at last, snow!

these deer were out on our road during our drive to work this morning, eating salt...

I am an unabashed lover of winter... but, real winter... with snow. None of this grey and chilly for 3 months nonsense. Give me mountains of snow!!

This morning when I let the dogs out at 5:17, I braced myself for the cold... but the winds of the last few days have finally dropped. There are about six lovely, soft and hushed inches of snow covering everything I could see, and my heart started singing!

Maya and Remy had a good old race and romp about the back yard... kicking up clouds of snow. And I broke out the shovel and cleared the deck, in my slippers and bathrobe.

There are lots of closures this morning, and the roads were not great. But, I tell you what... if the pool is closed this evening and I miss swim practice... Remy and I are going for a long and snowy run tonight. And that won't make me sad at all.

reason #1 that i run and fundraise to find a cure for cancer

You may recall that a few weeks back, I wrote about the 26 reasons I continue to run with Team In Training, and fundraise to help find a cure for cancer.

Reason #1 was my mom... in part because I ran my first half marathon with her, in part because she continues to be my greatest supporter/cheerleader in all my running endeavors... and in part because she was diagnosed with Ocular Melanoma in  2013 (that is, cancer of the eye).

She had a series of surgeries to remove the cancer and then reconstruct the eye in 2013 and 2014. Last week she had to go back under the knife (which she could see with the eye they were operating on, while they were operating on it! just imagining that makes me feel a little nauseated...) to remove several more discolored areas on the eye ball that were causing concern, and a dark growth on one eyelid.  We are still waiting on the biopsy results...

I spoke with my mom this morning and she's in good spirits. A week after the surgery she says that she's no longer in pain... it just feels like someone threw a handful of sand and bees into her eye.

care package!

ti-training care package compliments of Crank Bike Shoppe, in Brockville Ontario

I received my first ever triathlon training care package in the mail today. Huzzah! First, I love getting mail! Second, did you see the socks?!! This was from an old friend, who I've not seen since the late 1990s... what a treat to hear from him.

If you're ever in Brockville, go check out his shop (or shoppe!) and say hi to Scott for me.

triathlon training schedule for this week

I may have mentioned last week that I was feeling a little overwhelmed...

After last night's swim practice, I'm feeling a little better. I think it's just a matter of finding a routine, and I can do that. (i think i can, i think i can...)

For those of you who (like me 9 days ago) are not familiar with what the early days of training for an Olympic distance triathlon looks like, here is my schedule for this week:

Monday:

• 30 minutes cycling
• 20 minutes strength training

Tuesday:

• 25 minutes running
• 30 minutes swimming   

Wednesday:

• 35 minute cycling
• 20 minutes strength training

Thursday:

• 30 minutes running
• 60 minutes swimming

Friday:

• REST DAY!

Saturday:

• 40 minutes running

Sunday:

• 30 minutes running
• 60 minutes swimming

Exciting, no?

Snuggie Bar Crawl & Scavenger Hunt - Success!

Well, what a hoot this evening turned out to be... 4 bars, approximately 50 people dressed in snuggies, looking for clues and collecting donations for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society... everyone had a laugh, most people had a few beverages... and we raised over $1100 for LLS.

I call that a complete success!

let us pause for a moment of celebration!

Last night, thanks to the very generous donation of my friend Melody, I reached a milestone goal... I have now raised over $15,000 for LLS (since I started fundraising for the 2009 Shamrock Marathon).

So I'd like to take a moment to celebrate the generosity of my friends and family. You made this possible!

And I am so grateful for your support.

New milestone goal... $20,000! Who's with me??

sweet treat for your sweetheart?

Looking for a little sweet treat for your Valentine? How about breakfast in bed with some homemade jam (or marmalade)??

Ask me about available flavours and sizes... yours for a donation to my fundraising!!