Are The "Twins" Training For The Olympics?

This week, I just had to give Rachel & Elijah their own Track post.  These two are AMAZING!  I guess Rachel decided that she was not going to let Elijah be known as the long distance runner.  (She had done better with sprints in the past.)  I think that she decided, "Anything he can do, I can do better."  And ... she set out to prove herself on the track this week.  Go, Girl, Go!!!


First of all ... not to worry ... we are so NOT the competitive parents that set super high standards for their children on the athletic field.  Oh. My. No.  We LOVE sports.  We LOVE competition.  But, most of all, we LOVE having fun.  So, if the kids are having fun and want to do well at the same time, we say, "Go For It!"  


Let me tell you a little about these two ...


Rachel was the youngest in her Ghanaian family 
for 6 years (or so) before coming to America.


Elijah was the youngest in his American family,
for 6 years before Rachel arrived from Ghana.


Rachel's birth certificate says that 
she is 5 months older than Elijah.


However, since they had both been the youngest for 6 years,
we decided just to treat them like twins.


Our family has already done the twin thing,
so we know the joys and challenges of having twins.


Rachel is a fighter and a survivor,
having survived a very difficult childhood in her village.


Elijah is a fighter and a survivor,
having survived a near-deadly case of bacterial meningitis.
(You may notice the scars on his legs from the 100+
3rd degree burns that he survived, caused by the disease.)


And ... as the youngest of a dozen children ...


Rachel & Elijah think that they can do 
anything the Big Kids can do.


Rachel & Elijah are FULL of energy.


Rachel & Elijah are NOT quitters.  Never.


Rachel & Elijah are FULL of fun.


Rachel & Elijah LOVE being "twins".


So, what did they do in track and field this week???


Let me tell you ...

They Ran the 50m Hurdles.

They High Jumped.

Don't you LOVE that style?

They Ran the 50m Dash.

(sorry, no pics of that one)

They Ran the 100m Dash.

Rachel Ran a 17.5 in the 100m.

(Don't bite your tongue, Rachel.)

They Long Jumped.

Elijah jumped 9'4".

Rachel jumped 9'3".

They Ran the 200m.

(no pics)

They Ran the 800m.

(Rachel beat Elijah by a couple of seconds.)

Funny Story ...

Rachel was in 1st place for the 1st lap of the 800m.

She moved into 2nd place for most of the 2nd lap.

As she was coming down the last stretch, 

Mama was shouting encouragement to her.

With about 50m to go, another girl was gaining on her.

Mama yelled, "There's someone right behind you."

This was supposed to motivate her to speed up a bit.

But ... she heard me ... and moved over to the next lane,

to let the girl pass.  Too funny!  I had to explain to her

after the race, what I meant by my words of encouragement.

They Ran the 1st Lap of the Mile,

Side-by-Side.

(Yes, they are running with all of the adults.)

They Ran the 2nd Lap of the Mile,

Side-by-Side.

They Ran the 3rd Lap of the Mile,

Side-by-Side.

I was wondering if Elijah had slowed down this week,

so that Rachel could keep up with him.

Or, if Rachel had really picked up her pace this week.

At the end of the 4th lap, 

Rachel moved ahead.

And ... Elijah let her.  

He didn't "kick it" like he

usually does.  So sweet!

Rachel finished the mile in 7:47.

Elijah finished the mile in 7:48.

When we got home, 

Elijah told me that his legs hurt.

That's when I realized ...

Not only had Elijah and Rachel just 

gotten a GREAT time in the mile,

but they had also competed in

nearly every event.

Elijah and Rachel both competed in ...

50m Hurdles

50m Dash

100m Dash

200m Dash

800m Run

Long Jump

High Jump

and ... FINISHED the night with the MILE.

Oh My!!!

(We didn't run the 4x100m relay this week,

because Sarah needed to get home

to go spend the night with Lindsey.)

Run, Kids, Run!!!