he's going the distance...he's going for speed

Runners are an interesting breed. They obviously love punishment and inhuman amounts of perspiration, or maybe those are just the necessary trade-offs to be in better shape than the rest of us. Whatever. My husband loves to run, and started running more regularly this summer, presumably so that he can be a "bona fide" runner, and talk all the crazy, mumbo-jumbo runner language with all the other interesting people. I fully support this. And he fully supports my support-without-participation. Its a good thing we have going. So he signed up for an 8-miler (his first race since we've been married), along with my brother Nathan and some of our friends. Of course I went along to cheer and congratulate, and Beth kept me company, snapping pics. All of them did great, and Dave was happy to beat his target time. I'm proud of him!! We're a fabulous, glamorous couple, and here is some proof:

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Ok, ok...keeping it real. it was early. and cold. and early.

The two bros trying to stay warm before the gun

they are in that crowd somewhere, promise.

here he comes! woo-hoo, Babe!

Celeste was next. she runs like a gazelle. you'd hate her for it if she weren't such an awesome girl. I don't even think she was breathing hard when she crossed the finish line. **sigh**

then came Blair and Candace! look! see Candace trying to cut Blair off and beat her to the line?? man, I love this competitive vibe!

and then came Cheyenne and Nathan! he wasn't very sweaty, so I was suspicious that he had made Chey carry him part of the way. and she looked just as cute as before the gun. argh!

Dave, Blair, Candace, Chey, Nate, Celeste, a.k.a. "Team CoG" (Covenant of Grace, our church)

one step at a ti-i-ime!

I really had planned to blog this sooner, but once again, if I keep your expectations low, it works to my advantage. In my reality, 2 weeks late really isn't late at all! Earlier this month, our kiddos joined in a production of Psalty's Camping Adventure, with all the kids from our church (I think there were 36 performers). My sister CJ was the director, and some of my other siblings, along with friends, were involved somehow in putting on this fabulous musical. For about 7 months they worked, memorized lines, learned songs and dance moves, built sets (Dave was resident set builder), and made costumes, culminating in a show that was fun and creative. A couple of my children actually cried when it was over because they were so sad. Dave's parents got to visit and see the performance, and they kids had a total audience of over 150! Here are a few shots:

That's Molly in the middle. She was a total ham (I'm sure that comes from Dave).

Henry was hysterical to watch, totally into his character! Warren was Farley McFirefly, and did great!

Carrie is a drama queen. Again, the Slaughter side....

The whole crew!

Oh, and if you're wondering where Liam is, and if he was in the musical.....

I ask you, would you let this character in your play? I rest my case.

gimme, gimme that high-ten

My baby turned 3. "They" said it would happen, but I hardly believed "them". I've never had a 3 year old and not had a younger child, so this feels really weird, but wonderful too. Liam is so good to remind me though, that babies aren't the only tough children, and a life without babies is not a life without stress, mess, and insanity. He had a great party, with all 4 grandparents and whole mess of other relatives. Since he loves trucks, he got a couple of those, and since he loves hurting people, he got a sword. One of his Aunties was sweet enough to buy him several packages of pasta. Did I ever mention that pasta is all Liam eats? He asks every night if I'm making pasta for dinner, and if I say "no", he says, "OK, I'll take noodles". Oddly enough, he's my child and he hates meat...go figure. Obviously the large quantities of steak I consumed while pregnant with him did not have the desired effect. Anyway, this cake was his favorite part of the party....blowing out his 3 candles made him feel important. Its the little things, you know? For those of you with that question in the back of your mind....NO, he is not potty-trained. After over 2 months, we're still battling. I.hate.this.more.than.anything. Hopefully he'll decide to figure it out before Christmas.