costume swap

This is such a great idea!

We have lots of costumes, but some are for 2s and 3s, not a lot of fours.

Source

Throughout October, Febreze has partnered with Macaroni Kid to participate in National Costume Swap Day™ events.

I am excited to provide 50 bottles of Febreze at Magic Mountain to giveaway during this great costume swap!

Do you have a need for costumes or have costumes you no longer need? I have a solution for you that is cost and time friendly!

At Magic Mountain (Polaris) on October 6th you can drop off your no longer needed costumes betwen 8:30am and 9:30 am and then at 10am shopping will begin!

You can find this event happening downstairs by the Toddler Gym, in fact, children can play for a discounted rate of $2.50.

If you have costumes you no longer and would like to donate for this event I would be thrilled to arrange a time to pick them up from you. Please contact breeA@macaronikid.com

For the event details please click HERE.

For all the great Febreze product information and beautiful scents you can click HERE.

Cbus Marathon 2011

Well, my sweet husband is going to play pinch hitter and take my spot for the Columbus Marathon. He's ready, his last long run is this week (12) and after his pacing me for the Air Force 10k, I can safely say he's going to ROCK it.

He was really strong during the 10k and could have done it in at least 10 min faster. He has a 50- mile bike race/ride next week on Saturday that we are going to cheer him on! And then the following weekend he has the Columbus Marathon Half. I already am thinking of getting the girls some shirts with Ava's cheer for Brandon, "Oh yeah, Oh yeah, Run Daddy Run!" We cracked up laughing after she said it.

I have never really cheered for a half or full marathoner. Any tips? I would love to see him multiple times, but not sure how to do that with crowds and two little girls.

Thanks!

Velvet Ice Cream and Ye Olde Mill

On Saturday we had a great opportunity to head to Holmes County for a Kuhn's Family reunion. As we headed out that morning it was a beautiful fall day. You couldn't ask for a better day. Both my mom and dad's parents used to be old order Amish so this reunion was mainly with old order Amish families.

We got to Leroy's farm where we were having the reunion and Brandon was in awe as he entered the room and saw many, many families eating lunch already. It was a great day and the girls had a blast playing with their cousins. Sophia loved playing with the baby pigs in the barn. And Ava loved the little lambs that were only a week old and couldn't even walk yet. My Mom tried to take home some of the cutest little baby chicks. The chickens had these little brown eggs in the hay. It was a really beautiful home and situated on top of a little hill with their little farm animals. I would have loved to have some animals to take home for a little hobby farm. We have a great family and Brandon pointed out a genealogy book that had all of our names in it recorded in the family.

We had a great lunch there and then headed home. On the way, Brandon wanted to take the girls to Velvet Ice Cream where he used to go with his family. I got birthday cake, Brandon got peanut butter, Ava got Superman and Sophia asked for, "purple ice cream mom!"

Ulrich!

Here are some pics from the U.S. Air Force Marathon. We had a ball and Marshall Ulrich was a fascinating speaker as he explained climbing the seven peaks and running across America. When he said he was going to talk about his mountain climbing instead of just his book, "Running on Empty," I thought, "Brandon will love this!"

http://youtu.be/R1RBp2eek2Q

Ulrich was so inspiring. He answered many questions after his presentation including how did he fuel for his daily 70 miles that he ran in 46 days. (Answer: He would eat a huge breakfast, run slow marathon, take a nap, eat, then run quicker at night until 1 am or 2 am.) He kept on telling us that the human body is amazing and it can do more than we can possibly imagine.

After the expo we went to our hotel in Miamisburg (love the doubletree chocolate chip cookies) and had a quick dinner at Bravo. Half sizes there and it was just enough.

We loved the location of our hotel because in the morning everyone was coming from the opposite direction and our entrance gate was not even backed up. Supposedly some people had to run the mile to the start because it was so backed up. We had no problems and got there at 6:10 am.

Air Force Marathon 10K

Brandon and I headed to Dayton a couple of weeks ago to run the Air Force Marathon 10K. We had thought about doing the half, but it sold out quick!

I had seen information about this race last April when I was sick with pneumonia and running was just a dream. I had lots of time to read and I saw this race somewhere online. It looked amazing and was a great training run for the Columbus half.

Brandon hadn't heard a lot about the race so he was on the fence if it was worth a hotel, driving 75 miles, etc. But, at the end he was hooked. The race has a small feel with a big race production feel. It's really perfect if it's your first race or 100th. You get the best of both worlds.

We got up on race day about 4:50 a.m. Ouch, it was super early, but we had to be at the race gate to check in at 6 a.m. since it's at Wright Patterson Air Force Base. We drank a cup of coffee and a banana and headed to the race at 5:30 a.m. from our hotel. It was about a 20 minute drive and we got there in plenty of time. But, it was chilly, chilly. Like mid-40s chilly. I was so cold. We had worn old shirts that we tossed at the start line.

We got through the line to get in pretty quick and parked our car. It was here that we started getting excited. The long lines of cars just was electrifying. The base was sweet. They had airplanes lining the finish line.

We stretched a little bit, talked and went through the port a potty lines. We lined up in between the 8:21 and 8:47 pace groups and had a goal of just leaving everything out on the course. We didn't have gels or a garmin (dangit-left it at home), but thought we would run by feel.

We had a great time at the start. And at the moment right before the start, a B-1B did a flyover. It was so low it was just amazing. We were off with a horn and got started running. We did great on pace until the huge hill that went on forever. It was almost a 350 feet climb upwards and it was hard! Hardest hill I have ever done in a race. I kept on thinking - "I thought Ohio was flat!"

The hills were hard, but the downside of the hills were so fun to fly down. I was like, "Let's go Brandon!" and he would fly down with me. Brandon was super sprinty during the race. He could have gone a lot faster, but he wanted to run with me--at times I would tell him, "just go ahead, leave me!" My foot was still pretty sore and I was feeling it at every step. I drank a full bottle of half gatorade/half water and still stopped at miles 4, 6 to get more water. The volunteers were awesome and cheered for you by name (was on bib).

At mile 3.5 the marathoners split from us and we waved goodbye. Honestly, I was felt sorry for them. :) There were lots of military groups doing training runs with full gear, honestly, I don't know how they did it.

At mile 5 I took a last drink of water and we sprinted to the finish. I was so tired and feeling really sluggish until we saw the airplane jumper with a huge American flag in front of us in the sky. I have always been patriotic, but being on a base and seeing so many emblems of our nation just really got us motivated and inspired. We ran past the presidential hanger and then sprinted to the finish line that had airplanes lining it.

At the end we held hands and crossed over the finish line. A captain put a medal over our heads and gave us a handshake. Those men wait at the finish line all day - almost 7 hours for the last finishers to cross. PS-that's a random lady in the picture below. :)

Such a great race. Def. recommend it to anyone looking for a race. It's a bucket list race. And a great training race to test your pace before the Cbus Marathon.

We finished at 55:02 - about a 8:51 pace. I would have liked to get a 8:30 pace, but I just wasn't feeling it that day. I knocked off almost 15 minutes (wow!) off my previous 10K time last August of 1:09! Two goals down!

And you know Brandon and I have never really had the desire to do a marathon until that Saturday at the race. Those marathoners were just so darn inspiring. These guys below, yeah, they beat me by almost 3 min. in full gear. Geesh.

79033-522-002

We had a great breakfast celebration of a biscuit and gravy, hard egg, and hash browns at Bob Evans. It tasted so good. And the girls had a great time with Momma and Poppa Kuhns. They didn't want to leave when I went to pick them up. I mean, would you when you get to go with them to see Aunt Becca and go and get fro yo with Aunt Kelly and Charlie and Ethan?

Okay, so what are some of your goals? C'mon, don't be shy. Inspire others with your goals!! Thinking Rachel and Kelly would like to complete nursing school, Brandon wants to do a 100-mile bike race, etc.

apples galore

Black Friday at Lynd's Fruit Farm happens during the second week of September. It's a mass of cars, crying toddlers, swarming bees and oh, so delectable honey crisp apples. The reason for all of the mile-back car lines. It's a good thing.

We went about two weeks ago on Friday with our friends, Jess, Eli and Jude. We literally picked two huge bags of apples in like 10 minutes. Those apples were ripe and juicy and aside from crying kids (mine) and swarming bees that stung children (mine) we had a fun time. Or I should say, a fun experience. Because when you go to an apple orchard with your little kids, you are playing Russian roulette. And well, you win some and you lose some.

But, they love eating the apples every day and we had a great time with friends, although we never could find Tonia and saw Sarah later. And we saw Amber and little Garrett, cutest little baby ever.

Now the girls open the fridge and pull out a ripe apple and enjoy every bite. I made some freezer applesauce and would love to make some apple tarts.

Freezer applesauce

• Roast apples that are peeled and cored in 350 oven until very tender.
• Add brown sugar, cinnamon, and a little water or apple juice and puree in blender.
• Put in jars and freeze. Mmm! I love it a little slushy. Apple slushies are the best.

Thought for the week...

Source

College journalism

In college, I was the editor of our paper. And it was there that I grew to love typography.

And oh how I love this poster. It's just the coolest.

Sweat dates

Brandon and I are excited to get a great night away and have a "sweat date" weekend. We have the 10k this weekend, which I am thrilled to be running.

I did a tempo run last night for a quick mile to see how my foot was feeling and I did about 7:30 mile pace. I was at 7:20 or so but wanted to make sure I didn't hurt my foot. The rest of the 5 miles I did recovery after the mile and a 9:35 pace. It felt really good to run and you could not beat the fall leaves and chilly weather.

Today I ran at the Rec Center about 3 miles and took it easy. I did maybe 9:15ish pace and some at 8:40 pace and a cool down. I start to go fast and then worry about my foot. After I did the three miles, I went and did some swimming laps. Oh my, I have missed swimming.

I remember when Heather was helping me train for my first triathlon and I asked her, "What do you think about when you are swimming?" because she was so relaxed...She would say, "Oh, you know, my shoes that are coming in the mail today..." Right. I was just trying to get my breathing in.

Today I tried that approach and thought about things other than technique and the laps passed very quickly. I love how stretched out my muscles felt and how nothing hurts while you swim. So relaxing. I want to keep doing cross training and incorporate into my training like "Run less, Run Faster" suggests.

Oh, and are you under a rock or have you heard about this book? I totally, totally agree with their ideas. Because 1. you can't run a pace during a race you don't train at and 2. overtraining equals burnout and injury. You can hear a live podcast at Run Run Live.

However, there are two schools of thought. You may be into rocking the high mileage training philosophy. If that works for you. Hey, great!

For me personally, I have always run a better race when I have taken almost a week off pre-race and then almost two sometimes. Like I used to say when Brandon and I first got married, every marriage is different you have to do what works for you.

Highly recommend the Run, Run Live podcasts for long run listens. They rock!

What camp are you in? High-mileage or High-intensity? Or a little of both?

From Amazon reviews:

The key feature is the "3 plus 2" program, which each week consists of:

-3 quality runs, including track repeats, the tempo run, and the long run, which are designed to work together to improve endurance, lactate-threshold running pace, and leg speed

-2 aerobic cross-training workouts, such as swimming, rowing, or pedaling a stationary bike, which are designed to improve endurance while helping to avoid burnout

Air Force 10K this Sat. with Brandon! Can't wait...

10K Race Saturday, September 17, 2011 Start Time 7:30 a.m. Full Marathon and 10K **

The 10K race will take place within Wright-Patterson Air Force Base's Area B, where runners will get to see historic buildings as well as facilities housing cutting-edge research and technology. The last mile of the race will pass the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force's Presidential Hangar and finish among several historic aircraft static displays. The course is sure to be a great experience for the casual runner as well as the competitive athlete. The 4 hour closed course includes Hydration Stations approximately every mile, including water, electrolytes, and fruit. There will also be medical stations and port-o-lets throughout the course. Time Limit: 4 hours Registration Information - SOLD OUT! Bib Pickup - See: Race Rules There will be no bib pickup on Race Day (Saturday). Bib Pickup Authorization [pdf] NOTE: Bib Pickup representatives will be limited to picking up four race bibs, including their own Course Map 2011 - 10K [pdf]

Make your own photo lamp shades

Last Pinterest post!

Love this shade - especially for someone who is recovering from a sickness or post surgery or just had a baby and need lots of rest -- they would just feel so loved having their loved ones' pics right by their bedside.

Super cute. You can click on the link below to find the directions for the shade.

From ashleyannphotography.com

Pinterest Wed!

My lovely blue room (not really so lovely), could use some storage help like this. What do you think?

Bean bags

The girls are really big readers. Ava loves to fall asleep to about 10 or so books fanned out around her. And they love reading by their bookshelf in Ava's room. I found these cute bean bags that were amazing. Not sure how to do it, but they would make great Christmas presents.

Little friends

Here's little Eli and Sophie after church sitting and playing. Jess captured it and I love their little faces. Jess called me yesterday and said that Eli wanted to take Sophia on a date to Chipotle. It starts young huh! : )

First morning run!

On Monday I woke up and had my first morning run, pain free! I had done almost 7 miles on Saturday, but usually I have to wait until the later day so I can ice my foot. It was so nice to start again and have a morning start. I did 3 miles at an unknown pace -- just listening to the birds and my podcast, which was really nice for a change.

On Sunday we had the best dinner- Tyler Florence's recipe for pulled pork shoulder. Mmm. I halved the brown sugar and added in less garlic and it was scrumptious! It cooked in a le cruseut stone baking dish I got at TJ Max for $20!

Thanks Jessie for the tip!

Here's the recipe for Tyler's pulled pork sandwich. I used pork shoulder cut with the bone in. I added the green goddess dressing coleslaw on top. Mmm. The girls loved the corn on the cob.

Below is from the Cleveland Fab Food Show that mom and I went to about two years ago.

Ava's first day of preschool

My little Ava had her first day of preschool last Tuesday. We loaded up by the door to get into the car and Ava was dressed, picture taken...you get the picture. Until I realized the pilot was locked and the keys were in the car.

Officer Katie from the Marysville Police was so nice to come out and get my car opened. After some mom prayers sent up -- lots --- we got the pilot unlocked and went to preschool. We had yogurt parfaits in mason jars for snacks. Mmm.

Ava loved her class, reading stories, seeing her class and meeting her teachers. She goes to school on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Sophia kept on asking, "Mom, where's my class?" I can't wait to see how much Ava learns this year. She is pumped to go and wanted me to leave her classroom after the first couple of minutes.