Sports, Sports, Sports

 We spent our late summer on through to the fall watching Cai excel on the field, both for soccer and cross country. 

He had a new soccer coach this year which we sure didn't mind. Over 80 boys tried out so we were super excited that he made the JV team. He started most games and played in every game. He even scored 2 goals! We are so proud of his perseverance and hard work.

The cross country coach approached Cai and asked if he'd come run for their team as well. He had already cleared it with the soccer coach, and as long as it didn't interfere with the soccer season he was free to join practices and meets with he cross country team. He found a community he loved and another sport he is really good at! He began the season PRing nearly every early meet. By the end of the season his time made hime eligible for regionals and he came in second on his team! His PR for the 5K is 20.0006 min.

When Poppee came in a few weeks ago he started showing Cai some wrestling moves and is trying to talk him into trying out for that team...we shall see, ha!

The Little Visitors

 Josh's sister and husband reached out to us to see if we could host their 4 littles for a week and of course we said yes! It was such a full week of activity! The boys literally didn't stop the entire week. I'm just gonna photo dump the week because I feel that adequately describes the vibe from the whole week.

The boys (Cai) created some elaborate game that occupied their time. Don't ask me how to play, just enjoy the pictures of them having a blast!

August - Saying Goodbye To Summer

 

We celebrated Cai's 15th birthday. Birthday tradition gets them a breakfast with dad wherever they choose and often Krispy Kreme is the one.

This also meant Cai was able to get his permit. We now have our official 

4th teenage driver in the colony house.

Alethia is starting to get practice in pumping gas.

Our beloved Fluffy died in August. Our 9 year old chicken! We even saw the culprit! It was a hawk. He actually took out a couple of chickens before we were able to fully close in the ladies. But since we covered them up they have stayed safe and sound.

Rainy had a gig down in Myrtle Beach and took Zeke with her to grab some footage. 

I love that they love spending time together.

Jude, forever creating in the kitchen.

Zeke has really surprised us with his dedication to learning guitar. He now plays on the student worship team and practices for hours to perfect his parts. We love this creative outlet for him.

The kids finally started school the last week of August. 

Cai headed back to Rolesville High and took Alethia with him this year!

Jude is home in 7th and Zeke is home finishing up his senior year.

The Rest Of July

 After our Colorado trip our summer did NOT slow down. Cai had a singular day at home before heading off to soccer camp with his school. The girls asked me to tag along with them to see Sam Hunt. It is so fun to watch the girls get so into their concerts, lol.

Zeke jumped on a mission trip to Brazil, and boy did those Brazilian girls like him and his cousins!

And Jude finally got his birthday outing with friends. He chose to go ice skating, since he is all into ice hockey right now. It was so cute. He had the whole day planned out with outdoor games and snacks and everything. He is turning into quite the host.

Speaking of hockey. It is an extremely expensive sport and there are a LOT of steps to even get to the team part. So Jude went and surveyed a couple of the nearby neighborhoods, created a flyer to hire himself out for any odd jobs that people may need him for, to raise money for this deep love he has acquired to play hockey. He got a couple of call backs from a couple widows that just need some young bones and strong muscles and he is working his way into the hockey scene.

Things That Are Saving My Life Right Now

I did one of these posts back in May. A post dedicated to a select few things recently that have really stepped in to save my life! Here are my go-to's the last few months.

1-Sudoku - This summer was F.U.L.L. So full that I found it absolutely necessary to quiet as much noise around me as possible. Reading was hard. It's always been hard for me to read when people are around. Voices and movement can be super distracting and that can (not always) lead to frustration because I keep having to re-read things. I was also finding it hard for my brain to stay focused. After coming off of a busy season and stepping into summer, and all that comes with that, I decided I was going to give myself permission to just be. But I also like to be "doing" something and I found the PERFECT thing! 

Solving things + Numbers = Life Giving

Sudoku has been SO fun! I can jump in a game and be interrupted without feeling like I have to spend 20 minutes to get back in the zone. It has nothing to do with technology. I can be present with my family while also keeping my brain active and sharp, and also giving my hands something to do while just hanging out.

2-White Out - We make plans, then the times change, they get cancelled, then rescheduled, then completely moved to another month... I could just write in my calendar with a pencil, but I don't trust that. I could also just cross things out, but when my the little daily white squares on my calendar begin to get cluttered with changed plans being crossed out everywhere my anxiety starts to rise. Enter in this little gem. I can't even count the amount of times I've used this little guy on my homeschool plans or my calendar and IT.MAKES.MY.HEART.SO.HAPPY. It's like a fresh start every times something changes instead of the potential chaotic mess it not only looks like, but actually becomes! Go get you one of these and I promise you won't be disappointed.

3-Juice and Toya - Working out has been sporadic the past few months in between travel and extra littles running around, but I can always count on Juice and Toya to give me a good HIT. Josh and I love to do these workouts together. I mean, we get to work out with another J and T, husband/wife team! Here's the workout I knocked out this morning! Go check them out on YouTube.

4-Puzzles - When we were keeping Josh's sister's kids for a week in August they came with a 300 piece puzzle that the boys would put together, take apart and put together again, over and over. We went to our puzzle arsenal after they left but only had a couple of 1000 piece puzzles, which can be a bit too much for a quick weekend puzzle, so I headed to amazon to pick out a couple 500 and 750 piece puzzles which seemed much more attainable. I love looking over and seeing which of the kids (or adults) gravitate toward the pieces throughout the days.

5-Sabbath Candle - I started using a taper candle on Sabbath. There's just something about finishing the prep of grocery lists, laundry and cleaning chores on Friday morning and then walking over to the table to light the candle to enter into sabbath that is so life-giving to me. As the day goes on I catch myself glancing over at the flickering light, remembering this day as set apart. It also reminds me that I can trust God to still be alive and active even when I am not.

That's it. The things that are saving my life right now. Nothing earth-shattering, just things that keep me centered.