No Surprise

Griffin's teachers pinned this little note on his bag last Thursday. It cracked me up and is so, so true.  Got something this guy can kick and throw?  Well then, he's in business. 

First Grade

I mean seriously, how cute is it to see a a 1st grader diligently working on spelling homework while his 4-year-old brother looks over his shoulder, patiently waiting so that they can resume play?

First grade seems to be is going really well for Miles. He's hanging out with a mix of new friends and "old" friends. He loves his teacher (as do I). And he's tackling new things (like spelling tests every Friday -- welcome to the big leagues, baby). He seems to enjoy school and I've been loving every chance I get to be in there with him (having lunch, volunteering in the library, computer class, etc..). I'm slated to chaperone his class trip to a local farm/pumpkin patch on Thursday. Can't wait!

I ♥ Faces: Excited!

Nothing quite like the excitement of a 2-year-old splashing in puddles after a big rain storm!


This week's I ♥ Faces theme is "Excited".  Come see the other fun photos entered in this week's contest at iheartfaces.com.

Weekend

On Sunday Mike and I had a "date day" at the Panther's Game. We bought some great tickets from our neighbors (3rd row - wow!) and had much fun. Not going so far as to take credit for the Panther's first win of the season....but it was...and we were there....I'm just saying.  Word on the street is that we were on tv after a big play at the end.  Documenting their good luck charms, maybe?

In an effort to do everything "Halloween", Mike and I took the kids to Michael's  for a craft event. Miles and Noah loved making their vampire pumpkins. Griffin (the sports enthusiast) opted to throw, kick, and roll his pumpkin. Basically, everyone was happy.

Take Flight Triathlon

Sunday morning was one for the Brown family record books -- Mike and I each crossed the finish line of the Take Flight Sprint Triathlon.  It was Mike's 3rd and my 1st -- and it was FUN!  

The race was a 250 meter indoor pool swim, a 10 mile bike ride, and a 5k run.  There were 672 participants and starting times were staggered based on estimated, submitted swim times.  The race started at 7:30am.  Mike was in the 147th slot and started at 7:59:50.  I was in the 479th slot and started at 9:09:50.  Mike literally crossed the finish line just moments after I started my swim!  I was initially bummed about us being so staggered, but it ended up being great as we were able to watch the majority of each others races. 

Mike is in the middle of these two swimmers.  We quickly learned that some people lie about their swim times.  Mike was stuck behind several slower swimmers and couldn't pass.  Such a bummer, but he still did great.  (The humidity from the pool fogged up my lens.  The clear pictures that start a few down were taken by my dad -- the star photographer of the day.) 

I was able to encourage Mike on his run before I warmed up for my swim (yes, that means I am a much slower swimmer.)  :)

Love this shot, Dad, with both of Mike's feet off of the ground, just before he crossed the finish line!

Over an hour later it was time for me to start my swim (ps there are more pictures of me, but only because its my first one!  Here are many more of Mike in action! :).  (The cap is a good look, isn't it?)  You can see in the second picture the way everyone has to line up along the side of the pool to wait for the their start time.  Your swim time includes the time to pull-up out of the pool, run down a path, and cross into the transition area.  Oh, and the temperature outside?....Brrrrr.....

You can see Brad, Dana, and Griffin (his foot) in this picture. It was amazing to see everyone's smiles as I ran by. Thankfully Griffin was so snug with Aunt Dana that he didn't ask me to hold him. :)

Mike encouraged me to get a road bike a few days before the race (I was planning to use my mtn bike).  I opted for clip-in shoes and was nervous about them.  Thankfully, I clipped in fine and they felt great!  L.o.v.e my new bike!

While I was biking, look who was snacking. :)

Mike, Dana and Brad cheered me on as I transitioned my gear from biking to running. My mom and Griffin were right there as I started out on the run. My dad -- he was everywhere. :)

Cheesy shot. Seriously, what a dork.  I was just paces away from the finish and I was excited!

We had the best support team that day.  The race location was about 40 minutes away and Dana and Brad were there just after 8am -- wow (and seriously, how cute are they?)!

My parents brought the boys a few minutes later. It was AMAZING to see so many smiling faces and waving hands as we started and ended each leg of the race. Seeing the boys cheer us on was priceless. And, if it wasn't for my dad, the majority of the race would not have been documented. Thanks, Dad, for running, dodging, squatting, waiting. You did everything needed to get the best shots and we are so thankful!

We did it and we did it together. Can't wait till the next one!

Zoo

As much as we've all been enjoying the routine that school brings, we were so excited to have a teacher-workday on  Monday. We wanted to make the most of a fun day off, so Trish and I took the kids to the zoo. Oh, how we love the Columbia Zoo!

For the past 4 years, Trish and I have bringing the kids to the zoo. At one point, I felt like we were going there every other week. Somehow, this was the first time we ever ventured to the Botanical Gardens (a little train carts you from one side to the other). It was really pretty and the kids loved running along the paths amidst the plants and flowers.





There was a tiny kids play area, where the kids could plant artificial plants (though Noah looked me square in the eyes and said, "mom, this plant is real") and there was a chalkboard where Miles and Ella played school.

It was so dirty in the play area.  You can see the soil on Griffin's face and hands  (not that he cared at all.) The entire drive to the zoo, Griffin was talking about "tigers and lions".  We saw the tigers, but didn't see any lions.  He spent much of our zoo time saying, "see lion, mommy!".  Poor guy, I finally had to tell him that the lions were sleeping and we'd have to catch them next time.  Anybody up for a trip to the zoo?  Looks like we're heading back soon.  :)