one day in Hanover just isn't enough

Right after we ran 26.2 miles and crossed the finish line, we walked a few more miles. 

Really, we did. 

The security was so tight near the finish we had to walk about a half mile past the finish line just to find a break in the rails and wrap around (waaaaaay around) to head back to our transportation...near Fenway Park. I think we walked close to three miles. And, although we were exhausted, it was probably the best thing we could have done. Because then we sat down and ate some giantly delicious burgers and then piled in Cat's car to sit some more while we drove a few hours back to beautiful New Hampshire. 

Initially we were planning to stay in Hanover for a few days after the race, but our plans changed when we decided to travel abroad instead, so we had about 8 hours to fit everything in. 

The highlight of my day should have been walking around Tuck or lunching at Lou's with some of my ladies or eating delicious Morano Gelato. And those really were high, high up on my list. But the highlight was probably seeing Ryan limp down the Pyfer's front steps. 

You guys, it was hilarious. 

A full flight of stairs just to get to the car. After the extra walking and a nice ice bath I wasn't even really sore at all by this point (my toes were pretty banged up...), but Ryan was another story. I have a video, but I'm smart enough to not post it. 

Really, though, we loved walking around Tuck again, chatting with the ever-adored Sally and fabulous Dean Slaughter and finding Ryan's famous portrait that resides in a classroom hallway (and I love that he just happened to be wearing the same shirt!). Lunch at Lou's with the Hawkins, Ashley and Candace (who left before our picture!!!) was perfect and Gelato with the Kolstes was the icing on the cake. Spring really is beautiful in New Hampshire and I'm so glad we were able to visit, even if it was for less than a day.  

Easter in Boston

It was a blessing and a curse to have Easter fall on marathon weekend. A blessing because we got to spend it with our New Hampshire family and a curse because we had to spend it away from our own little family! 

Michelle, Andrea and I set out in the morning to go to church, only to find the congregation we had chosen was actually having an area conference that morning and they were meeting in a different building across town. It felt strange to not go to church on Easter Sunday, but we really did try! 

Later in the afternoon, Brennan and Liz were wonderful hosts at Brennan's parents' beautiful home just outside of Boston. We were so excited to see so many of our friends from Tuck all reunited! It actually felt like we were living in Sachem Village again, the community center just turned into a beautiful, spacious home instead! 

I don't have many pictures because my phone was playing DJ for the evening. But, we had an egg hunt for all the kids (who have all grown a foot since I last saw them!), enjoyed some warm rays of sunshine and filled our bellies with some delicious food to get some energy for race day. I had such a great time catching up with so many incredible friends. And being with them again helped to ease some of the butterflies starting to accumulate in my stomach as I anticipated the race. 

I opted to not eat dessert, but instead got to see a picture of my sweet girls in their Easter best. Knowing they were happy and being taken care of was the icing on the cake!

ca travelogue part three: Tuck family

Mother Nature tried her very best to ruin the second part of my trip. Really, she did. But does she really think she even holds a candle to my Tuck family? Dartmouth is in New Hampshire, after all. California rain has NOTHING on New Hampshire weather. Give us some credit!

I spent the next few days at the Holbrook's house in the east bay. I planned to run a 14 miler on some trails near her house Friday morning, but with the rain, logistics of shuttling kids around, not knowing the area and (honestly) just not wanting to spend a few hours of my precious time running solo in a strange place, I opted for five miles on a beautifully rainy trail with Michelle instead. 

And, because we had extra time, we made a pit stop at Johnny's donuts (I promise, I usually eat 1-2 donuts a YEAR, not two in two days) and Trader Joe's. I think we made the right choice. 

Friday night we ordered in Chinese food and watched the athletes from the USA enter the stadium in Sochi in their horrific sweaters. I was wearing some pretty crazy pants that day, and I still think those sweaters were ridiculous. 

Saturday the lovely Andrea drove up from Mountain View and we all drove into the city together for a fabulous girl's day. Though, we made sure to invite sweet little Beau, who I was so excited to meet! 

We didn't get to do everything on our wish list (which was way too ambitious to begin with), but we did get in some serious shopping (even down to the matching cardigans -  how did we not get a picture?), serious walking (as in probably 10 miles) and serious eating (um, a LOT of eating). 

This picture is as close to the Golden Gate Bridge as we got - the rain forbade us from seeing even a corner. 

Our boots were soaked through, our umbrellas bent skyward and we even lost a hat or two. But, we filled our bellies with sourdough bread, our faces were sore from smiling and laughing and I even completed my donut trifecta for the weekend at Trish's Mini Donuts at Fisherman's Wharf. Why not, right? 

 

 

 

A fabulous few days with some ladies who became my family during our stint as north easterners. Can't wait to see them and their families in Boston!