High School Swimming

Reggie has been practicing with the high school team for about a month now and it is pretty chill.  He still gives us a little grief about going, but it is much less strenuous than the tennis club (where he had to pack his shoes and do weight training and conditioning out of the pool!).  It will be good when their meets start because, hopefully, he will get to know more of the kids and it will be a social thing too!  We had time trials this morning in the pouring down rain and he did a great job...swam hard :).  They have this internal meet to see where the kids are so they can put them in an appropriate heat when meets start. 
They have carb up Fridays on meet days and he will be happy about that.  Parents bring pasta, pizza, mac and cheese, along with a bunch of other stuff to school and the kids pig out!  He might like swim season after all!

School finals are next week, so he's been working hard this weekend to make sure he is ready.  He has 3 A-'s, so its critical he do well to maintain his grades.

Volleyball and Trampoline

Most of our weekends these past couple months have been consumed by volleyball or trampoline.
Volleyball has been a beast!  We had no idea what we were getting into and its been way too much!  I thought I was signing up for snack mom, but when I had to attend a meeting for that position, I wondered what I had gotten into.  After that meeting and the "list" of things I was responsible for I decided it wasn't for me.  The goal was to tailgate at these all day tournaments and provide a hot meal to the girls and their families....CRAZY!  I guess its a volleyball thing. 
We should've ran when they switched the coach on us the night of signing.  She loved, loved, loved who her coach was going to be and her new one is young and has a bit to learn.  She is playing with several girls who have grown up playing volleyball and her learning curve has had to be tremendous.  Playing time isn't necessarily based on your ability....there's a political component and that has been frustrating for Ainsley.  She is used to sports where your performance is all you got.  So, she hasn't played as much as she would like and when she does play, there's so much feedback and she usually hears the negative, so we've watched her love of volleyball and her confidence go down significantly.  I got involved and tried to help the situation which I do believe was necessary and helpful, but told her she needs to stand up for herself and I'm out.  She has been doing a better job, but is so terrified to talk to her coach.  It's been a great learning experience and I'm hoping she can take that out of it at least.  We are about half way through the season and she has been getting more positive feedback lately from her coach and other parents, but her teammates most of all.  She has been enjoying her teammates a lot!  School volleyball starts in a week, so that will be interesting to see if we can juggle it all.  She is super excited about school because she will be able to have fun!

Trampoline is our safe haven!  I know when she goes there, she will be mentally and physically o.k.  Its hard not to start questioning if we are the problem, but when we have examples of sports and us not getting involved because things are the way they should be, it is a good reality check!  She has her level 8 skills on 2 events now, so will be competing one of those next weekend and maybe the other the following week.  She was in the belt last night working on doublebacks, both front and back! 
She finished with a 1st place on Double Mini and Trampoline and a 2nd place for Tumbling.

Weather

This winter has been rough!  We had some sun and 60 degree weather in January for a small bit, but then the rain came and hasn't stopped for any period of time.  We are all desperately needing vitamin D!  We also had some hail and the neighbor boy came running over and was so excited....wanted to play in the "snow" and he's 15!!!  We could see others out there throwing "snow" balls.  It did stay around for a bit.  It has been unseasonably cold and we were about 200 feet away from getting true snow.  The hillside was white for at least a week.

Getting out on the few days the weather cooperated.  Look at how full the lake is!

Khalif is finally a strong biker

Ryan and the boys enjoying a hike.  Lots of cows out this time of year.

Sharks Hockey game

This was on my bucket list and Ryan surprised me on Valentine's Day with tickets to the Sharks game.  We should have studied the game a little before we went because we had no idea 1/2 the time what was going on.  Thankfully, we had kind seat neighbors who were helpful!  That crowd was the most polite group I've ever experienced.  Instead of fighting over t-shirts that were thrown into the crowd, they offered them to others around who "went" for the shirt.  The game was super close and really exciting....went into overtime, but the outcome was disappointing for true Shark fans. 

New car!

I have wanted a Prius since Ryan had one for work several years ago.  The problem is that he didn't like it, so away it went.  My excuse was that Reggie would be driving soon and we needed to have another car, so there was lots of time over the winter break, so I started looking.  The plug in Prius's in our area are the same price as the regular Prius, so I thought, why not go that route?  In California, you get a carpool pass if the car is considered an EV vehicle, but those stickers are only good for 3 years, so people are regularly unloading these cars.  I found one that was a screaming deal, but guess what, we were in Washington, so I told the guy we'd like to drive it if it was still available when we got back.  The posting was deleted the next day, so I sent him a not and he said he had a potential buyer.  They got all they way to the end of the transaction and he didn't have the title because he paid off the car and it was in transit.  I guess that was enough to spook the other buyer, so it was still available when we got back. 
You can't insure a car without a title, so it wasn't going to work for anyone, but he was hopeful that someone would buy it without the title.  He had no takers and we were first in line, so lucky us, we got it for $12,500!  It has a lot of miles (76,000), but is a 2015, so is super clean and feels really new. 
It has been super fun to drive.  I like to see how far I can go and how many miles to the gallon I can get!  It was a bit all over the place in the beginning because it didn't like EV mode (the guys NEVER used it and it doesn't like when the heat or air is on), but once I refilled the tank and figured it out, it seems to be working much better.  It didn't start with a full tank so it was really hard for me to estimate what kind of mileage I was getting and I was a bit disappointed and frustrated when the gas tank kept going down and I was using electric only.  When it dropped to 1/2 tank I decided to just fill it up and start over....it took a whole 3.7 gallons!!!  So far, I've driven 450 miles on this tank of gas and I have a half a tank left.

Oakley house

I got a text on January 29th that asked what I wanted our renter to do with the house keys???  I was so confused, but after I thought about it, I realized they were moving out on Thursday!!!  Whoa....she sent me a text in October stating they would not renew their lease, but I took that to mean they would go month to month since they wanted to buy a house (and we had a discussion the prior year about month to month vs. signing a lease).  Apparently, that was not their intention, so let's just say we kicked it into high gear!  I guess it was a blessing in a way since we didn't stress about anything until we had to!  We went up there to assess the house on February 1st, made several trips to get it back in mint condition, although they left it pretty darn good.  They forgot to do a few things, so I gave them the opportunity to do them, which I was hoping they would do and they did, so that saved us a little time.  We had a few people drop in while we were getting the house ready and I made a trip up there to meet a family that wasn't able to make it to the open house on Saturday, the 9th and before the open house, we had two awesome possibilities.  We had so much interest from Zillow and Craigslist that I couldn't keep up with the responses (over 100!).  We were expecting a flood of people at the open house, but I guess when push comes to shove, people didn't want to make the effort to show up.  We did have lots of colorful people at the open house and many groups of people were planning to live together, hmmm.  I guess that is how people can afford to live here, kind of sad.  We also had a lot of single mothers which was also sad.  Everyone who came absolutely loved the house and they all signed up to fill out an application, probably 25 people in all.

It was very hard to make a decision, but we did and feel really good about who we chose and Ryan went up there to sign the lease with them on February 11th!  It was fast and furious and exhausting, so we are hoping to not have to go through this process again for a few years!!!

Christmas break

There were lots of indoor activities over the break!  The weather was terrible.  Snow was in the forecast for several days, but it just couldn't do it, so we had a bit of cabin fever.  Next year, we may try to plan Great Wolf Lodge, but my guess is it would start snowing right when it was time to head there.  We managed to have lots of fun and eats lots of treats.
We decided to stay at Aunt Pam's the first night because we flew out kind of late and thankfully we did that because our flight kept getting delayed!  The next day we celebrated Christmas with her and had a nice brunch.

Ryan surprised me with tickets to a Seahawk game and I was not that excited about all that is involved in going....the drive, the terrible weather, the parking, etc.,  I guess I'm getting old!  But, I sucked it up and went anyway and it was such an awesome game and a lot of fun, so I have to say thank you, Ryan!

We had great seats and the weather held :)

Christmas day 

 Dad enjoying flank steak!

Before it got to dark, we sent the big kids out on a little adventure, girls against boys....this is what happens when you are stuck inside for days!

Selfie with someone on bamboo lane
Write message in the sand
Climb a tree
Picture with geese
Build a rock tower at least 6” high
Write a story problem and solve it
30 second dance routine or sing a 30 second song
25 push ups each
Put a puzzle together

Not exactly what I was thinking....it was interesting to see their interpretation.

Reggie's first time driving!

Maggie's birthday celebration at the Rinehardt's.  The hoover board was the big gift this year and the kids had lots of fun on them.  I tried and could not get my balance initially and it looked like I was having a seizure....no one got it on video!  I quickly figured it out, but it is a strange sensation initially.  Here's Reggie learning:

But here' grandma:

Look at the improvement!

Olive garden...my kids first time there and probably their last.  They were not fans...

Lots of screen time....I think we saw 3 movies, Mary Poppins, Aqua man and something else that I can't remember.  Must not have been that memorable!  Reggie brought his gaming computer.

The girls danced

They played board games

The kids think grandpa is so funny!

We visited Funko

We went to a fun place in Bothell that had almost everything (except trampolines), but was really pricey.

We spent a lot of time in the hot tub.  Ryan was trying to make his back feel better.  Reggie and I did a polar plunge and that was very refreshing!!!  The video is too big....

We spent some time with Grandma Peggy (the kids stayed there!) and had a nice time hanging out at her place with Anthony, Emily and Grandma Gloria.

Reggie's birthday party

Reggie invited 7 other boys over for his party.  They gamed for a bit and then went to Deadpool, the PG-13 one.  I didn't like that movie at all and Ainsley had a birthday party to attend so I took her there and Ryan managed the afternoon!  I usually do the birthday parties and its a lot and I was a little happy to hear he thought it was a bit stressful too (glad its not just me) and still not really appropriate.

Cookie day

I flew all by myself to Washington a couple weeks ago for cookie day!!!  What a nice break...can I just say it is so nice to just worry about me!  The weather was very nice on Friday, so it made sense to make my toffee early (last time I made it in the rain, it was a little chewy and I didn't want to risk it).  That night we had a Bunko party at the fire hall and there were so many people there :).  I don't have much luck at that game but it was still fun.  Aunt Pam came up and went too....no beginners luck for her.  Saturday we spent all day making cookies, dozens and dozens.  My mom premade a couple and they were my favorites...Peppermint meringue and whipped shortbread.  I ate a lot while I was there!
I forgot to take pictures but I did get a few of us playing the face game.
The mouth pieces can be a bit challenging and somewhat painful to get it.

Piano recital

Ainsley and Khalif had there piano recital and both did awesome!  Reggie outgrew his teacher and with starting high school we decided to let him play on his own.  Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to happen too much anymore.  He was excited about some new movies coming out and learning their theme songs, so we'll see.

1st Trampoline meet

Ainsley's first trampoline meet was a couple weeks ago and we have a lot to learn!!!  The scoring is so different than artistic gymnastics and the scoring on each event is different.  I got the 101 from her coach afterward, so it makes a little more sense now.  We think she did pretty good and since she was the only one in her age group, she got 1st place on everything.  The group she was competing with was level 1-7 all ages, so she got lots of ooh's and ah's because most of the kiddos were lower level and I guess they don't get to see the upper level routines very often.  She felt pretty good about herself afterward!

Pac 12 Championship Game

Before Apple Cup, Ryan talked about going to the championship game at Levi Stadium in Santa Clara, but got pretty quiet about it after the Cougars lost to the Huskies.  Reggie's friends dad works for Audi and they sponsor the event, so we offered us tickets for the entire family, plus the VIP tailgating party!!!  The younger 2 have never been to a game, so I thought it would be a great experience and it was!  We were hustling to make it to the tailgate party and the Husky band was walking/playing next to us and it was quite impressive.  There's so much energy at college games!

We had all kinds of food to choose from, sliders, churro's, nachos, meat carvings, chili.  We did not leave hungry :).  

We got to the game and found our AMAZING seats...probably the best seats I've been in, BUT we were on the wrong side.  Sitting with a bunch of Utah fans.  The kids heard more f 'bombs than they knew what to do with...good and a bad because that at least meant the Huskies were causing misery.  It was quite entertaining and the kids laughed and laughed.  Khalif was a little uncomfortable with things being so out of control, so he moved over by me and cuddled in his blanket.  He was very annoyed that they would stand up for the whole game and swear for no apparent reason!!!  But, when all said and done, he really enjoyed himself too.  We all had a blast!  Brought me back to my college days....all the band songs are the same :).  Felt good to laugh..which we did A LOT.

The game ended on a bad no call, so the Huskies won and the crowd was booing and I took a little video for us to remember our friends in front (Ryan was buddy, buddy with them, chit chatting it up the entire game...well, until the last quarter when it got a bit intense.  They liked him because he wasn't a Husky!).

15!

Doesn't he look good!  Nothing like a hair cut and shave...What?  Yes, Ryan helped him shave his upper lip and chin!  He just said how weird it felt, but he'll get used to it.  He is now 5'11" and 148 pounds.  He is growing so fast, his knees are bothering him a bit and crack when he goes upstairs.  I hope everything will settle in when he stops growing.  It won't be long until he passes Ryan!

We had birthday dinner when the Rinehardt's were here, so there wasn't too much planned for today and we knew he would want to play on his new gaming computer that he worked so hard for.  He has been saving and working for us since February and combined with his birthday money, he finally ordered his computer on Black Friday.  He is really enjoying how fast and cool it is!
We did go to Timothy's birthday party today and that was lots of fun.  He destroyed his cake and it ended up all over him which is why he doesn't have a shirt on.

 Wasn't that nice that they had a party and cake for Reggie!  Ainsley overheard us talking about his age and she just couldn't get over that he is 15.  She was so surprised...it was very funny!

It is still weird to think of him in high school!  The first trimester is officially over! So far, he has all A’s and squeaked it out in biology with a 90.4!!!! We studied so hard for his final and I’m glad it paid off! He wasn’t so sure after he took it and was a little irritated that the study guide wasn’t exactly like the test but he did great ☺️.  English is still unknown...he had an 89 going into the final.
He also went to work with Ryan for the first part of Monday and Tuesday of Thanksgiving break and spend some time with the engineers at Molex. He seemed to enjoy it but hasn’t said too much. He is growing up too fast!  It is weird to think he'll be moving on to bigger things in less than 4 years.  He is such a great kid with a big heart!  Always wanting to do the right thing...he has a very strong moral compass and it so great to be able to trust him.  I hope he always stays that way.  I never know who to believe if he isn't around....the other two have a ways to go in this area.  He is a gentle soul and its easy to love Reggie!

He is getting quite the sense of humor and its been fun to see him "get" things and develop into a young adult.  Sometimes it isn't so fun....we have lots of screen time battles, but deep down he knows why we have limits and I'm hoping he'll learn to self regulate better in this area.  Its a different world than when we were growing up.  These kids always have access to screens and they see people making money on Youtube and becoming famous just by playing video games.  It is crazy!  He is very techy and someday that will hopefully be a benefit in the workplace.  

Happy Birthday....We love you Reggie!

Rinehardt visit/Thanksgiving

Unfortunately, for the Rinehardt’s trip started out with a delayed flight which threw everything off a little bit and they ended up in some San Francisco traffic but made it home in time for dinner.
We woke up bright and early the next morning to turn right around and go back to San Francisco to visit Alcatraz, Lombard Street, China town and the Golden Gate Bridge. It was absolutely pouring down rain!!! The rain was much needed to dissipate to smoke in the air but it wasn’t so fun. We were all soaking wet. I think everyone enjoyed Alcatraz but Maggie not so much. It was enlightening for sure.

 Ainsley with former inmate William Baker.  He was in for making counterfeit money and then escaping from 3 other prisons.  Pretty smart guy.

We cut it close in the morning and thankfully there wasn’t traffic so it all worked out but leaving in the afternoon is a bit of a nightmare. Waze routed Ryan all the way up through Vallejo and back down.... probably 40 miles out of the way. Our route seemed much simpler but when it took us an hour to go 2 blocks I wanted to jump out of my skin. Took us 3 hours to get to sweet tomatoes. The boys beat us by at least an hour! I won’t be returning there anytime soon. That might be the dumbest city exit ever...only one way out.
The next day was Thanksgiving and the turkey was in the oven by 8. It was a beautiful day and we could finally see clearly (the smoke was gone). We decided to play a little beach volleyball. The girls made a comeback and we ended up tying. It was fast and furious when we got home. Linner was delicious and we were all stuffed. Somehow the kids were able to jump on the trampoline with full stomachs. Adults were comatose! A few hours later we ventured out to Walmart and Kohl’s for Black Friday. What a mellow, quiet year. I didn’t have much on my list but it was worth going there. We were able to get the good stuff online and maybe that’s why the store was quieter. Lots more online shoppers!

 Working hard on one of his favorites!  He was also our potato peeler...

 We went and saw the fantastic beasts movie and The Rinehardt’s were impressed with the reclining seats and ability to pick your seats when you buy the tickets. We don’t really think about it much but I guess it is pretty cool. Apple cup was later that day ....ouch for Ryan!  Oh and I almost forgot that Wade and Ryan put up the Christmas lights!

We were supposed to go to the jelly belly factory on Saturday but I read online that none of the machines would be working so we all voted that was not worth it. We decided that might be a good parents night out! The kids also had kids night out and walked downtown to get dinner and Menchie’s. It’s good for them to have a budget, make choices about where they want to eat and have some freedom and responsibility at the same time.
I’m pretty sure they made better choices than we did!!! Lots of drinks and food (we got warm maple bars from the donut wheel 😋). We really enjoyed Paxti’s happy hour. Then we went to the escape room and failed miserably. We contributed quite a bit (we were with 6 strangers) given our condition and thought we were doing great until he showed us how much we had left. It was still really fun. From there, we Ubered back downtown to the beer Barron. That was memorable...Liha was asked to dance by a lady!!!! She wouldn’t do it, but it made us all laugh. The DJ started the music awhile later and the place was absolutely packed and we danced the night away. We walked home and arrived around 12:30! There’s still some young in us!

Everyone was hurting the next day but I pounded the water before we left and stuff with lemon drops and I felt great. I think that’s my new favorite drink! Makes me happy but doesn’t seem to make me pay later.
Sunday we went to church and then headed to the pool for some time in the indoor therapy pool (96 degrees). They have family day on the weekends and they were a lot of people there so we decided to go outside. The pool was empty and it was beautiful!!! The kids swim and we soaked up some sun, maybe snoozed a bit. It was glorious! That night we celebrated Reggie’s birthday at Red Robin for the last time (slow service), but we all left very full.

 We all walked to school on Monday.  I think Khalif is going to miss Spencer...

The kids spent hours in the secret room, playing a Overdrive (racetrack game), jumping on the trampoline and the girls did nails and played barbies and watched a lot of the carbonero show. Fun times for all!!!!