Summer soccer

Casey had his first experience in an "organized" sport over the summer. It was a four-week soccer camp through the Cross Plains Parks and Rec department--a very casual introduction to soccer. They practiced some kicking drills and played some scrimmages, but basically it was just a chance to spend some time running around outside and meet some kids his own age.

Here he is before his first practice ... that must be his game face.

And here he's showing off his spiffy new jersey. The kids were divided into four small teams, and Casey's team was called the Lizards.

Kicking drills ... aka a lesson in standing in line and taking turns

A new friend? Casey seemed to spend a lot of time wrestling and laughing with this kid.

More kicking drills ...

And still more kicking ... is that all they do in soccer?

Chris and I alternated being able to watch Casey and playing with Darby at the adjacent playground. Casey enjoyed the soccer and says he wants to play again next summer, but honestly Darby is the one who seemed to come away with a passion for the sport. It was all we could do to keep the little guy off the field with the big kids, and now whenever we're outside one of his favorite things to do is kick the little soccer ball around. He's actually a pretty good dribbler, but he hasn't learned the no-hands rule yet.

Also, he looks cute in his dad's hat.

What's that you say, summer's over?

Yeah, I'm really behind on these. At some point in August, or possibly July, I took the kids to a beach because Casey told me he wanted to build sandcastles. Of course, I ended up doing all the building. But Darby was happy to hold a shovel and take all the credit.

It was actually kind of chilly that day, but Casey braved the water. There were two lifeguards watching, and no one at the beach except for us, so I let him go in by himself up to his waist.

Then the kids wanted to play at the playground. It was close to the beach, and the place was practically deserted, so I just left the beach toys in the sand instead of hauling them around. An hour or so later, the kids wanted to go back to the beach, and by that time another family had arrived with a toddler boy, and the boy had been playing with Casey and Darby's trucks. No big deal, except that I had inadvertently left the bulldozer next to the sandcastle. Toddler boy ... bulldozer ... sandcastle ... you can pretty much guess what happened.

Casey was upset, and the other family was really apologetic (they thought the castle had been abandoned, which it basically was, considering how long we were at the playground). I assured them it was no big deal. I mean, we were practically asking for it, leaving that kind of setup behind.  

And then we had a picnic lunch. It's so rare that I get two boys in one photo, who cares if they're chewing with their mouths open?

You make a fair point, Casey

"Darby's a good baby!" Casey said.

"Well, he's good, yes, but he's not exactly a baby anymore."

"Oh.  Well, he does cry a lot."

More fun in Indiana

Happy birthday to everybody

My parents (aka Nana and Grandpa) have trouble making it to all of the grandkids' birthday parties, and I am always disappointed that we can't have more family at our kids' birthdays. So this year, we decided to throw one big party for all the grandkids when we were visiting Indiana. Krista and Casey were in charge of the decorating committee and went totally overboard with balloons and streamers. A lot of fun was had by all.

Little Guys, Big Strides

Before I left for my trip with the kids to Indiana, Chris jokingly made me promise that neither of the boys would reach any new milestones during the week we were gone. He didn't want to miss anything. We both agreed that at this age, probably nothing momentous would happen in that short time. They're both beyond that baby stage where they're constantly doing cool new stuff.

But, I still shouldn't make promises I can't keep. That week, Darby started stringing a couple words together in practically sentence-like fashion. One day he bumped his head and told me the story of how it happened: "Head. Bump. That. Ow." Another day we were talking about taking the kids out for a walk, and Darby got impatient. He stood up and announced, "Ready walk!" For a fleeting moment I thought he said, "Ready to rock!" Which would have been totally plausible, considering how much he likes to make music.

Casey also did cool stuff. He overcame his summer-long fear of getting on a bicycle and rode around Nana and Grandpa's driveway. Watch with the sound on to get the full effect of Casey trash-talking Darby:

Fun at the Epicnic

A few weeks ago Chris's company had it's annual picnic. It was a steamy hot day, but there was lots to see and do, and the kids had fun.


Since the campus is perpetually under construction, once again they set up a "construction petting zoo" for the kids. It was very popular, of course.








There also was an animal petting zoo. Darby particularly liked the duck.