baking for hope

Julie and I have been baking like crazy! We held an extremely successful bake sale in our department last Monday, and our homemade all-natural puppy treats were a huge success! So much so that we're now taking special orders! We've made three deliveries so far this week!

Julie and I spent the entire weekend prior to the bake sale baking. We made most of the goodies on our own and then met for a few hours on Sunday to make the dog treats and do all of the packaging together. Julie's dog, Ava, came over, so the puppies had a blast running amok together in the snow. Every few minutes we'd catch them both staring into the house wondering where all of the wonderful peanut butter smells were coming from. Then one would pounce on the other, and they'd both race back though the yard, chasing and wrestling one another.

We used bone, paw-print and dog house shaped cookie cutters to make the dog treats and then packaged them in either cellophane bags or larger colorful poop bags (depending on the size of the order). Julie was in charge of packaging and found some adorable bone print ribbon. She did such a great job! We've decided that if our PhDs don't work out, we can always open up a doggy bakery...

With our combined efforts over a two day period, Julie and I made:

• Pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting
• Banana bread with chocolate chips
• Chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting
• Brownies with mint icing
• Raspberry flavored jello cake
• Peanut butter dog treats

The bake sale itself was a huge success! We had customers before we even finished setting out the goodies! Luckily, and quite coincidentally, there was a faculty meeting that afternoon so every single faculty member in the department was in the building. Nearly everyone stopped by to support us! Because of the meeting we had a much better turn out than we could have possibly expected. I couldn't believe that every single cupcake, piece of bread, slice of cake, and package of dog treats were purchased! We made nearly $300 and it far exceeded our expectations.

The outpouring of support from our (perhaps sugar addicted) department was truly inspirational!

another amazing trail run

This morning's run through Lake Lansing North's trails was truly magical. I saw eight deer!

It's been snowing here all day, so I threw my camera in my CamelBak and hoped to get a few pictures of the snowy landscape. About 5 minutes into our run, I was startled by two white-tail deer racing through the forest. I usually listen to music while running, so the deer caught me by surprise. I fumbled in my massive mittens, trying to get my camera out of my bag and snap a few pictures, but it was too late.

Not 5 minutes later, Akitla and I rounded another corner of the trail and came face-to-face with a doe and her calf. They slowly meandered their way deeper into the forest, away from us, where they stopped and watched us for several seconds, and I was able to snap the picture above. As I stood there with my camera, four more deer bounded out of the treeline, leaping toward the mother and her calf, before disappearing into the dense forest.

I know it sounds cheesy, but mornings like this are why I love running so much. It doesn't matter what's going on in my life, I always find peace when I run. My head clears and the stress of daily life melts away. Nothing beats the serenity and peace of mind that trail running brings.

Back pain, 8 miles, and Sparty Beads

I suspect that I threw my back out last Monday. I have been waddling around ever since then, so I skipped all of the mid-week runs last week and spent all of my free time lying on a heating pad. Sitting for any length of time is painful, let alone running 4 miles!

Saturday was our 8 mile group run. I was really concerned about whether or not I'd be able to finish the full 8 miles, but I surprised myself. I probably should have played it safe and skipped Saturday's long run, but I was terrified of falling behind in my training. Despite the back ache, I still managed to complete the full 8 miles. Julie and I took it slow and stopped often for walk breaks. Before I knew it, the 8 miles were over, and we were enjoying homemade hot cocoa with our teammates!

Earlier in our training, Julie and I ordered a case of 30 lbs of green and silver Mardi Gras beaded necklaces off of the internet. Saturday night was our first night (of many to come) selling these "Sparty Beads" to MSU fans outside sporting events. Rather than selling our beads for a fixed price, we have been giving out beads in return for a donation.

We expected the students to be our biggest customers, so we began by standing outside the entrance to the student section. Of the hundreds of students lined up, only two wanted beads and donated! Sadly, either undergraduate students don't carry cash or they were totally unwilling to donate to charity, since the two students who donated emptied their pockets of pennies into our jar. Silly kids!

We quickly switched doors to target families and children. That proved to be a smart move as parents generously donated for beads for their kids and men diplomatically bought beads for their ladies. We were initially a little unsure about what to yell and how to get people's attention, but the longer we were there the sillier we got. By the end of the night, we were able to work the crowds and get everyone's attention. In retrospect, the delirium was probably the early stages of hypothermia setting in.

We were a little concerned about getting in trouble for standing outside the Breslin Center soliciting donations. We had anticipated being either chased off the property by a screaming employee or arrested. Seth was on stand-by, prepared to bail us out of jail if the need arose. At one point, we were concerned about a sting operation when we noticed a police badge in a donator's wallet. It luckily wasn't a "bust," and we were able to fundraise without incident.

Although the temperature was in the single digits, we were up to our usual shenanigans and had a blast! We made a sizable dent in our bulk bead order and raised well over $100 to support blood cancer research and patient support! Hopefully future games will go even better now that we know what to do!

St. Paul

Sunday was a day of firsts! It was Deitra (right) and my first time visiting Mim (left) in Minnesota. I also went rock climbing for the first time (awesome!), and it was our first time running together as a group. Mim is a seasoned runner and has completed several marathons. I started running in August 2008, and Deitra started running last week! The three of us running together was like a dream come true!

Hopefully we'll be running marathons together in the future! Like, maybe the Chicago marathon next fall. Right, Deitra? :)

Chicago

I was lucky enough to spend my birthday weekend with two very close friends: Mim and Deitra. We met several years ago while attending Bowling Green State University for our Master's degrees in sociology and have been inseparable ever since (despite the physical distance between us). Mim lives in St. Paul with her husband, and Deitra lives in downtown Chicago. Last, Friday morning I took the train to meet up with Deitra. Before flying to St. Paul together Saturday morning, I was able to squeeze in a 6-mile run along Chicago's Lake Shore Path. Deitra lives in an ideal location, nestled a block and a half from Navy Pier and a block and a half from Michigan Avenue. I started out the run with a loop around Navy Pier and then ran several miles north along the water into Lincoln Park before turning around and heading back to her apartment. Chicago's lake shore is probably my absolute favorite place to go running, and I never miss a chance when visiting Deitra. The view is spectacular.

The last few days have been great!

Sunday was a perfect day. I took the dog on a nice and slow 3 mile run around Lake Lansing. I was still a little tired from my 7.5 miles the day before, so I kept things at a relaxed pace. Although I don't normally listen to Dave Matthews Band, I discovered that Crash is the perfect album for slow, easy runs. After we got home, Seth and I went to the YMCA, and I swam laps for 40 minutes. I struggle with my breathing and still don't have much endurance in the pool, but swimming is slowly getting easier. I love it! After all of that hard work, we spent our afternoon relaxing and watching Inglorious Basterds. I couldn't ask for a better day.

I've decided that Mondays will be my official strength training day, so I hit the gym yesterday morning before work. A personal trainer showed me how to use all of the equipment correctly and set me up with a strength training regimen- including how many pounds, sets and reps for each machine. She was so helpful! I really don't enjoy lifting weights, but I realize it's a necessary evil if I want to run long distances injury-free.

Speaking of necessary evils, I signed up for a stretching class on Wednesday nights at the gym. I'm definitely a slacker when it comes to stretching, strength training, and eating before runs.

This morning Julie and I took our dogs up to the Lansing River Trail again for a 4 mile run. It was great! There were none of the expected puppy shenanigans--our dogs ran perfectly with us and were able to focus on running. Of course, every time we stopped, they were pouncing on top of one-another, ready to play. They were adorable.

I've officially lost my mind! I'm considering switching to the full marathon. I've wanted to ever since Julie and I started training for the half. I'm not going to make any decisions until next month, but I'm increasing my weekly mileage just in case.

This morning we had our group long run in Dewitt- 5 miles. Our coach, Bruce, ran with us the whole time, offering words of encouragement and support along the way. He's been such a wonderful supporter, and I am so thankful for this experience. It was great! We kept ourselves at a nice, easy pace. Before we knew it, we were done! It's amazing to see ourselves progress. A few short years ago, I'd get winded climbing the stairs. Now a 5 mile run is no big deal!

Afterward, we had breakfast pastries, bananas, Gatorade, water, and hot cocoa waiting for us inside the Dewitt Memorial Building. I'm not going to lie- I spent the last two miles of our run anticipating the awaiting hot cocoa (with whipped cream)! It's so nice to have a warm home-base where the team can chat, stretch, and snack. I'm so thankful to all of my teammates who so generously supply us all of us with snacks and goodies each week.

Since I'm psychotic and considering switching to the full marathon, when I got home I grabbed the dog and took her for a 2.5 mile run around Lake Lansing. It was tiring but felt good. I plan to continue to add a few extra miles each week until I decide whether to run the half or full marathon.