Tinsel Trot

Okay, so I had this brilliant idea one day to do a 5k with the kids. Hmm, yeah DID NOT think that one through. A 5k consists of 3.1 MILES. This didn't stop me though. I figured I would sign us up and we would just run as far as we wanted then stop running. It was called a fun run for heavens sake. I thought it would be a lot of people with Christmas Cheer running along... That was until we showed up for the Tinsel Trot. 

I decked us out in my idea of Christmas colors and went and signed in. 

As the race got closer in time more and more people had shown up. I'm not talking like a dozen... I'm talking like HUNDREDS. Oh yeah, and not kids. I saw very FEW kids. It was mostly adults in full running gear with their cool gadgets to track their time. 

I'm sure they were looking at my little group like we were indeed insane. I mean.... here I am with 4 little kids all decked out in Red and White with Christmas bells hanging around our necks. We did NOT look like professional runners by any means. I mean look at the twins for crying out loud. They wore their freaking rain boots. :) 

Anyway, I went in and grabbed our t-shirts for the race and threw the kids in the car. We had to get out of there. You might say that I was slightly intimidated to say the least. BUT, a Tinsel Trot was promised and by golly a Tinsel Trot was EXACTLY what we were going to do!

I quickly drove over to the High School track. 

Every good trot begins with some exercises to get those muscles stretched out.

They started with Carter leading them in stretches then quickly moved into push ups and sit ups. I'm not going to lie, it was pretty hard to keep a straight face. Especially when Ryker got down to do his sit ups. He kept looking at me like, "What the crap am I suppose to be doing and how is this helping." It's a good thing Hunter was there to assist in holding his legs in place. lol Too funny!

It was serious business to them though. So I didn't laugh too hard!

On your mark..... 

Get set.... go.

And there they go-

Carter took a quick lead. Followed by Tator Tot.

Carter was the first to round the bend. He kept going and ran 1 mile!

Taylor was the next one in and kept running and did 1 mile! Way to go buddies.

Hunter was the next little cutie to run in. He also kept going and ran 3 laps. Rain boots and all.

Ryker was the last to run in. No surprise there. I love his guts, but anyone that knows Ryker know he's a total freeloader. Even as a baby he always wanted to be held. He is the one who always asks for the piggy back rides. Love him, but the kid is a little lazy. lol He did finish 2 laps though. Good job Ryker.

Carter didn't think I could run so I had to show him I did indeed know how to do it.

Carter showing me he got 1st place-

This is my intimidation of Carter getting 1st place. He must get his facial expressions from his Dad. lol

Taylor with 2nd Place-

Hunter with 3rd Place-

Ryker with 4th place-

The winners with their prize t-shirts.

Taylor even put his on backwards so you get to see both sides. Pretty Awesome Family Tinsel Trot!

Soccer Season

Soccer season was such a workout. Sort of glad it's over!

 Rhett signed them up right before he left so that left me with taking them to practices twice a week and games every Saturday. It was sort of like deja vu with basketball season. I guess I didn't learn my lesson. lol. 

I am thrilled to say that my boys did so much better at soccer than basketball. Carter was a total ROCKSTAR! Taylor was pretty bad, but cute as heck. He sort of just ran around the field holding his shorts that were WAY too big and smiling and waving to Mommy as he passed. What a cutie. His highlight of the season was getting a drink at the games. They had this cool drink thing for the kids to get water from. Definitely his favorite part.

His signature smile and wave while holding his shorts. EVERY GAME! lol

I did snap a few pictures of him touching the ball. They were very few and far between though because really he didn't care about it. He spent most of his time... while not playing with shorts and waving to Mom in the goal area with the goalie talking and/or wrestling. We were a pretty awesome team so I guess we didn't really need a goalie anyway. lol

Not the best soccer player, but definitely the cutest. Well, in my totally unbiased opinion. :) Love you Tator Tot.

Carter was the exact opposite and took soccer very serious. He ran after the ball and was AWESOME at blocking. He took a couple shots to the face, but was super strong and didn't even cry. Carter you're a ROCKSTAR. Keep up the good work!

Carter practicing dribbling it on his knee!

Nice blocked shot.

Coming in for the steal.

Carter did such a great job playing goalie!

Tossing it in bounds.

Killer kick by Carter. 

The awesome soccer trophy and Carter. He really LOVED it and was really good at it. Definitely a sport I see in his future!

Carter's Friend C.J

Carter's teacher sent home pets for the kids. I was less than enthused as I am NOT a pet person, but seeing Carter's excitement over his new pet C.J. kept me from hitting it with a flyswatter and killing it. They each got these little caterpillar type bugs to take care of. Carter was so great at taking care of it. I would see him cutting up grapes into little pieces and collecting leaves and lettuce for C.J. to eat.

I asked Carter how he decided on the name C.J. and he responded with, "Well, we had to write the name a few times on different papers and I wanted something with only a couple letters." Makes sense to me. :)

 Anyway, we watched C.J. everyday. He kept getting bigger and bigger and Carter was so excited waiting for him to go into the pupa stage. I wasn't sure what he was talking about until I looked into the jar one night and saw his body cracking. I was disgusted, but couldn't turn away. I shot a few pics of what came out of the shelling.

It was so interesting to watch and I loved hearing Carter tell me all about what was happening. He started out completely white. He stayed this way for several days, but then started to gradually get some color.

He then started to turn a little more yellowish brown.

 Everyday, he seemed to be getting a little darker.

His legs then turned black and he got some eyes.

A few days after that he woke up. Carter was a little disappointed because he was slightly red, which Carter said meant he was actually a girl beetle.

But everyday, he kept getting darker and darker. 

By this point C.J. was a full grown beetle and quite frankly was grossing me out. I told Carter it was time to say goodbye and let him go outside. Carter was a little bummed, but understood that he would have a better life out in the wild. :) It was cool to watch the transformation.

 It reminded me of our pet Squidward the praying mantis. Best pet ever, minus all the spider hunts for food. Yuck! I hate spiders!

Ice Skating

Part of Carter's birthday gift I bought tickets for all of us to go Ice Skating. He had a friend party last year and we had thirteen 8 year olds show up. I decided to keep it low key this year and just do a fun family party.

We took a lot of pictures and had so much fun we actually did it again right after Christmas with Daddy. :) Enjoy the pictures. We had such a good time.

The twins were an absolute crack up. I got skates for everyone so it was funny to watch us all get used to something so different. 

We went through a tour company so we got to ride a bus there. The kids also loved this which I thought was crazy. lol

Anyway, I think the lady thought I was NUTS to bring four little kids to go ice skating when none of us really knew how to do it. I didn't regret it though and have never laughed so hard in my life. I totally dig my kids. I love hanging out with them and I know that they love me back.

It's kind of my calling. I am not the best wife, or cook, or sports player, but I am a pretty darn good Mom. Not to brag, but my kids ROCK and so do I. lol

Unfortunately we do not ROCK at ice skating and I still have bruises on my rear end to prove it. lol. I did pretty good unless I had a twin between my legs. Then we constantly got our skates tangled together and both ended up on the ice. Thankfully, we didn't have any major injuries besides our pride. I can honestly say that I have NEVER laughed so hard in the last year. It was pure comedy with the kids and I wouldn't trade that day for anything in the world!

Carter did AWESOME and may be the only one with any real talent at skating or even keeping balance in general. lol. He did take a couple spills throughout the day, but only because he was doing jumps and spins. 

Good job Buddy!

These little ones SUCKED! Not only did they absolutely suck at skating, but they also made me suck. I did fine until they would trip me, but look how ADORABLE they are. :)

Tator Tot also kicked butt at skating. I was completely shocked to death at how well he did. He was great and his little smile and excitement was contagious. I can never be in a bad mood around this kid. (Well, almost never) He is an absolute light in my life. I am so glad he is in my family!

"Mommy, watch me go by myself." (Ryker)

Love this face!

Thankfully, they had these awesome little toys that you could rent. I rented one car and one chair. It helped me keep balance pushing it and made it extra fun for the babies who weren't so hot at skating!

My awesome little skaters / posers! :)

The whole group!

This is not only how I looked, but also felt most of the time on the ice!

It wore everyone right out and all four little slept most of the bus ride home. Thanks boys for making it a special day and Happy Birthday Carter. I can't believe you are 9 years old already!