The Running Gene

Lil Red not only has a sassy streak in her, but she's also got a streak of lightning in her shoes. The girl can run. We finally let the little rascal loose and she proved that she had plenty of energy saved up for such an occasion. To my delight we watched last week as she took off down the walking trails with a pretty good pace. Who said you had to have long, lean legs to be a runner?!? I mean come on!!! Have you seen Riley and I's legs?!?! This short family of three now shares another common bond...running. Of course I'm not fooled into thinking that a couple trips on foot down the trails makes her a "runner" by any means....but I guess there's no such thing as starting them too young. She waddled along as fast as her sweet little legs would carry her. She ran so hard and far that a water break was in order.....

Using the water fountain didn't come as naturally as running did though. We will have to keep practicing that....

"How does this work exactly!?"

Getting the hang of it

Her red cheeks were begging for a rest break on the bench. Well, the bench would have to wait. Lil Red found a nice, comfy dog statue to "rest" on....

It turns out that the dog statue was less than desirable as a place of rest so she hopped on a nearby bench to take a breather....

"Hey guys! I think these shoes are magic!"

I might have to agree with that. We share the same taste.....

I'm a sucker for matchy matchy

In addition to a sweet pair of kicks, every runner should know how to map out a good route for their run. Don't worry, she's got this one covered too....

"Dad, let me do the mapping...it says to head north"

Shoes? Check. Route? Check. Hydration? Check. Second mode of transportation???????

Check!

Night #2 of "running" went almost as well as our first experience. The three of us had so much fun the first time that we decided to go back the following evening. We met Riley just as he was finishing up his run and set off on foot for a workout. We didn't travel near as far as we had the previous night but Hal broke a sweat. Broke a sweat from carrying this massive stick around everywhere, that is.....

Distraction set in which made it hard to focus on anything but that nine foot long stick. Part of me thinks that she considered running to be so simple that she decided to set her sights on more difficult track and field events. Like maybe javelin throwing.....

Night #3: we pushed our luck with the running thing. It appears that one of two things happened: #) she had delayed onset muscle soreness and was trying to recover with rest or #2) she is just a little diva at heart who decided that being pushed around in the car was a lot better. I'll let you decided between #1 and #2.....

"Hello. DHS? This is Hallie. Would you mind coming to pick me up. My parents are torturing me." 

Why all of this running talk? Well, ya see, the Fannings are busy getting our rears in gear for some upcoming races. Riley is on a mission to do great in a local 5K coming up in October and I've just decided this week to run the Route 66 half-marathon in November with my friend Jai. I often wonder why on Earth we put ourselves through the dreadfulness that is running sometimes. I guess my only answer is that feeling you get when you finally complete a run....or that sense of accomplishment you feel after you cross the finish line of a race. It's inevitable Hal, you were born to be a runner. Put down the phone and tie up your places....it's go time!