2008 Boise Captial Kids Run

Last spring, I think it was in May, my brother, Courtney, invited Devin and Siri to participate with his kids in the Boise Capital kids run. It's the biggest children's run in Idaho and kind of a big deal. The run is 1 mile from the Old Depot to the Capital building. We stood near the finish line and watched this huge swarm of maroon clad kids running down the hill towards us. It was really cool. Of course, my brother gave us a disk with the pictures, which we promptly lost, and I finally stole these off his facebook. We also had pictures of Devin and Siri & Riley finishing up the race, but as I mentioned, we lost the disk. Big losers.

But anyway, here the racers are at the depot getting ready to run the race. Maybe if we would have known the shirts were going to be maroon I would have gotten my kids black shorts too. Oh well. It's not a fashion show. Right?

Alex and Riley participated in the 2007 event and had a great time. A few months later, in September, Alex (then age 9) started having trouble with her coordination. Before long she had lost the use of most of the right side of her body. She now has very little use of her right arm and struggles to get that poor leg going. She walks but is not at all sure on her feet. After many tests and trips to San Francisco to the neurologist, they still don't have a definite diagnosis although they believe she may have sarcoidosis in her brain. It's been such a struggle for her to go from being a healthy "normal" 9 year old to becoming so dependant. They have done a great job of encouraging her to overcome her trials and do for herself what she can.
So, last year before the run, Alex decided she was going to enter the race again. There is not a walking category but she didn't care. She trained with her family. Courtney and Riley would run and Alex and Paige would walk. The day of the race Courtney walked along beside her to help steady her. She came in dead last. But at the finish line family, friends, volunteers, and strangers were all there to cheer her on. There was hardly a dry eye to be seen. What a sense of accomplishment. She was a rock star!
Alex's family has a magnet board in the bonus room that I just love. It says "WE DO DIFFICULT THINGS." On this board they have photos of Courtney's marathons, report card, and other reminders of accomplishments. This photo has had a spot on the board since the race. Thanks, Alex, for teaching us not to be afraid of difficult things.
We won't be participating in the race this year. Alex and Riley will be with their mom that weekend. Hopefully next year we can do it again.