As for the nitty gritty of the running for those that are interested, I finished in 4 hrs. and 35 min. The first 20 miles went well. I was on a great pace. Then my legs and my mind started wondering why I ever thought of running a marathon! Honestly, I had a great training program and I did the best I could with it. Balancing the amount of time it takes to train for a marathon and a house full of kids meant that there were times the training just couldn't be done. Also, one of the things I really liked about the program was that it included biking into the training. I have had a couple of knee surgeries in the past and biking always makes the knee feel better than running. Problem was that I had no access to a stationary bike and the nasty winter made outdoor biking difficult. In the end, I did plenty to finish which was the point of doing it at all, but the competitive nature in me has to ask the question, what could I do it in if I trained better? Luckily, Ayden Jane has a bit of that competitive nature (ya think?) and naturally strives to do more. Unrelated to fundraising, I am thinking I will keep running and plan to work on running a good, fast half marathon before heading back to the full.
Gary and all the kids were there to cheer me on. I was so happy to see them. In many ways this journey has been primarily mine. By journey, I include the daily care of AJ, the late night research of things that might help, the dosing of supplements, the nightly injections, the dietary decisions, the daily therapy, the doctors visits, the insurance phone calls, the explanations everywhere we go, the fundraising, the running.... But, I could not have done it without them. They always seem to show up when I need them most, just like being there at mile 25. When I just cannot be a jungle gym any more, Kayla shows up and takes over. When AJ is bored with me and still needs to work on therapy, Mckenna shows up and finds crazy ways to get Ayden Jane to do 15 more. When I need to go run Noah takes Ayden Jane outside and swings her and bounces with her and wrestles with her. On nights when Gary is home, even though he is exhausted from work, he takes over bedtime routines. They all do countless more things daily to put Ayden Jane's needs first.
Today is the day after. It has all sunk in a bit, but I am sure it will take time to get there all the way. The biggest thing for me right now is relief. Ayden Jane is doing unbelievably well, my out front, constant PWS talking, fundraising.... days are ready to be put to rest. Even this morning when we attended a new church, I felt less compelled to shout from my mountain top about PWS. I know that must sound crazy. It felt a bit crazy, but it also felt great. Not that I want to deny Ayden Jane's and our families challenge with PWS, just that it doesn't seem like the first thing new people need to know about us. I guess I am just trying to find a good balance. Running the marathon, raising funds, advocating, sharing our PWS lives with everyone was the right choice. It was a necessary part of dealing with it all. I guess, it just drug on sort of long with the Marathon being cancelled last year. I am ready for Ayden Jane to just be Ayden Jane, not the our kid with PWS.
Okay, so I think this post has been in circles and has gone on long enough. I hope it made a little sense, and if not, maybe it will as I sort it all out myself in the coming months.
Congratulations on an amazing accomplishment! It is a great thing that you did for both yourself and Ayden Jane, not to mention raising awareness for all who are diagnosed with PWS! Thank you!
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