Guatemala family fun run

 All the Eckerts participate in the Guatemala fundraiser family 1 mile.  The kids wanted to wear the shirts they got for the race.  We took off on our mile run and Bobby took an early lead.  This of course made the competitive Emerson very upset and Bobby and I were forced to slow to a stop to allow for dad and daughter to catch up.  Part of the reason they were so behind is my little animal lover insisted on petting every dog that walked by with their owner.  She cannot lose though and so I held Bobby back and encouraged Emmy to run to the finish.  She did win but I think Bobby would have taken this race had I not rigged it a bit.  In the end Bobby wanted to cross with me holding my hand and Emmy wanted to beat us all and did so with her arms up in the air.

The kids were pretty excited about the post race snacks.....chips and Cheetos.  They don't get those much at home and so they both devoured their snacks and had orange hands and mouths on the way home.  We had a great time supporting the students as a family.

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A busy, fun filled weekend of racing, parades and friends

 We had a VERY busy weekend.  It started with the mini marathon.  The kids were excited to race, win medals and get their race shirts.  They ran around afterwards with their friends.  Emmy ran into one of her favorite girlfriends there - Shacey.  The next morning I ran the half and placed second in 1 hour 35 minutes.  It wasn't my best time this year but it was good enough to get 2nd overall, 1st for my age division.  I was in the paper in the coverage with the winner saying she felt "stalked" by me and that it was nice to see some new, young females coming up in racing.  I thought it was great to be described as young ;)  My female relay team also placed first and that was really fun to do as well.  After the race I jogged to my car, changed clothes and drove to capitol to meet Emmy at her parade float by 9:40 (the race started at 7:30 so it was tight). I walked behind as a chaperone on the parade route.  She was dressed all in white with the other dancers on her team and they were all singing to "Let it Go" from the frozen movie, throwing glitter and handing out snow balls to the crowd.  She waved and yelled out to friends and people she recognized and I got teary eyed watching her be so happy and excited up there.  Bobby was there with Grandpa/Grandma Eckert and the Lovdal boys.  He enjoyed the parade as well.  Later on she met up with Shacey and they went to the Apple Fest and had a great time together.  Bobby went swimming in the pool.  My relay team and I claimed our awards up on the podium.  I missed the ceremony for the half but my friend who is also the race director had saved my medal and my winners' jacket.  My relay team also got winners' jackets and we went out for an afternoon drink while waiting for the awards ceremony to begin.  Robb and I met up with my relay team, their husbands and some other friends later that night.  My friend Heather got second (to me) in our age division and ran a PR so we took a celebratory pic together.

A busy weekend

 Emmy asked the face painter to make her into a kitty then had the balloon maker craft her some kitty ears.  Bobby just wanted another sword to replace the one he popped.  This time though he asked for blue....maybe he thought the color would make it more sturdy?

 Emmy enjoyed playing with these big foam blocks and shapes.  She made a little fort, then Bobby came running over and knocked it down.

 Emmy and Bobby ran a race/obstacle course this past weekend at the Apple dash.  They really enjoyed it.  Emmy ran way ahead of Bobby but Bobby kept up a good pace with a big smile on his face.  They enjoyed my loud cheering for them.  Bobby went under the ropes that were about 1 foot off of the ground instead of stepping over which was pretty comical.  They earned ribbons and treats and then they played in the bounce houses, got their faces painted and got balloons made into swords, kitty ears.

 We went to the downtown street fair this past weekend.  The kids chose cotton candy for their treat and then we got balloons made.  Poor Bobby was fencing with me when we arrived back home, he squeezed hard and the darn thing popped!   He instantly was in tears.  I did find some glow sticks and we used those to substitute. 

A long week without our dad

Robb was gone this week as he took a road trip to Texas with my brother to go to an auction.  The kids and I had some help getting to school on time from my mom and Bob and Candy.  They took Bobby to school for me so I could concentrate on Emmy.  She likes for me to walk with her to the playground the couple blocks from where I park.  I enjoy this too and so it is a great way for me to send her off.  She lets me give her hugs and kisses and we wish each other a good work/school day.  Today on the way she said, "Mommy, in case I forget to tell you at Centennial - have a great day at work!"  She had her extra fancy folders in her back pack and I asked her if I should take them out of there since she didn't need them for school.  She told me that she wanted to keep them in her backpack because they are beautiful and she looks at them during the day since they remind her of me.  She may be the sweetest little girl in the world. Today she asked for a braided bun and changed her pants 4 times and so maybe a bit of a fashion diva as well.  The weather was great over the weekend and so the kids and I swam, and swam and swam some more.  They asked me to take videos of their creative jumps into the pool.  Emmy has really impressed me with her swimming and she now dives down to the bottom and can pick things up and do hand stands.   I spoiled them a bit too and last night made two dinners per each kid's request.  Robb was home by midnight and the kids were very excited to have their daddy back again (as was I)!

Mini Marathon Training

Bobby went to Grandma and Grandpa Eckert's house last night and Emmy and I went to the Mini Marathon training that the 3rd year PT students put together.  It was a beautiful night and the students did such a great job planning fun kid activities.  The kids played games and ran laps where they earned colored rubber bands (Emmy was excited to earn every color - 7 bands).  She gave me high fives as she ran by each time.  I also was so happy to watch how Emmy makes new friends.  She came and sat down by a new girl and told her, "Oh my gosh, I just LOVE your shirt.  Ever after high is my favorite!"  The girl told her she has a back pack and other shirts with those character so Emmy said, "I plan to come to this training each week and so I would like to see your back pack and shirts next time."  They carried on their conversation from there but I was so proud to see how sweet, outgoing and friendly Emmy is to new people.

First day of Kindergarten and Pre-K

Emmy and Bobby started school today.  It was Emmy's first day at Centennial Elementary in Mrs. Vollmers class.  She was SOOO excited and she picked out her pink outfit and hairstyle (crown braid).  She was very ready for this to happen and we were excited for her.  Bobby starts Pre-K and must go to school without his big sister.  He did pretty well with this.  Emmy, Robb and I waited outside for the bell to ring and then we escorted her in there together.  She had some big smiles for her teacher when her teacher greeted her.  She took some pictures with us and then saw her friend and began ignoring us.  We got her attention long enough to say good bye and then that was it.  I held it together and held Robb's hand out to the car.  Then I shed a few tears in honor of my big girl growing up too fast.  Emmy and I wore our forever friends necklaces that make a heart when put together and so I am going to be thinking of her all day.  I can't believe how fast this time has flown by but I am certain that we've filled it with the best memories and times together that we could.  God has been so very good to us all and he has blessed us with lots of time together.  Emmy is confident, outgoing and happy and I have complete faith that today will be a fantastic day for her.  Bobby is very independent as well and enjoys his school and so I know he will have a great first day without Emmy there.  Today is also Grandma Launa's birthday and my parent's anniversary.  My mom stopped by and delivered the nicest flowers already today.  She is so thoughtful and we plan to have cake and give her gifts after school today which will be a fun way to celebrate!



Labor Day weekend

This past weekend we went out to the ranch and had a great time.  We played, ate great food and had a bonfire.  The Bear family joined us all out there and it was fun to have some extra kids and adults.  The next day we got up and headed out to the Almont parade.  The kids got lots of parade candy and then the ran the kids races.  Emmy was in first place but stopped to lift the tape which caused her to move into second place.  She was pretty upset initially about this but I gave her several pep talks about doing her best and being happy with her second place prize which was fantastic considering all the kids that ran with her (many of them older).  Bobby too really wanted to win but as a three year old running with 5 and 6 year olds he ended up in the middle of the pack (which I thought was really great)!  He was really into the race though and had a fun time.  We headed home to get some time in the pool.