Zoo Trip

We became Members of the NC Zoo Society several weeks ago on our recent visit.  We had so much fun!!!  Even though the polar bear exhibit is closed for renovation and the giraffes were not out we had a blast.  The dinosaur exhibit had Joey practically drooling.  We will be visiting more in the time to come as since we are now members of the zoo society, we get in FREE for a year. Not to mention the other 150 places in the US that we can get into for free during our membership.  We have a standing plan to go back on a warm day so Em can see the giraffes and we can do the Giraffe Deck.  

Enjoy our pics and take a trip to your NC Zoo!!!

Soccer and Basketball

Last weekend Michael's soccer team place 2nd in the FCCA Carolina Shoot out.  Michael scored a goal in the 2nd game!

 This picture is of the team and all the sisters that came to the final game. It's great when you hear them cheer their brothers on!

Emma made the JV Basketball team at West!  

(She's #16 in her practice jersey.)

 Wednesday night she has a scrimmage game against South Rowan. She played guard and center during the "games" that lasted 10 minutes each. She did much better than we expected since she hasn't played since 4th grade.

 

That's her on the left going after the ball. 

And there in the center after she took a shot.  

We are excited to see what she does during the coming season! 

We are so proud of them and their accomplishments on the court as well as in the classroom as each of our kids know academics come first then then court, field, track or ball!

Crazy Circles

Jamey & I have pretty much spent the last couple of weeks running in what seems a circle with an extremely few pit stops. Joey & Michael have been having soccer practice and Emma, volleyball practice.

Michael has already had 2 3v3 games, the first of which his team finished 2nd place overall in the u-12 division and the last one I have no idea where they placed because it was a down pour for the last game and it didn't get played, but the boys did have fun! He has a full blown tournament coming up shortly. Michael is now playing with the North Davidson Soccer League (NDSL) as we weren't in a high enough tax bracket to stay with certain people of FCCA. It had gotten to the unfortunate point where the parents tax bracket was more important than the skills of the child playing. Well - unless you were Mexican, and that became an entirely different story. Michael was extremely unhappy by the end of the last season (as were we), so we left. Michael is extremely happy now with the Sidekicks.

Joey and Emma both have tryouts for the JV squads at West this week for their respective fall sports. Good luck to them!!!

We have been having different levels of fun since the beginning of summer, but the one I still am laughing over is Cow Emma. I was cleaning my closet (again) and came across our cow costume. Emma, who is now an adult size fit it perfectly. After she grazed in our yard, she

went to ask neighbors if she could have a cup of milk. I was laughing so hard, I was crying. The thought still makes me chuckle.

Busy Last Weeks of School

June 1st , it started with Joey attending his Spring Athletic Banquet. He get recognized for being a member of the track team.

Then, he brings home his Letter for running track a couple of days later. Next big purchase will be a Letterman's jacket before the weather turns cool!

Emma has her last chorus concert on June 2nd. It was a very good concert.

June 6th ,7th & 8th brought final exams for Joey and the Algebra EOC for Emma. Joey passed all his exams with flying colors and is now a Sophomore! He will be trying out for the soccer team again come August. Emma passed all her EOGs and her Algebra EOC giving her a head start on her high school credits! Emma & Jonathan are now Freshman at West. Emma will be trying out for the Volleyball team and Jonathan the Soccer team. It will be awesome to watch Joey & Jonathan play together again. Michael passed all his EOGs and is now a 7th grader.

June 10th was the 8th Grade Graduation Ceremony. Can't you see how happy Jonathan & Emma are!

Downtown Salisbury Earth Night Out!

Michael and I went out last night to Downtown Salisbury to see that their Earth Night Out was all about. We did lots of walking and had a blast. We stopped into Innes Street Drug and each of us grabbed a bottle of Cheerwine and continued our walk until we found some classic cars.

We stopped and listened to the local musicians scattered around as well as taking a moment to pose with a train conducting Easter Bunny!

The highlight of our evening was spent with Salisbury Ghost Walk. We learned some history of Salisbury as well as the ghost that call Salisbury home. The picture below was taken by Michael when we were at the Andrew Murphy house on 229 West Bank Street. He was taking pictures after everyone else had walked away. He didn't use a flash on this picture and you can see a tiny orb at the foot at the statue. Needless to say, Michael wants to go do some investigating on his own.

Michael's Cooking....

Michael decided he wanted to help me cook dinner tonight,(Braised Short Ribs). He did a very good job and was not ashamed to let Joey & Emma know that he made it!

Go JOEY Go!!!!!

Yesterday, Joey had a track meet at West. He didn't jump this time, just ran and run he did. He ran the 800. The race itself only last like 3 1/2 minutes give or take some total, but Joey made it more exciting yesterday for us. This is just before they line up - the runners from West all talking about what? Who knows they are teenage boys! But they are together as a team and that is what matters!

This is Joey and his teammate just before the finish the first lap - see Joey behind him?

About 100 meters before the finish line, Joey kicked it into high gear, made up some space where he had dropped behind his teammate then, gets even with him. Yes, the look on this kid's face is "Please, don't pass me!"

Yes, Joey passed him and beat him by 1 or 2 seconds. As Joey crossed the finish line, he pumped both arms in the air in victory. Joey's final time was 2 minutes 55 seconds. Which is awesome since his first ever 800 meter run time was 3 minutes, 15 seconds.

I talked to Joey on the way to school yesterday morning about his track meet and his running & he told me that he didn't want to come in last again like he had in the past meets. I gave the Mom speech about never giving up and all that jazz. Well, he didn't come in last. He placed 13 out of 18 - and 2 of the ones he placed infront of were his own teammates!

Michael also made me proud as he watched his brother run his race. He cheered for him!!!!! - more than once! They fight like cats and dogs but I do see somewhere under all that fighting there is some love.

Graduation Week

Well, Joey is now a Freshman at West Davidson High School and Michael is a 6th grader at Tyro Middle.

Charlotte Eagles vs. New England Revolution

If you want to read the actual sports report,click here

It rained, and rained and rained some more. We got very wet! But by the end of the game, it had stopped. The Eagles lost 2-0 - but they had some nice shots on goal.

Besides his picture being made with several players, he also got some autographs on a mini ball. I felt better about paying $10 for the ball when I saw a regular sized ball with Sarlie Joseph's autograph on line for $250. Now, to try to justify the $70 for the N.E. Revolution or USA National replica jerseys Crash is asking for.

Maybe one day, we will make it to Washington DC to see the DC United play the New England Revolution!

Below is Sharlie Joseph with Crash. He is the team captin and a MLS 2009 MVP finalist and is also a member of the Grenada National Team (his home country).
The autograph and picture are worth much more than just a signed ball bought online anyday!

Michael Collar Bone

Thursday night, Michael fell out of a golf cart while playing at Ryan's and has re-broken his collar bone. He broke the callous that had developed over the first break and part of the newly formed bone. I took him to the ER Friday night to make sure there were no sharp points b/c it has swollen so much. (We didn't go Thursday b/c he said it didn't hurt & it wasn't swollen.)
So we now start over.
This is why we call him Crash.

Perfect Attendance for the Year!

Michael received his certificate for having perfect attendance for his 4th grade year! Yes, he even went to school for several hours the day after he broke his collar bone (on meds) just so he wouldn't mess up his attendance up. We told him he didn't have to go, but he wanted to. We are very proud of him for wanting to do this.

First Place!!!!

Michael's team finished first place in their u-10 divison this season. Wish Michael luck as he goes to try outs in 2 weeks to see if he makes the team again for the fall season!

Rowan Revolution

Today was the last game of the fall season. They played a great game using everything they had learned on since August. The score card showed the game tied 2-2, but that's only the score card -- not how they played or the ways calls were or WEREN'T called. Time to work on skills & kept conditioned for the spring - unless indoor soccer beckons Michael's to pay attention to it.... we'll see.....

Back row: Coach Ryan, Irving, Carter L., Adam, Michael, Coach Greg

Front row: Carter R., Ahmed, Tanner, Braxton, Wyatt

Michael's 10!!!!!

Night @ Catawba

The Catawba Indians faced the Lincoln Memorial University last night in Salisbury. Unfortunately, they lost 0-1 to the Railsplitters. There is a story on the game at http://gocatawbaindians.athleticsite.com/article.asp?articleID=3261 Michael and his teammates were ball boys during the game. During halftime, smaller goals were set up and a mini field was created half of the main field. The boys played a friendly game against each other. It was fun to hear the college kids cheer for the little ones.
In the picture with Michael is Matt Halton from The Woodlands, Texas who is a Junior at Catawba. Matt plays defender, which is the same position Michaels plays mostly. Michael made it a point to find Matt after the game. Michael had met Matt during a Skills Night that Catawba holds occassionally.
As a side note, only 7 of the 25 players for the Railsplitters are from the USA. The other ones are mostly Brazilian with a couple of English and Canadians. If you are a soccer fan, I highly suggest to check out local colleges to watch. You will NEVER complain about high school refs again!