One Spring Saturday

With snow in the forecast tonight, I am choosing to pretend that it is a comfortable 65-70 degrees with beautiful sunshine. I love snow, but after this past Saturday's perfect weather, I am longing for slightly warmer temps and outside time with my kiddos. More days like this past Saturday would be just fine with me...
We took part in the Cardinal Run last Saturday as a family. I did the 5k with my mom and dad (with my dad pushing Mary Claire in the stroller), and the boys opted for the Fun Run (1/4 mile).

I neglected to get someone to take a picture of the whole group with my camera, but I did manage to get pics of the boys.:)

It was a small event, but the kids had fun. Mary Claire decided, at the last minute, that she would not run in the Fun Run.

John Owen after the run!

The first (Jonah) and second (John Owen) place Kids' Fun Run winners.:)

Jonah didn't realize he was supposed to run "down the chute" at the finish. He ran around the hurdles, but finished well ahead of everyone else.:) I made sure the race director knew he had crossed first despite some protest from his big brother about not running the right way. haha

We left the race, headed to get some lunch, and decided to take our lunch to one of the nearby parks. I laid on the bench beside where the kids played, and soaked up the sunshine. It was so nice!

It was on that bench lying in the sun, that I began to think about Spring Break and what our clan was going to do to fill our extra time next week. We are not traveling, and I'm sorta glad that we are going to be around the house with no agenda. Of course, I cannot let the week go by without some sort of fun actvity or two. I am going to take the kids to see the new Oz movie. But before they can see the new one, they had to see the wonderful original! So, Saturday afternoon, I used my resourcefulness (insert sarcasm) and sent a text to several girlfriends that live nearby to see if anyone had the Wizard of Oz. (I had already checked the local Wal-Mart and had no luck.) Thank goodness for friends!:)

Saturday night was movie night at the Hensley house!

Would you just look at these faces mesmerized by the scenes from the movie?

(Please don't judge the cups you see us using in the picture. We only use plastic when we eat in the living room while watching a movie. Laughed when I noticed our CASH EXPRESS cups were in the picture!)

Other than the Oz movie, I have some other ideas to keep us occupied next week. More than anything, we are hopeful that the forecasted snow is pretty to watch, but is out of here as quickly as possible so maybe spring can make its official debut! 

Happy Spring Break!

Time is "March"-ing On!

Is this really March?! I am posting today after a long blog hiatus. As much as I try to tell myself that I will make it my goal to post something once a week, or once every 2 weeks, it doesn't always work out. I don't stress out about it, though.
I could write on and on about this and that right now, and everything that fills this feeble mind of mine:), but I'll try use these recent pictures to guide my writing.

It's sad, but I have gotten too comfortable with taking life's pictures with my phone. It's more convenient and easier for a mom of three young ones to NOT have to carry the camera around with me. (Sorry, honey. I know you spent a lot of money on that camera for us, and I know you don't like reading those words.)

Gosh, darn it! I can't seem to grab life by the horns and slow time down. My kids are growing faster by the day, and I am again slapped with the reality that time is marching on. Could be that all of this is brought on by the fact that all 3 of mine are approaching their birthdays. I lovingly call it "Our Birthday Season".
My 1st baby, John Owen, is turning 10 next month, my Jonah will be 8 in July, and my Mary Claire will celebrate her 5th birthday in May! I have had all of their silhouettes done at the age of 5, and yesterday, we went for Mary Claire's silhouette appointment. I looked at it after the artist finished, and a lump swelled in my throat as I looked at this child that has transformed before my eyes.

One random school morning photo...my big girl!

Think she's a little bit shy?!:)

I snapped this picture of Jonah and his best friend, Bo, reading a Magic Tree House book together after school one day. They were taking turns reading the pages. These two are so funny when they come into the library after school. I will sometimes send them down to get a snack and Ms. Melanie, our "snack lady"/bookkeeper, told me that they come in and discuss which snack they will buy. She says she loves to hear their conversations! They discuss which one they could share and both still get a lot to eat. :)

And this is the same super- imaginative, playful child showing his excitement about Easter and the decorations we have laying around the house!

Do you see how big my "baby" is? (See picture below.)

Makes my eyes teary when I look at him these days...

(not the best quality photo taken with my phone)

He did awesome in basketball this year! I could really see some drastic improvements in his "B-Ball skills". Now that the weather is warming a little, he goes straight to the basketball goal outside when we get home.

Is this funny or what?!

John Owen is the one to the far left of the picture. His friend, Hunter, had a birthday party last weekend, and they all went to a local wrestling event. Oh my goodness! The boys were super-pumped! Can you tell?! 

I, on the other hand, found it a little disturbing...

Then again, I have never liked wrestling or the idea that a man in an awful looking suit would parade around throwing out threats to his opponent and then the two of them would act like they are hurting each other!

(Makes no sense to me whatsoever!!)

But, there's a lot of things that don't make sense to me sometimes.

Human suffering doesn't make sense to me or my heart. Don't get me wrong, I know that God has a reason for everything, even the things my human mind will never understand. Why my grandmother had to suffer from dementia is one of these things. What I saw happen to her over the course of 3 years was hard to watch. But on February 5th, God ended her suffering. He took her to Heaven to be with Him, and I look forward to our meeting again one day with bodies and minds made whole again.

God has blessed me with some pretty amazing friends.

These girls have been there for me through it ALL, and I cannot imagine my life without them.

They came to the funeral for my grandmother, and I was not expecting any of my friends since it was in the middle of the day on a Friday. It was so nice to have all of them there, and made me feel special that they sacrificed a work day/day at home with kids to be with me and my family.

Thanks, girls! I love you!

Crystal, me, Allison, Nora

In closing (and while completely changing the subject...haha), I look at the picture below and feel thankful for my marathon experience I had in December. I am now training for a sprint triathlon. That's right! I signed up for the one I previously posted about, and I have been working hard since January. The swimming is DIFFICULT for me! But, with hard work, determination, and maybe a little luck, I hope to be able to raise my hands in victory at the finish, just as I did when I completed my first half marathon in 2011 and marathon in 2012!

Memphis in May Sprint Triathlon, here I come!:)

If anyone reading this has not signed up for the Go Lucy Go 5k, please go HERE to get signed up. Your support helps us reach out to families affected by childhood cancer! A wonderful reason to train and run...or walk!!:)

Thank you!