Ottawa Half Marathon

I blogged about my pre race dilemmas AHHH MOMENT
So I slept well and was up on race day at 6am (alarm was set for 0630, as race started at 0900 and we were downtown already and only a 5 minute walk to the start line)
This is the weather I saw......YUCK

I had a shower and ate my breakfast ....I went to the Lobby and got coffee for everyone...all before anyone else was even up!

This was a new pre race meal for me.....a bagel with natural PB, chia seeds and a banana...It did the trick. This stuck with me a lot longer then oatmeal does.
We got to the start line around 0820.

Before

I lined up for the porta potty line at 0830. My dad said he would wait at our start section (Orange) next to the flag. Well the line was so long that I was actually waiting for 30 minutes and was in the porta potty when the start gun went! Damn it. I smashed my way through politely weaved through hundreds of people to try to get to the Orange flag....it was hopeless....It took me almost 4 minutes to get accross the start line! And I was running alone! Sad! Glad I brought my MP3 player.
I took 2 salt pills and off I went. I warmed up quick. It was ok temperature wise but pretty humid. I don't mind that though. The pack was so thick! I actually ran into a few people (big surprise) So by km 4 I was feeling great! I sped up a by km 8 and took one more salt pill. I also had a GU chew and some water. I was worried about running out of energy but I was feeling great.
FEELING GOOD HERE
I was 57 Min in (actually 54 Min) at the 10 k split! I started to look more for my Dad at this point as I felt like I was getting close to him. It started to rain at km 12! But it felt good! At km 14 I saw my dad up ahead as we rounded a corner so I did a little sprint and as I caught him I said "What are you trying to do? Loose me?" He turned around surprised to see me and said...."wow, good for you" "you must have been flying". So until km 18 I annoyed talked with my dad.
Check out these race pics
Me and My Dad at km 16
I look like I am in pain but I swear I felt great here-Maybe it was the rain!
I felt Strong and at km 18 he said "go ahead, get the best time you can". So I popped a salt pill and a GU chew and took off!
Here I am crossing the finish line

Final Time 1Hr 53 Min 56 Sec- Pace of 08:41/mile or 05:24/km!



Me and my Dad after the race! A bit soggy!

Ummm....Oh and Just for your viewing pleasure-CLICK HERE
Seriously? Wow-Whats wrong with me?

Oh and don't forget to follow my Besties new blog BANANAS OVER BUBBLE GUM........One of my favorite people in the whole world for a reason! (she pays me)

A Blogger Award

I got a blogger award the other day from The Lovley THUNDERTHIGHS and just got so busy with the run this weekend that I didn't get a chance to write this post.

How cute is this!
So here are the rules to this
The rules:

• Thank the person and link them in your post.
• Tell ten things about yourself.
• Nominate your bloggers.
• Go to their blogs and let them know you've given them an award!

10 THINGS! Oh my-I know a million things, the question is what can I say that is actually minimally interesting.....
1 I live in the GTA-(Greater Toronto Area) for those who don't know....I don't think I have mentioned where I am located before.

2 I have a terrible issue with SUGAR- Before I lost weight and started running, I was always craving salt and grease......now....I crave the opposite.....Some of my favorites

I could go on but you get the idea
3 I really really wanna run a full marathon-but am too afraid to actually register!!!!

4 I want a tattoo that looks something like this

5 I am engaged

But have no real plans to get married (I want to get married I just don't know where to start!)
6 I don't even know what to call them but girls like this, bug me.....(So sorry if you are like this no offence just my opinion)-Let me explain....This

Is not attractive-Dread locks are dirty.Period. Yuck.....I am all for saving the environment, but seriously a tree never died because you shaved your legs.... 7 I am a bit of a control freak (apparently -I don't see it) Whatever-It is only with my own routines- I like to sit in the morning, read blogs, watch Breakfast Television and drink Coffee....I also have to do my Runs and when something interferes with that-Look out......
8 I really really liked smoking when I smoked-I miss it and wish sometimes that I still did! (Isn't that terrible!)
9 I miss living in the country....Tractors and horses.....
sad
10 I have never felt skinny....ever...sometimes I think it will never happen.....
My nomination is
1) My BFF Kelly and her new blog Bananas Over Bubble Gum
Yeah!

Just call me Dave-Y

I miss Ray!! He will be home Monday at 11 am!!!!

ugh....I got up around 8am and had coffee with KELLY and packed up. I hit the road around 11am and drove the 45 minutes to my place.
I hadn't been home since Wednesday when Ray left for Winnipeg, so my house was a write off-I cleaned the floors and dusted, got the mail and aired it out. I packed up my road snacks and pre race food for tomorrow....somehow I deleted this picture!
About an hour in I grabbed a iced cap made with chocolate milk-my fave-and kept moving

I got a phone call from my dad about 1.5 hours in saying that race bandits will be pulled out of the race and that without a bib I wouldn't even be allowed to get into the starting area!WTF-Now I didn't register because by the time I went to register (months in advance) the race was already SOLD OUT I was upset that I wouldn't have an chip time but I was still gonna run it......So at 2pm today (race kits had to be picked up by 4) I was in the car on my phone on kijiji sending out emails to try and find a bib! It was that or turn around and go home and waste the time off work, missing the trip to Winnipeg with Ray....having to spend $200 on mew race clothes(oh come on like you wouldn't) and all the training.......I stopped around 3pm at a rest stop to buy steal a car charger (when I was in the rest stop store my phone rang and it was seconds from dying...it was a guy about a race bib so I ran out of the store into the restaurant section of the rest stop to find a charger..While talking to him (HE HAD A BIB TO SELL) I set up my computer to try to get on the wi-fi at the rest stop....The man was super nice and even without paying him he gave me the bib info and my dad was able to go pick up my kit!!!!!
I was so happy and on the road again only 30 minutes behind.....
I got into Ottawa and off the highway to go into downtown and as I got off the ramp I saw this

DAMN RAMP BACKED UP-It took me 20 minutes to go 2 km.....There was a accident on Nicholas right before downtown and it slowed everything down......

I then got lost for another 10 minutes-with a GPS and the fact that I lived in this city for 10 years meaning nothing apparently....I made it to the hotel-It doesn't look like a hotel from the outside it looks like an apartment LES SUITES....it is nice and roomy so I will be on the pullout couch but that works for me.....
We went to BLUE CACTUS to eat....I have been here before when I lived in Ottawa....It was pretty good...I had the Bison burger and fries (carbs!!!!) BUT didn't eat the bun.....as you can see here I took it off-----too much bread

We went to The BAKERY Obama went to when he was in Ottawa

I love this Bakery-Ray and I used to come down and get fresh bread from it-So after supper we were looking for something sweet......

YUMM
Too many choices
I had to have a cookie for the walk back to the hotel-

 -So good
We got back and had a sugar party

Mini Cheesecake

Fruit Bread Pudding

Mini Pecan Tart and Mini Blueberry Tart

 The desserts were fantastic

Dads Bib

My Bib

Ok so I forgot that there are names on the bibs and when I bought this one from a guy named Dave I never thought about it until I opened the kit up-Hmmmmm Dave eh....great....So I am a 45 year old man named Dave-Rough- So I don't wanna look like I am nuts so all I could think of to do it add a "Y" to the Dave and go with Davey-Davey can be a girls name.............right?
Damn it

My dad swears by these salt tabs-I will try them tomorrow

 I can not stomach Gu-So he got me some Gu-Gummy candies-They taste pretty good-So I will use those instead-Puking sucks so I would rather not eat the Vile Gu

Running Time Chip

 Dad putting on his chip-
So I think we are ready to go!

11TH floor view of downtown Ottawa

So I am off to bed so I can get up at 6am-We are only a 10 minute walk to the start line!
9am tomorrow-Go Davey-GO!

My friend Kelly G

My BFF Kelly G.....A.K.A. My Goddaughters Mother.....

Just joined the blog world....after months of making fun of me! Hmmm...All it took was showing her a few of the amazing bolgs I follow!
Welcome to the blog world Kelly!!!!

This was today on our Lulu Lemon adventure.....
So go check out her BLOG HERE
We set her up last night and she is SO excited....I am very happy to finally have someone close to me who understands the blogging community! I hope we can even go to Fitbloggin next year!!!!!!YEAH!
Please excuse her if she appears rude sometimes....she has no filter...But I Love her!
I will be running the Ottawa National Capital Half Marathon on Sunday with my dad. I am pretty excited...Heading to my old home town tomorrow.......

New Cupcake Creation

My new cupcake creation of the day....as requested by a co-worker
Sweet Potato Cupcake with a Honey and Nutmeg Cream Cheese Icing

I wasn't sure when he asked me to make it, but it turned out great!!

Aww what a nice surprise!

I was reading some blogs today and happened onto my first "shoutout"! I was so surprised! This came from THUNDERTHIGHS. It really made my day! Thanks! Check her out for some interesting reading!

My Mini Garden and some Tex-Mex

I begged convinced Ray to go to the Garden Centre with me yesterday. I added to the FRESH HERBS I got at the Farmer Market yesterday. I also grabbed some green onion seeds, 2 tomato plants and 2 red pepper plants.

I don't think that the tomato plants will do too well as I planted them with the peppers and onions and they really need their own space (my mom told me after I planted them) but we will see what happens!

It was SUCH A NICE DAY OUT!
We had some drinks at the house with our friends Mark and Danielle and then went to LONE STAR for dinner. . I had wayyyy too many chips and Queso dip as well as a giant Pina Colada (I drank it before I could get a picture) and I also had a Red Raspberry Margarita.

Ray and I had Fajitas for 2...it came with chicken and steak as well as a 1/2 rack of ribs and shrimp....It was ok

I think we pushed it by having dessert but.... well I have no excuse really...just being a glutton.
I ordered mini butter tarts....they were cold and hard....I ate the filling out of 2 of them and then demanded politely asked that everyone else share their desserts with me.

YUCK

Danielle's Cheesecake.....better then my tarts!

Apple Sizzler

The boys shared the apple sizzler, it came on a hot skillet and they poured a hot butter rum sauce on it....It was pretty good....so I ate half or so...they didn't mind though!
As you see in the last picture it is dark now-well we stayed for 3 hours-The poor waitress (That is all I will say on that).

Ray

Me!!-I am soo photogenic...ugh...yeah ok

Danielle

Mark

Now at one point during the dinner our waitress came up to Mark and asked him if he was GSP brother.....Apparently there was a car in the parking lot with some kind of UFC licence plate and they thought Mark looked like his brother....LOL.....Mark was loving it....

OK....Well I have 2 new types of Cupcakes to make today! Hope you have better weather then we do today! Yesterday was just a tease of summer!

My New Website

My New Cupcake Website

Finally a nice day for the farmers market....and a cupcake!

I bounced out of bed at 730 am this morning.....littler...I was afraid I "slept it". Not that I have anywhere to go, I just knew it was gonna be a beautiful day and I didn't wanna miss a minute of sun! I had my coffee and omelet and got ready to go to the farmers market! (By get ready I mean put on a head band to hide my greasy hair).....
I was so excited to go to the market. I was hoping for some local asparagus and rhubarb 9since they are both in season).
I grabbed a coconut iced coffee from Starbucks and hit the market..the only annoying thing is finding a parking spot.

There were lots of vendors, mostly the same from last year. I only grabbed a few things since it is early in the season there is only a few local seasonal things. I also grabbed a fresh baked Cherry Strudel. I saw a cupcake vendor, I was gonna get a sample to try to see what my competition in the area is but honestly they didn't look very good at all so I passed.....Now I did go into the local Cupcake Bakery and get 2 kinds of cupcakes. I grabbed a Chocolate with a Dulce De Leche filling and icing (Ray ate it before I could get a picture of it ) and a Banana Cupcake with a Chocolate Icing

Now the 1st one was pretty good, except the cupcake stuck to the paper. The cake was moist and the Dulce De Leche filling was yummy, but the icing was not good at all....almost like whipped cream...kinda greasy soo.....We didn't try the Banana one yet, but it looks ok.
This is what I ended up buying at the market

I grabbed a new smoothie cup from Starbucks since I left mine in Cuba....I also grabbed my herbs for the summer....I will have to get them planted this weekend....Grabbed some Basil, Rosemary, Chives, Flat Parsley and Cilantro.....I had them last year and they worked out great.....Had fresh herbs all summer.....yumm.....
So we are going out to dinner with some friends tonight....It is our monthly outing with them...Not sure where we are going yet...I am trying to go to this place I just found that is an "authentic" Italian pizza place downtown...I am not a huge pizza fan, but mostly because no one makes it right! This place looks fantastic, with meat and cheese plates and a lot of local/regional ingredients......We will see.....
K...I'm off to bask in the heat!