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Hairdo Buddies

Yesterday we all got haircuts.  I had to laugh when I looked at Delia and realized we now have the exact same hairdo.  I unintentionally had Miss Becky cut each of our hair in a chin-length, A-line bob with the part on the left and no bangs. My semi-annual highlights even make my hair the same color blond as Delia's.  I promise I'm not trying to turn her into a mini-me, it just happened! :)

13.1 (and Other Numbers)

13.1 miles is the distance a Half Marathoner runs.  The best way I can think of to tell you all the info about the big race is by the numbers:

244.2: The number of miles Dave ran since he started training for the Half Marathon in August.

8: The number of cheerleaders in our group.  It was these 4 girlies plus myself, a Gilmore family friend and Dorina's parents, all decked out in our yellow Team Gilmore shirts.  We were able to cheer on each runner and walker of Team Gilmore at the 3 mile mark and at the Finish Line.  We got lots of attention!  Other family members of Team Gilmore were at other mile markers, giving the athletes some encouragement to look forward to.

7,000: The number of racers at the Start Line.  Because of this mob of people, there was no official start.  Each runner had a chip attached to their shoelace that triggered when they crossed the start and finish lines.  So everyone just started when they were ready.

5:30: The time we woke up in the morning.  (Thank you, Lord, for the time change!)  Mostly the girls did fantastic screaming and waving their signs and waiting out the hours of the race.  Delia had her moments, though!

4.5 and 10 miles: The places where Dave started dying.  Here at the 3 mile, he's still happy.  You'll be surprised to hear that Dave actually ran this race sick.  He spent a large part of Saturday in bed and had 3 sleepless nights leading up the big race.  Being physically sick did slow him down considerably, but he's still proud to have finished and brags, "I think I ran a Half Marathon with the flu!" (evidenced by the number of times he puked, a number I won't include!)

$1,473: The amount of money Dave personally raised for Team Gilmore.  This meant he did achieve his $100/mile goal and was the second biggest money raiser for the team.  The total raised for the Gilmores in Haiti was over $8,400, far exceeding their $5,000 goal!  Thanks again to all Dave's supporters and sponsors!!

2:00:17: Dave's finishing time.  His ambitious goal was to finish the race in 1 hour and 50 minutes.  His realistic goal was to finish in under 2 hours.  Missed it by 17 seconds!  He's disappointed that he didn't meet either goal, but again, that he even finished when he was feeling so lousy is an accomplishment.

4: The number of words Dave spoke ("It was really hard.")  for about 2 hours after the race.   We didn't get more details until later that night.  This race was one of the hardest things he's ever done.  Dave says he truly left everything he had out on the course. 

572: The place Dave came in out of 1,220 men running the half marathon (in the top half, that means).  Also, he was the 4th finisher on Team Gilmore (out of 19) and 85th among the 194 men in his age group (again, in the top half).

3 (+countless others!): Me, Delia and Ella-- the number of people who are super proud of his achievement!  I could go on and on here.  That Dave set his mind to doing this and finished it under worse-case scenario conditions, in many ways, had me crying yesterday.  He's so self-disciplined and strong and giving.  He's an amazing man!

Ready to Run

This weekend Dave ran in the Half Marathon in support of the ministry the Gilmores will be soon doing in Haiti.  We went down to Ericlee and Dorina's house on Saturday morning and had a whole fun weekend with them.

The first thing we did together was check out the Runners' Expo.  This was a conference room full of free goodies and vendors for the runners.  Dave registered and received a bag bursting with swag, like healthy foods and running gear.  The Expo was a lot of fun to walk around too.  We especially liked the funny shirt stand and laughed over logos like "I'm only doing this so I can post a picture on Facebook." or "In my dreams I'm Kenyan."  Dave liked the shirt that said "The miracle isn't that I finished.  The miracle is that I had the courage to even start."

After the Expo, we had a picnic and some playtime at the park.  The girls were thrilled to be reunited this weekend.  Then we headed back to Dorina's house to prep food for the giant Pasta Feed that night.  We also got out the neon poster boards and markers to make our encouraging signs.  (Hebrews 12:1 "Therefore since we are surronded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us."  A verse from an old, but favorite sermon of Dave's where he references his high school cross country days as an illustration for the race described in the passage.) 

The night's Pasta Feed was a time for all the athletes of Team Gilmore (pictured above) and their families to get together and share testimonies, receive rewards (Dave got the "longest traveled" prize) and carbo load!  We stuffed ourselves with Dorina's amazing Italian cooking and listened as the athletes shared what this journey of training has taught them and meant to them.  A few words of encouragement from Coach Ericlee and some prayer time concluded a great night-before-the-race.

Long Hair

In pictures, you've probably been noticing how long Ella's hair is getting.  Since she's worn a cute little bob hairdo since we trimmed off those baby curls, this increasing length is a pretty big deal in our house.  She started growing it long to be like a friend from preschool, but a few months ago the reason changed.

I explained to her what Locks of Love was and, in her Ella-way, she immediately empathized and decided she would grow her hair as long as she could to donate to people who are sick and lose their hair.  Even now as we combat tangles and she tells me she's ready for a change of hairdo, she still says, "But I'll keep growing it at least until Christmas so I have more to give."

I was reflecting on how indicative this is of Ella's character.  Dave and I were recently figuring out what Love Language each of the girls speaks.  Without doubt, Ella is a giver.  In the past two weeks alone here are some things we've heard from her:

1.  After delivering some coats to the box at church for the homeless, Ella came home and said, "We have so much dress-up, maybe we should give some dresses to the homeless too."
2.  When our annual pile of almond wood was dropped off by some wonderful church friends, she said, "They give us all this for free?!  What can we give them for free?"
3. When a friend at school shared a Silly Band with her, Ella went to her accessory box and picked out, not one, but two Silly Bands she wanted to share back with her friend.
4.  In thinking about Thanksgiving, on her own asked what we can do to help give food to people who won't have any.
5.  Is the most enthusiastic Peter Fish change-dropper in our family.  She found a dime on the ground and put it in her pocket to later feed the Peter Fish.
6.  Colors me at least one picture a day during her rest time.  They all have "To Mom Love Ella" written on them.

Dave and I are so impressed with her and know even we will continue to learn from her example!

Delia's Love Language

I can't brag about just one daughter!  The previous post described in great detail how Ella shows love through her generous actions.  Delia is totally different.  She is unquestionably a Physical Touch gal!  (In case you don't know what I'm talking about, the 5 Love Languages are Physical Touch, Words of Affirmation, Quality Time, Acts of Service and Gift Giving.)  Delia is the world's biggest snuggler.  She gives 35 hugs a day and has all different kinds: BIG hugs, family hugs, loud hugs, long hugs, running hugs, backward hugs, sorry hugs, sandwich hugs, tackle-you-to-the-ground hugs, etc.  Delia never leaves preschool or church without embracing each of her teachers and friends.  She even hugs Ella's teacher when we pick up Ella from kindergarten!  She's also the one to initiate an "I love you." multiple times daily.  No matter what battle I just fought with Delia or how many things I'm trying to accomplish at one time, when she says "I love you Mommy" and strangles me with one of her hugs or when she spends a whole hour just curled up on my lap, I am the happiest mom in the world.

The Great Pumpkin

The pumpkin has been carved.  The first fire in our fireplace has been lit.  It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown has been watched.   And I'm just exploding with happiness that my favorite season is upon us in full force!

Pumpkin carving is not something we do every year.  Usually with the church Harvest Party over Halloween weekend, we're too busy setting and cleaning up to bother with it.  This year, though, we had a whole Friday night open for nothing but some wholesome family fun!

We each took a job.  Ella and Delia emptied the pumpkin of all the ooey-gooeys.  Since we've been reading The Pumpkin Gospel a lot this fall, Ella kept making us smile by referring to the yucky guts as "sin" and expressing gratitude that it was being removed and thrown away.

Dave did most of the carving.  Yes, we did cheat by using one of those paper templates.  I was on pumpkin-seed-baking duty.  We crunched on these salty treats while sipping apple cider by the fire and watching It's the Great Pumpkin.  I think we found a new fall tradition. 

(Half) Marathon Man

As Dave cheerfully trots in from a 6 mile jog this morning, I am prompted to write this blog post bragging about what he plans on accomplishing next weekend.  On Sunday, November 7, Dave will join with a team of about 16 others and run a half marathon for Haiti.  Team Gilmore was assembled by my good friend Dorina and her husband Ericlee to help raise funds for their move to and ministry in Haiti.  Ericlee's grandfather started a grass-roots organization there 63 years ago that has now grown into 2 orphanages, 2 health care clinics, 5 schools and 8 churches.  After the devastation of last year's earthquake and other unmistakable signs in their lives, Dorina and her family felt an unquestionable call to sell their house, quit their jobs and minister full time in Haiti.  Their family also includes daughters Meilani (4 years) and Giada (almost 2 years).  What an amazing step of faith!

Dorina and her family are close to our hearts and we saw them make this decision "for such a time as this" over the course of this year.  Also, Dave has been wanting to make finishing a longer race one of his running goals.  For these reasons, Dave decided to join Team Gilmore to run the 13.1 miles (!) to raise money for the Gilmores and their ministry in Haiti.  He has been diligently training 5 days a week and has seen himself gain so much more endurance and strength!  He's excited to not only run the entirety of this race, but to do it in under 2 hours. 

One goal he has not yet reached is his fundraising goal.  He had a $/mile number in his mind that he knew would motivate him.  With the race a week away, he's still a little over $300 away from that goal.  So many of you have already generously donated a lump sum or a per mile sponsorship and we thank you!! But now you see my other motive for writing this post, to brag about my super husband, of course, but to also ask if you want to give to this valuable cause.  You can check out http://www.christianfriendshipministries.org/ to learn more about what the Gilmores and others are doing in Haiti.  Donations are tax deductible and come with a receipt.  Feel free to contact us in the coming week if you'd be interested in supporting Dave and the work he's been doing in the past few months while supporting the Gilmores in the work God is calling them to in Haiti.

Decade Day

This week is Red Ribbon Week at Ella's school.  To get the kids excited for a week of lessons about saying "NO" to drugs, each day has been designated as a special theme day.  Monday was Heritage Day.  Since everyone that goes to our school pretty much shares the same background, we were laughing about diversity coming from which part of the Netherlands kids would dress up from!  Tuesday was Nerd Day. After we explained to Ella what a nerd was, she said "That sounds kind of mean.  Do I really have to dress up like that?"  Today is Decade Day, as you can see from Ella's Flower Child attire.  Though she lives to dress up, Ella did feel a little self-conscious in this outfit...until she got to the bus stop and saw all her friends completely decked out in their 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's best.  What do you think, Grandpa and Grandma?  Does it take you back? :)

Only in a House with Girls:

-will you have to end a phone conversation because your daughter is distraught that Jasmine's bra is missing.
-are you constantly pulling Perler Beads off the bottoms of your feet.
-will you find one entire closet dedicated to craft supplies. (The sporting goods were moved into storage to make space!)
-are Ariel, Aurora, Rapunzel, Tiana and Belle household names.
-is a toothbrush that is not pink or purple shunned.
-are the train tracks and cars that were bought for "equal exposure" only pulled out when boy buddies come over to play.
-are those same boy buddies attacked with dress-up and forced to play the part of the prince.
-are new songs on the radio instantly liked for no other reason than: "This sounds like a pretty girl voice."
-does a toddler have words like "accessory", "pedicure", "tiara" and "pirouette" in her limited vocabulary.
-do you get a report on what shoes the teacher wore in the "How was school today?" answer.
-would you have to buy the BOY beta fish (because he's fancier) and give him a girl name.
-do you not think twice about your child pretending to be pregnant with a doll stuffed in her dress.
-is the nightly fight over who gets the pink plate/cup/fork.
-do Great Grandma's china teacups not collect dust because they are regularly filled with pink lemonade for tea parties.
-do you collect tights and leggings in bulk because, when given the choice, they will always pick a dress (even on the coldest days).
-can you make your daughter's whole weekend by simply introducing her to a gal named Barbie.

I recently chatted with Kris about what different worlds we live in-- me with two daughters and her with two sons.  There are things that are normal and commonplace in each of our homes that the other will simply never experience.  We were laughing so hard, I thought I'd jot down a few favorites for which this is true!