MFT: Late Again!

So, it's Tuesday and I'm just now linking up with Abby for MFT. Raise your hand if you're surprised...yeah, me either. Down to business.

I cannot even believe I'm about to write this but...running. It's one of my favorite things! When Milo was just three months old, my cousin asked me if I wanted to train for the Memorial half marathon. I said "sure, it's something I've wanted to do", thinking "Oh, maybe in a week or so we'll start jogging or something"....clearly I wasn't thinking. My cousin is not one to mess around. Within two hours, in my inbox, I had a Google calendar link to a training plan that started AT 6:30 A.M. THE NEXT DAY!!!! I told Nathan I was pretty sure I'd just gotten in over my head but whatever, we'll give this a whirl.

Now, let me just say here that I had not done a lick of exercise since Milo had been born and before he was born the only exercise I was doing was walking my feet to the bone around our neighborhood trying to GET HIM OUT! So, we started the next morning using the Couch to 5k program (C25K). Fast forward to last weekend. There was a point to point, (supposedly) mostly downhill/flat half marathon in Ardmore. We decided to do that one as a "training run" since we were supposed to have a training run of that length on that weekend anyway, and it was a smaller race to get one under my belt since this was all new to me. And you know what? I FINISHED!!!! And I enjoyed it!

My cousin has been injured for a few weeks but I talked my sweet running buddy Jenny into going with me and we had a great time! In spite of the 20 MPH HEADWIND FOR 12.5 OF 13.1 MILES (I blame that for my slow time). We took it easy, we jogged, we chatted, we joked about the wind and how it should DEFINITELY make our race count for more than 13.1 miles because it sure made it feel like more, and we ran into that stadium and across the finish line and it was one of the best feelings I've ever had!

Point is, I actually do enjoy running (I sure hope anyway otherwise I'm just plain crazy!). It has become one of my favorite things, and I miss it when I don't run for a few days. I'm not some superstar athlete, that's for sure, and I'm not running to beat anyone or set any records, I'm just doing it because by golly less than a year ago I had a 30 hour labor and had a baby and now I have run a half marathon and I'm doing another in a few weeks and I think I'm pretty awesome, even if I am slow! :) Also, for a while, I've had this secret goal to run all the way around Lake Hefner...and I achieved that goal on one of my training runs!!! Plus, I've lost a couple of pounds, which I'm certainly not going to complain about. I've also gotten to spend quality time with my cousin on our runs, and get to be better friends with someone I've known for YEARS (Jenny) on training runs. These two girls have kept me going when I didn't think I could go another step, and they made me laugh while I did it! So really, what's not to enjoy!

So, I know this is WAY longer than it should be, but there it is. And now, some pictures from the event:

Jenny and me before the event - this was around 6 a.m., just before we got on a SCHOOL BUS to get driven out to the starting line.

This is just before some guy (a volunteer with the race) tells us "great job girls, almost there, just enter the stadium and ONE LAP AROUND THE TRACK". WHAT??? We didn't sign up for one lap around the track...I want a refund!!!

Here we are making our "victory lap". I believe this was the point where I was asking Jenny "do I NEED one of those shiny blankets?" and she was daring me to take one (it was humid and in the 70s). I did not. But I should have.

And here we are crossing the finish line. That lady standing on the track just ahead of us might have been my favorite volunteer at the event (all of them were fantastic though). She was cheering us ALL the way across the line and telling us (and everyone) how great we did. And this was more than three hours into the deal - I can promise you she had to be tired but she still had a smile!

And last, but not least, Jenny and I just after finishing, Jenny w/her cinnamon roll, and me wondering where my husband went with my two bottles of water, my banana, and my king sized Payday.