Halloween 2013

My feelings and perspective on many things have flipped in the past year, including Halloween. Still didn't want my kids to over-indulge in candy but did want to encourage their creativity and fun. Everyone got to chose anything they wanted to be, no constraints on a unifying theme or only re-using items from the dress-up box.

David fell absolutely in love with the Punk Skeleton costume he spied at WalMart, which he called a "cary kelitin."

Charlie wanted to be a super hero, so I suggested we make him some muscles to wear under his Batman pajamas, and found an awesome mask and gloves online to complete the look.

Samuel looked on the same website and chose the wizard costume.

Isaac decided he didn't want to dress up at all. He helped me pass out candy at the door while Mark walked his brothers around the neighborhood. David came home after just our street. He was cold and thought he had plenty of treats already - about 8, ha!

Isaac Fall Soccer - The Edge Second Season

There were a few changes in line-up for the fall season, but most of the team returned for another foray into competitive soccer. Mark and Justin (the coaches) decided to bump the team up a division this season.

L-R: Coach Smith, Greg, "Bear", Cesar, Austin, Trad, "Acor", Kaulin, Wesley, Kade, Logan, Isaac, "Barto", Coach Dame, Trey

The ball pictured with the team, above, was the preferred ball during practice because the boys felt it imbued them with stronger, farther kicks. They dubbed it "Old Yeller" since, aside from it's color, it was on old, slightly lopsided ball of Isaac's.

The first game was at Simplot Field against the Boise Nationals C-team. We won 5-3, which was especially great for our new teammate "Bear" Ander since that was the team he played on previously. It was somewhat the highlight of the season, as we lost most of our games against the other really good teams.

Our most frustrating match was the 5-1 loss against Idaho Rush. Working with the boys, their tempers, opinions, egos, and emotions make straight-up practice and play difficult. It was exciting that several of the boys began to understand conceptually how to use passing to get by defenders.

Isaac had six goals over the course of the season, including two games with two goals, the first of which was against Nova Academy.

Our final match in Boise was a disappointing loss 5-3 against Twin Falls. They were the #2 team in the league, which makes the sting less powerful. I was proud of Isaac that he has learned to shake off his sadness and finish the match strong.

Instead of practices the last week, Mark scheduled a friendly match and a scrimmage. Just because the stats wouldn't count was no reason for these boys not to give it their all. Fun games.

The final match of the season was on our home field against the rather weak Caldwell Inferno. Everybody got playing time. Isaac scored two goals, Greg two, and Trad one for a final score of 5-2.

The boys always ran the width of the field after every match. There was something especially cathartic about this last run, it seemed to me.

With losses to Idaho Rush, Sawtooth, and Twin Falls, The Edge finished their season with a 5-0-3 record, and a 6th place ranking overall in the league of 11. We scored only two goals less than the highest ranking team, and feel good about the team's improvement compared to last season.

Justin purchased plaques for all the boys to commemorate the season and Mark organized a big barbeque dinner we ate together immediately after the match.

The prospects of leaving this team is truly sad for both Mark and Isaac. A lot of time, energy, and heart were put into building the team up in both skill and unity. We definitely wish Justin and the boys the best next spring.

Autumn Leaves!

Last year we completely missed the second coolest thing about our backyard: the leaves on our huge Box Elder tree changing color and falling. When Charlie had his accident they had only just begun yellowing and by the time we came home time and weather and rendered the tree barren. Also, our house is going on the market this winter, so we are experiencing our last autumn here. This tree is undoubtedly one of my favorite things about our home. There was something extra nostalgic about watching the season happen this year in our little corner of the world.

We actually had two or three separate leaf raking/jumping parties, plus cleaned up the back porch (especially sandbox) for winter, and Mark fixed the sprinkler valves. He had trouble getting them to blow out and ended up discovering some sea shells blocking on of the valves!

Though size has it's advantages when it comes to playing in the leaves, clearly Isaac enjoyed himself. And so did I, watching them.