A little break, but that's ok

So been awol for a bit, but wowza life gets in the way sometimes.  We have had a lot of visitors in the last 3+ months and while entertaining and working, well it just happens.  We had a lot of fun, but now can catch my breath a bit and update.

I want to thank my awesome daughter Riley again for helping me set this blog up.  This is something I've wanted to do for a long time for a couple of reasons - one is to get stuff written down because life goes by so fast that the moments do get forgotten.  I am a big "stay in the moment" kind of person, but with the journaling I have done over the last 10 years or so, I can't believe the stuff that has happened and I wrote down, but had no recall until I read the journal again!  The second reason is to become more tech savvy.  Want to do the photo thing, the craft record thing, the putting myself out there kinda thing!!  Riley, you are on standby!!

So to catch up, THE PATS WON THE SUPERBOWL!!!  My mom was here with us up until about 2 weeks ago, so she had to go through our ups and downs with the playoff games.  We set up our Patriots shrine as we have done for the last 4 Patriots Super Bowls.  We had a little mexican buffet with drinks, and after the win, Dave and I jumped in the pool screaming our heads off!!!  Sorry neighborhood!  But whodathunkit???

Like I said, my mother was here from beginning of Jan to about 2 weeks ago, my girls and Cassie came down in Feb for the Publix Marathon (done in the pouring rain, GREAT JOB, LADIES!), Keith and Sara Robinson came down for a weekend (of serious partying, nuf said), and the day Mom left, Mikala and her boyfriend Nate came down for a week to play in Florida.  Lots of fun, but now me and the boy can settle down a bit - back to our normal boring selves (YAY!!!).

Still doing the dental office thing, Dave still Macking it.  Hey it pays the bills.  We gotta get our training going again (mostly me!) races coming up next week and a couple in May, including the triathlon.  I finished the baby blanket I started in 2015 for a co-workers baby who is now almost 3, we made a couple batches of strawberry jam, did a lot of cooking, but a lot of going out to eat too.  Definitely taking a break from that for a while. 

So kinda caught up - next up is the training plan going forward - if you write it down it will get done, right???

It made things better

I was angry, so I went for a run.  And things got better.
I was confused, so I went for a run.  And things got better.
I was exhausted, so I went for a run.  And things got better.
I was lost, unsure, empty, afraid.  Certain that whatever was left of my sanity had snapped, had come untethered and floated away, to a place so high and remote that I would never see it again, and that even if I did, I wouldn't recognize it.
So I went for a run.  And things got better.
I felt like things could not possibly get worse, so I went for a run.  And things got better.
Another time, I felt like things could not get much better.  I went for a run.  Things got much better.
After enough miles, over enough runs and enough years, I realized:  No matter what, no matter when, or where, or why, I can find my shoes and go for a run and things will get better.
And that realization?  Just knowing that?
It made things better.

-  Mark Remy, Runner's World

What's next??

I have done 1 sprint triathlon, 1 indoor triathlon and 1 aquabike race.  I really enjoyed the training for these events, especially the bike and MOST especially the swim.  It's kinda funny because my husband and I have done tons of 5ks, several other distances up to 15k, and I have done my bucket list half-marathon (1 and done, baby!), and all the run training needed to stay reasonably ready to run, but the running is my LEAST favorite by far. 

I have signed up for the Space Coast sprint triathlon in Cocoa Beach on May 19, 2019.  This is the inaugural event, and will be my inaugural triathlon in Florida.  So consistent training will be starting soon.  My goal is to finish (as has been my goal since I was an age group swimmer, no matter the distance, I just want to finish without dying!) and a secondary goal is to be stronger off the bike into the run.  I've got about 4 months and I am feeling so much better being here in Florida, even running in the heat is something I have gotten more used to. 

My daughter is running in the Publix Marathon in Feb with a friend of hers and they will be staying here.  My Mom is coming today to spend a couple months with us, and my other daughter is planning to come down from SC to visit while everyone is here.   I love that we can offer a "winter escape" for friends and family. 

Also have some inspiration for more crafting!! Got some goodies for Christmas and will be making some gifts and decorations.   Can't wait to get back at it again.  Oh, and since I damaged my phone, I pretty much lost all my craft pics from this Xmas season, so will be posting here.  Phones don't like swimming anywhere near as much as I do!!

We're still here

And so another year begins . . . .

I remember when the year 2000 was approaching.  All the stores were selling stuff to stockpile, we weren't going to be able to use our credit cards, cell phones, computers, electricity was going to be a thing of the past.  The end really was coming.

We went to Gunstock for a long weekend of skiing as they offered night skiing on New Year's Eve.  I remember being with my family standing about halfway up the hill and looking down at the ski lodge.  Then I realized that we had actually missed the 5...4...3...2...1 Happy New Year 2000!!  It was probably about 12:30 am at that point.  I was looking at the lodge and realized the lights were still on, the lifts were still running, didn't hear any "shots heard round the world".  I was going to go back to work on Monday morning.   

And here we still are, 19 years later.  Another day arrives, another year arrives, the lights are still on.

Happy 2019 to everyone!  

This title?

So thought I would give some kind of explanation for the "Mintage" title.  Love the color mint, sea green, light teal, lightish blue, right in that color range.  And over the years I have accumulated quite a collection of everyday items (water bottles, watches, jewelry, clothes, even my cruiser bike) that are these colors. 

One of my peeps from my old job in NH talked about opening a tea and chocolate boutique as a pipe dream, so that got me thinking about my own dream business.  Vintage stuff has always been something I enjoy window shopping, and since I like the "Mint", put it together, and my shop, opening in 20?? will be called Mintage.  Well, not opening a shop in the near horizon anyway, but a blog is something like opening a shop, right??

To start off with . . . . . . .

Hello,
Welcome to my newly created blog!! I have wanted to start this for a while now, and so this year I asked my awesomely creative, computer mega-savvy daughter Riley to help me set this up for a Christmas present. She is here with us in Florida for Christmas break from Massachusetts, and I figured this is a gift she doesn't have to check (and pay $$$$$$) at the airport.  Thank you Riley!!

My husband and I moved here to Melbourne, FL in June 2017 - we relocated due to his job - after living in Maine and NH our entire lives.  We have 2 girls; Riley who is living and working in MA, and Lindsey has been living and working in SC for about 8 years.  It was hard (for me) at first with moving and finding work, and I was very surprised that I had as hard of a time as I did.  A lot of anxiety and guilty about leaving - selling my kids' childhood home, leaving my job, moving our older dogs to a new place without as much roaming area.  But everyone else has been thrilled for us, including our kids who love our new home and area (pool, close to beaches, no snow in Dec., etc.) and my mother who spent the majority of the winter months with us last year and is due to arrive in a few days to stay with us again!

I am working 4 days per week at a dental office doing reception/admin work.   That leaves 3 days for me to swim (beach or pool, love 'em both), run, work on crafts (knitting, sewing, painting, wood crafts, this has been an amazing outlet for me), and take care of stuff around the house.  My husband does have a good job, and he is very good at what he does, but man does he put in the hours!!  We do try to make his off hours as enjoyable as possible, and Florida definitely offers an easier lifestyle than NH.  We loved NH, but it has been much easier here in the fall with no massive leaf cleanup, house winterizing, and the winter with no snow removal, slip and fall ice around the doorsteps, driving in the snow (well, maybe driving is still somewhat hazardous in Florida!!).  Guess it was always the plan to eventually move south, just did it a few years sooner than planned.

So anyway, my goal for this blog is running/triathlon info, my craft projects/inspirations/goals, and (a big goal), become more computer savvy along the way.  I have kept a written journal for a long time, but there is soooooooooooooooo much you can do with the computer amirite???  And I will have my daughter on speed dial at all times . . . . . . . .

Thanks for reading!!!!!!!!!!!!!!