Good Times and Good Runs!

What a week it has been! I have had so much fun...and unfortunately my time here is coming to an end. So here's a recap on the week that I've had! At the beginning of the week I endured a couple hot runs in the humidity/sun. One part that I love about the humidity is the drops of sweat that are all over your arms by the end of the run! I don't know why but something about the sweat is extremely gratifying!

Beautiful sweat drops!

Drenched after 4 miles!

Some of my 4-mile runs here have been the hardest of any of my runs! Simply because of the humidity...my heart rate will be completely fine and I will feel like I'm dying, okay that's a little dramatic, but it isn't always pleasant thats for sure! 

I'm super excited that I finally got the chance to stand up paddle board! I was really nervous before going out, partially because my little sister fell/jumped off a paddle board and sliced her foot open on some reef, but also because I'm tall and not very coordinated, as my prior treadmill stories are proof of my coordination! ;) However, with all that aside I wanted to go for it and face my fears! I'm so glad that I did because it was such a blast! Here's proof:

Enjoying the ride!

Little Ander on the front of my board!

My quads/feet were a little sore afterwards since I was a little afraid to move my feet/stance while on the board! 

I was also fortunate enough to have made it to the beach on a glorious day! The water was so blue and crystal clear! I got to do some scuba diving and check out the fish, jellyfish, and stingrays out in the water! It was such a wonderful day for the beach! Here's a picture of the water that day:

Gorgeous Navarre Beach!

I had a couple cross-training days here with Erika! They were challenging but good! They included a crap-load of squats, lunges, and push-ups...all for which we were grateful when they were over ;) 

Last but not least today was my 8-mile run! My farthest distance so far. If I'm being honest I was not looking forward to this run. I was nervous (especially since it meant that I would be doing it in the humidity)! However I told myself that I was going to face the run with a good attitude. We had planned, initially at getting up at 0500 to be out and running by 0600, however, when my alarm went off I hear lightening and thunder and went back to sleep. We all woke up then around 0630 and got up, but there was still some lightening and thunder going on..so we (and by we I mean Drew) made a delicious breakfast and afterwards it was perfect weather to go run. It was super humid after the rain, but no more lightening! We started out and after 2-miles I took a water-walk break. I decided after that stop that I didn't want to stop again, so I ran the rest of the way! I was hoping to be at about a 13-minute mile pace....so I was extremely happy when my end pace was 12:32!!! It was a beautiful run. I chose my running shorts instead of my capris (which really helped keep me cooler). Also, thanks to my nephews riding their biked with me and my sister we took several detours...one of the last detours they wanted to take was through this beautiful neighborhood that has a gorgeous lake!! It was perfect because I only had about half a mile left when we made it to/through the lake! I had to take a picture of me and the lake...and Erika took a couple of me too so I didn't have to stop running:

Almost near the end!

Feeling like I can make it!

Glorious lake...Thank you God
For the blessing of your beautiful
creation!!

I decided to make it officially 8.1 miles since that'd be exactly 1-mile longer than I've ever run! So here's me and my sister, Erika after 8.1 miles:

There are fewer things than a sister who
believes and sees your potential that can
give you strength while running!

By the time we finished our cool down we went almost 10.2 miles! 3 more miles and we would've been at half-marathon distance! 
I've really enjoyed being out here and being able to run with Erika and Drew! It's encouraging and motivating, to say the least! I've also really enjoyed being here and playing with my nephews...I finally got Ander, the younger of my two nephews to take a picture with me, him, and Andrik! So here we are:

Ander, me, and Andrik!! <3 being an auntie!!

Wel, that's about all I've got for now! I head home monday and then back to reality (aka work) on Tuesday. Until next time...TTFN "Ta ta for now"