The Boys are Back

It must be spring, the boys are back together again.

The boys of the Dragons, that is.

We weren't sure if the team would be back since they were moving the from 4-5 year old league to the 6-7 year old league, but, they are!

Practically the whole team is here, plus a few new players.  We are all SO Excited!!

The grass may still be dormant and having a hard time waking up, but the Dragons are on fire and ready for another season.

(Oliver back right in white shirt, red shoes)

The team was all very attentive and kept their eye on the ball.

The hikes are under the legs this season and not to the side.  I guess when you're in the 6-7 year old league, your legs are long enough for the ball to go under and not around them.

Oliver hiking the ball.

Triple Threat.

Colby, Owen and Oliver.

(I missed a photo of the 3-O's running to the field: Oliver, Owen and Owen.  Next time!)

Owen's concentration was fierce.

Owen was so focused, that he ran the ball from one end of the field to the other.

Oliver only had possession of the ball once this game and they had his number, four to one.

There was no surviving this cluster without a flag pull.

He was bummed that he didn't get another try, but we have many more weeks to go.

Eye on the Prize!

This may have been one of the funniest candid moments.  I'm so glad that Keith and I noticed this happening before it was over.  Yes, that's Oliver and Owen conversing with the ref.

It's a good thing, someones got to make sure that the clock is right.

"3 minutes of play left!" yelled the ref and Oliver confirmed.

The Dragons pulled out a narrow win.  The 6-7 year olds are a tougher crowd, as we would expect, especially since most of our team is six.  The other team gave the Dragons a run for their money.  It's going to be a GREAT season!!

Who says we have to wait until fall (ok, August) for football?

Go Dragons!

Springing into Spring

The morning may have started out cool but the afternoon was bright and warm.  After Kellan's soccer game and some errand running, we came back home for some backyard relaxation with a heavy dose of Vitamin D.  Kellan even gave the new trees a much needed drink of water.

The boys have been working hard to earn points for good behavior and chores.  The points are converted into an allowance, which Oliver has been anxious to spend lately.  He's been talking a lot about getting a new Lego set, which until recently, he wasn't interested in.

We took both of the boys to the Lego store and they got to pick something out with their money.  Oliver wanted to spend ever last penny on a very large airplane.  We talked him into this smaller airplane and told him that if he could prove to use that he could do it on his own without any whining or crying from frustration, we would consider the larger airplane.  He sat down when we got home and worked non-stop for the next 3 hours.

Here, the airplane is almost complete.

We are so very proud of the work he did on a project that was rated for 8-12 year olds.

We LOVED our quiet and relaxing afternoon.  Oliver was especially excited that he finished his airplane with no problems.  Now, he wants to know when he can get the BIG airplane.  

Kellan's First Soccer Game

It must be spring!

Whether Mother Nature agrees or not, spring sports are well under way.  It was supposed to be sunny and 68 degrees but we awoke to clouds and a bit of a breeze.  We layered up and headed out.

Kellan is now 3.5 and ready to start sports as well as his big brother Oliver did when he was 3.5.  We signed him up for soccer with the Edge and Saturday was his first day.  He has been playing at Primrose in a clinic that is coached, but never competitive soccer.

That morning, Kellan was giddy with excitement.  He chattered a million miles per hour and the whole way to the field.  It was finally his turn to be in the spot light.

When we got there, his buddies Brendan and Stephen were already there and ready to play.  Oliver was a great big brother and helped the little boys play before the coaches stepped in.

A quick photo before they were off and running.

Brendan, Stephen and Kellan.

The boys headed out to meet up with the rest of the players.  Stephen entertained Kellan with his interpretation of what the cones should be used for.

I think that Coach Luke at Primrose has the boys stand with one foot on the ball quite often and this seemed to be their go-to pose.  Or, maybe their coaches told them to do this.  Regardless, they were cute to watch.

Kellan in white, Stephen to his left.

After taking some photos, I turned around to see my Dad on the sidelines.

Oh wait... it's Oliver.

Never in a million years would I have believed that I was going to birth my father, but it seems that I have.  There are so many things about Oliver that remind us of him from his meticulous nature, his caring and concerned heart, the way he gives knowledgeable advice readily, his rate of walking (which is always 20' behind us) and his resting position (legs crossed).

The team practiced for 30 minutes and then played a game for 30 minutes.

The teams were open to whichever field you went to and the coaches were high school student.  Since the players are all so young (4 year old division), this is how they operate it at the Edge.

Kellan had fun kicking his ball around.  He clearly has been learning some mad skills with Coach Luke at Primrose.

He practiced making some goals, even with obstacles in the way.

At some point, he took a resting position.  Again, I'm convinced that someone has taught him this and it seemed very natural and comfortable for him.

The march back to Mommy and Daddy also seemed natural.  He had a hard time transitioning from a spectator to a player.  He kept wanting to come to the sidelines to sit down and watch.  This seemed quite natural as Oliver had a hard time being on the sidelines and not playing.  We had to explain several times why he had to be there when he wasn't playing.  Give it a few weeks and they'll each have it figured out.

You can tell that Brendan thinks that Kellan is a bit out of his mind.  See him in white over Kellan's shoulder, likely wondering "where in the world is Kellan going?"

Finally, it was time for the game.  It turned out to be blue against white and the blue team had two ringers that dominated the white team.  It's a good thing that they don't keep score at this age.

Kellan was a bit shy on how and when to get in the crowd and kick the ball.  He did get in a few times.

At the end, they let all of the kids score a goal.  It was the biggest hit of the day, besides snacks.

Kellan so happy to be kicking in his goal!

Kellan had a great time and is already excited to go back again next week.

A Night at the Nuggets

Friday night, we had tickets to the Nuggets vs Spurs game, courtesy of Mommy's employer.

Oliver takes his sports very serious.

Kellan takes his hotdogs really serious.

Then, he prefers to move onto iPhone games instead of watching the sporting events..  That may change someday, but for now, he has a short attention span for watching sports games.

As I'm writing this post, Oliver said to type, "the boys had a BLAST".

When Kellan was asked if he has fun at the Nuggets game he said, "Ya" and then walked away.

Clearly, they have differing opinions of a BLAST.

We did have a great time, even thought the Nuggets lost by a landslide.

Martin Boys for the Afternoon

Last weekend we had the Martin boys over for an afternoon of fun and sun.

It was great that the weather was so nice as we spent the entire afternoon outside.  Keith pulled out the directors chairs that our neighbor gave us and the little boys highly enjoyed sitting amongst the perch.

This kid is a killer.  He cracks me up!

While Cole is cracking jokes, Kellan is very serious about his snack.

Meanwhile, Keith was teaching the big boys some of his favorite childhood games that he used to torture his brothers with.  Oh, Boys!

It was fun to see the little boys chatting it up on their directors seats. 

Based on the rate of their growth, I'm not sure that they will be the little boys forever.

Keith and the big boys moved onto another game, hangman.

We determined that while hangman is fun, it's not really politically correct to hang a man.  Really, who thought that was a good idea way back in the day?

We had a fantastic afternoon with the Martin boys in the hood.