5K... Take 2

Right after I ran (OK, so I walked quite a bit) my first 5K, I immediately signed up for another that was two weeks away. I knew it would keep me motivated to exercise. I hate to run in the dark, it scares me to pieces, and I can't do it with the two kids, so Doug and I had it worked out that as soon as he'd get home from work, I'd go for a jog, while he hung out with the kids and prepared dinner. It worked great for the most part, but then the cold weather came and I had another excuse. Actually, I still went out and jogged, just very bundled up, but I still skipped several days because I just hate the cold. The morning of the 5K came, ready or not. It had been very cold the previous week, but that particular Saturday was much more tolerable than the previous days. Thank you Lord!

Getting ready for the run: Yay! I made it!! AND FOUR MINUTES FASTER than two weeks ago!!!! I guess preparation pays off?? Or maybe it's the new shoes Dougie got me :) (my early Christmas present): I had a great time again (surprisingly). Maybe it's because I did it with friends? Maybe it's because exercise actually makes you feel good?? Maybe it's because everyone came together for such a good cause.

This day we ran for The Lydia Project. Lydia provides free services to women facing any type of cancer anywhere in the world.

"The Lydia Project is a grassroots non-profit charity begun by a group of Augusta, GA businesswomen in 2003. The project is named for Lydia, who appears just briefly in the Bible. (Acts 16: 14-15). She was a successful businesswoman in the trade of purple cloth. Using her gifts, Lydia extended a hand to those in need. In the same way, Lydia's purple-handled totes include a network of support and are monogrammed with "faith" "hope" or "love"~ ensuring women and their families are not alone during such a devastating time.
The Mission of The Lydia Project is to serve women facing cancer by providing hand-crafted tote bags, prayer and ongoing support. "

Back in the groove

Well, after having the computer on the fritz for a week, I'm back to blogging. But I'm so behind on the Advent calendar stuff, that I've decided just to hold off and do a post about it later this week. In the meanwhile, I've been posting some other things we've done over the past week. Here's a few more pics:

Love those kids!!!

Christmas PJ's

So, I finally got our son and daughter in matching outfits. $5 Christmas PJ's from Walmart!!! Madeline can make anything look girly!

Here Comes Santa Claus...

Our neighborhood sets up a visit from Santa at our club house each year. We waited very "patiently" for him to arrive.
I loved the happy faces of all the kiddies :)

Doug was the photographer so that I could try to get Ethan near Santa. Here's Madeline giving Santa a high-five:

...and a hug of course:

Not the typical Madeline, she was actually a little shy:

I plopped Ethan on Santa's lap, and he froze in his typical "I don't want to be here so I'm not even going to move or look at you" position. And Madeline needed a hair bow :)

Huuuuuug:

ALL Ethan wanted was the candy cane....It's the ONLY reason he even went near Santa! So, he got it and ran:

We had a nice lil visit with Santa :)

Happy Birthday to Jesus

Each year we attend a birthday party for Jesus at a church nearby, Prince of Peace. We are so thankful for the families who put this together and always welcome us :)
Madeline listened very intently to everything "Joseph" had to say. Doug was telling me that before I arrived and Mr. Jason was introducing himself as "Joseph," Madeline kept insisting, "You're not Joseph!! You're Mr. Jason!!" Mr. Jason talked to her about pretending, and then they were on their way again :)
Arts and Crafts time:

Ethan was excited because at home we usually reserve paints for during his nap time :)

Great job kids!!

Ethan:

Madeline:

The kids worked together to play the song "Happy Birthday to You" with bells. This group was a bit young, so it didn't work out so well, but they had so much fun with it anyway:

We had just run a 5K, so we deserved a cupcake too!!! (Notice poor Luke eyeing up my cupcake!)

Mmmmmm:

They drew names at the end to see who would win a few door prizes. I don't think we've ever won one in the past, but this time we won TWO!

A Mercy Me Christmas CD:

"Faith Bands" and some other cool things :)

After years of trying to find how to get it all done...

...we finally got a cleaning service:
He's been doing this for months, but this morning I finally had to get a picture. He knows where everything goes, and does his best to put away all the dishes. If something goes in a cabinet he can't reach, he puts it up on the counter below that cabinet. He actually is a help! While he empties the dishwasher, I work on collecting all the dirty dishes or cleaning the counters.
Putting the sippy cup tops away:

...and the kids plastic ware (obviously the pieces aren't neatly organized, but I've learned not to be picky):

He ASKED to do this after emptying the dishwasher:

He knows where all the glass is in our house:

Viola!

And he's quite affordable! Let me know if you'd like to borrow him for a few hours, I'll email you rates.

PlayDate!

So much fun!
I was watching my friends two kids, and we decided to invite another friend over with her two kids yesterday. We had fun, fun,fun!!

"It Was Mommy's Fault!"

I have only myself to blame for this one. I know good and well that our daughter is not very athletically coordinated. She's not very graceful when it comes to running, hopping, jumping, etc. In fact, it's only been very recently (yes, she's 4) that she has figured out how to jump with both feet at the same time.
So what was I thinking when I asked her to jump off the couch and look like a superhero (to model a cape I had made)??? I'm not sure! But I was smart enough to prepare the floor for her before the jumps:
After about a half dozen tries, she's ready to go again (I wanted to attempt a shot from behind).

Guess I should have stopped while we were doing ok:

7 hours later:

And today she has a nice, dark, black chin.

We never let the kids jump on the couch, so if she explains what happened, she'll be sure to mention, "Mommy told me to do it."

Sorry Madeline! I love you!

On the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Days of Avent...

...I did not update the blog.

Day 3:
Locating door #3:
Madeline's turn to put one together:

A little skateboarder dude!

So cute!!

Madeline played with this little guy for a looooong time:

Day 4:
Ethan's turn to locate the door:

Took us a while to figure out what it was...what's your guess?

Day 5:

The sharing/taking turns went well for a couple days:

But finally, Madeline was able to get to work with Daddy:

My favorite piece thus far....we call him, Nate:

Hopefully I will have more timely, in depth updates to come...but probably not :)