Hooligans are Rad.

I'm sure you guys have heard of all the "color" runs and races popping up all over the place. People are running through everything from color to foam to mud to zombies. As a runner, I first turned my nose up at these races since (ohmuhgosh) they don't even have a time clock or mile markers. I realized I needed to get over myself though, and ran one last summer with my sisters and had a blast, gasp, even though I didn't know what my time was. ;)

It was so much fun, in fact, that I thought we would take the hooligans to a local Color Me Rad race. I figured there would be a lot of walking and piggy-backing, and there was, but they ran a good part of the way and had a great time. Merrick did a little of his signature questioning (my child who has to know the reasons and the whys and the schedule for everything) and pouted a little when he got sprayed (the powder they throw was fine) with the liquid color. He ran for at least 1.5 miles though! So proud of those skinny white legs of his. Tirzah didn't care about being sprayed, and her only concern was there was not nearly enough pink color flying around. She was also a bit perturbed that I did not get her a long, curly blond wig to wear like the girls in tutu's and fairy wings she saw run past us. I'll know better next time.

The kiddos didn't actually get race bibs, since they run for free with an adult, so we made them their own. They have seen me race enough to know, "hey...where is my bib?" No fooling these guys. I thought their bib "numbers" were appropriate. ;) Afterwards we took them out to IHOP for some recovery pancakes. Apparently racing gives them a monster appetite since we couldn't fill the bottomless pit that was Merrick. He stood up at one point in his seat and said: "I am HUUUNGRY! I need more pancakes!" We had to leave before he managed to get full...eating his food and part of mine and Billy's. 

I know it's bittersweet watching them get older, but it's also so much fun to do things like this with them. I'd like to think they will look back on their childhood, aside from remembering how deeply loved and treasured they are, and see lots of colorful memories and traditions that keep them steady enough to run free.

I Don't Cayuh.

We were riding in the van the other day and the hooligans just busted out singing this song I wasn't aware they'd even heard before. Complete with matching accents.

Life was crazy this weekend, (Color Me Rad, photo shoots, goats and chickens and children oh my) and there's lots of fun stuff to blog about. But I'm still trying to find which way is up and sort through all the wreckage of the good kind of chaos. So I figured this would do as a good start to the week...but stay tuned. There's always more crazy on this end of the Internet.

Mall Walkers

Around our house, there really isn't any great spot to take a walk with the kiddos. We kind of have to cross a busy road, and then the sidewalk we walk down is right next to said busy road. If you've met my children, you know why this would lead to the complete opposite of a relaxing stroll.

The other night we decided we'd be really smart, and take them for a "walk" at a nearby outdoor mall. Plenty of room and no chance of getting run over by anything other than a few fashionistas who don't quite appreciate shopping alongside the local wildlife.

As you can see, they took advantage of the extra "freedom" to not stay on a narrow sidewalk. I would have attempted to rein them in a bit, but since there weren't many people to bother, I decided to save my breath. (Billy and I kept asking ourselves what they had eaten to make them so wound up...but so far this remains a mystery.) Thankfully no one fell into the fountains, and contrary to one of the above pictures, no one found any snakes in the landscaping either. There may have even been a relay race on the escalator, but this can't be confirmed.

Tirzah is obsessed with flowers, as you know. She even found this flowered  "item" that she wanted to buy in Urban Outfitters. Sorry, kid. Not buying you a flask for at least another 18 years. ;) I'll leave you with this little clip, which will probably leave you wondering how no one ended our trip with a little swim.

Different Kinds of Awesome

It's never more obvious to me the differences in my kiddos, and just boys and girls in general, than when we are playing outside. Tizzy can usually be found twirling or picking and and all flowers within a mile radius. Merrick is climbing something or breaking something.

Tizzy is a girly girl who manages at the same time to be a bully. It's an admirable skill if you ask me. It's why I call her the warrior princess. ;) And Merrick, in all his wild and crazy, is such an inquisitive sweetheart. He will stomp on a bug if its bothering me, but the other day he "took care of" a tiny ant for a good hour.

I want to celebrate the differences in my kiddos, even when their differences lead them to rip each others hair (and mine) out. They are three pretty amazing individuals...and I'm glad that I was chosen to be their referee.

It Walks.

J-Hawk finally took his first real steps Sunday night. We were really excited for him, and as you can tell, he was pretty excited for himself.

Life probably just went to a whole different level of crazy. But it was bound to happen eventually! ;)