my lil soccer players

i've been meaning to post this picture of my little sharks, the ymca soccer team i'm coaching.
this photo was taken about a month ago or so, on a day scoutie was sick.
he was sweet to pose for pictures,but he didn't feel well enough to play.

bottom {from left}: logan, jake, curren, nicole, scout + jaycee
top: coach cameron and coach angela

though i was having a wonderful time south of the border with my kiddos
i missed these little ones.  they popped up in my mind more than once.
i've certainly grown attached to them over the last few months,
and it feels like i haven't seen them in forever.

we got rained out the saturday before our family left for mexico,
one game was played while we were away,
and with the thanksgiving holiday last week,
the y didn't hold games this past saturday.

it's been 3 long weeks since i've kicked the ball around with my lil' sharks.
i'm having some serious withdrawals! 

i'm looking forward to this week's practice and saturday's game.

~ soccer update for finney:
while we were down south, we received an email letting us know that finn
was selected to play in the y's under 8 All Star Soccer Team.
with this honor, comes 2 practices a week and a weekend game -
this is in addition to his other standard team {piranas} and their saturday game. 

now i wasn't up for adding anything more to his or our schedules,
but c really felt finn should be given this rare opportunity.
when c said he would be responsible for shuttling finn to and from these
additional practices, i was on-board. 
finn is excited to play.

so for the next 3 saturdays we will literally live at the field until the season is over.
{and somewhere in there i need to squeeze in time for finding a tree and present shopping}.

thanksgiving 2011, part 2

while this momma was getting settled back in the real world
my 3 were having a grand time in california's central valley with aunties, uncles and cousins.

the boys arrived back home to sd sometime in the wee hours this morning,
but that didn't prevent finn and scout from waking up at the crack of dawn
and jumping into our bed.

after lots of squeezes and kisses and "i missed you mommy"
{it was hard to be mad at them after all this lovin'},
then they told me all the exciting things they had done over the last 2 days.

it seems the boys spent a fair amount of time playing wii.
we purposefully don't have any video game consoles in our home,
so this was SUCH a treat for finn and scoutie.
{i can picture my two like little crack attics glued to their television}

scoutie also told me uncle chad took them to a REAL airplane hangar and to see his fighter jet.
i can't recall at the details he shared with me, but he loves planes and he had quite an experience.
he went on and on {with big brother giving lots of specific}, as i coaxed them both out of our
bedroom so c could get some much needed sleep.  he was exhausted.

c remembered to take a few pixs and even some video for me.
so without further adieu, the photo highlights of their thanksgiving:


cousins: left/clockwise: scout (4), chloe (2),  maya (8), isaac (5), and finn (7)

enjoying chloe's playroom

inside the hangar

the F18 jet uncle chad flys
if you look closely it says "decaf" {his call sign }



according to my boys, uncle chad has THE coolest job ever!!

the boys had a wonderful time and chad + anissa were such great hosts.
i almost forgot, auntie anissa made personalized embroidered craft aprons for each of the kids.
{picture coming...}

~ i can't tell you how much i wanted to see chloe.
i contacted her mommy to see if auntie a can come up for a visit.
i'll be taking a solo trip in february. i can hardly wait!

thanksgiving 2011

before i dive into my cozy cama (bed in espanol),
i wanted to take a few minutes to reflect on today
and some of the things i'm grateful for.
{i mean that's what this holiday is all about right}

i could literally list hundreds of things here,
but i plan on printing this blog someday, 
so i'll just share the first things that pop into my head.
i am grateful for:

1. my boys {for christopher's devotion to our marriage, family and his work and
    for finn + scout for making me laugh every day and reminding me what life is all about}.

2. family {both the one i was born into and the one that i married into}.
    i am especially grateful for barby's recent move to the western u.s.
    having her closer means we will see her more now that she is just one state away.

3. friends {old + new}
    the bookclub i joined in january introduced me to a group of lovely and intelligent woman who all share  
    a passion for reading.  i'm so grateful for these new found female friends.

4. my pillow {i've been without mine for over a week and i can't express how much i've missed it}

~ my turkey day was anything but traditional.
just last night, c decided to drive to california's central coast to spend the holiday with
his brother chad and his sweet family {anissa + chloe who is 2.5}. it had been a while
since he'd seen them and the utah gerbers were going to be making the trek down there too.

we just arrived home from our vacation at 7pm last night but c was determined to go.
he got up at 3am {with the little guys}and drove north for several hours. whew - he is an animal!
unlike him, i couldn't muster up the energy for another trip so soon, so i stayed home.
{i did help unpack and pack to get them ready for their next journey}

so what did i do all day?
well, i went on a nice morning run, caught up with family/friends on the phone,
did lots of laundry, grocery shopped, watched this chick flick {very sweet},
and tried out a new receipe. i didn't want turkey, but i was craving pumpkin,
so i made pumpkin curry soup.  it was delicious and almost this perty too.

image: pumpkinsoup.org

i hope you and yours had a terrific thanksgiving {gobble gobble}.
xoxo

~ mexico vacation pictures to come!

made it to mexico

after a little scare and maybe a little luck,
the boys and i made it to mexico!

the view from our hotel

we are so relieved because we almost didn't make it
{as least as a foursome}. here's what happened:

less than 2 days before our flight,
c noticed finn's passport had expired!
we had both just assumed it was current,
completely forgetting that children's passports are only good for 7 years,
{he's had his since he was 6 months old}

the day before our flight departed {we were flying out of tijuana, mexico},
we crossed the border on foot and visited the mexican immigration office.
we were fortunate to be able to get finn a tourist card,
which allowed him to be in the country for more than 72 hours. *woo hoo*

if that hadn't worked, we were discussing plans a, b and c.
leaving the boys and going alone, flying a grandma out, etc. whew!
a BIG lesson learned for us both.

we are here and relaxed now.
so relaxed, we completely forgot what day it was
and had to ask our waiter at lunch.
{a true sign one is on holiday right}

~ tomorrow won't be so relaxing.
c and i plan on doing this zipline tour.
i've always wanted to try this.
i'm SO excited!!

20 years today

love does not consist in gazing at each other,
but in looking outward together in the same direction.
~ antoine de saint-exupery

today c and i are celebrating a very special occasion...
our 20th year wedding anniversary!

how can that be when we are still so young you ask? *grin*
well back on november 11, 1991,
two young kids met, fell madly in love
and decided to share the rest of their lives together.
the rest is history.

i could write a hundred wonderful things about why i love christopher,
and why i still get butterflies in my stomach when i'm holding his hand,
but the quote above i think sums up what love is really about,
and how we were able to make it to this milestone.

simply said, we are partners, moving ahead together in the same direction.
with this in the back of our minds, we've been able to weather some storms,
and hopefully will be able to weather the ones yet to come.

i look forward to at least another 20 years with this man by my side.
love love love him!!

me and my baby
{bubba-loo photography)

~ auntie jen is watching the boys overnight tonight while c and i
sneak off for a romantic dinner and evening all to ourselves.
i'm excited {and very grateful}

patience

patience is also a form of action.
- auguste rodin
 
as i was plugging in my phone to charge one night this past weekend,
i saw a text from a father of two little boys i coach.
the subject read: Coach of the year
and the message: thank you for being so patient with my boys

the dad attached this picture.

me and jayce

i almost cried as i read his kind words because this little guy
{and his 3 yr old brother} were real challenges for me the first few weeks. 
they are being raised soley by their father and i'll just say, it was not easy at first.

i got advice from my dear friend robin who has been coaching a variety of sports
for probably 20 years now.  it helped and i worked so hard at being patient with them,
gaining their trust and not taking practices or our games too serious.
after that, things turned around, and have been great since.
{now when my 2 little redheads miss a practice or game, i miss 'em alot}.

if the kids walk away with a love of kicking a soccer ball
and the importance of exercising their bodies at the end of this season,
i'll feel i've done my job as their coach. 

little do they know, it's their coach who's learned the most over the last few months.
i've learned how to be more patient.  it's funny how that happens.

best breakfast bunch

i couldn't stop smiling on saturday.
my heart was so happy.

it wasn't because i gained an extra hour in the morning
due to daylight savings {although that was nice}.
it was because i received some very happy news.

shannon, one of the sweet girls in my breakfast bunch,
announced she and her hubby vay, are expecting a baby!!
this is something they've been wanting,
and this couple couldn't be more deserving. 

it's monday and i'm still smiling and thinking of all the
wonderful things they have to look forward to. 

i wish i had taken a picture of this momma-to-be,
but i couldn't find my little point and shoot camera until
after she had left the house.

i did snap a few silly photos of the kids of the breakfast bunch.
the group is small - just my two and cathi's two girls.
{come april though, we'll add shannon's baby to our group}.

for now, here are the fab four:

scout (4), lia (6), finn (7) and maya (8)



artwork anyone

do you need new artwork for your desk mom?
- scout, age 4

i get asked this question every week or so by scout.
he loves to draw and color, and maybe even more that this,
he likes to share his artwork.

as his mommy, i  tend to make make a big deal about the pictures he colors  -
they fill my fridge and decorate the walls in my cube at work.
unlike his big brother who prefers to draw in pen or pencil focusing on details
like circuit boards, factories, assembly lines, etc.,
it's a treat and refreshing to see pictures with COLOR.

so i have piles of beautiful pictures from scoutie at my work like this one:

i don't even want to think about the day he stops giving me his artwork. *sniff*

hooray for pre-k

scoutie brings home work almost daily from pre-k,
and it's clear to c and i just how much he enjoys school.
he wants us to sit and give him our full attention as he explains
each drawing, project or writing assignment.
we do my best to try to give him this.

this is a kid who asks for homework when his teacher doesn't assign any.
i realize this might not be the case down the road, but for now,
it makes me happy that he has a passion for learning.  
it also reassures me our little guy is ready for kindergarten next fall.

a big milestone for him occured this past month.  
he now recognizes and reads simple words
{pointing them out wherever we go}.
he especially likes to do this in the books we read together before bed.
oh is wonderful to see a whole new world open up before his eyes!

his teacher, ms. heidi sent this home with him a few days ago. 

***********************************

if you feel like me, the weekend can't come fast enough.

it's been a very long and busy one - both at home and at work.

luckily, i've got a few fun things to look forward to. 
i'm joining the boys for movie night at explorer elementary tonight,

tomorrow we have soccer games, and on sunday morning, i'm hosting the 'breakfast bunch'.

it's been forever since i've seen some of these girls, so i'm looking forward to it!!  

{i better squeeze in some time to clean my house}. 

have a fantastic weeekend. xo