Exercising to the Beat of the Street

Great Danes, poodles, pitties, dachshunds, collies and more! Dogs of every shape and size ran, sniffed, played and rolled in the grass at Providence Animal Center's Bark in the Park fundraiser on Oct. 26 at Rose Tree Park in Media. It was pure heaven, but a little bittersweet as well.   Two years ago, I brought my best buddy Finnegan with me and we took part in the 1-mile walk. Sadly last May Finnegan passed away at the age of 15. We had spent so many days hiking in the woods, playing in the snow, swimming in the creeks and walking around the neighborhood. She struggled her last five months, but the night before she passed we went on one final long walk. It felt like a last goodbye to all her dog and human friends. This past summer without her felt empty, and I missed so many things such as her walks and the connections we had built with fellow dog parents in the area.   So last month, with my donation from my work in hand, my mom and I walked into Providence Animal Cen

The dream of swimming one last open water race this year was just too hard to resist! So with about a week's notice, I registered for a race, booked a hotel and bought airfare to perpetually sunny southern California for the one-mile  San Diego Sharkfest Swim on Oct. 13. With a three-day weekend coming up, and the fact that Kevin and I have never been to San Diego, the race was a perfect time and place for a new adventure.     After three days of touring museums, ships, Balboa Park , walking around both the city and Old Town and kayaking in La Jolla and experiencing a trolley tour, I was excited/anxious to swim on Sunday. Walking from our hotel to the start, which was behind the San Diego Convention Center, I noticed a lot of people were wearing wet suits, which made me a little nervous. But the race director, a former champion open water swimmer, joked and told the crowd that they were "wussies" and warned that those who looked to be struggling would be pulled from

The water was cold and choppy, I swallowed gallons of saltwater and I got kicked & kicked others in the face, but on Aug. 25 I swam my longest open water race yet, the  Cedar Island 5K Swim  in Avalon, N.J.  The goal of the race organizers is to raise awareness and provide support to the troops and honor members of the military.      On the morning of the race, mom, Kevin and I headed down to enjoy a nice day at the beach before the 4 p.m. race. Unfortunately, the weather was cool, cloudy and very windy which made for a poor beach day. So instead we enjoyed a long lunch (cheesesteaks, soda and French fries) and made our way to the start at the Avalon Yacht Club. There I met up with nine of my fellow members of the  Rocky Run YMCA Creek Rats , a group of open water swimmers who joined over 200 other brave souls in the bay. They have all swam long-distance races, so knowing that they would be at this race eased my nerves.      After checking in and receiving my chip timing band

   The forecast said rain all day, especially during the morning, but that didn't really bother me because I was too excited about marking my 10th year running Broad Street! Though the course is always the same, each year has been an unique experience.    Waking up at 5 a.m. on May 5, my goal was to leave at 5:30, get on the subway by 6 and make it in time for a special runners' Mass at Our Lady of Hope Catholic Church .  Only about two blocks from the start of the race, the  Church of the Holy Child is often referred to as the Cathedral of the North because of its massive structure and 200-feet-high steeple. Accompanied by my always supportive husband Kevin, we stepped off the subway at Logan and bypassed the crush of runners at Olney as we walked up the church's steps. The race volunteers and church staff were so welcoming to the crowd of soaking wet runners, who slowly made their way to the wooden pews.  This is definitely my new tradition.    With just a few minutes

There were Christmas trees, angels, Santas & leg lamps costume-wearing runners during the 10th annual It's a Wonderful Run 5K on Dec. 8 in Seneca Falls, N.Y. The run, which benefits local charities, was just part of a fun-filled weekend during the annual "It's a Wonderful Life Festival" from Dec. 6-9. For avid fans of the movie classic, like Kevin, Michael & I, it was a great way to experience the movie in the town many believe was the inspiration for Bedford Falls in the holiday classic. Upstate New York in December is cold, and trying to stay warm outside as you and 5,000 other runners wait for a 5K to start was definitely painful. After picking up our bibs the night before, we arrived the day of at about 3 p.m. for the 4:40 p.m. start. I've never seen so many people waiting to run a 5K! We weren't allowed in the Seneca Falls Community Center, so we crammed into a small heated tent to stay warm. Around 4:20 we squeezed through the 10-minute