Race Ya!

Another favorite annual tradition is our Stake Fun Run. Bryce and Thane have been practicing fairly consistently with Mark for the past month to prepare. Bryce wanted to better his 5K time from last year, while Thane had really big aspirations - he hoped to win the 1K kid's race.

Graham also competed in the 1K race, but mostly he just wanted to run with his friends. This was the first year he was able to run without an adult beside him.

Aubree wasn't interested in racing. I guess I can't get after her too much, because I didn't run either.

The start of the kid's race is always so much fun. The kids are excited and bouncy. The parents are frantically taking pictures.

Both boys ran a great race. Graham ran the whole way and stuck with his buddies till the end. 

There were some excellent racers, so Thane didn't manage to win, but he stayed with the leaders the whole race and ended up in 5th place.

At the end of the kid race, all the racers received Tootsie Pops. Nellie was devastated not to get one. Thankfully the organizers were empathetic to her plight.

 

When the kid race finished, the 5K race began. While Bryce and Mark ran, the rest of us hung out in the parking lot, licking lollipops and cheering racers as they returned.

Bryce ended up finishing in just under 33 minutes. He was disappointed because last year he finished in 30 minutes. However, this time around he got a really bad side stitch a quarter of the way into the race. He proved his mental toughness by continuing to run the whole way. I think that's more impressive than a PR.

Thoughts From the Dental Chair

My kids love going to the dentist, but I hate it. 

As a kid, I was pretty logical and compliant most of the time, but when it came time to go to the dentist (or to get shots) I was a complete nutcase. I remember once I even locked myself in the car and refused to get out. My poor mother. I certainly didn't set a good example for my younger siblings.
I didn't like my dentist. He and the hygienist always talked to each other over my head about random things and completely ignored me. He'd tell me to raise my hand if anything hurt, but when I raised my hand, he'd ignore that too. Every single time I went to the dentist, I'd throw up afterwards.
Suffice it to say, my distaste for dentists combined with other factors meant that I didn't have regular visits. Even as an adult I tend to take the avoidance route.

So, the other day when I found myself upside down in a dental chair getting work done on my teeth, I had nothing to do but ruminate of the proceedings. Here are some of my thoughts:

1. The topical numbing agent makes me want to puke. How much would it hurt to get the shot without the numbing agent. Never mind, I don't really want to know. (Later, my sister-in-law Karen admitted that she refuses the numbing agent. She's one tough cookie.)

2. I should have brought an audio book to listen to.

3. I'm choking on my own spit.

4. Do other people keep their eyes open or closed while dental work is being done? Mine are squeezed tight. I absolutely do not want to see what instruments the dentist is bringing towards my face.

5. If I came to the dentist more often, maybe I could avoid this major dental work?

6. Seriously, I'm choking on my own spit.

7. I would make a terrible dentist. So much attention to detail required and no getting away with, "Eh, close enough."

8. The dentist is constantly telling me to "open wider." I have a really big mouth. How does that work for people with small mouths?

9. Never mind. I should definitely keep avoiding the dentist as much as possible.

10. I would make a terrible dentist because I hate spit.

11. Wow. Being upside down for an hour and a half makes me really dizzy when I finally sit up!

12. Holy heavens! Dentists charge a TON!

PNW Parade

Every year our city hosts a small-town like parade. It's really nothing special, but our kids seem to enjoy it. Earlier in the week, the weather forecast called for rain. I asked for a vote if we should attend or not, and they all voted to go even if it was raining.

The morning of the event, however, the sun was shining and the forecast suggested the rain would hold off until afternoon. Hurrah!

Ten minutes after the parade started, I was cursing said forecast. The clouds rolled in, and the rain poured out.

We were wholly unprepared - except for smart Aubree who had thought to bring along an umbrella. She and Nellie stayed semi-dry, while the rest of us became fully saturated.

I was ready to bail, but Mark and the kids still wanted to stay.

I'm pretty sure the kids wanted to stay for the candy.

Who needs trick-or-treating when you can just stand on the side of the street and have the same result?

Next year we will bring umbrellas no matter that the forecast tells us.

Wild Waves

To celebrate the coming culmination of the school year, our good friends invited us to join them for a day at Wild Waves. We'd never visited the combo water and amusement park, but our friends are veterans. 

In typical PNW, June-uary fashion, the day dawned cold and rainy. The kids were undeterred. We spent the morning riding amusement park rides hoping it would be warmer in the afternoon. 

 

Aubree left her sweatshirt in the car and froze all morning long. She also refused to try any roller coasters. So, when the big kids took off to ride the first roller coaster, Aubree stuck with me and the littles. We snuck over to the Carousel.

Typically the Carousel is a pretty safe choice, but this one was pretty wild! There were no safety belts and it spun fast. Nellie was NOT a fan, and I can't really blame her. I was standing right next to her with my arms tight around her and still had a hard time keeping her balanced on the horse. Aubree, Graham, and Camryn appreciated the speedy version and asked to ride a second time. That time around Nellie and I sat in the sled and she liked it much better.

I was afraid the rough start to her day might turn Nellie off of all future rides, but she proved her mettle and loved all future rides. Her favorite was a little train ride. She rode three times in a row. I suppose that's the benefit of going to the park before school is out on a cold, rainy day - the place was pretty empty!

The favorite ride of the day was definitely the bumper cars. These kids rode three times in a row and would have been happy going again and again. Oh, and Aubree did eventually try out a roller coaster. She didn't love it ("That was terrifying!"), but she did it.

After lunch, I was hoping the kids would be willing to head back to the amusement park. Nope. They were all eager to prove themselves as True Washingtonians. All of them played in the wave pool, while occasionally taking a dip in the hot tub. I'd thought they'd fizzle out quickly, but they were tough. Aubree, Jackson, and Coleman even spent an hour riding the water tube rides. I thought they'd surely freeze while climbing stairs and waiting their turn to slide (even with no lines), but they had a great time.

The Park was much better than I expected. Our library is giving out 2 passes per person as a mid-way summer reading challenge prize, so we hope to visit again later this summer. I'm sure it will be much busier, but hopefully it will also be a tad warmer.

Memorial Day

The Sunday before Memorial Day, 4/5 kids dressed in patriotic garb (Aubree would have joined in, but lacked church clothes in the appropriate colors). 

The afternoon of Memorial Day Katie came down to join us, and we got together with neighbors for a BBQ. Between our four families we had 18 kids and someone remarked that we could almost be our own Branch.

Despite our large numbers, we still managed to have plenty of food.

 

It was a relaxed, perfect afternoon. We ate and played and chatted. 

 Aubree did what Aubree does best.

 Katie is such a joy. She got right down and played with all the kids. Even our neighbor kids, who hadn't known her before the event, decided she was their favorite person by the end of the afternoon.

 The kids spent a lot of their time exploring the hill and forests right behind our neighborhood. They were filthy by the time we got home. Thane and Dallin were excited to find roly-poly bugs.

Thane and Finley have been friends since they were 2. They are so funny to watch play together; they treat each other like brother and sister.

 Graham and Piper tested out our new camping chair.

Nellie and Jordyn relish any moment they can spend together.

We are so blessed to live in a free country and to have such wonderful friends, family, and neighbors.

Springs Days

Spring is when the benefits of homeschool come into full play. Honestly, by the end of February or March, when it's been cold and dreary for so long, and we've been cooped up inside together for months, public school starts to look awfully appealing. Just in time, spring blooms and the joy of homeschool is restored and renewed!

The last few weeks we've been getting together regularly with other homeschool friends to enjoy the beautiful weather and let our kids play outside. We've visited a variety of parks, including the newly renovated playground at our local park.

Another week we tried out a new park, but before we let the kids loose to play we took them on a hike.

"Hike" might be a generous term. It was more of a walk along a flat, paved trail, but there was nature around us so I'm counting it as a hike. The kids raced to the end and this is the sight that met us as we came around the last corner.

Once we let them free to play, they had a long, glorious afternoon roaming the park, kicking the soccer ball, and climbing trees.

Aubree spent the first 15 minutes finishing her book, then joined in the adventures.

For almost 13 years we have been beholden to the almighty afternoon nap. I don't regret adhering to sleep schedules, but we are on the cusp of a new era. Nellie, at 2 1/2, still takes a short nap most afternoons, but if she misses a day here and there it's no big deal. This has made our park days even more fun because we can stay and stay and stay.

One beautiful morning Aubree and Bryce were stuck inside doing their annual assessment, but Thane, Graham, Nellie, and I were able to hit a favorite playground for a few hours. Not surprisingly, they quickly found themselves a few friends.

One unseasonably warm afternoon our friends texted to let us know they were at the lake. We only had a few minutes before we needed to pick Aubree up from co-op, but we'd finished our work early, so we stopped by planning to spend just a brief time with them.

Of course, a few minutes was more than enough time for Graham and Nellie to get themselves thoroughly soaked.

Our friends offered to watch Bryce and Thane while I ran carpool. Nellie and Graham didn't love leaving, but Bryce and Thane loved getting to spend extra time with their friends.

Most of our park adventures have been at a great park in a nearby city as part of a homeschool open play invitation. 

 

This park is extra great because the play structure is impressive, there's a basketball hoop, and (best of all) it has an enclosed soccer field.

We bring a sack lunch and the kids rotate between playing sports, eating, climbing, and eating.

 

Bryce's friend Jordan brought a couple of his rip sticks the first week at this park. Bryce was immediately captivated and spent the whole time we were there teaching himself how to ride.

By the end of the first day, after lots and lots of falling, he made major improvement. It was impressive to watch him perservere. 

As we've returned in subsequent weeks, Bryce heads right back out to skate with Jordan. The second week they ventured over to the skate park. Bryce got a little over-confident and ended up on his head. Good thing for helmets, because even with a helmet he hit hard enough to immediately feel nauseous and had a head ache the rest of the day. As we left the park that day he commented, "I think I might be done with the rip stick."

The next week, however, he was right back at it, and he wants me to make sure to write that now he's much better than in the video I posted above.

One Friday the local school district had the day off of school so even our non-homeschooling friends were able to join us for the afternoon!

Aubree always appreciates having an older girl with whom to play.

One park day the kids just couldn't get enough of their friends, so after playing we spent another few hours together at their home. Aubree and Kenzie decided to make and decorate sugar cookies. 

Bryce and Jordan worked on robots, while Thane and Colman played Monopoly. Those boys will play Monopoly every chance they get (crazies)!

And if all of that wasn't enough, one warm afternoon a friend invited us over to play on her inflatable water slides. How genius is it to get one of these?!