Luke's First Big Race....

This post should've been completed almost 3 weeks ago, but you know how it goes :)

Back on Saturday, June 4, our little family of 3 participated in the River Run as part of the Wichita River Festival.

The River Run is no stranger to Marc and me as we've both run it before we met as well as after we met and got married :)

But, this was Luke's first official River Run.

It was a nice HOT morning for....

a) Marc to run the 10 km race (which he did place in his age group....Go Marc)!

b) For myself and Marc to walk the 2-mile race (with Luke in the jogging stroller)

c) Luke to RUN his first official race -- the Tot Trot

So......(I don't have any photos of the 10 km race)....the 2-mile start....



And, Luke wanted Marc to push him. Because of that, I was able to catch some sporadic photos during the race (both of Marc and Luke as well as complete strangers)....









And, 2 miles isn't really that far, but when it's as hot as it was that day....the finish line looked pretty good!



And, now what you've all been waiting for....Luke's RACE DEBUT!!!!

The Tot Trot was for kids ages 2 - 7....So, Luke, still being 2, was barely able to be in the race.

The kids were lined up according to age. Each age group ran a separate race (which I was very glad so that Luke didn't get pummelled by a 7 year-old).

The 2 year-olds probably ran a total of 40-50 feet....perfect distance for their size.

First, Marc pinned on Luke's number....



Then, Marc went with Luke (and the other two year-olds and their parents) to line up.

This was the hard part for ALL of the children -- the waiting.

(Luke is #7743)....



(In these next two photos, there are yellow arrows pointing to Marc and Luke)....





FINALLY, the kids were told when to GO!

Marc had given Luke some very careful instructions about what to do and where to run.

Luke TOOK OFF quickly with Marc right behind him.

He knew EXACTLY what to do....he ran straight to the finish line without looking back. Marc did NOT have to help him at all!

AND GUESS WHAT? Luke WON his little age division. Marc and I like to say that he pretty much dominated the race!

(The white arrow is pointing to Luke winning the race).



You know how, before you're a parent, you roll your eyes at other parents who get a bit too excited about their kids (I know I did that).

Well, I was, at that moment, one of those parents.

I realize Luke's only 2 (almost 3), but oh my -- I was excited for this race.

The funny thing is -- these kids are young. Luke had not a clue he was supposed to win. He didn't even know he did win.

AND, I wouldn't have cared if he wouldn't have won. It was just a little race.

BUT, I did yell and scream for him.

Luke did get a medal -- ALL of the kids got a medal.

Luke has LOVED this medal. He's worn it quite a bit. He showed the nursery workers at church his medal. He showed two Subway employees his medal. He's shown his grandparents his medal.



**And, most of you reading this probably already know this, but my husband, Marc, is a HUGE runner. He's run nearly 100 marathons and ultra-marathons. He runs most mornings of the week. Running is a BIG part of this household.

So, since Luke, at this point in his life, pretty much wants to do everything "like Daddy," it was major for Luke to run a race "just like Daddy."

And, those are special moments for this Mama to remember!