Why do nice guys always finish last?

Uncle Ed came to visit and the Watsons are back! It also just so happens to be Sweet Pea Festival weekend. We thought Uncle Ed could help get the kids into marathons early so he took the kids with Daddy to participate in their first run. It was a very strenuous 1K along Bozeman's Main Street.

The runners had their numbers and were ready to go:

Here was the beginning of the race as the 10 and 12 year olds whizzed by, followed by a mass of kids, strollers, parents and pups:

And then definitely last of 1,000+ kids but certainly not least came our little man:

He did run quite a bit

but he was mostly distracted by, ummm, everything. Horses, dogs, planes, people, cheering, Ed's shadow etc.

When they passed us along the route Catherine gave up the stroller for her older brother in hopes he might finish the race before being run over by the parade looming in the background. Looks like she didn't mind one bit:

Matthew rode for a bit but walked over the finish line on his own. Their 37:49 pace probably won't go into Uncle Ed's race logs, but not bad for Matthew's first race. Then he came back to enjoy the parade with the rest of us:

And of course he enjoyed the parade treats:

Then we headed over to the park for Sweet Pea. Catherine chilled out in the shade:

While Matthew watched attentively

He also made some of his own art:

Though we wish they were here, it looks like my mom and dad were having a good time this weekend as well:

Summer may be short out West and way up North, but it certainly is sweet!

Sweet Pea Festival

This weekend was the Sweet Pea Festival here in Bozeman, which for perspective is like Lander's 4th of July, without the parade drinking and blowing things up. Anyway, it's a really awesome 3 day arts festival with a few extra days of awesomeness thrown in. Wednesday was the 'Bite of Bozeman' where James and I were overwhelmed with yummy choices from local restaurants. Matthew's favorite was the Bison tamale, causing me to pause and wonder if I shouldn't have ordered two.

Saturday kicked off with a kid's race and parade. Here's Matthew and James waiting for the parade to start.

And the first of the hundreds of kids to race down Main Street. Next year we'll have to make sure and register Matthew.

The race was followed by a parade filled with everything a parade should have. There were horses, costumes, tractors, nordic skiers, dinosaurs, cute kids, the works!

Ingenious idea: Candy Cannon.

And the best use of a bike trailer in a parade (in case you're confused this young ladies followed the horses):

Sheer awesomeness:

And a very colorful and intriguing float from Yellowstone Coffee:

Though the costume design for ummm, coffee beans is a little confusing and questionable:

Just an idea regarding banner placement for my mother's class reunion next time :-)

Matthew, it turns out, is a candy magnet for 8-10 year old girls handing out candy:

Matthew on the move to get a better view:

The shoe that nearly ran over Matthew 5 seconds after I took this picture. Luckily James heroically scooped him out of danger:

Not deterred in the slightest, he's on the move again for more candy:

Interpretive dance to Pink's "I'm Coming Out" courtesy of the Women's Health ward of the local hospital.

Cuteness from the Parks & Rec dance class

The bulk of the event is at the park where we had our photos taken last week. There's 5 stages of puppets, plays, music and dance. We caught the end of a Missoula Children's Theater production of Robin Hood, the end of a Stellaluna puppet show and a few musical acts. There's also a great area for kids set up, including a very popular area where contractors donate scrap wood and kids build and paint things like these:

Watching some of the adults haul some of the creations (like a 7 foot snake/serpent) to the car is priceless!

There were also some amazing arts/crafts vendors as well as food booths run by local non-profits. We also realized we've hit the food stage where Matthew wants to eat everything we're eating. So we said yes to the sno-cone:

But ended up having to hide the kettle corn. This should keep James and I on our toes about dieting and eating healthy from a little while. All in all, an excellent weekend. We can't wait for next year when Matthew's a little older and can enjoy more of the kids activities and is a little less rigid about napping so we can enjoy more of the adult activities.