15k for chocolate...

 ^ waiting at the start line \\ getting kinda nervous \\ questioning what i'm about to do...

(photo stolen from ashley's instagram: ashleydj13)

^finish line!!! hugs afterward...i was kinda emotional

 ^ wiping away tears, trying to gain composure before pictures...

i know this picture is blurry but it means a lot to me, a lot has changed in the last year and i'm so grateful for the friends and family who have supported me through these changes. 

i just feel like the blurriness adds to the emotions and feelings portrayed in this picture and i love it.

 ^ victory!!! let me tell you, after running 9.3 miles...this was the best tasting chocolate i've ever had and the hot chocolate was even more amazing! it would be interesting to see if the chocolate was really that good or if we were just so hungry and tired we didn't care...

 ^ joey and milly taking seflies while waiting at the finish line, she was sooo tired...

 ^ chocolate, chocolate, chocolate!!!

 ^ 15k's make some people soooo tired, she crashed as soon as she was strapped in the car seat.

 ^ nothing like a greasy burger, fries and chicken nuggets after a run. 

and then of course i took two naps that afternoon thanks to joey bringing our mattress out to the living room and letting me crash. sunday was a good day!

so here's the back story of this race.... this race was so much more than just running 9 plus miles. like i said earlier, a lot has changed for me in the last year. the two biggest changes: having milly and getting my health back on track and maintaining a healthier lifestyle...and yes i realize there's a giant picture of a burger right above this paragraph but everything in moderation, right? right! anyways, i digress! as i started this race, i proclaimed to no one and everyone that this was "for you miss milly, so here we go!" when i crossed the finish line and saw joey and milly waiting for us and cheering us on, the tears just burst out of my eyes! it's so hard to explain how symbolic this race was and explain how it really felt crossing that line. 

a year ago, when i first heard about this race (thanks to ashley) i told joey i wanted to run it. i'm sure he was thinking "ya, right! you? the girl that complains about her weight and then eats everything she can and gets hamburgers and then hides the wrappers and wonders when she's gonna get her next coke fix (pre-pregnancy of course)...." maybe he wasn't thinking all that but maybe he was and he had every right too. that's what i did for the first seven years of our marriage, so what was gonna change now. as you may already know, milly was what changed. (read this post for more on that story) so seeing my little girl and my proud husband as i crossed the finish line, it made me so emotional and helped me realize how far i've come. thanks for all the love and support, husband, you are my best friend, a wonderful husband and an amazing father. i also have to do a huge shout out to ashley for also being a huge support and running with me. i can't thank her enough, she was such a good example and inspiration to get me started and is such an amazing running partner. so thank you, ashley!

so now my first 15k is behind me! a goal that was a year in the making - i can cross it off my list! feels pretty dang good. now i need to figure out what i'm gonna run next, i'm thinking something with mud...