Volleyball Season

Volleyball season has started for K. She has an incredible coach, and I have no doubt she will learn more from this coach than all of her others combined. The team is great and they won all three of their games Saturday. What's really funny is that every time they get a kill or an ace, they all go hi-five each other. Needless to say, this makes the games last a little longer!

S's favorite part of the weekend was the airplane museum where he got to stand next to Luke Skywalker's X-Wing fighter!! He said, "That is just so cool!!". He also got to pilot his own little jet around the hanger.

And on a final note, as if we needed to add another activity to our schedule, I decided to take a riding lesson yesterday. I haven't been on a horse since I was about 10 or so. Kudos to my daughter and her friends for making English riding appear easy -- it most definately is not!! It went pretty well once I started to get the hang of posting and my friends and I quit laughing! After an hour I had bruises where I shouldn't and was quite fearful that I would not be able to move this morning. However, thanks to my weights and running, I am not as sore as I thought I would be -- as long as I don't have to sit down! I'm sure Angel was a very confused pony after my ride and was quite ready to get me off of her back! At least I knew how to tack up and untack! When I told S that I rode Angel and that it was kind of funny, he asked if I laughed. I said "yes", and he said' "It sure makes me laugh!!". Oh the support we get from our kids!

Soccer Season '07

E began soccer season with a bang! This year the girls have gone from playing 4 on 4 to playing 6 on 6 with a goalie. The field is also much bigger, but the 'Dominators' (as they voted to call themselves) have adjusted quite well. They all rotate through all of the positions, but the coach doesn't put E on defense much because she can't seem to make herself stay behind that line! She made a goal yesterday and helped her team win 4 to 1. She is loving the game more than ever and has dreams of being the next Mia Hamm (whose biography she has now read twice!). So now along with our volleyball net, we have two big soccer goals adorning our back yard. She even has a soccer skills book that she lays on the ground, and various cones she sets up for drills according to the book. This kid is serious!!! And just to keep the record straight, while playing soccer she is to be referred to as 'EmDog'. How feminine!! At least she insists on having that hot pink soccer ball, and the matching socks they are required to have are, yes, pink because of her suggestion. To her, there is no other color, and there is no other sport! You go, girl!!

Blue Cloud Horse Show

K's first non-schooling show went great!! The day before, A learned how to braid a mane for a show. This particular horse has a very full mane, so it took almost 2 hours! Afterwards, we had to put a sleezy on her to keep her from rubbing out the braids during the night. Angel didn't much care for that! After getting home at 9:00 that night, we had to polish boots, press the hunt coat and shirt, and make sure we had gloves, garter straps, helmet, etc. ready for our 5:30 trek to the barn the next morning. K rode and jumped very well and there were no crashes this time! I really would prefer for someone else to watch and tell me when it's over, but it's hard to take pics that way!! K and Angel both were awesome and they both slept very well last night.
Since I had the cameras at the show, we have no pics of E's first game of the season (which is a bummer since I hear she scored the last goal from mid-field). We will take pics this Saturday and give her her own post!

Our Crazy Life

Everyone is back in the swing of school now (after 2 weeks!). K is at the middle school and loves it and her teacher. E has K's teacher from the last 2 years and we think she is the greatest! S is going to the Pre K program 3 days a week this year and is very upset on the 2 days he doesn't go!


K started the year with her hair nine inches shorter -- which she loves. No more nasty tangles!!! She is still riding (her biggest show of the year is tomorrow), taking piano, and will start volleyball next week. Someone should have warned me that girls grow up very quickly when they hit 10. Where did my little girl go!?



E just got new glasses -- yes, they are hot pink -- and thinks she is the coolest! She is playing soccer again this season (EmDog is back on the field!) and still taking piano. She also thinks having nightly homework in third grade is really cool! I'm thinking that won't last very long.


S just keeps getting taller. He is very much into Legos right now -- and unfortunately so are all of our feet! He loves to build airplanes! The rest of in the house are just plain boring. A is still playing volleyball, and trying to figure out how to get everyone everywhere since ALL of these activities take place on Wednesdays and Thursdays!! D's company is doing very well and you would all be impressed by how he gets around on those crutches! I'm sure there will be another post after the first soccer game and the horse show this weekend. We miss you all!!

How to get your dad to buy you a pony........

.....let the pony do the kissing-up!

How to stop Mom's heart.......

K is very sore and has a scraped arm, but OK. We think she should have been given a prize for taking out the whole upright and the crossbars! There were several bad falls this week at the barn with two of her friends ending up in the emergency room, but everyone is OK. It must be the heat!! We are all so thankful that God is watching over these girls and no one was seriously injured! And as K reminded me earlier, all the horses are OK, too.

Double Digits

My sweet little girl has turned 10!!! Where did the time go? She is such a wonderful, sweet, loving little girl that seems awefully grown-up now!







She had a Luau Slumber Party last night with all of her friends -- even her friend S from Texas!! They wore themselves out on the slip'n'slide, which made bed time a breeze!


This morning we went to the barn to have cake with all of the 'barn girls'. She even shared a piece of cake with her very best friend. Happy birthday, K!!!! We love you!!!!

A wanted me to try this cool feature, so here goes. The ony thing we seem to be doing and getting pics of lately is horse shows, so here is the latest from July 7.

Summer Fun

Summer has started with a bang at our house! All three kids are taking swim lessons, K is riding and taking piano, A ran the Bolder Boulder again this year and is now getting a late start on spring cleaning (the family loves me in this mode). D spends time chasing S around the house on his knee scooter (much faster than 'crunches', as S calls them).
Saturday morning all three of the girls ran a 2 mile race called the Sunrise Stampede. E was flying and finished in 21:10! You go, E! A ran with K and they finished in 23:something. As soon as the race was over, we drove straight to K's horseshow at Triple Creek Ranch. She was exhausted last night! Despite the fact that she moved up a division and added the canter, she did even better than last time. She ended up being champion of her division, and she has not stopped smiling!! Great job, K!
Other than that, we don't have much going on this summer! Oh yeah -- there is VBS, volleyball camp, A's weekly v-ball games, multiple sleepovers, K's birthday, missing our friends and family...............

....and Horse Show Season Begins!

K started off her season with a bang! After many nerves and jitters, and a nearly sleepless night for mom, K did awesome at her first horse show. She won a 5th place and a participation ribbon in her flat classes, and despite missing her first two classes and having to make all three of her jumping rides right together, she came away with 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place ribbons in her jumping classes! She is still grinning and we are so proud of her!! Congratulations K and Angel (showname: R U Listening)!!!!

Soccer Season Ends.......

E and S closed out soccer season with a bang this morning. E had two goals and two assists, and S had five goals. Yes, in the last game of the season he figured out what you are supposed to do with a soccer ball -- and he definately did it!! I'm not sure how E is going to survive untili fall soccer starts. I'm thinking summer soccer camp! Way to go E and S!!

Bye, Bye, Bunny!

Well, after keeping the little guy for about 4 days, we found him to be uninjured and able to care for himself. By the 4th day, he was desperately trying to get out of his cage. Grandma did some research and found out that his mommy might still be looking for him. After it got dark, the kids and I took the cage outside and let him go. He didn't go very far, though. He hopped out and immediately started eating the grass.
We were very excited to discover him in our yard the next morning! He has apparently taken up residence under our slide. This might be because we keep putting out lettuce, alfalfa, and rabbit yogurt treats. K goes out every morning to check on him. Hopefully we have a new, outside only pet!

New Baby

We have the cutest new addition at our house! This adorable little bunny fell down in our basement window well. Grandaddy found it and couldn't wait to show the kids! We figure it is about 2 or 3 weeks old, and have no idea where its mother is. So, we put it in Sophie's old kennel, and I went to PetSmart and bought a bottle and some formula. This wasn't quite what I had in mind when I was thinking of having another baby, but he's awefully cute! D tried to feed him but he wouldn't eat. We're afraid that our little buddy is so traumatized that he won't make it, but we're going to give it a shot! I'll keep you posted!

The Litesaver

S's obsession with Star Wars has moved from the Lego Star Wars game on the PlayStation to his very own 'litesaver' which, as he puts it, will 'cut off you hand!'. Isn't that nice? His favorite thing to do is walk around with it hanging from his pants, and to explain to us all how that process works with the clip on the litesaver. He has also become quite good at 'accidentally' hitting us all with it and saying 'I was just opening it.'. Of course, I happen to think he makes the cutest Luke Skywalker I've ever seen!

What soccer ball?

S had his first soccer game on Saturday. Considering they don't hold practices, it was quite entertaining!! After switching his uniform to the right color, S spent the first few minutes running, jumping, and just generally acting goofy. Once we pointed out to him that he was on a soccer field with a soccer ball, he managed to figure out how to kick it fairly quickly. Every time he kicked it in the goal during their practice time, he would run over to me on the sidelines for a 'Hi-Five' and yell 'Woo-Hoo! I got a goal!'.

It was quite funny to watch all six players on the field during the game follow the ball as a little herd. Right before the game was over, S got a goal! He jumped up and down and then looked over at us with his thumb up and yelled 'Gig'em Aggies!' That might have something to do with the fact that he kicked it in the wrong goal, but we didn't tell him that! He was so proud of himself, and so were we!!!!

Happy Easter!

It was a very cold Easter today! Spring came and went and now we have winter again -- although I think we are supposed to hit 60 degrees tomorrow!


The kids had lots of fun hunting Easter eggs, even though it was 29 degrees outside. Somehow the Easter Bunny found a few snow piles for the white eggs. Even Sophie got into the action and sniffed out a few eggs for the kids.


As soon as the kids came in it started snowing, and it snowed all day! Yes, there is a place on Earth with weather crazier than Texas -- and we found it!!! I hope you all had a wonderful Easter!!

Spring Has Sprung (for a few days)

Thanks to our unseasonably warm weather the last couple of weeks (we have been in the 70's), the kids have been able to enjoy the outdoors! K started riding again once the three-month-old snow melted. She was so glad to see her Angel and get back in the corral!

E started soccer again on Saturday and had an awesome game. She has so much energy she moves on the sidelines just as much as she does on the field! The team decided to call themselves the Speedy Girls this year -- and they definately are!


Today we got to go to a friend's house and ride horses. K jumped some more and E got to try riding. We've decided to let her stick to soccer! I thought she was going to bounce right out of the saddle when Duchess started trotting! Even L got to ride a horse today!! I realize I left S out of this post, but he has his first-ever soccer game on Saturday, so I'm sure there will be some great pics from that!!