What’s Up Wednesday: 11/26 Edition

I am still alive and kicking, in case you were wondering. I’ve been busy helping my mom rearrange the house for Christmas and getting ready for Thanksgiving, as well as trying to get the girls ahead in school so we won’t have to worry about it at Disneyland, next week!! 

I started Focus T25 on Monday and I am sore from my waist to my knees, and this is just from 2 workouts!! As things progress I will keep you updated, but for right now I love that it is only 25 minutes, and it is a great workout in those 25 minutes, but I’m not sure how much I like the actual workouts themselves. I always tend to be a little iffy until I get the hang of the sequences and I feel like I know what I am doing.

It’s also about time for me to get back to running since the Tinker Bell half marathon weekend is creeping up on me pretty quickly. (49 days y’all) I also thought it was a great idea to sign up for the 10k so I need to start getting some back to back runs in, because I don’t normally do those!

Right now my plan is to do the 10k for time, since my current proof (and PR) are set to expire, and then take it easy at the half and take advantage of the photo ops with my fellow DisBroads.

This will be something new for me, since I have only stopped for 1 character pic in the past, and that was at this years Princess Half Marathon, but I am sure it will be fun. And of course at the end of the weekend I will be adding these beauties to my collection, and really that is what it is all about for me. Although, I still wish they were a challenge since Dumbo and Glass Slipper are, but oh well. 

So that is what is up this week. Next week What’s Up Wednesday will be brought to you from Disneyland!! So it should be filled with complete awesomeness!! #DisneyHolidays

What’s Up Wednesday November 12 Edition

This week is busy busy busy for all of us here at the Pixie household. We are trying to get the girls ahead in their school work to account for our “travel days” as we head to Las Vegas for the Rock n Roll half marathon! To make things even a little more interesting Thursday my mom, the 2 older girls, and I will be the guest of Disney Parks at a World of Color- Winter Dreams meet up! ! ! !

Can you tell I am really excited about that? We were lucky enough to get into the meet up to attend the preview the night before the show goes live to park guests on Friday, November 15th. Secretly I am hoping “glow with the show” ears will be involved. ;) 

Since today is Wednesday you would think I am all ready to go right?? Yeah well about that . . . I always feel like I have plenty of time, until I don’t, and now I don’t. Today will be filled with lots of packing. I am packing for 5 after all and school work for the girls so that Thursday and Friday can go as smoothly as possible. Taking kids on a racecation is always a little tricky, but also rewarding! (hint: look for my post on DisBroads Tuesday)

So there you have it. Even shorter and sweeter then last week, but next week will be a busy week on the blog filled with recaps, so be on the look out for them! 

What’s Up Wednesday 10.29.13 Edition

Yep. That is pretty much it for this week, but on the bright side phase 1 of operation moving back to Houston is complete!! After 3 days of non-stop packing and loading we are out of the “old” house. It is suppose to close escrow either this Friday or Monday and I am pretty excited.

Now it’s on to finding a new house in Houston! Officer P is leaving tomorrow, and taking Pixie with him. :( We are hoping he finds us a house soon. He is enjoying the fact that he has all the power in buying our new house and it is driving me nuts!! Seriously, I keep telling him “I know you know this BUT . . .” I am a bit type A and buying a house is a huge thing!! I think we are going to have some Facetime house showings going on. That should be interesting. 

And in other news I am finally officially registered for the Tinker Bell Half Marathon!! I was signing up with one of my Facebook running groups and I was afraid it was going to fall through and my legacy status would be lost. BUT I got this in my email today

I am now breathing a sigh of relief and am gearing up to plan my costume. What oh what should I wear???

I’m also considering seeing if they happen to have any 10k spots open so I can throw that in there too. I really do need a good 10k time to submit as proof in the future since my PR at Tink 2012 is starting to “expire”. 

And that is this week’s WUW for you. Short and sweet.

What’s Up Wednesday: October 16th Edition

Today I am talking about the return of The Biggest Loser, DisBroads, and the wonderful world of memes!!


Last night was the premier of The Biggest Loser season 15 and I was watching it, how about you?

I can’t say I’ve watched every season, but I have watched most of them and I am still find it so inspiring every single time! I also must admit I teared up a few times. The back stories are always so touching and often heartbreaking.

It’s still too early for me to pick my favorite, but I’m leaning toward David. What I can I say? Any man who stands by their wife through cancer, twice, and then loses his wife to that cancer deserves some good karma in my book. 

New this year they also added a “trainer save” that will definitely make things more interesting!



Up next is a shout out to my The DisBroads!! Last week we started our #MeetTheDisBroads campaign on our Facebook and Twitter pages, and today the blog goes live so you might want to go check it out!!
In case you haven’t heard of The DisBroads, before today I am going to tell you the cast of characters and my version of how we came together!

It all started way back in 2011. DisBroad Patty and I had already known each other for a few years through a message board we were both members of for children born in April of 2005, and were planning on running the Princess Half Marathon together. We often frequented another message board community designated to all things Disney and that is where we met DisBroad Julie and DisBroad Amy, who were also planning to run PHM 2011 for the first time.

Now fast forward a couple of years.

I met DisBroad April at PHM 2013, thanks to the runDisney pusher Patty. I am not sure exactly where I met DisBroad Suzanne, DisBroad Kristen, DisBroad Shannon and DisBroad Tania first since we are all members of several of the same Facebook groups,  but before too long we were all chatting away on Twitter and viola!! The DisBroads were born, or at least that is my side of the story and how I met all my fellow broads!

Lastly, last week I was introduced to the world of memes. I mean I knew of them, and saw them on Pinterest and Facebook all the time, but it was the first time I just went searching for them and laughed for hours! So I decided to leave you one of my favorite memes from the week. There are many more, but I am saving them for future posts. :)    




Do you watch The Biggest Loser? If so who are you rutting for?

What are some of your favorite memes from the last week?

What’s Up Wednesday: October 9th Edition

This weeks top stories are the government shutdown, house hunting and holy crap 38 days till Rock n Roll Las Vegas!!

I will start with the shutdown. I have really tried to not go here since I absolutely hate politics and honestly the whole thing just makes me mad. BUT . . . this is a huge issue affecting our family so I am going to go there.


Officer P is, of course, an “essential” government employee. What does this mean in the terms of the shutdown? To make it short and sweet it means that he is forced to work without pay until *our* elected officials can get their stuff together and decide to start paying him again. This also means that his agency transfer has been postponed, so while our house here in California is in escrow and is set to close next month, until the government is up and running again we have no where to go. Which oddly enough brings us to house hunting. 

Yep. That’s right, we are virtually house hunting, which is silly since we have zero income but we will, eventually, need to get another house. Personally, my heart just isn’t in it. I am very happy and excited that we will be back in Houston sooner or later, but mentally I’m not in the right place to deal with it right now. I almost think being familiar with the area is making it even harder. We need a house that is zoned for the “right” schools, mostly updated, with a minimum of 4 bedrooms, and with in our budget. Easy peasy, right? Yeaaah not so much. And don’t even get me started on the new construction vs. “used” house debate, in which Officer P and I have differing opinions.

While I have been dealing with all that fun stuff some how my next half marathon, Rock n Roll Las Vegas, has snuck up on me. That’s right I have 38 days to finish up my training, that has been pretty much non-existent for the last 3 weeks due to a hip injury. I am use to my training not going as planned, but I am pretty bummed about abandoning my PR goals and reverting back to my very first half marathon goal of finishing under 3 hours.  Thankfully I have never finished in over 3 hours, but I really don’t want to start now.

So there it is my week in a nutshell. Anyone have anything fun, exciting and/or up lifting to share about their week? I could use the pick me up.     

What’s Up Wednesday: October 2nd Edition

Forgive me blogaverse for I have strayed. It has been about a month since my last blog post, but I promise I can explain.

Do you remember that job interview I had? Yeah, probably not since it was a month ago, but the short of it is it didn’t happen. I woke up with every intention of going, but as I was getting ready Officer P noticed he had a voicemail on his cell. Since the volume on his phone was pretty high I could very clearly hear the words “Customs and Border Protection” being said. As he returned the call I casually wandered around the room making sure to stay within an ears shot the whole time. 
I guess I wasn’t very stealth about it since Officer P looked over and gave me a thumbs up, but what did this mean? I mean thumbs up is a good thing right?? Then I heard the words “Dallas Ft. Worth . . . Galveston . . . I’ll take that one. It’s literally 15 minutes from where I use to live.”

My mind was racing. Could this really be what I think it is?? “The list” we have been waiting for for 5 years now?? As in the list of duty locations we have to choose from?? AND Houston International Airport is on it???

Yes, yes and yes, that is exactly what it was. So what does this mean you are asking? Well, in short it means we are moving back to Houston!! The last few weeks have been quite a blur, but we did manage to list and sell our house for full list price in a matter of 2 weeks!! You have to love the California real estate market.

In this time I also managed to hurt my hip so I have not been able to run for the last 2 weeks. I am hoping to get back on track tomorrow since RnR Las Vegas is just under 6 weeks away! ! ! It will also be the kick off for my racing season with planned races in November, December, January and April. Depending on how the relocation goes, I am hoping to add in RnR New Orleans in February and RnR Dallas in March!! But of course that depends on if I am Houston by then or not.

I think that should just about cover it all for now. I promise I will be around more now and I am planning on expanding my blog a bit, but there will be more on that as it develops.      

What’s Up Wednesday: August 28th Edition

This weeks topics are Swirl Gear and I got a job interview!!

Back in Texas I was a life skills paraeducator and I really loved my job, but I had to quit when Officer P got his promotion in California. I had tossed around the idea of doing the same thing here in California but was concerned about the logistics of it all. With 4 kids and homeschooling the 3 girls there was a lot to consider, but about a month ago I decided to “see what happens” and applied for a part-time special ed para position. Well, yesterday I got a call and I have a group interview set for tomorrow at 10 (PT).

I can honestly say I will be happy either way.  The money would be nice, but we don’t have to have it. It would allow us to be more comfortable and do more fun things, but we don’t need it to pay the bills. The position is 5 days a week, but only 3-4 hours a day so I think it is a good fit for me right now since it will still leave me plenty of time to work with the girls on homeschooling.

Of course one of the first things I considered was how it is this going to effect my races. This is kind of a double edge sword because I would be able to afford to do more races, but Sunday races will pose more of an issue when I have work Monday morning, but I’ll worry about that when the time comes.
 


Up next is some Swirlgear news. A few months ago I became a Swirlgear ambassador (use code 913 for free shipping) and I can honestly say I love the clothing they offer. Swirlgear is a new women owned and operated fitness apparel company for women. Since this is such a new company they have a limited line of merchandise currently available, but there is a lot more in the works for the fall/winter line. This is where you all can help us out.

With all of the cost associated with getting the company up and running funds are tight to produce the new line so they started up a kick starter campaign. Contributors have the opportunity to not only help back the new line, but they will get to preorder select items at a big discount! If you would like to know more about the brand there is a short video on the campaign page or you can read all about the company here. Also for you bloggers out there, they are always looking for more brand ambassadors so if you are interested in becoming an ambassador and getting a great discount contact Marisa at MARISA@SWIRLGEAR.com 

With my up coming interview I’d love to hear your best tips and advice for killing an interview?? What is the worst advice you have been give when it comes to interviewing?

What’s Up Wednesday July 31st Edition

What’s up this week?? Color Me Rad, weight gain, and getting out of my head. 

Up first is my head. I’m an over thinker, it drives me nuts, but it is who I am. I have a math/ science mind and will sit and dissect my runs split by split, and now that I am much slower then I was last year it is driving me nuts!! This led me to decide that starting this week I am making an effort to just do it and not over think it. I have told myself I am going to take it workout by workout and see what happens. I’m not going to get any faster if I allow myself to get so discouraged and I need to look at the bigger picture.

Next up is weight gain. I keep comparing myself to what I was this time last year, and well as of right now I am up 20 pounds, and on my 5’4” frame that is a lot! I keep trying, in vain, to get my weight under control and I just can’t seem to get there. So this week I started, once again,  logging my food in My Fitness Pal, which I hate by the way. Right now I am trying to take more of a Weight Watchers points type of approach by sticking within my calorie goal and macronutrient break down, but I’m not follow all the no carbs after 1pm type of things. I’m hoping to at least get back to my “normal” weight by the end of September, which means losing 10 pounds. So far this week has been iffy, but I plan to shop and prep this weekend and I am hoping next week will start to go better.

Last but not least I have been selected to be a Color Me Rad ambassador!! As an ambassador not only do I get to run a race, I also get to offer my readers a 20% off discount code (radfun) that is valid until midnight August 1st. My mom and sister ran the one in Houston in March and really enjoyed it so I am really looking forward to it. Right now I am trying to decide between San Jose and Orange County since the Fresno race is the same day as RnR Las Vegas.

Have you ever ran in a color run before? Love or Hate it?  

What’s Up Wednesday

I’ve seen “Five on Friday” and “3 Things Thursday” so I thought why not start “What’s Up Wednesday” this way I can post all those random things I think of throughout the week that are not enough to have a whole post of their own.

This week’s “What’s up Wednesday” will be about Pixie, chiropractic care, and officially starting half marathon training. Up first is Pixie!! Isn’t she adorable?

Pixie is our 7 year old boxer who sometimes runs with me. She loves to accompany me on runs, and even stalks me around the house when she sees me put on my running shoes and watch. I would take her more often but she can be a little unpredictable. Not her behavior since, of course, she is an absolute sweetheart, but do you remember Dug from Up??? Yeah she is kind of like that. We will be running along and she will see a squirrel and will cut across the front of me. Thankfully there are less squirrels here then there were in Texas so I might take her out with me more often now.

Up next is chiropractic care. A couple weeks ago a FINALLY bit the bullet and made a chiropractic appointment. I emphasis finally because I have seriously been talking about it for years, but I kept putting it off. The good news was that I didn’t have any issues with disc degeneration. The bad news was that  my lumbar is making a S shape.  This is my x ray with the light box off, but you can see where the Dr drew lines across my spine to show the curves.
The first 2 weeks I went 3 times a week and now I am suppose to go twice a week for the next 3 weeks. Honestly, I am kind of getting tired of it. My favorite part is the therapy massage bed. The adjustments are really quick and painless, but I do tend to have a lot of tingling after. This is suppose to be normal, but it irritates me quite a bit. It’s also messing with my running a bit. Since my back was curved my pelvis was tilted and since it is now straightening out my body has to learn how to run differently.

Last but not least Monday will be the kick off to my official Rock N Roll Las Vegas half marathon training. I am both looking forward to and dreading it. The weather here is really hot so I am really limited as to when I can run and that really makes it rough but I am hoping since I *have* to train now I will be motivated to get through it.

So that is what is up with me on this Wednesday. What is up with you? What are you training for?