Soccer Season

Another soccer season has come and gone, and boy was it a whirlwind! Having two kiddos involved in soccer this year proved to be busy busy, but they both had so much fun and it was always so rewarding to watch the smiles on their faces and their confidence grow. With them playing in different leagues in different cities it would have been impossible for me to get them to all their practices and games without the help of my mom. Once again, thanks Mom for making all of this possible.  

Mason played Orem Youth Soccer again this year. It's amazing the difference a year and going from being the youngest on the team to one of the oldest can make. Mason was confident, aggressive, and involved in all of the games. He scored one or two goals every game, but continued to be a great team player celebrating his teammates triumphs along with his own. His uniform was white and blue this year so when the coach asked for suggestions for a team name Mason enthusiastically threw out "whipped cream with blueberries on top". The kids all loved it! We tried to talk them into the great white sharks or other equally cool names, but the boys wouldn't have any of them.  Finally the boys decided the White Dragons would be cool (sound familiar...Mason's team name was the Red Dragons last year).  We thought it was funny that we played the Green Dragons, Red Dragons, Orange Dragons, and Yellow Dragons throughout the season. Must be a popular name with the 4/5 year old crowd.

 Brynnie Bug is our little soccer player and has been DYING to play on a team. She was going to have to wait one more year to play Orem Youth Soccer where the age limit is 4, so we were super excited to find out about a little soccer league put on by MBASA (BYU MBA spouses association) for 3/4 year olds. I will have to do a post sometime about this amazing group and how wonderful it is to be a part of. The kids were all divided into teams and each week they had a 30 minute practice with little drills followed by a 30 minute game against another team. It was super low key but perfect for their age. Since this was all free, instead of having uniforms they tied strips of fabric around their arms to distinguish the teams. Brynn's team was the Tigers, but Brynn wanted to be just like Mason and so she happily donned her hand me down uniform and shin gaurds. She was so adorable all dressed up in her soccer gear I could hardly stand it. On the first day she was little overwhelmed by the swarms of kids...because there were A LOT of kids and it was kind of chaotic. She wanted me to stay by her during the warm up and beginning of practice. All the sudden she turned to me and said, "I'm okay now, I don't need you anymore" and shooed me away to the sidelines to watch.  She is growing up so fast. She coached us before each practice and game how we should cheer for her by standing up and jumping with our arms overhead while chanting "Go Brynnie Go", so that's exactly what we did and you should have seen her beaming face. She scored one goal during the season but her true shining moment was in her first game when she got control of the ball but rather than kicking it toward a goal she found the path of least resistance and took off dribbling the ball perpendicularly across all the other fields. We were all yelling for her to stop and when her coach finally caught up to her three fields over she turned around with a beaming smile and gave us a giant thumbs up. It was the cutest thing EVER! That is why I love this girl!

 Miles was such a trooper being drug to and from practices and games almost every night. The life of a third child, I guess. He was usually a happy camper as long as he had a soccer ball of his own to play with.  If not then the entire game was a battle keeping him off the field as he tried to get the game ball.

What a fun season! I can't wait for more soccer fun in the spring.

9 months

 It's been 3 months since I did a post about Miles and boy is it amazing how much he has developed and changed over the summer. He started crawling at 7 months, a couple days later I came home from work to find him standing in his crib, within a week he was pulling himself up to anything and everything and cruising around along our furniture and now we turn around to find him standing independently more and more frequently. In a word he is BUSY. The kid is in constant motion, and I mean constant. It is impossible for me to get anything accomplished while he is awake.

His body isn't the only thing moving. Miles is a jabbermouth and talks to us all day long. He's got all of his Mama, Dada, Baba words down and loves to play mimic games with us. 

One thing that hasn't changed is his happy demeanor. He is the happiest little boy. All you have to do is look at him and he'll flash his big happy grin at you. He laughs all day long and still has his darling little chuckle. 

One thing he can't get enough of is food. The boy is a bottomless pit. He devours anything we will give him and has done pretty well with his 3 teeth (3 more have just broken through bringing the total to 6). He prefers real food and a lot of time eats whatever the rest of us are having. When he has babyfood he likes it best when we thicken it up by pouring oatmeal into it until it is a super thick consistency....gross if you ask me.  There isn't anything he won't eat, but he does tend to spit his green beans at me a lot. Despite his high caloric intake he is thinning out drastically. People are still always commenting on how chubby his cheeks and legs are, but to me he looks like a little string bean compared to a few months ago. He adores Mason and Brynn and it's a good thing because they both shower him with nonstop love and attention. What more can I say other than we love this little guy to the moon and back. Enjoy some pictures from the last few months.

He can often be found pounding on the piano.

Love to swing

Brynn is very protective of Miles and panicks when he gets close to the stairs. It's actually very helpful.

Mason is such a big helper playing with Miles when I have to get something done.

Still the most amazing sleeper ever!!!

The only picture of me with my baby is this beauty Mason snapped.

Absolutely loves playing outside and has scrapped up knees and feet to prove it.

Scott and his little mini me

I think us always gushing over his cuteness is going to his head because he spends a lot of time in front of the mirror :)

Summer Swimming

Just like every other summer, our summer days were filled with trips to the pool. We changed things up a little bit this year and rather than getting our usual punch pass to Scera Pool we decided to try out the Pass of All Passes. If you are asking what that is then you are clearly not from Utah County. Basically it's a season pass to 7 peaks along with other family entertainment spots around Utah for anywhere from $9.99-$39.99 at various times throughout the year. With our passes we made sure to hit 7 peaks at least once a week and then jumped around between other pools like Riverside, Aunt Marilyn's Pool, and Lindon pool with friends and family. We had an absolute blast. Mason is my little fish and always seemed to be trying something new and adventurous.  Brynn was hit or miss. Some days she would go crazy playing in the water and have the time of her life trying all the big slides and other days I could barely get her peeled off me she was so scared. She still has no problem putting her face in the water but hates having her ears go under. We might have to look into earplugs for swimming lessons this year. Miles started out the summer a wobbly 5 month old sitter and napped most of the time at the pool. But by summer's end that boy was CRAZY in the water. He loved crawling around splashing in the water and walking along the edge of the pool. I couldn't look away for a minute or he would be in water over his head. For this reason there really couldn't have been a better summer for Scott to be home. I don't know how I would have done it by myself. I'll let the pictures tell some of the highlights.  

 

Seven Peaks

First time to 7 peaks.

*Brynn's Slide Story*

Our first day at seven peaks was one of Brynn's fearless days. She insisted she wanted to go on the big flash flood slide all by herself. She wasn't tall enough, but Scott was able to pressure the new 16 year old lifeguard into letting her go. The plan was I would wait at the bottom while Scott took them up and sent Mason first and then Brynn. After Mason came down I would ask the lifeguard to scoot up and catch Brynn since she couldn't touch at the bottom. Mason came down the slide no problem. I told the lifeguard my little girl was coming down next and might need some help and ask if he would scoot up to catch her. This scrawny kid sat waiting with his arms outstretched as not Brynn, but a chubby 10-12 year old girl came slowly around the corner. He looked over his shoulder at me like, you really want me to catch her? I quickly told him, "that's not her! don't catch her!" I figured they must not have let Brynn go by herself. Right then Scott came shooting out of the other slide all alone. I couldn't figure out where Brynn was.  Before I could ask Scott I looked back to the green slide and saw Brynn's itty bitty body come around the corner. The lifeguard was turned around walking back to his post.  I started shouting, "here she comes, here she comes!" but it wasn't quick enough. She hit the water and went under for a second or two before the lifegaurd reached her. I don't know if she was more scared of going under water or being lifted out by "the red guy".  She never got upset and was really proud of how brave she was, but only wanted to ride down on our laps after that. So later I was telling Scott how the girl that went in between Mason and Brynn threw me off. Scott asked, "What girl? There was no girl. I sent Mason down then sent Brynn right after him." We looked at each other and then looked at Mason. He simply said, "She was going really slow so I just zoomed around her." We could not stop laughing. What are the chances that would happen the one time down the slide that we needed him to stay in order. Sorry for the lengthy story, but it is one I want to remember.

Riverside

Riverside with Grandma Nancy.

Miles absolutely loved kicking around in the water.

The kiddos all kicking back and relaxing in their tubes.

*Mason's Diving Board Story*

Riverside is the only pool in Utah County that still has a high dive. My dad told Mason he'd give him a quarter if he jumped off it. Mason will do almost anything for a quarter so he climbed up, walked to the end, and jumped without a second's hesitation. Then we couldn't get him to stop jumping over and over and over.  It was definitely his favorite part of Riverside.

 Aunt Marilyn's Pool

The diving board at Aunt Marilyn's pool suited Brynn more.

Allie, Rachel, and Brynn under water

Scott and Mason under water

Allie, Mason, and Brynn

*Underwater Camera Story*

One day Marilyn had a disposable underwater camera. We told the kids to go under water and we would take a picture. As soon as their heads popped up they wanted to see the picture. These kids have never known anything other than a digital camera and could not understand why they couldn't see the picture immediately after taking it. We tried to explain that this camera had film in it and we would take it to get developed. They all looked at us with blank stares. Mason finally broke the silence with, "oh, so it's just a pretend camera."

Lindon Pool

Mason and Cache after passing their swim test.

*Mason's Swim Test*

I took the kids to the Lindon pool with our friends, the McCanns. Cache and Mason were sad they weren't tall enough to go on the slide by themselves but learned if they passed a swim test they would get wrist bands that would let them anywhere in the pool. They had to swim across the length of the pool (25 meters) without touching the sides or the bottom and then tread water for 5 seconds before touching the wall. It was definitely the farthest Mason has ever swam and he was one tired boy by the end, but he did it. I don't know who was more proud, him or me.

I don't know how many more summer catch up posts I am going to get to so I just want to say that this was the Best. Summer. Ever!

School Days

Over the last month we have not only started a new school year, we have started a new chapter of our life. It began on August 14th when Scott started back at BYU full time to get his Masters of Business Administration.  The first three weeks of orientation/school have been intense, but Scott and I are both loving the experience so far. It feels so right this time around and for whatever reason we know waiting these two extra years before starting this journey was the right thing for us.

 On August 28th, Mason started Kindergarten at Scera Park Elementary.  He is in Mrs. Adams AM class.  I cannot even begin to describe how excited and ready for Kindergarten Mason has been.  I on the other hand am still trying to wrap my mind around the fact that he is now in school every single day, even if it is only half day. Mason is already excelling in school.  His teacher told me after his assessment that he is clearly a very strong reader, but more than that his writing skills are some of the best she has ever seen in over 15 years of experience and really set him apart from other students. I'll give his endless hours of coloring credit for that.  After the first week of class Mrs. Adams approached me when I picked him up and said that Mason is the sweetest boy and that if she could custom make her class she would fill it with 25 students just like him. I almost started crying when she said that. You work so hard as a parent to teach your child  how to behave, and lets be honest they rarely model that behavior for you at home, so to hear he is doing well in class just means so much. I was so grateful to Mrs. Adams for going out of her way to tell me that, because I really needed to hear it.

 Last, but not least, on September 5, Brynn started Preschool with Mrs. Young.  Waiting that extra week after Mason started school was very hard for Brynn and every day she would ask how many more days until it was her turn. The night before her preschool open house, when I told Brynn we would be going to Mrs. Young's the next day she got so excited! I have literally never seen her so excited for anything in her entire life. It was no different on her first day of school. I had a cute little preschool outfit all set out for her, but Brynn had plans of her own (see previous post). It took quite a bit of negotiating to get her into the outfit you see below. I used pretty much all my leverage to get her out of Mason's old camo crocs and into any other pair of shoes. She was dead set on wearing this hand-me-down skirt that is a favorite of hers and this was the only shirt I could get her to agree to that even matched.  Not exactly the picture I imagined for her first day of preschool, but it does tell the story of her little personality.  The important thing is she thought she was super cute and was sure all the other little girls would love her skirt.  She got a little nervous as I dropped her off, but came running out with a big smile on her face and said she had a great day.

 We now officially have more members of our family in school than staying home during the day. I know our life that was once filled with outings and play dates will never be the same, but I think we would all agree we're happy with our new routine.

Fashionista

Each morning when Brynn wakes up, the first item of business she wants to take care of is getting dressed. It is not uncommon for her to emerge from her room dressed and ready for the day. This is awesome on days when her outfit matches, is not two sizes too big or too small, and is in season. However, most days it ends up being 0-3. She is very opinionated on what clothes she wears and it takes some serious negotiating skills to get her out of one of her "outfits" and into something a little more...well cute. For this reason I choose to just sit back and watch her outfit (and hair for that matter) evolve throughout the day as she changes approximately 5,769 times a day and I only choose to intervene if we are going somewhere or doing something with other people. 

A small sampling of Brynn's outfits over the course of a single day.

 Brynn's outfit choice is largely driven by her affinity for hand-me-downs. I go to the store and buy her cute coordinated outfits and I cannot get the child to keep them on for five minutes. I literally have 2-3 things that have never been washed because she outright refuses to wear them. But when a box shows up with all of her cousins' old clothes she gasps like she's just been given a diamond ring and immediately finds the most well loved items in the box and wears them day after day after day. It's not that the hand-me-downs are ugly clothes, they're not. There are just a lot of pieces for her to creatively mix and match. Maybe that's why she likes them so much. Maybe my coordinated outfits are stiffling her artistic side.

One of my personal favorites.

Sometimes I find myself battling with her trying to get her to wear the clothes that are cutter and to let me do her hair all fancy.  Why am I trying to make my daughter more high maintenance? Why I am I trying to teach her that the hand-me-downs she gets aren't good enough? Or that she does not look good enough unless she is all dolled up? Don't get me wrong, I want to teach my daughter how to look nice. But my goal is for her to feel good about herself as a person and not base her self worth on her physical appearance.  I know there will soon be a day she wants all new clothes and won't leave the house without properly primping, so I'm just going to enjoy these simpler times.

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

Keeping up with Brynn's mood changes these days proves to be a lot of work. Her response in any given situation is completely unpredictable. It just seems to depend on the day. She swings from one end of the spectrum to the other and we never know which Brynn we will get.  Will it be Social butterfly Brynn or Stranger danger Brynn? Sweet Brynn or Sassy Brynn? Ultra obedient Brynn or Naughty Brynn? Helper Brynn or Troublemaker Brynn. Dare Devil Brynn or Cautious Brynn? What in the world are we going to do when she's a teenager? YIKES!!

It's a  good thing she's so darn loveable.

The Classics

I grew up in the prime of Disney movies. So many of the great classics like Aladdin, Beauty and the Beast, Little Mermaid, and Lion King came out during my childhood. I love each of these movies and have always been excited for my children to fall in love with them, too. Don't get me wrong, the newer Pixar movies are great, but there is just something about the classics that I can't get over.  I tried to introduce Mason to some of the Disney Classics years ago, but he just never loved them.  One time, after Mason watched Beauty and the Beast for the first time, I heard him running around growling like the Beast and it wasn't long before a then 1-year-old Brynn came walking up to me holding giant shards of glass in her hands. It turns out they came from a 16x20 picture frame that Mason had intentionally knocked over. When I asked him what happened he innocently replied, "I was pretending to be the Beast". I don't know what I was expecting, but it definitely wasn't for him to reenact the Beast's temper tantrums. I showed Mason classic after classic but he always preferred the latest pixar movies. But then, a couple months ago, Brynn and Mason watched Aladdin and I finally got the reaction I was looking for. They both loved the movie and asked daily to watch it. When I asked Brynn if she liked Princess Jasmine I got the sharp reply, "I don't like Jasmine! I like the bad guys!" Yep, my little girl's favorite characters are the palace guards. She is so weird. One of my favorite moments was when I heard Mason get frustrated with Brynn and call her a street rat. Hahaha. It still makes me chuckle thinking about it. After Aladdin followed Lion King, Jungle Book, and the Little Mermaid. We started listening to my old Disney CDs in the car and we now drive around singing along with our favorite songs including: One Jump Ahead (Brynn's favorite part that she shouts out in a deep voice every time is "Rip him open take it back guys!" Seriously, should I be worried?), Part of Your World, Under the Sea, Hakunna Matata, Can you feel the love, Bear Necessities, I Just Can't Wait to be King (Brynn and Mason know word for word and it is my favorite to hear them sing), Colonel Hathi's March, and many more. Brynn may not like any other princesses (she HATES the movie Tangled), but she has fallen in love with Ariel who happens to have been my favorite princess all growing up. I think she admires her because she lives in a swimming suit which is something Brynn wishes she could do.  Whatever the reason, it is nice to see her respond to something like a normal little girl would.  It's no surprise that Mason likes the animals in all the movies with his favorites being ZaZoo in Lion King, Baloo and King Louie in Jungle Book, and Scuttles in Little Mermaid. A big thanks to my Aunt Marilyn for letting us come borrow from her Disney DVD collection.