Oooh...aaahh...Dingoes Dodging Fireworks in July!

[1jooj]

Welcome to the July thread. 

Happy Canada Day to our Canuck Dingoes, and Happy Independence Day to our USA Dingoes!

New visitors to the Dingo Thread may ask, "but, what is a Dingo?"

Dingoes are mamas (defined loosely, when needed) who run, walk, cycle, tri, and participate in whatever sport they need to sustain their awesome mama selves in lives that are definitely dynamic. Sometimes, a Dingo is injured, or life takes a turn, and she has to take a break from her chosen sport. Whether active or aspiring, Dingoes support one another in spirit. When two Dingoes are in the same place at the same time, something incredibly special happens. This is called a Dingo Meetup. They are relatively rare, and so we try to record them with photographic evidence.

Are you a Dingo? You just might be, if:

You sometimes perform acts of brilliance in order to squeeze a workout into a busy week.

You're never ashamed of coming in at the back of the pack, even if you're used to coming in faster.

You have found yourself sincerely respecting and admiring moms in all forms, observing how they're doing it for love, and growing from their experiences as well as your own

You won't know until you try, and all comers are welcome.

 Happy July!

[Dmitrizmom]

Subbing in. 

nrr: I was without internet for 1/2 of last week and it was good/sucked.     And it we just me and the toddler for most of the last week... Dh took the older 2 up to his parents with him so he could go to his 20 yr class reunion.  I'm missing them, but I've really enjoyed the time with just me and Viv.

Only 2.5 weeks more of my summer classes. Is it wrong that I'm feeling a bit joyful about the fact that my Microbiology students have presentations for 1/2 of it?  I am so ready for this session to be done and then off to my 4 weeks of summer fun. 
 

RR: still pretty pathetic. got a few miles in on Friday and Saturday, but nothing yesterday. Hoping to sneak in a few today after class, but a nap might win.  My tri is on Sunday and I'm a bit nervous - I've not had time to do as much prep as I would like.  On the bright side, a friend from boot camp class has offered to help me with my transition area.   I'm pretty sure that my family will not be waiting for me at the finish line, so it will be nice to have a support person there.

[mommajb]

Hi ladies! July it is.
bec, where is your tri? What kind of weather is typical? It is so soon!
gaye, sound like a great vacation with your ds.
shanti, you can cook for me anytime!
kerc, where are you (traveling?) and how hot is it?
jo, you sound like you are living the pull of family and the push of standing your ground in a over all balanced way.
dimitrizmom, I would be so ready for the class to be over but mostly excited about the upcoming tri!

Today we find out who is moving up a level at swim. I think all three kids will which is but then I cannot fit dd1's class in as it meets only in the evening and we have conflicts. Maybe I should hope she doesn't get promoted?
My three girls are going to try c25k together. Dd1 needs more activity (teenage slug and sloth), dd2 needs to get taller, and dd3 could run a 5k if I would let her. I wonder how much bickering they will do while out? Alice has been hesitant but is bouyed by her first place finish at Iron Champs Outrigger races -5 miles of paddling on the ocean -she ran up the beach with a huge smile on her face!
I read the book by Taube and while I know higher protein, lower carb works well for me I have conflicts. One, We have been vegetarian for so long (some of us have periods of fish) that the change would be big and watched by my children. Two, we do not do processed meat analogs and going in that direction, blech. On the other hand, some meat looks and sounds so good if I can ignore my stomach turning when I think about how to prepare it. I have been feeling conflicted about a couple of my children being more carb fiends and sugar hounds than anything else but at a cookout this weekend a 'friend' took to questioning my 9 yo and when I heard her answers I realized that while I want to work on the balance of macros we are doing many things well and making some good choices. And we need fewer desserts. Overall, I have seen how what has worked is no longer working so more about hormones and their effects and the idea of what we need changing helps move my thinking along.

Enough about me for one day!

I love how this runner is followed by 5.

[tjsmama]

[Geofizz]

I registered for the C'bus Half Oct 21 today.  I'm not sure of the wisdom of that act.

RP flipped her work schedule for the week so we'll be running at 5:45 am instead of 8:30 pm.  Wise, but :zzz

So many people around here are without power.  I went to the grocery store and the checker saw my milk and cheese and said, "oh, you are lucky to have power!"  The store was bought out of pretty much anything that didn't require refrigeration. 
 

[Nickarolaberry]

Subbing. Hi mamas.

[Runningmommy]

Subbing! 

Burned out my third TM on my LR saturday.  Literally burning smell.  

Recommendations on a new one?

Thanks! 
 

[Nickarolaberry]

Wow, Lisa! Burning through 3 treadmills! You go mama!

Nice run this morning with my new running friend/partner. It is SO nice to find someone who moves at my pace and is great to talk to also. She's training for a fall marathon and I'm just kind of hanging in with her training. It will get me ready for my half in August and then who knows. With the new job I don't think a fall marathon is in the plans but I can do her training with her, you know? (Except maybe I'll opt out of the 20 milers.  )

In NOT news, dh is being a tool. 

So..I was chosen to be a wear tester to an unnamed but very popular running shoe company and I am getting a new pair of kicks this week to try out for a while (more minimalist but not barefootish) in rotation with my regular shoes. So cool. I cannot take photos of them or say what they are though. 

Off to take ds to his science recreation program "boys will be boys." Yesterday they built bridges out of straws, made cornstarch goo, and built finger skateboard tracks and raced them/flipped them. The teacher is one of the high school science teachers and he is very young (to me anyway) and um...pardon me while I have a 16 year old moment.  I bet all the girls love to take science the year he teaches.  Today I think they are making paper mache (sp) dragons.

[mommajb]

Geo, I'm hoping that registering for HM is just enough to keep me going at a level I know I like. May it be the same for you or better!
Hi Nic.
RM, you know more about TM running than any of us. I know my downstair neighbors hated my TM that made the buiding shake in 1992.

While you ladies are having your 16 year old moments I am living with one (nearly, in Oct) and let me say it is not all roses but I did get a glowing report from his supervisor at the Rec Center that I am still smiling about days later. I am reminding myself if I take the credit for his positives that leaves me with some blame for eveything wrong my children might do but I am awfully proud of the young man he is becoming.

I wasn't the only one with the evening conflicts and the pool made a morning class for Helen and friends. I set the alarm to get up when online registration opened and got spots for everybody that needed them. Now I am going to run 3 with dh and then head out with the girls on their c25k adventure.
Please do not report me for smilie over-use.

[Geofizz]

Lisa, I think you should pick out your favorite treadmill, contact the company and tell them that you run So Much, you keep burning them up.  You should suggest they GIVE you theirs in exchange for your testimonials saying that "Not Even Super Dingo and fry this one!"

MJ:  You can totally take credit for your DS' success as a result for your parenting while chalking up his failings to "growing up" and "DH's genes."  I certainly do.

How cool, Nic!  How did you happen into doing the wear testing?  Though I've struggled so much since not being able to get my Defyance3s anymore, that I'd be leery to try anything unknown.

RP and I have switched to morning this week to avoid the heat.  I'm now wondering if 92F and 65% humidity isn't as bad as 75F and 98% humidity.  Running through the soup this morning was awful, and honestly it didn't feel as bad coming home from swimming 2 hours later once the temperature had gone up taking down the relative humidity.

[MelW]

Hello July!

I loved the photo from your trip, Gaye. That's one good-looking son with some good-looking scenery.

RM, I agree with Geo that you should offer to try to burnout your favourite treadmill. Or write to the company of the most recent burned-out one and offer them a second chance if they send a free sample.

Nic, so cool that you're doing the wear testing. Hugs and admiration for surviving the tool-ness. And congrats on the new RP!

Geo, both of your weather choices sound challenging. I'd still take the 98% humidity, but here today it's 100% humidity. Yet another rainstorm. They're calling it Julyuary, which has followed Juneuary. I'm ready for summer!

RR- I had a bike collision with my youngest on Sunday which lead to me jumping off my bike worried that her fingers had caught in my spokes, followed by my bike smashing my ankle. It throbbed all night Sunday until I got up and wrapped it with a tensor and I hobbled through the work day Monday. Today is better, and I'm hoping to be runable by Thursday. Right now it looks a little like a snake bite on my ankle.

NRR- I started the week tired from the throbbing ankle Sunday night, and haven't caught up on sleep yet.This is not helped by the fact that my youngest has been getting up a couple of times a night for water (and then often later to pee) since starting the Singulair. Thirst can be a side effect. Doctor wants her to take it at bedtime, but if this keeps up I'll see about switching to morning. I'm teaching 10 hour clinical days with a too-big student group and enough needy students that I'm already feeling  burnt out in week 2 of 5. It's hard to work all day then come home and write learning plans for struggling students. Thankfully tomorrow is my final day this week.

[Plady]

Happy 4th ladies! 

RM - Dang lady!  I agree, maybe you should be a wear tester for treadmills! ow you to run downhill as well as up?

Nic - What's that emphatic Yiddish expression that means something like hush up before God grants your wish?  Well that to your suggestion that you need fewer 16 year old moments!  No harm in those!

Geo - Glad to hear you have power!  That weather out east sounds horrible!

MW - I'm with you on this whole sick-of-Julyuary thing.  I really thought we were about to have summer last week when it was warm enough for shorts one day. But, I guess if I had to choose between mid 50s and overcast or rainy and over 100 and humid I'd go with the cooler weather.

Sparkle, Jo - Yeah, I've watched Food Inc and read Omnivore's Dilemma and so I *know* the answers more or less but I just wished that the questions came up in that book.  If he's going to talk about how the SAD has been pushed since the '80s and it's making us all fat and sick and he's a journalist, not a doctor, it seems like a big hole not to have that discussion too.  And I do still wonder if human health outcomes were a metric that ever played into the push to industrialize grain production and was seen as a profitable end result or if that truly never factored in and was just an unexpected bonus to the industry?  Basically, was it just bad luck that we all got hooked on spag and Doritos or was it an evil plot?

Gaye - So glad you and ds had a nice weekend away together.  I bet he felt really special having you to himself that way.  And it sounded like you had some really fun experiences!

MJ - Don't hesitate to take credit for your kids, I'm sure your influence has everything to do with how they excel.

Things are busy busy as always here.  Still haven't figured out how to stop the crows from grabbing eggs but the chickens seem to be on to them too and have started hiding them in new places.  That's good and bad, I enjoy the thrill of discovering a new cache of eggs in the grass but it would be simpler if they just used their freaking nesting boxes!!!  Time to wake the kids up, we're walking in the parade today, hoping for no rain and not too much candy.

[MelW]

RR- We had our first day of sunshine today! It's amazing how everybody seems to be in a better mood, myself included I got out for a short (5k-ish) run today and the ankle held up- I wrapped it in a tensor and can't decide whether the tensor was helpful or just more annoying padding. I can't make the trail run tomorrow because I don't have childcare, but think by Friday morning I should be up to running normally on it.

NRR- Still tired from my clinical days, but glad that today was my Friday (meetings and paperwork aside...). One student in particular is burning me out. I'm having lunch with colleagues tomorrow and hoping for some support and ideas :)

I hope you all had a happy 4th of July!!
 

[JayGee]

Good Morning, Dingoes!!! I have fallen off the posting wagon and need to climb back on. My sister and her son left yesterday to go back to NH. We had a lot of fun, but her DS is so incredibly needy that it was exhausting to watch. I had forgotten what a PITA a 4 yo can be! Our big, exciting event for the week has to be DD2 finally working up her courage to jump off the diving board! It took her almost an hour of walking out, turning back, trying again, turning back, but she finally did the big jump and then about 20 more! they had to throw us out when the pool closed at 6:00!

RR - I managed to run once this last week and am going to the Y for the last day of Week 3 C25k this morning. The 9 week program is taking closer to 12 weeks at this rate, but I will be 5k ready for the fall races.

No personals this morning, since kids are stirring (a day off from swim team, yay!). Be back later.

[sparkletruck]

Kids doing a Tri on Sat. It's the one they did last year where I brought a sick dd2 with a bucket. I was reminded of it by a friend of DD1's mom today. This year, all 3 kids will do it, including the 4 year old (she's allowed to use a kick-board, and she already knows how to ride a bike, so ) Hopefully I can take some decent photos, as Dh will actually be able to come to this one

[mommajb]

Geo, the heat sounds brutal but if you can get it out of the way and enjoy the rest of summer so much the better.
MelW, that bike crash sounds a bit scary. I hope all is well soon and that your needy student soon finds someone else to fill the void.
Plady, did you find your eggs today?
JayGee, I am right there with you trying to get back on all my wagons: posting, eating, running... This swim thing really gets in the way.
Sparkle, I bet that kids tri is a hoot to watch. Enjoy!

I extended my run a bit today on a leap of faith in my body and it felt great. for a repeat soon.

ETA: We went to a party last night that I had trouble getting excited about but it was wonderful. All the kiddos had fun and everyone I talked to was nice. Much more than I expected. We drove around for half an hour before just going in. This has renewed a bit of my faith in my surroundings. I wish I could expand but this really is a boiled down version: It wasn't so bad.

[tjsmama]

I'm back, after another work week. Work has been crazy all week; not so much for me personally as just in general. Tuesday night, we were completely full on postpartum, only had one labor room open, and they were holding patients downstairs (in high risk L&D) that would normally come up to us after delivery because we just didn't have room for them. I had really great couplets all week, especially the nurse practitioner I had the past two nights. We had a potluck last night for the holiday and I swear I'm still full from it. The first food came out around 9pm, and then we just kept eating until dessert was brought out around 445am. Too. Much. Food. (It was really delicious, though!)

I finally finished booking everything for USAT nationals. Unfortunately, I apparently left it about a week too late. I was going to use XH's hotel points for the Hampton Inn that was about 4 miles from the race venue. Well, guess what...it sold out while XH was in Jamaica for the last week. Along with every other hotel within a 30 mile radius of Burlington, VT. Seriously? I spent HOURS looking for any respectable (preferably chain) hotel within reasonable driving distance for race morning that had a room available. I did finally find ONE place about 20 minutes away, so I have a reservation at the "T-bird Motor Inn"...at nearly $200 a night. According to tripadvisor.com, it's "meticulously clean"...it better be for that rate! Once in a lifetime, right? This trip is going to end up costing me as much as I estimated an Ironman would.

Kickball tonight, and I have to say, it was a blast. I decided to try my hand at pitching tonight, and I may have found my calling. Not to brag, but I pretty much kicked butt. I made an incredible diving catch (without dropping my cup!) that I truly wish I had on video. It was ridiculous. My team declared me tonight's MVP.

rr~Um, what? Tomorrow, I WILL run. I have the nanny coming, so it will happen. In the meantime, I have two weeks until the Courage Classic, and I have yet to ride more than about 30 miles this summer. Sheesh. Oh yeah, and marathon training should be starting this week. Does anyone have a great 16 or 18 week training plan where you only have to run 4 days a week??

[1jooj]

Back early from the cabin.  Not feeling it so much. Loving nature, but the cabin is a challenge. Did manage a long-ish walk, a couple of hikes and a short run-walk. Spent some good time with my sister and her kids, and also with my brother and his son. Then, we were done and so we came home.

I am sensitive and still a little raw and tender in some places wrt my mother. Wish it were better.

Geo, I heat is a killer, but the humidity will strangle you. Dh said it was "only" 106 in Dubai today but the windows on the buildings were sweating. That hot fog is just the worst. Whenever you do try and run in it, please do be careful. So hard to regulate temperature in both heat and humidity!

Plady, I vacillate between evil plot and giant oops, in terms of the Big Ag thing, and I think it was a perfect storm (i.e. an oops) that the "right" people recognized at the right moments. So, closer to evil plot, then? 

Dh called and proposed. So, no Paris this summer, but he wants to have a "wedding." We've been married 14 years but never had one.  He wants a crowd, a meal and a white dress. I'm thinking some kind of dress with maybe some white on or near it (or a white flower). So, trying to set a date and keep it on the sort-of down-low so it doesn't become a new family drama. (see also Mother, above.) We have a range of dates, and it is not long from now, so I guess I am spending Ramadan planning a wedding for an almost 15-year-old marriage.

Open to creative ideas, one and all, that would work in a park setting, be cheap but not seem "cheap," and are in line with an Islamic celebration. Those are my parameters. Let's run with them. 

[MelW]

mommajb for feeling good with the extended run, and for the wonderful party.

sparkle, have fun with the tri! I remember the bucket story- having her participating sounds like much more fun!

JayGee, good for you for sticking with the C25K even if it is the "extended" version. And congrats to your DD on the diving board accomplishment. When I was 5 and happily jumping off the high diving board I tried to convince my mum to do it too. She didn't want to, so made a deal with me that she would only jump off if I dove off it first.  I tried to dive off and belly flopped spectacularly. Mum tried to get out of it because she was so worried about me (as was the lifeguard who witnessed the flop) but I managed to swim to the side of the pool and yell at her that it was her turn and she *had* to do it.

There have been two sunny days in a row and I'm feeling kind of giddy. This morning we biked to the park before our 9:30 dentist apointment, then after my mid-day meeting went to the beach. First ocean dip (not really a true swim) of the year and a plan to spend at least part of tomorrow at the beach. This weekend is a big music fest locally and often a good weekend to hit the beach while everyone else is at the fairgrounds. Before swimming tomorrow I have plans for MIL to watch the kids while I run, strawberry picking (we're eating out of our garden, but need more to freeze) and picking up my big family meat order.

[Plady]

Jo!  A dingo wedding!  How exciting!  I always thought a potluck wedding would be awesome since everyone would bring their very best concoction.  Of course, a friend of mine from IL was describing what her mother would recommend to bring to a potluck (cherry pie filling, add cool whip, a can of Coke, and chocolate chips, chill, top with cool whip oh, and mini marshmallows) so maybe not?  Congratulations though, it's super sweet that it's dh's idea.

Mommajb - Yay for better than expected!  We had one of those last night.  Went to a party hosted by someone we don't know well and it looked like we were the only nonresidents to show up to a neighborhood party, but then it turned out that we met some really great people and made a real connection. 

Sparkle - Fingers crossed for a healthy weekend!

Gaye - Speaking of potlucks

MelW - I hear you on sun-induced giddiness.  I almost swam in the pond today just in case this was also the last day of summer, but then remembered the nasty cough I'm fighting.  How's dd in the sun?  I did manage to intervene and rescue some eggs for us today.

RR: Last boxing class of the summer today.  I'm sad but I know a forced break could be a good thing.  As long as I don't just completely stop, which would be typical.  But the teacher really tried to make it count today.  Too many pushups!!!

FR: Dh snapped our tractor in two today.  Seriously.  The beefy cast iron stud that connects the front and back of the thing snapped in half while we has doing some backhoe work.  Of course it's out of warranty but this break looks like fundamental structural flaw to me and I really hope Bobcat will want to stand behind their product, it was the only vehicle we ever bought new and by far the most expensive.