4th of July

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Because the 4th of July fell on a Thursday, that meant we were swim meeting it until 10:30pm on the 3rd (yeah for bday meets!).  So we figured we'd stick around for the festivities before heading to Baltimore.  

 Does it get much better than donut on a string??

 Awe...

 

 

Let the game begin!  13+ greased watermelon polo - there truly is no tougher exercise!

 Coin drop----crazy for money!

The Dad's blow-up ducky relay...

 The Mommy kick-board full-wine glass relay---didn't drop it once!

 

 The family relay was not captured, but somehow all FIVE us managed to race against four 9-10 year olds..."Brothers from a different mother", they claimed.

 An impressive end to the end, once again, thanks to Andy Lofton, courtesy Dino Taylor's multi-state procurement and delivery. 

 

 

Then off to Grandma's, to catch more fish than we ever have!

Margaret kayaked a lot, but Matthew just wouldn't stop going.  This was his first solo paddling and Little Man just couldn't get enough!

Matthew insisted on wearing life jacket while jumping off the dock to ensure that he wouldn't touch the "icky, squishy" bottom---smart kid!

 More fireworks down river...

And an impressive, competing lightning show...

 Try as he did to pull out the first tooth at the meet, it waited for Baltimore.  How on earth did the Tooth Fairy know where we were? 

 

Jim, Yvie, Caroline and Steve came by Saturday.  Good to see them, but missed all of the others.  It's been too long.  Maddie is off to Mary Washington this month.  Very proud of her and excited for this new chapter:-)  We know lots of people from C'ville there and they all love it.

Life is good on the River:-) 

 

2nd - 4th Meets - ACAC, Forest Lakes, Fry's Spring Bday Meet

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Once again, I am weeks behind on meets, which makes for a lengthy post, but one that the kids will love later:-)

 ACAC, a 50-m pool, is never fun for the 8 and unders----swimming to noodles at the 25-m mark is just odd, and times are ridiculously recorded. But Margaret and Matthew plowed through noodle as Emily watched on---so fun to have her in town for a meet! 

Oh, that little bum!  Just wanna squeeze it:-)

It was an extra interesting meet with a lightening delay resulting in re-swimming a 10-point event that ended up with different results, 2 swimmers in one lane for a dead-heat 15-18-year-old race, a Little Man swimming the 7-8 50-free...

 Matthew's 25-free....where is everyone else??

Commanding Finish - so awkward swimming into a teenager-lined rope!

Meg's 7-8 Medley Relay (after swimming the 9-10, too).

Although he can do a flip turn, Matthew has some fine-tuning to do.  So JJ gave him the opportunity to swim the 50 Free (and 7-8 event) in the 50-m pool.  Just look how he stacked up against some recently turned 9-yr-olds!

Love him on on the block!  Ready to smoke 25-free!

Martin and Sarah Katz have become good friends on the lax field (Michael is coaching their 2nd) and at the pool.   So sweet when Grandaddy, Ollie North, comes to meets:-)




 Complimented by a former collegiate swimmer on his "turnover" in breast stroke.

 Meg's fly

 Andrew's breast....bottom of the age group year.

Still fluttering at the end of the breast kick----there's a reason 6 yr olds don't swim it.

Margaret's breast win finish.

 Daddy made it, JUST in time!

You think his comfortable in his "next race" chair?

Matthew's 8-second free win.  Unreal.  (He's in lane 4, already finished and on the wall.)

Backstroke finish---where is everyone else?

Middle of the meet, with NOTHING else going on (they have 16 events between them!), Matthew decides he has waiting long enough for his first tooth to come out.  (After four attempts, "we" finally listened to Mom that it just wasn't quite time yet!)

When your birthday falls on a meet for the second year in a row, cake and singing are in order:-)

Margaret is poised to beat the pool record for 8 and under fly.  JJ set her up for success perfectly, swimming her exhibition so that she'd only focus on her stroke instead of the other swimmers.  Lightening didn't work in our favor, nor did her goggles breaking on her dive and sinking to the bottom of the pool.  So to finish 0.03 off the record....well, we only have two home meets left and the record must be set in our pool since our pool is slightly longer than regulation.  Praying for no lighting or wardrobe malfunctions the next two weeks, against our toughest competition!

It's been a great season so far, but so incredibly hard to believe how fast it always, always goes.  People complain about meets lasting 6:00-10:30 (don't forget warm-ups b/w 4:00-6:00!), but when you have three swimmers in 16 events, it FLIES by and just hope you don't miss any of their races.