Color Run Los Angeles!

When I signed up for my first Color Run, I thought I'd be taking my 5 year old with me (you know, the one who is adventurous and not afraid of anything). Well when I showed her the video on what it was about, she chickened out and said she didn't want powder in her face. Then the 7 year old (the one who won't do ANYTHING dangerous or dirty) chimed in and said she'd go.

Of course I didn't believe her.

So the last couple weeks, I've been thinking there was no way she'd go. #1, she's not a morning person (EVER!); #2, she doesn't like wearing socks or shoes; #3, she doesn't like anything in her face... pretty much setting me up for a sleeping-in kind of day.

BUT she kept saying she really wanted to do it... so the night before, she set out all her gear and at 4:15am on Saturday, I woke her up to tell her it was time to get ready. She rubbed her eyes, moaned a little, and about 2-3 minutes later said she was getting up! WHAT?!?!?! No way!

I clumsily found my clothes and grabbed the printed directions to the LA Dodgers Stadium (of course I've never been there! I'm an Angels fan!) :) I put the jogger in the trunk, and off we went! We got there much earlier than I anticipated, so we spent about 30 minutes at the 24 hour CVS down the street. The parking lot opened at 6:30am, so we drove in and got a front row spot right by the port-a-potties (this was crucial about 1/2 way through the run).

Gracie was full of energy and excitement, ready to go at 7:00am, dancing and hopping around, wondering when we were going to run. The run started at 9:00am, so we had a lot of time! We got my registration packet (no I didn't spend $40 on one for her because she wouldn't have gone if I had!), shopped at the color store to buy her a Color Run shirt, and browsed the vendor booths. We got some free stuff and she said to me, "This is the best day ever!" At one point, we noticed one of the tires on the jogger was going flat and couldn't find anyone with a bike pump (note to self: buy a hand-held one for races!) Gracie was certain she'd be fine without the stroller, so we put it back in the trunk.

Keep in mind I never thought this girl would run with me, so I didn't buy her any good shoes to go. Trust me when I say that if I had, she wouldn't have gone. This girl is notorious for saying she's going to do things she never ends up doing. So she had on the only real "tennis shoes" she owned, hand-me-downs from a friend that I honestly didn't even know the size of or if they fit her. She insisted they did, so I believed her.

She was so positive and anxious to get going. We got up really close to the start line about 30 minutes before it was time to take off. We enjoyed the pre-race festivities, danced in the crowd, and waited for the countdown. She started getting really quiet, a sure sign she's going to shut down. Oh no, don't quit on me now, girl!

Then it was time! 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1! And we were off... holding hands, smiling, moving to the right to let others pass us. And she asked me where the colors were. I explained we had to run/walk a bit to get to the first color station. So we did. And there it was! The music, the blue arch, and the powder! She was so excited, she grabbed my hand, and we ran through it... we made it out and she was laughing. She loved it! My Gracie loved having blue powder thrown all over her. Who knew?! We got to stop and take pictures often because it was just a fun run, no timing to worry about, and nobody "won" (another thing I had to explain to her)... which was good because then the pressure was off her to go fast.

So we ran a bit more before the orange arch appeared. She started wimpering a bit because she thought we went through it because a wind had blown an orange fog over us until I explained it was around the next bend (the course winded in and out of itself)... so we started in on the orange station and some young kid (a volunteer) threw orange powder right in her FACE. Uh oh! She was about to cry, but we made it through, got over to the side, and assessed the situation. I explained he wasn't trying to hurt her and probably threw it in her face on accident (nice save, Mom!)

She recovered well from that, then started crying. Her toes were hurting her. She was walking slowly and having a hard time. We got to the water station, and I offered a piggy back ride. She declined everything I offered, including taking her shoes off and walking in socks. 3.1 miles is a long way for a little kid! I was being so sensitive to her and trying to figure out how to keep it fun. She was convinced the next two colors weren't coming, so when we finally saw them, it was reassuring to her.

And that's when I noticed we were right by the port-a-potties again! Our car! The jogger! I asked her if she wanted me to get the stroller and she said, "Yes." She had been trying to be brave and strong by not changing anything, maybe she was worried about what I'd think, but that stroller was a lifesaver. We cut across the lines, made it to the car, took her shoes off, and got the stroller with the flat tire. We raced back into line and finished the run with the yellow and pink colors strewn all over us and crossed that finish line with smiles! She got out of the stroller after the race and played with the blue powder they gave us for the after party. We got some fun pictures, then joined the crowd for the big powder party. She hid in the jogger for that, then we left. It was close to 11:00am when we started leaving the parking lot. That sweet, brave girl fell asleep faster than I could count to 10.

She woke up at the gas station about an hour later with a big smile and bright eyes talking about how much she loved that color run with me. A day later, she's still talking about how much fun she had. I think that was a huge memory-making moment for both of us.

Next time we'll bring the whole family. And bigger shoes.