Red Velvet, Ric Rac, Running, and everything in between

Ten years ago around this time something sparked in me.

I had just had Emree in December. I was back to my regular weight, but
wanted to do better.

I became a mad woman.

I taped pictures from the SI Swimsuit magazine, that usually got tossed,
all over the house (in the cabinets, the fridge, even the freezer)....Joey probably didn't mind this part.

I followed the Zone diet, which is basically eating lean meats and veggies and cutting out sugar and white carbs. I did allow myself to have one and only one Hershey's Treasure Toasted Coconut (do they even make those anymore?) a day.
And I began running.


The SI pictures didn't last, and the diet did it's job, but really who could keep that up?

Running is what I kept.

It dawned on me today that it is my ten year anniversary of running.
I have been consistent with it, minus being pregnant and recovering.
It's funny to think back of how far I use to run, what I use to wear, and how fast I ran.

I have been able to clear my head, plan parties, write talks, think of what I should have said in an argument, think of ways to parent better,
cry, laugh, dance, and
bond with the dog all while running.

I have run two marathons, one half, a 15k, a 10k, and many many 5ks.
I run a minimum of 6 miles on a weekday and I do 10 on Saturday.
I wake up early and do it in the dark.
I see shooting stars almost every morning (who doesn't want to wake up to that?!)
I get to run through walls of garbage smell (on garbage days), orange blossoms, jasmine, and the smell of sprinklers on.
I've had a couple things that have hurt, but nothing major (knocking on wood right now.)
I have had encounters with a bull mastiff, a hog, and swallowing bugs.
I have had rough runs where I pooped my pants (seriously, isn't that disgusting?! tmi??...sorry)
and I've had great runs where I really feel like I could run all day.

Happy anniversary to me.
I'm going to go kiss my running shoes.