Last Lost Tooth

I guess today was meant to be an eventful one. Not only am I one step closer to being over the hill, my kids made an awesome last snowman of the year, but Brandon finally lost his first tooth. Kind of exciting, kind of sad for me. My last little guy is on his way to being a big guy. This is a great time in life, no diaper bags, no strollers, everyone sleeps through the night. It is also ending an era in our lives, which can be a good thing, but sometimes, I miss the days of little ones running around the house. So, here he is, our last child to loose his first tooth.

Happy Birthday To Me!!

I just had to share the wonderful morning I had watching my three kids playing together (from inside my warm house, I will admit I am not one who enjoys the cold). It was the best birthday morning anyone could ask for!!

Working together for a common cause!!

Mission Completed!!

Talk about the snow ball effect!!

Building the great wall

Gratitude Tuesday

Today was an absolutely splendid day. The sun was out and it was just warm enough to thoroughly enjoy every moment. The kids played all afternoon after school, it was wonderful. James helped Brandon put the old soccer goals up so he could practice being " more aggressive ". He is soooo excited about his soccer team.

Alex was especially grateful today. He called me while I was taking Jeremy to piano to let me know he had to be at the high school for a critique of his ensemble at 5:20. No problem, makes me evening a little tight, but sure, I' ll get ya there Alex.

Then, he calls me and says he left his trumpet at school. He called a ward member, but they weren't able to lend him a random trumpet, go figure. So, he wanted me to take him to the jr. high to get his trumpet then run him to the high school. I was not so happy with the plan and felt the chances of him getting into the school at 5:00 p.m. were zero. He argued with me until I decided I would take him just to prove I was right.

On the way, I let him know he wouldn't be getting into advanced pre-calc. because he goofed off all year and now he doesn't have the mandatory A that he needed in whatever math class he is in now. He also was in jeoprady of not getting into AP World History the way his grades are going. So I lectured him on how he needed to step it up and get serious about grades for the entire ride. He was almost in tears by the time we arrived at the jr. high. ( Moms really know how to lay it on thick ) He ran up the stairs, rang the bell, banged on the door, to no avail.

There were some drama crowd looking kids hanging around by another door. He ran over to them, only to find out they were just let out of play practice five minutes before. In a last ditch effort, I took him around to the back where the gym entrances are. Having spent the better half of this year picking Jeremy up from after school football practice/post season training every day, I hoped the doors would still be open. However, I feared even if they were open, the school would be locked in separate areas, if not the band room and the instrument lockers.

Alex was able to get in and returned in a few minutes with a huge grin, a trumpet, and his sheet music. He was thrilled and said as he opened the door " Prayer really works Mom." Well, can I just say, that was worth all of the headaches and arguing from the previous hour.

I dropped one temporarily happy teenager off at the high school. It was a good afternoon. To top it all off, after family prayer tonight, Alex said " Thanks for believing in me mom. " Yeah... that's just what I did this afternoon. I did want to teach him never to give up -- hopefully I accomplished that, without undermining my attempts to teach my children about personal responsibility. Such a catch 22.

Be Grateful!!

Spring is here... let the games begin!!

Today was the first day of outdoor soccer, and it was sure a nice day to kick off the season. Kyle was up first, it was so nice not to be stuck in the stuffy old soccer dome. The grass is ( almost ) green and the sun was out. We hauled the old, smoky soccer chairs out of the camping equipment, grabbed bottled water and sunglasses and we were off.

I didn't attend Kyle's game, I had to run kids to a primary activity and then to Brandon's game. James took Kyle to his game, which was against his old team, from which he was cut. It was one of those growing experiences, where you look back and realize it was a big blessing to be let go. Kyle's current coach was very willing to work with us on the no playing on Sunday rule and has gone to great lengths to get Kyle into as many Saturday games as possible. Kyle is also a very big fish in the pond, which his old coach recognizes every time the have a game together.

His team lost, but at least it burned a ton of Kyle's energy. I am all game for anything that will burn a significant amount of hyperness out of Kyle. He plays 95% of every game and usually only gets a break when he is ready to drop. It may sound like torture, but he sure is subdued for the rest of the day.

So, onto Kyle's clone, Brandon. He was at a primary activity and was anticipating me showing up with his uniform and gear. He was worried we would be late and not make the game, even though we had over an hour to get somewhere that only takes 15 minutes. We arrived at the supposed soccer fields, only to find an empty field and a guy in a truck redirecting me to the "new" fields. I followed his directions, got lost, and arrived just in time for the game to start. I guess Brandon had reason to stress, but that is what leaving early is for.

Brandon, very relieved, ran onto the field, in all of his new -team - shirt glory. He played most positions, including goalie, which was a thrill for him. His team lost too, but it was cute seeing a bunch of 6 and 7 year olds take great concern in a soccer game. They are actually very good for their age and played a good game. I had to laugh at the cool kid playing with sunglasses. Pretty funny.

Brandon's team lost as well, but by only one point. He was generally happy with the game--especially treat time. It was all good. I enjoyed feeling the sun on my face, seeing my cute little blondies have the sun shine in their hair whilst wearing their dollar store sunglasses, and watching my boys play a game they are both great at.

Spring is here... Be Grateful!!