Pure Inspiration

Today's main event in Boston was the marathon. Luckily my brother's family lives three miles from the marathon route. :) We decided to get ready early and head down to the marathon route around 8:30am. I wanted to get a quick run in before so I did a 40 minute light run.

I got back and hit the shower and then had a quick and plain breakfast. One egg and a half of a sandwich thin with nutella and peanut butter. 

Quick, simple and healthy...well sort of. 

After breakfast my sister-in-law Kelly, my niece Lily and I headed down to the marathon route to scope out a great spot at mile marker 4. We got there a little early so I decided to hit the nearby Dunkin Donuts while Kelly held down the fort. The line was sooooo long because apparently everyone else had the same idea. The wind was really chilly but when the sun peaked through it was a beautiful day for the Boston Marathon. 

Typical of us...donuts and lattes to wish the runners well. :)

When I am Boston I have to hit up Dunkin Donuts at least once because I LOVE their regular coffee. Which translates into lots of cream and sugar added to a delicious flavor of coffee...today's flavor Blueberry. :)

Because the line was so long I missed the leader of the wheelchair race but I was able to see the the majority of the pack. This was the best way to start of the Boston Marathon and a day full of inspiration. These athletes are truly amazing!

I was so excited to see all the waves of amazing athletes. I didn't know what to expect but I got goosebumps numerous times because this event because it displays such discipline, dedication and heart! Second up were the elite women. They hit mile 4 at a time of 20 minutes...yep that's right. AMAZING.

Today I learned of so many amazing stories about the runners but one truly hit my heart. Tim Hoyt is a man that is 70 years old and every year for 21 years he runs this marathon pushing his disabled son, Rick the entire 26.2 miles. Check out their story: Team Hoyt!! It truly touched me and gave me goosebumps watching them go by. Tim not only does entire marathons with his son but also does triathlons. What a truly remarkable athlete, man, father and role model!

The elite men were next and they did not disappoint. The came running through mile 4 at a whooping 17 minutes. Seriously!!

They went by so fast...I only could get their backs. :)

Again I can't verbalize how inspirational all these runners were. After the elite came through mile 4 we saw endless waves of runners. I think their were 28,000 runners today and we stayed and saw 95% of those runners. It was truly amazing to see people running for causes, family members and themselves while push their bodies to the edge to become a FINISHER of the Boston Marathon...one of the most challenging marathons in the world. All the racers were in such good spirits at mile 4 and even when we got home and watched the finish of the marathon, runners were smiling as they were running up the trademark Heartbreak Hill. Newscasters were actually running with people up the hill and interviewing them...CRAZY.

How can you not be motivated???

I have to say watching the Boston Marathon was such an amazing experience. Numerous times I looked at my brother and thought it would be so cool to do this together! I mean it is a ridiculous idea because he could probably run this marathon without training. :) But the idea seemed fun!! I am so glad I got to see this event up close and personal because it truly does motivate each and every one of the 500,000 spectators in a different way. This was the funniest picture of the day:

I promise you this is how the glove landed on mile 4. We all got a good laugh out this! :)

We left the marathon route around 11:30am and headed home to eat some lunch and enjoy the beautiful weather.

We had to capture a family picture bc they are so adorable.

For lunch I had a turkey sandwich with mustard and jalapenos on a half of a sandwich thin! Oh...I forgot the best part I topped it with shredded cheese and broiled it for about 5 minutes on high. I paired my sandwich with a mixed fruit cup that was delish.

After lunch it was time to play with Lily because she slept through the entire marathon. She was ready to be tons of fun. :) Check out the many smiles of Lily....can she get any cuter??

So we played, played and played until Lily had had enough. She needed a nap...so Kelly and I decided to have dinner. Kelly cooked an amazing meal of balsamic chicken, chopped caprese salad, steamed spinach and quinoa. I know...if I lived here I would be as big as a house.

Amazing spread of food! It made my belly happy.

Next up is dessert...watermelon sorbet with chocolate sprinkles. This is my favorite dessert in Boston because Seattle doesn't have watermelon sorbet. Dessert is always a must in Boston and I really love that. 

Today was as Lily would say an "AWESOME" day. Stay tuned to see Boston's new fad...Food Trucks on tomorrow's post. :) NIGHT.