Short recap (with pictures to follow at some point)
The summer ended with the kids finishing up their last bit of summer camp getting ready for school in the fall. I had a great time last summer because on Fridays I only worked a half day so I went down to the community pool with the kids and swam with them every week. That is the great thing about living in a small community, I had no fears of hanging out at a public pool, that and the fact I lost over 100 pounds. I felt a bit more comfortable being around "strangers" in a swim suit. Anyway the kids honed their swimming skills and bombed off to the big kid pool! They are officially swimmers. Wahooooo!
Fall came and so did a new year with the little kids starting first grade and Kat starting third grade. Wow, where did the time go. My kids are becoming full fledged humans. Homework is harder, reading is bountiful, AND they have started some elementary algebraic mathematics. No rest for the wicked parent and I definitely had to get a book to help refresh my old dusty memory how how to work a word problem.
The start of fall also means the beginning of the soccer season. My little Whimsys were in full regalia this season. The boy, a dynamo one boy show. He can throw the ball in to himself, retrieve the ball, press down the pitch and score. He has found his calling athletically. Bitsy has toughened up as well, she actually with assistance from her brother scored 4 goals this season. This is a long way from last year sitting in the middle of the field picking flowers. I think she has found her confidence. The Kat played on her first all girl power soccer team this year as well. She is getting stronger by the minute and had a good season working the mid and back field of the pitch. Kat had a wonderful season.
Halloween approached and with that my little kids turned six. Six! It is amazing to me that just six short years ago those little buggers were housed in my body sucking every bit of food I could eat. I find pictures of them and can't believe how much they have grown. Kat was beautiful witch, the Big Easy was Captain America, and Bits was Jasmine. As the month came to a close so did the soccer season.
November brought trinkets of corn, pilgrims, and chilly days. Smack dab on November 1st the kids are already pulling out the Christmas tree and the hunt is on. We had to get a new tree due to the fact there was a break in from a pack of hooligan field mice into the storage box. Chewed branches, chewed light cords was a calling card for a fire disaster so I had to make other arrangements. Although, now that I think about it ..... hottie fire fighters, in my house, the whole save the distressed woman scenario....hmmmm.
So once the new tree was in place and the ornaments adorning the branches it was time to sit back and bask in the colored glow of lights. That is until a 3 pound orange ball of lightening fast fur decided he needed to learn how to climb. Driven by ancestral genetics for stalking prey from the high vantage point of a tree sat our little orange love. Eyes a blaze, twitching tail, and a circle of ornaments lying on the floor instead of the branches they originally were sat upon. Sadly I must report there were a few casualties. I guess this being his first Christmas and all the sights and smells overwhelmed him.
The tree looked sad, this little bugger has successfully bent, yes I said BENT, every branch on the lower quadrant of the tree. He had a growth spurt and went from 3 pounds to about 8 pounds. I have never seen a tree shimmy and shake as much as ours did. The kids were in full swing of holiday tunes, belting out carols of all sorts in the house, in the car, EVERYWHERE! I successfully added the Big Man in Red to my phone (speed dial of course), NORAD Santa tracker app, NORAD Santa tracker site saved on the desktop, wish lists in hand the kids felt I was fully prepared to negotiate with the Big Man.
So when the Big Guy showed up at the local firehouse (remember I said hotties work there) the kids had a game plan. This time they made a decorated gingerbread man and bum rushed his lap with token gift in hand. The plan seem to work, for little did they know their wishes were materializing. So now we are well into December, I finally get some time off after the semester finished at work. Ahhhhh, time to breathe, nope not gonna happen. NORAD Santa tracker was turned into a 30 minute lesson in time zones, maps, continents, and how to add the hours on and off.
If y'all could have seen me in action, I actually surprised myself. All three understood and the countdown could commence. Big Red was still in circling the small islands in the Southern Hemisphere and the kids knew they only had a few hours before they must slumber.
The new year is upon us and we are all hoping for a brighter year. Things have been tough for us the past two years, and hopefully we can finally settle into a nice groove of stability for awhile. The Kat was recruited for a winter soccer league, she is one of two girls whom have received a invitation to participate. The rest of the team are boys. Amidst the chaotic training schedule all three of my brood are now moving into the Martial Arts world. I have held off as long as I could but now I think they are ready for that kind of responsibility. It is nice to have all three of them in the same class, it is nice to see the smiles and attentiveness the kids have while in class, it is nice to see the kids active for a full 60 minutes. Sensei wears them OUT! Listen, any activity that a kid can participate in while also learning a life lesson for respect, honesty, hard work, while building a self confidence I am all in.
Ok here is the soap box portion of the show, I played sports all my childhood and part of my adult life. There is good with the bad, however the good that came from my adventure in sports was this. I learned to lead from within, I learned I am capable of many spectacular things, I learned to work with others, I learned it is ok to have fun while working hard, I learned that you can't take things for granted, I learned there is a camaraderie amidst teammates, I learned you can build trust and friendships. I want my kids to be able to share in that exhilaration of competition, I want my kids to share in that happiness. If it gets them a scholarship into college then that is an added benefit but I am not blinded to a singular future for them. As long as they love to play, they will play. If they want to change and experience something new, I am all for it. The benefits of any activity is what the parent and the child put into that activity. Thus endth my speech.
So here we are in the middle of January and it feels great to write again. Did I say this was a short recap? I guess the faucet finally became unclogged.
Your mind will answer most questions if you learn to relax and wait for the answer. ~ William S. Burroughs
