Sunny Sunday Morning

This is the first nice weekend we've had in quite a few weeks. The weather all weekend has been sunny and in the 60s. Yesterday, Jeff and I went walking for about 3 miles. I was hoping to log more miles but had to get home so I could get ready for girls' night out. :)

It was nice not to dress in too many layers this morning. We walked around Bree's side of town and mapped out a pretty good route. It was definitely the most challenging walk we've done to date. We walked 7.6 miles which is the most we've walked at one time. The route also had some hills which was nice to get some cardio going for us. It was probably most like what we'll actually be doing during the real walk as far as traffic, inclines, paved paths, unpaved, etc......

I also learned some lessons today:

1. If we're walking over 6 miles at a time, I need to pack a snack.

2. I need to keep my big toe nails trimmed. My feet feel fine, but my nail rubbed a bit against my shoe.

3. Champion Sports Bras are the best! No rubbing or chaffing even with sweat..... I know that sounds weird, but you have to think about that when you're walking long distances.

4. I need to stretch more before, during, and after our walks. My quads are glutes are very tight. Partly because during Friday's Body Pump class I went down a little too far during squats.

5. People are really in a hurry on Sunday mornings and don't mind getting a little too close to pedestrians!!! Note to those drivers: God doesn't mind if you're a few minutes late to church.

Walking/Window Shopping

Well, another Sunday has rolled around and it's time to walk with Bree. Today was not cold, but it was raining. We decided to go walking in the mall. I know we might have to walk in the rain during the 3 day, but right now I don't want to walk in the rain. So while I have a choice, I think I'd rather walk indoors. Bree met me at Collin Creek along with little Sophia.

The first mall entrance we tried, was locked and the lights were off. Not a great start. We walked up and around the other side of the mall. Luckily the next entrance we tried was open because it was starting to sprinkle quite a bit. It was really weird. We were the only people in the whole mall. It was very quiet and somewhat eerie. Some stores had people inside getting displays set up for the day, but other than that it was just us three girls strollin' in the mall. As we walked we talked, of course, but also did some window shopping. Apparently dresses at some stores are now as short as a long shirt.

Sophia did really well in her stroller and fell asleep after about 20 minutes of Bree and I gabbing. Toward the end she woke up and started getting a little wiggly. She's not too big at this age on staying in the stroller. She'd much rather walk on her own or push the stroller. As usual, Sophia was happy to see me and gave me one of her sweet smiles.

Snow Dog

My dog, Coda, loves the snow. If she could walk in several inches of snow everyday, she would. So, this morning we woke up to a rare seven inches of snow on the ground. That may not seem like much, but at 35 years of age that's the most snow I've seen here in Texas. I bundled up and set out for a walk with Coda. Many places had untouched snow and she was happy to bite at it and then run through it. It was very peaceful and white. We walked a couple of miles and headed home. I'm hoping to get out again tomorrow and walk before it all melts away. Oddly, it wasn't that cold. It was colder three weeks ago when Bree and I walked our first training walk.

Training Week 3

Another chilly Sunday morning, but we got out and walked anyway. This morning, in addition to Bree and myself, Coda joined us. She's a pretty good walkin' buddy when she's in the mood. For a border collie she can be very lazy at times. When the weather is cold, she will walk pretty much however far you want to go. She was glad to have another voice praising her today and would get super excited when she heard Bree's voice. She would take off running and wait for us to catch up to her. Once again, the six miles passed very quickly while we gabbed away. Next week I think it's time to bump it up to eight miles.

Walking, walking, not so much.......

This week has not been very good for walking. It's only the second week of training and already I'm letting things bring me down that shouldn't. That will be something for me to work on and hopefully get past as I continue to train. This week I won't meet my training goal due to rainy weather, work stress, and my bad attitude. :(

Donation Status.......

I passed the $1000 mark today!!!!!!!! So, I've raised that much in a little over a week. My goal was to raise the required amount by the end of February. Anything over the $2300 is just extra money to be spent on research and is above and beyond my goal. Yes, people can be very generous indeed.

Bakin' for the Boobs

I had this bright idea that I would bake cookies for Valentine's Day treats and sell them at school. In theory, this is a GREAT idea! However, now I'm thinking, "Crap, I have to bake at least 12 dozen cookies." Oh well, the money is going to a great cause. It looks like I'll raise close to $100 in donations from the cookies. I bought cute little treats bags at Dollar Tree today to package them in. I think it will be well worth the money.