July 2017

Fireworks and sparklers and races: BAMRs run July 4

For U.S. mother runners, July 4 is more than an excuse to eat your weight in hot dog while waving Old Glory. More runners than ever celebrated the United States’ birthday last year by lacing up and running 5K, 10K, or 1776K. OK. Maybe not that last one…

The biggest July 4 race is Atlanta’s Peachtree Road Race (which is fixing to be a steamy one this year so hydrate y’all). But BAMRs don’t have to be in the ATL to pin on a bib and shoot out of the corral like a firework!

Like Anne Even, who runs the Lander, Wyoming, half marathon every year.

Anne says, “Here I am with my six month old twins that I pushed in their stroller. They are eight now! This year will be my 11th year of the Lander Half. I’ve done it every year I’ve lived here and will do it until I’m an old lady!”

And Cassie Cyr, who ran the Keene, New Hampshire, Four on the 4th Road Race.

Cassie says, “It’s always fun, hot and energetic!”

And Camille Murphy Giullian, who took on a virtual 5K after having her first baby.

Camille says, “It was 90 degrees in Florida but we did it. My husband did push the stroller and his walking speed was about as fast as my running but I was so excited to get back into it.”

And Heidi Mathis, whose race wasn’t actually on July 4.

Heidi says, “I don’t remember what the specific race was but the theme was USA and I think the picture screams patriotism.”

And a two-fer! Both Cathy Schmit and Erin Abramson ran the Red, White and Boom in Minneapolis.

Cathy and Satah MacGillis, Gena Robertson, and Heather Rossi made up two relay teams. Cathy celebrated with a hot dog at the finish.

Erin Abramson and Cindy Taber Spongberg decided on the hot dog Bomb Pop combo.

And check out Heidi Welte’s ginormous medal.

Heidi says, “This was April of last year, but this has got to be one of the most patriotic medals I’ve ever seen. And it’s huge, it’s like the size of my face.”

And, last but not least, Annemarie McCormick-Howell put on her red, white, and blue for a July 4 run.

Annemarie, who you might know from this post, says, “My birthday run a week early in 2014, one week before a 24 hour race and only 10 days before the end of a very long and hard deployment!”

Have a patriotic 4th of July, mother runners! What are you doing to celebrate?

Running for Two: Halfway there!

Want to know more about Ashley, our PBAMR? Read her first post here.

How am I 20-weeks pregnant already? I have no idea. This pregnancy has seemed to fly in comparision to with Reesie Roo in the womb. I will fully admit that BOB2 (which stands for Baby on Board #2) has gotten the short end of the stick when it comes to all the pregnancy rituals. There have been zero weekly bump photos. I haven’t purchased any teeny tiny socks.

The one thing BOB2 has received that Reese did not is exercise. With Reese I was a super sick blob who took full advantage of the couch and the “I’m pregnant” excuse. Reese may look cute and innocent now, however, she had me hurling any food or liquid I consumed until I was about 7 months along. Plus my husband has a sweet tooth and would often claim “the baby needs me to go on an ice cream run for us.” I rarely contested.

With BOB1, the most I exercised was in my softball league — and I am fairly certain my friends let me play for the entertainment value. Unfortunately, all of this meant this meant I gained way too much weight. In a twisted way I am happy I got a little plump, though, as it is what lead me to running and, ultimately, the AMR community. I was overweight with a beautiful little lady who needed her rockstar mama back, both physically and mentally.

She knows she is cute. Someday I will remind her what she put me through in the womb.

Because I’d suffered a miscarriage right before my BOB2 pregnancy, I was nervous the same could happen this time around. Even though deep down I knew that baby was not healthy and I needed to trust in my body to get it right the next time, I still couldn’t help but question what the heck “I” did wrong. Was I running too hard? Was I pushing my body beyond a baby’s limit? I knew the answer was “no” but I doubted myself. Running became my saving grace. It gave me time to process each  one of these questions and believe that I didn’t do anything wrong. As much as I would love to tell you all I navigated these question all on one 5-miler, it took weeks.

Hello Blurry Bob #2! Watch my Instagram @runningshoesandreesieroo for new photos! We have our big ultrasound on Friday!

My running groove came back along with a positive pregnancy test. BOB2 was in there. I was pregnant. I was overjoyed — but the questions all started flooding in again. Should I be running? Should I be playing volleyball and softball? Would this baby stick? On top of my own self doubt, some small bleeding just reinforced my concerns. I was afraid to even sneeze. I stopped running until I heard that little heartbeat and the bleeding was cleared by the doctor.

During this hiatus I realized two things: this PBAMR needs her runs more mentally than physically and, as much as I needed to run for myself, this PBAMR’s family needed me to keep running for them, too. I needed to be that rockstar mama to Reesie Roo and BOB2 that I signed up to be when we took this parenting leap. Running now, with Baby BOB2 inside, has shown me that I am 20 times than I ever thought. I am absolutely amazed at what my body can do while growing another human and I cannot wait to see what the next 20 weeks of running has in store for us.

Nate and Reese getting ready to meet me on a run. They bring water and smiles!

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