Thankful Things Thursday: Running & Puppies

I was in a pretty foul mood this morning. Life is so hard.

HI MY NAME IS DIESEL & I WEIGH 228 LBS.
HI MY NAME IS DIESEL & I WEIGH 228 LBS.

I got to bed late last night, so I chose not to go to yoga this morning as planned. I was stressing over my schedule and trying to figure out how to get everything done on time, and then Ellie was being a bit of a diva on our morning walk, further delaying the start of my day. Wah.

BEEP BEEP! HONK HONK!
BEEP BEEP! HONK HONK!

In other words, nothing is wrong, everything is fine, but I’m in a funk. Probably because I’ve eaten nothing but straight sugar for the past two weeks (OK, actually for the past “since September 26“), and I feel like crap. Nothing fits, I’m not really working out, and I don’t feel good about myself. Oh, and I’m not doing anything about it — except complaining.

Brian is lucky to have married me and Ellie is lucky to have me as her human. I am a ray of sunshine and joy!

BUDDIES. (Captions are hard today.)
Sunshine, Joy, & our friend Amir

Enter: Thankful Things Thursday. The ever-reliable cure for ditching the drama and getting grateful.

Inhaling good stuff. Exhaling brattiness. Onward!

Ellie loves November Project! Ellie does not love when I try to get her to wear hats.
Ellie loves November Project! Ellie does not love when I try to get her to wear hats.

I’m thankful for my girls. I have a lot of great girls in my life. (People get so mad when you call grown women “girls,” but I do it and I am not offended by it. “Sorry.” —Justin Bieber.) I’ve had multiple girls’ nights in the past two weeks with different groups of girlfriends, and it’s been so nice to stay in, hang out, drink wine, and gorge on cheese and guacamole. (See aforementioned paragraph about my clothes not fitting. Weird.)

Then we braided each others' hair.
Then we braided each others’ hair.

I’m grateful for girl groups in all different circles of friendships: my November Project girls, my Wine & Cheese girls, my runner girls, my yoga girls, my college girls, and my work girls. I feel lucky to be surrounded my lots of love, laughter, and silliness at all times.

My favorite dance party.
My favorite dance party.

I’m thankful I got back on the run! After a few days without knee pain, I decided to try a test run by jogging the mile-ish to November Project yesterday morning. The verdict: I was 20 minutes late to the workout (oops), but I had no pain! I jogged a bit during the workout, too, and a few blocks afterward because I was cold and wanted to get into a hot shower.

Ruined it.
Ruined it.

I iced my knee as soon as I got home, just to be safe, but by last night a little bit of the pain had returned. So who knows. I don’t have any races on my calendar until November (New York City Marathon, YAY BEST DAY EVER!), so I have plenty of time to give my knee some TLC and to let it properly heal up.

MY NEXT RACE. A full marathon on my half-birthday.
MY NEXT RACE. A full marathon on my half-birthday.

And still, those few precious moments of running? They were so good while they lasted.

I’m thankful Ellie loves school! She started puppy classes two weeks ago, and she loves it. There are six puppies in the class (it’s for the owners, too, so we’re there), and it’s Puppy Level I, so we’re learning the basics. We had already done a private training session with Ellie beforehand, so she knows the basic commands, but it’s good to reinforce them.

We have a photo shoot on this rock on our way to school every week. We all love it equally!
We have a photo shoot on this rock on our way to school every week. We all love it equally!

She’s the biggest pup in class (by far) — then there are two goldendoodles (Finn and Trevor), a black pug (Moxie), a cavapoo (Maisy), and Pete, who is a corgi pup the size of my hand. Pete is amazing. Sometimes he falls asleep during play group.

Puppy play! That's Ellie and Harper in the middle.
Puppy play! That’s Ellie and Harper in the middle.

After class, there’s an hour of puppy play, which is the cutest hour of my week. There are around 15 puppies all running around, playing and wrestling and learning from each other. I like that it’s supervised (by our puppy class teacher) and that all the puppy owners are pretty chill. I have quickly learned that dog owners are an interesting array of characters. Some are great and cool and others are not so great nor so cool.

Waiting for class to start!
Waiting for class to start!

Ellie has two best friends: One is Harper from puppy play. They are exactly the same size and they are obsessed with each other, and this week when Harper left early, Ellie sat by the door, staring and crying and so sad that her bae had to leave. Her other best friend is Ollie, a five-month-old black lab mix who lives in our building. They like to wrestle by the elevators.

Puppy's first snow! She went nuts for it.
Puppy’s first snow! She went nuts for it.

I’m thankful for a busy week. Freelance life = the busier the better. Because when you’re not busy, you don’t get paid! And it’s boring. Some shameless plugs:

NO MOAR WORK. (Note what happens when I leave a pee pad out and don't pay attention to her.)
NO MOAR WORK. (Note what happens when I leave a pee pad out and don’t pay attention to her.)

I’m thankful for hot showers on cold days. 

I’m thankful for bookstores. I love Amazon, but nothing compares to browsing a bookstore and wandering the aisles and getting a little lost and escaping the world. And, if it happens to be Barnes & Noble, also using the public restroom.

SAME.
SAME.

I’m thankful for stunning winter sunrises. 

Kinda takes your breath away doesn't it? (Because it's so pretty, but also because it's so cold.)
Kinda takes your breath away doesn’t it? (Because it’s so pretty, but also because it’s so cold.)

I’m thankful for Ellie. My little best bud. Even when she’s naughty (she does something to make me cry almost daily), even when she’s difficult and wants to sit down in the middle of Park Avenue as the light’s about to change, and even when she’s surrounded by delicious toys and treats but only wants to chew on my arm, leg, or inner thigh…I love her. And I love the infectious joy she’s brought into this [very] little [slightly over-crowded] household.

Camouflage!
Camouflage!

I’m thankful for Central Park.

LOVE YOU.
LOVE YOU.

I’m thankful for you. Always! Thank you for reading this blog, supporting me, and always being cheerful and lovely. I think you’re simply the best. Tina Turner wrote that song about you.

GET GRATEFUL WITH ME! Tell me something for which you are thankful today. 

Ali

Ali

14 Responses

  1. So it’s not Thursday.. but grateful for a solid half marathon last week, all the cheese in the land, and feeling like I’m evolving and moving closer to achieving some of my big girl dreams. Speaking of…….. any advice on jumping into the freelance world? Or an email I could send you a quick note to on the subject? xo

  2. I’m sorry you were in a funk (I am under the assumption that you are all better now, nothing like a blizzard to get into a better state of mind right?!)
    I thought about you the other day when watching the weather channel. They were just outside central park and were talking about runners out in the snow, I half expected you and Ellie to trot by!
    Hang in there your knee will be happy, Ellie will get out of the puppy stage, and you will be back to your normal active self (read everything will fit again!) soon enough.

  3. how about a blogreader wine & cheese? asking as a lurker in a funk because her friends are way more interested in netflix with their boyfriends than wine & cheese with their girls…

  4. I’m in a funk every other week. One week I’m totally motivated and get all my runs in and then the next week I don’t even want to get out of bed. Today is an off week so, hmmmmmm……..I guess I’m thankful I have the support and ability to do the things I want/love to do.

  5. I seriously love you, your blog and Ellie GIRL!!! BEEP BEEP!! Your snaps seriously make my day!! One thing I like to remember when I am in my funks…this too shall pass and before you know it, its over!! Sending you all the beep beep love!!

  6. “In other words, nothing is wrong, everything is fine, but I’m in a funk. Probably because I’ve eaten nothing but straight sugar for the past two weeks (OK, actually for the past “since September 26“), and I feel like crap. Nothing fits, I’m not really working out, and I don’t feel good about myself. Oh, and I’m not doing anything about it — except complaining.”

    Nailed it! I’ve been feeling the exact same wayyyy. Hoping your funkiness passes soon!

  7. Great reminder to bring some gratitude back…I’m thankful my digestive system is being more cooperative (because we all know how much that can impact life!), for having friends and family that support me, and for it being Friday!!

  8. I just can’t get enough of these thankful Things Thursday posts!
    This week I’m thankful that I only have to have this cast on my right hand (writing hand) for another week before it comes off and I can get back to life as a right-handed person! I’m also thankful it’s FRIDAY!

  9. I’m thankful for my amazing husband and my pup. This morning the pup was snuggled up by my husband while he drank a cup of coffee and I just stood there and watched the two of them and felt so blessed.

  10. I’m in a funk too! I have no idea why. But I’m thankful that Chicago is not getting the crazy snow storm that the east coast is supposed to!! And of course, I’m thankful for my doggie. Who is almost 8 but still acts like a puppy. PS I think this is the first time I’ve commented, but I’ve been reading for awhile and love your blog! And Ellie is too cute!

  11. Going sentimental… I’m thankful for my parents. They have always been incredibly supportive but over the past few months they have surprised me by being my biggest cheerleaders and rocks as I make a big career change.

  12. There’s always stuff to be grateful for, and you’ve got a great list here! 🙂

    Today, I am thankful that I am on day one of two weeks’ vacation! Even if I can’t afford to go anywhere warm because the Canadian dollar is in the crapper- at least I’m not at work!

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about ali

I’m the creator of the Ali on the Run blog and the host of the Ali on the Run Show podcast. I’m also a freelance writer and editor, a race announcer, a runner and marathoner, a mom, and a huge fan of Peanut M&Ms, Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (way better than the first one!), and reliving my glory days as a competition dancer in the early 2000s. I’m really happy you’re here.
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