Merry Christmas

A note from Jed....

In full recognition of the fact that it has been 2 months to the day since I posted anything here,

and to just whet your appetite for the posts that I promise are to come (a lot HAS been going

on around here, hence the non attention payed to the blog) I give you this video clip:

consider yourself tided over until next time.....

Everybody Plays

The motto of AYSO is "Everybody Plays".  In our family we take that to heart. 

All four of our kids are on AYSO teams this fall season, with Pete coaching the team that

Henry and Jed are on together.  Once you register three kids with AYSO the fourth 

(and fifth, sixth etc.) are free, so we convinced Jack to play fall soccer this year, mostly on the

rational that it wouldn't cost us (another) dime after signing up the others. 

Unlike two years ago, which was the last time he played, Jack is really enjoying his team this year and 

is doing well and helping them succeed.  Harriet is once again on her same AYSO plus team

with her great coach and fun teammates. They are doing very well this season, undefeated except

for one tie last week.  Jed and Henry are on the same team, with Pete as their coach as mentioned.

They are having fun but are struggling as a team.  They've scored exactly one goal so far this 

season, at the most recent game the score was 10 - 0 ( for the other team).  BUT, in my role as AYSO

cheerleader I just keep reminding Pete how good this is for the boys and how much fun they

are having and how beneficial the physical exercise is they get and how they are spending such

great quality time with their uber busy dad. And he tries to be less frustrated.  It's all good. 

Henry and Jed looking good in their uniforms for their team

Guts 'n Glory 

Coach Pete drilling home a point 

Dribbling the ball 

Henry on the practice field 

and Henry on the playing field...

Jed's slide tackle specialty

Jed plays goalie for part of the game and loves

all the times it allows him to spend rolling on the ground 

"Please.  Please.  Just score a goal." 

On the other end of the spectrum we have Jack and Harriet.  

Jack the Smashing Pumpkin 

First game day of the season there was rain and lightening so after

only warming up the games were canceled.  Just enough time for

Jack (and everyone else on the fields, including us spectators)

to get a good soaking. 

But since their first game (lost 4 - 0) Jack and the Smashing Pumpkins have been

dominating their age group.  They have a strong team that works well together,

no one is a weak link and no one is a dominating hotshot, so everyone feels like

they have contributed during the game.   Jack is not a natural soccer player

but he knows how to get on the field and be in position and mix it up a bit. 

This is also Jack's first season of playing Goalie: 

Jack in the (goalie) box 

Jack has done well and by my count has only let one goal in during his watch.

Sharing the fields with the geese 

When he's not coaching on Saturdays, Pete is reffing. 

Harriet the Hippie Chick! 

This is Harriet's third year with the Hippie Chicks,

the Lake Forest AYSO Plus team for her age group 

They have a strong team this year.  I'll admit, watching the boys play is fun and relaxing for

me, even with my kids playing goalie.  But when Harriet's team takes the field, always against 

a neighboring city's plus team, the competitive nervousness comes right out.  Every goal is

hard fought and hard won.  Their games are more skillful and exciting than

any other, and victory is far more important in her bracket.  These girls

know how to play and it's fun to watch them perform.  Again, Harriet isn't the strongest

breakout performer on the team, but she knows and plays her position well and can 

often make a difference out there on the field.  Competition is fierce, in a game against

Rancho Santa Margarita a week or so ago there were three Yellow Cards given out, one 

against our team and two against theirs.  After pulling ahead 2 goals to 1 the other team

scored in literally the last 10 seconds of the game to bring it to a (heartbreaking) tie.  Her coach

recently told us they are in first place for their age bracket of all the OC teams from San Clemente

all the way up to Los Alamitos. 

Very, very exciting. 

While most games are in the day, we've had a couple of games under the lights this season.

Harriet and the Hippie Chicks

Pete showing that he still has some of his soccer skills 

Celebrating a recent victory with some Fro Yo. 

Summer wrap-up; Pancakes and parties!

Harriet and Jack's middle school rudely interrupts our last few days of vacation to remind us through

registration that our days are numbered....

 The giant stacks at the school library book pick up reminds us that 

even in Southern California the summer isn't really endless.

BUT, before school can officially start there are a couple of things we still have to do...

First and foremost is our (now) long standing tradition of getting together in the day or two before school begins for the Back-to-School Breakfast at the Original House of Pancakes!  For at least the fifth or sixth year in a row Grandpa invited all of his within-range grandkids and their folks to join he and Grandma for a delicious breakfast and all around fun morning together to mark the end of summer/beginning of school year.  For the past several years we have held the breakfast on Labor Day morning so that Pete could join us as well, as we did that again this year.  We even managed to catch Kenzie on her last full day in town before she heads back up to school at BYU-I! 

Hot chocolate and competitive creamer structure constructing are part of the tradition...

Group photo with Grandpa and Grandma

(yes we all woke up early after having a sleepover of all the

 cousins minus Kenzie at our house the night before, and it shows)

Group photo on the railing in front of the OPH - another part of the tradition

(Pete was behind the camera)

Thank you again Grandpa for continuing this delicious tradition! 

For the rest of the (Labor) day we are invited to a block party with friends in our neighborhood. We take Porter along with us to enjoy the fun including a barbecue, a bouncy waterslide, and  someone's giant pet parrot (macaw?).

Porter and parrot 

The view from my chair under the easy-up next to my friends.

Didn't move from here much. 

Porter getting ready to slide down - Jed in the pool at the bottom 

Henry takes a run 

The blue cooler at Pete's feet was filled with homemade Tamales-

better than the barbecue even... 

Labor Day was overcast and cooler, actually the perfect 

weather for being outside for hours eating and chatting.

The day after Labor day and the day before school starts is a special one - it is the day that my twins become TEENAGERS! 

I was enjoying my last morning in my room of not having to get up and get everyone moving when I heard something next door - I go into Harriet's room and find that Jed and Henry, all on their own, have made her a birthday breakfast in bed!  (Jack slept over at a friend's house and wasn't around)  She is very touched by their effort, and I am impressed at the work they did all by themselves, including getting the serving tray down from its storage place on top of the fridge!

They fixed her a bowl of her favorite cereal, toasted and buttered two pieces of bread, poured her a glass of OJ complete with a straw, and served it with a muffin and a personalized birthday note! 

It was so cute...

For their 13th birthday we have planned separate parties for Harriet and Jack to spend with their friends. Harriet's is today! 

the adorable invitation we commissioned from Sugarhouse Ink 

As is mentioned, Harriet wanted to have a colorful Tie Dye party!  We had planned from the start to have the party outdoors due to its potentially messy nature.  We were a bit worried when the Labor day before had been cooler and overcast, but we need not have worried.  Today, the party day, was just the opposite; sunny, cloudless, and HOT!

There are 13 girls at the 13th birthday party - upon arrival they are invited to write a message to Harriet on the driveway in colorful chalk...

The colorful theme continues when Harriet opens her gifts...

The girls are given a goodie bag of colorful goodies, including a white t-shirt that they can tie-dye on the lawn.

Luckily, water is an integral part of the tie-dye process, and soon the buckets and hose are used in an impromptu water fight to cool off the girls - did I mention it was HOT outside today?!

Drying off post tie-dye/water fight activity 

Harriet and her ice cream cake with party guests

(Harriet's clothes were soaked in the water fight so she changed) 

Happy 13th Birthday sweet, smart Harriet! 

(party tie-dye t-shirts drying in the sun)

All in all it was a fun party and a great chance for Harriet and her friends to hang out one last time

before school starts the next day, and celebrate the fact that she's a TEENAGER!!

Jack had a party with his friends as well.  We ended up taking five of his friends to Sky High,

a trampoline arena in Costa Mesa that is literally wall to wall to ceiling trampolines!

There are several arenas for different activities - this one is dedicated solely to games of dodgeball, which Jack and his friends play over and over again 

flipping into the foam pit 

Giant jumping arena - our stake had a youth dance here last year that Harriet and Jack

hope they will recreate when they are old enough to attend... 

Jack and his guests dine on pizza and soda 

taking a sweaty break to open some gifts 

instead of cake and ice cream they get packs of dippin' dots 

Happy 13th Birthday handsome Jack! 

Sky High is located right next to the runway for the John Wayne airport - we can see and hear anytime an airplane takes off, lands, or taxis by.