Spring Running

May 23, 2021May 23, 2021 / Anna @ Piper's Run / 1 Comment

HELLO!!!!

Thought I’d pop in to say hi! Blogging has become non-essential….ha ha, I mean non-existent for me this year which means I’m moving closed to closing down the blog. Covid has us in another lockdown for the last 3-4 weeks. I don’t know how long exactly as I just don’t care to count anymore how long since we’ve been able to travel within our Province, see our families or gather in groups outside of our household. This extrovert is DONE with the lockdown!

I haven’t been running much but trying to stay active. Without looking, I run maybe 2-3 times a week. The weather is starting to get nice here and apple blossoms are out in full force. We’ve been biking with our girls most evenings which has been fun.

When I have been running, it’s been early mornings…. 6am ish and I’m loving it. My subdivision is so quiet at that time of day, just shift workers heading to their job or coming home. There is this older couple I see as well, we always chat when we pass each other- sometimes 2-3 times during my run and their walks.

I convinced my daughters last weekend to bike while I ran and we all had fun. I’d catch up to them and want a walking break and they’d take off saying “good job mama”.

I did get my covid shot 3 weeks ago and happy I did as my husband, being a paramedic is exposed to it. I got the AZ shot which our Province stopped giving out just over a week after I had it. I then had a week of “did I do the right thing?” and freaked out a few times. And yes, yes I did do the right thing for me and my family. I did have a rough few days post shot with chills, body aches, headaches and an increase of fatigue but it went away after a few days (5) and LOTS of hydration. I’ve been tested about 4 times, all negative and will likely continue to be tested weekly or bi-weekly cause you never know, right!

Spring running has been slow going but I’m more focused on just getting out the door, getting in a run, taking a break from bring at home …. cause I’m working full time from home while our girls are “learning” from home for school. They’ll be home until the end of the school year (June 30th-ish) and then summer break starts. I genuinely miss having meetings in person and value that time with my colleagues. Speaking of which, I got a new (term) job and loving the change. Same type of work, same people, just different work.

I am planning to run as few virtual races this summer….maybe 10k and a half marathon. My fingers and toes are crossed for a fall in person race, likely another half marathon but we’ll see what happens. That’s really about it!

I post often on my Instagram account, (pipersrun), so as I wind down this blog over the coming months, you can follow me over there.

How’s your spring going?

Anyone else in lockdown just done with it all? (But completely respect the decisions around it)? Me.

Are you racing in person yet?

A Morning Run with the TTPer’s!

March 30, 2014 / Anna @ Piper's Run / 11 Comments

This weekend the girls and I packed up and went to visit my parents. We celebrated my father’s birthday with a little cake which ended up all over the girls face’s and in their hair – awesome! Ahh well, they sure enjoyed it 🙂 I also managed a quick trip to Costco and a run with the TTPer’s!

TTPer;s???? Timberlea Tundra Pounders running group. I grew up in Timberlea and my parents still live there so I joined the group mainly online but with the intentions of running with them when I visit my family. Friday night I checked the Facebook group and saw there was a run for 9:30am. I checked off the “maybe box” as I had to make sure someone could be with the girls…Grammy, Grandad and even Auntie Laura said yes. (Lucky me).

I double checked the time and it was moved to 8:00 am. Oh me, oh my…did I really want to run that early? I dunno! I hummed and haa’d about it for a few hours and then decided that I would go. A little motivation from my family and a comment from Piratebobcat helped.

Saturday morning:

Hilary didn’t sleep well and came in bed with me and bounced, rolled over, kicked and kept me awake for a while. She finally woke up for the day at 6:47am, before my alarm was scheduled to go off. I took this as a sign from her to go run.

Looking tired before the run!

Everyone got up, we ate some breakfast, I got dressed and was out the door at 7:50 to meet the running group. When I arrived Tom was there so we chatted for a bit. Then Dave and Bryan arrived…..that was it. No one else was coming…..I wasn’t too sure about this. Running with three guys is a little intimidating.

We started off as a group of four then slowly moved into groups of two with Bryan and I leading the way. Up this l-o-n-g and gradual hill, down another, up another l-o-n-g gradual hill, another short hill.

Bryan looked really familiar to me so we played the who do you know game. I started with the soccer world as I played and coached girls soccer for a few years. No connections. He had an accent….it was British, so we talked about England and I told him that my husband was from England. Then I asked where he lived and we actually were just about to run by his house….that’s when we made a few connections. He was neighbours to people I grew up with and we found out we knew even more people in common.

We ran the whole time…slowed down a little but than picked up the pace again. Down, then up and down another hill, flat for a bit until the last little bit then UP another hill, down a short hill and done!

I was pooped! 5.18km in 31:58….I was pretty happy with that time considering the amount of hills we had. We all high-fived each other …that was awesome! I then said to Bryan…“hope I didn’t slow you down”…he responded with “I was just trying to keep up”. After we stretched I asked if he knew my father….and he did, he knew both of my parents. Small world 😉

My legs felt great, my lungs were full of life and it wasn’t even 9am yet! I arrived home to happy girls playing with my sister. My father cooked me a late breakfast (spoiled, yes I know) and then I hit up Costco for my favourite cheese and a few other things.

We had an afternoon visit with a great friend of mine, Kelly…..the one who’s wedding I was in last year (Operation Get Fit for you newbies). Since Lilly attended her wedding last year, she calls Kelly a Princess….since she was all dressed up in her wedding dress. Lilly just loves Princess Kelly.

We had planned on staying all weekend but I decided to pack up and hit the road after dinner. We are getting another storm today…. 😦 The good news is that it’s not snow but just freezing rain, rain and more rain AND that the snow from last Wednesday’s storm has almost melted away!

Do you run with a running group?

Ever run with someone and play the “who do you know game”?

Best weekend moment?

We Survived {spring} Snowmageddon

March 27, 2014March 27, 2014 / Anna @ Piper's Run / 20 Comments

It’s over and done with…thank you snow gods! I love snow and usually, USUALLY don’t mind shoveling the nice fluffy white stuff but I am done with winter.

The storm went down like this:

Breakdown of the storm

Records are saying we had 40+cm of snow fall and up to 102km winds. Here are some other stats from around Nova Scotia:

Greenwood: 102km/h & 42cm *close to were I live*
Yarmouth: 96km/h & 41cm
Sydney: 85km/h & 22cm
Halifax: 100km/h & 21cm

Peak Wind Gusts:
Cheticamp: 172km/h <– Oh my!!
Brier Island: 141km/h
Baccaro Point: 137km/h
Beaver Island: 102km/h

Source: Nova Scotia Weather Service

Last night I attempted to go out and shovel the snow but the wind was so bad I didn’t want to risk it. Plus the wind didn’t stop last night so I would have shoveled for no reason. It was nice to curl up on the couch and watch a movie.

This morning I had the pleasure of leading Team “Dig Out of the Driveway”….with my two side kicks: La La Lilly and Hipster Hilary. Luckily we have an AMAZING neighbour who came over and used her snow blower on 90% of our driveway!

Team Dig Out of the Driveway

Okay Spring…we’re all ready for you. This rain, snow and ice pellets that you have forecasted for this weekend – don’t even think about it.

Do your little kids wear sunglasses on sunny days?

Since it’s Spring…what’s your favourite thing do to ?

How to Survive a Winter Storm (in the Spring!)

March 26, 2014March 25, 2014 / Anna @ Piper's Run / 10 Comments

We’re about to be hit with another snow storm in Nova Scotia. Yes, it’s still March but technically it is spring. We’ve been watching the warnings on the weather network, local tv news stations, reading it in newspapers and it’s plastered all over Facebook – “Another Wednesday snow storm to hit Nova Scotia”. Urgh!

This time around, we have had multiple days to prepare for the “White-Juan” that hit the Maritimes back in 2004. Cancellations, road advisories, rescheduling events are consuming people, along with preparing for the storm.

How to Survive a (late) Snow Storm in the Spring:

Be prepared:

Stock up on food. Snack food and food you can make if the power goes out. The storm may only last a few hours to a few days – be prepared for the unknown.
Stock your wood pile if you have a wood stove or fire-place. If you don’t bring the wood inside before the storm, there is a good chance you won’t be able to get outside during the storm.
Get extra water for toilets (power outages), and drinking water.
Double check your batteries and flashlights are ready to go. Also, find any extra candles and matches.
Charge your cell phone, lap top, IPad, IPod etc – might be a while until you can do so again!
Do all your dishes – a load of dirty dishes in your dishwasher isn’t fun if the power goes out for days. You’ll probably need them during the storm anyway. Get ’em done!
Make sure the laundry is up-to-date before the storm, or as close as it can be. You don’t’ want to run out of clean underwear do you?
Buy some special treats for you and your family. Popcorn, chips, M&M’s, Jr. Mints. And yes, I bought my favourite Jr. Mints today…I can’t believe I did that…ha ha!
Never to early to have propane in your BBQ!!! Winter bbq can be quite fun!
If you have a generator, make sure it’s working.
Take out the shovels you just put away. I know, you may get emotional doing this but trust me, it’s better to have them out and ready then struggle last-minute to find them.
Partner up with your neighbour to watch each other’s kids while you clear the snow from your driveway, invite them over for a meal….reach out and support one another.

What to do during the storm?

Have fun. Enjoy the day home with your family or by yourself.
Play inside and build a fort with cushion’s from your couch and blankets from your bed.
Run on your treadmill, workout with those weights, roll out that yoga mat that is collecting dust.
Get outside and jump in the snow…then shovel. Always play first, work hard second.
Snuggle on the couch and watch a movie….remember that special treat you bought? Perfecting timing!
Get crafty….thank you Pinterest.

Winter snow storms can be a stressful time; blowing snow, wind gusts, power outages, damages occur. Be patient….it will pass over eventually. Just try having fun in the meantime and know that the weather is going to warm up in a few days 😉

Good luck Nova Scotian’s, Maritimer’s (PEI, NB etc).

What’s your best tip to survive a winter storm?

Do you prepare for a storm (snow, rain, hurricane, etc) ?

Do you buy storm chips? Apparently, this is a big thing to do!!!

Also….I’m just going to say….keep an eye on the number of babies that are born in December! 😉 Just saying…9 months is a long time. 🙂