Surf Cup - San Diego California 2014

The Apex 01 Premier team headed out to San Diego for the Surf Cup Tournament this Thanksgiving weekend.   Evan and I decided we were going to fly down this time.  We flew out Thanksgiving afternoon after having been bumped off our morning flight.  It was so nice to be there so quickly and just hang out with my boy.

The boys played very well at this tournament and won their first game 1-0, handed out a huge defeat 6-0 in their second game, and then tied the third game 0-0 (to the 4th place team in the nation!) to advance to the quarter finals!

The team stuck with it and were defeated 0-1 in the quarter finals to finish off a very good run!  I'm really excited for this team going forward as they have figured out how to play with the best and have a great attitude that they can win!

Halloween

Halloween this year was a super warm day and it was a lot of fun.  McKinley wanted to be a "nerd" and Evan wanted to trick or treat, so he came up with a referee outfit.  Ethan had some friends over and we all had a fun time.  We went trick or treating with cousins and friends and then ate candy all night!

McKinley and her zombie friend Kaylie!

Nana's house is always our first stop of the night.  We had a nice visit and got ready to hit the neighborhood.  It was a fun night all around.

State Cup Soccer Finals U14

 This past week has been the Utah State Soccer Cup tournament that hosts all the best teams in Utah for the playoffs.  Our team had to play into the quarter finals because of the rough season that we've had the past season.  We were able to secure a spot at the quarter finals against the #2 team in our league.  We played an incredible game against them and won in Pk's (overtime + kicks).  Then we advanced to the semi finals against the #3 team and were able to beat them 2-1.  Today was the final game against the #1 team in the state and we did very well.  We held them to 0-1 until the last few minutes of the game when we pressed to get the tying goal and got countered on.  The boys ended up losing the game, but quickly focused on the incredible run they had in this tournament which showed them all what they are capable of.  The best part of it is that they all played together so well and believed in each other.  Each member of the team was important!

Before the game some of the players gathered together for a moment of prayer/silence to gather themselves before the start of the game.  It's a neat moment for all of them.

One of our former teammates, Noah, who moved to California this year, was in town for the game and it was so fun to see him.  You can see already that the boys are happy with their play and while second place is hard to swallow, it was an amazing run!

Last camping trip of the season

Over the long Fall break weekend we decided to take a mini vacation up to Crystal Hot Springs in northern Utah.  We packed up the camper and headed out late Thursday night and set up the camper in the dark.  That was not fun, but the rest of the trip was great!  Friday morning we fixed a nice breakfast and then headed out to The Golden Spike monument which was about 45 minutes away from Crystal Hot Springs.  It's not a place that I would take the day and drive to, but since we were so close it was a trip we had to make.  It was actually a fun little place and we learned a lot about the Union Pacific and Costal Railroad companies and the great effort of connecting the railroad system.  Interesting place!

The rest of that day and night we spent playing games and swimming in the hot pools!  The water felt so good and the slides were fun too!  The weather was surprisingly warm for October and I even sat and read my book for a while at the pool!

And of course we had smores and ate yummy camping meals too!  All in all it was a great trip and a good time to get away one more time before we winterized the trailer and put the cover on and stored it for the winter!

Scouting Court of Honor

Evan is the third boy in our family and all our boys have excelled in scouting.  Austin earned his eagle and Ethan is a few steps away from Eagle, now Evan is progressing right along through the ranks as well.  Evan enjoys scouting and is a good leader.  Right now he's acting as the Patrol Leader and takes it very seriously!  He's great at letting all the boys know exactly what is going on and getting ready for all the campouts.  At the Court of Honor this week he earned 6 merit badges from all his hard work and advanced in the ranks to Star scout.  He's already well on his way to Life, he just needs to be active for 6 months as a Star!  We couldn't be prouder!

At the Court of Honor they also took time to honor the previous Scout leaders including Dave.  Dave has served in Scouts for many years and still serves as the Advancement Chairperson.  But this night he was recognized for his years of service with the 11 year old Scouts.  He's been instrumental in helping many boys begin their path in Boy Scouts and progress through the program.  It was a wonderful evening!

He's legal!

This charming, smart, funny, happy kid is now an adult!  What a journey we have had together.   I have learned things that only Austin could teach me and I hope that he can say that he has had a great childhood.  I can't wait to see what the future holds for this young man!

She said YES!!

Shortly after asking his date to Homecoming, Ethan received his answer.  There was a knock on the door and when I opened it there was no one there (surprise, surprise).  There was a flashlight and a sign hanging in the tree out front which read, "If you want to know my answer follow this string"

So I found Ethan and he proceeded to follow the string.  The string was wrapped around mailboxes and trees and bushes all the way up the street.  He followed it across the road, past people's homes, and finally into a field where there was a tree hanging with a bunch of treats and a sign that read YES.  It was super cute.

Cleaning that all up was no so cute.  It took Ethan a good 30 minutes to unwind that string from the couple blocks that it was strung across.  A few neighbor dogs were very upset and Ethan had to explain his presence to a few neighbors who just chuckled when he explained his plight.  All in all a very memorable event!