Race Day!

I ran a 5k today! I started running in September, have spent a lot of time on the treadmill (thank you, winter) and FINALLY ran a race! The best part was that I got to run with my sister Megan. She started training a few months before me and has already run a few races. Her Christmas present to me was a trip to Pennsylvania so we could complete my first race together! (Read her account of our race here.)

About to head to the start. See the fun shirts Megan made for us? C.E. MAJor, Inc.
was a "business" we started in our playroom circa 1989. We answered phone calls,
wrote checks, made signs...helped us become the women we are today. :-)

It was a little chilly before the race started; can you tell I am wearing four layers? But it was a beautiful sunny day (sunshine! too rare in western PA) and we were plenty warm by mid-race. We trekked an hour and a half north of Indiana for our race, to Cook Forest. The course ran alongside a river with trees and hills all around. So scenic.

When I started a couch to 5k program in the fall, my goal was to be able to run an entire 5k, no walking. And we did it! We do not have an official time yet but we're thinking it was in the 32:30 range.

Appropriate signage!

The only thing that could have made today better would've been having all four of my kids there. After we got an email on Thursday with some details about parking, the possible need to take a shuttle to the start,  etc. we determined that it would be really tough to take the twins. So we hired our beloved Miss Anne to babysit. But I was thankful to have Zach and my two oldest babies there to cheer us on.

Look at this great sign! It made me cry a little when I first saw it.

Nearing the finish line, coming in to give my kiddos a high five. Sure we're a
little blurry...we're running FAST! Well, sort of fast. :-)

Pretty girls in pink at the end of the race.

It felt pretty amazing to complete this race. I'm not sure I had cumulatively run a mile in the decade preceding September, and today I ran 3.1 miles with a smile on my face. So I can say it: I'm a runner! I am 32 years old, have four little kids, and am in the best shape of my life. Feels good! Thank you, Zach, for supporting me through all the time I've spent at the Y. Thank you, Megan, for coming so far to run with me.

I've spent a lot of time pondering this new identity I've made for myself as a runner. You see, this is the last thing I would have imagined myself becoming. Back in high school, I was a complete non-athlete. Orchestra, Scholars Bowl, and French Club were more my thing. One of the happiest days of those four years was when I walked out of P.E. for the last time knowing I would never have to take the class again. But thankfully we are not locked into our high school identities for life!

Tomorrow is Easter. A day for celebrating new life. A day to celebrate that because of Christ's death and resurrection I can have a new identity that is so much more than being a runner or a mother or whatever else defines me. Thank you, Jesus, for this new life!

Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature ; the old things passed away ; behold, new things have come. (2 Corinthians 5:7)