Happy Monday! Or, should I say, Happy Long Weekend!
I swear, I needed this three-day weekend more than anything. Work has been pretty busy (and stressful) the last few weeks, Dr. G. has had quite a bit of work travel lately (um, Hawaii, really?!), and the first day of school can’t come fast enough (tomorrow, finally!).
With August by in a flash and life being so hectic lately, we decided to lay low this weekend, with really only one thing on our agenda: the PawSox 5K in Pawtucket, RI.
For my non-New England friends, the PawSox are the AAA affiliate of the craptastic Boston Red Sox and this 5K benefits the team’s charitable foundation. I wasn’t really looking fora 5K to run in late August (!) but the race began with some kids races, which I thought Buddy would enjoy. And I had a feeling there might be a chance encounter with their mascot, Paws (which would make one of my kids happy; the other, ehh, not so much.)
We drove down on Saturday morning and got Buddy all registered for the kids races, which began about an hour before the 5K. The kiddos would be running all along the warning track, which my baseball-obsessed son thought was awesome.
Now here’s the scoop on Buddy and running. The kid is FAST. But distance and stamina? Not so much. He’s only participated in one other kids race about two years ago, which was a 1/2 mile and an utter disaster. But he really wanted to try, so he lined up with the rest of the kids for the first race, the 200 meter dash.
Now granted, he was one of the older kids there, but ever the competitor (hmmm, where did he get that from?),you can tell he was taking this pretty seriously.
And sure enough, as soon as he heard the word “Go!”, he was off, building up such a considerable lead it wasn’t even close. He cruised over the finish line with a big smile on his face (and slightly short of breath). “My first time winning a race!” he said.
He decided to opt out of the 100 yard dash and wait for the 50 yard distance — definitely his area, being much more of a sprinter and less a distance guy.
Even Mimi joined in, pink Crocs and all. [Which took me by surprise … and explains the lack of photos of Mimi’s first race. Sorry, Meems.]
One girl to Buddy’s left got a fraction of a second head start and you could tell that really bothered him. He sped off, keeping his eye on her the whole time, until he eventually passed her and won for the second time that morning!
Go, Buddy!
Even Miss Mimi got into the action, finishing NOT LAST (as Buddy likes to point out), which I think is pretty darn awesome for a 3-year-old sprinting in Crocs.
After collecting his second prize (a PawSox notebook and poster of the team), we wandered over to the dugout because when else will be on the field like this?!
We still had about 20 minutes to kill until my race, so we just wandered around the stadium. Let me say that races that have a stadium as their home base are the best. Kid-friendly, plenty of real bathrooms, lots for the kids to see. Just something to keep in mind.
Eventually, it was time to line up and I situated myself in the middle of the 7:00/minute pace pack. Yes, I know I am more of an 8:00 girl, but it was a small field (but chock full of elite-looking runners, all who seemed to be in my age group, grrrr) and I was going to try for that sub-25.
I ran that first mile in 7:45. 7:45?!? OMG. I have never run that fast in a race before. Like ever. The best part? I wasn’t even too pooped as the second mile began, only slowing to an 8:04ish pace, which still put me on track for sub-25.
I totally thought I had it. I really did. But I slowed a bit going into that last .50 and then my music died, and as we rounded the corner back into the stadium, it struck me I was going to have to run all the way around the field on the warning track (similar to the kids) to the finish line. And that got into my head because it seemed soooooo far.
In the end, my final time was 25:13, pace of 8:08, and — as I suspected — good enough for 6th (out of 41) in the 30-39 age group. Which is still pretty awesome — and my fastest 5K of the year. Overall, I was the 16th female finisher out of nearly 400 runners. Not too shabby.
On the way out, we posed for some silly pictures …
… then headed home because we had a special appointment on the calendar.
Someone was finally getting her first haircut. At the age of 3.
Honestly, I haven’t really needed to cut her hair before. It’s so fine and curly that even though it reaches halfway down her back when combed and wet, its springs up into ringlets just past her shoulders.
But lately I’ve been noticing the pieces of hair framing her face on either side are not as curly as the rest of her hair, making those pieces appear longer than the rest.
So off we went to Kingdom Cuts, where Buddy used to have his hair cut as a little boy. Mimi’s stylist took maybe an inch off and layered the front and voila!
Its still pretty long but dries to a curly bob that is actually … gasp … manageable. She looks so freaking cute. Hello, Shirley Temple!
Since then, we’ve succeeded in staying low, trying to tackle some lingering house projects, etc., which is good, because I came down with a fever on Sunday afternoon and felt miserable and nauseous all day. Blecch. Although maybe it’s another sign that I really, really needed these three days off.
The bummer, though? No long run for me this weekend. Although I did get a fast 5K in, which is better than nothing. And hopefully I’ll be feeling better today to get all of Buddy’s things ready for his first day of SECOND GRADE tomorrow!
How was your holiday weekend? Did you race? Cookout? Tackle house projects?
[…] a 5K race and the HMF KidsFit Run! I kind of wish my family were coming with me because Buddy (fresh off his success at the PawSox 5K Kids Run) would love this. All FitKids races are $10 and offer several […]