Middle School Cross Country Race

On Saturday, October 13th, Abby participated in the WCPS Middle School Cross Country race held at Springfield Middle School. They have far fewer students that participate in this race compared to the number who compete in the Elementary School version. We were shocked to see that there were only 10 7th-grade girls competing!! I guess she would make her goal of finishing in the top 10!

Four of the girls competing were former Paramount students. Here is Abby, Sydney, Rylie, and Avery representing their former Alma Mater well!

Here they go...

Abby looked strong at the start...

 But by this point I could tell she was bothered by some side cramps which seems to plague her running these days.

But she persevered to finish in 4th place overall!

She got a ribbon for her efforts, and was maybe slightly disappointed that she didn't finish in the top 3 because she would have gotten a medal! 

These friends all did so well, finishing in 3rd-6th place right in a row!

Art for a Cause

Both boys entered an art contest at school about stopping substance abuse. While we were wandering the mall last Saturday evening, Jason and I came across their pictures. The public was invited to vote for their favorite posters. I bet you can guess which posters we voted for!

Nolan's work of art!

Landon's poster is on the bottom here

They were excited to find out that their artwork was on public display!

Sister's Trip to D.C.

I got to have a special 3-day weekend with my sisters in Washington, D.C. on October 6-9. Tami and Lara flew in while Tasha and I drove from our homes to spend some time together as just sisters. We had a hotel room within walking distance of the National Mall and we were able to squeeze in lots of fun into our two full days together. 

We started off by walking around the city and seeing the White House from a distance. Sure do love these sisters of mine!!

Another view of the White House a bit further away...

Our first day was very quiet with low crowds and a cloud cover which made the 85 degrees a bit more bearable. We walked over 10 miles this day and visited many of the memorials and monuments near the National Mall including the World War II memorial...

The Lincoln Memorial...

The Vietnam Memorial...

And the Holocaust Museum

We stopped for lunch at one of the many food trucks that are now allowed to park along the Mall.

We also spent some time in the American History Museum on this first day and stayed there until closing time. I was not feeling too well at the end of this day and was anxious to get back to our hotel to lay down for a bit before going back out for dinner. I had a lot of pressure and cramping going on, probably from all the walking and the heat/humidity. I guess that is to be expected when you're 8 months pregnant!! Fortunately I was feeling better within an hour of lying down and we were able to have a fun evening together!

The next day, we took a Big Bus Tour of the city and got to hop and off at various sites. We saw a close up of the U.S. Capitol building...

The Jefferson Memorial...

The FDR Memorial...

The Martin Luther King, Jr. memorial...

And Arlington National Cemetery where we saw the changing of the guard at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier...

And witnessed what is always a very sobering reminder of the brave men and women who have fought for our country and freedom.

We finished out the day by spending a few more hours at the American History Museum, visiting Ford's Theater and Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum (only because it came free with our bus tour!) We were all wiped out by that evening and enjoyed an early dinner before crashing at our hotel. We all left the next morning for our various homes, but it was so nice to spend this time together. We shared lots of memories, laughter and a few tears together and it was just what we all needed as we face the third anniversary of my mom's passing this next week.

County Cross Country Race

Washington County Public Schools held their annual Cross-Country Race on Saturday, October 6th. Landon was kind of nervous about the race. He placed in the top 30 the last two years and even came in the top 15 last year. He had done some training, but he had also played in a really late baseball game the night before where he was the starting pitcher. The game didn't end until almost 10 p.m. so we weren't sure how he would hold up physically.

Here go all the 5th grade boys...

Landon looked strong coming in near the finish!!

All his hard work paid off as he came in 17th place! He was excited to finish in the top 30 and got a ribbon for his efforts!

Top 30 5th grade boys all together!

It's hard to believe that this was his last race as an Elementary school student. He sure loves his P.E. teacher Mr. Z who was there to cheer him on!!

And his name was in the newspaper the next day which is always a special treat!

School Carnival

Paramount Elementary had their September behavior incentive activity during the first week of October. This time it was a carnival with lots of fun games, prizes, and candy. Landon and Nolan both loved this activity and it was fun to see some pictures that Nolan's teacher sent from their day!

Maylie is Four!

After weeks and weeks of anticipation, Maylie turned 4 years old on Wednesday, October 3rd. She was so incredibly excited about her special day and loved every minute of it!

We started out that morning with a little princess party with her cousin Willow and good friend and neighbor Ayda. They sure made a cute little party trio and loved playing some games, eating lunch and dressing up like princesses together!

After lunch we sang "Happy Birthday" to Maylie and she wanted her little friends to help her blow out her four candles on her mini cupcakes.

After everyone came home from school and work later that afternoon, it was time to open her birthday presents and cards!

Can you tell she's a little excited about her birthday celebration!?!?!

Of course she had lots of help in opening and examining all of her gifts. The boys were especially interested in helping her out with her new Cinderella LEGO kit!

All the kids were very interested in all the new pretend makeup she received as well!

And she loved her new Elsa costume that she is excited to wear for Halloween in a few weeks!

She wanted her birthday dinner at Panera (she loves their broccoli-cheddar soup!) so after some yummy soup, salads, and sandwiches, we headed over to Chuck E. Cheese to play their arcade games. Maylie asks to go here every time we pass by it so we knew she would love it for a special birthday treat!

After coming home, it was time for more cake and blowing out of candles!

Maylie is at such a fun age where everything is over-the-top exciting. It made her birthday celebration so fun to see her with so much enthusiasm and excitement about everything! Maylie was born two weeks after her due date and has been doing her own thing every since! She is a very independent little girl and loves to be one of the "big kids." She makes friends everywhere she goes and is a delight to be around. She loves dolls, Barbies, make-up, and anything to do with Disney Princesses. She is very excited to be a big sister soon and I have a feeling she will be a great one and will be getting into lots of shenanigans with her baby brother! Happy 4th Birthday Maylie Magoo!!

Castle Builder

Maylie and I try to go to the library most Monday mornings in order to get some new books for the week and to play in their fun learning center. On Monday, October 1st, Maylie was very proud of the castle she made out of these special blocks and requested a picture with her masterpiece. 

Good job Maylie!