Weekend with Papa & Mema

Episcopal held Grandparents/Special Friend Day on Friday, March 8th and fortunately the timing worked out that Papa and Mema were able to come down for the weekend.  There was a short program for all the guests and preK-4 sang two songs.  Afterwards, Papa and Mema got to head over to Emma's classroom and see some of her artwork and hear about all that she is learning.  The Lower School had early dismissal that day so Emma got to leave and spend an afternoon by herself with Papa and Mema.  Before heading home, they treated her to McDonald's and since she ate so well, some ice cream!  I think the remainder of the afternoon was devoted to reading books; Mema must have read at least 2 dozen.

As I mentioned previously, Papa and Mema got to see Emma play soccer the following morning and then they got to meet the oft-mentioned Libby Loo.  Unfortunately with everything else going on that weekend, we only got to spend a couple of hours with Kacy and the girls but Emma was over the moon to see Libby.

After our visit with our favorite West Plains Family, Emma and I headed to the JumpZone for a party and after a nap, Josh got some time with Papa and Mema.  Since it was such a beautiful day, they took advantage and played outside.

We had a great visit and Emma was so excited that she had her Papa and Mema there for Grandparents Day!

Spring Soccer - Josh

Soccer kicked off for Josh the weekend after Emma.  He moved up to the next age group, which essentially means that they are doing the same drills with approximately 10,000 more kids (or so it would seem).  Several of Josh's friends from Grace are also playing this spring although he is in major denial about the girls.  He'll comment that Will and Ross will be out there and I'll add on Marion and Anna Beth at which point he shakes his head no and states "girls don't play soccer."  They have been splitting the kids up into 4-5 groups of ~15 kids and then they rotate between the different stations.  Josh is much more interested in the stations where he can practice kicking the ball than he is in kicking over cones or picking up pinnies; guess the excitement of those wore off after fall soccer.  We were hoping that they would start doing some 1 on 1 this spring but with the number of kids out there, I'm not sure that will happen. 

 

 

Wordless Wednesday - Three Red Headed Musketeers

Emma's New Bike

Emma upgraded so she no longer looks like a circus clown riding her tiny bike around.  In spite of our efforts to lead her in other directions, she ended up choosing a bike that looked almost exactly like her old bike only bigger.  We did break down and get her some training wheels with the hope that they won't be on there long.  Brad also put them on so that only one is actually touching the game at any point.  She did catch on to that and was asking some questions but with a little confidence, I think she'll be off and riding without them before long. 

 

 

Driveway Basketball

Josh is always happy when the neighbors goal is unobstructed by any extra vehicles parked in the driveway.  He could also care less that the goal is broken. 

 

Cat in the Hat's Birthday

Unfortunately for Emma, the Cat in the Hat's Birthday celebration at Barnes and Noble coincided with her first soccer game.  Fortunately for Josh, he was able to go hang out with his buddy Ross and stay nice and warm.  Ross's Mom and Dad were kind enough to let Josh come play and then take him with Ross over to see the Cat in the Hat.  The boys had a big time and were way too cute sitting next to each other.  Hope these boys can stay friends for a long, long time! 

Emma's First and Second Games

After only one practice, the girls were thrown into competition.  Fortunately at this age, there aren't a whole lot of rules and I'm not sure they even really kept score.  Emma was definitely a bit nervous about her first game and did not want to go because she is so afraid of failure.  She told both Brad and I separately that she just wanted to be the best and all the other girls were better.  We both reassured her that as long as she tried, she was the best!  The first game was a balmy 37 degrees with snow flurry but the girls had a great time and were not as bothered by the cold as the adults.  Her smile says it all!

 
Thankfully the weather was a little more seasonable for the second game.  I missed it since Josh also had soccer but Emma had good fan support between Daddy, Papa and Mema.  She scored a goal and was so proud of herself!  

 

 

At the end of the games, they have all the parents and other fans make a tunnel for the kids to run through; so fun!

Spring Soccer

After watching Josh play soccer in the hall, Emma's interest was piqued so we decided to give it a try this spring.  I will admit that I wasn't sure how it would go especially since the week before her first practice, she told me she was still thinking about it.  By that point, there was no thinking as the registration had been paid.  Emma is one of two new players on her team this season.  The team is primarily made up of girls from school and I think it really helped having friends on the team.  Emma is clearly on the right team as every single girl had either a completely pink or primarily pink ball!  The first practice went well and as it turns out, our previously clumsy little girl has figured out how to coordinate her feet and legs and looks the part of a soccer player.  I'm sure we'll see tons of improvement throughout the season. 

Wordless Wednesday - Pony Girl