Florida is a place our family loves. It always has been and probably always will be.
When we found out there was an IRONMAN triathlon at Panama City Beach we pretty much knew Matthew would do it at some point. Did I think so soon... not really, but Matthew registered for his 2nd IRONMAN traithlon on Nov 2, 2013 - the day Brinlee was born and thus began the year of the IRONMAN training.
The sport of triathlon is tough. Its tough on the athlete, the family, schedules, time and stress. With that being said... it is also one of the most rewarding sports to watch and support. While I sometimes resent the time it takes away from our family, I love that Matthew has found a sport he loves and that he is setting an example for our kids to work hard, set goals and push yourself beyond the limit in which you think you can.
Competition or not he is our IRONMAN just by being him, but we - Me and the kids, my parents and Ashley,Thomas and baby Nicole as well as other family and numerous friends - supported Matthew both physically and mentally when he made the decision to do another one. We also decided to vacation in Panama City beach and THAT is something to be excited about :)
The preparation before heading to Florida
Driving to Florida - we did anything to stay entertained
First time watching baby Einstein - pointing galore
The "Mountain"
Okay, so whats funny about this is that we are in long sleeves on the beach - it was cold the first few days. It looks like snow in the background vs sand... I promise it wasn't this cold the whole time :)
In the sand for the first time!
Cute little Halloween/Fall Ironman scarecrow!
Cousins!
I love that there was an IRONKID race for kids here. For Paxton's age group they ran a 1/4 mile - he did SO good! He was so proud and really loved pretending to be like Daddy. Its easy for the world to revolve around the IRONMAN athlete the weekend of the race so it was nice for the focus to be on the kids for a bit. Paxton ran his little heart out, got a medal AND had an IRONMAN tattoo like Daddy :)
The only unfortunate thing about the timing of Matthews IRONMAN is that some celebratory events occurred while we were there. First, Halloween! Our family isn't big into Halloween anyway, but it is a part of being a kid so we HAD to participate. The IRONMAN village had trick or treating for the kids so before the IRONKIDS race we had the kids dressed in their Halloween costumes and trick or treated. Paxton was a firefighter and Brinlee was Elsa (Paxton's choice :)) Cousin Nicole was a Poodle - fitting for her nickname!
"Let it GO"
Our little Skeletons!
The Morning of the race was...eventful. Matthew, my Dad, Ashley and myself woke up around 4:30am - Mom and Thomas stayed back with the kids. The whole race morning is fast paced, it was freezing cold and WINDY. SO windy that IRONMAN FLORIDA CANCELLED THE SWIM. WHAT THE WHAT?!?!?!?!
Whats weird though.. is I had a gut feeling all morning that something wasn't right. My intuition was just screaming that something was off and that proved to be right. It was so windy and the rip tide was so bad that to keep the athletes safe and volunteers, they cancelled the swim. BOO. It changed everything.
They had the athletes start on the bike every 5 seconds in numerical order. Matthew was 1868 - do the math. We had a while to wait before we would see him.
Matthew and Ashley... before the cancelled swim...
Dad and Matthew
Me and my love
No swim - just relax!
Once we knew the plan for the bike start - we went back to the condo and helped Mom and Thomas with the kids for a bit before heading outside of the condo to cheer Matthew on. They cycled right in front of the condos we stayed at. It was cold yall!
The cheering section in the car!
Paxton yelled "Go Daddy" to just about every athlete that went by :)
Uncle Thomas kept the girls contained!
Deja vu... The liquor store we caught Pammie and Opa at with Paxton 3 years ago - now with Brinlee!
Flashback 3 years with Pax in the stroller!
Aunt Ashley photo bombing!
After cheering him on outside of the condos we had hours to wait before he would finish. Remember, the swim was cancelled because of the wind...imagine being on a BIKE. It was vicious... I felt so sorry for all of the athletes. We filled our waiting time with breakfast, naps for the kids and relaxing at the condo. It was COLD and both of my kids were fighting a cold.. so staying indoors was a must.
At some point we decided it was time to head to the bike finish to see Matthew and within minutes of arriving he came in from the bike!!! WOOHOO!!! High five on the timing!
Getting a pep talk from Pax.
The crew... it was cold and windy!
We knew it was going to be a difficult run for him so we planned on going out to the run course in a few spots to cheer him on. We warmed up at McD's before going to mile 8. We greeted him there - gave him our love. Learned he was having stomach issues - and all the runners said - ugh!
We took the kids home after that and again, mom and Thomas offered to stay back with the kids. Having 3 little kids with us was a challenge. They didn't understand and they were tired. We got the kids down for the night and Ashley, Dad and I headed back out to the course. We met up with him at mile 18 and 22 and then headed for the finish line!
He asked us at mile 22 to pick up his bike and transition bags - so we knew at that point he was done. We high tailed it to the finish line and Ashley picked up all his stuff and the two of us ran everything back to the car. We got into position to see him finish!
Matthew Reibenstein YOU ARE AN IRONMAN! Again!
The emotions of seeing someone you love accomplish something great makes anyone smile and feel good. I am so proud of him - for being flexible with the cancelled swim and for pushing through the difficulty! It was a hard day for everyone but worth it!
Fast forward to the next....
The next day we pretty much just spent time doing things together as a family before everyone went home. We had already planned on staying another week but everyone else was heading home the next day!
I was having a good hair day - thank you Florida!
Before the trip was up we hired a photographer who met us on the beach to capture some family photos. I just love pictures on the beach. I/we will always cherish this trip with the people we love!
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