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Could be the end. Brought to you today by GIFS.

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Thu, 06 Aug 2015 18:31:00 +0000

Today I will boo my own damn self. Looks like the end of my running career is here. Well, at least for now I suppose. My plantar fasciitis has returned for the umpteenth time. While there are some positives to this (get to those in a bit), I'll be honest. This has been sucky.

Obviously there are far, far worse problems in the world. I could be seriously injured. My family could be sick. I could lose my job, so on and so on.

But it's a lesson for the kids out there: No, not everything is possible no matter how badly you want it.

Are those ... cheeseburgers? I have no idea.

I had to quit my run after a half a mile this week. I knew something was up when I started the warmup. Normally my foot does not hurt at all while running. It wouldn't let up.

I've already had cortisone shots, physical therapy, the ASTYM treatment and dry needling. I've worn the boot, I've used a golf ball, I've stretched, I've iced, I've even heated.

My only options left for a cure are: lose weight and surgery. Surgery is not a final cure. It could always come back. Losing weight is definitely an option, but I've done the numbers, I've tried to figure out how much I can lose before Oct/Nov. when training will get tough. Unless I starve myself, it just won't work.

I am taking a few days off to see if it will resolve itself. But I've been down this road several times and it won't. It might get better, but once I get back on the road it will be back.

I've had two people give me a mini-intervention. Rich, of course, has always been supportive. He never lets me down and will give me an honest answer. He says, however, it's time to re-evaluate my goals and to never lose sight that I did actually run a half-marathon before. I'm so focused on my bad time for that race, he says I need to move on. He's right.

Only Judge Judy cares about your time.

My super good friend who is also a trainer told me it's time to "let it go." She says running is not for everyone and even losing weight won't guarantee there won't be a PF problem. The thing that stuck out the most of what all she told me was - the longer I'm taking to constantly rehab is the longer I'm wasting the time I could be doing something else. Again, she's absolutely right.

She gets paid to train people so she knows what she's talking about. But it's hard to let go of this racing season. I had two half marathons planned. I could still walk them, but first, I have to get the foot on board. Do you think my foot is trying to tell me to drop it like a hot potato and never look back? :)

You said it Lena Dunham!

The positives:
* My stress load has been lifted - While I have enjoyed my hours of research, base-building, Bob Harper workouts, 5 a.m. wakeup calls, it has been a tad on the stressful side. This time has been fun, no doubt, and a good confidence booster. But let's face it, following a training plan is a chore. So now, no more of a rigid schedule.
* I get to sleep in - well ok, this has actually not been a big problem for me. I was able to wake up and get moving. I still have to wake up anyway to make us a proper breakfast now that E is going to big kid school.
* I can get back to yoga and weight workouts. I was pretty focused on running and I wasn't sure I'd have the dedication and time to do other types of activities. Not a problem now!
* Don't have to buy another pair of $130 shoes.
* Don't have to fight the heat OR cold. This is actually a really good positive because both are brutal and yay, I'll stay in my cool/warm bed.

No more runs in the humidity!

Dacia, I still want to meet up with you the weekend of the race!! E is talking about running a race so we may register her for the kid run. I know a few other people running in the race so I will have a good time spectating.

"Move along kids..."

So there we go. Running is not off the table permanently, but for now it is. I'm ready to focus on something else that will "honor my body" as my friend likes to say.

How have you handled injuries? Do you focus on something else or make new goals?

This turtle is faster than me. Watch how fast he runs down the hill.

Da weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Mon, 03 Aug 2015 20:47:00 +0000

I actually took a trip this weekend! MawMaw got out the house! Just kidding, but I really did take a trip to Houston. Friday Rich and I made the long haul to Houston. I say long haul, but it's four hours. Emily got to spend quality grandparents time.

We chose that night because it's orange jersey night, there was a Craig Biggio (now Hall-of-Famer) bobblehead giveaway and fireworks. Clearly this was a Rich trip. I took one for the team because he lives with a trio of zany girls (including the cat) and he does a lot for us and takes one for the team often.

This was my third Astros game since me and Rich started dating ten years ago. I'm pretty much the bad luck charm because they lost. 0 for 3 when I'm in attendance. But, we still had a great time.

First I began the morning with a run. I'm still base-building and will be for five? more weeks? I'm so confused now on days I just look at my spreadsheet and follow whatever it says daily. So I'm still working on those one-mile runs.

In hindsight this was not the best day for a run. I had so much to do before we left (I totally procrastinated on everything). I forgot to drink water to rehydrate. I felt so antzy I couldn't sleep in the car on the trip. We made it to The Original Ninfas in Houston and by golly the best part of the meal was the iced water.

I ordered chicken soft tacos, but the tacos were the corn-type tortilla so I turned the toppings into a salad. Delish!

We then stood out in the 98-degree heat for an hour before they let us in. We got there early because we (he) was afraid they would run out of bobbleheads.

Eventually they let us in the lobby at Minute Maid Park where we stood for another 30 minutes or so but I didn't mind because AIR CONDITIONING.

The bobblehead that does not look at all like Craig Biggio. LOL!!

I look pretty rough here, but that's what happens when you have been outside in this weather.

Orbit is quite possibly the best mascot there is. Before the fireworks show he did a lip-sync to a bunch of diva songs because it was, afterall, "Divas of Music" night. This dude is very talented. Or who knows, maybe Orbit is a she.

The next morning we were up bright and early and made our way home. First we stopped at Bucee's. Anybody heard of this place? It's the biggest convenience store I've ever seen. Let's just say healthy food options were SCARCE there.

Somebody was so happy to see us she camped out on our bags so we wouldn't leave again.

Overall my eating wasn't the worst, but it could have been better. I think the heat drained me of any sort of brain-power to even realize what I was doing half the time.

Yesterday's run was not that great. The weird thing is I felt like I was going really fast.

I said on FB and Instagram how I found this treasure trove of running music. The NKOTB remix album! The entire album! I had forgotten about some of these songs from the early 90s. Fantastic! The album brought back many memories of fun times with my girlfriends camping out for tickets and attending their concerts.

However, I have not had time to download it to my ipod. So I'm not quite the cool kid I thought I was.

This morning's run was better, but I'm still struggling. I think a big part is tired legs, still tired from the trip, last night I only slept about four hours, my diet from the weekend and dehydration.

But I'm super proud of myself because I've now done two separate sessions of back-to-back days in a row! My legs weren't nearly as tired this time around, but my poor lungs. Send an ambulance!

Tomorrow I'm having chia pudding for breakfast (if I can remember!). I'll post something about that.

Tomorrow is a rest day and then I'll have THREE days in a row of running. Still taking it slow with running only one mile each day. For any new readers, I'm going with a cumulative fatigue training plan. Running on tired legs is the main component.

How was your weekend? Have you ever been to Minute Maid Park? Who is sick of the high-90s weather? PS: We have had a couple of days of nice temp drops and I loved every minute of it.

I ran two days in a row!

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 18:42:00 +0000

I'm writing a post about this two-days-in-a-row thing because 1) I'm experimenting and want to document this 2) I've never run two days in a row in my training for my first and only half marathon.

I'm going to use the Hansons Half Marathon Method for my winter half marathons. You build up to running six days a week - six days in a row. A lot of people have used this method and it works for them. Cumulative Fatigue is what I'm working on here.

The concept is you train your legs to run on tired legs. In a full marathon this will help you have an easy first 13 miles (hahaha!!!) so the second 13 miles will be tougher, but you will have had such a great first 13, the second half won't be as tiring because you are used to running on tired legs.

Now for the half this is even better. The daily runs are shorter obviously than marathon daily runs. But there are days of running 7-8 miles during the week depending on which plan you choose. I'm using the "Beginners" plan.

I'm super slow so I'm hoping by the time my base-building ends, I'll be faster or otherwise I'll use the "Just Finish" plan.

I feel like this sounds so complicated. Here's a better explanation from the Hanson program:

Cumulative fatigue: The idea of cumulative fatigue centers around the long run. When you look at a lot of other training programs, there is also a primary focus on the long run. However, the idea of cumulative fatigue means that the runner is going into the long run slightly fatigued from the training during the previous days. It also means that training will resume as normal the days following the long run. There isn’t a single day that is overly difficult for the runner, but every day is tough enough that there isn’t a full recovery between all runs of major importance. In other words, the long run is literally in the middle of the training cycle, not the end of the training cycle (weekly).

I've read up a lot on this and I don't think I'll have nearly the success as most of these runners do. I think I'll at least have more success than my first half marathon?!?! Hopefully?

So Tuesday was the first run. I mentioned in yesterday's post I ran one-mile with an average pace of 15 minutes, 24 seconds. Yesterday I was not as sore as I had been in previous runs. I knew though the day following a run is when I'm sore. I figured today was as good a day as any to try the two-in-a-row.

Instead of carb loading last night, I had a salad. Which, let's face it, a one-mile run doesn't require carb loading. We went to a Mexican restaurant that has a balloon guy on Kids' Nights. I normally get chicken quesadillas. I ordered a chicken caesar salad. It was perfect. Just what I needed. I think I was actually craving greens which never happens. I was proud of myself because back when I trained for the first half, I'd order those quesadillas and have a ton of chips.

The only disappointing thing were the faux chips. Next time, I'll leave those off.

I woke up not hungry and ready. I had to force my legs to move. My breathing was pretty good so I was happy about that. The second half mile was better, but by the end of the mile, I was spent.

A half day later, yes, I'm feeling it mainly in my thighs. Everything else is surprisingly well. Although I suspect tomorrow I'll need a bunch of ibuprofen. But, alas, tomorrow is a rest day! I'll be ready for the Friday run.

It's tough to leave my doubts at the door. The doubts are always there and hopefully once I start the actual program, the doubts will get to running. I think at times we are all our own worst enemy. I have no real enemies. I have lots of people around me who encourage me. So I need to just trust the process, the program and myself.

What do you think about those run streak people? How do they do it? I think if I ran every day for like 500 days I'd hate running. Have you ever been to a kids' night at a Mexican restaurant? Oh, the stories we could tell each other.

The weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Tue, 28 Jul 2015 17:20:00 +0000

We are in "get-ready-for-school" mode. I am torn between panicking and crying my eyes out. I'm so nervous for a multitude of reasons for this kid to go to kindergarten. Growing pains for both of us right now. But I'm this close . to being finished with school shopping.

This weekend was mainly running errands. We bought her uniforms for school. That was a pretty penny and wow, wowwwww so expensive. But they do look sturdy so I'll give them that much.

Stopped at the Nike store. She either wants to be a headless model or a runner. Hopefully runner!

We bought this Easy Bake Oven for E. It's how can I say ... weird? Like so, so weird. I never had one of these growing up and honestly, it's a bit amateur for her since I've been baking with her with real recipes for about a year now.

The cookies came out to be the tiniest of cookies you'll ever see in your life. I don't know, I'm not sold on this Easy Bake. The taste was not great and even E agreed it was "yuck."

Sunday we went to church and to my friend's house. I just realized I didn't take one picture. That sucks cause E came to play with my friend's dog who is a female Snoopy.

Imagine a small girl and Snoopy jumping by her.

I ordered the Racing Weight cookbook. I think this will be excellent, but beware: lots of grains and wheat. So that could be a digestive problem. We'll see.

Matt Fitzgerald wrote Racing Weight and the cookbook. He's written several books so I ordered this one about nutrition. This talks about the importance of carbs, BUT they need to be from plants as opposed to chips, sodas, pastries, etc...

You may have to zoom on this, but this was fascinating. It's what the Kenyan elite runners eat. It actually doesn't sound all that bad except I'm not sure I could handle copious amounts of tea.

I'm still fighting my cold, but it's significantly better. I was ready to start running today. I took it easy and only ran one mile. But, truth be told, my time isn't much better when I'm not sick. Bwahaha!!

I also saw two falling stars while waiting for my GPS to load. It was amazing. Too bad they don't send you a memo saying when these will occur so you can take a pic. If it didn't happen on social media with a pic, then it didn't happen right? ;)

I have a few more runs planned for this week so I'm playing it by ear. Base building has officially begun!

Have you ever seen a fallen star? Do you think the headless models are creepy? Did you have an Easy Bake Oven and did you think it was the most bizarre kitchen appliance ever?

What's up?

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Thu, 23 Jul 2015 18:26:00 +0000

It's been a while since I've written. I've been pretty busy and sick. This really sucked because I had made such good workout progress the week before. But, I've turned lemons into lemonade and had some nice positives the last few weeks.

I received an upper respiratory infection from my little girl. It comes with the territory of being a parent. She's able to bounce back a lot quicker than me, thank goodness! But I had to get antibiotics from the doc and a nice cortisone shot.

I followed the "above-the-neck" run rule regarding workouts. My problems were below the neck. My lungs specifically. So running was off the table. I'm giving this sucker four more days and then it's back on!

Here's a wrap up of the past few weeks:

I bought a new phone case since the one I first ordered was a bust. I have no idea why in my 40s I'm drawn to evil characters. But I really am fond of the wicked witch and how she has her flying monkeys do her bidding. She's probably the smartest one of all of us.

Playdate for Emily. We had a good time with my friend and her 2-year-old daughter. These two get along famously and we always have fun.

In the pretend cafe

Me and Rich took her to see Minions. It's pretty funny, but not as funny as Despicable Me.

We had a nice rainbow to kick off the weekend. I said on Instagram we have a rainbow, now we just need a puppy or a unicorn. (Get it? Puppies and rainbows or Unicorns and rainbows?)

I went on a mini road-trip to my cousin's baby shower. It was great seeing her and my grandmother.

I was doing some serious Pretty Little Liars binge-watching until our cable/internet went out this week. This has actually been a good thing. I've taken time to clean the house nightly and read.

While waiting this morning for the nonexistent cable guy I re-read parts of the Hansons Half Marathon book. I took the time to read and finally figured out my plan for the Louisiana Half Marathon which is about 26 weeks away. (Sounds long, but trust me, it's not)

I've been waffling on how should I build a base? Which plan should I use when it is time to start an "official plan?" Should I incorporate cross training? Should I continue to use the Black Fire series? What about diet? Where can I improve on that?

The book states if you want to be good at something, you do that thing. A. Lot. The Hansons' team wants you to run. Only run. This is a tough one because when I look on Instagram and read the running blogs, people are doing the opposite. They are running some miles, but they are also doing weights, swimming (I won't do that since I have no access to a pool), biking, yoga, hardcore things.

I do believe proper stretching and some strength exercises involving the core are necessary. They believe that too and give a few exercises to incorporate throughout the plan. BUT, they believe running is so taxing on your body, you don't have the time or physiology to do it all and meet your running goals.

This goes against the popularity of the people. But, I'm going to follow them and the science on this one. So my main base building will be running. Once the program starts it will be running. I will run so much I'll probably run in my sleep.

In other news, I'm still in a book funk. The last time I was like this I was pregnant. (not pregnant now). But I think what's happened is I've read 50-something books in the first half of this year. I was feeling pressure (from myself) to start another one immediately. I like to marinate on a book after I read it for a few days before starting another one. So I think I'm just burned out.

I also instituted a "do not buy any more books until you read at least 20 of the 100 that you already own" rule. This one is tough too. I definitely have #firstworldproblems when my biggest pressing issues are about a running plan and having too many books. :)

What about you? Any topics you want to discuss? Running plans? Antibiotics? Rainbows and unicorns?

Dollhouse by Anya Allyn

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Tue, 14 Jul 2015 17:21:00 +0000

Partial overview from Goodreads:

"An abandoned mansion, deep in the woods. A dollhouse, filled with life-sized toys. A doorway into other realms. And girls who keep disappearing...

When Cassie’s best friend, Aisha, vanishes during a school hike, Cassie sets off with Aisha's boyfriend and their friend Lacey, determined to find her. Instead, the three teens fall into a carefully-laid trap—deep into the surreal nightmare and dark secrets of the Dollhouse.

Now, Cassie must uncover the mysteries of the Dollhouse and her own connection to it-- before it's too late."

I bought this book because it was on sale for $1.99 or so. I also bought it because I am totally in love and totally creeped out with stories about dolls. I'm reviewing this book because I know others like stories with creepy dolls.

This book was a bit of a mess. The plot was all over the place. There were creepy dolls - who are actually human?!?! The story involved kidnapping, a mansion, time travel, a clown with a limp, etc ... I could go on here.

It turns out this is a series. Believe it or not, I want to read the rest of the series. First, I need to let my mind rest from all the WTFery.

If you like horror, gothic mansions, the circus, cults and dolls with red cheeks - this one is for you!

Review of Black Fire workouts by Daily Burn (Part 1)

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Sat, 11 Jul 2015 23:59:00 +0000

I'll have a couple of other updated reviews as the weeks go on. But we'll start with week one. I'm not affiliated with Daily Burn or Bob in any way. These thoughts are my own, however I am on a 30-day free trial with Daily Burn. This free trial can apply to anybody.

My main goal for using this series was to boost my cardio ability. It is/was pretty bad. As soon as I would start a nice running warmup, my heart rate would shoot up and I could feel my lungs were getting ready to be on fire. Yeah, pretty bad for a "warmup."

I'm using this series while I build a base. For sure I will finish out the 30 days free trial and depending on where I am physically I will most likely pay the $12.95 for next 30 days. After that, I'll have officially started the half-marathon training and I will be running almost daily. I plan on trying to incorporate some strength training, but by then, I'm hoping my fitness will be better to focus on goal paces. #hopefully

This past week my plan was to work out six days, with the last day being a one-mile run. My one-mile runs have been very slow.

Sure enough, I used the dvd five days.

Monday: Strategic endurance - 3 rounds, 3 exercises, 2 minutes each. Sounds simple right? Nope. These included lots of burpees. The WARMUP was burpees. So you can imagine how that went.

Tuesday: Bodyweight tabata - 4 body-weight moves, 8 rounds per move. This was that whole tabata thing where there is no rest between each move. That feels so long ago, I can't remember much about it.

Wednesday: Full mobility - This was labeled as "easy" and I wondered if I should even do it. I figured it would be yoga and I'm working on cardio yo! But holy crap, this was exactly what I needed. You work every limb to the bone stretching and feeling the burn. I did not particularly like the host (not Bob) and the guy doing the moves, but I thought it was excellent. Honestly, this workout alone would be worth the $12.95 itself.

Thursday: ABC - I can't even remember what the ABC stands for, but I know it was core and abs. 4 moves, 5 rounds of each, 30 seconds of exertion. The hostess was a woman and she was pretty hard core.

Friday: Power 10 - This is the official description which is spot on - "One of the most challenging workouts in the Black Fire series, you'll sprint through 4 rounds of 10 exercises, for 30 seconds each...with no rest." This was torture. I really thought I would either vomit or die.

So, how did my run today go? It was at 5:45 a.m. on a Saturday and it was allegedly only 73 degrees. I was dying from the heat/humidity. But, I improved by 50 seconds! I was super excited because it felt like I had slowed down compared to the week before, but I shaved a good bit of time off! And having my Soleus watch that shows my pace is extremely helpful, yet habitual. I'm OCD about checking my pace which I need to quit doing as much.

Here are the pros and cons so far in this series:
Pros:
* Bob Harper
* Very intense
* Workouts are around 35 minutes so you can fit it in and even do two in an hour (I've seen this on the message board and will try this further down the line)
* Can do it easily in your home - always need a mat, some days weights
* You keep counts on each workout. Some workouts area a total count while others you count your lowest score so you can build up each week.
* Lots and lots and lots of different workouts. 12 Bob/Anja workouts with another half dozen or so of the "easy" recovery workouts. I have not had time to totally explore, but I think you can also use different programs of Daily Burn.
* There is a good deal of nutritional information which I haven't had time to look through. The recipes look good and easy.

Cons:
* Very intense - this is too advanced for me. They do make modifications for beginners, but if I would not be training for something, this would be out of my realm for sure. It will be interesting to see how I end up after the 60 days.

Yeah, I won't be doing this one.

* The equipment - the main issue I've had so far is some of the workouts use a box. The box is like $100 dollars. Um, no. I've modified it and honestly it hasn't been a problem because I'm so dead anyway I know I wouldn't be able to jump on the box even if I had it. I do need to buy a medicine ball and it seems a type of broomstick is needed for a couple of other ones. Again, something they try to sell you which runs around $30. Nope.

* There is a supplements section - I know a lot of people use supplements and protein powders. More power to them! For me, I'm trying not to because that stuff kills my stomach, usually tastes like shit, is overly expensive and I can make most of the same stuff and get my protein from greek yogurt, chicken, nut butters, etc ...

This week's plan is to keep up the program, but run every other day for one mile. I'm going to see how this week goes to figure out next week's plan.

If you are reading on my actual site, sorry about the font discrepencies. I've tried to fix it and the fonts are not cooperating. They are off the job for the weekend I guess. :)

Attachments by Rainbow Rowell

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Thu, 09 Jul 2015 15:24:00 +0000

From Goodreads:

"Beth Fremont and Jennifer Scribner-Snyder know that somebody is monitoring their work e-mail. (Everybody in the newsroom knows. It's company policy.) But they can't quite bring themselves to take it seriously. They go on sending each other endless and endlessly hilarious e-mails, discussing every aspect of their personal lives.

Meanwhile, Lincoln O'Neill can't believe this is his job now- reading other people's e-mail. When he applied to be "internet security officer," he pictured himself building firewalls and crushing hackers- not writing up a report every time a sports reporter forwards a dirty joke.

When Lincoln comes across Beth's and Jennifer's messages, he knows he should turn them in. But he can't help being entertained-and captivated-by their stories.

By the time Lincoln realizes he's falling for Beth, it's way too late to introduce himself."

OK, so I really did not like this book as much as I wanted to. It's a good book. The plot is endearing. There are Meg Ryan and Tom Hanks references. What's not to love?

This story is told by way of emails. Back-and-forth emails. I did not like this. I should have because I've engaged in many email exchanges with girlfriends and I like that. But, I found this perspective daunting. Am I a lazy reader? Yes. Do I like to stop and think about whose email I'm now reading? No. Am I the world's worst Rainbow Rowell fan? Most definitely.

By the end, I really did like the plot. I liked a few of the characters and I was rooting for them.

Rainbow Rowell is now quite popular. I believe this was her first book. Most people love another book of hers "Eleanor and Park." Honestly, I am not ready to read it because I feel like if I don't like it then I'm committing a book sin. Is that weird? Yes. Am I too focused on liking books others like? Yes.

Soooo excited!

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Tue, 07 Jul 2015 13:34:00 +0000

Reading that title you may think I got a raise at my job or get to go on a trip. NOPE. I got a good medical report! My sugar, thyroid and cholesterol numbers are P.E.R.F.E.C.T.

This is important because six months ago the numbers were all in the shitter. The deal was if in six months I didn't get the numbers better I'd have to go on prediabetes medicine.

However, I still have a long, long way to go. I still need to drop weight. I still have to follow a low-carb diet. I still have to commit to a long-term workout regimen.

But just knowing that what I've done for the past six months is helping gives me lots of motivation.

I try to follow a healthy diet, then usually something will trigger me and I fall off the bandwagon. As the doc said I need to chain myself to the bandwagon so I don't fall off.

The things I've done in the last six months that may help you as well:
1) Eaten a LOT more vegetables. This is a struggle because some I just flat out do not like. I've done a couple of Freevive detoxes which taught me the importance of REAL whole foods.
2) Cut way back on eating outside the home.
3) Water, water and more water. I aim for a gallon a day, but usually fall between 80-100 ounces.
4) Really tried to incorporate more fish (cod, tuna, sardines) and whole eggs (not just the whites).
5) Cut back on the bread, flour, sweets, etc...
6) Got back into working out and signed up for two half marathons to help keep me on track.

Now I have not been perfect with any of these. There are lots of days when I flounder around. I have a lot of trigger foods that send me in a junk-food spiral. But I think I'm making progress, even if it's in small amounts.

I've definitely learned you can't out-train a bad diet. I've tried and tried and it doesn't work.

Cheers until next time. I'll have a book review to post. Woot! Over the weekend I'll post my review of the BlackFire workout series. I'm on day two and it's kicking my butt!

The weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Sun, 05 Jul 2015 22:53:00 +0000

I had a fun three days off. Somehow, unintentionally, our weekend revolved around electronics. This is probably bad, but it was fun. Our weekend involved no fireworks. I hate those things in neighborhoods. If you have dogs, cats, babies, toddlers or kids who need to go to sleep I'm sure you can guess why.

First off, my upgraded phone came in. I finally have emoticons!

I am particularly fond of the animal ones.

I actually ordered this phone case from England (pretty cheap on Etsy btw) and %#$%@#$ it did not fit the phone. It's soooo adorable that was disappointing. #firstworldprobs

Friday we went bowling. Rich had a family emergency so we didn't get to finish our game. However, This girl was beating me when we had to leave, so there's that. I brought E back to the alley to play at the arcade.

Saturday we saw Inside Out.

I really don't know what to say about this movie other than I cried the entire damn movie. It was like being pummeled minute-by-minute. Shhhh, Rich cried his eyes out too. It is something about babies and blonde-haired blue-eyed little girls in movies that just rip us apart. E loved the movie and I just thought it was too heavy for kids. What with characters like "Sadness," "Disgust," "Fear" and "Anger." I get they were trying to stress that all of our emotions are important, but wth??

After that onslaught of tears, we played with Rich's remote-controled car. We bought this for part of his Father's Day gift and you can imagine who is having the most fun with it.

Thanks to the rain, rain and more rain we spent a lot of time indoors. Emily found this game for the ipad. I actually won an ipad in a raffle!

Teen Beach Movie game - I loveeee that movie.

I promised her we would buy her an "electronics" game. Apparently kids bring ipads to daycare. Um, she won't be doing that. I ended up finding this Lexibook at Toys R Us for $30. Gotta say, it's quite the find. It has 85 games. So now she can be one of the cool kids with her knockoff. muhahahah.

This is an Aladdin game.

We also watched the Scooby Doo movies while Rich watched baseball.

Now we are going to watch Gus.

Remember that movie? The one about the mule who played football.

Hope you had a good July 4th and maybe yours involved fireworks - I do like sparklers!

The 2nd before the 4th

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Thu, 02 Jul 2015 18:25:00 +0000

Woot, I'm off tomorrow and I'm excited! I plan on doing as many fun things I can squeeze in this weekend. So far I know we will bowl, go to a movie, read, workout. We will probably binge-watch this mermaid show on Netflix. It's awful, yet all three of us are in a trance when we watch it.

My workouts this week have been interesting. Monday I ran one mile without walking. It took almost 16 minutes. I have to say that sucks, BUT I'm kind of excited that I could run a mile without walking. Sure, I was slow, but I'm so early in the game that I don't really care.

However, the last three days have been torture. What can I say, I'm so out of shape that I felt pain for three long days. Mainly in my legs, but that's to be expected.

Since I'm getting back into this workout thing I realized I'm pathetically out of lung capacity and cardio ability.

So while I still plan to run a couple of times a week (for now), I need to boost my fitness. I signed up for BlackFire with Bob Harper.

I'm not affiliated with Bob or BlackFire or Daily Burn in any way, shape or form. So this info is not sponsored by anybody other than me. :)

This program is for 60 days, but the first 30 are free. The next month is $12.95. Woot again! They tout it's "only 20 minutes a day" but of course when you add in the warmup and cooldown, it's longer. No problem. I'm ready for Bob. I love Bob. Look at this face, how can you not love this face? smooches.

Demo!

I have ten weeks until I start my official half-marathon training plan. If I can't boost my fitness level after 30 days of this, I may as well hang up my running shoes.

I did try something new this week in food. I bought Garden Vegetable Spring Rolls from Whole Foods. Pretty good. It's basically a tiny salad in a rice roll I suppose. Naturally I liked the tiny dressing which I'm sure had some sugar. It tasted kind of like cracked pepper jelly.

I split this up into two lunches. I am not a sushi fan. I don't think I'll ever be convinced to try raw fish. However, I do like the rolls that have crab so maybe next time I'll try that.

The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Wed, 01 Jul 2015 14:58:00 +0000

Partial overview from Goodreads:

"Everyone knows Alice slept with two guys at one party.

But did you know Alice was sexting Brandon when he crashed his car?

It's true. Ask ANYBODY.

Rumor has it that Alice Franklin is a slut. It's written all over the bathroom stall at Healy High for everyone to see. And after star quarterback Brandon Fitzsimmons dies in a car accident, the rumors start to spiral out of control."

But exactly what is the truth about Alice? In the end there's only one person to ask: Alice herself."

Oh man, do I NOT MISS the teenage years. The rumors, the gossip, the lying - oh wait, that happens when you are an adult too. It's even worse because that sort of behavior is so cliche' and juvenileeeeee.

To be a teenager in this day and age must be hell on Earth. Alice's life is pretty depressing. To go from one of the popular girls to the bottom of the barrel based on gossip is really shitty.

The book is told from four students' perspectives. We see how Alice has impacted their life in very different ways. Isn't it always her side, his side and the truth is somewhere in the middle?

What I liked about this story was Alice fought her way back. Or so we think. But does she really? How can a year of lies and names not damage a person? I think this book gives a lot of food for thought on how we treat others, how we so easily believe what we are told about others and how we view ourselves.

The weekend and Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Mon, 29 Jun 2015 13:31:00 +0000

I have no pictures from the weekend. hahahah! I've already turned into a bad blogger. I did have a Hibachi lunch with my bestie of 25 years, which was really good. I ran a lot of errands and did some house cleaning. I need to upload my phone photos because I have no more space.

I also made a spreadsheet for my next 11 weeks of running. I did run this morning too! I'm on a semi-maybe-roll. I'll post more about that later in the week.

Overview from Goodreads:

"Rosemary and Guy Woodhouse, an ordinary young couple, settle into a New York City apartment, unaware that the elderly neighbors and their bizarre group of friends have taken a disturbing interest in them. But by the time Rosemary discovers the horrifying truth, it may be far too late!"

Wow, that is one of the shortest overview's I've seen on Goodreads. Most people will know the movie version of this book. The one with Mia Farrow and her super tiny body with her super short haircut.

I had seen the movie before reading this, so I was aware of the story and the ending. I prepared myself for a retelling of the book with obligatory Hollywood changes. I was wrong! The movie was almost identical to the book.

I think most of us know that Rosemary's baby is the spawn of Satan. I had a headache from all of the eye-rolling I did at the 1960s male chauvinistic ways. Rosemary is incredibly passive and that was annoying as puppy poop. I'd like to use a stronger word here, but I'll refrain.

However, I thought the book portrayed New York in a way that it's known for. The importance of finding an apartment that is 1) big enough 2) affordable 3) has delectable charm 4) nosy neighbors ... There are also a lot of religious elements which can either appeal or offend the masses.

I did not find the book to be scary. If I had read this as a child in the 60s, I would have been horrified I'm sure.

This book is for those who like the occult, those curious about the occult, those who like to read the books made into movies and for those who are fans of submissive female characters. Do NOT get me started on Anastasia Steele.

The Cage by Megan Shepherd

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:09:00 +0000

Partial overview from Goodreads:

When Cora Mason wakes in a desert, she doesn't know where she is or who put her there. As she explores, she finds an impossible mix of environments—tundra next to desert, farm next to jungle, and a strangely empty town cobbled together from different cultures—all watched over by eerie black windows. And she isn't alone.

So I loved Megan's Madman's Daughter series - the one with Dr. Moreau's daughter - read my review here. I was super excited for this next series by Megan.

Basically the characters are trapped in a human zoo. Crazy, bizarre and really good.

Howeverrrrrr, this is a science-fiction novel. This may turn some people off. When I realized it was set in outer space, I was a bit disappointed. But don't let that stop you because it's not full of Star Trekish characters or storyline.

The main focus is on Cora and Cora's relationships with the other humans and one particular person whom may or may not be human (if he has feelings, does that make him human? hmmm.)

I really like the idea of a human zoo as a plotline. I thought it was going to be more like a zoo on Earth with other humans running the zoo. But still, The Cage was a good read that I'm excited for the sequel.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 23:02:00 +0000

testing this ya'll!

I'm back for the 1,239th time!

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Thu, 25 Jun 2015 15:34:00 +0000

OK, really it's only for the third or fourth time maybe? Ideally I'd like to post daily, but I think my goal will be for 2-3 times a week. I quit blogging in March basically because I ran out of time to blog! I had a lot of craft projects going, I was working out, I was busy with work ... I was exhausted.

Let's see, not much has changed since then except no more craft projects through the summer! I'll post some pics of what I have done and they were fun and tedious.

The Minnie Mouse wreath I made for a friend's daughter's birthday. July 4th theme.

I've done a LOT of reading. I've read 46 books so far this year. I'll post some short reviews of the ones I've really enjoyed. 2015 has proved to be the year of the books!

Working out - this has been good and bad. I've started back running. Yay! My plantar fascitisiisisis (this word is impossible to spell so I like to make up my own version) has been doing, gasp! fantastic! I'm still wearing my MawMaw tennis shoes daily and doing my stretching, icing, golf balling to keep it in tact.

I'm starting off super slow. We are talking 16-minute-miles here. It's that slow because I don't want to rush it and have problems and I'm a big tub of goo. Seriously. Weightloss has been nonexistent.

The track after a storm that apparently brought out hundreds of grass worms ONTO the track. #goodtimes

But I have no choice to change that because I signed up for the Louisiana Marathon's Deja' Vu races. The races are in January. The Saturday is the 5K (not expecting much from this because it will be Hanson's Half Marathon Method shakeout run). The Sunday is the half marathon.

Then of course in February is my A-game race, the Rock N'Roll New Orleans half marathon. Which at this point, I'm looking forward to a relaxing weekend away. HA!

I signed up for all these races as motivation. I have to have a "goal" or I can promise you I will sleep in, I will eat all the junk and I will never lose weight that is needed for a healthier life.

In daughter news, she is about to start kindergarten. I'm super nervous about this and sad that she is growing up. I literally spend my nights kissing her forehead, stroking her hair and smelling her. It's weird and I don't care. She is growing up so fast and has frog legs. I just want time to stop right now.

I've also set up a great network of mommy friends to have playdates with each month. This has been good for both Emily and me. She gets to spend time with kids other than her daycare friends and try new things. It's been a really good experience and I sort of wish I had joined mommy groups when she was a baby.

Jobwise things are going good. It's the newspaper industry so it's always shaky. But I'm super thankful to still have a job and a job that I actually do like the work I do. The paper has seen a lot of changes but seems to be profitable and doing well. Can't ask for more than that! I'm savoring this as long as I can too.

As usual, I have to apologize for the alignment of the pictures. SIGH. I see nothing has changed with Blogger, no?

Training Week 4 and the weekend

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 13:39:00 +0000

This past week I worked out three times! What?!? Yay! Obviously I need to double that number, but at least it was something.

I swear I can't remember which Bob Harper dvds I used, but I used two. One on Monday and another on Wednesday. Both involved weights, squats and an overall wanting to die feeling. Perfect!

Friday I did yoga with my daughter.

Again, this is not enough for my fitness goals. I realize that. It's a tricky time right now because we have some home improvements we need to do on the house before we can sell it. We are still decluttering MORE stuff. Perhaps we are closet hoarders.

We are two weeks away from Emily's birthday party. I spent a lot of time this weekend working on a couple of projects for that.

Needless to say, I'm going to squeeze in workouts when I can the next two weeks. It sucks, but I'm not sure I have enough energy to get everything accomplished and meet my workout goals.

After the party, it's on!

Saturday I had a lot of girl time. Which was just what I needed for my stressed-out self. In the morning I took Emily to the zoo. We met my friend and her 2-year-old daughter for a playdate. It was the cutest thing I've ever seen. That little girl wanted sooooo badly to be just like Emily. She wanted to skip like Emily, she wanted to sit by her in the wagon, she wanted to check on her hand when Emily fell. It was different for me because normally I see Emily trying to be like the big kids at her daycare. My girl is growing up and I need time to freeze.

Sadly, we've reached the part of the show where she doesn't always want her picture taken. But I captured a nice hair swoosh.

That night I went with my other friend to see Insurgent. It was a lot better than I expected it to be. I need to re-read the last book, but I remember I did not like it. However, I'm trying to piece together what all happened at the end. But you can bet, I was in Theo James heaven for a couple of hours.

Sunday I worked on party hats for the party. I'm making character hats for the kids. I totally expect these to get bent, fall apart, have kids complain about tying it below their chin. I just thought they were so cute and it would be something extra for the kids. Naturally it's harder than I estimated it would be. hahahahahaah! #typical

I'm 90 percent finished with the Wizard of Oz wreath. This is coming along OK. I just need to paint an "E" and attach it to the wreath.

So there we have it. A week of ups and downs and while I'm not where I want to be with the workouts, I'm scratching off things from my to-do list. Some weeks all you can say is "it is what it is."

Training Week 3

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Mon, 23 Mar 2015 13:40:00 +0000

Another week, another epic fail. BWHAHAHAH! What can I say, some weeks just aren't your weeks. Last week I had the week-long stomach virus going around. I was better by Thursday, but I was freaking exhausted.

However, I was able to catch up on sleep and ta daaaaa, I think I'm finally used to the time change.

I gained sleep and I gained a pound. Boom. 167.

Today I'm back on track. I've got a fantastic salad ready for lunch. Tonight I'm making a smoky sweet potato hash. If it's good, I'll make a post about it.

I got my booty up this morning and completed Bob's "Beginner" workout. Oh Bob, you sly dog you.

This weekend I chopped off most of my hair. It felt very freeing and fantastic.

That girl, I love her more and more every day. She is fun, smart, beautiful and a handful.

How is your week going to shape up? What's your workout plan for the week?

Hansons Marathon Method

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Fri, 20 Mar 2015 19:01:00 +0000

Source

This book, wow, it's haunted my thoughts and given me a lot to think about. If you recall, I signed up for the Rock N' Roll NOLA for February 2016. I signed up for the full marathon with the half marathon being my "Plan B" and let's face it, it will most likely be my "Plan A."

So I've started researching. I've learned a TON and I'm so glad I've taken the time to research everything from weight to gels.

Let's just get down to it. Hansons has you running six days a week and your highest long run will be ... 16 miles! What???? Yes. Apparently these guys are racing pros. They are part of the Hanson-Brooks Project. They have coached regular joes like us and elite athletes.

Based on the writing alone, they know their stuff. The question is: do you want to follow the plan?

Pros:

16 miles as opposed to 20 or longer mile runs resulting in less possible injuries.

You get your legs trained for "cumulative fatigue" which means they can run and run and run and still stay strong.

There are "easy" runs and they insist on your long runs to be a slow, long run.

They recommend zero cross training because, after all, to be a good runner, you need to RUN your ass off.

You run, run, run and run more and feel quite prepared and superior on race day (based on reviews of the program I read).

Speed work - this is an area where I failed last time. The Galloway program had no speed work.

Cons:

Most daily runs are about 6 to 10 miles which can be a drudge for the "plodders." I HATE that term.

For me, this would require a day or two of 4 a.m. running each week ... for 18 weeks.

All you do is running. I would probably throw in some yoga, but if you are one to like swimming, cycling, pilates ... forget it. NO TIME for that nonsense.

Perhaps you are someone who needs to mentally cross that 20-mile long run to keep sunshine in your heart and know, "hey, I can make it that far!" You probably don't get that same feeling with a 16-mile run.

The thing that I have to wonder is: can I handle 6 days of running a week? Do I really want to run that much? Do I need the 20-mile runs?

I've also researched Hal Higdon's plan. BTW, I can't stand his book. I absolutely can't stand it. I'm probably going to DNF that one. I may do a post on this at some point.

I've read a lot of reviews on Hal's program. The 20-milers have resulted in quite a lot of people getting injured. I think that is one of my fears of the long run.

The reviews also said Hal's programs get you to "just finish the race." I do want to finish, but I don't want to struggle and want to die after all those months of training. I'd like to have a respectable time as opposed to my half marathon from a couple of years ago.

As for the Hansons book itself: Outstanding. Easy to understand even with all the scientific terminology. They make excellent points as to why their program should be used.

The book also has excellent charts to help you run according to your pace.

I've also been looking at the Hansons half-marathon plan. It's really not much "easier." It's still six days a week pounding the pavement.

I think my number one reason to pick this plan (if I were to pick it) would be I'd know mentally and physically I'd feel quite prepared for the race. Either race. I would know my running ability quite well by then and I'd feel prepared for whatever race day brings.

What programs have you used? Will you continue with it or are you looking for a new adventure?

Training Week 2

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Mon, 16 Mar 2015 16:43:00 +0000

This past week SUCKED. I had zero workouts. My diet was awful. I can give you about five legitimate excuses, but they are excuses. The biggest of all is DAYLIGHT SAVINGS TIME. I averaged between 4-5 hours of sleep each night. I can also add the cat getting up in the middle of the night, my daughter having a small sinus infection. Let's also add I had a stomach virus which I'm still trying to get over.

So basically it sucked. We are also in the midst of party planning AND putting final touches on declutter/cleanup to introduce our house to our realtor this weekend.

Needless to say, I'm swamped. Kudos and cheers and I raise a glass of champagne to those who are parents who somehow juggle 30 things on one plate and do it well. Extra amounts of alcohol for those parents who WORKOUT during the stressful times. I am sure there is some magical element I'm missing to get this all done.

Here is how I'm feeling these days:

Source

This starts off a new week and I'm going to master it somehow. I'm a bit unsure of my workout schedule. I want to include some yoga and get some good eats.

I will leave this tidbit: I'm 5'4" and weighed 166 this morning. Boom! Embarrassment galore, but I'll try to weigh-in once a week.

How was your week last week with the dreaded time change? I have no clue why this year was the hardest of all my 42 years. I'm already looking forward to the fall change. :)

Training Week 1

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Mon, 09 Mar 2015 15:26:00 +0000

Who else is dying from the time change? Grrrrr. At least it's a sign Spring is on the way! Yay!

Week 1 went OK. I worked out three days as to not overdo it.

Monday

When I say I nearly died, I nearly died. OK, more like I nearly barfed. This one, wow, once I master this dvd, I'll feel pretty confident about running. The worst part (or best) were the squats with weights. I'm going to actually count how many there are because I'm thinking it's close to 100. Minutes ticked on by where I was just lifting weights and doing squats.

Thursday

I used this one when I trained for my half-marathon. Oddly enough, it wasn't nearly as bad as Bob's dvd. It was difficult, but I realized during the workout I should have aimed higher with cross training during the half-marathon training.

Friday

Yoga! I did a bit over 30 minutes with Emily, who is a natural. I used two youtube videos from my friends at a yoga studio. They are the ones who head up the detox I've done off/on for the past year. This actually felt really good because I was tired and sore from the week of workouts and stress.

My food was way off. This is something I'm going to really focus on. You can't out train a bad diet!! You just can't. Believe me, I tried and it doesn't work.

This week I'm going to clean up the diet and aim for four to five days of workouts.

Interesting articles about ... books

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Fri, 06 Mar 2015 16:41:00 +0000

Here are some interesting links about books and publishing:

No Boys Allowed: School visits as a woman writer - Shannon Hale, author of the incredibly popular Ever After series discusses a recent school visit. Many authors regularly give presentations to schools as a way to instill writing and creativity. But in this particular visit - no boys were allowed. This is insane. Writing is not about genders, it's about creativity. I better get off my soapbox now ...

Kate Evangelista's What I Learned About Failure details her honest thoughts about publishing. These same thoughts happen to go through most writers' heads (mine). The "what if's" are a big factor in writers giving up their dream OR giving up writing as a career. Kate states it's important to learn from failure and move on. Don't give up!

The World's Most Beautiful Libraries is, well, beautiful! I think I could just camp out for a week in these libraries. #nerdalert

Veronica Roth, author of the Divergent triology, got herself a two-book deal for NEW BOOKS! Harper Collins announces two-book deal with Veronica Roth PS: Insurgent, the movie is coming out this month! I hope Jessica is ready to go see it!

Have a fantastic weekend. It's girls' weekend at my house. I'm going to soak up an entire weekend of just me and my little lovebug.

I'm back on Instagram & Book review: There Was A Little Girl by Brooke Shields

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Thu, 05 Mar 2015 15:55:00 +0000

I've hopped back on Instagram. You can find me as wendysrunning. I'll post workouts, good eats and books I'm reading. This will help me hold myself accountable. Let's face it, I need all the accountability I can get!

Source

Brooke Shields is one of those celebrities you may have liked from your childhood. You've watched some of her movies, maybe you read her book about postpartum depression. I really enjoyed her show Suddenly Susan.

However, she's not your typical A-list celebrity. I'd say she's a good B- these days. I like her BECAUSE of that lower status. Back in the 80s she was a big deal. She was also popular in the 90s when she had her show and was married to Andre Agassi.

I've always read and heard about the problems she had with her mother. Both on and off the sets their relationship was volatile. While her mother never physically abused her, she gave Brooke an exceedingly amount of narcissistic emotional abuse.

From Goodreads:
"Brooke Shields never had what anyone would consider an ordinary life. She was raised by her Newark-tough single mom, Teri, a woman who loved the world of show business and was often a media sensation all by herself. Brooke's iconic modeling career began by chance when she was only eleven months old, and Teri's skills as both Brooke's mother and manager were formidable. But in private she was troubled and drinking heavily.

As Brooke became an adult the pair made choices and sacrifices that would affect their relationship forever. And when Brooke’s own daughters were born she found that her experience as a mother was shaped in every way by the woman who raised her. But despite the many ups and downs, Brooke was by Teri’s side when she died in 2012, a loving daughter until the end."

Teri Terrific was a horrible mother. Her alcoholism affected everything. Teri lived her dreams through her daughter. Teri was criticized heavily for the roles she let Brooke portray.

My beef isn't about those issues, but about her alcoholism and selfishness. Her refusal to admit she had a problem, going in and out of rehabs and never changing ... gah! Brooke is a better daughter than me because I would have gotten myself away from her permanently.

I think a lot of women can relate to this book. If you have a "difficult" mother, you'd get the gist of what Brooke was trying to explain. The thing about mothers is this: No matter what has happened in the past, they are still our mothers. There will always be a natural and loving bond. Brooke had that bond with her mother.

There are lots of celebrity juicy bits like who was her first "boyfriend," ahem; her marriage to Agassi and those fake hair pieces; the female leading lady who did not like Brooke; behind-the-scenes of Blue Lagoon.

I think this book would be a good read for anybody who likes the celebrity scene, for those who have difficult parental relationships and for those who want to know what it's like to be a child actress on a set. PS: No, she does not discuss her relationship with Michael Jackson. Boo!

Book review: Doctor Sleep by Stephen King

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Wed, 04 Mar 2015 14:43:00 +0000

Ahhhh, another Stephen King book. Perhaps one year my goal will be to read all of his books. He is a true writer who can probably write even the most amazing obituaries.

This book took a while to get into. Overall I enjoyed it a lot. I read this hoping some of my questions about the characters from The Shining would be answered. Some of them were not answered so that was disappointing.

Then again, maybe my questions were not crucial enough to the Doctor Sleep plot.

From Goodreads:

"Stephen King returns to the characters and territory of one of his most popular novels ever, The Shining, in this instantly riveting novel about the now middle-aged Dan Torrance (the boy protagonist of The Shining) and the very special twelve-year-old girl he must save from a tribe of murderous paranormals."

Poor Danny. He turned out exactly like I thought he would: emotionally deformed and an alcoholic.

Dan's past mistakes during his alcohol tirades play a major role throughout the book. Wanting to make up for his past sins, Dan must help the little girl who also has the shining.

What we find is Dan must overcome his mental obstacles and the ghosts from his past. Literally. Dan gives the little girl his all to save her from some weird, soul-eating cult.

I thought for a sequel this was pretty good. I'm not sure what others thought, particularly those who are die-hard King fans. But for a newbie such as myself, it was a good read.

To Be Read List Survey

noreply@blogger.com (Wendy) — Tue, 03 Mar 2015 14:29:00 +0000

I stole this survey from Book Hooked Blog about to-be-read books. Here we go:

1. How do you keep track of your TBR pile?
I have a shelf on Goodreads for my overall list of books to read. I also have a shelf books to read for the current year. This is perfect because I am constantly adding to both these lists so I have nice lists to keep me focused. I actually set up a spreadsheet for 2015. Being the old lady that I am, I've already screwed up my spreadsheet on my computer. I must get the husband to fix this. I'm 42.

2. Is your TBR mostly print or ebooks?
I've been tracking this on the doomed spreadsheet, but actually most of the books are print. I can check these out at the library. But I do have a list of ebooks which are already purchased. I have about 50 books on my Nook waiting to be read. I also have a column on the spreadsheet for those that have to be purchased if the library does not have those books in stock.

3. How do you determine which book to read next?
I pick based on which is the most readily available. I actually read the fastest on my ... phone! Which is crazy to me. We rotate putting Emily to bed and a lot of times after she's asleep I'll just lay next to her reading my phone. So I start most books based on if it's a night I have to put her to bed. However I have five hardback books from the library checked out right now. I feel guilty about hoarding those, so I've been delving into those first.

4. A book that's been on your TBR list the longest:
I looked at my shelf and this one appears to be the first book I shelved. Really? What was I thinking? I do want to read it, but I can't believe that's the one I listed first. Hmmmm.

5. A book you recently added to your TBR:
I added this one after reading Julie's review.

6. A book on your TBR strictly because of its beautiful cover:

If you recall, the first book in this series is in my Did Not Finish Post - Etiquette & Espionage. I am attracted to these covers. That's really all I can say. :)

7. A book on your TBR list that you never plan on reading:
Oh this is a good one. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffeneger. I know this was an incredibly popular book, but eh, I just can't bring myself to do it. I should remove it from the list. I actually saw the movie the day before I found out I was pregnant with Emily. I cried and cried and cried during that movie. Pregnancy hormones? Or maybe, that movie was so damn sad? Nonetheless, I'd read it if it were the only book left on my to-be-read shelf.

8. An unpublished book on your TBR that you're excited for:
The first is the sequel to Dorothy Must Die. The second is about a human zoo. Enough said.

9. A book on your TBR list that basically everyone has read but you:

It's probably against the cancer patients' laws to not read this book IF YOU'VE HAD CANCER. But I can't bring myself to do it. It's at the library so I don't have to spend one penny on it. I don't know what my problem is. I had cancer when I was 26, not 16. I wasn't a teen with cancer in love with another teen with cancer. Perhaps I'd rather let my own cancer experiences float around in my head instead of reading fictional experiences. Obviously I have some kind of deep psychological backstory going on regarding this subject.

10. A book on your TBR list that everyone recommends to you:

Anytime I've had some type of "wish" people tell me to read this book. What???? I've heard about this book umpteen times over the years. I'm interested since I put it on the list, but this would probably be read just before The Time Traveler's Wife.

11. A book on your TBR list that you are dying to read:

Not coming out till May, but LOOK AT THAT COVER!

12. How many books are on your Goodreads TBR shelf?

515. sigh. Currently at 74 for the "to-read-in-2015 shelf. It's down from 85 on January 1, so I'm making progress!

Your turn. Post this survey on your blog. It's fun!

The cover images above were all from Goodreads.