Chicago Marathon: Day 2 / Part 2

After Garth finished the race we all ran to him and hugged him and congratulated him. All I remember is he was really, really cold and kind of out of it. He had worn pants and a jacket, but was told to take them off before he started sweating so he did and regretted it the entire time. Garth said he was freezing the entire race. He was shaking he was so cold and probably in shock that it was all over.

He wore his medal proudly as we walked back to our hotel. All he kept saying was how badly he wanted to take a warm shower and get warm again. We went to our room and they were cleaning it. Of course! This is when I knew how out of it Garth was. He was packing up some stuff to shower at my parent’s hotel room upstairs and he just kept asking where his deodorant was. I was like, it’s okay we’ll find it later. Just grab your clothes and let’s get you warm again. But he just kept wandering around the room aimlessly.

Garth went and showered and I met my family at The Bistro at 151 for a late lunch. I had vegetable soup to warm up from being out in the cold all day (being a spectator is hard!) and a tuna salad sandwich. So. Good. I grabbed a burger and fries to go for Garth and we went upstairs to my parents’ room to celebrate and open a victory beer.

Angie and Geoff came up to the room and we talked about the marathon for a while. Then we played cards. Confession: I fell asleep on the couch while everyone else played. I didn't sleep the night before because I was so nervous for Garth. So I cashed out while the marathon runner played cards. Ha!

Around 7:00 we got ready for dinner. As we were taking the elevator downstairs a couple guys congratulated Garth and he just said "Don't do it! It's not worth it!" So funny. Too soon? Anyways, we went to Grand LuxCafe and waited an hour for a table , but it was totally worth it. I still think about the Duck Triangles that I thought I would hate and ended up loving so much. We had an amazing dinner, great service, and lots of great conversation. Garth had worn his medal to dinner so the waiter brought Garth a free dessert for completing the marathon. We sang “Happy Marathon Day” to Garth and we all shared this incredible dessert and I’m not even sure what it was. I know it was good, though.

I didn't think I had my camera on me and I did. I could have kicked myself for not taking a single picture of my family or the dessert or any of the delicious food we had. But having my family there meant the world to Garth and I. This weekend was one we never forget. We will cherish the memories we created this weekend forever. I know that may sound cheesy, but it is so true. It was an incredible experience.

We walked back to our hotel, said good-bye to my family and had the best sleep we may have ever had.

In other random news, the boys had temporary tattoos with Africa on them and "26.2" in the middle from World Vision. Pretty cool. Now Garth wants a tattoo there of Africa.

Next Up: Day 3 aka The Last Day :(