Tuesday, May 8, 2012

ragnar. the first 20hrs...


I was randomly asked if I wanted to run in a 200 mile relay, and without hesitation, I said yes.  The 12man team I joined was a group of Board members of the Children's Abuse Prevention Center.  They were all raising money for the organization which was awesome!  I went in with the mindset of knowing I had 3 legs, all of which I knew I could easily run...4.9, 4, and 11.1.  I didn't take into consideration all the things that would make those miles insanely hard...not eating/sleeping

We got picked up at 3:00AM Friday morning to make it to Huntington in time for the 5:00am start.  They start you based on the average pace of your team, seeing as we got one of the first times we were on the slower side...perfect.

our rock star runner was in the blue long sleeve shirt, he started us off great, we were in 1st after his leg...
our van
 I was in van 2, so we had a long rest time in between legs.  We thought it would be fun to dress up for our first runner.  Thanks to Sue, we all had awesome super hero costumes...
these flowers were right before my run.  i was trying to find peace.  My first leg was around 1:00pm in Corona, a hot inland city.  The heat index for the day was at 110-gross!  Since my first leg was only 4.9 miles, i figured no worries I don't need van support.  They even came by me twice and I just waved them off, little did I know the heat would creep into my soul and destroy me.  See my pace chart below...Luckily just when i was melting into the sidewalk a team of angels came by and squirted me with a super soaker and woke me up.  Thank You friendly team that i don't remember, you saved my life.
Thank you Garmin to show how amazingly horrible i did on my first leg :)
soooo, street lights were my downfall, i hit a long one in the first mile, and a bunch in the last two, as you can see....the one downfall of ragnar, stopping at lights. 
 this was earlier...i just cut myself out of it b/c of course i'm the awk one on the side.  i just figured i needed a picture after my complaining.
i'm weird...
 this may have been the hottest time during the day...this is right before one of our girls took off...little did we know that she would get super dizzy, and dangerously close to a heat stroke.  I jumped out and ran with her for the last mile to make sure she was ok.  Unfortunately according to ragnar rules, if I jumped in for her, I would have to do her other two legs, which would have been too big of a commitment for my lazy self.  She made it out safe and sound, our next runner wasn't so lucky. He had a 10 mile leg, in the 110 heat, we lost our most experienced runner to a heat stroke. :( but on a positive note, I actually saw him this weekend at the PCRF half, and he's back to his super quick pace. anyways...that about sums up our first day....CRAZY!

Sunday, May 6, 2012

beach-->snow-->desert-->birthday!

I loved being home right around my birthday...mom's cookie cake is the best on the planet.

this is from a walk one morning with my momma. :)
one thing i miss. (besides my family and all the humans back home...) old oak trees, and moss covered streets.

my first day back at work was my birthday...my team is amazing and decorated it super cute in Minnie Mouse colors :)
For the weekend, we packed up and headed east to the desert.
We started at the pacific, seeing the waves, and headed over the snow covered mountains (see below) into the gorgeous desert. 
only in california



and over the mountains, we found our campsite.  We could see the snow clouds right over the mountains, so crazy.
springtime in the desert...



  

a man and his car.
we had some close encounters with the desert folk/creatures. 
  
happy birthday to me.
thanks jor, brent and chels for the great weekend in anza :) 


Saturday, May 5, 2012

Blurry...

The scariest flight of my life..
mom, kris and I bringing kurt from the AT to the ICU <3
After driving by this place multiple times, we had to give in.
best ice cream ever!
My dad's welcome home sign.
I couldn't be more thankful for The Village.  It was such a blessing to have everyone's support and love.  I now realize and appreciate how amazing it is to have such a close knit neighborhood family.  <3 the village!
After dad was home safe and sound mom and i deserved a sweet little treat.
 This picture was taken one of our first Easters in the Seff..
Being back in the same house for Easter was a blessing this year.  We were only missing Kurtie, who was there with us in ivideo spirit.
 
the world coming back into focus. 
life is good.
Life is too short to not appreciate every minute! 

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

26.2

this was my first marathon. my first marathon i almost didn't even do, because I wasn't sure my body could really handle 26.2.  After a year running, training middle school kids for a marathon, i joined in on the fun.  Never running a marathon before I didn't want to be stuck with a fast kid and not be able to keep up, so I decided to take the other route, the sweeper.  Once I decided to be the sweeper, I knew I could do it, my nerves now were all about the kids... I didn't want to be stuck out on this trail miles from any humans and have a hurt kid that I couldn't help.  luckily everyone was perfectly fine, and I saw a bald eagle!!!  Anyways long story short, this marathon has taught me patience, lots of patience.

now for the weekend in pictures... 
this one makes me laugh b/c my legs look crazy. probably not the best form...
miss tayler and some flowers...

 beautiful diamond valley lake
um....i kept my eyes pealed...
gorgeous
miss taylor did it.  completed 26.2 for the second time in her 14 years of life.  I could not be more proud of her.  we did it! 
after 6 hours of running, a 2 hour car ride home. (thank you traffic) and a nice long nap, we went to our fav mexican restaurant right before they closed. :)
 then went next door where andrea (coach k) is the dj.  :)
 met up with some amazing friends. <3 miss chels!
lovers 1.
 lovers 2.
 Sunday we slept in, went to a fundraiser, went for a walk, enjoyed the ocean views, and watched a movie.  I couldn't think of a better way to spend a post marathon day...



Monday, April 2, 2012

run filled week.

knotts berry farm 10k. success.
 monday
tuesday - pcrf research foundation 
Wednesday VoluntEARing
 early birthday gift!
happy marathon eve to me!
pure happiness after finishing 26.2.