Fall 2013 Update

I know, I know.... Fall only officially started about 20 days ago yet it feels like forever since I have posted. In a nutshell, everyone is doing really well. All the kids are settled into their new grade levels and did a great job balancing a hectic football schedule with their schoolwork. It's been really fun actually, even though I have to admit four nights a week of practice sounded almost unmanagable to me and I was worried that the kids would just be dead tired. But they all loved their teams so much that I never once heard a complaint and we got used to eating dinner by 5PM each night in order to get everyone to the right place by 545. Most evenings had Brian and I going to different fields, driving carpools for other neighborhood kids, and trading off coaching for Tanners team, Jake's team, and supporting Faith's cheerleading squad. The great thing was that everyone practiced at THE SAME TIME on the SAME DAYS. Heaven. Each evening ended with everyone meeting back home around 745, having a heavy snack, reading the first Harry Potter book aloud, and going to sleep. 

Besides football and the start of school, we have had some fun things going on in the neighborhood. In late September we had our last concert of the season on The Green. It was a combined concert and Food Truck Rally and although the weather gave us a run for our money (nearly blowing away our tent structure) the dark clouds did not dro any rain and there was, luckily, no thunder or lightening. We went with some friends of ours and their kids. The kids ran wild for almost 4 hours, checking in with us  periodically for warmth, pleas for more food, or  to show us their goodies (they were giving away light sticks to all the neighborhood kids). Brian and I tried food from the three different trucks, drank some really good red wine with our friends, and hung out chatting with lots of neighborhood people. It was a great end of the summer celebration. 

Last weekend was the second annual Scary Movie Night at the barn. They show three levels of scary movies:  a G movie, a PG movie, and a PG 13 for the teens. We opted for the middle option this year. The barn was decked out in decorations and had a huge bathtub full of candy and another huge tub full of soda. There was popcorn to eat and hay barrels to sit on. We brought our chairs and heavy blankets and enjoyed the show. Brian and Faith ended up walking home early as the movie turned out to be too scary for her, but they waited for us at home, watching The Bee Movie and making some memories of their own.  

My big event this fall was the Mayhem Mud Run. I signed up with a couple of friends and played hooky for the football games on Saturday. It was a 5K run with 15 obstacles. Now, I am not in GREAT shape.... but I consider myself in DECENT shape. However, this run (or, more specifically, the obstacles) KICKED MY BUTT. The first obstacle we came upon was two walls set up about 25 yards apart. The walls were about 8 feet tall with no footholds and no way to climb up them. My friends and I stood there staring at them wondering how in the heck we could get up there. A nice man came running up soon and sacrificed his back to get all three of us up far enough so we could grasp the top and pull ourselves over. It was hard! And then there was the next one to get over! There was a lot more walls to climb in varying heights, towers to get across (I had to conquer my fear of heights), really high monkey bars to cross, a section where we had to pick up a tire and run with it around a giant building, a water obstacle in which we had to run through ice cold water up to our waists, and more.  It was SO MUCH FUN but I did find myself wondering what the heck I had been thiking actually PAYING to do this to my body! I was very, very sore the next few days. 

The Optimist Football season officially ended today. Uniforms have been turned in and the end of the year parties have been thrown. Surprisingly I was a little sad to say goodbye to this part of the year. I watched all three kids grow up so much in their own ways during the last two months. All 3 showed such spirit and determination, perseverence and hard work. But, October should be a little less busy and we may be able to start eating dinner at a normal hour again!