"Old Blue"

*Here's something more personal than just how many miles I ran today, how many I have run this week, what I am eating, or how much pain I am in...*

Something *big* is happening this coming week.

I got my double jogger when my baby boy was 8.5 months old and my little princess was 23 months. It was "my sanity on wheels"..."the nap mobile"...the "what Mommy does when she's had enough". To have two kids fourteen months apart, I had to do something. Instead of taking up drinking (I am seriously just kidding), I chose running.

I looked forward to my "me time" every morning at 10AM. That two and a half miles was just enough to get me through the day...or at least until nap time. It was because of that blue double jogger that I slowly regained myself and found a passion for running. It taught me that it was okay to take time for myself...take time to take care of myself...take time to "be" by myself. Even though I wasn't alone it was a half hour of peace where I could pretend that it was just me and the open road.

Well, my kids are older now and my oldest two can ride a bike faster than I can run. Not only that, but I have taken my running to a new level...a level that is not conducive to pushing 100 or so pounds down the road. So, it's time. It's time to close a chapter in my life. A chapter that I enjoyed very much, but I am enjoying the present one even more.

This coming week, I am going to load my two toned blue double jogger in to the back of my van and deliver it to someone who is at the stage that I was once at. And even though I am selling my sanity on wheels for far less than it's worth to me, the worn out wheels, faded fabric, and torn foam on the handle bar is proof that I got good use out of it.

I have been running forever as far as my kids are concerned. They know as soon as I change in to my workout gear where I am going. I lace up my shoes and now head out by myself...solo. Gone are the days of pushing two (and for about a year, three) toe heads around in my blue jogger, answering their questions and pointing out the scenery to keep them distracted. They were my first little running buddies. But hopefully, because I have made running a part of our lives, one day we will lace up our shoes together and I will no longer be pushing them but be running beside them.

So, maybe I will take "Old Blue" out for another lap or two for old times sake...or maybe I will just keep the memories just the way they are.