Marathon #1 In the Books

Now that I have officially, somewhat, recovered from my beautiful long weekend/mini vacation in Duluth, MN, I think I am ready to write about my first marathon. Here are a few bullets that were going through my head the night after the race:

1.) 26.2 miles is a LONG ass way. Respect the distance.

2.) You have never tasted anything as good as a single Twizler until you have run 18 miles.

3.) Never, I repeat, NEVER run a marathon in shoes you should have replaced several weeks ago. You will feel it and your legs will be angry by the half way point.

4.) A little girl that hands out carnations at the end of the race may bring you to tears as she hands you yours and congratulates you. You may be several thousand away from first place, but she will make you feel like a winner.

5.) Last but not least, do not feel guilty about the glass of wine that cost more than you usually spend on a bottle. You deserve it. Because you are a marathoner.

We had an amazing vacation crammed into four days. I have a cousin, named Kirstin (yes it was planned) who moved to Duluth with her husband several years ago and they just had a baby. We hadn't seen them in five years, so it was wonderful to sit down to dinner at their house Friday evening.

Our cabins that we stayed at were fantastic. Don't get me wrong, they were not the Plaza hotel, but they were true rustic 1950s lake cabins. We had views of Lake Superior right across the road and it just doesn't get any better than that!

I had made a list of places to eat while we were there and NONE of them disappointed. We went to a little candy shop off of the scenic north shore drive that had hand made EVERYTHING! Taffy, chocolates, you name it...HEAVEN in our $9 white, paper sack.

We also ate at a couple of cute restaurants including, At Sara's Table, The Scenic Cafe, and Amazing Grace. All included local, organic, no artificial/processed anything ingredients. Check them all out. We will be going back - next year!

So, with a year to plan, I need to register for the 2012 Grandmas, find a place to stay (maybe somewhere new) and dream about the candy shop that I will be going back to! Oh, and shave off some time from my 4:22:34...maybe I will run a sub 4 by then!