Wife Mother Runner Blog - Wife Mother Runner

I Won’t Try To Do A Tri This Year

August 26, 2014

I had a goal set this summer that I would participate in a Women’s Sprint Tri this September. I did take part in training, biking, running and “some” swimming. But I didn’t get the chance to step up my swimming training and I also didn’t do any brick workouts. So after being on vacation last week and doing my first open water swim in a lake, I decided that I am just not ready for a race like this. I can do well with the biking and the running, but I am too afraid I will run out of gas from just the 1/2 mile swim alone.

The medal they are giving for the race is a cute charm bracelet and that sure did tempt me to suck it up and do it anyway; but I talked to my husband and kids and told them I had made the decision to not do that race that I had been working for during the summer. It was so cute when I told them. The kids immediate told me “you can do anything you want to mommy! Don’t give up, you can do it!” It was so obvious to me that they listen to me and what I tell them when I encourage them to keep trying and to not give up while they are doing something hard and get frustrated. It was so sweet that they were telling me that I still had time to train and get myself better and ready for the race. But I told them that sometimes I have to be wise and make a decision to NOT do a race to prevent myself from getting hurt. I wanted them to understand that I wasn’t giving up; but that I was making my decision so that I could be safe and to know that next year I will work harder towards the goal.

I am slightly disappointed that I won’t be doing this race, but I also want to stay injury free and healthy as I prepare for the Philadelphia marathon and the Dopey Challenge in January. Sometimes the best decision is to sit out an event rather than try to do it all.

I am so happy that my running hobby is also teaching my children some good lessons in life.

Epic Summer Is Wrapping Up

August 25, 2014

I am trying to stretch out as much of the last week of summer vacation that I can. But that means we are going to have to start going to bed earlier this week and the reality that summer is coming to an end is really setting in. I hate to admit this, but it is starting to make me very upset. I know we can still have fun once the kids are back in school, but it’s not the same.

This has been the best summer. The kids are having a blast, we have made so many memories and the weather has been incredible! We went out for ice cream, volunteered at the animal shelter, played in the pool, went to the beach, went on vacation, had campfires in the backyard, played with friends and so much more!

Sadly, we didn’t get as much homework done as we probably should have, but I’m not going to worry about that. It was a good time to be a kid and let loose. We did do a lot of reading, went to the library for a few events and even wrote our own book. I love summer. I am sad to see the days getting shorter, the nights are getting cooler and the pool water isn’t as warm. But I hear we are going to have some warm weather for the next week so I am going to hold on to that as long as I can. Fall is also a fun time of year and we will do our best to make the best of it with the fairs that come to town and the hayrides, apple picking, cider and yummy fall treats. But nothing beats summer.

Since day 1 of summer vacation I wanted the kids to have a best summer, and I want to make every summer vacation the best. I think I was successful in creating those awesome memories for them. I know I enjoyed everything we did. What did you do this summer?

I Am Now A Jamberry Consultant!

August 24, 2014

I am now a member of the Jamberry Independent Consultants! What does that mean? It means you can purchase Jamberry nail wraps from me. I can provide you the nail wraps from the catalog as well as custom nail wraps (more specifically, Disney nail wraps).

What are Jamberry Nail Shields? They are stick on nail art you can apply to your nails I get the color or design you want without the fuss of going to a nail salon or waiting for polish to dry. They come 20 wraps to a sheet and you can get multiple manicures and pedicures from one sheet. They are just $15 per sheet and there are over 300 designs to choose from. Not only can you purchase the designs already in the catalog but you can purchase custom nail wraps. I have several Disney nail wraps available to be used as enhancements to your Disney race costumes!

I became interested in the company when I attended a Facebook Jamberry party. I didn’t even have to leave my couch to participate. It is so easy!

If you are interested in hosting a party or purchasing nail wraps from me please visit my page at pamfrost.jamberry.com.

Visit my Facebook page and comment on the Jamberry nail wrap you like best and I will send you a set of accent wraps!

Dopey Training – August 17

August 22, 2014

I am committed to my running. So much so that even if my long training run falls on my vacation I do my best to make sure I am out there getting in the miles. This week Jeff Galloway has me running a 6 mile run on Saturday and a 17 mile run on Sunday. I did both runs back to back and am very glad that I have them done.

As I was enjoying the first part of my vacation it was on my mind that I had this long run on the schedule and I also had to be sure I was eating and drinking appropriately. I was enjoying some red wine by the fire the nights prior to the runs but made sure to be careful of how much I drank. We have been cooking our meals at the house and those were also good food choices to fuel up for the long run.

My husband said he would get up early with me and head out on his bike while I did the run. The main reason for this was because I was going out to run in an area that I wasn’t familiar with. I wasn’t too worried about being out there alone, but the thought of some bears or a “wild animal” did cross my mind when I went out on my shorter runs earlier in the week.

I set my alarm for 6:00 a.m. but when it went off I completely blew it off and reset it for 6:30. It was looking dark and grey out the window and I didn’t have to worry about trying to beat the sun and heat as much so I snoozed for an extra 30 minutes. Then we got up, I had my toast and tea and hit the road around 7:20. The weather was good, overcast, no sun and no rain. The showers blew over as we were getting ready to head out so thankfully it stopped when we left.

The route was nice. We followed the lake in an out and back route and then I went in an opposite direction but the route wasn’t the mileage that I had mapped out prior to our trip. I became frustrated when we got to the end of the road I planned to go to and I saw that I still needed to get in 5 more miles which wasn’t the distance back to our house. The distance back was just about 2 miles. At that point I needed some sugar to my brain to help ward off the negative thoughts that were creeping in. I told my husband that I needed some reinforcement. He helped determine an alternate route to get in some mileage and then we headed back into the direction of the house. I was concerned because the return trip back had a lot of hills. Once on the return trip I just dug in my hills and sucked it up and pushed on.

I was done with trying to make up the mileage on the road and just wanted to get back so we headed back to our beach and I ran along the road and driveway of our vacation area and got in the last 1.5 miles there.

I’m glad the miles are now behind me. I tried not to think about the fact that I did a little more than a half marathon and would have to do a full marathon after a half when we are doing the Dopey challenge in January. I did think about Dumbo while I was out there. That race is a 10K with a half the following day. Today’s run was over a half but the weekend structure will be the same. I am in good shape for the Dumbo Double Dare but I do still have many miles and training runs to put in for the Dopey Challenge. I know I can do it. It’s going to take a lot of work.

Disney Dumbo Double Dare Airport Recommendations

August 13, 2014

Last year was my first time flying to Anaheim to participate in the Inaugural Dumbo Double Dare race weekend. I watched the flights for that race for several months. I chose to fly into John Wayne Airport (SNA) because it was closer to Anaheim and LAX. Considering I was flying there alone and renting a car (for the first time at the age of 41), I didn’t want to have to drive from LA to Anaheim. I was lucky that all of my flights were on time.

I arrived on schedule to California and got off the plane (with carry ons only) and headed down to the car rental area. I learned a few lessons about car rentals. It is best to sign up for the Express check-out where you just have to find a car in your price level and then you can take it from the lot and sign out without having to go to the main car rental desk and the whole process of checking out a car. I also learned that you DON’T need all the extra insurance they offer to you.

Next, when you get into the car, set up your GPS ahead of time so you are all set to hit the road with the navigation system telling you where to go right away. As I drove out of the airport I was sitting on the entrance to a highway and I had NO idea where I was going. I pulled over and fumbled through my papers to get the address of the hotel and get my phone working with the GPS and the car charger and Bluetooth so that I could call home to my family while travelling to my destination. That’s another bad idea. Get settled and comfortable with where you are going before you start making your phone calls! I was sitting there sweating, in a little Fiat with huge airplanes flying over head while I was getting myself oriented.

Once I started driving it was ok, The route to Disneyland is pretty easy and quick. The trip back to the airport was even quicker. It felt more direct and was much less traffic on Sunday of Labor Day weekend as opposed to Friday at 5:00 on a holiday weekend. I planned on returning home the same day as the race so that I could spend the Labor Day holiday with my family. I took a 1:00 flight home so I had to rush back to my off-site hotel to shower, eat and finish packing up the last of my things. I did have enough time and plan on taking a flight home the same day of the race this year as well. I don’t have to rush as much because I will be staying on property at the Disneyland Hotel and my flight is also at 3:00 p.m. I wanted to have time after the race this year to shower and enjoy a meal with my friends before heading out.

I really enjoyed this race. Out of all the Disney races I think this was my favorite so far. I have done the marathon in 2013 as my first marathon, Dumbo Double Dare (2013), Tower of Terror (2013), The 10K and full marathon (2014), Glass Slipper Challenge (2014). Out of all of those races, I liked The Dumbo Race Weekend because of the race course. Out of all the races I did in Disneyland and Disney World these races had the most time in the park. I had awesome photo opportunities at these races and got to see the parks. I hadn’t purchased a park pass for this trip but was totally ok with that. I loved seeing what I had seen while in the parks for the races and enjoyed the races thoroughly (except for the last 4 miles of the half marathon because of the terrible heat and humidity).

Besides the heat, this event was a great time for me. I loved travelling alone to a far off city, having some quiet time to myself, venturing out to Downtown Disney and participating in several meetups. Hooking up with my friends Mandy and Kenn Remo and their two sons for dinners and the races. And I also enjoyed shopping for my family at Downtown Disney. Each runDisney event has its own unique characteristics. I would like to one day participate in the Tink, Avengers, or Star Wars races out West, but for now I’ll stick to Dumbo.

Virtual Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend Blog Hop Directory

Running Out of Depression

August 12, 2014

Well since the topic of depression is now coming out due to the death of Robin Williams I’d like to talk about how running has helped me. I talked about my illness of kidney vasculitis in my post “Everyone Has A Story – My Story”. I was feeling depressed when I was going through the onset of my illness and the time that I went with unanswered questions. At that time I began running. It was only on my treadmill at home, but it was something that I began to do and it helped me.

I needed to move my body and push it to limits that I never did before. I used to hate running. But once I started, I began to love it. I didn’t want to feel like the illness was going to take over my life and my moods. It was a very difficult time for me, but running did help.

After my second child Adrienne was born, I had a lot of hormonal issues where I was crying a lot. I felt overwhelmed having a 16-month old ACTIVE little boy and a newborn who was having trouble nursing. For my six week check up I just sat in the doctor’s office crying. The doctor looked at my husband who just didn’t know what to say. It happens, new moms sometimes cry a lot. But I really had a hard time. After that appointment I needed help. My mom came over after just having had shoulder surgery not long before and wasn’t really allowed to drive. She watched my daughter for me so I could go take a walk. At that point I wasn’t running because I was still postpartum. But I NEEDED to move my body and get those endorphins flowing. It helped to walk. Eventually that difficult time got easier for me and I got into running much more when the time allowed.

Running isn’t the answer for severe depression, doctors and perhaps medication are required, but getting active and moving your body while releasing endorphins is very helpful to me. I have been through very tough times in my life where I felt blue or in a funk and after a good run, it has helped me come back and feel a bit more hopeful. But like I said, it’s not the only answer to dealing with depression. If you feel you are anxious or depressed, talk to a doctor and let them know what you are feeling. I did and it was a very smart decision for me. Don’t be afraid. It doesn’t mean you are weak or incompetent or lessen your intelligence. It will actually make you more clear, focused and balanced. Your brain is a very complex cocktail of chemicals and if some of those chemicals get out of whack you need to help put them back where they belong so you can do the things you used to do.