Last Sunday I mentioned that I was visiting my mom and would be staying for the week. We had a fantastic time just being together and I was happy to be able to help her with some chores around the house and yard. It was easy to get my runs in because I love running along the scenic countryside, and of course I made sure to foam roll and do some yoga after all of my runs. Strength training; on the other hand, was put on hold and will be resumed again tomorrow.
On Monday, I didn’t make it out of the house to run until 4:30 PM. I’d planned to run on Tuesday morning, but a last minute appointment for Tuesday to take Mom’s cats to the vet for their annual checkup and vaccinations had me running on Monday so I wouldn’t be rushed the following morning. It was in the high 80’s when I ran, but I ran along the river and mostly in the shade so it really wasn’t that bad.
I stopped to say hi to the neighbors’ horses and as always, they were happy to pose for pictures…
Once home from the vet on Tuesday, I started weeding and trimming around the flowers and stones around the pond before moving on to some of Mom’s other flower gardens. I continued on Wednesday and again on Friday, totaling about ten hours. Now that I’m home, I need to tackle some of my gardens. 😉
There was a dense fog warning when I ran early on Thursday morning. It was a delightful 63° and felt heavenly compared to my usual runs at home. I chose to stay off the main roads (nervous that drivers wouldn’t see me), but that put me in areas where there have been several bear sightings this summer.
Luckily, the only wildlife I saw during my run was Mom’s cat, Callie, who had wondered out into a field looking for small rodents.
Just for fun, here are two pictures (I took pictures of the pictures) my mom’s neighbor took through her front door of a bear investigating a bird house before turning to walk toward her house. That’s a big black bear!
Friday afternoon I went for a walk to get cucumbers and a cantaloupe from the same neighbor’s garden. Along the way, I snapped a picture of the cows in the field next to mom’s house. You can bet that when I make out a large black object through the dense fog while running that I make sure it’s an Angus and not a bear!
Saturday morning, I headed out early for a run before I headed back home to the rat race. It was 60° and foggy and I chose a slightly different route. I ran past the same corn field as Monday’s run…
And said hello to my horse friends…
And then I turned to follow a different road along the river. I set up my GoPro (affiliate link) and took this cool silhouette.
When I noticed the cows watching me, I paused to take their picture, too.
Now that I’m home, my scenery won’t be as interesting and I’ll see few horses and even fewer cows unless I run farther west toward the countryside. There’s nothing to keep me from doing that except for time, and I’m heading back to work tomorrow…
In case you skipped checking in on my blog this past week, here’s what you missed…
- Sunday – Bloggers On Bikes, More About Cosmos, And Visiting The Farm
- Tuesday – Breakfast Before My First Road Race Versus Today’s Races, Pre Timing Chips; And Three 1980 Fredericksburg, VA Road Recaps
- Thursday – Runfessions Of Skipped Runs, Too Many M&M’s, And A Century Ride Put On Hold
Looking ahead to this coming week…
- Monday – Please feel free to join me for Race Linkup and let your friends know which races they can find you running in the next few months.
- Wednesday – Please be sure to join me for my monthly Wednesday Word linkup where this month’s word is fabulous.
- Friday – I’ll be joining in on the Ultimate Coffee Date fun with Deborah and Coco.
In addition to the exercise I mentioned above, here’s a complete run-down of my workouts from this past week (completed mostly in our home gym)…
- Questions:
- What animals do you see when you run?
- Let’s discuss what runners like to talk about most – the weather! How’s the weather been where you live?
- Did you race this weekend?
And that’s a wrap… Have a great week!
Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links which means if you click on the blue product link and then make a purchase, I will receive a commission for referring you. You will pay no more or less for the product; however, Amazon will show their gratitude for my referral by paying me.
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I’m linking up with Holly at HoHo Runs and Wendy from Taking The Long Way Home for their Weekly Wrap. Be sure to check out not only the hosts’ posts, but the other great bloggers joining in on the fun!
There are no cows or horses along any of my normal running routes. Plenty of chipmunks, rabbits & occasionally deer. Thankfully no bears, although very occasionally we hear about some in town. I did see a groundhog once . . .
It’s always great to have a change of scenery & I’ll bet your mom really appreciated all the help.
Growing up we never heard of bears in the area, same with coyotes…
It’s sad how humans have forced so many wild animals out of their natural habitats.
I have (once) see coyotes just a few miles away from our home. Just another reason I don’t leave the dogs out unsupervised.
I may have to drive out and visit your mom just so I can have some cooler weather to run in!
LOL, it would be worth the six-hour drive.
I normally see rabbits, squirrels, deer, dogs (hopefully on leashes or behind fences!), a few cats, and loads of birds. Sometimes I see horses depending on where I go. This weekend I saw a snake and occasionally, I’ll see a turtle. I’ve seen a bear once a few years ago and I’ll take a hard pass on seeing another one. I don’t even live out in the country! I mean, I kinda do but I live in town so, no thank you! haha
That’s nice that you were able to get out and help your mom. I need to get up to my mom’s and help out too.
Seeing one bear in a lifetime is enough, huh? I’m waiting for my first, but prefer to see it from the safety of through a window!
We actually ran by a herd of cows on our 12-miler yesterday…I almost paused to take their pic LOL
Almost… You should have taken a pic so we could compare Virginia and Iowa cows. 😀
Holy moly, where does your mom live? Those pictures are all amazing (love the “Boop my nose” picture of the horse :)! But that is one BIG black bear!
Mom lives in southwestern Virginia – it’s where I grew up. That one horse, the one with the frizzy blond bangs, is so friendly and always gallops over to see me when I run by. 😀
It’s wonderful you can spend time with your Mom! I know you treasure these visits. The scenery around her house looks amazing. Running there must feel like a special treat. Thanks for linking!
I do enjoy running there very much. One thing I failed to mention is how hilly it is there. If I trained regularly there, I’d be a beast!
I love all that nature on your run! My parents live in the country too–it’s a heck of a lot prettier than in the ‘burbs where I live. No bears tho. Whew!
I live in the ‘burbs, too, so I do enjoy the change of pace and scenery when I visit.
Wow! That is quite the bear. We saw a bear one time run through our yard years ago. It was so odd because we don’t live in the country. There is a trail that we run and see a few cows but they are not that close to us. We do see deer often.
I don’t know what I’d do if I saw that bear walking toward me while out running… Hopefully, I’d at least get a picture of him for my blog before I panicked! LOL
I always love your pictures – but the horse pictures are great. I scrolled too quickly and thought the field of cows were all bears after your prior pics. I hope Callie found some rodents to please her
Thank you, and could you imagine seeing that many bears. THAT would be scary! Yes, Callie found a mole and brought it to my mom’s porch to eat it. Bleh!
Oh animals and their presents. We’re proud of you, really. No show and tell needed
As I was reading, I was thinking (at first) “how peaceful” and then you said the cows were watching you and I totally got a chill. I have a weird (but small) fear of cows, haha! I have no idea where it comes from, it’s just always been something I deal with 😉
Oh wow, that’s interesting about your fear of cows. I grew up on a dairy/beef farm (my parents sold the farm in 1998, but kept the house), so I grew up around cows and love them. I do have respect for cows that I “don’t know” because they’re so much bigger than me. 😉
Looks like a lovely week! Love the close-up of the horse. We saw one bear in Yellowstone — but we were safely in the bus. My mother-in-law had one climbing up her back deck in N.C.!
Oh wow, on her deck? That’s definitely too close to home!
You took some amazing photos during your run! I would love to see some of those running buddies out on my runs. Sometimes animals can be friendlier than some people, lol
Oh my goodness, you got that right! I get so annoyed when I meet someone regularly while out running and they can’t acknowledge my “Good morning!” with even a little nod.
The scenery near your mom’s house looked beautiful. What a perfect place to run. I think your neck of the woods is pretty darn special too! I loved the scenery during the Wine Country Half.
Yes, it is beautiful here, especially in the western part of the county where it’s more rural. 🙂
I do love traveling along with you to your Mother’s house through pictures! Her garden and pond looks so beautiful and peaceful!
Awww, thank you, and peaceful is a perfect way to describe where she lives.
BEARS? Goodness. All I see is the odd cat in a front garden and quite a lot of dogs (on our run yesterday we saw a hilarious dog that looked JUST like its owner). Maybe the odd cow and horse when on a race that goes out in the countryside, and lots of bees on the lavender and sometimes parakeets in one of the parks, on top of the usual birds, but that’s it.
We’ve been having a respite from the weather since Saturday but I think it’s coming back again. Gah!
It’s so funny seeing dogs and owners who look the same! There used to be a TV commercial here in the US that showed lots of humans/dogs who looked alike. 😀
I for one am very glad you didn’t see a bear! How scary would that have been! What a lovely week – I am sure your mum was really glad to have you around for a bit. Her garden looks lovely by the way. Well done on a great week of running.
Thank you! It was a fun and relaxing week being out in the country!
[…] Sunday – When Horses And Cows Are Your Only Running Buddies […]
What pretty scenery for your runs last week! I see all kinds of creatures out running – alligators, snakes (sometimes copperheads – yikes!), wild turkeys, herons, crabs, seagulls, sometimes deer.
That’s quite a menagerie of animals you see on your trails. There are copperheads and rattlesnakes on the Appalachian Trail and I’m glad I didn’t see any. It’s starting to get a bit too cold for them now, though.