Just when I thought we had enough snow

We are still getting snow. It is trying to rain, but it is mostly sleet. What a mess it will be when it does rain. The snow level in the yard is up past the deck. The deck rails and BBQ are about the only indication we have a deck.

I bring you more pictures:

Green Chairs today:


The table today:


A Cedar tree in the back yard:


Snow Laden:


Our back yard:


Bob The Cat:

White Christmas and all that jazz

After our 20 miler, the snows and frigid temps arrived. I have gotten a couple runs in, a couple walks and a whole lot of extra tapering. The snow is extreme. It is enough that I am posting pictures of my world as it was this morning when I was out.

Running has been a bit of an issue. I have gotten out a couple times since the snow hit, but not like I should be. I went for a long walk today and shovelled snow. The marathon is in2 1/2 weeks and I am getting a little worried at this point. I don't own a treadmill, nor do I belong to a gym. I rely on being able to get outside and get my runs in.

We are snowed in - really. I didn't make it in to work today. It's crazy out here. I measured snow around our yard. The deepest pocket was 34 inches and the lowest amount I found was 19 inches. It's still snowing. It has been snowing most of the day. They say it is going to rain by Friday, but I won't believe it until I see it.

This morning I cooked a huge breakfast for the family. The boys dined on bacon, eggs, hashbrowns, toast and D had a German Pancake. Days like this I just cook and cook and cook. It keeps me sane.


I am going to leave you with a crap ton of pictures. On my walk this morning I got pictures of the Bald Eagles that here. They were really noisy today.

My House:



Front Walk:


Youngest Son's Bike he left out:


Nigel the cat:


Green Chairs on the Deck - the beginning of our snow and today:



The neighbor couldn't get out this morning:


Pasture down the way:


Youngest son had cleared this table of snow of 4 days ago:


Down our street:


Eagles:

And so the taper begins

Today was our big 20 miler. The last 2 long runs have been done in pouring rain. I discovered that I rather enjoyed running in the rain. The temps had been mild enough that I didn't feel too chilled. I found a fantastic running coat that is a water/wind resistant shell lined with fleece. It has been perfect. The last couple of weeks I have managed to get all my weekly short runs in as well. This has been significant and I am feeling better prepared now.

Today, we ran in a Nor'easter. Today was the big 20 miler and it was pretty brutal. We are experiencing some of the coldest temps for December since 1990. The run out wasn't too bad, the wind was behind us and we were partially sheltered on the trail. Coming back however was a much different story. By the time we were unsheltered the wind was fierce and it was one of the most difficult runs I have done since I started running. Running in a strong bitter cold head wind is no easy task. I am thankful the snow held off. There were a couple of moments I considered giving my inlaws a call to come pick me up. I didn't, I kept going. I have running partners and they really helped keep my motivation up. I love having partners. I trained almost completely solo for my first marathon. Even though I was part of Team In Training, all but 2 long runs were completed completely on my own.

Now we taper. I have been so looking forward to the taper. It means we are so close! Tapering isn't easy. It is tough to stop running at a shorter distance when you feel like you could just keep on going for another couple miles.


To give you an idea of the weather during our run: