I got back from my long awaited vacation in Ireland on Wednesday night. 23 days of lovely relaxation. And lots of knitting and sightseeing and familyseeing. But most exciting, I have now completed an official marathon. Even though it was pouring for the first 2 hours and I felt really dizzy and weird for the last 3 miles, I had a really really great time. Before this marathon training started, I would never had imagined that running could be so much fun. And best of all, my dad flew to Dublin the day before the marathon and surprised me. I have never been more surprised in my whole life.



What a wonderful Daddy I have! And I must have had the biggest cheering section for any non-Irish runner. Look at my fan club! So many! Bryan took the AIDS marathon bus to miles 10 and 21 to cheer me on, and the rest of my family (my dad, my 2 aunts and uncles, 4 cousins, my dad's cousin and his wife and 2 of my second cousins) was at about 22.5, and I gave them each a kiss as I ran by. I can't thank them all enough for coming to cheer me on. October 31, 2005 was one of the best days of my life.