Monthly Archives: August 2010

Ironmama- Jen Temperley

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60401-317-023fTake a close look at the picture to the left (click the pic to enlarge it).  Do you see the mom pictured there?  That is Jennifer Temperley, mother of two darling kids ages 6 and 3.  Also, did you notice the time on the clock above?  That is the time it took her to swim 1.2 miles, bike 56 miles and run 13.1 miles.  Even finishing one of these events in 5 hours would be an accomplishment.  But Jen did all three events in 5 hours and 27 minutes (oh yeah, don’t forget the 5 seconds).  She placed 4th in her age group and 20th for women overall.   Best of all this time qualified her for the Half Ironman World Championships and the National Age Group Championships.  Just two weeks later, she placed first in her age group for an olympic distance triathlon- piece of cake after doing a half ironman (I guess).

Jen proves that it is possible to achieve your goals even if you are a busy mom.  Competing in triathlons takes prioritizing and dedication, both of which she has mastered.

When Jen was training, she invited me to ride along for 32 of her 70 miles.  Let me just say something- this girl doesn’t mess around.  You see, I joined her on her LAST 32 miles and when I got home, a fell into a heap on the floor.  She probably put on her running shoes and sprinted 10 miles; but, in order to save face, I pretended to be fine and told her to call me anytime she needed company for a ride. Continue reading →

Following dreams- it’s hard work!

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helpinghandsSee this picture?  Yesterday, my kids helped me out by putting together marketing materials for my business: MyOwnLittleStory.com.   Sometimes I wonder if I am pretending to be teaching them something so that I can selfishly get my work done without having to break up a fight!  Call it what you want, I will call it a good lesson in launching a business.

Thus far I have spent countless hours designing, printing, and cutting marketing materials.  I don’t have the money or the time to hire someone to do this.   Every step of the way, my kids have been helping me.  They pull stuff off the printer, stack pages in order, punch holes and help me clean up the paper scraps.  They see how hard I am working to spread the word on my business.  Today I sat at the Manhattan Beach Farmer’s Market handing out fliers and promotional materials.  I was there for 6 hours and 15 minutes.  One of my sweet friends stopped by to ask,” Have you made any money yet?”  The answer: “No, but I am not deterred”.  People have bought gift vouchers, but considering I paid my babysitter $100 bucks and $25 to the Farmer’s Market for my booth, and $50 for ink and paper to print all this stuff- I haven’t made any profit…yet.

In order for me to just break even for all I have spent- I need to sell 1,000 books.  Yep, you read right: ONE THOUSAND books.  Some of you might think I should throw in the towel right now.  But dreams are priceless and so is the lesson I am teaching my kids!

Kicking and Screaming- phase two of ocean swim complete

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lifeguard shack and hermosa beach piercrThis ocean swim goal is testing me mentally.  In almost any sport, I see myself as having some sort of dignity.  I get out there, work hard and regardless of how tired or sick I feel I rarely quit or complain.  But ocean swimming is a slightly different deal.

The other day I met my friend (Robin), who is an amazing swimmer, and a swim coach (Eric) to get in the ocean and swim for a bit.  The thing is, I sort of cheated.  I wore a pair of swim fins.  Not only that, but from the get go, I said I wouldn’t swim around the pier, and warned that I would get out of the water after a short while (all of this before even getting in).  But, I did get in and swim- I managed to swim a half a mile.  I started feeling sea sick from the rolling swells and called it quits. Continue reading →