i have a lot of respect for anyone who coaches little kids sports. the husband does plenty of it, and i know it's not easy to keep their attention. his whole philosophy is not to let them stop moving--when they are still, they are trouble.

so i'm watching little j's volunteer soccer coach last night. the guy was FRUSTRATED. he would try to explain the rules and the kids were wrestling, jumping, laughing--but definitely not listening. i wanted to yell "just give them the ball and let them run!" but i didn't want to be one of those moms.

when the coach finally got done talking, his plan for the fidgety little soccer players was to have them line up across from each other and then kick the ball as hard as they could at the kid across the line. that kid was supposed to "block" the kick without using his arms.

you can only imagine.

the kickers were backing up and getting a run at the ball in order to cause as much bodily injury as possible. the blockers were terrified and running away. balls were nailing kids left and right. a pair of glasses went flying. a little boy ran to his mom and would not return to the field.

when they finally started playing a practice game, little j and another hockey buddy ran circles around the other kids simply because they used a passing strategy.

after several uninterrupted goals the coach made them sit on the sidelines for the rest of practice.

looks like it's going to be a long, long season.

last summer my friend introduced me to a guy named tony and his little series of workout videos. he calls them p90X and the X stands for X-treme. after one week i told the husband he would DIG the arm workouts. and the ab ripper. and maybe even the plyometrics.

he ignored me until last night.

i told him if he worked out with me i'd stay up late and watch the dumb guns and blood movie he rented. so we put in the "biceps and back" video and got to work. sadly, there is this little competitive piece of me that crops up now and again (volleyball, anyone? hospital, anyone?) and it is the reason i can barely move my arms today. i have a feeling tomorrow will be worse. after the biceps and back workout, we continued on with "ab ripper X." dumb, dumb, dumb. what in the heck was i trying to prove?

perhaps working out with the husband and his giant man-size weights is not the best idea i've ever had. i figured it was a one-time deal. but tonite as we were riding bikes (me on the snooty race bike, him kicking my butt on MY trusty old trek) he says something about more P90X.

the competitive thing inside me really wanted to reach over and punch him, but it hurt too much to lift my arm off the handlebars.

sigh. and I wonder why my kids hate to lose?

big j got his art skills from his mother. but, thought you art girls would get a kick out of his homework. he had to re-create one of leonardo's masterpieces to go along with his report.

i may never walk again.

he he.

it's all because of my new super bike, which is fast and light and very very fun. i finally bit the bullet last week during a big sale and bought her. i've been saving for a road bike since last year, but almost decided to just stay with my trusty old trek from 1993. i bet i have put thousands of miles on that thing and i will still ride it any time i go off-roadin'.

anyway. i got a great deal--over half off the bike and i used all my scheels points plus the money i had saved. so really, she was practically free. i wasn't so sure about her the first day but i have put some more miles on and we're getting used to each other. the bike is way cooler than i am, so i have to try to pedal faster so i don't embarrass her. it's quite the workout. when i feel like i am in better shape and able to keep up, i plan to join the biking club here in town so i have people to ride with. i do worry about popping a teeny tiny tire when i'm out in the middle of nowhere by myself. i bought the tire repair kit that fits so cutely under the seat but what are the odds i'm going to be able to change a bike tire? i can barely button a coat.

i don't have pictures of us together but maybe this week i'll have one of the boys snap a shot. you will see the bike looking kind of snotty at me...she is actually pretty touchy and definitely a diva. i'm sure she's wondering why this dumb girl (who doesn't even wear proper biking attire) is making her ride down by the railroad tracks.

anyway. that is my excuse for not blogging last week. which is another thing about my new bike--she's a total time hog :)

Thank you, Carey. Your registration deposit of $95.00 has been received and you have been emailed a confirmation. Should your camp require air travel, please call our office for details before buying your plane ticket. Thank you for securing your spot with WB Surf Camp, the world's safest, most educational and exciting learn to surf program. Upon successfully processing your credit card, you will be e-mailed an invoice, and your spot will be reserved in the following session:


9/18/10 - 9/19/10: Weekend Clinic- Wrightsville Beach; ages 18+ AM


He he. Nope. Not kidding. We're going to learn to surf. Thanks to all my adventurous college friends willing to dive into the shark infested waters with me (just kidding, the surf instructor dude said the sharks are nice). Thanks also to those friends willing just to go along and sit on the beach for the comedy act.

i had a long work day on wednesday, and when i picked up the boys that night they both asked me about my day. i told them i had seen Jesus. of course, they wanted to know more. i explained to them that i had spent my day on a Christian college campus, talking to students and teachers so i could write about them. and i saw Jesus shining out of all of them. the day was such a major blessing to me. i wish i could have taken you all there. if you could have seen how confident, cool and full of faith these kids are, you would understand why it is so important to model Jesus to your kids. i want my kids to WANT to serve others and feel valued and to trust in God. i can tell you a million stories from that day, but the thing i carry with me is that they were all so excited and passionate about serving. they loved the fact that the campus provided them with so many opportunities to get out there and help the world. feeding the poor, mentoring kids, habitat for humanity, working in third world countries--these kids were lit up about all of it.

most kids i know at this age are lit up about themselves and getting new things and hanging out with their friends.

see? there is a difference. it hit me over and over again.

i will tell you two cool stories.

the first boy wanted to go to a Christian college but his family didn't have the money. he told me he knew God would provide, and the school gave him a football scholarship. he played for one year and said he felt God calling him to do something else--something that needed to happen during the same time as football practice. so he quit the team and gave up his scholarship, not knowing how he was going to pay for college but having FAITH that God had it under control. he and a few friends started an after-school ministry for underprivileged kids and that ministry has grown and grown. his eyes were on fire when he talked about it. and he doesn't ever worry about tuition money. somehow, it always comes through. he says he knows it always will. he was beautiful and kind and i really really could see Jesus just glowing right out of him.


i talked to a girl who wants to be a teacher. she decided to go to an inner city over her break, live in a homeless shelter for three weeks and work in a junior high full of homeless kids. all by herself--without friends or a group or anything. she said many of those kids brought their own kids to class. the girl was the sweetest, most wholesome thing you'd ever see--had never even taken public transportation. she said the trip was the best thing she's ever done. it changed her life, and when she graduates she wants to teach at a school like this in a big city. she could care less about a paycheck.

needless to say, the day affected me. i want to raise my kids to be like this--but i know that first I need to be like this. my brain is as full as my heart right now, trying to think a few things through. i don't know where all this will end up, but i do know that God has my back. if i keep that in persepective, the rest will fall into place.

my third grader has a homework assignment that involves researching an artist, creating a collage about that artist, giving a report on the artist's life and then trying to recreate one of his/her pieces of art.

big j claims he chose his artist because calvin (from calvin and hobbes) had talked about him and he recognized the name. the dude's name is paul gauguin, and i'm sure you artsy folks know him. i didn't. he's post-impressionist, and karen knows how i feel about impressionist art. i had to watch her go through her monet phase in college. ahem.

anyway. i was reading through the book last night so i could learn about this guy. and i'm not sure what to think. many of his pieces of art feature topless native women. i KNOW that it is art and the human body is art and all that...but my kid is in third grade. so far, i don't think big j has even looked at the art in the book but i know he read it because he told me about mr. guaguin's tragic artist life. i'm trying not to be wierd about it--it IS art and maybe i just explain that the women he was painting were from south india and they didn't wear clothes there. probably isn't a big deal. right?

i know paul gaugin is an interesting guy, but i kinda wish he would have picked monet....:)

well this one tops my list of 'only me.' last night i served a volleyball that hit one of my teammates in the face and sent her to the emergency room with a concussion. i have never felt so crappy. poor girl was puking and crying and dizzy and very confused. thank goodness it wasn't more serious. i can only imagine how someone must feel when an accident like that is worse--i kept thinking about baseball players who die when they get nailed in the head, or drivers who accidentally kill other people in a car crash. brutal.

thank you God that my sweet friend is ok. sigh. i promise not to serve like that ever again.

on the way to school today the husband and big j were discussing commercials. i am not sure why all of us ad people have not tapped into this idea yet, but big j came up with an ad that would definitely get attention.

"buy my product or die."

sheesh. why didn't i think of that?

tank top season is nearly here. sigh. i decided to go dust off the hundredpushups.com website and see if i can make it happen this year. i think i quit last year on week 7.
it only takes less than 10 minutes to do all these push-ups...but push-ups suck. show me someone who likes push-ups and i will drop and do 25. however, they work. which probably explains why they are so hard.

anyway. we'll try it again. care to join me?

www.hundredpushups.com

i was just sitting here checking email this morning when i heard a noise and looked out my front window. somehow a bunch of trucks, trailers and tractors had congregated on what would be my front lawn if i had a front lawn.

yippeee! by the end of the day, i will have a real live driveway and sidewalks. may not seem much to all of you, but we have a ruddy, bumpy, muddy mess leading from the street up to our house. i was under the impression that the driveway would not be happening for awhile and had gotten over my disappointment about three weeks ago.

i have never been so excited about concrete.

i hope i can calm down enough to get some work done :)