An awful Rhythm and Blues half marathon

This was opening weekend for Rice Baseball.  The team was home so we had four games to attend this weekend.  It is something that we have all been excited about since we told the kids we got season tickets on Christmas Day. The first game was Friday night.  It started off lovely and ended up chilly pretty quickly.  And, yes I will get to the half marathon recap!

One of my favorite things for the kids to see and this happens before every game!

Jonah was cold

Such a great view and place to watch baseball

Jonah and I were snuggling to stay warm...excuse the creepy guy in the background

Emma thought it was hilarious I put on gloves

Rice played UT and lost Friday night.  They should have won...oh well....three more games to go!

Saturday was an amazing day to watch baseball in February.  It was sunny and in the 70's.  We could not have asked for a more perfect day.  We spent the day on the outfield hill instead of in our seats.  This allowed the kids to play and watch at the same time.  It allowed me and Drew some uninterrupted baseball watching time.  The other super cool thing about watching on the hill was meeting several former Rice players.  Three signed Jonah's cast.  Samuel's favorite player from last year signed a C-USA ball for him.  It is now one of his most prized possessions.  The Rice players we have met are always super nice and friendly.  I think it is definitely a perk of a small school.  Rice won both games!

Happy Valentine's Day to us...doing something we love together.

Post game silly selfie

Sunday morning was the half marathon.  I was super excited to run this race until Saturday night when I looked really closely at the course map.  It was then I realized how hilly it would be.  Not too excited about that and the weather forecast getting warmer by the minute.  It was not good news for me.  Sunday morning it was 65 degrees with 90% humidity at the start...ugh!  The course was hilly and the last 1.5 miles was mostly uphill including an uphill finish....seriously.  I live in Houston and this course was in the hilliest section of the city.  I knew by mile 5 that my goal for the race was not going to happen. I knew by mile 8 I was not even going to get a PR.  By mile 10 I was just running angry.  I did not care much that the course and weather were a challenge.  I did not care that the wind was annoying.  I did not care that the severely uneven roads were killing my hip (thank goodness my foot was fine).  I did not care about any of that.  I was just angry that my hard work since Thanksgiving felt like a waste of my time.  Angry, angry, angry was all I could feel.  I gutted out the last three miles as best I could.  As soon as I finished I grabbed two bottles of water, my medal which I didn't look at for hours, and I left.  I just left and walked to my car. 

On the way home I cried.  Then I texted Susan and she talked me off the ledge.  Then I texted Erin and she got me thinking like a normal person again.  Thank goodness for these two amazing women.  They said the right things...good and bad....just like I needed to hear them.  They both made me laugh and cry!

Running is brutal, but it is also beautiful.  It has shown me so much about myself.  I was ready to walk off that course at mile 6 and go to church.  I don't quit so I couldn't talk myself into going through with that plan.  I decided to stick out the brutal aspect of running on a hard day.  The beauty of running came to me from my friends who provided me with love, encouragement, and perspective.  I only know them because of running and for that I am so thankful.

I finished in 1:50.04.  I finished 8/129 in my AG and 45/870 female runners.  I wanted better and that is my goal for March.  Personally disappointing races just fuel the desire to work harder for the next race.   

Thankfully the weekend ended on a good note.  Rice lost in extra innings because of another stupid error, but we had a great day.  This is going to be a fun season and we will definitely be making some great memories between now and May.  The decision to give experiences for Christmas has been so worth it!