Football Season ROCKS!

Evan is playing his last year of City Football this year and is absolutely loving it. He is playing both offense and defense and is a valuable player on both sides. His size is definitely a bonus, but his drive and his thirst to learn techniques and new skills excites his parents to no end. I can't wait to see what will become of my 'lil' athelete in middle and high school football. Go Evan!

Back to School!

Mackenzie is a junior this year at Fossil Ridge High School and Evan is a sixth grader at Preston Middle School, yes, that would be PMS. Anyhoo, they are both doing fantastic and are adjusting to their new schedules of school, practice, and social time. I am very proud.

Mackenzie has to miss Homecoming this year for Cheer Choreography. The gym flys in some top dog choreographer from out of state and they create a routine over four days and 30+ hours of practice. Insane ~ I know! But this is our life.

Evan will get to do an Eco week trip again this year with his sixth grade class to Pingree Park in October for three days. I know he'll have a blast. I know I wouldn't because it could be snowing and too damn cold. He's a trooper though, unlike his mama and his sister.

Recreation Baseball was a hit!!!!

Evan's team did not finish undefeated, but they did finish winners! What a great season. Fortunately, the coach was very conscious of the spirit of recreational ball and played every player at every position. The boys learned so much and matured quickly. Evan had a great season! Again, he is a steady player and very reliable! Go Evan! xo

Camp Timberline ROCKS!

Evan has left for camp for 7 days. I know he loves it there, but GOSH it is hard on me to not have my gentle giant here. He's enjoying the high ropes course, the zip line, the outstanding counselors, the worship sessions, and living with a dozen other 11 year olds without parent supervision. Woo Hoo! I cant wait to see him on Wednesday. The ride home may be difficult. I doubt he will have showered the entire time. P U!!! xo

The Perry's visit Mount Rushmore!

Just a quick 5 hour drive north, and we were there. What beautiful country - even in Wyoming! I have always loved driving long distances with Clay and the kids. I feel like they are all mine and I don't have to share with all of their social life distractions. (It helps that we couldn't get cell phone service in Wyoming ~ Yea Wyoming!) We enjoyed seeing the monument which truly is amazing and worth the trip. We explored Rushmore cave, which also was fun and historical. Alpine slide is always fun no matter where you are. Great trip overall! Thank you, thank you, thank you for my dear sweet family! xo

Miss Blake is learning to drive a stick shift!

So, she wanted a slug bug - she got one! (One with manual transmission!) We are taking it slow and easy and she is doing great. We are still practicing in the neighborhood, but I'm thinking after a few times out, she might be ready for city driving. Keep your fingers crossed! As you can see in the picture, she can sometimes be a "DING DONG"! My hope is a manual might keep her focused. Oh please! Oh please!

Father's Day Hike to Horsetooth Rock!

This has to be the first really nice day in a weekend in a long time. We hiked the 5 mile hike to the top of Horsetooth Rock today as a family! Great fun! Moose is our city dog and does fine for a while, but after a few hill and hot sun, he's searching for the shade. Despite the look in the picture, Evan really had a great time! ;o)

Evan's Baseball Team is Still Undefeated!

Gosh! We are enjoying watching Evan play baseball this summer. He is such a steady player! He always gets a hit and the team can count on him to make the play. What fun! Now the weather . . . winter coats, umbrellas, blankets, and hot coffee . . . that sounds like football weather. I object!!!!

Belly Button!!!!

OK I know, "Are you serious?!?!" Yes, I allowed Miss Blake to get her belly button pierced. YIKES! I figure you need to pick your battles and as long as she remains a straight A student, involved in competitive sports, and nice to her family maybe I can give a little. She does work awfully hard for her physique ~ a little bling to accentuate the positive really can't hurt. I'm thinkin' the first time someone catches her wrong in a stunt, the piercing might go bye-bye. FYI ~ I had come to terms with allowing her to do this, but after it was done, I cried. At least the worst consequence will be a small scar the size of a stick pin. A tattoo would send me off the deep end.

Miss Blake's New Car

So, yes, it was inevitable! We needed to get the girl a car. We looked and looked for the small SUV, the Jetta, the Honda, etc, but since day one, she has always wanted a "slug bug". Absolutely NOT, I thought. Too small, not safe, too much, and your brother would look ridiculous riding in it! Then we started to look into them. We knew we could only afford an older vehicle, but SAFETY was my main concern. Which cars, that are 10+ years old, have front AND side air bags? The New Beetle did so this is the direction we went. And, the Beetle has great visibility compared to my Volvo. Miss Blake has had some issues with visibility. ;o) So, I looked and looked to find a "slug bug" we could afford that was in good condition. After many months, I found one. It was in Longmont, close to Clay's office so I asked him to go take it for a test drive. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!?!?" Clay doesn't think he is "slug bug" material. But being the FANTASTIC father that he is, he took a visit to the dealership. He sat in the front seat and was really surprised at the head and leg room! The leather seats were in great condition and were heated as well! There was a great stereo and all of the controls were power controlled and very well taken care of. Perusing the dash he noticed a "shot glass" built in next to the steering wheel. "What is this?" he asked the dealer. "That's a vase so you can have fresh flowers in the car." "ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!?!?!?!" Clay had no idea there was such a concept. Hesitant to drive the car, for fear of being thought of as anything but the macho straight heterosexual man that is MOST DEFINITELY is, he turned the key and started the ignition. He pulled out of the lot and turned onto Highway 287 heading out of town quickly, making sure not to be seen by any other macho straight heterosexual men that might laugh at the sight ~ like he would have. He meekly drove to the final stop light on the outskirts of town hoping for the opportunity to let loose from the traffic. The light turned and he was off. Once he shifted to third and the turbo engine kicked in. . . Goodbye! Oh golly he had no idea this cheesy little vehicle could have such spunk and power! Hot Damn! The vehicle ran fantastic! Passing the other vehicles at 95 mph without any effort, I think he was sold. He drove back to the dealership and we are now proud owners of a 2000 VW Turbo New Beetle.

. . . . Miss Blake just thinks the car is cute. xo

Evan's 5th Grade Grad Party!

Fort Collins had adopted the plan that middle school will now be 6th, 7th, and 8th grade with high school being 9-12. Evan will be in the first 6th grade class to do this. To celebrate the end of the elementary years, we through a shin-dig with 20 of his classmates, male and female. What a trip! YIKES! I am not quite sure what I was thinking except now, Gosh, I have great kids!!!! Maybe it was the maturity level, but between some of the boys (not mine) throwing things at the girls just to see if they could hurt them, to kids (not mine) hanging from the willow tree branches until they broke, to the some of the kids(not mine) ripping the trampoline cover just to see what would happen, I couldn't believe it! Again, Gosh I have great kids! Anyhoo, we have some great pics of the party. I think I will wait a couple of years to get the group together again. ;o)

Proud Parents!

Once again, I get to brag about my kiddos! I love that part! Both received perfect report cards for the 2009 semester and we are thrilled!!!!! Also, Miss Blake was awarded "The Nicest Sophomore Female at Fossil Ridge High School" at the end of the year award assembly. She was chosen by her peers. Clay and I are impressed! Cute, talented, smart, AND nice ~ what a combo!

SUMMER?!?!?!?

We keep hoping the sun will come out so we can enjoy the summer. Rain, thunderstorms, and tornado warnings have been the norm for the month of June so far. We have made a trip to Water World on a chilly Sunday morning, Evan has played a couple (non-rained-out) baseball games, and Miss Blake has had a couple of tanning sessions on the trampoline. That’s about it so far. We’re ready for the heat!

WORLDS 2009

Here are some great pictures of Blake competing at WORLDS.

Miss Blake's Sweet Sixteen

Miss Blake turned 16 while away for the WORLD championships. This didn't stop us from celebrating though! The team put together a prom night for all of the teammates who had to miss their prom at home to go to WORLDS. They dressed in their formal gowns and suits and ties and looked fantastic. They celebrated their prom at the pool Saturday night and the weather was gorgeous. I can't imagine the temp was less than 75. I had set up the area with princess tiaras for the girls and crowns for the boys along with candy jewels and princess rubber duckies in the pool to represent my princess and her special day! The entire team and coaches, 40+ in all, enjoyed an evening of music, dancing, cupcakes, and fun!

Clay and Evan and their world-wind Orlando vacation!

No time to rest when there are so many rides to ride and parks to visit for my boys! We arrived in Orlando on Thursday late afternoon. Evan swam in the pool for a while then we headed down to Downtown Disney to check out the sites. Friday, Aunt Judy who lives in Orlando and works for Disney, was generous enough to offer Evan and Clay two free days at the park. Hollywood Studios and Magic Kingdom on Friday and Epcot on Saturday. Cheryl's youngest, Dillan, came along for the fun, too! They made a brief visit to Wide World of Sports on Saturday to watch Miss Blake compete and were off again to the parks. They had a blast! Sunday consisted of a day at Universal Studios which was, by far, Evan's favorite park. Lots of roller coasters! Oh, and for me, when I wasn't hanging with Miss Blake, which was not much this trip, I was sitting by the pool with my good buddy, Stephanie, reading a novel and drinking a cocktail. Life is good! We flew home Monday and slept the whole way home. Whew! Back to reality!

Top 10 in the WORLD!

WOW! Miss Blake and her team competed at the WORLD championships in Orlando, Florida this past weekend. The division she usually competed in, CoEd with up to 13 boys, was added to the unlimited division, 14 + boys on a team. Obviously, the teams with the most boys really have the advantage with the extra strength and phenominal tumbling skills. Yet, we held our own and represented Colorado proudly! Last year when I watched this outrageous division at WORLDS, I would never have thought that our team would compete at that level. This division is definately the BEST of the BEST and I am so proud to say I was wrong to limit the possibilities. Never underestimate the will of my daughter and the skill and determination of her gym, the Cheer Central Suns! This was a great finale to a fantastic season!

Videos of the kids skydiving.

These are fun! I apologize for the videography. :o)

Clay's Birthday Celebration!

Clay's birthday falls on Easter this year so we decided to celebrate a couple of days early. We went to Denver and did some indoor skydiving. I was the photographer. Clay did a total of 4 minutes and the kids each did 2 minutes. They had a blast! Evan was really a natural. Clay really would like to do the real thing and I am just not ready for that. Maybe for my 40th I will be ready to take the big jump with him right beside me.

Lake Las Vegas Trip

Clay and I had a great relaxing trip to Las Vegas. He was in class half of each of the four days we were there. I read a great novel, met some nice ladies, got a great hot stone massage, and sat by the lake in my free time. We took a trip into town to the Strip and ate dinner at the Eiffel Tower at the Paris Hotel. It was FANTASTIC! We had a great view of the sun setting over the Bellagio fountains. It was a great trip! A blizzard was visiting Northern Colorado while we were gone and the kids got two snow days! The kids stayed with Grandma Perry and didn't miss us for even one day. Thanks Grandma!