one foot...

Yes, so it has been some time in between entries again. Naughty Angie. I have found the past couple of weeks to be a little...chaotic, in a good way. I will see how much I can recall.

Sunday May 2nd was the Mastodon Stomp 5K race. I was on campus already because I was working...coordinating the race. I worked with the race organizers to get everything up and running, oh gosh, seriously didn't intend that pun. haha
The morning had been cool, like in the 50s Fahrenheit. So I had dressed to run in that kind of weather. By the time the race started at 2:10pm it was in the mid-70s and very humid. I was severely overdressed. I had a long sleeve shirt and running pants on under my shorts. I was kinda warm. The race was hard for me this time. It felt really hard. And I hate to admit it, but I had to stop and walk about half way through. I was running wayyy to fast in the first half. I let the excitement and spirit of competition get to me and I ran so much faster than my normal pace. By the time I was 2 miles in it felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest and my lungs were surely bleeding, ok maybe not, but it felt like it. It was hot. I had forgotten how much harder it feels to run in heat. I wasn't hydrated enough by a long shot. I have to hydrate like 2 or more hours before the race. Otherwise I get pretty bad stomach cramps. I didn't drink much beyond a cup of coffee in the morning. So I had that strike against me too. I learned from this race to trust my pace, dress for the weather and be serious about hydrating myself safely prior to running. Caleb and Finn met me at the finish line. Finn ate my complimentary banana. I am pretty sure that is Finn's favorite part of my running in races. The free banana.

I took Monday off to get my tooth fixed. The tooth basically broke in half. I had to have a temporary crown put on and a permanent one will be put in place in about a week and a half. After almost 4 hours in the dentist chair I had to take the day off running too. Or at least that is the excuse I gave.
Tuesday I ran 6 miles over by the bible school.

Wednesday I took off running because my schedule and Caleb's schedule with finals was hectic and full.

Thursday I ran 6.5 miles in the morning before work through neighborhoods and Shoaff Park. Caleb had his VERY LAST FINAL EVER today!!!!!!!! Yay! It is almost 100% over!

Friday I took off work and we drove up to Shipshewana, Indiana to camp over night. I was running the Mayfest 4 mile road and trail race Saturday morning at 8am (those masochists!) I was going to run once we arrived to Shipshewana. The weather thought otherwise. Upon arrival in Shipshewana it was in the low 50s/upper 40s, cloudy, wind gusting and raining/pouring. It continued in this fashion all night. We had intended on sleeping in the van or tent over night. But due to the beautiful weather we chose to spend an extra $20 and get a cabin. Boy am I glad we did that. The wind was blowing so hard you could feel the wind coming through the cabin walls and it would wake you up. The cabin had heat and electricity so we were warm and cozy inside, thank you!
Finn woke us up at 7:15am...that's right, 45 minutes before race time. So we really had to haul *ss to get to get Finn fed, get dressed, loaded into the van, drive into Shipshewana, pick up my racing bib and check-in and stretch etc before race time. I had exactly 1 minute to stretch.
The weather was about the same Saturday morning cold, raining and wind blowing very, very hard. Just a little colder. But I was dressed appropriately this time. I even remembered my gloves! I think because of the weather only like 140 people ran in the race. I promised myself no matter what, after the Mastodon Stomp experience, I would keep my pace. I just had to trust that if I stay true to my pace and style that eventually it would pay off and I would gain ground and do well. So I did just that. I didn't know this about myself before this race, but I am a really good trail runner. I picked up a lot of ground/time during the portion of the race we ran on trail. It felt effortless and I passed about 20 people in this section. It was crazy. So I guess I will look into more trail races :)
There is a huge population of Amish that live around Shipshewana. At the 2.5 mile marker a young Amish girl, dressed in total traditional/proper Amish wear besides Nike running shoes, was standing off to the side of the road and watching longingly as the runners went by. Just as I passed her I smiled at her and said "hi". Then about 20 seconds later I heard her start to run behind me. She stayed just behind me until the last 1/4 mile. Then she ran around me and began to gain ground on me quickly. As she ran in front of me a horse buggy with a local, older Amish couple riding inside was driving past. The Amish girl running waved to the couple. The older man smiled and waved and laughed as if he were tickled by her audacity to run in this race. The older woman didn't even acknowledge this girl's existence, as if disgusted by her participation in the running race. It is pretty taboo and frowned upon for Amish girls to run, especially in public. It took a lot of guts to do what she did running out in public, for everyone to see. I was so inspired by this young girl's courage and love for running. How much would you have to love running to go against everything your community believes in just to participate in a race? I could see it in her eyes. She just *had* to run. There was no option for her. Now that's truly awesome. I finished with a time of 41:25. Caleb and Finn were freezing so we pretty much took off for the cabin directly after I completed the race. Shipshewana is a cool little town if you are ever passing this way, check it out! Especially this store called E&S. That place rules.

Sunday was Mother's Day. We drove down to Peru, IN to Caleb's dad's family farm where his Gram lives. His Gram, Mom, Dad, sister Holly and her boyfriend, Michael and Aunt Becky were all there. The weather was cool and a little windy, but super sunny and all in all a really nice day. The farm is beautiful. Finn got to ride on his Grandpa Brauneller's tractor. He didn't like it very much :( He was terrified and cried most of the time. I was surprised because he seemed so interested in the tractor before Grandpa started it up.
After Holly and Michael left I went for my Sunday long run. I ran the back roads that follow the Eel River. It was a gorgeous run. I ran a little over 7 miles. The run went really well except I had to go to the bathroom most of the time. It is amazing how you can divert your attention from that for so long while you run if you have to. My body felt great post run. The past two weeks I was getting a little scared and unmotivated with my running and training for the mini marathon. But after this week, I feel soooo much better and a lot more confident. You just have to put in the work, and the results will come. Patience young Jedi. Oh Yoda