Back in January, when we several of us started our New Year off with fitness goals and dieting goals, Mr. Mark was feeling a bit left out. After all, he's already fit (rowing) and he doesn't need to lose a pound (or he might just blow away), but he wanted to be included. So, John and I set the goal for him to run a marathon, and to not only complete it, but finish it in under 3:30:00. The prize he chose? A trip to Cambodia to see Angkor Wat.
We figured it would be a good idea if he had a practice run for the full 26.2 miles before the actual test day, and too, we figured it would be good for him to get away after his horn recital. We were already headed out to Salt Lake City to see Hannie, and to run in the Salt Lake City marathon, so we bought him a ticket.
And he started training.
I can't tell you the number of funny pictures he would send to us of his training runs. Always around Ford Lake, and almost always in the snow.
The best part was that he would frequently get Ethan to go with him, seeing as Ethan had a step goal each day. Nothing like doing a quick three-mile run in the morning before school to knock a bunch of those steps out of the way!
It's funny, because we went to Utah to see Hannah and to run the marathon, but we ended up doing a whole heck of a lot more. Turns out, Rebecca wanted to come back to Utah to see some of her friends, and Ethan had the time off (kind of), so they bought tickets too. And thank goodness Ethan had been running with his brother, because he signed up to run the half marathon! Yep, the two boys who basically hated John and me throughout their childhoods because we forced them to run everyday are now bonafide RUNNERS...and no joke, I think they might like it just a little bit ;-)
Unfortunately, Delta Airlines decided at the last minute to change our flight plans without telling us until just days before, so we ended up losing a day in Utah. So when we landed, we hit the ground running, and headed straight to the temple. The Provo City Center temple which just opened a month earlier. Goodness, it was just beautiful, but it honestly felt like a labyrinth inside, and when we would ask for help and directions, all the newbie temple workers couldn't help us much ;-) No worries though--we still got some sealings done which was a good thing, considering I have over 300 of them to do. Too bad they only let us do five though....
Cutie Hannah. She took full advantage of the fact that we had a hotel room booked (but couldn't make it for the first night because of Delta), and had her own personal girls' night out :-) Thankfully, she had no problem picking Mark up from the airport the night after we arrived, nor do she have a problem sharing a bed with Mark for the remaining nights :-)
The next morning, we were up bright and early, and all four of us headed to the Payson Utah temple. Seriously, the only reason I would ever live in Utah is because of the HUGE blessing it is to have temples everywhere! It makes me rather jealous of all those Utahns who can actually go to the temple before they head off to work in the morning. We started off in the baptistry with Hannie, and completed several baptisms. Then, Hannie left for work, and John, Mark and I headed up to the sealing rooms, because, you know, I still had 295 sealings to do!
Then, because I had posted on FB that we were in Utah, the requests to see us started poring in. It's funny, because many of the people were more acquaintances than actual friends, so I'm not sure why they want to see us. We deflected most requests, but John insisted that we see the Mathesons.
Richard and Linda Matheson were our first friends as a married couple. They lived in Wymount Terrace with us, and they invited us over to play games one night. The rest is history. Every available night (and there were many, seeing as we were all students), we headed over to their apartment (and later home) to play cards. Nertz and Pinochle were our games. Linda was always the best at everything, and she still loves to play cards to this day.
Anyway, we met them at a Kneader's in Alpine, and grabbed a quick lunch. Not nearly enough time to catch up with them, but it was good to see them again.
Next, we were off to the Aquarium. This is one of Ethan and Rebecca's favorite places from when they lived in Utah. We had never been, so off we went! The cutest thing, of course, was seeing Baby looking at everything.
No joke, it felt like we were running a marathon already, trying to get every where and see everything!
We didn't have much time at the Aquarium, but I do believe we saw just about everything. Next, we were off to pick up our running packets before the registration place closed. It was up in Salt Lake.
Turns out, Uncle Bud is even FUNNIER than we knew:
At this point, I was ready to get back to the hotel and go to bed. We had an early start in the morning.
Because my family is such an awesome family of runners, the four of them headed off to the legit races via shuttle: the full marathon, and the half marathon. Seriously, I'm so impressed with all of them, running so far. Me? I got to sleep in for an extra 30 minutes, and just walked to the start line for the 5K.
It's always a tradition to take a picture at the starting line. I'm thinking that they had just sung the national anthem, judging by John's hand placement ;-)
I finished the 5K without even thinking. In fact, I ran the entire distance which shows I'm making progress. Sometimes it's hard, because there isn't anyone ever at the finish line to cheer me on. I just crossed the line, grabbed my snacks, and kept walking back to the hotel. However, I did give myself a pat on the back, and took this picture. Yes, the sun was in my eyes, and yes, I couldn't even see my phone because of the glare, but gosh darn it, someTHING was cheering for me!
I went back to the hotel, showered, curled my hair, pondered the mysteries of the universe, took a nap, read War and Peace....and went back to the finish line to wait for the real runners.
Ethan was the first one in. Doesn't he look so good, sporting his Michigan apparel? I was really proud of him, considering he hadn't done much training for this last minute decision.
Hannah came in next. I was really proud of her, finishing so strong. She's been taking a running class at BYU this past semester, and all her hard work really showed! She honestly made it all look easy.
Finally, the big boys came running down the stretch. And I mean "big" because of the accomplishment it was. 26.2 miles is a crazy long distance, and I'm glad that I ran it twice in my 20's! We all knew John could finish it, seeing as this is his 3,487th marathon, but we were praying for Mark. And John showed the good dad that he is by sticking with Mark the entire way. It was a proud moment to see them cross the finish line together! (Maybe Mark will post about his experience someday....)
I was so proud of everyone, running. It turns out that this is becoming quite the tradition for the Kennedy family. And I'm totally good with that <3
Of course, there's nothing so nice as relaxing in the hotel hot tub after a long run. And Mark took full advantage. And in true Mark fashion, he fell asleep. With his feet in the tub. #markcanfallasleepanywhere
We didn't have much time to rest or relax (besides the pool), because we had lunch/dinner scheduled with our old friend, Nancy Carlson, and the Peine family. It's amazing how our ties to Germany never die. However, I can see how long it's been since we actually lived together when I look at our kids--getting engaged, getting married, and having their own kids. We aren't in Germany anymore, Toto.
We figured it would be a good idea if he had a practice run for the full 26.2 miles before the actual test day, and too, we figured it would be good for him to get away after his horn recital. We were already headed out to Salt Lake City to see Hannie, and to run in the Salt Lake City marathon, so we bought him a ticket.
And he started training.
I can't tell you the number of funny pictures he would send to us of his training runs. Always around Ford Lake, and almost always in the snow.
The best part was that he would frequently get Ethan to go with him, seeing as Ethan had a step goal each day. Nothing like doing a quick three-mile run in the morning before school to knock a bunch of those steps out of the way!
It's funny, because we went to Utah to see Hannah and to run the marathon, but we ended up doing a whole heck of a lot more. Turns out, Rebecca wanted to come back to Utah to see some of her friends, and Ethan had the time off (kind of), so they bought tickets too. And thank goodness Ethan had been running with his brother, because he signed up to run the half marathon! Yep, the two boys who basically hated John and me throughout their childhoods because we forced them to run everyday are now bonafide RUNNERS...and no joke, I think they might like it just a little bit ;-)
Unfortunately, Delta Airlines decided at the last minute to change our flight plans without telling us until just days before, so we ended up losing a day in Utah. So when we landed, we hit the ground running, and headed straight to the temple. The Provo City Center temple which just opened a month earlier. Goodness, it was just beautiful, but it honestly felt like a labyrinth inside, and when we would ask for help and directions, all the newbie temple workers couldn't help us much ;-) No worries though--we still got some sealings done which was a good thing, considering I have over 300 of them to do. Too bad they only let us do five though....Cutie Hannah. She took full advantage of the fact that we had a hotel room booked (but couldn't make it for the first night because of Delta), and had her own personal girls' night out :-) Thankfully, she had no problem picking Mark up from the airport the night after we arrived, nor do she have a problem sharing a bed with Mark for the remaining nights :-)
The next morning, we were up bright and early, and all four of us headed to the Payson Utah temple. Seriously, the only reason I would ever live in Utah is because of the HUGE blessing it is to have temples everywhere! It makes me rather jealous of all those Utahns who can actually go to the temple before they head off to work in the morning. We started off in the baptistry with Hannie, and completed several baptisms. Then, Hannie left for work, and John, Mark and I headed up to the sealing rooms, because, you know, I still had 295 sealings to do!
 |
| It feels like it's always a gorgeous day in Utah. |
Then, because I had posted on FB that we were in Utah, the requests to see us started poring in. It's funny, because many of the people were more acquaintances than actual friends, so I'm not sure why they want to see us. We deflected most requests, but John insisted that we see the Mathesons.
Richard and Linda Matheson were our first friends as a married couple. They lived in Wymount Terrace with us, and they invited us over to play games one night. The rest is history. Every available night (and there were many, seeing as we were all students), we headed over to their apartment (and later home) to play cards. Nertz and Pinochle were our games. Linda was always the best at everything, and she still loves to play cards to this day.Anyway, we met them at a Kneader's in Alpine, and grabbed a quick lunch. Not nearly enough time to catch up with them, but it was good to see them again.
Next, we were off to the Aquarium. This is one of Ethan and Rebecca's favorite places from when they lived in Utah. We had never been, so off we went! The cutest thing, of course, was seeing Baby looking at everything.
 |
| Lemmings. Penguins. Whatever. We are them. |
 |
| Isn't she so cute? She's watching the penguins! |
No joke, it felt like we were running a marathon already, trying to get every where and see everything!
We didn't have much time at the Aquarium, but I do believe we saw just about everything. Next, we were off to pick up our running packets before the registration place closed. It was up in Salt Lake.
 |
| These are always my favorite kind of pictures from the race. |
It was then a mad dash up to Bud and Melanie's house in Kaysville. They had kindly invited us for dinner, and we were more than happy to accept. Some of Mike and Katrina's family was there too, so it was a fun mini-Kennedy reunion.
Turns out, Uncle Bud is even FUNNIER than we knew:
At this point, I was ready to get back to the hotel and go to bed. We had an early start in the morning.
Because my family is such an awesome family of runners, the four of them headed off to the legit races via shuttle: the full marathon, and the half marathon. Seriously, I'm so impressed with all of them, running so far. Me? I got to sleep in for an extra 30 minutes, and just walked to the start line for the 5K.
It's always a tradition to take a picture at the starting line. I'm thinking that they had just sung the national anthem, judging by John's hand placement ;-)
I finished the 5K without even thinking. In fact, I ran the entire distance which shows I'm making progress. Sometimes it's hard, because there isn't anyone ever at the finish line to cheer me on. I just crossed the line, grabbed my snacks, and kept walking back to the hotel. However, I did give myself a pat on the back, and took this picture. Yes, the sun was in my eyes, and yes, I couldn't even see my phone because of the glare, but gosh darn it, someTHING was cheering for me!
I went back to the hotel, showered, curled my hair, pondered the mysteries of the universe, took a nap, read War and Peace....and went back to the finish line to wait for the real runners.
Ethan was the first one in. Doesn't he look so good, sporting his Michigan apparel? I was really proud of him, considering he hadn't done much training for this last minute decision.
Hannah came in next. I was really proud of her, finishing so strong. She's been taking a running class at BYU this past semester, and all her hard work really showed! She honestly made it all look easy.
Finally, the big boys came running down the stretch. And I mean "big" because of the accomplishment it was. 26.2 miles is a crazy long distance, and I'm glad that I ran it twice in my 20's! We all knew John could finish it, seeing as this is his 3,487th marathon, but we were praying for Mark. And John showed the good dad that he is by sticking with Mark the entire way. It was a proud moment to see them cross the finish line together! (Maybe Mark will post about his experience someday....)
I was so proud of everyone, running. It turns out that this is becoming quite the tradition for the Kennedy family. And I'm totally good with that <3
Of course, there's nothing so nice as relaxing in the hotel hot tub after a long run. And Mark took full advantage. And in true Mark fashion, he fell asleep. With his feet in the tub. #markcanfallasleepanywhere
We didn't have much time to rest or relax (besides the pool), because we had lunch/dinner scheduled with our old friend, Nancy Carlson, and the Peine family. It's amazing how our ties to Germany never die. However, I can see how long it's been since we actually lived together when I look at our kids--getting engaged, getting married, and having their own kids. We aren't in Germany anymore, Toto.
Finally, John requested that we head to Get Out Games. We went last year, and we had a wonderful time. The room this year (the Egyptian room) wasn't quite as fun, and it always feels awkward with strangers, and Baby was rather gassy, but we got out in the nick of time!
Too, it didn't hurt to finish off the night with some of the most delicious cupcakes and cookies on Planet Earth. Thank you, Sweet Tooth Fairy for always leaving us with sweet memories...and cookies to bring back to Pennsylvania :-)
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