Zenaida Arroyo

Author: Zenaida Arroyo

I am a 2nd grade teacher and a runner. I love coffee and cats.

15
Aug
2019

Random Thoughts Thursday 85

Random Thoughts Thursday

• I saw this on Facebook and not sure what to say. Kindergarten teachers are supposed to teach kids how to tie their shoes? Umm, shouldn’t parents do that?

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• Excited to plan for Hawaii next year. I was supposed to go 10 years ago but cancelled because I was hired as a new teacher and had to go to orientation.

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• This made me sad. I have seen so many little ones struggling to make friends and it breaks my heart. I tell my students to be nice to everyone and to always include their classmates if they see them by themselves.

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• My Peloton bike was delivered on Tuesday. I didn’t plan correctly since I need cycling shoes to use it. I ordered some on Amazon and am supposed to get them today.

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• Another Lola picture because she is cute. I don’t think she likes that the bike takes up so much of “her” space in the living room.

13
Aug
2019

Tuesday Topics: My favorite running shoes

categories: Tuesday Topics

One guess as to what is my favorite brand of running shoes? 🙂 I have worn Mizuno, Newton, Nike, Asics, and Saucony but have been wearing Brooks for all of my runs and races since abot 2017.

This week’s Tuesday Topic: Do you have favorite running shoes and why? You can write about this topic, or feel free to post any running related blog post. Remember to link-up with Kim and Zenaida! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Remember to come back for later linkers!

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Right now I have the Ghost 11, the Levitate 1, the Launch 5, and Launch 6. I like them all and have another pair of the 5 and 6 in boxes. I wear the Launch 5 for my speed workouts and the others I rotate on my easy runs. Why do I love them? I won’t get all technical on you but the main reason is that they’re soft and comfortable. I also like how they fit. Each pair has plenty of cushion and provides ample support. Black shoes are nice but why not get them in wild colors?

I’ve also worn the Glycerin, PureConnect and the PureFlow (another one of my favorites). The PureConnect and PureFlow are no longer available. << Correction: The Pure Flow are still available. I just realized that I had a pair of the 6 but sent them back because they hurt my calves. The only “bad” thing about them is that they had to be replaced every 200 or so miles.

New running shoes

The PureConnect 2 was a lightweight shoe but yet provided plenty of support. I remember running the Goofy Challenge in those shoes.

The PureFlows were perfect. I loved, loved these shoes. At one point I bought 4 pairs of shoes from Running Warehouse. I think I paid about $55 for each pair.

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For sure I will continue to wear running shoes from Brooks. Right now I buy my shoes from Running Warehouse and love it more when the shoes are on sale. Running Warehouse provides free shipping and have a great return policy.

Are you a Brooks fan? What running shoes do you wear?

Tuesday Topics

11
Aug
2019

Weekly Run Down: A great run on Saturday and some new records

categories: Running, Weekly Recap, Weekly Run Down

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The days are going back too fast! I like it but then I don’t. We had some great weather this week and I ran 22 miles. Big improvement from last week! 🙂

I deleted all of my records from my Garmin watch. Feels good to see some new records! I went from a 11:24 fastest mile to a 10:50. I am confused about the 10:50 record because I don’t see it in the mile splits from yesterday’s run.

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I also got new records for a 5k and a 10k. It is the little things that make my day.

I love my 4 mile runs. Slow and easy since I don’t worry about pace. I tried to do a speed workout on Wednesday but had to stop because I ran out of time. My next one is on Wednesday and I plan to do 6×800.

My run on Saturday was PERFECT. In the morning I had coffee and an Orgain Organic protein bar before heading downtown. I also drank some UCAN on the way. The weather was gorgeous! I felt great too! I didn’t feel sore or tired. Honestly, I haven’t felt this way in a long time. The heel of my left foot was a little sore but then I foam rolled when I got home and it was better. Again, I cannot believe how great I felt yesterday!

I know I’ve written about issues with my mother’s medical coverage and it looks like we have it all straighten out. For some weird reason her Medicaid medical coverage (County Care) was cancelled. I thought she didn’t have medical coverage and freaked out! We were told to go to the Public Aid office and apply again. We went on Thursday and I learned a couple new things. She does have medical coverage. What was cancelled was the long term care which pays for medical supplies and a caregiver. What we need to do now is pick a new medical plan for her. Some options are Aetna, Blue Cross Community, Cigna, and Humana. After that visit, my sister called the Department of Aging and we were able to get a caregiver and medical supplies. Cross your fingers we don’t have any more issues with it.

Beginning tomorrow is when I can start setting up my classroom. This was my view on Tuesday when I went for a meeting. 2019-2020 Classroom-1.jpg

My classroom is 104. My classroom is on the right side of the hallway so as my kids enter the building, they’ll be on the right side of the hallway and easier for them to get to the classroom. You probably think it is silly but when you have that many students trying to get inside in the morning and after lunch, this definitely helps.

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This year we have a new GE classroom for a total of 5 second grade classrooms (3 GE and 2 TR). What is nice is that the teacher in the new classroom is someone that I’ve worked with before and the transitional teacher I will be working with is someone that already works in our school. Due to some changes, her 1st grade TR classroom isn’t available anymore and she moved to 2nd grade. It looks like we will have a GREAT year! I still have 17 students in my roster so I hope that number does not change.

Linking up with Kim and Deborah for the Weekly Run Down.

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08
Aug
2019

Random Thoughts Thursday 84

categories: Random Thoughts Thursday

Random Thoughts Thursday

• I do my laundry on Monday. This week I went on Sunday with my mom because I knew I wouldn’t be able to go on Monday. It is always weird when I see other people’s machine and the amount of detergent they use. My machine is the one on the left. It looks like I don’t use any at all. 🙂

• Monday afternoon I met a friend for lunch at The Purple Pig. Ha, even the name is interesting. My friend lives in Dallas and the last time I saw her was in November I’ve known her since college and she is am amazing and wonderful person. We had cheese, calamari, steak, and wine. For dessert we had chocolate cake.

• I know I’ve mentioned the high cost of traveling by plane. I was looking for tickets to go to Mexico in December and holy cow! Do you think these will be cheaper next month? I really want to go since it’s been years since I’ve been there for Christmas but cannot justify paying that much money.

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• This made made me laugh. I know these meetings sometimes are out of their control but still many times they’re unnecessary.

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• There is an app called Resy that allows you to book restaurant reservations. My friend told me about because she wants to eat at Tiffany’s in New York. Well, I was shocked when I got an email to let me know that I could book one for that day. Ugh, if only I lived in NY. I would like to get a reservation for in 2-4 weeks so I have enough time to make travel plans. I think it would be cool to eat there.

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06
Aug
2019

Tuesday Topics: My BibRave Pro Summit Weekend

categories: BibRave Pro, Tuesday Topics

Hey there! How is everyone doing? I think I got bit by the running bug and am now looking forward to running. I am excited knowing that I will run in another state in a few weeks. Oh, and I cannot wait till next week for my Peloton. 🙂

This week’s Tuesday Topic: How do you incorporate fitness with your family? You can write about this topic, or feel free to post any running related blog post. Remember to link-up with Kim and Zenaida! Visit at least two of the other linked posts – the more the merrier! Remember to come back for later linkers!

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The weekend of July 19-21 was the BibRave Pro Summit in Chicago. The events included dinner on Friday and Saturday, a Cubs game on Saturday, a community service project, running RnR Chicago, ending with lunch on Sunday after the race. I did not participate in all of the events and after looking at all of the pictures, I regret it. But I still had a lot of fun and it was great to meet so many of them that came from various states.

The first event was a community service project on Friday morning but due to the weather, it was cancelled. A few Pros still met up for a run and then went to get donuts and coffee at Stan’s Donuts. I met up with them at the RnR expo. I had already been there about an hour so I didn’t stay too long. I was excited to see Kathrine Switzer again!

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That evening we had dinner at City Winery West Loop which was sponsored by Knockaround. I’ve never been there and I had a great time. I met more Pros while enjoying some delicious wine and food. Check out all of that orange!

The next day was a shakeout run along the lakefront and a Cubs game. That evening was another dinner at Current Kitchen that was sponsored by Aftershokz. During dinner there was a BibRave Podcast recording with Tim and Jessica as well as guest Cindy Kuzma, author of the upcoming book, Rebound: Train Your Mind to Bounce Back Stronger from Sports Injuries. I missed all of the events that day and regret it because they all had so much fun!

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After a few emails with my coach, I decided not to run RnR Chicago. She told me to take a few days off from running because of my plantar fasciitis. I still went downtown to spectate and of course I had fun! I saw Amanda, Erica, Becca, and a few other friends.

It was warm but luckily not as hot as the past couple of days. It was humid though. Once we saw all of the Pros pass mile 6, we walked over to the finish line where we saw most of them again. Then we met up by the music tent and waited until every Pro had finished. Then it was time to head out because we were meeting for lunch at noon. I walked with Amy to Buckingham Fountain because she wanted to take pictures. She was sharing a hotel room with 4 other women so she wasn’t in a rush to get back to the hotel. While waiting for everyone to shower, get ready, and pack, it started to rain.

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Our post race lunch was supposed to be at City Winery Riverwalk but due to the rain we went to Public House. I had a beer and a buffalo chicken sandwich which was so good. I didn’t stay too long but did enjoy my time there drinking, eating, and catching up with the rest of the crew.

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I love being a part of this amazing community. I’ve had the opportunity to try some new and cool products as well as run some run races. BibRave is now accepting applications to become a BibRave Pro! Head on over to bit.ly/2FxiKT7 and apply now!

Tuesday Topics