Welcome Home

After the holidays, i took down my Christmas wreath and wanted to do something new. Didn't quite know what to do, so my branchy wreath sat on its hook naked. Lately I have been reading http://www.centsationalgirl.com/ and have been inspired to do stuff to my house, and well also i got sick of getting home to my naked wreath door. I was looking to do something simple, but classic that totally says ...this is my home... I think i accomplished it. Some may think its really plain, but let some think whatever they want, because i love it. I went to Michaels and searched and searched...first for ribbon, then for satin flowers...is ribbon to little? do satin flowers look tacky? i searched and searched...i found this little bundles of lilac and violet hydrangeas for $1! so i got those and also some great sage green wired ribbon. Did i use those to creat my look? no. But i got them anyway for when I want a change. I bought two sets of these little apples with a wirey stem that worked great with the branches of my wreath. I also purchased some golden wired ribbon...didnt know how i would use it...to wrap around parts of the wreath perhaps? anyways... got home and started playing around. I got the apples placed just how i wanted them...now for the ribbon, i knew i wanted to incorporate the golden color, so .... it looked like crap wrapped on the wreath, so i looked elsewhere...can i hang the wreath from the ribbon?! yes! great idea, but wasnt looking how i wanted it to. so ...i wrapped my brass hook with the golden ribbon and guess what...it looks fantastic, at least i think so, and since i am the one that lives here....then the client is pleased. take a look for yourself!!

A Thousand Splendid Suns...in review

I picked up this book because I so much enjoyed reading The Kite Runner (TKR) by Khaled Hosseini. Same author different book, both New York Times bestsellers. I wrote briefly about the Kite Runner in a previous post, I took a breather from the Afghan culture and read The Time Traveler's Wife, and I am so glad I did. A Thousand Spendid Suns (TSS) and TKR are both set in Afghanistan. In TKR they move to the US and the story is told from a young boy's perspective ---he becomes a man throughout the book --- I absolutely loved the book although it did have some really brutal scenes.

TKR's brutal scenes are an afternoon tea compared to the scenes described in TSS. TSS is the story of two women in Afghanistan and the way they come into each other's lives. These books are marvelously written. So much so, that I had flashbacks of TKR during some occasions of TSS and i had such vivid pictures that I had to stop and think if I had really seen it on tv or a movie .... but no certainly it was from earlier scenes depicted by Hosseini. The book is engulfing in so many ways. You fall in love with these women, so young, so vulnerable, yet so brave. The book goes into much of the Afghan history, culture, and way of life and it is absolutely intriguing, in sad ways more than anything, but definitely intriguing. How can these people survive all these hardships? They have suffered for so many years, they dont know what life without war is like.

This book really made me appreciate what I have and the way I was brought up, and most of all the culture into which I was born. Being a woman, and reading this book is heart breaking. I literally wanted to jump into the book and knock the life out of this man for doing what he did to them. How can men have so much disrespect for a woman. a wife. a daughter. how can a father not want "his" daughter because she is not a boy?

Anyway, just wanted to spill some of my thoughts about the book without giving too much away - I highly recommend this book, but be prepared to as Joey from Friends would put it "put the book in the freezer" ---- if you have read the book or if you read it, give me a shout when you are done, I would love to hear your thoughts regarding it.

Bookin' It!

How dorky is the title of my post!!
So I have been really consumed by reading. I really have this list of books that i have read and I think they are ALL good. The list includes:

The Twilight Series ---- everyone else was doing it, but I really enjoyed the books.

Marley and Me ----- A total teer jerker, but so well written, and really just as much a good laugh as a sobber.

The Posionwood Bible ----- LOVED IT. HArd to get into, but kept turning pages based on CB's recommendation. There was a point, where i literally couldnt stop reading. I really enjoyed this book.

The Glass Castle ---- RIDICULOUSLY GOOD --- Thanks JB

The Emperor's Children ---- EXCELLENT ---- Thanks CB

The Lovely Bones --- page turner. Thanks LW.

Eat, Pray, Love ---- I absolutely related to her story!

The Kite Runner ---- absolutely amazing book, it really touched me. Such a great story, really well written, and opened my eyes about the Afghan culture and the country. It is hard to swallow some of the scences that the book paints, but I think they add so much to the story and are a key part in making the book as impactful (is that a word?!) as it is.

The Time Traveler's Wife --- picked this up because my new manager told me it was one of her favorite books. It was tough to follow at the beginning, but once you get the hang of how the book works, it is amazing. It caused me to reflect on JR and my relationship. And really i felt a lot of connections between the character's relationship and my relationship. Needless to say, i really enjoyed the book and would highly recommended it.

I have now started reading A Thousand Splendid Suns, which is written by the author or The Kite Runner. I must say that is my favorite book of 2009. I REALLY loved it, and have heard great things about A Thousand Splendid Suns. I am on Chapter 4, but will hopefully be writing about it on the blog. Or not about the book, but what I think as the pages turn.

Where have I been?!

...that's a question you might be asking yourself. So I am here to tell you. Last you heard from me, unless you see me regularly, I had finished my first ironman. Since then, quite a bit has happened....i.e. the new job, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year, the big chill. What else?! Probably forgetting quite a few things, but those really are the bigs.

Thangsgiving was wonderful. I went with JR to South Carolina and had a great time. I met the rest of his family and I must say that I absolutely love them. They were very welcoming, and I really felt "at home" with everyone. I can't wait to go back.

On a Christmas note, I am so excited that I did all my Christmas shopping, well, I shouldn't say all, but most of my Christmas shopping before Thanksgiving. I hardly dealt with crowds, but I probably did spend more money than originally intended. Oh well, the best part is seeing my loved ones open their presents, which they appear to have really loved. In particular my mom. I just love giving presents!!! My sister was in town for Christmas, and I realized that I had not seen her since LAST Christmas. That is just way too long. I guess that Ironman training really did take away the opportunities to go off to New York on any random weekend. Runs and Bikes were number one priorities over trips. This year, I definitely need to take some time to head up there to see her. When, i have no idea, since i have reduced vacation at the new j-o-b. I miss my 5 weeks of vacay. Not the only thing i miss btw.

The day after Christmas i ran with my friend @ http://www.stridesacrosstexas.org/. That was so amazing. AND on January 1st, KK finished 482 miles running across Texas in effort to raise funds for pediatric cancer. You can see his website at http://www.snowdropfoundation.org/ ---- I raised money for his organization through my Ironman, and was able to raise over $2K --- so thanks to everyone who donated!!

Now I am getting ready for the Houston Half marathon. That is coming up on Sunday. It should be great! JR is running the full and looking to BQ (Boston Qualify) --- so i will be in full support mode once i cross the finish line.

I am hoping to be a little more frequent with my posts. Especially ramping up with training for Ironman Canada.

Ironman Florida 2009

This was the event a year in the making. Last November, a group of friends and I took a little trip over to Panama City Beach, Florida to volunteer and register for Ironman Florida. This wasnt something that had just popped in my head...no, it was an event I had been wanting to do, the second after I finished my first sprint triathlon back in March of 2007. I figured 2009 would be the perfect year for it, it gave me the opportunity to get comfortable with the sport, get used to riding a bike for prolonged periods of time, and just gave me time to mentally prepare.

A group of us who signed up at IMFL2008

So the journey began last year at Ironman Florida and continued for a full year. So much has happened in that year! But that is beside the point.

Last year I decided that I would join the Janus Charity Challenge for Ironman Florida 2009 and fundraise money for Snowdrop Foundation http://www.snowdropfoundation.org/ . I began my fundraising efforts early on and had amazing results. Me along with family, friends, and coleagues were able to raise just over $2000!!!! I am so excited and so proud to have been able to help Snowdrop's cause. So thank you to all of you who supported!!

On to training...I began training a LONG time ago...not necessarily the heart of training, but building a base. A lot of my friends participated in Ironman Couer d'Alene in June, so I was going along for bike rides and runs early on (but not nearly as long as what they were doing!) ... Let's just say that I got some reading done while I waited. I was very comfortably doing 50-60 mile routes and running 13 comfortably. The hard core training started in July...adding a few miles here and a few miles there....by the end of August I had done a 100 miler and run numerous miles. My weekends were filled with lengthy workouts that left little time to rest and relax.

Taper finally came around in mid/late October. Wow...it was very difficult to think that there was not much i could let myself do....the training was done, the only thing i could do now is injure myself. So with lots of advice from my friends (and experienced ironmen) I put less miles on my running shoes and less miles on my wheels. Time to put my feet up and rest!

We left for Florida early on Wednesday morning. By early I mean 5am! It was definitely the right thing to do, since we wanted to avoid any and all traffic. We stopped a few times to get gas and use the little girls roon (Josh used the little boys room) and we were well into our trip by midday. We arrived in Panama City Beach right around 3pm! Great time! We decided that I should go ahead and do the registration right then, this way I would avoid long lines on athletes the next day. I walked right up to the registration booth and got my stuff without wasting any time. We walked around at the expo and the Ironman Store...no i did not get a thing! That would have been a curse!

Me at IMFL 2009!

As it turns out, I am SO glad we went as early as we did, it was really nice to get there and get accustomed to the environment and just get used to being there, without getting caught up in all the hoop-lah. Thursday morning, I was of course up before 6am and couldn't sleep another wink...so i read my book "The Lost Symbol" by Dan Brown which I cannot put down. It was a little chilly so I did not have my fantasy of drinking coffee and reading out in the balcony facing the Gulf. Later that morning, I wetsuited up...and went for a quick swim. I just wanted to get loose and make sure that the wetsuit was in check and ready to go. After that swim, I decided that it would be in my best interest to get in a little warm-up on race morning, rather than just go for it. I felt so much better after having swam a few hundred yards...i loosened up quite a bit.

The rest of the day was spent resting and relaxing...we had lunch and dinner in the condo --- a must have luxury for any future Ironman races...having a full kitchen was the best thing and definitely worth every penny! We read and we watched the Hokies game. Oh and I also started to prep my gear!!! That is so stressful! I am so glad I already pretty much had everything pre-packed :)
Also went to the prerace meeting that night...glad i went! I found out some important info about the transition being in a different location than last year, as well as, found out drop points for special needs bags race morning and most importantly ... port-o-potty locations on the course! Got to see my Tripsy teammates at the meeting as well!

The next day...I woke up early, yet again! Agh! Can I please sleep in?!! This was the day before the race...by the way...not a nervous muscle on my body...very odd, since I am generally a stress magnet. Josh and I had a bagel breakfast and then we went to meet the Houston crew for a group picture, it was certainly great to see everyone and chat about how preparations for the race were going.

After the photo, Josh went to pick up our friends at the airport. So excited to see them!!! Them being here made it that much more real! The race was almost here! We spent the day lounging around and Shellie and I went to the grocery store to get stuff for dinner. Lisa ended up coming over for dinner as well. So Lisa, Shellie, Randy, William, Josh, and I, had a great pasta dinner at the condo, good friends and good food :) I wish my family had been there as well, but I know they were thinking of me :) That night was I guess a bit short...i think i woke up once in the middle of the night as was so ready...there was no grogginess when i woke up, i was just ready to go! I completed getting my stuff together...force fed a banana down my throat and then I was off to get body marked! Shellie was up when we left so I gave her a big hug and then we were off!

Josh came with me that morning, we dropped off the bags and got me to body marking. I made sure that someone with nice and neat numbers was in charge of writing on me :) She did a great job placing the number 82 on me. I was then off to double check my bike and get the fluids and nutrition ready...there was no stopping time now...the race was fast approaching. We went closer to the beach to get my wetsuit on. I applied A LOT of body glide on my neck before doing the final wetsuit zip up...Josh and I hung out on the beach until about 6:35 ... at which point i went off to through the chute for my 140.6 mile journey. I kissed him bye for now with a couple tears in my eyes and a certain smile on my face.

I went into the chilly water and swam a bit to get loose. I postioned my goggles and repositioned them about a zillion times. Josh had told me NOT to let ANYONE get in front of me when I lined up to swim...so I did not. It was obvious that the other front rowers were swimmers...they all sported their sweddish goggles...haha! I chatted up with a lady from Amarillo and a dude from Austin, cue the National Anthem...cue the count down...less than 1 minute....the cannon goes off!

A sea of people awaited me...if not in the back row, in the front row, on the side in the middle, underneath, and up on top...people...people..people...was I pulling water or body parts?! there were 6 buoys on the out and 6 buoys coming back in...in all the commotion i missed one...so it was great to see the big orange buoy sooner than i had expected. I remained very calm through my first lap...really really calm. Just stay relaxed and get through the swim. I did...at least the first loop. I came up onto the beach and head Josh, I waved, got a drink to get the saltyness out of my mouth (I drank a significant portion of the Gulf on Saturday) then I was off to loop numero dos. swim swim swim...oh wait...there was an enormous sand bar....they should have served cocktails cause i spent what seemed like a lifetime trying to get through it! I finally was off onto the second loop...the water was a bit choppier by now, but at least i had space to swim in now...the crowds had dispersed...or maybe it was my awesome swimming powers leaving everyone behind! as I made the turn to come back, it was very clear that the water was getting choppier...i started thinking that I was getting a bit seasick, but i stayed focused and just told myself to keep going and stay relaxed. I did and before I knew it...i was onshore! Out of the water...on the ground with the wetsuit strippers taking my suit off! I did it! 2.4 miles down!! On what seemed like a marathon transition i saw Josh, William, Jon, and the rest of the crew off to the side...i ran by....with a smile on my face and went on to grab my biking gear...the biggest challenge was just ahead.

I had NO clue how i had done on the swim because in the massive sea of people swim, someone maanged to hit my watch and really i didnt see what my time was...Lisa was in transition and I ran in screaming her name...she was right there ready to help me get my stuff on. As soon as that was done .... i hurried out of there and on to get my bike. I got on it and started my nutrition timer. Nutrition was the key to this race. Staying on top of it. I looked at my watch and I was on the bike before 1:12 into the race...no idea how long i was in transition, but that meant that I had had a pretty descent swim. I knew going into the race that the bike was going to be tough...especially because i am a great swimmer...and all those folks that are behind me on the swim...are pretty good cyclist...they started coming and coming and coming...i was getting passed non-stop...predominantly my men named Michael (the race numbers had the person's names on it). The miles were coming slowly...teh wind was pretty strong, but like I had done many many times before...i just kept pedaling...10 miles turned to 30 and 30 turned to 50...before I knew it i was halfway done with the bike portion. I bypassed special needs...there was nothing special that i needed except the end of the bike course! Just before the out and back, I saw JOSH! I spotted the yellow hat and immediately knew it was him! I was so excited to see him! I had been waiting almost 70 miles to see his shining smile! I rode by and soon after saw Jon and William right around mile 70....the next 4 miles were BRUTAL! The road sucked! there were breaks on in the asphalt or cement or whatever the surface was every few seconds. that and the head wind...agh! I finally saw the turn around! I unclipped and carefully turned (at Redman, I fell on a turn just like that and I wanted to be sure that history didnt repeat itself). After the turn around...it was marvelous! On my way to mile 80 and to see everyone again! I rode fast by (the wind was at my back :)) Saw Randy and Shellie told me to "Focus" so i did...mile 80 came by...and then...that is when the cramp hit. My left calf was screaming at me. All i could do was stop for two secs to take an e-cap...following Josh's advice to listen to my body and the moment i feel a cramp to pop one in. I did and was on my not-so merry way .... the road was long, but fortunately smooth. The miles inched by...I just kept telling myself that all I had left was an out and back ride from Belin...then Just less than a Belin ride....then from fulshear to Belin...I knew that it was 12 miles from the GIGANTIC bridge back to transition...it finally arrived. Only 12 miles to go. Piece of cake. I prepared myself for a slow 6 back in...seeing that the wind was coming from the east, but it must have changed because i was still coming in at 17.1 mph on the way in. It was awesome. I saw the condos where we stayed when we went to watch Sandy, Lisa, Chad and Kevin in 07 and thought to myself...this was only like a 1 mile walk! I am almost there!!! Then...i saw it. The Waffle House and Circle K. I was bawling. Tears were rolling down my face as I rode the last half mile in. It was amazing and no one could have erased the smile from my face.

I gave my bike to a volunteer and ran over to the bags --- i quickly found mine and headed into T2 where i sat next to Ingrid who was doing so great! Lisa helped me again and soon I was off onto the run. I saw Josh right as I was about to turn the corner and I gave him a hug and a kiss and I kept on going...running. I saw the rest of the crew cheering us on. I ran with Ingrid for a bit...and then after about 2 miles...the cramps in my stomach were really making themselves noticeable. I was having trouble taking in deep breaths and the cramps on my right side were killing me. I decided to walk for a bit to see if that would help the breathing and cramping. I took some e-caps to see if that would help. Kept going...tried to run again, but was unsuccessful. I decided at that point that it was going to be a walk for the rest of the way. I didnt realize that I did not train to walk the marathon...i trained to run it...which means ... totally different muscles hard at work. The marathon was VERY Painful. Along the 26.2 i met one of the originators of Ironman. His name is dave. He was one of the first Ironmen in Hawaii. It was amazing to have met him! I thanked him. Out of the park on my first loop, i met Mike. Mike was having cramping issues as well and was walking...so we walked together...all the way. Our goal was to get out of the damn park --- it was soooooooooooo dark! We got out of there and then it was just two loops of Memorial Park...too bad it was going to take twice as long as it normally would! We kept our pace...and soon we saw mile 25! OMG we only had 1 mile to go. We turned right on Surf and with smiles on our faces kept putting one foot in front of the other. My condo! After that the tears of joy started coming...just a quarter mile more...i didnt think i would be able to run...but as we were approaching the chute, i started running, smile on my face, tears welling up....i ran under the ironman sign...soon i heard..."there's a bunch of them coming! blah blah blah, blah blah blah, a butchered Agustina Fogleeeeta, Mike Blah Blah...." did he even say "YOU are an Ironman?!" I have waited so long to hear that and I NEVER did! agh! Josh was coming towards me, someone gave me a shirt and a medal and a hat. Put that on sooooo quickly. Timing chip off. I was done! I was an Ironman! I hugged Josh so hard, tears in my eyes! I quickly got in line for my finishers photo (which turned out great! and is already framed) I realized I couldnt walk any more...but who cares...after a year...countless miles....tears and smiles....Now, I can call myself an Ironman.

I talked to my mom soon after and gathered with everyone! Everyone did so great!!! Congratulations to all the first time Ironmen, Congratulations to the veterans, and most importantly...thank you to all of you who were supporting me from the sidelines or from home. This was an amazing experience that I will never ever forget. THANK YOU!

~Ironman Augie

Its been a while....again

yea it has been a while...what have i been doing? training! going to weddings! among other things.
So last Friday i had a really great 15 miler --- did it 2:05 before work, talk about efficiency! it was defintely wonderful getting that thing out of the way...if only i could have done the same with that bike ride...

well the kids tri went on so that is why i couldnt run on sat and had to do it on fri instead. Sat night we were at a wedding and we were able to get up the next morning to do the long ride. BUT it was not as long (mileage wise) as intended, but it was just nearly 5 hours (which was what was on the schedule). THere is something to be said about miles upon miles of hills a week after a half ironman...they are HARD! but oh well, you do what you can. I will be ready come november 7th. I am starting to get nervous and feel not ready... but i still have 3 more weeks of busting my ass....so that should get me there.

I've been hitting the water a little more, although these random sporadic thunderstorms dont help. Like the one on Monday that caused me to go swim at the 24 hour where i almost asfixiated. tough to breathe!! but i did get in some water time and that is what counts. RUnning in this changing houston weather has been great, makes up for all those ridiculously hot and sweaty runs that happen during the summer... and definitely makes running a lot more pleasant :)

oh ---- failed to mention that once IM Florida is done, i have a couple months of resting before i have to start training for my next endeavour .... IM Canada....yea ... dont know what i was thinking.

oh and another side note...because of all this crazy training, the total weight loss to date (since March) = 14 pounds :)

Janus Charity Challenge - Snowdrop Foundation

I finally had time to put this together! I am so excited!!!

I am participating in the Janus Charity Challenge for Ironman Florida and have decided to participate on behalf of Snowdrop Foundation. Check it out www.snowdropfoundation.org

Its going to be great!! My goal was to raise at least $500 but I think i will surpass that goal any minute now! SO EXCITED!!!!!!!

You can donate at the link below if you are so inclined!

https://www.kintera.org/faf/donorReg/donorPledge.asp?ievent=296523&lis=1&kntae296523=F0F0B72CA48C498090C9A42663D6E9CD&supId=256543026