Hello out there! It’s been a while since we last chatted about life, and miles, and mishaps,huh? Looks like DECEMBER was my last post! Ugh….! Life’s mishaps for you! 😏.
So, this “first time” I speak of is NOT what you think…but I did get your attention, right? I am talking about my first half marathon!
Never…never….NEVER in a million years on this planet did I ever imagine I would do 13.1 miles of running. 13.1 miles of driving? Sure! 13.1 miles of traveling? Absolutely! 13.1 miles of running, intentionally and no one is hurt or chasing me? Never thought so! Guess I fooled myself! 😂.
After my good friends from Junior High (yep…I’m that old because they call in Middle School now!) and I ran the Disney Star Wars 5k and 10k last year, one of my friend’s says “Let’s do the Challenge next year!” I was like…”SURE! Let’s do it!” Sign ups came…and I signed up for the Star Wars Challenge, which is the 10k and Half Marathon. I also wanted to do the 5k, as well, so I basically gave Disney all of my money for the Star Wars Weekend 😏. Now this sounds all fine and dandy when you sign up a year (or less) in advance. As I started training, still hadn’t hit me. The holidays came and went….hadn’t hit me. January and February…nope! March…uh uh. April showed up and I couldn’t BELIEVE I was going to do a half marathon! Apparently, I’m a little slow to the game! What made this half even more scary for me was that I was running the 5k and the 10k prior to the half! I know…I know…I’m crazy! Let me just give you a glimpse of how crazy I am…
Friday (5k):@”
3 am wake up to be on the bus by 3:30. Why??? The buses don’t run after 4 am to assure everyone is at the park and in their corrals for the start.
I don’t do costumes but I do like funny shirts….
#truth
My time was ok, but I honestly don’t do the Disney races for time because of the amount of people, participants in costume and the numerous photo op stops. 
#5kDONE
This MEDAL,though!!!
Me, Kim, and Terri (the infamous “Let’s do the Challenge” friend! 😂). ❤️ them !!
Didn’t have to wait TOO long for Kylo Ren this year!
Saturday (10k):
Same obnoxious 3 am wake up to make the bus. It still sucked! But the funny shirt made me feel better….
My time was a bit slower than I wanted but considering it was a whole racing weekend, I didn’t give it much thought!
It was a really easy 10k. I honestly didn’t feel a struggle at all during the run. I kept an even pace (slower than I would have liked honestly) and just ran. 
The medals just keep getting better and better….
I went to bed after a nice meal and the nerves really began to settle in. I was nervous, anxious, and scared about this race. I haven’t felt this way about any race in a very long time. My friends, Terri and Kim, helped to keep me calm. Hubs reminded me that I was here to have a good time and to just run my own race.
Sunday (half marathon):
Yep…same 3 am wake up! Sheesh…3 days in a row! If that ain’t the definition of crazy, what is? Oh… running 3 races in 3 days…that’s all kinds of nuts!
I found out one of my favorite bloggers from Tampa was running the half as well! In the blogosphere, you get to know people but maybe don’t get to meet them in person. I was beyond excited to finally meet Denise from RunDMT! (check out her blog…she’s AMAZING!)
Denise (aka BB-8), Me, and Terri
What did I think about the half?
I went into this race with (self imposed) expectations of how I should run. I felt as if I didn’t belong here because I am not a “real runner”. I was worried because my girlfriend had done so many half marathon races that I would almost embarrass her attempting to do the same. I was scared that I was setting this goal and that I would fail. I always wondered what do you think about for 13.1 miles?! How could possibly not feel like you are going to die at any moment??
Once I started, all of that crap went right out the window. I got into my groove, I found my pace and I ran my race! I knew that I’d be fine at the 10k mark because I like this distance. #myJAM. It’s what came after that I was worried about….but it never showed up! I just kept running my race and before I knew it, I crossed the 15k mark. At that point, I grabbed some water mixed with some Powerade (yellow…not that yucky blue one!) ate a few Sport Beans and kept.going. Before I knew it, I crossed the 20k mark. That’s when it became REAL for me! That mark was 12.4 miles and I had less than a mile and then I was done! Tears people…TEARS! This is when I realized I had accomplished a goal that I never thought I would!! I crossed that finish line like I knew I was winning a gold medal in the Olympics! I had my Shalane Flanagan NYC Marathon “**** yeah” moment! 😂
I was so happy to have done this race and I got to share it with my friends!!! 
(I think Kim took the picture and that’s why she isn’t here! 😢)
These medals!!! The half marathon medal is the Storm Trooper and Kylo Ren…yeah…he’s the Challenge medal! #yeaBABY
What an emotional weekend that honestly I would do again in a heartbeat! I never thought I would say it, but I am looking forward to my next half marathon…hopefully, this year! (Who is this and what have you done with Angie??)
Thanks for reading and sharing this experience with me!
What have YOU been up to lately???
Cute, ain’t he??
Mom, Miles, and Mishaps...... 