Gemma's broken leg and MARATHON TIME!

The Month started off rough for poor Miss Gemma. While I was at All State Choir with some students Ari called to tell me that she and the kids were jumping on the trampoline and Gemma broke her leg. Apparently Ari bounced her just wrong and she came down on her leg and broke it just above the knee. She was pretty miserable for a day or two. This is not a normal Gemma face below. . .

 To make matters worse she also caught a nasty case of Hand, Foot, and Mouth syndrome from being at the doctors, so she had a raging fever and sore throat for a few days too. It was kind of nice that she was immobile for a while, but it didn't take her long to figure out she could skoot around on her bottom, then for the last three weeks or so she was pretty much walking on it the whole time. She had a pretty hilarious gait when she was running around the house with that cast.

This didn't stop her from being her sweet adventurous self!

Alright- it's time. Marathon weekend! I honestly didn't know if this was going to happen because mid to late March I started having some pretty bad injuries with the running. I couldn't run more than a mile or so without having severe pain in my left arch. I started going to Craig Hackett at Roadrunner Physical therapy. He wrapped it a few times. I went to the trainer at SHS and had him wrap it. Still, no dice. There was something majorly wrong! Thank heaven's I called up Jody Peck and made an appointment with the podiatrist she works for, Dr. McMaster. He took an X-ray and knew just the insole I needed to put in my shoes. I thought it was a crazy idea. . .but I did it. And soon I was able to add a mile each day to my runs. Soon I was running up to 10 - 15 milers, no pain, or very limited pain. I knew this was my time- I HAD TO DO THIS. I had trained so hard and there was no backing out- so I officially completed my registration and made plans to run my Peoria, AZ "Go The Distance" Marathon!

 Ari and I were off, with little Lottie in the back seat. Thankfully Grandma and Grandpa Keith opted to watch the other kids while we were in Peoria.

 Here we are- the last supper. I had a huge pasta meal that day for lunch at Olive Garden, so I opted for a Cobb Salad at Red Robin. Ari got an amazing looking Burger. Usually the tables are turned!. That really was an amazing salad though.

 

Here we are. This is the moment. No turning back now! The morning of the race was actually pretty funny. The race started at 7, and we needed to be there at 6:30 am. I woke up probably around 4:45 to go get an awesome breakfast across the street. Problem- nothing was open. Nothing opened until 6 am! I panicked but saw down the road there was a 24/7 Circle K. I trotted on down there and grabbed a banana, power bar, and yogurt. I also got a few gatorades. Let the hydration begin. It was actually the perfect breakfast because I felt great!

So, I get Ari and the baby up and we're ready to go down to the park. It's probably 6:15 now. Ari was so great and found the perfect La Quinta Inn right by the park where the marathon was to be held. So, we get in the car, punch in the coordinates in my trusty iPhone and begin the drive. 

Uh oh- It says we are TWENTY minutes away from the address! I have a typical "Keith" panick attack and start driving like a MAD MAN. I'm tearing down the streets of Peoria telling Ari over and over again how I CANNOT believe this is happening- with all the training, preparation, and planning I've put into it- and this is how it goes down! NOOOOO! Once we were where my stupid phone told us to be I realized this is NOT correct at all. Apparently the apple maps in the northern Phoenix area are jacked. I had the sinking feeling halfway there that we were going in completely the opposite direction of where we should be. Of course- the race was right where we originally thought it was back at the park right across from our hotel. Awesome Jordan, completely Awesome! Luckily, we made it back with five minutes to spare before the gun went off. That was stressful. But we had a small moment to snap these pics!

I had my trusty portable battery charger I had borrowed from the Martindells and the names written on my arms. I was raring to go!

My sister Kelly ran a marathon a few years ago and she had this brilliant idea to run a mile for each and every person who is so special in her life. I followed suit and here is my list:

That's:

1. Ari

2. Mom and Dad and Grandma

3. Kelly and Troy/fam

4. Jim and Kim/fam

5. Joanna and David/fam

6. Richard and Jenny/fam

7. Jill and Brian/fam

8. Nancy and John/fam

9. Jaxon

10. Kodee

11. Gemma

12. Lottie

13. Bob and Roseann

14. Kim and Dave/fam

15. Kevin and Sitlally/fam

16. Clay

17. Ryan Innes

18. Emily Romney Sanchez

19. Garrett Coates

20. Matthew Yack

21. Dr. Lunt

22. Bro. Palmer

23. Spackmans

24. Innes Family

25. Another one for Ari! Cuz I love her that much:)

26. The last mile was for me! I've had to learn to believe in myself and have confidence!

I was not prepared for the amazing experience this run was for me. It ended up being one of the most spiritual experiences of my life. The second it started my mind was racing. . ."I'm running a marathon. . .what am I thinking. . . this is crazy. . . .I'm gonna die!" But then I looked down at my arm and thought of my love. My eyes immediately flooded with tears. Here is a woman that loves me unconditionally. Someone who has stood by me through thin/thick/and thin again (literally). She's never loved me any less for when I've put weight on. She's never made me feel unattractive or unloved. In fact- she always tells me how cute and HOT I am. Ha ha- sound's funny but seriously- my whole life I always worried that there would be anyone who would ever think this of me, let alone be smokingly attractive herself! And not only attractive but GOOD through and through. To the core. She is the epitome of goodness, love, service, selflessness. I could not imagine a better partner in life. A better mother for my children. A better daughter of God. A truer warrior of Light in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. She literally is the best decision and best part of me. 

So all these thought are flooding through my mind. . .needless to say- I did not think I was going to make it through that first mile. Not with all the tears that were streaming down my face. . .

The next mile was for my parents and wonderful grandmother. Memories of countless swim meets, piano recitals, choir concerts, etc. FLOODED my mind and their unending support. No man could ever have more supportive parents than I have had. Once again- floodgates. This was silly. Was I going to make it through this race? Where were these emotions coming from? I hadn't been this emotional- probably since Jaxon was born. 

Well, it didn't stop there. Next was Kelly's mile. I love my sister Kelly with all my heart. She is one of my heroes. From a very young age I remember thinking she was a celebrity- famous. She was, after all, Jr. Miss Arizona when I was 2. We watched her compete on National Television. She was A STAR! Kelly is one of the greatest mothers, daughters, sisters, HUMAN BEINGS a person can ever be. As I'm running her mile my iPhone randomly shuffles to the BYU Vocal Point version of "Just the Way You Are." The lyrics started flooding my mind: "When I see your face. There's not a thing that I would change. Cuz you're amazing. Just the way you are. And when you smile. The whole world stops and stares for a while. Cuz girl you're amazing just the way you are."

I've always thought of this song as a love song- and frankly- always for Ariana. In fact, this is one of the songs that is kind of "our" song. But in this context it hit me completely different. You see, I was thinking of my sister and how AMAZING she is. No truer words could have been spoken for her. 

I thought of the years and years of emotional abuse she had endured from a husband who did not appreciate her one-in-a-million-ness. The years she felt unloved, unattractive, unappreciated, undeserving. My heart BROKE for this incredible sister of mine. The years she never heard words like the lyrics of this song. But then. . . .

I thought of Troy. Kelly's knight in shining armor. He has been the best thing to ever happen to her. Granted, she had to wait 40 years and endure a tough life to get there. But there is NO DOUBT in my mind that Troy says these kinds of words to my sweet, deserving sister- DAILY! For heaven's sake, for Mother's Day he bought her a HUGE granite boulder, thousands and thousands of pounds and put it in their front yard. He is a winner and a keeper. Thank you Troy. 

Man how I balled and balled through that third mile. But it was gratitude for such a wonderful person rescuing one of my most favorite people on the planet. Our family can never thank you enough. You have helped heal us in ways we never thought could happen. 

During Jim's mile I thought of what a wonderful brother he is and how he set a great example for Richard and I to serve honorable, full time missions. Thank you Jim for paving our road and showing us how to honor our priesthood. 

Some funny things also happened. On Nancy's mile a song started that sounded like Tornado warning sirens in Iowa. How funny is that. That gave me a good laugh. It was a Little Mix song. 

On Emily's song her requested track magically started playing- Ice Cube's "You Can Do It Put Your Back Into It." Believe me, it was a much needed boost in mile 18 because by that time I was pretty delirious. 

My other "special" mile was for my son Jaxon. The song "Lucky Luke" by The Real Group came on. It's all about being a great parent and teaching your children right from wrong, etc. I love Jaxon with all my heart. Sometimes I am too hard on him. He has ADHD and sometimes I get pretty frustrated with his inability to focus and follow instructions. This mile reminded me HOW INCREDIBLY lucky I am to have him in my life. Also, how I love him more than the world and could NEVER imagine not having him in my life. For all of you who know Jaxon- you know he is a special kid. He has great things in store for him in this life. The spirit reminded me of this during his mile. I came through that mile resolved to always be the best father I can for him and my other children. 

  

  

This had to be somewhere around Gemma or Lottie's mile. Poor Ari kept following my trail but always just missed me because she had trouble parking close to the route. I appreciated every little glimpse I caught of her and Lottie. 

So- funny story. Yack had told me he might show up during his mile. I shrugged it off- yeah right. Who does that? But this is Yack, and I should know better. Unbeknownst to me, he waited at his mile for quite a while. Right before I passed that drinking station, he HAD JUST LEFT! The people manning the table asked if I was Jordan. I said yes. They screamed and were going crazy. I thought "uhhhh. Do I know these guys? Did I teach them back in Higley?" 

"Your friend JUST left!" they told me. "He'd been waiting here for a long time waiting for you but we told him we thought you might have already past this point before he arrived." 

No matter. I knew Yack would be waiting for me at the finish line! And HE WAS!

So- it all happened around mile 22 or 23. I was having a hard time concentrating on two of the greatest teachers I've ever had. I called Ari and let her know my quads were cramping up big time every time I'd take a little recovery walk. Also, I was getting the chills ALL over my body and they would not go away. The chills were contributing to the cramps I was getting. I thought this might be a symptom of heat stroke. After all it was in the upper 90's and I was filling a little cold. That can't be normal right?

By this time I was on the Spackman's mile. I remember thinking- if Heavenly Father hears ANYONE'S prayers, it's definitely the Spackmans. I knew they were praying for me, so I knew I'd be alright. 

I felt like the drinking stations were nowhere in sight. I didn't have any liquid with me. Ari told a medic at the finish line and they came out on a golf cart to see if I was ok. There was no way I was not going to finish. I can't believe they didn't even have a cup of water with them:)

I said, I'm good, I'll finish. Thought I left them in the dust, but after a few minutes I turned around and they were literally RIGHT behind me. It scared me, and made me laugh how surprised I was. If I would have fallen they could have caught me. It was pretty funny. 

They followed me all the way to the drinking station. I hydrated. And I was off. They finally left me alone then. Nice to know they cared though. . .

Here I am- cramps up the wahzoo- but finishing with a running stride! The girl there right in front of me had been pretty much matching my pace from mile 22 on.

I finished! 26.2 miles! I could not believe it! I felt wonderful! Actually this marathon was 26.3 miles. Don't ask me why, that's just what they said. 

 Kissing and biting the coveted Marathon medal!

 

The woman of my dreams! Right by my side the whole way. Oh yeah, somewhere around mile 16 or 17 she found me and gave me advil and Gatorade. Bless her!

 Yackety Yack! He was there complete with fan poster! Love that guy!

 Lottie Love! Cutie patooty!

Whelp- immediately following this I went back to our La Quinta pool and literally fell in. I did all of my post race stretching floating around like a dead carcass. The hot tub was quite nice as well.

Would I do it again? Yes! I told the kids that on each of their 18th birthdays- we're running marathons together! Well, at least Jaxon. He was up for the challenge. We'll see if I can sneak a few in here and there before then. I definitely want to keep up with the triathlons and 5K, 10K's and half marathons on a regular basis. What can I say? I am an Active, running athlete. It's in my blood and I can't stop. Even to this day I try to run 2 or 3 miles every day. It just makes me feel good and I don't want to lose my stamina!

Thanks for partaking in the Jordan Keith Marathon experience!