Another Day, Another Run

Another spring day has come and Flat Jenny has been out enjoying the beauty of the world around her. This morning started off chilly and a little cloudy, but by the time the 4.5 mile run was finished it was sunny, warm, and glorious!

The daffodils were out, happily sharing their sunny faces with the world!
Flat Jenny's run took her through some neighborhoods around town. Again, Mack was her gentlemanly chauffeur. She has a completely unobstructed view of the world that way and she loves it.
Toward the end of the run, Flat Jenny and Mack met up with some of their friends---John and Anya---who were coming back from a scooter ride adventure. John gave Flat Jenny a speedy ride back home and she loved feeling the wind on her face!
Excellent running again this morning, Flat Jenny! Now she is off to have spring break adventures with Meggen and her family!

Springtime in Utah

Mother Nature sometimes has a wicked sense of humor . . . especially here in Utah! We made it through April Fool's Day without any problems, but then when we least expected it, WHAM! Mother Nature had only been teasing us with the recent beautiful, sunny, mid-70 degree weather of late. Sunday morning we woke up to a flocked world! Everything was covered in a layer of snow and ice (even the popcorn that had just started popping on the apricot tree!)

Even now, Monday morning, the world is still snowy and 28 degrees outside. ;o(

So, although Flat Jenny thinks the snow is beautiful, she has opted to stay inside on the treadmill this morning for her daily run. Slipping on the icy roads and possibly breaking her neck in the process just doesn't sound like a great way to start a new week. But, perhaps if she waits a day (or even an hour or two), the sunshine just might return! That's springtime in Utah for ya!

Jordan River Trail Run

Flat Jenny had a glorious run today on the Jordan River Trail in Lehi, UT. The sun was out and the temperature absolutely perfect! Flat Jenny smiled and loved every minute of her adventures outside. She got to ride on the back of her friend Mack. (Mack is very gentlemanly and always carries the water, snacks, camera, and car keys in his backpack, so why not let Flat Jenny ride too?!)
Within the first mile, Flat Jenny came around a bend in the trail and discovered a dozen cows hanging out next to the fence waiting for a visit. Flat Jenny said a quick, "hello," but couldn't stop for too long. She was just getting warmed up!
Next, Flat Jenny decided that the view of the lovely snow covered Mount Timpanogos was awesome, so she just had to stop for another picture. She really loves looking at the beautiful world while she is out running---there's always something inspiring to see.
Another mile later, the llama who shares his pasture with a bunch of sheep decided to come over and say hello. He usually is not very friendly, so this was a special treat! Even so, Flat Jenny decided not to get too close because, as you know, llama's spit (or so Flat Jenny has been told!)When today's 6 miles were through, Flat Jenny and Mack felt very tired, but extremely happy to have been outside on such a beautiful day! They hung-out together in the back of the car while Meggen drove them home for a well-deserved rest! Great running, Flat Jenny!

Flat Jenny & Laurie's Adventure

From Laurie:

Jenny and I have something in common - neither of us can run. Jenny's inability to run is due to a very bratty disease. Mine is due to bratty genetics. A few years ago my doctor, who after several tests diagnosed me with osteoporosis (at 37 - awesome), told me a list of things I cannot ever do again. Included on the list was no skiing, no tackle football (For real - do I look like a football player?) and no running. I then went through a few of my favorite exercises and asked if I could do those. NO. I asked him what I COULD do and he said, "Walking is a great exercise." Please. Walking is for old ladies.

I was mad. My husband had just signed up for his first marathon and I was feeling sorry for myself. My exercise options seemed so lame. Was I going to have to sneak into the 65+ water aerobics classes? No thanks. As Scott was looking on a race website he noticed that you're allowed to walk marathons if you can do it under the time limit. Hummm. I could do that.

So then, because apparently I am very easily persuaded to do good things for my body when I am mad, I decided to show my bratty genes what I thought of them. I decided to be not just any old lady walker, but a freakishly fast one. Yeah, so there, porous bones. As it turns out, I'm pretty darn fast. Yes, I look a little silly (OK, let's be honest, you've seen the racewalkers on TV, they look CRAZY) but I'm having fun, I feel great after a long, long walk and now I have a flat friend to go along with me.

Enough background. Let's get on to the adventures!

Here's flat Jenny in my kitchen (giving my scary callused toes a massage) before she was carefully folded up and put into my backpack. Sadly, some of those toenails are actually that color in real life. At least I still have all my toenails! While inside the backpack Jenny enjoyed eating a banana, energy bar and gel. She was pretty thirsty after all that and went through three refills of the water bottle.

I was pretty nervous. I'd never done 18 miles before. The hospital is about seven miles from my house so I thought I should head in that direction. I figured it wouldn't be a bad idea to be by a hospital because anyone going 18 miles was either sick in the head or just plain sick.

There were lots of fun things to see on the way to the hospital. About five miles in we passed the mall that burned down last fall. Here is a photo of it when it was still smoking. It's almost back to normal now - whew - except the DownEast Basics is not coming back.

One of my favorite things about California in the spring are the poppies. (Important note: this photo is not of a real poppy but part of a state flower embroidery project I found today. I think I feel a new project coming on!) California Poppies all over the place in my neighborhood! Flat Jenny and I felt a little more relaxed every time we walked past a big clump of them.

We did not feel quite as relaxed when we saw these jokers. Not only is my neighborhood filled with the state flower, but also these gigantic turkeys! Doesn't it seem like turkeys are something that just live on farms or in ye olden days or yore? I swear they are as big as a Kindergartner. They actually kind of freak me out. They way they move always remind me the scene in Jurassic Park when the velociraptors were walking around the kitchen. We also saw lizards, by the way. They do not scare me.

Somehow we made it to the hospital, past the hospital, into a neighborhood with bigger trees and fancier cars than on my block, back to the hospital, back past the poppies and freaky turkeys and back to my home sweet home. We did it, Flat Jenny, we did it! (Or as Dora would say, ¡Lo hicimos!)

Races, Races!

Flat Jenny is now officially competing in 4 races---3 half marathons and 1 full marathon!  She's going to be a BUSY girl, but she will love it!  Wow, Jenny has a lot of incredible running friends!  Can't wait to see how Flat Jenny does in all her events in the coming months!  Go, Flat Jenny, go!

Flat Jenny's First Week

Flat Jenny kicked off her official training for the Utah Valley Half Marathon this week!  She is excited to have this challenge ahead of her.  It will be a wonderful 12 week adventure.  She hopes to be able to share it with many friends along the way.

Flat Jenny has been running on the treadmill with Meggen this week because the weather outside has been cold, rainy, and miserable!  It is great to run on the treadmill but not nearly as enjoyable as running outside---the views are not nearly as interesting.  Flat Jenny is hoping that improved weather next week makes for some wonderful outside running adventures.