We Finished Another Marathon!

Hi everybody! I hope you had a wonderful weekend!  Bryan and I ran in our third Columbus Marathon on Sunday and believe it or not, we had a great time.  It wasn't always easy... and I hit several walls... But the best part about running with someone you love (and someone who loves you), is they keep you going.

When we ran our first marathon back in 2006, one thing that we didn't realize was that something that can help is outside motivation from fellow runners.  In order to get the attention, it can be so much fun to have a clever shirt.  Everybody likes to have something to read that makes them chuckle when they're twenty-something miles into a race.  So, we came up with these saying to put on the back of our shirts this year.  We weren't sure what the responses would be, but you wouldn't believe how many women AND men cheered us along.  It was really sweet to hear some quick stories about their spouses and their running careers together and apart.  We know we're incredibly lucky to have found each other  and we're able to share this passion together.

You can read a little bit about our first and second marathon (and a little love story) here!

So, to make our "My Wife/Husband Made Me Do This" Bibs, I took some scrap fabric and used Heat N Bond Iron on Hem tape to tuck under the edges.  Then, I used my Silhouette Machine to make a Freezer Paper Stencil, ironed on the stencil, and then painted!!  The hardest part was just figuring out what to put on our shirts!  I think we picked a winner!

As far as how we did?   We had another PR! (Personal Record)  We ran 26.2 miles in 4 hours and 1 minute.  We couldn't be more thrilled and proud of each other. 

• 2006: 4:13
• 2011: 4:10
• 2013: 4:01

Huge shout out to:

• My parents who kept the kiddos the last 3 nights (with colds) so Bryan and I could prepare and recover from this little run.  Without them, this wouldn't have been possible...at all.  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  My mom also watched the kids more times than I can even count so we could train for this race over the last several months.  She's amazing.
• My brother Eric, who drove us to Downtown, Columbus at 5:30am.  He was also at mile 16 to hand us water! 
• My Papa for coming down to cheer for us.
• My Sister in Law who met us at mile 23 to motivate us and kept us going.  
• And my Father in Law who drove us home from the race.

Okay, I need to get back to popping blisters on my feet, icing my knees, and resting up so my muscles with magically heal over night.

Janice