The kids, of course, get plenty of exercise during their daily play. We live on a wide, relatively quiet street and our kids are usually riding bikes on that street or playing in the backyard. One of the more popular games we play is Street Tennis. No net is needed, but if you miss your volley on the downhill side, there can be lots of running to catch a fly-away bouncing ball! Heidi usually plays this game with them and stands on the downhill run. Here, Jackie O, aka Miss Julia, shows her good form while returning Heidi’s serve.
Nadia started Soccer practice a few weeks ago and her first game was this past Tuesday. She and Ashley are on the same JV team in middle school. They both have practice twice a week and play once a week, either on a Tuesday or a Thursday. They won their first game 2-0 on the other team’s turf. Nadia plays guard and got in on some action once or twice. I did see her clear the ball once. Here is Nadia “outstanding in her field”. (Snicker, snicker, I’ve been waiting all season to use that one!)
Kole is getting in some sports as well. At home he likes our wiffle-ball batting practice. He can hit it over the fence into the neighbor’s yard. We toss his football a lot too. Boy does he have an arm. His spiral is good and tight and puts mine to shame. I need to practice! Kole likes to try new tricks on his skateboard too and is always asking me to watch his latest move. A sloped driveway and a slight downhill street make for some interesting tricks. Right now, Mom has taken away his skateboard for a few days because he did not heed her warnings to wear his helmet. Usually this is not a problem, but Tuesday during Nadia’s game, he had to be told three times. The first two times resulted in time-ins with Mom, the latter was a restriction. For the past three days, the skateboard has enjoyed rides to Mom’s work place in the back of her car.
Our second oldest daughter, Jordan, flew in last Saturday for her Spring Break. She goes home this Sunday. The kids love her and she is “too cool” because she is older. Of course, these three have never had another sister, let alone an older one. Julia dotes on her and can be usually found hand in hand with her new sister. I’ve gotta introduce Jordan to “Papa-sandwich” and let her be the one at the bottom of the pile. It is sweet to her the playful banter of sisters in the house. Jordan really enjoys her new role as big sister. She used to be the youngest. On occasion I have viewed from afar her being role model and mentor to the two girls, this affirms that we are all family now and forever!
Here’s Jordan and Nadia jamming to Guitar Hero. The kids are only allowed to play it after home work and before dinner during school days, and then for only 30 minutes. Quibbling or arguments result in 10 minute losses of time. On the weekends, they get one hour. At first, I thought that we would have big problems sharing or wanting to play it all day, every day. But, this has not been the case. They usually only play it once or twice a week, forgetting about it due to other goings-on and they share and don’t argue over it. In case you’re wondering, the missed time is not accumulated. If they miss all week, they still only get the 30 or 60 minutes per day. So far it has worked.
Kole started his dental repair last week after I posted. He had three teeth pulled (rotten baby teeth), three fillings, and one crown. He returns next Thursday for the second half which is more of the same. Over the course of the next 10 years, he will need about eight implants to “make” teeth that he will never develop. He is missing eight to ten permanent teeth that never grew due to nutrition and childhood disease in his baby years. He will also need spacers, retainers and braces to make room for these future implants. I told him that he will have a million dollar smile when we finish all of his treatments.
Nadia’s birthday is on Monday the 30th of March. She turns 13! We will have a party that preceding weekend. Nadia has already made a list of the things she wants to cook for her invited guests. Borscht and Soshleek (sp?) were at the top of the list as I remember. Cake and ice cream were on the list too.
So, life goes on with our family. I’m sorry that the post was late this week. I’ll probably be late two weeks from now, too. That’s when I get to play Mr. Mom for the week while Heidi goes to Tulsa for a conference or training event. Whoo-hoo! Fun times are a comin’! I’m not worried though. It will be just a little more work than usual, but I can handle it!
~ Felix ~
