Marnie's First 5K

So this posting is for my good friend, Lisa. She's the one that got me running. She's such an inspiration. Her first run was the half marathon in 2007 that I walked with my other good friend, Sheli & she ran it. She is still running. You go girl. I've been telling Lisa for months that I would post these & I've finally done it. So this first picture is the funniest one, where it looks like I'm gonna hurl. I was explaining to Lisa earlier that as my sister, Jennifer & I crossed the finished line I thought I was doing fine until she said "so how do you keep from throwing up?" This was my expression. And my sister-in-law captured it on camera to my surprise. I am happy to say that I didn't get sick even though the picture tells otherwise.

Hopefully my sister never says that again at the end of a race. Also, I learned not to sprint the last quarter mile at the end. Who's idea was that JJ? I think she started it & I couldn't let her win, of course. It's pretty funny to remember this experience months later.

So here's "MY FAMILY" that I'm still so proud of. We set a goal. We accomplished it. I can't wait to do it again & also again as a family. I understand that there's a 5K coming up the week of Thanksgiving here in Wenatchee. I haven't exercised much since this 5K in August. I've been a real slacker. I have committed to my good friend, Lisa, that I will run the 1/2 marathon next year in October 2009 in Leavenworth. So I've got to do lots of runs prior to, in order to work up to it. I do need to also acknowledge my brother, Ryan, who has continued to keep running since this occasion & also continues to inspire us all. To all those exercising, keeping healthy & possibly running, keep it up! We all inspire each other. "WE ARE FAMILY". That was our families song. I think of it often.

Austin & 6th Grade Camp

Back on the first week of October Austin & I got to attend 6th Grade Camp together. It was held at Tall Timbers a christian church campsite near Lake Wenatchee. It was beautiful there as you can see from these pictures. The weather held quite nicely. We got wet but not too bad. I was there once before when Whitney was in 6th grade so I knew what to expect only this time it was a little different being there with my son. We had a great time. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

This man (in the white shirt & hat) was real interesting. He spoke to the kids about trees and his job when he worked for Fish & Wildlife. He had a piece of petrified wood that was like 700 years old. It was real neat. He taught the kids to stay in school, work hard and stay out of trouble. He showed the kids how he could climb a tree several hundred feet up. Then he would pick the seeds out of the cones and use them to plant more. They loved to watch him do this even though he only climbed about 50 feet up. The boys loved it. He had some great stories to tell & the boys found it very interesting to think they could do this working for Fish & Wildlife.

This woman taught the kids about salmon & we saw several right there near the bank of the river. The cycle of salmon and how they swim all the way down stream to the ocean & then back again to the exact same spot is amazing. How do they know where they are going when they are swimming up stream? It's incredible to think about. This is something these kids have been taught for years. The school system here teaches them about salmon beginning in third grade. It's real interesting & they love it. It's not the extreme "save the salmon" talks don't misunderstand.

Here's Austin with his "group" at the dinner table. There is a cook here in this lodge & she has it really well organized. There's no messing with this lunch/dinner lady. The kids are kind of scared of her so they eat what she has prepared & follow her instructions to the "t". Dinner this night was homemade mac & cheese with pepperoni in it, Jello squares, scones & no dessert. Good thing since they knew we'd be eating lots of junk food later in our cabins. Breakfast the next morning was real good. Steel cut oatmeal that had been baked with add ins to liking, i.e. brown sugar, raisins, coconut, milk, pecans, etc. Real filling & very tasty.

Here are 4 of my 10 girls I was in charge of. Aren't they cutie pies! Good thing they aren't all 16. They are still sweet innocent fun loving girls. I think I was picking food out of my teeth there in the back of the picture. Oblivious to a picture being taking. So the funny part of this is that I guess Austin's teacher Mr. Birks knows me well. I was the only adult with these 10 girls. All the other groups were about 6-7 in size & had two adult women for each group. All the mom's and dad's thought it was amazing I could handle that many girls all by myself. Never mind the fact they were so well behaved except one mentally challenged girl in the group. But we all got along great. I fed them lots of sugar, we stayed up way past curfew & played games. I got thank you cards telling me how much fun they all had. I am so thankful for all the experience I've had in Young Womens. That's why it was so easy for me to take care of 10 by myself & I told anyone that who cared enough to ask how it was going. Mr. Birks at 12:30 am had to come to our cabin & tell us lights out. He laughed when he saw silly string everywhere & the girls having so much fun & I was still sane. He hated to have to tell us to go to bed. We had a full days schedule ahead of us though. So much fun!

Last picture. Mr. Buhler(sp?) Papa you probably know him? He grew up in Wenatchee. Now teaches school in Oregon. He juggled, lots of fun, silly, scarey things & last of all he ate fire. Then he taught one of the teachers how to do it too. Great fun. The kids also did skits. Somewhere there's a great picture of Austin doing his skit & laughing hysterically at something only he thought was funny. His laughter & smile is always so contagious. When I track down the picture I will share. I think Austin will always remember this fun experience. I know I still remember my 5th grade camp experience. Fun times I think I will always remember too. Glad I could do this with my kids.