A Grand Zoo Adventure

Today was a great day! We took our Tiny Dancer out to the zoo. It was her first time visiting the zoo, and while she spent a lot of her visit napping in her stroller, it was still a fun day. With all the walking we had to do from exhibit to exhibit, it's only fitting that we turn on Charity Miles to help benefit a noble cause. And since we were at the zoo, I thought it only fitting that the miles I walk help benefit the World Wildlife Fund. We walked over 4 miles and raised over $1 to help furries around the world.

Stroll for the Furries

This evening, I was ready to get back on track with walking the pups. Piper hasn't really had a good, structured walk this week, so I was determined to get him out tonight. And he was quite happy to get his walk. I took the Piper reins while Cliff walked our two girls. Of course, Piper doesn't respond as well to me as he does to Cliff. I walked him most of the way, but for the last quarter mile, Cliff took over to show me how to relax while I walk Piper. It's just difficult for me. Relaxing while a maniacal mutt is doing everything he can to pull my arm out of the socket isn't really an easy feat. But I'll keep trying. In the meantime, I enjoyed having a few minutes to walk my girls.

Once we got home, I was ready to finish up logging our mile. But when I stopped the Charity Miles app, I got this error message.

I started to have a little panic attack. I've gotten this message before, and it was the prelude to an app crash and my progress not saving. But luckily, that was not the case today. I did manage to get my progress saved after we finished dinner, in which the baby proved to be quite fussy from sleepiness. You wouldn't know it to look at the picture I took of her (see below). For some reason, whenever a camera comes out, she can't help but ham it up. She just loves it when we take pictures of her. And she's so smart, she knows the difference between really taking a picture and pretending to take one. She's a clever clogs!

Pre-Bedtime Stroll

This evening, after I got home from work, I immediately made dinner. After eating, it was time to go for our evening walk. I wanted to eat first to give the day a little longer to cool from the heat. I got to man the stroller and the Tokie today. But with thunder clouds threatening rain, we did a shorter route than we had been doing. Still, we walked for 28 minutes and still managed to provide 1.5 meals. And after our walk, I got some snuggle time with my girl right before her bedtime.

In Touch with Nature for ASPCA

Today was a scorcher, and I was worried that we wouldn't be able to go for our evening walk. When I left work, the thermostat in my car showed 96 degrees. I definitely didn't want my girl to be subjected to uncomfortable, sticky heat. But luckily, by the time I got home after running a few errands, the temperature showed about 87 degrees. And by the time we finished eating dinner, the sun was setting and the evening was quite pleasant for our walk.

I manhandled the pup while Cliff strolled our girl and walked the Tokester. Ramsey was so cute on the stroll. She kept trying to hold Tokie's leash, and she loved it when I would turn quickly to look at her. On the way back, she held out her little hand to feel the leaves of some shrubbery as we passed by. I just love watching my girl as she experiences the world. And all her experiences tonight provided 2.5 vaccinations to some needy pets.

Spontaneous Mall Walk

Today is Sunday, and normally, Sunday is our obligatory mall walk. But since it is a long, holiday weekend, we had decided we would forgo our usual stroll. We already had plans to meet Jade at Twisted Fork for brunch, which was great because I enjoyed having brunch with her, but awful because neither the service nor food was very good. But after brunch, we opted to go to the mall to see about getting a cute onesie for the little one from Flashback. We didn't realize we would actually be pacing any distance just to go get a cute onesie. But after Flashback, Jade and her friend, Dan, wanted to go to FYE to look around, so we decided to go with them. About halfway to FYE, Cliff and I realized that we were missing out on prime Charity Mile recording. So, we set our phones for the rest of our shopping excursion. Shopping didn't last very much longer, but it was long enough to make for a very tired baby. And since I recorded 0.5 miles, I was able to get at least one meal for someone hungry. Hurrah!

The (Obligatory) Evening Stroll

It had been a couple days since our last walk with the pups, so I decreed this evening to be one for a family stroll. When I got home from work, I got the stroller ready, changed my clothes, tied on my shoes, and we hit the road. I could feel some tension as I pushed the stroller and tugged Tokie along. I believe I'm feeling a bit of frustration over end-of-month accounting stress, but I was hoping the walk would help. While I wasn't completely happy-go-lucky by the time we returned home after walking a mile, I was happy that we helped provide 2.5 vaccinations for some furry friends. Now, I just need to get through this month-end to return to my lovely, happy self. My pups and daughter feed off that negativity like piranhas.

My Shaggy Beast Helps Other Shaggy Beasts

Another day, another opportunity for an evening walk. When I got home from work, I quickly changed into some appropriate walking clothes, and off we went. I manned the beast today, while Cliff pushed the baby. I enjoyed walking in front of her only to turn quickly and get a delighted giggle from my girl. One mile and 36 minutes later, we found ourselves back home with 2.5 vaccinations provided to other shaggy beasts. Now, if only we had gotten Piper that much needed haircut… all in due time!

Mall Stroll to Help Feeding America

Today, Cliff and I opted to go to the mall for a walk after Ramsey's morning nap. We've been regularly going to the mall on Sunday mornings to meet up with another mom and dad and their little boy. Today, another mom joined in on the baby playtime, which we opted to do before the walk. I started the Charity Miles app before we walked into the mall, so the time seems really long for a 2.5-mile walk, but that's because it includes the stop for the playtime, which lasted about 30 minutes or so, as well as other stops during the actual walk. At any rate, Ramsey had a great time playing with the other kids, and they both did well in their strollers after getting to spend some time playing with toys on the mall floor. Ramsey even did some crawling to contribute her movement towards the miles. By the time we stopped for lunch, we had amassed 5 meals for Feeding America. Not bad for a morning stroll.

Morning Family Stroll...Getting Breakfast and Giving Breakfast

This morning, we decided to get our family stroll completed early in order to beat the heat. Around 8:30, we arrived at the Greenway with the dogs and baby, and set off down the path. I set the timer for 15 minutes, so that we could turn back at that time if necessary for a nice 30-minute walk. I also set my Charity Miles for Feeding America. I was excited to do this walk because I just got a new jogging stroller for my birthday, and I wanted to get out on the "rugged terrain" with my girl. Cliff manned the dogs while I manned the stroller. When the timer sounded at 15 minutes, we decided to go just a bit further until we hit a bridge near an underpass. Then we turned back.

As we walked along, we noticed how muddy the Greenway was. All the rain we've been getting of late had obviously washed dirt over the path. And the swampy area right next to the Greenway looked rather deep. I could just imagine this setting in a horror movie (picture on lower left of the eerie scene). But it was a pretty good walk, and we both managed to get 3 meals each for hungry folks! That made my post-walk oatmeal taste even better.

What's Good for the Piper...

We got a little lazy this weekend when it came to walking the dogs. They got some exercise on Sunday when we took them to the park, but Saturday only presented a short, parking lot walk. So, I was ready to get back into the routine. Piper is really responding well to having these afternoon walks with the family. This time, I led Piper while Cliff strolled the baby and guided Tokie. He did really well, and the walk was obviously good for him as you can see by the smile on his face. But it was also good for other pups and cats. It only took 0.9 miles to get 2.25 vaccinations.

Exercising for Two...Charities, That Is!

Hooray! It's Friday. Normally, I have lazy Fridays, but since Sarah and I missed our usual Tuesday run, we rescheduled it for today.

The critters were out in force today. We saw lizards, dragonflies, and a friendly little snake on our run. We managed to make it 2.6 miles in about 40 minutes (I estimate down due to stopping for the photo, etc.), which provided over 5 meals. Yea!

Update: My second exercise session happened this evening. When I got home, we opted to do a walk with Piper and the baby again. Cliff walked with Piper and I strolled the baby (in flip-flops...not a great idea, BTW). We did our normal route, and if I would have just walked a tiny bit further, I would have gotten two whole vaccinations. Oh well, there's always next time.

An Evening Walk to Provide a Meal

This evening after I got home from work, I was ready to take Piper for a walk. We missed his (what is becoming) usual walk yesterday because of dinner plans, so I definitely wanted to get him on his leash. Since Cliff was the last one to man Piper's leash, I opted to take the reins while Cliff pushed our girl in her stroller. We opted to leave Tokie at home, which she didn't like, but she doesn't really like walks longer than our parking lot. So, we did (what is becoming) our regular route, and then back to the house. Piper did very well. Although he tries to challenge me, he obeyed most of the time and didn't pull too badly. And 0.8 miles later, we not only have a happy dog, but we also have 1.5 meals for the hungry.

Boo, Accelerometer...Poor Furries!

Today, my running buddy had a work conflict that prevented us from running together. So, I decided to go to the gym and meet Helen. Helen is a type of crossfit workout where you do three rounds, three minutes each (with two minutes rest in between) of 15 situps and 15 lunges AMRAP (As Many Reps As Possible). So, I did my crossfit training, which took a little less than 15 minutes. I did about 7.5 reps. I guess that's ok, but I have nothing to compare to it. Not knowing what to do with myself for my remaining gym time, I decided to get on the treadmill. Treadmill and I don't get along, but occasionally, we have to put aside our differences so that I can run.

So, I launched Charity Miles and set it for an indoor run. I knew it would be monitoring my phone's accelerometer, so I tried my best to make sure my arm was swinging properly while I ran. Boo, the accelerometer didn't work very well. I ran a mile as is evidenced by the picture of the treadmill, but the accelerometer only registered 0.2 miles, which was only a half a vaccine for the furries. Oh well, I'll try to get them the other half of that vaccine when I take the pups for a walk later.

 

UPDATE: I did take the pups, the Cliff and the kid for a family walk after work (around 6:00 p.m.). Since I relied on my GPS for the walk, I got in another 0.75 miles, which helped provide another 1.8 vaccinations.

Feeding America on a Sleepy Stroll

As is becoming our normal Sunday routine, we opted to go to the mall and make a few rounds with a couple friends and their cute little boy. The little tikes got a bit of playtime, but I could tell our girl just wasn't feeling it today. But we still managed to circle the upper level twice and the lower level once, which equated to 1.25 miles, or 2.5 meals. Not bad for leisurely walk with our sleepy girl.

Strolling the Mall for Feeding America

Today, Cliff, Ramsey and I met with a couple of friends and their cute little boy to stroll the mall. I didn't make the same mistakes this time that I made last week. I stayed on 3G and was vigilant about restarting the app whenever I paused it. It was definitely a leisurely walk with a little baby playtime thrown in for good measure. We walked a little over a mile and got over 2.5 meals to feed hungry people. So, since Cliff did his app as well, together we amassed that's 5 meals. Yea!

Stroll for Feeding America

Today, the weather was gorgeous. I knew that after work, I wanted to get out for a stroll with the munchkin. So, Cliff walked the dogs, while I pushed the stroller. We spent 30 minutes walking leisurely through the neighborhood. We managed to walk for a mile, which means that we both provided 2 meals each to hungry families (4 meals total).

Stroll for the ASPCA

Today, the family took a slow, leisurely stroll around Shelly Lake. Tiny Dancer rode in her stroller, the dogs pulled on their leashes, and the ducks got a little nibble of some stale bread. Our two-mile, hour-long walk netted 5 vaccines for puppies and kittens.

Stroll for Feeding America

Today, Tiny Dancer, Cliff and I went for a stroll with the pups. It got cut short due to a fussy baby (it was probably too hot for her), but we still managed to stroll 0.87 miles in 26 minutes, which provided 1.74 meals to hungry people.