Tigers

Alyssa and Holly decided they wanted to play soccer this year. They met their coach and team a few weeks ago and got their little uniforms. Orange and black wasn't their first choice, but since Ben's favorite color is orange, they're okay with it.

Their first game was a few weeks ago, and as a team, they decided to call themselves Tigers. These sweet little kids were so much fun to watch. Their coordination was obviously just beginning to develop. Watching them trying to kick the ball and run at the same time was pretty entertaining, but also a little frustrating for all of us impatient adults. Before the actual game they did warmups and drills for a half hour. Then they played 3 on 3 for the final 30 minutes. It was a complete mess, really. They hadn't really grasped the concept of kicking the ball into the goal. They would kick the ball down field past the goal and then just keep right on going. So much fun!

The second game was much better, I think the idea that they're supposed to get the ball into the goal finally registered. Both Alyssa and Holly scored goals this time. It was fun to see their bright smiles when they scored, you could tell that they felt a sense of pride in their accomplishment. One time Holly came running back as fast as she could and yelled out, "mom, I scored a goal!"

Summertime

Where did the summer go? Since the girls were in preschool for 10 weeks it felt like a very short summer, but we had some fun times!

To start it off, the girls went to Shreveport with their daddy for a week. I was ecstatic to have a week off. It had been 2 1/2 years since I had been on a real vacation (without my girls), so it was definitely time for a little rest and relaxation! I ended up doing a road trip through Mexico with some friends, and had the time of my life. It wasn't nearly as relaxing as I would have liked, but I laughed and enjoyed my time off tremendously!

I already wrote about Lagoon, which was one of the highlights of our summer, but we also went to This is the Place Heritage Park, which the girls loved, the Discovery Gateway, Thanksgiving Point, the Tree house Museum, Classic Skating, Kangaroo Zoo, the Davis County Fair, the swimming pool a bazillion times, some fun movies, and of course spent plenty of time at various parks around Davis County.

After preschool got out we made a special trip to visit my brother David and his family in California. The girls love their cousins (and their rats), and had a wonderful time playing at the beach, and at the San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park. We also visited Queen Califia's Garden, which is a very unique mosaic art display in Escondido, California.

To end the summer the girls spent Labor Day weekend at Lake Mead with their dad, and then went with Ben and I to Zion's National Park where they went on their first hike.

We are so blessed with so many wonderful opportunities!

Spanish Immersion Preschool

One of the goals I've had since my girls were born is to teach them to speak Spanish. I have to admit, that with all the chaos and changes in my life over the past couple years, teaching them Spanish dropped to the bottom of my priority list, and I've kinda felt like a failure. So last spring I started searching online for a Spanish immersion preschool to help me get back on track, and I found one. Unfortunately, the closest one was in Salt Lake City, and was much more expensive than I was hoping, but they offered a 10 week summer program that I felt I could afford. I decided to enroll the girls with the hope that they would get a solid Spanish base and it would motivate me to recommit to my goal. I know that the best time to teach children a second language is before they are 7, so I need to get refocused! The girls went to class 3 days a week for 3 hours and learned a lot. Now I just need to keep the ball rolling, and make sure that I don't let this opportunity pass us by.