Welcome, July!

This summer is just flying by.  It seems like they always do, though.  I am super excited to be starting my official half marathon training tomorrow.  My goals are simple:  improve my endurance, improve my time.  My hope is to run the half marathon in two hours.  Having a goal and a training schedule helps keep me on track and focused.  I love to write down in my running log that I've done the required work each day.  

July is the month where I hope to get a few things done that I just didn't get to in June--mostly house stuff.  You know, that maintenance that falls through the cracks.  Really, who thinks about washing your house?  I do.  The siding gets dirty, and I grab the giant brush, attach it to my hose, and plop it in a bucket of soapy water. Start scrubbing.  It's good to do it on a hot day, since I manage to get completely drenched. The house always looks brighter and fresher.  I try to do it twice a year--in the spring, and in the fall, just before it gets cold.  So far, I haven't done it at all.  I did get up and clean out the gutters after seeing the horrifying sight of little trees growing in them.  I was making my own dirt in the gutters.  It was a smelly, icky mess, but they are clean again for awhile.  Time to get the rest of the gutter guards out of the garage and put them on!  I don't enjoy climbing ladders.  

Bud doesn't know it yet, but he's going to be eating kitchen experiments this month.  I've been sucked into the summer recipe magazine hole, and now I have to use them.  There are some great side dish recipes--how does green beans, tomatoes, and  white beans sound as a side salad?  I will find out.  Bud may start eating before he comes to my house.  But, if I'm going into my workout mode, I want to put the good foods in my body.  An occasional sweet will be my reward for eating healthy the rest of the week.  

What are you doing for the 4th of July?  I'm heading over to my brother's on Sunday for a cookout.  The actual 4th of July may see me working on my front porch, after an early morning run.  Hopefully Bud and I will see some fireworks, if we can get downtown and avoid the huge crowds.  

And reading?  Well yes, I will be doing that.  I got off track last month, but this chick is back on, hitting the gas pedal, and cruising through my books.  

  I'm going to have a huge book sale on half.com, so watch for that posting.  I'm cleaning out the bookshelves, and there will be some great deals!  

Have a great weekend, and I'll "see" everyone next week.