The First Half

I have officially earned my 13.1 sticker that resides in the back window of my car.  Though it wasn't exactly pretty I ran for 13.1 miles on Sunday morning.  2 hours and 16 minutes after I started it was over.

We could not have had better weather for it, it was cloudy and even though it was a little windy, especially when we ran over the river, the temperature was great.  I didn't even have to wear a jacket, just my short sleeve pink (of course) shirt.  I was feeling pretty nervous as Josh drove me to Veteran's part at 6:45, but once I got there I felt much better.  Choon, Kim, Bob and I were all assigned to corral C for our start, so we got to wait for our start 10 minutes after the first gun, and being among all the other runners really calmed my nerves.

It was pretty crowded at the start, with 9,000+ runners registered to race it was to be expected.  My goal was to finish under 2:20, and I just wanted to run my own race.  Bob didn't stay with Kim and I for long, and Kim and I stuck together for about 8 miles, except for when she took off for a potty break and then caught back up with me.  After about 5 miles my hips started killing me, and I had a hard time working through the pain for the remainder of the race.  I remember running over the river the first time, but I cannot for the life of me remember when we crossed back over.

At one point the marathon runners had an out and back off the course for the half and I saw a sign that said 10 miles and then one that said 16 miles and had a partial freak out for the next two miles thinking I'd gone the wrong way.  Apparently I passed Bob in the last two miles, but I didn't see him, it all seems like a blur.  Near the end I did feel like my legs were going to give out on me and that last small hill up to the finish line about killed me.  But aside from walking into the four water stops I took I ran the whole time, and I finished it.

Here's a picture of Kim and I after we finished.  Even though my hips hurt, and my feet have blisters, and it was a long walk back to the car that smile stayed on my face most of the day.  I am so glad I did it, and so glad that I got to run with a great group of people that helped me every step of the way.

So now I only have to decide what is next.  After this I feel like I can accomplish almost anything.  I'm taking a few days off and then I plan to be back at it, pounding the pavement in preparation for where ever the road takes me next.

Route 66 Half Marathon

Well this year definitely didn't turn out like I thought it would, but it has turned out so much better.

Who would have thought that in January that I would be where I am right now?  Certainly not me.  Finding out I have high cholesterol and was going to have to have knee surgery in the span of two weeks in January really helped the year turn out so much better, really.

So on Sunday I am going to be running my first half marathon in Tulsa, and even though it has taken about eight months longer to get to this point than I thought it would I think the race will be so much better because of everything I've gotten through to get here.

I can't say that I am not completely terrified, although being super busy at work all week and working really long hours have not left me much time to think about it.  I do feel completely lazy for not having worked out since Tuesday.  I think this is the most days off in a row I've taken since boot camp in April.  The added stress from would would have been much easier to handle this week if I had been going to the gym, but oh well.  I should be able to work out plenty of stress on Sunday.

All there is left to do is pick up my race packet tomorrow, decide what I am going to wear (Gotta look good if Kim is going to have a camera handy), and do a little carb loading tomorrow.  The weather is supposed to be beautiful and I can't wait to put that 13.1 sticker on my car!

Free to a Good Home...Maybe.

Free to a good home, one two-year-old French Bulldog.  Goes by the name Penny and comes with her own hand made tutu.

She is a delightful and loving dog, who is a bit stubborn at times.  Guess that's the bulldog in her.  She does have a tendency to pretend that she is house broken for months at a time and then for no reason at all start peeing and pooping in the house.

She has a tendency to intestinal issues, probably because she was over fed as a young pup, so she requires canned pumpkin in her food daily.  Don't worry she'll eat organic pumpkin if there is a shortage on canned pumpkin.

She loves to swim, although she is built alot like a brick with little stumps for legs, so we'll throw in her pink and white polka dot life vest for her aquatic adventures.

Oh Penny, how you frustrate me so!  My sister had a cat once, Spanky, that all of the sudden started going to the bathroom RIGHT NEXT to his litter box.  Once he started he never stopped.  Might have been the trauma of the two kittens we acquired, but who knows.  Maybe he just decided that he wanted to think outside the litter box.

The bad part about Penny is that she is so darn cute.  She will sit when you tell her to, and she is a very good snuggler.  I feel that she is mostly my dog now, since Lucy is gone, but I just don't get her.  She can just snuggle up when it's time for bed, go outside in the morning when she gets up and then come in and crap on the floor when no one is looking.  Maybe she thinks our steam cleaner isn't getting as much uses as it should.

I guess dogs are like a box of chocolates, you never know what you are gonna get.  We have one very lovable, cute little dog with some strange tendencies I guess.  We will probably keep her.