Edmonds Kind of Play: It’s a dog-eat-homework world out there, plus family fun runs and parents night out

Handy documentation of the oldest excuse in the book.

It’s a three-day weekend and, in a moment out of a cartoonish movie about parenting, both of my kids woke up on their own at the time they would need to in order to get out the door to go to school. In contrast, at least twice last week, one of them was still in bed with 10 minutes left before we needed to leave while their dad and I looked at each other like “what’s the magic word to get them out of bed.” He just added that “apparently the magic word is Saturday.” We’re at the stage where we feel like the messy-haired, bumbling, cliche children’s movie parents. Despite two reminders on my phone, I forgot “Backwards Day,” which was remedied easily enough; we hear the words “Fortnite” and “Youtube” more than we’d like; and this week, the dog actually ate my youngest kid’s homework.

I’m assuming that of the three-day-weekend-based hashtags on Instagram leading to pictures of road trips and barbecues, there are enough of us who need to work in pictures of “getting the rest of the things you need for a Benjamin Franklin costume” and “cleaning off the barbecue to get it back in working order.”

While this weekend often means trips out of town, forgetting to turn off your alarm for Monday if you get the day off or getting extra stuff done around the house, it also really signifies both the beginning of the busy last weeks of the school and the ramping up of having events outside. The Hazel Miller Spray Park at City Park is open, and it’s even late enough in the year to sign up for Sno-King Youth Club’s new Flag Football offering on Friday nights starting in late August. As we try to work midday school events into weekly schedules and remain hopeful that the outdoor plans we make won’t be subject to the “Junuary” weather the news loves to cover, there are more and more family friendly events. There are two 5ks, an option for the parents to get some free time, and a “goodbye” to a local librarian.

Girls on the Run’s 5K is June 2. (Photo courtesy Girls on the Run)

Girls on the Run, whose mission is to “inspire girls to be joyful, healthy and confident using an experienced-based curriculum that creatively integrates running,” has over 30 teams and is constantly growing. Headed by an Edmonds Mom, Megan Wolfe, Girls on the Run will have their 5k on Saturday, June 2 at 10 a.m. (arrive at 9 a.m.) at Everett Memorial Stadium — and they are still looking for helpers, including course monitors, fun zone helpers and aid station support. The group is also looking for running buddies to pair up with young participants. This 5k is the culmination of the GOTR season for 496 girls, and it is always evident from the pictures of these events just how fun they are for everyone involved. If you are interested in volunteering, please contact Board Chair Christy Brookhart at Christy.Brookhart@GirlsontheRun.com. For more information and to register you can visit GirlsontheRunSnoCo.org/5k or the 5k Facebook events page HERE.

Kids running in the Waterfront 5K in 2016. (File photo by Larry Vogel)

The Edmonds Waterfront Festival will be in Edmonds next weekend, June 1-3. On Saturday, June 2 at 9 a.m. there will be a 5k benefiting Washington Kids in Transition. The race, which starts and ends at Civic Field, 310 6th Ave. N., is for runners of all ages with  day-of-race registration starting at 8 a.m. that morning. Their goal is to get 100 kids to run the race! As an added bonus, parents of elementary-aged children that attend school in the city of Edmonds can enter their child in a contest for a Pizza Hut pizza party for their entire class! The class that signs up the most runners will win the prize, and friends and family members can choose which school they want to support on their registration forms. For more information on the Edmonds Waterfront Festival and the 5k, you can visit EdmondsWaterfrontFestival.org.

The City of Lynnwood is offering a “Parents Night Out” at the Lynnwood Recreation Center on Friday, June 1 from 6 to 9:30 p.m.. The email I got from Jon Bullard, Recreation Coordinator for Youth and Teens, says that participants ages 6 to 12 “will have dinner, go swimming, and be playing some fun games all through the night.” We have used the City of Lynnwood for camps before and are always impressed with their level of organization and activities. Plus, the price is right — the fee per child is $17.25 for a non-Lynnwood resident and $15 for residents. You can register for “Parents Night Out” by calling 425-670-5732 or visiting PlayLynnwood.com’s registration page and using the the number 6999 to look up the class.

Children’s Librarian Edith Farrar leading the Fairy and Elf parade in 2018. (File photo by Larry Vogel)

As I was walking into the library this week, I saw a post that there will be a celebration for retiring Children’s Librarian Edith Farrar on Wednesday, May 30 from 3 to 5 p.m. at the Edmonds Library. I was instantly hit with a best-of montage of the help my family has received from Edith. She assisted my kids in getting their paw prints while checking in at Reading with Rover, she helped me with graphic novels for my dyslexic son, and — as I found out via My Edmonds News — she is the “organizer, leader and self-admitted “head fairy”” of the Annual Children’s Fairy and Elf Parade. Farrar, described by Larry Vogel as a gifted story-teller, musician, actor, teacher and local celebrity, is hanging up her hat at the library after 20 years. For more information on Edith’s farewell event you can call the library at 425-771-1933.

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