Before you meet Ashley, just a call-out for those BAMRs running Grandma’s this weekend. TLAM Coach MK put a course preview together for all y’all. It’s here. Run strong!

Hello, Ashley here. Formally known as Role Mother and still known as BAMR, just with a slight twist. You can now call me PBAMR! That “P” does not stand for “pretty” but, rather, “pregnant.” That’s right, AMR community, this Role Mother is expecting! When you have one as cute as our Reesie Roo, how could you not want to try for another?

Ashley and her Reesie Roo.

Because he’d kicked some serious cancer butt in his teens, my husband and I weren’t positive we could conceive naturally to begin with. Much to our surprise, we were blessed with our Reesie Roo shortly after deciding to take the parenting leap. BOB, or Baby on Board, as we referred to her in the womb for nine months, now has a sibling, BOB Number 2 or B2. B2 is due in mid-November (or so) and we could not be more excited about the new addition.

B2 did not come quite as smoothly as our Reesie Roo though. My husband, Nate, is a member of Team USA’s Wheelchair Basketball team, which took him to Rio de Janeiro this past September for the 2016 Paralympic Games. The Paralympics run about a month after the able-bodied Olympics in all the same venues and locations. The only difference is these athletes have a physical impairment. The cancer that my husband conquered in his teens, unfortunately, took part of the bone in his leg, leaving him with the inability to run, jump, or competitively play able-bodied sports. This, however, qualified him for adaptive sports.

Having experienced the 2012 London Paralympics with Nate, I was sidelined from flying to Rio this round and watching him win a Gold Medal in person. Zika is real… and terrifying. You put two of us there, you double your chances of contracting it, which was just not a risk we were willing to take. Upon his return, we had to patiently await the test results to confirm Nate was Zika-free before trying to conceive. I like to pretend we are as cool as all the other Olympians who got pregnant post-Olympics, such as Gwen Jorgensen, however, deep down I know I am just another average BAMR from Wisconsin.

Olympic-level Face-timing!

In addition to waiting to be Zika-free, we did not conceive right away and suffered a miscarriage in between. I will speak more candidly about this later, as running post miscarriage is down right scary as all heck, but for now we shall celebrate. B2 is happy, healthy, and sassy as can be, conveniently kicking my bladder about as often as it seems my toddler says “No.”

My running has been slowly changing, emphasis on the slowly. Imagine yourself swearing at MK in the first few weeks of Heart Rate training, plus one extra swear for each week of pregnancy you have surpassed. This is right where I am currently stationed in my running. I was no speedster before, so I knew I would not get quicker while growing a human. I am a turtle and 100% ok with it. I told my husband I need a shirt that says “Yes, I’m pregnant. Yes, I’m slow. and Yes, I would like a taco RIGHT NOW.”

I look forward to sharing this journey of running with B2 with each and every one of you. Together we will celebrate the joys, talk candidly about what it is really like attempting to run with a watermelon attached to your belly, and share the in the laughter of motherhood, as I am sure there will be plenty throughout this experience. As an added bonus, the occasional picture of a cute kid will be included!

Like this one!