1/2 Marathon #3 Recap

Good morning everyone :-) The weekend's almost here!!!! I have to venture up to Milwaukee for drill/a friend's wedding this weekend.  It works out very nicely because the hotel where we stay on drill weekends is where she's having her wedding.  I decided to skip this week's "Wedding Wednesday" post because I didn't have enough time to post it yesterday. But if you missed the past two Wednesdays you can catch up here & here.  I've  been nursing a bad bee sting to my left arm since Sunday night and today is the first day all week that it hasn't hurt to type.  My arm swelled up to the point where I went to see my doctor ASAP.  She said it wasn't an allergic reaction, but that it was infected.  I guess bee stingers can carry a lot of bacteria.  She put me on antibiotics and sent me on my way.  I'm doing much better and hopefully my arm will be back to a normal size by this weekend.    



normal arm



stung arm

Kind of awkward to take pictures of your arm, but it's still pretty swollen.  Even though it's gone down some, I still couldn't get my wedding ring on today :-/

Thankfully, this did not happen during my 1/2 marathon on Saturday.  The morning started out with severe thunderstorms, but cleared up by the time the race was set to begin.  When I heard the thunderstorms and saw the lightning just as I was getting out of bed, I layed there and a small part of me had hoped that the race would get canceled.  I just wasn't in the mindset to run 13 miles and with that I knew this wouldn't be my best race.  I started out running with my friend, who runs at a slightly faster pace than I do.  Mistake #1.  I tired out sooner in the beginning because of it.  There were also hardly any porta potties on the course.  Mistake #2-not going to the bathroom before the race.  By mile 6, I had given up.  The motivation was just not there, so I told myself to just enjoy the race, the scenery and try to finish strong.

Why the lack of motivation?  First and foremost, I didn't have enough time to train and mentally prepare myself.  Secondly, I'm a big city girl & there's nothing in the world like a big city race.  The last two 1/2 marathons I have ran have been in suburbs in WI.  And as much as I love my family & friends in WI I am done with long races there, unless the race is in Milwaukee and it's a big one {Like the Summerfest race}.  This past race, I ran for MILES without seeing one spectator.  I ran through subdivisions, past rummage sales, and onto someones lawn to get past a fallen tree.  I felt like it was just an every day run.  The scenery was peaceful, but at one point a CAR cut out in front of me.  A car on the race course!  The best part about a 1/2 marathon is supposed to be the race and the atmosphere itself.  There's nothing like running the streets of Chicago (blocked off streets) with thousands of people there to cheer you on.  I finished the race is 2:25.  Not the time I was going for, but with all things considered, it could've been worse.  My next race will definitely be a big one.  I'd love to run the Rock n Roll Las Vegas in December.  We'll see! 

What's next? Chicago has finally gotten to the point where it's my favorite running weather.  September/October are the best months for running in my opinion.  The temperatures are just right and the colors in the park are changing.  BUT this year, I won't get to enjoy it because of a possible deployment overseas.  I say possible because I was supposed to go somewhere last December, and the trip got canceled last minute. So we'll see, but as of right now I am supposed to be leaving :-/  No where too dangerous though. 

Fact:Since LC and I have been together (5 years+) we have yet to spend a year in the same state as one another because of our military obligations.  We almost made it in 2009/2010, but then I got sent to Biloxi for tech school. Hopefully one day soon we'll get our year together!         

Music Moves My Soul {And my Feet}

(Source)

Yesterday, I completed the Lake Country half marathon.  It wasn't my best half marathon, but it wasn't my worst either.  Full recap to come.

But today, to celebrate seeing Carrie Underwood at Ravinia, I'd like to talk about music & running.  When I injured myself back in April, I first blamed it on the city of Chicago for not fixing the running path and then on myself because I got so caught up in my music and forgot to pay attention to what was going on around me.  After my sprain, I started running sans music and I surprisingly enjoyed it.  With the wedding just around the corner, I had enough thoughts to keep myself entertained :-) But when I signed up for this half marathon with my friend, I knew I'd need some music to help power me through my long runs.  

The Friday before the race, I made sure to update my 1/2 marathon playlist with some new favorites.  In total I had about 42 songs.  I won't list all 42, but I will list the ones that motivated me to get running again or run just a little bit faster.

1. Otis-Jay-Z

2. I wanna Go-Britney Spears

3. Pumped up Kicks-Foster the People

4. Super Bass-Niki Minaj

5. All I do is Win-DJ Khaled

6. Cowboy Casanova-Carrie Underwood; (I typically don't put country on a running playlist but when I hear this song, it motivates me to run only b/c I want legs like Carrie Underwood!)

7. Power-Kanye West

8. Sexy Bitch-David Guetta

9. Give me Everything-Pitbull

10. Waka Waka-Shakira

11. Party Rock Anthem-LMFAO

12. You Make Me Feel-Cobra Starship

13. Shake Senora-Pitbull

14. Every Teardrop is a Waterfall-Coldplay

15. Moves like Jagger-Maroon 5

16. Loca-Shakira

17. La La La-LMFAO

 I'm off to start my day!  Maybe some yoga & pancakes?? LC bought Carrie Underwood tickets for us at Ravinia tonight.  They're lawn seats, but I'm looking forward to packing our picnic and just relaxing and listening to the music.  I hope everyone's enjoying their long weekend!

Where do the Weekends Go?

Happy Monday {if there's even such a thing}!  Mine got off to a rocky start, but I'm trying to not let it affect the rest of my day. (Sidenote: right after I wrote this, my Synergy juice fizzed all over my desk and my dress. I didn't realize you're not supposed to shake them and keep them refridgerated. On the upside, I'm thankful I chose to wear black today.) Sadly, the weekends always go by so quickly but my mom's coming for a visit on Saturday so that gives me something to look forward to. Also, an old co-worker and I have a margarita date on Wednesday and I'm really looking forward to that!  I like when I have mid-weeks plans because it helps break up the work week.

On Friday, I went to Bar Method after my 1/2 day of work and then headed off to the social security office to officially change my last name.  I guess changing it on Facebook isn't good enough?  I'm not too crazy about becoming a very common last name, BUT I am happy about the fact that my initials won't change and hubs pointed out the fact that I will move up in the alphabet...

After the name change, I went and got my first ever Chicago hair cut at Aniko Salon & Spa.  I was very nervous going into it because, like I mentioned in a previous post, for as long as I've lived in Chicago, I've always gone back to WI to get my hair cut.  But James did a wonderful job on my hair!  And man, can men stylists give awesome head massages!?!  My hair is not easy to cut, and he did use some new techniques that my former stylist had never done.  But I'm very happy with the result and I will be going to him from now on.  It's much easier to get to a hair salon two blocks away from where I live as opposed to two hours.    

On Saturday, I completed my first long run of this 1/2 marathon training :-/ (8 miles) and sat in my first ice bath...it was extremely cold but very necessary.  My legs were already killing me after my run and I knew that if I didn't do something, I would be paying for it on Sunday.  After ice bath, I made myself some blueberry protein pancakes...       

And uploaded over 1,000 wedding pictures!!!  Our photographer sent us our wedding pictures this weekend and I love every sigle one of them!  It's going to be so hard to decide which ones we want to print off and put in frames.  I will be sharing them on my blog starting Wednesday.  Every Wednesday, starting this week and ending whenever, will be called, "Wedding Wednesday" and will highlight different aspects of the day.  Seeing the pictures makes me want to re-do the whole day over again.  The planning? Not so much.  

On Sunday, LC and I took someone else to get a haircut...

Then the three of us ventured over to the lakefront to catch a glimpse of the Air and Water show.  The weather was perfect, but it was sooo hot in the sun.  Honestly, I'm ready for Fall.  I know people think I'm crazy when I say that, but I can only handle so much of summer.     

1/2 Marathon Training Update

 I know it's only Tuesday, but I have a feeling that this week is going to fly by.  I'm very excited because I have no plans to leave Chicago, a rarity for me these days.  Last weekend, I was in WI for my friend's bachelorette party.  I rode a mechanical bull for the first time.  It was a ton of fun!  Her bachelorette party had a rodeo theme to it and my girlfriends did a great job of sticking to it.  

Last night, LC made salmon on the grill.  This summer, he's been really into grilling and I've been loving it.  It his first time grilling salmon and he pretty much got it right on target.  I made mashed sweet potatoes with garlic, carmelized onions, and goat cheese (they were to die for). 

Recipe for Mar's mashed sweet potatoes

3 sweet potatoes

4 oz. goat cheese

1 clove minced garlic

1 sweet onion

1 tbsp olive oil

*Place baked potatoes in the oven for about an hour.  While they're cooking, peel and chop the onion.  Heat up the olive oil and cook the onions on a lower heat setting until they get to be nice and brown (about a 1/2 hour).  Once the potatoes are done, take then out of the oven and let them cool for a bit.  Peel them and place in a bowl.  Mix in the goat cheese, onions and garlic.  Place in a serving bowl.  (I put mine in the microwave last night for about a minute to get them extra hot). Enjoy!!

Tonight I'm scheduled to run 5 miles...the longest run I've had throughout this marathon training :-/  I'm going to pay for it the day after, I just know from previous experience.  My friend, who's also running the 1/2 with me, and I set out to run 8 miles on Saturday but got caught in a rainstorm at about mile 2.  I was going to try and run 8 on Sunday but my shoes were still soaked and my head was still recovering from all of that bull-riding fun :-/ So I opted for a nice little walk instead.  I know this race won't be my best, but I'm happy to be running it.  My ankle sprain took forever to heal and I didn't think I'd be doing any races this year.

I have some exciting news to share with you all!!!  Maybe the picture below will give you a little hint of some exciting posts that are coming your way ;-) 

    

1/2 Marathon (#3) Training

It's Friday eve :-) I hope you're enjoying your Thursday.  I'm very excited for this weekend because I'm staying put in Chicago and have plans of laying by the pool and reading, getting into trouble in the kitchen and buying some things off of our registry at a discounted price.  I can't wait!

Last Sunday, I stopped over at one my BFF's house because I had some stuff to give back to her that she borrowed me for the wedding.  It's always nice to see her and her hubby because they're such great people :-) Anyway, she was telling me that she was thinking about running the Lake Country 1/2 marathon on September 3rd (in 1/2 marathon training, that's right around the corner).  Up until my ankle injury, I haven't gone over 3 miles, so naturally, I was a bit hesitant.  But I gave it some more thought and told her that I'd do it with her.  I figured this would be the best way to get back on my running game.  So, we are fast fowarding to week 6 of 1/2 marathon training.  This should be interesting...

1/2 Marathon Training

Today called for 4 miles.  I ran this on Tuesday and everything went perfectly, with the exception of the humidity.  No falls, no ankle pain.  Today, I had to move it inside, because the sky was looking a little beastly this morning.  I was nervous to run on the treadmill because last time I did, it didn't feel comfortable for me.  This time I rocked it, but the only problem was boredom.  Not the greatest timing, but I hate the treadmill so this is fine for me.   

Along with running, I'm trying to do some strengthening & toning to keep from getting injured.  I was going to try and sneak in a Bar Method workout tonight, but I have so much stuff to do at home, I think I'll just stick to the Tone 30 from Turbofire.  That way, I can get in laundry & a workout :-)  

My Eats
Tonight for dinner I'm making salmon, asparagus & risotto :-) Definitely beats last night's dinner of a bagel thin and peanut butter (I wasn't feeling too good last night).  My new favorite breakfast has become a small container of greek yogurt mixed with some chopped up strawberries and topped with agave nectar along side a hardboiled egg.  I'm not sure why, but my appetite has been very minimal in the mornings, even after I workout.  Normally, I'm pretty hungry after a run so I'm not sure of what's up.  Maybe it's the heat? All I wanted after my AM run on Tuesday was a popsicle...

I'm off to do some turbofire & make dinner.  Enjoy the rest of your night :-)

LC's Tough Mudder Recap + SIDI for the Week

Sorry this posting is a day late, but I hung out with my parents all day on their boat yesterday & the time just got away from me :-) It was a glorious way to end the weekend and I didn't want to leave.  We didn't get back to Chicago until after 9pm, and after sunning & swimming all afternoon, I was beat.  But not as beat as this guy...

Hubs had his tough mudder race on Saturday and he completed it like a champ :-) I'm not going to lie, I had my doubts about him finishing only because this race sounded so intense & the night before, we were laying in bed and I asked him when the last time was that he ran 10 miles.  He told me 8 or 9 years ago...EEK!   

We woke up EARLY Saturday morning to get ready and drive up to Devil's Head in WI.  We got on the road at 4:30 a.m. and guess what...there was a traffic jam!  At 4:30AM!!!! To be honest, I was not the least bit surprised...it's Chicago.  But we later found out that the highways had standing water and there was a part of the highway that was closed all together.  Needless to say, we made in there just in time for LC to start his race.  

Pretty much, he had to complete run/walk/ crawl :-) 10 miles and complete 25 obstacles.  I tried to make it to as many obstacles as I could, but being a spectactor at these things are no joke.  One, I definitely wore the wrong kind of shoes.  My old school Adidas flip flops are shot :-(  And two, the maps were not helpful at all.  I pretty much just walked around, asked the people what obstacle # it was and waited for him to show up. (Tough mudder, get better maps and some guides out there to direct you on where to go.)

This was obstacle #10.  But the first one that I saw him at.  I was so happy to see him alive & not hurt.  And I'm pretty sure he was happy to see me :-) 

  (No thanks buddy, we'll save the hugs for later.)

Some of the obstacles included runnning through walls of fire (so mad that I missed this), climbing up a wall, carrying logs, jumping into pools of ice water, low crawling through barbed wire in the mud, and last but  running through yellow tenticles that had electrcity running through them.  Most people made it out of that unharmed, but hubs was not so lucky.  He got shocked with a BIG one and, therefore, fell into the mud.  This was the very last obstacle and why he looks so dirty compared to everyone else...

I think he's still feeling the effects of that shock!

After they finished the race, they got a beer, a clean t-shirt and those groovy sweatbands :-) Oh, and a facebook badge that says you complete Tough Mudder.  He keeps asking me to do it with him next year, but I told him the ONLY way he could get me to do it is if we get to do the one London or Syndey Australia ;-) If I'm going to put myself through that kind of punishment I want a sweet vacation out of it, or at least a medal :-)  The money went to a great cause & I was just so happy he finished successfully AND injury- free.

So below is this week's Say it Do It.  I saw one of my BFF's for a bit yesterday and she roped me into doing a 1/2 marathon with her.  It's her first one and I thought it would be nice if she had a buddy to run it with her.  Did I mention that it's over Labor Day weekend? 6 weeks to go, so I better get running! I also got my turbo fire DVDs in the mail.  So far I LOVE them.  They're so much fun :-)

Monday: Fire 30 + Stretch 10

Tuesday: Run 4 miles + Turbofire workout

Wednesday: Run 2 miles + Bar Method+ Volleyball playoffs!

Thursday: Run 4 miles + Turbofire

Friday: Turbofire workout

Saturday: 5k Race to Zumba in the Park :-)

Sunday: Yoga!

I'm off to the grocery store & to grill out with hubs.  Grilling has become our Monday ritual since it's his day off and the only day he gets to perfect his grilling skills this week ;-)

My 7 Links!

Special thanks to Lindsey over at A Running Tale for tagging me in the 7 links post! As a fairly new blogger, I'm excited to play along :-)

Most Beautiful

So far my most "beautiful" post to date, has been a birthday tribute to my then fiance, 27.  I think it's the most beautiful because I put it all out there, he read it & got teary eyed.

Most Popular-My recent bar method review has hands down been my most popular post.  Thanks to a tweet by Bar Method and a facebook post, that one post got almost 500 views.  I love the Bar Method because it works!!

 Most controversial-My post about strippers @ bachelor parties. I knew LC would be having one, I didn't haven't a problem with it, but I knew some of the GF's of the guys did and I just wanted to see what everyone's opinions were.

Most Helpful-I'm going to go with my honeymoon recaps. Part 1-Arriving to San Fran.  Part 2-Big Wineries & Lodging.  Part 3-Small Wineries & Restaurants. I want to go back to Napa!

Surprise Success-My wedding shower post! haha! I didn't think that many people cared :-) It was a bit long a huge picture overload, but I had so much to say & I didn't want to forget anything.

Not Enough Attention-When I decided to withdraw from the Chicago Marathon I thought more people would comment.  It was a big decision (and HUGE disapointment) for me and a lot of different factors went into it.  Spraining my ankle has almost been a blessing in disguise.  It has taught me A)listen to my body, it knows its limits B)Not take exercise or simple things such as walking for granted C)forced me to try different things besides running (I got turbofire in the mail yesterday! Trying it out tomorrow!!)

Most Proud Of- My first 1/2 marathon with my sister :-) Something I never thought I'd be able to do.  I miss you MissE Childs :-)

And now I pass the 7 links torch onto:

Elvi@ Life.Wedding.Nonsense

Legally Fabulous

Jill @ Life After College

Meesh@ Postively Meesh

Okay, I'm off to bed...being a spectator at Tough Mudder is exhausting in itself!  I will be back tomorrow with an update of LC's race.  It will be a dirty one ;-)

Half Marathon #2-CHECK!

My goal for 2011 is to be more frequent with my posts. To help pass time, I've been keeping myself so busy. Almost to a fault. I'm a horrible fiance, the 3 months that my fiance has been overseas, I have sent him ONE care package...ONE! If there was an award for the crappiest fiance, I would definitely win hands down.

Anyway, this past weekend I ran the Haunted Hustle 1/2 Marathon in Middleton, WI with my friend, Marr. My goal for this race was to come in at 2:30. I came in at 2:27:23. So I'm very happy about that. I'd like to do the Disney Princess 1/2 marathon in February, but with the wedding coming up, financial it isn't feasible. But I will be there in 2012.
I went to church with my mom on Sunday and we found out that the pastor who is marrying us got a call for a church in AZ and he is taking it. He's a really good pastor and he will be missed dearly by my parents as well as many members of the congregation. As to whether or not he will be back to do our wedding, that still hasn't been discussed. I really hope so because I don't know who we'll have marry us otherwise! And so the stress of wedding planning begins!

Marrisa, My sister (and her sign) and Me! 2nd 1/2 marathon of the year!

Going the Distance

One of the reasons that I like participating in races is for the charity/organization in which I'm running for. The Chicago Rock N Roll 1/2 donated a portion of their proceeds to the American Cancer Society. This meant a lot to me because LC's grandpa died of cancer last year. It was the first time he and I had ever gone through something like that in our relationship.

So when I signed up for the race I'm running on Oct. 30th, I looked to see what charity the race would be sponsoring, and I couldn't find anything. I'm guessing this was more of a "fun run" as there is a Halloween costume division. Who can run 13.1 miles in a Halloween costume anyway? I found it really hard to stick to my training because I didn't feel like there was a purpose (besides creating a PR) for this run.

Until yesterday. I was on the University of Chicago Celiac Disease center website. I was looking at their events and fundraising page. They have a charity called, "Going the Distance". It's a DIY fundraiser going to benefit the University of Chicago Celiac Disease Center and to raise money for education, research, and advocacy. I have never done a fundraiser on my own but I am sold. This will be what I am running for.

A few months ago, my mom was extremely ill. They thought she had MS and those tests thankfully came back negative, but her doctor could not find out what was wrong with her. Months went by and my mom's symptoms got worse. Finally, her doctor decided to do a simple blood test and test her for Celiac Disease. Sure enough, that's what she had. So I will be running this race in honor of my mom, who will be there to watch me cross the finish line.

What is Celiac Disease? It's an inherited autoimmune disorder that affects the digestive process of the small intestine. When a person who has celiac disease eats gluten, a protein found in wheat, rye and barley, the individual's immune system responds by attacking the small intestine and inhibiting the absorption of important nutrients into the body.

I know I don't have a ton of readers, but I'm appreciative for all the ones that I do have! If you want to find out how you can help just e-mail me directly at brewcitybride@gmail.com.

xoxoxo,
Maria

Yesterday, The Donuts Won

This whole week has been super busy and I've been slacking on my 1/2 marathon training (yet again). I will give myself a pat on the back for running 7 miles on Sunday though. Well done, Maria! Anywho, yesterday I was scheduled to run 4.5 miles and do strength training. I was super excited and motivated, until I came in to work and saw that my manager bought us donuts and munchkins because it was the last day of the month. Pumpkin donuts. And muchkins. Right by my desk. Fail! Despite the fact I was broderline hyperglycemic, I still attempted to run and it did not go well at all. My legs kept cramping up and my feet felt like there were bricks in them. I did not make it 4.5 miles. Instead I did 2.5 and forced myself to do some speed work, so the workout wasn't a total bust. So yesterday, the donuts won and it definitely wasn't worth the defeat I felt. Next week I'll be back on track. 1/2 marathon in 4 weeks and this time I'm determined to beat my last 1/2 marathon time AND not feel like I"ve been hit by a truck. Side note, 9 months and 2 days before the wedding!

Weekend Recap

I haven't stayed in Chicago for the past 6 weeekends. For the past 6 weekends I have had something to do. In Wisconsin. This has been fun (weddings) and exhausting (drill!) at the same time. It has kept me busy since LC's been gone (we're almost at the 2 month mark!) but I have not had a moment to myself or a day to just breathe. So this weekend, I finally got to stay in my favorite city and my favorite lady came down to visit me (my mom).

She arrived on Saturday morning, via train, and we spent the day searching for a fabulous MOB dress, lunching, and discovered my new love...Sprinkles Cupcakes. We started out on Michigan Ave and searched every department store, high and low, and could not find anything that she LOVED but, she got some ideas of what she was looking for. I told her not to buy anything unless she loved it because the wedding is still 9-ish months away and I wouldn't want her to have buyer's remorse. After our failed shopping trip, we stopped and ate at Food Life in Water Tower place. About 6 weeks ago, my mom was diagnosed with Celiac Disease. Long story short, she can't have anything with gluten in it or she gets very sick, and gluten is in EVERYTHING! So I was so happy that Food Life offered a list of gluten free foods that she was able to eat. After lunch, we walked around the Gold Coast area, looking for more stores that had MOB dresses. We didn't find anything, but instead stumbled upon Sprinkles. I've heard a lot about this place but wasn't sure where it was located. I came across it on accident so it was a MUST that we try it. I tried the banana cupcake...AMAZINGNESS. And my mom had the Red Velvet cupcake, gluten free of course.

Later that night, we enjoyed some sangria & mexi food at Zapatista. Although they didn't have a gluten free menu, the waiter was very knowledgable in what my mom could and couldn't eat.

Sunday morning, I got up and went for a run. Sunday was my "long day" in my 1/2 marathon training. Despite the windy conditions running north, I completed 7 miles in an hour and 10 minutes. Running back (with the wind) was a piece of cake. After my run, we went to Whole Foods to get things that we needed to make Chili for dinner. My mom had never been to a WF before and she was in heaven. They had tons of stuff that she could eat. It's too bad that the closest one is about 45 minutes away. I told her that she should franchise one, it would be really popular where they live. I spent the rest of the night studying, while my mom cooked me dinner and took care of Ollie. It was nice to have someone there to take care of me for a change! Next weekend, I will be heading back to Milwaukee for drill...bleh!

Here I go again!

A good friend of mine from high school, M, is getting married about a month before me. To get in shape for her wedding, she's been running. A lot. The other she posted on facebook that she was about to run 10 miles after work. Ugh!

After I ran my first 1/2 marathon, I've been lacking some serious motivation to go out and just run. It's easier for me to run when I have a goal or something to train for. You would think my wedding dress would be motivation enough. Not so much. So, last night I signed up for another 1/2 marathon that M talked me into running with her. Yes, even though I felt my body had been hit by a truck the following day, I am running another 1/2. I'm officially addicted.

The race is at the end of October, which gives me 6 1/2 weeks to train. I started running again this week and doing cross training. I WILL stick to a training plan and make it my top priority for the next 6 1/2 weeks. I made the mistake of not training properly the first time around and I have learned from my mistakes.

So here I go again, 1/2 marathon #2!

Run 1/2 Marathon...CHECK!

Well, I have one more thing to cross off of my bucket list. On Sunday, my sister and I ran our first 1/2 marathon together. It was by far the hardest thing my body has physically endured (and this includes basic training). I started training a few months ago for it, but because of my decision to take a summer class, time to train became less and less. My goal on Sunday was just to finish with my sister by my side and I did just that.

We started running her pace, she runs a little slower than me and it was really hard for me not to speed ahead. Almost painful. But I did my best to stay with her. Finally, by mile 5, she told me to just go ahead that she felt bad for holding me back and that I will meet her at the finish line. So I went, and by mile 6 I was feeling really great. Like I could do anything. The longest I have ever ran at this point was 6.2 miles so the fact that I could go further made me so proud. I had rediscovered my love of running. At mile 8 I was getting bored and I decided to stop and wait for my sister. I already wasn't going to get the time I wanted because I started out running her pace and not mine, so what difference does it make? She couldn't have been that far behind, right? I waited 15 minutes for that girl before I finally just said, "The heck with it" and I ran off. By mile 10 I wanted to die, and my love for running was gone. I pushed myself to keep going and I finished 13.1 miles...right behind my sister!! How and where did I miss her?! As I crossed the finish line I looked and I shouted, "Melissa!" She had a big grin on her face and we high-fived each other!


The last few races I've ran with people, it's really hard to stay together on the same pace especially when you're not training with them. So when she moves to Chicago (fingers-crossed) we will train for our next 1/2 together and run that thing side by side, start to finish.