That which does not kill us makes us stronger

Ok. If you say so.



Last week I ran my second 20 miles. I felt pretty good for most of it. In fact up until mile 16 1/2 I was still singing along with my ipod. It was a beautiful crisp fall morning and I was probably equally happy to be reaching the peak of my training as I was to be out running. I ended strong( meaning I could run up my driveway instead of crawl) and I even went for a small hike the next day.



Yep, I was ready for the tapering part of my training. I feel like I've been training for this marathon for a looooong time! I am ready to run just for the sake of running again and not because I have to. I have enjoyed the challenges that each long run presents, but leading up to them are torment. Truthfully the hardest part of this all hasn't been the long runs on the weekends, instead its just been fitting in running at all now that school and, well, "life" have started again. The relaxed pace of summer and kids sleeping in made things a lot easier.



Now to get in a 5 miler I am forced to get up at 5:30 AM!!!!! HELLO, its still dark out!!!!!!!!!! I have never NEVER been a morning person. But there is no way to fit in " me" time if I don't. I've learned that my body adjusts and before long my eyes start popping open on their own before the alarm clock has time to buzz. However, on a cold fall morning before the sun comes up, it just feels good to stay in bed. And so, even though my eyes are open, getting out from under toasty blankets is still a a battle of the wills. My body's will to lay in bed verses my minds knowledge that if I don't do these runs I have no business getting out on that course come marathon day.

Never have I regretted being out there, though. The quiet of the mornings. Watching the mist coming off the water of the creek down the road. The cows looking at me like I'm such a fool:-). All those moments make it worth it. Those moments and the satisfaction of knowing that by 7:00 am I've already run 5 miles!



This week I enjoyed three very relaxed runs and then two days off, in a row. Off to a good start on the tapering.

Today I ran the Hollis, Nh Applefest half-marathon. This is the third year that I've run this and the thought when we( my friend and I ) signed up was that it would be a nice training run. The course is beautiful, albeit quite hilly. The first year I did it I came in under 2 hours. The next year I did not. And so as pride can so easily get hold of us, I convinced myself that if ever I was gonna beat my first time this would be it. Aren't I in the best shape( running wise) I've ever been? If I can run 20 milers now then it should be no problem to pull of a half in under 2 hours.

Never mind the fact that a week ago I ran 20 miles. Never mind the fact that I still need to run a marathon in three weeks. Never mind the fact that this is supposed to be a tapering run! Nope, pride was leading my way.

And what comes before the fall????? Yep, pride!!!!!!! Really shoulda seen that one coming.

Hot. Grueling. Miserable. Awful. Painful. Worst race ever. Just to throw out a couple of adjectives to describe this mornings tragic defeat( of my spirit!).

Now, in my defense, it was 86 degrees! And the race doesn't start until 10:00 which puts me running at noon. It was hot. I have never seen so many people walk that course as I did today. The ambulance went sirening by at least twice( not an encouraging sound ). But still, I am defeated. I'll post my time when I get it officially( hoping it will be a few minutes better than what I think).

Also made a rookie mistake of wearing brand new running shoes for the race. Now I have something on the ball of foot that resembles a stone when I walk. Yeah! Praying that goes away quickly 'cuz I really can't envision running 26.2 miles on a stone.

Yes, this was a very discouraging post. I debated waiting it now and waiting until later. But this is it. This is me being real about training. And the reality is........ sometimes it just stinks.

Now what doesn't stink and is very encouraging and something I am still everyday in complete amazement over is how much support you have all shown. Truly and honestly it has shown that God is in this. Reaching 2400.00 is a God thing. There is no way it can't be.
You guys are awesome!

Thank you for loving, giving, praying.

" With God all things are possible"

20 miles and the lucky penny

Let me start by saying how once again I am amazed! Check out that chip-in meter! We're so close! Thank you all again so very much for your support both financially and in prayer. I even need to give a big giant "Woo-hoo" for what this means for Kingdom Kids Orphanage! For the kids whose home it is right now and for the woman that God already knows about who will soon have the "job" of loving and taking tireless care of 74 precious orphans.



Well, 20 miles! It sure kicked my butt! Because my husband is currently in Haiti Sage was unable to accompany me on today's run. It was a very lonely 20 miles. A nice quiet 5 mile run to process your thoughts is one thing. 20 miles without talking to a soul and being only in your own head can get pretty ugly. Sage being unable to accompany me meant that Sage was babysitting. I didn't want to leave the four kids unattended for too long so my plan was to run 13 miles outside( two hours) and then finish the last 7 on the treadmill. No problem, right! Not quite.

I set out at 7:00. Stopping at mile 7 for a 4 minute walk so I could choke down half a cliff bar and some water. At 12 I knew there was no way I'd get through 7 more on the treadmill. Just too boring.



So I called home( LOVE my iphone :-) ) and begged one of my sweet children to meet me on the driveway with water and asked if everyone was still getting along. Yes and yes. Great. I was able to add on a four mile loop before jumping on the treadmill. I pretty much dragged my butt those four miles and couldn't believe that reaching home wouldn't be an end to my misery as it usually does, but rather three more miles of PAIN!!!!



I won't go into all the intricacies of my torment today( I've done enough of that in the past), but I will share two things. One, I finally figured out the gosh-awful muscle knot I get between my shoulder blades. I think its because I run with my head down a lot. Somehow that causes to much stress on that muscle( whatever it is). I can ease the pain by running with my chin up. Really up. I feel like a show dog prancing itself around the ring. " Oh, everyone look at me. Don't I look so pretty!"

Secondly, my stomach has developed a type of Pavlov's dog response to returning home. As soon I turn the corner at the top of my street I, shall I say, get a sudden urge! Not normally a problem because I'm usually done when I return home. Today however I was just passing by. Didn't help that four mile loop at all. I'll remember to avoid looping by my house in the future:-).

Finished my three remaining miles on the treadmill. The longest three miles I've ever run on it. And now..... oh, the pain and stiffness! The thing about running my long run on both a weekday and also a day without my husband around meant that I still had to function. Actually function. Driving. Errands. Cooking. All with my legs! But right now I am sitting and it feels goooooooood. I think I may sleep right where I am tonight:-)



The lucky penny part......

During my run I noticed a penny on the street. My family calls all stray pennies "lucky pennies" . Of course you need to pick it up to receive the " luck". Completely silly, I realize, but something that helps us pick up the pennies as opposed to just leaving them on the ground.

See the thing about going to Haiti is how it changes everything for you. It changes your thoughts and mindset so that you can't see a penny laying on the street and not pick it up. A penny is still money after all. Now some people may pick up all those pennies they see, but I've been with many people who don't . Why? Are we so wealthy that seeing free money on the street isn't worth the effort to bend over. No matter the worth.
Do you think a Haitian would leave a penny on the ground? Or maybe the better question would be, would a Haitian even drop a penny on the ground and not know it? What are we doing?
I write this because I have to admit to you all that today I didn't pick up the penny. It was on a hill around mile 8 and I was hot and tired. And I thought... " oh, its just a penny". And it has bothered me ever since. I've been to Haiti. I know. I've seen. And yet...
In Haiti it would never be " just a penny".
Forgive me Haiti for being so American.

Isaiah 40:31
Thank you all for giving, praying and loving.