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{run happy}

Run happy

I'm not a runner.

Well, that's what I tell myself anyway.

My girls were signed up to participate in Girls on the Run (GOTR) through their school. It is a wonderful program that promotes girl empowerment by teaching life skills through lessons and running. The goal is to run a 5K and celebrate their accomplishments. Both the girls' dad and I agreed to be their running buddies. So we all had some work to do to be ready.

Then the world stopped.

We decided to train at home during this stay-at-home order. We had the time. We had places to run. The fresh air was good. No excuses. Maybe a few grumbles.

As a family, we ran. Sometimes a mile. Sometimes a mile and a half. Sometimes two. It wasn't ever easy. Or fun. What mattered was that we did it together and the running made a difference (more for us than them).

We ran in the morning, sometimes lunchtime, or after all our school work was done. We ran in the cold, the rain, and the sun all through the end of March and April. Some days were easier and others were harder. But truth be told: We all felt better after running and attitudes improved. (Staring at laptops and devices for school most of the day makes us crabby!)

We set our goal for a May 1st 5K on the girls' birthday. A BIG celebration!



Our second 5K was on the official GOTR day on May 16th. We did it again! (And took two minutes off our time!)



Do I consider myself a runner yet? Maybe.

But I did splurge and buy these fun running shoes to remind myself to .... run happy. 

 Maybe I'll be able to say ... I am a runner.

Because you know, we are still running every day as a family.


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Comments

  1. JudyMay 21, 2020 at 6:10 PM

    Way to go girls & Mom & Dad! A great way to grow closer as a family and enjoy the outdoors. Love the shoes! Hope they fit well and helped with the running! Love ya, Mom

    ReplyDelete
  2. JulieMay 21, 2020 at 8:01 PM

    I love those shoes! And this family activity is awesome. I need to get my people in on this!

    ReplyDelete
  3. MandyMay 22, 2020 at 8:06 AM

    YES, you are a runner and how wonderful of you to rise to the occasion to keep something going for the girls before the pandemic. Congratulations.

    ReplyDelete
  4. elsieMay 22, 2020 at 10:54 AM

    Absolutely you are a runner, but even more you are a runner who writes! Congrats on the events and the shoes.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Ruth AyresMay 22, 2020 at 2:47 PM

    LOVE your new shoes! I always feel like I am becoming a runner...it is such a good feeling to finish a run. My favorite moment is always when I know I'm going to make it to the end. :) Happy running...(or more accurately) Happy finished-a-run!

    ReplyDelete
  6. AnonymousMay 23, 2020 at 1:26 PM

    Cheers to you all! Kudos to you for keeping the habit and not stopping once you had reached the original goal of 5K.

    ReplyDelete
  7. LoraleeMay 25, 2020 at 5:14 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

    ReplyDelete
  8. LoraleeMay 25, 2020 at 5:14 AM

    You ARE a runner! How good for your mind and heart to be running with the girls through all of this!

    ReplyDelete

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