Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Esther and Cerena absolutely LOVE it when their cousin Jazmin comes to play! Sometimes they can be the silliest girls I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. (Just a few words by way of disclaimer. . .Rob took the old Christmas tree out for a skit he did at a Church activity. It has been safely stored away till we have a chance to enjoy Thanksgiving first.)

Jessica, we decided to try for some really cool action shots just for you. . . .

This is what happens after a long day at church. . . especially when that long day at church also involves a Primary Program in which all three girls had a part of their very own.

Notice how Ivy tries to sneak into some of these pictures. . . she is pretty good at action sometimes too! I love Jazmin's unintentional ballet pose. It actually looks rather pro, doesn't it Cynthia?

Um, this next one looks rather familiar. . . too bad I am not very adept at editing my blogs. . .

This next little series is so dang funny. . . I had to put it all in. Esther is such a camera ham!!!!

Not one to be outdone by her sister in anything. . . especialy silliness. . . . . . . . . . . . . The girls really had too much fun creating these blog photos, especially since we got crazy in the "Quiet Room".

In the end, I believe it is true. . . girls just wannna have fun!

Field Trip

The little ones had their first field trip last week. And what fun it was!!! A trip to a farm with hay rides, a tractor, and a pumpkin patch! Rob was able to meet up with Esther at the farm. She definitely had a wonderful time! Um, is it safe to drive that big tractor with just one hand?
The sun was in her eyes, but this picture turned out so dang cute! Just a little pumpkin patch fairie!

Each of the girls got to pick out and bring home her very own pumpkin. There were so many to choose from. . . big ones, small ones, fat ones, skinny ones. The girls were so proud of their pumpkins. Esther was delighted to find out that Cerena had chosen a pumpkin the same size as hers. The pumpkins were not the only things measured. . . look how tall Esther has grown!

Again, the sun was right in her eyes! Poor thing. Eventually, the sun hid behind the clouds and we got to see her beautiful smile once again!

Last Race

Rachelle is an athlete. Like her father before her, Rachelle is a runner. She knows what it means to 'hit the pavement'. She has become acquainted with leg cramps, extreme fatigue, and pain. She has pushed her body to its limits and experienced the coveted 'runner's high'. Rachelle is an athlete.
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Rachelle ran cross country with the this year. As a Senior in her first year of public school, this was both her first and last year of high school cross country. She pushed herself, and did an excellent job. She beat her PR (personal record) the last 4 meets in a row. The Hunt family is extremely proud of her efforts and accomplishments.
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The last race of the season for Junior Varsity runners was hosted in Camas. The athletes ran two laps around Lacamas Lake. It was quite a difficult course with some fairly steep hills. It was a great challenge to end the year.
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This is Coach Keiser. She also coaches swimming and teaches Rachelle's photography class. A busy woman, and and excellent teacher. She and coach Cummings really worked with the kids to develop a sense of TEAM spirit. I think that really enhanced Rachelle's enjoyment of the sport. Rob really enjoyed this cross country season as well. He was quite a runner back in the day, and misses the thrill of competition. I can't express how very proud he is of Rachelle for working so hard and doing her best. He made a special point to be at EVERY SINGLE MEET!!!! That meant that he had to leave work early on several occasions (which meant he worked extra hours at other times). Missing a meet was NOT an option! The rest of us attended as many as we could. Several meets were impossible for some to attend, as school schedules did not always work around meet times. Marissa was absolutely wonderful to always volunteer to be home for those on their way home from school so that I could support Rachelle at the home meets as well as several of the away meets held on school days.

This is Coach Cummings. This was the first year he and Keiser were head coach for cross country. They were responsible for putting together two home meets, as well as making sure their athletes trained hard, kept healthy, maintained a sense of team spirit, and were able to travel to and from all the meets. They also oversaw fundraisers for next year's team. Coach Cummings pretty much always had this smile on his face. . . when I saw him at the meets, anyway!

I believe these drummers volunteered their time. I can't say how much I enjoyed listening to them play to inspire the runners!

Rachelle is doing a little warming up near Lacamas Lake. The team already did their official warm up. Race time will begin in just about 10 minutes.

A little team group hug and cheer. . . "Trample the weak. . . .Hurdle the dead. . . Pee clear . . . . Run hard!" A little gruesome to be sure, but this has been the call of cross country runners in this school for years.

Here she is contemplating the race. Mentally preparing herself for a really tough course.

Runners hit their mark (or gather around the starting line and prepare to run!).

There were quite a few schools participating at this last meet. Lots of runners to compete with!

The far side of the course. . . directly across the lake from the starting point. The scenery was really beautiful here.

Coming in hard on her first lap. It really helps to have someone to compete with right beside you.

But, as this is only the first lap . . . she has to remember to pace herself. She has those steep hills to contend with one more time.

Finishing up strong! She said she was seeing flashing lights and could barely feel her legs at this point. From here on out, it is all heart.

This is where she releases the BEAST!!! She really gives it all she has got at this point!

Notice the determination in her expression. Notice Rob and Cerena following close behind. Did I mention that her Daddy is SOOOOO DANG PROUD of her?

One of Rachelle's new friends is Maria (commonly known as Mari), a German exchange student.

Just trying to breath after such a run can be a challenge! Before this picture, there were hugs and tears (tears of pure adrenaline).

She is trying to smile. And breathe. And walk. Cool down will begin in a minute.

I had missed the really pathetic picture, so I asked her to reenact it. Not too bad! Rather pathetic, if I do say so myself! :)

After the race, the team had what they call a cinnamon roll hug. Of course, I missed that one too. This is the aftermath of the cinnamon roll hug.

Some of Rachelle's friends from church also ran JV. This is Austin.

And this is Joseph. Joseph is a Freshman this year. We all loved cheering him on because he would always gratify our cheers with eye to eye contact as he ran. We probably shouldn't distract him like that, but he is such a nice young man. . .

Cerena arrived home from school just in time to join us at this meet. Esther's bus arrives a bit later and didn't get home in time for this one. Both Rob and Cerena enjoyed their time together.

This is a picture of Rob and Cerena playing on the beach way back in the distance. As I zoom in . .

There they are! They were skipping stones as they waited for the boys race to begin.

I asked Nichole to look spaced out. This works.

And her grumpy face. . . she is always way too cute!

People always like to bring their dogs to these things. This dog was especially cute. He is part wolf. Very soft and friendly. I just couldn't get over how his ears came together like that.

No, Nichole. We can not get another puppy. . . yet!

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We are sad to see the cross country season end. The kids were so kind and supportive of each other. Truly what a sport should be in a person's life! Rachelle ran hard and got to know herself much better. Way to go!!!!!

Birthday Fun

Last night, we celebrated Miss Jazmin Ament's 8th birthday. This was a very special birthday party as it was at CHUCK E. CHEESE!!! What an incredibly FUN--no, make that SUPER FUN time for all the kids lucky enough to be invited! I know every single one of my kids (even the adult kids) enjoyed the evening immensely! Of course, I forgot my camera, but my cell phone always works in a pinch. (What did we do without cell phones back in the day?) (This picture shows up again later. I tried to delete one, but couldn't figure out how to do that...)We are singing Happy Birthday to Jazmin with Chuck E. Cheese! What a beautiful cake (more information on that to follow...).

I can't believe I got such a good picture of her blowing out her candles! ON MY PHONE, no less! What a great blessing!!! Nichole made that cake for her. It turned out great! She bought a 1/4 sheet cake just in case this was too small. Wise move. . . about 2/3 of the sheet cake got eaten up in addition to this cake. Of course, the Nichole cake was by far superior to any made in a store!

Jazmin got lots of gifts for her birthday. Over the weekend, her mom and dad took her to the mall to build her very own bear. She chose a puppy (of course) and had them insert a barking sound. It was stuffed with the traditional teddy bear (or should I say puppy) stuffing, then finished off the ensemble with a pair of ballerina shoes and a pretty pink dress. In the picture above, she is standing by the present we got her. . . ZU ZU PET! These are so cute!!! She already has several, and the girls love playing with them. We got her the hedgehog, a ZU ZU pet carrier, and a blankie bed thing. I think she loved it! I suspect my girls will be wanting their own for Christmas.

Chuck E. Cheese is not just for little kids. . . well, maybe it is. At least the little ones at heart.

Of course Cynthia would come to her sister's big party! Who is the guy? Her new boyfriend, Devon. So far, we are all agreed. . . he is an incredibly nice young man. He opens the door for her AND her mom, he writes songs for her then sings them, he even pulled out her chair at dinner! Pretty impressive for a 17 year old!

Chuck E. Cheese was a new concept for Esther and Cerena. They didn't know what to make of him. Esther was the first to warm up to him. Cerena. . . not so much. She enjoyed the special sippy cup though!

Jazmin. . . Very happy to be celebrating her birthday at Chuck E. Cheese. Love the blow up birthday crown. . . complete with extra tokens to be spent on various games and activities.

Jazmin and her birthday guests. Cerena was not about to get anywhere near the giant rodent!

Jazmin and her Daddy and Mr. Cheese.

Jazmin and her beautiful Mommy enjoying the company of that most famous critter. . . CHUCK E. CHEESE!!!

Below, Jazmin is all ready to hop into the Ticket Blaster Machine Thingy! She stood in the midst of tickets being blown all around. Her mission: grab as many as she can in 30 seconds flat! Notice the safety glasses. . .

She got the golden ticket!!! Actually, she got several golden tickets which were worth 100 redeemable tickets each! Esther and Cerena were so kind. . . they each gave all their tickets to Jazmin so that the Birthday Girl could redeem them for a better prize!

I had to include at least one picture of Selena and Mike working out the details with this spetacular party hostes. I secretly enjoyed calling her the 'servant girl', she was so incredibly helpful. The kids responded to her very well. Over all, the evening was great fun, and a complete success!