Carving Pumpkins w/Larry

We were staying with my sister and her FIL came over to carve pumpkins with all the kids. Grandpa Larry was able to carve 3 or 4 pumpkins and supervise the carving of several others. The creations were great and unique...the kids drew their own designs. But most importantly, everyone had a blast! Thanks Larry!

Our last Pinewood Derby

Tonight was the Pinewood Derby for our Cub Scout Troop. There were 12 racers and it was quite a night. To make it fair there had to be 132 races. Everybody raced everybody else twice (each side of the track). Evan's car was green and gold and shaped like an arrow. He designed it, cut it, sanded it, and painted it himself...with very little guidance! His car came in 5th overall and he had a great time. There were no tears from anyone involved...and that is a successful derby!

Family Halloween Party

This year Nana asked me to help with the Halloween party for all the grandkids. I always like to plan parties... and this was no exception. It was actually pretty easy since I just did a bunch of things that we did at a Halloween party in Texas last year!

We gathered early to take advantage of the sunlight and the warmth and started off with a chili and hotdog meal! After eating we were ready to play: We had donuts on a string:

Bobbing for apples:
Facepainting:

Playing in the leaves:
And a candy walk, pumpkin bowling, and sack races! It was a lot of fun and the whole family enjoyed spending the evening together!

Blue Knight State Cup Finalists!

This past 2 weeks our Blue Knights 01 team has been competing in the State Cup soccer tournament. It was a long and very hard road to the top! We had a fabulous season, coming in 2nd in the league and followed it up with this tournament. We had to face the #1 team twice in this tournament and beat them in the semi-finals to advance to the finals! Sadly, we lost in the final game, but our boys played so hard! We are so proud of their 2nd place finish in the state! Way to go Blue Knights!

Demonstration

Evan's class at school was required to do a demonstration in front of the class. Evan chose to do a demonstration on how to make strawberry, banana smoothies. For Evan, this was a breeze. He loves to make smoothies and he was a pro up there demonstrating. And everyone enjoyed the smoothie after he was done! Way to go Evan!

Happy Birthday Austin!

September 23, 2011 - Austin is now 15. Wow! What a great kid he is. This past year has been a year of change for Austin...we moved, he's grown 5 inches, his voice is really deep, and now he's got his drivers permit! So look out if you're in the south end of the Salt Lake County area! He's got wheels.

Race Day!

Yesterday I went to cheer Austin on at his cross country meet. This is only his second one and he has only trained for about 3 weeks. He did so well! He definitely has more of his Dad's running ability than his mothers. It was a chilly, rainy afternoon...perfect for the runners, but not so much for the fans!

I don't know how many were running in his group, but when they took off it was a massive blob of runners heading out and up the first hill. What a site!
Things spread out after the first mile and it was easier to photograph Austin. He ran strong and hard the whole way.
And this race he said he even had some energy left to make the sprint to the finish. I am so proud of him and admire his determination and drive to take on this new sport.