Daddy Is Screwed

B: {walking around the house, room to room} "....24, 25, 26....."

R: "Are you walking around the house counting my shoes?"

B: "Yep."

R: "Don't forget to add in the two I bought today."

B: "Already did.  Where are your summer shoes?"

R: " Under the bed.  You might want to start down here.  HAHAHA."  {Evil laugh and pointing towards the end of the bed where I have neatly lined up 5 or 6 pairs of wedges alongside a container filled with shoes.}

Time passes.  Counting continues.

B: "Rachel, you have at least 65 pairs of shoes in this house."

R: "Well in my defense a lot of those are from before I was pregnant and became a mom.  While 5 inch heels are fun to wear, they're not the most practical shoes to cart a baby around in."

R:  "Why don't you walk around the house and count Quinn's shoes?"

B:  {Big, deep sigh}  "I don't want to.  Daddy is screwed."


You're right.  Sometimes it just sucks being a girl!

Running Gear

I realized when I told you all that I was going to run my first 5K of this year and I needed new shoes, it sounded like I'm that girl who woke up one day with a profound thought to get up and become a runner.

I've always been a runner.  I have participated in many races since I was a little girl...as in when I started moving, I was running.  I have the trophies to prove it.

When I got to junior high, I of course joined the track team and did distance running.  Well distance running for track anyways is, at most 1500 meters.

High school came and during my first two years, I remained a distance runner.  I was never really good at it...I never won or probably even placed in any race. 

Come junior year, I decide to give up on distance and become a sprinter.  I became a hurdler.  It was my calling.  We went to state both my junior and senior year (3A - biggest division in Iowa for girls) in the shuttle hurdle relay.  I'm 5'1, mind you but I jumped those babies like they were nothing.  I also ran the 100M and 4X100M relay races.  I have the medals to prove them all.

Now, I have decided that I'm going to convert myself back into a distance runner and get back into the racing scene (I'm seeing a 1/2 marathon in my distant future).  Transitioning is proving harder than I thought it would be.  I still have a sprinter's mentality and it doesn't make for fun runs.  I want to sprint the entire time which causes me not to be able to breathe appropriately and leaves my leggies a wee bit tired.  The treadmill allows me to keep a steadier pace but the pounding kind of hurts my shins.

Anyways, I wanted to show you all the things that I use when I run because that is fun and I think you should know.

First up is shoes.  I went shoe shopping a few weeks ago and had my little heart set on the Nike Lunarglide 3.  They were both functional and fashionable. 

A cute running shoe but doesn't really have arch support.  I could basically bend the shoe in half which is not good for running.  So, I tried on the Asics GT-2160, which has a lot of support, on one foot and the Lunarglide on my other foot to do a comparison. 

Holy macaroni, I could tell the difference right away.  They were not even comparable.  So, even though my heart and fashion sense wanted the Nike, my brain and body told me the Asics were the shoes for me.

Since buying these, I've only ever worn them running.  I don't want to waste mileage on wearing them around casually.  I found out that a good running shoe can get me around 450-500 miles of use.  So, I have quite a few miles to go.

While running, I use the Nike+IPod device.  It's bomb dot com.  I know at all times how far I've run, my pace, calories burnt, etc., all while listening to musica.  I then synch it with ITunes which sends my runs to Nike to track and contribute to challenges.  I also synch to Daily Miles (widget on side of blog).

Finally and maybe best of all, I'll have the best running companion because I have this:

Thank you Craigslist!

It's been nearly impossible to get my runs in because hubs is working late all the time.  I've been to my parents to run, have run on the treadmill at 9 pm at night and even ran on my lunch break.  Now I'll be able to get my run in when I want without having to rely on someone to watch Quinn.

 What are your must haves when running?

10 Day YOU Challenge {Loves}

{one}

Family.

My husband, daughter and my family are my number one loves (extended and all).  Duh, how can it not be?!  These are the people who are stuck with me for life.  You can choose your friends but you can't choose your family...

{two}

Friends. 

These are the people who have the choice on being in my life or not.  I've kept a few strong friendships from high school, a few from college and now all the friendships I've developed through my husband.  Even though I may not talk to my besties every day or even once a week/month or whenever, it's nice to know we can pick right back up where we left off.

{three} 

Shoes.

{four}

Staying up late and sleeping in the next morning.  I only get to do this on occasion but I still love it!

{five}

Television.

New fall shows and premieres.

Modern Family, Tosh, Castle, Glee & anything Real Housewives.

{six}
Iced coffee and cranberry vodka's.  I don't get to indulge in the latter very often but it still holds a place in my heart and a black spot in my mind.

{seven}
Christmas!

{eight}
Anything that will keep my baby contained, entertained and happy.

{nine}

Working out and playing slow-pitch softball.

What are your loves?

Shoe McLovin'

I absolutely adore shoes.  I can't get enough.

I fantasize and dream in shoes.

Ask my husband or family...I might be addicted.

My shoe obsession started the year after I graduated from college when I got a "big girl" job.

I love a good shoe sale.

I love boots but love wedges and pumps even more.

I feel sexy when I slip into a pair of heels...even if it's to walk around my house.

I'm a tad short, ringing in at about 5'1 without shoes, so heels are almost a necessity.

My warm weather shoe collection has been lonely, hidden away in storage, and I cannot wait to take them all out when warm weather arrives.

One of my favorite collections is by Jessica Simpson (among others).

Look at this beauty....

Her name is Massi and I love her in all her colors.  I want her and her friend Grear.

Now it's your turn.  Show me your shoe love...


Happy shoe hunting,