How I almost didn't meet Lori

During the summer of 2007, I began training for my first-ever marathon, the Chicago Marathon. The hub and I also decided to try and have kids together, after years of his insistence that he didn't want to.  (This was epic, huge stuff!) Since I was really excited to run my first marathon that fall, we decided to wait and try and get pregnant until after the October race.

Race officials wound up canceling the race midway on race day because of 88-degree temps and collapsing runners. I didn't get to finish -- at about mile 16, race officials were on bullhorns telling us to walk and that the race was cancelled. I figured, well, time to get pregnant now and hopefully I'll get another shot at Chicago someday. (Note: I hope to run it in 2012). I found out I was about 5 weeks pregnant that Thanksgiving weekend. We were so excited! I was 39 and my husband a couple of years older, so we were thrilled that it took no time at all considering we were older.

However, by New Year's Eve day, I knew something was wrong. We went to the emergency room that night and it appeared I was starting to have a miscarriage. We were there through midnight. Finally, the hospital just sent me home. I should have been 10 weeks along by then, but the fetus was only about six weeks along and there was no heartbeat. We were heartbroken.

Without getting too graphic, it takes a few days for the miscarriage to well, be done. I stayed home from work for a few days and cried with my husband. Suddenly it was Friday. I felt listless. I was supposed to go to Omaha that weekend to see family and meet my brother's newest baby but I couldn't do it. I remembered my running friend Jennie, who I had met training for Chicago that previous summer, was going to start with a winter marathon training group the next day so she could run the St. Louis marathon in April. I thought, what the hell, I'll go join them for a run. Maybe I'll train for a spring marathon, and give myself something to put my mind on other than our loss.

I showed up on that gray, wintry Saturday, in the Waveland golf course parking lot. Jennie was surprised to see me. I told her what happened. She's a labor & delivery nurse, by coincidence, and was so kind and supportive as we ran together. I finished the run, still anxious but less so than when I got there. I went home.

I came back out each Saturday for the long group training runs. I met Vern. I met Darryck. I met Tonya. I met Lori. I still run with most of these folks, actually. Vern has become a great friend and mentor about everything from job-hunting to being parent to a teenager. If I have a big life decision, I like to get Vern's opinion. He is not shy in telling me what he thinks. It's good.

Tonya is this incredibly loyal friend and hard-working attorney who just lights up my day whenever I'm with her. A few weeks ago, after a job interview just didn't go very well and I was upset, I called her from the middle of Randolph Street downtown and sobbed in her ear for a good 15 minutes. She gave me advice and a pep talk that I needed. I adore her.

This weekend I'm going to Darryck's youngest daughter's birthday party.

And I'm going to Lori's wedding tonight.

Lori is an architect. She is also this gorgeous, slim blonde with a cute giggle and one of the kindest hearts I've ever met. She was going through a divorce at the time I met her, and I hope she doesn't mind my saying this but when I met her, her confidence was pretty well sunk. She didn't seem to have any clue how smart and wonderful and gorgeous she was. As we ran those bitterly cold Saturdays together, the five of us in particular grew closer. She talked of her struggles. I eventually opened up and told my new running friends of my loss, so grateful that I had them to talk to. We ran some really, freezing cold runs. We still talk about that awful 16-miler. The wind was stiff and straight out of the north, with some gravelly mix of snow and sleet. Our faces stung and our eyes water as we ran into it. We got each other through it and many similar runs.

I ran and finished the St. Louis marathon in April 2008, but didn't stop running with my friends, including Lori. Lori went through a layoff, though she found work again, thank goodness. Her divorce wound down. I got pregnant with the little toddler man later that summer and ran with them until I no longer could. Somewhere in there (or maybe it was later, can't trust my memory anymore) she met a guy who lived in Milwaukee. Vern and I wondered about the guy, if he was a good one. I had the toddler in April 2009 and began running again. Lori and I ran a half marathon, the Chicago Rock-n-Roll half, that sumrmer. I met Aaron that day, her guy, who came down to cheer on his girlfriend on race day. The guy had charm to spare and a kilowatt smile. She glowed in his presence and giggled. A lot. Almost nauseating, haha, but seriously, I was so happy for her. Two lovebirds. Isn't falling in love awesome?

Today she's marrying Aaron, tonight, actually. I couldn't be happier for her. And I had forgotten until this morning that I almost never even met her -- I surely would not have begun training for a marathon while pregnant. So it's funny how random life is -- and I'm so, so grateful to know Lori and to get to be there tonight on a really wonderful day for her. :-)

And I have a super cute new dress to wear. :-)