My first 10K!

Me and Matthew freezing (it was like 45 or 50 which is cold here) while we wait for it to begin.

Nancy (my college friend who married my brother-in-law, in red above) and I just before the race started.
I went over to Yuma to participate in my first 10K run. There aren't many here in Tucson that aren't on Sundays. It worked out perfectly that they had a 10K in Yuma because Nathaniel's parents and brother's family live there so we were able to have a little vacation as well as training.
We left on Thursday afternoon to get some play time in before the run. We were able to spend Thursday and Friday playing with the kids cousins which is always such a good time. It gives us Moms and Dads a little break to visit with each other. My husband, Coach Sorenson, was giving me advice as to what I needed to do to be ready for the "big run". He ran track in high school and coached high school track in Utah so I lean on him for counsel. He had me run a couple of miles on Friday morning and then he fixed a delicious spaghetti dinner for us that night. He encouraged me to get to bed early, which I did, but found I couldn't sleep. I was too excited. How old am I? I had run that far several times before, so I didn't think this should be something that keeps me from sleep. Anyway, I woke up before the alarm went off and got ready to go. My brother-in-law Matthew decided to go and keep my husband company while I ran. I was happy to have him. He's the best! The run was going to kick off a parade that I was unaware of and that made it kinda fun. As we began there were people lining the streets cheering us on. It felt like my own private cheering squad drowned out by my ipod. I felt a little discouraged as the 5K runners turned around to finish their race and we continued on, only to find out there was only 1 person behind me. I didn't think I was that slow. I had to remind myself that there weren't that many people signed up for the 10K but it didn't really help. Coach told me before the race that I wasn't out to beat anyone but myself and I had to remind myself of that every 2 minutes or so. I stayed right at pace with the old guy (in the bottom picture) and that was a little embarrassing. He's twice my age. But I haven't been running my whole life either. Nathaniel and Matthew were waiting for me at about 5 miles and cheered me on. How cute are they! Anyway, I finished in a whopping 65 minutes and did beat the old guy and 6 other people that I passed in the last mile. No records broken, but it was fun for me to do. I was happy to see Nancy at the end (I had conned her into doing the 5K) and proud that we had both accomplished something that although it may not be huge for some people, it was a step for us. We both plan to increase our distance in the near future.
We had a fun Valentine BBQ at the castle park (the world's best park ever) and then we had to get on the road. It was a great weekend! It always is with Nana, Papa, and the other Sorenson's!