July is always a big month. This year it's as big as always. It starts out with all of the Independence Day Celebrations (which actually start with the Lancaster Jaycees Fireworks on the last Friday of June).
This year July marks my only vacation time. I am on vacation through Sunday, July 25. I thought 3 weeks would feel great but then I started putting things on the calendar and realized that there were really only 6 days that I didn't have something planned. As I was working on filling in our family calendar, I decided to make a running calendar, too. As part of the Made to Move Summer Challenge I will be running a half marathon in August so I need to follow some kind of a training plan so that I'm ready.
I completed 3 really successful weeks of summer school with some amazing kids in June. One of the things we did during our last week together (20 minutes per day) was watch Luca. Have you seen it? It seemed like the perfect movie preparation for summer!! Summer boredom causes the main character, Luca, to go to the surface of the water and explore farther than he should.  |
| Running Calendar |
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| Family Calendar |
Let's talk about boredom first, shall we? I wish I could think of a time when I felt bored since 1994. Seriously. It just isn't something I ever struggle with. I think it helps that I always have books I can read and household chores that can be done. Even when I could be doing those things, I often do other time wasters instead. Oh how I wish I knew what boredom felt like.
Luca and Alberto grow a friendship and make plans with an Italian girl named, Guilia. The threesome is determined to win a triathlon so that they can buy a scooter. I love the events in their triathlon: swimming, eating pasta, and bike riding. While the movie is definitely made for kids, I am so glad that I got to watch it. I took away so much for myself. BE BRAVE, BE BOLD, BE YOU! Luca, Alberto, and Guilia grow through their experiences in the movie and Luca finds the courage to be himself even if it means giving up certain hopes and dreams. I'm coming away from watching this movie with the confidence to chase some bold goals---please know that none of my goals include swimming. 😜
I've also been reading some great books and I hope to finish 4 more books during July. Two of the books I'm reading are Mere Christianity by CS Lewis and The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-time Indian by Sherman Alexie. If you have some great book recommendations, please do share them with me.
Wrapping Up June
While I didn't get as much running in during June as I had originally hoped, I did enjoy lots of time with my family. My Garmin goals only hit 21/30 days. I can do better in July.
My Made to Move 10K was pretty rough and so I am glad that my pace for our July 4th race was nearly a minute per mile faster.
My 5th annual ICE CREAM STREAK was successful with 30 days of ice cream. Culver's was probably the most popular ice cream I consumed followed by Phish Food from Ben and Jerry's. 3rd Place goes to Happy Joe's Feature Flavor and the close 4th place of Vesperman Farms. I haven't had any ice cream in July but I'm sure that I will have some while I am visiting Virginia this week.
My final wrap up on June are 2 connections to my "professional life." I finished Unit 2 of my LETRS training and have a pretty great score. I also renewed my Illinois teaching license just to keep my options open.
Planning ahead and working toward goals is something I hope will help me.
Big goals require dedication and commitment not just interest.... Here's to chasing BIG Goals in July and August.
