6.2

I did it. I ran 6.2 miles on Saturday and it never felt so good. As I mentioned last week, I have been training and preparing for the Monument Avenue 10K since January. Well race day finally got here and I was amazed at how my body rose to the challenge!

We left Blacksburg Friday afternoon and our first stop as soon as we got into Richmond was to pick up my race packet. As soon as Nic put the car in park I could feel the butterflies flutter in my stomach. I started thinking, "What in the world have I done? These people have driven all the way to Richmond to see me run-I can't back out now" (just to clarify my exaggeration here, "these people" include Nic and my parents, who would have gladly driven to Maine to see me walk one mile). Once I got out of the car and saw all the other race participants with their "free" stuff, I was more than happy to walk into the expo. There were tons of people inside but it was really well organized, so I walked right up, traded in my race postcard for my running bib/time chip and was well on my way to running my first 10K. My name even came up on the TV screen on the way out the door- proof that my time chip was activated and ready to go!

I wish I could say I slept well Friday night, but unfortunately I was like a little kid on Christmas Eve. I kept waking up staring at the clock, counting down the hours till race time. I finally woke up for the last time around 7:30 and started getting ready for my day. We were up and out of the hotel by 8:30 (the valet parking concierge gave us a little cheer on the way out the door) and around 9:00 I was lining up with my wave. I had been ok till now, but as soon as I stood with the rest of "the pack" I started freaking out. Luckily I saw my friends Lauren and Robin, who graciously decided to drop back to a slower wave to start the race with me, and I started feeling better. As we got closer to the starting line I could hear the man on the microphone say "Wave SA-2 minutes till start time, 1 minute, 30 seconds, and GO!"

And just like that we were off. Lauren and Robin were trying to run the race in 65 minutes or less. Me? I just wanted to finish it without walking, so we waved goodbye and they were soon out of sight. I put in my iPod (thank you David Crowder for your musical accompaniment) and could hear my friend Sarah's voice in my head, "Be sure you set your own pace and stick with it from the beginning, people fly out of the gate, just let them pass you, don't worry about what they're doing." Sure enough she was right, I felt like the slowest runner out there but I decided that was alright and I cranked up the volume and kept running. About a half a mile in I passed my personal cheerleaders. Mom & Dad had made me neon green and orange signs so I spotted them before they even saw me! The route was really flat and lined with cheering fans. I started hurting after about a mile and a half but luckily I knew there was a water stop at the 2 mile marker so I kept running thinking about the water! Sure enough I grabbed my water, chugged it (not sure how much of it really went into my mouth though) and kept on running.

I finally reached the halfway point and was feeling good; my legs weren't too heavy and my breathing was pretty steady. I kept looking for the bright mile marker signs and slowly but surely I passed Mile 4 and 5. After I passed the 5th mile marker I knew I had to rely on my adrenaline to propel me forward since my longest training run was 5 miles. That little voice in my head (some might call it Sarah) reappeared and I started to visualize crossing the finish line and what satisfaction I would feel when I was done. So I pushed forward and gave it everything I had.

I finished in 1:16:54, not bad considering I wasn't worried about time at all. I had just run 6.2 miles straight WITHOUT walking AT ALL and no one can ever take that away from me. Walt Disney said it best when he said "All our dreams can come true, if we have the courage to pursue them."



*My only regret of the weekend is that we forgot our camera! So this is a picture taken in Blacksburg when we got back. If anyone knows how to get pictures off a Samsung Trance please help me out!*

Spring is when.....

“Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.”-Doug Larson, 1924 Olympic Gold Medalist

That's exactly how I've felt the past week or so. Spring didn't officially arrive till this past Saturday but the weather here in Blacksburg has been great all week! Everytime I walk out the door, I find myself smiling no matter what the day ahead holds. People in general just seem to be in a nicer mood when it's gorgeous outside. Mabel also enjoys the nicer weather and can be found hanging out here most of the time (she especially seems to like the fact that the squirrels know it's Spring too).



To celebrate Spring I'm running my first race (of any kind) this upcoming Saturday in Richmond! The Monument Avenue 10K will kick off for me at 9:27 am Saturday morning and I couldn't be more excited (and terrified). Training has been both difficult and mind boggling all at the same time. I've been amazed at how far my endurance and overall body condition has progressed in just a few short weeks. When I first started out back in January I could barely run a quarter of a mile and now I'm capable of running 5 (note I said capable here and not AM GOOD AT because running those 5 hurts like heck). The frustrating side of that is one day I'll have a really good run and be feeling like a trained athlete and the next day I'll barely be able to get through the first mile. But luckily I've been reading on running blogs that this is totally normal and you just have to push through it.

This is another thing that's amazed me through this whole running process. I never really bought into the whole "No Pain, No Gain" slogan, remember those No Fear shirts? Yea, I never bought one of those. If something hurts, my philosophy is you stop doing it! But lately I've been learning that maybe pain isn't the worst thing in the world and if you keep going it eventually stops hurting. So who knows what other life lessons I'll learn from this but for now my sights are set on Saturday. I'll be sure to keep you posted on how it turns out!

Arkansas on Saturday

I would begin this post with a song lyric regarding Arkansas but unfortunately none really come to mind. So I'll just tell you about my visit to AR instead. Melissa & I (along with 7 students) are loading up the BCM van tomorrow afternoon and heading west: our final destination, Ft. Smith, Arkansas. To break up the 14 1/2 hour long drive, we'll be stopping tomorrow night in Nashville, as the Nashville Reuter fam and younger Uebel brother have so graciously opened up their homes for us to spend the night.

I'm excited and nervous at the same time-in case you didn't see the number above we're going to be on the road 14 1/2 hours, that's a long time in the car! I'm excited to get there though and see how God is working through Cross Community Church. We'll be working in a community garden, speaking on the University of AR at Fort Smith's campus, and hosting a couple evening cookouts in local neighborhoods. And as if that isn't enough, I'm also going to see my fabulous, fun friend Libby. I seriously let out a little squeal everytime I think about it! So here's hoping for warmer weather and seeing God work in new and exciting ways!

Man Crush

Although I'm not a fan of the trend of putting the word "Man" in front of other words (such as "Man Night" or "Man Date") to transform them into something that guys do, April has correctly told me that I've been developing a "Man Crush" lately. Who is the object of my admiration and at times emulation? This guy right here:
















I've recently become much more interested in learning to cook, and I've been immediately drawn to Alton Brown's style of cooking tasty things (as he would say, "Good Eats") and understanding the science and technique behind what I'm doing. I asked for his "Good Eats: The Early Years" cookbook for Christmas and have tried out a bunch of recipes from the book already. Despite the fact that I already burned my hand pretty badly learning to cook a steak in a cast iron skillet, I've really enjoyed reading and cooking from the book.

In his book, Alton Brown described his cooking show as a mix between Julia Child, Mr. Wizard, and Monty Python - I can't think of a better mix for my tastes! I appreciate the goofy humor, scientific knowledge (I used to watch Mr. Wizard all the time as a kid!), and wise cooking instruction all wrapped up in one. I guess April can't complain too much about my recent Man Crush because at least she gets to enjoy (most of the time my cooking is at least enjoyable, I think) eating the results.

Why we support TOMS

I saw this on someone else's blog and just had to post it on ours. This video broke my heart to watch but it's really cool to know that a company like TOMS is working to solve the problem. What's even cooler though is that we can be a part of the solution. So go pick out your TOMS today; they're extremely comfortable and what's even better is knowing you're giving to a child who really needs them!

My childhood dreams come true

I saw this today and I think my heart may have jumped out of my chest for just a second. I mean who wouldn't leap for a chance to buy the 'Full House' house (and no this is not sarcasm)? I watched that show religiously while growing up and yes I admit I may watch a few reruns every now and then on ABC Family during my lunch break.

Seriously though where else would I have learned such wholesome family values and enriched my vocabulary with phrases like "How rude" or "You got it dude." So about that house, is anybody looking to give away $4.1 million sometime in the near future?

In case you were wondering I'm not a gamer

I'm not a gamer. In fact before I got married it was like pulling teeth to get me to even play a board game. Nic however is a gamer; first it was Sporcle, then Settlers , and now Spider Solitaire. It's not uncommon for him to play at least one game a day (if not more) on his computer. It's sort of his way of decompressing when things get stressful or just needs a break. Me, I'm a TV watcher. My current lineup includes Chuck, Greek, NCIS-LA, and Modern Family. I can't imagine coming home after a long day to use my brainpower to solve a puzzle, in fact the thought alone detests me.

But today is the start of my wonderful, amazing husband's birth month. And as a birth month present I will try my hardest this month to be a gamer (at least for the next 10 days). I will play a board game when our friends ask us if we want to, I'll allow him to keep score when we play Scrabble (despite the fact I lose horribly whenever we play), and maybe just maybe I'll even help him with the answers to Sporcle because I love him that much! So this post is dedicated to my wonderful hubby.

I'm reminded every day of how grateful I am for him!