A look at September

As so often happens, I get behind on my blog, and have to settle for a few favorite pictures to document exactly what has been taking up my time that I intend to use for blogging.  

This month has been no exception, and I give you a condensed version of September, 2015...

What would Autumn be like without soccer?  I really couldn't tell you, as I have been going to soccer games in the Fall for longer than I can remember!!  Sadly, the light at the end of that tunnel is growing brighter by the year!  The LHS girl's soccer team just celebrated the Seniors as part of their last home game on Saturday.  Seven girls who have played together for at least 4 years, and in the case of a few of them, most of their young lives.  

Ashley, Kristin, Allison and Miranda, Soccer Storm - circa 2004
(Be still my heart!!  How cute are these little girls?)  This year, these girls played teams consisting of several of their current LHS teammates.  How fun would it be to have taken pictures of all of them back then??  One more note - Kristin loved this blue uniform and wore it A LOT!!  She was such a funny duck back then about clothes!!

Kristin, Rylee and Ashley, LHS Soccer Team - 2015
A trio of beautiful girls

Michael, Kian, Ashley and Kristin, Soccer Storm - circa 2008
Hard to believe these kids are all graduating this year!!

Just one of this girl's many talents!!

Beautiful!!

They can't wait to graduate!!!

 More on soccer in a minute, but let's take a break to catch up on more September happenings...

Ashley and Chelsie came to visit and brought their 4 little guys with them!  It was great, and although it went by really fast, it was an unexpected treat to have them come!!  

We...

...went to the park and played...

...rode scooters on the pump track...

...rode scooters on the walking path...

(Carter even got in on that action)

...cheered on Trev at his soccer game...

...felt protected by our resident Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle... 

...and spent a rainy afternoon indoors, which included playing in the teepee the girls played with as children.  I couldn't help snapping a photo of the kids doing the exact thing their moms used to do...

I know I am missing T2 but he chose not to participate

We didn't do too many exciting things, but also managed to have a pizza night, watch the real-life Cinderella movie, find a house for next summer's vacation, and have a few nice chats to boot.  The girls also took advantage of a little nap here and there.  An added perk when Nonna is around. :)  The only bad part about the trip was the fact that Trevor and Kristin were both so busy with soccer, they didn't get to spend much time with our visitors.  Kristin actually skipped school one morning because she had two away games while they were here, and literally only got to spend a few hours with them.  There wasn't much we could do about that, just the way it was.  :(

Elder Dallin H. Oaks came to our Stake Conference this month!  Kristin had the opportunity to help give him his lunch for the trip back up to Spokane!  She came in the house after she got home and said..."Best. Day. Ever!".  That is music to this mama's ear!!  I'm grateful she knows the importance of modern day apostles and prophets, and what a blessing it is to have been in the presence of Elder Oaks!!

Of course, there are a few other things that have been going on this month, unfortunately, no pictures are available, but they are happening nonetheless...

Seminary is in full swing.  I'm getting to know my class, and loving it!  We are studying the Old Testament this year!!  Yikes!  I'm just taking it one day at a time.  And yes, it is still relentless, but I'm also grateful for the calling!!  It is amazing!!

Yoga is still happening, although I took an unintended break in August!  Too much going on.  It feels so good to be back at it!!

And just life in general has been moving along at a pretty fast clip!  I thought it would slow down a bit after school started, but I should have known better!  Silly me.

Kristin had a great final home game.  She assisted on both goals scored by LHS!  She has loved her time as a Lady Bengal!!

Trevor in his game against Moscow.

Another stroll down memory lane...Hayden, Cassidy, Kristin and Alyssa.  Boys and Girls Club soccer, 2006
Especially poignant as Hayden was involved in a fatal helicopter crash this summer.  A tragedy too great for words.

I made posters for each of the Senior girls.  There is glitter from one end of my house to the other, and much in between!  :)

So there is the Reader's Digest version of September.  As you can see, it was a great month!!

Au revoir, 2014...

Just a quick post about 2014.  The good, the bad and the ugly.  (Since it will be quick, it will probably be incomplete, but oh well.)

The good - Where to start?
-A new grandson - pictures here
-Sister Rietz serving in the California Rancho Cucamonga Mission.  She's 7 months in and going strong.  You can follow her adventure at her blog
-Teaching Seminary.  Who knew I would love it so much?  And love it I do.  I have a great class who show up, stay awake and are a joy to meet with 5 mornings a week - see this post
-Thanksgiving with the family.  see this post
-The first Roommate Rendevous  - see this post
-Many good books - Non-fiction seemed to be my genre this year - here is one I really enjoyed
-Watching my family continue to grow and seeing the great people they are becoming - you'll have to peruse the blog to find examples.  I'm sure I included plenty!  :)

This is just a sample of the good.  So many things to remember and to be grateful for.  I hope I appreciated and will continue to appreciate them enough.

The bad - Luckily not the longest list, but still long enough...
-Too many people we know passed away too soon - here is one story
-We didn't go to Australia - I could list this under "ugly" because it makes me very sad, and the regret       I feel about this is something I have to let go, because I can't change anything.  Lesson learned             though - take the matter into my own hands if I want something badly enough.
-Not enough blog posts, quilting, hiking or bike riding...no posts, just 3 resolutions for 2015!

The ugly - okay, there really isn't anything to put here unless you want to see a picture of my varicose veins, and really, who wants to see that?  ;)  My life is great, and my family and I are richly blessed.  Sure we have ups and downs, but isn't that what life is all about?

I'm excited to have a new year ahead of me.  I just saw a quote today about how we have 365 pages of a new book to write on.  I'm looking forward to seeing how our story unfolds in 2015.

Happy New Year!!

Did you feel the winds of change blow through?

A few weeks ago I ended my blog post with a little foreshadowing...remember, the winds of change?

Well, they have blown through and after the storm, it ends up I am an Early Morning Seminary Teacher!!  What??  Yep, its true.  I will take off my Relief Society counselor hat, and change it for a dress/skirt every morning, and a class of sleepy, yet really good Juniors in high school.

To say this will be an adventure is an understatement.  Seminary is a huge calling.  A lesson almost every day there is school means every day or night before school, I will be planning, or hopefully, fine-tuning a lesson.  I have always looked at the Seminary teachers with a little bit of awe.  Their knowledge of the scriptures is so good our Sunday School teacher often consults one of them when there is a tricky concept/question.  This particularly happens when we are discussing the Old Testament.  Let me just say, she will have to skip right past me for any sort of clarification!!  Especially when it is the OT.  That course of study is not until next year, and even then, I will not be in any position to clarify anything, I guarantee it.

This year, I am grateful it is Church History and Doctrine and Covenants.  And I'm grateful I have the Jr. class.  Kristin will be one of my students, as well as her friends, who are all really nice teenagers.  I will enjoy teaching them.  We studied Church History my first year of Seminary, wayyyyy back when, and I remember I loved it!!  I particularly remember loving my teacher, although, I couldn't tell you her name.  I don't remember loving the other years I went as much as that Freshman year.  (Not even my Sophomore year when the guy I crushed on right after we moved to Amarillo came every morning to pick me up.:)

I have thought about why I am getting this calling and all I can come up with is that one of my children was in a class who was particularly hard on teachers.  Seminary and Sunday School in particular.  I think they had a different teacher every year for Seminary, and although the majority of those teachers were good at their callings (I'm not going to lie, one teacher didn't prepare lessons and that was not good), that group of kids did not give them their attention, and for the most part were pretty disrespectful!  Is there really such a thing as Karma?  If so, this may be a good example of it.  I will be atoning for the sins of my daughter's class.  Come to think of it, two of the teachers I will be teaching with had kids in my daughter's class.  Its all beginning to come together.  (You may think I'm exaggerating, but I distinctly remember the girls taking cookies to their Sunday School teacher one day after church because she left the class in tears!!  I rest my case!)  I hope my class is more gentle with me!!  Maybe if I do it more than one year, it will cover a multitude of transgressions by said class!!  :)

But Karma or no, my new adventure begins Septermber 2nd, bright and early.  Its a new dawn and a new day!  I will just have to take a deep breath and jump right in.