Three Things Thursday!

1- Things around here have been CRAZY full of Christmas, snow storms, my birthday, too many cookies, and a little running, and a lot of family! It was GREAT!!!!

2- I have had many requests for more Runner's Race Bib Books and Scrapbooks. I am currently taking a little break, but will be back up and scrapbooking next week! I am looking forward to it, although I have enjoyed this little break that I gave myself. I got a new die-cut machine for Christmas which is AWESOME!!! I can cut out and personalize little "runners" to use in the books. I can't wait to start to use it!

3 - We are getting a weekend away without the little guy. My parents are watching him for the weekend while we go skiing with friends for New Years! Two nights away....very well deserved, but we will definitely miss him :)

Hope everyone is enjoying this holiday season.
Happy New Year!
Laura Elaine

Snoopy is Snoopy

This was the conversation in the car on our way home from the library:

Stephen (as he spotted a Snoopy Xmas decoration): Look! Snoopy has the same hat like Santa!

Me: Wow! That's so cool!

S: Snoopy talk?

M: No, Snoopy doesn't talk. He's a doggie

S (laughing): No, he's not a doggie!

M: Yes, I'm pretty sure he's a doggie!

S (still laughing): No, no doggie!

M: Well, what is he then?

S: He's a Snoopy!!!!!

Love those 2-year-old minds! :)

Runner's Race Bib Scrapbook Giveaway WINNER!

I recently completed my 100th post, which was a giveaway for one of my handmade Runner's Race Bib Books. You can see some of my past Race Bib Book designs HERE on the giveaway post, or HERE at my Etsy shop (my shop is looking pretty bare these days though, thanks to my AWESOME customers who were buying books faster than I could make them! If you click on "46 Sales" on the left hand side of the page, you will see all of the designs I have made). I plan on taking the next 2 - 3 weeks off from making any new books, so that I can concentrate on getting my family ready for the holidays. I will be up and running again the first week in January.

So, on to the good news......the winner! There were 29 entries in the giveaway and random.org generated #29, BARBIE from Barbie Runs! Congrats Barbie!!!!! Email me at Laurak1228 {at} yahoo {dot} com and I will get the details to you!

Have a great day!
Laura Elaine

26 miles to go

**Don't forget about my current giveaway for a Runner's Race Bib Scrapbook HERE**

I only have 26 miles left to go until I achieve my goal of running 400 for the year! I find it kind of ironic because I have yet to catch the marathon bug, even as much as my husband has pestered me about running one! So today when I logged my latest miles on DailyMile.com and saw that I only had 26 left I thought it was ironic....someday....someday....

It was another treadmill day, since it was only 8 degrees when I left the house. No, that is not a typo...it was in the single digits when I left and there was NO WAY that I was running outside! C'mon, if it's going to be THAT cold, then we at least need some snow!!!!

Goals = Accountability

**Reminder - enter my giveaway HERE for a Runner's Race Bib Book!**


Accountability, aka guilt, is kicking in. Since my running plan of trying to maintain my miles without training for a specific race wasn't working, I decided to set the goal of completing 400 miles by the end of the year. I know this doesn't sound like a lot, but I really needed it to get my butt in gear. So far, it's working pretty well. I had a TON of stuff I could have done this morning before I went to work, and it was FREEZING outside. Great excuses, right? WRONG! I got my butt to the gym and cranked out 4 miles on the treadmill! Whoo-hoo :) If it wasn't for committing to the 400 miles, I don't know if I would have done this. Plus, it made it easier to eat those 2 cookies at work. Geez I need a lot of help this time of year!


Have a great one!
Laura Elaine

100th Post, A Giveaway, and a Coupon Code!!!

Well here it is, my 100th post. So exciting!! I began blogging back in April about my scrapbooks, but have also ventured into running and family posts as well.

It has been a lot of fun, a great way to get the word out on my scrapbooks, and also a way to try to keep me accountable for my running! I figured that since it was the holiday season, what better way to celebrate the 100th post than a giveaway!

The giveaway is for a CUSTOM 8"x11" Runner's Race Bib Book! You can see samples of bib books that I have done on this post, as well as on my Etsy site (HERE).

The Runner's Race Bib Book is a 8"x11" chipboard album, decorated with scrapbook paper, cardstock, sticker, tags, and quotes, all with a RUNNING theme! There are 5 sets of coordinating pages, making room for a total of 10 race bibs. The bibs will attach easily with tape. What better way to preserve your race bibs that in a fun, colorful scrapbook?

One lucky winner will CUSTOM DESIGN their very own Race Bib Book. Winner will be chosen at random by random.org.

Here's how to enter (please leave a separate comment for each entry):

1)Be a follower of this blog - MANDATORY (leave me a comment)

2) Head on over to my Etsy shop (HERE) and come back and leave me some feedback - either something you like, something that needs improvement, or something else you would like to see in it! (leave me a comment)

3) "Like" Laura Elaine Designs on Facebook (HERE) (leave me a comment)

4) Spread the word - let others know about this giveaway via facebook, twitter, your blog, etc (leave me a comment)

Please enter by Sunday, December 12, 2010. Winner will be chosen on Monday, December 13.

Good luck!

Laura Elaine
PS - I am also offering a DISCOUNT CODE to all of my followers. Enter the code "BLOGGER100" at checkout on my Etsy shop to receive 15% off your order. But hurry, this code is only good through December 31, 2010.

Caution...stating the obvious...

Just got back from my run - my usual 5k around my neighborhood. I have not been as consistant w/my running as I would like to be. I had set my new goal to complete 400 miles by the end of 2010, which is TOTALLY achievable....if I can just get my butt out the door and log some miles!
So back to today's run. I am a solid 10-minute mile girl. Occasionally I am able to get a few consecutive miles sub-10. Today I looked down at my watch after my 5k and saw this:
28:44!!
A 9:09 pace!

The big difference.....wait for it....I run faster when I'm not pushing a 30-lb munchkin in the jogger :) I'm still excited though.

Have a good one!
Laura Elaine
PS -stay tuned for that 100th post!!!!!!

Pieces of Meagan

I am the featured seller on a fellow Etsy-er's blog! You can find the interview here: Pieces of Meagan

Items from Meagan's Etsy shop, BabySwank, are listed on the top right sidebar of my blog. Head on over to her Etsy shop HERE and check them out!

You can also find Meagan on Facebook HERE.

20% off SALE!!

The Black Friday thru Cyber Monday Sale is in full swing over at my Etsy shop, Laura Elaine Designs (click HERE to see). ALL items are 20%! Check out my newest Runner's Race Bib Scrapbook (HERE), plus much more!!

A Turkey Trot and Etsy Black Friday Sale!

We heading out early this morning, complete with our drumstick headbands to run a local 5 mile Turkey Trot. I've been running 2 - 3 times per week, while my sister and husband haven't done much since their marathons a few weeks ago. Even though we are all SUPER competitive, we decided it would be fun to just stick together and not "race." It was a ton of fun, and our headbands were well-recepted :) We finished just over our goal time of 50 minutes at 51:??.
Hope everyone had a great Turkey Day! Anyone else run a fun Turkey Trot today?


Looking for some great handmade gifts this holiday season? Check out the EtsyMom Street Team Black Friday Sale! There are over 90 EtsyMom shops offering great deals on their crafts, beginning Black Friday and running through Ciber Monday. You can check out the full list of shops HERE. If you are interested in grabbing some great running scrapbook items, you can see my shop HERE. Happy Black Friday shopping!

Laura Elaine

PS - My 100th post is coming up soon....stay tuned for a fun giveaway!!

The MIA blogger

So I just realized that I haven't posted in almost 2 weeks! Wow!!! I haven't really been absent lately....still reading and commenting on posts when I get a chance.... I've been busy preparing my Etsy shop (click HERE) for holiday shopping and especially for a HUGE Black Friday - Ciber Monday Sale! All items will be 20% if purchased and paid for from Friday, November 26 - Tuesday November 29th.

Check out my newest Race Bib Books - holding up to 10 race bibs:

Or a similar item, the Race Bib Scrapbook, meant to hold up to 5 race bibs and room for photos and journaling as well:

Happy shopping! Laura Elaine

Wordless Wednesday - NYC Marathon Style!

New York City Marathon photos!

Welcome to the Expo

Check out the awesome shirt I got for the little guy - it says, "Future Marathoner"

Steve with his number

Ready to go at 4:45 am, right before he left my sister's apt in Astoria

Runners in Brooklyn, just before mile 8

"Run Daddy Run!"

Here comes Steve - just before mile 8

See ya at mile 16!

Back to the train we go!

Mile 16.5 and still smiling!

All this marathon watching makes me tired!

After his snooze - very excited about his chips from Loe

Where's Waldo?

Here comes Steve!!! Mile 26....only .2 to go!

High 5's

The Chilien Minor - he's behind the guy in the bright orange tank - he has the blue hat on - that's the camera crew in the golf cart in front of him

Steve's cheering crew

Thanks for your pretzels Daddy!

Showing off our shirts - the front said 2010 NYC Marathon and the back said "Run Steve Run" (Stephen's said Run Daddy Run :)

The family after - gotta love that 2-yr-old "cheese" smile :)

Three Things Thursday

Haven't done one of these in a while, so here goes!

1 - Tomorrow morning we are NYC-bound! Hubby will be running in the New York City Marathon on Sunday! So proud of him since he had to be patient for this one. He was turned down by the lottery 3 years in a row, so 2010 is his year!!! His other marathons to date are:

Charlottesville, VA 2006

Chicago 2006

Boston 2008

Boston 2009

and now NYC 2010

He mentioned the other day that he has London in the back of his mind...hmmmmm...wouldn't mind taking a trip across the pond for that one! :)

I'll be back next week with a race report and hopefully great pics.

Run Steve Run!!! 2009 training run for Boston

2 - Today was a L-A-Z-Y day. It was rainy and cool, Stephen was whiny and clingy, so we decided to stay in our PJs alllllll day. It was great! We colored leaves, played a leaf matching game, made some granola, watched Mickey, finally finished hanging up the Buzz and Woody wall clings in his big-boy room, and "took a run" up and down the hallway about 100 times (his new favorite game.) Sometimes you just need days like that....ahhhhhh.

3 - I have a new plan in place for the rest of the year to get my butt out of this lazy funk I've been in with running. 400 miles is going to be my goal. I'm right around 330, so it is COMPLETELY attainable. I know it sounds like nothing to some of you (awesome!!!) runners who are aiming for, or already reached, 1000. But I need something to keep me motivated, especially with the holidays quickly approaching. I hope this will work!!!! I'll be lacing up tomorrow before we leave :)

Have a great weekend!

Laura Elaine

Wordless Wednesday - Trick or Treat!

The World of Make Believe & New Race Bib Scrapbook

In my little guy's 2-year-old world, playing "pretend" is becoming an everyday activity. It is absolutely adorable to see what he comes up with next. Usually it involves something that he has seen us do, which is hilarious. Here are some of his favs:

Making coffee - he "drives" up to me in his Little Tikes car and asks, "coffee Mommy?" (hmmmm...who has been taking too many trips to Dunkin Donuts?)

Take a "snoozie"- he takes pillows, blankets, and his little monkey and curls up on the floor to pretend to take a nap. And he's usually not happy unless I'm laying there next to him!

And my favorite so far, and the one I'm most proud of: "My take a run!" (We can't get him to say "I", so he says "my" for everything!) He races up and down the hallway until he is out of breath. It is just adorable and I'm so happy that he has already realized that running is such an important part of our family! Sometimes he'll even get upset if he knows I'm going out for a run and I'm not taking him with me in the jogger!

And speaking of running, here is my latest creation for sale on my Etsy site - a *NEW* and *IMPROVED* Race Bib Scrapbook!

Front cover of the album

The original version measured 8" x 8", while this new one is 8" x 11", enough room to accommodate the larger race bibs. The album has 5 sets of coordinating pages with room for a race bib on one side, and room for 1 - 2 photos on the opposite page. The front cover reads "Marathon Mama 26.2". You can see the full listing HERE on my Etsy site.

Sample page with race bib

Have a great day!

Laura Elaine

26.2 Treasury

There is an awesome new treasury on Etsy featuring items with a MARATHON theme! There is some great stuff, including headbands, necklaces, motivational prints, and scrapbooks. You can check it out HERE.

My Review of Scrapbook Central Series - Scrapbook Case in Clear - 6 Pieces

Originally submitted at CSN Stores

These cases are designed to accommodate scrapbooking needs and will hold up to 12" x 12" papers. Perfect for separating projects and making them portable. These cases are also acid-free.

Features:

• Holds 12" x 12" scrapbook paper
<...

Scrapbook Central Series - Scrapbook Case in Clear - 6 Pieces

I need more of these!

By Laura Elaine Designs from Massachusetts on 10/24/2010

 

5out of 5

Pros: Versatile, Lots Of Storage, Easy To Use, Durable

Best Uses: Bedroom, Office

Describe Yourself: Homeowner

I was looking for a way to help organize my scrapbooking area, and these cases are PERFECT! They fit 12" x 12" paper and supplies with ample room, and stack nicely for easy storage. I also LOVE that they are clear, so I can see what is in each container. If my scrapbooking supplies continue to grow, I will definitely be purchasing more of these great cases!

(legalese)

Runner Girl

Are you a Runner Girl? 12" x 12" Premade Scrapbook pages with room for your race photos, memorabilia, and even your Race Bib!

You can see the full listing for this $10 set of pages on my Etsy site HERE.

Thanks for looking and have a great weekend!
Laura Elaine

A place for everything and everything in it's place

What once started out as my husband's "sports basement" has now turned into my scrap booking room. The walls are decorated with all sorts of Red Sox and Patriots memorabilia, along with shadow boxes from our best/favorite/most memorable races. The only furniture down there is our old futon from college, an old end table and our old TV which isn't even hooked up to cable. So I decided to take over the room full time and give it some good use. It's one of two rooms down in our finished basement, and I can gate off the doorway so little fingers can't get into any of my stuff. The only downfall to all of this is that I can just leave my mess, since the room isn't used for anything else.

Well, today I decided that it had to end. I recently was given the opportunity to review an item from CSN stores, so I chose some clear plastic scrap booking storage cases. Six of them came as a pack and they have been sitting in their box for about a month now. So, it was time to clean and (finally) do the review. Here you have the before pics (I do some work on the floor, and some on the card table):

The Mess, view #1

The Mess, view #2

After some MUCH NEEDED cleaning, organizing, purging, and "oh wow, I forgot I had that!", the room was clean and organized!

Clean room view #1




Clean room, view #2

The bins worked great and I was able to organize them by started projects, paper, stickers, finished projects, and accessories. Now let's see how long it will stay like this...... :)

Our sport is a matter of seconds

So if baseball is a matter of inches, then running is a matter of seconds. Hubby is running the NYC Marathon in a few weeks, so he tagged on 5 miles before running the Newport Half Marathon Sunday to get in his last long run, 18 miles.

When he got to mile 10 of the half marathon (really his mile 15), he realized that he was going to be really close to breaking 2:00 hrs for the half and started to pick it up. He booked it all the way to the finish, and when he crossed, the gun time was 2:01:58. Since he does not like wearing a watch while running (it's distracting or itchy or something, I don't know why???), he was constantly checking the website all day to see if the results were posted.

When the official results were posted, he saw this:

1:59:59

He broke 2:00!!!!! Wa-hooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!! One second, and he now has bragging rights forever that he broke the 2-hour mark!

Virtual 10K Race Results

I think that virtual races are the coolest. You can run them when you want (basically). You can wear headphones, push a baby jogger, etc., and not break any rules. And most of the time, they are for a good cause or with a fun theme.

10.10.10 was a huge race day. There were so many races, since it was a cool date, a day in the fall, and Columbus Day weekend. I was looking forward to running one, but since my sister ran the Chicago Marathon, I was out there cheering her on instead!!!

So when I heard that Jamie at Running Diva Mom was hosting a virtual 10K in honor of 10.10.10, I knew I was in! And I didn't have to run it ON 10.10.10 if I wasn't able to. Perfect!

Since I am working more hours this week to make up for being out on Monday, the only chance I was going to have to get in the 10k (without pushing the stroller, rules or no rules!) was Friday after work, before I picked up the little guy. Then, I watched the news this morning. Apparently, there is a HUGE nor'easter heading this way, starting tonight and lasting all the way until Friday night. Which means my planned 10k would be in the rain and wind tomorrow. No thanks! :)

I called my neighbor this morning to see if she wanted the company of a 2-year-old this morning so I could bang out this run. She said yes, of course (love her!) and off I went.

It was a cool, clear, dry day, the PERFECT running weather. I headed out with my GoLite Hydroclutch and my Ipod tuned to my running mix. It was soooo nice out! It felt great to be out there - this was definitely the farthest I've run in a while. By the end of about 5 miles, my mind and my breathing were still doing great, but my knees and hips just felt heavy. I knew I could make it, but definitely slowed it down A LOT in the last mile or so.

My finish time was 1:07:20 for 6.24 miles, 10:47 pace. Not too bad considering the longest I've run lately is about 4 miles. These are my splits for the approximate mileage (I don't have a garmin, so I was guessing on mile 4...I think I was off a little, but oh well!):

Mile 1 - 10:18

Mile 2 - 10:19

Mile 3 - 10:58

Mile 4(ish) - 9:26

Mile 5(ish) - 11:07

Mile 6 - 12:55 (mostly all uphill back to the house!)

Mile .24 - 2:16

All in all, I am very proud of myself. And I got to do a 10.10.10 race. Sort of :)

Have a great one!

Laura Elaine

Running Chics WINNER

I recently had the opportunity to review a Running Chics long sleeve thermal which I LOVE!! You can read all about my review HERE.

There were 31 entries in the giveaway and random.org selected....#8, TMB @ RACING WITH BABES! Congrats T! Send me your email address and I'll get the info to you asap!

Have a great day everyone!

Laura Elaine