Drew Playing Soccer

Little Striker

Drew has started playing soccer now. At 3, it is pretty young, but he is so excited to be just like his big brother and big sister. There was a big discussion between Ty and Ellie whether Drew should wear Tyler's number (7) or Ellie's number (3). since 3 was the only one available, Ellie won out. When I brought the uniform home, Drew was so excited, he immediately changed into the uniform and went running around the house yelling "Look at me, I am a soccer player". Needless to say, the socks didn't make for good footing on the wood floors. After several spills, he wanted to put his cleats on too. Not a good idea! 

With Buddy Kyra

The first game was last Saturday, April 2nd.  The team had not had chance to practice due to rain.  The other team appeared to have been practicing since last year.  I wanted to check the birth certificate on one kid.  I think he was already shaving.

"Herd Ball"

Regardless, that kids had lots of fun, and enjoyed the snacks.  At 3, what more can you ask for, right?


 

Boys of Summer

Last weekend, Tyler had two soccer games and a baseball game 0 Phew! He did well, scoring a goal in one soccer game (see first photo) and getting a couple of hits in the baseball game.

Guess who was 'volunteered' to coach Ty's baseball team? Turns out the league had enough players, but no coach. So I volunteered. Of course I end up missing the first game and team pictures due to work. Fortunately for me, I have lots of help from all the other Dad's - everyone 'pitches' in.

Unfortunately for Melissa, she is stuck being the Team Mom, which means she handles all the emails, coordinating practices and did I mention all the emails? I think I got off easy.

For kindergarten and first grade, games are coach pitch, with each kid getting 5 pitches to swing at. Like every sport he has tried so far, Ty really likes it. He has a good arm, and is getting very good at hitting. More than once I have had to jump out of the way of a line drive or risk ending up on episode of America's funniest home videos.

Easter Eggs, Dancing and Soccer - Must be Spring

I wanted to post one more update before we head out on vacation. That's right, I said the "v" words, but more on that later.

First, an update on the kids' activities. Saturday was the neighborhood Easter Egg hunt. The day started out nice, but quickly cooled off as the wind picked up. At least the rain held off. Ellie and Ty both had lots of fun grabbing as many eggs as they could. Ellie particularly liked the purple and pink eggs. Melissa behaved herself this year by not taking any eggs for herself.

Ellie is almost finished with her dance class. We have a recital in a couple of weeks where she will show off what she has learned. If you click on the picture to the left, you can see a little tap routine.

Tyler has finished basketball and is on to soccer and baseball. Dave "volunteered" to coach Ty's baseball team. By default, Melissa is "Team Mom" and has been taking care of the administrative side of things - lots of phone calls and emails. Games don't start until May, so for now, it is more soccer. He definitely stays active, and loves it!

Okay, back to the vacation comment. We are going to Europe for a couple of weeks to visit friends in Brussels and Paris. It is something the whole family is really looking forward to - now that we ALL have our passports. A warning to anyone else considering international travel (including Canada and Mexico) - plan WAY ahead!!! The State Department is inundated with passport applications and it is taking several weeks to even get your application into the system to be tracked.

Our good friends from back East, the Robinson clan, have kindly opened up their house as home base, Kirsten has put together an AWESOME itinerary which includes trips to Amsterdam, Brugges, Luxemburg, Normandy and of course Brussels. If we're lucky, our trip to Keukenhoff Gardens in Amsterdam will coincide with the blooming of the tulips. We are then off to visit former neighbors, who are on assignment in Paris, for a couple of days. Dave will have his laptop, so we will try to make a few posts while we out of town.