Saturday, October 12, 2013

Race Recap: Ty's First Race (and Brooklyn's!)

On Wednesday, one of my students told me about this local race. Ty and I decided to sign up yesterday. It's been a good while since my last 5K race, and Ty was really wanting a race experience before our November half. Of course, Brooklyn came along to cheer us on. You'd better believe she'd have rather been running than sitting on the sidelines. (But a special thanks to my mom and dad for looking after her!) It was overall a great experience! Good for us, and good for Brooklyn to socialize with lots of people...

...and cows.
Yes, she met the CFA cow.

That blur? That's me.

Family, post race!
(No Brooklyn was not relieving herself; she was completely obsessed with a water bottle and decided to sit down and chew it at the wrong moment. We won't be framing that one.)

So how'd we do? Well, I freaked a little bit when I couldn't find my results on the time sheets. I talked to an administrator, and they found my bib number in the computer system. Apparently, they lost my registration form, so they had no name or information attached to my number. So glad I noticed so they could set it right.

The race itself was lovely. Beautiful morning, great neighborhoods, pleasant course. My big beef was that the miles were not marked. There was no way of telling our time or distance while racing. (This is why I need a GPS watch!) It was small and enjoyable, though, and I'll take that any day over crowded and miserable (read: fairy wings).

The best part was that Ty and I ran together! We encouraged each other, and kept each other going. I stink at hills (Florida girl problems!), and at the teeniest incline my muscles began throwing a temper tantrum. Instantly, I felt a little prodding on my back, reminding me to keep pace. We set landmarks near the end for sprinting, and crossed the finish line within two seconds of each other. 

Ty finished 4th in his age division (Men, 20-29) at 23:46. Awesome for a first race!

I set a new PR for a 5K race at 23:44 and finished 3rd for my division (Women, 20-29). 

I'm sure Brooklyn would have smoked us both, if she'd have been allowed on the course.

Thursday, October 10, 2013

Window Season is Here!

Something is happening; there's a chill in the air! In fact, I was cold when I started my run this morning! Perhaps you've often heard of this change of season referred to as fall or autumn. At our house, it's officially dubbed, "Practice-with-the-Windows-Open-Season," or just, "Window Season," for short.

Drive on by! You'll hear music!

Brooklyn is enjoying it, too!


Friday, October 4, 2013

So Long, Sallie

To: SallieMae
(cc: Dave Ramsey)

With joyful hearts we say goodbye
No need to hug, no need to cry

We've had enough, enough of you
Hard we've worked so we'd be through

You've taught us much about our ways
To plan and wait, to spend and save

We choose to live now on our own
Without the weight of debt or loans


That's right, friends! We are officially debt-free!


Funny conversation with Ty after I made the last payment: