The Bright Side

TC Valentine's Day 5K

Today, Paul and I ran in the TC Valentine's Day 5K.  Our very first 5K and we did alright.  Our time was 38:10 with a 12:18 pace.  Slow, I know. But, not bad for our first race ever and at our age.  We definitely learned a few things that I'll share with you here.  

First and foremost, try and pick out a slightly less dorky looking headband for the next cold weather race. Puhleez!!

Second of all, if you train for months on end using intervals, don't throw the intervals out the window in a race situation and just run.  BIG rookie mistake!  Totally (t-o-t-a-l-l-y) goofed me up. Paul was so great though, I kept trying to tell him to go on ahead, (save yourself) but he stuck with me the whole time.  Such a good husband. 

Also, don't arrive too early, especially when it is cold outside.  It was a balmy 25 degrees today, but my toes were numb by the time we started. Speaking of starting, here was our view in the starting line.  

And finally, the most important thing I learned today was to relax, enjoy it and just take it all in.  I couldn't believe how many people showed up at this thing!  We saw lots of funny costumes, (Cupid, ballerina/fairies, etc.) and even a bride and groom who were getting married after the race. Excellent people watching!  

All in all, today was a great experience.  Now we just have to look for a new race to set our sights on for the not too distant future.  

 

 

 

thursday's workout

• Spinning:  Spinnervals - Lean & Mean
• 316 calories
• 60 minutes
• HR: ave. 114, high 141
• Felt great!

Loved this new Spinnervals 4.0 DVD.  It focuses on interval work, which was great.  Near the end, the trainer has you get off the bike and do a series of squats and isometric squats.  Wow, my quads were shakin' and quakin'!  It was a challenge.  

Tonight, while I was spinning, I watched Under the Tuscan Sun.  Man, I love that movie.  Ah, Italy.  Tuscany.  The Amalfi Coast.  Positano.  It must be one of the most beautiful places on the planet.  I've been there twice and I'd go back there in a heartbeat.

Positano

 

The Hotel Santa Caterina

This is where we stayed in Amalfi, The Hotel Santa Caterina.  Heaven on earth.  Take a mini-vacation by clicking on the link above and take a little tour.  So beautiful.  I highly recommend it.

Wait.  How did I end up talking about Amalfi in the middle of my workout report?  Oh, right. Under the Tuscan Sun.  

 

 

Ok, enough.  Back to reality.  Time for bed.  

Night!

 

sunshine and tulips

Today we enjoyed sunshine, blue skies and 54 degree weather on our hike around Lake Harriet.  Signs of spring were everywhere.  The ice on the lake is beginning to melt all around the edges.  I have a feeling sparkling blue water isn't far off. We saw pairs of ducks and geese quietly paddling in the open water, enjoying the warm weather. Cheerful little chickadees hopped from branch to branch and we spied a few trees beginning to bud.  Yes! 

All of that springiness inspired a quick re-do of the foyer table.  It's time for tulips and bunnies and colored eggs.  I can't wait for 60 degree weather and more sunny days.  Happy spring, everyone!

Oh, and Sophie found a cozy spot for a snooze.  All in all, a great day!

 

chrissie's great adventure

My daughter, Chrissie, is on a great adventure.  She is in her final semester of college and she is student teaching at an all girls school in a town in England. How cool is that? She traveled there with 3 other girls from her university and they are staying with a host family. The first 2 weeks were spent traveling through Europe with the other girls. They visited many cities in Spain, including Madrid, Malaga and Granada.

They also went to Rome and Florence, Italy.  Ah, gelato!  Yum!

The red rooftops of Florence.

Looking up in the Duomo.

In Germany, they toured Munich and Berlin.

Naturally, that included a stop at the famous Hofbrauhaus beer hall, they are college students after all.

Here's a memorial of the Berlin wall, these stones follow where the wall really stood across the whole city.

Now they are back in England and have begun their student teaching. Chrissie has a class of thirteen 3rd grade girls. They told her the first day that they love her voice, which is so funny because I think little English kids have the cutest accents ever!

So, her adventure continues and I can't wait to hear more! I'll keep you posted. Be sure to check out other beautiful life adventures at The Inspired Room's Beautiful Life blog party.

my new obsession - monarch on the glen

In need of a mini-break? A little holiday from the pressures and pace of this high-tech, high stress world? How about a little time in the peaceful, bucolic Scottish highlands? Too expensive, you say? Not to worry...

I just discovered a wonderful, highly-rated gem on Netflix.com. It is a BBC t.v. series from 2000-03. Forgive me if I am sadly out of the loop, but I had never heard of it before and now I am completely hooked. Endearing, funny characters, beautiful scenery, great stories and relationships keep me coming back to watch more and more of the episodes. 

The Netflix synposis:  "This popular BBC series, inspired by the novels of Compton Mackenzie, traces the adventures of Archie MacDonald, a London hipster-restaurateur summoned back to his Highland home, Glenbogle, to care for his sick father.  Faced with an estate riddled with mounting losses, the city boy stays on -- at least until the muddled mess can be sorted out." 

Check out the very first show in the series below:

Next 10 minutes:

Next 10 minutes:

Last 10 minutes: 

The first 5 seasons are available on Netflix.com for rental or to watch instantly. You can also purchase the series on amazon.com. 

Enjoy!!

4th grade update

Decision made.  We are going to keep homeschooling our youngest for one more year.  We are geared up and ready to go.  The Calvert School curriculum is our fav and we are going to stick with it. Calvert really steps it up in fourth grade so it promises to be an interesting and busy year. 

We are going to try something new for math, however. I have heard great things and was very impressed by the demos on the Teaching Textbooks website. It has an exciting interactive computer component that I think Ryan is really going to like. Plus, it has a great built-in review element to each lesson.

For enrichment courses this year we are going to tackle the first half of the Calvert Spanish course. That promises to be interesting as I learned French in high school, not Spanish. Thankfully, Calvert has an audio component on their website. May have to call my daughter in as back up on this one.

Minnesota History is next up on our schedule. Calvert has an awesome in-depth class for that with multiple field trips included. We plan on hitting as many of these as we can fit in. They include:

• Fort Snelling (Civil War Weekend)
• Traverse des Sioux
• Birch Coulee Battlefield 
• James J. Hill Mansion 
• Oliver H. Kelley Farm 
• Walnut Grove and the Wilder Museum
• Mill City Museum  
• Soudan Underground Mine State Park
• The logging camp at the Forest History Center in Grand Rapids
• A Paul Bunyan statue or two 
• The Walker Art Center
• The Minneapolis Institiute of Arts 
• St. Paul Winter Carnival 
• The Science Museum 
• Lake Superior Railroad Museum
• Minnesota State Capitol Bldg. 
• The Boundary Waters 
• Jeffers Petroglyphs Historic Site 
• Mille Lacs Indian Museum 
• Big Island Festival in Albert Lea 
• Buffalo River State Park

Phew! That should keep us busy!  Many are only open from May-Sept or October so we are trying to fit in several before our school year actually begins.