Words I Never Thought I'd Hear

This is a conversation I heard this morning while Max and Elise were in the kitchen getting ready for school.

Elise: (Obviously unhappy) EWWW! Mommy, Max kissed me!

Max: (Cheerfully) That's because I love you.

Elise: That's disgusting.

No, I wasn't dreaming or delusional. It really happened. If I weren't so hopeful, I'd worry that Max was delirious.

Weekend Events

Columbia River Classic

Saturday Brett ran in the Columbia River Classic in Richland, WA. Our niece, Krysten Stoker, ran the 2 mile race and did a great job. Brett did the ten mile run with his sister Melissa, our family’s crazy but beloved endurance athlete, and her running buddy, Stacia. I cheered them on at the start, then met them at the turnaround to cheer some more and take their cast-off shirts and jackets. This is the longest distance Brett has run. He finished in 1:28:42, 14 seconds behind Melissa. Way to go, Brett!

Watching all these runners during the race was really fascinating. You wouldn’t believe how many of the top half finishers were 50+ years old. Every runner had their own distinctive form. Some looked painfully awkward even though they were among the front runners. Some looked like perfect athletes. All found joy in conquering their limbs and their minds, in subduing the pain of muscle and breath and enduring to the finish line.

Aren’t our bodies miraculous? Amazing.

The Climbing Buddies

While we were at the race, Elise and her cousin Xander decided to do a little mountain climbing at home. Elise dangled a long bungee cord through the stair rails and down the side of the stairs while Xander grabbed on and tried to climb up the stair wall. Predictably, Elise couldn't hold Xander's weight and the bungee cord rebounded onto Xander's poor head. After Xander's two battle scars had been glued shut at the emergency room, Xander told his Mom "That was fun. Can we do it again?" Luckily, these two good buddies are just as close as ever. Xander was very forgiving.



Landen's Baby Blessing

Sunday afternoon, we had the honor of being present as our nephew Landen received his baby blessing. He is such a sweet, good tempered baby. In his blessing he was promised that he would be 'a force for good in the world.' What a wonderful promise.


Here are Ryan, Ronica, Xander and Landen after the blessing.




Natalie vs. the Wood Stove

Later that night, Natalie had a close encounter with Grandma and Grandpa's wood stove and lost. I discovered that I'm no good with burns. I'm an old pro at blood, surgery, staples, trauma of whatever sort. Burns . . . not so much. Initially, it didn't look too bad. In fact, it took us a few minutes to even find where she'd touched the stove. By the time we got home, however, the whole heel of her hand was covered with a blister. The doctor says she will likely heal without scaring. For the next week she'll be running around with her hand and arm bandaged to help keep things clean.


And a Happy Birthday to Brett today, November 11th! He took a half day off since the kids were out of school today. He got to go for a run in the daylight, take his family to a matinée, then came home and grilled steak and opened presents. It was a good day for him and for us.

Have a great day,
Kim

Boo to you, too!

What do a pink fairy, a very large baby, a fearsome Jedi, a highly animated skeleton and a baby bumblebee have in common? Other than the fact that they all live at my house, absolutely nothing. We had some firsts this Halloween.


Elise had her first dance recital. Five little girls all tapping to 'Monster Mash.' The little girl in yellow had a complete meltdown and sobbed through the whole thing. The little orange witch stood in one place with her finger in her mouth. Elise did great, but I've had my share of times where my child didn't perform as expected, so I had lots of sympathy for parents and kids.


Camille is now of an age where she wanted to trick o' treat with her friends rather than go to the trunk o' treat at the church. So, we split the crew up. Brett took Max, Elise and Natalie to the church and Cameron and I chaperoned some young ladies around suburban Spokane Valley. Camille discovered that traditional trick o' treating is a lot more work than walking from car to car in the parking lot! But, she had fun. Although I missed the family being together for Halloween, it was worth it to help her further cement strong friendships with other good kids. The older my kids get, the more I recognize how vital this is.


Cameron, by the way, was amazing. You'd have thought he was a pro, walking up the driveways to the doors by himself, announcing 'Trick Or Treat' and remembering 'Thank You' each time. Rather than being scared of the dark, the costumes or decorations, he seemed delighted by them. Once when he looked up and saw a giant spider suspended above someone's porch, he simply grinned and yelled "YIKES!"



Brett reported that Natalie, Max and Elise had a good time as well. I hear Max spent a lot of his time light saber dueling with our ward's other Jedis.


Thanks for the great skirt, Grandma Borders! Elise wears it around the house pretty much 24/7 except when she has to go to school. She shoves the wand in the waistband like a holster. You never know when you might need some quick-draw fairy magic.


Happy November, everyone. We begin the downhill rush through the holidays.

Love,
Brett, Kim and family

Terror of the Tupperware Drawer

Yep, we've officially reached menace status. My containers are no longer safe in their neatly nested homes. Check out the grin. She is obviously tickled pink about her new ability.