We did it!

Well, we did what we set out to do, we finished the Ogden Marathon. Man oh Man! Let me start and the beginning. I don't think I slept a wink between the hours of 2:00 and 3:00, but I managed to wake up just before 4:00am it get ready. I felt like such a Pris. I had to do my hair and make up before I got something to eat. I always thought if you were in a sporting event it didn't matter what you looked like, but after looking at the half-marathon pictures I realized that after a certain age you just can't get away with those things anymore. So after I got ready I ate some oatmeal and a waffle. I figured if I could get through half of each I was good. At 4:30 April, Joy and Chuck came over so we could ride into Ogden. Thanks for the ride Chuck! We boarded the buses and set out to the starting line. When we got there we had port-a-potties a plenty and small fires to gather around. We put both to good use. An hour later we lined up at the starting line. We were literally the last three in line. The pace sheriff was on our heels. We tried a new strategy that seemed to work well (run 3 min walk 1 min). We managed to shave about 15 minutes of our first half of the marathon. The course was beautiful. I loved winding down Ogden Canyon, probably because it was mostly down hill, but it was beautiful. I loved the spectators, my favorite was my family. They met me at mile 8 and ran with me for about 20 seconds. I think my Scout, she will be a runner. She was fast and excited to run. They also met me at mile 17 at Pineview Dam, just before I headed down Ogden Canyon. I was a big pick-me-up to see them cheering me on. Now it was time to focus and finish the last few miles. I listened to my ipod and sang for everyone. Some enjoyed and some did not (they gave me funny looks). But it helped me to focus. The last 2 miles were the toughest. I kept telling Joy, "Let's go, Let's get this over, This is what we worked so hard to do." Slowly but surely, we pushed on. My family met me once again 4 blocks from the finish line. We ran together down the home stretch. Again, Scout leaped out of the stroller to run. With our noodley legs, Joy and I kicked it in to finish the race. My mom and dad & Diane were all there to greet me at the finish line. Thanks everyone for all your love and support. Thank you Justin for allowing me this great opportunity. Thank you family for enduring my long training. I love you my family! Thanks Joy and April, my training friends, for all the motivation and training. I certainly had a great time and you are my forever friends.

Later that day we went to get a message. This was our reward for all our effort. I could hardly walk into the spa, but when we left I felt pretty good. That was until Sunday morning. OH MY GOODNESS! My quads were on fire. Justin keeps laughing at me because I only have one speed, that turtle speed. He thinks it funny to help me walk a little faster. One time I almost fell on my face. I can honestly say I don't feel as bad as I thought I would because I'm walking and moving. We will see how long it takes to fully recover.