Friday Night Photos #124

It has been a whirlwind couple of days up north! I have a ton of pictures, but I'll wait to post some more later so it's not complete overload. These pictures are only from the last couple of days...

The ride to Jeanie and Shawn's is 9-10 hours, so we were in for a long car ride. Jerry and I listened to a good 90's playlist and some podcasts...

...meanwhile, in the backseats, the teens (Noah, Eli, and Eli's girlfriend Ava) slept pretty much the entire way ;)

 

This is the Mackinac Bridge that connects the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan. It's actually five miles long! This is a little past the halfway point to Jeanie's.

Almost as soon as we arrived, Noah wanted to set up a hammock he'd just bought. His hammock is as easy to set up as mine, but his also has a mosquito net and a weather canopy. I was totally unfamiliar with those, but we worked on it. (Can I just say that I despise that some companies don't include instructions now, and only a link to a YouTube video?!)

This is what it looked like when we were done. He slept in it that night and said it was super comfy.

While we did that, Eli and Ava played corn hole.

Joey was SO excited to see us! We all missed him, but it's very clear how much fun he's been having. Jeanie's dogs are happy to have him visit, too. Jeanie and Shawn offered to let him stay longer, but I think we're going to bring him home with us. Hopefully he'll want to come! ;)

I took this picture of Noah because it made me laugh that he looked like an old man. Early in the morning (on his 19th birthday), he was sitting on the porch in a rocker, reading a book and drinking coffee in his pajamas.

I don't know why I got so emotional about his birthday (maybe because it's the first one since he graduated high school?) but I love this picture that Jerry took of us. Definitely more than Noah does, hahaha.

Since Noah loves Shrek, and he saw the picture I posted of him wearing the Shrek hat I made for him ages ago, I decided I wanted to knit him another one. Being in the middle of nowhere, Jerry and I drove an hour to a Walmart to get the ingredients for his cake as well as some green yarn. I had luck with the ingredients, but they didn't have a good green yarn for his hat (the shades were very off).

By some crazy miracle, on the way back to Jeanie's, we saw a sign that said, "Yarn Store, turn right and two blocks ahead." A yarn store in the middle of nowhere? It was perfect. I wanted vegan yarn (I won't buy wool) and the store owner (who definitely wasn't happy that I wanted "fake" yarn) said she only had one skein of that color that wasn't wool. So, I bought it and started knitting his hat while the boys were fishing.

Noah asked for that *amazing* chocolate cake that I'd baked and reviewed (you can find that here) for his birthday dessert. I was worried about messing it up and then Jeanie and Shawn might be turned off to vegan cake, but it turned out perfectly. So much so that Shawn requested I make another before I leave! I think Jeanie and I are going to do that tonight.

We forgot to buy birthday candles, so we used what Jeanie had--a 1 and a 2, plus 7 stick candles to add to the 2. So, 19 candles for 19 years. Or something like that.

Today, we went tubing down a river (I usually don't go with everyone when they do that, because I really don't like the water). I haven't bought a bathing suit in about a decade, so I didn't have one. Jeanie started laughing and told me that she had a disposable one! HAHAHA, I'd never heard of such a thing.

When she brought it out and I tried it on, I was cracking up. I may post the picture if I'm feeling brave next week; I don't even like to see *myself* in a bathing suit, let alone post a photo of it on the internet! But Shawn and I have talked a lot about stepping out of our comfort zones, so I'll try. Going tubing was a big step today.

Anyway, I'll write about it soon--right now, I think Jeanie and I are going to bake a cake ;)

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Three Things Thursday: 19!

Well, today my first born turns 19 years old. I don't know why, but this is hitting me harder than when he turned 18. I think I'm just dreading the day that he moves out (he doesn't have plans to yet, at least until he's done with school). And the older the boys get, the less I see them at home.

It's something you don't really think about as a parent until you realize that the kid(s) have become super independent and don't really need you anymore! I should also mention that raising teen boys of this age is SO MUCH HARDER than I ever imagined. However, I am super proud of my boys, and I wanted to write a few things about Noah since it's his birthday today (and it happens to fall on Three Things Thursday).

I thought it would be fun to pick a few categories and list three things for each of them...

Three Things I'm Proud Of:

1. Taking college classes in high school and graduating with 60+ college credit hours.
2. Saving up his own money to buy a car--he did all the research, the inquiries, the financial stuff, etc.
3. He's very self-driven and I've never had to push him to do homework or anything like that.

Three Random Things I Remember From The Day He Was Born:

1. Jerry almost passed out from emotion and the nurse made him go sit down.
2. I was so surprised at how warm Noah's body felt when they set him down on my belly right after birth.
3. I fell asleep while standing up when the nurse was trying to explain things to me--I was walking from the bathroom to the bed at 1:30 AM after giving birth, and I don't know why she thought I could keep my eyes open, hahaha.

Three Things That I Loved Doing With Him:

1. Running a long run with him riding next to me on his bike.
2. Running races with him.
3. Walking him to the bus stop before school and being there when he got off the bus after school.

Three Funny Things He's Done:

1. On Eli's first day of pre-school, Noah colored all over him with Crayola markers.
2. Emptied an ENTIRE bottle of baby powder in my living room while I was taking a shower.
3. He was such a good sport about our impromptu "senior photos" session--I laughed so hard at some of his cheesy poses.

Things I Loved Teaching Him:

1. How to knit when he was four years old.
2. How to straighten his (newly long) hair when he was 18.
3. The names of the bones and organs in the body--he was very interested in anatomy from age three! (I've always loved anatomy, so it was fun to teach him.)

Things Noah Has Taught Me:

1. What a "poker run" is. (You can find the answer on this post)
2. What the word "salty" means (as slang, not seasoning)
3. How to use a DSLR camera ("taught" is a loose word--I'm not good at it, but he showed me all sorts of cool things!)

One of my favorite photos I took! I was WAY out next to right field when I took this.

Three Sweet Things Noah Has Done:

1. He took cake decorating lessons and he made me a birthday cake all on his own.
2. He's come to some of my races with signs to cheer me on.
3. He's always been sweet to Eli--from the time they were babies until this very day.

Three Things I Miss About His Early Years:

1. His "Bambi" laugh (his laugh was very high pitched and giggly).
2. Asking questions about *everything*.
3. When he and Eli would wait in front of the living room window when I told them daddy would be home from work soon. They got SO EXCITED when he came in the door!

Noah, Eli, and their friend Kaden waiting to see Jerry's car turn onto our street :)

The day that Noah was born, I had absolutely no idea what kind of person he would grow into. It's kind of scary as a first-time parent; you have no clue what to expect and you just do the best you can with the knowledge you have. I know for sure there are a lot of things I would have done differently as a parent, but I can say without a doubt that I am so proud of who Noah has grown to be in the last 19 years! And I look forward to seeing what's in store for his future :)

And because Noah LOVES Shrek, I'll close with this photo...

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Wednesday Weigh-In: Week 111

This is one of the shirts I bought at the thrift store with the intention of using part of it for something else--but I liked it so much when I put it on that I decided to keep it ;)

I am currently writing this from Jeanie and Shawn's place in the upper peninsula! It was a long day of driving, but it wasn't too bad, actually. It went by quickly. The kids slept most of the time and Jerry and I listened to some podcasts. 

I'm going to keep this short (for obvious reasons) but I still wanted to do my Wednesday Weigh-In for accountability. On the scale this week:

I was at 137.6 today...

Considering I was at 141.0 last week, I'm down 3.4 pounds! I wish I could say it was due to great eating habits and exercise, but once again, I feel so overwhelmed that I haven't been able to eat much. This is so weird to me! I have never been one to lose my appetite like this--usually I eat MORE when I'm stressed--but feeling overwhelmed and feeling stressed are two different things to me.

I feel like stress is very fast-paced, kind of like a "to do" list--lots to get done and feeling rushed and just being busy. To me, feeling overwhelmed is a huge overload of things happening in a short time period--not just things to do, but also just things that are happening. When so many things are going on at once (even if it's something that doesn't directly affect me, like Brian and Becky getting divorced in February) I get extremely overwhelmed. I tend to close myself off from people (which I'm sure is the opposite of what I *should* do) and get too much in my own head. It makes me want to just go hide somewhere and come out in a year--ha!

I've had an overload of things on my plate right now and it's very much affecting my mood. I'm hoping that being up north for a few days will help me to chill and hopefully take things off my mind. It's been really hard to talk to anyone about anything lately, so I may try to find another therapist. I really liked my last one, but I didn't feel like we were getting anywhere or that there was really a plan in place. Despite a rocky start with my psychiatrist, though, I actually really like him now, so I think I'll ask him for suggestions for a therapist.

Anyway, I didn't intend to go on that tangent! Being up north, I'll probably eat more, so I may gain some of this back next week. But I'm happy to be back in the 130's for sure. My clothes are starting to feel a little less tight, which usually happens when I get to about 135 pounds.

This week, I'm going to try to take time for myself (reading in the hammock!) and playing some board games and sitting around the fire with my family. Hopefully I'll be in a refreshed mood next week. And tomorrow is Noah's 19th birthday--I can't believe it!

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The One Where Jerry Interviews Katie

Jerry and I are getting ready for our trip up north (gah, so much stuff to do!) and I was putting away laundry while Jerry decided to work on his "deep thoughts" post. He started asking me about questions he could answer, and then had the idea to interview *me* while I was putting away clothes. I thought that sounded fun!

So, I didn't choose these questions (neither did Jerry--he got them from a list of ice breaker questions). But here goes...

Jerry: I'm going to keep it short and sweet today. Katie and I are getting things ready to go to the UP (upper peninsula) tomorrow. Today I thought it would be cool to interview Katie by asking some fun ice breaker questions. This should be fun.

Q. What is the worst haircut you've ever gotten?

Is it any question that a mullet would be the worst? My mom used to tell me that my hair was "like a bush"--so thick and curly. I don't know if that's why she gave me a mullet, but a mullet is the worst. There are a couple of years of photos of me that proudly show off my mullet.

Q. What is one thing you can't live without?

[Eyes super wide as soon as I asked this question] Jeez. That's a HUGE question. As lame as it sounds, it's got to be Google Maps. It's the only way I can find my way around anywhere because I have a horrible sense of direction. You know I'd still be lost in New York somewhere without it.

Besides, sometimes you accidentally come across funny things while looking at Google Maps, like this crop phallus circle. 

Q. What is your biggest phobia?

Getting Alzheimer's disease. It's kind of weird to have that as my biggest phobia, but when I can't remember something, it freaks me out beyond what is normal. Gobby [my grandma] was heartbreaking to see in the end. I hated every second of it. And when I was in the hospital for my broken jaw, I woke up with NO memory. (The whole story about this fear and how it came to be is in this post.)

Q. What was your favorite breakfast cereal as a kid and what is it now?

As a kid? Ughh... Did I eat cereal as a kid? Probably Lucky Charms. I can remember eating all of the brown pieces first and then eating just the marshmallow pieces after. My favorite now is Grapenuts--how old am I?!

Q. What is the most out of character thing you've ever done?

Flying on the Breezy, hands down. (I wrote all about that on this post.) Anybody who knows me knows how much I *hate* flying! I hadn't flown in years and I was terrified of it. Remember how I was DYING and crying and dry heaving at just the thought of doing it? Totally out of character.

Q. What is the dorkiest thing about you?

Ummmmm.... there are so many! I think the dorkiest thing is probably that I love numbers. I'm always looking at numbers and associating them with other numbers. Sounds weird and is totally unexplainable, but that's it. I add up numbers on license plates or I look for patterns on things that have numbers. God, I didn't realize I was this weird. Aside from numbers, I also love logic problems and I actually do them for fun. LOL

Q. How did your parents choose your name?

My mom told me that the delivery room nurse's name was Katie and she really liked it. It wasn't Katherine or Kaitlin or any other version--just Katie. And I LOVE my name!

Q. What two things do you consider yourself really bad at?

1. Replying to people either by text, email, or phone. I have said it a million times over, but it's literally my biggest vice. And it's one thing that I feel absolutely terrible about!

2. I'm also REALLY bad at remembering names. Another thing I feel terrible about! Remember during cross country season, I finally remembered everyone's name by probably the last practice. I don't get it! Renee knows all of their names by the second practice. I am always trying to remember, and I'll ask Renee, "That's Sara, right?" "No, that's Catherine. Sara is the one with the pink shorts." CONSTANTLY. It's embarrassing at how bad I am.

Q. What is your favorite meme or viral video? 

Hahaha, you know how obsessed I am with memes! There is NO WAY POSSIBLE to pick a favorite. It depends on my mood and what I'm interested in at the moment. Lately, I've been loving the dad jokes that people write on stock photos. Here is a fun one:

Q. What is your biggest pet peeve?

When people are on their phones while "spending time" with other people. Instead of interacting with the people they're with, they're on their phone. It's just rude. It always makes me feel sad when I see kids trying to tell or show their parents something and their parent tells them, "Hold on." or "Oh, that's so neat." while their eyes are glued to their phones. Maybe it's just me, but if I'm having a conversation with someone and they check their text messages or Facebook or whatever, it makes me feel like what I have to say is super unimportant.

Q. What is your favorite useless fact?

I don't know that I'd call this "useless", but it's definitely a huge eye-opener.... If we killed people at the same rate we kill animals for food, the entire population would be gone in 17 days--all 7.7 billion of us. If we include fish, that number goes down to about 27 hours. My jaw dropped when I read that.

Q. Can you do an impression of someone famous?

You've heard my perfect Cookie Monster voice! LOL. I also do one of Chewbacca, remember? I even have that one video when I was trying to make the kids laugh when they were little. So funny!

Q. Who was your role model as a child?

It's cheesy, but Jeanie and Brian [my older sister and brother by 8 and 6 years respectively]. I just thought Jeanie was SO cool and I used to borrow her clothes sometimes, which is funny because she is literally eight years older than me. I wanted to be just like her. I looked up to Brian because he was the smartest person I knew and he was super funny.

Q. What is something you think is totally overrated?

This is a hard one, but I think I would have to say coffee. People put so much emphasis on how important it is the mornings, but I just don't get it. This tweet sums it up (for me, anyway--coffee gives me bad anxiety):

Q. What was the worst idea you've ever had?

I'm bipolar!! What kind of question is that?! I've never had a bad idea ;)

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Reader Mail

I'm so excited to have reader mail to share today! Until 4:00 pm, I was 100% sure that today was Sunday. When I mentioned it to Jerry, he told me it was Monday. I'm STILL shocked. I am absolutely not ready to go up north in a couple of days.

Anyway, when I read this email from Valerie, I knew I had to share it. You all know that I'm a "cat person"--I completely adore Joey, of course, but I am a cat person, through and through. When I read this email, though, holy smokes--I couldn't believe how cute this dog is!

I asked Valerie if she minded that I share this, and she was happy to. I love a good heart-warming story!

When my son’s hamster passed away recently, he immediately wanted to replace him with another pet--a hamster or a bunny. I didn’t know anything about taking care of a bunny, and after researching the care required, I was not thrilled with the idea. It seemed like a lot of work and not much reward. 

A dog is a lot of work, but they love you unconditionally. I told my son he could get a dog, even though we already had two--Snickers and Twix. I started looking at the rescues to find a dog and was shocked to see adoption rates of $400, $500, $800! I understand needing to recoup expenses, but with shelters being so overcrowded, I would think it would be more reasonable. 

My son wanted a small dog, the size of a bunny, and fluffy. I also quickly learned there were no dogs like that in the shelters nearby. They are all big. The couple that were small came from a home where the owner had passed; those dogs were eight years old and blind. (Not a great option for a young boy.) 

I decided to go a different route--Craigslist. I ended up finding this cutie, a six-month old "Pomapoo", half-Poodle half-Pomeranian. Her family wanted to re-home her because she was a fourth dog and they were busy with jobs and teens who had school activities. They told me they wanted $200 for her. We picked her up the next evening.

I was nervous not knowing her personality... was she a little devil dog? But she is literally the sweetest dog ever! Her name is Dixie and she needs a candy bar name. My son loves baseball so I think Babe Ruth, and call her Babe or Baby. Or Kisses because she is full of kisses.

 

We have hypothetical names for other animals…if we ever get a cat it will be Kit Kat; if we ever get a cow (I love cows) it will be Milky Way. Our Pomapoo is six pounds and I’m told she’s full grown. We are taking her to get groomed on Wednesday. Her crazy hair is her trademark I feel like so I plan to have it put in a ponytail and we’re going to have her tail dyed hot pink. I’ll show you pictures after!

[Katie here now.] How stinkin' cute is this dog, seriously?!

I want to note a couple of things: For anyone who knows anything about me, it's obvious that I'm VERY much an advocate for: 1) having pets spayed or neutered; and 2) rescuing pets from shelters or organized rescues, or places that have pets who are unwanted and need a home. I am 100% against buying from a pet store or breeder (this was true long before I became vegan). 

If Valerie had bought her dog from a pet store, I wouldn't share it here (even though I adore Valerie--we've been in contact for years.) I just wanted to say that I love how she thought outside the box on this one. She *tried* a rescue and shelter. And she didn't give up-- she found a dog that was being re-homed because it was unwanted. And it was exactly what she was looking for. A great story.

That said, HOW COULD ANYONE NOT WANT THIS DOG?! ;)  That's how I feel about Joey. He was in the shelter for three months before we adopted him, and he's the best dog ever. Somebody really missed out, and I'm glad, because we had the privilege of adopting him into our family.

I am so happy for Valerie and her son for finding a great dog for their family. I love the candy bar theme for the pets! (We have hypothetical names for hypothetical pets as well--although we are running out of Friends characters, hahaha.)

Remember: If you ever have fun news to share, please email it to me! (With permission to use it, of course--just specify what/if is okay to share.) Whether it's getting married, buying a new home, getting a new pet, etc., let me share the news for you on my blog! katie (at) runsforcookies (dot) com.

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Friday Night Photos #123

Just like the intro to yesterday's post felt very overused, today's is as well--some weeks I have a ton of photos, some weeks I have next to none; and some weeks, I have photos but they're hardly worth bothering to look at. This week, it's mostly the latter. I didn't have a very exciting week. Next week, I should have photos from up north--hopefully more exciting ;)

Anyway, here is what's on my camera roll...

Jerry had the day off work a few days ago, so we went up to Ann Arbor to the Salvation Army. They have a huge store, and Jerry wanted to find some summer clothes. I bought a few things, this shirt being one of them. It says, "Always be kinder than you feel"; Jerry and I had just had a conversation about that very thing on the ride up there.

I also found these overalls. I've wanted a pair of overalls for years, and I never see them at the thrift stores (probably because nobody has worn them since the 90's?). Anyway, I saw these ones and I fell in love--I absolutely love them! I love the color of the denim and the wide legs with raw hem.

They looked a little small, so when I checked out the tag, I saw "GAP Kids" XXL. Bummer! This picture below shows them next to a pair of jeans--so you can see just how small they are!

Despite the fact that I could JUSTBARELY pull them over my hips, and the straps weren't long enough over my shoulders, and the legs are somewhere between "cropped" and "capri", I bought them anyway--and I've made this into a project that I've been working on before bed. Make them wearable and not bad-looking.

I love how they are turning out! This is what they looked like when I opened the side seams. I felt inspired and overwhelmed at the same time, but they've been really fun to work on. A make-up-as-you-go-along project. I'll post pictures once they are done.

Duck hates it when I pay more attention to anything at all than I do him; so while I was trying to measure and cut fabric, he decided it was time that I show him more attention.

Eli went up north with his girlfriend Ava's family for a few days. The only pictures I ever manage to get of my kids is from their social media! Even when I ask them to send me their pictures, I only get a couple. But here is a cute one of Eli and Ava...

I always like looking though the odds and ends at the thrift store, and I happened to come across these stickers that someone printed. What the heck--?! So weird. And who the heck would dislike cats *that* much?

It's been a tradition since the kids were little that I would give them each a chocolate orange in their Christmas stockings. (I loved chocolate oranges and had one every Christmas, too.)  However, I haven't been able to find them since 2019! I have no idea if the pandemic caused a chocolate orange shortage or what, but the kids and I have been disappointed every Christmas when we look for chocolate oranges.

Then, while Jerry and I were in Ann Arbor, we stopped at a store called World Market that has some interesting stuff in it. And they had chocolate oranges! In July. I couldn't believe it. So I bought each of the kids one (Noah likes dark chocolate while Eli likes milk chocolate--and World Market had both.) The kids were excited. Now that I think of it, I don't know if I ever unwrapped a chocolate orange with Luke and Riley. I feel like Riley would *love* this.
 

Jerry stopped at the store and when he got home, he noticed that the person who bagged his groceries put two 16-oz containers of fresh blueberries in there by accident (they must have belonged to the person behind him). He called the store to let them know what happened (because surely someone would notice their blueberries were missing); but then we had lots of free blueberries. I ate them ALL. I love blueberries, but they're so expensive--I buy frozen ones to eat on my cereal every morning.

I happened to notice that Chick had arms and legs sticking out of this bed all over and he just looked funny while he slept. When I grabbed my phone to take a picture, I held it up to take this picture when I noticed that Chick's eye was open and he was watching me! It scared the bejeezus out of me because I'd been taking a picture of my sweet "sleeping" cat.

My favorite snack lately has been anything with cinnamon sugar on it, pretty much. I do a bigger ratio of cinnamon to sugar than most, but I probably make up for it in volume ;)

And finally, here is a (sad-looking) photo of Joey that Jeanie sent me yesterday. She said that Joey *loves* the campfire and he saw her out there starting a fire, so he came out to lie down. She wasn't even really starting the fire--just burning a few pieces of trash--but Joey was excited to lie next to it. (It's not nearly as hot as it looks in the picture--I think the temp is only in the 70's right now. It's not going to be a very hot trip, which is nice.)

I miss Joey a lot more than I thought I would--we get to see him soon!

And that's all I've got. Have a great weekend! xo

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Three Things Thursday: Camping

It bothers me that I always start my posts with something either about the weather or about how fast time has flown by--well, right now, I'm just stunned that it's JULY of 2023. I still feel like we're getting things "sorted out" for the year (budgeting and insurance and stuff like that).

I kept thinking to myself, "It would be great to do that this summer!" all year long--and now IT IS SUMMER and I have to do all the things. Except I don't remember them. Next week, though, we are going to Jeanie and Shawn's property up north. I am SO not prepared--prepping vegan food and bringing it with us is going to be stressful, but I'm going to make it as simple as possible.

Since we're back to more careful budgeting this year (after all the unexpected expenses last year), we don't have the savings to go on a "big" vacation. So, we are renting a minivan, the kids are each bringing someone, and we're heading up north for a long weekend. Jeanie and Shawn's cabin is a FAR cry from "roughing it" in the woods (seriously, it's super nice), but I thought that for "Three Things Thursday", I would write about three things that I like about camping/the outdoors.

I am NOT an "outdoorsy" person at all, so this actually won't be an easy post. But I wanted to keep it positive and look for a few things that I can look forward to...

1. Reading in my hammock under the trees.

I could literally do this all day long. After seeing my brother (Brian) with his hammock during Ragnar Florida Keys, I really wanted a hammock too! So I ended up buying one and while I don't use it very frequently, I *love* to use it up north. I got an extra big one so that we can put more people in it at once. Jerry and I liked to drink our coffee in there in the mornings. (Here is the link to a hammock very similar to mine; the one I have is no longer available. It's an Amazon affiliate link, in full disclosure.)

2. Sitting around the campfire in the evenings.

Summer nights in the northern peninsula of Michigan are pretty magical, I have to admit. The sky just seems so much deeper (clearer?) somehow. Everything is SO quiet and still. For some reason, telling stories around a campfire makes them that much more entertaining as well!

3. Working with Shawn in his shop.

I had a hard time coming up with a third thing I like about the outdoors! Haha, that's terrible. So this one is kind of a cop-out... it's not necessarily outdoorsy or camp-like, but it's something I like to do when I go up north. Shawn has a huge pole barn and my dream wood shop. I like helping him work on whatever it is that he's working on at the time. We worked on shiplap one time, which is how I learned what a planer and jointer do. His shiplap turned out to look amazing! (And naturally, I can't find the photo of it right now.)

Here is a photo of my other favorite thing to do up north--shoot Nathan's rifle. I am not, and never will be, a "gun person", but I do love shooting Nathan's rifle--it kind of makes me feel like a badass. We line up soda cans across a pond and shoot them, using a scope. Nathan's not going to be up there with us, so I won't be doing that this time, unfortunately.

So, there we are--three things I am looking forward to this summer next week. Good grief, time is going by faster every moment.

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Wednesday Weigh-In: Week 110

Well, as you can see, I finally wore one of my sundresses! A couple of weeks ago, I mentioned that I wanted to try wearing a sundress each day for a full week. This is the first one I chose.

I got it from Goodwill; once I got home and tried it on again, I realized it needed a belt or something. Instead, I just sewed a small piece of elastic around the waistline (between the black and white portions)--not to really gather it in much, but at least to keep it from looking boxy. Of course, I don't like wearing anything that shows my arms, but I find that as I get older, I just don't care much anymore! It's liberating.

I wore a dress the following day, too. I found it awkward when I decided to stop on my way into the house and pull out a bunch of weeds in the landscaping. I knelt down like I always do and when I stood up, my knees looked like they always do--like ground raw meat, hahaha. Seriously, though, when I work on projects I tend to kneel on the floor a LOT--and my knees show it.

On the third day, I can't remember what the reason was, but I didn't wear a dress. And I haven't since! I actually really did like wearing them, though; I never wear shorts, but it's been SUPER hot here this week, and the dresses kept me cool. Several of them have little things I'd like to alter here or there--actually, I've been working on a lot of clothing alterations lately--but I'd like to start wearing them more often. Basically, if it's hot outside and I'm going to be out there, a sundress is a comfy option.

As far as my weight this week...

I was at 141.0, which is down 0.6 from last week--not much, but I'm happy with it! On most days, I continued to eat regular meals and I definitely found that helpful in not snacking at night. On the days that I ate here and there throughout the day, I ended up snacking on a LOT of calories at night. I did good about not eating sugar--I haven't been craving it, so I'm not going to tempt that by eating something sweet "just because".

I did really bad with running, though--I only ran once this week. So, I want to get in three more runs before next week (I completely forgot that we're going up north to Jeanie and Shawn's!). 

Anyway, Jerry is off work today and he wanted to cook out on the grill--veggie dogs (a brat for Eli), vegan potato salad, baked beans, and chips (what he describes as the best all-American meal). I'm hoping that the vegan potato salad will turn out good! Jerry *loves* potato salad and we haven't tried making it plant-based yet.

Fingers crossed that maybe I'll see the 130's next week.

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Pop Quiz for Jerry

Jerry was having a hard time coming up with what to write for his "deep thoughts" post today, and then I felt kind of clueless as well. I looked through past July 4th photos, and I really don't have any great ones. Anyway, since Jerry is such a history buff AND he's very good at trivia, I thought it would be fun to give him this pop quiz on American history (found on Reader's Digest--I did not fact check these, so take it for what it's worth).

Jerry has no warning whatsoever that I'm about to ask him these questions, and (obviously) he's not allowed to look up any info. I hope that he does well--I always talk up his trivia skills! Here goes... (I'm going to sprinkle some random America / Fourth of July photos throughout this post--I'm not sure what else would go with it!)

Question: When was the Declaration of Independence signed?
[Answer: August 2, 1776]
Jerry: 1776 (CORRECT)

Question: The United States bought Alaska from which country?
[Answer: Russia]
Jerry: Canada (WRONG)

Question: Who was the fourth president of the United States?
[Answer: James Madison]
Jerry: James Madison (CORRECT)

Question: Which era marked a switch from agricultural practices to industrial practices?
[Answer: The Industrial Revolution]
Jerry: Industrial Revolution (CORRECT)

Question: What was the name of the series of programs and projects President Franklin D. Roosevelt enacted during The Great Depression?
[Answer: The New Deal]
Jerry: I have no idea (WRONG)

Waiting for the fireworks show to start

Question: Fill in the blank: The 19th Amendment guarantees ____ the right to vote
[Answer: Women]
Jerry: Women (CORRECT)

Question: Which four presidents are on Mount Rushmore?
[Answer: George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Thomas Jefferson, and Theodore Roosevelt]
Jerry: It doesn't get more American than this, Jerry, you idiot. Seriously? I know this. Um... Washington, Lincoln, Jefferson, Roosevelt. (CORRECT)

Question: Who was the first woman to make a million dollars in the United States?
[Answer: Madam C.J. Walker]
Jerry: I have no idea. It's not Oprah, that's for sure. I really truly don't know. (WRONG)

No idea what the situation was for each, but it's funny that this coincidence happened.

Question: Which year was George H.W. Bush elected president?

[Answer: 1988]
Jerry: 1984 (WRONG)

Question: What do the stripes on the American flag represent?
[Answer: The 13 original colonies]
Jerry: The original 13 colonies. (CORRECT)

Question: Where was Martin Luther King, Jr. born?
[Answer: Atlanta, Georgia]
Jerry: Mobile, Alabama (WRONG) 

Question: Which two Native American leaders led Lakota Sioux and Cheyenne warriors in the fight against Lieutenant Colonel George Custer’s troops in the Battle of Little Bighorn?
[Answer: Crazy Horse and Sitting Bull]
Jerry: I don't know. No idea. (WRONG)

Question: Finish the line President Franklin D. Roosevelt said during his speech addressing the attack on Pearl Harbor: “Yesterday, December 7, 1941…”
[Answer: “A date which will live in infamy”]
Jerry: "A date which will live in infamy" (CORRECT)

Question: What was the name of the landmark Supreme Court case that ruled the racial segregation of schools unconstitutional?
[Answer: Brown v. Board of Education]
Jerry: I don't know this one either. (WRONG)

Question: What year was the Vietnam Veterans Memorial dedicated in Washington, D.C.?
[Answer: 1982]
Jerry: 1982 (CORRECT)

Question: The “shot heard ’round the world” describes the beginning of which battles in the American Revolution?
[Answer: The Battles of Lexington and Concord]
Jerry: I have no idea. Give me a clue. 
Katie: Okay, it's a type of grape--I think it's even a brand for grape juice.
Jerry: Battle of Smuckers?
Katie: Juice, not jam.
Jerry: Concord?
Katie: Yes. The other is a city in Kentucky.
Jerry: Lexington.
(CORRECT- kind of) 

Question: What was the first state to legalize same-sex marriage?
[Answer: Massachusetts]
Jerry: California? I don't know. Why don't I know these things?! (WRONG)

Question: Who was president during the Cuban Missile Crisis?
[Answer: John F. Kennedy]
Jerry: Kennedy (CORRECT)

Question: Who was the first Black Supreme Court justice in the United States?
[Answer: Thurgood Marshall]
Jerry: Clarence Thomas (WRONG)

Question: In what year did child labor laws start in the United States?
[Answer: 1938]
Jerry: 1984? I have no idea. I've always grown up knowing the labor laws like they are. (WRONG)

Question: What was the name of the battle in the Pacific fought between the U.S. Navy and the Imperial Japanese Navy in June 1942?
[Answer: Battle of Midway]
Jerry: Battle of Midway (CORRECT)

Question: When was the Battle of Gettysburg fought during the Civil War?
[Answer: July 1 through July 3, 1863]
Jerry: I want to say like 1842, but I think it was a little later than that. (WRONG)

Question: Who was the first American to win a Noble Peace Prize?
[Answer: Theodore Roosevelt]
Jerry: I have no idea. (WRONG)

Katie and her dad roasting hot dogs and marshmallows on the Fourth in 1983

Question: What country did the U.S. men’s Olympic hockey team defeat in the semi-finals of the 1980 Winter Olympics in Lake Placid, a game commonly known as the “Miracle on Ice”?
[Answer: The Soviet Union]
Jerry: Russia, The Miracle on Ice, Lake Placid (Katie: I only ready up to the word "defeat" and then Jerry started spouting off these words. Clearly he knew all about this one. (CORRECT)

Question: What year did the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) go into effect?
[Answer: 1994]
Jerry: 1968? (WRONG)

Well, I got 12 correct and 13 wrong. I definitely need to pick up a history book. I forgot so much from history class! I forgot significant dates, mostly. I'm curious what is being taught in history class these days versus what I read in school. I guess I need to brush up on my history trivia.

---

Katie here. I am impressed! I literally did not know a single one of those answers. (History has always been my worst subject EVER.) 

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Reader Question: Will MAF ever make me faster?!

Despite the fact that I no longer "train" (or run regularly, for that matter!) I still get asked a particular question pretty frequently. As a running coach, it makes sense that I get questions about running ;)  And running is one of my favorite things to talk/write about!

This question has to do with heart rate training--specifically, MAF training. In short: 'MAF' is a heart rate training method that was developed by Dr. Phil Maffetone; and coincidentally, his method involves a heart rate called Maximum Aerobic Function (i.e. MAF heart rate). From here on out, when I write MAF, I'm referring to the Maximum Aerobic Function heart rate. Heart rate is given in bpm (beats per minute).

(If you want the full, more-information version, here is a post I wrote about the MAF method of training and my thoughts on it.)

Please don't take this as gospel, because it's been a while since I read the MAF book, but the gist is this: a typical person's MAF heart rate is a simple number that is calculated by subtracting their age from 180. (Let's say you are 40 years old--your MAF heart rate would be 140, because 180 bpm - 40 (age)=140 bpm.) 

To train using the MAF method, you do all of your running at or under your MAF heart rate. In the example above, the 40-year old woman goes for a four-mile run several days a week--and each time she runs, she must keep her heart rate at or below 140 beats per minute. Always. No matter the situation.

Let me tell you, it feels VERY SLOW. But we'll get to that in a minute.

According to Dr. Maffetone, if you always run at that MAF heart rate, you will naturally get faster while maintaining the same heart rate. Your muscles and cardiovascular system are getting more efficient each time you run at your MAF rate, and therefore, it takes less effort to do the same amount of work (your running pace).

So, here is the big question/problem that people ask me about frequently: Running at the MAF heart rate is SO SLOW--I have to walk a lot of the time, especially when going uphill, and it feels like I'll never get faster. Does it really work? Will I get faster if I only ever run at my MAF heart rate?

First, let me be clear that I have not done the MAF method 100% for more than a couple of weeks. (I use the MAF formula frequently, but I'll get to that later.) I hadn't really studied the method until a friend told me about it, and the whole idea made so much sense to me. I loved it!

Until I tried to run at MAF pace and was soooo slow that I was very embarrassed. (Wisdom I wish I knew then: Don't ever be embarrassed at what pace you run. Seriously, that's dumb.)

I didn't do MAF training for long because I just didn't have the patience to see it through. I wanted to run FAST, dammit! So I ignored it for a few years. I read a book called Hansons Marathon Method in 2013 to train for the Chicago Marathon. It involved a LOT of running, but it really stressed that most of the running should be SLOW and easy. I didn't even know the meaning of "easy"--all of the runs I thought I was doing at an easy pace were not, in fact, easy. They were pretty much "garbage miles"--too slow for speed work, too fast for cardio efficiency.

(I hope I'm writing this in order--but this is the end result, regardless...) I wanted to train with the Hansons Marathon Method, and decided to use my MAF heart rate as the rate I would use for my easy runs. And finally, I read a book called '80/20 Running' by Matt Fitzgerald--he says to spend 80% of the TIME spent running per week at an easy pace, and 20% of the TIME can be spent doing work that raises your heart rate into a particular zone. (It's key to note that it's *time* and not *distance*.)

I sort of combined the methods to train for Chicago: the training plan in the Hansons Marathon Method Book (you can find my review of the whole method here); the 80/20 rule; and using my MAF heart rate to be the heart rate I spent 80% of my time running.

I took this picture after the hardest training run I've ever done: 3 x 2 miles at race pace (for me, that was 7:55/mile at the time). 

Training for a marathon is more of an extreme example for this particular question about MAF training. I used the method mostly during my training for a 10K (spending 80% of my time at MAF heart rate and 20% of the time doing HARD speed work).

I came in second female overall at a 5K that I decided to use as speed work.

I had results. Really good results, in fact.

I wish I could answer the question that I'm asked so frequently--about whether following MAF exactly as it should be will yield the best results--but I can say that the MAF training heart rate number was perfect for my own training.

The pace I had to run at that number felt way too slow (and yes, I had to walk quite a bit to lower it) in the beginning. At that time, I'd been trying to follow the MAF program as written; however, I got impatient and decided to combine it with the 80/20 Method. Then I could get my "fix" of fast running once in a while.

Using the combination of the MAF easy runs (80% of the time) and very hard speed work (which I'll describe), took my 10K pace from about 11:00/mile to 7:55/mile in about six months. I trained SO HARD and definitely got the results I wanted. (Unfortunately, I was burnt out after going after such a lofty goal.) I hit my 10K goal, which was thrilling.

I absolutely think that the MAF method on it's own probably works--thousands of people rave about it. And actually, if you want to read a book about a famous runner who followed this sort of heart rate training and felt SO SLOW at first, check out Rich Roll's memoir called 'Finding Ultra' (the link is to my favorite running books, so you can find it there). 

So, for the official answer to my question...

Yes, I believe that the MAF method works if you do it like you are supposed to. I didn't do it for long (only a couple of weeks) but I could understand how it starts to feel easier at the same heart rate.

Also, when I first started training with MAF heart rate, I felt super slow. But I forced myself to trust the process (I think my pace was 13-something a mile--when I was used to calling my "easy" runs 9- or 10- something per mile, haha!). I remember my MAF heart rate being 146 bpm, and I always kept my pace below that number when I was doing "easy runs".

Per my own permission, I spent 20% of my running time each week doing speed work--intervals and/or tempo runs. And I went hog wild with them, making each of those workouts really count. Seriously, I gave them my ALL. I think that was important--what's the point of half-assed speed work?

I think the combination of the two methods is a great way to train, regardless of the distance. I wrote out several places that use the method; you can check out my free training plans on this page. The plans can even be used for walking--I've discovered I have to walk VERY fast to get my heart rate up to MAF; and holy smokes, it's a tough workout. 

You could actually use this method for any sort of cardio exercise you like to do, now that I think about it. The whole point is to make your body more efficient at the workload you give it; and it does this by being trained, over and over, at that particular exertion (your MAF heart rate). Eventually, you'll have to work really hard to get it up there!

(If I remember correctly, I think my "easy runs", using MAF heart rate during 10K training, went from 13:00 minutes+ per mile to just under 10:00 per mile. At the same heart rate of 146 bpm! I wish I could tell whether it was the MAF method, the 80/20 Method, or a combination of the two that did it, but I'll never know for sure.)

After all is said and done, it wouldn't hurt to TRY doing the MAF Method exactly as intended--see what happens. (And definitely email me and let me know.) If you really don't see good results after the time that Dr. Maffetone suggests, you can always decide to try a different method (or try adding speed work, like I did). But there certainly isn't anything wrong with giving it a try.

I think the hardest part about it is all mental--making yourself run/walk/bike/etc. much slower than you want or that you're used to is mentally challenging! I'm sure that once you start to see results, it will be encouraging, though. 

(Oh, this is a random question that deserves a spot here as well: Dr. Maffetone says that you don't have to change your MAF heart rate every year on your birthday. He says that as long as it's working for you and your health hasn't changed, you don't need to change it. I found 146 bpm worked so well for me when 10K training that I used that number for a couple of years.)

This post isn't nearly as clear as I hoped it would be, but I wanted to try to write this info in one place for anyone who may be wondering the same question. Give MAF a try, and let us know how it works out for you! Or, make it your own and work the MAF method into your own training like I did.

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