#mudpig Doesn't Care

 Let's start with the good stuff, shall we because it's been a pretty darn good week? 

 

Andrew got an early birthday present this year.  The band director had suggested he was ready to move to a new trumpet from the one that I had had from when I was in junior high and high school.  His band director had scheduled a day for the kiddos to play new to them instruments and then a night when they could come in and purchase the instruments they tried.  Andrew fell in love with the beautiful silver Eastman trumpet and wanted it the day he tried it, but they had to let other kiddos try it first.  

When I heard him play it and I also played it, I knew we had to have it!  SO now I have birthday done and I get my old trumpet back.  I even got a new mouthpiece for my old trumpet for me to use.  

I also got three runs in this week!  This is my kind of weather for sure.  Cool and cloudy, no humidity, and little to no sun during the day!  She's still a nutcase and we had the unfortunate experience of the soccer games letting out when we were coming back to town, which equaled a ton of cars which promptly sent her over the edge.  We also had a car full of teenage girls that came roaring up behind us on the gravel when we were running north and straight into the wind. I couldn't hear a thing and couldn't prepare for her lunging, so I was completely caught off guard and almost pulled off my feet.  That would not have been fun to hit the deck on full gravel.  I know the kid's parents, so am debating on whether or not to talk with them and tell them I have a super reactive dog so if she could slow down when she comes up behind me, that would be great.  Or should I just let it go?  Thoughts?  What would you do?

We also had an experience with a loose dog this week and Ollie was NOT having it.  The dog came running up from the trailer park we pass and while it didn't have hackles up, it was running with a purpose.  I yelled LOUDLY GO BACK HOME which triggered a frantic homeowner to come running.  Now every time we pass that area, Ollie instantly goes into reactive mode.  Great.  Yet another thing for her to react to.   

We also had lots of puddles thanks to the rain, and she was a very happy mudpig.  We did get a six miler in, but without the puddles, I am not sure she could have made it that far.  Sigh.  Just not making much progress with her reactivity and it's going to kill me this summer to not have any dog run with me.  

We did get one practice in with one car this weekend due to it being very cold and windy.  I'm just going to put this back in the universe, I think I am going to get back on the board.  Yes, I said it.  This is ONLY if this one person would like to step down and it is totally their decision, but I know how busy they are, and I know that they might like an out.  I am working just as hard if not harder right now than when I was on the board previously, and it would only be for the rest of this board year.  It's not a position I've even done, so there will be a learning curve.  Stay tuned!

And last but not least, missing my babies that have passed so much this week.  We lost Harley several years ago this week and of course still missing Stella and Deuce so very much.  Lots of pictures came up on my timeline and I would love to share them here.  We never have them long enough.

Have a great week y'all!

This week in pictures (cause I am way behind)

 Oh boy, so behind.  Here is last week in pictures.  There was some running, some working on cars, some racing, and some beer.  Enjoy.

We had our first race of the year with new to us cars. I had no expectations other than get the cars on the track and see what we have.  We luckily had a rain delay as the boys were still putting finishing touches on the car Sunday morning.  It was also our first race with a new crew in the tower and I hoped that I knew my stuff well enough to lead a new crew of ladies (along with a few veterans).  I would have to say even with the slight delay that we had a pretty smooth and good day with only minor hiccups.  Andrew had some great racing moves but with him being locked up, was passed by the unlocked cars pretty quickly.  I feel we made the right decision keeping him safe and not giving him a squirrely car.  This was basically a practice for us and we got lots of good information for the next race.  Most of the kids in his classes have been practicing daily for a few weeks now as they have all been racing this winter.  I think he looked pretty darn good against some kids who had success on the national stage.  I'm super excited for this season!

Have a great week y'all!

Spring break 2025

I'm trying to really get Ollie ready for the hotter days and try and get her to not be such a nut.  It takes a lot of work to help a reactive dog and a lot of time and that is something I don't have a ton of.  Just being honest here, it is going to take so much to get her to a spot of where I don't worry about her overheating constantly.  Even if I carry my bladder for her to have access to water to drink on demand, she has got to stop reacting to every single thing that moves.  I've been doing loops in the industrial complex to reduce incidences of cars and also so we can be near a water source AKA my car, at all times if needed.  Of course, all of this pavement running in the meantime is killing my body, but yet I do it because I feel like there is a shred of hope in there that she can be a running dog.  To say I'm missing stelle ella a whole shit ton is where I am at right now.  Okay heart laid bare, let's go into the week.  

It's spring break week for little red.  No fancy trips this year, just a lot of feral time.  I know he's sad and it's been hard to see all of the pictures of kids at the beach or skiing, but we are talking about taking the Colorado race and making a fun week out of it as a mini vacation.  He's never been to the mountains or the front range, so I think we can have some fun.  He did complete his first audio book for a class and now is thoroughly hooked on Harry Potter books. Took me 12 years to get him to that spot but here we are FINALLY!

We did get our haircuts this week and we both got a ton of hair chopped off. I decided to get a chin length bob and Andrew decided to go short and tight.  I'm still getting use to my new hair and the challenges it brings.  I can sort of pull it up into a ponytail, but I am not used to having hair in my face at all times.  I do love it, just need to get used to it, plus I need some products to help kind of tame it because now it has tons of volume and so many different ways to style it.  

I am going to go back to get some color done because all of those streaks I have are natural and I would like to make it look better.  The sun does a number on my hair every year running even though I wear a hat.  

And I will end on an update on Ollie.  We found a weird bump on her leg that grew and got very odd looking.  Of course, having had a dog with mass cell tumors previously, I was very worried about the fact that it grew and changed.  I also knew that she was super young and while not a 0 percent chance, the odds were still super-duper low that it could be cancer due to her age.  We did a needle biopsy and got nothing, then a blood smear and just saw red blood cells, so the vets are leaning towards a histiocytoma which is just a fancy word for weird bump.  We are hoping as they do in young dogs, that it will go away in few months.  While the results don't rule out cancer, to hear they are common in young dogs makes me feel a little better.  It doesn't seem to hurt or bother her, and she has left it alone even post needling.  

Three runs in one-week and thinking about going back to classes as time permits next week.  Who am I????  We also finally got to the track to practice one car.  While our goal was to just get it on the track and make sure it runs with no hiccups, we saw some good things and know what to adjust to make it a rocket on race day.  I am seriously loving this blacked out car.  I'm calling her Black Betty but I am getting push back from the boys.  They say it's a he and they are calling HIM He man.  To be continued.  

We have one more car to get ready and then hopefully as the season progresses, a third to add to the mix.  Andrew is ready to do some big things, and I am so excited to help him.  I think this was the first time ever in a practice we had to tell him to slow down and not slam her into the wall.  

Why does he look so freaking grown up in these pictures????

Have a great week y'all!  It's race week, back to school week, and mammogram week for me :)

More?

Not more running and that makes me sad.  More beautiful weather, just not great timing.  If I could just get some sleep, I could go back to morning running.  Also, running with both dogs is a big no.  I tried twice this week and both times it sucked.  Ollie is over the top, reactive to everything and losing her shit, and Boom gets sick of her crap and attacks her.  It's a big mess and I am afraid I am going to fall because of them stopping in front of me to fight.  I have to figure out a plan because they both need their mileage.  It's nice to get Boom back out and I miss running with him.  Hell, I miss running with Stella ella so much lately.  So much less drama with running and her and boom just ran together so nicely.  I am just not sure Ollie is going to ever be a good running dog and for sure will be a challenge this summer.  To be continued.

We had concerts again this week, shocker!  We had our spring concert and of course I loved it.  They did two songs that I really, really loved including one with the high school choirs and it was powerful!

I love that the music boosters get lots of photos.  Mine with my iphone camera just sucked and andrew looked like a white, washed out Caspar the ghost.  To hear the boys actually singing loud and proud was so freaking cool.  Their voices are really coming in and I am here for it!  The song with the high school gave me goosebumps, not going to lie.

Towards the end of the week we had fun in Topeka and KC.  Saturday was the St Pat's Day parade in Topeka that we always try and be a part of for the club.  We had a great turn out and lots of new to our club families walked with and helped out.  We had a huge group go to a local bar and eat and just hang out and I loved every minute of it!  I think we have found our new post track hang out and I am super excited.  Their beer menu alone was a whole page, plus that was one of the best burgers I have ever had.

 

Of course, I had to have an Irish beer for St. Pat's Day :)  Guniess for the win!

On Sunday we went and celebrated one of our former racer's 15th birthday.  Micah and his family are some of our most favorite people.  Micah wanted to take Andrew to the go cart place in KC and I think Tony was the most excited of all of the kids.  

After some interesting food/experiences/people, we headed over to Crane Brewery to have a beer with our favorite KC family, the Soares.  

Track family is the best family.  Both of these families have been through some crap with me and have stayed by my side.  I am so blessed to have such great friends in my life.  Someday I hope we will leave pavement for dirt and start traveling with these two fams.  Of course, my liver may never be the same but oh well, we will have some freaking amazing times!

I did learn that I can eat like crap and have three beers and still get a run in.  Who knew?

Have a great week y'all!  We are going to have summer and a blizzard with inches of snow next week, YIPEEEE!

Fake news

Fake spring.  Why.  Snow and ice.  Wind and cold.  No running.  Thanks Kansas.  Back up.  I did get two short runs in during the weekend.  That was it.  We literally had 70 degree weather one day and then a blizzard with 50 mph winds and blowing snow and ice that night.  

My life is about to be overtaken by the track and that is okay.  Most weekends from here on out will be track weekends.  Two of the elders of the track LOL!  One has a mustache, and one is getting super tall.

We welcomed a new car into our family and said goodbye to the red car.  Why do I get so sentimental about these things.?  The red car was Andrew's first junior animal car, and it was fast.  It eventually became the 160 that he kicked butt with and found all kind of confidence in.  I am glad it is staying in the club so we can watch a new kid grow up with it.  I will never forget Andrew getting like 3 or 4 laps in it and then going out in the junior animal class and almost winning his first time out in that car.

All the spring concerts are happening!  Band was up first.  He's grown up so MUCH!

Have a great week y'all!  It's going to be busy with more concerts, nice weather, and track time.  

  

And mud.  Ollie hopes more mud.

And margs.  More margs.

I want to completely end on this.  The club has had to pull together and do a lot that we didn't expect to do so soon.  While it's been hard, and it's going to continue to be hard for a bit, I am really enjoying seeing everyone do their jobs or a job and step up.  That is what a club should be every member pulling some sort of weight.   I wish we had not have gotten here in the way we did, but I hope people continue to help and explore new to them jobs.  After we work all day together, we break bread and have some fun together.  I missed that and glad to see it back on such a large scale.  I hope it continues, I truly do.   Our club has evolved a lot over the past few years, and I hope we keep evolving for the future kids and families.  Our number one goal has been to make this about the kids and make it fun.  We've taken huge steps in that direction, and we can only keep going up from here.  I'm excited to have been a part of that evolution with others, even if they are not participating in the club anymore.  We've built a good thing, all of us, and we should be proud.  

Spring can it be you?

Usually, winter running is my jam.  I am always love when temps go low and the snow flies.  I love nothing more than a good snow run.  While I am not looking forward to the heat coming, I am really looking forward to warmer weather and just having one week of nicer weather has really rejuvenated my soul.   Can I be #teamspring and #teamfall when it comes to running from now on?  

I am also really worried about Ollie.  She has been overheating already, and highs are in the low 70s only.  She's already at a disadvantage being a black dog and then adding in her reactivity to cars and you have a major problem.  I've been working with her on reducing her aversion to cars, but it is a slow process, and I can't not run her near them.  Our running route takes us down a very busy road and there is no way to avoid it, so not sure how I am going to tackle this one fully.  I know i can go down to the rec complex and work her on the trail that is nearest to the highway as I think it's far enough away to get us under the threshold.  Sigh.  I want my stella ella back that viewed running as a job and nothing else mattered.  It adds a whole big layer of complexity to running when I am worried about my dog passing out constantly because she can't control her urges to eat everything that passes us on wheels.  

We did get a longish run of 6 on Sunday.  I think Ollie slept the rest of the day and was completely worn out.  I also need to figure out how to incorporate boom back into my runs.  Poor dude is not loving being left at home, even if he gets a PB kong every time I leave.  I miss him as he was a pretty easy dog to run with and we had just really gotten good at being lose during our runs.  

Here are some random photos from the rest of our week.  Had a date night with some good food and beer.  

He's dealing with a lot at work right now.  I wish we had never gotten into business.  It's aged him so much and i hate seeing him so upset all of the time.  

Birthday party time!  Happy birthday Chuck!

She takes the best photos when I can get her sit still.  

Had some great beers this weekend.  Lots of great porters and dark IPAs.

Spring is that you?  Love having deck time!

Have a great week y'all!