Splish, Spalsh...

Maleen loves a bath.

The Sound of Freedom...

JET NOISE!!!!!

The little girls started out happy and adorable in their patriotic outfits.

They were not so amused by the 100 degrees with no shade at the show.
Lucky for them Aunt Mel took them home for naps.

Marcus and Jace played all day with their Blue Angles.
They didn't even seem to notice that it was 100 degrees.

LOVE THESE TWO!

Fallon Naval Air Station used to host an annual air show but after 9/11 they stopped. This year they once again had an airshow. It was a big deal in Fallon. Schools closed early, stores closed and the entire town headed out to the base. Nathan took a half day off work to go with use and we were not disappointed. Marcus loved everything I mean what 6 year old doesn't love a Wall of Fire, Sky Divers, and the Blue Angles.

Canning

I have spent the past seven years waiting for the day I could can with my Mom and Mel. Each year I was living in Idaho I would inevitably call my Mom's and find out that her and Mel were busy canning and I would wish I was there. Well this year I finally got my wish. We canned and canned and canned. It was just as much fun as I thought it would be.

This all happened on the week of September 8, 2009

Labor Day

We usually go to Starr Valley for Labor Day. This year was no exception. Unfortunately we had some heart breaking news while we were there. Our dear friends 6 year old daughter was killed when her horse rolled over on her at the Fallon Rodeo. These types of heart breaking accidents really make you cherish your kids.

Football

Football season was LONG. We started practicing when it was 104 degrees outside and at our last practice it was about 23 degrees. In other words, July to November. Once school started we had 3 two hour practices a week and games every Saturday. Don't worry I will fill you in on all the football details later. Maleen loved the games and practices while it was warm but once it got cold she hated it. Marcus had a great season and learned a lot.

These pictures are from a game played on September 5, 2009.

Back to School...

Marcus had some opinions about his 1st grade attire. The biggest one being Ecko shoes.
We shopped and shopped and finally we went into the Sketcher Store and there they were the "exact ones" he wanted.

I am not sure who will miss Marcus most Maleen, Silver or ME!

Marcus has a great teacher, Ms Mandic.

No more little tables. He has a real school desk. Boohoo!!!

While it was all I could do not to break down in tears Marcus had not a moment of sadness. Honestly I could have dumped him out at the curb and he would have been fine.

I HATE the 1st day of school. I want Summer Vacation to last FOREVER!!! Marcus on the other hand is very excited for 1st grade. As he told me, "If I don't go to 1st grade then no High School, no College and then what?"

Starr Valley

Last summer Nathan's parents put in this beautiful yard. They have thousands of square feet of grass surrounding the "Big House". It is so beautiful.

Marcus spent a big part of the day building a Dam in Boulder. I always pack a swimsuit knowing how much he loves to play in Boulder. For some reason the suit never gets on before he get soaked.

Maleen loved her first swim in Bounder

Starr Valley is one of our favorite places in the world. It is one of those places you can completely relax at. There is nothing you HAVE to do and a lot you CAN do.

Nathan had an archery deer tag for Starr Valley so we decided to spend the last weekend before school started there. Nathan has been going a 100 MPH since graduation and he completely crashed. He spent NO time hunting and a lot of time sleeping (which is what he needed). We went on several four wheeler rides and swam in Boulder. It was just the type of weekend we needed.

Some say size matters....

Look closely and you will see Marcus blocking this BIG guy!

SMACKDOWN '09

The boys all looked adorable in their uniforms waiting to be weighed in. The parents no so much (we had to be there by 6:40 AM).

The pre-scrimmage warm up

The sweet block.

RUN...

and TOUCHDOWN!!!!!!

For those that don't speak FYFL the Smackdown is the official weigh-in and scrimmage (not to be confused with a game) of the season. We arrived at the Golden Eagle Sports Complex in Sparks at 6:40 AM to be weighed in. Apparently the weigh-in is a BIG deal (coaches try to cheat, who knew). Marcus weighed-in at a whopping 51.5 pounds fully padded. By this time there were hundreds of kids and thousands of people (again who knew that so many kids played in the Sierra League). We grabbed a quick breakfast burrito from a vendor (no way were we giving up our sweet parking spot) and waited until Marcus's fist scrimmage at 10:00 AM. I must say that I was a little confused about why the Fallon kids were instructed to change from their game jerseys to their practice jerseys for the scrimmage (ALL the other teams left on their game jerseys). Well come to find out there was a reason. Apparently everyone tapes the games so that coaches can review the film (yes I did say that the coaches review film) and by wearing the practice jerseys other teams don't know who is who on our team when they review film. Anyway Marcus's team, the Greenwave Bandits did great. Everyone was a little nervous because our team was much smaller then the other teams but they did AWESOME. They shutout the McQueen Bandits and outplayed the Dayton Bandits. I mean I know it was just a scrimmage and no one was keeping score (ya right) but everyone was shocked by how well they played. Lynlee's boyfriend Steve came to one of Marcus's practices and on the way to the Smackdown he did not display a lot of confidence in our little team. He told Lynlee that they were going to get killed. Boy was he surprised. I mean they actually knew what they were doing out there.

After Marcus's scrimmage we stayed and watched our nephew Conner. His team also did awesome. We were very surprised how well all of the Fallon teams did. I think it is going to be a fun season (even if we loose every game).

P.S. Expect a lot of football posts. The season is every Saturday until November.

He is not just a tough guy. He is also the worlds best big brother and Maleen is his biggest fan.

What happened to my life...

FYFL, that's what happened.

There are four coaches for the team. Ed Little is the head coach.

Marcus is one of the smallest, if not the smallest kids on the team. His pads sit on his shoulders so high that his helmet is crooked.

Marcus does not like to get hurt and he is not real aggressive/competative. So as an incentive for trying hard he gets a $1.00 for each tackle and for each time he doesn't get tackled. Possibly the wrong message to be sending but hey it's working.

Marcus decided to play tackle football this year in the Fallon Youth Football League which is part of the Sierra League. Football has now completely taken over our lives until November. This is hardcore football. Marcus's team of 6 and 7 year olds practices four nights a week for two hours (5:30 pm - 7:30 pm). Games start later this month and are every Saturday. They are all over Norther Nevada. Football is now our life.

Washington DC

Nathan and my Dad went to Washington DC for a trade show. They had a great time.

Tahoe

The view from our deck. It doesn't get better.

I was way to busy doing NOTHING at Tahoe to take a bunch of pictures.

We had a GREAT time. We got to Tahoe Tuesday afternoon and got settled into our cabin. Then headed down to the beach. Marcus and Fenn played and played. Mel and I had pre-made dinners for each night (brilliant) so it was a piece of cake to feed the kids and then head back down to the beach. Unfortunately I forgot half of the ingredients for pancakes (butter and syrup) so we went to the lodge for breakfast and then headed down to the beach. My mom, grandma, and Claudia came up for the day and so did Julie and her girls and Nathan's sisters and their kids. My nephew Jace told his mom "This is the best vacation ever" and I must say I totally agree. The kids played so hard that Marcus went into global meltdown that night because he was so tired. We drove around the lake the next day before heading home. It was soooo much fun.

We will be going again next year. Anyone like to join us!?!?