JENuary!!!

Can you feel the excitement in the air???  Not only is tomorrow the first day of JENuary........it's the biggest JENuary ever!  I will be celebrating my 40th birthday next month!!!  And no....the JENuary thing is not a typo.  Long ago I decided to rename the month JENuary in my honor.  As you've probably already guessed, I'm not one of those people who says that my birthday is no big deal.  I plan on celebrating ALL MONTH LONG! 

As of right now, I have a 3 part celebration plan....

Part One:  I was inspired by the Mission Statement of Saucony (a running clothes company):

At Saucony, a good day is when we get to run.

A great day is when we inspire someone else to run.

So here's the plan.......I'm going to run 140 miles in the month of January for my 40th on 1/14/14 aaaaand.....I want you to join me!  I want it to be kind of like a quilt along......but we'll be running or walking instead!  But don't panic.....you can drop the 1 and just run or walk 40 miles next month.  Or 14 miles.  Or 4 miles.  I'm so, so, soooo excited that I already have a small group of awesome peeps on Facebook and Instagram that have said they're giving it a go!   I really hope you'll join me for my Run or Walk Along.  I'll be doing weekly updates about my progress....and I hope you'll be posting comments about your progress too!

Part Two:  A week long Staycation.  Yeah.....I know.....I just took one.....but it's my 40th birthday so this is no time to be practical or responsible.  Some people want a huge party for their birthday.  Or a long, extravagant vacation.  I just want to be at home with my pets and Col Sew Fab and hang out in my jammies while watching Netflix and working on all sorts of crafty projects!  I'm sooooo cool!

Part Three:  A weekend trip to Napa sometime next month.  Because I love wine.  And food.  And wine.  Did I already mention that I love wine???

Well, Happy New Year.....but don't stay up too late....because we're going running tomorrow!  Col Sew Fab and I have an exciting evening of sipping champagne, eating a nice dinner of tenderloin, bearnaise, creamed spinach and button mushrooms with warm, homemade chocolate chip cookies for dessert, watching t.v. and pretending that we're on the east coast so we can go to bed at 9:00!  Like I said before.....I'm soooo cool!

Hugs,

Jenny

26.2 miles

Well......I DID IT!!!  I finally did it.  On Sunday, November 3, 2013 I ran my first marathon.  Yup.....26.2 very, very, VERY long miles!

This is Col. Sew Fab and I before the marathon (he ran the half marathon).....

And this is me crossing the finish line.....

It was exhausting and exhilarating and epic and it made me feel kind of invincible.   I went from being a non-athletic kind of girl to running a marathon in the course of two years.  Pretty cool, huh?!
 
It was also a bit overwhelming at first.....so much excitement and energy in the air....so many people around cheering on the runners....so many funny signs....so much to take in and soak up!

But somewhere around Mile 8 when I was really starting to "hit the wall" my arch nemesis appeared.....yup.....SHE just couldn't leave me alone.  Maybe you know her too....SHE is the voice inside my head who likes to tell me things like.....

"You can't do this."

"Everyone else is so much better at this than you."

"What makes you think YOU can do this."

"You're not going to succeed."

And finally I decided that I'd had it with her!  Enough is enough!!!

So, I told her "Shut up!  Shut up!  SHUT UP!!!  I am trying to run a marathon here and it's really, really, REALLY tough and I don't have time for your negativity and shenanigans right now.  I need to focus!  I'm done with you!  Buh bye!!!"

And I left her in the dust and kept on running.  And I haven't heard a heck of a lot from her since that day. 

So much of the rest of the run is a foggy blur in my mind.....but I distinctly remember that at Mile 20 each mile became twice as hard as the previous mile.  But all of the wonderful people that stuck around and kept cheering on the slow poke, stragglers at the end of the race really motivated me to keep pushing forward one step at a time and to keep giving 100%.

Wouldn't it be great if every day there were crowds of people that you'd never met cheering you on and telling you you're awesome???!!!

And finally......I saw the finish line.....and started to cry.  Mostly because I was so overwhelmed and proud of what I'd accomplished.....but also because I was so darn happy that I was about to be DONE and didn't have to run anymore!  

And Col. Sew Fab stuck around for HOURS after he finished the half marathon so he could be there to see me finish the marathon in 363rd place!  How sweet!!!

Soooo.....if you're wondering.....

Yes, I'm sooo glad I did it.

Yes, I'll do more marathons in the future.....but I'll probably do a few half marathons first!

Yes......I was incredibly sore and exhausted for several days.  I knew it would be hard on my body.....but I was pretty surprised by how mentally draining it was too!

And I guess the moral of the story is.....

"If you think you can do a thing or think you can't do a thing, you're right."  -Henry Ford

Hugs,
Jenny

16 Miles

Runners are annoying.  And for that I apologize.  It doesn't mean that I'm going to stop be annoying......it just means that I recognize that I'm annoying......and I'm really sorry about that!

We're obsessed with times and stats and numbers and we never miss an opportunity to tell anyone who will listen about our latest "Personal Best."  And really.....only other runners or immediate family members and best friends would find any of this even remotely interesting. 

But I'm super excited about something that I just did so I have to be annoying and share it with you guys.  I just finished up Week 5 of marathon training.  And there was a 16 mile run at the end of the week (there's always a long run on Saturdays on the training plan I'm following).  Ummmm......SCARY!!!  The furthest I've ever ran before is 14 miles and I've only done that twice and it was sooooo hard.  

So, I was hoping to do my 16 mile run in under 3:30.  I was basing this guestimate on my average pace from my previous long runs.  And I would have been really happy had I done it in under 3:15.  And I would have been shocked and thrilled had I done it in 3:00.  But do you see that time up there.......YEAH......that says 2:50!  Knock me over with a feather!  Literally.....you probably could have knocked me over with a feather after I ran 16 miles at a fast pace in summer in central California!  But it was sooooo worth it!  I loved every minute of it!  I even forgot to stop running after I hit the stopwatch button at 16 miles!!!

And to think that a year ago I thought a 5 mile run was really long and I was hoping that one day I'd be able to run 10 miles!  Soooo you dear, sweet, fabulous, talented, amazing person.....yes I'm talking to YOU......whatever thing you're thinking of doing and you're not quite sure you can do it.....trust me.....YOU CAN! 

And I'm starting to wonder if this whole numbers obsession is going to flow over into my quilting life now.  Am I going to start saying things like...."it took me 55 minutes to make that last Madhuri quilt block.....I need to do the next one in 52 minutes!"  And will I start going around asking people what their "Personal Best" time is for making a Swoon Quilt Block?  Or what's the longest time they've ever sewn without taking a break???

Soooo......what cool thing have you done recently?  I'd love to hear about your latest accomplishment no matter how big or small.  Even if it's just that you remembered to put the clothes in the dryer right after the washer finished it's cycle!  Because around here.....that's a big accomplishment too!

Hugs,
Jenny

P.S.  Next Saturday.....18 miles!  

P.S. #2 - Did you see the best part of the picture?  Go back....take another look.....I didn't realize Baxter and Emma were fighting over a stuffed pink pig in the background when I took the picture!

P.S. #3 - My training plan is the Runner's World First Timer's Marathon Training Plan.  It's 16 weeks long and I have medium length runs on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday, long runs on Saturdays, short runs on Sundays and rest or cross training days on Monday and Friday.

Slow Going.....

It's been slow going around here during the last week.

I went from being the half marathon running Hare to being the slow poke Tortoise with tendonitis in my foot pretty fast.

It's taking twice as long to get anything done and I'm trying to keep my foot elevated and iced as often as possible so that hasn't left me with much time or energy for fun projects.  My only big accomplishments over the weekend were planning a new quilt and finally making perfect homemade focaccia bread and doing some online shopping for running clothes.  Because yes.....it's oddly comforting to buy new running clothes when you're unable to run.  I know I'll be back out there on the track soon!

And oh yeah....the new quilt idea.  I've been in love with the Swoon Quilt pattern since it first came out and I was starting to feel like the only person in the world who hadn't made one. 

I think I was just waiting for the perfect fabric collection to come along.  And I think Old New 30s just might be that collection along with a few dots and ginghams from my stash.

 

What do you think?  Can you picture it?  Is it a match made in heaven?  Wouldn't it be the perfect picnic blanket?  Have you made a Swoon yet?  Or what's your idea of the perfect Swoon?

I'm gonna try and hobble back on over to the cutting table now and cut the binding for my Going Coastal Granny Square Quilt.  The sooner I get it done the sooner I can start on my next quilt!!!

Happy Sewing,
Jenny

P.S.  The recipe for the perfect and VERY easy focaccia bread is in the book Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day.  I can't recommend this book enough!  The bread is super easy to make.  Incredibly delicious.  And no matter how many times I mess up or forget a step I still end up with fabulous bread!

Run Bunny Run

I did it!  I finally did it!!!  I ran a half marathon for the first time ever!!!

It was my very own race which I named the 1st Annual Run Bunny Run Half Marathon.  And since I was the only contestant in my half marathon I guess that means I came in first place, right?!  Well.....Col. Sew Fab ran for half of the time with me.  So he was the winner of the Half of The Run Bunny Run Half Marathon.

It was tough.  And exhilarating.  And exhausting.  And I was kind of sorry when it was all over.  Seriously!  And it made me realize how far I've come since I took up running a year and a half ago. 

The most interesting thing I realized was that what used to be a LONG run to me is now considered a short run.  And what used to be an impossible length run to me is now quite doable.  When I was at the 7.1 mile point and I thought to myself....."only 5 more miles to go, no biggie.....wait a minute.....since when did it become appropriate to put the word ONLY behind the words 5 miles?".....well.....that's when I realized that things have really changed and I have really made some progress.

When I got home Col. Sew Fab was waiting at the front door for me with a towel soaked in a bowl of ice water.  And this was on the front door.....

And then I found this taped to my computer......

After I settled in (and cleaned up!) he made blueberry pancakes and bacon and mimosas.  And then I spent the rest of the day in bed or on the sofa.  I had all sorts of big plans of how I was going to spend my Sunday afternoon.  Sewing.  Dollhousing.  Printing fabric for the dollhouse since we finally figured out how to print fabric using my new printer!!!  But noooooo!  None of that happened.  I knew I was going to be tired after the half marathon.  But I didn't realize I was going to be THAT tired.  Too tired to sew.  Too tired to read.  Too tired to think.

I'm feeling great today and I'm gearing up for my next big challenge.  After I take about 2 weeks of semi-rest I'm going to start training for the 1st Annual Run Bunny Run FULL Marathon.  I've already taped my full marathon training plan to the side of the refrigerator where the half marathon training plan used to be.  It should be fun to do marathon training during summer in Florida, right?!  I can't wait to get started!

Hugs,
Jenny