Lots to catch up on, so prepare!
June has nearly passed us by, and with it, the first of many produce seasons. The girls and I snuck in some last minute strawberry picking with Grandma one evening. Tierney was thrilled to be right at the berry level and help herself!
The girls grew tired of picking after a short time (so much for their "help"), and retired to some buckets with books to look at.
Since I am a week behind already, I have some catching up to do here... Two weeks back, we were preparing for my friend Kathy's big 100 mile run for Emmett's Endurance Event. Her son, Emmett, was born with Craniosynostosis, a condition of the skull in which plates grew together too soon for his brain development and required surgical intervention. Unfortunately, it took Kathy's hard work and time to diagnose her son and fight for doctors to agree, so his treatment did not begin until after he started having seizures at one (it should have been diagnosed at a few months of age).
Each year, on the anniversary of Emmett's surgery, Kathy runs to raise awareness, as she did the day of his surgery - all 7 hours and 26 minutes. In past years, she has run on her treadmill for 8 hours or at Gazelle Sports in Grand Rapids for 40 miles (more than 8 hours). This year, she went big time and committed to 100 miles. As she ran it in Sandy Pines, we were able to be there to cheer her on and help her get through the long miles.
The first task was to make signs to encourage Kathy and super hero capes for the kids. My friend Kelly and I, and our kids, spent an entire day working on this task and had such fun doing so!
The day of the run, Friday June 19, Kelly and I brought our kids to cheer for her. While the kids played, we put in several miles with her.
Ezri and Alora wanted to run with her too, as they had in Allegan in February when she ran a different 100 mile race. Apparently, a few feet was all Alora wanted to commit to, because a trip to the end of the street and back turned into Kathy carrying Alora as Ezri ran along side.
After some lunch, the kids settled in for a movie with friends.
After the movie was done, the girls and I headed home for a few hours. After Daddy was done working for the day, we headed back to Sandy Pines to keep Kathy and Tony company. I put in several more miles with Kathy that afternoon and evening.
What started out as a visit turned into an overnighter for all of us, including Andy, Jay & Becci. The guys took the overnight shift, running with Kathy into the early morning. As the sun came up, I was back awake and figured I might as well be useful. By now, Kathy was quite tired, but had a bit to go yet. So, I went back out on the trail for more miles, and stuck with her as other friends joined us up until the last mile was finished. All said, though completely unplanned, I had over 23 miles in myself in that 24 hour period I was there. Kathy finished at 10:30 am Saturday, June 20, her full 100 miles in 27 1/2 hours!
Needless to say, EVERYONE in our house was tired after that, so we spent most of Saturday sleeping (those that would anyway) and laying low.
We spent Father's Day resting together as well. Daddy wanted a quiet day at home, so we enjoyed a nice quiet day together.
Last Tuesday was my birthday. The girls and I spend the day hanging out and playing together until Daddy came home from his meeting for dinner. Grandpa and Grandma brought dinner and a delicious chocolate cake, which the girls could hardly wait to get into.
Ezri and Alora were super excited about giving me the gift they picked out with Daddy on Monday during their Daddy-Daughter date. A new telephoto lens for my camera!
Excited about the gift myself, I set to playing with it right away, with my favorite people as subjects.
After all of that excitement, we needed a few days of peace. However, Tierney apparently has decided that now is a perfect time to learn to crawl onto the table any time my back is turned for a second!
Little turkey! She is quite proud of this new skill.
We spent a day with Great Grandma last Wednesday. A new puppy on the farm has been quite a lot of fun for the girls, and has given Sadie a chance to play with another dog too.
Of course, Great Grandma spoils the girls, so each time we are there ice cream of some flavor is readily available. Tierney had her own little bowl, and is even able to scoop it with a spoon and eat it fairly well.
The girls discovered the matchbox cars this past week, and were happily entertained for quite some time playing while Great Grandma and I worked on some other projects in her house.
Around Tierney's nap time, she found her way into Great Grandma's lap, and it wasn't too long before she was fast asleep.
And providing me with a picture to cherish...
It also made me realize how long that kid is!
This past Saturday, we had another quiet day around the house. In the evening, we took the girls to the school playground, where they played their hearts out while this Mommy had some fun with her new birthday gift!
Can't help but smile at those adorable faces!
