I hate the politics of coaching!!

Ok, this is going to be my little vent session. First off I would like to apologize to every coach my kids have had that I have judged too harshly or thought was not that great. The physical act of coaching the kids has been fun and rewarding............then the other side of it. Dealing with parents, other coaches, staff at he gym, trying to make sure everyone gets equal playing time without hurt feelings, UGH!! Then there is always 1 or 2 kids on your team you just have a hard time with but you have to deal with it, nicely. I have learned a lot about patience and keeping my cool and trying to represent myself how I want people to see me. At times I want to just scream and quit..........then when your kids play an amazing game that gets you so excited, makes it all worth it in the end!

Family Night of Caching

For family night this past Monday we went to find a geocache. Yes, we have become obsessed! This is one activity we all love and it gets us out of the house! Martha did volunteer to sit in the car with 2 sleeping little ones, she is not much for the hiking ones anyway. This is on a hill that was a quick hike in Murrieta. It was recommended to do it at night so we complied. It was a beautiful night and it was so much fun.

Water fun..................in January!

Here we are on a beautiful day in January. Yesterday was in the mid to high 70's and we decided to spend it outdoors. We pulled weeds and trimmed trees and of course there had to be water involved! Anytime the temp is above 70 Tommy thinks that is an invitation to get wet. Here he is playing in the hose. I love California weather!

WE WON!

Last night the Trojans had their first volleyball victory! The kids had so much fun and it was a great game. Shelby is at 6th grade camp and missed the whole thing! She will be bummed she missed it but happy for her team mates. I was really hoping last night would be a win for us. Now that they have felt a victory I hope we will have more in the near future. GO TROJANS!!

Happy Birthday Dylan and Thomas!

Today Dylan is 10 and Tommy is 5. It is crazy to think that Dylan was the same age as Tommy is today when Tommy was born! Did you follow that?


My little Dylan. He has such a gentle and sweet heart. He is always helping kids at school and wants to be friends with everyone. He is an amazing big brother and a great example to Tommy. He loves his baby sister and has been a huge help to me with her from the day I brought her home. She loves him very much! He was not always the easiest baby, but he has grown into a very sweet young man. He has been blessed with an athletic talent that he loves to use. We are doing baseball again this year and he wants to be a pitcher. He was introduced to snowboarding over Christmas break and he loved it! Dylan is always the one to hug me and help me whenever I need it. His new passion is geocaching and it has brought him and Mike closer. They both love the activity and every free moment is spent doing it together. Happy Birthday my little man I LOVE YOU!


Thomas..................oh my little Thomas. Tommy has always acted older than his age. He is so smart and so independent. He cannot wait to do what all the other kids are doing. He woke up this morning and asked if he can go to Kindergarten now. He always surprises me with the things that he says. His vocabulary astounds me, especially when he uses the words in context! I was so worried when he was born on the same day as Dylan, but they have been nothing but best friends. Tommy wants to be exactly like Dylan and hates to be away from him. I have always believed Thomas was the best thing that ever happened to our "blended family" and he brought us all closer together. He is my little gift from heaven when needed the most. Happy Birthday T I LOVE YOU!

Volleyball

I have taken on a new activity as of late. Shelby signed up for community rec volleyball. They were in need of some coaches, so I signed up! I have not coached a team since her t-ball team when she was 6. I was a little nervous about it, especially after meeting a couple of other coaches who are very serious about the game. I enlisted a friend of mine to be my assistant coach and she has been a life saver! I am so glad she offered to help. We have lost all three games but I am seeing an improvement in the kids. We have 10 girls and one boy on the team. The age range is 6th to 8th grade, but it is mostly 6th graders. I was not really sure what I was getting into with this but I have to say I am enjoying it very much. I love that I am involved with something Shelby enjoys and I am able to be with her. She does get a little frustrated when I try and "coach" her but she is very patient with me. For those of you who know me I like to be in charge! I love the much needed exercise it is giving me and I have always enjoyed volleyball. It feels good to be doing something different and get to know new people. My anxiety in the beginning has been dissipated and I am really glad I did this!

Geo caching!

What is geo caching? Definition: A type of scavenger hunt for waterproof containers bearing treasure using the containers' exact geographic coordinates and Global Positioning System devices

We have recently discovered the joys of this activity. We have always loved to go on rides and new adventures and discover new places and this makes it even more enjoyable. Especially for the kids! What kid doesn't like to find boxes filled with little treasures you can trade for? Here are the latest pics of our geo caching adventures. Check out the link at the top right of the blog to see what caches we have found!

This is a cache Mike made for the boys as a Christmas gift to hide for others to find.


We found three cool caches on this mountain yesterday.


Eliza likes the ones stashed in public parks the best!