Day 12 - 5 miles

"Let us be grateful to people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." - Marcel Proust

Miles Ran: 30 Dollars Raised: $300 (Thank you Kelly Hogan!!!!)

Ugh.. that was a ROUGH five miles. Probably had something to do with the fact that I participated in the "night before Thanksgiving bar festivities" last night, but what can you do. It was so nice to catch up with the girls, Michael Joseph and CJ that the pain this morning was worth it. I just felt like I was completely dragging the whole time. I did a 2 1/2 mile loop around my neighborhood twice, which was probably a good thing so I could gauge how much longer I had left.

Running gives me a lot of time to think (which can be a good and bad thing) and today, in light of Thanksgiving, I was just thinking about all of the things I am so thankful for--especially during this marathon challenge. First of all, a super big thank you to Kelly Hogan who, while I was out on my run, donated $50 :) I'm just so thankful, and more appreciative than I can express, for everyone who is supporting me in so many ways. From donations, words of advice and encouragement, spreading the word, and just plain interest in what I'm doing and running for. I'm so thankful for what running has given back to me: something to be passionate about, a goal to work toward, a reason to be more confident and conscious about my body, new opportunities to meet people, and even just having that time to myself where I can think (or not think) and work on self-care. I'm also so thankful to have an inspiring charity to run for that's very easy to be an advocate for, and to have an amazing coach who makes me feel like NOTHING is impossible and makes me confident that this is something I will accomplish.

And, I'm thankful for my Mom's incredible cooking skills. Let's Eat! Happy Thanksgiving!