last weekend the genders split. daddy and micah went with papa (and a bunch of friends) to a men and boys retreat a couple of hours away which left mama and the girls home. we started saturday with the annual emma creek classic: women and girls only!

naomi taught eliza a pre-race handshake…eliza sure looks pleased to participate in a big girl ritual.

the sea of red, all sizes and shapes, the husbands and sons cheering from the sides, little girls making their first race without a stroller, grandmas making the race with a walker…girl power.

5 k gets long and tedious, even with the reminder that rolls and strawberries would be waiting. we finished our first mile at the time that the fastest women finished the entire race. yikes. we had to get clever to keep our girls happy…and finished in just under an hour. wow.

that night the big girls made supper for the mamas and husband/son-less sara: green spaghetti (spinach pesto), greeny salad, lime jell-o, sprite infused grapes, and orange juice. a delightful meal with rules included (take your shoes off, don’t leave the table until the meal is over, ring the bell if you need something). delightful.

then daddy and micah arrived home sunday afternoon.

with treasures given and found, i heard stories of lizards caught, a field of cacti cut down by a bunch of boys when the dads weren’t there, wearing two pair of pants to keep warm, sleeping between papa and daddy and being the only one not wet from the rain…the treasured place of being a young one.

back to life together.