How is it at all possible to sum up these last few incredible months of 2015?! I’ll give it a shot….
Here are just a few snippets of awesomeness for your reading and viewing pleasure:
Disney. Hands down travel/play/eat/run/fun highlight of 2015. Holy moly is this place magical. Like for reals. This is no joke people. The house of the mouse really and truly evokes feelings of happiness and excitement. It lived up to every expectation I had (after a 22 year hiatus) and then some. It all started with a half marathon that became the inspiration for one of the greatest group adventures I’ve ever experienced. So what if the half got downgraded to a quarter marathon due to some unfortunate weather? It got us to the wine and dine festival that much faster and sir I am NOT complaining about that. It was freaking magical amazingness all over the place. How much fun was it you ask? Just watch this video. And oh yeah, you might see an appearance by yours truly around the :51 second mark :) Enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xvZRP5JXOQ&sns=em And I can’t talk about the Disney trip and not mention meeting my favorite character of all time. The Little Mermaid. Yes, I waited in line for over an hour to meet her. Surrounded by little girls in tiaras. And it was glorious. We talked about feet and running, and I was totally star struck. Best. Day. Ever. Thank you to Cheri for sticking it out with me. It was so worth the wait!
Family. Like whoah. We had 13 cousins - 7 grandkids and 6 great grandkids - surrounding our 92 year old matriarch at Thanksgiving this year. (Great) Gramma Doris is the absolute jewel of our hearts and I feel so fortunate that we can surround ourselves with our big, crazy, sometimes dysfunctional, but truly loving and always supportive family that spans 4 generations. We are so lucky.
November Project. F@$k yeah! What the heck is November Project you ask? Free, awesome, fun, crazy fitness with the most amazing, ridiculous, fun, outgoing, loud, bright and incredible humans you’ve ever met. So what do you have to do to join? Just show up! Dave and I started going to the workouts on Wednesday mornings at Harvard Stadium in June and we haven’t looked back. It’s been a wild ride and every workout has been glorious. It’s become something that Dave and I really enjoy doing together every week. So we get up at 4:45 every Wednesday and we rock out from 5:30 to 6:30 breaking a sweat and yelling fun things and hugging strangers and making friends. I literally look forward to waking up at the crack of dawn every week to do these workouts and see these amazing people. November Project has helped me become a stronger me physically and competitively, and to step outside of my training comfort zone. I ran my fastest, strongest half marathon this fall - and shaved a whopping 7 minutes off of my personal best time. 7 minutes! Due in no small part to the hard work we get done at November Project each week. I can’t wait to see what we do next!
And the cherry on top of the tail end of 2015 is without question my newest buddy - lil Hylan. It has been so encouraging and motivating to have been matched with Hylan in the I Run 4 program. We’ve only been buds for a short while now, but I so look forward to the updates I get about his work in therapy and the fun times he has with big sis, mom and dad. Just look at that smile! You absolutely can’t deny how powerful it is to make a connection with total strangers and find strength and encouragement from one another when you’ve never even met before. And I’m taking my match to the next level for 2016…the goal I’m dedicating to Hylan is to run one race a month for the entire year, and to work my way towards running 1,000 miles in 2016. It’s crazy and awesome all at the same time. And I’m dedicating every mile to come to my little bud. I Run 4 Hylan!
It’s impossible to call out every amazing moment that happened in 2015, but these highlights from just the last few months really shine a light on just how awesome a year it was. Can’t wait to see what 2016 has in store for us.
Love and light to all for a most delightful New Year!
See you in 2016!