Andrew and Natalia's first race!

Andrew and Natalia had so much fun in this race! With the kids divided by age we didn't see Andrew most of the race. The one time we did see him, he had a huge smile on his face! Natalia ran or piggybacked the whole race, but also ran with a grin! The race was 1 mile and each participant received a medal at the finish line.
This is the three of us, pre-race.
All the kids lined up to race. I almost think this was just for the purpose of a photo shoot, because afterward they divided the kids up with the kids 10-13 in front, 8-9 yr olds second etc. which only left Natalia and her peers (with their parents) on the actual starting line. I was surprised how many little ones there were! I was also relived they put the older kids up front- I was wondering how this was all going to happen without the little guys getting trampled!
This is the one time we saw Andrew. He walked or ran the whole race, but he was awesome to do it all by himself and be so happy about the whole thing. ( We saw several kids throwing tantrums, and not wanting to have any part of this. Ahh, the temperamental state of children!)
Here Natalia is running along!
Near the finish line!
At the end, Andrew came back to see us and to show us his medal. He was so proud!
Andrew's soccer coach is the directer of the YMCA and therefore had a big role in this whole event. Here he is giving Natalia 'five' as she crosses the finish line!
Natalia receiving her medal. After the race all of the kids got hot chocolate and an apple. They also had a party with a D.J. and a bounce house. We look forward to doing this again next year!