I Did It!

Thursday's workout: 4.1 mile run

I said I was going to run last night and I did! A whopping four miles, but that is much better than nothing at all. I also had some great company, my friend Autumn decided last minute to run with me!

Then I got to meet these lovely ladies (the coaches, not the girls) for dinner while we talked about the upcoming GOTR season. I can't believe the season starts in a little over a week! We have 7 girls who have already gone through the program this season!

After the dinner meeting it was time to meet some girlfriends at Orange Leaf. Yum!

I ate mine too fast to take a picture of, but I brought this home to The Boyfriend. I can't go to Orange Leaf without bringing him something, it might possibly be his favorite place on Earth.

What a fun, busy night! I am so glad this is a 3 day weekend!

Accountability

Instead of running last night, I read about running. Kinda the same thing, right? 

Yep, a little behind on my magazine running lately!

Ok, not so much. So right now, I am writing it down and declaring to the world 2 people that might occasionally read this blog:

I am running tonight.

There, I said it. That means I have to do it. I only have 2 more days to add to my August mileage too. I can't believe summer is almost over.

Tonight I get to meet the amazing ladies I coach Girls on The Run with for dinner to plan the season. Woohoo! I love coaching and the start of a new season is always so exciting!

Have you seen the new "basic" Garmin that is coming out?

Garmin Forerunner 10

Not as expensive, easy to use...and check out the pretty colors!

Weekend Update

Monday's workout: 5 mile run

Last week and this weekend are a bit of a blur. The last half of the week became quite stressful at work. Working on Saturdays is not fun.

Family stress + Work stress + Little sleep + Zero workouts = Cranky Bethany

I was stressed about missing a long run this weekend, but on Monday I just decided it doesn't matter. I've already done 12 miles. One long run won't make that much difference at this point. Especially when I'm already exhausted and stressed.

Sunday night I had the brilliant idea to ask my friend Amanda (a fellow GOTR coach!) if she would like to meet for a run on Monday evening. I knew it was short notice, but I figured it didn't hurt to ask.

Ready to run!

My essentials: long sleeve in case we get drenched in the rain, pringles for pre run fuel (only thing I had, must go to grocery!), my wallet just to have some $ just in case...

We hadn't seen each other all summer so it was great to catch up and it made the 5 mile run fly by. It worked out super well as it started pouring after I got home from work. It would have been so easy to not run if I was planning to go alone. 

Waiting in my car...thankfully I was early and Amanda was just a few minutes late

By the time we met, the rain had cleared out and there was a nice blue sky overhead. Unfortunately the rain left it super steamy out, but that's much better than starting a run when it's already raining.

Post run sunset

I was slightly hoping for a run in the rain. I thought it would be soothing, but it turns out running with a friend was soothing enough!

Faith

Tuesday's Workout just didn't happen.

I think The Boyfriend has a GPS tracker on my car. The past 2 days as soon as I've parked my car at the gym, he calls. Which wouldn't normally be an issue. But those phone calls these days mean it's time to spend time with the family. And family comes WAY before the gym. Or running.

I feel blessed to be a part of The Boyfriend's family. They have embraced me since day one. It's only been 5 months, but it feels like I have known them for at least five years.

These clouds seemed to say a lot about last night. I don't think my pictures do them justice though. They were dramatic. Gray with light shining through. Dark with the beautiful blue sky as a back drop.

I've searched for the perfect words, a quote that will say it all...but I've come up empty handed. So many emotions, so many thoughts, so I will leave you with this:

Hebrews 11:1

Only faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for, or prove the existence of realities that are unseen.

Weekend Review: Rookie Mistakes

Friday's Workout: Chasing Little Miss Harper around

Saturday's Workout: 12 mile run

Sunday's Workout: Sweating at the Reds game

Another fun-filled weekend has come and gone.

I had the privilege of spending Friday evening with my favorite going-to-be-two-year-old-in-November. I seriously want to clone her.

Going for a walk, reading books, more books, and playing outside with Boomer

Saturday morning we hit the road for the first double digit run of the training season. It was a gorgeous morning. No pics of the run, but I did snap a pic of the deer I saw on my way to the run.

Mama and baby

The Boyfriend and I ran the first 4.25 miles together, then split off. I ran the next 6.75 alone, then met back up with him and completed mile 10 for him (and 12 for me) with him. I let him have the garmin when we split though, so I don't know how fast I was going, but it felt good to just do my thing.

Two rookie mistakes: No water and no body glide for me. Whoopies.

We did the first 2 mile loop in The Boyfriend's neighborhood so we did circle back by his house for a quick drink (well, for him at least, not for me). And somewhere in the 2 miles I did that he did not, I hit a water fountain.

The last mile was hard for The Boyfriend. I mostly blame the lack of water. So right after our run I promptly went to Speedway and bought every liquid I could find. Not really, just 4 32oz Gatorades, 2 chocolate milks and 2 bottles of water. I felt really bad for the lack of preparedness.

Sunday we took The Boyfriend's nephew, niece and niece's friend to the Reds game. We had awesome seats.

Since we were right on the third base line I made sure the nephew sat on one side of me and The Boyfriend on the other. They both knew it was their job to protect me from any foul balls.

This pic looks way farther away than we actually were

After taking out a loan so we could afford 3 kids at the ballpark concession stand, we decided to take them for fro yo on the way home too.

It is my life's mission to try every fro yo place I can. Thankfully we have about a bazillion different ones locally so this mission hasn't proven too difficult yet.

Nephew, Niece, Niece's friend

It was our first time at A Cherry on Top (but not the kids first time!) It's definitely in the running as my favorite fro yo. So delicious, and TONS of toppings to choose from!

Such a fun weekend, so sad to see it go!

Hyde 5

Thursday's workout: 3.1 mile run, 2 mile walk

Why not run a 5k on a Thursday night, right? Especially one that has a good party afterwards!

The Hyde 5 kicks of St. Mary's festival for the weekend.

It's hot. It's hilly. It's humid. But it's fun!

Especially when you get to hang out with these awesome people before, during AND after!

We actually lucked out on the weather. Although it was hotter and more humid last night than the rest of the week, we had cloud cover and an occasional breeze blowing. And the storm waited til I was almost home to start!

Even though I felt horrible for at least the first two miles of the race, it ended up being an OK race. 5ks seem to always be mentally tough for me. One of these days I am going to be in good enough shape that it won't get to me mentally.

 Place O'All Name                           Ag City                St   Time Pace
===== ===== =================== == ================== == ======= =====
2         75    BETHANY CROSBY 32 LOVELAND OH 25:02 8:05

Look at me running under my own name!

Before the race I mentioned that I had no idea what my PR for a 5K (or 10K or half marathon for that matter) is. Mary graciously informed me of Athlinks. 

You can create a profile and it will search for all of the race results under your name (or fake names) and you then "claim" them as yours.

So of course I was obsessed with this last night.  It appears that on September 19, 2009 I ran my fastest 5K in 23:05.  

Now I have a time to aim for...

Mudathlon

Workouts: I'm not doing very well at my tiny goal of 2 runs during the week before my long run on Saturday. At least I know I will get one in tonight at the Hyde 5! I know it's an excuse, and a lame one at that, but we have just been SO busy the last two weeks. Granted, almost all of it has been fun stuff, but we've still had something planned right after work every night for the last two weeks and haven't gotten home until somewhat late.

I'm refusing to make plans next week. We'll see how long I can make that last. Definitely not something I am good at!

Oh, what fun we had at the Mudathlon!

 I think I see at least one good option for a Christmas card photo this year!

And yes, I had mud in my teeth at the end of the race. Awesomesauce.

Columbus Crew v. L.A. Galaxy

Via

Oh, Becks, you broke my heart.

Five whole years in the MLS and you have yet to make it to Columbus. This should be against the law. I hope you make it up to us soon. 

Despite Becks standing us up, we had a great night. We started the night off with dinner at Pei Wei. I introduced The Boyfriend to Pei Wei while we were in Chicago and since we don't have any in Cincinnati, we were both a little too excited to eat there in Columbus. We may have driven a little further north than we had to just to eat there.

Mmmm, lettuce wraps

After dinner we headed off to the game!

Sadly, a Columbus Crew player passed away last week. This was their first game since the death, so there was a tribute before the game. It was very touching and to see the flags and banners honoring Urso gave me goosebumps. His number - 15 - was also painted on the field in 2 places.

Right after the moment of silence for Kirk Urso

Smoke bomb after the Crew's goal

Honoring #15 Kirk Urso

It was a perfect night to be outside - the weather was absolutely gorgeous. The stadium is really nice and the crowd was a lot of fun! If we lived closer, we would definitely be going to more games!

Next up: the US Men's National team taking on Jamaica in a World Cup Qualifier in September! It's a good thing we both love soccer, eh?

Letter to a Soccer Star

Dear Mr. Beckham,

I know you have been quite busy and traveling a lot lately, however I would really appreciate it if you would make the trip with your team to Columbus.

I will be there and it would be fabulous to stalk see you.

via

We enjoyed seeing you on the boat with the torch at the Olympics.

You have amazing soccer skillz. (Yes, you deserve a "z").

Via

I've also heard you are quite nice and friendly to fans. Not to mention friendly on the eyes.

Via

So, do a girl a favor and join your team against the Columbus Crew tomorrow night.  I'm sure we'll be BFFs if you do!             

XOXO,
                                     

  

Crushes

Monday: Happy hour with my girls. We had some celebrating to do. Although, we celebrate every time we get together!  It's so great to see my awesome running girls all so happy. Life is fabulous!

Here are some items I have been crushing on lately. Most are running related, some are not.

26.2 Apparel capris, Toms ballet flats, Lululemon run crops, frock stock earrings (these beauties have already found their way to my house!), Run Pretty Far tee, Gap blazer, Garmin Forerunner 610, Saucony Kinvara 3, Lululemon run shorts, ruffle trench from La Posh Style.

Weekend Review

Saturday: Mudathlon - 3.1 mile race 40 obstacles
Sunday: 8 mile run with The Boyfriend

It's Monday already?! Where do the weekends go these days?

My running slacked off this past week after my 7.2 mile run on Monday. Last week was super busy and this week is looking to be about the same. So, this week's goal is to at least get 2 shorter runs in.



Friday night we headed to the Jungle for the Bengals first preseason game vs. the Jets. We met up with a few of The Boyfriends friends and had a blast. I can't wait to go to the regular season games!
I will post more about the Mudathlon later this week. For now, I'll just tell you it was tons of fun and very muddy!

Perfect running weather = capri tights

Sunday morning we headed out for an 8 mile run. We weren't sure what to expect with some lingering soreness from some of the obstacles. My upper body was super sore. 

Awesome photog skills on a beautiful morning

We ran on a bike trail that The Boyfriend discovered last weekend near his house. The weather was gorgeous (in the 60s to start I think!), the path was scenic (barns, horses, fields, woods), and the company wasn't so bad either!

Our friends Erin and Carter informed The Boyfriend that he gets something special every time he sets a PR, so since 8 miles is the farthest he has EVER run, we headed to skyline for dinner.

Yes, that is a 4:1 ratio on chili cheese sandwiches

It was such a great weekend. It's not so sad to see it go since I have so many fun things planned this week: happy hour, cook out, soccer games, 5Ks!

Hope 2012: A Blog Relay

I've been passed the baton to write about Hope. This project originated here and I received the baton from the amazing JennyJ at  Two Itchy Feet.

I was instantly struck by this for a couple of reasons: 1) I love relays 2) "Hope 2012" has been my personal mantra since February.  Ironic, eh?

Since I mentioned my story recently in a post, then received this, maybe that means it is time to tell it. 

My world came crashing down Saturday February 18th. The day started off as most of my Saturdays do did - at running club. After a 15.5 mile run I met two girlfriends for lunch. After lunch I headed over to my place of employment to switch cars with my then boyfriend. He knew I was going to be doing this. And that's when I saw them. Sitting in a car talking. That easily and that quickly, the life I had known was over. 

I can't even put into words the shock I felt. To be betrayed by the person I loved and thought loved me, the person I shared my home with, was quite simply the worst pain I had ever felt.

The first few weeks are a blur. I managed to go to work, but that took everything I had. I was a zombie. I wasn't ready to talk about it. I couldn't tell my family. 

At this point I had a choice to make. To have hope or to not have hope. I chose to believe in Hope. To remind myself of this, I wrote Hope 2012 in inconspicuous places that I would see multiple times throughout the day (yes, it's nerdy, I know!).

This penny sits on my desk - a visual reminder that 2012 is a hopeful year.

Since this is mostly a running blog, I have to tie in the running part, right? 

Runners will understand that those you run with know you in a way that others do not. When I missed a triathlon I was registered for on February 19th, my running partner knew something was very wrong. It took me a few weeks to be able to get together with her and tell her what had happened. 

A few weeks after that she told me there was someone she wanted me to meet. I was skeptical, and knew I wasn't ready at first, but by the time she had talked to him and exchanged our information for us I felt more ready.

Now, almost 5 months later, I have more hope than I knew was humanly possible. I look forward to the future more than ever. 

It's not just The Boyfriend that has given me hope, although he is amazingly perfect for me. In  the depths of my despair, I found strength in myself that I was unaware I had. My faith was reignited. My friendships were strengthened. I emerged with Hope.

You might not have to know despair to ever have hope, but I do believe it makes you appreciate it that much more. 

Now I'd like to hand off the baton to my amazing sister Jen and my talented Aunt Julie. Of course if anyone else out there wants to join in on the fun, the more the merrier!

Baltimore

Oh, Baltimore, you have such nice stadiums. It's too bad one of them is for the Ravens.

We were so happy to be able to spend time with my cousin Jess while we were in Baltimore. She graciously opened up her adorable condo to us and was our personal tour guide. 

Our train was a little late...never a good sign when they tell you there is engine trouble in the first 30 minutes of a 7 hour trip...but we were able to have an amazing meal in Little Italy after taking in the sights of the Inner Harbor.

Saturday was spent at the soccer game, a bar after the game, then a bar/restaurant in an old mill. Apparently I forgot to take many pics in Baltimore though. I'll blame in on the heat. It was 96 the day of the game - and the game was at 1 in the afternoon. 

I felt ridiculous, but didn't care one bit!

Jess was such an awesome hostess that she even had a spray fan for us to take to the game with us! 

Weekend Review

This weekend was quite busy...yet again! Friday night we finally made it to see The Dark Knight. The boyfriend had really been wanting to go, and we finally had a night free to do so. I'm pretty sure I haven't seen the other movies...but I still really enjoyed this one. It was long (2 hours 45 minutes), but it didn't feel like it.

Saturday evening we had dinner with the family I nannied for in college. Can you believe the oldest is starting GRAD school in a few weeks???? Crazy. I'd like to take this moment to take some credit for her academic achievements...

Unfortunately I didn't get a picture of me with the kids. This is the only from the evening:

My lame attempt at being a fashionista

Dinner was delicious, the company was fabulous, and most importantly they all gave The Boyfriend two thumbs up!

Sunday we spent most of the day with The Boyfriend's family for his nephew's birthday. It was a lot of fun and a little crazy! But you can't beat a curly haired almost 3 year old singing Call Me Maybe. Over. And. Over.

The weekend came to a close at book club. Good friends, good wine...and I'm guessing the book was good. Maybe I'll get around to finishing it soon!

Another fun and busy weekend! I can't believe the first week of August is already over. I'm not ready to say goodbye to Summer yet.

An Almost Perfect Evening

Monday's Workout: 7.2 mile run!

This is the farthest I have run since the middle of February. It's crazy to think that...but it's true!

Since The Boyfriend did his long on his own Sunday night, I was on my own tonight for mine.  I tried unsuccessfully to get someone to run at least part of it with me. In the end though, I was happy to be out there on my own. 

In the locker room before my run I ran into a friend at work I hadn't talked to in many months. She asked some questions that led me to telling her my story. It makes me feel strong and proud to tell my story. Back in February I never thought I'd be able to talk about it without crying, but now I can tell it while smiling the whole time because I know how incredibly happy I am now and I can say with 100% certainty that "everything happens for a reason".

I felt pretty good on my run and for a few miles felt like I was just floating along the sidewalk. I have no misconceptions that I looked like I was floating, but it definitely felt awesome.

This might have been modeled after me

And now I am enjoying an almost perfect evening. Laying in bed, Mac on my lap, book next to me, Olympics on t.v. I think I'm going to go into withdrawal when the Olympics are over. Oh, how I love the summer Olympics. 

I better go and enjoy the rest of my relaxation time, this is rare!

Trains, Planes and Duckmobiles

Saturday's workout: 3 mile run, 1.5 mile walk.

Our Saturday run was intentionally kept short due to our lack of running during the week. Unfortunately I still have to get my "long" run...the plan is after work today. However, The Boyfriend ran his last night (while I was at book club) - his longest run EVER and he did it completely alone. I'm so proud!

Our short Saturday run did put me over the 200 mile mark for the year. Far shorter than where I thought I would be at this point in the year back in January, but a milestone nonetheless!

We've been back for over a week, so it's about time for a vacation recap, eh?

We flew into Boston and stayed there for 4 days. We packed in as much as we could: Fanueil Hall, Boston Common, The Freedom Trail, Little Italy, Fenway, Boston Harbor, The Charles River, Harvard, Boston Garden, Duck Tour, Mike's pastries, famous dead people (Sam Adams, Hancock, Paul Revere), the oldest bar in the U.S. The boyfriend got to meet a couple of Liverpool soccer legends and I got to meet the brand new mascot!

We had an absolute blast and were super impressed with how easy it was to get around the city. We relied on our legs and the T (that's Boston speak for subway).

We then took the train, yes Amtrak, to Baltimore. We were super excited for our first American train trip!

A post on Baltimore will come this week!

ISO Motivation

I am a complete sucker.

And possibly a complete slacker as well.

My planned workout didn't  look like this:

But that's what it turned into.

Why am I having so many problems with  motivation? Am I still in vacation mode?

I did get a nice treat from the boss lady though:

It's been an odd week. I've been sneezy, super tired, wishing I was still on vacay...lots of excuses. But it's time to snap out of it.

Getting My Booty Kicked

Wednesday's Workout: 3.25 mile run at a much faster pace than I have been running.

Pre after work run essentials.

Ben and I were finally able to run together again. It felt like it had been forever...and my legs and lungs agreed.

It was quite the humbling experience. Ben reminded me that I used to "carry" him on this route. I know he sped up a few times just to see what I would do.

Towards the end he gave me the option to cut out a quarter mile. Of course I said "heck no!". I think it was a test to see if the running buddy he once had was still in there somewhere.


I am. And I am coming back. Just a little slower than I used to be.