My first (and only) marathon

I did it. I finished my first marathon. It was the hardest thing I've ever done! So here's my journey- and I felt EVERY mile of it!

When the bus pulled up to the start line, and I got out, I suddenly thought, "What was I thinking? I have not trained enough for a marathon! The farthest I've ran is only 13miles!" Then I thought, "Oh, well it's too late to back out now- so I guess I'm going to do it." It was a freezing 42 degrees! I started with two friends and at the end of 5 miles, one of them quit! So, my friend Christine and I kept going. Miles 5-9 were really difficult. It was really windy and there were few water stations. Miles 10-16 are the toughest of the whole course and the most beautiful. (the first picture is from the 560 feet climb on this leg) It was a lot of fun, and when I got to mile 13, I felt great! My friend Christine was slowing down and told me to go on. I kept going and left her thinking that she would catch up to me. I did the next 10 miles alone.

I knew that Aaron was waiting for me at mile 22, so I just kept thinking, "only _ more miles 'til I see Aaron." It kept me going for about 5 miles. I definitely hit "the wall" about mole 19-20! So, when I saw Aaron I lost it. I started to get choked up, and lost it! We ran the last 4.2 miles together. He was so encouraging. In fact, I have the best husband ever! I knew could have done it without him! Those were the hardest 4 miles of the whole race! He was there to walk with me, run with me, and push me when I wanted to quit. It was such a sweet experience to share with him. If I was going to cross the finish line, I wanted it to be with him. And it was with him. The thing I didn't expect was how much pain I was in while I was running mile 20 on. My legs- every part- killed me. I couldn't walk to get relief. It didn't stop once I started running. They hurt so bad! That's never happened on my other runs (probably because I was prepared for them). My stomach was not normal the rest of the day either. I was starving, but once I started to eat, I would fell sick.

I finished in 5 hours and 12 minutes. I'm really happy with that time- actually shocked! I still can't believe I actually made it the whole way- it doesn't seem real. This course is a very difficult course because of all the hills. Will I do another one? No, not right now. We'll see once I recover!

The second picture is at the end of the race, and the third one is at mile 23. These are the BEST strawberries in the world! SO good! I've waited all year to taste them again!

Marathon

So, I've committed to running a marathon this Sunday. I'm getting more and more nervous as the week goes on. The race is a relay marathon from Big Sur, CA to Carmel, CA, on Hwy 1. It is the most beautiful stretch of hwy anywhere and I get to see it upclose and personal. I ran two of the legs (the last 9 1/2miles) last year. I loved it. It was challenging because there are hills, but it was also so inspiring. There are over 10,000 runners entered. Once the runners start, they never stopped. It was this long, continuous stream of runners. There are musicians every two miles or so, tons of water and food stations along the way- and when you get tired, all you have to do is look at the ocean to your left, and you feel the motivation... well, we'll see about that...

I have been running, but I haven't done the training required for a marathon- let alone one with lots of hills. About mile 10, you climb for 2 miles and then drop for 2 miles! So, what was I thinking? Well, I want to do a marathon. I feel like if I'm going to do one, this is a good one and it's a good time. I'm thinking about having kids in the future, and this may be my only chance to run one before that. Plus, I'm not running alone. There are at least two other women I run with regularly that are running the full marathon. One of these women ran this last year.

My goal: to finish- which means under 6 hours because that is the race requirements.
My motivation: the BEST strawberries in the world at mile 22.
Aaron is running too. He is running the last 9 miles. He's going to wait for me the last 4 miles so we can run across the finish line together- or at least so he can carry me across. I am excited... and scared.

being enough

Last night I had my family over for Easter dinner. I don't know why it is but everytime I cook for my family, there are always problems. Yesterday, the ham was still cold at dinner time! I even went with a precooked- all-you-have-to-do-is-heat-in-the-microwave-ham. And I still couldn't do that! Thank goodness, we could just heat in the microwave to finish warming. Also, about two hours before dinner, I discovered that I didn't have enough glasses! I guess that we have broken a few glasses since the last time we had dinner at my house. I had to run to Walmart (thank goodness they were open on Easter) and buy more at the last minute. I get stressed when I have people over for dinner, and I never feel like a good host. Hospitality is NOT my gift. I don't think my mom was very hospitable either. I am so jealous of people for whom hospitality comes naturally and they are great.

My friend is back!

Michelle flew in to town last night. We had her bridal shower this afternoon. It went really well. We had a great turn out, and she got some great things! Tomorrow- I get to go shopping with Michelle! I'm so excited! We're just headed out to the local mall for a few items. Tuesday is the BIG shopping trip to Santa Barbara! I can't wait. I'm so glad she's here. It is going to be a nice week.