Race for the Park

One fun summer event that I would like to document was the 2nd Annual Race for the Park Event in Cookeville on August 8. There was a One Mile Fun Run for the kids and then at 8:58 pm the adults ran an 8K. Lincoln and Catherine ran in the kid race and I ran the 8K portion while Brad watched the kiddos. It was a first for all of us and completion was our goal.

Below- Lincoln and Catherine with friends, Anna and Emma

Catherine and Emma

Catherine with Bella and Ella. Catherine overheard them say they would fire a gun to start the race. She stood with her fingers in her ears anticipating that shot for 5 minutes. :)
Lincoln with buddies Walden and Jake
In the days leading up to the race, Lincoln asked many questions about the race and winning. We had to stress that we were running this race for FUN not to win. We had to explain that there would be bigger kids running and that they would be much faster (and he would say "but what if they are not??") I wanted to give Lincoln tips on how to start the race but Brad had to remind me that Lincoln was going to do it the way he wanted. Giving tips wouldn't matter, Lincoln would have to learn it by experiencing it . And he did. He shot off the line at full sprint, I just knew he would die out. But several minutes later he came... he was going at full speed. Arms pumping, legs going as fast as they could. I was so proud. He did his best and he was happy!

Catherine, opposite of Lincoln, was in because her friends were in. She didn't care about the "race" part. According to Brad, she ran when the girls did, stopped when they did, walked when they did. She did start running when I cheered for her at the end. As soon as she was in sight of the finish line, she began to run. She was grinning her sweet little grin as she rounded the final corner, and down she dashed. It was so sweet and my heart swelled as she passed with her flushed cheeks and little pony tail swishing.

It was a fun night!