Boredom, Running, Food, and Friends

The past week or two, I've really been struggling with boredom. I have things to do - like work, cleaning the house, minding the kiddos, going to my mom's groups, running, etc - but in my downtime, I've just been plain bored. I've found myself sitting on the couch just starring off into space and genuinely feeling bored. I haven't felt this way in a long, long time. I think part of it is that we had a few weeks where we were constantly doing something fun - family visits and two mom's groups play dates on the same day. Not a lot of downtime. Plus, I finished up a big grant about two weeks ago for work, and didn't have a lot of pressing things to do for work. I started reading 50 Shades of Grey and despite it being hailed as the best ever (and yes, it is QUITE steamy!), I just find myself not getting into it that much. So last night, I decided that I would get a new book (for my kindle) and make a list of things I'd like to get accomplished this summer. I'm still working on my list, but I did start reading the new Jennifer Weiner book. As usual, I'm hooked :) AND, on Friday I had a meeting via phone with my boss that got me motivated to write some more grants. On Sunday, Derek went and found a desk on craigslist for me. He even hooked me up with double monitors. I feel like I'm at work now when I do work. It's super nice!

My running is going good. I'm still right on track for the Tyler Rose Marathon. Although, I think my insistence that I *can* do this marathon is wavering a little. I looked at the elevation chart and read some reviews and it looks like it is a killer course. And not only is it a killer course, but signage for the run seems to be bad too. People were getting lost and cars were coming at runners. Safety is a big concern for me when I run, so I'm not sure if I want to do it or not. I would absolutely HATE to have a DNF on my record for my first marathon - or to have something happen (like get hit by a car or get incredibly lost!). I would be a little sad, to say the least. There is a 6.5 hour time limit on the marathon. I'm still going to train for the marathon, but I'm very anxious/curious to see how long it will take me to do 18-20 miles. I think when I get up to that distance, that will be my deciding factor as for if I will or will not do the October marathon. I'm worried that the hills will totally wipe me out and that I won't have enough time to finish. So, we'll see. I still want to do it, I'm just starting to be a little more realistic. I read that the second half is worse than the first half (hill wise), and that makes me a little hesitant. I am going to start training on hills this week, so maybe that'll make me a little more confident.

Today was my weigh-in for my "Lose a Marathon" weight loss challenge. I'm down a total of 4.8 pounds. Woo-hoo! It's looking like I'm losing roughly a pound a week, so I'm rethinking my original goal of a 26.2 pound weight loss and looking to lose a half marathon (13.1 pounds) as a more realistic goal. I think re-evaluating your goals is crucial to success and finishing strong. If you notice that your goal has become unrealistic - whether for weight loss or exercise or any other type of goal you have set for yourself - re-analyze your goal and change it if need be. This week, my goal is to at least maintain my weight and not gain. I have been giving myself small rewards for losing each week. This week I gave myself a new pair of running socks. For this coming week, if I maintain, I'm giving myself a new running skirt. If I lose, I'm getting a pedicure. So if you see some polished piggies - you'll know I had a loss! It's going to be a challenge because we have a friend coming into town and plan to eat out. A lot. My mini-goal for the week is to just keep writing everything down and being accountable for what I eat, and the exercise that I do.

Between my moms groups and my running group, I really feel like I'm starting to make friends here in Dallas. I am a strong believer that it takes about 6 months after you move somewhere to really start making it feel like "home." I'm happy to say that Dallas is feeling like home. In fact, I feel like this is where I belong. The sunshine makes me happy, being with my kids makes me happy, working from home for a great company and with even great co-workers makes me happy, being close to my sister and mom makes me happy, knowing that my husband has a fulfilling job makes me happy, and so does the fact that I feel like I have people here in Dallas that I can call my friends and could count on. Life is good, and I feel like I'm able to enjoy it in ways that I wasn't able to in Spokane. Maybe it's the fact that I don't work full time and have more time at home with my kids and family. I don't know what it is, but I do know that I love it and I'm happy here!