Union Soccer

      Austin made the Union Soccer Team.  After participating in the speed and agility program at Union the months of November, December and January, Austin tried out for the soccer team-again.  There were about 80 kids at tryouts.  Last year he made it right down to the end only to be cut in the last round.  This year his hard work paid off.  Less than half of those that tried out were chosen.  Austin is starting defender for the JV team.  It is not the position he is used to playing (he usually plays mid-fielder or forward), but he has a good sense of the field and can help direct the team and use his speed to keep the other team away from the box.  Yes, Austin and speed in the same sentence–can you believe it?  He is the fastest on his team.  It must be those long legs he’s grown this past year.  That combined with his determination and hard work makes a winning combination.

BYU!

This past fall Tanner filled out and submitted his application to attend BYU for the 2012-2013 school year.  We have been anxiously awaiting a response.  While Tanner was out on the scouting adventure this weekend with his brothers and Dad, I got a phone call from a friend down the street asking if Tanner had received his acceptance letter yet because their daughter said he was showing up on the BYU student directory.  I quickly logged in to Tanner’s email, and sure enough, sitting there was his letter from BYU.   I was so excited.  McKenna and I decided to surprise Tanner and have the house decked out in cougar fashion for Tanner when he got home.

 He was so surprised.  It took him a second to figure out what was going on, and then as he continued to read the letter his smile got so big he could hardly see the letter anymore through his squinted eyes.  

Way to go, Tanner!  You should be so proud of your hard work and effort to make this dream come true.   Tanner will graduate June 11^th and will start classes at BYU Provo on June 18^th.

Valentine's Day

A family tradition that always creates excitement around our house is our valentine dinner.  This year was no exception.  It seemed everyone was anxiously awaiting the big event.  The kids were talking about it weeks in advance.  Everyone made sure it was on their calendars and that nothing was going to interfere.  No one wanted to miss it. 

Tanner and Austin had the option of bringing dates this year,  but they both decided that just the fam was the way to go.

The menu: 

Appetizers:  Little Smokies and Cheesy-Onion Bread

Soup:  Chilled Strawberry Ginger Soup

Salad:  Caesar

Main Dish:  Bacon and Scallion-topped Filet Mignon, Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Roasted Vegetables

Dessert:  Red Velvet Cake with Cream Cheese Frosting and Cherries on top

We spent the time around the dinner table (lots of time by design in serving five courses ;) getting to know each other a little better.  What is your favorite color?  What school subject do you like the best and why?  If you could go back and do something over again, what would it be?  Inevitably we ended up talking about some favorite memory or silly story that someone’s response elicited. 

This always turns out to be such a fun evening.  I love having my family around the table and spending good quality time with them.