Soccer Camp

This week the boys spent a week at soccer camp at the rec center. This is our last camp of the summer! Already? Say it ain't so.

Evan and Coach Gary - I had to give my right arm for this picture! Well, almost anyway.

Keagan and I end the week with a game of Jimmy Neutron. I wasn't really banking on parent participation.

At Friday's "World Cup" Evan scored a goal against a much older player. He celebrated like never before with a huge jump and then the airplane celebratory fly-by.

Evan's UK Elite Soccer Team - On Wednesday he was moved up to the 8-11 year old age group where he played for Coach Gary, a semi-pro player out of London. 

I told the boys that I could live every day like the past two weeks....Football and/or soccer scrimmages in the AM, swim leassons after lunch, trip to the library in the late afternoon, bike rides before dinner, and evenings filled with card games or checkers. And Keagan said, "Don't you get tired of driving the car all those places?"

National Harbor

A friend of mine suggested we spend a day at the National Harbor. This person does not have young children, and although it might be a great place to go at night to have a good meal, hear live music, or to take a walk around the water, it is not the place to go with two young children when it is 90 degrees! The best part of the day for us was climbing on the huge God of Water buried in the sand at the edge of the water. 

Football Scrimmage

Today was Evan's first football scrimmage. He played safety, his position of choice, and even though his team lost, I am very proud of him for keeping up with the older boys who had stronger skills and much more experience. Just as I predicted a year ago, he has told me that if he can only play one sport this fall then he wants it to be football. He says he wants to play full contact (one league begins full contact at the tender age of 5!!!), but we have found a flag football league that we think might be a better fit - especially for Mom.

Backyard Bible School

 Every summer our church hosts a Backyard Bible Club that targets a neighboring community with disadvantaged youth. Our church volunteers go to the neighborhood and set up stations as any church would do inside a building when hosting a traditional VBS program. We do this hoping that we will reach people that would otherwise not be exposed to the Word, and because well, we don't have a church building to use. The boys LOVE it because in addition to music and Bible time,

there are crafts like making shell necklaces and beaded bracelets (only Keagan participates in this; Evan hates artistic activities)

games with relay races involving water, sponges, and lots of competition

and always food. Last night Wes loaded our grill into the back of the truck and cooked hundreds of hot dogs for the kids and their families. I have learned that this model of VBS has been adopted by military installations around the country so if we indeed move in June this will not mean the end to Backyard Bible Club.

Movin' On Up

Today at swim lessons Keagan passed tots level four at swim class. As a reward, he was granted a trip to the treasure box where he chose a dinosaur. It has taken him several months to advance because he was unable to roll over from stomach to back and back to stomach without sinking. He got it yesterday, and the coach tested the last three skills today. Ironically, he tested today with one of the coaches he had at our very first swim camp.

Football Frenzy Begins

Evan had his first day of football camp this morning. For two years he has asked to play football and we have been hesitant to allow him to play. We might be from Texas where football is the sport of choice and Evan might have been able to do a three point stance at 18 months, but we were really hoping that he would find another sport to play. But this spring I relented and signed him up for a week long program. Because this particular camp is non-tackle and a beginner skills camp, I thought it would be a good way to introduce Evan to the game. And I also thought that he would give up the idea of playing football after spending 2.5 hours in the July heat running monotonous drills with kids three and four years older than him. However, today Evan went to camp with a temp of 75 degrees and overcast skies. Strike one for mom. Even if he was the youngest, he was as big as the nine year olds and felt at no disadvantage. Strike two for mom. The drills that the coach demonstrated for the boys were actually quite complicated and kept Evan's attention. Strike three for mom. When we left, I reminded Evan he still had four more days. Again, I was thinking(hoping) he might not be as ethusiastic about playing. However, he response: "Only four?"

He Said It

I love how the boys misuse English vocabulary. Here's the latest: 

Keagan:

The round cookies used to make vanilla pudding.

What are waivers?

The basket that is used in grocery stores to carry food items and small children.

What is a boogie?

Evan:

The name of the international restaurant famous for pancakes.

What is Hip Hop?

The name given in the game of golf for a score of one stroke over par.

What is a boogie?

Ahoy There, Matey!

How can you experience a true summer vacation without a little water park fun? We spent the day at Pirate's Cove hanging out by the pool and the water slides.

We also found ourselves in the sand pit scooping up sand,

but the highlight of the day  was Evan's courageous jumps off the diving board in 13 feet of water.

Nature Walk

Keagan's "Creepy Crawlies Camp" was canceled for the week. It has been rescheduled for the week in August, the half week we are in Texas. Although I might go ahead and register him for the three days that we will be in town, I felt like I needed to make it up to him. So this morning the four of us hiked the trails through the forest of Locust Shade Park. Wes pointed out important manly facts of the forest, the boys had foot races, jumped over creek beds, and looked at various creepy crawlies on the floor of the forest. 

On our way out of the park, we stopped at the batting cages.

Holiday Bike Parade

Evan was really excited about the parade this year; Keagan decided he would be a spectator. Encouraged with the possibility of earning a popsicle at the end of the parade, Keagan decided he would participate after all. We only spent a few minutes decorating the bikes this morning, but Keagan had the most fun! He was able to successfully ride his bike in the parade without any wrecks or mishaps. 

Evan, however, distracted with the loss of his tooth and the decision to ride with no training wheels, was not as successful. It is difficult to ride a bike in a parade (stop and go, stop and go, stop and you get the point) when you are just learning how to ride with no training wheels. He was relieved to get home but not nearly as much as Wes was!

He Said It

When we visit family in Texas, we always fly. Otherwise, it is a 21 hour drive. Yesterday, while looking out of the window in the car, Keagan mused, "Why do Opa and Oma live in the sky?"