A Color Me RAD kind of day!

We have anticipated this 5k race for a couple of months now. In fact it was on my mind so much I almost forgot to pick up our race packets!!!  The kids and I had gone out to eat and we were sitting there when I realized we hadn't gone to pick up our stuff!  We had exactly 30 minutes to drive into downtown Raleigh on a Friday night.  Thanks to no help from the GPS taking us to the wrong address, we made it right at 7pm.  We were the 3rd to last people in line, but we made out with race bibs and some loot.

This morning we picked up Aunt Katie and cousin Ginger who were also running.  They had on these awesome tattoos that we didn't realize were in our race bag.  Derek and Mason applied them in the car since we had tons of time as the traffic getting off the highway was backed up 2 miles.

Derek put his tattoo on his leg

Ginger pre race.  It was a little chilly.

Derek was so excited he could hardly stand it!  He decided to run last minute.

Mason all jazzed up.

Mason's tattoo on his neck.

Walking in to the start line.  

Pre race cleanliness.  

First color bomb station.  There were 5 along the whole route and then a huge finally at the finish line.  We couldn't take pictures at the end because there was just a cloud of color.

Katie and Ginger

Derek thought he needed to be carried 10 minutes into the run and Sadie changed her mind and  decided she really wanted to run with us.  Notice her flip flops!

He decided he could do it!  He made it the rest of the way on his own.  I'm so proud of him!

After the yellow color bomb station.  They had paint sprayers at this one.

Hold your breath!

Mason near the finish.

What a fun morning!  I don't know how I managed to keep my face clean, but Mason had enough for the both of us.

Awesome!  What a colorful morning!

A special thanks to Dad, our photographer, who looked so official, racers were waiting in line to have their pictures taken by him!

Swim Team 2012

Derek

We couldn't be more proud of our swim team kids this year.  Derek especially took to the water and practiced with all his might. He practiced hard all season to make it the length of the pool without any assistance.  On his very last heat of the season, he made his goal of getting a red, white and blue ribbon which is a "Heat Ribbon Winner!"  AND he did it without any help.  He was so excited and we were so proud of him for working hard to accomplish a goal!

Mason

This boy is turning into a young man!  For all of the complaining about not wanting to do swim team this year, he really stepped up to the plate and showed us his talents.  Mason enjoys time with his buddies at the swim meets which makes it all the more fun! 

Sadie

Sadie is the strong silent swimmer.  She is consistent every week and works hard at improving her time.  Her strokes are beautiful and as much as she enjoys swimming I know she will go far!

eXcellence love!

I did it. Bought THE machine. At least I hope it will be THE machine for a very long time. The Elna 740 eXcellence. Big decision...huge purchase...I"M IN LOVE...Not only with the machine, but also with my very supportive M.A.N.  He asked to see my used car when he came home today (ha, ha, ha)!

I decided on this machine because of all the features it has and came with. LOTS of feet, big harp and throat for quilting and she hums. She is beautiful.

My first project is this little bag created by Anna over at thimbleanna.com. She has a couple of great tutorials and this one allowed me to use a few of the plethora of feet this beauty came with. Sadie started 6th grade today(middles school) and this will be for whatever useful purpose it can serve.

I love that I can personalize items now.

Oh boy, too many projects to make.  Now if I could just lock myself in the house for a week!

Skits by the kids and cousins

Ever since our cousins have moved near us we have been having family dinners on Sundays.  The kids have taken to providing us with a little after dinner entertainment each week. This week, we were surprised by some short skits. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2YHhO6L1eso

One little project

Sadie has been asking for beds for her dolls. She has been using the boxes the dolls came in for beds which has been working quite well actually. Yet, I felt like she needed something more. So, Santa found this set of beds on craigslist and then I created some bedding to go along with them, mattresses, pillows, pillowcases and quilts. They turned out quite lovely, I'd say...Sadie is pretty happy with them too.

Disney on Ice

The kids and I enjoyed a showing of Disney on Ice for the first time. Their favorite parts were, "All of it!" I suppose that is a good sign. They especially enjoyed the overpriced toys we splurged on. It was a fun night out.

Getting back to normal...which is ?

Summer has come to an end here in NC so that means no more hanging out at the pool for us (we are heading to the beach next week instead!). Which feels really weird for this Alaska girl because today it was still 86 degrees. Yet without the humidity, it is a whole new world...and I love it! (Not that I didn't enjoy the pool too, but this fresh air and not sweating every second you are outside is really nice) This was our last dip in the pool for the year:
  
 

The kids have returned to school and are getting used to their teachers, routines and making new friends. We are trying to figure out our after school hours to make sure we are getting homework accomplished and activities attended. Sadie is dancing, taking piano lessons and has a girls activity at the church this fall. Mason is playing basketball. I am playing volleyball, running and have cub scouts to attend and Chris, well, he supports me in all I am doing and is the Popcorn Cournel for the Scouts again this year. He definitely needs his own activity! We are also finishing up our produce deliveries this month which will free up our Wednesdays. Derek has been enjoying movie watching and here he and Mason enjoying a flick together:
 
Chris and I decided it was finally time to make a change in our paint colors in the dining room and foyer. We are enjoying the new dining room colors, but the foyer colors have not grown on us like we thought they would. We are trying to pick out different colors, but we can't come to an agreement yet. A new light fixture has been installed earning Chris a gold star and a huge improvement to the entryway. I love it.
 
The other day I heard a bunch of noise outside my window (because I can have them open now!) and figured it was just the birds which were migrating making a stop in our trees. Later in the day I walked out our garage door and saw an owl fly by along with a bunch of crows making the same chatter I'd heard earlier. The poor owl was being harassed by the crows. They were pecking at him and taunting him. The owl stopped in a tree next to the house and looked at me with a "save me" look on his face. The crows left for a while and came back when the owl decided he'd had enough of me after about 20 minutes and flew off. I'm sure he's fine, but those crows sure can be mean.
 
So, here's to another great school year and being able to be outside again.