Thankful Thursday 10: Wrapping up

Welcome to the tenth instalment of my Thankful Thursday, The Little Things! No, I’m not wrapping up the series, but I am wrapping up some other stuff!

This week I’m focusing on gratitude for wrapping up – quite a few things have neared the end of their life span for me.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the Week of June 15 – June 21, 2018!

Things I am thankful for this week:

  • My new sloth mug, which is giving me child-like glee to sip out of:

  • Thursday was the last day of scheduled classes for the year
  • Andrew and I went to see Incredibles 2, which is the funniest movie I’ve seen in a long time. I came away with sore stomach and cheek muscles, and cried laughing more than once. Here’s a gif you’ll appreciate if you’ve seen the movie.
  • It was really hot early in the week, but it’s cooled down right on time for my half marathon tomorrow
  • Andrew and I went to Red Robin for a nice (not so) little dinner, and we got these amazing Chocolate Hazelnut (mine) and S’mores (his) milkshakes.

  • I made it through report card week, albeit with a couple nights where I was working straight through until bedtime

And the theme for this week, Wrapping Up!

I finished up most of the requirements for the teaching year this week, and I also started wrapping up my half marathon  training for the year.

First, the school year.

  • As I mentioned above, this was the last week of scheduled classes. Thursday was the last day. We are still providing opportunities for students to come in and do some fun learning activities next week, and of course there are some provincial exams to invigilate, but the school year is almost complete. And a lot of the usual stressors are gone, like planning lessons and marking.
  • I had a couple of students in the bands performing their year-end pieces in Player’s Hall one morning, and I was so proud 🙂
My student is the girl on bass guitar! This is the senior jazz band
That’s my student on trumpet in the grey t-shirt!
That’s my student on piano! These two photos were of the junior jazz band.
  • I posted my final grades on Friday morning. Then, I got my last couple of students across the finish line who hadn’t been passing.
  • The LSP teachers hosted a picnic on Friday at lunch, and one of the VPs got his head shaved for Cops for Cancer.
  • The awards ceremony was on the last day of scheduled classes. I got to see the final product of the amazing paintings a couple of students had been working on in the cafeteria for a couple of weeks. They are the banners on the sides of the stage.

  • One of my favourite students (I know, I’m not supposed to have faves) gave me this beautiful bracelet as a gift on the last day. Not only does it suit me super well, it went along with a lot of what I taught my Planning 10 students this year about mindfulness and mental health. I won’t miss the I-Reports that come along with teaching Planning 10 as I switch over to a fully French subject assignment for next year. But I will miss the course’s meaningful content and the connections I was able to make with students because of it. Thank you Anna <3

  • Finally, I’ve been collecting textbooks, organizing binders, and cleaning my office. It’s been really nice to have a bit of a change of pace.

Second, the training!

  • My training for my second (and last) half marathon of 2018 is wrapping up as well. On Tuesday I did my 10k race pace at dawn, with this beauty around me:

  • Then on Wednesday, I did my 6k race pace, at dawn again, with this view:

On Saturday, I’ll be doing 3k slow, and that’s it for the training! It’s been a long 7 weeks of battling to come back from my hip injury and still try to finish this half in a reasonable time. It looks like my goal will be sub-2:30. It’s a bit of a disappointment for me as I spent most of the training season doing really well at the 2:00 pace. C’est la vie. I’m going to work on cross training and keeping up some distance for the next six months leading into the 2019 season. Next year, I’m hoping to run both the BMO and Scotia again. I’ll perhaps join my parents for Edmonton in August, too! Fingers crossed!

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 9: The Little Things

Welcome to the ninth instalment of my Thankful Thursday, The Little Things! Finally back to actually posting on Thursday.

This week I’m focusing on gratitude for the little things, of which there were several this week.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the Week of June 8 – June 14, 2018!

Things I am thankful for this week:

  • Andrew brought a Lucky’s donut home from work for me today
  • These floofers on Granville Street

  • I got a lot of marking done! There are still huge mounds to go but I feel like I’m actually going to make it.
  • This owl mug I got at London Drugs for $3.99. $3.99!!! (I actually got two, and they are slightly different)

  • These views on my runs

  • Our favourite brunch locale, Craft Beer Market in False Creek, empty and super peaceful on Sunday morning after I ran 20k (more on that in a sec).

  • This view from my best friend’s apartment.
  • This piece of art in Starbucks while I did some marking with said friend.

  • The view I get every day when I leave work.

Also, some not-so-little things.

  • I knew I wanted to see if I could run the 20k scheduled for Sunday (the last run longer than 10k until race day), so I decided to do a slow stationary bike ride on Saturday to loosen up my legs instead of the 6k steady. I biked for the same amount of time it would have taken me to do the run. Then, on Sunday, I planned to head out around Stanley Park for a 10k, and then turn around and go all the way back if it went well. It did, so I completed 20k!! It took me 2:33, so I’m changing my expectations for the half, but I’m thankful I was able to do it at all.
  • I’m also hella thankful for this gorgeous 7am view about a quarter of the way through:

  • Finally, I had to schedule an appointment in the middle of the day on Tuesday, so I decided to take the day off work and schedule some other appointments too. I got by thyroid checked on the new dose and it’s back to normal (I could have told you that myself based on how I’ve felt, but it’s nice for the blood work to confirm it for me). Physio was amazing as always. I had a fantastic counselling session. And I got my nails done! It was a much-needed mental (and physical) health day. And it turns out I got my favourite TOC in for me! 🙂

Here’s my nails!

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 5: Restoration

Welcome to the fifth instalment of my Thankful Thursday. I can’t believe it’s been a month of doing this already! This week I’m focusing on gratitude for the restoration that’s going on in my life.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the Week of May 11-May 17, 2018!

Things I am thankful for this week:

  • This week Andrew had a big win at work which I’m thankful for and really excited about.
  • I’m also thankful for the delicious Breka treats we got to celebrate that win – donuts and torte!
  • For another week, it’s been hot and sunny. We actually hit a temperature record here in Vancouver on Monday at 25 degrees Celsius! Over the past couple days it’s cooled down a bit, but it’s still not rainy, which is awesome.
  • These beautiful flowers:
Across the street from home.
On my walk from the parking lot into work.
  • As usual, I spent a big chunk of time with my best friend over the weekend doing work (teachers don’t just work M-F 8-3!!). I was super productive. I’ve had a lot of marking hanging over my head for a few weeks now and I managed to finish ALL OF IT!

And the title of this post, Restoration!

  • The main reason I chose restoration for this week’s gratitude theme is that I’m working on restoring my hip to full health.
  • I’m thankful for the good chiro session I had last Thursday, which helped.
  • I also went to physio on Monday and Wednesday. I’m thankful to my friend Sagal, who recommended the physiotherapist that I saw and liked. I’m also thankful that he determined that I likely haven’t actually injured anything. I just have a LOT of sympathetic/compensatory tightness after twisting my hip a bit coaching rugby. I also made it angry without giving it the rest it needed. Lesson learned.
  • In the same vein, I’m thankful that my physiotherapist now thinks it’s within reason to aim for me to be able to run the next half I’m registered for, the Scotia Half toward the end of June!
  • At yesterday’s appointment, my physio did IMS which is probably the weirdest feeling I’ve ever experienced. It’s not exactly painful, but it made the insides of my muscles twitch involuntarily, which he said was textbook. Now that I’ve rested and my muscles have recovered a bit, my hip is feeling miles better, which is amazing.
  • This restoration of my body that I’ve done while resting post-BMO half has also allowed some other types of restoration to happen.
  • The state of our apartment tends to run on a sliding scale exactly the opposite of the sliding scale that shows how busy we are. Training for a half-marathon takes about 10 hours a week. When you’re working full-time and coaching a high school sport and tutoring, there’s not much time for a clean kitchen or clothes. Now that the rugby season is over and I’m resting, the dishes are getting done with more regularity, which does wonders for my mental health (I’m not exaggerating).
  • I’m also thankful to restore some of my time writing and planning, which really fell off the table during the busy season.

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 4: Motivation

Welcome to the fourth week of my Thankful Thursday. This week has flown by, and this time I’m focusing on gratitude for getting my motivation back.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the Week of May 4-May 10, 2018!

Things I am thankful for this week:

  • I was able to run my half-marathon on Sunday. My hip gave out at around 13-14km in. I ended up missing my PB by 6 seconds, but I did PB the first 5k (28:31) and 10k (1:00:15), which I’m proud of.
I did it!
  • It was also really great to have Dad, Sharon, and Andrew all at the finish line cheering me on.
Part one of the cheer squad.
Part two of the cheer squad.
  • I felt like I was going to die for the last 400 metres and their cheering really got me over the finish line!
Me feeling like I’m going to die.
  • I’m also thankful for all the awesome signs that people held along the course. Some of my favourites:
    • If Trump can run, so can you
    • Run quietly, I’m hungover
    • Smile, you paid to do this
    • Go random stranger go
    • Worst parade ever
    • Run like someone called you a jogger
  • The weather has been pretty consistently good once again, and I’m really enjoying the sun
  • We’ve had a few really nice dinners and visits with my Dad and Sharon and got to play Mario Kart together (I’ll let you imagine who won, lol)
  • Since my hip flexor is pretty sore after the run, I’m now on a complete rest period until it’s entirely better. It’s nice to be forced to slow down after 5 months of non-stop training.
  • I’ve also booked a chiro appointment and a physio session, which I’m really excited about. Chiro is today, I can’t wait!

Motivation

  • And the title of this post, motivation! For most of March and April, I had totally lost all my motivation, and over the past week it’s finally felt like it’s coming back. I think that some of this could be due to the change in my thyroid meds, which really has lessened my levels of fatigue. My counselling appointment on Tuesday really helped, also. Those sessions really help me process all the things going through my head at a mile a minute. I also think the sun and the longer days are helpful as well. It’s nice to get home from work and still have at least 3-4 hours of sunlight left both for energy and to bask in.
  • I’ve also been reading more. The catalyst for this was realizing that I had an Advanced Reader Copy of a book to read and review two days before the due date.

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee

Thankful Thursday 3: Slowing Down

Welcome to the third week of my Thankful Thursday, this time with a focus on slowing down.

Here’s my Thankful Thursday for the Week of April 27- May 3, 2018!

Things I am thankful for this week:

  • My hip is still pretty messed up but I went to chiro again and it was magical. This is the best chiropractor I have ever seen (and I’ve seen my fair share).
  • Also, I’m still able to run (albeit in pain) which means I’ll still be able to run Sunday’s race.
  • In the same vein… there are only three days until the BMO Vancouver Half-Marathon! I’m excited and nervous all at once. Five months of training and it’s nearly here!
  • I can feel the difference my new thyroid meds are making already. It could easily be placebo, but I’m sleeping less (more like 8 hours instead of 9) and still feeling rested. My mood is also higher and I’m more motivated and productive.
  • Dad and Sharon arrived safely in Vancouver and are staying really close to my place for two weeks! I’m so excited to have them cheer me on at my race.
  • We got a thank you card in the mail from friends we gave a gift to for their new baby.
  • My husband and I are quite possibly happier than we ever have been. We’ve always been happy, but things are just pretty swell right now, and we’re both taking notice. It’s awesome.
  • This 6am sunrise on my last training run before cutting things off to rest my hip:

Slowing Down

  • And the title of this post, slowing down! Because my hip and quad have been bothering me so much, I’ve cut some training runs out of my schedule and am spending a lot of time contrasting (ice and heat), and using my foam roller. It’s forcing me to slow down a bit and it feels nice, even though the injury itself is un-fun and stressful.
  • I’ve also been reading more. The catalyst for this was realizing that I had an Advanced Reader Copy of a book to read and review two days before the due date. So it forced me to spend a lot of Sunday and Monday reading. I managed to get the review published on time, which was great.

There you have it!

So, that’s my Thankful Thursday list for this sunny week. I hope it inspires you to make your own, and get on that gratitude train!

Peace and love,

Bee