RRR

I have been busy working on my run.  Along with 11 other amazing gals, we kicked 187 miles of pavement can from Brianhead to Zion's, running the Red Rock Relay.  It was life changing craziness wrapped up into 35 hours of girl power bonding.  Truly one of the hardest yet most exhilarating things that I have ever done.

So amazing in fact, that I already signed up to do it again next year.  In addition to Zion's, I am going to run on a 6 man team in Moab in May.  I am super stoked!!!

I never saw myself as a runner.  I loathed it in fact.  But now, even though the last 6+ months have been filled with injuries galore (ITB, ACL, MCL, calf strain, foot strain), it is one of my favorite pass times.  I can totally tell a difference in how I feel if I miss a run. 

I am by no means a good runner.  I still have much to improve on.  My times are still pretty slow, but on a positive note, they are a heck of a lot faster than they were when I began training.  To go from 0 to 6 miles in 6 months is a pretty great accomplishment in my book. 

Van 2 at the first exchange

Van 2 L to R:  Shanna, Chalese, Me, Josie, Michelle, Mindi

Van 1 L to R:  Patty, Lauren, Jodi, Chelsie, Liberty, Jenny (here they are at the first van exchange, one run down)

I want to remember how I felt about the run this year, so I can see how much I improve by next year.  My first run was my shortest, 2.9 miles (at about 2 in the afternoon).  I wish that it had been longer because the temps were perfect post rainstorm downpour, and I had a lot of excitement built up. I think my average pace was about an 11 min mile (I said I was slow).

Van 2 run #1

my first run

we had a super fun group of girls

Shanna and I, rekindled friends for life.

Mindi and I.  She drug me into this whole thing-love her!

Some fun from Van #1.

Obviously we had a fun time playing off our team name "That's What She said"

Jodi was our team inspiration.  That girl rocks!  She brought me to tears a few times.  I had so many emotions when she handed off to me at the last van exchange. 

My second run was a 5.2 miler (at around 1 A.M.).  I loved it.  Night running was so not what I imagined it would be.  The temps were perfect and running with a head lamp didn't bother me at all. My average pace was around an 11.3 min mile.

My last run was 5 miles of pure torture.  It was at 10:30 A.M.  in hot St. George.   I had barely had any sleep in over 24 hrs.  I was super nauseous.  My calf and foot were killing me (I was still nursing these injuries).  The temp was already in or near the 90's.  And I had some killer hills to climb.  Up until this point I had not had to walk on any of my runs.  I was completely out of gas and felt like I might pass out 2.5 miles in.  So I had to walk, even walking was hard.  I kept trying to get little surges of runs in, but my body wasn't letting me.  I had to walk nearly half of my leg.   I was pretty bummed to say the least.  Not to mention, my pace was shut down to about a 14 min mile-yikes!!! 

It was so exhilarating cheering on our runners.  Especially when Mindi was on that last leg, and the home stretch.  I was honored to bestow her last stripe on her (that totally sounds cheesy). 

Nothing feels more amazing than knowing we made it to the finish.  Not to mention our finish time was better than we had anticipated (this was the first race for many of us).  Our time was 35 hours and 20 minutes.  We plan to kill that time next year. 

But the whole experience was great.  I learned a lot about myself.  It was so much fun being surrounded by so many runners who were excited to cheer you on.  All the teams were so supportive of each other.  And, my girlfriends are the best!!!  My relationship with each grew immensely.  What is better than that?  I made some knew friends (fast legs Lauren and speedy Patty).  And I rekindled friendship with one that I hadn't seen in years (we will be close friends for life-I love my Shannie). 
Over two weeks later and I still am smiling!!!

if they had a spokes-model for corn...

Lily would care less about the big bucks she would make from such a prestigious job.  She'd be all, "Money?  Who cares?  Give me the corn!"

And you better give her the corn, or someone might get hurt.
 

M.I.A.

We've been crazy BUSY lately.
Starting with back to school:  Bayli loves her new school and new teachers.  She is super excited about learning French and riding the bus. 
I wasn't so excited because my baby is gone all day, her school was a bit hectic that first week, and the first day of school I was called in for jury duty.  So, I missed all the firsts.  Thank goodness Jed took a bazillion pictures.

Speaking of jury duty, that was interestingly lame.  And yes I was picked as a juror.  4/25 really, what are the odds?  Kind of one of those situations where you know without a doubt your number is going to be called, as much as you fight against it.

Jed realized how crazy my day can be while I was M.I.A. with the justice league.

Get everyone fed.  Dressed.  Send Bayli off on the bus (for the first time).  Get Chase to preschool.  What do we do with Lily?  Send her to Grandma's (big thanks).  Who picks up Chase?  After school play-date with Macey (thanks wonderful friend).  Who will see Bayli get off the bus?  (have her walk home with the neighbors-thankfully court didn't last all day so I got to help with this one.)  Off to swim lessons (I know Jed was most grateful that he didn't have to deal with this on his own). Oh crap,  we forgot Bayli's swim gear.  Leave a tearful 6 year old with a loving Grandma that surprised her with a swim lesson visit.  Head back home for swim gear.  Whoops, shut Chase's fingers in the door, the sacrifices everyone must bare. Grandma topped it off with providing dinner, much appreciated.
Thank goodness we have such wonderful friends and family!!!

Lily has been working on her super hero moves.  She is blessed with speed, fearlessness, and her mommas tongue.  If she isn't running around, you can bet she is either scrounging off the floor with her mighty tongue, investigating for criminals-typically in everyone's shoes, or practicing her dismount from the couch.  Seriously we have determined that she will bare the first broken bone. We have yet to come up with her super hero title.   

Chase has been busy with his love/hate relationship with school.  He secretly loves it, he just doesn't like to do what others tell him to.  So I have to threaten that I am going to school instead, works like a charm (at least for now).
He has also been busy practicing for  trucking 101 complete with sound effects.  He cracks us up with his broken stroller trailer.  He can pile his "trailer" pretty high.  And you better look out when he is on the road, no toes are spared.  And shoot, chair in the way?  Well he'll just plow on through it.

Don't get me wrong, it hasn't been all fun and games around these parts.  We have been up to serious business.  Our garden is crazy mad.  We have had a constant influx of tomatos, corn, zucchini, carrots, peppers, and squash.

Also we have been trying to identify who our mysterious ghost is.  Yeah, that dust print is legit.  Poor lil feller, plum flew inna ar winder.  We are pretty sure it was a dove.  As evidenced by, dusty print (they do hang out on the ground quite a bit), too big to be one of the sparrows (they frequent the window enough that we would know), oh and biggest sign, we found a carcass under the tree.

I have been busy working on my run.  Rather, overcoming injuries that I keep accruing while working up to this:

 That in it's self, deserves it's own post.