Outdoor Fun and The Mudstacle Race

This school year is in full swing and is keeping us busy. We have been taking advantage of our weekend time to get out and enjoy the sunshine. The first weekend of October marked the season closing for our neighborhood pool. Boogs and I were both saddened by this event as we had been indulging in an hour swim a couple of times a week after school and swimming on weekends.

 Sometimes, Daddy came swimming with us, too.

Since school started, Boogs and I usually had the pool to ourselves on weekdays.

The Central Texas weather has been beautiful the past few weeks. It definitely does not feel like Fall.

 We went to two parks in one morning.

 I love Boogs' face in this picture.

Poor little butterfly had a torn wing. He spent about 15 minutes on my shoe.

We also attended our school district's annual Mudstacle, the muddy obstacle race.

Boogs was excited about running it this year. We ran the 5K course. Since it is a family run, they also offer a kid's fun run course and a 2.5K course. The race began and ended with bubbles.

 Both Boogs and I were knocked off the balance beam into the mud.

Ooops, my camera lens was blocked with mud. I had it in a protective waterproof case and was able to wipe the lens area clean.

 There were four sets of hanging pool noodles to plow through.

 Boogs got all tangled up at the Get Wired obstacle.

Boogs skipped the blocks of steps and only used one to propel himself over the wall. I went over without using the blocks at all.

 We spent a part of the course walking. I guess we did not pace ourselves very well at the beginning.

 Cinnamon Rolls Obstacle.

Boogs cheated on this part of the course. He just hunched over and walked through the mud CRAWL obstacle. I was too tall to do that so I got coated in mud from going through this obstacle on my hands and knees.

 Boogs said his feet were "squelchy" and he wasn't too happy about it.

 We were glad for the water stop, it helped us revive our energy to finish the course.

 This part of the course was called the "So Tire'd" obstacle.

 Jumping the fence meant we were finally nearing the last few obstacles.

 Muddy lens again for the balancing beams.

 One more set of hay bales. These were stacked instead of rolled.

 Boogs took off sprinting when the finish line was in sight.

 Yay! We finished another muddy race!

 Boogs had to visit the bubble pit before he rinsed off and cleaned up.

 Sometimes, I had trouble locating him in there.

After about 40 minutes, I had to coax him out of the bubbles.

 It looked like he had a flowing robe of bubbles.

 All cleaned up and ready to donate his muddy shoes.

 Of course, we had to play a few games on our way back to the car.

The Mudstacle Race was a fun way to spend a Saturday morning. Boogs is already looking forward to the next one.

Boogs has wanted to do a "real" mud race for a long time. Here are pics from one of the Warrior Dash races I participated in a few years back. I think these pics are from 2011. You have to be 14 to enter the Warrior Dash Race. Boogs wants to try jumping over fire. :-) I'm glad he will still have to wait a few more years to do that.

We are enjoying these wonderful sunny and warm days while they last. We aren't ready for cold weather, yet.

This post is linked to:

Winter Holiday 2016 - Catch Up

I have not been very good about keep this blog updated for the past year or so. (Sorry Grandmaman) The last post I wrote about our Christmas holiday in 2016 was our ski trip to Vorlage. Whenever we go to Canada for Christmas, we try to get out, explore, and hike in the winter wonderland. The Mer Bleue Bog trail has always been one of our favorite hikes.

Daddy and Boogs stopped for a snowball fight before we even made it to the trail.

Anytime we get a chance to feed the chickadees, we will take it. Boogs loves to wait patiently with a handful (or hat full) of sunflower seeds. Feeling those little tiny bird feed land on your hand never gets old. We probably stood here for half an hour watching and feeding the birds.

Part of the trail is made of raised wooden-plank walkways. They stand about a foot above the peat bog. It is really neat to look out over the bog and see the beaver dams built up above the water and ice.

I love how isolated I feel on this trail. It is a true escape from the hustle and bustle of the city. The only sounds you hear are bird calls, the rattle of dry grass in the wind, and the beating of wings. It is so peaceful.

Well, it is quiet until we start playing around. There are many great spots for a snowball ambush.

Even I got attacked by flying snowballs and then pushed off the edge of the walk way.

I love seeing Boogs' smile and rosy cheeks.

Daddy and Boogs were looking at a spot where the ice had cracked. They were wondering what had walked there or fallen there to make it crack. They had a long conversation about it.

There were several structures that people had built along the trail. Boogs stopped and explored each one.

These squirrels were chatting away under a bird feed. They seemed to be having a disagreement over who the dropped seeds belong to. I have never heard such noisy squirrels.

Near the end of the trail, I lost track of Boogs. It didn't take long to find him. He was silent and motionless with a handful of seeds, waiting for the chickadees to notice him.

We are not planning on going to Canada for Christmas 2017. It will be a long time before we see snow like this again.