{DIY} Race bib holder

 

My fellow runner friend had one of these race bib holders at her house and I LOVED it!  Her husband got it off of Etsy and after searching for them, I found out they were anywhere in between $30- $40 which I really didn't think I should be spending.  So, being such a "crafty" person,  I decided to make one!

 

This project cost me less than $15 and a few hours to make...probably less time for someone that doesn't three kids running around.

 

To make this, you will need:

 

11x14 beveled edge wooden plaque (I got this at Joann's)

acrylic paint, any color you wish

small paint brush or foam brush

mod podge

scrapbook paper, any pattern you wish

hammer

large nail

level

2- small "c" hooks

4- large "c" hooks (sometimes referred to as tea cup hooks)

newspaper

pencil

 

This is the wooden plaque I used.  It cost $9.99 normally at Joann's but I used a 50% coupon so got it for $5, this was my most expensive item.

 

I chose to paint mine this pretty Robin's Egg Blue.  You will only need a small bottle and you won't use too much.  You can use any left over paint you have as well.

 

Paint the plaque with at least two coats of paint.  Make sure the first coat is dry before you do the second.

 

While the paint is drying, work on your words.  You can chose whatever you want to say.  I wanted to hang both mine and my husband's bibs so I tried to keep my phrase "gender neutral".  If it were just for mine, I would have written "Run like a girl!" but, alas, you must make sacrifices for a marriage :) 

 

Choose what you want to say and type it as large as you wish and in which ever font you like.  That was the hardest for me...I couldn't decide on the font!  Print it out in landscape mode on your paper.  Make sure your paper isn't too busy or else the words will be too hard to read.

 

Cut out your words and use some of the mod podge to glue them down on your board.  Then cover your entire board in mod podge and let it dry.  I did two full coats on mine.  It was dry clear, don't worry!

 

I bought these sawtooth photo hangers at Home Depot.  They were less than $2.  I wanted to hang two on the back just in case my running bling gets heavy ;)

 

Use the level to mark where you want them to be and use a pencil to mark the holes. They come with some teeny nails and it was hard to hold them to hammer them in so I used a larger nail and made a "starter hole" so the nail could sit in it and then I hammered it in.  Make sure they are level!

 

Ta-da!  Level and ready to hang.

 

Now onto the hooks.  Some running bibs are more narrow than others and some are wider.  The race bib holders I saw on Etsy had two sets of hooks, one more narrow than the others but I decided to use the most narrow I had use that as my size.  Then I hole punched the rest of my bibs so they fit.  This way, I could put them in order of when we ran them.  On the bottom, I hung the four larger hooks for our metals.  I just evenly spaced them across the bottom.  To hang the hooks, make a small starter hole with the same nail as before and just screw them in.  The wood is fairly soft and it is easy to screw them in. Make sure your screw backs aren't longer than the wood is!

 

Once you are done with the hooks, you are finished.  It is quite easy to make and didn't take too long.  I think it looks nice hanging up and is a good inspiration to see all of them! 

 

I hope you hang yours up with pride!  We have 10 bibs hanging and 5 metals...pretty cool!  I look forward to running more races so I can add more goodies to my display.

 

Happy Crafting!

 

 

 

 

 

Happies and Crappies #5 {link up!}

Happy Friday all!

Being a stay at home mom that has a husband that works every weekend, Friday is really no different than any other day, but happy Friday to all of those who Friday is special!

Last week I did not do Happies and Crappies, because the crappies FAR out weighed the happies, and I just didn't have much free time.  I am glad that this week I had some happies I am excited to share!

Happies:

- I have had more time to blog this week.  I have done a new post almost every day and have several recipes and projects in the works for next week.  This makes me VERY happy :)

- Shockingly my mileage for March wasn't too bad.  I plan on doing at least 3 miles today and tomorrow on the treadmill and with that added 6 miles, it will bring my March total to 83 miles and my year-to-date to 227.8.  I had really wanted to do 90 but with a week with no running, that wasn't going to happen.  As the weather gets hotter, it's gets more difficult to find time to run (+ Mr. Peas's work schedule never helps) but I will figure out a way to fit it in!

- I ran the Arizona Distance Classic this past weekend.  My friend Courtney, her sister Breanne and I all did a fantastic job and it was mucho fun.  I ran the quarter marathon in 1 hour and 3 minutes and came in 68th place out of 338 people!  I had REALLY wanted to come in under an hour, but with all the crappies we had the prior week, I didn't have too much free time for running, so I can't complain.

 

Don't we just look smashing??  We barely look sweaty :)

 

 

I had a nice man take this for me.  Please don't ask me what I am doing with my hand because I don't know.  I still like the pic though.

 

 

This was as soon as Courtney and Breanne finished.  They finished at the same time, two cute sisters :)  I am proud of both of them!

 

- Easter has completely snuck up on me this year.  I feel woefully unprepared, which isn't like me!  I did get some goodies for the peas and things for their eggs.  Unfortunately Mr. Pea is working so he won't be able to join us for church or dinner.  I will save him a plate of ham, though.  The other day, we colored eggs.  We only lost one solider during battle.

 

 

Mr. Pea and Hannah

 

 

The peas.  We have been using this same Dora tablecloth for all our painting and egg dying needs since Abby was 2.

 

Mama and the peas.

 

Mama and Jake...I look tired, someone should have told me.

 

The finished product!  Yes, that is a spider man egg, of course.

 

- I had a nice play date with some of my mommy friends.  The kids played in the pool and us mama's had a margarita.  It was perfection.

 

- The kids are in full swing with their spring sports.  It is fun for them to be so busy!  Abby is taking an art class every Monday and Jake is playing T-ball.  I know four of the mama's on Jake's team.  It is fun to sit and be the "cool moms" together.

 

Crappies:

 

- The kids spring sports are KILLING me!  I have literally driving all over town.  It figures that Jake's baseball is the same two nights Abby has her art class and also CCD.  Ugg....thank heavens Mr. Pea works right down the street from her two events because I am having to rush to drive her and drop her off and then turn around and drive ALL the way back to Rita Ranch for Jacob's events while he picks her up.  I need a glass of wine just thinking of all the gas I will be using!  At least they are cute and are enjoying their activities.

 

- We toured the cemeteries for my brother-in-law.  It is a "happy/crappy".  Crappy, for obvious reasons, but a happy that Mr. Pea has found a place he feels good about.  It's a difficult decision.  I will be glad when he is at peace.  I have a very unfinished feeling in my heart that is hard to explain.  When he has his place and his stone, then we can begin to heal.  Since this is a Catholic cemetery we can only have religious icons on his stone, so no Denver Bronco, but I plan on painting some rocks to place around his stone with all his favorite things.  I did the same for my Mom's grave.  It's my way of showing how much we loved him and miss him. 

 

How was your week??  Are you ready for April, because it's almost here!

 

 

 

Dirty Girl Mud Run!!

 

Today I ran the Dirty Girl Mud Run with 9 other lovely ladies.  It was SO much fun!  We didn't all know each other to start, but by the end we were always remember each other as Team Superboobies!

 

I was asked by Dirty Girl to help promote the race and to get a team together and I was happy to do so, since this type of race is right up my alley! 

 

This race is a 5k and was a lot of fun.  It was at Old Tucson Studios so the terrain was rugged and deserty.  The obstacles weren't very challenging, but certainly made for lots of laughs from our team!!  There were quite a few watery ones, and the water was COLD!  One, we had to climb under a very low net crawling through the muddy water.  It was so funny.  We really enjoyed ourselves.

 

If you are looking for a fun and not too challenging of a race to do with your ladies, this one is for you!  The girls I was running with had never done one of these races before and they all agreed it was the perfect for beginners.

 

Here are some pictures from all the fun we had!

 

There was lots of music and a great atmosphere!

 

 

Add another race bib to my collection!  Since this race benefited the National Breast Cancer Foundation, I dedicated my run to the memory of my mama. <3

 

Here's half our Superboobie team ready to go!

 

Woot!

 

This was my friend Wendy's first race ever, and I was SO proud of her doing it!  She did AH-mazing!

 

Team Superboobies finishes strong!

There wasn't as much mud as I thought...they should add more next time!

 

 

Celebratory beer!

 

Two more friends, Kim and Lisa, who were running a mud run for the first time...way to go ladies!

 

We got these adorable shirts to boot!  I'm still wearing mine now :)

 

Overall, we had a blast!  So many laughs and we got some running in as well.

 

Check out Dirty Girl Mud Run online:

Facebook, on the web, and on Twitter!

 

I would definitely love to run this race again next year!  Plenty of running, laughs, sunshine, girliness...and some free beer, all for a great cause - now what's better than that?!?

 

Disclosure: In exchange for blogging pre- and post this event, I received a complimentary entry fee and a discount for my my fellow runner team mates! All opinions are my own :)

A "cross fit" treadmill workout

This girl has a nice butt.  I do not.

In order for me to attempt to get a nicer butt, I run.  But just running at roughly the same speed for varying distances isn't quite enough.  I believe that Tony Horton calls it "muscle confusion" and I am sure there is a lot of science to back it up, but I don't have time to read all of that so I will just take his word for it.

 

Some days I don't have the luxury of running outside so then I will use my treadmill.  I can't run distance runs on it though, it's just too boring.  In order to "spice it up" some, I like to do different types of workouts, usually totaling no more than 4 miles, which is about my max attention span on the TM.  Sometimes I vary the incline and do a "hills" run, sometimes I vary the speed and do a "interval" run.  This week I tried a "cross fit" run and it was fun!  It went by fast too.

 

I want to share what I did, so you can try it out some time.

 

Cross fit is like the king of muscle confusion, so basically I have added a mini workout in the middle of my running.

 

I set the incline at a 3, because I wasn't in the mood for too major of a hill.

 

Run 1/2 mile on a 6 mph

 Stop and do:

10 push ups

20 squats

30 lunges

 

*repeat 6 times

 

I alternated my speed slightly but running a 6 for the first 1/2 mile, a 6.5 on the second, then a 6 again, 6.5 again...yadda, yadda.  You get the picture.  It was a bit harder than I would've thought, or else I would have bumped it up to a 7.  Next time I will try that though.  This three mile workout packed quite a punch and I enjoyed it. 

 

It's nice to add some variety into your workouts....and also remember:

 



This is good to keep in mind :)

Saving the world...one dirty run at a time

I like running; running straight races and muddy obstacle runs.  They are different animals and require different training.  These mud runs are a nice change of pace and are LOTS of fun.  I have done a few in the past and they are always a good time.

I have been invited to get together a team for The Dirty Girl mud run and am VERY excited about it!!!  This race is ladies only and is a 5k muddy obstacle course that will be held here in Tucson at Old Tucson Studios on March 2nd.

What makes this race special is that part of the proceeds goes to benefit The National Breast Cancer Foundation, which is a cause very near and dear to me.  As most of you know, my mom lost her battle with breast cancer last March, and the race will take place 9 days before the one year anniversary of her passing.  Running this race will be a tribute to her and all others who have struggled with this b of a cancer.

This 5k race will feature 11 obstacles with such hilarious names as "utopian tubes" and the "PMS" (pretty muddy stuff).  Good thing no boys are allowed because all this lady talk will sure make them blush!!  This un-timed race is a great beginners course for newbies and a fun time for running pros.

When you sign up you get a t-shirt and a dirty girl key chain.  You also get a free drink at the end, and the icon was of a Cosmo so I am hopeful that will be the bev of choice!!

Keeping in line with the breast cancer theme, I decided to name my team the SuperBoobies....clever, eh???  I already have visions of adorable shirts with a Superman-esk hot pink SB on the front...and perhaps a cape???  There are prizes for best team names and costumes.

Want to run with me and join my team??  Log onto the Dirty Girl Run site here:  http://www.godirtygirl.com/  and then click on "event schedule" and pick Tucson, March 2nd.
When you register, find my team name, SuperBoobies and sign up!!!!  We are the 8:30 wave to run.  Being the coupon ninja, I scored us a code.  Enter code DGTUBLOG20 and receive 20% off your registration!!! 

So spread the word, invite your friends and come get dirty with the SuperBoobies!  Anyone is welcome, the more the merrier.  Don't be shy if this is your first race...you have to start some place!!

Here are some photos of past races:

This run will be a great time and supports a great cause.  Come join the SuperBoobies and help me save the world....one dirty run at a time!!!

The Color Run!

 

 

This Saturday my friend's Courtney, Breanne and I ran the infamous Color Run up in Tempe.  We ran with a group of bloggers and it was quite an adventure!!

 

It never rains in Arizona.  In the off chance that it does, it rarely lasts more than a few minutes and almost always in the afternoon.

 

Well the weather gods were not in our favor this weekend because we woke up to a torrential down pour and it just steadily got worse as we got closer to Phoenix. 

 

We had some ADORABLE white outfits picked out: white knee high socks, our cute blogger t's and our awesome handmade tutus.  Short sleeved shirt and shorts.  When wouldn't this be appropriate in Arizona??  On Saturday.

 

 

 

Here's our starting line picture.  Very rainy!

 

Here's Courtney and her sister Breanne.  Still feeling the Color Run love!

 

The Color Run!

 Here's the whole group of us, getting ready to go!  Cute tutus, eh??

 

We ran the rainy, colorful race in about 30 minutes.  We waded through knee high puddles and over muddy hills; and no, this was not an obstacle race.  We were blasted with thick, chunky plods of color.  I think it's suppose to normally be more of a powder.  Well, water mixed with it made the consistency quite different!

 

 

 We still had a blast.  We had to wait awhile for some of the others in the group to finish, which was when we got really cold.  I mean, so cold, we couldn't feel our hands for probably a good three hours later.

 

Here's our adorable Color Run nails and smurf hands!

 

After having the most joyous experience of changing out of those drenched clothes, my feet had transformed into zombie feet.  Eating at In and Out was hilarious.

 

Overall, we had an awesome time!  I would most definitely run this again...I would just PRAY for a sunny day!  Any temperature, just no rain!!

 

Another run in the books...and one with a now-hilarious story (but if you had asked me about it while I was shivering soaking wet under an underpass like a homeless person, I would have had a different response ;).

fitness friday- a new app! {get sworky!}

Feeling lazy??  Don't really feel like doing a workout, but know you must do SOMETHING??  I have just the app for you :)

I discovered the Sworkit app: fun name and equally as fun to use.  It's free, unless you want to upgrade to the Pro version.  I have no clue what's better about the Pro and never will because I am too cheap to pay for it.

This app gives you set of exercises you to for 30 seconds each.  You begin by choosing "strength" or "yoga and stretching".  Then you choose the desired section you would like to focus on and how long you would like to work out and press start.

The robotic lady will tell you what to do and if you are unsure of what a particular move it, each has a video link that you can watch and see how to do it.  It's very easy to use.

I tried it a few times and it's a decent little workout.  There's no weights required and I did bust out a little sweat.  Now, it's no replacement for running a 6-miler outside or doing a massive weight set, BUT if you are short on time and want to do something quick, this is a nice option.  Plus, you could facebook "sworking it" as a status and it will sound awesome.

This will be my last post until Tuesday because I am off to Vegas with my Wives Club!  Have no fear, though, because I have lots of hilarious stories upcoming and also, I'm sure, many more fitness days because I will have many, many calories to burn when I get back :)

Happy sworking!! :)

Fitness Friday- a treadmill workout

So I've been wanting to do a fitness-themed day on my blog for awhile as a way to share some knowledge and also give me an added reason to force me to workout :)  So here's the first installment: Welcome to Fitness Friday!

Working out can be fun.  Eating healthy is fun.  Working out and eating healthy isn't as fun when you are trying to lose weight.  It adds an extra layer of stress and knowing you HAVE to do it makes me not want to do it :).  I have some personal fitness and weight-loss goals I am working on right now.  I would like to run 1,000 miles this year and also lose 10 lbs.  I don't, however, want to not each a bunch of yummy stuff or not have some wine at night, SO it's all about balance and moderation.  I used to be a terrible snacker at night, after the kids went to bed.  Not sweets, but salty stuff like crackers and chips.  Yum!  The past few weeks I haven't done that, which has been great!  I haven't been counting my calories, just because I hate it so much.  I know it's a good thing to do.  I've lost almost 3 lbs in the last 3 weeks, so I'm happy with that. If that starts to change, then I will probably start counting again for awhile.

I am a runner, as you all know.  That's my primary source of exercise and I really enjoy doing it.  With less daylight hours and a hubby that's at work so much, I will sometimes use the treadmill.  Since I am training for the tough mudder in February, I am also doing some weighted cross-training workouts 2x a week, in addition to the 4 days I am running. This is the second week of my training schedule and it's working out well so far.  I can't always stick to the same days each week, like my long run for example, because of Mr. Pea's work schedule.  One day is a long run, where I increase my distance by a 1/2 mile or a mile, two are shorter runs with varying depending on the week (between 3-6 miles) and one "training run" which is usually interval training on the treadmill.

Tonight is treadmill night since David won't be home in time for me to run outside.  Treadmill workouts can be boorrriinng so it's nice to spice it up by doing speed intervals.  I don't normally run for distance on the treadmill, just time.  Tonight I will be doing 30 min.  This is a fairly standard interval treadmill: warm up, run fast, recover, repeat.  I will do all of this on a #2 incline, just because I am not in the mood for hills today :)

0-5 minutes: 3.5 (warm up)
5-10 minutes: 4.5
10-12 minutes: 6
12-14 minutes: 3.5
14-16 minutes: 6.3
16-18 minutes: 3.5
18-20 minutes: 6.5
20-22 minutes: 3.5
22-24 minutes: 6.7
24-26 minutes: 3.5
26-28 minutes: 7
28-30 minutes: 3 (cool down)

If I feel so inspired, I may bump it to 35 minutes because I would like to do 3 miles.  We will see though :)

This is also a good thing to remember too for all us mama's out there :)

                                                                    Happy running!

Why I run

I am about a week away from my second half marathon.  I feel pretty good about it.  Part of me is looking forward to it being over because it's hard to find the time with David's schedule to run the long distance runs. I am up to 11 miles.  This week I'll up that a bit more, probably to 12, but that'll be it before the big race.  Once you run 11-12 miles, 13.1 isn't really that much farther.  Plus, the  adrenaline of race day will help to carry you though it.  If you are an inspired runner, I definitely suggest signing yourself for a race.  Maybe not a half martahon, but at least a 5 or 7k.  It gives you something to train for, a purpose to run.  It's also a cool feeling, all of those other runners around you, all that adrenaline pumping.  You also usually get a free shirt!!  As I train, I frequently think about WHY I run.  I wanted to share my reasons with you now, and they are probably not all what you think ;) Please note, these are in no particular order...

1. I run to stay thin.  I seriously wish there was some healthy and safe miracle pill that would make me lose 10 pounds and keep it off, but, alas, there is not.  So until some awesome scientist invents one, the really only way to stay thin is to eat right and work out.  As for eating right, I just try not to stuff my face with crap everyday.  And for exercise, there's nothing that burns more calories than a long run.
2. I run to get a break from my kids.  Ok, I said it!  I love my peas but often they make me batty.  Especially staying home, it's more often then not, just me and them and that alone is enough to make  a mama nuts!
3. I run to listen to my music loud.  Enough said.
4. I run to get better legs.  As I get older, my metabolism gets crappier and so do my legs.  So I run to try and combat that.
5. I run to train.  I am lazy.  Shocker, I know!  If I had the choice, I'd always pick the couch.  I just so rarely get to!  So that's another reason why I sign up for races  because it helps to keep me motivated. Otherwise the couch would probably win. 
6. I run to be healthy.  I don't want breast cancer.  I REALLY don't want it.  As most of you know, my mom passed of stage 4 breast cancer this past March.  She wasn't the most healthy person.  Smoked, didn't really exercise.  She was always blessed with "thin" genes though.  She may not have been healthy, but she always looked it.  She was first diagnosed in 2003 when I was in college.  It was awful, especially me being in AZ and her al the way in MA.  It sucked, big time.  But she fought it and went into remission.  My mom was nothing short of a fighter.  I know that I am awesome as I am today because of her, there's no doubt. Her best traits were passed down to me.  This past November, she got sick again.  Thankfully I went home for a good friend's wedding.  This was the last time I would see my mom like how I will always remember.  She was Mimi.  December we found out the cancer was back. March she was gone.  Just like that.  Fast.  It is the worst thing ever.  Still is.  These feels make me run. I'm 31 years old.  My sister, brother and I shouldve had 30 more years with her.  She was only 54.  I will always do anything in my power for my babies not to have to go though what I am.  So I run.
7. I run to be with my mom.  I know, sounds weird.  When I run, it's truly the only time in my day that I am not thinking about what else I have to do, who needs what, what's for dinner, what chores need to be done.  I don't think.  I just jam to my songs and I run.  It's when I do this, I feel like my mom is most with me.  Especially when I run really early and see the sunrise behind the mountains.  It always reminds me of her.  She, unlike me, LOVED it here.  Those dang mountains will always remind me of her.  I miss her every second of every day.  Running helps me to clear my mind and just be.  Which, as a mom of three, is quite hard to do.

I added hot pink laces for my mama this month.  Helps to keep me focused.

This is my very favorite picture of my mom and us.  It reminds me of me.  This what I do every day.  We were the same, her and I.

This is why I run.  So that I can carry on her legacy, continue to be a great mom like her.  To jam to my songs, to have great legs, to be healthy, not to get cancer.  What every your reason is, just do it.  Run.