Grady's Field Trip!

Last Tuesday, Grady's first grade class headed to Walter's Pumpkin Patch! The class had a blast! There was ton of stuff to do! The favorite was the slide that was a tube that went through the side of a hill! You took a disk sled to the top and whoosh! out the other end you would come! I wish I would have been smaller...definitely would have liked to give that one a whirl! This pumpkin patch is located north of El Dorado...and they must have been blessed with a lot more rain, because their pumpkins were fantastic! The kiddos each got to pick one to take home! The two fellas I had (Grady and Matt) were on the hunt for the perfect pumpkin....it may have taken a while, but in the end, they both found terrific looking pumpkins! It was a gorgeous day to be at the Patch, and the class was very well behaved! I tell ya, I have been on several field trips in my day...and this week I was blessed to be a part of 2 very fantastically behaved class field trips! I so love going with boys' classes on field trips...I am so thankful I am able to go and they still want me to be a part of this!

Score Updates!

Grady on the far side....getting ready to ATTACK!
Gabe is the second one from the back....this is on a kick off return!

Yep, I'm 2 full weeks behind...what's new?! Well, I have been procrastinating on this for 2 very good reasons! 1-All last week, I spent one day at home...the rest on field trips and other school related stuffs....the one day I had free was spent gathering food for the fam....these people just can't seem to get by without it! 2- There were absolutely no good sports scores to report!

I'm not sure if burn out has finally set in, but neither Gabe's nor Grady's team has been performing like they did in the beginning of the season! The last few weeks have been somewhat painful as spectators! Two weeks ago, we headed to Hesston with Gabe's team....final score 38-0...yikes! Yes, it was every bit as painful to watch as you would imagine. Gabe had quite a bit of playtime that day....and he played well. Unfortunately, football is a team sport, so if the team is having an off day...it doesn't much matter what you are doing! Last weekend we were back in Augusta...but you really couldn't tell one week from the other! I really can't remember the final score....something bad...with Augusta losing, how's that? Gabe did not have a lot of playtime on Saturday...he was in on special teams, but other than that...not really anything else! We did have a visit with the Coach...hopefully things will sort themselves out. Gabe was not the only one and we were not the only perturbed parents! Would have hated to be a Coach after that game. I can speak for Shawn and I, we were very civil....I hope all parents were!

Grady and AAA......well, painful on that account as well! I know for a fact that Grady is done....we started in the beginning of August and are now 3 weeks into October....I guess 12 weeks doing one thing is a little long for Grady! After the game 2 weeks ago, we had to have a talk with Grady about finishing things out strong even when you are tired....it seemed to have helped this week, but again...team sport...if every one is not on board with finishing strong...not much you can do! Two weeks ago was the start of the tournament...they played one of the teams they had tied with....well, Saturday was not our day....final score 7-0..OUCH! Last week we played the other team we had tied with...the outcome was the same, but AAA was able to score.....final score 6-2! This week, Grady has his last game! They will be playing for 3rd and 4th! Keeping our fingers crossed to end the season with a win!! GO AAA!

Little Mr. Citizenship!

Last week, Grady won the Citizenship award for Mrs. Maska's 1st Grade Class! He was chosen by his teacher and principal for this prestigious honor! We are so proud of you, Grady! WAY TO GO!

Hot Dawg Day!

Gabe doing the jackrabbit race!

Gabe and his partner McKenzie.....she is a little sweet on him! I know he will kill me if he sees this....but, really too cute! She chose him as her partner...and as he puts it, well, she wouldn't have been my first pick as a partner, but she is the Student Council President, so that should get you somewhere shouldn't it?! Gabe...you gotta love him!

Grady and his class having their Hot Dawg Lunch!

Gabe, Easton and Jacob eating their lunch and trying to make sure that I could get them in the picture!

Grady and Wyeth concentrating so hard on stacking those cups and plates into a pyramid!

Gabe and Dalton getting ready for the egg toss....he had to lose the lady friend....she may be Student Council President, but unfortunately not athletically inclined...I think that is how he put it!

Today was Hot Dawg Day at Ewalt!! This is such a fun day for the kiddos...it is a day filled with running, playing, eating, giggling, good times! Because I have two kids in two different age groups...I get to volunteer at stations all day, plus have lunch with the boys...bonus! The fifth graders also have an extra special event at the end of the day...the annual egg toss! Gabe and his partner Dalton were 2nd in their class...thanks to Mom giving a little pre-game coaching on the proper technique for successfully catching an egg...unfortunately the 1st placers were listening too! The weather stayed pretty nice for the day....we could have done without all of the wind, but at least I wasn't standing outside in the rain! I am posting a few pictures of the boys doing some of the activities, eating lunch with their buddies, and Gabe right before the egg toss began. I actually videoed the event, so I only got the one picture! Enjoy!

Score Update!

Yep, we will officially be playing again in 12 hours....but it's better late than never! Last week's scores:

Gabe and the 5th Grade Orioles - 16-12! A close and exciting win! Gabe actually played more offense than defense this week, and was on most every special team play! Just when I think I have it all figured out, they have to go and switch everything up!

Grady and the AAA Hardwood - 5-0!! YAY! Another win...that put them in the second seed for the tournament....which starts tomorrow morning at 9:30 a.m.! He will have two more games after that...and the times will depend on a win or loss....I will try and get the times out a little quicker!

So proud of our little sporties!! Can't wait for another fun Saturday of football and soccer!! GO GABE AND GRADY!

Boy Scout Camp Out!

Last weekend Scout Grady had his first camp out!!! He LOVED it! They cooked soup, breakfast, smores and cocoa outside, slept in tents, and hiked in the woods at night! He also received his first badge...the Bobcat Badge! He had to learn his pledge, salute, promise, motto, sign, boy scout code, boy scout laws, and safety rules to complete this badge! He is loving every minute of Boy Scouts....I think he may have just found his "thing"!

Sports!

Here are last weekend's sports scores.....

Gabe - 0-7....their first loss. Shawn and Joe headed to Halstead for this game....and from what I understand it was a LOOONNNGG one! The game went scoreless until overtime when Halstead got a touchdown. Halstead threw our coaches for a loop....our coaches are usually pretty good about even playtime, but in the first half pretty much the same offense and defense line up played. We are fortunate this year to have 2 complete sets of both offense and defense...it does shorten the amount of playtime each child gets, but it tends to keep playtime pretty even. So, while Gabe didn't play a lot in the first half he got his chance in the second half! He played quite a bit of defense...where I am told he plays corner...not end! The Orioles are back in Augusta this weekend playing Maize! GO ORIOLES!

Grady - His team had 2 games this weekend! And both were BIG wins! On Saturday, AAA beat Prairie Print 8-0! On Sunday, they had a make-up game against The Insurance Guys 5-0....it was a weekend of shut outs! Grady played very well...he has found his nitch at defender. The coach has him player defender most of the time...with a few run ins at right or left wing. He is becoming much more aggressive, which is pretty funny when you know Grady! They are playing Duncan Electric this week...we scrimmage this team every practice, so I am anticipating a pretty good game! These kids should know what is coming next from both sides of the ball! The tournament begins next weekend....we should find out how we are seated after Saturday's game! GO AAA!!!

Another Win....Another Rain Out!

Gabe is on the front left side playing defensive end!

Same song, different day....Grady had another rain out, but we were able to get Gabe's game played! The football team plays on AstroTurf, which is able to be played on even in the rain....the soccer team on the other hand plays on grass (or what there is of grass), so when it rains it turns into a muddy mess! We have yet to find out when we will make up Grady's 2 soccer games, but we will let you soccer fans know as soon as we do!

Well, Gabe had a great game!! He played mostly defense again this week, but was really on the top of his game! He had 2 tackles....you know the big game kind, where they announce your name and everything....you know the ones where you are the reason they don't get the first down...yeah that kind!! If you couldn't tell...we were pretty excited! He also played a little offense...where he also did a fantastic job blocking for the running backs! So, enough bragging about my boy.....the team as a whole had a great game...another shut out....30-0 against the Clearwater Indians! Now for those of you with the memory of an elephant, you will remember Clearwater was one of our losses last year, and an ugly loss at that....well, the boys redeemed themselves...those Indians got flocked by the Orioles!!! Way to Go Orioles!!!!

A Win and A Rainout!

Here are the results from last weekend's Sports....sorry it has taken so long to post and that there will not be any pics! Gabe's team started the season with a win against the El Dorado Wildcats...20-0!!! Gabe got in quite a few plays on Defense as a Corner (oh, shoot I hope I have that right!) and a few plays as receiver on Offense! He also plays during kick returns...which there was only one of on Saturday. We were very pleased with his play time...he is under a different head coach this year...so far everything is a lot different...in a good way! As for Grady's soccer game...it was a no go! When we loaded up in El Dorado after Gabe's game to head back to Augusta for Grady's the skies opened and did not stop for at least 45 minutes! No one was complaining about the rain...except for the kiddos whose games got postponed! Grady was a little perturbed, but he quickly got over that with a snack when we got home!!! This weekend we stay in Augusta for both boys' games!! Grady plays at noon at the arena followed by Gabe's football game at 1:30!! A busy day of sports entertainment for the Fox Fam! GO ORIOLES!!! GO AAA!!

Tiger Cubs and Louis Armstrong!

Because lately we have had a couple of spare seconds in our day....we have decided to add a couple of other activities for the boys!! HA!

First, Gabe is well on his way to becoming the next Louis Armstrong...that's right, he has taken up the trumpet! He is on his second full week...so far he has learned 4 notes, can clean the instrument, is able to play Mary Had A Little Lamb, and has scared away any living creature within a 10 mile radius!! No really, he is doing fantastically....we are not having to force him to practice....he is loving every minute...so far!

Next, little man has joined the Boy Scouts!! This is an adventure that Shawn and him are embarking on together....so, I do not have too many details! I do know that he came home last night from his first meeting very excited that he needed to learn the motto, they had given him a cupcake and juice (if you want to win Grady over, just feed him!), and that he was going camping with his troop on the 24th!!! The cupcake was definitely the highlight of the meeting, but the camping bit was a close second! He also informed me that I would need to purchase him some hiking boots before the camping trip....tennis shoes will just not do!

We are still heavy into soccer and football.....they both have games this weekend!! Life is crazy, but I would have it no other way!