i did it!

today (saturday) i ran my 5k race. it was held in redlands at prospect park. the grounds were beautiful. the only bad thing about it was the last tenth of a mile uphill. and i mean UPHILL!!! it was torture. but i will get to that later. here were the events of the day.

my mom spent the night so she could go with us. we all went to bed early to get a good night's sleep, since we had to be up by 6am. around 2am, jesse's cough really started acting up. i got up with him for a little bit, and told him to take his codeine so he could sleep. he told me that he wouldnt be able to get up in the morning if he did. so i, being the wonderful wife that i am, told him to go ahead and take his medicine and sleep.

when 6 came, i was super excited and woke the kids up (they were equally excited too). we were out the door by 6:30am. we had a nice walk up into the park to register. got my tshirt, number, and was ready to go.

at 7:30, we start. i am towards the middle to back of the runners. we all take off downhill toward the street. i feel really good. just when i start to get winded i wonder where i am at. i look at my stopwatch and see i have been running for 12 min. but i didnt see a mile marker. bummer. i wanted to know my mile time. i keep running . the course went in a big circle outside of the park. once i got back to the entrance of the park, i started walking to catch my breath so i can make a big finish.

once i catch my breath, i turn and see where we are going to get back into the park, and it is soooo steep. i am not happy. so as soon as i make the turn i start to kick it into gear and make my way up the curves and hills. now i start to hear the finish line music and all the cheering, so i get excited and my adrenaline kicks in. i keep running and see a guide say "you're almost there!" i keep going and realize i need to walk again. its a battle to keep running, but i hear the noise and know i am so close. so i start running again. next curve i see my mom and the kids. i remember ellie waving at me as i ran passed them. all i hear is "one more curve" or "you're almost there" or "the finish is just over there". at this point i am getting pissed because i dont see it but i hear it. all i see are curves and hills and more curves. now i come back around and pass by the kids again. my mom said that when ellie saw me she said, "mama, you can do it!".

finally, i run up the last hill and see the finish at the bottom. so i look at my watch to see what time i am at. just as i look at the watch i see it change from 29:59 to 30:00! ugggghhhhhh!!!! SERIOUSLY!!!! my goal was to break 30 min. i was so mad. finally i cross the finish at 30:20. which is much better than any other time i had ran.

i am happy that i came so close to 30 min., but still a little angry that i was so close and didnt get it. its like losing a game by one point. so annoying.

they had trader joe's there giving away free food and water. we got free frozen yogurt coupons and some oranges. i had a great time. i am happy with my time, but maybe next time i will do better. it was all for a good cause too. all the proceeds benefitted beautiful africa. a church sponsered charity that helps orphans in africa. they even had worship music playing before and after the race. super cool.

some might be thinking that 30 min. isnt all that great to shoot for, but for me it is. i have always been a slow runner. also considering that i just started to get back into shape 3 months ago. i am super proud that i was able to put up a good time and that the kids got to see their mama race.

oh, the first guy to finish crossed at 18 min. craziness!

before the race

getting ready to start

just finished. ellie wanted to hug me but i was too tired. so she hugged my leg and felt how sweaty it was and changed her mind.

the kids doing crafts while i ran