Running Mom

I ran a little race while visiting PHX.
I had my babies and my amazing MOM by my side.
She kept us in line and made me sane.
 
It was a huge race, SO MANY PPL!!  Not usually my style but I'll be doing it again indeed.
It was also the first of many races for me this year.  I took this one slow and low and loved that.
I took walk breaks, photos, and high fived as many kiddos along the way as I could.
This year I'm taking my running back and not feeling too guilty about it.

After all... happy WIFE, happy LIFE!
:)

Run on.

I am a runner.
In 2009 I ran the Sacramento Marathon.

I qualified to run Boston.

A HUGE bucket list item for me.

A HUGE bucket list item for most every runner on the planet.

I never did that race because I had a baby in my belly shortly after qualifying.

I knew there would be many more marathons.
More hopes of another BQ (Boston Qualifier) time.

Now I'm not so sure.

I pray for happy.

and healing.

and answers.

I wish for the kindness to overshadow the evil.

I wish for tragedy to get lost and never make it's way back to our world.

Prayers and thoughts for the folks that hurt and heal and help solve these horrible crimes.
Prayers for the entire running community.
Runners.
Family members.
Sideline high fivers.
Volunteers.

There is good out there.  We know this for sure.  We must remember this....
and run on.

Instasilliness!

So grateful for health and love.

For calm & opportunity.

So thankful for faith and belief.

For Andrew and Darcy.

So hopeful for peace and direction.

For meant to be & do not disturb.

Instagram

It leads me to some really nice places every single day...

#seventyinarow!

What the heck does #seventyinarow mean?

I just came off of a personal challenge.... running 70 days in a row! In a row.

It was perhaps the hardest challenge, mentally, that I've tackled to date.

Harder than Ironman.

Harder than child birth (WOAWA!)

Harder than leaving my wee Bean for the very first time.

It was hard because I knew there were no excuses.  

Maybe tomorrow.

I'm too tired.

I'm not in the mood.

None of those excuses would fly... so I didn't bother making them.

I ran anywhere from 15mins to 1 1/2 hours, depending on how I felt.

The deal was I had to give it my all for 10mins and if it wasn't clicking for me I could turn around and come home.  Easily, 99% of the time I just kept going.

These were not long, fast, hard core runs.  They were whatever I wanted them to be each day.  Reminders of how grateful I am to have the heart, lungs, legs, and chance to pound pavement one foot at a time.

I love to run.  But everyday for that long of a stretch? Mega mentally tough.

I picked this challenge for a few very personal reasons. I tackled a few demons indeed.

I ran in snow.

Rain. 

Under the stars.

and all by myself.

Every run was solo, I didn't want it any other way.

Most in the dark after Andrew was in snoozeville.

And all of them mapped and tracked (hello type A).

Thanks to Papa Bear and a few days my Mom, I was able to gett'er done.

Gotta come up with a new challenge.  Any thoughts?

:)

Below are a few photos I took on my phone during or after my run. All of them sent to the beautiful iphone app INSTAGRAM where I tagged them as #seventyinarow (plusoneweebean to follow me in Instagram)

I saw a lot of miles and some amazing starry nights!

Running makes me happy.  I will never stop.

Melissa's Unplugged!

No camera.
No phones.
No baby.

Just me and my runners!
I forgot what that was like...
We were really UNPLUGGED, at least for the 1:50+ it took me to run the race (I'm too shy to tell you my actual time - SIGH).

We packed up and went to Banff for the Melissa's half marathon.  It was slow and steady but it was breathtaking.  It is crazy to know we live so close to such an amazing playground.  Good grief!
First time doing this race in 3 years.  Missed it once for a friend's wedding, once for no good reason, and once while waiting for the arrival of the wee Bean!

I ran and ran and ran.  I ran my heart out.
I have no photos to prove it, or mark the amazing mountain fall that hugs Banff.
Just trust me.
I ran!
That city is so beautiful this time of year.  It was full on summer but fall brings so much excitement about the winter ahead in Banff.  SKI HILLS are opening soon, yes soon.  You can honestly feel that vibe.  Maybe it is just me, but I sense it every fall in Banff. All the TOTALLY NARLY DUDES come out of the woodwork in anticipation for the super sick POW POW that is just waiting to blanket those big shinny rocks.  I'm not rushing winter, we all know it is my least favorite... I'm just sayin.

It was the first time I'd ever ran this race in 30 degrees, it is always chilly and fresh and involves down vests and fuzzy sweaters.  Not this year my friends,  HOLY SMOKES!  What is with me and hot races this year?  WOWZA.

So I ran and sucked back the beautiful fall sights and smells.  It wasn't just another run in the park for me.  Each run I do now is cherished and appreciated, as it is just so much harder and more work to get out for them now.  So to pack up the family and head to the mountains just to do a run may seem crazy to some but it involved Tim Horton's, the chocolate shop, and some Led Zeppelin drivin tunes... Darcy is always game for those!

The course circles the Fairmont golf course.  Did you know Marilyn Monroe golfed there way back when?  YUP! It goes up and down and around and around.  Pat pat pat, just the sound of feet ahead and behind me.

It was like a bit of a chariot convention there, how did I never notice that before?  So many families sporting chariots filled with snacks to keep the old and young people happy.  Kids were clapping.  Kids were crying.  Kids were loving the mountain smells and all the amazing happy happy things that go along with the race environment.

I love to run.
I just can't deny it.
Melissa!  It was so great to see you again.
See ya next Sept!