Holidays Are The Time For Family

No matter where I have been in the world, I have always looked on Thanksgiving and Christmas as a time to be with family. Sometime it is family you are directly related to, sometimes it is family you married in to and sometimes it is with people who connect with you in such a way that they become family.

Thanksgiving this year was held at my sister Kari's house. The following day, my sister Jenny and her family came down to Bakersfield from Sacramento. We try and take a picture each year of my dad with all of the grandchildren. 

 Another tradition which I try and keep going is honoring and remembering family who are not able to be with us during this holiday season. And may I record for those in the know..... it just would not be Christmas without walking up and down the rows of graves at Greenlawn cemetary with my Dad looking for his parents graves. After 40 minutes of looking, I now have the official map from Greenlawn in my possession. Next year is going to be a little different, I hope!

Merry Christmas Mom!

Adam 1st Grade Picture

Adam- Age 6. 1st Grade Picture. Little Red School House. I am not sure if this kid has ever taken a bad picture. He is cuteness inside and out.

My Luke

Why do I love this picture of Luke? Well, perhaps it is because it captures in a moment what Luke is somewhat about. He is a very conservative, careful child. He observes life and then decides if he will participate in it. He is reserved with new people in his life. I tell people to not get offended when he gives you the stink eye because that is just his way of assessing your importance to him. He is highly intelligent and his constant questions about who, what and why tax my ability to endure to the end. Sometimes at the end of a long day I put a temporary restraining order on question time until the following day.

You have to love a kid though who comes up with classic lines such as "Mom, when you have no birthdays, you are dead."

The Boys and Soccer

This year, Adam and Luke were adamant that they wanted to play soccer; okay so Adam was adamant, Luke is just along for the ride.

I made sure that they both got on the same team; they are the mighty Blue Sharks. Their coach is fantastic. His name is Bernardo and his wife Katie is the team mom. The team consists of eight little boys with Adam and Luke being the youngest two; the oldest boys are seven and in 2nd grade. The team puts in a great effort but have not been very successful on the "win" side. Adam and Luke are a bit tenative in going after the ball. Adam has turned out to be a great goal keeper. He is willing to sacrifice himself by placing his body in the way of an incoming kick. One ball connected with his upper body and I think people from two fields over heard the sound. Credit to Adam though, he did not have to come off the field for cry/breather. Luke loves to play the game but really does not see the value in practices. You can usually find him in the pack somewhere around the ball. He is a bit afraid of dribbling past defenders but is not afraid to give the ball a mighty wack to the sidelines. Luke requires a fair amount of "resting" during the game. I did catch Adam on the field during a recent game pulling the drawstring out of his shorts and trying to loop it over his head whilst still wearing the shorts. He almost got the job done because he does have a lot of string to play with as his shorts could probably fit both he and Luke in them. Needless to say, I did have to tell him that was not a good look for the game and might just hinder some play action. I don't think anyone plays well with their shorts up around their neck, do you?

So here are some pics of my soccer boys. Note Adam and his shirt 1/2 in and 1/2 out. It is supposed to be tucked in all the way!

1ST Day of 1ST Grade

Two posts in a row. See if I can keep this winning streak going. My little boys in 1st grade. Before I know it, I will be sitting at High School graduation and saying what all parents before me have said.... where has the time gone? I am trying my best to document the big moments; I often don't hit 100% but I try. I am trying my very best to just enjoy the little moments and the time together. Moments such as when Luke tells me yesterday, "Mom, when you don't have anymore birthdays, you are dead!" Profound thoughts coming from that little head. But Adam, not to be outdone, interjects this wisdom, "yeah, and when you are dead, you lay flat on your back and don't blink your eyes."

Luke's teacher this year is Mrs.Smith; and 7 days into the new school year and Luke is already seeing and testing what her boundaries are. This usually lasts the first month at school after which Luke becomes a model student.

Adam continues to have Mrs.Billiard as his teacher. At first (second and maybe even third, let's go there) his teacher seems to be a bit past the teaching thing; She can't be younger than about 75. But Adam loves her and is doing well in school. In fact, Adam is a constant surprise in terms of his academic level of achievement. Not that I thought he was remedial but I just had observed in the past his lack of attention to what was going on in the classroom. But osmosis seems to have won out in his case because apparently it is all getting through.

PS. Luke refused to stand in the grass in front of the school sign because there was a bit of dew left on it and he did not want it dripping on his foot. He continues his reign of high maintenance! Also note, no smile at his desk. He was not sure he was liking 1st grade. Mostly because he was not allowed to play his DS Nintendo there. The sacrifices that must be made for an education!

Adam Graduates from Kindergarten

I am always a little late in posting significant events. So here is Adam's kindergarten graduation picture. He was very excited to be graduating and moving on to first grade. Only Adam's school did a big graduation ceremony. They even had the kids dressed in cap and gown. The 1st grade class at Adam's school "hosted" the ceremonies. The 1st graders did the entertainment part of the program. So this year, Adam will be hosting the ceremonies and his cousin Bella will be graduating. Should be an interesting combination to witness!!

BTW. Mom thinks Adam is a little cutie. :)