I have decided to take up running. Mind you, I can’t go very far, and definitely not very fast either, but I’m doing it. It helps that I have a large cheering section on Facebook, and lots of one-on-one support from my friend Nancy at Running Chick. I went to a store that sells running apparel and got fitted for new shoes. If anyone is reading this and knows about running issues – I have got almost totally flat feet, bunions and lots of over pronation, which causes my ankles to turn in and drop down when I walk. So, I have some heavy-duty motion control shoes with cushioning. They feel really good on but I can tell that my feet are not used to that much support. I remember feeling the same way about Birkenstocks when I first started wearing them. I’ve got some sore spots that I’ve been icing and they only hurt now and then. I can feel that my endurance has improved slightly just in a few days so that’s encouraging. My son gets on his bike and I have my daughter in the stroller. I might need to try to find a jogging stroller soon though (hope to borrow or get one used, if anyone has one, call me!), because the front wheels can’t take much speed. (I never thought I’d be that fast but I guess I’m working into it!) I am a bit shocked at how many people I know who run and how amazingly positive and supportive they have been. I am sure I cause earthquakes going down my road and my butt bounces a whole lot, but if people don’t like it, they can close the curtains (and bolt down the furniture!). The kids enjoy it too, my son likes to pretend he and I are various characters from Disney’s “Cars” movie – most of the time he is Lightning McQueen and I’m Chick Hicks!
We just purchased 183 trees to plant in our field. Two apple trees, one pear tree, 25 cedars, a few other conifers, and a mix of hardwoods plus some poplar (which grows quickly) to help fill it in. (I think there will be 50 of those.) I think we might need to have a “Tree and Beer” party, so we can nurse our sore backs with beer after planting trees all day. The fruit trees will be here in a week and everything else will take a couple of weeks longer. Once they are planted I’ll take some pictures and update We Must Be Nuts To Build This.
