What I Read: April

April is always an exciting month for me because of Independent Bookstore Day! Libro.fm had a huge audiobook sale the Friday before as a special to celebrate and I got 13 audiobooks for $50! Each one was $3.65-4.99! My thought was I would stock up in case I didn't find a golden ticket this year to get a year's worth of audiobooks for free. I went to Magic City Books right when they opened and searched for a solid 45 minutes, but never found it so I gave up. My mom went to Literary Cat Co and found a golden ticket which she was so very sweet to gift me with! So I have all the audiobooks I got on the cheap as well as 12 free from Libro.fm so I am one lucky lady! That puts me at 3 years running for the golden ticket which is just wonderful!

Books:

• The God of the Woods by Liz Moore- This book sucked me in from the first page. I loved how she told the story from so many different perspectives, always keeping you enough in the dark to be somewhat confused until closer o the end of the book. She did a great job of showing how being wealthy can keep justice from occurring. It was also interesting to see the role women were forced into in the 60's and 70's. It was a nice touch having a female investigator in the 70's.

• Say You'll Remember Me by Abby Jimenez- What I love most about Abby Jimenez's writing is the humor. This book started off so good with their meet cute, but then the humor was spread pretty thin thereafter with the majority of the book being frustrating situations and sad moments. This was my least favorite of her books. Xavier's friends all seemed awesome and she's said this i the first book in a new series, so I'm hopeful they will get their own books which will be more her usual style.

• The Housemaid is Watching by Freida McFadden- I got a little bored with this around the halfway point and then it really picked up steam and I could not stop reading. She has a way of doing that!

• Wild and Wrangled by Lyla Sage- I've been waiting for this book since Dusty's character was first introduced and it did not disappoint. I had to re-read that first chapter because I loved it so much. I didn't think she would be able to write their breakup and make it believable that they would stay apart for so long, but it actually made sense. Who is ready for that kind of relationship so young? I also loved the snippet that explained Cam and Gus. I'm holding out hope that Amos will get his own love story, even though she said this was the last book in the Rebel Blue Ranch series.

• The Perfect Divorce by Jeneva Rose- I love how she always takes her books right to the wire where you aren't quite sure what is going to happen. I knew Sarah, the sociopath, would come out on top, but wasn't quite sure how she would pull it off. I was excited to read in the acknowledgements that this isn't the last we will hear from Sarah Morgan.

eBooks:

• The Love of My Afterlife by Kirsty Greenwood- This was a rough start because the main character was so hard to like, but it really turned around. I enjoyed seeing her character blossom throughout the book and it had a sweet ending.

• The Housemaid's Wedding by Freida McFadden- I really enjoyed this one! She still kept it thrilling, even with just a short story. I was worried it would be too sweet and venture too far from what I love about her books since it was Millie and Enzo's wedding, but it wasn't at all.

• Evidence of the Affair by Taylor Jenkins Reid- This was also a short story. It was a quick read and I liked that the whole story was told through letters.

Audiobooks:

• The Bullet That Missed by Richard Osman- This was my favorite book in the series so far. These are so much fun. The little snippets he puts in them that get me giggling are the best. One of my favorites was, " I was sitting next to a man dressed as a banana, eating a banana." And, of course, the mysteries in the stories are always top notch!

• Scythe & Sparrow by Brynne Weaver- Book 3 in the Ruinous Love trilogy. I really enjoyed the trilogy. It amazed me how Weaver can pull together these characters with such off the wall character traits, but they somehow work and make sense. This book was as humorous as it was dark. Barbara the trash panda may have been my favorite character.

• Babel by R.F. Kuang- Being the word nerd that I am, I absolutely loved all the discussion of languages and etymology. This was such an interesting and fresh idea for a story.

• Can't Spell Treason Without Tea by Rebecca Thorne- There were some very cool parts to this, I just never really got super into it. I liked the characters enough that I think I'll give book #2 a try.

OKC Half Marathon

This spring season I didn't really have a big goal race. I made up my week's plan each Sunday and just played it free and loose with my training. I knew I wanted to run the Zoo Run 10k, but beyond that, I didn't really have any plans. I kept my mileage fairly low in hopes that a lower mileage spring would put my bone spurs in a good spot to pick up training for the Chicago Marathon this summer. I'm not sure how they will fair with marathon training, we will see! It was really nice to have a really easy, low stress season. Kind of last minute I decided to tack the OKC Half Marathon onto the end of my training cycle. I originally hoped to run a sub-1:40 half, but after running my 10k in a 7:13 average, I was a little unsure if that was still a realistic goal. Adding 20 seconds per mile from a 10k to a half is definitely reasonable in a cycle where I'm focusing on half marathon training, but I definitely wasn't with this one. I was working more on speed and my long runs were typically only 8 miles, though I did run 13 miles twice. I decided I'd go out in 7:40 pace at the start of the race and go from there. My hope was I would be able to pick up the pace in the 2nd half to run a negative split.

The race started at 6:30 and corrals were supposed to close at 6:20. We ended up not leaving the hotel until 6:09 and it was an 11 minute drive to the race start. That was my fault, I was having some tummy troubles and was in the bathroom for 15 minutes when I first got up! We ended up finding parking fairly quickly and getting to porta potties by the start line as the wheelchair race started. I'm glad we stopped because I ended up going again. I would rather start the race late than have to stop at a porta potty during the race. We made it into the start corral with 1 minute to go until race time. We entered right by the 7:30 pace sign so I just positioned myself a bit back from that and figured I'd be good to go. The race was just so congested at the start. I had a hard time getting going and when I'd check my pace, it kept saying 8:00 pace so I thought I was way slow and would rather be slow than fast so just went with it. About a half mile into the race I heard something hit the ground and a guy by me ran backward. I realized it was the sound of a key hitting the ground. I felt my pocket and realized it was mine. He was so kind to grab it for me and I ran back to get it from him. I thought I was going to have to run with it in my hand, but then decided to tie it to my drawstring and then stick it in my pocket which worked out really well. My first mile split was 7:32 which was faster than I had planned, but felt good so I didn't worry about it.

I ended up running the entire race with my sunglasses on my head because the sun never came out.

Mile 2 was 7:54 so I figured the first 2 miles evened each other out and then I could settle into 7:40 pace. Mile 3 was back to 7:32, but then mile 4 was spot on at 7:38 and mile 5 was as well at 7:41. I felt good and was cruising along, just enjoying myself. I didn't feel awesome, but I didn't feel rough or like I was running too fast. I just never felt very fluid or like I typically do in the first portion of a half marathon. The spectators were awesome and the energy of the race was just incredible. During mile 6 I noticed I started getting passed more which made me wonder if I was slowing without realizing it, I didn't feel like I was slowing down at all. I missed my mile split, but it was 7:49 so I had slowed a bit. Since it was warm with 98% humidity, I made sure to drink water way more than I normally would during a half. I didn't quite hit every other water stop, but I tried to. There were just a few that came up on me out in the middle of the road to where it was tricky to cut over so I just skipped them. Mile 7 was 8:10 and we came up on my favorite part of the race which was gorilla hill. There were people in full body gorilla costumes, a giant inflatable blue gorilla, people in banana costumes lining the course, and an inflatable arch to run through. There was another area we ran through that had a Mario theme and it was awesome! There were so many decorations and most the people were in costume. 

Gorilla Hill

Then we split off from the marathoners a little bit before 8 miles and I immediately got lonely. I had been running with a lot of marathoners and I was sad to see them go. I think I was also starting to feel a bit rough at that point because that was when I stopped enjoying the race quite as much. I did a really great job of staying positive during this race. I think knowing I hadn't trained specifically for this race and wasn't quite in half marathon shape helped me to not get too down on myself as I was running. There were a few times when I'd look down at my watch and think about how I was running my marathon pace and it didn't feel easy and I'd start to get discouraged. Then I'd see my tattoo out of the corner of my eye and think, grandpa would be so proud of you! I knew he would be proud of me, but he also wouldn't want me to give up. Around 8 miles I knew there was no way I would be able to be under 1:40, but I would definitely be able to run under 1:45. I thought about just coasting it in because I wasn't going to have a decent time anyway, but I told myself if I could run faster, I should run faster. Mile 8 was 7:49 and things started to spiral from there. I kept trying to push the pace, but my legs just weren't responding. When Thomas and I talked after the race we were both having the same issues and hit tough spots at the same points in the race. I always get confused when my legs won't work quite right and I try to push but they won't go any faster. When I describe it to him, he tells me it is oxygen debt. Which makes sense because I also felt a bit light headed at a few points. I was having trouble with allergies and that combined with the humidity did a number on my asthma. I was also not in the best shape so that didn't help.

Mile 9 was 8:08 and mile 10 was 8:07. I got excited that I just had a 5k to go and tried to get going faster, but it just wasn't happening. Mile 11 was 8:15. I kept telling myself to push back under 8 minute pace and I was finally able to do so with a 7:54 for mile 12. With a mile and a half to go, the quarter marathon merged onto the same course as the half. Things got really congested and most of the quarter marathoners were walking or run/walking which made it harder to weave around them. I was glad I wasn't having a good race because I would have been frustrating with all the weaving I had to do in the last miles of the race. Then when we hit a mile to go, the 5k (which was re-scheduled from the day before due to lightning) also merged onto our course. At that point I had to jump up onto the sidewalk a few times to pass and it was absolutely insanely packed and nearly impossible to get around. I don't know how I was able to run 7:35 for mile 13 and then pulled out a finishing kick in 6:58 pace! As I crossed the finish line a quarter marathoner abruptly stopped in front of me and I ran into her. It was so crowded even walking through the finish chute. I made it part of the way through and then heard Thomas who had finished about 3 minutes before me and waited for me so we could walk together. We got food and then made it to the end of the chute. It was so packed we were just standing there and weren't able to move at all. It was pretty rough. We finally made it out of the chute and were able to go cheer for the first marathon finishers and Michaela as she finished. I ran with my cell phone in my sports bra, but service was horrible so it took quite a while for us to find Michaela. Then we had a long walk back to the car. The start and finish were in different places and we parked by the start. Overall, I really enjoyed the race. The spectators and energy were awesome. I just didn't have a great day. I am excited to train a bit harder for the fall and hopefully finally have a marathon race where I feel decent. If not, it may be time to stick to 10ks and below.

Thomas finished in 1:39:52 and he was definitely in shape to run 1:35 or under. He was 265th out of 8,669 overall and 33rd out of 520 in his age group. I finished in 1:43:25. I was 377th overall, 55th out of 4,829 females, and 15th out of 623 in my age group. I was excited when I searched for Cox in the results I was the fastest finisher with the Cox last name. Michaela finished in 2:19:33. She was 3,356th overall and 248th out of 760 in her age group.

Zoo Run 10k

Looking back at past training logs, it looks like having severe allergy issues leading up to the Zoo Run (since the switch to an April race) is a recurring theme. I was a little nervous about the race because I felt terrible all week leading up to it. My lungs were burning on my runs and I had to use my inhaler before running, I was falling asleep on the couch after getting the kids in bed, was coughing a lot, and super congested. I know I've had allergy trouble around this time in the past, but this year was really bad. Ty convinced me to take double allergy pills on Friday evening so I started feeling better around Sunday morning, unfortunately the race was on Saturday, so I didn't get relief before the race. I ran a 6 mile tempo around 3 weeks before the race and averaged 7:13 pace. I wasn't sure what to expect with my allergies throwing me for a loop so I decided to just shoot for my tempo pace and decided to try for sub-45. They changed the schedule for the races around a bit. Normally the fun run is at 8:00, the 5k starts at 8:30, and the 10k starts at 9:00. This year the fun run still started at 8:00, but they swapped the 5k and 10k so the 10k started at 8:30 and the 5k started at 9:00. I was excited about that change because it meant I wouldn't be fighting crowds of 5k walkers during my race, but I was disappointed because it wouldn't give me time to run the fun run with Elise and then get back out to my race start in time. 

I watched the kids start the fun run, then I ran a warm up and did a quick restroom break. I stopped off at the truck to drop my warm ups and just lucked out that Thomas and Michaela ran by on their warm up, so I was able to connect with them and finish my warm up with them. There were a lot of 5k runners milling around the race start which made it feel like a bigger race than it really was. We took off and I was pretty much immediately in the top female position. I'd seen a woman I've run with in the past doing a warm up when we arrived, but she started out slower than me. I knew Thomas was shooting for around 6:50 pace and he wasn't as far ahead of me as I expected, so I was a little worried I was starting too fast, but I felt good so I went with it. I went through the first mile in 7:01 which was faster than I planned, but it felt good and I was excited, thinking I was going to have a better race than I expected. Mile 2 we were running into the wind and my split was 7:24. I realized my first mile had just been too fast, I wasn't actually going to have a better race than expected. I went through mile 3 in 7:12 and then the 5k point in 22:20. I was happy with that because it put me right on pace for sub-45. I knew I could run a negative split and was excited about that. In the 2nd loop I was passing walkers and run/walkers and was confused about how 5k runners would be ahead of me and then I realized they were in the 10k and still doing their first loop.

I went through mile 4 in 7:06 and was excited, thinking I was on pace for a nice negative split. I didn't feel like I slowed down, but I went through mile 5 in 7:23 which was disappointing for me, but I told myself to really push that last mile. We got into the zoo and I started getting confused because the course had changed and I didn't realize it. We had so many turns within the zoo and I was confused about where to go in some places. It kept me from getting down to speed and I was disappointed about that. My last mile was 7:27 but I did rally for 6:34 pace for the last 0.2 of the race. The finish was in a different place than in the past and you couldn't see it until you were right there which made it hard to finish strong. I was very disappointed with the change in course and the use of a smaller building for the post-race food and awards. It was so packed that I had a hard time getting to the stage to receive my award for first overall female which was a $50 gift card to Dick's. I was frustrated about it and a friend said she thought it was due to construction on the new African Wilds which made me feel better. Hopefully the course will go back to the usual after this year. I told Michaela if it was the first time I had run it, like her, I wouldn't have wanted to run it again. They should have made the changes more clear and explained why they had to change the course. I am excited for the new exhibits so I didn't mind the changes once I knew why they made them.

Thomas finished 9th overall and 2nd in his age group in 42:14. I finished 15th overall and 1st female in 44:56. Michaela was 54th overall, 13th female, and 3rd in her age group with a time of 53:24. So we got lots of awards! Carter and Elise both enjoyed the fun run. We got to the start early enough that they were closer to the front of the start line than they usually are and were actually able to run from the start of the race. Ty said Elise was one of the first finishers so she must've passed a lot of people! We will be back, but I'm hoping the construction is completed before next year!

MyHistory at the Zoo Run:

2013- 5k in 21:23

2014- 5k in 23:11

2015- 5k in 21:55

2016- 10k in 41:49

2017- 10k in 44:57

2019- 10k in 42:56

2023- 10k in 43:31 

2025- 10k in 44:56

Wordless Wednesday

Viva Zarrow, Kentucky Derby theme

We won the costume contest and this was our prize.

Book Character Dress Up Day, she chose Wings of Fire.

Aquarium Field Trip with Elise. She started feeling sick toward the end and by the time I got her home, she was running a high temp. It turned out she had strep throat.

Elise made us matching earrings!

Shamrock Bash

The kittens testing out Elise's new room arrangment.

St. Patrick's Day Block Party

Scavenger Hunt on the trails at the Nature Center.

Solving the last puzzle.

The kittens' new costume Elise bought.

Ty's building a shed in the backyard.

Girl Scouts Self Defense Class

Some of the girls from our troop delivering donated cookies to a fire station.

Bonnie Garmus Author Event!

Elise offered to make me an omelet for lunch. It was delicious!

Otis spent all day in this laundry basket.

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