Holiday Performances

Hi Mom and Dad

Jake didn't have a holiday performance this year, they had their performance earlier in the year I think to keep the music teacher from going insane trying to have one for each group of grades.

Tanner and Faith both had theirs though.

Tanner had several performances of theirs, for the school only and two times for the school and parents (so the 1/2 days kindergarten kids could be in it and one without them). His performance was very cute. It was kindergarten, 1st and 2nd graders. They sang some Christmas favorites that Tanner was practicing for a few weeks in advance through the house when he thought no one could hear him. He wore his antlers and sang the songs and did the moves, without A LOT of entusiasm, but he did do them, which was a plus.

Foxy Lady!

Faith had her performance the same night at the clubhouse. This was our fourth and last Smart Start Preschool performance, so it was a little bittersweet. Ms. Erin has been so great for both Tanner and Faith and they have loved their pre-school experiences, which have both included elaborated holiday performances. This year they were doing The Mitten, which is a Ukrainian folk tale. Faith was thrilled as she got to be a fox and had been practicing her "fox walking" in preparation. They also sang a bunch of Christmas carols after the main performance was over. Faith sang all of them at the top of her lungs and was VERY into the whole performance.

Nothing like little kids singing Christmas songs to kick the holiday season right in the butt. Merry Christmas to all and a Happy Season, whatever your holiday!

Feliz Navidad

Ho Ho Ho Santa - 2011

Merry Christmas To All

The holiday season is officially upon us. I guess it has been for awhile- I heard my first Christmas song right after Halloween. In any case, we are all in the holiday spirit. The kids love waking up and opening the advent calendar each morning, I love seeing the lights on the outside of the house each night and sitting in front of the Christmas tree each evening.  I sing along happily to all of the music on the radio and even heard my favorite, Bruce Springsteen's "Santa Claus is Coming to Town". Between that and having the Starbucks red holiday cups I am in heaven. Small pleasures... 

We went back to our old tradition of getting our tree from Home Depot- after the tree we got last year (at a local neighborhood farm) died within days of getting it. Decorating the tree was highly anticipated by the kids. They love the traditional "snacky dinner" (including such healthy items as salami and cheese, mini tacos, pigs in a blanket, and bagel pizzas) plus they love how Brian sits on the couch with the bins of ornaments and takes out each one and hands them to the kids. We talk about where each one came from, which are our favorites, etc... This year we listened to the new Michael Buble Christmas CD while we decorated. The tree looks beautiful! 

Jake was up for angel duty this year. The first year he
 did it on his own without being lifted up.

Yesterday was the annual Hidden Springs Holiday Party at the barn. The kids- especially Faith- were very excited to see Santa. Once we got there, though, Jake told me he was getting too old to sit in Santa's lap and asked if he "had to". I said, no, but Brian made him stand next to him at least for the photo.  Faith didn't cry (first time ever!) and although Tanner wasn't completely at ease, he also didn't burst into tears upon seeing Santa walk into the barn. They all LOVED the gifts that Santa brought. Faith got a Zooble that then came with us everywhere for the rest of the day (and had to be rescued after being left behind at Joe's Crab Shack) and the boys got NFL knit caps. Jake swore he would never take his off- not even to sleep. 

Tuesday we are both taking the day off work to go Christmas shopping. We leave at 830 AM and will be gone most of the day to shop, eat lunch, have a coffee/diet coke break, and just generally take in the festive atmosphere of Boise. We did this the last two years and it really helps make the holiday relaxing and fun and allows us to avoid shopping on any weekends!  The boys are hard to buy for this year. All they have on their list is NFL gear and a trampoline. We'd like to do the trampoline but since we are moving it doesn't make a lot of sense to get one now and then move it in May. Not sure what we will get for them. Faith is easier- she basically wants anything that is an animal- stuffed, plastic, electronic, or other. She wants zoobles and littlest pet shop and build a bear puppy, and Furreal Puppy and... you get the idea! 

No tears for the first time EVER!

Like our Thanksgiving, Christmas will be very low key. My Dad will be here and I will cook and bake but nothing fancy and no extra guests- just the six of us. The boys are signed up to do Y Sports Camp during their time off school, and an indoor football camp the week between Christmas and New Years.  

Basketball Season

It's a really BIG shot at this age

Today was the last day of basketball games for both the boys in the YMCA league. As per usual, the last game was followed by treats and the "everyone gets a trophy" presentations. I assistant coached Jake's Third Grade team for the 1st half and then Tanner and I had to leave to get across town for his game.


Tanner had a great season. Kindergarten Y-Ball is really just awesome. No one really has much game and everyone is more or less at the same level. The teaching is the basics, traveling, double dribble etc. and a made shot is a huge deal. No score, no winners/losers etc. This was the first season that I actually had a boy on the team who was too little to get the ball all the way up to the 8 ft hoop. He didn't score a point all season, but never got down, never got discouraged, he would just keep coming down the court and throwing it up there, sure that one time he was going to get it. Tanner made several baskets over the course of the season, was a great ball handler and a very good passer on the few occasions where I told him he wasn't allowed to make any more shots and had to pass the ball. We had 11 kids on the team, which was tough because it means that you have to substitute mid quarter so that the 11th kid gets equal playing time. I had one of the dad's help me on the bench and that was his whole job, keeping the playing time straight. Tanner loved basketball and had a great time. We are putting a basketball court in at the new house so he will be able to get lots of practice in before next season.

Jake brings it down

Jake had a good year individually as well. I guess he is just getting to a tough age sports wise, because we ran into some of the same issues during basketball that we ran into during baseball. Some of the kids on the team are really good, know what to do and want to win (again, this is the first year they kept score) and some of the kids, this was their first year playing the game. At this age there isn't a higher level option beyond just Y-Ball. AAU starts her after 5th grade. It makes me feel bad for the boys who can play as they bring the ball up and have two options, be a ball hog, or pass it to someone who may or may not be ready for it, may or may not be able to catch it, and most likely, turn the ball over. His coach this year was one of the parents that we had issues with during the baseball season, so it was interesting to see how he handled it. The last game, we played the best 5 together for just one quarter to see what they could do and they had a 16-2 quarter, so they can really tear it up, given the opportunity. Jake has one more year at this level and then he can try out for AAU if he wants.


I had a great time coaching both boys teams, but was exhausted each Saturday afternoon, so I am a little relieved the season is over. Trying to keep 11 6 year olds were they are supposed to be and running up and down the court with them is tiring enough, then trying to coach what was essentially two different third grade teams (some on the basics and some on the advanced pick and roll etc.), was even more tiring. Combine them and I was feeling every single one of my 42 years by Saturday afternoon. It was a lot of fun, and I'm sure I'll do it next year again, but I am trying to coerce Marisa into coaching Kindergarten girls ball next year for Faith. 


The boys are done with serious leagues for a bit (they have some football camps over the break) and so it is Faith's turn. She has signed up for ballet, jazz and tap lessons (although she is scared of tap for some reason) for the next few months. Once we get thru winter, it's baseball time. Tanner and Faith will be on the same TBall team and Jake will try out for AAA. The seasons change and they grow older, and so do I.

Coaching Tanners Team

The Superstitious Kind

Our New House Elevation

So we have been holding off updating the biggest issue going on in our lives out of a fear of jinxing it. I understand that given we are both college educated professionals that seems a little silly, but this is such a big deal that we didn't want to take even a silly chance that it would fall apart. So once again. we are moving. We are building a new house on a vacant lot at the other end of our neighborhood. 


We sold our house, just as we were getting ready to pull it off the market and do another addition. It just went thru yesterday and finalized today. The new owners are allowing us to rent back for up to six months while we get the house built, so we don't have to pack twice, move twice etc. It really works out to be a perfect situation for us. So as of yesterday, we are renters. The pictures are of our front elevation of our new home and a shot of our new lot. 

Welcome Home!

This was a tough decision, whether to relocate or not. We are moving away from the Merc and a little further from school for the kids, but we know a lot of families in our new neighborhood and we'll be able to get a better laid out floor-plan for us (no more treadmill in the Dining Room - no more Dining Room actually). We are currently finishing up the floor-plan and getting it approved by the town and county. We started on selections today and it's A LOT to go over. We have done a remodel before, an addition before and a new kitchen before, but this is our first time doing an entire house. We are both excited and a little nervous. I am able to visualize things a little bit better than Marisa can and she has a tendency to get overwhelmed by the minutia, so we are trying to spread out the selections over a longer time period. 


The design process has been a lot of fun. Our builder is a custom home builder and we were able to sit down with him and his architect and go over what we needed and wanted and were able to come up with a great floor-plan that really works for our life. We have no formal Dining Room (we don't use ours now), a downstairs Master Bedroom with a walk-in shower and all three kids rooms are upstairs and all connected (Jake and Tanner share a bathroom), and Jake's and Faith's doors are right next to each other. Faith has her own bathroom (her brothers are pigs). The kids have a Basket Ball court out back and I have a nice big garage. 


We are meeting tomorrow to finalize the selection details and the contract and then they start digging. According to our builder, the house will be ready in April (which means June most of the time), but we're still within our 6 month rental window. Wish us luck that we get thru the process in once piece.

Hidden Springs Thanksgiving Bowl 2011

As big on tradition as Brian and I both are, for some reason neither of us feel the need to continue our forefathers yearly ritual of roast turkey, cranberry sauce, mashed potatoes, and green bean casserole with our kids. We both grew up with Thanksgiving Day being a big deal. We both came from families that celebrated this day in style, with all the fixings. And we both have wonderful memories of Thanksgivings of our childhood. Maybe it is my lack of cooking skill (or desire to put my hand inside a turkey's you-know-what), maybe it is the fact that my kids don't like any of the traditional foods, maybe it is because I have never liked sweet potatoes or stuffing or cranberries- even the homemade kind. We both love to celebrate the day in style at the homes of our loved ones where other people do most of the cooking and we just are "helpers". Last year at Lisa and John's in Seattle was so much fun and it would have been great to see everyone-but this year we didn't have travel plans (having learned our lesson the hard way about traveling through snow storms in an old Suburban over mountains). We knew we were home for the big day and we wanted to make it memorable- minus the feast.

We decided to invite all of our local friends over for a casual day of football watching, a family flag football game on the Green, appetizers, and dessert. We didn't know who would come- knowing that most people had family in town or plans of their own. All we knew for sure is we would have the five of us and Nana. We ended up with two families and an extra kid- a friend of Jake's from football. People arrived a little after 3 and we ate chips and salsa, artichoke dip, cheese and crackers, and other easy finger food. We watched the games on TV, talked, and shared our house plans with everyone. Beer was on hand, as was plenty of Diet Coke. It was "come as you are"- definitely no dressing up required (as you can see from my baseball cap and sweats).

The highlight of the day was the Thanksgiving Bowl. We split everyone into two teams and had our own football game. Faith started out wanting to be scorekeeper but ended up taking part in the action- and even scoring a big touchdown for our team (aided by a lot of people that mysteriously were unable to pull her flag as she ran first one way down the field, then the other). No one took the game too seriously- Brian even going so far as to utilize the defensive tactic of trying to "pants" the person he was defending (that would be me). Even Jake, our ultra-competetive kid- was able to just play for fun and not worry about the score. I'm not entirely sure who had more fun- the kids or the adults. There was perfect weather- chilly but not cold with a little sunshine peeking through. We stayed outside until the sun went down, then headed indoors for a little more NFL and delicious pies that Mom made.

All in all it was a great day spent with people we like doing things that we love eating food that we enjoy. Isn't that what Thanksgiving is all about?

Tanner's Birthday Phase Two

We decided to celebrate Tanner's birthday in conjunction with Mom's birthday on Sunday night. He was, not uncharacteristically, pretty low key about the whole thing. I mean he didn't really care what kind of cake we got and he didn't drive us crazy for days asking us when he could open presents. But I think he had a really good time and truly liked everything he got. Brian and I surprised him with a bike/skateboard ramp like the one the kids down the street have. He hadn't asked for it on his birthday wish list but we were pretty sure he'd be thrilled. Brian caught the expression on his face- which was priceless. He also loved his new Reezig shoes (thanks, Grandma Mary!), Under Armor gear (Thanks, Auntie Sue!), and Happy Napper (Thanks, Nana!)

Yes, he has become quite the "brand name" guy-asking specifically for Under Armor and Reeboks. Happy Nappers commercials are shown each morning when they have TV time so I knew that was a "must have" as he's been asking for one for about a year! We sang happy birthday and he blew out the candles on the cake we bought that morning. He, however, didn't want cake, preferring to eat the last bit of his chocolate football that was sent in his "Happy Thanksgiving Package" from Grandma Mary last week!

I've been telling him since his last birthday that he is not allowed to turn six. I joke with him that he better still cuddle with me when he is 6 and 16 and 60. He snuggled up to me on the couch later that night and said, "See, Mom? I'm six and I still will cuddle with you whenever you want!". Let's see if he will still be such a love at 16! I can only hope.

Tanners Thanksgiving Feast

Does he have to turn six? Really? Because I love this age and I'd kind of like to freeze time. He brought home this list of things he is thankful for this week. In case you can't read it on the picture, here it is:

my famle

home

wotr

car

chres (trees)

bed

food

bes (bees)

clos (clothes)

frens (friends)

scool

shoos

froot

He had his Thanksgiving Feast yesterday at school.He was dressed in his little pilgrim hat and collar and out of the huge array of Thanksgiving foods to choose from he had carrots, cheese, and deli turkey. No pie. No cranberries. No olives, stuffing, or potatoes. Is it any wonder I don't go to the trouble of making a traditional dinner for my children? Despite his picky eating habits, on my list of things I am thankful for, that little boy is definitely a contender for #1.

Tanner's Birthday Phase One

Tanner couldn't make up his mind what he wanted to do for his birthday this year. He said he wanted to go to Gem State Gymnastics, again. We've had two birthdays there for our kids and been to countless others for other peoples kids, so Marisa and I were trying to come up with something different for our sakes anyway (yes, I know, it's his party, but come on!).

So our neighborhood was having a community night at the Steelheads Hockey Game last night and a couple of Tanner's friends were going with their families. We kind of hi-jacked the idea and got a few more of his buddies families to sign up. Tanner loves hockey, so he was all in, and so it became the Hidden Springs/Tanner's Birthday Party Bus Trip to the Steelheads game.

This was the first time the community had done this so we weren't sure what it was going to be like, but it got such a response that we filled two party buses. Luckily for everyone concerned, the families with kids (and all of Tanner and Jake's friends) ended up on one bus and the serious drinkers ended up on the other one. There was beer, wine and food served on the bus. We played trivia games for prizes and Tanner opened up his presents with his friends on the way downtown to the game.

The game itself was a 7-2 blowout loss by the Steelheads, but we had a really good time. Tanner and his buddies all sat together and watched the game the whole time. He was a bit dismayed when he heard the PA announcer wish him a Happy Birthday and spent a considerable amount of effort trying to figure out how the Steelheads knew it was his birthday. He stood up and screamed for the free T-Shirt guys (we didn't get one), and in general, just had a good time at the game.

Jake and his friends got a little bored with the game (I don't blame them, it was pretty bad hockey) and spent most of the night roaming around the arena, dancing and trying to get shown on the video board. They succeeded in the third period and spent the rest of the game bathing in the victory. Faith also enjoyed dancing in the aisle and sitting with Nana, Mom and Dad.

On the way home after the game, everyone on the bus sang "Happy Birthday" to Tanner and he curled up on my lap with his new pillow pet and rested. We got home at 11:00 or so and got everyone into bed. We fully anticipate paying for the late night out (like we always do) with some cranky kids today, especially after both boys play a full basketball game each.

We're going to do Tanner's family birthday (Phase Two) on Monday. The kids are off school all week next week for Thanksgiving Vacation. We're going to take them to the Trans-Siberian Orchestra on the day before Thanksgiving and Marisa is trying to organize a neighborhood pot-luck/flag football game for all of the families staying in town (it's just a ploy to get pie), so there will be plenty of posts upcoming.

Halloween 2011

It took me awhile to get into the Halloween Spirit this year. On Sunday I finally felt like participating and we carved the pumpkin and made pumpkin seeds. Up till that point the most I had done was find Faith her cheerleader paraphenelia and went with Tanner's Kindergarten class to the pumpkin patch. Fall has been so beautiful here and I have enjoyed the weather and the trees and the chill in the air so much- but with the house on the market we didn't really get into the decorating part of Halloween.

Once again we had two football players. I think that is three years in a row. Easy, cheap costume! Plus the boys always get tons of comments from people in support of the Broncos. Although one house gave everyone else at their door two pieces of candy and the boys only got one piece each since the person that answered the door was a Vandals fan.

Faith went to preschool as a cheerleader and went trick or treating at the mall with Miss Wendy after school. That night she was a bat. She was thrilled with this last minute costume I found at the thrift store and kept saying all night, "Mom, thank you SO MUCH for getting this for me. I LOVE it!". She ran down the street flapping her wings and making bat noises. Most people thought she was a cat but she happily corrected them while taking their candy.

Jake invited a friend along this year and they ran on up ahead of us on each block and waited for us at the end of each street. It was kind of bittersweet in that I know this could be the one of the last Halloweens when Jake wants to be with us. Soon he will be off on his own with his friends and mom and dad will be so "uncool". Ugh.

As always there were a ton of kids out in the neighborhood and many adults set up outside with their buckets of candy and bonfires. It's always so festive here. The weather wasn't too cold so no heavy coats were needed- which is always nice! We were out for about 90 minutes and the kids raked in the candy. Seriously WAY TOO MUCH candy. I have no willpower so after the kids go to bed I raid it all. I am all "butterfingered" out now and it is only the 2nd of November!

So now we are on a slippery slope to the New Year. Hard to believe. Conferences are this week, then there's Tanners b'day,Turkey Day, followed closely by Christmas and New Year's. Wow. Time is flying by way too quickly. The chill in the air has already turned COLD- especially in the mornings when it is 25 degrees or so! There is so much to look forward to and so much to be thankful for.

Basketball Season (the unlocked out kind)

In the midst of all of this self-inflicted chaos (should we sell?, will we sell?, will we build? will we go insane?), we had a really fun day today.

Today was the first game of the YBall season. I am coaching Tanner's Kindergarten boys team and assistant coaching Jake's 3rd grade team. If you are having trouble wondering what kindergarten boys basketball looks like; imagine cats, all hopped up on Mountain Dew and catnip with a big ball of yarn and that's pretty close. Even at this age, there are four or so boys who have good athletic instincts and those who the light tends to flicker on and off as to what they're even doing on the basketball court.

So we had our first game today and given the way life works, both of the boys games were at the exact same time in two different gyms pretty much across town from each other. Since I figured that today was Jake's 19th game, and it was Tanner's 1st, we sent Jake to his game with one of the other boys on his team and all went to see (and coach) Tanner's 1st game. The boys did great. We worked on all of the fundamentals in our two practices before the season started, so they dribbled (most of the time), knew where they were supposed to be on defense (most of the time) and shot at the correct basket. Our opponents, not so much.

At this level, the penalties are all

instructional and we spent a lot of time getting the ball out of bounds as the other team was stealing (not allowed) and playing gang up defense (also not allowed). Additionally, they would pick up the ball and tuck under their arms like football payers and run down court. So the game didn't have a lot of flow. But we scored a couple of baskets, which is always amazing at this age. Tanner scored and played great defense. He has really good instincts for basketball and really took off flying today. He had a lot of fun and it was a really good game.

Jake's team apparently crushed the team they played. This is the first year of keeping score and they won 38-22. The is also the year they get their first "real" basketball jerseys (as opposed to the Tshirts that the little kids get). Jake has three other boys on his team who are really good and they ran the score up to 30-12 or so before the coach told them that the four of them were supposed to work on assists for the rest of the game. I was told Jake scored 10 points and did a good job on defense. Next week our games are close in time but don't overlap so I should be able to see most of it and am really excited to see him play in a game where the score counts.

Jackson goes to Pre-School

Jackson has become a much better doggie as he has gotten a little bit older. We have been working on his training with him and it has really started to pay off. So much so that he was able to go to Pre-K with Faith today as her show and tell.

He did an excellent job being paraded around and petted and pulled on. A few months ago we wouldn't have been able to take him, but he has done such a great job and become such a good boy, that we were able to let Faith bring him today without any worry.

What's Been Goin' On

As usual, there's a lot going on over here these days. For one, we decided to put our house on the market. No, we are not leaving Idaho. We aren't even leaving our neighborhood. We just want to move to a different house within Hidden Springs. We are exploring the idea of building a house on one of the few remaining lots that back up to Open Space. This is on Brian's "Bucket List" and something that intrigues me as well. We found a builder we really like and a floor plan that would be perfect for us. We found the lot... now we just need to sell our house! One of Jake's friends moms is a realtor and we are working with her to see what happens. If our house doesn't sell by Thanksgiving we are going to work with a contractor to make this house into more of what we want. It has great potential and we love the neighborhood we live in, we just would like a bigger master bed/bath (room to put bedside tables and a dresser would be nice!), a space for our workout stuff that isn't in the middle of our living space, and some upgrades to the flooring upstairs,new window treatments, etc... It definitely makes things a little crazier here as we need to have the house in "showing" condition before we leave each day but I have to say it's kind of nice living in such a clean space day-to-day!

Fall has been so nice here! Evenings have found the kids running around outside with all of the neighbor kids, playing on the hill behind our house, drawing with chalk, tossing the football at the Green, riding scooters and bikes, and basically just entertaining themselves like I remember doing when I was a kid. Winter will be here too fast and I am going to miss these days. But I guess the winter will bring days of sledding and snow ball fights so I can't complain!

The kids are doing well. Faith loved her soccer experience at the Y and was very good at it. She is learning to read already (thanks to tanner's homework from K) and still loves to draw and color. She is definitely a "lefty". She has recently learned to ride a Razr scooter and is a wild girl on that thing. When mom moved here a few weeks ago she brought along Abby's next size bike and she also loves riding that. She is growing like a weed. For Halloween she is going to be a cheerleader. I kept hoping she would change her mind (I know.... I have a weird almost pathological dislike of the cheerleading thing) but no such luck. Her favorite song right now is "Colder Weather" by the Zac Brown Band and she belts it out in the backseat whenever it comes on the radio or my iPod. She still loves her "guys" and usually carries one around with her on the weekend, talking to it and treating it like a pet or a friend. She loves to play with our neighbor, Ava (she is 6), and they play horses and house and other "girl stuff".

Tanner has done so well adjusting to Kindergarten. He loves it. He hasn't had one day when he has complained or worried or been anxious. He is reading already and just seems to take to the whole school thing. He rides his scooter to school, usually with Brian and I, but some mornings he goes alone with Jake. They are very cute together. They play football together before school with kids ranging from Tanner's age to sixth grade. I joined him for Walking Club at lunchtime last week and he was so excited to have me there. I am doing art in his class every other Friday and it is so much fun. I have to admit, however, working with 22 Kindergarteners in art is an experience that is new to me and also makes me realize how well behaved my child is!! I don't know how Kindergarten teachers do it every day! Tanner's favorite song lately has been "Need You Now" by Lady Antebellum. Kind of funny (and maybe a bit disturbing) to hear him belting out the lyrics while riding his scooter in front of our house, "It's a quarter after 1, I'm a little drunk and I NEED YOU NOW!". Booty call song from a five year old. He is really excited for his birthday and the only thing he really wants is a Happy Napper (Thank you, morning TV ads) and tickets to a Steelheads or Boise State game. Still my little love, that one. "Mommy, I don't think I gave you a hug yet this morning!" greets me upon waking. He still crawls into bed with me to cuddle every chance he gets. He starts Y-ball next week and is so excited that Brian is coaching his team.

Jake is very into NFL football this season. Brian started a mini Fantasy League here in our neighborhood and that's been a lot of fun. Many of Jake's friends and their dads are doing it so they often watch together on Sundays. I typically take Faith out to the Y, grocery shopping, and somewhere fun like a pumpkin patch while the boys watch Sunday Football. Jake's football season ended yesterday. It was a hard season- Jake was one of only two third graders on the team, the rest were first year second graders. I think he had fun but they lost every game and I think it was a little discouraging. He still says he wants to play tackle next year. He loves his third grade teacher and is enjoying third grade so far. He still hasn't found that "joy of reading" that I would like for him. He reads his 15 minutes and is done. Getting him interested in books has been a challenge. Unless it is written by Mike Lupica, forget it. He doesn't like fantasy or anything remotely scary. Harry Potter is out of the question, as much as I'd love to share them with him. I keep reminding myself that I survived on Sweet Valley High for much of my young life and still managed to become a book lover so there's still hope! Jake continues to be quite the Lady's Man much to Brian and I's embarrassment. His latest crush is new to school. Her name is Abigail and she just moved here from Texas. She is a (gasp, sigh, barf) a cheerleader for the third grade tackle team. Her brother is a fourth grader that Jake idolizes. I tell you, that boy has been girl crazy since he was born. He "falls in love" with all of our babysitters, Y counselors, teachers, etc... We will have our hands full with that one come high school. No doubt.

Brian surprised the hell out of me recently and arranged a date night for us with four other couples in the neighborhood. We went out to see MoneyBall and then had dinner out. It was so much fun! I hired the daughters of my colleague to babysit all the kids at our house and they had a giant sleepover. Everyone had a great time and we hope to do it again around the holidays. Between that and his instigation of the father/son Fantasy Football League, Brian has become quite the social butterfly :) I started a Mom's Night Out Movie Night last year with three other women and we still meet once a month for dinner/drinks/movie. I'm pretty proud of both of us for stepping out of our comfort zone and putting ourselves out there. Next weekend we have tickets to see Matt Nathanson at the Knitting Factory (a small music venue in Boise). A much needed date night!

Shake It Off

Jake loves football and has wanted to play football as long as he has been able to catch a ball. For a long time we weren't sure he was going to be able to due to his kidney thing, but we got the okay from the pediatrician, and he's in his second season of flag football.

We had to have a pretty tricky talk with him this week about the difference between being "hurt" and being "injured". He gets knocked around pretty good playing football as he is the QB and runs the ball quite a bit and is constantly getting "hurt". This generally dissolves into tears, the coaching staff having to come out and calm him down, him coming off and someone else having to go in and play his position and us kind of shifting uncomfortably on the sidelines because we know that he's fine.

It's happened in each game and a couple of practices so far. In his game yesterday, it went so far that they brought the cart out and, based on his dramatic reaction to the fall, diagnosed him with a mild concussion. 1/2 an hour later he was up running around, no headache, and feeling fine. He even admitted he was overreacting. Now, due to league rules, we have to take him and get him cleared by his doctor with a written release before he can play or practice again.

We're not quiet sure if it's just he's not tough enough to play football, or that he likes the drama, but it's gotten to be embarrassing. I was out with Faith at her game yesterday when Marisa told me he was hurt. We raced across town to the field in time to pick him up (worried out of my mind the entire way) and he ended up being fine.

Not wanting to come across as "that Dad", Marisa and I both sat down and talked to him about it

yesterday. I thought he got it I really did. Then he scraped his knee on the stairs and was screaming like his leg had been cut off. I looked at his knee and couldn't even find the scratch, so back to square one.

One of the coaches on his team is a dad that played for the Chicago Bears and Washington Redskins in the NFL (he played for BSU in college which is why he lives here), anyway, he blew out his knee to such a degree that he was never able to get back. I'm thinking about asking him to talk to Jake about the difference between "hurt" and injured". I don't want Jake to not tell us if he gets hurt, and he has been injured while playing football (he got his face smashed last year and was bleeding) and we explained that is a legitimate injury and worth some tears. Stuff that he has forgotten about 10 minutes later, not so much.

It's a tough line to find and a tougher conversation to have. Hopefully it will resolve itself before tackle season starts next year or I don't know what we're going to do.

Faith Starts Soccer

After many weeks of anticipation Faith started soccer last Saturday. She must have asked me 100 times in the last 30 days, "Mom, is today the day I start soccer???". She has been so excited and has said things like, "Will you and Daddy watch me play like you watch Jake and Tanner when they play baseball?". As soon as she mentioned her interest in playing we took her out to get her gear: pink cleats, pink soccer shorts, purple ball, shin guards. I figured I'd take advantage of this break from her wanting to be a "cheerlead" and run with it!

She loved her first day on the field! It was great because her coach turns out to be the same guy that coached Jake's summer football team- the one that was a counselor up at Family Camp- so she was familiar with him and unafraid. She ran a lap, did warm ups, did lots of drills, and loved all of it. As soon as it was over she ran over and asked me when she gets to go back. In fact, this morning (Day 2 of soccer) the very first words out of her mouth were, "Mom, don't forget my water bottle. I'm playing soccer today!".

We have to divide and conquer today: I am taking Jake to football while Brian gets to watch his daughter play soccer. They get to have a little "father/daughter bonding" time with a stop to get donuts first- which Faith is almost as excited about as she is about soccer.

Family Y-Camp 2011

After having so much fun last year we decided to head up to Cascade again this year for some more Family Camp. We even convinced my sister and family to fly in from CA to join us! After freezing our butts off last year in the tent we went with the fully heated cabin this year. The heat wasn't the only benefit- it also had a full bathroom with two showers, two sinks, and two toilets. Luxury camping! The kids loved sleeping on the top bunks and made themselves right at home- checking out games and books from the camp supply and entertaining themselves in between "activity periods".

Also learning from last year's mistake, we brought a double jogging stroller along to help with the "tired factor" that Faith suffered from. She, Aidan, and Tanner took turns riding "Chariot Style" while the other two rode inside from activity to activity. All the kids rock climbed, Kim and I did the zip line (Which, by the way, no longer required you to "GRAB THE ROPE!" like last year so I did not do a repeat of knocking down the head of camp!). The kids fished and swam and jumped off the trampoline one day, rode in the canoes, tried BMX racing, and did rocketry again. They made friendship bracelets one day and chased/caught butterflies and bullfrogs before and after mealtimes. Everyone had a great time I think, and except for meals (I have to say the food was really quite bad) it was a neat experience again.

Being the last camp of the season, the counselors were not really as "ON" as they were last July when we went, and we definitely missed the energy, but we had some great activity leaders. One was Jake's football coach from July who was a really nice guy and a great role model. I am pretty sure Jake wants to do residence camp next summer with a couple of his buddies (a one week sleep away camp without parents). The YMCA values are something we really believe in and getting the kids involved at a young age and possibly on the road to being a Junior Counselor or a coach one day would be great!

Brian and the boys headed down the hill into the small town of Cascade on Saturday night to join all other campers within a 40 mile radius to watch the opening game Boise State vs. Georgia. I took Faith and Abby and drove the 9 miles down the hill to join them for a few minutes at the end of the second quarter and was so surprised to see this little town overtaken by hundreds of campers and locals in full blue and orange crowding the few restaurants/bars in town. Boise State won, starting our football season off right! I am sure Kim and Bill thought we were all a little crazy to leave camp for a football game but Boise State is a big deal here and it's hard not to get into the action!

It was a great weekend, but as always with our kids it was a yin-yang situation. Great family memories and a fun time had by all, but it accompanied the "miles to go before I sleep" exhaustion and subsequent fit throwing that seems to be the other bookend to our family. It started to hit Faith even before we left camp (the picture above was taken while packing to go home). Jake and Tanner felt it much later in the day. As usual it took several days before everyone was back to their normal selves.

First Days

Tanner started Kindergarten today. Given his recent attachment to me I was worried he might cry. He has been really excited to start, and we have been talking it up a lot, but we both worried he may sob when it was time to actually start. He did great! It was so much fun to watch him. He picked out his clothes several weeks ago (the shirt he has on was chosen because "it is very soft and it feels good on his skin"). He wanted to "dress fancy" so notice how he chose to dress up his athletic shorts with the polo style shirt. Too funny. He had picked out a Boise State backpack and we worked to fill it with all of his supplies. It is almost as big as he is! After the standard pictures on the porch we all walked to school together.

On the playground we met up with his best buddy, Evan. They hung out a little but mostly Tanner kept to my side. We lined up when the bell rang and did the Pledge of Allegiance and The Harbor Pledge. The Harbor Pledge is said each morning before school by the entire student body, the principal, and the teachers. It goes like this:

I promise to behave in such a way that I will be proud of myself
And others will be proud of me too.
I came to school to learn and I WILL learn.
I WILL have a great day!
(Foot stamps and arm motion on the "will")

I have to admit I think it's a great way to start each day. It was fun to see Tanner recite it this morning, having already learned most of it from watching Jake. Parents were allowed into the Kindergarten classroom for the first 15 minutes. The teacher greeted the kids and read them "The Kissing Hand" then asked us all to do this kissing hand gesture to our kiddos and say goodbye. We did, and even though Tanner gave me several extra hugs before letting me go, there were no tears- in fact I think I may have been closer to tears than he was! Brian and I were so, so proud of him and are so excited to begin his school years with him. After school we met him on the playground and he ran up to both of us and jumped into our arms for big hugs.

Jake started third grade. He walked with us to school, went in to meet the teacher with us and drop off his things, then ran off with his buddies almost immediately. We didn't see him again until after school. Both Brian and I commented on how far he has come in the last few months. There was no anxiety, no nerves, no repetitive behaviors such as we have seen in the past. At the end of the day he walked out to greet us and said, 'That was the best first day of school EVER!"

Being the first day of school we continued the Merc tradition and took them both there for treats. They were running a "First Day of School Ice Cream Sundae Bar" which they loved. We talked about their day, heard about their experiences, and took turns reading the notes home from the two teachers. We headed home and they worked together on Jake's "homework"- decorating his portfolio binder. Of course he decorated it with pictures cut out from Sports Illustrated for Kids and images from the web. We set the timer and the boys did their required 15 minutes of nightly reading.

Faith, meanwhile, starts her first day next Monday. But because today was her pre-K Orientation we decided to count it as her first day in terms of pictures, new clothes, etc... Notice the 80's clothes and hair? I'm not sure when she became a Valley Girl. The expression on her face seals the deal, though. With all the cute clothes out there for little girls, it was REALLY HARD to let her pick the one she wanted and not the one I wanted!! I think she was excited to be back in her classroom. She played with the playdoh and science center experiments and the "tomato heads" (also known as Mr. Potato Heads) then went to Miss Wendy's for the rest of the afternoon.

Even though this time of year always makes me nostalgic for my teaching days, this year I just kept thinking how lucky I am to have the job that I have. I was able to walk them all to school, spend time there getting them settled, pick them up, and help with homework. And between the two of us we will be able to be there almost every day for these things. For two full-time working parents I think this is an anomaly and one that I am most grateful for.

Marine World

When I was little, we went to Marine World every year with my Grandma and Grandpa for awhile. I have really good memories of those trips. Of course, this was in the olden days when Marine World was just about the animals, they didn't have rides other then the train and the tram that ran across the park. Then I got older and we stopped going.

Marine World moved to Vallejo and brought in all kinds of rides when they became a Six Flags park. We had gone with Jake and Auntie Sue right before we moved to Boise, but he was so little we didn't do a whole lot other than see the animals. So when we saw that we had some days to fill prior to the delta trip on this vacation, this trip was on the short list.

We went with Auntie Sue and Grandma Mary and had a great time! All of the kids had a blast, Marisa and I had a great time watching them and I had a really good time reliving some old memories.

Jake could remember some of our prior trip to Marine World and was really looking forward to it. As mom is no good for rides, I told him before we went that I would go on any rides he wanted to, but, he needed to be sure before we stood in line, because once we got thru the line we weren't getting back out. As soon as we walked in the park, he said he wanted to go on Roar, the giant old style wooden roller coaster. Now I double checked that he wanted to (I hate wooden coasters as they give me a headache because it's such a rough ride), he said he wanted to go, so we stood in line. He was a champ all the way into the car. When we got to the top of the first big rise, I looked over and he looked terrified. I looked back and started screaming as we headed down into the drop. Pretty soon I heard Jake screaming along and getting into it. We finished up and he was so excited that he did it. He didn't want to go on any of the other big coasters, but was proud of himself for going for it (I was proud of him too).

Tanner got left at home on our last trip as he was only 6 months old when we went, but he was looking forward to going. He was the perfect age for Marine World as he was young enough to lovethe animals, but old enough to appreciate the rides as well. He was too short to go on the big rides, but loved the littler rides. We did all go on the big flume water ride. He had a great time and we all got soaked. We also got to sit in the splash zone for the killer whale show and got drenched there as well. He had a great, but very damp day. Of course he ended up buying two killer whales and two dolphin stuffed animal so he had a whale family with his souvenir allowance.

We knew in advance that Faith would love Marine World. Recently we had asked her what she thought she might to be when she grew up. She thought about it for a few moments and then answered that she thought she would like to grow up to be a baby giraffe. To try to keep her dreams alive as long as possible we took her to feed the giraffes. She had a great time. She also loved the whales, dolphins, penguins and all the other animals. She also got stuffed animals for her souvenir allotment, we now have a big and baby camel that have joined her enormous herd up in her room.

Add it the henna tatoos, the cotton candy, the bumper cars and the cartoon characters roaming the park and it made for a perfect day with the kids and Auntie Sue and Grandma Mary. We had a blast and are trying to figure out how/when to try the Disneyland experience.

40th Birthday

I couldn't have asked for a better 40th birthday week. Yep, I got a full week to celebrate, not just one day! We flew into Reno on August 3rd and started the "party" with 2 days at Auntie Sue's house with Grandma Mary. Of course there were presents and cake and games and 40th b'day napkins and place settings to set the mood. Those two really know how to make a girl feel special! The kids were so excited to spend time with two of their favorite people and they, of course, loved being spoiled with all the attention and time and love that Mary and Auntie Sue lavish on them. Auntie Sue had originally wanted to send us all to a Giants game for a birthday present but due to the timing we were unable to take her up on this great idea. Instead we suggested a family trip to Marine World for the day- which was a yearly tradition with Brian and his grandparents growing up. It ended up being a blast! I'm not sure who had more fun: the kids or Brian and I watching the kids!

Next we headed to the Delta where we spent Saturday and Sunday with the whole family and various friends from high school and college. Yoshi won the award for "traveled the furthest to be there", coming all the way from London to join in the festivities. Lisa and John and the girls came in second, driving down from Seattle towing Ol' Bessie (our old ski boat) the whole way! Joe and Suzie continued their bid for "most prepared and best meal" by cooking for a huge crowd on Saturday night. We had leftover salmon and arugula for days!! Anna and Geof came Saturday evening, also, and allowed us to use their boat for the entire week, even though they were only able to join us for the one evening. A huge thank you to them for that! On Sunday Sheila and Wayne arrived and Shannon and her two girls. Even our old "house boating friends" Kristie and Paul were able to make it for a few hours! It was so much fun to see everyone and to watch all of the kids play together in the water, on the dock, and on the water slide. I actually had time to just relax and talk to the grown ups, as the kids were fully entertained by all the other families around.

We split dinners up and everyone cooked one night. We ate well!! White chili with all the fixings, buttermilk chicken, tri tip, pork tenderloin, last night.... we had a little bit of everything! We ate outside on the deck every night and enjoyed the food, drinks, beautiful sunsets, and conversation. Unfortunately I got strep throat on Sunday and went to bed early each night, trying to recuperate, but all in all I feel like I didn't miss out on too much, despite not being 100%. We celebrated our birthday on Tuesday with presents after dinner. Brian and the kids made me a beautiful and funny book of 40 coupons to be used throughout my birthday year including things like: a new pair of sunglasses (even though I really don't need one!), a day of garage sales on my own, a latte from Starbucks without Brian making fun of my ridiculous $4 coffee habit, etc...

The kids all tried waterskiing, with varying degrees of success. Jake gave it a good go, but only "got up" for a second before tiring out. Tanner tried from the beach and gave it three good tries before calling "Uncle". The kids loved the SeaDoo- and the adults, too. I even got Mom to give it a try and she was fearless! Brian and Faith got it up to 52 miles an hour but I was content cruising along at 22. I was so glad we decided to rent it for the week.

Wednesday-Friday was basically just our family and the best part was watching all of the cousins play together. They entertained themselves 98% of the time, making up games, playing in the water, playing hide and go seek, etc... Faith was fearless in the water. She put that life jacket on and just jumped right in, over and over and over. The kids also loved the paddle boat that was there and they would all climb on and take it across the "bay" together to the "Witch House" (an abandoned house on the other side of the cul-de-sac). It was so much fun to watch them and I was so impressed with how the older kids helped with the younger kids and how everyone got along. There was virtually no fighting.

It wasn't perfect: Family vacations are always a challenge-so many different personalities and so much emotional baggage and the unfinished business of growing up that each person brings to the table. But despite the ups and downs (that each of the adults experienced to some degree) it was a really successful and fun trip for me. It was actually exactly what I wanted it to be when I started planning it almost two years ago. I wanted to relive some of my favorite childhood/young adult moments ("The Delta Days") and I did. Those old Delta days were never perfect either. Even though they live strongly in my heart I don't think I sugarcoat the memories too much. It was FAMILY then- and all of the chaos and craziness and love and challenges that that word entails- and it was FAMILY now.

At the end of the ten days everyone was

exhausted! Seriously, the kids looked like they were coming home from war or something. The picture below shows how they passed the time as Brian and I were checking in with Southwest on our way home from Reno. The Giants Pillow Pets, courtesy of their Auntie Sue and Grandma Mary, came in very handy!

I couldn't have asked for a better way to enter my 40's. A huge "Thank you" to everyone that helped make this milestone so special. I am a very lucky woman to have all of you in my life.

Summer Fun - Marisa's Version

The summer continues to fly by. Somehow it is August 3rd already and we haven't yet been camping and we've only taken out our boat twice! Summer weather didn't really start until late June and I had to be out of town for work for three days at the end of June and 7 days in July which has seemed to shorten the summer substantially. We have been having lots of fun, though. Lately we have been spending weekend mornings at the pool with friends. No one is there at 11AM so we get the good spot in the shade with an umbrella and set up camp for a few hours. The kids are finally at an age where we don't have to monitor them every second so both Brian and I can read our books, enjoy our soda or iced coffee, and chat with our friends. Tanner is a little fish- I could definitely see him swimming on a team when he is a little older. Faith is unafraid but doesn't seem nearly as "buoyant" as Tanner and though she wants to be self sufficient she sinks when I let go of her. Jake can play for hours with his friends, using the basketball hoop, doing front flips off the side, and playing football in the shallow end. When it gets too hot Brian and I hop in for awhile and Faith jumps in to us and Tanner does cannonballs off Brian's shoulders.

We leave for our big trip tonight. We are flying to Reno where Nana will pick us up (with bells on, I am sure!) and we will stay the night in Truckee and leave for the Bay Area Thursday morning. We will spend two nights at Auntie Sue's house. Grandma Mary will also be there so we will celebrate all of the August b'days (me, Auntie Sue, and Mary) by heading to Marine World for the day on Friday. Faith can't wait to see the whales and dolphins. On Saturday afternoon we will pack up and head to Discovery Bay for a week of waterskiing, swimming, hanging out with friends, and celebrating our big 4-0. On Sunday we expect to have over 40 people there- friends from high school and college and lots of family.

The kids are all doing great! We have gotten Jake to a healthy spot with his anxiety and our household is about a million times calmer and happier. He is getting so old and has basically had the run of the neighborhood this summer with his friends. He has done lots of camps to keep busy: football, lacrosse, speed camp, and more. He and I have had quite a bit of "quality time" lately and I find that I enjoy him so much more nowadays. Drama no longer lurks around every corner. His favorite thing is still sports, but he had a babysitter this summer that was very creative. He did a lot of cooking and crafts and fort building - which was really good for him. He made me jewelry and made up new recipes and did creative things instead of just sports.

Tanner is so funny. He is my little blond boy- almost white hair these days after spending so much time outside and at the pool. He is excited about Kindergarten, is learning to read, loves to color and draw, and is still so snuggly. If I could keep him this age forever I just might agree to it. He keeps me laughing with his funny expressions and mischievous grin. Lately he has taken to a little drama himself- he feels so put upon sometimes by his siblings and will say things like, "WHY does no one EVER believe me?" as he throws himself onto the ground. He loves to play Clue with the family (he is on Brian's team usually) and loves to play "Guess Who?" with Faith.

Faith, too, is doing well. She finished her gymnastics

classes and now wants to play soccer. She seems to be over her cheerleading thing for now (whew!). She got her first "real" haircut a few weeks ago. We took her to a fancy "girly" place where they actually gave her a style (much shorter and so much easier to brush and keep tangles out!) and painted her fingernails. She still loves to color and paint and will happily do that for long stretches. She wants to be a swimmer but, like I mentioned above, is having trouble making it happen. She will definitely need a life jacket the entire time we are at the Delta next week! She still refers to "yesterday" as "last day" and calls "dessert" "zert". She loves to play with all of her guys and has a different favorite each day it seems. She takes her puppies on walks and plays so much more make believe than her brothers ever did.

We had a block party last night and we all, even Brian, had a great time meeting some new people and watching the kids play. We have new neighbors two doors down that have four kids: a 7 year old, a 5 year old, and twin boys. Our block is now full of kids that meet outside and ride scooters and bikes, draw with chalk, go bug hunting, etc... I love it. This is exactly the way I wanted our kids to grow up.

When we return from the Delta we will have Brian's Dad and Joan in town for a few days, hopefully we can take the boat out for "Happy Hour" one night. Optimist Football begins August 15th, and the school year starts the 24th. Labor Day weekend we are heading back up toFamily Y-Camp in Cascade. So... things are hopping. Life, definitely, is Good.