Life’s too short...to never sleep in a treehouse! 8/27 TR is up! Link in siggie

[GreatBiscuit]

Did I read Creative Suite? Orrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrnkkkkkkkkk. (Which is the best typewritten approximation of drooling I can come up with.) Video edting is a big part of what I do for the church so everytime I see After Effects I get the warm fuzzies. And my left pinky toe twitches. Sometimes there are noises. There may have been a squeal. But only the first time. One day it will be in the budget. Oh yes..one day. BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA! Now then...where was I?

Oh, great update! I hope the boys love the Great Wolf Lodge. (Is it a lodge named for a wolf who was great or is it a great lodge which was then named for a wolf? Am I the only one who ponders these things?) There is one in Dallas that we have been wanting to try out. We hope to hit up Wisconsin Dells this summer so we'll see if we can score one of the indoor water parks there.

Good luck on the sports drama.

Disney Dreaming...perfect idea. Goodnight!

 

[eandesmom]

Did I read Creative Suite? Orrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrnkkkkkkkkk. (Which is the best typewritten approximation of drooling I can come up with.) Video edting is a big part of what I do for the church so everytime I see After Effects I get the warm fuzzies. And my left pinky toe twitches. Sometimes there are noises. There may have been a squeal. But only the first time. One day it will be in the budget. Oh yes..one day. BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA! Now then...where was I?

Oh, great update! I hope the boys love the Great Wolf Lodge. (Is it a lodge named for a wolf who was great or is it a great lodge which was then named for a wolf? Am I the only one who ponders these things?) There is one in Dallas that we have been wanting to try out. We hope to hit up Wisconsin Dells this summer so we'll see if we can score one of the indoor water parks there.

Good luck on the sports drama.

Disney Dreaming...perfect idea. Goodnight!

I"m thinking the Wolf was great. But if I find out, I'll let you know!

Yep, drool away!!!!!!!!!!! Of course I only have it b/c it comes with the job, lucky for me! about After Effects. I work iwht guys like you!

Someday I may get there...right now I'm still learning how to deal with bloated Illustrator files! For me, it's just a lot of fun, I don't have a clue what I'm doing but it's fun to play!

 

[eandesmom]

My busy weekend update! Actually my busy Friday and Saturday, today's been relatively lazy in comparison.

First up.

New Moon!
It was a riot. 10 of us met before the movie to have “Ed in Bed”. Which was basically a seabreeze. It went nicely with the vampire lips sugar cookies our hostess had made. The group was fairly evenly split though Team Jacob had a larger showing. Me, I play for both teams but ultimately am on team Charlie.

The movie was a riot. Definitely easy on the eyes and I have not seen a theater packed like that since…well I don’t recall when. Two Towers on New Years Eve in 2003 maybe or something like that. We were there an hour early and were still not able to sit together and had to park in Egypt. 95% women, enjoying nights out with their girlfriends, having a glass of wine or a beer, it was a very fun atmosphere! I think the average age was 40.

Next.

Great Wolf Lodge. A mini TR.

The E’s woke up about 8:30 and I fed them a big breakfast and then loaded them in the car. I had already packed our suits and towels the day before, and a cooler with our lunches while they were still in bed. All they knew was we had a “commitment” that day and it would mean Evan would miss his demo performance and Eric his soccer party. We made a stop at B&N on the way so I could get a book to read while they were sliding (which I didn’t really end up needing) and get another coffee. GWL is about 90 miles from our house and thankfully we didn’t hit any traffic or bad weather at all on the way down. The boys were a riot trying to guess where we were going.

"Seattle?"

"The AIRPORT?"

"Tacoma?"

"Olympia?"

And then they ran out of steam and would just guess any exit we passed by

“Nisqually?”



Evan was just tortured. "This is CONFUSING Mom!"


I know buddy, isn’t it fun?

The really great thing was you cannot see the lodge from the freeway if you are driving south and so it wasn’t until we pulled into the parking lot that they knew where they were. They were blown away!!!

For those of you that don’t know what Great Wolf Lodge is, it is a hotel/indoor water park with a convention center attached. Because it is all indoors it is, relatively speaking, a smaller water park. The E’s had been begging to go there for at least a year (I think it is maybe 2 years old here, tops) and it’s always seemed crazy expensive for what it is. I like water parks, don’t get me wrong but it’s kind of in the middle of nowhere and I always wondered how you could really even fill 2 days there. And, I have to say in that respect it met my expectations. For me, about 3-4 hours at a water park is enough, everyone starts to get bored, or cold, after that no matter how big it is, how short or long the lines are, etc. What I liked about this was it was “just” big enough. Because attendees are limited to people actually staying at the lodge, the lines are not bad at all. And because it is indoors it is temperature controlled so no one gets cold. Until you leave the water park!

We all thought the wave pool did not have very fierce waves. That was a bit of a dissapointment. It has 4 tube slides and then 2 single rider slides.
The tubes slides were all quite good, but 2 in particular were noteworthy.

First…

The Howlin’ tornado

"Our most thrilling adventure. Grab up to 3 other members of your pack willing to drop into the 6-story funnel. You'll quickly learn how this ride earned its name. Repeatedly swish and swirl 30 feet up the sides of the funnel, before making a safe splash landing."

This ride was a TRIP! You head into a black tunnel with one white strand of lights running down it and then DROP the 6 stories into the funnel where you swish and swirl and then drop again into a black tunnel before splashing out. It seriously, is the Rock and Roller Coaster of Water Slides. I LOVED THIS RIDE!

The other tube one we really enjoyed was the green slide of the 2 Alberta Falls slides. The rest of the park was pretty standard, cool splash zone area, dumping giant bucket, hot tub..the usual.

That filled about 4 hours quite nicely. After that my eyes were on fire from the chlorine and the kids were burnt out. Plus something else was calling their name.

MAGIC QUEST.
"Slaying a dragon? Helping the Pixie restore her magic? It's all part of MagiQuest, a one-of-a-kind, live-action adventure game. Armed with high-tech wands, your family must solve magical challenges throughout the resort to gain powers (and points) and move to higher levels of the game."

Okay I’d heard about magic Quest from my sister and nephews and other friends. And we were startled by the hordes (herds?) of kids running around the lodge waving wands like crazy people. And I mean HORDES! Swarms, clusters, running kids from 2-16 waving wands like maniacs.

Or more accurately possesed by the Magi. Or just possed Magi, I'm not really sure.

The quest covers 6 floors of the lodge and is a series of missions or quests that you must fulfill to move to the next level.

You have to find things, solve puzzles and complete things in order before you move on. I believe there are 11 quests and then it moves to adventures. I was very much on the fence about doing this. The kids behavior at home this week really hadn’t earned them any special treats and just going to the waterpark was a pretty big undeserved treat as it was. However I’d driven an hour and a half and it didn’t seem worth it to head back home already even though I was fine with being done with the waterpark. So I let them spend THEIR money on the wand and activation and made them share the wand which just made more sense anyways. Two wands would have been silly as they’d just be repeating with the other did but spending twice as much money. So forty dollars later we headed out on our quest, we were "Magi" armed with our very cool wand (which of course had to have a wand topper...sucking more money out of their banks).

Our magi was named Earl.

Evan's class had a "fiesta" party on friday, I'd brought nachos (which was a total pain to get there in time so they were still warm!) per his request and they'd made decorations including a little senor who went around with a speech bubble saying "my name is Earl". Why I find that so funny I've no idea but we named the wand, the magi, Earl.


My deal with them was we buy the wand, we buy mom a glass of wine to carry with and THEN we start the quest.



The boys LOVED Magic Quest. As their cousins before them I think they liked the Quest as much or more than the water park itself. We played for about 2 hours, broke for dinner with my mom and her scrapping friends and then came back, armed them with my mom’s cell phone and strict instructions to call me upon the completion of each quest. They did a great job of checking in and I’m sure felt like big boys being cut loose like that. There were tons of other kid events going on, Radio Disney was there with “Gabriella” and some different shows and things. I let them stay WAY too long and they completed a total of 9 quests but did not get to fight the dragon. Heading out into a huge nasty storm it was a LONG and icky drive home, we didn’t pull in until about 11:30.

For those of you considering visiting one I would recommend it. The rooms on the surface seem pricey but when you factor in that it does include the water park for everyone it isn’t so bad. I would stay one night, but not 2. I would pack food, which we did, and eat dinner offsite, which we also did. Their food is crazy overpriced and pretty bleh. The wands can be re-used and all you pay on the next trip is the re-activation of $9.99. The wand has been safely stored to be much admired, but not played with, so it will be intact for the next visit. I would definitely have kids share a wand. We’d have borrowed my nephews but both wands were at my brothers, not my sisters, not close at all to get at. The rooms were pretty big (but the bathroom tiny) and are fully equipped with a mini fridge, coffee maker and microwave. It’s like of like a mod version of a Wilderness Lodge if you ask me.

Bottom line is we will go again, very likely for one night during Spring Break unless something magical happens and a real trip could happen then. No signs of recession there, the place was PACKED! Of course I still spent a ton of money even though we didn’t pay anything for the room, I got suckered into new crocs for Eric (the river ate one this summer and he did need a new pair though it certainly could have waited!) and cool souvenir slushie cups. It would have been more fun for me with another family or if Jeff was there to sit by the fire with a glass of wine while the kids ran around so I can definitely see doing one night in April if nothing better is on our agenda. Of course I’m sure we will go again next year as well since this is an annual event for my mom lol!

I think Kendall would have enjoyed it, especially with a friend, but am not sure about Taylor. She had a game where apparently they played miserably but she was consoled by FINALLY getting to go see New Moon after wards. Sadly they didn't play much better today so she consoled herself with a really long soak in our big tub. I think she secretly loves really soggy games, it's the only time she gets to use the jacuzzi tub in our room and she will be in there for at least an hour lol! Jeff took Taylor up snowboarding so all the kids had a pretty good weekend.

My pictures did not turn out very well at all. I love my camera. For outside shots. Inside…BLEH!

Arrival

For LL

The Water Park

Wave Pool

Splash Zones

Track that takes the tubes up to the top (love the fact we didn’t have to carry the big ones here up 6 stories!)

Small slides

Kids splashing! And being boys. Nothing funnier than water up, or out of the swimsuit!

Magic Quest
(this really didn't photograph well at all)

I will say the Great Wolf Character himself, who was working the room during the radio Disney...looked like Ranger Rick to all of us.

In other news.

I’ve got my sisters marathon design done, but need to finish up her “ladies in waiting” tees and tweak my other sisters wedding scrapbook paper a little bit.

All those prayers for Doug seem to have helped. We just found out, out of nowhere, he is receiving a small legacy from his godmother. Which will allow him to get his car fixed. Hopefully this will let him feel like he is on more “solid” ground and can persevere.

 

[Happydog]

Hey! We have never been to one of these, but there is one near Williamsburg, VA. We have thought about it, I am glad to see someone else write it up! My DH said it is a little pricey but for the same reasons you cite, said it is a decent deal in the end (wpark tickets, etc). I think we have to wait until our guys are a little older or better swimmers. But I enjoyed reading about it!!! Great update and glad you had a fun time!

 

[All7OfUs]

Hey, Mornin' Cynthia!

I woke up to snow this morning!! hooray!

WOW! Super great update there. The Great Wolf shouldn't be too far away from Portland next time we're that way. My kids would adore that! I'll go and check prices, just to see what we're talking about.

LOVE that you got to have a ladies night out! Wine, good looking guys with not shirts on.... Nice!

Hope you are having a restful Sunday evening!

 

[jordanyosh]

That Great Wolf Lodge looks pretty cool. I just looked them up online...

I agree it looks like the Wilderness Lodge or the best version that non-Disney people could do.

I'm glad mommy got her glass of wine...

 

[englishrose47]

I hink we have something similar 2 hours away in Erie Pa !!! May have to look into tht for next year !!

 

[eandesmom]

Hey! We have never been to one of these, but there is one near Williamsburg, VA. We have thought about it, I am glad to see someone else write it up! My DH said it is a little pricey but for the same reasons you cite, said it is a decent deal in the end (wpark tickets, etc). I think we have to wait until our guys are a little older or better swimmers. But I enjoyed reading about it!!! Great update and glad you had a fun time!

There is a super cute splash/play area for the littler ones that my pictures did NOT turn out on (foggy lens) and a kids club geared towards them as well. LOTS of kids under 7 everywhere. But I would agree that just one or 2 years older than yours are now, they'd get more out of it. They have life jackets there but the big rides are 48" or taller so a good benchmark. Smaller slides are 42" I think.

Hey, Mornin' Cynthia!

I woke up to snow this morning!! hooray!

WOW! Super great update there. The Great Wolf shouldn't be too far away from Portland next time we're that way. My kids would adore that! I'll go and check prices, just to see what we're talking about.

LOVE that you got to have a ladies night out! Wine, good looking guys with not shirts on.... Nice!

Hope you are having a restful Sunday evening!

Snow. WOW! None here yet but tons in the mountains. It is officially the wettest November of my life and I think, on record here. My theory is they put the location where they did so it would be equidistant btw Seattle and Portland. We could easily meet you there for a day and maybe convince Winkers to brave the pass if it isn't during winter! Your kids would love it. They are definitely set up for families, lots of rooms sleep 6 and some, more.

Yes, I'll admit, Taylor Lautner may not be my cup of tea but he sure "filled out" the role, nicely!

That Great Wolf Lodge looks pretty cool. I just looked them up online...

I agree it looks like the Wilderness Lodge or the best version that non-Disney people could do.

I'm glad mommy got her glass of wine...

The wine was helpful for those 1st 2 quests. It's a workout up and down the 6 floors looking for the different things. A secret stairwell and everything!

I hink we have something similar 2 hours away in Erie Pa !!! May have to look into tht for next year !!

Rosie it it looks like it is the same thing, it says Poconos PA, which I'm assuming is near Erie.

 

[TarzansKat]

Well, I'm happy to hear that Kendall has found a sport she likes, but sorry to hear that it further complicates everything, and that it wasn't discussed with you at all. That poor kid must feel like monkey in the middle, and it's not her fault. Not that I mean you put her there...you know what I mean, right?

I'm glad you had a good time at Great Wolf Lodge. I love the pictures of the E's! So cute, especially when they're dripping with water.

 

[Lady Lallie]

The Great Wolf Lodge looks really cool. In our area, they just opened a hotel that has an indoor water park too but it's called soemthing different. I want to stay there and check it out eventually.

 

[MEK]

Cynthia -

What a nice little mini vacation you and the boys had. Sounds like so much fun and I wish I could see your pictures (back to work today). I have heard a lot of good things about the Great Wolf Lodges. I know they are all over the place now. I think the original one may have been in Ohio near that big theme park in Sandusky. (the name escapes me know). What a great concept. Probably the only hotel chain that is really thriving and expanding in today's economy. See how they even suckered you into buying things you really didn't need!

So - you already have snow for snowboarding, nice!

Sorry Kendall's team had a bad weekend. I hate to say this, but I think I'm more worried about Kendall's mom then Kendall. If they have another miserable weekend, she may have a nervous breakdown. I'm sorry - I know that's not nice, but I know she is really uptight and suffers from soccer anxiety disorder.

Is Kendall playing a tournament over T'giving???? Brian is playing in Baltimore, but fortunately we can drive back and forth to the games. The Friday game is not until 1200.

 

[glennbo123]

Thanks for posting your mini-TR on Great Wolf Lodge. We've gotten brochures on that place (the Poconos one), but haven't been. When we lived in NC we used to go to Myrtle Beach during the off-season to stay at a hotel that had some good indoor water stuff. Our kids were much younger then (and fewer in number!), so a lazy river and some fountains were all we needed for entertainment. Fun times!

Rosie it it looks like it is the same thing, it says Poconos PA, which I'm assuming is near Erie.

Rosie's probably gotten info on the Niagara Falls Ontario one....the Poconos are in eastern PA, while Erie is in northwest PA.

 

[englishrose47]

No th one in Erie is similar but not the same and we don't have passports to go to Caada or those extended Drivers licences !!!!

 

[eandesmom]

Well, I'm happy to hear that Kendall has found a sport she likes, but sorry to hear that it further complicates everything, and that it wasn't discussed with you at all. That poor kid must feel like monkey in the middle, and it's not her fault. Not that I mean you put her there...you know what I mean, right?

I'm glad you had a good time at Great Wolf Lodge. I love the pictures of the E's! So cute, especially when they're dripping with water.

I honestly don't know if she feels like Monkey in the middle or not. She keeps things pretty close to the vest which is hard at times. You have to drag stuff out of her, we had a couple of (girl development) things this weekend that neither her mom or I knew about and it breaks my heart that she can't feel more open about that stuff. Part of it is the age, but a lot of it is just her, she is not remotely comfortable sharing her feelings anything personal. With anyone. Neither is T.

I'm not sure there is a sport she doesn't like though lol!

Drippy kids are a good thing.

The Great Wolf Lodge looks really cool. In our area, they just opened a hotel that has an indoor water park too but it's called soemthing different. I want to stay there and check it out eventually.

it was fun.

Cynthia -

What a nice little mini vacation you and the boys had. Sounds like so much fun and I wish I could see your pictures (back to work today). I have heard a lot of good things about the Great Wolf Lodges. I know they are all over the place now. I think the original one may have been in Ohio near that big theme park in Sandusky. (the name escapes me know). What a great concept. Probably the only hotel chain that is really thriving and expanding in today's economy. See how they even suckered you into buying things you really didn't need!

So - you already have snow for snowboarding, nice!

Sorry Kendall's team had a bad weekend. I hate to say this, but I think I'm more worried about Kendall's mom then Kendall. If they have another miserable weekend, she may have a nervous breakdown. I'm sorry - I know that's not nice, but I know she is really uptight and suffers from soccer anxiety disorder.

Is Kendall playing a tournament over T'giving???? Brian is playing in Baltimore, but fortunately we can drive back and forth to the games. The Friday game is not until 1200.

We have had SUCH a wet November (2+" over normal month to date), the mountains actually opened 2 weeks ago. Usually it isn't until Thanksgiving! Great snow too according to T but thankfully the pass wasn't too bad for Jeff to drive in, I always worry.

Soccer anxiety disorder



that's pretty funny. Yeah it's sad when your personal success is tied up with your daughters team. Even sadder that she isn't alone in that. I'm sure you see it with your boys teams in some parents. The really sad part is we wonder if she is just hedging her own bets with this Volleyball thing. We actually hope she meets a nice Volleyball dad. Unlikely since she refuses to date but boy that would be the best thing for everyone involved!

She does have a tournament in San Diego and is taking off tomorrow I think. T will be with his grandparents in Palm Springs and they will drive down for some of the games.

Interestingly the team was supposed to have another tourney in Phoenix over Presidents week and it looks like a lot of the families are pulling out of it. K's mom is supposed to be a chaperone but is now saying K can/should go to her volleyball tourney that weekend instead.

Overall the team just isn't what it used to be. They are very inconsistent and it's a number of factors, not any one thing. Change in coaches, losing some key players, etc. I expect more drama as the rest of the season plays out not just with K but with other girls on the team....I have a sense of impending doom or team falling apart but maybe I'm just paranoid.The whole situation gives K's mom angina I'm sure and I won't be at all surprised if she wants K to change clubs come spring tryouts.

Which would be a nightmare logistically....

Part of it I'm sure will depend on how ODP tryouts go.

Thanks for posting your mini-TR on Great Wolf Lodge. We've gotten brochures on that place (the Poconos one), but haven't been. When we lived in NC we used to go to Myrtle Beach during the off-season to stay at a hotel that had some good indoor water stuff. Our kids were much younger then (and fewer in number!), so a lazy river and some fountains were all we needed for entertainment. Fun times!

Rosie's probably gotten info on the Niagara Falls Ontario one....the Poconos are in eastern PA, while Erie is in northwest PA.

A lazy river and some fountains can still keep the E's entertained for hours! The slides were great but honestly it really did cement my feeling that we do NOT need to add water parks and more to our tickets! SAB ought to do just fine. I would say they spent at least half the time in the splash areas and had there been a lazy river, they would have been in it.

No th one in Erie is similar but not the same and we don't have passports to go to Caada or those extended Drivers licences !!!!

Jeff and I have been talking about those extended drivers licenses, we are going to try and find out more info about them as it would probably make sense for us. I'm so excited to see how it works heading up there on the train this weekend!

 

[winkers]

I feel bad for Kendall...does she ever have any down time? I know alot of mom's who have their kids so scheduled they never have time to relax and be kids. Plus, the family is never together.
With my 4 kids and they each have 2 weekly things it's insane.

Where is the Wolf Lodge? I'm always looking for fun day trips.

 

[cjackearl]

Looks like you all had a fun, drippy time at GWL. I have fond memories of spending a night at the one in Traverse City, MI on our trip "Up North." It was our last vacation as a family of 4 and where Amelia learned to swim, under water at least. We spent 2 nights at an indoor waterpark in Sandusky, Ohio near Cedar Point this last Spring Break and had a blast, but 2 nights was just a tad too much water for me. For more than a night I want my water served with a side of beach and sun.

 

[eandesmom]

I feel bad for Kendall...does she ever have any down time? I know alot of mom's who have their kids so scheduled they never have time to relax and be kids. Plus, the family is never together.
With my 4 kids and they each have 2 weekly things it's insane.

Where is the Wolf Lodge? I'm always looking for fun day trips.

Oh I wouldn't feel bad about no down time. One she does have some, surprisingly enough and 2 she really doesn't like, want or need much. When she does have it she is just as likely to want to go play a pick up volleyball game or watch a soccer game as much as the mall, a movie or read a book.

Even though it sounds like she is crazy busy, and she is, really on the weekends unless there is a tournament it's only maybe 2 hours a weekend devoted to sports. This weekend she had plenty of time to see 3 movies (2 at home, one in the theater), read a book, take a huge long tub and just hang out for meals. I do believe she is being a kid the way she wants for the most part, her mom just facilitates some of it being bigger and grander than it needs to be.

Family never together is the bigger problem. 4 kids with 4 schedules and a age range of 9-17, generally speaking we are lucky to get 4 dinners a month with everyone all together! It would be more of course but we only have K&T a little less than half the time. Friday nights are pretty sacred when it is our weekend.

Great Wolf is right by Centralia, so about 4 hours for you? Not exactly around the corner....

http://www.greatwolf.com/grandmound/waterpark

Looks like you all had a fun, drippy time at GWL. I have fond memories of spending a night at the one in Traverse City, MI on our trip "Up North." It was our last vacation as a family of 4 and where Amelia learned to swim, under water at least. We spent 2 nights at an indoor waterpark in Sandusky, Ohio near Cedar Point this last Spring Break and had a blast, but 2 nights was just a tad too much water for me. For more than a night I want my water served with a side of beach and sun.

yeah, 2 nights would be too much and I agree...water is best served with...

Beach. Sun. Drinks with little umbrellas...mindless chick lit....

What a fun place to learn to swim though! Eric was a disaster on the ropes course and watching him doggy paddle away it reinforced that he really could use some more lessons. And some upper body strength!

 

[MEK]

Overall the team just isn't what it used to be. They are very inconsistent and it's a number of factors, not any one thing. Change in coaches, losing some key players, etc. I expect more drama as the rest of the season plays out not just with K but with other girls on the team....I have a sense of impending doom or team falling apart but maybe I'm just paranoid.The whole situation gives K's mom angina I'm sure and I won't be at all surprised if she wants K to change clubs come spring tryouts.

Which would be a nightmare logistically....

Part of it I'm sure will depend on how ODP tryouts go.

Cynthia -

I don't think you are being paranoid. Usually when there is a vague sense of discontent, there is more going on below the surface. It sounds like other parents are probably going to start shopping around for new teams, too.

Brian has been on so many teams that have turned over or folded that is sounds like you are describing the warning signs. Its so frustrating, bet gets easier when they are older since they start making the decisions about where they want to go. Then the parents just need to decide if they are willing to write the check. haha.

Anyway - I hope things work out well for Kendall and I mostly hope that if she goes and wherever she goes doesn't interfere with your summer vacation plans. Yikes - that would be terrible!

 

[eandesmom]

Cynthia -

I don't think you are being paranoid. Usually when there is a vague sense of discontent, there is more going on below the surface. It sounds like other parents are probably going to start shopping around for new teams, too.

Brian has been on so many teams that have turned over or folded that is sounds like you are describing the warning signs. Its so frustrating, bet gets easier when they are older since they start making the decisions about where they want to go. Then the parents just need to decide if they are willing to write the check. haha.

Anyway - I hope things work out well for Kendall and I mostly hope that if she goes and wherever she goes doesn't interfere with your summer vacation plans. Yikes - that would be terrible!

In retrospect I think we've been spoiled. We used to "wonder" at girls that seemed to switch teams each year. I think the checks are equally big no matter where you go at this point.

I don't think a different club would impact our trip any more than the current one (except perhaps feeling less secure in her spot so less willing to miss anything) but the logistic nightmares would be that the other good ones just aren't as close so games and practices would be some serious travel on a pretty constant basis. We'd prefer not to commute to soccer practice!

I just overlaid the vball schedule with soccer and I just don't know what her mom is thinking. Pretty much all of the main vball tourneys that require any travel are during state cup. I feel bad for the vball coach but can't imagine how they can form a solid team if "several" of their players (as they say) are in the same boat and missing is ok. Not to mention the cost per game goes WAYY up.

 

[creativeamanda]

Cynthia--have I told you recently how great of a Bonus Mom I think you are?!? You truly have the best intentions for Kendall.

My daughter's occupational therapist yesterday told me how kids really need those sports to keep their core in good shape and that video games and television watching is really even bad for simple things like handwriting! I did not even think that, but now that I know that, I don't feel bad for "forcing" (not really, but sometimes I think I am) my daughter into softball season and outside softball practices. Which, by the way, will probably start again right after Christmas!