Personal records, or PRs as we so lovingly refer to them in the running world, are what many of us long for as we hit the pavement day-in and day-out. The idea of a personal best performance is exciting and scary and sometimes even beyond our current comprehension. But when it happens, personal records fill us with joy, confidence and strength. There are few things as empowering as riding the high of a PR.

When it comes to the weather, however, records are anything but wonderful.

I stepped out the door at 5:45 a.m. and sighed. How can it feel like a sauna before the sun has even come up? In October? September was the hottest month ever on record in our area (average temperature of 85.8 degrees), and during October we hit another record of 155 days without the temperature dipping below 70 degrees.

You can imagine my response when my husband said, Hey, let’s escape this heat. On a bit of a whim and in a desperate attempt to prevent from melting, we booked a trip to Vermont for a long family weekend.

We’ve been fortunate through the years to have some darn near perfect trips. Running and relaxing in Hawaii. Rafting through the Grand Canyon. Exploring Oregon. Two weeks in the Pacific Northwest. Hiking our way through the most epic National Parks. I could go on and on. Most of our travels have been smooth and successful, relaxing and re-energizing.

But not Vermont. I needed a vacation from this vacation. The way it started was a theme for the entire trip.

We flew into Boston on a Friday morning. Toward the end of the flight, which actually went swimmingly given that we had a 21-month-old in tow, the pilot decided to fly through what was left of Hurricane Michael. It was the scariest 10 minutes of my life. Maybe it was only five minutes, but it felt like an eternity. I was holding Baby rUnladylike like an NFL running back protecting the ball during the last play of the Superbowl. I was gripping her so tight and was so nervous from all the turbulence that my hands went numb. I literally couldn’t move them. Mr. rUnladylike had to massage them to bring them back to life.

Little did we know the trip itself would have bumps along the way, and that the terrible twos would elicit a temperment that was as up and down as that harrowing flight.

Don’t get me wrong: There were certainly magical moments and memorable experiences during our Vermont adventure.

Like visiting Billings Farm in Woodstock, where we met sheep, cows, chickens and goats.

Seeing the gorgeous fall colors of the changing leaves.

Running along the Stowe Recreation Path in a wonderland of yellow.

Yummy meals at Woodstock Inn, Worthy Kitchen and Idletyme Brewing.

Stopping at Cold Hollow Cider Mill in Waterbury for lunch, cider tasting and to see how apple cider donuts are made.

Or just seeing Baby rUnladylike running around in winter clothes. Seriously the cutest.

I’d also put staying at the Stowe Mountain Lodge as a highlight and a recommended place to stay for anyone traveling to Vermont.

But just like our arrival flight, there was turbulence.

Two of the four days were rainy, foiling our plans to hike in Woodstock and visit the famous Simon Pierce restaurant and gallery. Instead, we spent most of our time driving from one city to the next and waiting for the rain to stop.

When the skies cleared and we went on a hike in Stowe, what should have been a 90-minute trek turned into a wet, three-hour suicide mission trying to slowly and carefully traverse wet rocks and terrain while carrying a baby on our back. Or should I say, Mr. rUnladylike’s back. Cue cold, hungry, tired child who would have eaten and been napping by the time we finally finished the hike we never want to think about again. Also, see terrible twos below.

We learned that the terrible twos are a very real thing. Most of our photos looked like this, earning Baby rUnladylike her nickname The Vermonster.

By the time we made it back to the airport with our five bags to check, including a car seat, pack-n-play and baby hiking pack, we were done. Dare I even admit that we would have taken Florida’s rainforest-like conditions just to go home?

Upon touching down in Tampa and returning to the sweltering heat, Mr. rUnladylike and I had a little PTSD (post travel stress disorder). Thankfully, we were able to quickly recover and are already contemplating our next adventure.

Have you ever been to Vermont? Where is your favorite place to see fall leaves? How do you mentally deal with heat as a runner?