Sunday, May 17, 2009
Monday, May 4, 2009
APRIL: by Bjorn
April has been a very busy month for us. With soccer games for Enoch every Tuesday and Thursday, and games for Isaac and Natalie every Wednesday and Friday, we have really been on the go. I am Isaac’s coach and the assistant coach for Enoch’s team. Quite the whirlwind! At Isaac’s Friday game the other team forfeited but we ended up playing anyway just for fun. The other team had a couple players claiming they were on the team but were clearly too old to be 5th or 6th graders and so Isaac’s team was down by 2 or 3 goals at half time. During the second half I couldn’t resist any longer and I ran out on the field and joined my players. Screams of excitement ensued and the boys had a blast being a little bit crazy and enjoyed not having to play exactly by the rules. Isaac said he would remember that game for the rest of his life and I realized how out of shape I really am. I agreed to play in an adult city soccer league with Enoch’s coach and some other guys. We’ll play on a shortened field with only 6 guys per team playing at a time. It should be a blast, but I’m trying to whip my body into shape in order to avoid making a total fool of myself.
Auriana gave her first talk in sacrament meeting last Sunday and did a fantastic job. She spoke on having the courage to be virtuous – using excerpts from Elaine S. Dalton’s October 2008 General Conference address. Auriana also made her parents proud when she decided she wanted to try out for Show Choir at school. She and I went over to a friend’s house in the ward and got some help putting together an audition number. She practiced and practiced and when audition day came she did a great job. Thirty-seven girls tried out and only 20 made it. We were excited to learn that Auriana is one of them. Yes, this is the same shy Auriana that you all know and love – just coming out of here shell a little more each day. Honestly, she is growing into an amazing young woman – talented, mature, confident, considerate, spiritual, quick-witted, and really fun to be around. Of course she’ll always be daddy’s girl. Aren’t I lucky that I have four of them!
Miriam performed in her Let’s Play Music recital and was so cute playing the xylophone and singing her Do Re Mi song and many others. She has really learned a lot about music in that class. She had a fun birthday earlier in the month. Towards the end of the day she started acting a bit nervous and strange and at one point broke into tears. We asked her why she was crying and she said that she didn’t want to go to bed but wanted to stay up and play with her toys since this was her last day before going to kindergarten. We realized that we had been telling her all along that when she was five she would get to go to kindergarten – we just failed to explain that it wouldn’t happen until September. We all laughed when we realized the misunderstanding.
Natalie is excited to be participating in the Hershey Track Meet this Tuesday. She’s doing several events included the 4x100 relay. She’s the fasted girl in her grade. She even beat the fastest boy once and said he instantly started blaming it on some people that distracted him or something. Boys! She’s joining Isaac on the city Youth Track Club that starts tomorrow. Natalie is once again the speedster of her soccer team – she says soccer is her favorite. She’s also really enjoying her Irish Dance class. It’s tough having a child that is good at everything she tries. It’s also tough keeping the activities to a manageable level. We love to encourage them to develop their talents, but we also want to make sure there is still time to relax and have some down time – for them and us. Harry Potter is monopolizing much of her and Auriana’s (and Isaac’s for the eleventy-billionth time) time. Natalie is on book 3 and Auriana is just starting book 7.
Ellie also gave her first talk last Sunday. She talked about reverence and did a fantastic job. It seemed she knew exactly what she wanted to talk about and when I went off on a line that we hadn’t rehearsed at home she just stood there and refused to say what I was whispering in her ear. Once I dropped that and got back to what she knew she wanted to say, she then dove right back in and finished off strong. It’s hard to believe our youngest is old enough to be giving talks.
Enoch’s black eye is finally mostly faded. Isaac figured someone had to keep up the tough guy look so he got a black eye playing kick ball this past week. With my venture into soccer again, maybe I’ll be the next tough guy. ☺ Enoch starts tee ball practices this week. Maybe this year there will be a little more focus on the game and a little less daydreaming in the outfield… maybe. Enoch’s sense of humor has really blossomed lately. His mind is so quick, he often has all the kids and even his mom and dad laughing out loud at the dinner table. I think it all started when he began reading Calvin and Hobbes. It’s not uncommon to see a combination of “Calvin” faces working their way across his expressive face. And watching Jerry Lewis only adds to the silliness. It’s actually really fun to see them all joking and laughing together and building off each other’s humor.
Isaac is pretty good at commanding the floor too. Once he hooks an audience he doesn’t let up. Isaac also starts Track Club tomorrow. He enjoyed it so much last year that he’s been looking forward to it for a long time. He even bought some nice running shoes with his own money. He’s usually done just the short distances, but this year he’s going to try the 400. He’s really been enjoying 11-year-old scouts. I get to go on a campout with him in July. We also have the fathers and sons campout on May 15-16.
I guess that’s about it as far as the kids go. Becky is going through a workout schedule with a friend of hers and getting in some good running. She went with Enoch on a field trip to the zoo. She continues to be a great help to all of the kids’ teachers. I’m glad she stays so involved in their education. I appreciate the fact that she puts forth the effort to plan many of our dates when I’m so busy I can’t even think ahead more than a day or two. I have been putting in several late nights over the past couple of weeks and she has been so supportive and done so much on her own with putting the kids to bed and taking care of running everything else. I’m sure I don’t tell her nearly often enough how grateful I am for all she does for me and our family.
Happy Mother’s Day to each of you mothers and future mothers out there. I hope you know how much we love and respect and honor you!
Auriana gave her first talk in sacrament meeting last Sunday and did a fantastic job. She spoke on having the courage to be virtuous – using excerpts from Elaine S. Dalton’s October 2008 General Conference address. Auriana also made her parents proud when she decided she wanted to try out for Show Choir at school. She and I went over to a friend’s house in the ward and got some help putting together an audition number. She practiced and practiced and when audition day came she did a great job. Thirty-seven girls tried out and only 20 made it. We were excited to learn that Auriana is one of them. Yes, this is the same shy Auriana that you all know and love – just coming out of here shell a little more each day. Honestly, she is growing into an amazing young woman – talented, mature, confident, considerate, spiritual, quick-witted, and really fun to be around. Of course she’ll always be daddy’s girl. Aren’t I lucky that I have four of them!
Miriam performed in her Let’s Play Music recital and was so cute playing the xylophone and singing her Do Re Mi song and many others. She has really learned a lot about music in that class. She had a fun birthday earlier in the month. Towards the end of the day she started acting a bit nervous and strange and at one point broke into tears. We asked her why she was crying and she said that she didn’t want to go to bed but wanted to stay up and play with her toys since this was her last day before going to kindergarten. We realized that we had been telling her all along that when she was five she would get to go to kindergarten – we just failed to explain that it wouldn’t happen until September. We all laughed when we realized the misunderstanding.
Natalie is excited to be participating in the Hershey Track Meet this Tuesday. She’s doing several events included the 4x100 relay. She’s the fasted girl in her grade. She even beat the fastest boy once and said he instantly started blaming it on some people that distracted him or something. Boys! She’s joining Isaac on the city Youth Track Club that starts tomorrow. Natalie is once again the speedster of her soccer team – she says soccer is her favorite. She’s also really enjoying her Irish Dance class. It’s tough having a child that is good at everything she tries. It’s also tough keeping the activities to a manageable level. We love to encourage them to develop their talents, but we also want to make sure there is still time to relax and have some down time – for them and us. Harry Potter is monopolizing much of her and Auriana’s (and Isaac’s for the eleventy-billionth time) time. Natalie is on book 3 and Auriana is just starting book 7.
Ellie also gave her first talk last Sunday. She talked about reverence and did a fantastic job. It seemed she knew exactly what she wanted to talk about and when I went off on a line that we hadn’t rehearsed at home she just stood there and refused to say what I was whispering in her ear. Once I dropped that and got back to what she knew she wanted to say, she then dove right back in and finished off strong. It’s hard to believe our youngest is old enough to be giving talks.
Enoch’s black eye is finally mostly faded. Isaac figured someone had to keep up the tough guy look so he got a black eye playing kick ball this past week. With my venture into soccer again, maybe I’ll be the next tough guy. ☺ Enoch starts tee ball practices this week. Maybe this year there will be a little more focus on the game and a little less daydreaming in the outfield… maybe. Enoch’s sense of humor has really blossomed lately. His mind is so quick, he often has all the kids and even his mom and dad laughing out loud at the dinner table. I think it all started when he began reading Calvin and Hobbes. It’s not uncommon to see a combination of “Calvin” faces working their way across his expressive face. And watching Jerry Lewis only adds to the silliness. It’s actually really fun to see them all joking and laughing together and building off each other’s humor.
Isaac is pretty good at commanding the floor too. Once he hooks an audience he doesn’t let up. Isaac also starts Track Club tomorrow. He enjoyed it so much last year that he’s been looking forward to it for a long time. He even bought some nice running shoes with his own money. He’s usually done just the short distances, but this year he’s going to try the 400. He’s really been enjoying 11-year-old scouts. I get to go on a campout with him in July. We also have the fathers and sons campout on May 15-16.
I guess that’s about it as far as the kids go. Becky is going through a workout schedule with a friend of hers and getting in some good running. She went with Enoch on a field trip to the zoo. She continues to be a great help to all of the kids’ teachers. I’m glad she stays so involved in their education. I appreciate the fact that she puts forth the effort to plan many of our dates when I’m so busy I can’t even think ahead more than a day or two. I have been putting in several late nights over the past couple of weeks and she has been so supportive and done so much on her own with putting the kids to bed and taking care of running everything else. I’m sure I don’t tell her nearly often enough how grateful I am for all she does for me and our family.
Happy Mother’s Day to each of you mothers and future mothers out there. I hope you know how much we love and respect and honor you!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
August: by Bjorn
Well, the 3 younger kids are off to their first day of school! Can't believe Miriam's in high school! We did father's blessings...
