I STILL Can't Believe We Did This

11 Weeks ago Belle and I decided to do something crazy.

We joined the Women Run Arkansas walk/run clinic.

Every Monday and Thursday (give or take a few misses) we joined a group of women at the Conway tracks and practiced building up our endurance. We had everyone from the beginning beginners (Hell-o Billie!) to some speedy little suckers (Hell-o VERY far from Billie!)

When we started we had to walk at our normal gait for 4 minutes and then try to speed walk for 1 minute. As the weeks wore on the times got harder and harder. Until the last week we were there we had to speed walk for 9 minutes and walk normal gait for 1 minute.

Yeah. THIS body is so not used to that.

Neither is my heart.

I really didn't do it for weight loss or anything like that. I basically did it just to see if I could.

And I did.

The Conway Jr. Axillary was in charge of the Girls Run Arkansas team. They had their own little shirts and everything. Belle's group started with about 30ish girls. Saturday, they were down to 3 with Belle being the only walker and the other 2 being runners.

There were nights when I just didn't want to do it. WAY too busy (but honestly...any one that knows me at all knows there literally isn't a single minute of my life that isn't busy anymore) and way too notlookingforwardtothesoreness.

Those nights...my little champion would cheer me on and inform me that we were not going to miss out on exercising.

Um, excuse me little girl. I'm the parent here and what I say goes.

So off we would go.

Her heart is MUCH younger than mine, people.

Anyway, all of this endurance training lead to Saturday morning.

The Women Run Arkansas 5K!


Here is racer #1083 and #1084 up in the wee hours o'tha morning having just ate our peanut butter toast and heading out the door.

We got to the hospital and met our partners!


We got our time chips put on our shoes and waited for it all to start. Over 1300 women from Arkansas showed up and it was an absolute blast! Seriously.

It was fun to see the different groups (shout out to Begina who had to miss with her Cabot group. They were HUGE!) My Conway walk leaders were dressed as faries and they came around to sprinkle farie dust on our feet so we will run faster.

And it was a BEAUTIFUL morning! Mostly cloudy and cool, thank You Jesus!

Belle walked with her instructor and she made it her goal to beat me. So when she jogged to get a good ways ahead of me, I just smiled. I wasn't going to try to keep up. She deserved this, she really did! I stayed and walk/jogged with Nana Shirley and Sharon. And we really had a great time.

And let me just interject here...that is the fiestiest 72 year old woman I know! I had to jog just to keep up with her!

I sucked her under at the finish line, though. She told me to, it's ok.

We were by NO MEANS THE winner, but we WERE winners. (The person who came in first place over all...17 minutes...3.1 miles in 17 minutes!) Tammy did it in 47 and me/Nana/Sharon did it in about 55 minutes.

Belle...50 MINUTES!

I was so stinkin' proud of her, ya'll! And she was proud too! I mean, one night we trained on the Salem trail because it is exactly 3.1 miles. Halfway thru, she screamed "I AM NOT DOING THE RACE!"

But she did.

And she was AWESOME!

I could see her turning around and looking back at me from the front and waving as she would realize she was still beating her Momma!

While we didn't win any medals (we did get a ribbon) we won so much more.

We won this pride (the good kind)

Look at how proud she is!

Oh, and don't forget the girls and their ribbons!


My 2 favorite mens even showed up to support their girls!


Thank you, girls, for a Saturday morning to remember!

And Belle...you ROCK!