It was a glorious weekend for Familie Schmitt for so many reasons. Most importantly, it was a long weekend and we were able to spend it at home relaxing, doing things around the house and seeing friends.

The main event of the weekend was the Med City Marathon, which neither of us actually ran. Rather, we parked ourselves right along the race route on a curb with an inspirational sign, sidewalk chalk messages and a carefully prepared cd of peppy songs all to give the runners a boost at around mile 10. Since we both know how important spectators are, we really wanted to make a point to be there for the runners. This race doesn't typically have much spectator support, so we stayed in our spot and cheered every single runner that ran by from the leader to the back of the pack (or as I like to call them - "my people"). After the race, on Sunday, we went over to Peg and Wally's, the former race directors', for a post-race party. Benjamin was the only young child there, but everyone was great with him and he had such a good time. The backyard of their house goes up on a major incline to a pretty big hill and Benjamin occupied himself by repeatedly running up and down it. You can see how hillarious this was in the video. The guy running with him is Rob, a REALLY talented runner and tri-athlete - - Benjamin wore him out!!

We also were able to lounge around our backyard in the beautiful weather with our neighbors, Katie, Jason and Ethan, for a while on Monday. The boys had a great time running between our yards, playing with their toys and outdoor equipment. When the sun started to go down, we moved over to their house for some chicken kabobs and dessert. The two boys played some more and gave us a surprise performance on the sax and trumpet!

We might be crazy, but we have been happily waking up early on weekday mornings since last Wednesday to the sounds of hammers and saws. Our new siding is being installed on the house and it is looking fantastic! They are already done with the garage and the front of the house. It is going to be awesome to have this project done. After its completion, the plan is to move onto the landscaping in the back of the house and a small bit in the front, which have been neglected for years. The house should be in tip top shape just in time for the first snowfall sometime in 5 months!