Yep she did it again. My fitter than fit daughter loves to get me into things. Earlier this year she challenged me to a 30 day wine fast. We went over to her house for dinner and I had a bottle of wine in tow and she was drinking a tall glass of water with lemon. She said “Mom – I am doing a 30 day wine fast. What do you think? Are you going to join me?” My first thought was “Are you crazy? I can not nor want to give up my wine.” But then my next thought was if I don’t say yes, I better head on over to an AA meeting. So I said “Sign me up – I’m in.” And along with my daughter, I accomplished the 30 long day wine fast.
Then in February she said. ” Mom let’s run in the St. Patrick’s Day Run.” I was a bit more skeptical of this challenge because I had only been walking for exercise at this time. But I really thought I could do it. And I said “Count me in.” I did try and started to run/walk. But my schedule got busy and I came up with a million excuses. And St. Patrick’s Day came and went and I decided I really did not like running after all.
She also got me doing the Paleo Diet. She is a very healthy eater and she enjoys eating like a caveman. My weight loss with Weight Watchers had hit a plateau last January and I was ready to shake things up a bit. I tried it for one month and it worked. I think I lost 6 pounds that month. But I went back to my steadfast Weight Watcher way of eating.
And then on my birthday Maria e-mailed me with a birthday wish and a present. It was a sign up for the Webster/Kirkwood Thanksgiving run. My first thought was how sweet. I thought no big deal. I can run/walk a 5K. I do that almost every day. But then I looked a bit closer to the e-mail. She signed me up for a 6 MILE RUN!!!! How can I possibly run 6 miles? I was not sure I could even walk 6 miles. Couldn’t she have just given me a card for my birthday?
But then I started to think about it. I thought maybe I could do this 6 mile run/walk. I had been walking 3-4 miles for 4-5 days a week and also had been incorporating a bit of running. So we went to this beautiful trail on Sunday along the Meremac River and started to run. We trekked for 6 miles. And actually, I did not think I was going to die. Maria was giving me tips on how to keep a constant pace. She was very encouraging. And guess what? Along with my daughter, I walk/ran 6 miles. I was so excited when I hit the 6 mile mark and lived to tell the story.
So on Thanksgiving, my daughter Maria and I will be running in the Webster/Kirkwood 6 mile run together. I will not make any excuses not to do this. I have 5 weeks to train for this feat. I thank my wonderful daughter for her amazing birthday gift to me. It was not just a tangible gift. It was a gift of encouragement and believing in me. And it was a gift of friendship and spending time together. Thank you my darling daughter, my best friend and running partner.
