Tuesday, March 24, 2015

What's up in our house lately?

Life has become a whirlwind.  Spring sports have started and my children decided to pick up something new.  Samuel, instead of going out for Track and definitely earning that varsity letter as a freshman, decided instead that he would try out for soccer.  Um, What??  The last time he played soccer was when he was 12 (I thought it was 9, but he insists he played when he was 12, too.)  He was the redheaded step-child  at try-outs, with hand me down cleats from a friend (Emma's feet never got that big) and Emma's socks and shin guards.  The first day he went without shin guards or soccer socks. I was amazed he made the team, as this is Europe and these guys play year round soccer, but he is extremely fast and extremely athletic.  He only made JV and he isn't a starter, but he plays a fair amount of time and actually does really well.




The first day of try-outs, they all met at the main field and then walked away together.  The track coaches saw him start to walk away and yelled at him to come back.  He was supposed to be their hurdler!   Well instead we sent one of our other family members to try out hurdles.  Emma decided to run track this year.  She wanted nothing to do with the soccer team here, despite them begging for players this year.  I think they really burned some bridges when they allowed 9 captains to choose who would be on their team last year.  Emma is not the only one who refuses to go out for the team again.  She was originally going to try shot-put, but she said that all the fatties went there and so instead she is trying to run hurdles.  She still doesn't have the timing down.  She is able to get over the 300 meter ones now, but stumbles and stutters a lot.  I told her to concentrate on 100 and 200 and try to get on a relay team, but she really wants to get those hurdles.
Besides sports (the little boys still haven't started), we had senior portraits done and are working on graduation announcements,



planning our spring break and end of year trips and getting ready for girls camp.  Yep, Emma is going for one more year and so is Mom.  I was called as the assistant camp director.  Sometimes, I  really like not being in charge!  Do what I'm told and do it well and not worry about anything else!
I am trying to finish up Emma's quilt before she graduates.  It's a queen, so it really won't work on her bed at College.  It was meant for her bed here.  The fact that I decided to try and hand sew it, is what is taking me so long.  Now that it has been half hand sewn, I can't change and use the machine!   I just have to buckle down and do it.
The other day Emma told me about all the times she has cried in public this year.  Most of them involved in public speaking.  She was fine with Model United Nations, but she can't tell about a board that she made about herself to her class.  She said, "people scare me when they are all looking at me.  I need to come with a note that says Emma shouldn't be made to speak for more than a minute in front of people."  I told her I would pin it to her blouse when she leaves for college and to make sure that her new bishop gets it.  Mostly I just try not to think about that time.
I have also been working a lot.  It seems that no one has a substitute nurse and so I am getting calls from almost every school now.  I do enjoy the school nursing.  Last time I worked for a whole week.  I brought my 5 pound weights and my pad and every 30 minutes or so I would go lift weights for a few minutes.  I couldn't do it for long or I would start to sweat.  Some days were crazier than other, however and I couldn't hardly get any weights in.  It's a lot like the ER that way.
Rob has been busy with work and being sick.
Max got glasses (he is far-sighted, like his Daddy) and has been sick as well.

Now mom is sick.  I think we are all on the mend now.
Joe, of course, never got sick.  I told him that he has the constitution of a rock- rock's never get sick either!  But he did stay home one day with me.  We watched the solar eclipse together and then I took him to get a ride to the Merit Badge University.  He earned a badge for climbing and for rifle.  He said he almost got the badge on his first try.  He was supposed to get 5 shots in one quadrant and he got 4.  He got it on his second try after readjusting the sites!

Thursday, March 5, 2015

Why Emma was Grumbling

So there was kind of a reason for Emma to grumble.  Not really, but kind of.  She had a ball to get to that night. 

She didn't need the whole day to get ready, as we all know.  I once got ready for a Prom in a half hour- of course I don't think I took a shower after work (gross) and I threw my hair up on top of my head and didn't wear make-up.  I never was a girly girl.  It didn't turn out to be the best Prom- go figure!
Emma was going to the JROTC ball as a representative of the Yearbook staff.  Her date was the Yearbook teacher who also brought her husband and a couple other representatives along.  She had lots of dates.
  One guy did ask her if she could be sort of his date when he found out she was going, just so he didn't have to sit with his unit- everyone that was anyone had a date, so the only people still sitting at the unit table were freshmen.  She told him that if he paid the teacher back, she would be his date.  He didn't, but he still got out of sitting with the freshmen.  She even was nice enough to take a picture with him.


Let's just say, she is a really nice girl and I hope she doesn't get taken advantage of at college!  Love her!

Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Basketball Max!


We all went- on my insistence (with lots of grumbling from Emma) to Max's final Basketball game.  


The poor kid has missed half of his games- 2 from sickness and one when we all went up to Ramstein to see Sam wrestle.  He did well in his last game and even scored a couple points.  Surprisingly he is one of the shorter kids on his team.  It's not because, like the rest of our children, Max is short, it's just that we had a really tall team.  

One kid was so big that he just stood under the basket and caught his balls over and over until he would make the shot.  He wasn't that great of a player, but he was way taller than anyone else!  The short guys were mixed in with the taller guys and everyone got to play exactly half a game.  The coach was wonderful.  We remained undefeated! 


Good job Thunder!

And the End of that Story is...

So at the end of that story- getting a wild card to European, not getting it, getting it, not getting it is...They didn't give Sam a Varsity letter.  The kid went to sectionals and came very close to going to Europeans, but still didn't get a varsity letter out of the deal.  They are making this whole getting a varsity letter thing really hard to do!

But he did get another coaches award.  They said he was a pleasure to coach.  He was always polite and did exactly what they would scream for him to do when they were coaching from the sidelines.  That is his second coaches award.  Good job buddy!  I'm glad they recognize him for all his hard work and heart!