Soccer - The Final Showdown

So....soccer. Again. If you missed round one, you are welcome to catch up here.

Caught up?

Last season's highlights: Daisy is cute. Daisy is not really made for soccer.
This season: Much of the same.

She didn't complain about running at all this time around. And she went to games that included snow, rain, and HEAVY wind. She didn't whine. She also didn't kick the ball that much or make any goals.

We were faithful cheerleaders - Pearl, Dad, and me. One of us was always there. (Well, I'm pretty sure if Pearl was there, there was probably an adult as well.)

I didn't take as many pictures this time around. (Slacker mom.) Here is a nice day, weather wise.

Oh, I thought I took one on the day it snowed. Proof that I did.

I was wondering somewhere along the way if Daisy knew that she was not the most stellar player. She did say one time, "I have never made a goal." And I naturally said the programmed parental response, "That doesn't matter. As long as you try your best and have fun." (I really do believe that, but it is kind of a bummer NEVER to score a goal.)

Today was the last day. It was super, SUPER, windy!! I made all the kids come so that we could support Daisy. It was trying. Robyn went home early with Dad. (I wanted her out of the wind. She is just getting over being sick. Spoiler: stay tuned for news of her best birthday present...strep.) Pearl and June kept each other entertained, and Ivory hunkered on my lap trying to soak up my heat, but ironically making a nice windbreak for me.

The soccer kids were playing well. They were dueling the Queen Bees, so it looked like ketchup and mustard on the field. At half time Daisy posed with her orange. Can you see her hair flying in the wind?

It was like that the ENTIRE time, unless you count the four (yes, I did count them) brief seconds that it stopped blowing.

I mentioned to the mom next to me that I wished (this being their last game) that they could somehow stage it so all the kids who hadn't scored a goal all season could kick one in. (But it is possible that my child was the only one who hadn't scored a goal, and it wouldn't be right to stage it. I am a firm believer in earning your rewards. There is a place for winning and losing.)

That said, I sat in the chilly wind and cheered for the Red Dragons for the last time.

Daisy was slowing down. I was encouraging her just to get in there and kick the ball once or twice, while simultaneously not really caring since it was the last game. The Queen Bees were actually quite good. They had some aggressive, strategic players. (June likes to keep score. When she asked, I just said that I think the Bees had scored more goals. Like a lot more.

Someone yelled one minute. Nice. Time to get out of the wind.

And then the miracle happened. DAISY SCORED!! SHE MADE A GOAL!! Kaiona (one of our better players) had the ball down by our goal. She kicked it from the side and it rolled to the middle, right in front of the goal. Amazingly, Daisy was right there, and there were no bees nearby. She neatly kicked it in.

I screamed like a crazy woman. Daisy raced down the field and I scooped her up and swung her around. I seriously was so happy for her. And the game was over.

Daisy scored the last goal of the season. Way to go, babe.

They all got a medal. (Daisy asked me later, "Mom, if I hadn't scored a goal, would they still have given me a medal?") Of course they would. They give medals for everything now days.

So that brief chapter of soccer in our lives is over. I think we learned a few things and had a good time.

Hope Of America

I had never been to Hope of America before this year. Most likely because I did not have any kids who participated before and I am still a newbie to Utah. Wait...do they do Hope of America in other states?? I still am mostly clueless as to the origins and reach of the program. I do know that lots of kids participate, and it is a LOOOOOOOOONG program. June brought home a CD ages ago and I know she learned most of the songs. I just followed along like a good mom and made sure she was ready on time. 

Even better, there was a mom from her class who was working at the show, so she volunteered to take a car load of kids early. Perfect. Now there was no chance that I could do something wrong and make her late. I packed her a lunch/dinner and sent her on her way.

Good thing too. The flyer warned about heavy traffic and they weren't kidding. But I stressed less, because performing child was already there.

Arriving on the scene, we found some suitable seats and I went to locate June to give her a general idea of where we were sitting. (Very general, since she really couldn't see anything from where she was. After all, the lights were shining on them.) She got to sit by her bestie.

Notice June was wearing a pink jacket. When they were getting ready to take the pictures, they were making sure everyone looked right and they announced that someone had pink in their lap. Not sure if that was June, but I noticed she took off her jacket in a hurry.

Okay. They are all ready to go. Take your picture and let's get this show on the road!

The songs sounded great and the kids did such a good job. They weren't the hardest moves to learn, but there were still plenty of songs to get right. 

There were other numbers between the kids singing. My favorite was a group of older ladies. (54-96 years of age. Sorry I can't remember the name of the group.) They did a fun number and then came back later wearing ears and fox tails. Bet you can't guess what music they danced to.

My other favorite number was the finale. They turned off all the lights and all the kids took out their flashlights. This picture doesn't quite do it justice, but it is cool nonetheless.

It was a bit of a long evening, but worth it over all. Those are some great kids. They certainly are the hope of America.

*A big thanks to Tyler who brought the binoculars. And a reminder to bring both pairs next time.

Final Crack in the Road

I need to record the last Crack Off we had before it gets lost in the archives. (Because now I know that does happen sometimes.)

We like to do a neighborhood Crack Off to inspire people to take the event home and carry on the tradition. Add that to the fact that we are living in a new neighborhood, so there is plenty of fresh blood.

My mom was still in town, and unsurprisingly she came up with two more stellar egg designs. Spoiler: She totally won the design contest with Harold.

Don't forget the hidden snail the octopus was gunning for.

I made a couple more eggs as well. My Faberge came in second.

Tyler always does his last minute, but they are still amazing. (Dave came in third. We swept the podium.)

I apologize that I do not have pictures of our design competition. There was one in particular that I loved, but it was eaten by the time I thought about taking individual pictures. (Egg casualties, they can be pretty final.) This is the best I got. Okay, it stinks...

Lest you think that our neighbors are weak-sauce, let me put your mind at ease. Here is a battle involving a huge brown egg, and one painted with nail polish. The brown one was so large, we nicknamed it the 'Raptor' egg. (For the record, nail polish did not help. You can scratch that one off the list of potential cheats.)

The Raptor egg did rather well. Terrie was in total disbelief when she lost at the end.

But our winner was Jana.

Does she look familiar? Look closely in this post. Did you see her? She is Hannah's Mom!! Two winners from one family in the same day. I suspect foul play. Not really. However she boiled her egg though....I want the recipe.

Like last year I allowed Robyn to take on the winner. Champion battle.

And Robyn LOST. It is a good thing too. I was beginning to think she was invincible.

We played some 'My Team' later. It was a good group.

My favorite moments include everyone asking each other if they were a pig or cow. (It sounded insulting, but our category was farm animals.) Most people did not know what a gander is. Do you? And Aktar wore the viking hat to cover his smile. Apparently his lips give him away when he lies.

I'm not sure if this is true, but he did much better the second round when we did ice cream flavors.

After the party, it was my family's last night, so we stayed up late and played Scotch Bridge. I think Tim felt picked on. One hand he bid zero and then threw out a 6. Most likely, someone should have something higher. It didn't go so well for him.

Take a closer look.

Ha ha. What are the chances? We all had a card lower. Too bad it wasn't poker. That would be a nice hand.

Good times. It puts me in the mood to play games. I think I need to go talk some children into losing playing a game.

Color Me Again

Family was in town last week, so it shouldn't surprise anyone that we went to Color Me Mine. (Well, it shouldn't surprise anyone who reads this blog.) Sadly, family had to leave before the pieces were finished, but luckily I am posting pictures on here for them to see. (Unluckily, we'll see if the pieces can survive the children until we see them again. Hee hee. Just kidding. I put them up on a high shelf right after I took pictures. Unless there is an earthquake, they should make it.) I am taking pictures of both sides so they can get a better idea of how they look, since they can't hold them and examine them in person.

Let's start with Tim's horse. Nicely done.

And looking good from this side as well.

Mom did a huge project as usual. And they always turn out great. I still can't decide which frog I like the most.

The texture on the purple frog is awesome.

Miranda did a cute teapot. I have never seen that piece at the store before.

It turned out so darling.

I was going to make another dessert plate. However, they no longer carry the same style plate. So I ordered more and will have to wait for them to come in. In the meantime, I painted something for Pearl and let her help a bit since she was dragged along. She chose the colors and painted the inside.

You get the idea that it spells her name. Even though you can't see the 'L'.

Fun, fun. Ivory and I went to Color Me Mine for a date recently and Robyn requested to go there for her birthday, so I'm thinking I will have more pictures in the near future. It is a great place to let your creative juices flow.

This Class is Crackin'

Last year I did a Crack Off in Robyn's class, so this year I went to June's. (Ivory has already petitioned for 2015.) The kids had a great time. They dove right into decorating their eggs.

June feels more pressure than most kids because of our high decorating standards.

I think all the kids did a fabulous job. Looks like a whole tray of soon to be cracked eggs.

Watch the pictures. All the kids did a good job remaining at their desks....for about five minutes. This is one of the first battles. A noticeable difference from how many kids are surrounding the table by the end.

Mrs. Mahoney does not normally have an Easter party, but she liked the idea that the boys have no physical advantage in this competition.

We only had to call the 'Eggzaminers' in once. The crack in Josie's egg was so slight, we had to look pretty hard to find it.

Mrs. Mahoney did well.

And she was a good sport when she lost too.

Hannah was the funniest. (She is June's best friend.) She was SO excited each time she won. She is off the ground jumping for joy in this one. (Most likely because June wins so many of the games they play and the roles are reversed here.)

Another fantastic face from Hannah here.

But she should be happy. She made it to the final two. The competition was fierce.

Let's do this. (Once again, notice the amount of kids surrounding the table. I think they were into it.)

And Hannah WON!! She immediately went over to celebrate with her mom.

Nicely done.

Here she is with the only egg that made it through unscathed.

And check this out. She was prophetic. I think this statement (written on her egg at the beginning) says it all.

The other moms brought super yummy treats for the kids. I think everyone went home happy. Happy cracking everyone.