Yoder's with friends

I needed to pick up some items at Yoder's Country Market, and Yoder's is always a great trip for the kids as well.  They don't care so much about steel cut oats or whole wheat bread flour, but they do love to feed the goats and chickens and play on the playground.  

Sierra had been asking to see her "best, best friend in the whole, wide world," so I called Sarah and she agreed to meet us at Yoder's with Sophia and Henry.  

Baby goat!  So cute!

The chickens obviously needed to be fed.  Sophia was not interested in getting too close.

After goats and chickens and ducks had all had a snack, it was time for some fun on the playground.

I loved that Kaia and Henry were both sporting their overalls that day!  "Hold Henry's hand," I said to Kaia.  She held it up in the air.

That's better.

Nine years ago ...

I was nervously anticipating my wedding to an amazing guy.  

Happy 9th Anniversary, Jason.  

The day we were married, your brother gave a toast that included the sentiment, "May today be the day you love each least."  And I'm thrilled to say that I love you today even more than I loved you then.  We are great together.  Go team!

Wicked Bottom 5K

I ran a race last year that took place at a Old House Vineyard and we had a such a good time, that I decided to register again this year.  Last year, we packed a picnic that we enjoyed after the race, but the start time was earlier this year, so we just packed snacks.  Still had a great time, though.  

Jason entertained the girls for the 21-and-a-half minutes I was running.  They found a fountain and checked out the gardens at the winery.

Coming in for my big finish.  That's me in the pink.  I'm not going to show you a closer photo of me running because I almost always look disgusting in photos of me running (except on that my cousin recently took because I was waving at my girls and smiling).

I had a little help at the finish.  This is a nice benefit of small, local races.

Kaia felt left out when Sierra ran across the finish line with me and started cry-walking after me!

Then it was off to the island for our "snack picnic".  Sierra insisted on it!

When we finished, we went back to the awards ceremony and I found some monkeys in the tree.

We had a lovely morning, even though the race didn't go as well as I would have liked.  I got a stitch in my side before the first mile and battled it for the rest of the race.  I finished at least a minute slower than I had hoped, and shortly after I crossed the finish line, Jason came up to me and said, "Everything okay?"  "No."  Apparently, he could tell by the way I was running that it wasn't my best race.  I'm sure there will be more.

Discover Virginia Food and Wine Festival

In April, I came across a Groupon deal for entrance into a small food and wine festival in Ruckersville, VA.  It was called the "Discover Virginia Food and Wine Festival," though I think the name was a bit presumptive as it was such a small size that you really weren't discovering very much of Virginia.  

Still, it was the perfect size to spend a couple of hours on a "family date" on a lovely afternoon.  There were some nice food vendors and a few wineries offering tastings.  Sierra called it the "fun fes-tibo" and must have had a good time because she talked about it for days afterward.  

The part Sierra like the best?  The little barrel train attached to an ATV that drove around in a circle a few times!

Kaia didn't want to get on the train, but she liked watching big sis go 'round and 'round.  Maybe next year!

Sorry, Kaia, you're not quite old enough to sample the wine!

Definitely old enough to share a giant bag of kettle corn, though!  Delicious!

Sierra wanted to get her face painted, but she looked really nervous during the process.

She was really happy with the result, though: shooting stars with glitter!

One more ride on the train before we go!

And Mama was thrilled to have some warm beignets from the Louisana food vendor before we headed for home.  Yum!

Hockey league championships

Jason's hockey team made it to the championship game and since the game was early (they are often bedtime or later), the girls and I headed down to Charlottesville to watch him play hockey.  Since Daddy had to be at the rink early to get ready for the game, the girls and I spent some time on the downtown mall before heading to watch the game.  

We did some window shopping.  

Sierra rode on the carousel, which is really a merry-go-round.  Kaia tried it as well, but lasted mere seconds before she was ready to get off.

We had some ice-cream.  And had to back for extra napkins!

Kaia had some, too, but she was not allowed to self-operate her ice-cream.  She had some help from Mama.

We met Red Dog, who we had met when we first arrived at the mall, and then saw later in our wanderings as well.

Then it was time for hockey!  Both girls started out on chairs against the glass, but then the hockey players slammed into the wall right next to us and Kaia refused to stand there anymore.  The loud noise scared her!

Kaia liked the view better when we went to check out the action from the bleachers above the ice.

But Sierra had no problem being close.  She told me later she liked it when the hockey players slammed into the wall next to her!

Jason played well, but his team didn't win the championship this time.  He did, however, secure the Goalie MVP award for having the best goaltending record for the season!

We had to stay long enough to watch the zamboni come out and resurface the ice.

Happy Easter

Easter morning, looking for eggs in pajama.  There were a combination of plastic eggs with candy inside and the eggs we dyed the night before.  

We had a low key Easter and enjoyed some lovely family time.  We dressed up a little bit and enjoyed brunch on campus and then spent the rest of a lovely day mostly playing outside.

Happy family!