End of Fall Soccer Season - Jaden

Jaden races down the field



Jaden's team ended their season today.  The team was 1-2-5, with their lone win coming in the very last game that was part of the two games they played today.  I think the boys were a bit disappointed that they weren't more successful, but they did get better over the course of the year. 

They ran up against teams that were very skilled and the boys struggled to play the disciplined and controlled style that comes with the advanced skills that most of the teams had.

The team had a a picnic in between the two games to celebrate the season and desptice the cold weather, everyone hung out on the beach for a good hour...the kids even ran around without their jackets and hats, of course, and then had about an hour of downtime before their second game.

It was a good season nonetheless as Jaden enjoyed the people he was playing with, learned some skills and got to play a sport he loves on a consistent basis.

Date Night

Last night was date night for Kristen and I and she decided that we were going to play a game as part of our experience.  As we got ready to go she said, "We are going to play the alphabet game.  Our goal is to figure out as we go through the night how we do something associated with as many of the letters of the alphabet as possible, in order. To start, we are going somewhere for appetizers.  That will be our "A"."  And off we went.

Jason's Entree

 It was certainly nice to get out with her.  We talked about her interviews, her upcoming work with CASA and future thoughts...things that we don't normally get to talk about.  We also ventured to a new place for those appetizers and dinner called Tavolino.  A nice place and not too expensive.  The presentation of their food was awesome, which Kristen always enjoys:



Kristen's Entree



We both tried items that we weren't really sure we would like...and while that was part of the experience, we probably didn't end up with food that we were that enamored with...



From dinner, we went to a movie and enjoyed both laughing and getting to see some friends unexpectedly there as well.



I think we only made it to M or N in our alphabet game, but that really wasn't the point anyway.  It was a nice way to spend an evening together and the alphabet game simply helped us try some new things while being out.

Jaden's offsite school adventure

Each year at Miscoe Hill Middle School, the 5th graders go off to Nature's Classroom.  Not sure how to describe it as I don't think I know exactly what all happens when they go...so, maybe I will have to add some more details once Jaden is back.  I do know that mom is nervous about Jaden being away for 2 nights and that apparently he will journal while there.  A friend who is one the parental chaperons snapped this photo and sent it to me last night.  Excited to hear what Jaden gets to experience while out there.

A Great Rainy Day

Great Expectations

Free image courtesy  from imagerymajestic
of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

So, with all respect to the title of this post, this is about the newest project that we have embarked on with our eldest two children that is slated to last for the summer...

How many books would you think you could read over the summer...if you had the summer off like the kids do?  10?  15?

Jaden got his summer reading list from school and he is required to read 2 books for the summer.  1 fiction and one non-fiction.  Now, I know that is the assignment and that he can do more...but it just irks me that the bar is SO LOW right now.

So, I told Jaden he was going to read ALL the books on the schools list that the kids had to choose from...He promptly said no way and then went on to count how many were listed...it was 65, I think.  Ok, so 65 books over the summer was a bit aggressive, so, I have backed off of that target and decided that I would approach it in a slightly different way.

If Jaden and Jacob only read 2 books this summer (actually from now through the end of summer...which gives them an extra 2 weeks...), that is fine.  That is their choice.  But, if they read 5 books they get prize level 1.  11 books is prize level 2.  18 books is prize level 3 and 26 books is prize level 4.  26 books for the summer is my goal for them.  However, I am helping them choose the books and they have to write up a small report or summary on each one to prove they are comprehending it.  They also have to mix some non-fiction in with the fiction stories as well.

I refuse to give them a low goal.  It is going to be hard for them to make level 4.  I don't want to discourage them, but I don't want them to not realize that they can do things with some hard work either.  We have put a big carrot in front of them if they can make level 4...an iPod Touch...but it will be hard work to get there.  I have Great Expectations of them.

Now we will encourage and support them to get there.  I will give some updates as we go over the next couple of months.

Kristen's a Graduate!

Kristen and me after her graduation ceremony

It is official.  She graduated last night with an Associates Degree in Nursing and deserves congratulations for making it through an incredibly difficult program over the last 2 years.  I hope that the joy, excitement and fulfillment that come from the graduation are sweetened by:

• the time invested
• the money invested
• the close calls on tests
• the study sessions
• the missed opportunity costs
• the frequent prayer requests

While many people were part of the loop as she has gone through this over the last 2 years, only a few really know how difficult it was.  God blessed Kristen's determination, heart and diligence.  Now we will get to see her bless others in a wonderful career where she will care for people as a nurse.

Kristen's Nurse Pinning Ceremony

Kristen and one of her best friends, Cindy Gentile right after the ceremony

Kristen had her pinning ceremony last night.  What a huge milestone!  See the video link below as well.  She was fortunate to have her brother, and mom in from Colorado to attend and also had her sister, brother-in-law, niece and a friend from church, Christy Rejmer.

It was a very nice ceremony (despite it seeming like the faculty was a little too proud/full of them themselves throughout it) and it was wonderful to see the culimnation of a lot of work that Kristen and others in the program had invested in the planning of the event.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=4028652159758

Only 2 days till graduation...what an exciting week!

Mother's Day

 Another Mother's Day was just celebrated here and I thought I would capture a couple pictures for posterity.  This was the way the table was set up for Kristen as she came down this morning.  There were cards, flowers, baloons and gifts.  A pretty good display, if I do say so myself.

As Kristen came down to check everything out, she was all smiles.  Especially since she had some coffee in bed to help her start the day.  It was a new dark coffee that I bought as one of her gifts called Obsidian.  She also got some dark chocolates to enjoy as well.  Jaden made mom a card with an optical illusion in it.  Jude had a painting he had made at school and Jacob had helped Dad with a card as well.

We enjoyed Monkey Bread for breakfast with all the boys as Kristen opened everything up and she was very happy.

We had one other gift for her, but it was not much of a surprise...though the way she got it may have not been expected.

You see...somebody had pretty much made it known that getting a Pandora bracelet was not a request...it was pretty much a demand as she had been talking about it for a couple months...not just to us but even to her classmates.  So, that is what she got.  I picked up the bracelet, two spacers and a charm for her to start her collection.  You can kind of see it on her wrist...a beautiful blue charm to remind her that her three boys got it for her on Mother's Day.

Then, after church, we enjoyed a lunch out as a family (including Papa!).  Hopefully, a good Mother's Day for Kristen.



F1 Trip with Dad

 Yesterday I took Dad to a place called F1 Boston.  An indoor go kart facility.  It was a thank you for all the work he did while out here and an opportunity for us to have some fun together.  I thought we should go during the week, so I took a day off from work and we had the place almost to ourselves.

Here are a few pictures and the race results:

 Our first race out was for 15 laps.  Dad started out in the first position, we started with a warm-up lap and then the green flag flew and we were off.  Dad was much faster to start and in no time, he was far enough ahead that I didn't even get a glimpse of him for a good portion of the race.  You can see from the results on the left how it took me 7 laps to get comfortable enough to start running laps as fast as Dad.  So, it was a pretty good thrashing, but a really fun start to our day.  Best lap time for me, this race...21.94 seconds.

Our second race was interesting and eventful.  We were joined by another gentleman who started behind us in the third position.  It was his first time and, unfortunately, it showed. 

I started in the first position this time and as the green flag dropped, we started racing around the track, lapping this gentleman about 2 times per each of his laps.  It was very difficult as we were not ever sure where we would come upon him as we went around the track and we both had to get around him while battling each other.  As you can see, on lap 8, Dad caught and passed me as I tried to get around the other driver on the high side and Dad went low.  He passed both of us and I stayed on his tail all the way around for the rest of the race.  I even got a warning for bumping as I hit him as we went into the corkscrew turn.  Another victory for Dad.  Best lap time this time, 21.06...about a 1 second improvement from the last race...and that was with lapping our friend 2 times per lap.  You will notice that we got to go 25 laps vs his 11.  The race was only supposed to be 15, but they let us keep going just so that he would get enough laps in to be worth his fee.

So, we felt we were doing pretty well and we were getting positive feedback from the worker from the facility that was working with us.  So, he gave us a couple pointers, asked if we wanted to consolidate our 3rd and 4th races into one long race and back to the track we went.  35 laps to see if I could muster a challenge to Dad.  We were given the 2 fastest carts (supposedly) and the green flag went down.  This time I managed to keep Dad at bay the whole race and took the checkered flag and we both managed to improve our times again.  Another second improvement this time too...down to 20.09.  Dad even managed to break the 20 second barrier just so he could hold that over my head ;)  As you can see, after only 3 races we were less than a second (Dad only around 1/2 a second) off of the course record.  Pretty impressive, I think.

 

Overall, a wonderful day and happy that I could spend the quality time with my Dad before he went back to Colorado.

 

Dad Retirement

 My dad, after 25+ years on the fire department retired this year and he had a party at his home yesterday in Colorado Springs.  Joel helped plan the event and is was pretty disappointing to not be there.  It is definately one of the biggest struggles with not being near family.  Since we couldn't attend, I asked for everyone to send me video clips and I spent a bunch of time creating the video above.  I may not be too great at video editing, but I was reasonably happy with how it turned out.

Jaden, ambassador

Jaden was nominated to go be an ambassador for his class to a visiting "celebrity". He got a jump rope out of the deal, but he was very excited to be viewed like that by teachers in the school.


A cool memory for him today.

Kristen Birthday

Kristen celebrated her birthday this year with Oreo cookies (she love Oreos and we had been keeping them out of the house for a little while in an attempt to eat better), cards and a beautiful picture frame that the boys picked out.

Then Kristen decided that she wanted the family to go bowling.  While we had a wonderful time, it didn't end up being the best idea for Kristen's shoulder.  It throbbed for a full week after the day of the bowling.  And even though it was Kristen's birthday, I still couldn't let her beat me...so, she may not have got everything she wanted this year, but hopefully it was a fun day.

(Isn't she a beautiful woman?)

Over the weekend, we also got to celebrate Kristen's birthday with her sister's family and went out for Mexican food together.  Kristen got some more cards, a CD and I got a picture of her in the hat....despite her reluctance to wear it :)

Not too shabby

Just wanted to share that I did get to participate in the go-kart activities as described yesterday...I took Jacob in a two person car and away we went.  Unfortunately, we were too fast for Kristen to catch any pictures, so I thought I would share the Lap Times print out that they gave us as we finished.

We smoked everyone in our session and then, as you can see above, posted the 5th fastest lap time of the day.  Considering we only got to do one race and all the people on that list were going over and over and over again on a day pass kind of deal...I thought that was pretty respectable.

It was also a ton of fun.  I think we may have to go again...even if it was a 45 minute drive.

February Vacation Fun

Today we went to an indoor go-kart / arcade / mini golf / bowling facility.  The boys did not "do" a lot for their February break, so we wanted to have some fun on the one day that Kristen had off from clinical work and school.  The picture above is a pretty decent shot of 90% of the track.  Lots of turns, lots of fun!

Kristen and Jude rode together in a 2 person kart and Jaden was able to drive on his own.  All of them  went in the same wave together.  Jaden was really excited to lap them and was one of the fastest on the course at that time.

 This was the really neat little bowling lane that was part of the arcade area.  They used little balls...like the ones for candle pin bowling, but the pins were just mini versions of the regular bowling pins.  The most interesting part of the unit was the way the pins were held by strings to do the set up and clearing of the pins on all the shots.

Kristen was getting into all the games.  She took Jude for a skateboard ride and spent quite a few coins on the "Deal/No Deal" game where you could win tickets.  She also won the bowling game against the boys...so. overall, I think she had a good time.

Sweet Valentine

Kristen asked me to post something about Jaden's Valentine's Cards....so, here it is :)

Mom was certainly very appreciative of the thought and effort Jaden put into writing and drawing on his card for her:

He wrote how proud he was of her....

Note the drawing includes Kristen with the stethoscope around her neck!  A beautiful, skinny, nurse.  Now you see why she had such a smile on her face :)

Valentines Day

Had a great valentines day with the family today.  Above is a compilation of the valentines cards I received.  Jaden drew everyone individual cards with pictures on them, Jacob filled out his school valentines for us as well and Kristen gave me a very nice card as well.  It is neat to celebrate any and all times that we can together.

Kristen always does such a nice job of laying things out for everyone and making everyone feel special.  Cards for each of the boys and candy...all set up beautifully

.

My honey loves me so....
She knows I love Snickers!
Of course, she does too...so she bought the giant one that has to big pieces in it so that I could share with her :)

The boys loved getting to open their cards.

Holding Pattern

image from :  http://safeintheshadow.blogspot.com/2011/08/holding-pattern.html

holding pattern - a state of inaction with no progress and no change;

I was talking with my sister last night and I referenced the fact that life felt like it had been in a bit of a holding pattern because two years ago we had decided that Kristen's school was an important thing we really did want to do and that our other life choices, (behind God and family) was going to be subjugated to that priority.  I explained that I felt that we were coming out of that time because now we were asking ourselves..."What is next?".  Up to this semester, we had not needed to ask that question.  But now, we are 14 weeks away from Kristen's graduation and that question is actually looming very large for us.

As I spent a little time thinking about holding patterns though, I think it was only partially accurate.  Based on the definition that I pulled from a website up above, we definitely were not in a place in our life with no change or inactivity.  We were even making progress, however, it was really only visible in the kids ages and in Kristen's class number.  It could appear we had been in a holding pattern because we have been doing essentially the same thing for the last 2 years:  Kristen and the kids are in school, I am working and doing ministry and everything else is as we can fit it in.  

So, now with a mere 14 weeks left, things have an opportunity to change.  That is both scary and exciting.  

What is our bigger life goals and how does the next step fit into those plans?

Has God been using this time to prepare us for something particular?

How do we line up personal, professional, familial, financial and all  other goals together?

And so on...

When we had made the decision to do school, that set us on a direction and we really became very reactive in life to everything else.  Now, we have to become proactive, because reactive will no longer help us towards any goals...it will simply keep us in a true holding pattern.  So, to continue the analogy...we need to figure out which runway we are landing on, or if we are re-fueling in mid-air and which way we are going, quickly.  We have 14 weeks of "fuel" left and the pilot and co-pilot better figure this out real quick.

Answered Prayers

Kristen saw this number posted to her grade for last semester at about 3:30pm on Friday.  After anxiously awaiting the results since she took her final on Wednesday, the answer was finally here.  She had passed.  And again, it was by the smallest margin imaginable.  Just like in May, Kristen got exactly what she needed on the final to continue to the next section.  One could think that she just has a knack for it, but we know of the innumerable people that had been praying for Kristen specifically for this test over the course of the last 4 weeks and we attribute her success as being the combination of Kristen doing her part with the immense amount of prep work that she did, all the prayers of us, friends and family specific do this test and to God hearing those prayers and answering them.  

We have to mark this down now, much as what happened in May so that we can trace this journey back later. The improbability of how these last two semesters have played out have left us not only worn out physically, mentally and emotionally, but I think that both Kristen and I have had the opportunity to reflect on how we have felt God's presence and hand in these circumstances.

Isaiah 55:8-9(NIV)

⁸ “For my thoughts are not your thoughts,
   neither are your ways my ways,”
            declares the LORD.
⁹ “As the heavens are higher than the earth,
   so are my ways higher than your ways
   and my thoughts than your thoughts.

Ultimately, I know that this can be misused, and misapplied....but it does at least speak to the fact that God is ultimately in control and that we get to partner in things when we do our part.  Kristen did and now she is one semester from graduating.  We both are looking forward to seeing where God is wanting her to be once she is graduated...you have to think that there is a special place that God has in mind for her and is making sure she gets to where he is going to be able to best use her for the glory of His kingdom.

Riddle me this, Batman?

Jude, Jaden and Jacob sporting their Brasil shirts - January 2012 

How is it that I never played soccer...don't watch soccer...in all reality, have no affinity for soccer whatsoever....live in America, and have only let each of my boys play one season of organized soccer each (I think...though Jaden may be at two)...and somehow, all three of my boys LOVE the BRAZIL soccer team and want to wear these shirts as often as possible?  I am at a loss.  (BTW, I am not at a complete loss...since I know Jaden's friend Alex loves soccer and that has influenced jaden...and of courese, Jaden influences his brothers...but, COME ON!!!!!) :)

Tin Tin

image from:  http://www.letintinmovie.com/

Took the boys to see this movie yesterday.  And a couple of things jumped out at me:

$50 to get me and 3 boys to a movie is ridiculous.  The boys are always going to be months behind the times if this is the case.  Ouch.

For a movie that is obviously directed towards families...especially kids, some of the content was rather adult oriented:

1. The secondary character spends a large majority of the movie drunk.  WOW.  Couldn't they come up with some other reason for his memory loss?  I have never read any of the Tin Tin books...so I assume they are trying to stay true to the story.  Bu since when does that EVER really happen in movies?  I really wish that they had Not made him drink and drink throughout the movie the way that they did.  Pretty soon you have kids stumbling around pretending they are drunk and thinking they are a jovial and lovable character too.
2. A surprising amount of death.  From battle scenes, to drowning and so on...there were a ton of deaths on screen.  While I can not say I remember seeing something particularly gory...though one scene I would say was a little too violent...there were still a large number of deaths that made everything seem casual about it...just retelling a story...

I suppose I am becoming an old curmudgeon...but even Jaden commented on how many deaths there were on screen...and it is one of those things that you have no way to know how it is impacting their little minds.

Jesus said, "The eye is the light of the body; so then if your eye is clear, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. . . ." (Matt. 6:22-23)

See at last (LASIK!)

Don't let this picture spook you....but yes,  I am looking right at you :)

See at last, see at last, Thank God almighty, I can see at last!

As I am posting this on MLK day, I figured a quick shout out reference would be appropriate :)

I am a full two weeks distant from my previous world of wearing contact everyday to see.  That world was left behind, at least for the foreseeable future in light of a world of 20/20 vision simply by opening my eyes.  On December 29th for my right eye, and on January 2nd for my left eye, I underwent the LASIK procedure to correct my nearsightedness and the slight astigmatism that plagued me since I was young.

I know that I couldn't really say this was a wise financial move because of the cost, there is definitely no ROI in it.  It is a nice life improvement which I am enjoying though.  If it had not been for the money we had set aside for Kristen's shoulder that was in a use it or lose it Flexible Spending Account for 2011, I would not have done it.  Now that it is done, there is no looking back (pun intended).

Thanks to my family who had to deal with some painful logistics issues over those few days.

A week of frustration

To say that this week was frustrating would be putting it mildly.  I am running the line of complaining / documenting for posterity, but, to put it frankly, it sucked.  If it was an isolated occurrence, it would be one thing...but this seems to be a pattern.  And, as much as my frustration is with work itself, it is with me also, because I have let it get here.  I have not called out the excessive nature of the hours I am working....assuming that people will recognize and correct it.  I have assumed that it would be appreciated more so than the simple "atta boy" and heightening of the bar for the future.  And to be perfectly honest, it is a complete lack of recognition on my part that I have been going this way for YEARS.

Well, while the fear in me cries out and the hackles raise because I am raising the issue rather than just knuckling under and persevering...I have brought it up with people and it will be interesting to see how that shakes things up at work over the next few weeks.  I hope that it is only positive...but, not sure that it will be.  I am praying that God will guide my words, actions and decisions over the next several months as this comes to a head.

Failblog worthy from our hike?

Just a fun memento from our hike last Saturday.