October weekend

I posted these pictures last Sunday night, planning to write about our weekend Monday night, and well now it's Sunday night again.  So here we go.  Last weekend, we had a bit of a cold snap which put a slight damper on our Saturday plans.  Will had his second-to-last (penultimate!) tackle football game and it turned out to be his best game of the season.  He caught a pass for a 2 pt conversion (his first score!) caught a few other passes and had a great tackling game.  It was a lot of fun to watch.  I forgot to take the camera so I didn't get any pictures.  Reina took a few selfies....

This was one of about 40 pics.  Look at those flowing locks.  

After the game, Will and I headed to Denver.  I was running a race Sunday morning and then Will and I had tickets to the Rockies playoff game.  It was all very exciting.  Glenn and Reina stayed in Cheyenne.  Reina had her first all-girls sleepover to attend and Glenn had a blissful evening at home by himself.  I was a little jealous. 

Will checking out the sights from our hotel room.  We had a lot of fun exploring downtown Denver.  I survived a trip to Pac Sun with a tween and Will lasted 15 minutes in H&M before complaining of boredom.  What a trooper.  

Sunday, I ran my race (Hot Choco 15k and didn't barf) and then Will and I worked our way towards Coors Field for a Rockies playoff game vs the Brewers.  The game didn't end the way we wanted it to but I'm so glad we had the chance to go.  A few weeks before the end of the regular season, I had a chance to enter a lottery for a chance to buy playoff tickets.  I was worried I would jinx the team but I went for it anyway and found out that I could buy two tickets.  I let Will and Glenn fight over who got to go with me and Will won out. 

We arrived at the stadium really early but we got to sneak down to the field level to watch the teams warm up.  It was really neat to see the players we've been watching all summer up close and in person.  

Obligatory selfie from our seats.  Go Rockies!  

The afternoon got colder and colder and the score went from hopeful to not so hopeful.  It also started raining every so slightly.  We stayed through the 7th inning and then thanked the Rockies for a great season and headed home.  I was chilly for the rest of the evening.  

Meanwhile, Glenn and Reina visited the Pauley grandparents and made old fashioned hats out of paper!  

I took Monday off because the kids didn't have school and I wanted a chance to hang out with my darling offspring.  Also, I had a bunch of laundry and other chores from the weekend.  But it was win-win because we crossed off a lot of things on our to-do list, like flu shots and cat vaccines. 

Who looks more excited for shots?  At least Will didn't meow at the window the whole time during our drive across town.  

The kids bravely got their flu shots.  By "bravely" I mean there was a minimum amount of whining, although Will asked Reina to go first and I had to buy donuts for my brave little soldiers afterwards.  Coco didn't need a darn donut, thank you very much.  But we did give her lots of cat treats.  We spent the rest of the day watching movies, working on school projects and doing the previously mentioned laundry. It was a pretty good way to start my week.  

September is for football

We have football coming out of our pores.  Flag football, tackle football, college football, Broncos.  Well actually, there's a lot going on in September.  Dance classes, piano lessons, hunting trips, work trips, end of season gardening, races and football.  And baseball.  Most of us are all in on the last week of the baseball regular season.  Go Rockies!  And all of the teams that need to beat the teams that the Rockies need to lose in order to make the playoffs.  Yes, that last sentence will make little sense to anyone else but at least a few of us are carefully keeping track.

So back to football.  Will is playing tackle and flag.  I don't have any pictures of flag yet but those games are after school a few times a week and Will is playing center like he did last year.  He finds flag a little low-key compared to tackle but I think he has fun with his friends.  I don't have any tackle pictures either but Will is having a pretty good season.  He's playing linebacker and tight end and has played every snap for the last two games. 

 Earlier in the month, we all traveled to Laramie for the UW game.  It was a beautiful sunny day and the only drawback was that the Cowboys lost. 

Reina and Glenn at a UW game a few weeks ago.  Game day gold!  

Last weekend, Will and I went to the Broncos game.  It was a record high temperature that day and we refilled our free-refill soda at least four times.  The Broncos had a tough game and were behind most of the game.  Will and I left our seats with a little more than two minutes left because one of us (okay, really both of us) were pretty frustrated with the game.  When we got down to the concourse, I told Will I just wanted to watch a couple of plays on the tv.  The Broncos put together a 2-minute drive and won the kicker won the game with a few seconds left. 

Will and our new lucky seats on the concourse after the game-winning field goal. 

So that's our September in a nutshell.  Glenn is home from a bighorn sheep hunt and I shall momentarily turn over the reins of the blog to him for a picture-filled post next time. 

First Day of School and also some stuff that the parents did this past weekend

Well, we made it to the First Day of School.  Both kids popped out of bed bright and early.  Outfits had already been decided on the night before.  Backpacks were mostly packed and while there was some slight indecision, concerning footwear, everyone was dressed and ready to go about 45 minute before we normally leave the house. I don't expect that to happen again for the rest of the year.  

Obligatory 'stand in front of the flowers on the front porch' picture.  

What's a first day picture without Coco?  Will briefly thought about grabbing Tootsie and Trigger for the photo but then figured that would get out of control quickly.  

 Will seems excited about his teacher and 6th grade class.  He reminded me several times this morning that it was his first last day of elementary.  (Muffled sob.)  I did not need to be reminded. I've also already made plans to take next year's first day of junior high off (preemptive muffled sob.)  He has several friends from last year in his class and flag football practice starts tomorrow already.  Bring on 6th grade! 

Reina has the same fourth grade teacher that Will had and she also has several good friends in her class this year.  She had a little attack of the nerves this morning but was slightly mollified when I told her how I threw up on the first day of school a few times and a little anxiousness was perfectly normal.  Or runs in the family at least.  She was full of stories tonight and enthusiastically attacked her homework so she's off to a good start, too.

On an unrelated note, but before I forget to post these pictures - Glenn and I ran a trail race this past weekend.  We did this same race last year and had so much fun that we decided to give it another go.  This year, I ran the 4-mile course and the much faster Glenn took on the 8-mile.  We were both happy with our times and didn't break any bones.

Isn't this a great picture of a handsome man?  I didn't take this picture - this is from the official race photographer. I was miles away when this picture was taken and probably breathing so hard I couldn't have stood up straight.  But look at Glenn attacking that hill.  He's a natural.  

And then there's me.  I have a remarkable flair for always looking like I'm standing completely still in races but hey, I'm ahead of that older guy behind me!  

A night at the ballpark and back to school shopping

On Saturday, the kids and I zipped down to Denver for a Rockies game and some back to school clothes shopping.  Glenn stayed in Wyoming and helped out a ranch that's managed by one of our friends.  A friend and her two boys joined us and down the interstate we went.  

We picked a great game to attend. It was Wyoming night at Coors Field so we were surrounded by UW fans and fellow Wyoming-ites.  Well, the game wasn't great to start, but it definitely ended up that way.  https://www.mlb.com/rockies/video/share/must-c-mcmahons-walk-off-homer/c-2375037483?tid=47074596 

The Rockies were behind the entire game and in the bottom of the 9th, down 2-0, a rookie hit a 3-run walk-off homerun and it was one of the most fun sporting events I've seen in person. Will was screaming his head, the other mom and I were astonished and even Reina was yelling.  It was so fun.  What a great memory.  

Our seats, way up in the altitude.  Great view of the field and homeplate.  

Purple and silver hair - it ended up being rally hair.  The little kids started it off.  Reina and her friend were getting restless in the third inning so I took them for a walk around the stadium.  A barber shop was set up and giving out free hair color.  Reina was all in naturally and opted for purple and glitter.  When we got back to our seats, the big brothers wanted a turn.  It ended up being rally hair and obviously the key to the victory.  

Post-game victory picture.  Great game!  

 

The kids and I spent the night in Denver and woke up to shop on Sunday.  We headed to the mall and had a pretty good time, all things considered.  Sometimes shopping is a trainwreck and other times, we find what everyone needs with few tears and little bloodshed.  Sunday was one of those days. 

The register at a girls-centric store was having technological difficulties so we had to stand in line for a long time.  Reina kept herself amused easily but Will had to get creative.  That's a blob of hair extensions, although it could easily be his hair.  

Not to be outdone.... 

The rest of the summer

Goodness. I step away from the blog for a minute and three weeks fly by.  Okay, actually four weeks.  This summer is just kicking my butt, pardon my french.  Work has been busy, family stuff has been busy, the kids have been busy.  Glenn has a big hunt coming up that's keeping him occupied.  The house is always teetering on the edge of somewhat clean/how can we live in this hovel. The yard has pretty flowers in one spot and hail ravaged raspberries and sunflowers in another.  The pets.  The pets are good.  We added a rat to the menagerie but he (Simon) deserves his own post.  A few weekends ago we coaxed a stray German shorthair into our yard.  He'd been in the neighborhood for about 24 hours so we knew he was lost.  We kept him for another 24 hours until we tracked down his owner.  Tootsie and Trigger were fine with the new addition.  The chickens and Coco were not.  Everyone survived.

So what have we been up to?  Reina had theater camp for most of July.  She was a UPS guy in the production of Twinderella - a fractured fairy-tale with a modern twist.  She had six lines and she rocked them all.  She also got to dance the Macarena with a few other kids during the show and she's spent the rest of the summer showing us how the Macarena "goes with every song mom!"  She had fun honing her acting craft for another summer.  Reina is done with camps for the summer and she has dance and piano to look forward to next month.

Will has been in a hodge podge of activities since the baseball season ended.  His team lost in the semi-finals of the tournament the night after my last post.  They rallied back from a deficit and played tough but lost on a throw out at third.  Since then, Will had a week of dodge back camp, spent some time at Frontier Days with friends and watched lots of movies.  He was going to do football camp but caught his sister's ear infection and was on the couch for a few days.  Now he's started football practice and has the first game circled on his calendar.

Glenn and I have been plugging along.  We've been working on the garden with my sister and a friend and growing some cucumbers, squash, peas and more dill than anyone can possibly use.  There are also some potatoes and beans growing while they aren't dodging the hail.  Oh and beets.  There are definitely beets.  We're both training for some races in August and September so we've had some long runs together which is a weird date but also a great way to spend some time together.  During Frontier Days we went to a great concert - Eric Church.  He was a terrific performer and I had so much fun.  Glenn even stayed up like two hours passed his bedtime on a Wednesday night even.  Frontier Days miracle!

So that's where we find ourselves in August.  Next up, the story of Simon the Rat. 

Scenes from the ballpark

This summer has been a whirlwind and it's already the middle of July.  Reina's softball season ended a few weeks ago and Will's baseball team plays in the semifinals tomorrow night.  I started this post in late June and I'm finally getting around to finishing it.  

Reina played on the Rockies this year and she had a great season.  She was on a team with 9 and 10-year olds with a mixture of experience.  On last year's team, they used a pitching machine but this year, the girls pitched.  For the first few weeks, Reina played some innings in the outfield and some at shortstop or second base.  Imagine my surprise when I looked up to see the team take the field and my girl head to the pitching mound!  I'm used to fighting the nerves when Will pitches but I wasn't prepared for #9 to pitch.  She was a trooper.  Many of the pitchers have trouble throwing strikes and I'll never forget Reina's first one.  She'd thrown a couple of balls and tossed the next one towards the plate and the ump said "strike!" and Reina looked up in surprise and gave a quick first pump before throwing another strike.  

That's my pitcher!  

Shortstop waiting for some action. 

Softball ready!  

Reina is still on the fence about whether she wants to play next year and she doesn't need to make a decision today.  It sure is fun watching her play.  On one of the last games of the year, Reina was pitching and the batter hit a soft liner right back to her.  Reina stuck out her glove and caught the ball for the third out.  I jumped up and screamed and wanted to run out onto the field but it was only the first inning. 

This is Will's first year in the Majors.  The league has all of the same rules as the actual Majors, with the only exception being that the field is smaller.  So kids can steal bases, including home.  Some pitchers are developing curveballs and sliders but most of them just try to get it over the plate as fast as they can.  Will's team had some ups and downs throughout the season.  They won the first game of the tournament last Monday, lost on Friday and then won two exciting games on a super hot Saturday morning.  They play in the semi-finals tomorrow night and I"m not sure who's more excited... me, Glenn or the actual ballplayer. 

Glenn taking his job as assistant coach very seriously.  

Look at that handsome pitcher!  

He was warming up in this shot because probably wouldn't tolerate me peering through the fence with my camera during a live pitch. 

Reina's piano recital

Before June is officially over, I have to capture Reina's piano recital which was on June 2.  This was her second recital and it is awesome to see how much she's learned in another year.  She's doing great.  She has both hands playing along and she can read treble clef and bass clef and she memorized her recital piece and knocked it out of the ballpark.  Sorry for the sports metaphor, I'm watching baseball while I write this.  

The theme for this year's recital was Americana, Old West & Wyoming.  Reina played a old-timey ragtime song called "Rowlf's Rag" (Rowlf was one of the Muppets.)  She started learning the song after Christmas and by recital time, she had it mastered.  

Serious girl playing the piano. 

At the end of the recital, all of the students sang one of my favorite songs, the UW fight song Ragtime Cowboy Joe and we all sang and clapped around.  Look a that cute girl knowing all of the words! 

"He always sings....." 

We are taking the summer off for lessons and then starting again in the Fall.  It's not always easy to get Reina to practice but boy do I love hearing her play.