The Morris Family Blog: Benton Harbor/Saint Joseph, MI

We had fun this past week on Michigan's west side! Dave did the Steelhead Half Ironman in Benton Harbor/Saint Joseph, MI. A half ironman is a 1.2 mile swim, a 56 mile bike ride, and a13.1 mile run (which is a half marathon). Crazy eh?! This weekend, it was so windy that the water was too "trecherous," so they replaced the swim with a 2 mile run. So it was technically a "duathlon". The waves were pretty huge, so I was glad they opted on the side of safety and got rid of the swim. He did a great job, along with our friend Chris Brede who came along and did the race as well. It was right on Lake Michigan, on the beach, so Avery and I had fun watching for the guys as they transitioned from event to event and also playing in the sand and people watching. We took the jogging stroller so it was nice to have a place to carry all of our stuff. It was pretty hot so I wanted to have plenty of supplies- sunscreen, drinks, snacks, bathing suits, towels, hats, our sweet $1 Wal-Mart bag of sand toys, etc. Here we are waiting to see Dave finish the bike and go out on the run:

Then we went out to the beach for a while. She had so much playing in the sand, I never even took her down to the water. I didn't want to get her all wet and then have a few more hours to wait, in case it made her more tired or fussy. I was keeping the water in my "back pocket" =) Here she is digging around. See the wind? Also check out her super cute teensy New Balance tennis shoes.

This was her favorite move- standing and digging with both hands- full force.

Here she is before taking a little mid-race nap. Check out the sleepy eyes.

And then back to the sand, I'm glad I remembered to pick up a shovel and a rake! Especially since she's been shoveling her farm animals around since she's been home. Ha.

Here is Chris, Avery, and Dave after the race. We were so proud- can't you tell by Avery's face?!

The race was on Saturday, which was nice since it gave us Sunday to hang out and relax. We took her down to the water this time - she loved it! She wanted to walk further out and wanted to sit down as the waves would come up. She's very brave =) I know she will have a great time at the beach in Destin later this month.

We're so glad Chris and Allison were there to play with us. Here is a picture of Chris and Avery- they are BIG buddies.

Avery did great at walking on the sand, though it did bring another level of difficulty. She is all over the place these days. My new motto is "Avery, come back!"