Well, this is it! Next weekend I'll be heading to Des Moines to participate in the Des Moine half-marathon, there is no turning back now!! I had a dream last night about the event, it was quite hilarious actually! I was running and I kept complaining that I've only been running for like 5 minutes and that there is no way that I'll ever get to the finish line before dark; but then someone showed me a clock which showed that I had been running for 6 hours and then I felt really proud of myself. I continued following everyone and the route was so confusing, at one point someone drove me across the interstate (?) and then when I saw the finish line I made them let me out so I could cross it (cheat much??). Anyway I crossed that finish line and found out I finished the 1/2 marathon in 12 hours...and I was EXCITED about that! If it takes me 12 hours to cross the finish line somebody please come pick me up and drive me across the interstate!!
Through out my training I have been able to hold a steady pace of somewhere between 11 to 12 minute miles, which is not fast at all BUT slow and steady is what I'm going for. So I would like to be done in like 2 hours and 30 minutes...my only goal is to cross the finish line so if I don't get there until 3 hours that is fine too.
I am remembering my very first athletic event that I did in 2002, it was an adventure race that I did with my friend Jon and his dad. It started out with a 15 mile bike ride, followed by a 5 mile canoeing trip, then a 5k at the end. I remember getting to the top of the hill on my bike and seeing nothing but country ahead of me and know that there was no turning back, I truly wanted my mom! It was a crazy feeling, I felt alone, scared, mad at myself! But I told myself to buck up and I did and I got through it...so "Buck up self, you'll be fine!" There, that's my pep talk!
October 11, 2013
July 24, 2013
Action!
It's been a little over three months since I last posted here about my journey toward completing a half-marathon; I will say that over the last three months I have been wrestling through the "contemplation" "preparation" and "action" stages (see my previous post titled Stages of Change) and I am just now sure that it is safe to say "ACTION" with no turning back. Whew, that's a scary idea, but an exciting one!!
Training for any kind of athletic event is naturally difficult and challenging even for the most seasoned athlete. I wouldn't say that I'm naturally athletic with tons of granola-like energy for these kinds of things, in fact I really like to sit on the couch and watch Lifetime movies while playing games on my Ipad-so the decision to complete a 13.1 mile athletic event is not something I would choose to do without a method behind the madness! That "method" is exactly what I want to write about today! About two years ago I caught this bug and most of you who know me have probably heard me talk about it at some point (or at several points) over the last couple of years, that "bug" is the organization "Girls on the Run" (GOTR). In short Girls on the Run is an afterschool program designed to encourage and inspire young girls, ages 8-11, to "recognize her inner strength...and to define her life on her own terms". I've been involved with this program for two official seasons-both as a GOTR board member and as a GOTR coach. What this means first of all is that I am in mad-crazy love with this organization (mad-crazy enough to run a half-marathon) and most importantly that I have seen first hand the impact this program has on the lives of the girls who are able to participate!
The longer I am a part of this organization the more passionate I become about it, and about inspiring young girls to DEFINE their lives on their OWN terms! One of the best things about Girls on the Run is that we, as an organization, want any girl to participate despite ability to pay the $150.00 registration fee (the registration fee covers the necessities for the season including curriculum, materials, medals, t-shirts, volunteer recruitment, coach training and certification, coach background checks, healthy snacks, water bottles, 5k race registration, program management, etc). In order to allow all girls to participate despite income level or ability to pay GOTR does fundraising through out the year to build a scholarship fund that can be utilized by any girl who wants to participate but cannot afford the fee. On our registration form the girls (and their families) are simply asked to pay what they can whether it be $5.00 or the entire $150.00; the scholarship fund then absorbs the remainder of the cost. According to the GOTREI annual report our chapter served over 600 girls in the Iowa City/Cedar Rapids area and provided over $44,000.00 in scholarships in FY2012...so as you can see the program itself, and the scholarships provided are kind of a big deal!
One of the fundraising programs that GOTREI launched in 2012 was the Solemates adult charity running program; according to the annual report this program raised $10,000.00 in it's first year! And that, my friends, brings us full circle in my explaination of the method behind my madness! I CAUGHT THE BUG! And through my journey with Girls on the Run and with the Solemates program I want to help you catch the bug too, whether it's helping me to raise money for local girls by donating for my race, or the decision to sign up to participate in your own Solemates event! You could also consider becomeing GOTR coach...the possibilities are endless and I want you to feel the energy and spread the word!!
My three main goals for participating in Solemates:
1. To spread the word about Girls on the Run and all the awesome work the organization does for girls in THIS community and around the world.
2. Complete the Des Moines half-marathon (13.1 miles) as an inspiration for the girls who participate in the program, locally and world-wide, to see what it means to set a goal in mind and work hard to achieve it, and to be inspired to do the same!
3. Raise money (my goal is $500.00) to benefit girls locally and pave the way for them to be able to participate in the program despite household income or ability to pay the registration fee.
Will you consider helping me out and making a tax-deductible donation? It's super easy to donate, here is a link to my fundraising site: https://www.raceplanner.com/donate/Vicky_Wieben_GOTR. All funds that are donated go directly to Girls on the Run of Eastern Iowa to benefit girls locally in the Iowa City/Cedar Rapids area. I will continue to blog about my own journey and about this organization! Thanks for your help!
Training for any kind of athletic event is naturally difficult and challenging even for the most seasoned athlete. I wouldn't say that I'm naturally athletic with tons of granola-like energy for these kinds of things, in fact I really like to sit on the couch and watch Lifetime movies while playing games on my Ipad-so the decision to complete a 13.1 mile athletic event is not something I would choose to do without a method behind the madness! That "method" is exactly what I want to write about today! About two years ago I caught this bug and most of you who know me have probably heard me talk about it at some point (or at several points) over the last couple of years, that "bug" is the organization "Girls on the Run" (GOTR). In short Girls on the Run is an afterschool program designed to encourage and inspire young girls, ages 8-11, to "recognize her inner strength...and to define her life on her own terms". I've been involved with this program for two official seasons-both as a GOTR board member and as a GOTR coach. What this means first of all is that I am in mad-crazy love with this organization (mad-crazy enough to run a half-marathon) and most importantly that I have seen first hand the impact this program has on the lives of the girls who are able to participate!
The longer I am a part of this organization the more passionate I become about it, and about inspiring young girls to DEFINE their lives on their OWN terms! One of the best things about Girls on the Run is that we, as an organization, want any girl to participate despite ability to pay the $150.00 registration fee (the registration fee covers the necessities for the season including curriculum, materials, medals, t-shirts, volunteer recruitment, coach training and certification, coach background checks, healthy snacks, water bottles, 5k race registration, program management, etc). In order to allow all girls to participate despite income level or ability to pay GOTR does fundraising through out the year to build a scholarship fund that can be utilized by any girl who wants to participate but cannot afford the fee. On our registration form the girls (and their families) are simply asked to pay what they can whether it be $5.00 or the entire $150.00; the scholarship fund then absorbs the remainder of the cost. According to the GOTREI annual report our chapter served over 600 girls in the Iowa City/Cedar Rapids area and provided over $44,000.00 in scholarships in FY2012...so as you can see the program itself, and the scholarships provided are kind of a big deal!
One of the fundraising programs that GOTREI launched in 2012 was the Solemates adult charity running program; according to the annual report this program raised $10,000.00 in it's first year! And that, my friends, brings us full circle in my explaination of the method behind my madness! I CAUGHT THE BUG! And through my journey with Girls on the Run and with the Solemates program I want to help you catch the bug too, whether it's helping me to raise money for local girls by donating for my race, or the decision to sign up to participate in your own Solemates event! You could also consider becomeing GOTR coach...the possibilities are endless and I want you to feel the energy and spread the word!!
My three main goals for participating in Solemates:
1. To spread the word about Girls on the Run and all the awesome work the organization does for girls in THIS community and around the world.
2. Complete the Des Moines half-marathon (13.1 miles) as an inspiration for the girls who participate in the program, locally and world-wide, to see what it means to set a goal in mind and work hard to achieve it, and to be inspired to do the same!
3. Raise money (my goal is $500.00) to benefit girls locally and pave the way for them to be able to participate in the program despite household income or ability to pay the registration fee.
Will you consider helping me out and making a tax-deductible donation? It's super easy to donate, here is a link to my fundraising site: https://www.raceplanner.com/donate/Vicky_Wieben_GOTR. All funds that are donated go directly to Girls on the Run of Eastern Iowa to benefit girls locally in the Iowa City/Cedar Rapids area. I will continue to blog about my own journey and about this organization! Thanks for your help!
April 3, 2013
Stages of Change
There is a model for behavioral change that smart people in the 80's used research to come up with to assess a person's readiness for change. This is called the Transtheoretical model and there are 5 stages: Precontemplation (either completely unaware of the issue or just unwilling to do anything about it), Contemplation ( Aware of the issue and thinking about overcoming it but mostly uncommited to taking any action), Preparation ( Aware of the problem and having good intentions about taking action within the next month or so but have unsuccessfully done so for more than a year or so), Action (actually committing time and energy to change the behavior), and Maintenance (preventing relapse from occurring).
So being a therapist, working in a mental health clinic, and being constantly surrounded by therapists of whom you consider your friends it's a little difficult to try and make changes without having to truly conceptualize what it means to make a change and the most effective ways to go about making that change. This is how I get to a blog post about the Trantheoretical Model of Change. So it's been a joke between one of my friends (and coworker) that I have been slipping in and out of the precontemplation, comtemplation and preparation stages. So I'm aware theres an issue and some days I'm unwilling to do anything about it, other days I just think about overcoming it and the rest of the days I do have good intentions about taking action, but they are not always carried out. I do think over the past month or so I've moved completely out of the precontemplation stage and have even dabble in the action phase because I have gone for a run a handful of times.
But now, spring has arrived and the time has come to announce that I am IN the action phase. No more dabbling around to the stages I find most comfortable for my mood that day...action it is!! Ugh. Just typing that kind of sends me straight back to precontemplation. Sigh.
This weekend Team Vic is gearing up for Season 3!! We will be running the Live Healthy Linn 5k in Hiawatha. Considering it's Wednesday and I'm just NOW declaring ACTION...I guarantee this race will be have to be a "get through it without throwing up" kind of run! :)
Wish me luck and considering donating to my cause! I'm currently attempting to raise money as part of a fundraising group called "Sole Mates". I will be running a half-marathon in Des Moines in October and all the money I raise will go to our local chapter--Girls on the Run of Eastern Iowa! Check out the website for more information on this awesome program and learn how to donate!! www.girlsontherun.org or girlsontheruniowa.org
So being a therapist, working in a mental health clinic, and being constantly surrounded by therapists of whom you consider your friends it's a little difficult to try and make changes without having to truly conceptualize what it means to make a change and the most effective ways to go about making that change. This is how I get to a blog post about the Trantheoretical Model of Change. So it's been a joke between one of my friends (and coworker) that I have been slipping in and out of the precontemplation, comtemplation and preparation stages. So I'm aware theres an issue and some days I'm unwilling to do anything about it, other days I just think about overcoming it and the rest of the days I do have good intentions about taking action, but they are not always carried out. I do think over the past month or so I've moved completely out of the precontemplation stage and have even dabble in the action phase because I have gone for a run a handful of times.
But now, spring has arrived and the time has come to announce that I am IN the action phase. No more dabbling around to the stages I find most comfortable for my mood that day...action it is!! Ugh. Just typing that kind of sends me straight back to precontemplation. Sigh.
This weekend Team Vic is gearing up for Season 3!! We will be running the Live Healthy Linn 5k in Hiawatha. Considering it's Wednesday and I'm just NOW declaring ACTION...I guarantee this race will be have to be a "get through it without throwing up" kind of run! :)
Wish me luck and considering donating to my cause! I'm currently attempting to raise money as part of a fundraising group called "Sole Mates". I will be running a half-marathon in Des Moines in October and all the money I raise will go to our local chapter--Girls on the Run of Eastern Iowa! Check out the website for more information on this awesome program and learn how to donate!! www.girlsontherun.org or girlsontheruniowa.org
February 9, 2013
"You.Cannot.WING.A.Half-Marathon."
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| College-Age Me |
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| Adventure Racing |
After I graduated and moved to Cedar Rapids I was that much more exited about working out because I had a lot of extra time on my hands since I no longer had homework to worry about. One of my friends convinced me to participate in two adventure races one summer. One was four hours and one was eight. So I rowed my own canoe for 4 miles, biked 19 miles and then ran 3.1 miles all in a matter of 4 hours...by choice!
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| This is one of my very favorite wedding pictures of Matt fluffing my dress! :) |
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| The day before I delievered my baby boy |
And then I decided to go to graduate school which was stressful!! I think I'm still stressed from grad school! Oh, and this happened...
But really, who could complain with a baby this adorable?
Team Vic was established in 2011, when my bestie Vicki and I decided to participate in some events together...
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| April 2011 |
The summer of 2012 was our biggest year yet with five 5k's completed and a 90 mile bike ride from Marshalltown to Cedar Rapids!! It was a fun summer!
In 2012 running took on a more philanthropic reason specifically last fall when a lot of hard work paid off and Linn County hosted their first season of Girls on the Run in 4 area schools. Watching the girls who participated grow, change, and realize their internal worth changed ME. Here is a post I wrote about Girls on the Run and what it means to me to be a part of it. I'm proud to serve on the Board of Directors for Girls on the Run of Eastern Iowa and will be coaching a team of middle school girls at Tanager Place later this month. I have wanted to participate in Solemates since I've heard about it but wasn't sure if I was ready for the commitment of anything more than a 5k because running is difficult and I am not in as good of shape as I used to be. But after completing a day of Ragbrai without training prior to the event (Huge mistake!) I've decided that I have the mental power to complete at least a half-marathon, I can raise money for a good cause AND cross it off my bucket list!! I'll try and keep up to date with my training on here, if for nothing more than to keep myself accountable BECAUSE I tend to suck at training for these kind of events but I must make my mantra "You.Cannot.WING.A.Half-Marathon." :) Stay tuned!
March 22, 2012
T is for TWO (take 2)
Well, anyway...I didn't get to take the whole day off to spend with him but I did go watch his music class at school and then took him out for lunch :)
When we got back to his daycare (we call it "school") after lunch it was nap time. I didn't want to upset him and disrupt all the kids already sleeping so I thought to myself "Well, I'll just stay a little while so he doesn't cry and once he's asleep I'll go." Well about 10 minutes later my sweet boy says "bye, mom" I thought for sure he doesn't know what he's saying, he doesn't want me to leave! So I asked him, "you want mommy to leave?" and he said "yea". Heartbreak!! So I think to myself that if I stand up and start to leave he'll for sure make a fuss because he doesn't want his mommy to leave! So I stand up and just kind of look at him waiting for him to start whining for me to sit back down...but no he just blew me a kiss then turned over on his tummy and started sucking his thumb. So I walked out and kept looking back at my little boy who is independently laying on his cot with not a care in the world. Of course he's still my cuddle bug who adores his mommy and daddy but for that moment I really had to grab a hold of the fact that he won't always be my "baby" no matter how much I say he will!This growing up thing is so bitter sweet and though I'm sure this is a feeling that all mommies in the world feel as their little ones grow (or grew) up...it's still difficult for the mommies who experience it for the first time with their first child. The sweet part is watching him grow and learn. Listening to him talk and have thoughts of his own...the bitter part is when I miss that baby smell, his soft hair and gummy, drooling mouth. When I miss those little clothes and baby giggles.
The baby toys have been replaced with big boy toys like trucks and tractors. That soft, fine baby hair has now become unruly, thick hair that wants never wants to stay in place. That gummy smile has turned into a mouth full of little pearly white teeth and a sponge bob toothbrush. Those cute little clothes have been replaced with big boy clothes that don't say things like "I love mommy" or "Team Daddy" on them. Those baby giggles have turned into BIG belly laughs with a constant plea for "mowe tickle". And he goes from being my baby to being my little buddy. As things change and I attempt to hold on when I think about the the great things to come for this little boy and his sentimental momma the sweet definitely takes over the bitter!!
I created this slideshow on www.onetruemedia.com so that I can remember his second year of life; so I can move on with him as he grows but look back whenever I need to. I did this last year to remember his first year of life and enjoy watching it from time to time and seeing how much he has grown and changed. This video took me FOREVER to finish because I did not sort his pictures very well through the year and I had to find the perfect songs. But am so glad I took the time to complete it because I will cherish it forever!!
March 9, 2012
T is for TWO
I haven't written a post in a couple of weeks! Which also means I haven't spent any quality time with Carmen in a couple of weeks! But you see, my sweet baby boy is turning TWO next week and like the (un)organized mama that I am I have been trying to get his two year video done!
Last year for his first birthday I made this video:
I love this video, I ordered the DVD of it and love to watch it from time to time because he has been SUCH a joy!! Riley turning two is so bittersweet...I love watching him grow and learn but I also just want to keep him little, sweet, and innocent. It's a scary world out there!
So I definitely want to make a video for him every year. Right now I'm having to go through all my pictures from the last year (there are A LOT) and organize them into months and then organize them onto the video. I already have a couple of songs picked out but I will have to narrow down the pictures to fit the two songs. I want it to be awesome so I just keep going over it and over it (read about my perfectionist tendencies here). I think this year my goal will be to keep them organized by month through out the year so I don't have to do so much work just to get started on the video. So for now Carmen will have to collect a little dust and understand that my boy is only little once and I'm sure once he is grown she and I will have LOTS of time together...I'm sure she understands!!! :)
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| Riley Matthew, age 2 |
Last year for his first birthday I made this video:
I love this video, I ordered the DVD of it and love to watch it from time to time because he has been SUCH a joy!! Riley turning two is so bittersweet...I love watching him grow and learn but I also just want to keep him little, sweet, and innocent. It's a scary world out there!
So I definitely want to make a video for him every year. Right now I'm having to go through all my pictures from the last year (there are A LOT) and organize them into months and then organize them onto the video. I already have a couple of songs picked out but I will have to narrow down the pictures to fit the two songs. I want it to be awesome so I just keep going over it and over it (read about my perfectionist tendencies here). I think this year my goal will be to keep them organized by month through out the year so I don't have to do so much work just to get started on the video. So for now Carmen will have to collect a little dust and understand that my boy is only little once and I'm sure once he is grown she and I will have LOTS of time together...I'm sure she understands!!! :)
February 27, 2012
Sunday is Sew Relaxing!
A miracle occurred yesterday, I'm not sure if you heard about it. It was the strangest thing, I put my 2 year old down for a nap and then chose not to take a nap myself! This was a big decision for me, one that I almost always regret later...one truth about me is that I love naps, a lot! There was mild regret right around 5:30 but not too bad because I spent the afternoon in my craft area and FINALLY got to start my online home ec class!! For today at least, sewing trumped napping! I can promise you that there has been nothing in the past at least 5 years that has EVER trumped a nap!! It is truly a miracle!
Anyway I have to be a little careful about what I share regarding this class because of copyright so I won't give any tutorials just some pictures of before, after, and maybe a few in between! :)
First things first, I grabbed my trusty sidekick Ernie and a sparkling beverage that was necessary due to the zero nap situation.
There is one tool that in a very short time has become very invaluable to me! That tool is painters tape.
I would think (hope?) that all beginning sew-ers find it very hard to sew in a straight line. I also find it very hard to cut in a straight line but that's another story for another time. I was so glad I read this post on http://prudentbaby.com. Actually I'm just glad in general that I came across the Prudent Baby website, it's great!! They suggest the following:
Mmmmm...not bad if I do say so myself. it definitely looks better scrunched up than flat...That's not what I was exactly going for but I'll take it. There are a couple of things that bother me and I plan to make another just to try to perfect the skill a little more. So until this point I explained all the ups now lets talk about the downs...and, as a personal favor, please frown while you read.
#1. Oh those lines!! I know that what seems like just one paragraph ago I sang praise to the almighty painter's tape which makes me sew so straight BUT I've decided that the reason (excuse?) these particular lines on my project (pictured below) are sooo crooked is because this line had to go all the way AROUND and then meet up again on the front...WITH a gap between! So when one struggles with straight, it's no surprise that there would be a struggle with around (can I get an AMEN???) Here's a closer look:
What's a girl to do? My panicked brain said "just dump it you failure" but my (still developing) crafty brain said "just finish it best you can, learn from your mistakes, and try again!" Oh crafty brain, you're so nice, thanks!! Stay tuned for Project 1, Take 2 :)
Anyway I have to be a little careful about what I share regarding this class because of copyright so I won't give any tutorials just some pictures of before, after, and maybe a few in between! :)
First things first, I grabbed my trusty sidekick Ernie and a sparkling beverage that was necessary due to the zero nap situation.
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| A sparkling beverage |
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| My sidekick: Ernie |
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| KNOW how important this is! |
"Painter’s tape
. This is my trick for sewing straight especially when working with
. This is my trick for sewing straight especially when working with
large fabric pieces...just measure from your needle over to the tape edge and sew straight
for days."
GENIUS!! I always use it on my sewing machine now and I USED to use it to cut fabric straight, however I recently purchased a rotary cutter and self-healing mat (for 50% off at JoAnn Fabrics!) and I LOVE LOVE LOVE it...but again, another story, another time we've got to stay focused here!!!!
So the first project is a fabric gift bag! It's supposed to look like this:
So here's what I ended up with:
Mmmmm...not bad if I do say so myself. it definitely looks better scrunched up than flat...That's not what I was exactly going for but I'll take it. There are a couple of things that bother me and I plan to make another just to try to perfect the skill a little more. So until this point I explained all the ups now lets talk about the downs...and, as a personal favor, please frown while you read.
#1. Oh those lines!! I know that what seems like just one paragraph ago I sang praise to the almighty painter's tape which makes me sew so straight BUT I've decided that the reason (excuse?) these particular lines on my project (pictured below) are sooo crooked is because this line had to go all the way AROUND and then meet up again on the front...WITH a gap between! So when one struggles with straight, it's no surprise that there would be a struggle with around (can I get an AMEN???) Here's a closer look:
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| This is where it got scary... |
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| The back: really not too bad if I do say so myself |
I'm not really sure how I'm going do this differently the next time around but I'm hoping for practice to make perfect and maybe a little extra help from Carmen!!! What'daya say Carmen...you in??
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| Well put! |
#2. Those moments of sheer panic where you say to yourself "You dumb-dumb you just ruined this whole project!" I hate those moments!! I almost gave up on this one but I took a deep breath and looked back through the instructions.See if you can follow me here-o.k. the instructions said to sew a line around this bad boy and leave a 1.5-2 inch gap on the front. THEN you're supposed sew a second line around leaving about a quarter inch space between the two lines. So I'm thinking to myself that a quarter inch space is not going to accommodate my ribbon at all! Thinking I was ahead of the game...or at least the head of the class I pinned my ribbon on the bag and sewed above it leaving about a 2 inch space between the two lines (pictured above). But THEN the instructions got even more complicated and the panic continued building up. Next I was supposed to sew a perpendicular line that would literally close off that space I just made for my beautiful ribbon! Well, that doesn't make sense, how will I get my ribbon through?? Ahh, I'll just skip that step. But then even MORE confusion set in when instructed to handsew a rectangle between the two lines. That was it, top of the panic chart instantly!! I must have just stood and stared at my mess at least 2 minutes before deciding what to do...and what, you might wonder, did I do? Well, I went back through and read the instructions again. Which brings me to bother #3.
#3 Hooked on phonics? Sewing for Dummies? Somebody help me out!! I think I missed the most important note of the entire project. Doh!
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| Note: Say what?? You're not being clear...oh wait, yes you are!! |
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