Puppy Update: Four Weeks Old

Can you believe that the puppies are now four weeks old today?  They are all about two pounds now and they have learned so many new things in the last week.  They are so playful with one another now and they walk, bark and growl and are learning to do all of the things that dogs should do.

On Wednesday, I caught one of the puppies eating a piece of dry food out of Sugar's bowl so I decided to try to feed them. It was a little sooner than planned but I think they will be fine. The put a cup of dry food, some powdered puppy milk, and hot water in the blender and made them some mush.  They loved it!  

They were even licking each others faces after they were done eating!  It was very cute!  Sugar is starting to get a little tired of nursing and it kind of separating herself from the puppies so I think it is good time to start training them how to eat on their own.  The cuter they get, the more I don't want to give them away!! My son is busy convincing me that we need to keep all four of them!

TGIF and I've Been Shopping Again...

I am so glad it is Friday!  It has been a busy week and I am ready for the weekend!  We don't have big plans for the weekend but I am so looking forward to resting a little more than I have this week.

Next week is going to be a mini vacation for me too because I will only be working Monday and Tuesday and then I am off for the rest of the week!  I am hoping to get a few goods runs in and just relax a little. There are a few things that I want to get done around the house but we will see how I decide to spend my energy.  Most of the time running wins and I put my energy into a good run!


Since the Brooks Pure Flows did not work out for me, I returned them to REI and decided to try out the Mizuno Wave Rider 15's. REI carries them in one color and one color only, which I am not crazy about, but I will live. I will take them for a short run this weekend to see how they feel and if all is well, I will try them out on a longer run. I have an 11 mile run planned for sometime this weekend but don't think that it would be a good idea to try the Mizuno's out on a long run quite yet.

I not only bought new shoes but I also bought a Stick. I do own a foam roller but I have always been kind of curious about the Stick and finally bought one! I think it is a lot easier to use than a foam roller on certain parts of your body so I will be trying this gadget out too. I think I am going to like it for some reason or another.

Do you use the Stick or a foam roller?  What's your opinion of the Stick if you own one?

Three Things Thursday

1. This has been a hectic/stressful week at work. We had inventory this week and everything that could have gone wrong did.  Not to mention, that the warehouse manager is retiring this week so that made things even more chaotic.  I had to learn how to do the inventory in a day which is something that he has been doing for the last 25 plus years.  I am looking forward to the weekend because I need a break. If I am going to be tired, I prefer to be exhausted from running not from working! I'm not planning on going postal or anything like that but I am just more tired than usual this week.

2. I spoke to my Dad on Tuesday and he is due for his scan next Thursday. I always get really nervous when he goes for his scans because I want to hear that the cancer is gone!  The last scan he had six months ago showed that the cancer didn't get better or worse.  This is not bad news but not the news that I wanted to hear. Please keep my Dad in your prayers and pray for a positive outcome.

3.  The Brooks Pureflows did not do it for me!  My calves were really sore after I ran in them and they made for a very uncomfortable run.  They also run small and I had to go a size up and they felt huge on my feet. I am back in my Nike's but my next attempt at new shoes is probably going to be the Mizuno Wave Rider 15's

or the Brooks Glycerin 10. 

 

Do you have a stressful job? 

My job is pretty decent for the most part. I am definitely grateful to have a job but this week was just crazier than usual!

52 Marathons in 52 Weeks!

No, I won't be doing that but this lady is up for the challenge!

Her name is Julie Weiss. She is from Santa Monica, California and lost her dad to pancreatic cancer in 2010. She will stop at nothing to raise $1,000,000 for cancer research so other families won't have to go through what she has. She is part of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network's TEAMHOPE on a serious mission to run 52 marathons in 52 weeks to show how strong the human spirit can be!!  Pretty determined woman! I don't personally know this woman, but her story hits home because as most of you already know, my father is currently battling cancer.  Although he is still here with me, I found her story to be very brave and inspirational.

Julie has already completed 10 of the 52 marathons and her final marathon will be the LA Marathon in March of 2013.

You can follow her challenge through her website Marathon Goddess. She is moving all over the country so chances are she might just be in your hometown running a marathon! I just wanted to share her story since she caught my attention and I think it is a great thing that she is doing.

GOOD LUCK JULIE!

Weekend Recap

Since we have this new above ground pool and all, my son wanted to show it off and invited his two cousins over. The plan was to go to Universal Studios on Friday, have them all spend the night and then go swimming the next day. Let me tell you, when these three get together they can be a handful. They all get along for the most part, but they do have moments when two of them team up against the third so I have to keep a close eye on them. They wore me out and I can't imagine raising three small children all at the same time.  I only have two kids and they are 14 years apart (crazy, I know) so I really have respect for those parents who have the patience to raise several children because it's tough!

Universal Studios was a lot of fun! The kids had a great time and it wasn't incredibly crowded for a Friday in June. Costco had some reasonably priced annual passes for $69 so we took the deal.  I think we have officially given up on the $699.00 Disneyland annual passes and will have to find some new things to do this summer. The kids really wanted to ride the new Transformers 3-D attraction so we headed there first. They really liked it!  We also enjoyed the Jurassic Park Ride, Revenge of the Mummy Ride, King Kong 360, Terminator 2-3D and  the Studio Tour. The remainder of our visit was spent at the Curious George water park.  These kids love to swim and play in water!!

Saturday was also a busy day. The kids went swimming in the morning before they all went back home and then it was time to get ready for a birthday party with more swimming!  My son was pretty burned out by Sunday morning with all of the swimming and fun he had over the weekend! I think I am still recovering myself!

Weekly Recap: I exceeded my goal of 25 miles this week and ended up with 26 and some change.! I had a great 10.5 run on Saturday morning in spite of the warm weather. I revisited an old familiar route that has a bit more of a climb than what I have been doing lately and it went well.  With seven days left in the month of June, I am on track to hitting 100 miles for the month. I have not seen a 100 mile month since December of last year so I am excited about my progress and hopeful that I can continue to increase my mileage without any setbacks. 

How was your weekend?   Did you do anything special? 

A New Home for the Puppies

The puppies turned three weeks old yesterday! They have changed so much in the past week and continuing to grow and do new things all of the time. Their newest thing is escaping out of their bed and looking for mama! They are also learning how to walk around. Their walk is not yet perfected but they are no longer slithering around. 

We had to relocate them to a new set up in order to keep them safe. Their previous home was the laundry room but I was afraid that they would start to wander behind the washer/dryer and I didn't want any accidents. So this is there new home for now. We had to put the sheet up since Sugar is too mindful of Roxy and Buster (my other two dogs) and barks like crazy is she can see them.

The puppies are also becoming more vocal and trying to bark when they want their mama. Sometimes when we pick them up, they let out these little growling noises. They sound so cute. They all have their own little personalities and the two smallest pups are always together and love to sleep together.

They are getting so cute and I am trying my best not to get too attached to them.  

Three Things I'm Loving This Thursday

Here are a few things that I am loving lately!  

1. Instagram/Photo a Day June: I think I am starting to become a huge fan of Instagram. I guess I am a picture person. I would rather see a photo and a few words than a bunch of words without a visual. I guess it's just my preference which is why I rarely, if ever, do a post without some type of photo to go along with it. I am also participating in the "photo of the day" for June and I have not missed a day yet.  I am kind of having fun with it and really keep track of what the theme is for the next few days. 

2.Strawberry Sour Belts: These are my favorite candy of all time! I usually buy them from the candy stores in the mall and they are not cheap! I think they charge anywhere from $11.00-$12.00/lb.  I recently found them in the bulk section of grocery store for half the cost and have been going kind of crazy. I haven't had any this week but I will be out in that neighborhood tonight and you better believe I will be refilling the stash!

3.The Poor Man's Pool: Our neighbors on both sides of us have in-ground pools so my son has been wondering when we are getting one too!  I don't see one coming anytime soon so he settled for an above ground style but he actually loves it so I love it too. It's pretty decent in size (18 feet wide and 48" deep) and will allow for some swimming this summer. I call it the "poor man's pool" even though it cost $600.00. It takes over 6,000 gallons of water so we are going to be filling it up today.  I can barely wait to see my water bill!! The little boy who lives next door, who has an in-ground pool, saw us putting the pool together from his window and came right over.  He told my son that our pool is way better than his because his only cost $40.00. I thought it was very cute! Kids say the craziest things! 

 

Are you on Instagram? Check out the right side of my blog and you can follow me!

Have you tried Strawberry Sour Belts? Love them or hate them?

Do you have a swimming pool? In-Ground or Above Ground?

Almost Wordless Wednesday

Hopefully all of my readers not getting tired of seeing these precious babies but I just had to tell you that they have all opened their eyes and are able to track their mommy down much easier now! They are getting cuter and cuter every day!

Father's Day Dinner with Spongebob and a Weekly Recap!

This weekend was really busy and exciting all at the same time.  Other than getting new road bikes, we enjoyed a great Father's Day dinner at Benihana. I think my son enjoyed it the most and our chef was great. The restaurant was super busy and it took longer than expected to be seated, but I guess that is to be expected on a busy holiday like Father's Day.  We were starving by the time the chef showed up but he was pretty entertaining and we had a great time.  I won't bore you with all of the food that I ate but I have to share some of the highlights of our dinner with you. Yes, I forced my son to put this hat on and pose for a picture!

Have you ever seen this corny creation at Benihana? I had not and neither did anyone else at our table so this one was the favorite of night! The onion volcano ain't got nothing on Spongebob!  My son loved it and he enjoyed the dinner show! Notice that Patrick is in the picture too!

We talked a lot and laughed a lot and we had a great evening. The chef kept the jokes coming throughout the meal and we were stuffed.  I don't think anyone at the table finished their food. We all wore some shade of blue for some unplanned reason or another but I think the colors made for a nice photo.

 I love the green tea ice cream and even though I was stuffed, I saved some room for just a few bites!

As far as my running last week..I did not meet my goal of 25 miles but did happen to get 20.52 miles on the books. I was planning to run on Father's Day but it just did not happen so I have to get back on track this week. I am also excited to say that I did reach 400 miles for the year. I am still way behind on hitting my goal of 1200 for the year but I will take what I can get right now!

Are you a fan of green tea ice cream?  What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?

I think my all time favorite would have to be mint chocolate chip or just plain chocolate chip.

Some New Things In My Life

We always look forward to going to the REI Used Gear Sale. I always find great deals and we have been trying to score a good deal on some road bikes so we can ride together as a family. The problem is that you have to get to REI at 4am in order to get first pick at the gear and I am not going to do that. I do the Black Friday thing once a year and that is way too much for me. This year REI did things differently and gave out colored wristbands and randomly determined which color shopped first. We got lucky this year with a pink wristband and shopped with the first group!

We were eyeing the merchandise as we were in line and made a plan to head over to the road bikes right away. We weren't willing to die for them but we knew we had a good chance and we got them! I didn't want to pay $1000+ for my bike because I am not a serious rider. I have tossed around the idea of a triathlon but without a bike I just left the thought in the back of my mind but now I just might revisit the idea.

I ended up buying a Novara Carema Pro which retails for $1100. Since it was used, I bought it for less than half the price and it is in great condition. The bike ended up being my size as well so I got lucky. My husband likes the fancier road bikes and he was also able to score a really nice one for half of the cost in his size. His is a much fancier bike than mine but he has been wanting one for a long time so his road bike was his Father's Day and birthday present for the year. He does not like to spend lots of money on himself but I convinced him that he deserved it and he is very happy with it. There was only one condition to buying his bike: his riding schedule can't interfere with my running schedule. Just Kidding :)

I also bought a couple of used Garmin's for super cheap and some new running shoes.  I am getting bored with my Nike's and wanted to try another brand. The last time I switched shoes I ended up with bad shin splints so I tried to stay with a neutral shoe and not a stability shoe like I did last time. I ended up going with the Brooks PureFlow. I am going to try them out on a couple of short runs to see how they feel. They are very light and comfortable so hopefully they work for me. If not, then I will stick with my same old Nike's.

Do you own a bike? Have you ever done a triathlon or considered doing one? Do you run in Brooks shoes? If yes, tell me what you think of them?

Happy Father's Day to My Three Main Men!

I want to wish three of the most important men in my life a Happy Father's Day!

My Dad, who is one of the most bravest and positive people that I know. I won't be spending the day with him today because he is out fishing with my uncle. Fishing is one of his most favorite things to do and I want him to be happy and enjoy his life while he can.  He is pretty exhausted when he gets home from his fishing trips and needs his rest so I will let him enjoy his day. It was chemo week for him but he still gets up and lives his life to the fullest. I am not sure how he does it but I am glad that he does. I really respect and honor him for his braveness and his will to fight. Happy Father's Day Daddy! I love you and thank you for everything you have done for me.

My Husband, who is one of the most patient and kindest people on the earth.  He is a great father and is so patient with our son and treats my daughter as if she were his own. He never gets upset and takes life as it comes. I worry about everything and he always tells me to just relax and take it easy. He tolerates my endless hours of running, spending all of our money on races and running stuff, and encourages me to do my best. He always wants to make me happy and makes sure that my parents and my grandparents are taken care of. He honors our marriage to the fullest and I am lucky to have found such a wonderful man who loves me and our family so much. He is a quiet person and doesn't talk much in crowds but his actions speak wonders. Thank you Honey for being such a wonderful husband and father. I love you and thank you for tolerating me and my running.

My Grandpa, who suffers from Parkinson's, is one of the greatest grandpa's in the world. He would lay his life down for me. He does not like to take pictures because of his illness so I don't have any recent pictures of us together. He has always been there for me and has helped me out so much my entire life. He loves his grandchildren to death and sometimes he gets into trouble for spoiling them too much! I love you Grandpa and thank you for your unconditional love and support that you have shown me and my family.

Happy Father's Day to all of the wonderful Dad's out there! How are you spending Father's Day?

We are celebrating Father's Day tonight by taking my husband out to eat at one of his favorite restaurants. We also bought him a really nice Father's Day gift that he has been wanting for a long time, which I will share with you later.

I See You!

The puppies are two weeks old today!  Puppy #2 and Puppy #3, the two biggest pups, had a big surprise for us this morning! Their eyes were open! I can't really tell what color their eyes are but they look kind of bluish. Now that they can see, they just look at me like I am crazy when I hug, kiss, and talk to them.

Puppy #1 and Puppy #4 haven't opened their eyes yet but we are thinking that their eyes will open any day. The puppies have grown so much in the last week, and they all weigh a pound or more. You can see how much they have grown in the photo below.

Sugar is doing great and eats like a horse! She is starting to give the puppies a little bit of freedom and is spending less time in the bed with them. She feeds them every few hours and then lays beside the bed when she is done. She is also less protective of them and allows us to handle them without getting upset. The plan is to start weaning the puppies when they are 3-1/2 to 4 weeks old so we can start preparing them to go to their new homes. I get sad thinking about letting them go but I know that it is not realistic to keep 7 dogs!! 

Aren't they just adorable?

The Lovely Blog Award

Caroline who blogs over at Canadian Runner in Exile tagged me and awarded me the Lovely Blog Award so now it's my turn!

These are the Rules:

1. Thank the person who awarded the award: Thank you Caroline!

2. Tell seven random things about yourself that no one knows. 

3. Pass the award on to seven blogger pals.

Here are Seven Random Things About Me:

1. I am addicted to Chapstick and have one with me 24/7!  If I forget it at home, you better believe that we have to stop and buy one or my lips will fall off!

2. I had my first child when I was 16.8 years old. Don't judge! I actually turned out pretty good considering this incident. Although it was not planned, I don't like to call it a mistake because I love my daughter unconditionally and could not imagine my life without her.  It's also fun to get all of the nice compliments like "Is that your sister?" It keeps me feeling young :)

3. I hate seafood! I don't eat anything that comes out of the ocean. I have tried most of it and just do not like the taste or the smell!

4. I am afraid of needles and go into a huge panic when I have to have my blood drawn.  I guess this means that I will never get a tattoo either!

5. I am afraid of the dark and still sleep with a night light.  If I stay at a hotel and I forget my night light, I sleep with the bathroom light on and crack the door.  Weird...I know...

6. I am also afraid of heights! I can fly in a plane and I can be up high as long as I am enclosed and know that I can't fall. If I am up high and don't feel securely enclosed then my palms start to sweat and I get really, really nervous and go into a panic!

7. I always look at a restaurant's Health Department letter grade card before dining there. If the restaurant has anything less than an "A," then I am very hesitant to eat the food.

                       Here are the 7 people I am awarding the Lovely Blog Award to:

1. Meg ChickNamedChuck

2. Michelle Run for Life

3. Megan #runmeganrun

4. Rachel Curious Runner Girl

5. Heather Running with Heather

6. Lisa RunningFitnessHealth

7. Michelle (26.2 Before I Turn 40...Bring It!) Chelles Journeys 

If you have already been tagged, you can ignore me!  HAVE FUN!!

Three Things Thursday!

1. I love steel cut oats but since I have to wake up at 4:30am to get to work, there is no time to prepare them. On my weekend trip to Costco, I spotted cooked steel cut oats that are easy to prepare in the microwave.  All you have to do is heat them up in the microwave for 60 seconds and then mix with water, milk, fruit or whatever you like to add.  A box of 8 is $7.99. Works for me!

2.I found some good deals at the Nike outlet.  Pink is not my favorite color but all of the clearance items seemed to have some shade of pink.  I got the tempo shorts for $9.99 and the capris for $27.99.  The tank top was not on sale but it matched with the bottoms and it was $21.00 so I bought it. It actually looks really cute with the capris. I am a sucker for Lululemon however 3 Nike items =1 Lululemon item!

3. It's been a while since I ran a 5K and for some reason or another I have been itching to run one.  My friend Caroline told me about a local 5K that takes place on July 28th so I just might sign up for another race. I am trying to convince my husband to run his first 5K and I think he is almost ready. I normally stay away from summer races but since this is such a short distance I can probably pull it off without killing myself.

Do you run with your husband/significant other?

My husband is very supportive of my running, attends all of my races and is my photographer, however he thinks that anything more than a 5K is crazy and is self-torture!  

Wordless Wednesday...

It's Summer Time!

Although the first official day of summer is June 20th, it starts for my son today since yesterday was his last day of fourth grade.  I can't believe that he will be in the fifth grade in just a few months!

We attended his class party to celebrate the last day of school and the kids overindulged and loaded up on sugar and junk food. Then comes the fun part..... we get to take our kids home on a sugar high!

The had a pinata and my husband was in charging of hanging the pinata. The teachers had the first hits at the pinata but they didn't want to break it and spoil the fun for the kids! I put myself in charge of taking the bat away from the child who broke the pinata. I think everyone forgot about that job!

Working full-time can be tough as a parent but I am going to make a great effort to schedule some fun stuff for my son this summer. He really wants to go to Raging Waters, Universal Studios and to Disneyland to see the new Cars Land which is due to open this Friday. 

Speaking of Disneyland, this is the first year that we did not renew our annual passes due to the huge price increase. A Premium pass is now $649.00 versus $499.00!!  Outrageous!! 

What are your plans for the summer? Are you going on any fun and exciting vacations? Are you a Disney fan?

A Family Reunion and Weekly Recap

Every June we have a family reunion and all of the families take turns organizing and putting the event together. My Dad is full Japanese so the reunion is hosted by my Dad's side of the family.  I enjoy it since it is the one time of year that I have the opportunity to see a lot of my relatives that I don't often see. I also get to see my Dad and I always look forward to seeing him. My niece, Taite, is in town for the summer so she came along with us and it was a great opportunity for her to see her Grandpa (my Dad) and spend some time with us since she lives in South Carolina. My brother-in-law is in the Navy so they have not yet found their permanent home.  I am hopeful that they will settle closer to California one day soon so we can see my sister and her family more often.

There were lots of games and activities for the kids and my husband and son won the Rock/Paper/Scissors championship and came home a few dollars richer! My husband was really getting into this game and was taking necklaces from the children and the elderly! In a nutshell, if you beat your opponent their necklaces which had a quarter attached, became yours. We had never seen the game played this way before and thought it was a great idea.

There was a ton of food and it was nice to see everyone especially my Dad! Taite decided to give chopsticks a try but after struggling for a few minutes she gave up! She is such a sweet and well-behaved little girl and I love her to death!

Weekly Recap

I ran 26.25 miles last week and met my goal of 25 miles for the week! I am still experiencing strange aches and pains and some issues if I try to run consecutive days. The good thing is that the pains goes away within a short period of time and I am pain free when I run. I usually try to run every other day and cross train in between but I am not quite there yet. The rest days are much needed and appreciated until I think I can handle more. I will continue to shoot for 25 miles a week and increase my mileage when I think I am ready for more. My goal is to run a strong half marathon in September and get closer to the 1:5o range again.

How was your weekend? Did you race or do anything special with your family?

Puppy Update: Week One

Thank you to everyone who has asked how the puppies are doing and all of the comments on how cute they are.  They are so adorable and I love them to pieces already. I use the daily bedding change as my opportunity to hold, pet and kiss each one.

The puppies are a week old today and they have grown so much in seven days!! They are trying to open their eyes and they can slither around pretty well. Sugar is exhausted but is taking her daily calcium pills and they seem to be helping her handle the nursing a little better. The bottle feeding is not going so well, in fact is was a failure! The puppies are refusing the bottle and definitely prefer their mommy! We have been trying to give Sugar some time away from the babies since they eat constantly when she is with them. They actually sleep for 2-3 hours straight when she is away from them so we know that they are not as hungry as they like to make Sugar think they are.

Here is a little update on the puppies:

Puppy #1: Current Weight is 10.870 ounces! Her nose is no longer pink and is now black just like Sugar's.  The little pads on her feet are also changing color.

Puppy#2: Current Weight is 12.995 ounces and he is the biggest to date! He is obviously the most aggressive with the food supply so we have to keep an eye on him to make sure that he shares with his brother and sisters. He is also the biggest cry baby. He doesn't like it when I pick him up and give him his daily hug and kiss!

Puppy #3: Current Weight is 12.620 ounces. She is the calmest of the bunch. She loves to cuddle up with her sister and brothers. She is always yawning and trying to open her eyes.

Puppy #4: AKA Brownie: Current Weight is 10.910 ounces and he is the least aggressive of the bunch and usually sleeps close to mama. We have to help Brownie find the milk most of the time so that he doesn't lose any weight and stays healthy. He is the only puppy that we have given a name due to the fact that he is the only puppy that is not white like Sugar.

As I have mentioned before, I have an awesome vet who is helping me place the puppies once they are able to be without mama. She called me to tell me that she may have a home for one of the puppies already. I am happy but sad at the same time because I am already getting attached to them. I am lucky to have such a great vet who is helping me out.  I also feel secure that the puppies will be going to good homes since I know that she would not give them to anyone she did not feel comfortable with.

This is one of my favorite pictures!

This is a full time job but so worth the experience.  I am so glad that we made the decision to care for Sugar and her puppies.