Lisa: T-Minus 11 hours and counting

The marathon is tomorrow morning. If you would like to send a bit of support or encouragement our way, send a text message to (number removed) between 6 and 11:30 am Utah time.

AAAAACCCCCKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sarah: And we raaaaan, we ran so far awaaaay...

I'm sure Lisa will have more to say about the marathon, but I just wanted to let everyone know that we didn't die! We were a bit slower than expected (about six hours, rather than the predicted 5.5), but our goal was always to just cross the finish line. The day was hot, but not as bad as I thought. We jogged and walked, taking a slower pace when I got worn out, and when Lisa's knee started hurting. The backs of our legs got sunburnt, but all of that didn't matter.

What mattered was accomplishing our goal and being part of the race. The people that cheered us along from the sidelines helped more than they may realize. Thank you to the people that sent us encouraging messages: Jessie and Mallory on Friday night, and Mary, Nicole, Andrea, and E during the race. Thank you to everyone that saw us along the route: Mom, Dad, Blake, Bill (all of them multiple times! How awesome are they??), Dave (we saw him twice), Armando, Jeff, and Marci. The outpouring of love and support was so important to our success. You made us cry and you kept us going all the way to the finish line. Thank you for your well-wishes, Dawn, even though you had to work.

Thank you, Lisa, for getting me to commit to running with you. I've loved spending time with you, chatting during our runs, commiserating about blisters and stiff muscles. You were encouraging, supportive, understanding, and determined. I wouldn't have dared attempt a marathon without you, and even if I had, I couldn't have finished without you pushing me along.

We weren't the fastest, the most glamorous, or the most natural athletes. But we set out to run 26.2 miles, and we did it.

Sarah: Canadians Among Us

A few weeks ago, my brother, Dave, performed with his band, Canadians Among Us in Bountiful.

They rocked.

Hey, stop making fun of my photography. Blurry is the new clear.

You know what was awesome about the performance? That would be the fact that they have an accordion player. And that accordion player is my brother.

Attending the concert were Mark, Jessie, Andrea, myself, and my younger brother, affectionately called Young Jeffrey.

Mark is known for his stoicism. And possibly for his habit of wearing sunglasses indoors? I assume he did so to shield himself from the brilliance that was the musical performance.

There was a veritable smorgaasborg of emotion.

Jeff found something hilarious...

While Andrea expressed... anger? pain? a jealous rage? Your guess is as good as mine. Andrea is like a book written in a dead language... So much to be learned, if only I could understand.

Meanwhile, Jessie and I admired our shoes (I'm at the bottom of the photo, she's on the right). Hers are from Aldo, mine are from Target. My shoes may be more casual, but I was still taller than her.

If you're wondering about the band's name, the best explanation I got from Dave was as follows: "Well, have you noticed that all of the really cool bands are from Canada? We're trying to be cool by association. Or something like that."
So there you go. The inaugural performance of CanAmUs, as the kids are calling them. It was fun. And when they perform again, you should come. I'll bring drinks.

Sarah: Missing Marci

My buddy Marci is in Europe for the month. I think right now she's in Italy. I'm so excited that she's taking advantage of the opportunity to travel. But... I sort of miss her. She's really nice. And fun to hang out with. And totally funny and smart.

And pretty. See? Here she is with Aviator McBeakerson.

Have a blast Marci, but then come home and hang out with me. We'll watch bad chick movies. See you in July!

Lisa: Marathon

Words cannot express how supportive and wonderful our familes and friends were during the marathon. I can only echo what Sarah said and add a big ME TOO. Thanks, you guys! I wouldn't have made it to the end without you, and I certainly wouldn't be considering running again next year (am I insane?). Thank you, Blake. Thanks, Mom and Dad for running us in to the finish line. Most of all, thank you Sarah for getting me through the months of training, putting up with my bossiness, and for being my best friend. I love you all.

For the record, here are our average speeds, based on my pages to Blake as we passed various mile markers:

Miles 1-3: 11.5-minute miles
Miles 3-5: 12-minute miles
Miles 5-8: 13-minute miles
Mile 8: 14-minute mile
Mile 9: 12-minute mile
Miles 10-14: 13-minute miles
Miles 15-16: 14-minute miles
Miles 17-18: 17.5-minute miles
Miles 19-20: 17-minute miles
Mile 21: 21-minute mile
Mile 22: 17-minute mile
Mile 23: 18-minute mile

Mile 24: 14-minute mile

Final time: 6:16:57
Place: 156 of 160 in my age group, 1866th overall (Hey, we got to the end! No mocking.)

Here are the pictures the official marathon photographers took. I haven't decided whether to order any yet, since the thumbnails are SO TINY. Also, I think we might have been too late to get a finish line photo.

130.5 lbs, 25% body fat (with wet hair)

For an extra gross-out, here are my humongous blisters. I wore these special socks that have two layers and are supposed to prevent blisters, and I didn't get any blisters at all EXCEPT on the outsides of both big toes.