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| Mid-Race. I was a little less tired. Then again, I ran for 5 hours less.... |
The weekend of the 22nd, I got to go to Austin to visit 2 amazing friends. I haven't been there since 2006.
I met Byron at a wedding in 2002 (you can go
here to refresh your memory) and I've been friends with Suzette for 22 years now! We met when I first moved to Texas.
So I went down to run part of a marathon with Byron. He had asked if I could come about 4 months ago. I, of course, was worried. I may work out a lot, but I'm not exactly a runner. I told him I would run the last 5 miles with him. I started training a little bit, and the other day I called him and said, "Hey! I ran 5 miles- it took me about an hour. I'll try to keep it up." At that point, he basically said, "Christin, stop training. I run a 15 minute mile- and it will be slower by that point." So I decided I would walk the last 9 miles with him and stop training. :-)
It was so wonderful to see him and his family again. His boys have grown up so much and they were so cute and funny. I loved hearing, "Miss Christin! Miss Christin!" Zion always wanted to help with everything and is so animated in the way he talks. I was cracking up the whole weekend. His oldest is Phoenix and he is just such a cool 6 year old. There's definitely a grown up in there. And Exodus is a little too small to comprehend all the excitement, but he is such a sweetheart.
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| Yes, I am holding a 4 year old and a 2 year old |
I flew in on Friday afternoon. Byron and I's first stop was to Mighty Fine for a delicious cheeseburger and a strawberry lemonade milkshake. mmmm...so healthy. haha. Then we drove home, took showers, and went to pick up the race packet and some power gels. That night we met Suzette and her husband Jon at Chez Zee for dinner. It was so fun to just sit around and talk with everyone. I couldn't believe that I was sitting there with these two friends and their spouses and it was just kind of magical. (Maybe it was the Christmas lights hanging from the ceiling...). Anyways, we all agreed the food was good, but not amazing. What WAS amazing was the chocolate pumpkin cheesecake I devoured, the gooey chocolatey thing Tara had, and the Lemon Rosemary cake Suzette and Jon shared. Next time I think we'll just go for desert. I couldn't believe how much I ate!
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| Chez Zee |
That night I slept forever, to the concern of Byron's kids, who wondered when I was ever going to wake up. I had only slept for 3 hours the night before, so I didn't get up until almost 11, right when Byron was ready for me to join him. I quickly got up and got ready and his wife Tara drove me out to the race. He was doing awesome- I started at mile 17. I walked while he ran and we talked constantly for 2 and a half hours. The scenery was beautiful, and I love to just see how green everything was. We even saw some Longhorns and a deer! He finished the race at 7hr and 17 minutes. The sheer endurance to keep that up is beyond me and I was so soo impressed. He may have teared up a little at the end, and his family was all there to meet him at the finish line. So fun!
Afterwards, we showered and went to get massages and then stopped at Rudy's barbeque for the 2nd most amazing barbeque in the world. Amazing creamed corn. Delicious ribs and brisket.
mmmmmmmmmmmmm...!
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| Reward time. mmmm..... |
I definitely felt like I was back in Texas- and I loved every second of it.
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| Zion, my little buddy |
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| Tara, Byron, & Me |
mmmmmmmmmmmmm...!
5 comments:
Sounds like you had a ton of fun and getting to catch up with old friends is so nice. I am amazed that the two of you could run that far. I realize he ran further but still it is far for both of you. Congrats is in order. The food sounded amazing and I wish I could have been there. I almost teared up when I realized you were in Texas and I was stuck in Idaho still. The most important thing I am grateful for is that you said it was the SECOND best brisket you'd ever had. Thanks for that!
That wasn't your mothers comment it was mine. Stupid gmail anyway!
I knew when you said, "I almost teared up when I heard you were in Texas...." that it was you. Mom doesn't have quite the same soft spot for Texas that we do. :-)
You're so right!! Texas wouldn't make me tear up unless we were moving back there!! I loved the people (most of them) but will pass on everything else:0)
So glad you had fun with Suzette and Byron and his darling family!!!
p.s. Your haircut looks good!(In the picture AFTER you took a shower:0) lol
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