Borrowed Questions

I happened upon this great blog yesterday courtesy of the FitFluential Ambassador Blogger Support Group FB Page. She listed 11 random things about herself and then answered some questions from fellow bloggers. At the end, Rebekah posted this list of questions and asked people to comment back with answers. I'm out of ideas for blog topics at the moment, so I'm posting my answers here:


1. What’s the closest purple thing to you? - The cover of a book entitled Dr. Paula's House Calls to Your Newborn
2. Who inspired you when you were little? - My father. He was an immigrant from Korea and worked harder to make a good life for himself and his family than anyone I've ever met.

3. Who inspires you now? - My fellow Stroller Warriors. They are military moms making fitness a priority in their lives and often serving as single parents while spouses are deployed. 
4. What was the biggest fear you’ve overcome? - I honestly can't answer this one. I don't have a single thing I can think of as a FEAR that I've had to overcome. I suppose that makes me one lucky gal:)
5. If you could change your name, what would you change it to? - When we were about 4 or 5 years old, someone asked us what we would rather have our names be. My sister (Jessica) answered "Jessie." I answered "Martha." This is mainly because we had another set of twins in our pre-school class with those names. Now I would have to say I would change my name to Reagan because I'm secretly in love with Ronald Reagan. Luckily, I just named my daughter that, so I guess I won't have to change it any time soon.
6. Who is your celebrity crush? - Without a doubt, and even with pointy ears in Star Trek, Eric Bana. 

7. Who is your same-sex celebrity crush? - Jennifer Connelly. She's gorgeous, but more important, it's natural.
8. What’s your favorite character trait? - Honesty. I'm physically unable to lie. I start sweating and laughing nervously if I even try. So I value that character trait in others.
9. What’s your favorite body part? - My friends from SW call me "Calves McGee," so I suppose I better say my calves. I got them from my father.  

10. We’re going on vacation to Bali. You can take one thing. What is it? - I'm Asian. It's in my DNA to say I'd take my camera. But because this is a running blog, I'll say my Saucony's.
11. Bikini, tankini, one-piece, or coverup? (extra points if you’ve been to a nude beach!) - Even pre-baby I was never really comfortable in a two piece. I've had a complex about my hips since I hit puberty, so I'm going with tankini...sporty, but also cute.


And just for fun, not because I was tagged in the posts circling the Internet, here are 11 Random Things About Me:


1. I hate even numbers. In March we will turn 32. I'd rather just skip it and go straight to 33.
2. I cut my toenails more than I probably should, and when I do it, I usually clip the calloused skin from the sides of my big toes. Gross, right?!
3. I have a tattoo of a frog on my left foot for absolutely no reason at all.
4. I hate bumpy gourds that they display at Halloween because it makes me think of skin diseases.
5. I love being a twin, but I used to hate it.
6. I talk to my mother-in-law every day.
7. My two best friends are from my high school days. We usually text once a day at least.
8. When my husband is away, I get used to being alone with my daughter. When he returns, it's difficult to fit him back into our lives.
9. I like way too many shows on ABC Family.
10. If I could have excelled at one sport when I was younger, I wish it had been gymnastics. Unfortunately, I'm 5'10".
11. I would love to be a semi-professional photographer one day.


Now if you're willing to share, please comment with one random fact about yourself!

Kindness of a "Stranger"

Today, much to my pleasant surprise, I received two care packages from a complete “stranger.”  I use the quotation marks because although we are friends via the blogosphere and Twitter, we have never actually met.  A while back I did a post about things that forward deployed Marines like to get in care packages.  There was absolutely no expectation that anyone send anything, but I frequently am asked the question, “What do you need over there?” 

Source (basically I borrowed this from Heidi's blog:)

We’ve been here for a little over a month now and these were the FIRST care packages (yes, she sent 2!) that I’ve received.  It was a total morale boost and she even added some extra things to make it more fun!  There were Larabars, Odwalla Bars, running socks (seriously, can you ever have too many socks – NO), Twizzlers, hand and feet warmers, fruit snacks, running magazines, Goldfish, and so much more!  The most fun thing she included was a package of stickers!  I plan on decorating one of my Marine’s computers, one of the Alpha male types ;-)

                  It never ceases to amaze me how kind other people can be.  And when I’m in a place like Afghanistan where a lot of folks are always irritated or grumpy, sometimes I can lose some faith in humanity.  Then something like this happens – a care package out of the blue – and WHAM, I remember that the world is truly full of amazing, kind, wonderful people! 

                  Heidi – thank you so much for the care packages that you sent out here!  I’ve parceled out the items to be sent to Marines who are out in remote parts of the battle space and they will be so very appreciative.  Your kindness means so much to me and it puts a huge smile on my face!  

Trying to Keep Up

And I'm not talking about on a run!  I'm talking about keeping up with Social Media and all of you amazing runners, triathletes, and FitFluential people out there!









Between Facebook, Twitter, HootSuite, and the blogosphere, there is just so much going on out there!  When I finally get a chance to login to all of these different sites it seems as if there was a flurry of activity that went on all day long and I missed out on everything.   How do you guys keep up with it all day?  I spend about one to two hours a night just reading up on what I missed during the day.





There are so many amazing athlete-writers out there too that it is impossible to keep up with everyone!  You guys continue to motivate and inspire me on a daily basis.  So grateful for the awesome FitFluential people out there!


Do you try to keep up with all of these different social networks?  How many more are out there that I don't even try to follow?  

Virtual Friends

Although we are very new to the world of running blogs and Twitter, we have rapidly realized that you can create and maintain virtual friendships with so many out there!  By virtual friendships, I mean forming a connection with other people out there on the World Wide Web, people you've never met face-to-face (and not in the creepy child molester "connection").  These aren't people you have to call, text, e-mail, or write to.  You can just follow their daily goings-on via Facebook, Twitter, and their blogs....boy, really starting to sound like a stalker aren't I??

Here are a few of the folks that we love to follow and feel like we have "virtual friendships" with:






@nycrunningmama: We just got to watch her complete her first ever ultra, and what an amazing job she did!  It's always fun to be the runner, but it's almost as much fun to share in the joy that someone else has for running.  Way to go!  Checkout her blog - www.nycrunningmama.com














@RNrunnerdiva: She recently completed her first ever half marathon!  What a HUGE obstacle to overcome.  I had a great time tweeting with her the week prior and reading her race recap.  She is proof positive that hard work pays off!  Checkout her blog - The Health Trek








@WarriorBetsy: Always looking to impact other people's lives, we eagerly wake up Saturday morning just to read her Soldier Stories!  Her blog is full of great stories about things she supports and what she's doing to train for her next race!  Checkout her blog - The Everyday Warrior















@TheMommyMiles: These two girls are fun to follow!  Great writers who find humor in everything.  They have a joint blog, like we do, so that's also fun!  Reading about the trials and tribulations of motherhood and how they find ways to intertwine running through it all is awesome!  Checkout their blog - The Mommy Miles


This is by no means everyone that we love to follow, but that would be a REALLY, REALLY long post.

Keep pushing ladies, you are awesome!

Do you have virtual friends out there in Twitterverse that you've never met face-to-face?

Hooray for Holiday Giveaways!

Nope, this is not a giveaway from I RUN, THEREFORE, I AM...but it is an awesome chance to win a Garmin Forerunner 405!!

This sweet piece of flare will give you accurate readings on distance, pace, calories burned, and elevation...and so much more!  I'm hoping to win because right now, I just tote my iPhone along on every run to use the free RunKeeper app. And while it provides me with great running log info, it's not exactly the best piece of gear to have to carry while on the move.  

So, what are you waiting for, go here and sign up!