so lately our world has been overtaken by little scribbles of x's and o's and phrases like "waggle right" and "charlie tango austin." after years of mindlessly watching football--mostly chatting on the sidelines and cheering when someone makes a touchdown--i asked the husband to explain his top secret playbook to me.

wow. i am impressed that a group of 5th and 6th grade boys can carry off elaborate plans like this. not only that, but apparently there is something called an audible. if they make a plan in the huddle and then see that the defense has lined up in a different way, the quarterback calls an audible at the line and they change their plan. it's all done with code words and signals. this weekend, they scored a touchdown on an audible.

impressed again.

the husband's team--the one big j plays for--is undefeated and no one has even scored a touchdown against them. most of this is due to some stellar talent but i see how much of it comes from experienced coaching and kids who are smart enough to read the field, communicate the plays and work as a team. the husband says this is a fun group of boys because they are all so smart but also because they want to make those plays work. every boy does his part, even if it isn't a glory role.

little j's team has two coaches who don't know much about the game. they are volunteers, and God bless 'em, but it's hard to watch. the husband watches when he can and kind of winces, but he never says a word. the team hasn't won a  game yet and i am surprised because there are some really good little athletes out there. then it dawned on me. they don't have any plays. they just run around without a plan. everything is chaos. they won't win because they aren't communicating any kind of strategy, and every boy is just out there running around with his own agenda.

i had an aha moment right there on the sidelines. none of us can really be very effective on our own, running on our own agenda. we need a playbook. we need to huddle up together and all go in the same direction, with the same goals in mind. without that playbook, and more importantly, without our Coach and our Playbook...we are not at all effective, no matter how smart, athletic or gifted we are.

see? i AM paying attention at the football games.

                         j boy picture of the day. man i love that kid.

we're gonna go random here. hold on tight!

*little j took best of show for his art at the sd state fair. this was funny for a few reasons. first, we didn't know he entered anything. second, he told me this was his rendition of a modern statue of liberty but i honestly thought he did a patriotic self-portrait. third, he's my son and he won a ribbon for ART? ha. i am sure bobbi must have rubbed off on him somehow. 

*big j has never had any depth perception. the eye doctor just told us that he has learned to use each eye separately, something humans don't really do. so big j is like a predator now. that sure explains his appetite. 

*football season is underway. tonite both boys play back-to-back games so think of me watching two hours of a game i've never really bothered to understand. 

*getting ready to take on one last yard project...building a patio/firepit down by the boardwalk. i want to get it tackled before the weather turns cold (if it ever turns cold). going patio stone shopping tomorrow. funny the things that get me excited these days. 

*thanks to big j, i am getting a second chance at algebra. i am checking his homework each night and it's all coming back to me, but smarter this time. i really should go back to college and take it seriously this time. i think i could  be something cool when i grow up.

*which is good since i recently took up mt. dew again. us college kids need that stuff, right?

*no i am not going back to college but i have been asked to guest teach some marketing classes. i think i will say yes but first i must teach myself some marketing skills. ha.

*all for now. good day!

my dad came to visit this past weekend. we don't see him much, so the boys were kind of getting to know him. what better way to get to know a grandpa than on a trampoline? 

sister-in-law kelly got out her "sepia tone" filter and took these two shots from the wedding this weekend. i love the one above. grandma greta even got out on the dance floor in her wheelchair and shook her stuff to "if you like it you should have put a ring on it." we had a great time. the husband came with an amazing bonus--a huge, fun, loving family full of laughter and tons of kids. my little nieces make me melt. but the two handsome dudes above do a pretty  good job of that, too. 

here are just the four of us. working on getting a picture of the whole giant clan for karen and her wonder hub to see. WH is apparently curious to see what a family of twelve kids and all their spouses and their kids looks like. chaos. that's what :)