Catching a cold and catching up on some gratitude

Here we are on Monday morning once again...somehow I missed posting for the last 3 days, and so I will have some thankfulness to catch up on. But first let me tell you what happened on Friday.


I did my morning run, and for the first time IN MY LIFE I ran for 36ish minutes, and made it a distance of 2.9 miles. I have never, never ran that long or that far before. And while it was still short of my 3.2 mile goal, I was pretty proud of it. I have two weeks and two days until the Thanksgiving 5K that I am signed up for, and I am just going to be focusing on increasing my time and distance. Oh, and on actually running outside. I have been on a treadmill this whole time as I was working through the C25K, and I know that it is totally different running on pavement, and so the plan for this week is to map out my run somewhere near my home (somewhere without hills, as the run in Sacramento is very flat - thank heavens) and get out there and start trying.


Those of you who are runners, or who at least have tried it, how does running on the treadmill compare with the street? What should I be aware of?


As of this minute I am fighting the cold that I have been trying to get my oldest daughter over, and as her surgery is in three and a half weeks neither one of us can be sick. I am drinking tons of water and consuming copious amounts of vitamin C, as well as downing Airborne and zinc, all in an attempt to convince my body that I am NOT going to succumb to this disease. I made the choice to miss my workout this morning, hoping not to push my body over the edge, but I hope to feel good enough by tonight to go and do something. Missing it is like having things crawling under my skin - it is a really unpleasant sensation and I am constantly aware of it and it is wigging me out.


So onto my last 4 days of being thankful...


On day #5, I was grateful for music. I LOVE music. I love to sing (I sang tenor in high school and was in a musical where I was a gospel singing nun.) I love to dance. Music makes me feel lighter and happier when I want to, or it embraces my melancholy when I need it to. I love lyrics and melody. If I had to make the horrible choice between being deaf or blind, I would have to go with blind, because to never hear music again would make my life miserable. Friday night, I went with the hubs to see one of our favorite independent bands at a local night club, and it was wonderful. Music just makes me happy.


My 6th day found me grateful for health as I was saying goodbye to mine - nothing makes you appreciate feeing well like not feeling it. 


Sunday, or day#7, I was thankful for rainy days when I can stay at home in comfy clothes and just rest. I love to listen to the rain hammering outside while I am snuggled up with a cup of herbal tea and my favorite blanket, finishing an entire novel. Ah, that is bliss.


Which brings me to today. Monday. I think that part of the fun of this month of gratitude is waking up and thinking "what will I be grateful for today?" Today I am grateful the days when I am able to get up and make breakfast for my kids. With all my early morning workouts, they have usually eaten when I get back, and mosts of their breakfasts consist of cold cereal and milk. This morning, since I stayed home, I was able to make them French toast (which I abhor but they love) and it was just gratifying to watch them eat it up, some with powdered sugar lips, and to know that I did something right. They will go off to school this morning with bellies full of warm food, and that is a happy thought.