Girls On The Run 5K

This past weekend marked the end of the Fall Girls On The Run (GOTR) season for 2009. (sniff sniff) I started as head coach for this 12 week program in September at one of the six locations in the San Diego chapter. We have had meetings twice a week for a total of 24 sessions, with our final event being a 5K race.

GOTR Girls

About GOTR

GOTR focuses on “Educating and preparing girls for a lifetime of self-respect and healthy living”. Girls on the Run is a non-profit prevention program that encourages preteen girls to develp self-respect and healthy lifestyles through running. The curriculum addresses all aspects of a girl’s development – their physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual well-being.

The twelve week program has broken up into three main sections which focused on:

• All About Me: Getting to know who I am and what I stand for
• Building My Team: Understanding the importance of cooperation
• Community Begins With Me: Learning about community and designing our community project

Working on an Exercise

Practice 5Ks

We had two practice 5Ks during the season where the girls had the majority of the time to just run. In our first practice 5K I brought the girls Gatorade and was AMAZED by how much they loved it. Seriously Gatorade turned out to be preteen girl crack. They couldn’t get enough of it! I didn’t get it at all! Gatorade is kind of bitter and weird tasting! I mean I like it now but I can’t imagine how it appealed so well to the candy palate of a young girl! Anyways, it worked, they loved it, and the chance of getting one more little cup of Gatorade totally spurred them on to run each additional lap.

GATORADE!

In our second 5K the girls did even better. In the first practice 5K we had 8 of 20 girls complete all twelve laps (1/4 mile each = 3 miles ~ 5K). In our second practice 5K we had 13 of 20 girls complete all twelve laps .. and 5 girls run more than that!

Season Continues

As the season continued from All About Me, to Building My Team, to Community Begins With Me, we got to a session where we did a group Community Project which I covered in my blog GOTR Community Service Project . The girls all created holiday cards for members of the military in the “Holiday Cards for Heroes” program and chronically ill children from the “Make a Child Smile” program. The girls all had a lot of fun and I hope that their cute little cards made those special people far away smile.

Creating Holiday Cards

Season Ends

On our last meeting of the season (session 24) we didn’t run at all and spent our last session together having a season end celebration. One of the other coaches brought balloons, cupcakes, and ice cream (OH MY!) and another coach and I put together awards for each of the girls.

Each girl received a spirit award for the season which related to her as an individual in our group. (Okay .. I had 26 girls in this group and had a tiring time coming up with 26 suitable/cool/exciting awards!!) Some examples of the awards are:

• Shining Spirit
• Running Wizard
• Mega Miler
• Super Smiler
• Future Marathoner

Jingle Bell 5K

Our season end celebration was last Thursday, and this past Saturday was the finale event .... the 5K! Luckily the 5K was in Balboa Park close to my neighborhood! Whooo hooo! The girls ran in a public race which is known for its holiday costumes and spirit. From the website I saw that people dressed up as Santa, Reindeer, elves, and other random red and green creatures. This race would be the location where all six of the GOTR San Diego groups came together and participated in a “real” 5K.

Getting Ready for the 5K

Funny – about a week before the race one of the girl’s father called me and asked about when the race was, where it was, and general information about it. Then he asked me how far a 5K was. I said "well, its 3.1 miles". He said “wow.. five miles? Okay .. okay .. wow.. five miles huh? Okay .. I can do that. .. Huh..” (HAHA!) After being a runner for so many years and after running so many marathons (11 thank you!) its hard for me to see 3 miles as being far! Also, after seeing all these little 8-11 year olds run 2-3 miles several times in the past few months its even harder to realize that running 3 miles can be totally out of the comprehension of someone! I guess for some people who never run though even running a mile can be a challenge.

Best Race Costumes!

As the race approached we started getting the girls geared up for the race. Each girl is supposed to run the race with a “Running Buddy” who can either be her parent or someone who signs up to volunteer just for that day. As it turned out 20 of the 25 girls running the race had their parent(s) running with them. Only 5 girls needed a running buddy with whom I paired up a volunteer. Most of us coaches had signed up as well to be available but in the end we were able to run alone.

We met an hour before the race to get everyone together and stretched, performed our group cheer (ours was the best and loudest!) and then got ready for the race. Since I wasn’t paired up with a runner and hadn’t run a 5K in a year (and before that not for 3 years) I really wanted RACE! In my last 5K (Run and Stride for Pride 5K 2008) I came in first in my division (whoo hoo!) with at time of 23:49. My goal for this race was 22 minutes!

I started out the race FAST and was charging along feeling eat when I looked down at my Garmin GPS watch and saw that I had run a sub-7:00 pace mile in the first mile. Great! But not really… I don’t have the ability to maintain that pace and I knew that because of that I would pay later. I slowed down a bit and managed a sub 8:00 pace for the second mile.. but a little after that my fatigue and shortness of breath set in. I actually had to WALK (in a 3 mile race! FOR SHAME) for a bit to catch my breath before starting up again. I felt like such a sheepish shame! I finally picked back up into a run and crossed the finish line at 24:09 with a 8:01 pace! (Also being the first GOTR associated runner to cross! Whooo hoo!)

My Running Race Face

As soon as I crossed the finish line I grabbed a water and then went back to a spot just before the last turn before you could see the finish line where I could cheer on the rest of my girls. The fastest girl in our group (a little 9 year old) flew by not that much later! After her I waited a bit and probably saw one girl every few minutes.

More Cowbell!

I’m not sure if I can describe adequately what a wonderful experience it was to stand there and see each girl approach the finish line. For some of the girls the race was a piece of cake. They had run a 5K before and knew they could do it. Sure they got more excited and gave me a big smile when they saw me yelling and cheering for them (cowbell waving madly overhead) as they came around that last bend, but it wasn’t them that were so moving to me ... it was seeing the ones that I think didn't know that they could do it who really made me smile. I could see a change on so many of their faces as soon as they caught site of me, and then the finish line just past me. You could see on their face a look of WOW! I DID IT! I ran a 5K!!

The Finish Line

Several girls were already running as they approached me and just smiled bigger as they passed me. Others were running slowly or walking in the last stretch but when they saw me ringing my cowbell and shouting their name they suddenly perked up and took off for the finish. A couple of them actually looked like a bat out of hell as they passed me! All-in-all I can’t think of the last time I smiled so hard and tried to hold back tears! (Okay, actually I can … seeing David’s parents at our marathon waving big signs over their head at location after location really touched my heart...more details and pictures at my blog entry on the Marine Corps Marathon 2009) But these little girls, warmed my heart a bit more.

After a while the crowd started to thin out and more and more time passed in between each girl. I started to curse myself for not having my roster with me where I could have crossed each girl off who had passed me! I did a quick mental inventory and thought of some of the slower girls and remembered whether I saw them or not. As 30 minutes turned into 40, and then 50, and then an hour.. I then started to think okay.. where are my last few girls? I’d see GOTR shirts approaching and would get excited and then would feel let down when I realized it was a girl from another site.

When I saw the second to last girl she was waking with her mom, looking down at the ground, and looking somewhat dejected. I cheered loudly for her and suddenly she perked up, started pumping her arms and just took off! As her mom passed us she smiled and said “I needed you there doing that the whole time!”. After her I still had to keep an eye out for our very last girl. About ten minutes later she approached with her mom kind of walking … but with some cheering she started to jog a bit.. and then they both started running again and plowed on to the finish line! I ran to the finish line after her too and saw her get her medal and a big hug from her mom, her Running Buddy. Okay .. teary moment again! She looked so proud, her mom looked so proud, and it was just such a sweet moment.

Changing Lives

I didn’t run a 5K until I was in my 20’s, and at that point it was cool to me, but nothing life changing. Life changing running came for me the first time I finished a half marathon .. and then a full marathon. For me, running a distance race was something I never thought in a million years that I could ever do. Distance running for me has truly been life changing and its something I would recommend to everyone I know. It changes your life when you cross those finish lines, and its amazing.

After seeing these young girls complete their first 5K, I felt like I was witness and a part of a life-changing experience of their own. As one of their coaches I also felt honored to be part of that experience. More than that, I was so proud that they had accomplished this and experienced something like this so young in their lives! Some people to this day have never run three miles, but these girls did it! And along the way they learned a number of important life lessons.

Group Discussion Time

After the race I received a number of emails from the girls parents that really moved me. I know this program had a purpose outside of running, but I didn’t’ really understand the effect that it could have had before the parents had contacted me with stories specifically about their girls. I had hoped that the girls had had fun in our season, and I had hoped that they’d be proud of the fact that they had run a 5K, but I hadn’t really thought about the bigger picture effect of what this program could do for them as a person and their sense of themselves and who they were.

Some of the messages that really made me stop and say WOW:

“My daughter had a fantastic run yesterday!! Thank you so much. She was in awe of her own accomplishment. She kept saying how proud she was of herself and held her medal high with a big grin! This was such an amazing opportunity for her! Thank you immensely and we plan to be back at it in February!”

“Thank you for such a wonderful experience with Girls on the Run. My daughter loved the whole program. She loved going to each session and learning new things as well as meeting new friends. She loved the camaraderie of the team. I really think the program helped her with self esteem and confidence. Sometimes it is hard for her being the tallest girl in her class, but I can definitely see a difference in her since the beginning of the program. Thank you to you and all the coaches for providing such a fun way to be healthy and a strong girl. She was very proud to cross the finish line on Saturday and we were so excited to see it happen. My husband enjoyed it so much he wants to sign up for another 5K with her!”

“My daughter is going through a tough time at school right now, and GOTR is such a bright spot for her. She LOVES it. I hesitated to sign her up because she was only a couple of days older than your cutoff, but I'm so glad I let her talk me into it. Running has been so great for me and I am so happy that it "works" for her too.”

Its really amazing to me to see how impactful this program has been on the girls. The design of the program makes it mostly fun with games and fun exercises. Through the program and exercises the girls are actually learning though, and in addition to that they are running! There isn’t anything bad I can say about running! In my own life running has been the greatest thing I could have started to do for myself. In addition to helping me be a healthier person, it has also helped me build self-confidence by showing me that I could do something I NEVER thought I could do if I set a goal, developed a plan, and dedicated myself. It has also became something that I really enjoy, and its a great way to get outside, to workout, to burn off stress, and to meet new people. Running isn’t for everyone, but for me .. it has worked. And I can’t think of anything more rewarding in life than to take what has changed my life for the better and share it with others. In this situation, a group of 8-11 year old girls.

I love the whole GOTR program, the San Diego chapter, my fellow coaches, and my group of Fall season girls. I’m so thankful to have been involved in this opportunity and I’m looking forward to continuing my involvement. The next season of GOTR starts in February and I’m looking forward to coaching again! In addition to coaching again I was also asked by a couple of the directors to become more involved with the organization and to join their board of directors! What a dream come true! I can’t wait to see what this opportunity holds. :o)

Walk Down Memory Lane

I was in Maryland this past weekend and on Saturday David and I made a trip out to my grandparents old farm in New Windsor, MD. I hadn't been out there in almost ten years! Before that last visit I had spent a week or two there every summer for as long as I could remember out at my grandparents farm and visiting my Aunt Judy in Virgina, and later my Aunt Elsa in Baltimore. I can easily say that some of my favorite summer memories occurred on these trips, and I look back at those times with a smile. :o) <--- Like that!

History of the Farm

According to my dad my grandparents bought the farm in 1969 when my grandfather retired from the Coast Guard. The lived there until the mid-9os when they moved into a nursing home close to Baltimore.

The Farm - 1979

The last time that my dad and I went for our normal visit together was 1993. I came back years later alone (I was a big girl by then!) in 1999 when I was about to finish college, and then sadly again for another time in 2000 for my grandmother's funeral.

The Farm - 1999

My grandfather passed in 1996 and my grandmother in 2000. I wasn't able to make my grandfather's funeral because I was in school, but I was able to make it back for my grandmother's. Last year around the holidays David and I took a trip to Arlington Cemetary to visit my grandparents.

Arlington Cemetery - Dec 2008

Capt. Arnold E. Carlson
US Coast Guard

Allegra Carlson
His Wife

Growing Up

My parents took me to the farm long before I remember ever going. The love telling the story of how they took me as a baby and there was't a crib for me so they put me in a drawer to sleep in. Okay, these days that might sound like child abuse, but I think its cute. :o) My mom also talks about how she couldn't sleep at night because of the sound of the cows mooing. Do cows really moo at night? Maybe it was in the morning? Or should I say moooorning? Haha. By the time I could remember the farm the cows were long gone. In my younger years my grandfather had chickens, but for the majority of my visits to the farm there were mostly small crops like corn and potatoes.

Little Monika
(The cross eyed full Asian girl)

I remember going out with my grandfather while he turned the ground and I picked up the potatoes! (and then made icky icky poo hand motions and faces while I rubbed the dirty dirty off my hands. Yes ... even as a young child I was a prissy priss. haha.)

Me & My Grandparents & Aunt Judy
(At my cousin David's wedding)

Grandpa used to also take me out into the corn fields and pull off a few ears and peel them open to look at them. I remember how he'd peel back the shucks on a few and then toss them aside behind him if they didn't look right. I was shocked! Little city girl me! Him tossing an ear of corn behind him was the same to me as if he'd thrown a box of cereal or a loaf of bread off to the side. That was food!

Me & My Grandparents & Dad

Good Memories

I have so many good memories at the farm that its hard to list them all briefly. I loved going out with my grandfather and picking up potatoes and picking corn .. even if the natureness of it grossed me out. I loved working on craft projects with my grandmother, and best of all her letting me sit in her lap with my head on her chest listening to her pacemaker. I was being prepped to be a real homemaker at that farm! I learned how to sew, knit, do needlepoint, and do latchhook. Each summer we usually had a project we'd complete, most often from a craft magazine or from Bob's Hobby Lobby in the nearby town of Westminster, MD. My Aunt Judy usually was a huge help, and I attribute my needlepoint skills to her alone!

Silly Picture of My Dad

I have so many various random childhood memory from the farm ... making potato chips from scratch with potatoes from their field, sitting on the porch watching the fireflies and wishing they had them in San Francisco, watching my grandparents fry bacon with a bacon press (quite a contraption for the bacon lover who loves flat, crispy bacon), planning my next dollhouse based on the room replicas my grandmother had made, reading books with the window fan going (because there was no AC), swinging on the porch swing with my dad or grandparents, listening to the kitchen screen door slam whenever someone came in, playing on the armchair my grandparents had which lifted you up to standing, watching the Young and the Restless with my grandmother (oh Cricket!!), answering the phone when someone called for "the Captain" (my grandfather) ... and so many more. Those were good times, really good times.

My Grandfather

But I digress.... wow, this is getting me a little misty!

Return to the Farm

Ever since I found out that David had grown up in Maryland I've wanted to go back and see the farm. I mean its been ten years since I'd been there! And ... its the defining point of all of my childhood summers! We were in Maryland last year around the holidays but due to the busyness of the week we never got to make it out. I have been back to the area a few times since but we've just never had time to go. For this past trip David asked me "So what do you want to do this weekend?" I answered "Well, its your birthday weekend so we can do anything you want. But .. there is one thing I want to do ... I want to go see my grandparent's farm." And so we did!

Saturday morning we had plans to head to the farm in the morning, have lunch in the nearby town, and then head back to College Park. I woke up on Saturday morning, yawned, looked at the clock, looked outside .... and my world came to a standstill. RAIN?! (Give me a break here. I've lived in San Diego for the past two years and lived in Arizona for about six years before that. I can almost count the number of times I've seen it rain in the past 8 years on one hand!) Okay, mayyyyybe two! Growing up in San Francisco I didn't see a lot of rain either, but moving to Arizona made me think "Rain? What's rain?" Okay, back to Maryland. So I woke up and it was raining. Boo. I hate rain. Whatever though, we'd be in the car and it would be fine.

Driving to New Windsor

As we started to drive towards New Windsor my surprise over rain quickly turned shock over SNOW! It looked like it was snowing! But when the snowflakes hit the windshield they went SPLAT and were drop/splotches. California girl was confused. David quickly informed her that if its not cold enough outside it can snow ... but it won't "stick". Okay .. I get it. So we drove in the snow splotches for a while as I sat in amazement ... and then suddenly there was snow on the side of the road! And then more! And more! And as we got closer to the farm the sides of the road were blanketed with snow! I was SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO excited!

About an hour later we arrived in New Windsor and started approaching the farm. The first time I had told David about my grandparents farm in New Windsor he almost immediately said "oh, I bet its row houses now.". :-O No~ I was like what?? No way! He said yeah, that's what happens. :o( I didn't want to believe it, and didn't believe it in my heart ... but a tiny part of me was scared as we got closer. I vaguely remembered the road to the farm being bumpy and hilly .. as we coasted along with only a few miles to go I got nervous .... but then we got closer... and there it was! The same as how I remembered it!

Arriving at the Farm

When we first drove by the farm there was a bundled up man salting the driveway. I instinctively gave him a dirty look thinking "UGH! You're living on *MY* grandparents farm!! ! Who are you anyways!?!" David said "Hey look! You should talk to him and tell him why you're here!" I declined thinking it sounded too cheesy.

David and I drove by a few more times before parking down the road and walking up to the farm so I could take pictures. It was probably really weird that in the middle of nowhere a big truck drove by about three times. David joked that the man ran back into the house and said to his wife "Honey! There's a hippie and a Muslim casing the place!" haha.. David and his long hair ... me and my phobia of snow and rain with my scarf wrapped around my precious hair!

The Farm! 2009

Grandparents' Farm

We got a few good pictures of the farm and McKinstry's Mill across the street. I had never seen the farm in snow before... and it was soo pretty. A part of me is still sad that this cornerstone of my childhood is no longer in my family. I wish someone had been able to buy it and our next generations would be able to come there to visit and spend there summers.

Walking Past McKinstry's Mill

McKinstry's Mill

Sams Creek Rd/McKinstry's Mill Rd

After casing the farm and taking a number of pictures we headed into the town of Westminster. There was a bookstore that my grandparents used to get me books from each Christmas. I'd get a book wtih a special bookmark in it from "Locust Books". When I was old enough we'd go into town togheter and I'd get to pick out a book myself. My hopes for this bookstore still being around were slim. I had forgotten the name so David and I just headed in the general direction of the main town street. As we got closer to the main street he asked me if things looked familiar. Sadly ... I said no. :o( And then we pulled into a parking lot and EUREKA! I recognized a brick tower in the parking lot and knew we were right behind the bookstore. We went in the back entrance and I was AMAZED that the store looked just as I remembered. Wow, my last visit was 10 years ago! And I'd been there as a child! According to the signs the store had been there for 25 years! (Older than someone I know... haha)

David and I looked around the store and he ended up buying four books for his America Reads kids and I bought one book for my dad. (Dad, if you're reading this ... guess what you're getting as a Christmas gift? haha) After buying books we went to one of the nearby eateries for lunch. Mexican! With the option to order fries or hot wings of course! Random...

Locust Books - Westminster, MD

As we drove back from the farm I had mixed emotions. It was bittersweet to see the farm, the place where my childhood summer memories lie. It was nice to see that the farm was still there. It was nice to think back to all of the times with my grandparents. It was nice to visit the bookstore and the town of Westinster as an "adult", after going there for so many years as a kid.

I think part of me loves the farm and all of those memories becuase they are SO opposite of the rest of my life. I'm a city girl, born and raised in San Francisco. (The "city" - for those of you who think "San Francisco" means everything within 100 miles.) I love being a city girl! But I loved those times at the farm with my grandparents as well.

Arnold & Allegra - May you rest in peace. I love you. Thank you for the memories. :o)

The Making of a Sock Monkey

There seems to be a sort of obsession with sock monkeys in David's family. Maybe "obsession" isn't the right word, I suppose tradition is probably more suitable. David has his own sock monkey named Marcus which sits (creepily) in the corner of his bedroom. The sock monkey is kind of like the Mona Lisa ... its eyes follow you wherever you go in the room! No, I'm kidding - but it is weird to see the little sock monkey propped up in the corner. I actually think he might have been lost in transit to David's new place, but in his last two apartments Marcus manned his corner post each day and night.

Last Christmas when we were looking for a gift for his niece Skylar we came across a large stuffed sock monkey at Target. It immediately went into the basket. Little did we know his mother had bought her one as well. David wanted to be the one to give Skylar her first sock monkey so the one his mom bought was put into the pool for the gift exchange we'd have at his cousin's house in MD on Christmas Part 3. Skylar's twin sisters also received sock-monkey-like themed dolls... sock frogs!

Sock Frogs for the Twins

When I was at the craft store about a month ago looking for supplies for my Girls On The Run group I came across a sock monkey kit! How perfect! I could make David a sock monkey for Christmas! I immediately bought the kit and then went to go buy stuffing. For some crazy reason the store was out of polyfill stuffing! (And all stuffed animal making in San Diego screeched to a halt... jk) I found stuffing at another craft store and we were ready to get monkeying!

I brought the supplies over to my friend Devika's house with the intention to make the sock monkey while we watched a DVD marathon of True Blood.

Sock Monkey Kit

Sock #1 Becomes the Body
(With baby foot for size perspective.. haha)

Let There Be Legs!

Sock Monkey Body

Sock #2 Tail & Arms

Sock Monkey w/Tail

Sock Monkey Arms

Starting to Look Like a Monkey!

Rear View.. Love the Red Butt!

Sock Monkey Face
(Kona jumped into a picture)

Sock Monkey Face Completed!
(Mika jumped into this picture)

We watched about 6 hours of True Blood .. and I wasn't finished with the monkey! Six hours of sewing was miserable! I had no idea the project would take so long. Due to the loose fibers in the sock material the stitches needed to hold the parts together were this back cross-over double stitchy thing that took a lot of time and a lot of thread since you were basically going over every stitch twice. I got most of the sock monkey done at her house including his hat, but still needed to make his slippers and teddy bear before he was complete.

Sock Monkey w/Hat

I put the project aside for a few weeks until I realized that I didn't want to wait until Christmas to give David the sock monkey, so I quickly finished the project early this week so that I could send it to him for his birthday instead. I made the slippers and bear .. and we were done! Yay!

Sock Monkey's Teddy Bear

Sock Monkey w/Teddy Bear

Welcome to the world Thaddeus Primus!

Sock Monkey Complete!