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“I run because long after my footprints fade away, maybe I will have inspired a few to reject the easy path, hit the trails, put one foot in front of the other, and come to the same conclusion I did: I run because it always takes me where I want to go.”
― Dean Karnazes

 Forward is a Pace! Peace.

I hate to iron. Really hate it. I don’t hate many things but I hate to iron. I not only hate it but I am not good at it either.  I buy things they do not need ironing.

When I do iron, it is a special occasion. When my kids see me take out the ironing board, they ask, “what’s the special occasion, Mom?” Not only is it a special occasion the ironing is usually is for a special occasion. When I do iron it is so stressful for me. However in that stress I find peace. The things I do iron are special to my family. I iron tablecloths for family dinners. I iron baptism dresses. I iron communion dresses. I iron the important things.

Tonight I ironed a graduation dress. 14 will wear it tomorrow for the first time for May Crowning. She will get dressed, put on her heels, pin on her class ribbons and process into church. In a few weeks I will iron the dress again. She will again put on the dress and process into church. This time wearing her cap along with the gown and collecting her diploma.

As I ironed her gown and pressed out the creases, I thought about the creases of her life. The distance she has traveled and the obstacles she has overcome. The bumps in her life that she has smoothed out. She is a sensitive soul with a heart of gold. She has become a beautiful, wonderful young woman. I thought as I ironed that there were some creases I just could not press. Creases that would not lay flat. I know her life will be that way. There will be creases that will be more difficult to press. She will need to find a way. I will help. I will help iron out the important things. She will iron out the every day issues. Soon she will be able to do all her own ironing. I will be here in case she needs help but she will want and need to do things herself.

Perhaps that is why I dislike ironing so much….the fact that the things I iron for those I love will be outgrown or go out of style…..like me.
peace.

Today was about nothing but about so much. My running group of girls decided to run the Wisconsin Half Marathon today and since I was missing a girls running weekend with my other group of girls I decided to be cheesy!

We were up, out the door and on the road by 5AM. Eight girls in 2 cars with a mission…run 13.1 miles and garner some sweet bling.

The ride up was rainy and we were a bit panicked. Running in the cold rain…running in the rain at all…is no fun. We arrived safely and waited out the rain in the car. soon we would need to head to the start line and the rain was beginning to let up. The gun sounded and we were off. I tried to start my Garmin and it failed. Tried again and FAIL. So that was it. I started to used the timer on my watch. At least I could run with something.

The course was very pretty. We ran throught the downtown areas and some residential areas as well. I was eventually without my group and before I knew it there was a sharp slap on my butt as some of the girls passed me. I tried to keep up but they are fast!  I just kept pushing on, taking off my jacket at some points and putting it back on as I ran through the course.

We we turned to run along the Lake the wind picked up…not only did it pick up speed but it picked up water and sand. Several miles of running into the wind were no fun. It was tough but we powered through. Up the hills and down the hills, into the wind and Lake spray. Finally we hit the turn around….it actually had a sign that said turn around. I laughed and turned to run back towards the finish. I thought that now the wind would be at my back and I would have an easier time running…no such luck. It was not as bad but it was still wind. My tutu was a constant source of discussion and comments from other runners….and it was my inspiration to keep moving…forward was my pace.

Heading back towards the finish was good mentally but there were still miles to cover. Back along the Lake, up and down the hills and  the wind.  The last 2 miles were totally mental. the temerature had dropped, the wind had gotten stronger, and the spray off the water was now heavy. We passed the turn for the finish line…it was in sight but we still had 2 miles to go…

Water and Gatorade at mile 12 then another turn and heading to the finish. As I got to the last 2 blocks, people started cheering and yelling. I thought this was for me…thought they were loving the tutu…I was wrong. The winner of the marathon was closing in on me and people were cheering him on!  We crossed the finish line within seconds of eachother…the marathon WINNER and me!  Yup…he ran 26.2 in the same time I ran 13.1…LAPPED!

I had a wonderful volunteer drape a medal around my neck, another wrapped a blanket around me and then I  got some snacks…CHEESE and a brat. I was so happy! I found my frinds and we watched our other runner CRUSH her PR by 15 minutes!  We were so proud of her!

We were cold and wet and miserable but so very happy at the same time!  We headed to the car cheering on other runners as we walked. The drive home was filled with race stories and discussion of what we would do …after a nap!

The most important thing about this race was not the time with friends(but they are awesome), the medal (I love bling), the time on the clock(other than for those crushing PRs!), the weather (not the best), or my sassy tutu(I can rock a tutu like no one else!)….the most important thing is that all of found something we had lost…our running mojo. Peace.

You know you are a real runner when you can talk about bodily functions without flinching.

The story of my Half marathon today has to be told in 2 parts. Part one is the drive to the race and hanging with my running girls. Part 2 is actually the race report with all the happened while running 13.1 miles.

The alarm went off at 3:30 and we were out the door by 4:45 to meet the other car full of ladies. It was dark, rainy and miserable. We chatted and checked 3 different smartphone apps for weather…watching the green blob that was the rain move slowly from over the race site to  the Lake.  It was not moving fast enough for any of us.

We arrived at the race and many of us had bathroom issues to attend to…however it was still raining and no one wanted to leave the car. The thought of running through the rain to relieve ourselves was not appealing at all. We talked a lot about it and other ‘personal issues’. Things that would/could NEVER be discussed in the company of non runners. Not many people would understand the need for a good poop before a run. Not many people would understand the need to apply body glide to nether regions of the body. Not many people would understand the need to wear the proper bra/underwear or go commando. Not many people talk about these things nor laugh so hard they cry about these issues.

We talked and laughed and eventually the rain let up and we could head to the bathrooms…stage fright got the best of some of us. We would have to run with a full bowel. We headed to the start and race our own races. Some needed a stop along the way to ‘lighten the load’.

After we had a brat we headed to the car. Once we all changed into some dry clothing, we took off and headed home…stinky, sweaty, and smiling with our medals around our necks. More discussion of the race and more discussion of bodily functions lead to more laughs and a few “oh not you didn’t”s!

Thank goodness I have such wonderful running buddies. Who would I tell my deepest, darkest personal body secrets to? Who would laugh with me about all things disgusting? Who else would consider this all ‘normal’? My running friends rock…and poop. Peace.

As moms we worry. We worry about so many things but mostly we worry about our kids. We worry that we are good enough and that we won’t mess the up to much …. We don’t want them to attend to many years of therapy!

We live much of our “mom life” in what seems to be a vacuum. We don’t want to appear less than any other mom. We want others to think we live a bucolic life devoid of problems. We have a hard time allowing anyone into our world … allowing anyone behind the “shower curtain” that is our life.

It is in this need for acceptance that we find ourselves alone. However if we opened up to one another…accepted more and judged less…we would find that many of us have so much in common. We are all longing to be a ‘good mom’. We want our kids to like us and respect us. We hate to discipline our kids…often it is harder on us than on them. We want a better life for our children. And we want our children to be happy and successful.

It is time that we opened up a bit. It is time that we allow others to see the imperfection that is our life. It is time that we help each other and lift each other up. We all want the same things but need the help of one another to achieve greatness. Peace.