Finishing the race

I ran the Provo Half-Marathon yesterday. For those of you who are not marathon runners, half marathons consist of 13.1 miles. I tried to train for it but unfortunately did not find the time to train the best I would've liked. My longest run was around eight miles and the majority of my runs were less than five. I figured I would hurt after the marathon but hoped I would be able to finish the race. I could hardly sleep the night before thinking I would a. not wake up to my alarm and b. not finish the race in a decent time. Due to my lack of training, I wanted to run it in 2 hours and 15 minutes. I was nervous to see the results.

Our friend, Taylor, came down from Salt Lake on Friday, and Tim's parents came in town that night too. We all went to dinner at an Italian restaurant so we could carb load. My stomach was sick during and after dinner, and I wondered if it would affect the race. Taylor and I woke up at 4:10 a.m. to get ready and make it to the buses by 4:45. We jumped on the second bus and were dropped at the starting point around 5 a.m. We froze for two hours in the canyon as we waited for the race to start. The race started after 7 and Taylor quickly ran ahead. I told him I wanted him to run it in less than an hour and forty minutes. He made no promises. I found my pace and ran the first six miles without any hint of exhaustion or cramping. I had to go to the bathroom around mile six so I stopped at the cleanest port-a-potty I have ever seen and started the race again. However, the stop made my body cramp up. I literally felt like my legs were lead pipes and my body was not moving very fast. Frustrated, I pushed through the pain and stiffness and continued the race. Taylor paced me on the downhill and seeing him encouraged me to keep going. I only walked for 6 minutes of the race. I was too stubborn to walk any more. I stopped once for the bathroom and once to stretch my calves. The race was poorly marked and towards the end I had no idea where I was or what mile I was on. It was irritating until I found the 12 mile mark and literally jumped for joy. I turned on "Heart of a Champion" and started the last mile. I finished the race in 1 hour 54 minutes. I was number 634 out of 2100. Taylor finished in 1 hour 39 minutes. We both did better than planned.

Today...I am dealing with the aftermath. My body literally broke down after the race. I ran a 99.8 fever last night and had the chills until 3 in the morning. Today, my body is stiff and achy. I look like I have two hip replacements. Seriously...I look ridiculous. I am grateful that Tim has been here. He has helped with Mya and everything to be honest. His parents are also wonderful. They are currently watching Mya. I posted pictures Tim took of the race and some of Mya in her new Detroit Tigers shirt. Tim's parents found it in the Detroit airport on their way out. I love it. Tim loves it. He is one of the biggest Tiger fans I know.

Mya turned 10 months today. She weighs 17.5 pounds and is 28.25 inches long. She is a little thing but perfect. Just perfect. We love her. I just can't believe how fast the time has flown by. Our little girl is not so little anymore. She has been walking for about a month. She laughs at everything. She has six teeth. She waves and says "Hi" and "Hi da..." We assume she is trying to say dada. She sleeps through the night....thank goodness. She is getting more stable walking in shoes. She no longer wants to be spoon fed. It's all about the finger foods. She doesn't love to be held when she knows she can walk. She loves spoons, toothbrushes and tubes. She loves brushing her teeth. She is starting to figure out the parts of the face. She is the most innovative person I know. She thinks of just about everything.