A short note to say "I survived!"

I know I have been silent since getting on a plane and flying to Orlando for the Walt Disney World Marathon Weekend. Sorry about that. I have been having too much fun to sit down and blog! But because I am so excited, I am posting this while laying in bed at 5:15am after sending 'good luck' texts to my friends who at this very moment are preparing to start either their Full Marathon, Marathon Relay, or the second part of their Goofy (that's 39.3 miles -- 13.1 of which they ran yesterday).

I am SO EXCITED to announce that I finished my two races this weekend! First, my son and I ran the Fiesta 5K on Friday morning at 6:30am through Epcot. This was my son's first race ever and he did very well! I am so proud of him! And, my cousins Doug and his daughter Ciara also ran it with us. It was a blast!

And the next day, I competed in the Half Marathon through the Magic Kingdom and Epcot! Oh my gosh!! What an amazing experience! I will post a more reflective article later about it. But the important thing is: I finished the race!!! I am now officially an endurance runner and Half Marathoner! My official finish time was 2 hours, 29 minutes, and 1 second. I cannot even begin to tell you how amazing it felt crossing that finish line!

To everyone who have been praying for me and encouraging me, I give many thanks. What an awesome ride this has been! Now I will get dressed and head over for my Sports Massage (oh yeah, the feet, legs, and knees are very achy right now) which I definitely deserve. Then I will head to Epcot to cheer on my friends Beth, Mike, Vicky, Eva, Dave, and all my WISH racing teammates!

Runs, Weight Loss... and Disney here I come!

Last weekend I had a church mission trip overnight Friday through Saturday late afternoon. So I could not get in my usual Saturday morning long run. So, I ended up going to LifeTime afterwards and getting a quick 2.5 miles in on the Treadmill before meeting up with my son to have some father/son time.

Then on Sunday, we had fantastic morning weather for a change! So I was able to run 3.8 miles (3 miles at a 12:04 pace) and felt really strong! I could have run more but I had to go to weigh in at Weigh Watchers and needed to get home and shower! The coolest thing on my run was passing two deer on the side of the run path. They just looked up at me as I ran by but they didn't get spooked or anything! I wish I had brought my camera! I guess they figured "He's not wearing an orange vest and he's not armed. No problem!" How cool is that?!!

I returned home, showered, changed, and went to Weight Watchers. I weighed in and WOW! I lost 5.8 lbs since last weekend! I was SO excited! I had weighed myself before and after my run and the difference was only 1/2lb so I knew that those 5lbs were real! That just made my day!!! I am now officially passed the 90 lb total loss milestone! I am going to break 100 lbs lost by August for sure!

Disney here I come!

So I have been texting with my 'running muse' Beth the past week about tips and what events we are doing, and she was talking about her upcoming Disneyland race this fall. Now Beth ran in the Disney World Half Marathon this past January and said it was an awesome experience. So she is running in another 'Run Disney' event. It got me thinking... I love Disney, and I would love to run a race there. Do I think I can meet the challenge? I have three races already scheduled between now and October -- would I be able to train and prepare for a half marathon (my first one)?

Well, after talking with several other runner buddies, my trainer, my daughter, and my wife, I have decided to GO FOR IT! I registered tonight for both the Disney World Family Fun 5K (January 6) and the Disney World Half Marathon (January 7) next year! We will make it a family post-Christmas vacation -- it has been over five years since we were at Walt Disney World so it is about time, right?

I am totally psyched for this event!! My daughter is going to run the 5K with me and I hope to get the other two kids to join me as well. Then I will do the Half Marathon. This will mark a significant milestone in my running journey and a personal achievement that I would not even have dreamed of attempting six months ago.

I will be asking for prayers as I prepare for this. I am confident (well, mostly) that I can do this and I have great people who will support and advise me along the way. I will succeed!