The last couple of weeks or so have been a complete whirlwind for me. We arrived back from the Dakotas on August 24th. On August 25th I submitted an application for a job a friend of mine let me know about. My youngest daughter just started kindergarten this year, so I was thinking I might take a look around to see what might be out there job-wise. My friend sent me a message while we were away on vacation that a library job opened up at a school in her district, so when we got home, I figured I'd give it a shot. I didn't really think it would go very far, as the job had already been posted for a couple of weeks, and the teachers had to report to school on the 24th, students September 1st. I figured it was too late and that they likely would've already hired someone.
I received a call on the 28th that they wanted to interview me on the 31st. Fast forward a week...I was offered the job and accepted. I started as a full-time library media specialist in an intermediate school (grades 3-6) this past week. Talk about making my head spin. It has been just like running a marathon. Fast pace, not knowing what is going to come up along the way, working on building your stamina, complete exhilaration and complete exhaustion.
So my plans to work on projects around the house and train for races have fallen by the wayside in favor of getting my brain back in shape with work. However, this definitely does not mean that I'm cutting back on running. Instead, I have started getting up at 5 am every morning to either bang out a 5 miler or some Beachbody strength training DVDs. It has been tiring, but my body is getting used to the wake up time by now. Somehow I'm managing, but it has definitely been tough.
I am convinced that fitting in my run (however early it may be) helps me keep my energy up during the day. Working with elementary school kids all day takes a lot of energy for sure. I need to stay dedicated and focused, both with work and workouts. So far, so good. Long runs will just have to wait for weekends. Or holidays.
Today my oldest daughter and I ran in a local 5K race, the Somers Great Escape. It was a nice way to kick off our weekend. I bumped in to a bunch of running pals there. Shout out to Rachel and her sister, Scott R., Alicia (Kate's mom), Dave and Sam Smith (my neighbors), and Stephanie (formerly Green, but I don't know her married name) and her family. I also saw a friend on the sidelines. Hi Tenley...thanks for cheering us on!
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| Pre-race selfie. |
It was a lovely little race, but it wasn't our finest. My daughter was tired and nursing some sore legs. We ran some, walked some, which is fine, but she just felt really defeated bringing on some whining, grumbling and tears. Not an easy race for either of us, but we did it. I'm always so amazed that my little 7 year old even wants to run in these races. I NEVER would have done that at her age. I hated running then. She makes me so proud getting out there to try. Even though we didn't beat our fastest time, we gave a good effort. And she already said she wanted to do it again next year, maybe with her sister. So I guess it wasn't all that bad.
For now, I'm going to balance everything the best I can. I know I can do it. It will just take a little more planning and perseverance. Stay tuned as I embark on this new life-work-running journey.
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