Bumps in the Road

Sometimes the world catches up to you.  And this week it finally did.  I woke up Friday morning feeling alright but by the time I got to work, I was groggy, stuffed up and had a headache.  I toughed through it, thinking it was just allergies.  Friday was also our five year anniversary.  I wasn't going to let a little cold ruin Lori and I's anniversary dinner.  Instead, Lori, myself and Avery went and got Sushi.  It was the perfect example of what our lives are made up of right now.  A cranky three year old, one sick parent, and exhaustion from a long week for all three of us.  It was a perfect anniversary meal.  Lori and I actually joked about how real it actually was.  Nothing special, just us, our family.  And it was perfect.

Saturday, I decided to call sick for probably one of the only times I have in six seasons as a pacer.  I hated myself but the reality was that there was no way I was going to get through 12 miles (or even my scheduled 20) on a cold in humid warm temperatures.  Instead, I would probably have to drop out and be sicker than I was originally for trying to push.  I didn't like missing it.  But I knew it was the best thing for myself.  The other part of me was pissed for missing the 20 miler.  For runners, this is a huge hurdle.  But its okay because I have another one in a few weeks.  

Sunday, Lori and I took the kids to Busch Gardens to enjoy some time together as a family.  We wanted to get their early so Avery could enjoy the park one last time before it got dark and scary for kids.  We had a blast.  We ran into the Mautes and hung out.  Avery and Chet played, rode together, and won stuffed animals.  Watching through their eyes of imagination is a lot of fun.  We also got to ride a few rides for us adults too.  The day was just what our family needed, some time way from work, school, and running.  Just us four enjoying the amazing weather and Busch Gardens.  

Lesson learned this week:  Listen to your body.  

Halftime

The school year has begun, the temps have dropped (at least right now), and life is getting busier.  It must be September.

Friday, Lori and I dropped off our daughter to her first day of preschool.  The cliche that is how time flies is so true.  But I remember every little moment since she was born.  But she is excited and so are we.  We look forward to her learning, adapting, socializing, and growing.

At the same time, our son started his junior year in high school.

I think it's funny when people talk about running like it's every story or blog or conversation you have.  But the reality is that running is just my therapy.

The past two weeks have been insane.

My ATV needed to be worked on.

My son's truck broke down (aka the world is ending).

my car brakes went out.

So sometimes you punt, you buy a new car, you spend evenings fixing shit and you keep trucking.

But thank God for running and Evofit.  They keep me sane.

The cool part is that Cancer Better Run is halfway through our training cycle.  We definitely have some big hills to climb before we taper but we are closer than ever to our goal of running the New York Marathon for such a great cause.

I will be honest.  I am not excited to run a marathon.  But I am excited to run for this cause.  I am excited to run with three friends that are amazing people.  I am excited to see that hopefully our money we have raised will help save one person's life.

As we completed the first half of our training, we actually all got to run with each other on Saturday.  We haven't all run together in 8 weeks.

Onto next week.