Michelob Ultra Atlanta 13.1 // Recap

At the beginning of October I ran the Michelob Ultra 13.1 Atlanta race.  I had run this race when it was just Atlanta 13.1 and before Michelob Ultra and Lifetime Fitness got involved so I had really high hopes for this race, but was pretty disappointed from the very beginning.

Packet pick up was a slow slow mess.  There was one person manning the packet pickup table.  Yup, you read that right. One person to hand out race numbers, shirts, and race day bags.  The poor lady apologized to everyone for the long wait and I still cannot figure out why they would have one person handing out race numbers and what not.  But that was not even the worst.  At packet pick up, one week out from the race, the exact location of the starting line and where to park had not yet been announced. Simpler terms: no one knew where they needed to be for the race and it wasn’t posted online until about 3 days before the race. 

Race Day was not too bad.  Granted, it was a LONG walk to the start (and a long walk back) everything seemed to run pretty smoothly.  The actual course had its highs and its lows.  Truthfully, I did not think it was too bad - kinda boring, nothing too exciting about it, there was nothing that made me say, “oh that is cool”.  We did run one area twice (by the new Braves stadium) and it was a meh area.  Nothing to look at with the exception of apartments and a new baseball stadium being built.  And I don’t know if the course was missing mile markers or if it was on purpose or if I just missed them, but I messed my Garmin up from the very beginning and my miles were all off so I was kinda relying on those and they were nowhere to be seen after mile 10.  So that last 5k was pretty slow and miserable and I thought I would never find the end since mile 11 never ever came.  The course had it’s fair share of hills and the weather was off and on.  Not too hot, not too cold, rained off and on.  There was one part of the course that was on a trail next to the river and that may have been the highlight of the course for me.  Semi flat land, good scenery, allowed me to pick up the pace, serene little area tucked away in city chaos.

It was a slow and steady race for me seeing how I did not run more than 6 miles leading up to the race.  Typical Barbie training style, but I am not super young anymore so my body (read: hips) started to hurt around mile 8.  Yikes.  I think that picture was taken around mile 5 or 6 or something like that and I was still trucking along (doing better than the dude in orange behind me! HA!)… and in that picture I don’t look like death.  But trust me, there are some pictures and yikes. (Maybe I shouldn’t comment on the dude in orange. #karma)

Near the end, trucking up one of the many hills, 2 police officers mentioned that the finish was just over the hill and then it was all downhill from there.  I had to believe them since I could hear the finish line party; however, I did not believe them because I had not seen a mile marker since freaking mile 10 and at that moment, in my mind, I was running the longest 10th mile in the history of any half marathon. I finished (and that is what matters) in 2 hours and 41 minutes.   Not my best time.  But I had to start back somewhere and I got a pretty cool new piece of medal … to sit in a box in my closet with all the other medals I have collecting dust. :-)

I did not stick around for the post race party.  I had no one to party with.  And I was tired and who really wants to drink a beer post race and then get on the road to drive home.  And really Michelob Ultra, is that actually safe?!  The post race party was a little hectic and I just wanted to find a quick escape.  I got my finisher’s medal.  Had my picture taken and walked a bit.  I somehow missed the finisher’s bags so I did not grab one of those and was actually bummed about that.  (Hey Michelob Ultra, put the bags closer to the medals next time. K. Thanks!)  I grabbed a water, a banana, and some nasty dried snap pea things and headed home for an ice bath and family time.

Am I glad I got up and did it?!  Yes.  Will I do another half marathon?  Yes.  Will I train properly for that one?  Ehhhh… probably not because that is not my style, but I am running more so maybe I won’t be as old lady with hip problem like next time.

And just a shout out to the Cobb County cops - you all were awesome and great on the course. I know it is not the most exciting assignment to have on a Sunday morning, but we runners appreciate all you do to keep us safe on the course.  So. Thank You!

Five Things Friday

I have so so so many things to blog about.  This is going to be my draft.  And a little taste of what should theoretically come.   Plus I need to get back on that Thankful Post Thing. You know.  When I find the time to sit down and blog. In-between all the 4 zillion errands I need to run (I have needed an oil change since SEPTEMBER) and chasing a 15 month old around the house and laundry and catching up on crap TV (which, by the way. Grey’s Anatomy last night? Yes? To everyone who bowed out seasons ago - you’re missing out.  And Quantico. Goodness I am hooked.  And my guilty pleasure - Scream Queens.  Yup. Don’t recommend it.  It is bad. Real bad.)  …. I have found it hard to spend time blogging.  My bad.

O.N.E
I ran a half marathon at the very beginning of October.  It was not pretty.  My training was (per the usual) less than stellar or structured or disciplined. Long story short I did not run more than 6 miles to prep for 13.1 … my bad.  But, I survived. And I have a medal to prove it. Post to come. Theoretically. And, we have a family 5k tomorrow.  It will be the 2nd time we run this one as a family.  Fingers crossed it is not too cold.  Post to come on that one too.

T.W.O
Actually this is going to be a busy weekend and you just may get one big blog post.  We are going to a Pumpkin Patch on Sunday afternoon.  I am sure McKenna is going to be unamused and wonder what we are doing there.  But.  She will suck it up and love the hayride and love pictures with pumpkins.  After all, she is a budding white girl and we all know white girls love all things fall and one of those things is pumpkin patches.

T.H.R.E.E
A few weeks back we went to Florida to visit with my parents and it was great to get away.  It was McKenna’s first plane ride and I had a tiny bit of anxiety.  Full disclosure: I started googling “one year olds on planes” and things like that back in March.  And I read a lot.  And all you really need to know is - keep that kid distracted and you will be A OK.  But, we had a great time.  McKenna warmed up to the pool (after 3 days) and she enjoyed eating out and hanging out with her grandparents.  She did not sleep well, so I did not  sleep well, but it was just great to get away!  Again. Theoretically. Post to come + pictures.

F.O.U.R
Kyle has been asking me what I want for Christmas and I cannot give him any answers. I have no idea what I want for Christmas.  So. I need ideas.  Give me ideas people. I mean, there are things that I want. For example. Red Glossy Hunter Rain Boots. But then I ask, when will I actually wear them?  A new Tory Burch York Bag.  But that is out of our budget range.  Le Sigh.

F.I.V.E
Speaking of “Le Sigh” - I joined the world of Fantasy Football this year and I cannot handle it.  As always I expect too much from players (that I know nothing about) and get mad at them each week.  I think Kyle thinks I am 25% funny and then 75% annoying as I complain about my players who “should think about a new career path because the NFL isn’t working for them anymore” …. or when I tell him I am dropping players or benching players.  I just don’t lose well & if a player is projected to get 10 points he should get 10 freaking points.  What needs to happen each week is this.  I need to set my roster.  Then delete the app off my phone.  And then check the outcome Tuesday morning. 

Welp.  I hope everyone has a really good weekend.  And I have A LOT of writing to do this weekend and upcoming week.  McKenna has some exciting things going on in her life too.  Well, exciting for her.  I am having a hard time dealing with the fact that my kid is basically going to high school.  OH.  And if any of you mom’s want to do a book swap thing - message me and I will give you all the details! 

Transformation Thursday || Hizzy Style

FYI: Hizzy = house  and we have been doing a lot to the house lately. I have a super long list of home improvements I want to do on our house and we are slowly chipping away at the list.

:: Update One ::
We took out the sliding glass doors that lead from our eat in kitchen to the back yard and installed french doors.  I don’t have a before picture, but these doors look so much better than the old ratty sliding glass doors that sometimes would not open or not open all the way.  Our kitchen just looks cleaner and nicer.  Simply put, it was an upgrade that was overdue (K and I were losing our patience and sanity a little bit each day) and surprisingly not very expensive, but it really makes our kitchen area just look so much better.  Now, we just constantly worry about our bad dogs taking the door off its hinges as they run outback and we always scold them for pawing the door to go out or come back in.  They’re too nice to have the dogs mess then up with their disrespectful ways.

:: Update Two ::
We have this sitting room off the foyer that will probably never really get used, but I knew I did not want an “off limits” room like I had in my childhood house and I knew that we couldn’t have anything too nice in that room because we have bad dogs who love to sit at the window and bark at poor innocent people as they walk by.  Add a dog to the mix and good grief, game over. Dogs have lost their mind. So, we could not have nice things.  About a year ago we moved the old love seat into this room, but this Labor Day we added a coffee table and an end table.  I know that the coffee table needed a little bit of additional décor (again, nothing too much because of our dogs) so plan on slowly scouring Target and Home Goods for little items to make it just right.  I am happy with the overall outcome of this room and know it will be better once it is fully done.  But, it feels GREAT to have one more room basically done in our house. …we just need new pillows for that couch  Ones that stand out and add a little brightness to the room.  The hunt continues

:: Update Three ::
I have a handy husband. Labor Day weekend Kyle totally upgraded (what he could) of our hall bathroom.  And this bathroom now looks A TON better.  He just swapped out hardware and added a towel ring, but I love the new look of this bathroom.  The old gold look was dated and not attractive.  Plus, it is nice to have the towel off the counter and hanging.  The only question that remains: will we replace the marble on top with granite?  Part of me says yes.  Part of me says no.  I guess it would come down to price.  The marble doesn’t look bad… but it could look better.  I may also frame the mirror.  There are some easy-ish looking tutorials on Pinterest.  Who knows.  But, I do know it looks a ton better and my husband did such a good job.  No. He is not for hire.  He has 2 more bathrooms to do!!

Next Up: The master bedroom – new paint colors & new over the bed décor and then that room should be done, done, and done.  Kyle is not looking forward to spending a weekend or two painting, but it is cheaper than hiring someone and I have totally volunteered to help him out.  But we have this thing called a baby.  We also have 6 ceiling fans to replace.  The one in our room and the upstairs “foyer” do have top priority. 

Long Range: I would love the have the kitchen done next, but we are still having to save for that.  Granite ain’t cheap.  We have been tossing around the idea of a new door and painting the shutters since it is not as expensive and curb appeal is huge.  But… we will see. And don’t get me started on the major master bathroom overhaul we want to do.  Evidently, we need to win the lotto.  Or maybe we should have bought new construction v. an old house.