A New Bike, Limited Motivation and A Big Change

I haven't blogged in FOREVER! I kind of lost my motivation to do so after the half marathon. I ran the Buffalo Half and it was pretty much a disaster, mostly because it all of a sudden got REALLY hot, and also because injury had kept me from continuing my training. I have been running sporadically but not like I had been.The heat and humidity are making it very difficult, and it seems to zap my motivation. I did get a nice shiny new bike a few months ago, a Quintana Roo, which I love riding. I can easily go out and do 10 miles and have fun with it. That seems to be my exercise of choice lately. I am actually registered to do the Summer Sizzler Duathlon next month- it is a 2 mile run, 13 mile bike, 2 mile run. It is the shortest I have seen and the distances are not overwhelming to me. So my focus is really just keeping up with running as much as I can in the heat and get faster and better on the bike.

Another reason for my limited motivation is a very big life change. We are moving to Philadelphia in about 6 weeks! I got the most amazing job and I am so excited about it. Moving is scary and stressful, but I am hopeful that it will be well worth it in the end. We found a house and are currently working on getting everything in place as far as that goes. It's a really great house and I am really excited about it. It's a quick walk to the train, which I will take to work on most days. I am hoping that I will be able to get out and do some more running now that I will be living in a better neighborhood and will have so many new and exciting places to explore. It will certainly be an adventure!

Flower City Half Marathon

Well, I did it! My goal was to finish this race, on my feet, and with a smile on my face, and I did. My secondary goal was to complete it in under 2 1/2 hours, but I missed it by 3 minutes. You'll see why shortly. My longest run prior to today was 9 miles, because of injury and general life. I knew those last 4 were going to be tough, but I don't think I was prepared for how tough. I am really pleased to say that I walked for maybe one minute of the entire race- there was a nasty, steep, narrow cobblestone hill that led everyone ahead of me to walk. The footing was uneven and this was after another hill, at about mile 7 or so, so I decided walking was the safe choice. I also tried to walk around mile 11, but my foot wobbled when I tried to stop and I decided that I had to keep running (even if it was at a snail's pace!)

Mile splits:
1- 10:47
2- 10:59
3- 11:11
4- 11:17

Miles 1-4 went pretty well. I originally planned to start pretty slow and get faster as I went on, but after we drove the course yesterday and I saw the hills at miles 7-10, I decided to change my strategy. I thought if I started out a bit faster, I could bank some time for the more challenging terrain. It worked out well- my target pace to finish under 2 1/2 hours was 11:30. Awesome- I banked over a minute and half already and I was feeling pretty good.

5- 11:27
6- 11:22

Miles 5 and 6 felt a bit tougher but I kept my pace reasonable, banking another 11 seconds. I was pretty excited when I hit the halfway point at about 1:11 or so. Awesome- I was about 4 minutes ahead of where I wanted to be at that point.

7- 11:59
8- 11:58 
9- 11:45

Miles 7-9.5ish were pretty hellish (they WERE in a cemetery after all). The hill to get into the cemetery was cobblestone as I mentioned above, and this is the only place I walked, mostly because I was afraid of hurting myself. There were quite a few hills here, and my pace really suffered. I lost about a minute and 15 seconds here, but I didn't panic because I was still on target. The 2:30 pace group passed me here, but I felt confident I could move faster once out of the cemetery and I knew they were a bit ahead of pace too.  

10- 11:52
11- 11:47

Miles 10-11 were where I really started to hurt. Even though it was flat, I really couldn't gain any speed here. I was getting tired and my left leg was aching in various places. I also felt pretty sure I had a massive blister on my left foot. Lost some more time here.  The 2:30 pace group got further and further away. I saw my friends Bob and Nancy here, and that helped perk me up.

12- 12:36
13- 12:30

Miles 12-13- even though I knew I was in the home stretch, these were the worst two miles of the run. I was in pain and really wanted to be done. I would think I was moving faster, but I couldn't do it. I tried to stop to rub my leg, but when I tried to I got a bit wobbly and decided to keep moving. I knew I was going to finish but I thought it was going to take a really long time. I gave up on 2:30 at that point- I knew I didn't have enough left to make up all of that time. I am pretty sure I saw someone go into the woods to poop at this point. That's so weird to me- I never had an inkling that I needed to stop for a bathroom break.

.15- 10:22

The last .15- I saw my husband and in-laws cheering for me and I was able to surge forward. I just wanted to be done and get some water. I crossed the finish line at 2:33:08 and that is good enough for my first half marathon. Right now, I feel like I will never want to run again, but I imagine once my legs and feet feel better, I will change my mind.

Total: 3.15  2:33:08

The race was really well organized and started on time. The course was enjoyable, even with all the hills. I can honestly say I had fun (until the last two miles when I felt like I was being tortured). I am really proud of myself- I worked really hard and I did it!

My preparation really paid off. The clothing I wore was prefect. Carrying the camelback worked out well, and I can't imagine not having it. I did run out of water right at the end, so when the weather gets warmer, I may need to upgrade to a larger pack. I ate Chomps as needed, and they worked out great. I wore my calf compression sleeves, which were wonderful. I had no calf or shin pain at all. My new sneakers were really great. My feet felt good, until they just didn't, but that is to be expected. Overall, I think it went pretty well considering I only started running last summer.

I'm Ready!

One week to go before my very first half marathon! I am getting pretty excited, I must admit. I had a decent week of training, and now it's time to taper. This week I only plan to run once, and ride my bike twice. I am taking Thursday through Saturday off so that my legs will be well rested for Sunday. The weather forecast has changed a few times already in the last few days. Right now it is supposed to be in the 50s with a 60% chance of rain. I HATE running in the rain, so needless to say I am keeping my fingers crossed that it changes. I've run in some nasty weather though, so I feel like I can handle whatever comes at me. I just want to finish and feel that I can do that no matter what. I have some soreness in my foot, but I think if I keep taking my motrin, icing and resting up that I will be just fine. After Sunday is over I plan to take a good week or two off to recover completely. I still have to tweak my music playlist- I need to have some slowish songs in the beginning. My tendency in races is to go out fast, but I know I can't do that if I am going to maintain or speed up my pace as I go on. I really intend to start slow and finish strong. I have my outfit all planned out- purple running skirt from Athleta, black underarmour short-sleeve top, arm warmers (too cold not too I think but I get too hot in long sleeve shirts), and pink calf sleeves. My bluetooth headphones will be all charged and ready to go, along with my Garmin and my ipod. I plan to carry my Camelback for water, as well as a package of Gu Chomps. I know there are plenty of water stops, but I really like to have water whenever I want it, which is usually often. I also hate dealing with all the people that bunch up at water stops and then I also would have to walk. I don't want to encourage myself to do that and plus I have done all of my long runs with the Camelback and it was fine. As far as the Chomps, I will try to eat some at the beginning and then maybe around miles 5 and 10. The only concern I have is that in the past, they didn't sit too well early in the morning. But I am hoping that since I will have already eaten breakfast and been up for several hours that my body will be confused and will tolerate it fine. Nothing else really works for me energy-wise- gels are gross and I don't care for Gatorade-type drinks. I feel like I am ready for this and I have trained hard. I definitely had some setbacks and didn't get in all of the mileage that I had planned to, but I worked hard. My goal is simple- finish on my feet, with a smile on my face. Oh, and if the clock reads anything less than 2 1/2 hours, that would be even better.

Absentee Blogger

Bad blogger, bad! Well, today is two weeks from the big half marathon. I haven't had a great month of training, unfortunately. I was sidelined by injury, then went away on vacation, came back and was still hurting. Stupid feet and shins. Last weekend I had a great 9 mile run, which did a lot for my confidence, but made my legs very tired for the week. I had planned to do two 3 mile runs and a 10 miler this week. Sadly, I cut the two short runs even shorter and didn't do the 10 mile run. I got a new pair of sneakers (Saucony Kinvara) in hopes that I can avoid further stress fractures in my feet. I was hoping to get the 10 miles in this weekend, but the weather did not cooperate and my legs really weren't ready. So I have a couple of possible plans. I am planning to run 3 miles after work tomorrow at the gym. Then on Wednesday, I am either going to run 10 miles after work or 6. If I run 6, I will run another 6 over the weekend. If I run 10, I will probably just do a short run on the weekend. Mentally, I think I am ready for 13.1. I am more worried about my shins and feet holding up if I do another long run beforehand. So we will see what happens. Hoping for good weather and healthy legs and feet for May 1st!

Taking Some Time Off

I know I have kind of fallen off the face of the earth. Training was moving along nicely. I ran a new PR for the Bengal Run on 3/19, which was pretty exciting. Unfortunately after that run, my right foot starting feeling sore again. Against my better judgement, I ran the next day. I had a 9 mile run planned, and I am so stubborn and determined, that I did it. I ended up walking much of it, because of the pain in my foot. I knew what it was, but I went back to the podiatrist anyway. An xray and ultrasound confirmed that the stress fracture had either returned or never healed in the first place. I was feeling so good for awhile there too. So I haven't run in nearly two weeks. The timing kind of worked out though, since we went to Vegas for a week. We even brought our gym bags- but sadly, never even opened them! I ate like a pig and enjoyed every second. Although it was sad to come home, I enjoyed eating healthy food today and even got on my bike trainer for a 7 mile ride. I plan to re-evaluate after this weekend. I did a lot of walking in Vegas, so I suspect that may slow my recovery. I am feeling better but not quite right yet. The half marathon is a month away, so if I can't get back to where I was, I may have to skip it and plan for another one. But I am thinking that if I can get in a couple of easy 2-3 milers next week, and then get in a good long run the following week, that I may still be able to do it. I had planned on maxing out my long run at 12 miles, but I don't have time to do that now. I can still hit 10 though, and a lot of training plans are set up that way. And I figure, as long as my foot is ok, I know I can finish- even if I end up walking some of it. Who cares how I get there, as long as I finish on my feet?

ABCs

I think it's time to write about something other than running. Yes, my blog is called D. Rock Runs, but I do other things too. I've seen this on a couple of other blogs, so I thought I would give it a whirl too since I like reading these.

(A) Age: 34 Sometimes I forget, and I think I am still 32. I have to do some math to figure it out.
(B) Bed Size: Queen, but I wish it was a king.
(C) Chore You Hate: Cleaning the bathroom.
(D) Dogs: Penny the Pug, Jack the Jack Russell/Beagle and Kira the German Shepard/Husky. Plus two cats- Socks and Abby.
(E) Essential Start Your Day Item: Coffee (regular with coffeemate or a non-fat latte)
(F) Favorite Color: Yellow and pink.
(G) Gold or Silver? White gold.
(H) Height: 5'1"
(I) Instruments You Play: Clarinet ( Any type, plus Alto sax and oboe)
(J) Job Title: Audiologist
(K) Kids: Never
(L) Live: Tonawanda, NY
(M) Mom’s Name: Sheree
(N) Nicknames: Dani, D, Shims, Rock
(O) Overnight Hospital Stays? Never
(P) Pet Peeve: So many too list, so little time. Messy people are the biggest one for me.
(Q) Quote from a Movie: I can never remember quotes.
(R) Right or Left Handed? Right.
(S) Siblings: 1 younger sister
(T) Time You Wake Up? 4:45am if I have to run before work, 6am if I don't have to run, and between 8 and 10am on the weekend
(U) Underwear: Always
(V) Vegetable You Dislike: Onions
(W) What Makes You Run Late: A little dog taking her sweet time to do her business
(X) X-Rays You’ve Had Done: Teeth, right foot
(Y) Yummy Food You Make: Shrimp Scampi
(Z) Zoo, Favorite Animal: Bears

Chilly Challenge 5K

I have been dying for a nice day to run outside, and I finally got my wish today. Nice, as in not snowing and windy. As in 25 degrees, but sunny and no snow on the roads! I will take it. All I really wanted was to run a nice solid race. I set my Garmin Virtual Partner to a 10:20 pace. Because I didn't have time to get my long run in this week, my plan was to run a little 1 mile warm-up, run the 5K and then run another 4 miles afterwards. Yeah right :) Anyway my husband was nice enough to stay with me for the warm-up and we ran a nice solid mile. I felt pretty good and was hoping I didn't waste too much energy. I actually think it was helpful to run a little warm-up. My first mile was awesome. I couldn't believe it when I looked at my watch after the first quarter mile to see I was running an 8:45 pace. I have never done that before. Anyway I just kept at it and ended up hitting the 1 mile mark at 8:50. The next mile went by pretty easily, and although I couldn't maintain that speedy (for me) pace, I did run the second mile around 9:55, which is still faster than I have ever run before. The third mile was tough- I was getting tired and it was slightly uphill here. As I was hitting 2.5, I started to realize that I could actually achieve one of my goals for 2011, which was to run a 5K in under 30 minutes. I was running just over a 10 minute mile now, so I knew I had to pick it up if I had any chance. I picked a guy in front of me to pass and I turned it on full steam- finishing the last tenth of a mile at a 7:57 pace. I did pass him, and my Garmin time was 29:57. I did it! I didn't know if I would ever meet my goal, and here it is February, and I did it. I slaughtered my Virtual Partner too- my pace was 9:42. My legs were hurting after that, and although we tried to run another 4 miles, I could only muster another 1.68. We decided that was enough, and that my long run would need to be a little short this week. Normally a long run is far from running all out, and I really had nothing left at that point. It was a nice race and very well organized, with yummy chili at the end. Yay for my PR and yay for my husband who got a PR and placed 3rd in his age group today!

Why I Run

I decided that today I would make a list of reasons why I run, because I think sometimes I need a little reminder. I got up at 4:30am today so that I could get in an "easy 3 miles". But, as luck would have it, it was anything but easy. I was tired, my left shin was bothering me, and the blisters I ended up with after a wet 5K on Saturday and a long 7 miler on Sunday decided to re-appear. Ironically, my stress fracture seems to be much better, and isn't really causing any problems for me right now. But I felt very tired, and it was just a slow, uninspiring run. I cut it short to two miles and did some weights instead. Not too big of a deal, since I had a two mile run scheduled this week anyway, but I just felt like I couldn't go any farther, which kind of sucks when the long range goal is 13.1. I know that I am still easing my way back after my injury, but I can't help but feel disappointed and a little bit concerned that I have taken on something I can't do. Anyway, back to the reasons why I run:

I run for my health. Running helped me lose 17 lbs & I have never felt better. I want to be as fit as possible.

I run for the challenge. Hey, running is hard, and who doesn't love a good challenge?

I run to reach goals. I love the feeling of running faster & further. I'm very competitive, if only with myself.

I run for the fun of it. Let's face it, the Turkey Trot is hilarious, and even more so now that I don't hate it.

I wouldn't say that I LOVE to run, but I don't HATE it anymore either. I hate when it doesn't go well, like today, but I had some great runs last week that reminded me why I do this. I know I will have some better runs coming up and some bad ones along the way too. That's what it's all about, right?

A Fantastic Run

I am definitely back! I have run the last 3 out of 4 days and I feel really good. No pain, other than from the bruise on top of my foot. I have been feeling great during my runs, with lots of energy. I am still keeping my mileage down, just to make sure I don't come back too fast. Yesterday I did 2 miles, at a 10:30 pace, which is my fastest training run ever! Not only that, it is only 2 seconds slower than my best race! So with a a 5K on tap for Saturday, I have to admit I am feeling very excited. I feel like I should be able to PR with no problem, provided that it isn't a snowstorm again and the roads are clear. It is so nice to run pain-free- hopefully it lasts!

On My Way Back

I ended up resting for nearly two weeks due to pain from my metatarsal stress fracture. I did ride my bike, do the elliptical and also lift weights, but it wasn't quite the same. I felt ready to run on Wednesday, until one of my dogs decided to bite my foot. Yes, that foot, in the same damn spot. Go figure. Fortunately, the spot where she broke the skin is on the side of my foot, and the top is just bruised, so it wasn't as bad as I initially thought. By Saturday, I couldn't wait any longer and I decided to do a test run of a mile. Well, it went pretty well so I decided to do two. I went back and forth today about what to do and I ended up running 3 miles. The first 1.5 didn't go great, I felt very blah and sluggish. I was wearing my old Brooks and I decided to take a half hour bike "break". I gave myself a pep talk while on the bike. When I finished that, I went in a changed into my Newtons. The next 1.5 miles went off beautifully. A little bit of "discomfort" shall we say, but not really pain. I am aware of that foot, whereas the left one I am not. But I think as long as I ice, elevate and don't overdo it, I should be ok. I intend to take this week fairly easy- I am going to do a couple of easy runs, 2 or 3 miles each and then a 5K on Saturday (with no crazy expectations, just good old running fun). After that, I will re-evaluate and see if I can start adding back in some speed work and long runs.

To Run or Not to Run...

I am faced with a dilemma. I went to the podiatrist to figure out what's going on with my right foot. I had a feeling all along about it, and unfortunately I was correct. I have a stress fracture in mt foot. Crap!! Looking back at my blog, I was complaining about the same issue before Thanksgiving. I am guessing it started then, but I rested a bit and it must have healed, and happened again a couple of weeks ago. He said it has started healing (apparently they don't show up on an xray until that starts to happen). He was surprised that I have continued to run through it, but as I explained to him, I have a goal in mind, and when I am determined, I don't let a lot of things stand in my way. I also have what I consider to be a high threshold for pain. So anyway, he basically told me that I can keep running, but that I need to reduce my mileage and wear a more heavily padded sneaker. I also shouldn't wear heels while it is healing, which isn't a huge issue for me. I also have a nice painkiller/anti-inflammatory to take. I can do all of those things- I even have a decent pair of Brooks Glycerines that I was fitted for about a year or so ago, which haven't been used much. But everything I read on the Internet tells me not to run at all, that I can do more damage and end up with a break. The last thing I want is to make things worse. I can deal with missing a couple of weeks of running- I can easily hop on the bike or the elliptical, maybe take a swim in the pool. But more than that and I can forget about the half marathon in May. After I saw him I had myself pretty well convinced that I could drop it down to two runs a week instead of four. Now I am not sure that I should run at all. I go back in 3 weeks to see how things are, and if it isn't better, I may end up having to wear a removable boot, which at that point I imagine running will be out of the question. So it seems logical to me to rest for the next week (or 2 or even 3), get in some cross-training and hope that it heals quickly. That would still give me 11 weeks to train. Plus some programs I have looked at max out the long run at 10 miles. I've already hit 6.5 and I would hope that I could still do that even if I took some time off, as long as I keep up the other cardio workouts.

A Successful Week

I had planned to take a few days off this week and save my runs for later in the week due to my nagging right foot pain. I was hoping that some rest would solve whatever the issue is. I did some cross training on the bike Monday and Tuesday, as that didn't bother my foot much and I wanted to get some activity in. Plus I am hoping to improve my performance on the bike, as I am considering doing some rides this summer. I took Wednesday off since I had plans with friends and ended up taking Thursday off too due to a nasty headache. But, I got myself up early on Friday morning to get my 3 miles in at the indoor track. Yes, it was very cold and very snowy but I made it there and had a great tempo run- in fact, it was my fastest training run ever. Maybe running at 5:30am isn't all that bad. The unfortunate thing is that my foot didn't feel any better. Not worse, but definitely not better as I had hoped and expected after 4 days of rest. I actually have an appointment with a podiatrist in a couple of weeks to see if they can figure out what the issue is and how to make it go away. Saturday I did my long run- 6.5 miles, which is the longest I have ever run. It went pretty well and I was happy to see that it took me 1 hr and 15 min... this means that my goal of completing a half marathon in less than 2 1/2 hours is possible. I am halfway to a half! And today, I had an easy 2 miles to complete, which was just that- easy. It's nice to be able to say that.

This week is going to be interesting. I have four runs scheduled. In fact, I think I have four runs every week until May to get ready for the half marathon, which I registered for yesterday. I can easily do two on the weekend, as my husband runs both weekend days as well. It's the two during the week that can sometimes challenge me. I have plans for two nights this week and I need a rest day tomorrow. So, I decided to do one on Tuesday night and one on Thursday morning. A morning run is the only way I can work it this week, and so be it. We are toying with doing the Penguin Run 5K on Saturday, but if the roads are like they were for the 5K last weekend, I will be running that at the gym instead!

Everyone Has a Bad Race Sometimes

Everyone has a bad race sometimes.... this is what I needed to learn this weekend. Since I started running this past summer, each 5K I have run has gotten progressively faster. The Snowball Run 5K was this past Saturday and I really thought about not doing it. It was snowing like crazy and I figured the roads we were running on would be snow covered. On top of that, my right foot has been bothering me again and I wasn't sure how it would go. But, when the time came to get dressed, I decided to soldier on. I probably should've stayed in bed. There were not a lot of people there, so naturally my fear of being DFL (dead f****** last) crept up. Looking around me, I felt like it would be close. The first quarter mile was ok, but then all of a sudden we turned into a nasty wind. I found myself inhaling snow. I tried putting my neckwarmer over my mouth, but then my sunglasses fogged up and I couldn't see. If I took off my sunglasses, I had snowflakes in my eyes. It was not good. We were running on side streets, which had not been plowed, so it was like running through quicksand (or what I imagine that to be like). My legs were burning pretty early on and it was just ugly. No matter what I did, I couldn't go any faster. I even tried "skating". At the halfway point, I knew it was just a matter of finishing. I saw my husband jogging towards me at the 2.5 mile point and I was ready to go right to the car, but he pushed me to finish. It was the worst race I have run since the summer. It was not as bad as my first couple, and as he pointed out, those were run in perfect conditions. So I suppose it is a testament to me getting stronger. It also helped to read someone else's blog who ran this race too, and she said it was the worst conditions she had raced in, so that makes me feel somewhat better too. Oh, and I wasn't last :) I may have been beaten by people I felt I should have been able to pass, but I wasn't last.  

On Sunday, I had a 6 miler scheduled. With it being so cold and miserable, I had no choice but to run inside. I thought about shortening my run, as I was feeling pretty dejected from the day before and my foot was pretty sore. I managed to do 3 on the treadmill while watching a movie on my phone. Once I decided I had enough of the treadmill, I went to the indoor track. I ended up running the remaining 3 miles. The last mile or so was pretty tough, as my foot was really hurting. I probably should have stopped but now I felt like I was on a mission to prove that I can run. I finished my 6 miles within 3 seconds of my goal pace, so I am pleased with that.

Unfortunately, my foot went from bad to worse. I'm not sure exactly what's going on- I suspect it's more overuse pain. I have been icing it and I am staying off of it for at least the next three days. I have three scheduled runs that I can get in even if I wait until Thursday. If need be, I will skip one. It isn't worth making my foot worse at this point. So I will get in some cross-training and keep the pressure off of my foot.

Back on Track

I had to make some adjustments to my schedule this week, due to some soreness in me left calf. It was something that had come up back in November, disappeared and then reared its' ugly head on Tuesday. I had a decent run on Tuesday, but had to sit down in the middle to massage my calf. Still, I completed my run and faster than scheduled. I decided to take the next three days off to rest my leg. I couldn't tell what was going on but I was concerned that the calf pain was actually shin splints, as I almost felt like I had a bruise on my shin. I moved my tempo run to the weekend and eliminated a cross-training workout. My run today was scheduled to be 5.75 miles. It was so cold outside and snowing on top of it, so I decided to run at the indoor track. It went really well today- I felt great most of the time. The last mile was tough, but I got through it and completed my run about 9 sec/mile faster than my target pace. I decided to do some weights afterwards since I felt good and had rested for the past three days. On tap for tomorrow is my rescheduled tempo run. I am not super excited about it- I find tempo runs to be the most difficult. But it's an important part of my training, so onward I will go!

New Year, New Challenges

Now that January is here, I am even more focused on my half-marathon training. My plan is to run the Rochester Flower City Half Marathon on May 1st. I have 17 weeks, which is a bit longer than most training plans call for, but my husband designed a plan for me to continue what I have been doing all along. The idea is to get me up to running 24 mile weeks, with a long run of 12 miles, by mid-April. When I started this, I was running 5-6 miles per week, and right now I am at about 12-13, with my longest run at 6 miles. In addition to my 3-4 runs/week, I am also going to continue to cross train and do some strength training, twice a week. These elements are really important, and it seems like all of the blogs I have been reading mention that this is a goal that has not been attained, so I feel like it is something I really need to pay attention to. This will give me 1 or 2 rest days each week, but depending on how things go I may re-evaluate. The last thing I want to do is burn out!

Another new challenge for me has to do with nutrition. I am a fairly healthy eater most of the time, but this past week at home has been difficult. Too much chocolate, meat, alcohol and whatever else. I can feel it affecting my running too- today I ran 3.5 miles, but this was after breakfast out (a buffet, no less- bacon, eggs, french toast, cookies). I completely understand what it means to suck wind after today. I completed the mileage, but it was painfully slow. I have not been having nearly enough fruit, veggies and water. I am back on track tomorrow, as I head back to work. In addition, my husband and I decided that we are going to try out some new (and maybe some old favorite) recipes. I will cook on Friday night and he will cook on Saturday night. The plan is to try to new and healthy meals to add to our repertoire. The other part of this is that we are trying to save money for a big vacation in March, and the way we plan to do this is by cutting out a lot of the extras we have been indulging on, like eating out and shopping. I think we have a good plan and I know we can stick to it if we try really hard.