November: Turkey Trot

Nothing like a Turkey Trot to get you ready for the Thanksgiving feast!

This was my second year to run the Turkey Trot here in Houston, and I do believe this event is one of my favorites. It's a HUGE event - we're talking 15,000 people participating! The course is also through Uptown, which is just awesome. We run along streets that are usually jam-packed with traffic, so it's a cool feeling to be there on foot and in the middle of the road. Of course, 15,000 people just creates a different kind of traffic.


The Mister and I ran the 5k. One, because it's cheaper. Two, because it's shorter. And three, because there was a FEAST waiting! Can't have Turkey Trot time cutting into turkey time, can we?

I went into the run aiming to finish in under 35 minutes. I figured that was a realistic goal for the pace I'd been running while training, and I felt that it left enough wiggle room for stroller-dodging and human traffic jams. I'm happy to report that we crossed the finish line at 34:46! I am definitely proud of that time, and meeting a goal is such a good motivator.

The trot was festive, the crowd was lively, and the weather was beautiful. And best of all? Guilt free dessert!

Have you ever run a Turkey Trot?

May: 5k Foam Fest

Have I mentioned how much I love fun runs?

I love the themes and the after-parties and the costumes and the crowds and all the festivities.  The 5k Foam Fest was a 5k run with obstacles, which was so fun!  Most of the big obstacles were inflatables.  And they were covered in foam.  And I loved it.  We also climbed over a rope net, crawled under some wires through the mud, ran across a floating path, and crossed the finish line by going down a huge inflatable slide. So. Fun.

Go get some exercise! You'll have a blast, I just know it.

April: Rusty's Run

Spring time!  I love this time of year - the flowers are blooming and the trees are sprouting their new leaves.  Colors are their brightest and nature is just having a party.  Which is basically how I feel at the end of winter.  I am so happy when the cold, wet, rainy days finally give way to some sunshine.  Summer will be here before you know it!

Every year, the weekend before Easter, my church has a Spring Fling, complete with face painting, inflatables, snacks, games, a silent auction, and an Easter egg hunt.  There is also the annual Rusty's Run - a 5k fun run with a 1k race for the kiddos.  

I took this one easy and, per tradition, brought the pupsqueak.  The mister wanted to compete this year, so he took off while we moseyed around the course with my friend Carly, enjoying the fresh air and sunshine.

It was a lovely, low-key fun run with lots of friends and lots of laughter.  Jessie-dog had a blast meeting all the other pups and being generally ridiculous (per the usual).  The mister got 4th place over all and won his bracket.  The prize is bragging rights and smack talk until next year's event.  Ha.

Rusty's Run is one of my favorite church traditions because it gets whole families out playing and exercising in the sunshine.  The weather is warming up, and we can all play outside again!  Spring is here!

February: HAWC Race Against Violence

Round two!

For February, I ran the Race Against Violence 5k supporting the Houston Area Women's Center.  HAWC assists survivors of domestic and sexual abuse get back on their feet.  The center hosts families until they can rebuild and restart.  My firm has chosen HAWC as one of the charities we are supporting this year, so there were several of us there to participate.  I love that something as simple as a 5k can do so much good in our community! 

So if you'll recall from my new year's resolution post, the whole idea of this resolution was to keep me exercising regularly.  Yeah, no.  Pretty sure I only ran about five times between the Choco Loco 5k and this one.  And I was huffing and puffing to show it.  Well, I guess I did succeed in creating some consequence for my lack of discipline!  Motiviation, I suppose.

Panting or no, I'm glad I turned out for this run.  The weather was incredible - just chilly enough to make you look forward to breaking a sweat.  It was so fun to have some other friends out on the course as well!

Rose (on the left) killed it.  She's training for the Bearathon in Waco, proudly advertised as the hardest half marathon in Texas.  

Sean did not kill it because he's sweet and ran with me instead.  And what I mean by "ran" is that he picked his feet up a little higher while walking so I could pretend we were running together.  He's basically the fastest human I've ever met, but I love that for some of these casual runs he hangs back with me.  I'll have to step up my game and make him actually jog next time.  It'll be intense.  Or not.

Stay tuned for March - I'm riding my first ever bike road race.  On a bike I've only used a couple of times.  That should be interesting...

January: Choco Loco 5k

One down, eleven to go!

For January, I ran the Choco Loco 5k.  Get this - you run your 3.1 miles around the lovely Uptown Park area in Houston, and finish it off with a chocolate buffet.  Hey there, motivation!

The course was lovely.  I work in the Galleria area and drive by Uptown Park all the time.  I didn't realize, though, that there is a secret neighborhood behind it.  Winding little streets, beautiful houses, and all those old trees.  Lovely, I tell you.

What we did not bet on for this race was the arctic conditions!  It was below 40^o!  And y'all, for a Houston girl, that is COLD.  But do you know what goes perfectly with a chilly January morning?

Hot chocolate!

and chocolate covered strawberries!
and chocolate covered bananas!
and chocolate covered pretzels!
and chocolate chip cookies!
and maybe a brownie bite or two...

Yeah, I was pretty excited about that chocolate buffet.  Sean was a little less motivated by the chocolate and just wanted to get somewhere with a heater.  Once my fingers went numb, I had to agree.  Especially when all the chocolate fountain goodness froze together on my plate.

I had a great time with this first run of 2014.  For me, these themed runs give me something to look forward to, rather than just lacing up and taking to the road.  I know there's something special at the end, and a little adventure along the way.

Happy resolutions!