The Dennis Diary: Our 7th half-marathon

Rob and I had an absolutely wonderful time in Savannah this past weekend. We started the race with high expectations...maybe a little too high in my case...but still ended up doing very well. I originally set my goal time as 1 hour 45 minutes and even though I didn't quite reach my goal, I got fairly close to it...1:53:42. My PR. I was well into breaking the 1:45 time and maybe finishing in 1:40 or less, but it just didn't happen. Maybe next time. There was absolutely no way I could have gone any faster. I didn't feel well at the end of the race. Was it due to the meal the night before...or perhaps the breakfast I ate that morning...or wait, was it the loud music outside the hotel that kept me up until after midnight? Who knows?!? I was slightly disappointed in myself, which may sound dumb, but that's my fault for giving myself an unreachable goal anyway. After thinking about it a bit, I've decided I should be jumping for joy. Afterall, it was my first endurance race post-baby and I did set a new PR. Plus, it felt really great to be particpating in a race again. I love all the pre-race and race day hype...picking your number and t-shirt up at the expo with all of the other excited runners...going out to dinner the night before for a pre-race meal...the pre-race insomnia...setting your alarm clock and waking up when it's still dark out...okay, so maybe the last two aren't really that awesome, but it's all part of the endurance race experience and we had a great weekend. We were also able to spend time with good friends the entire weekend...childfree. I was so sad to leave Tripp, but loved having an adult only weekend. I feel that every parent needs them every now and then. It's a chance to recharge and not worry about diapers and bedtime routines. Plus, the biggest benefit is that it reminds you just how special that little tike is and how lucky you are to be his/her parent. I'm so glad we had this fun weekend.