Dempsey Challenge

Today Grandma, Mom, and the kids headed to Lewiston (Maine) for the 5K portion of the Dempsey Challenge. We brought our old Bob stroller just in case the girls got tired, and boy were we glad we brought it! Five kilometers is quite a workout for a 3- and 2-year old.

There was a great turnout for the event--3,500 people signed up for one of the bike rides or the 5K. At the same time we were walking, Pop Pop was riding his bike in the 50-mile event, and Mama was riding in the Century (100 miles)! We also met up with Aunt Sara and her parents, Uncle Seth, and Sebastian.Kate rode in the stroller for the entire distance, but Emily actually walked over two miles of it.Both girls loved the experience of wearing their race numbers and drinking water at the rest stops, just like a real race.We brought along some snacks, which were much enjoyed by the girls. The course wound around downtown and crossed several small bridges, which the kids also liked.The kids did great for their first ever 5K!After the race we went to the festival at the park and checked out the "Kidzone". Emily was really tired from her big walk, but Kate was fresh as a daisy from riding like a princess in the stroller.

The girls did some bouncing in the bounce house.... ....played with some fun toys....

...and Em even built herself a cool wood toolbox in the Home Depot tent.Lunch was included with the cost of our registration, so we decided to head over to the lunch tent a little bit early to get in line. We were sure glad we got in line early, because it ended up being really long. We were so glad it wasn't raining!The food was pretty tasty, although none of us chose the lobster option.It was nice to see Aunt Sara and her family and get a chance to walk along with them. She named our team Team Tigerlily, in honor of her late aunt Judy. We found out later that both Pop Pop and Mama finished their bike rides safely and in great time. Congratulations to Team Tigerlily and to everyone who biked or walked today.