the one where I run my fastest 26.2 miles EVER

4:27:42. That's how long it took me to run my 4th marathon.

I beat my previous PR by 22 minutes.

I beat my goal time by 18 minutes and my secret, don't dare to say it out loud, goal time by 2 minutes.

waving to my kids before mile 26

I never thought it would be possible. I never thought I would be sitting here, writing a blog post about completing a marathon in under 4 and a half hours. Apparently though, it is possible, because I did it. Insane.

I also never thought it would be possible to run that fast with only 4 hours of sleep. W was up every 2 hours; coughing, sneezing, talking. At about 3 am when he told me he was hot, I realized the poor child had a fever. Of course, the medicine I brought was packed in the suitcase, which was already in the car. My amazing husband got up, put on clothes, and went to the parking garage to bring back the medicine. At 5am, he told me he had to go to the bathroom. In my sleepless stupor, I didn't pull his underwear down fast enough (he had his hands full with his blanket and Angry Bird Pig) and he peed all over the place, including my hand. That's when I lost it. I cleaned him up, laid back down and prayed (actually begged) for sleep. I was wide awake when my alarm went off.

that's what I look like after a night in a hotel with my son

A Facebook message from a dear fellow runner friend lifted my spirits and got me to the starting line. I took a deep breath and ran the FASTEST MARATHON OF MY LIFE! Totally worth getting peed on.