All I Ever Do is Run

And unfortunately, I don't mean literally run, like I should have been while I was "training" for my half marathon. But I mean like running around, whether it's work, my social life, or my volunteer work... I hardly ever have time to just relax anymore.

Except for today. :) I finally decided to take a personal day just for me. Not to go to a Cardinals game, or to go some place fun, but to just be able to sleep in, lay around all day and do absolutely nothing that requires my body or brain. And I think I've almost accomplished that.

But then again, here I am, blogging. But that's OK. This is my downtime, and I've decided to use it productively. Because let's be honest, I'm a busy bee, and I like it that way. I can't stay idle for too long otherwise I start going crazy. Even though my life would be what others might consider "crazy" anyway.

So here's the rundown of what my life has been like for the past month or so, in a nutshell:

Running to Stay in Shape

Yesterday, Tyler and I ran in our second GO! St. Louis half marathon. We did pretty well, considering. And when I say "considering," I mean that we hardly trained at all like we should have (as in never having ran more than five miles). And I was just mentally and physically not in it like I was last year. While it's cool to say that we've done it, I'd have to say that I hope this is our last half marathon... at least for a while. :) I'm thinking about taking on biking next. I probably need to work on getting a hold of a bike first, though...

Running Around at SCC

Last week was St. Charles Community College's 25th Anniversary Kick-Off Week, which included a campus-wide party with games and a live band, an all campus photo day, a scavenger hunt, an egg hunt, kite flying, a baseball tailgate party, a movie night and lots of free Chick-Fil-A! So needless to say, I was a little busy.

Oh and did I mention there was FREE Chick-Fil-A?! They're opening a new store in St. Peters this week (Thursday, to be exact) so they gave out a TON of free sandwiches at SCC last week to promote their grand opening. Last week was a lot of fun, but it was also a lot of work. It was all worth it in the end though. :) You can check out more photos from the week on the SCC Facebook page.

Our next big event I'm helping to plan and promote is the SCC Spring Wellness Festival (Find us on Facebook!) on April 30. It's a 10K Race, 3-Mile Walk and 1-Mile Fun Run. There's also a Wellness Fair with a bunch of booths and exhibits about personal health and wellness. The fair is free, but the 10K is $20 and the 3-Mile Walk/1-Mile Fun Run are $15 each. Prices go up after April 26, so you should register today! The 1-Mile Fun Run is more kid-oriented, so feel free to sign up the whole family! Plus all participants get t-shirts, which are pretty cool this year. I've also heard a rumor that Smoothie King will be giving out free smoothies to all the participants... wish I could run in it! And if you go, be sure to come say hi to me, I'll probably be the one walking around with Scooter McCougar, our big, furry cougar mascot. :)

Running on the Field(s)

Did I also mention that I signed up to play on a coed indoor soccer team? Crazy, I know. Especially considering I never played soccer as a kid or in high school, ever. In fact I used to hate it and think it was a dumb sport. And now I'm paying for it because I'm the one who looks dumb trying to use my feet when all I want to do is pick up the ball and run with it and throw into the goal instead of kicking it. I'm all about the hand-eye coordination, not so much on the foot-eye. If anyone has any tips on how I can get better, they would be much appreciated. :)

And there are the sports that I'm actually decent at, softball, which was supposed to start tonight. In the middle of me typing this post I got a call saying the game was cancelled because of the rain. Stupid rain. :( Oh well, I guess I'm a little glad it was cancelled because I really wasn't sure how my body was going to handle it, seeing as how I've been wobbling around like an 80-year-old man all day.

But anyway, I'm playing in two slow pitch softball leagues again, a Monday night women's league and then a Wednesday night coed league. I'm also super pumped about the NCA faculty/staff softball game that I'm playing in at SCC next Monday! Should be a good time.

Last year's Tigers softball team.. yeah, we're pretty intense. :)

Running For a Cause

And last but not least, I just put together my first-ever Relay For Life team, in honor of my dad, who has been fighting brain cancer since last August. There are probably a lot of you who don't know that, and please don't take it personally if I haven't told you, it just hasn't been something that's easy for me to talk about or bring up in everyday conversation. It's been quite a struggle for him, as well as the rest of our family and friends who we lean on for support, but he's still going strong and is doing well, considering the circumstances.

So, I decided to put together a Relay For Life team, Bobby's Big Shots, to raise money for the American Cancer Society in an effort to end cancer, once and for all. Because if there's one thing I've learned since my dad's been diagnosed, it's that he is not alone and cancer is a terrible disease that has probably affected at least one person you know. So what better cause to get behind and support than ACS?

If you'd like to donate to our team, I'd really appreciate it. Just go here. We're already 69% of the way to our goal of $1,000, so please help us reach our goal!

Or, if you're interested in creating your own RFL team, please feel free to do so here. The Relay is from 6 p.m.-6 a.m. Friday, July 15-Saturday, July 16, at Lutheran St. Charles High School on Mexico Road in St. Peters (right by the Rec-Plex). It only costs $10 to register, and you only have to raise $100 to get a t-shirt. It's free for survivors to register, and there are a lot of special activities just for survivors, because really, that's what Relay is all about - honoring our survivors.

You can also follow our Relay For Life event on Facebook and Twitter. I'm also the publicity/marketing chair for this particular event, so feel free to ask me any questions about donating or signing up!

Running Is What I Do

So, as you can see, I've been doing a lot of "running" lately, whether that means actually physically running or running around. But, that's what I do. That's what I've always done. And that's what I'll continue to do. I'm a runner, a go-getter, a non-stopper. I go until I can't go anymore, and even then I'll probably try to go a little more. But I'm glad I was able to stop and take a breather today and share a little of what's been going on in my life with you! Thanks for reading!