Overscheduled vs. Bored

So Ryan and Adam both wanted to play soccer this fall. Ryan was particularly looking forward to it. I printed the registration forms for one league off the Internet back in August, but since it wasn't a city-sponsored league, I wanted to get to our neighborhood and check with other moms to see if their kids played in it before we signed up. So this weekend I finally figured out that it is the league that most kids around here play in. Unfortunately though, I waited too long, the league is halfway through the fall season, and they aren't accepting late registrations at this point. Ryan is so disappointed and I feel really bad.

I feel bad that Ryan's disappointed, but I also feel bad that it's my fault that my kids aren't involved in anything yet. I really don't want to be one of those parents who overschedules their kids with teams and lessons and classes, etc., etc. Doing just baseball in the spring for the last two years made our evening family schedule just crazy. I don't know how parents with more kids, or with kids involved in more activities, do it all.

On the other hand, I want my kids to have the opportunity to try different activities and have the experiences of playing on teams and learning to play musical instruments and all that good stuff. They were an important part of my childhood. And when my boys aren't involved in anything, they watch TV and play video games constantly, and still complain about being BORED. Aaaagh! How do I find a happy medium?! So now I'm thinking about signing them up for a karate class at the rec center....

Sold!

We sold our first home today, almost two years after buying our first home. The best thing about it was not having to put it on the market because some friends in our ward wanted to buy it from us. It was a win-win situation, AND nobody had to pay real estate commissions. We think we gave them a decent deal on it for the current market here, plus we got enough out of it for a down payment and closing costs on something in Utah Valley where the market is almost double. Anyway, we hope they feel as blessed as we do. Now all we have to do is finish packing and cleaning, move, find a new home, buy it, and unpack. Somehow I'm not feeling any relief yet....

On a totally different note, Adam and Ryan finished a two-week session of swimming lessons today. Adam was a pretty good little swimmer to start with, but he really improved his crawl stroke. I think he's a better swimmer than I am now. Ryan made the most progress though. He was scared of the water last summer and didn't want to take swimming lessons this year. Once he got started though, he adjusted amazingly quickly. It's so nice when they are finally comfortable on their own in the water.

That's the Ball Season

Possibly you thought our baseball season would never end, but it has. Ryan had his last teeball game this past Monday evening. He had a good season and really enjoyed himself. His skills will need some work as he moves into coach pitch next year, but he's really picked up on the rules and how the game is played. I think he's actually learned more from watching Adam's games than he has from playing teeball. He basically taught himself to read the same way, by watching as Adam did his homework. He's a pretty sharp cookie.

Adam's team finished off their season tonight on a bit of a low note. They didn't look very sharp, maybe because it was 90 degrees plus outside today. Mercifully the scoreboard stopped working in the middle of the game, when the score was 10-5, so we really don't know how bad they lost. I think their final record of 9 wins and 6 losses doesn't really tell what a good year they had. All their players from last year really led the team, and the younger boys who joined the team this year made a lot of progress. Adam will miss getting to play with them next year. It was a good group of players, coaches, and parents. He was 1 for 2 with a single tonight, so his batting average for the season was .765 (26 for 34, 21 singles and 5 doubles). I am proud of him for doing so well and for being a good sport most of the time. I'm not one of those parents who think that sports are the be all and end all of their children's lives (and there are a few of those around here), but I do think it's a good for kids to participate in team sports and have those character building experiences of working and cooperating with others towards a common goal, and doing it with a good attitude.

There, now you've had your last baseball update...until next spring. :-)

Baseball, Sick Kids, Cousins, Kindergarten Graduation, & Friends

I haven't caught up on baseball for a couple weeks. We've had several more rainouts, but the weather finally cooperated this week so we could make up for some lost time. Ryan had games on Tuesday and Friday. He was running a high fever Tuesday, so I made him skip that game. In Friday's game he got to play pitcher, the busiest position in teeball. I missed the game to stay home with the other sick kids, but Jeff said he fielded everything hit to him and even got one batter out at first base. Ryan was most excited about sliding into home plate. As soon as he walked in the door he proudly showed me all the dust on his pants. Adam played Tuesday and Thursday, and had a double-header on Wednesday to make up some rainouts. They won two of those four games, but I've lost track of their overall record--something like 9 wins and 5 losses. Jeff has helped me keep up with his batting average though. At the moment, he is 25 for 32, for a .781 average (20 singles and 5 doubles).

As mentioned, we've been doing the sick kid thing this week. So far the symptoms are just fever and headaches. All four boys had fevers yesterday, so I kept them home from church today. I might have to take at least Dallin into the pediatrician tomorrow, but I'm guessing this is a virus that will go away on it's own. I tend to be pretty conservative about taking kids to the doctor, as I hate spending time and money to be told, "It's just a virus."

The most exciting part of our week though, was the visit of my brother, Enoch, and his family. They decided to do a Texas family vacation this summer, including two days and three nights at our house. It was fun to catch up with them and play with cousins. Will especially fit right in with our light-saber and superhero loving boys, and Adam and Ryan were a jealous of his Gameboy. We were a little hard-pressed to find things to do to entertain them, but they went with us to Adam's baseball game Tuesday night, then on Wednesday we took them downtown to Eggemeyer's General Store, to Kings Kingdom Park and the Concho River where we had a great time feeding the ducks and turtles. In the afternoon we went bowling and Will beat us all with a score of 114! Their time in San Angelo will probably be the most boring part of their vacation (compared to San Antonio and Dallas), but we're glad they came to see us. Thanks for fixing our gates too Enoch!















And finally, Thursday was the last day of school and Ryan's kindergarten graduation. I'm proud of Ryan--he had a great year and learned a lot--but I think kindergarten graduations are kind of silly. It was a nice, short program, however, in the hot, crowded elementary school gym. The 102 kindergarteners looked great all dressed in little red caps and gowns. They sang four songs, including a very cute one called "Move Me Up to the First Grade," sung to the tune of "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." I got tears in my eyes when they played the Edward Elgar graduation march song, but then I almost always do. I think I associate it with change (something I've always struggled with) and with leaving a chapter of life behind that can never be returned to. Anyway, I wasn't emotional about kindergarten graduation, but that song got to me anyway. Ryan was emotional for an entirely different reason. He didn't even want to go because he said he was afraid of getting up in front of so many people. I tried to reassure him and calm him down, but he was still visibly upset. I wasn't sure where that came from until I talked to his teacher afterward and realized she was afraid of getting up in front of so many people too. It's amazing how impressionable our little ones are. Ryan was fine afterwards though, so hopefully he realized it wasn't as bad as he thought it would be.

Speaking of changes, we are really going to miss our good friends, the Townsends, who moved to Wisconsin this week. One of the benefits of moving around every few years has been all the wonderful, wonderful friends we've made. The hymn, "Each Life That Touches Ours for Good," has been playing in my brain this week.

Each life that touches ours for good
Reflects thine own great mercy, Lord.
Thou sendest blessings from above
Thru words and deeds of those who love.

What greater gift dost thou bestow,
What greater goodness can we know
Than Christ-like friends whose gentle ways
Strengthen our faith, enrich our days.

When such a friend from us departs,
We hold forever in our hearts
A sweet and hallowed memory,
Bringing us nearer, Lord, to thee.

For worthy friends whose lives proclaim
Devotion to the Savior's name,
Who bless our days with peace and love,
We praise they goodness, Lord above.

Thank you friends, for truly being blessings in my life!

Grandparents, Mothers' Day, Baseball, and Fathers and Sons

Jeff's parents just finished a 12-day visit with us this week. They needed a grandkid fix and had some Delta Skymiles to use. It's always fun to have family visit, and we enjoyed having them. The day they left, Ryan was moaning and groaning, wondering what in the world we were going to do for fun after they were gone. The kids love playing games and reading stories with them, and generally just having the extra attention. They helped me out too, washing dishes and tending kids and helping me with some projects. I felt a little guilty working them so hard. We tried to make it up to them on Saturday with a little trip to Fredericksburg to see Texas wildflowers and eat German food. Although I was disappointed that we didn't see more bluebonnets--missed their peak by week or two--we've had a wet spring so the wildflowers were everywhere and really beautiful. (I also got two or three new counties on this trip. :-)

I had a very nice Mother's Day, and it was extra fun to celebrate it with Grandma too. Jeff and his dad cooked yummy Japanese/Chinese food for us--almond chicken, sweet and sour pork, and gingered green bean salad, with pecan pie and vanilla ice cream for dessert. I love having a husband who enjoys cooking!

Jeff and the boys really outdid themselves with the gifts this year--I usually don't get or want near this much for Mother's Day. They surprised me with a beautiful new oak chest of drawers to replace the hand-me-down we've been using for 14+ years now. It's unfinished--raw wood--but Jeff is also looking forward to finishing it, which is good since all I need right now is another project. We're thinking we'll stain it medium brown to try to match our headboard and then seal it with tung oil. That's what's been recommended to us anyway, although my friend sealed hers with polyurethane and it looks great. I also got a couple Ritter Sport candy bars--real German chocolate (available at Target, FYI). I needed shirts and I got a couple of those too--a pale green button-up and a "Lady Longhorns" t-shirt. I guess I couldn't really leave Texas without some burnt orange in my wardrobe. It is "my color" after all, even if I bleed BYU blue. The most fun present of all though, was a pink cowboy hat. I don't really do pink...or cowboy...but now I have a souvenir that says "Texas" all over it. The funny thing is, whenever Jared finds it he brings it to me and says, "Put the pink cowboy hat on your head Mommy." I've worn it quite a bit this last week. :-)

I'll bet you thought I'd forgotten about baseball. I'll bet you missed my play-by-play posts too, didn't you? Well, I didn't forget, but there hasn't been much to post about. We've had several games cancelled by bad weather--lots of thunderstorms and rain lately. When it finally cleared up last week, Ryan and Adam both had games on Friday. Ryan's game was typical teeball-- everybody hits, everybody scores--except that this time Grandma and Grandpa got to see him play, which was a treat. I think Adam was a little nervous to have the extra audience--he wanted to do so well while they were there to cheer for him and got upset when he struck out a couple of times. I think he did get at least one hit, but I didn't keep track very well since the other team forfeited due to a shortage of players. We lent them some of our players and just played a practice game. They "won" thanks to our players who hit well, so technically we "beat ourselves." Adam and Ryan both played again last night. Ryan's game was cut short due to rain, but he still got two good hits. Adam batted 2-for-4 with two singles and an RBI (15-for-19, .789, 12 singles, 3 doubles on the year). His team won 10 to 7 for a 7-2 record so far.

I've had occasion recently to think about how many Little League games and Cub Scout pack meetings we're going to end up going to over the next several years with our four boys. Tonight I've discovered another benefit of having all boys--Fathers and Sons outings! Dallin is still a little young to go camping without Mommy right now, so he and I are having a nice evening here at home. I really, really love my boys, but ah, the peace and quiet!

Not enough hours in the day

I've decided recently--not for the first time--that there just aren't enough hours in my day. I need three more hours to sleep and three more hours to get things done--things I really need to do and things I feel like I should do and things I just want to do. I suppose there's a chance I wouldn't be satisfied even with six more hours, but it sure wouldn't hurt. Dallin and I fell asleep on the couch for about a half an hour today, but my nice little nap was negated somewhat by the dreams I was having about what I should've been doing instead of sleeping. :-(

Just for the record, Adam's team lost again tonight, 11-4. So their record is now 5-2. Adam hit two singles, so he's 13 for 15 (.867 batting average, 10 singles and 3 doubles).

Blown Out

Adam's team played the Padres tonight and suffered their first loss of the season, so they are now 5-1. It was ugly. The score was 15-1. The other team hit really well and played well in the field, while Adam's team struggled at bat and had lots of fielding errors tonight. On the upside, Adam hit a nice leadoff double to start the game, and had a single as well. So he is now 11 for 13 (8 singles and 3 doubles) for a .846 batting average. It's nice though, that he cares more about his team losing than about how well he is doing individually.

Obligatory Baseball Post

Only two baseball games to report on this week--aren't you lucky?! Ryan and Adam both played last night. Ryan's game was rather unremarkable. He got to play shortstop and left field and got no action at either position. But he was more disappointed--as most tee-ballers are--that somebody's parents forgot the after-game snack again. So I let him get Ring Pops for himself and his brother's at the concession stand. They are slowly learning they are much more likely to get a treat if they don't ask, i.e., beg.

Adam's team won another squeaker, 2-1. It turned out to be a pitcher's duel, if you can call it that in a pitching machine league. :-) Hopefully both team's coaches learned that putting their weaker hitters all together in the lineup instead of mixing them in with the stronger hitters isn't very effective if you want to score runs. (Actually, I think Adam's coach is usually careful about that, but he wasn't there and the assistant coach in charge of the lineup appeared to be less experienced with that kind of thing.) Anyway, Adam hit a single past the shortstop into the outfield and also got on base with a fielder's choice. I've loved baseball since I was a little kid and think I know quite a bit about the game, but I didn't know until last night that a fielder's choice counts as an out when calculating batting average. So Adam is now 9 for 11 (.818 batting average). His team is 5-0 for the season. The league doesn't actually keep track of standings because they consider it a "learning league," but you just ask the 1st and 2nd grade Little Leaguers at Adam's elementary school and they will tell you that the Tigers and the Padres are undefeated, so if the Tigers (Adam's team) beats the Padres next week, they will be in first place.

Four more games

I think--I hope--this is the last week we have baseball games on four out of the seven days. Adam played Tuesday and Friday. Last night he struck out once and hit a single in a 7-6 win (4-0 record for the season). He's up to six singles, two doubles, and a strikeout for an .889 batting average. He also stopped four balls at third base. On one of them he got the force at third and threw the ball to home, nearly turning the double play. It would have been awesome if he'd gotten it, but I'm just proud that he's picked up enough of the game to know to try for it.

Ryan played Thursday night, Friday night, and Saturday afternoon. He was happy to get to play catcher for an inning today. It's a little harder to keep stats for him, however. In this league, every teeball player bats every inning and everyone scores unless they get thrown out at first, which happens only occasionally. He's having fun though, and has improved a lot since last season. By the way, have you ever noticed how little kids look so cute in uniforms?

A Squeaker

Adam's game last night was a close one, but they pulled it out, 9-8. He got one double and two singles and scored twice. He also got to play catcher for two innings, which he was excited about--I'm not sure why. But he did a good job of it. Here are a couple pictures.

Dallin also enjoyed the baseball game. Well, he fell asleep in his carseat, which I assume means he was enjoying himself. Before he fell asleep we got this picture. By the time Jared and Dallin are old enough to play baseball themselves, they are either going to be really good, or really sick of it. If you're reading this blog, you might be sick of it too. Please forgive the game-by-game description and just be grateful it's not play-by-play. :-)

Cold Texas Easter

We had a cold front blow into Texas yesterday. At Ryan's teeball game last night it was about 50 degrees, but the wind made it feel much colder (although not quite cold enough to send the players to the coach's motor home between at-bats). They actually called the game after two innings and let us all go home to get warm. On the way to the car 3-year-old Jared said, "Mommy, I'm frozen." Anyway, Ryan got to play in the pitcher's position the first inning and was so excited when he threw two runners out at first. Wish I could have caught the grin on his face and shared it with you.

Today was even colder. I'm not sure it got above freezing. We had freezing rain and then snow too, which actually accumulated maybe an inch on the ground. In this part of Texas that is fairly rare, especially in April. So far they haven't canceled church tomorrow, but if the roads are icy enough, they might. We did Easter baskets and an (indoor) Easter egg hunt today so we can hopefully focus on Christ and His resurrection tomorrow. That might be a bit trickier to do with the kids if there is no church. We'll see. It'll be a cold Texas Easter, but fortunately the weather is supposed to be back up in the 70's in time for the next round of ball games next week.

Still batting 1.000

Adam played his second game tonight. I took our camera this time, but still didn't get any pictures of him. My multi-tasking capabilities seem to decrease in direct proportion to how sleep-deprived I am. Anyway, Adam got a double and a single, respectively, in his two at-bats, and his team won 9-7. The only bad thing was the mosquitoes have started coming out. I really don't like mosquito repellant, but it's better than the alternative.

$143 sock and Ryan's first game

I think it's a good idea to try to learn at least one new thing every day. I just hate learning things the hard way. Last Wednesday our washing machine broke down with two loads to go. Jeff volunteered to look at it and try to fix it, but when it wasn't even obvious how to open it up we decided to call a repairman. Sears sent out a really nice guy who popped open the washer, pulled one of Dallin's little socks out of the pump, kindly advised me to wash little socks in a mesh bag so they can't escape the tub, and then charged me $143. What a pain. I even have one of those mesh bags, but hadn't thought to use it. Guess I will now. Live and learn.



As mentioned in yesterday's post, Ryan's first teeball game of the season was tonight. He's one of the older, bigger kids in teeball now too, which I think he's pretty happy about. Last year he wanted so bad to play in the infield. Tonight he played third base the whole game. Here he is in his Pirates uniform. (Maybe it's a genetic thing with third base. That was usually my position in Little League too, unless I was pitching.) He got three hits in each of the three innings. They don't keep score in teeball, so there was no winning team. Jeff and I have always thought they should declare the team who gets the most defensive outs as the winner, since getting a runner out is quite the accomplishment for those little kids who are just beginning to figure out how the game works. And believe me, although Ryan knows more than he does last year, this team has a lot of young kids and a LOT of room for improvement. If one of them weren't my kid, it would be painful to watch them.

The elation we felt when Jeff was offered a position at UVSC a few weeks ago is beginning to take a back seat to the stress that comes with the whole moving process. We are still happy about these changes, but not looking forward to the transition period. Ugh.

April Fool's and Batting 1.000

So for my first official entry in the blogosphere, let me tell you what Jeff did to celebrate April Fool's Day with the kids yesterday. They wanted aebleskivers for breakfast, better known as "footballs" at our house, since that's the shape they usually take when we cook them. Jeff was game to make them, as he usually is on weekends, but he decided to add a few surprises for the sake of the holiday. After a little thought he first tried marbles. Now, it didn't occur to me until afterward that this might pose a choking hazard, but luckily it had occured to Jeff, so he was very careful to not give a marble-filled aebleskiver to Jared, and to carefully watch Adam and Ryan as they bit into theirs. They thought it was a great April Fool's joke and also enjoyed the blue milk, and the aebleskivers filled with other assorted things found in our kitchen--breakfast cereal, peanuts, pretzels, toffee chips, and especially, Spiderman fruit snacks. Only problem was, Jeff made a double batch, which almost caused us to be late to the Sunday morning session of General Conference, which we usually go to the church to watch so the kids know it is still the Sabbath day.

Adam came up with something interesting yesterday that I had never thought of. Jared's name includes the first letters of the names of most of the rest of our family:

J--Jeff
A--Adam
R--Ryan
E--well, maybe the next kid, if there is one
D--Dallin

That leaves me out, but since I'm the odd one out anyway, and since I was impressed that Adam thought of this in the first place, I'm not in the least offended.

Adam played his first baseball game of the season tonight. (Ryan's first game is tomorrow night--stay tuned.) For the second year in a row, Adam is on the Tigers in the Peewee (machine-pitch) division of our local Little League. This year he is one of the older, and therefore, better players. He's even grown a few inches and looks like a big kid. He played third base for the whole game and got up to bat twice, getting singles both times. That means he's batting 1.000 for the year. Not bad at all. And his team, which struggled last year, was very excited to win their first game tonight by a score of 3-2.