Happy Thanksgiving!

We started Thanksgiving off this year with what I hope becomes a tradition for our family...we ran in the turkey trot 5K! I've always wanted to do it, but since I usually host Thanksgiving dinner at our house it just didn't seem feasible. This year I decided that we would just make it work. It was SO fun!

Jonah and Bridget ran in the kid's run. Six and under ran one lap around the building, seven and up ran two laps. Here is Jonah as he starts off his run (he's in the white shirt)...he was just SURE he was going to win. He finished strong, at the front of the second group of kids to come in.

And here is Bridget finishing up her race. She was so excited about the race, talking about it for a week ahead of time; but when it came time to line up at the start, Bridget wasn't so sure. She said she wasn't going to run, but Sam talked her back into it. She agreed as long as he would run with her. As soon as they started though, she didn't really notice whether Sam was there or not...she just RAN!

So proud of Jonah and Bridget...what great runners!

After the kid's race was the 5k (3.1 miles). Henry decided a while back that he wanted to run in a 5k with me, and this was this first one that we could work out. He has been training by running with me a few times a week, a mile or two at a time. Henry asked Sam and I to run with him during the race, so we all agreed to stay together. He was fairly nervous as we waited to start, but he found his groove once we got going.

I wish I had a picture of his face after we started and the people started to thin out a bit (it's always REALLY crowded right at the starting line)...Henry had the biggest smile on his face. He was loving it! After about the first mile, Henry looked over at me and said, "I really need to run faster, I've just got to go!" So we picked up the pace. I got stuck as the runners all funneled through a bridge and it took me at least a half mile to catch back up to Sam and Henry!

I finally caught up with them right at the 3 mile mark, just as Henry spotted the finish line and took off at a sprint. I couldn't keep up with him! Henry finished his race at 28:32 which was way ahead of the goal of 30 minutes that I had set for him. (He was so proud to find out later that he even beat his Sunday school teacher!)

Here are the three of us right after the race...

It was so fun! I hope that we will be able to run many more 5k races together as a family! :)

Thanksgiving was lovely, by the way. We hosted it here at our house, and we had Sam's folks and his brother Dave and family. The day was relaxing, yummy, and full of good conversation.

The day after Thanksgiving, Mary Beth and I headed out for a little shopping (we slept in and didn't go out for any of the crazy early sales, but we still found good deals) and Sam and his dad worked on splitting wood. Later in the day, we decorated the house for Christmas. I'm always a little sad to put away the fall decorations (I love the colors of fall!) but it's so nice to have the house decked out for Christmas.

And now we have entered advent and we are preparing our hearts for Christmas...what a wonderful season!

Florida 2011

We had another fun vacation to Florida this past fall! We planned a fun stop along the way this time...in Mobile, Alabama. We always drive by a huge battleship as we zoom on by and we decided this year that we'd better check it out.

It was so great! When we first got there we let the kids out of the car to run around. There is a wonderful park area, with a pier, a rocky shoreline, and lots of tanks, helicopters, and airplanes that you can look at up close.

We would have enjoyed the stop if that had been all that we got to see, but there was SO much more!We bought tickets to board the USS Alabama and headed out. None of us had ever been on a battleship before. It was WAY bigger than we could have imagined. It's amazing that it can float! We followed the self-guided tours around and saw most of the boat...we actually got lost more than once.

It was a real treat and an eye-opener for all of us. We so appreciate the US armed forces and all who serve our country.

After touring the battleship we walked over to another part of the park where they have a submarine, the USS Drum. The kids really enjoyed walking through that...I think for two reasons it was their favorite part. (1) It's so compact and they make use of every inch of space, and (2) We met the man who is in charge of restoring the sub, a retired vet who had lots of fascinating things to share with us. Sam was anxious to get back on the road by this point, but we just couldn't tear ourselves away from this kind man and his vast knowledge. SO FUN!
After the battleship park, we headed on down the road...at that point we are pretty close to our destination, so the last part of the journey went pretty quickly. We finally made it to the house we rent (or as the kids call it, "our Florida house"), dropped off our things and the kids and I, along with Kelly, Jordan and Matthew, grabbed some buckets and headed down to the beach.

We slipped our toes into the warm water, dug in the sand a little, got wetter than we planned on, and enjoyed a beautiful sunset. What a perfect start to a vacation!

We did many of the 'usual' things that we do in Florida, since this is an annual trip for us. This year we decided to take the kids to see Dolphin Tale, as it had recently opened in the theaters. What a perfect movie to see at the beach, huh? :)

We spent some fun times shopping and even found matching sunglasses for all of the adults...

We spent many mornings and/or afternoons at this fun park that is just across the street from our house...and we even got a unique group picture!

Family picture time! We tried to recapture the colors from that first incredible sunset but couldn't quite get them.

The beauty of this vacation is that we all get time together, but as the kids get busy playing, Sam and I get time to talk and reconnect too. Such a refreshing time!

Of course there was lots of swimming...once they finally fixed the pool. The first few days we were there it was WAY too cold to swim, and the last day we were there it was actually too hot! There were a few days in the middle there that were absolutely perfect.

Vacations with family are the best!!!

I had high hopes for this next picture...it didn't turn out so great, but I just love all these little faces! :)

Last year Henry studied the Mississippi and was fascinated by it. He loved the idea of this HUGE river that flows so very far and was so very useful to the early American settlers. When I reminded him that we drive over the Mississippi every year on the way to Florida, he could not wait! Since we didn't cross it at a good time on the way there, we decided we would stop on the way back.

As we crossed over the river (on a bridge, high, high, high above the river) Sam pointed it out to Henry and told him to wave. Henry was devastated. He had thought we would stop and take pictures, and Sam had thought we would just slow down and look...different plans. So we drove on a few miles, and Sam looked for a place to turn around so we could go back across the river where the visitor center is and get out of the car. We enjoyed looking out over the river and walking around. For some reason there was an old cannon displayed on a hill overlooking the river. Sam thought it would be a good place for us to break out our inaugural 'family planking' and join the strange phenomenon. ;)

We are so grateful that we are able to take a yearly vacation. We love Florida: the weather, the beaches, the friendly folks and abundant shopping. But what we love most is a chance to spend time with family and enjoy time away together! Thank you Lord for the blessing of family vacations with extended family! :)

Ranger Plane!

My Grandma recently stayed a while in Texas with one of my Uncles. This was a great opportunity for me, since I haven't seen my Grandma in years (right after Jonah was born, so 6). She lives in Washington. I haven't seen my uncle in more years than I can count. I was quite young the last time I saw him.

Even though we live about 30 minutes from my Uncle, we hadn't found a chance to get together since we've lived in Texas. I think it was a mixture of he is really busy, and we don't really 'know' each other any more, and he works in Dallas. So I was thrilled at the chance to get to see him and my Grandma at the same time!

My Uncle Bill runs an airplane inspection company at the airport, so we met them there at his hangar. It was pretty cool to go through the security entrance, and drive out onto the tarmac to park near his hangar.

Once inside, my Uncle let the kids look at all of the airplanes currently in the hangar. The one below is his personal plane that he is restoring and fixing up. My mom with her brother Bill...

My Grandma doesn't really like having her picture taken, but I was able to sneak in a quick shot of her with my mom:

Sam and I thought the best part was checking out the Texas Rangers (think baseball!) team plane. It is really nice inside...they travel well, by my standards. :)

The Ranger plane was probably a highlight for the kids too...they thought the seating was so cool. There are chairs that face each other with a table in between, and they also really loved the phones. ;) There was a helicopter parked at the hangar that evening too, and the kids all really liked seeing that.

So grateful for a chance to see my Grandma and Uncle Bill and Aunt Chris! Family is so important to me, and I was amazed to see some distinctive character traits that so obviously run in my mom's family. My brother is so like my Uncle Bill in his mannerisms and speech that you'd think they grew up together. My Grandma is planning a trip back down here in the Spring, and I am looking forward to seeing her again soon! :)

Bridget soccer 2011

Bridget has been eagerly anticipating playing soccer for as long as I can remember. The year she was born is the first year that Henry played, so she has been watching from the sidelines ever since she was a baby.

This year she was finally old enough to play on a team! Bridget was the youngest player on her team, as her birthday was the cut-off for being eligible to play. She was placed on the Tornadoes, coached by Mandy and Andy.

Bridget was so excited to go to her first practice! She ran right over and joined the group...and she hardly looked back.

Actually she made eye-contact with me once, raised her hand in a little half wave, then quickly turned back to her coaches. She takes her soccer seriously. Every time they called out 'water break' Bridget would run over to me, grab her water bottle for a quick drink, then run back to her coaches. Once or twice they told her to go back and sit down a minute to rest. ;)

This is Bridget right after her very first game. She looked so big out there on the field! And after the game, she was quite excited to head over to the snack-shack and get her free juice and animal crackers (which might or might not have been the highlight of the game for her).

Here's Bridget with her two biggest fans! It was weird for Henry to be watching instead of playing this year...this is his first season 'off' since beginning soccer four years ago.

My goofy girl. One of my favorite parts of this season was watching little parts of Bridget's personality develop. She is not usually very aware of the days of the week, but during soccer season, she was constantly counting down to the next practice or game. Friday nights she would lay out her gear and uniform before going to bed, without anyone reminding her to do it.
The referees are very good with the kids and always make sure they know which goal they are heading toward. Bridget was good at knowing which one was her goal; and even though she didn't make contact with the ball much, she was always right in the middle of the action.
Go Bridget!!!
Team picture of the Tornadoes, fall 2011

Back row: Coach Andy, Coach Mandy
Middle row: Mitchell, Maddie, Ryken, Bridget
Front row: Aden, Chesni, Johnathan
Not pictured: Thomas, Diego

I didn't get a good picture of Bridget with her good friend Mitchell! That was another of the best parts of the season...watching Bridget develop a friendship entirely on her own. We showed up for one game an hour early (oops! Should have checked the schedule, Mom.) and so did Mitchell and his family. The two kids played together at the park until game time and they were best buddies on and off the field for the rest of the season. So fun!

I'm so thankful for a daughter who loves sports and is healthy and active, and I'm also thankful for a wonderful community that provides great opportunities like this one!

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Football 2011

Henry surprised us all this past spring when he announced that he would be playing tackle football in the fall.

Since he was four, Henry has been playing soccer in the spring and fall. He is good at soccer and loves it, so I wasn't really sure what he would say when I told him he would have to skip soccer if he decided to play football. He hesitated only a moment, asked a few questions (along the lines of, "Can I still play on the same team in the spring if I skip the fall?") and made his decision.

I tried to talk him into trying out flag football, to no avail. He wanted to play tackle or nothing.

So we signed him up!

The first two weeks were evaluations/try-outs. The coaches had them run (and run, and run!), catch balls, exercise, do drills, etc...and they separated out the boys into two teams. The White team was mostly boys who have played in the past, and the older kids (4th graders). The Blue team was mostly the younger boys (3rd graders) and those who were new to the game.

Luckily, Henry was picked for Blue, which is coached by a friend of ours. Coach Michael works with Sam at Sky Ranch, goes to church with us, and his son Luke is a friend of Henry's. Sam told Michael he would be willing to help out if needed, and Michael made him an assistant coach.

The first few practices were helmet-only, to get the boys used to the feeling of running with the different balance and weight that it adds. After that they wore full pads and started learning to tackle. Those first few tackle practices were pretty intense and emotional (for Henry and his mom!). Henry and the other boys learned how to tackle properly to avoid injuries. Once they figured it out they gained quite a bit of confidence and lost some of their fear.

After that it was time to start learning positions, plays and strategy. Henry loved learning the plays and the code words they use to tell each other where they should be. He was put in the position of wide receiver...in the picture below, Henry is #82 (blue jersey, player farthest to the right).

Henry loved his first season of football! He was not the smallest player on the team, but he was close...most of the other boys were fourth graders. That left Henry on the sidelines quite a bit, but he definitely got lots of playing time. Henry was enthusiastic and one of the best encouragers on his team. We were so proud to see him paying attention, helping others up, telling his friends what a good job they had done, and generally promoting team unity.

Sam was a favorite among the parents. There was another assistant coach who was a bit harsh sometimes, and the other parents really appreciated that Sam never once yelled at the kids. Sam is a gentle, encouraging, inclusive coach. So fun to watch! Henry was so proud to have his dad out on the field with him. :)

The Blue team lost all their games...they actually scored 7 points in the second to last game, and they were so excited to have points on the board! At the end of the season when the other teams went into play-offs, we were done. So we invited the whole team (along with their parents and siblings) over to our house for an end-of-season football party. We cooked hot dogs, had chips, potato salad, soda and more dessert than we knew what to do with. The boys had so much fun! The parents mostly sat around visiting, and the boys played catch, climbed around in the tree forts and ran around the yard.

From left: Grayson, Nick, Caleb, Dylan, Coach Sam, Luke, Ethan, Henry, Alex, Blake, Coach Michael, Jordan, Seth, Christian, Braxton, Brody.

It was such a great season! I'm grateful to the Lord for keeping all the boys safe, helping them find joy despite the scoreboard, new friendships, and healthy bodies. Way to go, Henry! We are so proud of you for trying something new and learning that you love football! :)