Midnight Run

This weekend was the 3rd annual Ready, Set, Glow, Midnight Run.  This 5K is one of my favorites because it is unique.  I love that it is dark and that everyone is decked out in their "glow gear".  Also, this is the one race a year that my brother runs, and he goes all out.  This year he won the "best costume" award with his Daisy Mae (from Lil' Abner) get-up.  Terrible.  There were lots of familiar faces at this race- including Krystial, Karina, Quincy, Maura, and Hunter.  We had lots of fun, and we all ran a good race.  My cousin Hunter got a new PR.  And with a time of 24:38, I was the first female to finish.  This is the second race this month that I have won.  That's never happened before.  Anyway, below are some pictures from our fun time at the run.

Here's a First (and Probably a Last)

There were three local races that took place this Saturday. Because of this, all of the local runners split up and went to different ones. I ran in the Southeast Christian Academy 5K. I won the overall female award. Now I've won my age group a few times in the past, but this is the first time that I've ever been the first female (of any age group) to cross the finish line and win the overall female award. I do realize that this is a total fluke. Had this been the only race in town, then this probably wouldn't have happened. Still, it's neat to have an "overall" award under my belt. My time was a decent 24:38- which I'm happy with. I received a trophy, which Olivia was quick to point out is not as big as the overall trophy that she won last year.

Okefenokee Field Trip

Last week Olivia's pre-k class went to the Okefenokee Swamp Park for their last field trip of the year. Olivia was excited to have Gigi as her chaperone. The kids (and chaperones) had a great time at the park. They took a train ride, saw the exhibits, and got to touch a snake and a gator. When I picked Olivia up later in the day, she was super excited about the fun day that she had had. She was also excited about the alligator stuffed animal that Gigi had bought for her at the park. Not only has my child touched a gator more times than I can count, but she now sleeps with a stuffed alligator in her bed. I hope she's not on the way to being a "swamp person".

Easter Morning

The kids awoke on Easter morning to discover that they had had a visit from the Easter Bunny. The bunny had filled their baskets with candy, DVDs, a puzzle, and bubbles. The kids were thrilled. After checking out the loot, they each took their baskets to their rooms to search for the eggs that the Easter Bunny had hidden for them. After finding all of the eggs, the kids began getting ready for Sunday school and church. As expected, their was a large crowd in attendance. The kids were excited to have a "guest" (Granny Mel) in their Sunday school class. Gigi is one of the Pre-K Sunday school teachers, so both Grandmothers ended up being in the kids' class. After church we went to the front to get our picture made by the cross, which is always decorated so nicely on Easter. Not to call any names, but some people (cough cough- Daddy, Sam, Quincy- cough cough) left instead of coming to the front after the service, and so not everyone appears in this year's Easter pictures.

Easter Eggs

The kids had a lot of fun dyeing and hunting for Easter eggs this year. We colored some eggs for the Easter Bunny to hide, and then there were two egg hunts with plastic eggs at Granny Buie's house. There were plenty of prize eggs, so all of the kids were able to find one. Here are some eggcellent pictures (sorry- had to do it).

Swampfest

Every year, the city of Waycross has a two day celebration called "Swampfest". The days are filled with competitions, demonstrations, and vendors. During the evenings, there are live bands. For the Saturday night grand finale, the festival-goers are treated to fireworks and an outdoor concert given by the Swingin' Medallions (our favorite). Since Swampfest usually falls during the week of Spring Break, we rarely get to go (because we are usually out of town). This year, however, we were in town and able to attend. It was so much fun! Granny Mel was visiting, so she and I took the kids. It didn't take long for us to spot my dad, brother, and two of my sisters. My brother Sam was working the door as a bouncer at KDs. We stopped to say a little something to him, and daddy went inside for a moment. Seeing how uncle Sam was at the door and Papa was going in, Owen thought that he should go in, too. He tried, and he got bounced- by his own uncle! What's that about? Getting bounced didn't hurt Owen's self esteem, though. It wasn't long before both and Olivia were cutting a rug on the "dancefloor". The kids had such a good time. We stayed for one entire set by the band and for the fireworks that followed. It was lots of fun.

Spring at the Zoo

The kids and I took a trip to the Jacksonville Zoo during Spring Break last week. We haven't been to the zoo in about two years, and I must admit that I am impressed with the improvements that continue to be made. It is really becoming a great place. Since our last visit, the zoo has added several new attractions and exhibits- including a magellenic penguin exhibit with an underwater viewing area just for kids. The zoo itself is arranged in "loops"- most named for the different continents. My favorite loop is "South America". The jaguar exhibit is fantastic (kind of has to be since the jaguar is the mascot of Jacksonville football team).






















I always enjoy seeing which animals the kids are the most interested in. It changes with each trip. On this particular day, the kids were most impressed by the penguins, reptiles (all), and gorillas. The silverback was probably the favorite animal of the day because when we walked up he had his butt straight up in the air and pointed at the viewing glass. The kids thougt this was hilarious, and insisted that we see "the gorilla with his booty in the air" from several different viewing platforms and angles. I'm actually glad that we did because that gave us more time on the "Great Apes" loop. It was great to be in this part of the zoo on this particular day because the siamangs were going crazy. I did not know that they could be so loud- and I learned that they have little puffy things (like a frog) on their chins that puff out when they shreik. It seemed like everyone visiting the zoo was crowded around this exhibit because their noise and antics were simply amazing. I felt like I was in a jungle in Africa with wild, crazy monkeys all around me.




Before leaving the zoo, we visited the kids water-play area. We didn't bring bathing suites, but the kids still wanted to get in and splash a little. I said that it would be okay, but told them not to get too wet because we didn't have extra clothes. My advice was totally ignored. Thank goodness it was sunny enough to dry out their clothes before we left the zoo.