fresh flowers for my foyer....

oh wait, that wasn't me.... that must have been Cher!!!

(who is playing at Caesar's Palace on my birthday and I would kill (kill Bill) to get tickets). LMAO....

In reality my week was crazy, we are so busy at work, taxes are due today and we are in the final weeks of training for the marathon.

For two (no, make that three) nights this week, I've stuffed myself with Tostito's and salsa, splashed with a glass or two of red wine for dinner while sitting on the couch watching, yes Dancing with the Stars...mulling over taxes....how can I write off the Phoenix RnR Half Marathon, mmmmmmmm????

Yes, I'm eating that crap even after having gone to the nutritional course at our most prestigious Heart Institute. My salt intake has just increased a thousand fold and my veins are gurgling plague.....gah, quite the vision. I need to eat a great big apple and have a colonic, LOL.

Truthfully, this past week's work outs have been busy too. The weather has been great and warm and really the necessary tonic all of us northerners need right now.

Last Tuesday was our clinic night and the first week of starting our speed work, hills are over with and now onto speed and fartlek....let 'er rip!!!

Jen and I ran a really nice almost 7K at a very comfortable speed and the nicest part was we were back on the Trans Canada Trail....an old railroad track that has been converted over to a nice pathway for runners, walkers, cyclists and dog walkers.

Wednesday was our tempo / speed day, but I changed it up to do this on Thursday, I usually do this run on my own. Sometimes I just need to run on my own and zone out....so for the 6K run, my average pace was 7:05Km with my speed spurts maxed at 5:33Km...I was pretty happy with that pace, it felt comfortable and my recovery was fairly easy.

Friday was a steady run for 6K at 7:34Km...again a nice easy pace and a great run to reflect on life.

Saturday was a nice easy run day without time, nor pace, nor anything other than just run and enjoy the sights, the sounds and clear out my mind.

Sunday was our LSD 29K, we were out again on the Trans Canada Trail, up to Turtle Pond, we ran through what use to be a private golf course, but now is public with stunning homes, ponds and bike trails. Of all the days to leave my camera at home, this would have been the perfect run to take pic's along the way.....it was just so nice to get out of the mouse maze that we had been running in for weeks on end during the winter weeks. Finally, a run where you can just enjoy the scenery. It was warm and sunny and I even got a scorcher of a sunburn where I had missed with the sunscreen, oweeeeee!

Our 29K average pace was 8:15 /km. This run felt far more comfortable than our Around the Bay race....amazing what your body can accomplish in a few short 4 weeks....what a nice run and easy recovery.

Even though it took us 3:59:08, the best part of the run was coming up the final hill where we ran past the faster runners who were already out on the patio enjoying their beverages.....Jen and I received a thunderous WOOOO HOOOO as we ran past and high fived everyone....no matter how fast you run, we as runner's all support one another!!!

Finally I'm not so nervous about the marathon!!! My goal to finish is attainable.

So far it's been a non running week, today was TAX DAY, once I submitted my taxes, I came home to chill'ax and write up my post.

Tomorrow, back running, hopefully today's little snow showers will be gone and the sun will heat us back up again.....

Life's fun if you don't weaken.

Lily

Wordless Wednesday!

Blogger was not playing "nice"

Don't know about all of you but I was having trouble with Blogger, he just wasn't playing nice over the weekend and well, I kept losing my Internet connection as well.....so this will be short and sweet as I'm here at work. Yes, robbing the company of valuable time, LOL....

Thanks everyone for your kind comments and positive feedback with continuing with Lily on the Road ~ I'm not that easy to get rid of, so yes I am going to continue to post and thanks too for sharing your thoughts with me...I certainly wasn't fishing for compliments...(no I wasn't, hahahaha).

I'll hopefully be able to play with all of you later today, when I'm back home and can get my thoughts together....

BTW, had a great 29K run on Sunday, don't know the actual stats, but it was beautiful and sunny and yes, I'm sunburnt where I missed with the sunscreen....yikes, "lily white skin meets the sun"!!

Okay, got to "run"....catch you all later....again,

Thanks!!!!!

Life's fun if you don't weaken!!!!

Lily

So, after the Marathon...

The other day I was thinking to myself , what on earth are you going to blog about after the marathon in May?

Once you've done the marathon, then what?

Yes, you will still keep running, as a matter of fact my Wooo Hoooo Running Girlfriends are going to run the 15K Utica Boilermaker in July.

July 1st, our Canada Day we will be running the HBC, 10K Canada Day run and there is now a new Canada Army Run starting in September. It will be similar to the Marine Corps. race.....so yes, I'll still be running.....

Is this the end of blogging, do I shut it down? Do I drift off into space? Do I just let it all go?

I mean I've only been in blog land since I came home from Phoenix Rock n Roll...when I ran the half marathon with Tinkerbell in my fuel belt because Rebel was in a drug induced coma and I was running the race for her.....

Well, we now know that Rebel has had her heart transplant and is on her way to health, happiness and a long, long life. How great is that? You can receive updates on Rebel's progress by visiting her mom's blog Spousalennuie. By the way, they, the family are absolutely thrilled with all the outpouring of love and concern we runner's have shown them...please stop by, drop them a note.....

Anyway, back to whether I will continue to blog....so I'm mulling this over and then I hit Nat's blog "From Nat's Brain" with whom I've been killing myself laughing with since I "found" her in blog land....and she has bestowed upon me my very first blog award!!! Thanks Nat!!! That's just awesome!!

OMG, an award??!!! How cool is that?? And you know I'm all about the bling, how could I walk away now! This is an amazing gift and truly a sign that I can't quit blogging now! LOL....

The rules for for the Excellent prize are:

• Give credit to the originator of the Excellent Blog Awards: Kayla at The Mommy Project. And then give the award to at least 10 bloggers.

I'll name those bloggers that I truly love reading and who haven't already been bestowed the award, all of you are brilliantly funny and you make me read you everyday!!! (if I have overlapped you and you've already won the Excellent Award, well then bully for you because your blog is that great, informative and down right funny).

• The Dark Side of Blonde , you are always cracking me up....


• SpousalEnnuie, you are going through hell, yet seeing the light at the end of the tunnel


• A Side of Grits, Mendy you are a fantastic mom, wife, triathlete!!! you go girl!
  
• Lust for Life, David, who always shares his knowledge, his positive attitude and is the loving husband to Mendy and the loving father to Grace!!!


• Babooshka, a fantastic photographer on the Isle of Man, you are an absolute riot!


• Triguyjt, as a fellow Gemini and sign of the Snake, you bring sportscast journalism a whole new meaning! Thanks for your humour and humanitarianism!!!


• Cycling through Life, Jahowie, you are always making me see the greatness that a dad can be to his boys!


• Chad in the Arizona Desert, Chad is always positive, humorous and willing to share his experiences with us.
  
• Living and Tri-ing in River City, Vickie who continually challenges herself and is another fellow snake!!
• Amy, living in Belgium with her loving family, and intrigues me with her vegan lifestyle while running, and continues to be fit and fabulous (after forty!!).
  

There are many, many more of you that I just love reading and "stalking", but some of you have already received this most prestigious award....

I would truly miss all of you!!!

How would I get by without a daily does of Marcy? I mean this woman has taught me about trashtastic talk, the Kardashian's, hell, she has even enlightened me to the ways of blog polls.

So, no, you're not going to get rid of me that easy, I'll still be blogging along with the best of you!!

Thanks again for the award!!! My gosh, I'm honoured!

Life's fun if you don't weaken!!

Lily

Thirteen on Thursday

Before we get to the thirteen, here is a Rebel update!

Rebel continues to recover. Sitting up at the side of her bed less than 24 hours post surgery. Talking a blue streak, complaining about the chest pain, because the morphine infusion is pretty light. BUT she is gaining strength and moving. It's amazing! She continues to improve.

Thirteen things I've learned while training for the ING Ottawa Marathon;

1. I will never train in the winter again, unless of course it is somewhere warm!
   
   
2. Sometimes it just hurts to get out of bed, but once you do, it's not so bad.
   
   
3. There are never enough clean running clothes when you run 5 times per week.
   
   
   
4. There is never enough time to visit with non-running friends, you'd better take up running if you want to see me!
   
   
   
5. There will always be someone who can run faster than you, *sigh*.
   
   
   
6. Sometimes I'm just a wimp and have to dig deep to get to where I want to go.
   
   
   
7. Did I mention there are never enough clean running clothes? LOL!!
   
   
   
8. Training for your first marathon is the hardest training you will ever do (other than you triathletes. and Bob our Ultra 100 Mile guy), your body just doesn't know what the heck you are doing to it....
   
   
   
9. There is a multitude of support from places and people you'd never expect ~ Thank YOU!
   
   
   
10. As per Lance Armstrong; pain is temporary, quitting lasts forever.
    
    
    
11. You meet the most interesting people while out running and see things you would have otherwise missed.
    
    
    
12. Count your blessings that you have your health to be able to do any sport, I call it my attitude of gratitude.
    
    
    
13. Smile, encourage others and don't take anything for granted, oh, sign your donor card!
    
    

Life's fun if you don't weaken!

Lily

Wordless Wednesday

Mending the broken heart

Rebel's surgery went very well.

"A perfect surgery," said one of her surgeons.

All in all they were nearly done by about 7 AM after being in the operating room since 1AM. The VAD and ICD( pacemaker /defibrillator) were removed first of all before Rebel was put on the heart/lung machines and the heart surgery could begin.

There also had to be extra precautions because of the MRSA virus.

Given she has been on blood thinners there is the possibility of bleeding and that is all being carefully managed.

Rebel is now back in the intensive care and recovery rooms. They expect to take her off the breathing tube later today or tomorrow, and they say she has been very responsive.

The new heart is doing very well.

Thank you everyone for your kind words of encouragement. It certainly makes us all linked .....again, please send prayers to the family who is mourning the loss of their young 18 year old son.....

Lily