Mom Needs Some Ear Plugs

Mike decided to surprise Kenneth with a drum set.

He is so very, very excited!!

I am happy for him.

I think I am going to have to invest in some good earplugs :)

First Football Game of the Season

Kenneth's team had their first game tonight. It was interesting.

Here they are coming onto the field. He is number 41.

They got some good warm up time in. I thought it was so funny that every time I snapped a picture he was facing the opposite direction of everyone else on his line.

During the 4th qtr. they needed a kicker since the normal kicker was hurt. The coach looked at Kenneth and said .... he plays soccer...he can kick!

Umm....Yeah......drop kicking a soccer ball is very different!!

Kenneth jumped on the chance to do it, even though he really didn't know what he was doing. Let's just say, he needs a lot more practice if he wants to be a kicker in the future :)

This was right after the kick.

Going into the 4th qtr. the score was 32 to 0. We were zero...that's right a big ole goose egg.

The coaches finally started putting some different boys in that hadn't had a chance to play the entire game (including Kenneth). They scored 4 touchdowns in the 4th qtr!!!

I hope the coaches realize that they have some talented boys and they deserve more time on the field.

Here he is on the sidelines, cheering his team on.

I realized that sitting on a hard bleacher for 3 hours was not my idea of fun.

I also found out that since he is playing high school ball now, parents get to pay to watch their kids play!

However, watching Kenneth play for a total of 90 seconds during the entire game was worth the whole wait!

First Day of School

I told Kenneth that I wanted a few pictures of him on his first day of school. Most of the pictures are of him standing by the door just staring....no real expression....not even a hint of a smile.

So then I told him to pose....and this is what I get...

Man, I sure love this kid! Life is much more entertaining with him around.

I can't believe that he started 9th grade. He is a freshman!!! Where has the time gone???

I am super excited that he gets to start Seminary this year.

He seems to like most of his teachers so far.

He was sad that he doesn't have any classes with his friends, but they do have the same lunch hour.

This trimester he has Band, Math, Science, Seminary, and English.

Annual Back To School Dinner

We have a fun tradition of a back to school dinner.

I let Kenneth pick the menu. This year he picked steak, spinach salad, mashed potatoes, and cooked carrots.

We get out the fancy China and decorate in school colors.

The purpose is to get together as a family and set some goals for the upcoming school year.

We each picked out goals in four different areas: education, physical, family, and spiritual.

We also decide on a personal theme for the year.

Mike decided his theme would be: Engage

I picked: Simplify

and Kenneth picked: Be Positive

I think this is a sign that they like the food.....

Family Reunion Part 1

Last Thursday we headed out to the middle of nowhere Wyoming for Mike's family reunion.

We were able to meet up with Pam and Delbert and have lunch with them in Jackson Hole.

We went through about 25 miles of road construction near Togwotee Pass. Since we were driving so slow we were able to check out lots of cool looking construction vehicles.

Notice the legs hanging out from underneath the tilted cab?? Not where I would want to be. These trucks were HUGE!!

We have never driven through Togwotee pass - it was beautiful!

The elevation is around 9500 feet at the top - so we were able to see snow in July. I am still a little baffled why there was still snow when it was about 70 degrees outside.....hmmm...

It was a long drive, but we pulled into camp around 6pm.

It was 97 degrees outside (which is really HOT for us Idahoans!)

This is what our campground looked like.....

Yep...it was flooded!

Luckily, there were enough campsites that we were able to just shift to a spot on higher ground.