Don't forget the sunblock

One of the things we decided to do to help pass the waiting time after being approved for adoption is to train for a 5K race taking place this Saturday. Fourth of July weekend is always a busy one for us and this year I'm starting to think we are crazy to add running this race. We have had a hard time training because we couldn't find a reasonably flat route near our house. But last week we finally found one. The race is taking place in the town I grew up in so it will be funny to run with all these strangers in a place that is so familiar to me. I'll be running past the house I grew up in and past other houses where relatives once lived, past the grocery store I used to walk to, the church where I went to Vacation Bible School and the school I attended in grades 1 through 3.

My family along with my aunts and uncles and loads of cousins has always spent the 4th together. Over the years our family celebration has gone from a simple boat ride and picnic at the beach to the current weekend-long festivities. Saturday, we go fishing on my Uncle's charter boat followed by lunch on board. When we get back to the dock, we rush off to town to catch the "big parade". It's just local businesses sponsoring small floats and fire trucks blowing their sirens. But they throw candy to the kids and just about everybody I've ever known is there. So it is fun to catch up. We get a little rest before we head back out on the boat to watch the fireworks over the creek. We drag ourselves home afterwards only to get up the next day and go to my aunt's cottage for a picnic. The highlight of this get together is "Show and Tell". Everybody from the youngest to the oldest gets a chance to share a story or a favorite object. Then we have ice cream and cake and sing Happy Birthday. That way we all get to wish each other happy birthday even if we don't get to spend our individual birthdays together.

When it's all over with I'm exhausted and thinking I won't do as much the next year. But by the time it rolls around again, there I am. I wouldn't miss a moment. Now, we're adding a 5K race first thing Saturday morning. After training for weeks, we're as ready as we'll ever be. Hope we don't look like total losers!