School’s In!

We have an eighth grader. 

A fourth grader. 

A kindergartner. 

And a kid who misses them the moment they leave, so she makes friends with neighbors’ dogs. 

Here’s to learning, growing, putting so many miles on the car with carpools, practices, performances, and going out to eat to talk about it all. Here’s to 2022/23!

Soccer tournaments

Yep, that’s right, tournaments, plural. Ansel’s started his soccer preseason with not one, but two tournaments. We put a lot of mileage on the car, but it was a lot of fun. 

Above is his team ready for their first game in the first tournament. They won that game and then over the next few days the next, and the next, and the next! They took first place! Ansel was very excited. 

Then they entered the next tournament. This one was tougher. The team had a win but some losses too. Ansel hustled. He used his speed. It was fun to watch. So much so that I only got one blurry photo. That’s Ansel in the white jersey by the ball. 

The other kids came to a game or two. They were busy doing this:

and this. 

Overall, Ansel had come goals and helped score others. He has a head for finding the pass. Plus, his team was working together very well. They have learned so much this summer. They should be better since they’ve been practicing three times a week. Whoa! Our new coach isn’t messing around.  Here’s to a fun fall season!

Hummingbirds

We recently had a hummingbird build a nest right outside of our kitchen window. Watching the progress of the nest being built to jelly-belly-sized eggs to babies flying off into the world was fascinating. We kept the binoculars out and checked on them daily. It was so fun to watch. Photos by Oliver and me, with the especially good ones from Ollie. 

There’s the momma bird. 

And here’s our best shot of the eggs. 

She kept those eggs warm for many days. 

And then suddenly, we got home from vacation and babies! I love this shot because you can see Oliver’s feet. He was trying to get a pic without bothering the birds too much. 

The chicks were very good at keeping their mouths open and ready. 

Even from far away you could spot them.

It started to get really tight in that nest of their’s. It’s hard to see, but the mom would try to rest on top of them or between them. 

Finally, she had to give up her spot. 

She’d perch on a branch above and occasionally come to feed them. It was so neat to see. We could see their little tongues. 

They grew and grew. 

And finally, Ollie looked out one day and only saw one. We figured the other had flown off. He went to get a shot. 

As then the second one flew away, and the nest was empty. 

Full circle! The whole thing started end of June and went to the end of July. Wow! I may just keep the nest.