Zoo Running with the Animals

I ended up taking Friday off. I'm glad I did, though making that decision to have a rest day is always tough for me.

But today... I was supposed to do a 4 mile training run. First, though, I had to get my kiddos to THEIR run... at the ZOO!

It was really cold when we woke up, and everyone bundled in their thermals and running clothes. We headed to the zoo and arrived just after 10AM. Check in was quick and easy and we walked around the route the kids would be running later, just to get them familiar with it, since they'd be going on their own during the run. We then spent some time just hanging out and looking at the animals while we waited for the start.

Around 11:30 we headed back to the entrance for potty breaks and to get lined up with the age groups. I dropped the boys off with the other 7th & 8th graders, dropped a reluctant Emma off with the 3rd graders, and went with Abby to the 1st graders. We took a few photos and then headed back towards the middle schoolers so we could take pictures of the boys as they started.

Emma's group set off FAST. I knew she would never be able to keep up, but at least she was smiling now and having fun.

Then it was the 1st graders turn. I sent Abby to line up, got some photos, and jumped in with her right after the start. My, oh, my can those little 1st graders move fast!! At least in short spurts. It took everything I had to keep up with Abby. She and I finished the run in just under 11 minutes.

We headed to the finish line snacks and goodie bags, then set out for home.

So, then, it was decision time. Do I go run more? Do I wait and run my 4 tomorrow? The weather tomorrow was supposed to be bad, so I'd planned to be sure to get it in today. So I checked the weather. I was pleasantly surprised to see that the forecast had improved greatly, so I made the decision to postpone my 4 miles for a day. Today would just be a warm-up for tomorrow. But what a fun and memorable mile warm-up!