I Hate Christmas!

  No, this isn't a joke, I really am not a fan of Christmas.

  Although, you would never guess that by looking at the massive amount of Christmas decorations that we have both inside and outside our home. And you'll most likely find a Christmas candle burning with either Christmas music or a movie playing in the background if you came to my house at any point in December. As a matter of fact, I am watching The Santa Claus (one of my Mom's favorites and one of our Holiday traditions) as I type this.

  And the fact that I enjoy dressing like a fool and wearing my reindeer antlers any time I get the chance probably doesn't help my case either.

  Let me explain...

  My childhood was as close to perfect as it could get. Christmas was no exception. Every year, my Dad, Mom and myself used to go to Ann & Hope to pick out our Christmas tree. We waited the obligatory day for the the tree to settle and then the Christmas traditions would begin. Dad was in charge of the lights and Mom and I took care of the rest. We would put Christmas music in the tape player, I would put on my Santa hat and force my childhood dog Goldie to wear something on her head too (some things never change!) and we would decorate the Christmas tree along with the rest of the house.

  The Christmas season was always a fun and memorable time in our family. We had family Christmas parties with my aunts, uncles and too many cousins to keep track of. There were cookie exchanges! I always opened a gift from the same aunt every Christmas Eve and it was always new pajamas! Santa (aka one of my uncles), personally came to visit me every Christmas Eve.  And there were presents! Lots of presents! There is no delicate way to put it, I was spoiled!

  On Christmas morning, our living room was filled (literally, there was hardly any room to walk) with gifts. My stocking was one of those huge obnoxious ones that was also filled. It took us hours to open gifts and I was an only child. I once showed my hot handsome husband a picture of what a "normal" Christmas morning looked like and his response was, "how many people were those gifts for?"

  At this point, I bet you're wondering how I could hate Christmas. Stay with me, I'm getting to that part.

  Fast forward to 2002.  My Mom was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, had surgery to have the cancer "removed", started chemo and in October the cancer returned. This is obviously the condensed version. Bring me a bottle of wine and I'll tell you the whole story if you're interested. But I digress.

  As you can imagine, October through December every year since then have been less than enjoyable. I usually get pretty down and my OCD comes out in full force.

  My last Thanksgiving with my Mom was not the greatest. A family friend was kind enough to order us a meal from a local supermarket so unfortunately, we did not have any of our Thanksgiving traditions. At this point, my Mom still had some energy and we could have made the meal together. We were all a little disappointed with our last Thanksgiving together but we still had hope for Christmas.

  Christmas Eve arrived and so did all of the family members. At this point, my Mom was quickly going downhill. She spent a good portion of her day napping. She didn't have much strength and relied a lot on my Dad and myself. I can recall several nights that my Dad and Mom slept on the recliners and I slept on the love seat. Mom was no longer comfortable in the bed and she was too weak to walk all the way to the bathroom by herself. We hoped that by all sleeping together, one of us would hear her if she woke up in the middle of the night. These are things that I've never shared with anyone before. Things that my Mom's family were unaware of. So when all of them, and I mean our house was jammed with people, arrived on Christmas Eve, it was a little overwhelming. Mom was awake all day! 

  Christmas morning arrived and Mom was incoherent and barely rousable. I fought back the tears as I opened presents and tried to pretend everything was normal. I attempted making Christmas dinner myself. Back then, I knew NOTHING about cooking so it was a challenge. We couldn't even wake Mom for any of our Christmas meal. She was exhausted. Her condition was quickly taking a turn for the worse. It was only a day or two later that we welcomed Hospice into our home. And from that year on, Christmas has sucked!

  I refused to decorate for a couple years after my mom passed away but then I tried to start enjoying the Holiday season again. I still listen to Christmas music while I decorate and manage to have at least one breakdown every year while putting up all my Christmas decor. I still watch The Santa Claus every year and think of my Mom and I decorate a small Angel tree in her honor.

  I hope that someday when I have children, I will start to enjoy the happiness of the season when I am able to see it through the eyes of a child. I look forward to the day when I can start my own traditions with my children and continue some of the traditions I had as a child. Until then, I will decorate our home, fill it with Christmas scents and tons of food, listen to Christmas music, watch Christmas movies and "Fake it until I make it!" Because on the outside it may look like I love the Holiday season but deep down I am hating every second.

  I ask that you don't feel sad or sorry for me. I am a strong person and over the years I have learned to cope in my own way. Yes, I have bad days and moments when I start to cry for "no reason" but I'm only human. I ask that you pray for the strength of those who have gone through similar situations during the "joyous" Holiday season and have not yet found their strength. 

  I want to end this not so upbeat blog by wishing you a Holiday season filled with Love, Joy and Peace.

  From my family to yours, Merry Christmas!

Where Did You Go?!

  Well hello there.  Long time no blog.

  I have been approached by several people (more people than I thought actually read this silly little blog), asking me why I haven't been blogging lately. Most of the time I reply by joking around saying my life is too boring. But when my hot handsome husband asked me the same question a couple months ago, I gave him the honest answer.

  Truthfully, this year has sucked! The negative has greatly outweighed the positive and I am more than ready to say "peace out" to 2013.  I chose not to blog about it because who wants to read what Negative Nancy has to say. Plus, I did not want people to feel sorry for me. Believe me, I have drowned myself in enough self pity for everyone.

  I hit a very low point this year. I was in a dark place and pushed some of the people I am closest to away from me. To tell you the pain I was in (sometimes physically) but mostly mentally was unbearable at times, is an understatement. For the first time in my life, when asked if I was okay, I honestly replied, "no." And I wasn't okay. I prayed everyday for strength. Heck, some days I still find myself digging deep to find that strength. 

  But don't you worry, I am doing much better. I have been slowly climbing out of the dark hole I was in and I am almost on solid ground. Running has helped a great deal. It has reminds me how strong I really am and that my body has not completely failed me.     

  I obviously have been very vague with my situation because I am not ready to go into detail yet about what exactly happened this year but I think that as a part of my healing process, I will eventually write about it. It is a very personal issue but I know that many woman have experienced a similar story to mine. It is nothing to be ashamed of but for some reason our society likes to keep situations like this hush hush.

  My plan is to blog one more time before the year is over, giving a little more insight into why I've stayed away from blogging lately. Then, my goal is to get back into blogging regularly after the New Year. I plan to share the good, the bad and the ugly!

  Here's to 2014 being a much better year!

 

A Small Setback

    Operation Skinny is temporarily on hold. I didn't even step on the scale this morning because I'm sure I gained at least a pound or two. I didn't eat the best this week. Major fail on my part. But I'm going to blame those girly hormones, if you know what I mean. 

    My lack of self control is not the reason my fitness is on hold. I actually injured my foot and the doctor recommended that I take at least a week off from running and working out in general. She actually told me to rest for two weeks but to see how I feel after one. 

    No big deal though, my injury could be worse. I just have some inflammation and a nice little knot in the tendon on the bottom of my foot (aka plantar fasciitis). Lots of ice and stretching for this girl! And counting down the days until I can hit the pavement again. 

    Operation Try Not to Overeat while I'm Not Active is now on until further notice! 

Memory Lane up in the Headlights

    ....it's got me reminiscing on them good times! 

    Those are some lyrics from a Jason Aldean song for all my non country music loving friends!

    I don't even know where to begin talking about the AMAZING night I had Friday night! Seriously, it was a much needed fun night out with friends. And a much enjoyed "cheat night." I may have enjoyed one too many beers and consumed too much guacamole and chips.  But it was all worth every second, no regrets!

   M and I arrived at the Jason Aldean concert early and met up with some other lovely ladies to do some tailgating and picture taking.

    We missed Thomas Rhett's opening act because we were too busy waiting in line for beers and taking selfies.  According to a girl I met in the bathroom, we missed a good show. I managed to make several "friends" at this concert, so unlike me. Maybe this southern friendliness is rubbing off on me.

    We sat down a few minutes before Jake Owen came on, admired how awesome our seats were and took more pictures.

    I cannot tell you enough how awesome Jake Owen is.  He put on a great show and he's not too bad on the eyes. I developed a major crush on him and plan to start stalking him soon.

    He was constantly calling people out way up in the nosebleed section and thanking them for being fans.  A young girl (maybe 10 years old) was holding an "I love Jake Owen" sign and he called her down from the way top, brought her on stage and gave her the guitar he was playing and even signed it! Jake jumped off the stage and climbed his way up to the nosebleed section, too!

   Maybe the best part of Jake's performance, was when he was rocking out and managed to split his pants! Yes, you read that correctly. He took his shirt off and secured it on like a diaper because in case you were wondering, he doesn't wear any underwear under those skinny jeans!! Jake Owen with no shirt, yes please!

    Next, it was Jason Aldean's turn to hit the stage.  A few songs into the set, I heard someone calling my name.  It was one of the lovely ladies I tailgated with.  There were empty seats behind them and we managed to sneak onto the floor. Score!

    We spent the rest of the night dancing, singing and taking selfies with great friends! It really was an amazing show and an even more amazing night!

    Sometimes I feel guilty about having such a great time while my hot handsome husband is deployed but then I quickly remember that I need to have fun to keep my sanity.  He was definitely greatly missed though.

    And I leave you with a quick Jason Aldean video...

A Surprise and Extra Motivation

    Weigh in: 2lbs down! That means I have lost a total of 6lbs since my hot handsome husband has left. Wahoo! Only 7 - 9 lbs left to reach my Operation Skinny Goal and only approximately 6 - 7 more weeks to do it! Eeek!

    This week, my motivation to lose the extra poundage that I have hanging around was greatly increased because my hot handsome hubby (and some of his friends) surprised me (and their wives too!) with a vacation when the boys return home. We're all so excited and in major workout/healthy mode! We need those sexy beach bodies!

    As many of you know, I met my hot handsome husband on a cruise and well that's where we'll be heading. Fingers crossed that cruising the Caribbean is our "lucky" spot and that Baby Froyo is created. If everyone could start praying now, it would be greatly appreciated.

    But back to motivation! This week I printed the below pictures out and taped them to my refrigerator and pantry.  I also wrote on my bathroom mirror: "Think Skinny Thoughts," "Suck it up Buttercup," and "No Excuses!" Just gentle reminders to not give up.

    I purchased this swimsuit in dolce red that I plan to hang in my bedroom to keep me motivated too! Because I don't know about y'all but just thinking about having to get into a bikini motivates me to workout and not reach for that cupcake. I also have my two BFF's who are coming with us on the cruise that are keeping me motivated. We text each other daily (sometimes an excessive amount) about our workout and eating triumphs and struggles.  We can do this ladies!

    Now let's see how I did on those goals this week:

• Prepare and portion my meals for the week. - Fail! I only portioned out the Southwest Quinoa Salad I made but that's okay because I still managed to stay on track all week (well since Monday).
• Enter all my meals and snacks into my app every morning. -  Done! 
• Add a couple spin classes to my workout routine. - Done!
• Allow myself one cheat meal or dessert. - This is planned for dinner tonight...Mexican!

    Overall, this was a successful week, starting on Monday.  I didn't count calories last weekend and skipped working out.  But I have managed to work out everyday since. I either ran or went to my spin class and I did a JM workout video. It feels good to be back at spin but unfortunately I will not be able to attend another class until after I return from RI in June.  That just leaves me more time to run!

Goals for this Week:

• Continue to enter all my meals and snacks into my calorie counting app every morning.
• Stay on track even when I am eating out. I have 3 different dinner dates this week and this could throw me completely off.
• Workout as soon as I wake up in the morning and don't lay around catching up with my DVR. I'm pretty sure that my DVR sucks a lot of motivation from me. 

    What better way to end a blog post then with a picture I snapped of Cheyenne waiting with her nose against the fence for her boyfriend (the dog that lives in the house behind us) to come outside.

Have a Happy and Healthy Weekend!

Weekend Recap

    I had myself one fun filled weekend...

    It started Thursday night with the Little Big Town concert.  My friend M and I had awesome seats! I realized that I don't know many of their newer songs but we still had a great time. We're actually planning to attend the Jason Aldean, Jake Owens and Thomas Rhett concert next Friday. I can't wait! This is starting out to be a summer of concerts, but I'm not complaining.

    Friday morning didn't start out too great.  I went outside to water my mini garden, only to find that kudzu bugs were invading my house and plants. They had even found their way under my protective net. It was Crystal vs. the kudzu bugs! After many tears, a breakdown in Lowe's and several hours out in the sun, I finally removed all the bugs from my garden net and plants. My house was still covered, but I called an exterminator to take care of that. They are spraying my house as I type this.  Fingers crossed that they can get rid of them.

    After a not so great day, I went over a friends house for some wine, Mexican food and an impromptu Just Dance party! It was just what I needed. There is video evidence of our stellar dance moves but I'll save you the pain of having to witness it!

    Saturday included slushies and a trip to the water park.  We had tons of fun soaking up the sun, riding the waves in the wave pool and floating down the lazy river.   But a word of advice, antibiotics and sun do not mix! I was using SPF 50 (something I never do) and still managed to get a bad burn on my hands, forearms and feet. It still hurts to have water touch them. No sunshine for me for a few days!

    Sunday was a much needed and enjoyed lazy day.

    And here we are again at Monday!

Hope y'all had a sunshine filled weekend!

The Scale is Not my BFF

    Maybe it's the two and a half cupcakes I ate this week or the constant snacking I did all day Tuesday or possibly the fact that I lost 5lbs the first week out. But whatever it was, when I stepped on the scale this morning, I was not a happy camper. I had gained a pound. Now I know 1lb is not that big of a deal and honestly I expected more of a gain with all the emotional eating that occurred this week but I was still very disappointed when I saw those numbers climb up.

    I let myself mourn for about a second and then it was time to give myself a pep talk. This is not the end of the world and just means I have to stay serious about my healthy eating if I want to see results. Easier said than done for the girl who likes to eat a cupcake to celebrate good news and eat another one when she hears bad news. The story of my life.

    My biggest mistake this week was that I did not portion my food out for the week. This really did make it so much easier to stay on track. Another little trick I use, is to plug all my meals and snacks into my handy dandy calorie counter app in the morning. That way I don't have to think about what I want to eat, the decision has already been made. 

    The positive thing about this week was that I kept up with my workout routine. I did my JM videos on the appropriate days. I did however skip one day of cardio and I regretted every second of it. I feel so much better after going for a run. Am I experiencing a runner's high?! I think next week I am going to make an effort to go back to my spin class a couple days a week instead of running every day. We'll see how much of a "high" I feel then!

    Goals for this Week:

•  Prepare and portion my meals for the week. 

•  Enter all my meals and snacks into my app every morning. 

•  Add a couple spin classes to my workout routine. 

•  Allow myself one cheat meal or dessert. 

    I may need some help staying on track. Who's going to keep me motivated?! 

What are some of your tips and tricks to eating healthy? 

My Week in iPhone Photos

    A quick recap of my week (through iPhone photos): 

   * My shirt says, "This isn't sweat, it's liquid awesome!" I absolutely LOVE this shirt, especially because one of my favorite songs to run to is "Thrift Shop" and my favorite lyric is "this is f**king awesome" because well when I'm running that's how I feel!

    * This little guy greeted me after one of my runs.  Hermie (our alligator) was also out, up close and personal, but I was pushing through the last few minutes of my run and didn't want to stop to snap a picture.

    * Cheyenne likes to "help" me with my Jillian Michael workout videos.

    * Yesterday was our wedding anniversary. My hot handsome hubby sent me gorgeous flowers, left a super sweet card (with strict instructions not to open until our anniversary and I actually listened!) and a thoughtful Facebook status that made me cry.

    * And today, I came home to the BEST gift ever, a hammock! I have been wanting one forever! I mentioned once (maybe twice) and my hot handsome husband remembered! And he even purchased a color to match the rest of our outdoor furniture! Major brownie points were earned!

                                      

    * I soaked up some sunshine today and realized that I will be spending way too much time laying outside in my hammock. Who needs to be productive?!

     * On a more serious note,  my hot handsome husband and I learned at the beginning of this week, that a friend from pilot training was killed in the KC - 135 crash that I mentioned on my Facebook last week. At the time, when I "shared" the article, I had no idea that Tori was one of the pilots. Our hearts are heavy as we mourn the loss of an amazing woman. Our thoughts and prayers go out to Tori's family especially her 7 month old son, Gabriel and husband, Rich.  If you are reading this, please take an extra moment to say a prayer, too.

    I'm sorry that I ended this on such a sad note but sometimes I think people (mostly nonmilitary people) need a reminder that we have the luxury of living the life we live because of the brave men and women who continue to risk their lives for us.

Be grateful for each and every day. I know I am.

Fitness Friday

    I officially started Operation Skinny on Monday and I am happy to report that this week has been a success.  I have been eating healthy and working out daily.  I have not had a cheat meal yet, I am saving that for my Panda Express date on Sunday with two of my favorite ladies.

    I spent a couple hours on Sunday purging my house of junk food, making healthy meals, chopping up fruit and vegetables and separating them into "servings."  This made my week so much easier and I plan to continue to do this to help keep me on track.

    Every morning for breakfast I have the same thing, a smoothie.  I look forward to it every single day.  I change it up every morning but it almost always contains a banana and spinach (I promise you can't even taste it). I change up the fruit, sometimes I had a scoop of protein, sometimes PB, sometimes pureed pumpkin, you just never know what's going to end up in my smoothie.

    This morning, I wanted to pretend I was on a tropical island and far away from the clouds and rain we've had all week so I made a tropicalish smoothie containing strawberries, pineapples, banana, Greek yogurt, vanilla protein and pineapple orange banana juice. I forgot my spinach!

    I went to Barnes and Nobles this week and purchased two running books. I want to make sure I am training properly.  More specifically, I want to read up about fueling for long runs. I am no where near a long run yet but I like to be prepared.

  I picked up "The Runner's World Big Book of Marathon and Half Marathon Training" and "Kara Goucher's Running for Women." Kara Goucher became an instant idol for me when I watched her run the Boston Marathon just a few short weeks ago so when I saw her book, I knew I'd love it.  I am enjoying both books and am learning a lot of great information from each of them.

    In addition to reading, I have been keeping track of my runs in a notebook.  I include the distance I ran, the time it took me to complete the run and a short tidbit of how I felt.  I want to start keeping track of how many miles I run weekly and monthly.  This will be beneficial once I  start running longer distances and start training for another half marathon.  I plan on taking things slow and not rushing into anything. There are no plans for another half marathon until possibly the Fall depending on our family expansion progress.  

    Now time for the part that every woman hates, the weigh in.  I weighed myself on Sunday and took some "before" pictures to get a baseline.  Since Monday, I have lost 5lbs! That's just crazy! I'm sure 4 of that was water weight but its amazing what just a few days of eating lots of fruits, veggies and proteins (vs. the eating out daily and alcohol consumption that occurred the prior week and a half) and working out out can do for you.

    I'm off to get a quick run in before Stanley Steemer's arrives to clean my disgusting carpets.  Exciting, I know!

Have you been eating healthy this week?

What's your favorite healthy snack?

Operation Skinny

    Operation Get Skinny While my Hot Handsome Husband is Away officially started on Monday.  I made a promise to myself that if I was not pregnant by the time my hubby went away, I would use that time to lose some weight.  Over the past several months, the stress and horrible eating has caused me to gain almost 8lbs and I am only 10lbs away from my heaviest weight.  Let's be honest ladies, its way too easy to gain those 10lbs! Especially since I am an emotional eater and enjoy eating ice cream sundaes for dinner when my hot handsome husband is away.  But not this time!

    This deployment, I am planning to eat healthy but not deprive myself from my cravings.  It's all about moderation.  I plan to get serious about my running, lose some weight and get healthy.  Yes, I am counting calories but only so I can become more conscious of what I am putting into my body.  Once I make healthy eating a habit, I'll most likely stop keeping track of every little thing eat.

    If you know me at all, you know that I live and die for lists.  In order for Operation Skinny to be a success, I needed a training plan.  I found a Jillian Michael's 30 Day Workout on Pinterest and I knew it was made for me. I have several JM workout videos that I use from time to time but this challenge mixed things up, which I like.

Source

    In addition to JM Challenge, I will also be following a running training plan. Now before someone gets all crazy on me and tells me I shouldn't be working out so much, you need to know that I am starting my running back from square one.  I know I can push myself to run anywhere from 3 - 6 miles right now but I want to be able to run these distances without feeling like I am going to die.  I am following a 5K training plan which means I will not be running more than 3 miles for the next 8 weeks.  Running for 15 - 30 minutes AND doing a 30 - 45 minute workout video is not going to kill me.

    I plan to do a few things to keep me motivated during Operation Skinny:

• Check in with y'all each and every Friday (Fitness Friday) to let you know how my week went.  I will include how much weight I have lost or gained. I am hoping this helps keep me accountable. 
• Put aside $1 for each and every workout I complete. Thank you Pinterest for another brilliant idea!
• No touching the above mentioned $$ until I reach my goal weight.  Only then can I use the money to treat myself to something. I'm thinking a plain old basic Kindle that I have been eyeing forever.

    Tune in tomorrow for my first Fitness Friday!

Who Moved the Finish Line?!

    I have dreamed of doing the Disney Princess 1/2 Marathon for several years, even longer than I've known my hot handsome husband. So, last Fall, I signed up for my first 1/2 marathon and starting running on a more regular basis shortly after.

    Fast forward to January, when I experienced some health issues that left me doing ZERO physical activity for more than TWO weeks.  At first, I was devastated because my original goal was to run the entire race without stopping and I didn't think there was any way I would be able to run/train for the 1/2 marathon anymore.  

    After my two plus weeks of rest, I was given the okay to start walking and also given the thumbs up to walk/run the race. Yay!  The doctor gave me strict orders to listen to my body and made me promise to walk most of it.  I happily agreed and changed my goal to finishing the race in one piece!

   A week of walking and I was cleared to start running again except there was one problem, the 1/2 marathon was a week and a half away! I was not prepared but I knew I could push myself to walk the 13.1 miles if I needed to.  Prior to my "resting period", the longest run I went on was 5 miles.  The week before the race I was able to push out 4 miles but it was not easy!

    On the morning of the race, despite my lack of training, I was not nervous. I was actually beyond excited! Racing gives me such a high. I had decided (just days prior) that I was going to use the Jeff Galloway Method and run for 3 minutes and walk for 1 minute.  The fireworks went off and Corral D was off and running. I felt great!

Can you find me in the crowd of runners?!

    I started making "mini goals" the second I crossed the start line.  Goal #1, run 1 mile without stopping. I'd use the run/walk method later in the race.  I passed mile marker (MM) 1 and I was going strong. Slow but strong! I usually run around a 10 minute mile give or take but on race day I ran around a 12 minute mile.  

    Before I knew it, I was passing MM 2 and 3.  My new goal was to run 5 miles/60 minutes without stopping.  Right after MM 5 was an incline and the perfect opportunity to start walking.  Before I started the race, my hot handsome husband told me that "I better be running" when he saw me in Magic Kingdom.  As I walked up the hill, I set the goal to start the Jeff Galloway 3:1 method except when I turned the corner, there was Magic Kingdom.  I was off running again!  And thank goodness I did because my hot handsome husband and supportive BFF were right at the start of Main St.  Seeing the two of them gave me the boost of adrenaline I needed and I decided to run all through Magic Kingdom (because "you can't walk through the castle").  I came here to run through Cinderella's Castle and that's what I was going to do!

Just an excited blur running through Magic Kingdom

 
    Magic Kingdom was probably only a mile and a half but the second my foot stepped out of the park, I started walking again.  I finally starting doing the 3:1 method until I reached MM 8.  This is when I hit my wall.  I no longer thought I was going to be able to finish this race and started questioning my sanity for choosing to run 13.1 miles so unprepared.  I was tired, my thighs were chaffing, my right knee was hurting me and I felt like my ankles were about to give out.  I was ready to give up!  I took some gel somewhere around this point and at around MM 9 I stopped at the First Aid Station to slather up my thighs with petroleum jelly and my knee/ankles with Bio Freeze.  I wish there was a video camera at that moment because I'm sure I was a sight to see!

    After lathering up, I was off and running again.  I continued with the run walk method.  I always walked one minute but varied how long I ran (up to 5 minutes or so) depending on how I was feeling.  Towards the end, I was lucky if I was able to run a full minute but I was hanging on.  I walked through every water station along the way, walked up every hill/incline and ran down every downhill.  

    I finally made it to MM 12 without dying and decided that I was going to run the last 1.1 miles. I am pretty sure that was the longest mile of my life.  I kept thinking where the heck is the finish line?! Right around MM 13, I saw my hot handsome husband and supportive BFF cheering me on!  My hot handsome husband thought he was funny and yelled out "only 3 more miles."  I turned and gave him the look of death! I really wanted to give him the finger but I didn't think that was appropriate in Disney!

13 miles down, only .1 to go!

    When I crossed the finish line, I started crying.  I was beyond proud of myself.  I had just finished 13.1 miles when only a month prior, my body had failed me. This was not the first time I teared up during the race, I had tears in my eyes almost every time I ran through a group of spectators cheering the runners on.  Tears were there anytime I thought, "I'm really doing this!" and when I made it to the half way point.  I guess you can say that running makes me emotional.

    After the race, I met up with my hot handsome husband and supportive BFF.  They asked me how I felt.  My response, "like I can do anything! Anything but walk!"  My legs were tired almost instantly and my calves and thighs started hurting shortly after.  But I still felt like I could take on the world!

My supportive BFF!

"Run Fast my Little Kenyan Bran Muffin"

    We spent the next few days walking through Disney.  Any incline was pure torture! Getting up after sitting for any period of time was a challenge.  I'd have to say though, it was all worth it!

    Bottom line, Disney knows how to put on a race!  Water/Gatorade every 1.5 miles and tons of First Aid Stations with petroleum for chaffing, Bio Freeze for aching muscles and Tylenol all set out and ready to grab.  There was Disney entertainment everywhere and tons of spectators to fill in the gaps! Two of my favorite signs (besides the one my hubby made me of course) said: "Hi complete stranger! I'm proud of you!" (yes this made me tear up) and "Only a Princess will pay $150 to run 13.1 miles and then force you to wake up at 3:30 AM to chase her around the park to watch her!"  Disney has me hooked on racing!

    You can bet that I'm excited to run another 1/2 marathon sometime soon.  Maybe I'll even get crazy and add a marathon to my Bucket List.  MAYBE!