Happy Thanksgiving

I hope each and every one of you had a great Thanksgiving Day and evening!

I headed north to Akron/Canton to spend Thanksgiving with my family, sans Nate :( as he was with his dad. Weird not having him here with us. 

Rise and shine at 6am to help sis "bathe Tom the turkey, give him a nice massage of EVOO and Harry and David Turkey seasoning, dress him with some stuffing, and seal him up". Sis can't do it. It grosses her out.   Then out the door for me by 7 to meet my dad and Deb on a very cold, 16 degrees to be exact, snowy as icey morning to run a 5k. A Turkey Trot. 

I'm not even gonna get into how cold it really was. It was cold. But it wasn't the cold that had me so concerned. It was the ice and snow that I have never, ever ran in/on. I was only thinking that "if I make it thru this race without falling on my ass then I can run in the winter...outside!"  And I did. Very. Very. Carefully. Dad and I ran together. He was ahead of me a little but would check back and I would catch up and we would continue. He is used to running under these types of conditions. And so there we were.  The last time we ran a race together and finished together was July 2011. I was seriously dead last. No, he was actually. Dad let me cross before him so I wouldn't be last.   So anyhow...we kept running. And it was good. Until about mile 1.5 when the turkey trot actually turned into a turkey TROTS for me. If ya know what I mean...

Anyhow. I finished. Because as my dad says "nothing you can do but finish". Yep. That's about it. Keep running. Cry later. And I did. Secretly. And then I wiped my tears. I finished. With my dad cheering me on behind me because he let me cross the finish line ahead of him. But this time, we weren't DEAD LAST. 

Deb placed first in her age group! 23 minutes or something?! Just amazing. And dad, well, he placed 2nd in his age group!  Well earned medals! 

Me? I didn't place with a medal in my age group. But I placed 1st with my dad. I always do. And I placed first with myself because I ran my first race in conditions that I have never ran in and I didn't fall on my ass. And my time, our time, was 41 minutes, I think, which is a HUGE improvement from the race in 2011. It wasn't a 5k PR, but given the conditions (weather and this turkey trottin') I will take it! 

On a side note...my sister and I contemplated going out tonight shopping but decided against it. Stay in and hang as a family. We never just get to chill when we come home. And my brother-n-law had a kegerator in the basement! 

Happy Thanksgiving!

Run. Strong. 

-t-