Chicago Marathon Weekend

I’m not a bad blogger, I promise.  I’m just a pregnant woman who moves a little a bit slower than normal.  Honestly, I usually work on my blog at work but our internet at work has been horrible the past month…it takes me all day to my work and there’s no time for blogging.  Long story short, I’m still here.

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This past weekend we traveled to Chicago for the Chicago Marathon.  Obviously, I didn’t get to run for my charity this year, but Willie did.  I’m sad to say that he didn’t finish the marathon.  I’m proud of him for trying.  He has his own reasons for not completing the marathon and I’m not sure it’s really my story to tell.  Willie knew how badly I wanted to represent my charity and a huge part of the reason he was out there was me and my devotion to Action for Healthy Kids.

Being pregnant and constantly having to go up and down this stairs to get on the train is torture. I don't remember having this problem last year when I came to Chicago. It's Chicago Marathon weekend and I'm here to cheer my people on. #travel #travelgram

I walked a total of 28 miles (how ironic because I hit 28 weeks during this trip) and climbed 90 flights of stairs while I was in Chicago.  All of those stairs to get on the L were brutal.  I don’t remember them being that bad last year, haha!  But I did enjoy being able to walk around outside and get my exercise that way.  I promise I walked at least 10 miles on marathon day.

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I was so happy to see Lauren from breathedeeplyandsmile.com.  This girl inspires me to do great running things in life.  Besides that, she’s just a great person and has great energy!  Big congrats to her on her BQ at the race.  She did awesome!

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My friend from home, Shay, also ran the marathon. I had a great time chasing her around the course. I hate I didn’t get to see her at the end, but after finding Willie and getting a train…it was horrible. Willie wasn’t in the best of spirits anyway.

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The biggest reason I even went to Chicago was for Action for Healthy Kids. It completely broke my heart not being able to run this race, but I wanted to be there to represent. There was a nice lunch for all the runners and their families. It was so great to see old and new faces. It just makes me realize how truly blessed I am to find this charity and to be a part of it all. I am hoping to do more in the next year.

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She did awesome and I’m so proud of her because she did great. And of course, she ran for a great cause!

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I have to admit it was a little hard for me to be there this past weekend. We went to the expo and a cried a little bit. Yes, I’m an emotional pregnant woman but I really do miss running marathons. I miss seeing my friends in various cities. I miss the travel. I miss feeling the accomplishment. But this was a growing experience for me. This was the first time I spectated a race. This was the first time I stalked people’s tracking and tried to find them at certain miles. It was fun and exciting and I really feel like I made some people smile. I had a great time and it wasn’t bad at all. This was important for me to do.

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I even made a stop for some touristy stuff but not that much because it’s not really my thing.  I did get to see President Obama’s motorcade after he finished early voting and then we headed to the bean.

It was a great time and I can’t wait to run the marathon next year for Team Action for Healthy Kids! This is the one goal I am setting for next year and it’s far enough away to be prepared for it.