Sunday at the Park

Yesterday we took a bike ride over to the park for a picnic. It was beautiful day and the kids love picnics. Afterward the kids got to play around for a while. While we were there I got to thinking how our family really gets our money's worth out of our city parks. We go to the big park by our house all the time. Not just for playing around but also soccer practice as well.

The Strikers - Game 4

Today was our 4th soccer game...and what a game it was. I'll get right to the big story today - Ben got his first goal! This is our 3rd season of youth soccer, and Ben has never gotten a goal before. Lately he had been playing great on the defensive side of the ball, and we were really proud of him about that. Then last night he and I talked about "wouldn't it be cool if you scored a goal." So in the 4th quarter I put him on the same line as Jeb and Parker...and somehow the ball trickled in front of him and he shot it in. Jenny and I were so excited on the sideline. I was jumping around and hugging everyone in sight and Jenny was so happy she shed a few tears. We never made a big deal about it...but we have been waiting for 3 seasons now for some kind of sign from Ben that he wanted to score - and today it happened. It was pretty cool to see. The whole thing happened in slow motion for me. He has improved so much this season. It's been great to watch.
Anyway, I got some pictures of some of the kids today. They played a tough game today and everyone was completely exhausted by the end of the game. After the game we celebrated Ben's big moment by going out to lunch with Mark, Miles, and Quinton.

Happy Birthday Jenny!

Yesterday was Jenny's birthday. As a surprise for Jenny Megan and I baked her a cake. She didn't like the noise from the mixer, but overall she was pretty excited to help. Then after Ben got home from school the three of us iced and decorated it. I was pretty happy with how it turned out, and Jenny was pretty surprised when she got home. Also, Jenny's mom sent her some daisies which she enjoyed as well. Happy birthday honey!

The Blue Rockets - Game 5

The other night was another baseball game for Ben. He went 3 for 3 and had a few stops in the field. He played a great game and he had a lot of fun with his friends.

30 Years Later...

It was this weekend...30 years ago...that THE EMPIRE STRIKES BACK first premiered. A friend of mine and I were talking about this the other day, and then I saw everyone talking about it online, so I thought I'd write about one of my all-time favorite movies. Growing up I was a "Star Wars kid." I had all the action figures, all the toys, and I saw all the movies. I even subscribed to the monthly fan club newsletter "Bantha Tracks" (does anyone still remember that?) And as a "Star Wars kid" I would say EMPIRE represented the apex of my fascination. Everything about the movie is just perfect. A great opening act with the "snow walkers," a great second act that's dark and mysterious with "Yoda," and a great third act with a great lightsaber battle and the best cliffhanger of all time. EMPIRE was the first movie I can remember being "impacted" by it in the theater as I watched it. I remember sitting there watching Darth Vader utter the most famous line in movie history..."Luke! I am your father!" I remember being truly stunned. I remember my friends and I afterward saying things like "I can't believe it!" and "How can this happen?" We were all in shock.
I had hoped one day to let Ben experience the impact of that line as well, but even before I let him watch the first STAR WARS film he had already read in a book that Darth Vader is Luke's father...so there goes that.
Anyway, it's amazing how the first 3 Star Wars films still hold up after all these years. And in my opinion, it was 30 years ago this weekend that the best Star Wars film of them all was made.

Let's All Say Goodbye!

Tonight is Megan's last night in the crib. Tomorrow we're supposed to get her new furniture set delivered, complete with a new dresser and matching bed. She's pretty excited about getting a "big girl" bed, and we're excited as well...but also a little sad. This is of course the same crib Ben slept in for years. Man...so many memories for both kids in this thing. There's no sense in keeping the crib, but it's just kind of sad to finally say goodbye to it. Why do people get emotional about the strangest of things? Funny how life is sometimes.

The Blue Rockets - Game 4

Tonight was another baseball game. Officially it's Game 4, but only Game 2 for us. The weather has caused several rainouts recently and that's caused some of the games and makeup games to shift to days that don't work for us because of soccer. Anyway, tonight Ben went 3 for 3 and he had a couple of throws in the outfield. I also caught him yawning in the outfield. But that's okay, the girl next to him was digging in the dirt between 1st and 2nd. Ah...the joys of Little League.