Mudbath!

Some fall games are windy, some are rainy and some are muddy. This was one of the more muddy experiences we had this fall. This is right before the girl in red tripped Maria for no reason. It was probably because Maria is so darn cute.

This is Maria getting up from falling FLAT on her face. She is still watching the ball, that's my girl!

This is her watching the ball but thinking how dirty and wet and yucky her hands are. It is right before I yelled at her to wipe them on her shorts.

This is me wondering how in the holy tide I am going to get all that mud out of a white jersey.

Is that a left hook to my kids face???

Then she had to go in for goalie. Is this season almost over? I can't take this goalie business any longer.

What moron from the other team thought a pink game ball was the way to go??

This is what dried mud looks like. With a sucker in it's mouth.

Here are 2 clean people to rest your palette with.

Oh no! Mud is giving clean kid a hug!!!

I wrapped her in a plastic bag for the ride home.

No I didn't. That would be ridiculous.

I let her stick her head out.

Eleven!!

She had the week off of school AND it was her birthday. The fact that it started to snow as we walked out the door for her shopping day was just ICING on the 5th grader's cake.

Here she is opening the best present EVAR:

A jacket that matches Mom's Sounders jacket!! Thanks Uncle Loren!

What could this wonderful pink monstrocity be?? None other than her very own Archery Set. Don't worry, the wall only has one hole in it so far.

We topped off the night by having cupcakes from Trophy Cupcake. Sigh...

Oh, and this wasn't even her actual birthday!! Two days later we celebrated her day with ice, freezing temperatures and snow. Record lows that offset Morrie's birthday where we had a record high.

Maria got to do whatever she wanted on her birthday which meant cake and a glass of pop at 11am, movies, Mario Kart, coloring, more movies, archery, walking the dog in the snow, more cake... you get the general idea.

If only the snow would make cool shapes in the gutter...

I can't believe my baby is 11. How does stuff like this even happen in my universe?

Ouch! I need an adjustment!

Isabelle thinks I don't have enough to worry about and decided to up the number of headers she does per game.

#1: Heading it down (and getting a booty check from the other girl)


#2: Flicking her neck really fast results in heading to the left- and Mom getting whiplash.

#3: Hold on the player in front of you and use that leverage to head better. Mwaahahahaha.

#4: OMG header. That is when you head back a punt and mom puts the chiropractor on speed dial.

That is also when number 33 in grey stops to tell you "Nice Header".


Aaaaaaaand the ball goes back to the feet and Mom is once again able to breathe.

Thank you Isabelle.

Maria's New Best Friend, Chloe

Today I found myself in a very foreign environment. A place where I knew none of the vocabulary, none of the equipment, and not one clue as what was going on around me. Where is a soccer field when I need one?

This is where we were:

A horse barn! Stable? Hallway? Whatever.

At least one of us knew what was going on:

("Mom, pull it together!")

These are...saddles. I know THAT. Maria says that it is a tack room.

Ummm..Wait. So you are going to leave my child in here alone? With that huge animal? Maria says this is a Grooming Room and the horse is tied to cross ties. What do these words mean? What am I doing? What is she doing? Who's on first?

Those are really big muscles. Could she have picked any BIGGER of an animal to ride? Why didn't she just ask for Elephant lessons? I think I need a ventilator. I can't breathe.

I can't feel my legs. Is there a chair around here?

Now, this freaks me out. She has to clean the horse hooves.What if the horse kicks her? What if the horse leans over and lays down on her?

What if I stop breathing?

Yeah, that horse is big, but her instructor keeps saying that Chloe is a "just a Quarter Horse"
(Maria just told me to capitalize that because "it's a breed mom"). Just? What, is a Clydesdale next?

Does someone have a paper bag?

Gaaaaasp. Wheeze.

Okay, this was intense for me. The horse is jogging...going fast...wait. Let me get my horse thesaurus.

Trotting. The horse was trotting and Maria was...wait for it...posting. She had to put her hands on her head and lift her body out of the saddle and squeeze her legs and do all this in a rhythm of some kind. I was getting really sore just watching it all.

I saw another mom and was asking her some questions. After I asked where the pitch was and she stared blankly at me I told her I had no idea what I was doing here. She told me her daughter had been riding for a few years and then out of the blue offered Maria a pair of riding pants (I am sure there is a special word for them) that her daughter just outgrew.

These horse folks are soo nice!

Now if I can just find some smaller horses.

And a respirator.

Be still my heart: 2005

Back on the fall of 2005, we had a great friend take some family photos. I recently came across them and immediately started crying. Then I got out from the fetal position under the desk and began to wonder where did these little girls go??

Oh my. I am having a heart attack. Right now.

How can a child look like she has the sun beaming out of her eyes? Can I please have 10 minutes with this 5 year old girl?

These days -luckily- I don't have to work too hard to get her to snuggle with me. However, she is generally busy doing other grown up things, like listening to her i-pod. When did she get so ginormous? Quit it Maria!

Seriously? Those blue eyes are killing me. I just want to ask her a few questions so I can hear her voice again. Please?

Who is this girl now? I think my life just flashed before my eyes. I'm not old enough for that to happen. Where did the time go?

GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BAAAACK!! I want them little again!

This sucks. I am getting back under the desk again.

I kind of think we still look the same. Maybe a few more wrinkles. Creases if you will. Watching those kids grow up so darn fast will do that to a person. You think Morrie will go get the neighbor's baby for me? I just want to hold her for a teeny tiny bit. Just until this ache in my heart eases up.

Maria Goes MAC

What happens on a lazy Sunday when Maria has free reign on a MAC photo booth? Lots. Happens (especially when Dad is zoned out watch Nascar and football).


She ponders the existence of Dads. The possibilities of practical jokes she could play. Endless. The silliness she could leave imprinted on this hard drive. Limitless.
Even the dog gets brought into it. Smile Annie!
This is what happened when Dad started to watch Nascar for the third hour.

Then she remembered how happy she is about it being November. She turns double ones this month. She is twice as excited about this.
What is worse than one unhappy Maria?


Two unhappy Maria's.

Then we texted her that Izzy had just won her game. Guess what the score was?
Who is this monkey kid of mine and where did she come from?
She is kinda fun to have around!

Sigh...

I haven't had much time to blog lately, and it kind of has me down. I just can't cram everything I need to get done inbetween the hours of 7pm-10pm (9 central). I have a crap load of pictures on my camera to download, so many games I can't even describe it. Here is what we were doing a few weeks ago. I'm not even sure what I have been doing this week- because I don't have any pictures to remember it by.

Here is Izzy taking ball to the left kidney- it made quite a loud noise. I think she is ok, but more importantly, she totally blocked the ball from going down to our end of the field!!

Here is what happens when it rains. The dog wants to smell outside, and see outside, but not necessarily GO outside. She is just standing. Hanging out. Observing her domain. Considering the idea of maybe, perhaps going out on the deck.

Ummm...is that MY KID playing the player and not the ball? Nooooooooooooooooooo.

(when the other kids are that big, you gotta do what you gotta do!). KIDDING, I am just kidding. We are a non-violent family. Maria never gets called for fouling.

Okay, well THAT is a teeny exaggeration. She completely stiff armed a girl last week. I told her that when she is running up to the girl, not to have her arm already out and locked, it kind of gives her intention away to the ref.