The Frankfurt 10K

{June 3, 2012}

I DID IT!!!! I survived the Frankfurt 10K run! ;) It was intense with the amount of rain we had to run in but thankfully it was still a fun experience! The week leading up to the race, I started to get a bit nervous and apprehensive. Especially since I hadn't been doing a whole lot of running the previous two weeks leading up to the race. The only time I ran in Garmisch was the day after we arrived and the air was much too hard for me to run again at it's higher elevation. It was nice to have a vacation and relax though! And then during the last week before the race, I ran a few 3 milers and that was it. I still figured that if I could run these distances, I could do 6 miles too. It would, without question, be a bit more tiring. (And it was!!!) The day we received our race packets, it felt more real than ever! I knew there was no time to turn around and back out now. It's so hard for me to believe that just 5 months ago, running wasn't even a thought. My how things have changed!!! :)

{Race shirt}

The morning of the race, I got up and randomly checked the weather. It looked questionable outside and I wanted to have an idea of what to prepare for and what to wear with my race shirt. There on the screen it showed that we were facing 100% chance of rain. Lovely! And thunderstorms were predicted right on time: when the race was to begin at 1pm! Go figure! This news did NOT help calm my nerves one bit but I just prepared mentally the best that I could and went along with it. I figured if they felt the need to cancel the race, then that's what would happen. But I wasn't going to make the decision to not go on with the race! This rain was NOT going to stop me! And like John always tells me when I want to go for a run and it's raining, "the rain isn't going to make you melt!" :)

After a hearty breakfast, I had John take a quick picture with me and the children. The very children that have helped me get to this race day to begin with. I owe a lot to these cuties - for Aubrey watching them many times after school so I could get a run in and their never failing support and encouragement! Just love these guys of mine!! We then headed straight over to our friend's house. They were so sweet in watching them for us while John and I ran. I don't know who was more excited to spend the few hours together - them or the kids! :) And if it weren't raining, they would have likely been downtown cheering us on. I have to say, with it raining, my excitement was starting to fade. I was sad that they couldn't be there!

Around 11:30am, John and I met up with a group of us Marines and Marine spouses that had signed up to run the race. We got our running chips strung onto our shoes and this is when the rain began. My first race ever was going to be interesting! I hadn't run in the rain and cold weather really at all, I was a bit sad my children wouldn't be at the finish line waiting for me and cheering me on and I was planning on taking my iPhone to the race with me so I could take photos. John didn't think it was going to be a good idea to do that with the heavy rain. And I knew he was partly right. But being the stubborn person that I am and still insisting on some photos....I found a quick and temporary fix: a ziplock bag! Just shoved the phone inside the bag and viola! Problem fixed! :)

{Off to the train station! Just 5 stops or so and we were there!}

And this pretty much summed up what the path for the race looked like...Rain and slick!

And more rain...

And some MORE rain!!!!

BMW was one of the main sponsors - I love how all the balloons were tied to the bikes.

Me before running my FIRST race ever!

To escape the rain, our group ran inside McDonalds and sat and talked until it was time to head to the starting line. Not only was it pouring down rain but it was getting really cold too. These next few pictures were taken before the race on the way to the port-a-potties and before the rain started to come down really hard. 

Here's the start and finish line. The 10K route started from here, ran through the city to another point, came back here and did another round finishing up here.

The white BMW drove around with the clock time on it. Before we ran, there was a 5K race going on.

SportScheck was the company that oversaw the race - lots of emergency personnel out to keep an eye on all of us runners.

Our group!

Another sponsor for the race: some yummy tomatoes!!! We ate some after the run and they were so so good! (Along with the delicious apples and pretzels. If it hadn't been raining, I would have taken a photo for sure!)

So my nerves were all over the place before the race began. It wasn't really that I was nervous per say...I was just extremely excited for a race I had never run before. Especially six miles I had never run before! We left McDonalds about 20 minutes before the race was to start. Last minute bathroom breaks and getting to the lineup area to stretch and get ready. Oh how I wonder how this day would have been had it NOT been raining! I will say I was a bit concerned with the path we were scheduled to run on. It looked slippery and very wet! I made sure I wasn't standing at the front of the line. I'm not one that wants to hurry and go too fast at the start. They counted down from 10 in German and then we were OFF! Well, 30 seconds later we were actually moving and going somewhere! :) Before the race started, I had stuck my ziplocked phone into the back zipper pocket of my pants - but after running a short distance with it bouncing up and down and being uncomfortable, I ran a bit slower while trying to get it out of my pocket. That was interesting! So I have learned not to put anything heaver than a key or ID card in there ever again! :) 

I had heard before race day how fans cheering for you on the sideline can often times help keep you pumped up and moving - but we didn't have that experience this time. And I don't blame them for not being there! I wouldn't have been either if I wasn't scheduled to run. It was cold and terribly wet! And as the weather had been predicted, it didn't take long after we started the race for the rain to come down in buckets! I am not exaggerating! We were soaked from head to foot! Initially, I was glad I had slipped on a dry-fit shirt under the racing shirt. But I sort of regretted that decision when it was making me extra cold and wet!!! 

Running in that extreme amount of rain was challenging to say the least. I started to shiver, my breathing was not steady as I was breathing harder than normal to compensate for being cold and my feet were drenched with all the puddles I couldn't dodge! I remember John mentioning to me that his feet were squishing around in his shoes and I told him that being a true Oregonian, that he should be used to that sort of thing! Hahaha

When I signed up for this race, I also signed up John to run it with me. I of course had his full permission and consent in doing so but being a newbie in running, I felt better knowing he'd be there to run it with me. I mentioned to him that running the race with me didn't mean he actually had to RUN the race WITH me. But he insisted on running the race at my pace and by my side every step of the way! I felt happy and sad at the same time. Happy he wanted to be with me and encourage me and sad that he wouldn't be running it at his own and much faster pace! So with that said, I gave him many chances to change his mind if he really wanted to run ahead...that I really would have been fine. But he stuck by me the entire way! xo

Running with my phone in hand and not in my pocket made things go so much easier. (Especially when John ran with it!) I didn't have music to listen to which I normally do while running but I at least had John to talk to. And thankfully, I had a piece of gum to chew (thanks, Christi)! :) Things were going well and I was running past people at a comfortable speed. I think with it raining, I was actually running a little faster. Maybe to get done quicker? Maybe because I wasn't getting as warm? I honestly don't know. From time to time, John would ask me how I was doing. So sweet of him, I know. But after he kept asking and talking about the race, I had to ask him to change the subject so I could focus on something more pleasant. I don't think I hydrated myself very well before hand and was starting to get a side cramp. I was a little edgy but I kept quiet and made small talk. When we were close to the point of making our first turn to head back, John said, "I don't think it's raining hard enough, do you?" And not too much after he said that, it began to come down even HARDER! How that's even possible, I do not know! 

When we reached our halfway mark, I was starting to lose my energy. I was running still at a good pace and making good time according to how I felt and from what my watch was showing. My watch that didn't work the minute the race began because it didn't find a satellite in time. Thank goodness my running chip detected my overall time! :) Volunteers were holding out water cups and a half of a granola bar. I grabbed both. Drank the water quickly and disposed of the cup. And then tried eating the granola bar. I had gum and because of the rain, it wasn't staying in my hand and I didn't want to liter so I swallowed it. Yeah. I know. Gross. It reminded me why I don't do that. But eating that granola bar wasn't worth losing my piece of gym, let me tell you! And do you realize how hard it is to chew and run at the same time? Boy, that was another interesting experience. I ended up choking on my one bite of the granola bar. I didn't care at this point...I threw the bar on the ground over to the side so no one would trip on it. And it was then that I realized I had another 3 miles, while coughing and choking, without gum! 

John asked me if I was okay. I told him, "yes, I'm just choking!" And he laughed and said, "it's hard to run and eat at the same time, isn't it!" No sooner he took a bite of his own granola bar and started to choke as well. He now knew what he was talking about and we both chuckled as we ran. 

As I said, I hadn't prepared for this race as much as I would have liked. As I started running the second lap around, I let doubt creep in. I was starting to get fatigued and I began wondering "why on Earth did I sign up for this thing???" Tears started to fall down my cheeks but I was trying to fight them back. My breathing started to go out of whack as I was trying to hold back the tears AND the coldness from the rain was making me hyperventilate a little bit. My teeth were chattering and I was shivering from the rain. John noticed that I was starting to struggle with the run and coached me into focusing on my breathing and getting it balanced again. So I focused on that and then laughed about crying and being ridiculous - but part of laughing was because nobody could see that I was crying with all of the rain that was going on. John then said, "and nobody can see the snot running down my face!" Ha!!! Guess the rain had it's advantages! :)

We were heading back towards the finish line when I told John that I needed to slow down a little or....And he said, "or....what?" And I said, "stop!" He said, "stop, what?" And I said, "no....the word STOP!! I will STOP if we don't slow down!" So he started chanting, "Go Go Go!!!" And I said, "stop!" We both laughed. It was good he was keeping up the jokes and making me laugh so I could take my mind off the run for the time being. We then heard loud music up ahead so I knew the finish line was getting closer! I started running a little faster again knowing that the run was almost done and that really carried me to the finish line. And then we did it...moments later, we crossed the finish line and were greeted by our friends from our group!!! I was so happy I about cried again! :) Especially when I saw our time. I ran without having a goal other than to finish. Maybe deep down, my goal was also to finish before an hour. So I was really pleased with how I did. John crossed the finish line 1 second sooner than me....here's our stats:

Leslie

Placed: #81/305 women

#14 of age group/ W30

Time: 53:10 

(About 8 1/2 minute mile)

John

Placed: #424/603 men

#58 of age group/ M30

Time: 53:09

We made it!!!

I had such mixed emotions after crossing the finish line. 

Relief.

Happiness.
Emotional.

I completed a goal I set out to achieve! What a feeling that is! :)

At this moment, I'm not sure I'll sign up to run another race but I may consider it at one point so I can continue making running fun and something exciting! And to help a cause.

After greeted by friends and warm hugs and high fives, we immediately walked over and got in line for some drinks and food. And they didn't disappoint! While holding my phone, I had room to grab a water, a few cherry tomatoes and a pretzel. John grabbed, well, I actually lost count. 5 apples (1 he gave me and it was the best tasting apple I've ever had!), maybe 5 pretzels, a few waters....yeah, he was feeling pretty blah after that! :)

{Me + Christi! We rock!! - she finished #10 of our age group (4 before me)}

{Friends!}

{All of the guys}

{All of the ladies}

I'm so happy we did this! A few from our group were getting ready to move back to the States so it was one of our last fun times out together. So....we shall see what's next! I can already tell you I will never run a marathon. But a 1/2 marathon is doable. Anything less than a 1/2 will be fine by me! Today I'm not considering anything. But tomorrow's a new day so who knows! I really never thought I'd ever see the day that I would run. And enjoy it nonetheless! But I'm glad I started it at 32. I probably would have done really well starting in my 20's but averaging 8.5 minute miles right now is pretty good in my book! Running is definitely still happening though - race or no race! :)

Exciting Things Ahead...

We have some very exciting trips and events coming up! We have soooo much to see too! Another two years here doesn't seem very long and I have a hunch that it's going to fly by faster than we'd like or expect it to so we are having fun squeezing in as much as we humanly can - with an appropriate amount of down time throughout of course. I am beyond ready for summer break to be here so we can have some fun! :) And in some ways, I feel that this summer is jammed packed with so much excitement, that summer seems over before it has even begun! It'll be fun though and I'm pretty certain we'll be plenty busy making a lot of fun memories!

{Andrew - Spring 2012}

In May, John and the other guys from his region are going to be away for a few days exploring Belleau Wood in France. He'll enjoy it, I'm sure! Someday, I look forward to us taking the kids to see this before we move. Such a neat memorial of fallen Marines. I'll be playing single mother for these few days, but nothing I haven't ever had to do before. I'm glad he has this opportunity to go. We'll be busy filling our time with a movie nights and games on the Wii and trips to the park. Maybe even some bike rides around the neighborhood.

Later this month, we'll be attending a week long trip with John and his region to Garmisch. If you go to THIS website for Edelweiss, you'll see a video at the bottom that shows the lodge and area. While he attends meetings during the day, I'll be entertaining the kids at the pool, exploring the area and local town and hiking around the Alps. We love nature so I have a feeling this is going to be fun! I'll probably hear a lot of complaining about a lot of walking around but I can deal with that! :) We went here for a few days back in October for our Anniversary so I'm super thrilled to be going back to spend some time outdoors with the wonderful spring weather! We have family events to look forward to in the evenings. We also extended our stay through the weekend after John is done with his meetings. We haven't mapped out what we're going to do yet but I think we are going to try to see some local things like the Salt Mines and Hitler's Eagle's Nest in Salzburg.

In June, the 3rd to be exact, John and I are running in the Frankfurt 10K. I'm pretty excited and nervous. Just a few more weeks of training! :)

After the kids get out of school, we are going down to Slovenia for about a week to visit with some friends of ours we met a few months ago. John met him from work and his family came and stayed with us one night while in route back to the States. They have three very cute kids. It's going to be a blast and I can not wait!! (I also get a new running buddy for a week and some girl time! :))

In July, Aubrey will be going to Young Women (church) camp for 4 days. We don't know the details yet, but she's very much looking forwarded to her first year at camp! Most of the girls from our Stake are German speaking but most also know English so I'm sure Aubrey will have a great time. I KNOW she will!! And if it gives her the chance to learn some German, even better!

One of my best friends, Sabine, that I met while living in Virginia, is from Germany and is flying out here to visit her family. LUCKY US!!!! :) I can't wait to see her again! It will mark one year since I last saw her! How much I miss my Virginina friends and wish to see them all again! Hopefully one day! (It goes without saying, I miss my Oregon friends and family too!)

It's not yet confirmed, but another one of my best friends, Ally, might be coming out here with her husband to visit. I haven't seen her since Aubrey was ONE and since the time we were all living in Pensacola, Florida. Whenever they make it out this way, it will be a great and long overdue reunion!! :)

Ah! August! A month I've been waiting impatiently for! :) We are flying out our family friend, Megan (who happens to also be the daughter of another one of my best friends) to come stay with the kids while John and I finally have the chance to go on our own vacation...alone...to GREECE!!!!! A WHOLE WEEK! It's a dream come true and still seems so unreal to me. It probably won't feel real until we get there! As I've mentioned before, it's part of my reward to keeping my 6 month long commitment to exercise. But it's also because John and I never went on a honeymoon or have even gone on a trip alone together, for that matter. Can you believe that!?!? Quite frankly, we desperately need the break! With me home taking care of our children and in between John's full-to-the-brim job all the while taking his Masters...the vacation is not only long overdue but highly welcomed for the both of us! Megan will also be staying for another week so we can all spend some time together and show her around Germany and whatever else our hearts and time desires to go see! We are really looking forward to having her here and are so grateful for her! She's one of the few people we trust watching our precious little ones!

August also welcomes the beginning of another school year. One which Aubrey AND Jocelyn will be enjoying. It probably won't take long going into June before we, as parents, are anticipating this moment. But maybe not! I have a feeling that NONE of us are going to be bored this summer! :)

Easter 2012

 {The day before Easter, I walked to Rewe with my girls to get some flowers for our dining room table. I was thinking more like Lilys or something but they only had this or dark roses left to pick from. This sweet little plant ended up winning!}

Have you ever had a holiday that wasn't stressful or hectic? If so, you are my hero! I think in most cases, holidays tend to get a little crazy with all the hustle and bustle going on - even when you try to prevent it from happening. I would love to say that our Easter was amazing - and in ways, it still was! Friends joining us for dinner, talking to family on the phone and knowing the true meaning of why we celebrate Easter was the amazing part! The not so amazing part however was so many of us waking up in bad moods which lead to a few disagreements throughout the day and tears shed, it being really cold outside and kids not cooperating for a few pictures and Landon hurting his finger which resulted in us missing Sacrament meeting at church. You know, just normal daily stuff. :) But we definitely made the most of it and did what we could to still have a fun and enjoyable day as a family. In order to do this though, we had to simplify some of our plans which turned out being a huge blessing! Us girls forfeited painting our nails and doing them another day instead. We didn't dye any Easter eggs. And I didn't make homemade cinnamon rolls. And a few other things. Simplicity at it's best! I don't like a lot of stress so this was nice to cut some fun things out of our normal Easter festivities and be okay with it in order to have a calm and functional family. A baby keeps things busy and us on our toes a lot anyways.

The kids woke up to find their Easter baskets. We ate breakfast and then got ready for church. Landon sliced his finger pretty bad on what I have no idea and it took quite a bit of time to get that sucker to stop bleeding! And just in case anyone was wondering....a band-aid and a 12 month old does NOT mix too well. That band-aid didn't stay out of his mouth or on his finger for very long! I know, surprise surprise! :) So as I mentioned, we missed Sacrament meeting. I was completely bummed about this to be honest. I love being able to take the Sacrament and hear the speakers and testimonies shared. Especially on a day like today! It was so easy at this point to have everyone hang up their Easter clothes and stay home but I still had to be at church to teach a primary class. Andrew's Sunbeam class actually. My friend teaches his class but her and her family were on vacation so I gladly accepted to fill in and teach for her. We may have missed Sacrament meeting, but boy was it nice to still be able to go and attend Sunday school. It completely lifted my spirit to be there, to see so many friendly faces and to teach 3 wonderful three year olds (which the little girl was the only one to stay in her seat! This also doesn't surprise me! :) Hard age for little kids to hold still in their seats longer than 2 minutes. In fact....not a lot surprises me anymore these days)! :)

Once we got back home, we found out that the Easter bunny had stopped by while we were at church and left a ton of eggs throughout the house. (AKA: John got upstairs faster than the rest of us and planted eggs as fast as he could)! :) We figured that if we hid them any sooner, let's say last night? Jocelyn would have had a field day. That girl sneaks sweets any chance she can get! So back to the Easter egg hunt. Kids went crazy racing around the house. Aubrey was generous and helped the others find some that she had already spotted. Or even gifted a few of hers to them. She's so sweet and helpful! Landon threw one of his recently developed tantrums on the floor! Haha!! With him being child number four, it doesn't get to me like it used to with the others. Now we're like, "be my guest....acting like that is not going to get you anything!" :) He then crawled (and sometimes walked) around and found some low to the ground eggs which Aubrey quickly opened and broke up some Robbins Eggs for him to devour. He was happy after that! Honestly, who wouldn't be? It was pretty fun watching them search and find their eggs.

We then changed over into some comfy clothes, put Landon down for his afternoon nap, kids played and helped tidy up for our company and John and I got things started with the dinner. Ham, homemade mashed potatoes + gravy, mixed vegetables, rolls and a salad. Our friends, another Marine Corps family, brought a delicious cake and some drinks. Their kids are close to our kids' ages - for Jocelyn and Andrew anyways. Their daughter is going to be in Kindergarten with Jocelyn this coming year and their son is a year or so younger than Andrew. (They also have a baby that is about 10 months younger than Landon who will one day be buddies together!) All four of them got along really well like they did when we got them together for the first time at the playground a few weeks ago. Their family is super nice and are expected to be here as long as we are. We're pretty happy about that! :) I'm not sure how I did it, but I managed to forget to take a photo of all of us adults. But the kids are plenty cute, so they make up for me forgetting! :)

As the night began to wind down and our company left for home, we made a few calls to family to wish them a Happy Easter. This 9 hour time difference can be quite hard to reach everyone! We didn't get to talk to a lot of them which made us sad but we at least got to talk to a few. Got the kids into their pajamas, talked about the real meaning of Easter (Got some strange looks from Andrew like: "What? It's NOT about candy and the Easter Bunny?" And this one came from Jocelyn: "Is the Easter Bunny real or fake?") and then we watched an Easter video on the churches website called "He Is Risen." It was a good end to a sort of not good start to the day. I am very thankful for my Savior, Jesus Christ! That he paid for our sins and died on the cross so that we may all live again. That He was resurrected. That He lives and loves us and wants us to be happy! I have so much to be thankful for!

Especially my family!

Happy Easter!