Happy Halloween!

A Helpful Sign

Apparently, with all the construction going on, she was confused.

Doing our part...

Breathtaking

'The Long Breath'

Before my son's race on Saturday, we wandered along the shore in Belfast and discovered these interesting totem pole people.  They are created by a local artist named Ron Cowan, who calls them his muses.  Collectively they are known as 'The Long Breath', because they disappear beneath the tides twice a day.  Which is why we didn't see them the last time we visited Belfast...

A Personal Best

He raced in the Eastern Maine Regional Cross-Country Championship 5k this afternoon.  He pushed himself harder than usual and broke the 19 minute mark!

It's the simple things...

My friend gave me this chocolate today, not just because I love chocolate, but she chose this particular one because it's wrapped in my very favorite color...now that's a thoughtful friend.

Portrait of a Miserable Teen-aged Boy

They're ready to run!

Meet the Oxford Hills Middle School Cross Country Team. What a fun group of kids! Today they competed at the regional championship meet and everyone did great. We are all so proud of them.

Her 1st Parade with the Band

Rebel's Strawberry Miniature African Violet

1st Annual West Paris Pumpkin Run

Today we ran in the inaugural West Paris Pumpkin Run 5k to raise money for the Agnes Grey Elementary School PTO. The weather was perfect and there was a much bigger turnout than was expected. It was a fantastic event and we had a great time running with our family, friends, and neighbors! The boys hadn't seen some of their teachers since they attended the school 4 years ago, so they were sure surprised to see how much the boys have grown up. And then, my older son came in 2nd overall in the race! He ran that 5k in 19:28.3 - almost 2 minutes faster than his 5k race just yesterday!! (The winner was the man in yellow.  Our neighbor in the blue shirt came in 3rd.)  His step-sisters were the top 2 female runners this morning! Big sister ran it in 23:50.3, with her little sister HOT on her heels with a time of 23:57.8.  My younger son wasn't far behind with a time of 27:10.6 and just 1 runner behind him was our youngest daughter, with a PERSONAL BEST of 27:23.3.  These kiddos are totally AMAZING! 

After the race we pigged out on yummy chili and pumpkin pie in the cook-off, which was won by the 2 ladies in the picture.  I heard LOTS of people saying that they couldn't wait for next year. That is very good news for our little school.

A Great Finish

Novelist at work...

It's finally here!

A Fair Trade

I traded eggs for a whoopee pie today. We were both quite happy!

Love Lily

He hadn't ridden in years, but decided to try it again today. I think he liked it!

Back in the saddle again...

I got to ride today!

We explored the old woods trails & wandered along the brook for a while. Good training session for a spoiled pony!

Racing Tutus

Piggy Bank

A late birthday present means another chance to celebrate! And what a cute bank she received from her Grammie...that was well worth the wait.

Tropical Delight

You know it's going to be a good day in the office when you walk in and see your hibiscus has opened up not one, but 2 big blooms for you to enjoy before leaving for the long weekend.  So pretty!

Oops!

I found another pretty lunchtime spot...and didn't realize I was trespassing until I saw the sign when I was leaving!

Coleus

Waste not, want not...when my big coleus needed to be trimmed back, I placed those stems in a cup of water and now I've got a baby plant growing on my windowsill.  My friend is going to plant it and have a new colorful plant to brighten up her office!

Maine Half-Marathon Runners

The Oxford Hills were well represented by my family and friends!!

This photo made me smile for another reason though.  My neighbors' daughter was laughing hysterically at the photo taking...I don't know why, but I had to make sure she made it into one of these group shots and of course, that made this particular picture even more blog worthy!

Someone ran the Maine Half-Marathon this morning!

Our oldest daughter did...she ran 13.1 miles in 1 hour 57 minutes and 17 seconds, and came in 3rd out of 13 females under age 19.  She is the bravest (and fastest) 12 year old that I know!

Festival of Champions Cross Country Meet

Look who's riding shotgun!

Yummy!

Today it was their turn...

This afternoon the Middle School Cross Country Team had their home meet, so I got to watch 2 of my kiddos run!  Whoo hoo!!  They had so much fun and they both did great in their respective races! 

Bathtime