Monday Mayhem and Choosing Your Running Friends

**This post was suppose to be posted yesterday but the pictures were giving me issues. Day late. My bad!

EXTENDING THE GIVEAWAY UNTIL FRIDAY!!!! I want to give more people a chance to enter the giveaway!!! Check out this post to see how to enter!

HAPPY MONDAY!

Ew.

This past little bit has been busy, we Hagys don't know how to be anything but busy.

Lynny let me braid her hair. Win.

Paula and Billy ran the Marine Corps Marathon yesterday. We are ALL THREE (hear that, Paula?!?!) running it next year. I was so proud of them! It was HOT!

Lynny and I played "picnic" before bed on Thursday.... She packed my drink. She knows the way to her Momma's heart ;)

We played outside Friday afternoon and, of course, the pups had to join us. They are handsome boys and Lynny sure does love her buddy.

We also jumped on the trampoline, because why not?

Saturday morning I did some MAJOR house cleaning. By that I mean laundry. Before...

After... Spot anything completely adorable?!

It was bad. Ha!

I took the boys for a walk on our local trail. We ended up walking about 3 miles.

I think Clyde about died. He is a hefty feller.

I got the L'ange curling wand in the mail (FINALLY- It took FOREVER to ship). It is legit. I was pretty surprised with the curls. They didn't seem to last as long the first day, the second day they did.

Playground selfie.

We had a LaBoo pickup scheduled for Sunday and played until that was over.

Then we headed back out to the trampoline and played... and of course the boys were present. As always.

Today's Topic: Picking Your Running Friends!!!!

Running friends are so different that normal friends. These are the people you will be around for HOURS literally just running. You must like them. There's no getting around that. Running with people you don't get along with or genuinely do not like is no fun. Trust me.

Here is a list of 10 characteristics you should look for in a running friend:

10. A person who helps you train smarter. You need someone who knows when you're pushing yourself too much (yes there is such a thing). Pushing yourself to injury isn't smart, and sometimes you don't see that it's what you're actually doing. A good running friend will tell you what you're doing that could potentially injure you.

9. A person who keeps watch while you pee.

We've all done it. You need to pee mid-run and there are NO bathrooms. So you pop-a-squat and let it go. Hopefully you've got a friend that can help you keep watch for others while this happens! If I had a dollar for every time I had to pee on the side of the trail..........

8. A person who pushes you.

Obviously not too much (see number 10). You want someone who doesn't let you cheat yourself when you know you have more in you. You want to give it your all, that's what helps you get better.

7. A person who gives it to you straight. Or doesn't.

There are people who can be told like it is, there are people who need things sugarcoated to protect their feelings. I need people to be straight with me. If I'm doing something dumb, if I've offended you, if I'm making a fool out of myself... TELL ME. I don't do well with the ongoing drama and I'd much rather fix something sooner than later if I'm wrong.

6. A person who doesn't judge you.

Your running buddy shouldn't judge you for your choices. She should join you for that 4 pound hamburger meal you're about to scarf down after a long run... People do that, right? Asking for a friend...

5. A person who is funny.

You're going to be spending hours with this person without a phone or computer or radio or anything. Make sure they're funny. It'll help the time pass.

4. A person who is generous.

You do not want to run with a selfish person, one who refuses to move around their schedule to help accommodate yours, refuses to take turns with transportation, or refuses to go in on running gear (gu or water). You don't need selfish people. Especially running friends.

3. A person who can help you process things. I can't tell you how many times I have started a run with a major issue on my mind and then felt so much better after talking it out with the ones I run with. It's free therapy, y'all. Find your therapist! And make sure they can keep a secret ;)

2. A person who competes WITH you, not AGAINST you.

Healthy competition is amazing. However, you do not want to run with someone who is so competitive that they cut you down (usually behind your back, am I right?....). Find friends that are genuinely happy when you do well and that you can feel the same for them when they do well.

1. A person who you can make memories with.

Like I've said before, you're going to be with this person for HOURS. Make some memories. Some of the best memories I have of running are on training runs when random things happen to me and Paula. It is so much fun to think back on all of the things we have seen/heard/done on runs. It's important to genuinely like the people you do all these things with.

I have a great running buddy, Paula. She is all of those things for me! Go out and find someone that encompasses these traits (and drop those who don't) and start your running friendship with them. I promise you won't regret it.

I hope y'all have an awesome start to your week!!! ENTER THE GIVEAWAY!!!!