We did it!

I am very behind in updating everyone on how the half-marathon went. The day was such a blur and completely amazing. Amanda (my running partner) and I actually got things off to a rough start by being late into our wave. Stupid lines at the port-a-potties! But then we were rocking and rolling!

Most of you know that we were trying to run the race in under 2 hours. This is a goal I've had since I came *really* close a few years ago when I ran the National Half-Marathon in D.C. (my time then was 2:01:28). Since that day, I have run a marathon, moved to the Philippines and back, and made some pretty futile attempts to get back into running shape. All of that changed when I signed up for the Richmond Half-Marathon this fall.  I decided to run this race for a cause (a first for me), and it was perfect, because the race takes place in November, which is National Adoption Month. I had recently learned about an organization called Show Hope, which is run by Steven Curtis Chapman and Mary Beth Chapman (if you knew me as the dorky child I was, you know that I was jamming out to Steven Curtis Chapman's hit "Great Adventure" back in the 80's).

In case you are wondering--NO, I did not just watch that video and sing every line correctly, including the back-up harmonies. That's ridiculous...also, I should say that his music has definitely made some progress over the years. Back to the blog, though.

In my head, I thought....well, if I'm running for a cause maybe that will motivate me to focus on my training and really run this race well. Warning: I'm going to be sappy for a minute here. I owe a lot (a LOT LOT) of my success to my running partner, Amanda. She wrote a blog post that included some very nice things about me and how I pushed her to set a new PR, and I think that's what is so cool about running. Neither of us would've done as well without the other person. It's not that I'm a great runner or that she has broken any world records--but together, we were able to train and run harder and faster than we would've been able to do alone. Man, that's a whole other blog post by itself...

Anyway, after the race, I told Amanda that I knew at mile 3 that we were going to come in under 2 hours. I don't know how I knew that, but I was feeling incredible. She was nervous, because as the time-keeper, she knew I was going too fast. I couldn't help it! In the end, everything worked out okay, and I came in at 1:56:42--so, with time to spare! We also (amazingly) caught up with some friends after the race to celebrate our victories. I say amazingly because of the craziness of Brown's Island.

We are SO Richmond in this picture.

 I posted on Facebook the night before the race that we had raised over $1000 to help orphans get placed in their families, and I knew that the support of everyone was going to help me during the race. It did! I felt great most of the race, but anytime I started to feel tired, I remembered why I had even signed up to do this race in the first place. It was all about Show Hope. My personal goal just added a level of interest, and I knew I'd be much more excited to talk to people about it if I had met my time goal as well. So that pushed me to run harder, too.

We look good, ya know?

Thanks so much for the support on the course, but most importantly, thanks for the support for Show Hope and my heart for orphans. Even if you were not able to give financially, it's clear to me that my family and friends are with me in this cause, and that means so much to me. I cannot express my gratitude enough.

November 10, 2012 will always be a really special day for me. Thanks for being a part of it as we showed hope for orphans! Let's continue to think of ways to do that in the upcoming year! Maybe it's your turn to run a race for a cause...