Try Again!

I am going to try Blogging again. It has been over a year since my last post, but I am going to give it another try, so... Stay Tuned, pictures and info to follow before Monday!

Baseball

Spring Time at our house is very busy! We have at least 2 baseball games a week and sometimes as many as 3 soccer games. Then we have practices for those sports...If it is a soccer tournament, Bug may play 3 games in one day.

Stephen improved SO much because of his determination! Tonight at his game he played Third Base and he Pitched. Two games ago when he pitched for the first time I was so proud of him! It is still a very stressful position for his mom to be in, but he does a great job!

Mother's Day

I am the luckiest mom in the world! I love my children! All I wanted for Mother's Day this year was for my children to get along for the whole day. They did! They even worked together to make me a HUGE cookie. It was made on a pizza pan; they tinted it pink; they put Heath Toffee Pieces and White Chocolate Pieces and Peppermint Andies Mint Candies on top. The white chocolate pieces spelled out We Love You.
I have the greatest kids in the world!

Brooklynn Plays Soccer

Brooklynn really wants to be BIG! She is so excited when her Soccer starts, because then she is just like her big sister. I have learned to really enjoy soccer. When Makayla plays it is a good game...When Brooklynn plays, it is "grape soccer". The players all move in "bunches" with the ball.
Here are some fun pictures of her first game this year...

Easter II

We were also invited to celebrate Easter with our Friends. We were able to celebrate with Stacey and Jer and also with the Jeffrie family. We are so blessed to have friends in Michigan who include us as family...

Easter

Easter is one of our families favorite holidays.  For many years, we have "hunted" for easter baskets by following a piece of yarn. We have a spider web of yarns (one for each child) all over the house.   One end of the yarn is tied to the bedroom door knob and woven through the our living room, kitchen, basement, yard, and this year even through our car - and the other end of the yarn is tied to the basket. 

I did it!

I finally figured out how to post the slide show. I was doing it right all along, but for whatever reason, it just wouldn't work. When I did it again, showing Michael every step of the way... It worked. I get so CRAZY when things work that way!

Chuck E Cheese

Last night was our school's fundraising event at Chuck E Chees. I love going there to eat (NOT)! Michael was very excited to go and play with his children! He is such a great dad!!! Here are some miscellaneous pictures.

Pinewood Derby

This year was Stephen's LAST Pinewood Derby! As a mom, I am so happy about that!
Now, having said that...
Every year Stephen makes a Pinewood Derby car, his goal is to "make the coolest car"... He is never overly disappointed when his car is not the fastest.
This year he designed a "pencil". He did most of the work himself, but did not want to use the table saw because he didn't want to put his fingers that close to the "fast blade". He did the rest of it himself!!!



In years past, he made a mouse, an hourglass shaped car, and a skateboard.

Daisy Investiture

Brooklynn is a Daisy, Girl Scout.  She loves Scouts.  Stacey and I are her GS leader and we are having so much fun!  Here are pictures of her Investiture (becoming a scout) Ceremony.

Science Olympiad ~ Catapult

The second event she competed in was where they had to build and test a catapult. They "fired" it and collected the data so they could figure out how to hit specific targets during the competition. They did well with this event and even won a 6th place medal! She was so excited!!! As soon as she got the award, she sat down and sent me a text. She was so excited!

Science Olympiad ~ Robot Competition

Makayla competed with the Pierce Middle School Science Olympiad Team this year. She competed in 3 events. The first one she did ~ she had to build a robot that would move from point A; around the playing field, collecting coins, legos, golf balls, etc. and place them in a specific container; and then end at point B. Michael coached this event and Makayla and Kevin were the students who "helped" build the robot and figured out how to control it.

Piano Recital

Stephen and Makayla have been taking piano lessons for quite a while.  Their first recital with "Sister Dangerfield" was in February.  We did the recital in the chapel at the church so the kids could perform on a grand piano.  

Makayla is progressing quite quickly because she is also in band.

Stephen ~ for quite a while did not like piano.  Then this school year we have a friend (Megan) who comes to our house daily and loves to practice the piano.  Stephen decided Megan was not going to pass him in the book, so he has started practicing and is doing very well!!!

FREEZE IN

On January 31 and February 1, Makayla went on a Girl Scout Freeze In Activity.  She had to go to training on two different days to learn to build a fire, lash, use a pocket knife, pack to stay warm and plan the menu for the weekend.

The plan for the weekend was to hike in about 1/2 a mile; locate a place to build a shelter; build the shelter they were to sleep in; build a fire to keep warm, dry their wet mittens, and cook their food. 

When they got there, the girls broke off into their groups of 4 girls and 1 leader and began their weekend...  They had to hike to their destination in snow up to their knees and when they got there, in order to build their shelter, they had to shovel out the snow where they were going to sleep and then search through the snow to find the logs they were going to use to build it.  

Makayla started the fire for their group and was so proud of herself because she started it "with one match".  

I was extremely impressed with Makayla.  She worked throughout the whole weekend with out "wimping out" or complaining.  Her leader said she was a joy to have and one of the hardest workers he had ever seen!  

In this slide show, it shows the shelter her group built, her backpack (and how huge it was), one of the meals she made, some of her friends and at the end the "WE MADE IT" breakfast.

 

Okay...

Okay, so I am going to try this again.  About a month ago, I tried to post a slide show and I had the whole post typed and the slide show created.  It took soooo long to upload that I hit the "refresh" button and it erased everything I did, so I got frustrated and haven't blogged since then.  I am going to try again and then add what we have done since then.  Hold on, it's gonna be a long read!!!

Soccer

Makayla LOVES soccer. She is also very good. She has "played up" to the age level older than she is. This year that level (at the recreation level) plays all their games on Sunday. We knew that would not be an option, so we looked for other options. We found a select leage, and she tried out. She made the "B" team ~ or the training team. After a few practices, she said "Mom, my legs are sore right here, and I don't know why..." She is getting such a great workout and her skills are really improving. She plays goalie, and this league has specific training for goalies. Here are a few pictures of her training.

SNOW ~ Snowboarding

Stephen got a SNOWBOARD for Christmas. He took his Christmas money and spent it on a Snowboard. Stephen did well on his first time down...




On our way to the hill, we were "placing bets" on who would hurt themself first. I bet it would be Michael and OF COURSE I was right!




Makayla wanted to try, but Stephen was not willing to share with his sister, yet. So she tried it on a sled. First she did it on her knees and then she stood up. She did a great job and made it to the bottom of the hill without falling.




When Stephen decided he would share with Bug, she did not make it very far on the Snowboard. She did so much better standing on the sled.