Fun Run and Relay

And yet again, I manage to pick a race held on a frigidly cold day.  At some point, you'd think my family would run away screaming when I say the words, "I found this race that looks cool."  But no.  It turns out they continue to be gluttons for punishment and we are getting better and better at preparing for sub-freezing temperatures at the track.

And we did do pretty good prepping this time.  The boys all wore two layers on bottom (poor Josh wore pj bottoms under his pants) and three on top with hoodie, hat and gloves.  We brought a camping chair so no one would have to sit on the metal bleachers and two blankets to bundle up in.  Of course, the boys were running in their races periodically so that helped.  I think the parents (and one grandparent - hooray Opa!) suffered more than the boys did.  And once we got home, there was hot chocolate and hot apple cider to warm little boy insides. 

Last Saturday was the Fun Run and Relay Race at the local high school.  They hold this event twice a year and this was our third time.  This was also the first year that Ben could participate.  Notice the word could.  In true Ben fashion, he waited until the very END of the races to participate and only ran in one of the three he could have run in.  Luckily, one of the kids on the team had a younger brother willing to jump in and take his spot.  So here is our K-2nd grade team:   

Michael and J cheering on Josh.

Ben, happily taking in the experience before committing to participating.

I think this is Josh's first relay, but I have tons of pictures and each age group ran two relays and one individual race, so I can't be sure.  Josh did really well for a kid little stamina and slightly limited lung function (learned that happy fact at the allergist's last month).  I was just super pleased that he ran the whole time and didn't ever come in last.  I know it sounds like I have set my expectations really low, but between seasonal allergies and being a picky eater I feel that it has often been difficult for him to reach his physical potential.  But he did great at the races and he was very happy with how he did and we didn't have to use the nebulizer afterwards, so I consider it all a win.

Actually, everyone is a winner at these races.  There were five teams running in the 5th-6th grade division.  When it came to handing out awards, they divided those teams into co-ed, all girl and all boy.  Since Josh's team was the only all boy team (there was also only one all girl team), they got FIRST PLACE.  He was thrilled.

Here is our K-2nd grade team getting ready to start their relay race.

And Michael looking amused by the baton.

Second place for our team.

I love the medals they hand out.  The kids totally feel a sense of accomplishment wearing them.

I just like this pic because J and M are running along side Michael cheering him on during this leg of the last relay.

Again, the only all boy team gets first place in their division!  (For historical accuracy, I must record that Ben did not actually run in this race.  He has some anxiety issues which sometimes manifest themselves by an urgent need to use the bathroom when he gets really anxious.  And that is what happened while he was waiting his turn for his leg of the race.  But he did run in the individual race, so he still wears his medal with pride.)

And finally, the individual race.

I really, really thought that the boys would want to head home after the relay races.  And it was really, really cold so I was hoping that would be the case.  Unfortunately, I would return to our little base of operations (ie camping chair/bags) after taking some pictures elsewhere only to find that they had gotten back on the field for the next race.  Ultimately, I am glad and grateful that they enjoy running and the race experience with their friends.  And I have never been more thankful for the "butt warmers" in our car than I was after over two hours in the cold 7 months pregnant.

The Many Faces of Ben

Ben graced us with several lovely faces on Saturday.

The "I ate a chocolate covered bagel for breakfast and am now wearing most of the chocolate on my face in a Joker-esque fashion".

The "check me out I just completed my very first project at Home Depot and painted it my most favorite color in the whole world".

And last, but not least, the "Halloween candy stains my face and I hope it is permanent!".

Halloweek

Yes, you read that right.  HalloweeK.  This holiday has morphed from a one night event to a week-long affair.  And dentists everywhere secretly rejoice!  The boys, of course, love it all.  

The celebrations started with our church's trunk-or-treat held the Saturday before Halloween.  Michael dressed up as Boba Fett, Jason as a cow, and Ben was a ninja.  Josh was nothing so clear cut.  He wore a cowboy hat, pirate hat, cape, and boxing gloves while carrying a plunger, bow, and Captain America's shield which meant he was...I don't know what.  He was certain that he was going to win the prize for best costume due to his uber-creativity.  Sadly, not so much.  But they all had a great time doing multiple laps around the parking lot filling their pumpkin buckets.  And thus began sugar rush week.

Tuesday night the older boys had a pack meeting during which they carved mini-pumpkins.  I was feeling fairly ill, so no photos of that night.

Thursday night (because we like to wait until the last minute) we carved our monster pumpkin.  Or, as the boys liked to call it, our mellokin.  A little background on the mellokin:  a family that Jason visits was generous to offer us a pumpkin from their garden.  When Jason was picking one out, he noticed that one of the other pumpkins was orange on one side and green/white like a watermelon on the other side.  He didn't think much of it until he got an email from them telling him that they had carved one of the pumpkins and that it smelled quite a bit like watermelon.  So, when Jason cut the bottom off of ours, the boys took a sniff and declared it also to be reminiscent of watermelon.  The flesh was softer and Jason joked that maybe it would taste like watermelon and we should eat it.  Michael and Ben decided to take him up on that offer and took a taste.  They both liked it and Michael ate several pieces.

No matter how good it tasted or smelled, touching pumpkin guts is still not a favorite activity here.  I usually get that task.

But this pumpkin was so easy to clean out that the boys were prevailed upon to help.

With its innards resting in a pot, it was time to design the face.  It was a group effort with lots of crazy, outlandish ideas that were eventually pared down to a workable plan.

Behold!  The masterpiece!

Finally, the big day came.  I can only assume that it was not the most productive day at school.  Our school does not allow the kids to wear their costumes at school (which is probably for the best), but I am sure the kids could hardly concentrate for all the anticipation.  Around 6pm we headed over to Josh and Michael's best friends' house.  We had this sweet set-up where I sat with their mom and passed out candy while their dad went out with Jason and the 5 boys to go trick-or-treating.  Well, sweet from my perspective, anyway.

At this point, Josh abandoned his former get-up in exchange for being Anakin Skywalker, Ben remained a ninja, and Michael busted out his Batman costume.

Several streets, lots of running and full buckets of candy later we headed home after a lovely evening!  And then, of course, as soon as the boys were safely in bed, it was time for the "parent tax".

If You Give Two Boys A Rake...

...they may start off raking the leaves, but they will probably end up just playing in them.

Fun Weekend

Cox Farms was just the beginning of our fun weekend!  Saturday morning the Primary held an activity at the DC LDS temple.  So we packed a lunch and headed out to relearn the lesson that traffic is pretty much always bad on 66 and 495.  However, we did arrive safely and spent the morning at the Visitors' Center and then on a stroll around the temple.

Between that and a stop at Trader Joe's the day was almost over when we got home.  Not a bad way to spend a Saturday (well, except that TJ no longer carries their gluten free pumpkin pancake mix which I had heard great things about but sadly missed out on this year).

Sunday started with the usual: meetings for Jason and church for all of us in the morning.  The afternoon air turned out to be nice and crisp and calling my name.  And since I enjoy torturing my husband and children, I decided it was calling their names as well.  Lucky guys.  And because they are SUPER lucky, I brought my camera to document the torture.  As you can tell, they clearly suffered.

Clearly.

Cox Farms

Cox Farms Fall Festival is one of those traditions that has been much more difficult to keep going now that the boys are in school.  So, we haven't been a couple of years.  I have been very tempted to take the boys out of school to go, but after playing hooky at Shenandoah National Park earlier this Fall, I felt like that might not be a good idea.  And Jason, who doesn't believe in playing hooky ever, agreed.  

Luckily, they now have a great afternoon deal and yesterday we had great weather.  Plus, this qualifies as one of those "before the baby comes" activities.  So, as soon as Jason got home, we loaded into the van and braved Friday afternoon traffic.  

Totally worth it.

As always, the boys enjoyed the slides.

Well, Ben wasn't quite sure about the final drop on the Dino Slide.

We were lucky enough to see a bunch of friends while there.  We got to meet Ben's friend Will.  We figure Will must be pretty important because for the last few weeks Ben has been rather proud of the fact that he can spell "W-I-L-L".  The boys were super cute together and went down the Barn Slide together.

We also saw Peter and his family.  Peter joined us for most of our time and the boys had a dance party in front of the stage.

Then I was lucky enough to catch some excellent dismounts on the rope swing.

And finally, after playing in the hay mountain, it was time to get kicked out of the park.  We took some pictures by the largest pumpkin at the farm (this is the zombie shot), picked out our baby pumpkins and then headed home.

And then we sat in traffic for the next 2 days getting home.  Just kidding.  Well, Friday afternoon traffic in the DC area really isn't anything to kid about.  I would love to tell you that the boys wore themselves out and slept in the car on the ride home.  However, the sad reality is they were still going full speed crazy when we got home.  By the time we got them showered, fed and in bed, Jason and I were ready to go to bed well before 9pm.  

Picture Day

Whatever happens today, I just want the world to know that when I sent the boys to school today for picture day, they had brushed hair and ironed shirts (although considering what damage they managed to do between my bedroom and the front porch, I should have used starch).

I am pretty sure that they will look nothing like this by the time they sit down in front of the photographer.

It took a morning of nagging and an enormous amount of gel in Michael's faux-hawk to reach this point.  And they are all wearing t-shirts under these shirts so they can shed them as soon as the flash goes off.  Normally we don't bother worrying about picture day because they have something like 20 of them a year (slight exaggeration) and I refuse to pay the obscene prices they charge for what are usually mediocre pictures.  However, I told Josh that we would get him a yearbook when he is in 5th grade (this year) so he would have pictures of (most of) his teachers and the year he would know the most number of kids.  So, showers/baths and button-up shirts it is.  I just warned Michael not to move too quickly and hopefully all these pictures will turn out well.