Pumpkins Aplenty

Pumpkins were the theme of our weekend.  On Saturday morning we woke up bright and early to prepare for The Great Pumpkin Run.  It is a cross country run for elementary school aged children.  Madeleine participated  for the first time in Kindergarten, at which time my dad ran with her (see here).  Since I am not a runner I was sort of counting on him to run it with her again this year when she brought the registration form home, pleading to participate.  However, much to my dismay, he was out of town this weekend.  I was prepared to tell her we couldn't do it this time when it donned on me that my sister, Natalie, loves to run.  She was gracious enough to request the day off from work to run with Madeleine.  Perfect, except for one minor detail.  I was not counting on Audrey wanting to run as well.  This development meant I was going to have to lace up my walking shoes and run (huffing and puffing) after all.

The day I had been dreading for weeks arrived.  Here we are pre-run.  

We were all freezing in this picture because it was 39 degrees!

They were freezing here too, but wearing a jacket in the picture would cover up their cool shirts.

On your mark . . . get set . . . go!!!  I like to say we lingered in the back so we would not get trampled.

Halfway through and still going strong enduring the increasing pain in my calves and lack of oxygen to my lungs.

 

Madeleine really was going strong.  We came across her friend Sam on the course.

 

Finally . . . the end!  

Madeleine shaved off 3 minutes from her kindergarten mile and I did about as well as I always have.  I am NOT a runner

We I survived!!!  Now perhaps I will start training for marathons (wink wink).

Next up, Audrey and Natalie!!

Originally Natalie was going to run with Madeleine, but after practicing the day before we changed our plans.  We quickly discovered that Audrey is a speedy little runner with great endurance.  We decided it would be best for Natalie to run with her since I wouldn't be able to keep up and would ultimately hold her back.  

Ready, set, go!

 Here they are at the halfway mark.  Audrey held Natalie's hand the entire time . . .

 . . . until the end when Natalie encouraged her to let go so they could sprint to the finish line.

Check out that time!  Pretty impressive for a kindergartner.  I bet she could have shaved some time off of that had she not been holding Natalie's hand the whole way.  All I could think about when she crossed the finish line was the fact that nearly 6 years ago she came into this world fighting and because of it I knew she would be destined for greatness!  (Was that a little much?!  Sorry, I can't help but be cheesy from time to time.  It just ooozes from me).

I love this picture.  As soon as they crossed the finish line Natalie gave Audrey a high 5 and scooped her up.

 

The dynamic duo!

As it turns out, this run that I had been dreading for weeks ended up being the highlight of my weekend.  I was not only proud of my girls, but proud of me for running the whole mile (only stopping to go down hills because Madeleine wanted to).  In fact, it made me a little cocky.  Like, maybe I really will try to train for a half marathon or something.  I doubt it . . . but I might surprise you (and myself).

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We decided a pumpkin run wasn't enough and that we should carry the pumpkin theme throughout the entire day by going to Vala's Pumpkin patch.  Going to a pumpkin patch is my favorite part of Fall.  I would venture to say that our annual trip to the pumpkin patch is my favorite time of year.  I love the smell of bonfires, and roasted almonds.  The way the sun reflects off of the red and orange trees can be compared to nothing else and what is it about a pumpkin that feels like home?  I also love the pumpkin patch for the Fall pictures we take every year.  I anticipate them like a kid does Christmas.  

Here are a few of my favorites:

 

This picture was taken in the middle of a corn maze.  Madeleine successfully lead us through it.

The mums were in full bloom and simply gorgeous!

A lady who saw us taking pictures kindly offered to take this one of our family.  I was so grateful to her, especially since I had been wanting a fall family picture and this one turned out so nice.

After a full day at the Pumpkin Patch we rounded out the day with dinner at The Cracker Barrel.  Seriously, it doesn't get much better than that; a day at the Pumpkin Patch followed up by chicken fried chicken with mashed potatoes, all in the company of my family.  It was a good day indeed.

To see all of the Pumpkin Run pictures click here and to see the rest of the pumpkin patch pictures click here.  And, just in case you like to reminisce like I do you can click here, here, here, here, and here to see our previous year's trips to the pumpkin patch (although I think the only one who will do that is my mom. )