You're Only 11 Once

I asked Logan what kind of cake he wanted and he requested a double layer, Chocolate and Vanilla. These cakes were made from scratch. No box cakes allowed. Just sayin'.

 

 

Here's the finished product.  Kind of tacky for an 11 Year Old, but whatev. As long as it tastes good.

We could not find a babysitter for the little kids. SO, off we went with Sadie and Chase in tow. Ryan and I took 2 vehicles to arrive at Shakers with 11 kids. The Party was scheduled to start at 4:30 pm and end at 7:30 pm. 

 We.had.fun. To say the least.

 School friends Aiden and Riley.

 There's the crew of them.

 Basketball Buddy Jared says this is the best place ever! 

 I may have forgotten to mention we were having so much fun, I texted all the parents of the kids and asked if we had permission to keep playing. And.so.we.did.

Mini Golf after Dusk.

 She scored it. "I'm a genius" she says.

 Night Ridin'

 And the little buddy that misses naps is now also missing bedtimes too. Turn us in. We are unfit.

 I tried to get him to sleep. Really I did.

 But he doesn't need a beauty sleep. He's perfect just the way he is.

 The Grand Finale: Logan spins the wheel and hits the Jackpot! (after they give him 3 tries at it!) I guess that's what happens when you close down the park.

 Happy Carnival Shopping!

 A Great Time Had by All 11. Ryan and I were exhausted. The parents picking up the kids said this was the longest Birthday Party ever. Well, time flies when you're having fun!

Baby Erin

Last September we attended a wedding in Kelowna for my cousin and his wife. This year, we met their baby Erin!! She is a little peanut. She is the 2nd girl among 13 and 2 half Great Grand Sons.

It goes like this: Logan, William, Eamon, Colby, Quinten, Cian, Bryan, Alexandar, Jude, (Sadie falls here) Hudson, Chase, Kesler, Declan, Baby Boy Mathews and Baby Boy Henderson en route.

 

We are happy for this 2nd Girl.

 

 Will always gets his turn.

 Erin even had her first Backyard BBQ in her honor. There were a whole lot of boys there too - and Sadie.

 

 

The boys started a game sacrificing their drawings. If there are no organized games then why not make up your own.



We all learn a little

Logan ran his first Cross Country Divisional Race and was hoping to qualify for Zones.

I was quite excited because this was a course I had run when I was young and athletic. It was my favorite course. I arrived to find Logan dashing around the green space from one group of friends to another, to grab a sip of water and change his shirt. One running with one idea after the other.

 

A Mother's advice to this overly perky child was: "You should conserve your energy."

Logan's response, "Mom! Do you know we get to miss the whole day of school!"

'Message Send Failure'

 Ah yes, it seems to be a family trait. To be squoze out into the back row 'On Your Mark'.

Don't worry, Logan is great with speed, so I was sure to tell him this was not a race of that nature. Instead, he needed to pace himself. As any 11 year old might respond, "I know, I know Mom."

And so the 2 km distance run began. Logan took the outside lane to get around all the front row runners. As he rounded the corner and out of sight I was close to falling over in pride/joy. He had taken 3rd place as they began to set the pace. He later informed me that I was incorrect. He was actually in 1st. I was obviously too busy with my eye behind the camera, and tracking Chase. All things happen for a reason. If I had seen him in first place I would have fallen over!

 It seemed to take forever for him to come back into sight. And when he did, I was so relieved to see him. He placed 13th. When I asked him what happened he said he was tired. AND! he was frustrated because he knew he could do better. This was a first, and last chance kind of day.

In my opinion, it was a great experience. And I'm sure he learned something along the way.

September Cross Country - Flag Football

September was A-Maz-Ing. Here is one reason why. The boys enrolled in Cross Country. I was so proud of their initiative. This particular race was in Millerville.

 

And they're off!!

A few steps away from the finish line.

 My little athletes achieved 6th and 4th place.

 Will was squeezed between gigantic kids. He eventually was squeezed through to the back row. I was sad for him. But when speaking to him after he said, "they were so pushy that they ended up tripping over each other and I just jumped over them.

 The Grades 1 through 3 run 1 Km. Grade 4 (including Will) runs 2 Km !!! I did not  know if he would make it. Along the course, out of sight, he was running to pass another boy who threw grass at him. I've always said, if there is adversity, Will faces it. But as with all challenges, good can come from it. Another boy from his Grade protected Will.

 He even saved some energy to sprint it out at the end.

 A Mother's Pride is pictured here. His ribbon reads Participant.

 But let us not forget the true champ. The boy who misses naps so Mom can cheer on the Big boys. This shining star was seen having a couple overtired meltdowns. It would have been much better had I remembered the stroller! But as luck would have it: in the final hour, he found a soccer ball! A few more minutes of distraction.

 This form of body language speaks to two factors: pouting and tired.

 This one: Just. Plain. Tired.

Thanks for hanging in there little buddy. It was SO worth it.

 

Moving right along. The funny story is: One day I was driving Logan to school and he asked if he could go out for the Flag Football Team. I said, "Sure." Not knowing that his first practice was on the same day he was asking! I searched for him after school, only to find him attending practice. In a room nearby was the first meeting for Cross Country (as seen above). And so began our journey on the race through September. I loved being on the road and outside at this beautiful time of the year. The kid management did get a little hectic at times though.

 

With a garage full of laundry, a kid nursed back to health and a kitchen full of dishes, here is the calendar I was preparing to attend to on Sept. 25:

 

Here is the calendar I actually ran. I had to leave Will to his own devices for the Zoo field trip because I thought Logan should have my support at his first Cross Country race (ever). And thankfully, someone out there in the Black Diamond world felt overwhelmed enough to cancel Cross Country. This meant I could totally manage my 4:30 pm pick-up conflict. I don't worry about getting stressed. Things always seem to iron themselves out during the day.

Logan played a couple Flag Football games and just blended in with the rest of the players. I sat quietly observing. Wondering if anyone would ever see skill in him (I knew it was down deep somewhere). Then came time for game in Turner Valley. I took my time getting out there and they ended ahead of schedule. So I missed the game!!! But I arrived just in time to speak to the coaches who said their main goal was to stop this unbelieveable opponent. Just when they thought they had lost the game, because Player "Unbelieveable" was running for a touchdown, Logan "Came from No Where!!!" and ....fell down. Everyone stood in utter suspense and in a few short seconds they saw Logan raise his arm ... with the FLAG!!! Miss McKenzie quoted Logan looking like the "Road Runner." I made her repeat comment because I could not believe she just called him by his own Nick Name. And so, there you have it: The Turner Valley game is where Logan arrived to show the team what he was made of. And it just got better and better.

 

Logan playing his next home game.

Touchdown #1

Touchdown #2

 This boy has wheels!!

 

Remember this little dude? Missing naps? Yeh, this day was no different. He moved the out-of-bounds markers and he was a great sport.



This will go down in history as one of the funniest things I've ever seen. See Little Man going in for the approach?

 Finding the Gap.

 Execution Complete

 High Fives came to the Tiniest Team Member. Oh, how I love this!

And just when you think you've seen enough red. We find some in Will's hair.