Hastings Half Marathon

Hastings Half Marathon...What do I say about you!  I am so glad I had no clue what the course was like!!  I did research and read about it and I had a few people tell me, "Oh, that is very brave, it is a tough course.." But I had no clue that at mile 9, YES, MILE 9, I would still be climbing uphill.  But I knew that if I went up then I would eventually have to come down and we did.  Oh, it was wonderful once we started the downhills!! 

This was a really fun race because of all the people along the course to cheer you on.  Bless those people that were handing out oranges!  I have never enjoyed an orange so much.

This is Grace and I before the race... wondering what in the world we had gotten ourselves into. 

The boys were great troopers and played at a park while we ran! 
I have the best husband for encouraging me to run races!

 

 

At the end!!  2:12!!!  Could not believe it.  Not the best picture but Ben wanted to see mommy, so Allen snapped a quick one, while holding Ben.  The best finish ever, seeing my hubby and Ben cheering me on at the end!!

 

 

 

 

It was a great race!!  The best part is realizing that even though I am a busy mommy, I can still run the race.  I love the time by myself.  As I was running up the hills that I thought would never end, the Lord brought to mind all the verses about running the race of life with perseverence.  We do not know the course laid out for us, but the Father does and he will give us the strength to handle what lays before us.  Sometimes, life is like miles 3-5 where it is just a slow steady uphill with no reprieve.  Sometimes, it is like miles 6-9 steep uphills with little bits of reprieve and lots of oranges and cheering along the way.  Oh, how I hope and pray that I will run the race with perseverence and at the end the Father will say, Well done my good and faithful child!