Kids Fun Run

On Saturday the 29th, we all got up super early and headed downtown for the Akron Marathon. Kevin was running the half marathon and Cody, Robin and I were running in the relay. That left Jill alone with 6 kids under the age of 7. Thank goodness, Aaron came with Robin and was a fantastic helper for Jill. I'll write more about our relay team soon but first here is the Fun Run experience.

After I finished the 1st leg of the relay, I joined Jill and Aaron with the kids and headed over to the Fun Run area. I was super tired and had to sit down and rest for awhile. We had some friends meet up with us there so we had a very fun group to keep us entertained while we waited for all the older kids to start their race.

A mainstay around here is the Goodyear blimp. Always fun for the kids to see.

Kellen holding Brigham waiting for the race to start. His wife Mindy ran the second leg of our relay team.

All the kids waiting in their blue shirts to start the race. Since I wasn't about to run anymore, Jill and I pushed the babies in the stroller...and Alice, while Aaron and Kellen ran off with the bigger kids.

Jill made a good point about the logistics of the run not being the safest idea. She said, "Yeah, let's put all the kids in the same shirt and then tell them to run away from us in a large group." Maybe not the brightest idea, especially when we were stuck behind with the strollers. Oh, and pretty much everyone with us was blonde too! Luckily, Aaron is a very responsible 11 yr old and he kept good track of Morgan, Jane and Pepper.
Here's a video of the kids taking off at full speed:


Because I was so slow I didn't get any more footage of Morgan and Pepper but I did get some more shots of Kate and Alice. Alice didn't get out of the stroller until the very end part but little Kate toddled along for pretty much the whole 1 mile. Everyone thought she was just the cutest thing and I cracked up the whole time watching her. She got distracted by everything and pretty much looked like a drunken sailor in a really big blue shirt dress. It was fantastic!

Kevin finished his race in time to meet up with us near the end of the Fun Run. Alice and Kate were very excited.

Kate was not happy that Kevin picked her up. This girl was determined to finish her race on her own!

Kellen still carrying Brigham! After the race, the kids get a goody bag and snacks.

Morgan, Jane, Aaron and Pepper showing off their medals with not the best facial expressions. I swear they had a great time. Pepper keeps telling everyone she won the race. That she ran real fast and won. Too funny.

To the victors go the spoils. Mindy, in the background, also finished her leg of the relay in time to meet up with us at the end. Such a fun group.

Playing with toys from their goody bags.

Hazel, Mindy and I. When we finally took Hazel out of her stroller after being in it since 6:30 am. she had the worlds worst blowout. Instead of going up the back it went all the way to her neck in front. It took Mindy, Kevin and I all working together and singing, "I've Been Working On the Railroad," along with almost an entire package of wipes to clean her up. These are the happy faces in the aftermath of that.

Yay, we ran the race!

And there's the blimp again. I love Katie's pointing.

Katie getting ready to spin.

Yep, she's pretty proud of herself.

And then there's Aaron!
This kid cracks me up and man o man we would have been so lost without him!

After the Fun Run, Jill and Kevin took the kids home so that Mindy and I could go meet up with the rest of our relay team at the finish line. What a fun, long and crazy morning!