SBMAT 2015

A few months ago, Swim Bike Mom sent out an all-call to apply for the 2015 ambassador team. When I first saw her post, I got all crazy jazzed and excited and thought, "YES! I'm totally applying for this!" Then my brain started working again and I realized that I would likely be one of about 252  applicants. Applicants who had been tri-ing for more than 5 minutes (or 4 months, as the case may be). Applicants who, you know, were actually *good* at triathlon. So I thought about it for 2 more minutes and I shelved the idea.

Fast forward to the day the applications were due. We were home. My kids were happily occupied with Legos and a movie. I saw something come across my feed about the deadline and I started furiously writing (er, typing... whatevs). I don't know what possessed me to apply, but it came from left field. I went with it. I typed and deleted and typed and deleted for a solid hour. When I finished, I read some of it to my husband. I told him, "I'm sure I won't get picked, but I hope I at least make her laugh." Well. Apparently, I did. 

The phone rang Wednesday morning with a number from Georgia. "I don't know anybody who lives in Georgia," I said to my friend. We were sitting at Einstein Brothers, enjoying all the pumpkin. My brain kicked into overdrive, and I realized that I DO know a few work folks in Georgia, so I politely answered the phone, "This is Sheri." What happened next floored me. For real. I heard this, "Hi Sheri! It's Meredith Atwood from Swim Bike Mom. Is this a good time?" I swear I sat there for 10 minutes with my jaw sitting in my lap and tears streaming down my face, but my friend has assured me it couldn't have been longer than 9 minutes. After I stammered a little and regained my composure, I said something. Obviously it was English, because I quickly accepted Meredith's invitation to be a part of the team. 

I have no idea what part of my application stood out to her, but I am SO beyond grateful that I plopped down that Saturday and offered up my thoughts on triathlon and how it's continuing to change my life. I am SO excited about this opportunity and what the 2015 racing season holds for me. I cannot wait to get started and give back to this sport that has so willingly given to me. So YAY! Just keep moving forward and stay tuned for many updates to come!

Mother's Day Tri!

Race report!! The swim was very intimidating until I heard the bullhorn. As soon as I dove in, I was fine. Nobody kicked me and I'm pretty sure I didn't kick anybody either. :) I felt like I was SO.SLOW, but my parents said I was right in the middle and even passed some people from the first wave. ~8 minutes. I felt strong coming out of the water and passed several folks into the transition area. My T1 was pretty quick - in and out in 2:30. The bike was fun, but I heard "On your left!!!" about 600 times. I definitely need a real bike. My shining moment was getting passed by a 10-year-old. Beast mode... T2 was great - less than a minute!!! And the run was the best. I passed all those chicks who passed me on the bike, which felt great. My folks and Daniel were at the finish, but doug and Lia missed me cross by about 10 minutes. I'm pretty convinced I'll be doing another one soon. Super fun and super rewarding. And not nearly as taxing as a half marathon. I highly recommend it!

It's that time again!

It's that time again! In 10.5 hours, I'm going to attempt what I once believed impossible (and maybe even insane). I'll be diving in to Lake Houston at 7:04 tomorrow morning to take on my first triathlon. Prayers, positive thoughts, and support are appreciated, especially for calm nerves in the water! Thanks, y'all!

I don't need no stinkin' noodle

I went to Williams Indoor Pool today to practice swimming for my triathlon. A couple of observations.

1. Swimming is freaking hard.
2. 200 yards is a LOT farther than I thought.
3. I don't need no stinking pool noodle.

I don't know how many laps I swam, but MAN. I needed to get out and get a drink at least 3 times in the 30 minutes that I was there. As soon as I got home and ate allllll the food, I started looking for a different triathlon with a "real" swim. I don't need no stinking pool noodle.

Luckily, I went to see Dr. Moore today. There are a ton of folks on his staff who do tris. A couple of the ladies there recommended this Mother's Day tri in a couple of weeks. I looked into it. 200 yards, 8 miles, and 2 miles. I think I'm going to do it. I don't need no stinking pool noodle.

Tri-ing something new

A couple of weeks ago, Doug and I ran our last 13.1 of the season - Angie's Half-Crazy Half-Marathon. This made 13.1 number 4 for me this year. I felt great. Ran great. Fueled great. Recovered great. There was a little flyer in our packet about the Life's a Beach triathlon that's ON MY BIRTHDAY. I'm not really taking issue with turning 35, but it just kinda seems like a super groovy way to spend my 35th.

Here's the cool part - I can use *anything* I want to on the swim, except for a surf board or a boat. Like a pool noodle! Surely I can swim 200 yards with a pool noodle. Yes?

I already have my junker mountain bike I got on craigslist to ride around with Daniel. And I only have to ride 5 miles on the beach. The only thing I'm missing is a helmet. And I know I can run 2 miles on the beach. Easy peasy.

So why not? I think I'll sign up, give it a shot, and cross "triathlon" of my bucket list.

Random snippets of life with Daniel

A few weeks ago at dinner:

Doug: (insert random comment about Baltimore)

Daniel: No, Daddy. It's Vol-de-mort.


Here's a chunk of our conversation from Monday:

Daniel: I learned ALL about the pilgrims today.
Me: What'd you learn?
D: Well. There was this one Native American guy named Squanto. And he taught the pilgrims how to fish and plant corn. And if you plant a dead fish in the ground with your corn, it rots and the corn grows faster. And the corn likes it.
Me: Oh yeah?
D: Yeah. And I learned how they made water hoses.
Me: Water hoses?
D: Yeah. First, the pilgrims had to kill an animal. Like a turkey. And they used the turkey's skin to make the hose.
Me: (trying not to laugh at this point, but still very interested in this methodology) I don't think turkeys have very water resistant skin. Pretty sure it wasn't a turkey.
D: Goats. Then it was goats, because their legs are long and skinny and hollow... like a hose. So they had to kill the goat. And then they used the skin from its legs to glue together to make a hose. But they had to make the glue, because pilgrims didn't have stores. 
Me: Are you sure they didn't just carry the water from the river? Maybe with a bucket? 
D: Nope. They used animal skin.
Me: Got it. Did you learn anything else about the pilgrims?
D: Oh yes. I learned how they made bread. Let me show you. (proceeds to open a can of Pringles and a jar of peanut butter)
Me: Ok, bub. I'm with you so far, but I KNOW they didn't have Pringles or Jif.
D: So maybe I should just use a hot dog bun?
Me: .......???




And today at his class party, he asked his teacher, "Please may I have an extra plate for my little sister?"
I love this child. I need to do a better job of writing down the zany things he says, but that's a full-time job.

Break-throughs

I had two break-throughs today. Yes. Two events that empowered me, made me change my perspective, and helped me feel just amazing.

Break-through #1

I watched this video yesterday. Watch it. Go ahead. I'll wait. It's three minutes. And worth it. Please. Go ahead... You kinda need to watch it, just so you'll understand the next little bit.

Good little flick, eh? Even if you're not a mom, you HAVE a mom. You can relate. Neat perspective, huh? I'm not a mom who struggles with much. I know there's always room for improvement, but at the end of the day, I love my kids. My kids love me. We're happy, healthy, and well-adjusted. We laugh. We color. We craft. We eat healthy foods. My house is clean enough for my standards. I take care of my family AND I take care of myself. We go places. We make memories. We're happy.

But every so often, doubt creeps in. What if I'm doing it "wrong?" What if I'm doing too much FOR them? What if I'm expecting too much OF them? What am I doing TO them? All these prepositions...

This morning, Halloween, I was getting the kids ready for school. Daniel declared in May that he wanted to be Batman. Last week, he altered his costume to Batman-Spiderman. His idea was to take "a little bit of Batman and a little bit of Spiderman and SMOOSH them together." Lia wanted to be Hello Kitty, my least favorite of her picks. I had my doubts that we could pull this off (See that? Doubt.). I have to admit, I was a little stressed about getting two kids into costume and out the door in under an hour, especially because both kids' costumes required face paint. Our morning went something like this:

"Sit RIGHT. HERE. and DON'T. MOVE."
"If you don't eat that poptart in the next three minutes, you CAN.NOT be Batman-Spiderman."
"Lia. Look at mommy. LOOK at mommy. Look at MOMMY. Not down. AT MOMMY."
"Quit squinting. Quit moving. Quit blinking. QUIT."

When I finished Daniel's mask, he ran off to look at himself in the mirror. I (figuratively) held my breath. It looked less than stellar and not at all like what I had envisioned. He came tearing back into the kitchen, breathless. "I. LOOK. AWESOME!!!!!" I exhaled and smiled - a big enough smile to match his own. Silly doubt. Silly, silly doubt.

Lia was just as thrilled with her face paint. She twirled her skirt, meowed, twisted, hopped, and sang in her sweet little voice, "I'm Hello Kitty cat on happy Halloween!" My doubt was cast aside. My kids were thrilled. Here's a little peak:

Break-through #2

Doug and I run. A lot. Neither of us strive to set any records, win any races, or become any sort of national phenomenon. But we enjoy the challenge, the endorphins, and the health benefits associated with running. We ran our first half-marathon in April (see this blog for more details). We ran the Space City 10 Miler just three weeks ago. We're running our second half-marathon in 9 days. We run. But you see, I've never said the words, "I am a runner." It somehow seemed like I hadn't earned the right to actually call myself a "runner."

This morning, while walking Hello Kitty into class, another mom and I were chatting about Halloween and other stuff. We'd never talked before, but we wave and say hi twice a week. She said to me, "I always see you in workout clothes up here. Do you always work out after you drop your little girl?" I replied, "I'm a runner." It felt amazing to say those words. According to RunKeeper, I've run 647 miles in the last year. I think I've finally earned the right to call myself a runner. It felt great. Look. I'm gonna say it again. I am a runner. :o)

Happy Thursday, y'all.