We kicked off November by going to Moab for the Moab Trail Marathon! All those bajillion miles of training came to test here, and as David says, I didn't train for the first 20, I trained for the last mile. Although in this case, it was the last 3 miles! Lorri and I ran this event together and stuck together the whole time, which was really fun. I'd never run an event before, and it was really fun to stick together on the trail. Lorri drove down with her husband and kids, and I drove down with the boys, and David joined us in Moab when he got off work. We got checked in, got our t-shirts and race bibs, and then went out for dinner.
Getting everything laid out to make the morning run smoother...all those snacks! There were aid stations every 4-6 miles, but I ate station snacks and my snacks, and my stomach was rumbling almost the entire race! Ha ha...
The event started at 8, and we were the 5th wave, starting at 8:20. We got there early enough to walk around, stretch out, use the bathrooms, and find Wendy, to give her her birthday tiara. I love the start of running events, when we are all taking off, heads bobbing up and down on the trail, all heading up the trail with the same purpose--I love this vibe and this feeling of community.
This event was really fun. Difficult, and I definitely felt pushed to my limit, but very fun. I felt great through mile 20-21, and I think we were at the aid station at mile 21 and w were at 5:30. I knew we weren't going to run the final 5 trail miles in 30 minutes, so I had to let go of my sub-6 hour A goal. B goal: finish sub-7 hours. We got to mile 23, coming down a steep ravine, and we could see the finish line in the distance, so Lorri and I started cheering, thinking we'd just hammer out the last 3 miles. A lady behind us said, "Save some energy! They actually have us run by the finish line and do an obstacle course for the final 5k...that's where the ropes course is!" Oh boy. I was glad to know that so I could mentally prepare...but boy those last 3 miles were harder than the first 20. It took us close to two hours to finish those final 5-6 miles, and reached our B goal by just 10 minutes. Overall a beautiful event, amazing trails and views, and definitely a race I'd do again.
I've never been part of a race before where there was a bit of standing in line time, waiting our turn to come down the trail! This was right before the ½ marathon and full marathon runners split. I was so excited when I saw the arrow pointing the way for the full marathoners--a first for me!
This 2-mile climb was around mile 14-16, and everyone we'd talked to ahead of the event said this climb was the hardest part. I thought this climb was a breeze! I'd done much steeper, longer, and harder climbs in many of the training runs. Yes, this one was uphill, but it was very doable. And you had a great view the whole time!
At the top, and on our way back to the finish line!
The first of three ropes courses at the very end...phew!
And then, after climbing down a short ravine, the race volunteer directed us to walk over some planks suspended over water, climb a ladder, and crawl through the culvert. I'd never had directions like that at an event before! Boy were we tired!
After resting a bit and showering, we went out for dinner. Max loved his chocolate cake.
We had decided to make a whole weekend of the trip, so after church that morning, we walked around the national park, doing a few short hikes/walks. As perfect as the weather was for the race on Saturday, Sunday brought cold and overcast weather!
I'd been dealing with a couple injuries in training over the past few months, I knew I had tendonitis in my posterior tibial tendon, but there was a new pain higher up my leg I was afraid was a stress fracture. So after my event I finally went in. X-rays were clear, which was a relief, and I was referred to physical therapy. It's been great--I've already had a lot of relief and am running again pain free! The PT is also working on my piriformis/left glut, which has been problematic since having my slipped disc when I was pregnant with Max.
We had parent teacher conferences with the boys teachers. Both boys are still testing academically about a grade and a half above of their respective grades. They are doing great int he Spanish immersion program, and have good friends. Max decorated his folder for us with two bats that like each other, as indicated by the heart between them. His teacher informed us there was a little girl named Eve in his class (awwwww!)
The boys are really into nerf battles. Really into them. They created this huge fort one weekend, complete with a window for one of the stationary nerf guns.
I love Pace's threats: "The ultimate box fort!" and "Every time I think of something bigger and better!"
After I hit David in the eye in pretty close range with the gun that shoots balls, not darts, we decided we all needed to wear masks...
Max, our little music aficionado is excelling at piano. He loves practicing, and loves when I sit and watch him. On this one song about a cat, I'd sing along to make it silly and do loud, silly meows and Max thought it was hilarious.
Bicker helped Max do a fun trick one day!
The boys and I went on a short run/bike ride about a week after Moab. I gave myself some time to recover, but had to get out again! I was in shorts and a t-shirt, but the boys weren't dressed warmly enough, and it ended up being a pretty cold ride for them. MomFail again!...as soon as we got home, they got into their warm sweats, bundled up in blankets, and I made them hot chocolate.
David took the boys and Bishka out for another rockhounding adventure to look for more goethite. They came back with some really great specimens!
I started a homemade pie and ice cream side business and wanted to jump on it before Thanksgiving, and my friends brought me a funny t-shirt and immersion blender to help me out. I had a couple smaller orders I made at home, but the rest--92 9" pies and over 10 dozen minis--I made in a period of 1 hours in a commercial kitchen. I had 3 friends and Bishka bailing me out of the orders I'd gotten myself into...and it was still bigger than me. I think I am going to seriously limit the number of pies I make in subsequent months...
What a fun find--getting apples and cherries from local orchards to use local ingredients in the pies!
I had so much crust and filling left over I ended up making a bunch more minis I sold the day of, in addition to the mini dozens I'd already sold. I'd gotten home from the commercial kitchen at 3am, and was absolutely exhausted and in so much pain with my back and form being on my feet for 12+ hours, but when I saw how much I had left over, I just knew I had to hammer out as many little pies as I could. It worked!
I wanted to schedule a fun overnight getaway for David for his birthday, but knew I had to schedule it before peak hit. I made a reservation for the first weekend in December, and then called UPS to confirm whether or not he'd be working on Saturdays yet. The office told me he was scheduled for that Saturday...so I called the hotel back and rescheduled for the last weekend of November, thinking we'd celebrate really early...I'd unfortunately made the first reservation through someone's timeshare on Expedia, and couldn't cancel because of his policy, so we have a credit to go another weekend sometime! So the last weekend in November, for David's early birthday, Bishka was so nice to stay with the boys, and she dropped me off in David's car at work, where I sat waiting for him. We went to Midway, and had a nice dinner in a restaurant he'd always wanted to eat at in Heber, watched a movie at the theater he'd always wanted to go to, and slept in the next morning. I thought we could go swimming at the crater, but they were completely booked! We'll definitely have to do that when we head back out to redeem our other weekend.
One more trail run in November with a couple friends, hitting up the BST in Orem/Provo.
David participated in a body transformation challenge at a crossfit gym. For 6 weeks, he watched what he ate, increased his protein intake, and started lifting weights. he had a great time, and saw some great results! We're excited to have him continue!
We started decorating for Christmas!
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