Update from Charleston 5k

I was so proud of myself.  We hit our goal of finishing the race but we surpassed another goal.  I wanted to run 1 of the miles and walk 2 miles.  Instead I ran more than 2 miles and walked less than one.  I was so proud.  My next goal is to run/walk the Cooper River Bridge Run which is a 10k.  Wish me luck.

Ready or not here I run (or walk)

If you know me well, you might find this amusing because I am not athletic at all:  I was on the crew/rowing team at College of Charleston my fall semester, freshman year.

My dear friend and roommate, Kelly Parker talked me into going to the informational meeting with her.  It then became a challenge to myself that I could do it.  After all it was just for one semester.  Well, the first 10 weeks of practice I never saw the water, we ran, at 5:30am every morning, all around the peninsula of Charleston and did rotations on the stairs at the Customs House for 30 minutes (torturous).  The first morning of practice they split us into two groups: those who've done sports before and those who haven't.  My roommate was in the first category and I was in the latter.  We ran and we ran and we ran and I was always in the back of the pack.  But I never quit...I did it- it was totally mental.

The week before a big regatta we were doing a practice race on the erg machines in the gym.

I rowed so hard I got a first-degree burn on my rear.  That's right I rowed so hard that I rubbed the first few layers of skin off my rear.  That was painful.  At the end of the season I won the award for the "Best Injury."  Needless to say, I didn't sign up join the sprint racing team in the spring.

I had always had this idea subconsciously looming in my head that I couldn't do it: be athletic, be on a team, survive.  It was wonderful to overcome that.  I KNEW that I could do it.  Thanks Kelly for encouraging me.

That was more than 10 years ago.  Now, two babies later, and I've fallen into this mental rut again.  One of my best friends wanted to do a 5k and so I agreed...not hesitant, but excited, knowing it will force me to conquer this again.  We looked online and chose the "Shrimp and Grits 5k" in Charleston.  It's part of the Charleston Marathon.

So last week (yes I waited til the week before to "train") a friend of mine came over.  We both loaded up our children in our double jogging strollers and went on a walk/jog.  I should note, Christy is a runner and was sweet enough to keep pace with me the little we jogged.  When I began jogging, within five steps, well let's just say after giving birth I don't have great control of my bladder anymore.  I yelled up to my friend what was happening and we just laughed, that's all you can do, right?  I was also laughing because when I began jogging my daughter started yelling "yay mommy! mommy run, mommy run!"

So, Shrimp and Grits 5k, ready or not, here I come.  It's supposed to be 30 degrees at 8am.  Hmmm.  I'll post pictures and tell you how it goes.  Our goal: to finish.  We are going to walk mostly and jog a little.

Chalmers Street

Chalmers Street is the longest remaining cobblestone street in downtown Charleston, SC.

Chalmers Street has a special place in my heart for two reasons.

#1  I walked in heels and my wedding gown down Chalmers Street to have my bridal portraits taken.

This is my favorite one:

I just love this street.

#2  Among pregnant women in Charleston, Chalmers Street has a reputation for being the bumpiest. Many women swear by riding up and down Chalmers Street after their due date comes and goes to jumpstart labor.  I had multiple friends encourage me to do so.  So, on February 26, 2011 our family of three went downtown Charleston.  At the end of our day together my husband, Brandon, drove us up and down Chalmers Street.

Our little girl, Myra Grace, fell asleep before we went down the second time.

Chalmers Street is full of centuries worth of history and also a little bit of history for our family of four.

You might be wondering if it worked.  Did I go into labor?  To read the full story of what we did that day click here.  To read Mackey's introduction to the blogging world visit here.