ALOHA!!!

I'M HERE!! I'M HERE!!!

If you can't tell....my excitement, my nerves.... , me.... we've all arrived here in Kona!

It is so great to finally be here. Yes, the flight was long, and no unfortunately I could not sleep in that tight little space on the plane, but it went by fairly quickly, and now I'M HERE!!

It is so funny being here too because it's brought back so many memories. Adam and I came to Maui for our honeymoon almost 9 years ago!! I can't believe it has been that long.

And what's funny is this morning I was thinking about how this race seriously feels like all of my wedding drama!

Adam and I started dating in high school and got engaged after my first year of college. That meant I had a LONGGGG time to plan my wedding! 2 and 1/2 years of planning!

Believe it or not, it turned out to be an advantage from the planning department of Atlanta weddings. Those stinking wedding people book up years in advance, so that was good, but that is a super long time to stress, worry, and fret over something.

Of course I was young too. I was 19 when I got engaged and turned 21 less than one month before my wedding day. I stressed and worried ENTIRELY too much! :) I guess a lot of brides do no matter their age, but of course I can look back now on it and laugh at myself.

I was no bridezilla, but you get caught up in everything being PERFECT! And I truly did have an amazingly beautiful wedding. Something I'll always cherish of course.

But I was reminded of it this morning as I woke up to the sounds of waves and suddenly all of the stress and worries about my race just kind of washed right over me.

Just like building up to my wedding there were the moments of freak out that Katherine didn't have tights that matched, and did my Dad's tux fit properly, and so on and so forth. But then suddenly after all of that hard work when the Rehearsal dinner finally came..... none of it mattered anymore. I still wanted my wedding to be beautiful, and I still had those excited, nervous jittery-bugs, but I was no longer "sweating the small stuff." Because it had arrived. It was time to STOP planning and ENJOY every moment that I'd spent the past 2 and 1/2 years choreographing!

That is exactly how I felt today! I've been so worried about my swim, my splits, the wind, the heat, my bike getting here, getting the kids situated, traveling, etc... But this morning... all of that is done. I've worked so hard all year to get here, and I'M HERE!!

So it is time to ENJOY!! I mean this obviously doesn't mean that I can just kick my feet up and NOT do what I came here to do. I still proceeded with the ceremony and reception, and I still have a race to do! :) But the stress and worry is gone.

I'm so excited and having so much fun and so thankful to be Here! :)

Mahalo to you all!!

K :)