My 1st Half Marathon

I ran through two states on Saturday! That sounds much more impressive than it really was. I ran my first half-marathon on Saturday morning and the race started in Clarkston, WA and ran into Lewiston, ID and then back. Thanks to Jen for the inspiration to try a 1/2 marathon, and thanks to Greg and Dixie for driving around to every possible wide spot in the road to cheer me on! And even though I did all the work, Dixie amazingly got all the attention. She was a kid-magnet. One cool thing at the race... there were three little kids parading around with signs that said "My mom is running her first half-marathon on her 30th birthday!" As soon as she crossed the finish line, a man who I assume was her husband, played happy birthday on a trumpet! Here are a few pictures.

Who knew that Lewis, Clark and Sacajawea were midgets!? The race (The Lewis & Clark Half Marathon) ran along the Lewis & Clark trail from Clarkston to Lewiston. I think they made their point!

Pre-race stretching

The start

Running along the Snake River

The gnats were terrible! They were plastered all over my clothes, stuck in my hair, and running down my face with the sweat. It was really gross. Who knows how many I ate!

Taking a quick break at the halfway point to suck down some Powerade Gel. Luckily, Greg was waiting there with water!

Heading back.

A smile! (because I'm almost finished)

Amazingly, I run 13 miles...Dixie gets the massage!

Friday evening we watched one of WSU's volleyball games. They had a very impressive turnout, but it was easy to see why. They were very exciting to watch and beat USC in 3 straight games. They had a full pep band on hand for the game, and immediately afterwards, the drumline entertained everyone for awhile.

Watching the game with Edith

Here's a video of the WSU drumline playing after the volleyball game.

Finally, my latest sewing project. It is the Heather Ross Weekend Away Bag. It didn't turn out too bad. I've definitely made improvement with each new project. It's just a shame that it takes me 2 months to go from start to finish on a project. :)

Running, Shopping & Cookies

It finally rained here! It seems like months since we've had rain, but it finally rained on and off for a few days. I guess I hadn't realized the rain was missing until it showed up again. It has also significantly cooled down. Last week, the car read 32 degrees one morning while I was driving to work. I think it should stabilize some this week and hover around the upper 50s/lower 60s area, so that shouldn't be too bad. The only other sign of fall around here are the trees that separate the aisles in the Walmart parking lot. :( They are a beautiful yellow-orange, but everything else is just brown. I have a feeling that fall will be when we miss WV the most.

This weekend was pretty laid back. Saturday morning I ran in a 5K race with Travis and Shannon to benefit the YWCA and the Special Olympics. It was the nicest course so far, 3 loops through one of the local parks. Although we all did well in the race, Shannon and I were slightly ashamed that we got "out-sprinted" by a 70+ year old man at the very end of the race. He rode our coattails from the start of the race, and I imagine he was laughing internally as he glided past us in the final stretch.

Saturday afternoon was devoted to shopping. We made all the rounds, hitting the WSU fruit sale for more apples, the Coop for my gluten free items, Walmart for anything & everything, the grocery store, and the pet store. Dixie and Ginny came along (and Shannon) to sniff around the pet store with us. Dixie seemed more interested in the cat food section than anything else...and the fish tanks!

She was trying to lick this despite the plastic.

Can you spot the "squeaky" toy??

Mmmmm.....seafood!

She's not much of a shopper. If we stayed in one spot too long, she would just lay down. :)

Sunday was pretty uneventful, although I made some new cookies that - despite being gluten free - actually turned out good! If you like lemon flavor, you'll love these lemon ricotta cookies. Every cookie that I've tried with gluten-free flour has turned out to be a disappointment, but these were a pleasant surprise. I imagine they would be even better made with regular flour. Here's the recipe if anyone is interested.

2-1/2 c. all purpose flour (I used a gluten-free mixture)
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 c. unsalted butter (softened)
2 c. sugar (I used sugar/Splenda blend)
2 large eggs
15 oz. ricotta cheese (I used part-skim)
3 Tbsp. fresh lemon juice
grated zest of 1 lemon

Cream butter and sugar until fluffy. Add eggs one at a time, beating well. Add ricotta cheese, lemon juice and lemon zest and beat to combine. Stir in dry ingredients. Drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment (I used silicone mats). Bake ~12 minutes at 375 degrees, until slightly golden at the edges. Remove from oven and let cookies rest on baking sheet.

Spoon a glaze made from 1-1/2 cups powdered sugar and 3 Tbsp. lemon juice over top of cookies and allow to set until glaze hardens. Enjoy!