State #44, Kentucky Derby Mini Marathon, Louisville, KY, 4/27/19, Part 1

I flew out to Louisville, KY on Friday morning (4/26). The flight was easy, and my connections were made without incident. I arrived around 4 pm, picked up my rental car and drove to my hotel in downtown Louisville. I stayed at the Galt House Hotel, the host hotel for the marathon, and when I arrived, the lobby was packed with a giant line of people checking in, most of them marathoners by the looks of their attire and by the sound of their conversations. When I finally got my room key, I dropped off my luggage and made my way over to the running expo to pick up my bib number. Thankfully, it was only about a block away and was a quick walk. 

Banner logo at running expo.

After getting my bib and race shirt, I browsed quickly around at the various vendors, and the Humana booth (top sponsor of the race) caught my eye. There was a woman in the booth who I knew I recognized as a famous runner, and it wasn’t until I saw her holding a 261 bib that I realized it was Kathrine Switzer, the first woman to run the Boston Marathon! She was taking a photo with a young girl and encouraging her to keep running. I asked one of the women working in the booth if Kathrine was taking photos with everyone, and she said that it was time for her to leave and that she’d been trying to leave for awhile because she had a dinner meeting to get to. I thanked her and began to walk away, figuring I’d head out myself to find some dinner. As I exited the expo, Kathrine was leaving and I decided to just say a few words to her. I thanked her for all she had done for women in our sport. She gave me a hug and asked if I wanted to get a picture. I was thrilled! So the man she was walking with took our photo. I was so overwhelmed with emotion, meeting this legendary running hero. What a thrill! 

Photo with running legend, Kathrine Switzer.

I was planning to grab dinner at a restaurant nearby called The Old Spaghetti Factory, but when I got there, a two hour wait for a table made me rethink my plan. Apparently all the other runners in town for the race were planning on eating there, too. Instead, I made my way from there to the Fourth Street Live area, a section of downtown that is closed to vehicular traffic and full of restaurants, bars and a place for live music to be staged. After browsing around all the options, I settled on TGI Fridays. Not my first choice, but at least I could get a regular plate of pasta there. All the other fancier restaurants had spicy or creamy pasta choices on their menus that I really didn’t want to experiment with the day before a race. It wasn’t the greatest dinner I’ve ever had, but it was food and the restaurant wasn’t crowded, so it worked. 

I stopped at a CVS before heading back to my hotel to pick up water and some other supplies. Once back at the hotel, I checked the weather for the next morning only to realize that the warm temperatures I was expecting were not what was in the forecast. It was looking to be in the high 40’s for race morning!  I laid out my long sleeve/pant running gear and tried to get to sleep on the early side. Unfortunately, I didn’t have a very restful sleep, but I slept on and off throughout the night. I guess it was better than nothing. 

Shedding Winter

It's been a rough winter, but now that spring is finally taking hold, things seem to be on the up and up. During the winter season, my family and I ski/snowboard on the weekends at Berkshire East. I completely enjoy this change in exercise. It is a great cross-training activity that really helps strengthen my legs. Plus, it is a nice way to enjoy the cold weather and get some fresh air. It seems to make the winter go by more quickly. 

While I was reveling in the wonder of the ski season, one weekend in February, for no particular reason, my back started to kill me after one morning on the slopes. I had no idea why my back felt tweaked after skiing--I didn't take a bad fall, I didn't twist weirdly or sharply, I didn't crash into anything or anyone--but nonetheless my back was out of whack after that day. I could not straighten up for about a week, and after 3 weeks with visits to my massage therapist combined with at home stretching exercises and foam rolling, I was still not quite right. What a mess!

I tried my best to keep "running" throughout this period of time, my pace was greatly decreased along with my mileage. I was at bare minimum mileage for February. Miraculously, I squeaked out my 100 miles for the month, but just barely. I was so annoyed by this because I was so energized after my California race in January, and I came home determined to add weight training back into my regimen. So much for that in February. (Meant to post these sooner, but here are 3 fabulous pics from the CA race taken by the official photographer, Rob Nelms. It is rare that all three of us would take a great race photo while running, so here's the proof...)

Hazel on the course. Making it look so easy.

Myself, flashing a smile and big wave.

TJ the running man, peace out!

Also in February, we experienced the death of one of our dear family members on my husband's side. Having the family together to grieve was a blessing, but my diet suffered around this few weeks with lots of comfort foods around. So basically, I was eating too much fattening food and not running enough. February was a cruel month, for sure. 

March brought a bit of change. My back finally came around to feeling normal, and with Lent upon us, I decided to clean up my calorie intake by giving up my favorite snack of cheese & crackers along with all alcohol. Plus, I've tried to just eat cleaner during this time. I also started off the month with a Beach Body 3-day Refresh, which is always hard, but it really helped me to refocus and get out of the comfort food mindset. The month of March ended up being a real bang up month...I clocked 125 miles for the month and lost about 5 pounds. Not too shabby. 

And now the weather is starting to improve, which feels magnificent! Spring is my absolute favorite season for running. I love the smell of the dirt and the blooming spring flowers and trees. I love the feel of the sunshine, fresh from its winter freeze. I love shedding the heavy layers and getting back outside, freeing myself from the confines of the treadmill. It is such a season of renewal, and it helps make running feel fresh again. I have started up the spring edition of the running club at the school where I work, and the kids are so happy to be back outside having fun. It feels so joyous!

I'm relieved for all of this change, as I have a race coming up at the end of April and was unsure about my training with my back being so bad in February. Thankfully, I feel good and strong right now, and I've been able to add weight training back in to my routine, so I hope I will be even better by the end of the month. Looking forward to the Kentucky Derby Festival Mini-Marathon (#44).

May your spring be filled with a newness, be it running, or some other activity. Get out there and enjoy whatever your passion may be! Time to leave winter far behind!

State #43, Winter Fun Half Marathon, Long Beach, CA, 1/20/19, Part 2

I woke up way too early for the race, my east coast internal clock thinking 3:45 was a good time to be awake. Try as I might, I tossed and turned until 4:45 am when I finally gave in and got up. I got dressed and headed down to the kitchen for some coffee. TJ was already there, and he was nervous about the race, leaving on time, and about a million other things, this being his first ever half marathon (and really with little training for it). Hazel joined us shortly thereafter, and we all talked and stretched a bit, grabbing some light breakfast and hydration. We ended up leaving closer to 6 am, as the traffic reports were showing no real traffic issues.

View just off the freeway heading in to the Long Beach area.

As we drove out to the race, we talked about running, and I caught Hazel and TJ up on my family. As we got closer to the Long Beach area, the sunrise was stunning. I snapped a picture and sent it off to my husband, who countered later in the day with a photo of himself snowplowing the 6+ inches of snow we received back in Connecticut. 

My morning view.

My husband's morning view.

We arrived in Long Beach without incident and easily found the starting line of the race and check in table. We got our numbers, used the bathroom and shortly thereafter the small but willing group of 5K, 10K, 15K and half marathon runners lined up and were given the starting instructions. 

Final race instructions before official start.

This race (for the half marathon) was a 4.36 stretch of paved sidewalk that ran all along Long Beach, leaving half marathoners to complete the out and back route 3 times to complete the distance. I wasn’t sure if I’d love the simplicity of the route or hate the repetition. It didn’t seem like there were very many runners for the race, and not all of them were half marathoners, but that didn’t really matter. We had a half marathon here all ready for us, now we just had to tackle it. 

Runners ready at the starting line.

Hazel, TJ and I gave each other a good luck hugs and posed for a starting line picture, and then we were off. Without a huge crowd to weave through, the start was pretty good. TJ took off like a shot, and I was worried he went out too fast and would crash later. I tried to stay at a moderate but strong pace despite the cool (50’s) temps and slight headwind. It was definitely better than being back at home in the frigid snow! 

The fun thing about this out and back x3 race was that Hazel and TJ and I all got to see each other several times as we passed back and forth. We’d shout words of encouragement along the way. 

The beach was nice to run on. There were beach volleyball courts, a large pier, a dog park, and a bike path to see, as well as the ocean (of course) and shipping activity. The first mile took forever it seemed, but once I had completed the course once, I had a good feel for what I had to do to finish and keep myself motivated. The temperatures warmed up as the sun rose higher in the sky, and it felt so nice to be on an outdoor run on a beach. Yum! 

Long Beach panoramic view.

I chatted with one man for a bit along the way, as we ran a similar pace. It was his first half marathon, and I shared with him that I was from the east coast and that I was running halfs in all 50 states. He was super nice, and we traded encouragement as well. Hazel was a little bit behind me, but she looked great, like this was just another daily fitness run for her. The path was pancake flat, except for a ramp that led up to the main pier on the beach and then down again on the other side. It wasn’t especially steep or anything, but by the third lap I was wishing it wasn’t there anymore. My only real complaint with this race (not that I can really complain since we were grateful to have this race available after the postponement of the other race we were supposed to do) was that they only had one water station at the starting line. There should have been a second one at the far turn around so that we had access to water every 2 miles or so instead of every 4.3 miles. I was glad that I’d brought my hydration belt, but by the end of the race, my bottle was empty. 

By my third lap, I was doing ok, but slowing a little. The star of the day though was TJ! He was still running a crazy fast pace, and it looked like he was one of the front runners! I was so excited for him. As I made my way to my last turn around, he was already on his way back to the finish line. I was cheering him like crazy. I made my turn and headed for my last half lap. 

I was so glad to tackle the ramp for the last time (the midway point of each lap more or less) and tried to pick up the pace a bit as I headed in to the last mile. TJ was waiting for me at the finish line, filming my triumphant crossing of the finish line. I was amazed to find out from him that he was second overall in the race and the first place male finisher! Holy crow! How the heck did he manage that!?? He was tired and his feet hurt, but otherwise he seemed excited and no worse for the wear. I took a few minutes to cool down and walk a bit. I collected my medal and started walking back out along the race route to find Hazel and run in with her. 

Finisher selfie with TJ.

We connected at about the half mile mark. She told me that her headphones hadn’t worked at all for the race, and since she always runs with music, it really made for a tough race for her.  We ran together back to the finish line area, but I ducked out in to the parking lot to allow her to have her own finish line moment. TJ filmed hers, too. What a good brother!

Three happy, accomplished half marathon finishers!

We chatted about our experiences, indulged in some of the finish line water and food, and then found out to our dismay that the race coordinators had run out of medals! Hazel didn’t get one, but they promised they’d mail one right out to her on Tuesday. What a bummer! But as a consolation prize, the organizers gave all three of us some free running t-shirts (2 each!). Huzzah!

We walked over to the bathroom area still trading all kinds of stories of our individual runs. I changed into dry clothes and we stretched out a bit before heading to the car. On our walk to the car, a woman driving by stopped and asked if TJ was the actor from Bones. He chatted with her for a few minutes, and we headed off kidding him about his fame. 

We found out later in the day, when the race results were posted, that TJ finished in 1:39:57, I was at 2:00:28 and Hazel had a new PR with 2:29:44. TJ finished first overall for the men, I was fourth overall for the women, and Hazel was 10th overall for the women. Yay, us!

The drive back was amazingly devoid of traffic, and in about an hour we were back at Mr. and Mrs. Thyne’s house, ready for some glorious showers and brunch. One of the other Thyne siblings, Shelly, was there with her baby daughter. It was so nice to see Shelly and meet her little one. Shelly was the youngest of the Thyne kids, so she was really just a baby still at the time when my family moved away from the town where we all lived as kids. She didn’t remember me all that much, but she was able to pull a few details from the past out. We talked about her job and mine, and motherhood. She’s a sweet girl and her baby is adorable!  After showering, we all enjoyed catching up, relaying our race stories and eating an amazing brunch together. Hazel and I were both aching from our Breathing and Bracing workshop from the day before, which Mr. Thyne thought was hilarious. Whenever I laughed, my abs killed. 

After a lovey, leisurely brunch, Hazel and I both decided we wanted to rest a little, as we had plans with Katie later that night to see Tig Notaro at the Largo comedy club in West Hollywood. I said my goodbyes to TJ, because he was heading home and I wouldn’t see him before I left the next morning. What a great guy he’d been to take us all around and then run with us. It was such fun! We vowed to stay in touch.

Walk of Fame star outside the souvenir shop I stopped into on the way to Katie's house.

Despite laying down for a little over an hour, I don’t really think I fell asleep. I think there was just too much adrenaline still running through my body and too many thoughts swirling through my head. Katie, Hazel and I headed out around 4:30 to get back to Katie’s house to pick up the will-call tickets for the show followed by a quick dinner. Katie’s boyfriend, Nate, joined us at this point, and we all had a great time hanging out in line at the Largo and for dinner at a place called Cal Mare. Even though we said we weren’t very hungry, we managed to do a great job clearing several shared plates of delicious food. 

Largo Theater marquee.

We got to the club at ten minutes of 8:00 (the show time), only to discover the show time was actually 7:30! Oh no! Our amazing reserved seats were given away and we were relegated to the last row. The show was already underway, but once we got in and settled, it seemed we hadn’t missed very much. Tig’s format for this show (apparently the first in a series) was “Tell Me Everything” and was interview style. Her guest on stage was Olivia Munn. Many of their conversation points were very funny, but a few seemed to drag in places. The show went for about two hours, which was awesome, and Tig was amazing. She is so lovable! It ended up being a fabulous end to another incredible day with the family Thyne.

We walked back to Katie and Nate’s house and hung out there for a short bit. Katie drove us back to her mom and dad’s house. Arriving there around 11 pm, we found out that the Patriots had won the last playoff game and were heading to the Super Bowl. Hooray! Mrs. Thyne chatted with all of us about our night out, but before long, the lateness of the evening started to hit me. I had been awake and very active for a very long time. It was time for bed. 

I thanked Katie for all her amazing hospitality—dinner, the comedy show, the visit at her house—and we, too, vowed to stay in touch. I headed up to bed, and I think I was asleep before I even had my head down on the pillow. What a marathon day! (Literally!)

Race bib, finishers medal and t-shirts.

Day 3—

I woke up early to get to the airport early for my 11:30 am flight out. I wanted to leave ample time, considering the government shutdown could affect TSA wait time. I got a little teary saying goodbye to Mrs. Thyne. Mr. and Mrs. Thyne were just the best for hosting me for the weekend. I felt so loved and cared for on my visit.  Hazel joined me for the ride with her Dad back to the commuter station. At the curbside of the airport bus station, I said my heartfelt goodbyes. What an amazing trip it had been, and so special to reconnect with such funny, creative, wonderful old friends. Hazel and TJ were already talking about running in Hawaii…I sure hope that happens. Los Angeles was fabulous, and I hope I get to return someday to explore more of it. Thank you for joining me, Miss Hazel, and huge thanks to your family for all their hospitality! xxxxxooooo

California card.

State #43, Winter Fun Half Marathon, Long Beach, CA, 1/20/19, Part 1

Hazel and I met at the LAX airport Friday night with much cheer. My flight arrived about 40 minutes late due to a delay in Charlotte, but she waited for me before catching the shuttle to bring us to a commuter station in Van Nuys. We met up at the baggage carousel, and I said goodbye to my new friend Beverly who had been my seat mate on the flight in to LAX. Haze and I grabbed our bags, and after a lengthy-ish wait for the Fly Away Bus, boarded and began our catching up. The wonderful thing about a dear, old friend is that you feel comfortable right away and pick up just where you left off, despite the time passed and distance between our addresses. 

We arrived at the Van Nuys station, the closest location to where Hazel’s parents live. Her dad was there to pick us up, and my childhood reunion continued. Mr. Thyne looks fantastic! He lost over 130 lbs in recent years and became a committed Crossfit enthusiast. In fact, he arranged for Hazel and I to participate in a Breathing and Bracing workout the next day at his gym. 

We arrived at their beautiful home in North Hollywood where Mrs. Thyne was waiting for us. She immediately remarked that I looked just like my mother, and the catching up continued. She looks just the same as I remember her, and it was so wonderful to see her after all these years. We stayed up for a bit chatting, and then headed to sleep, which was very welcomed after a long day of travel. We had a big day the next day and needed our rest. 

The morning brought us to the Crossfit gym with Mr. Thyne. Thinking that the workshop we were about to do was yoga, meditation and breathing based, we weren’t worried about overdoing it before the half marathon the next day. Well….we started off with a “warm up” of jumping jacks, jumping, pushups, burpees, and squats. More than what we bargained for, for sure, but not impossible. The breathing and bracing came next which was pretty cool. We focused on filling our lungs and doing various exercises with proper breathing. Bracing was the activity of tightening our abs to properly prepare our bodies for various exercises, and we also worked on bracing with proper posture. It doesn’t sound hard, but actually the tensing and holding of our muscles was actually more strenuous than expected. The workshop ended with the WOD (workout of the day) which included pushups, sit-ups, burpees and squats (I think). As many as we could do for three minutes for each exercise. Whew, we were tired when we finished, but it was great. 

Mr. Thyne, Hazel and I after our breathing & bracing workout at Angelino Crossfit.

Coach Karlos, myself, Mr. Thyne and Hazel post-workout.

We wished everyone at the gym well and headed back to the house on foot. It was about a two mile walk home, which was perfect to shake things out after all that muscle work. Once back, we had breakfast, changed and waited for Hazel’s brother, TJ, to come along. He was planning to give us a tour around Los Angeles.

TJ arrived around noon or so, and it was so fun to see him after all these years! I remember him as a little kid with curly hair and glasses, and now he is a real life Hollywood actor! I congratulated him on his success for the tv show Bones and let him know that the folks back in CT were very proud of his achievement. We chatted for a bit about our lives and his decision to run the half marathon with us (yay!),  and then Hazel, TJ and I set out for our tour of L.A.

Iconic Hollywood sign.

Sun in my eyes...Hollywood sign behind. 

Me and the Hollywood sign in the distance.

Hazel and I attempting a selfie at the Hollywood sign.

TJ brought us on the most wonderful driving tour of his city, providing the most excellent narrative history of the area and its early founders. He told us of the early “moving pictures” industry, creation of roads and advertising how luxurious they were, diversion of water (reservoirs) to the area and beginnings of Walt Disney Studios/Disneyland. 

TJ drove us through many of the amazing little neighborhoods scattered all through Los Angeles and he brought us to see the infamous Hollywood sign. What a beautiful area! We stopped to take a few pictures and enjoy the views before moving on.

Next we stopped at what seemed like an ordinary grocery store (Gelson's), but once we went inside, TJ told us that the building was in fact the original Walt Disney Studios where the earliest animated Disney movies were made, including Snow White. He told us the story of how Walt Disney wanted his animators and their families to relocate to the area to work for him, and that he built special housing for them that was close to the studio so they could work and spend time with their families. The housing he built for them looked just like the cottage of the seven dwarves in Snow White. So charming! We took a peek in their courtyard, despite the no trespassing sign. Such a cool place and even cooler story!

Grocery store that was once the original Walt Disney Studios.

Cottages built by Disney for animators and their families.

Another cottage. 

Front gate of the cottage alcove.

Inside the courtyard.

End of the cottage courtyard.

Next we visited TJ’s house in the Silver Lake neighborhood of L.A., a lovingly restored 1920’s bungalow style home filled with such style and amazing tricks! Inside, the house boasts a hidden passage to his master suite, master bathroom and master closet, cleverly disguised as a built in china cabinet. So cool! The finishes and decor in the house were amazing, and his back yard had a pool, outdoor patio/deck space and detached studio for the workout room, laundry and kitty hangout. He also had a fabulous roof deck that overlooked the area with gorgeous views! I was ready to move in! Such a cool home. 

TJ's super cute house. 

View from his roof deck.

We were due to meet their sister Katie at her home in West Hollywood next, so we headed over there via the famous Sunset Boulevard and Hollywood Boulevard. Along the way, TJ pointed out various points of interest (theaters, statues, speakeasies, etc.). I snapped a couple of photos here and there along the way. 

Sunset Blvd. view.

Hollywood Blvd. view.

Mann's Chinese Theater.

Once at Katie’s house, I got the grand tour…her house is amazing, too. The house is a flat roofed mid-century modern type home with the most perfect modern, clean decor to match. I told both her and TJ that I needed them to help me redecorate my house! We left Katie’s and took a stroll around West Hollywood down to the Melrose Place (yes, that Melrose Place) area. Boutiques, restaurants, coffee shops and other places of interest lined the main street. We stopped to pose in front of the famous Paul Smith hot pink wall, where apparently people line up to take selfies and pose for photos. We got very silly about that little detour. So many laughs!

Posing at the Paul Smith pink wall.

Trying to be all California cool.

It actually is pretty fun...

TJ and I and Lemonhead Man.

The Thyne kids. Super hip.

But they couldn't hold it. Too many laughs!

We ended up at her local Le Pain Quotidien for a late-ish mid-day bite, where more laughs ensued, and Katie and I got to catch up with each other. What wonderful medicine it is for the soul to reconnect with with long lost friends! I absolutely enjoyed their funny family stories and photos as they also caught up with each other. 

On the walk back to Katie's house, we stopped at the new flagship Restoration Hardware store (which seriously looks more like a luxury hotel than a furniture store) to check out the rooftop park. The city required RH to make the rooftop park a city park open to the public, and it is a spectacularly gorgeous space. We took in the views from here and tried to take some photos, but as you can see, our silliness and laughing just got the best of us. 

Pano view from the top of Restoration Hardware.

Who wouldn't want to hang out in this gorgeous park?

Old friends trying to take a serious photograph...

Too much laughing...

Still can't stop.... 

We probably won't be able to do this... 

The best we could get in between our hysterics.

We walked back to Katie’s house and said our goodbyes to her (after a hilarious episode of the siblings trying to stuff a large, rolled up, non-slip carpet pad in the trunk of the car), and headed back to Mr. and Mrs. Thyne’s house. Mrs. Thyne was treating us runners to a spaghetti and meatball dinner for our pre-race carb load. 

We also secured our plans for the next day’s race (wake up time, drive time, etc.). Although it seemed like the Winter Fun Half Marathon was a pretty small, casual race, it would take about an hour to get there (with no traffic), so we settled on 5:30 am as our estimated time of departure to allow for plenty of time to make the 7:30 am start time. TJ ended up not staying for dinner, as he wanted to get to bed early to be ready for the morning, so mom and dad Thyne, Hazel and I had a fabulous spaghetti dinner together followed by an early bed time of 9:30. Such a fun, wonderful, heart-warming day of friendship and sight-seeing it had been. 

A First for Everything...

Today is Friday, and I'm at the airport waiting to fly out to Los Angeles for the weekend for my 43rd state half marathon. Yesterday when I woke up, I had a text from my friend Hazel who is meeting and running with me in L.A. She forwarded me a message from the race organizers that they were canceling the race and postponing it until March, citing a problem with the location. WHAT??!!!!! How on earth do you cancel a race a few days before it happens without much of an explanation???!!! I have no idea what the problem is with the location--either they didn't have it hammered out to begin with, or perhaps the current teacher strike/protests are taking over--but at least let us know. The options they gave were to transfer our registration to the future race (or another race within their organization) or transfer our registration to another runner. Um, thanks, but I can't just hop another plane to run in California anytime I want, and I don't know any other runners out there, so WHAT THE HECK!??? Needless to say, I was super annoyed and disappointed. 
But I wasn't going to settle for missing the race. Upon my wake-up on Thursday morning hearing this news, I hit up halfmarathons.net to see what other options might be out there. As luck would have it, there was another half marathon about one half hour away in Long Beach. The Winter Fun Half Marathon will do! It was super cheap to register, and they do give out finisher medals, so it will suffice. The route is 3 laps of 4.35 miles, which isn't my favorite way to run, but it looks like it is along the beach, so that should be really nice. 
I can't believe, of all trips, that this happened. I feel like I jinxed us because I mentioned to Hazel when I spoke to her earlier in the week that inaugural races sometimes have some organizational snafus. Talk about a snafu! Neither of us wanted to just cancel, with all the plans she and her family have arranged for us. I'm just so glad she was open to jumping into this other race. I usually spend more time researching my options, but in a case like this, plan B had to happen very quickly. I'm just glad there was another option available.
So I'm here at the airport, waiting to start the first leg of my trip. I have a stopover in Charlotte, and then I'm on to LAX. And none too soon...we are set to get up to a foot of snow here in CT this weekend. I'm happy I'll be running on the beach Sunday instead of shoveling snow. Stay tuned for more updates from California this weekend!

California, here I come!

Only a few short days until my next race. I'm heading to California this weekend for the Women Run LA race in Los Angeles. I'm super excited for this race, as it will reconnect me with my dear friend Hazel, who you may remember I visited when I ran in Texas. 
Well, when Haze and I met up in Texas, we talked about the fact that her family (parents and siblings) all mostly live in and around the Los Angeles area and that it would be fun if I ended up running in that part of the state. Well, a few months ago, I found the listing for this new half marathon there, and after a couple of texts back and forth, Hazel and I are running together, and her family will be there to not only cheer us on but also generously host us! I am overwhelmed (in the most wonderful way) that her large, fabulous family is coming together for this event. I absolutely cannot wait to see all of her family (I haven't seen them since we were in high school, I think) and to hear all about their lives now. We have lots of catching up to do!
Hazel's family and mine lived in Windsor Locks, CT for our early years. She and I were the best of friends in early elementary school, and I fondly remember so many zany, fun times at her family's house. She comes from a family of 6 children, so spending time at her house was much more exciting than at my house. Not only was it a blast having all those kids around to hang out with, but on most occasions, the kids had friends over, too, so it was a neighborhood crowd all playing and being silly. Over the years, both of our families relocated (hers eventually to Texas) so we didn't get to see each other as much. And in a pre-internet world, we wrote letters or called, but then life got busier and we lost touch. Once technology caught us up, it was fantastic, and getting to see her a few years ago in Texas was like a dream come true. I can hardly believe I get to see her and her whole family this weekend. I am so grateful to all of them for making time in their busy lives to connect with me on this trip. And I simply can't wait to see them all and hug them and spend quality time together. 
California, here I come!
Not to go without notice, Connecticut is set for a pretty big snowstorm this weekend, so hopefully I can fly out without incident, and I'd say that the timing for a warm weather run is just perfect. Looking forward to savoring every moment of state #43.

Year end reflections

I felt so lucky to be able to get outside for a 7.3 mile run today. Temperatures here were in the 40's with a brisk but bearable wind, a welcome change from the deluge of rain we've recently experienced. Even though the last week or so has had some seasonably warm days, my work schedule doesn't always allow me to run outdoors. Most often at this time of year, I'm at the local gym very early in the morning with the pre-sunrise crew banging out a 5 miler on the treadmill. I am very grateful for those treadmills this time of year, but to have a weekend day with cooperative weather was a perfect Christmas gift.

Although I'm very much a winter wimp when it comes to running (thus my indoor runs at the gym), I couldn't help but think as I ran today that braving it out in the chilly temperatures (albeit above freezing) really makes you feel like you are getting the most out of your workout. I kept thinking that the difficulty of the headwind was only making me stronger. The cold of the air and wind was making my body work harder to stay warm. The slowness of the uphills was helping my endurance, making me push harder. The joy of the downhills was pure happiness. As I arrived home and stretched out, I kept thinking of how much running is a metaphor for life; yes, it is hard and sometimes it is just plain terrible, but if you push through the hard bits, the triumph is wonderful. You have literal times of ups and downs; moments of complete doubt and moments of absolute triumph. You have times when you think your body will just quit on you and other times when you feel like you could run forever with glee. You watch out for obstacles in the road. You try to run with the best form you can. The only way to get along your path is to put one foot in front of the other and keep going. You breathe and feel and sweat and hurt and finish. And in the end you feel amazing. It is such a glorious journey. Just like life. 

I've been reflecting on this past year, and again I feel so lucky to be able to run as I do. I am so appreciative of all the support I have from my husband and children and other family members and friends as I continue to strive toward my goal. I am ever grateful that my body continues to cooperate. I don't take for granted one single step along my journey. Each step is a gift. Each step is one step closer to finishing all 50 states. I can't wait!

I feel like the luckiest runner around. As I sit here with my family, relaxing around the Christmas tree, I think about my love for them and for all they've sacrificed for me. Early mornings on vacation when I have to get up for a race, and they drive me to the start; mornings when I'm at the gym and my husband takes care of the wake up and breakfast routine; weekend days when I head out for a long run and everyone has to fend for themselves or my mom hangs out with the kids. I'm so thankful for my family and my life. 

Sitting by our Christmas Tree.

As the year comes to an end, I am thrilled to have reached my goal of 100+ miles per month for this year (assuming I can run the rest of my miles this week...). I'm glad to have run in 5 new states this year and to have seen some incredible sights along the way. I'm grateful to have avoided injury (for the most part) and to still be running strong. I'm proud to have started a running club for students at my school, and I hope they are on the path to life long running. 

It's been an amazing year, and I'm ready to have some relaxing downtime during this holiday vacation. Don't worry...I'll be running, too...gotta get those miles finished! Wishing my 50x50 readers a joyous holiday season. Happy miles to you in the year ahead!