Stand Back 500 Feet

Jakob and Joshua both played football on the Firefighters teams this year.  The teams are selected based on geographical location, so as long as we're living here, the boys will play for the "Fire".   (Stand back 500 feet is on the back of the coach's and fans' shirts). This is Jakob's third year.  The league begins as early as 4th grade, but our own family rule is 6th grade, otherwise we would have had three playing.  It has been fun to watch the progression over the last three years, and equally as exciting to watch the beginning of another new "career".  I'm always eager to watch them play, excited when they do something well, I feel bad for them when they don't execute a play as intended.  I'm not one of those parents who is loud or obnoxious or angry or up in the coaches faces.  I witnessed that as an athlete in high school and it is my top priority as a spectator not to EVER behave in that manner!  I am a proud parent though and I would never hesitate to (calmly) celebrate a successful play, a competitive spirit, a hard-earned win.  I'm quick to congratulate, hesitant to critique, and consistent to advise good sportsmanship and minimal excuse-making.  I have a thousand pictures from the games that need to be filtered and deleted to find the good ones, next to none of the boys posed and not one single one of just the two of them together in their uniforms.  (Joshua's season is over and his uniform was washed and returned prior to this realization!)  Tim and I both enjoy watching their games and each time that it works for all of us to be there to cheer on both teams, we all are there.  I know that the boys appreciate it, but also understand when one of us can't be there for some reason. 

Joshua running the ball to score a touchdown!

This last weekend was even more special as each of them had multiple fans cheering them on.  Grandma and Grandpa A are able to attend several games throughout the season and it's always a treat for them to be there.  They were there to root for the boys' teams, but this time, so were Grandma and Grandpa S. and Uncle Cash and Aunt Annie.  I think it was as much fun for them to be there as it was for the boys knowing they were there. 

The weather was beautiful...a picture perfect fall day, completed of course by watching football!  Both boys played at the same time on fields just diagonal to each other, so we watched from Josh's endzone and spun around to watch Jakob's game from the opposite end zone.  Fortuneately for all of us, Jakob's game was a quarter behind in start time and went into triple overtime, so we felt like we really got to watch both teams play!  Our nephew played the time slot right before so Grandma and Grandpa A really had an efficient spectator's day!

One of several well-executed tackles from Jakob.  (He's on top)

Jakob's sack at a very key time in one of the overtime periods.

I'm not sure that I knew this about myself:  I find myself thinking "Go out there and hit somebody hard!"  My stomach turns and my heart aches every time a player is down on the field for longer than a few seconds and then anxiety sets in when I can't immediately find my child on the sidelines or in the huddle.  And then if they have to bring the stretcher out to carry a player off,  I'm almost in tears thinking of some poor mother who is probably beside herself wondering why she let her baby play this game!  I usually take a deep breath and remind myself that my kids can get hurt walking down the sidewalk, riding a bike, playing a non-contact sport, or even falling out of bed. 

The day lent itself to more than just a game ON the field

Joshua does a great job running the ball...although all of my pictures of him doing so either look just like this, or he's hidden in the mass of defenders trying to bring him down.  I initially thought that it was silly that he swapped out his long yellow socks for these short black ones, but that resulted in me always being able to find him!

It was a great day to have extra fans in the stands!  Both teams won and it was Joshua's last game.  Jakob still has one more before his season ends and this is also his last year before highschool football.

Of course a day that resulted in two wins certainly seemed that the most logical next step would be to go have ice cream!

Matching ice cream cone!

She really just wanted to go home with Pop.  I think she would've been content to ride the 450 miles just like this!

The weekend wasn't planned around football, but it definitely fit well...Tim, Mathilda, my dad and my brother were all able to go to the Husker game on Saturday (THANKS Taubenheim family for making that happen!)  Cash and Annie were able to come Thursday night and there was no school on Friday, making for a wonderful day to enjoy fall at a leisurely pace.

A prior foosball wager was finally paid up...Jakob had to buy Cash's yogurt!

I bought Benjamins!  I don't know what I was thinking letting this child help himself.  At Cherry on Top, you pay by the ounce, and they don't offer small dishes.  His alone was over a pound!!!

I was really great to get to spend some extra time with Annie.  I don't think any of us feel like she's only been part of our family for four months.  She's a great fit and each of us enjoys her like she's always been here.

I was so excited to have a day with nowhere to have to go so that I could really enjoy the season and the company of my family.  I thought it would be a perfect time to make pumpkin doughnuts, and then I rethought that.  It was actually a more perfect choice to make grebel.  I think my kids need to have memories of eating these.  My great grandma used to make them once a week (or at least it seemed like it).

Annie got some first hand experience in learning how to twist the dough.

...and Millie was just happy to be able to eat them in all their sugary goodness!

Scones for dinner...a delicious effort from Annie and Mathilda!  Aren't memories even better when they involve food?  :)

And we even got to celebrate Annie's birthday while she was here!  We explained that birthday celebrations should go on for at least a week.  We started this for the mere fact that we are usually at least that late in delivering our birthday wishes!!

Pre-picture haircut.  No mohawk this time though.

There was no lack of a good time spent!  Thanks for coming to see us Cash and Annie!!  And Grandma and Grandpa too!!  I love having a full house!