Hemsley5: May 2013

Thursday, May 16, 2013

Spartan Race 2013

The boys wanted to race in the Spartan Race but I have heard horror stories so it took them a long time to convince me. They had a blast and came home dirtier than when they come home from boys camp. They said the obstacles were not the hardest part - it was those good ol' Montana hills. Here are the highlights . . .

Notice the cleanliness of the boys and Chad's white shirt.

Keston going across the bridge . . . just look for the red hair. I wasn't able to go watch but I believe the track loops around and you have to army crawl under that bridge.

Chad just finished going through the mud bog and across the bridge. That white shirt isn't so white anymore.

Keston getting ready to go across the rope bridge

And down again.

And Keston is off again in the mud. Remember his shoes are or shall we say were bright orange.

Chad is going across the rope bridge

And getting ready to come down

Chad climbing the rope - missed Keston on this one.

Up and over again

Jump the fire then through the gladiators to the finish line

He dodged the first round

Now Chad's turn to go up and over

Chad nearing the finishing line

Over the fire, through the gladiators to the finish.

They had photographers throughout the race so I was able to download more of the boys.

I love the look on their faces as they jump the fire.

This picture is perfect - he finished the race and you can tell he had a great time.

Chad under the bobbed wire.

Over the fire - Jack be nimble - Jack be quick

Through the gladiators - he said they got him pretty good in the gut.

The whole team. Keston works with L and K at Melita Island in the summers and they Chad join the team. Notice albino boy's not white legs. I think this is the most color those legs have ever seen and I have no idea how long of a hose off he needed to take to get them white again.

Keston's time was 1:29:52 he placed 61 out of 165 in his age group of 15 - 19. He placed 541 out of 2009 men and 613 out of 3391 overall.

Chad's time was 1:38:00 and he placed 9 out of 22 in his age group of 14 (yes we lied and said he was 14 so he would race). He placed 784 out of 2009 men and 974 out of 3391 overall.

Signing the Wall of Valor.

The team again.

Here are the boys home again, a little cleaner and still smiling.

Those were white socks Chad is wearing and yes they found the trash along with his shoes. Keston's orange shoes did become orange again thanks to a high pressure nozzle for the hose.

So for anyone who wants to join in next year the race in scheduled for June 14, 2014 and you can sign up online. The boys will be signing up again. Val will not be a spectator next year and I almost want to join in just to say that I did it. Almost . . .

Sunday, May 12, 2013

Tylissa's Senior Prom

We found Tylissa's prom dress early because we knew it would take time to find a dress that would be modest and, let's be honest, it would need shortened. Granny helped with the modifications - thanks Granny! The only thing left was to get a date which was a team effort but a great young man took Tylissa and they had a great evening. Aunt Sherylee sent some beautiful jewelry that worked perfectly. Granny picked out the hairpiece.

The week before prom Tylissa an I did a Twilight movie marathon (don't judge) and we played with her hair using ideas we found on pinterest. They were cute and if Tylissa was living in Texas in the 80s she would have fit right in. Her hair boufed up so big Maggie would have gotten lost in there. So we decided nice and simple would be great.

So here is the final hair. Rather than wearing the headband as a headband we angled it slightly and braided it in place. Tylissa added a little bit of mascara and she was ready to get dressed.

It was a very low key day and Tylissa wasn't really ready when Preston arrived. But she wasn't far behind. Preston and Tylissa talked a lot about what she wanted her prom to be. Funny or serious. His example of funny was dinner at Taco Bell in their prom clothes. Tylissa preferred a little more serious. While Tylissa was finishing up Preston's dad asked where the fridge was to put the "real" corsage in. Tylissa pinned on his boutonniere on the first shot.

Here is the corsage that Preston first present to Tylissa and she wasn't really sure what to think. He finally let her in on the joke and yes your eyes are not deceiving you those are some lovely fake roses tied to a bath scrubby with tulle - what you don't see is the hair tie that fits on her wrist.

Putting on the real flowers.

Holding Prom in March in Montana is never great weatherly speaking. We were able to get a few pictures before it really started to rain but it was better than snow . . .

I love her dress. It was modest, it fit (Granny did have to take about 14 inches off the bottom), and she loved it.

The rain really started to come down so Preston and Tylissa headed off to dinner at Scottibellies. Preston's dad acted as chauffeur. After dinner they took some more pictures.

I like the no pictures please - hiding from the paparazzi. They had a great evening and Preston really made it a great night for Tylissa's prom. Preston is the kind of kid that when you go to a dance, you dance so it was really fun.

When she got home I finally got a picture of the back of her dress and her corsage.

Tylissa will have great memories of her senior prom.

Dodge Ball

Keston organized a team for the annual Parks and Rec Dodge Ball tournament. Two people bailed and didn't show up but they still did great and had a fun time. At first other teams would leave Chad alone but after the little kid took out three adults on his own to win a game, he became a target. Keston was the same way and also became a target. Everyone was having a great time.