Epic.

One of these things is not like the other...

Look what we found in our coop!

My faith is restored.

Jane is Three: Cue the Happy Dance

Jane's first question on the morn of her birthday, "Am I three?"  When I said yes she did a rendition of the Hokey Pokey as she yelled, "I'm three, I'm three, I'm finally three!"  If she could skip right to 16, she would.  In honor of her Golden Birthday, here are some facts about Jane:

She is the stereotypical precocious child.

She listens and learns from everything I say and often repeats the most embarrassing bits at the most inconvenient moments.

She would subside on condiments if I let her and has been known to eat butter, ketchup, cream cheese and drink those little containers of half-n-half straight up.

She is extremely "girly" and loves all things pink, purple, sparkly and princess.

She started ballet in September and still loves to put on her tutu and leotard every week.

Her hair still makes me laugh sometimes.

When she was born she had delicious, drippy cheeks.

Truly edible.

And beautiful blue eyes.

She loves to accessorize.

And she loves to make others laugh.

She is extremely physically affectionate.  She wants to hug, kiss, snuggle and be as close as physically possible to other human beings. 

She prefers to sleep on her brother's floor rather than in her own bed.

She couldn't wait to turn three.

She has a wild imagination and I will often overhear her playing out scenes with whatever lucky creature is nearby.

Did I mention she likes to accessorize?

She loves all animals and wants to touch/hold/pet/hug them as much as she can.  Just so you know, our chickens are not fond of being held.

She's been planning her "Princess Birthday" for months.  I finally jumped on board a couple weeks before her birthday and made these lovely Rapunzel braids for Jane and her friends.

Then everyone ate a delicious pink princess cake with pink ice cream and pink lemonade.

We love you Jane.  You make our lives sparky, pink and hilarious.  We're so glad you're part of our family.

Shredded Kids

They make it look so easy:

Tunnel to Towers Race and NYC Shenanigans

Right after the Run for Mercy, I packed my bags and boarded a train with seven good friends for a relaxing few days of child-free fun in lovely New York City.  The train was the perfect way to get there.  It is about a 7 hour ride, which gave us plenty of time to talk.  At first we were doing that kind of frantic talking that Moms do because they know they will be interrupted at any moment by a child needing something.  Then we remembered, No Kids!

Four of us awoke bright and early Sunday morning and boarded the ferry to the starting line.

When I uploaded the pictures to my computer it loaded the ones from the camera Scott had at home with the camera I had in NYC in the order they were taken.  So, while I was making my way to the starting line, Scott was engineering the bike ride to church.  When I got home, he told be they rode bikes to church and it took me a minute to realize, "...but, how?"  Leave it to Scott.

Back to NYC, this race is run by firefighters in full gear.  It's really cool.

And Army regiments run in it in formation.

I loved this firefighter dad carrying his little man.

The race goes through the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel (which feels so long and can feel a bit claustrophobic if you remember the tunnel is under water...).  As you come out of the tunnel there are West Point cadets, each holding a banner for a firefighter or police officer killed on 9/11.

There were also several school groups singing patriotic songs.  The whole thing was an awesome experience.

Finished!

After the race was over it was time for the fun to begin.  We started with Billy Elliot on Broadway followed by a late-night dinner.

Breakfast the next morning was glorious if not a tad expensive.  $9 for my OJ.  It was fresh squeezed, but still.

Is it a girls' trip without pedicures?

No, it's not.

Back at the farm, the kids were being entertained by a tree being taken down in the backyard.  I think Scott even made them some popcorn.

The next day some of the girls took the early flight but some of us stayed until later.  We went to St. Patrick's Cathedral
.

Apparently, while I was being born, John Paul II was in NYC at St. Patrick's.

30 Rock, baby!

And then it was time to head home and kiss my husband's feet for letting me get away for a few days.  Same place next year ladies?

Run for Mercy 2011

In May of this year Scott and I decided that we would run the 5K sponsored by our church.  We trained for 4 months and were really excited on the day of the race.  It was the first 5K for both of us.
  

The race also includes a "fun run" for the kids.  Adam had been training using "Kinect Sports" and was very excited. 

The racers ready.

Paige hung out with the kids and Grandma while Scott and I ran.

Me with a group of friends who also ran the race.

There's Scott!

Scott crossing the finish line at 24:30.  Not too shabby for his first 5K.

I have a picture of me crossing the finish line, but I choose not to post it.  Mostly because you can see my time and I like to perpetuate the illusion that I am some sort of athlete.

After the 5K the kids started their fun run.  Adam is in the blue shirt literally elbowing his way to the front.

I think the course was 1/4 mile.  Adam and Jane both ran the entire way.  Adam even fell and scraped his knee pretty badly, but he hopped up and kept going.

It was literally a dream come true for Adam to cross an actual finish line.  They had medals at the end for the kids.

I just want to squeeze her sometimes.

Coming up, the race I ran the following day in NYC...