Redemption is Made (a triathlon gets completed!)

This post is totally NOT about sewing... sorry. :)

REDEMPTION IS MADE!!! I mean, I am sure you all remember THIS EPIC FAIL, right?

So, last Saturday, I participated in the 2012 Kokopelli Olympic Distance Triathlon. It's the exact course as the Epic Fail, but in the Fall rather than the Spring.

Anyway, the Olympic Distance Triathlon goes like this:

1500 meter - Swim
20.4 mile - Bike
10 K (6.2 mile) - Run

Obviously, I had trained a lot harder and a lot smarter for this one. It was fun, and I was so happy to have my family and my parents there to cheer me on!

Let me break it down for you...

The Swim

I'm not going to lie. I was just North of totally petrified before the swim. I even used some colorful words to describe how I was feeling to my hubby. I almost cried. I almost bailed. But, redemption had to be made, right? So, I swallowed the near paralyzing fear and got in the water.

It was a wonderfully warm temperature. And I had the right wet suit on. ;)

The swim went okay. It certainly wasn't the best swim of my career, and I found it very difficult to "spot" the buoys. I should say - to spot the right buoys. There were many in the water that didn't apply to us... but, the important thing was - I finished. I was pretty grumpy when I got out of the water, though. After reflection, I think it was the anxiety that I was feeling beforehand that really caused me to not enjoy the swim. I also need to practice in the lake more than I did. And for longer distances. Oh, well... live and learn. BUT - I finished! It took me 39 minutes, which was about average.

The Bike

The bike portion went well. I felt good the whole time and finished it in about 1 hr and 27 min, which is pretty good for me. I repeat, FOR ME. I learned quickly that I am a s.l.o.w. biker. I did pass exactly 3 people while riding, and all three of them were while we were going up "The Hill." Yea me. Uphill passing feels great! However, the rest of the time, I was passed by everyone else. lol! But, FOR ME, it was a good ride.

The Run

I felt like I was the last Olympic Distance athlete to pull in on the bike. I don't know for sure, but it really did feel that way. So, onto the run. It was great. I ran the 10 K in 1 hr and 5 minutes, or a 10:30 min/mile pace. That's a decent pace for me anyway, but at the tail end of a triathlon - it was great!!

It did start to get a little hot, and I was in the back of the pack, so it was a little tiny bit lonely. I tried to make jokes with those around me. I hope I wasn't just obnoxious...

As I was coming toward the finish, it seemed as though everyone was leaving. Finished, awarded, and heading home. Didn't help the ego. But, I did feel a great sense of pride as I (finally) crossed the finish line! My total time was 3 hr 17 min. Not last place. In fact, I came in 9th in my age group... out of 11. :)

I am very happy to have conquered this one. The Hubby says he might do it with me next year! That would be cool! I'll have to start biking faster, though...

WIP Wednesday... sort of...

So... I did get some done this week. I got the back of the game night quilt started... But that's all.

So, in lue of a real WIP post, I am going to share some of what I've been doing instead of sewing...

Fact about me: I love the Olympics. I mean, I love the Olympics. I love the Olympics the way most people love Christmas. Every 4th year, I want to buy a giant TV and never stop watching the epic display of human awesomeness. LOVE!!!

So, with the 2012 London games starting, I found myself in full Olympic fever. And, because I was unable to pack up and move to London for two weeks, I settled on hosting our own family Olympics instead!

***Que Theme Music***

The Events:

Javelin!

Discus!

Fencing!

Archery!

Marble Racing! (I think this one could be running?)

Shot Put! (Which, as you can see was really just a water ballon fight...)

Kayaking!

Finally, our own Olympic Torch!

Cupcake cones! With a frosting flame! Yes, they were really, really good! :)

Here's to all the Olympians!!! Next time - I'm totally going to Rio...

Happy WIP Wednesday, everyone!! Be sure to head on over to Freshly Pieced!!!

For laughs...

So true... :) Happy sewing!

WIP Wednesday!

Wow! It's been 2 weeks since my last post. Why? Because Summertime continues to kill me!! lol! But really - we've been having fun and doing a lot of running around, but sadly, that translates into much less sewing time. Quick story - yesterday my hubby and I went out on a bike ride. 3 miraculous things happened:
1 - I didn't fall (this is a big deal!)
2 - I didn't swear once (again  - big deal!)
3 - I didn't get mad at my husband (because my lack of biking skills are somehow his fault, right?)

Then one horrible thing happened - we saw a hUge rattle snake. Seriously. It was a MONSTER!!! I am terrified of snakes. I like to pretend that they are just myths. Anyway - it gave me the creeps!!!

So, on to sewing!

These past two weeks, I have been working on a project for my husband, who in a few weeks is taking a group of scouts canyoneering. He has a bunch of gear for each scout, and I am making utility backpacks for each set.

They are actually super easy, really useful, and pretty cute! I'll probably make one for each on my kids in fabric that is actually cute, and put up a tutorial soon!

In other projects - I have cut the sashing for my game night quilt:

And planned the sashing for the skill builders!

As soon as those bags are done, I will be sashing things up!! Yea!!!

Be sure to check out all of the WIPs at Freshly Pieced!

Explanation :)

Okay, for those who didn't get it, here's what the sticker is getting at...

I am a marathon runner. I am proud of this fact. So, I sport the following sticker on my car...

My husband believes that running should only happen in a life or death situation, and avoids runner far distances as much as he can. Therefore, he gets this sticker:

It's all about the all important placement of the decimal point! haha!!

Funny...

Okay, this is what I got my husband for Father's Day.

Who "gets" it? Because to me, a runner, it's pretty darn funny!

Have a great weekend!

A Legend

Today I dropped off my sewing machine to get a service and cleaning. I planned it this way so that the week I would have to leave it would be over my vacation. But I didn't think about how I would make it through tonight. I feel like I left part of my soul behind... ;)


Anyway, a quick funny story. The story behind how I got my wonderful machine is very cute. Last year, I was having a crumby year - dental wise. I managed to have to get 3 root canals and 3 crowns. Totally blew my sewing machine savings. During the 3rd root canal, I was whining to my hubby about how my teeth kept preventing me from getting the machine I wanted. The day I got the 3rd and final crown, my sweet hubby came home with the very machine I had been pining over for a year or so. It was the sweetest thing ever! He went to three different quilting stores until he found the one that sold Janomes. So. Sweet.

Anyway, today, as I was filling out the service info thing, the lady looked down at my name and said, "Dunn! OH! I remember when you got this machine. Well, when your husband got it for you. *giggled* That was so sweet!"

Yep. My hubby is something of a legend down at the local quilt shop! How awesome is that?!