Bring it Home

This photo of my family was taken in 2009, shortly after I started wogging (not sure I'd even call it running at that point). My husband had just returned from a deployment in Iraq. Most people smile and say, "Awwww" at this snapshot. It is cute, yes? But for me, the emotions I felt at the time flow back, tears welling in my eyes as I type now. This deployment had been a tough one for me. The kids were little and so very active. Communication with my hubby was pretty limited. I felt extremely alone and slightly overwhelmed trying to keep our household afoot. I was like a juggler with about 20 balls up in the air, moving from one to the next with constant focus. I literally fell into bed every night, exhausted both mentally and physically.

I was also battling my excess of weight, which further eroded my emotions. By this time, I had started to chip away at the baby weight, but the deployment put a huge pause in that. To put it mildly, I was slightly distracted from my fitness routine... and that made me cranky, frustrated and little mad. I had finally found the motivation to exercise and lose the baby weight... and then this was thrown on my lap. My "free time" was zapped and workouts came to a halt. Meanwhile, halfway across the globe, my husband was bored on his off-time (so he started to workout) and had healthy options awaiting him at every meal in the chow hall. He lost over 30 lbs during deployment! I can't lie, I was slightly bitter.

Like any difficult journey, I took it one step at a time. The day my sexy thin husband returned, no one rejoiced more than me. When I look at the photo above, I feel RELIEF, like a huge weight being lifted off my shoulders. I was grateful to have my little family back together and even a little proud of fulfilling "my role" in his deployment. Through this experience, I became greatly appreciative of the delicate role military spouses play in our country. We really haven't endured a ton of deployments, but many military families in our country are divided on a constant basis. I have huge respect for how they manage to stay married keep it all together. That is why I chose to run the Air Force Half-Marathon as part of Team USO.

The USO has worked for decades making deployments more comfortable for our soldiers and their families. I invite you to check out all the great USO programs here. If you feel inclined, a donation towards my USO team is greatly appreciated. Visit my Team USO page here. I'm trying to raise $1200 before race day!

I will run the Air Force Half Marathon in just TWO days. I have no idea what to expect. My injured toe has been a pesty pain the past week. (I walked into a door a couple weeks ago and tore a ligament more severely than I initially thought.)  Besides my race last Sunday, my running has been fairly limited. In fact, I didn't even run with my Sole Sisters last night! Instead, I've been keeping my legs moving on the bike, which doesn't put the pounding on that poor little toe.

The Air Force Marathon will be my husband's first 13.1. We are leaving the kids in care of the grandparents, so it will be a nice getaway for the two of us. I also finally get to meet bloggy friend Kim and her better half.  I plan to pack the ibuprofen and run whatever I feel that day. I certainly still hope to come in under 2 hours, but we'll have to just see how the toe cooperates on race morning...