Fall SoCcEr & the BEST GAME EVER!!

Oct. - Nov. 2013
Harrison decided he wanted to give soccer another go, which was fantastic!  And as it turned out, one of his Primary teachers was putting a team together and wanted him on it.  :) So he got lucky and had a whole team of friends.  It was such a great experience and SO much fun!

Their team struggled a little.  They went nearly the entire season without so much as scoring a goal!  :/  They were getting a little discouraged.  But in game 8, the second to last game of the season, Harrison was bribed by me (yes, I'm that mom) with $20 for a goal (we were desperate!).  ;) And apparently money was the motivator that flipped the little switch in his head and it all just came together!  Hahaha.  It was amazing.  Like it just "clicked" and a miracle happened... down the field he went...

He shoots...

He SCORES!!

That face says it all!!  Saying we were "happy" for him feels like the understatement of the year!  Patrick and I both were SO excited for him!  (We were even admittedly teary eyed.)  :)

Everyone was screaming!!  I mean, EVERYONE!  Every kid on our team, every parent on our sideline! There was a serious delay of game for celebration!  :) (The other team probably thought we were all crazy, freaking out over a goal like that, but they didn't know how long we had waited to cheer!  How long our kids had been waiting to feel like that!)  :) It was SO incredible!  After watching them struggle ALL season to score, it was AMAZING!!  And of course, without skipping a beat, he runs over to me and says "You owe me $20!".  Hahaha.  I looked at him and said "Go do it again!".  He smiled at me with a grin of confidence we had been hoping and praying for all season!!  And said "Ok!".

....And sure enough, that's exactly what he did!!  :)  They WON that game.  The only win of their season.  In Harrison's words, "THAT WAS THE BEST GAME EVEERRRRR!!!".... it really was!  :)  I loved what scoring that goal did to him, for him.  He was a different kid, he had some swagger in his step, he was less timid and SO much more aggressive, he was excited and happy!  He has a hard time getting out there in front of everyone sometimes, I can honestly say that night was a turning point for him.  He discovered that he could do it, that he could be great, that he could be a leader!  He believed it!  And that is why it was THE BEST GAME EVER!  :)  

And a GREAT season!!  Can't wait to do it all over again! 

 CONGRATS BUDDY!!  :)

This is HaLlOwEeN!!

HaLlOwEen - 2013
The day started with school parades and parties! :)  First, was the Kinder parade at Harrison's school.

Then off to Reagan's school for a fun pizza party!  This girl loves food!  :) 

After the boys got home from school we got busy with our carving.  And it wouldn't be a Halloween carving party without "The Nightmare Before Christmas"!

The boys wanted to draw and cut their own this year.  It was so fun to see what they came up with!  :) 

Dad did Reagan's.  ;)

Finished product!  SO cool!  (L to R: Reagan, Jackson, Harrison)

And then there are the costumes! :)  Maybe I'm a little bias, but these are some super cute kiddos!
Jackson aka Snake Eyes.  
And this kid was VERY in character ALL day!  hahaha.  It was very entertaining!

He took posing very seriously!

Harrison aka The Hulk.
I told him to put shoes on and he said "Hulk doesn't wear shoes, Mom." - He was right. So I responded with "I bet Hulk doesn't live in the desert though." to which he replied "I might need shoes." hahaha.

 You can see his "crazy eyes"!

Reagan aka The Minion.
They speak her language... it only seemed fitting! Might be my favorite costume ever!   

Grant aka Purple People Eater (I think it's really a fat purple dragon but... same difference).

So much fun with the littles!   I love how excited they get and how much fun it is for them!  (Which in turn, makes it so much fun for us!)  :)  Trunk-or-Treating, Trick-or-Treating, parties, packages... they were busy little people, with the loot to prove it!  Love them SO much!  :)

Everyday Fun...

October 2013:

These are some of the random things on my camera!

Our wonderful friends, the Bogle family moved to Texas.  :(  We were all very sad to see them go!

Grant fights sleep like it's the most horrible thing anyone could make him do... except of course when he randomly falls asleep at loud sports events with his hat on backwards and spit up all over the front of him.  :) 

Harrison likes to make things.  Forts, Lego cities, drawings... everyday it's something.  So, when he happened to see a couple of boxes that were headed for the garbage, he instantly claimed them.  With a little duct tape and some imagination they became his star ship.  :)

Harrison's artwork. It's our Salisbury Family. He loves to draw! And he did a great job! (The little banana looking things are babies in our family.)  But if you look real close, you can see who he forgot about! ....That's right, I'm the headless miniature character in the corner. Why is mom always the afterthought. Hahaha.

Jackson really loves to draw too!!  He is always drawing, I can't keep enough paper in this house!  But I love to see what he comes up with!  He has a lot of imagination!! (And there is always an underlying Star Wars theme in everything that goes on in this house!)  ;) 

The boys got their school pictures!  Such handsome studs, they are!  :)

Outstanding Owl of the Month

October 19, 2013
Harrison Swain!  :)  This sweet boy got recognized at school for his outstanding behavior and example!  He was super proud of himself, as he should be!  

They had an assembly with all the Kindergarten classes to give out awards.  

They started out with some singing! :)  Major perk to having a kid that is so tall... He's super easy to spot!  (Even on the back row!)  

And then they gave him his award!  :)

Love him so much!  He really is a great kid and is always so willing to help and show kindness!  So proud of you Bub!