Soccer-Blading-Scooter Jumping

We have been busy with family and just stuff this month. We visited the Smith family for a weekend and had a wonderful time. We watched Lanna and Maggie play in soccer games and then watched Oma and sister Carol play soccer against their high school varsity team in an annual alumni game. Way fun and funny. No oxygen was needed on the sidelines but there were many missed kicks with an “Oh Geez” to follow from said player. Sandy and I had some good laughs from the grandstands.

We didn’t take any photos that weekend but if you wanted to see a couple they are on the “Ruiz Family 4” website, the link is to the right here under "Other Sites".




Cole is playing soccer now too, the running is good for him and his coach likes the way he listens and follows directions. Cole says he also likes his coach, and is learning quite a lot. Did I mention that Oma was coaching his team? I didn’t? Well she is.The “Beaver Volcanoes” played their first two mini-games this past weekend and Cole had a very good time. The other teams seem to dominate the direction of the ball but we do have two or three boys that “get” the game enough to challenge them. Cole seems to understand the angles pretty well, running to those to cut off the ball or for an accidental pass from his team…or from the other team. He even made a goal, which made him turn and say “Yeah” with a fist and a smile.

Jo and Momma kicked the ball around a bit before Cole’s game and she had a very good time. I did ask her if she wanted to play soccer on an all girls team and her words were. “Please don’t make me play soccer again, Momma.” How could you force that? She might try it another time but not this season. This day like so many others, she played in the dirt and was very…very happy.
(fyi, she starts swimming again this week)

After almost a full year of owning roller blades Jo has finally pulled them out and started playing on them! (we have not pushed her) In just a few days she has gained much confidence on them and has even gone down our ‘hill’ at the end of the driveway. (if you have ever been at our home you know that it is barely a downgrade but it’s enough that she rolls without pushing) She is working hard, smiling and laughing the whole time! Oma and I are having a wonderful time watching her and helping her here and there.

Cole is becoming quite the hot dog on all things with wheels. Here he wanted to prove that he could jump a piece of sidewalk chalk. And he did. He has taught himself how to jump like this, along with doing a little wheelie, and now trying a nose wheelie. He has started racing his bike around the yard so fast that all vehicles have to be moved from the driveway. (A couple close calls with hitting them while riding very fast.) Anything we can do to help him keep the teeth he has left until they are ready to leave on their own.

That’s about it for now. Busy but all good.

Mt Hood – Oma goes Girl – 1st Day of School!

Momma took the kids camping on Mt Hood for the last long weekend before school started. This is a family camping trip every year that started with Momma’s Maternal Great Grandparents, so we are now working on the fifth generation camping in this area.

This is our campsite for the three night stay, next to the river with the sun peaking over the mountain every morning warming our tents. Eight of us were in this spot and we were not the largest grouping of family members. The kids were up early and only came back to our area when called to eat, brush teeth or go to bed. The freedom they had this weekend around the camp was really unique. As Uncle Bob said “Everyone is watching the kids and yet no one is watching them”. Grandma Marie or myself would wonder through camps if we had not seen one of our own for a length of time, find the one or two we had not seen and then moved on. Other adults were doing the same with theirs as well. Wish life could be like this all the time, I know it use to be.

Some of the family brought up their dirt bikes and rode for a while. Momma was sure tempted to tear it up like she use too but declined the offer when asked. I envisioned myself taking this really cool jump and then biffing it big time. Oh…I was not worried about hurting myself, I’ve done a superman off the front of a dirt bike many years back. It was more that I didn’t want to embarrass myself in front of family and friends.

This is Momma’s cousin Mark giving Cole a long ride. Cole came off all pumped ready to ride on his own. When we got back home Cole asked Uncle Todd if he could learn on their 50cc and he was told to come on out and learn.

On the way back to camp from the motorbike ride we pulled off the dirt path and let the kids ride in the back of the truck. Oh, how they thought they were really something riding like this. I don’t think Gma even got the needle to move on the mph but the kids had a grand time!

Cole, Jo, Hannah and Derian all climbed this rock and posed themselves for a photo.
Nice group shot so that is why you see it now. ;O)

The original family campsite has my Grandparents ashes laid on the side of a hill, sunny spot over looking the campsite and river. We went there to place Gpa Lovely’s engraved rock and just to say hello. Gma Lovely got some nice flower and Gpa was left a beer and a whoopee cushion among a few other items. Our kids are probably getting an interesting version of celebrating life after death. We all took turns sitting on the whoopee cushion before Marsha placed it at his stone. I’m sure Gpa was laughing.


Oma done up like a girl!
Jo and her friend Alexis played beauty parlor with Oma and did Oma look BEAUTIFUL! Her makeup all matched along with her fingernail and toenail polish. I have no idea how long Oma laid there for them but they went to town on her and she just smiled and told them how lovely their work was. (purple eye shadow all over her face)

FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL!
Here they are folks! Kindergarten.
Wow…it’s here!
They both dressed themselves and chose what they wanted their hair to look like. Sporting their new backpacks we dropped in next door for Dale & Francis to check them out and then off we walked to school. Turns out that Jo has an “old bestest friend” in her class, Yvonne from their first year and a half of preschool. Cole was excited to come home with homework in his backpack and wanted to do the work straight away. When he pulled the paper out it turned out to be the school calendar and a welcome letter for the parents. He was very upset about this. Keeping our fingers crossed that this trend will continue. haha