Let the Games Begin

Remember when you were little and your mom bought you new shoes, and you thought they made you run faster and jump higher?  Every once in a while, I'm glad to discover that my sons have some little kid left in them because I think they still believe that their shoes do have some magical powers.  Recently, before the soccer and cross country seasons started, we purchased new cleats for Matt and new spikes for Adam.  They were both focused on their search for the perfect shoe and were thrilled when they arrived in the mail.  As you can see, they are not afraid of color:

In all seriousness, I have to admit that I believe in the power of footwear, too.  When I was in nursing school, I had an experienced nurse give me some good advice for my upcoming career.  The first two points were (1) eat when you get a chance on your shift and (2) use the bathroom when things get slow.  The third piece of advice was to buy good shoes.  My feet would thank me.  Four years into my nursing career, I concur.  And, as a bonus to my kids, I'm more apt to fork out the bucks for decent kicks.

The soccer and cross country seasons have begun, and the shoes must be working.  Matt's team has won two games and tied one.  Their team is remarkably well-conditioned but has been riddled with injuries.  In spite of having lost some key players, they are hanging in there and playing tough.  Matt has played every minute of all three games, and that has been especially fun to watch.

Adam also had his first high school cross country meet yesterday, and he had a good little race.  He's been running hard all summer and earned his way on to the varsity team.  He was sorely disappointed to find out this spring that he wasn't going to be able to run at Mountain View, but I doubt he'd have the chance to run on the varsity squad as a freshman there.  Amazingly enough, he finished fourth out of seven Centennial varsity runners from his team, so he'll get to run varsity again next week.  He also broke 18 minutes for the 5K race, which both pleased and kind of surprised him.  Overall, he finished 22nd, a pretty good showing for a freshman.  

As you can see in the group shot, Adam's certainly not the biggest runner in the race, but he sure doesn't back down from a challenge.

We'll Leave the Light on For You

We were blessed with a couple of visits this past week, both of them very short but awesome nonetheless.  Mike's parents are on their two-week semi-annual break from the temple, and as they did in February, they tried to see EVERYONE in that timespan (all seven children, most of their grandkids, two great-grandchildren, Mike's grandparents, Rexburg friends, and some of Mom Young's sisters.)  We got them from about 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday until 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, and we thoroughly loved having them in our home.  We went to Matt's soccer game together, ate a nice dinner, and enjoyed some relaxed conversation with them.  They bring such a happy spirit with them that it just lifts and builds us whenever we can see them.

Karen, Andrew, and Rachel arrived just before midnight on Friday.  They wanted to see Matt and Adam in their sports events, and this looked like the only chance of the season they would be able to do that.  So, they were here only until about 7:15 this morning (Sunday), but we crammed some good visiting in with them as well.  I can't even describe how happy I feel when all the chicks are back in the nest, even if it's just for a few hours.  "Fulfilled" may be the best word.  I  can't wait to see them again.  (And, yes, we are trying to taint Andrew's loyalties and get him to be a Bronco booster.  I still think he'll still root for BYU when they play Boise State, but maybe he can cheer for Boise State in other games.  What a smart man he is!)