EEEEEK! SQUEALS OF DELIGHT! SUPER AWESOME OVER-THE-TOP EXCITED TODAY!

I get that some of you may not quite understand how super fantastic this is for my husband and I, but let me start at the beginning. My love affair with the Baby Jogger begins here…

This past April, I was registered for the Gulf Coast Half Marathon in Pensacola Beach,FL. This event was held a few weeks after we found out we were expecting and I decided that I was feeling good enough to race anyway. Well, I didn’t so much “race” as I did “run” but that is beside the point. Either way, I finished. 🙂

Brent and I got there a couple of days early to enjoy the beach and pick up my things from packet pick-up. This event was sponsored by a local running store, called Running Wild. (On a side note, let me just say that I LOVE going to running stores in different cities. I love seeing different gear, brands, and how trends vary from city to city or region to region.) The employees at Running Wild were super helpful and I think I talked to one of the guys for literally an hour about the New Balance Minimus Trail Shoes. But I digress…

On the way out the door, I spied the Baby Jogger in the corner. In my many trips to what feels like a billion different running stores, I had never seen a store that actually carried running strollers. Even though we had many months to go before Baby Key was to arrive, I couldn’t help stopping and ooohing and aaaahing over it. The owner of the store must have picked up on my interest. Before I knew it, he was by our side, telling us all the wonders of the Baby Jogger. Seriously, it was love at first sight. This is a picture of the one we saw in the store. I mean, really…could it be any more fantastic??



running stroller

When we found out we were expecting, I immediately started scouring the internet and local baby stores to findrunning stroller. (C’mon, does this surprise you?) Once I laid my eyes on this one and took it for a test spin around the parking lot, I knew it was the one for me. I love that it truly is a, not just a stroller that you can run with. The no frills, no drag aspect of it is really appealing. This stroller is definitely not built for a day at Disney World, but it is perfect for getting Baby Key and I out the door and on the road…marathon training together!

The owner of Running Wild went on and on about how durable the fabric was and how easy it was to care for (just get regular tune ups from a local bicycle shop!). Oh, and did I mention that this sucker can hold a child up to 100 pounds!? That’s a middle-schooler! (Another side note…do not think for one second that I will be pushing a 100 pound child around. If my kid is that big, he will be running WITH me…NOT in a stroller.)

I was sold…until I saw the price tag. Then I frowned. While awesome, I quickly realized that the Baby Jogger would be an investment. With its substantial price tag (let’s just say that it cost more than our whole stroller travel system that we had picked out), I just knew we could not afford it. Currently operating on one family income, we just knew that getting a Baby Jogger would not be feasible when we have the necessities like baby furniture, bottles, clothing, hospital bills, etc. to pay for. Disappointed, we left the store.

I resigned myself to the fact that post-baby runs would be totally solo, without my sweet bundle of joy. I continued to pull up the Baby Jogger website at least once a week, ogling the beauty of the Performance jogger. (And c’mon…its even BLUE…perfect for my Future Ironman!)

Then fate stepped in. Through an odd twist of fate and meeting the right person at the right time (though I truly feel these things are NEVER coincidence), a Baby Jogger presented itself to me!

Several months back, ultramarathoner, Paul Sibley, came to Baton Rouge to run 50 miles around the LSU Lakes to raise money for Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center. One of his aid assistants was his sister, Wanda. I went out to the lakes to congratulate Paul on this wonderful thing he was doing and watch him get started on his journey. After he took off, I hung around a while and started talking to his sister. We talked about running and children and then she casually mentioned that she used a Baby Jogger with all of her children and how great it was. I sighed longingly and told her of my desire to have one but that it just was not a possibility for us right now. And then she said those magical words…

“Oh, I don’t need mine anymore! You can just have mine!”

WHAT DID SHE SAY? HAVE IT? Are you kidding me!? I offered to pay her something…ANYTHING…but she insisted that she just wanted it out of her garage and into a good home. I gladly took her up on the offer. I have been warned that it is pretty old, needs a serious tune-up, a good cleaning, and possibly a new protective cover. However, considering that it is free, I think I can figure all of that out.

So, today is the day we get to go pick it up! It’s Baby Jogger Day! Who knows, maybe it is one run away from falling apart…but hey, I appreciate Wanda’s generosity from the bottom of my heart and, if nothing else, it will at least get me and Baby Key out on the road at the beginning.

And maybe if I keep my fingers crossed and keep wishing and hoping, maybe Santa will bring Baby Key and me a NEW Baby Jogger for Christmas. A girl can dream, can’t she?

Have YOU ever run with a running stroller? Which brand do you have and what do you like/dislike about it?