Like Father, Like Son

Excitement filled the air on Friday night as preparations for the Tri Idaho Splash Pedal N' Dash got underway.  Beck Botkin has followed in his daddy's running shoes and participated in his first triathlon.  The first leg of the race was the Splash....climb up the water slide and then slip slide down.  I was a little worried when Beck hesitated at the top of the slide and knowing he isn't the biggest fan of water, I wondered if he would come down.  Being the courageous little man that he his, down he came.  Tucker headed Beck over to the bikes and made the transition to the Pedal portion of the race.  Beck rode the half mile, training wheels and all, with Dad running with him.  Coming in strong from the ride, Beck did the Dash.  He was a determined little boy.  What a great dad Tucker is too to be with him every inch of the race.  Beck crossed the finish line with determination and a smile.  This was about the cutest thing I have ever seen.

      

  

 

Wedding Weekend

What a great weekend being able to participate in the weddings of our wonderful nephews and soon to be nieces.  It was a great experience to witness Nathan and Noel's wedding in Twin Falls.  They are a beautiful couple.  Noel was a stunning bride.  We are looking forward to seeing Kyle and Brianna this evening and witness their union tomorrow.  How fun to watch this family continue to grow.  Grampa Bob would be so proud and I am sure that he is watching and has been and will be there for these weddings.

We are staying with Kay and Karla for a couple days and it is such a pleasure to see them.  A huge added bonus is that Rob is here attending Education Week  Kim and I have been chatting with him most of the morning.  What a great young man!  It has been fun to sit and talk with him and catch up on what he and Rachel are doing and how little Christian is.  Rob showed us a picture of Christian eating a fudge bar - what a darling cute little chocolate mess.  Just listening to Rob talk about his beautiful bride and his darling little boy, I can tell that he adores his little family.  I overheard Rob talking to Christian on the phone this morning and couldn't help but smile.  What a good dad.  What a wonderful surprise to be able to see Rob this weekend in addition to the rest of the family.  I am so lucky to have married into this family.  I was not only blessed with a beautiful wonderful wife, three amazing kids, a great son-in-law, two beautiful daughters-in-law but also a plethora of new brothers, sisters, nieces, nephews, etc.  I can't imagine what my life would be without each individual in this family. 

And the Winner is. . . .

 

Kim and I traveled the short distance to Emmett today to watch Tucker in his first triathlon.  We had Beck and Arli stay with us last night to allow Tucker and Michelle to leave bright and early this morning.  Beck and Arli were absolutely amazing for us last night, but that is a tale for another time.  We left Boise at 0900, swung by Tuck and Michelle's house to rescue pink sandals from the mailbox deposited there by Michelle and headed out to Emmett.  We thought we would arrive in plenty of time to see Tucker in the biking portion of the race.  The swimming portion of the race began at 0930 and Tuck thought he would be out of the water by 1000.  His swimming was fantastic, he was only in the water for 13 minutes if I remember correctly....we completely missed him on his bike, in the transition from bike to running.  We were able to share in his accomplishment as he crossed the finish line at the end of the race.  He really "left it all on the road"...you will need to ask Tucker what that meant.  He did AWESOME!  Not only did he complete the race faster than his goal, he won first place for his age division.  The boy is a champion!!  He didn't look too worse for wear at the end of the race.  Had to sit down for a moment but was pretty well pumped up when he found out he was 63rd over all and first place in his age division.  What an amazing example he is for me and for all of us.  He set a goal and not only achieved it but exceeded his own expectations.  What a great kid.  I included a few pictures allowing anyone who reads this the opportunity to see what a winning triathlete looks like.