And You Gotta Have Friends

We are thankful for our friends in the stands too! Friends from work, church, neighbors, and other coaching families all make football season more fun.



Another group that we can now call our friends is the CSHS football players and dance team! They are all so welcoming to our kids, and it is fun seeing Cade and Annie get excited about seeing their idols. Cade's favorite player is #4 Raj Preciado (a fellow fast runner) and Annie loves all of the "dancing girls". It is so cute seeing her get star struck around them, and I think we have a future dancer on our hands (silent cheering from Mama!!)

Fam in the Stands

We are a football family! Thankfully, our family is full of supportive grandparents, aunts, and uncles who spend their Friday nights with us in the stands. Here are all of our family pics this football season:

First game at home:



Lots of visitors at this game!



We went to JV and a few away games too:




It got a little colder as the season went on:



Thank you, family, for seeing us through this long season!

Go Gators, Go Away Rain!

Cade continued flag football this season with Upward, and he was on the Gators team. They had a good, albeit very short season. Their last 3 or 4 (I don't remember; it was so traumatic for Cade that I've already blocked it out) practices and games were rained out, resulting in one very frustrated little boy. Highlights of the season were Cade's touchdown at the first game, Cade finally being able to play "rusher" instead of quarterback so he could run and pull as many flags as possible, and Cade being pretty mature about his first experience of not always getting to play where he wanted to play but where his coach wanted him to play. Annie's highlights were fruit snacks at practice :)

During the games:

Cade is a good listener (to coaches and teachers, not always to his parents!), and he goes straight to his spot when they are ready to play. He got pretty frustrated with the other players who did not hustle. Here he is being ready:



This league mostly does hand-offs rather than throws for the quarterback, and that position is not allowed to run the ball. So, since Cade loves running so much, he was kind of frustrated by this. But he was always ready to go fast after his job was through!



We were so happy to have so many wonderful people come to games with us this season. Cade is a very loved boy!




The best smiles are always reserved for running toward Daddy on the sideline after the game!



Until next year, flag football! Cade and his cheering/snacking squad will see you again!

When Other People Take Pictures...

it is magical! Both kids had school pictures taken last month, Cade had his football pics, and we even got a family picture on Parents' Night at one of Chance's games. While the pictures I usually post on here are less than high quality, the professionals do a dang good job!







A little background on the football game picture - I had no idea this picture was happening until we got there, which is why we are not looking too cute. Oh well, the smiles make up for the super casual outfits! I was quite happy when Chance handed me a flower right before the picture! And I was quite surprised when the photographer told me, "Ma'am, you need to put that flower back in the bucket. They are really for the football players' moms." A coach's wife can dream.... :)

September Smiles

Apparently, I am a bit behind on blogging :)

When I went through our pictures from September, I was so happy to see that smiling was a theme! We were busy with life in general this month... so I'm especially happy to look back on my phone pics and see that we made it through with smiles!

Smiling... on the black truck at Nana and Papa's



Smiling... at Luke and Jake's Powersports birthday party (where a miracle happened... the kids were so busy playing that I had an actual conversation with friends! Of course, all of the parents there work together, so we were actually talking about our classes, but still!)



Smiling... eating at Papa's table... together!



Smiling... when running into Uncle Chris at Casa Rod!



Smiling... because Blue Bell has returned!



Smiling... with shades on Grandparents' Day!



Smiling... because Mama agreed to spray them with water on the trampoline! And because no one got hurt while jumping with Ninja Turtle weapons!



Smiling... because going to church together is the best way to start the week!



Smiling... at the start of the spoonful-of-cinnamon challenge!



Sm.... nope... the theme had to end sometime!