DYF Trophy

Reed was pretty excited to get his massive football trophy tonight.  It was half his height!  Way to go, Reed, on an excellent season.  You learned so much and always had a smile on your face.  Congrats on your first year of football!

DYF Season Ends

The boys played their last football games of the season today.  It was beautiful outside, and we were super excited to experience Big Dragon Stadium in a new way.  Ryland's game was played on the high school field with an announcer.  It was awesome to hear him call Ryland's plays.  Way too cool!  Even though Reed didn't play at the stadium, he had a great season ending game with a touchdown.

Go Dragons!

In the Game

Reed is really into football these days, and he does a fair amount of trash talking about his playing skills.  Tonight I saw him on the line of scrimmage ready for some LSU Tiger action. 

Tough Loss

This one hurt.  The boys gave it their all, but they fell short by one point.  They were disappointed, but they quickly recovered with a little candy from the cheerleaders. 

Football

Ryland is loving football this year.  He is engaged and going for it every game.  Today, he was on fire.  He saved 4 touchdowns by running down the runner and taking them to the ground.  The boy can run, fast.  He loves his coaches and teammates and looks forward to going every week.  Several parents and the coaches made numerous comments today about how well he was playing.  My favorite part was when he helped pull the other team's players off his buddy after a tackle.  He then helped pull his man up.  It made my heart melt.  Some other moms saw this and commented on how sweet this was of him.  That's my sweetie, Ryland! 

Player of the Game

Reed played like a champion today.  He pulled his first flag, and it pumped him up!  He was named Player of the Game.  Go Reed!

Awards at Practice

Ryland was given a few awards at practice today for his awesome performance at Saturday's game.  The top prize was Pokemon cards.  These cards are super popular, so he was swarmed by his teammates to see what he received. I was so proud of him, and he was so excited to be recognized.

Chillin'

We enjoyed a bit of sunshine this afternoon at North Park while we watched Ryland play football.  It cracked us up when we saw Ridley just chillin' in her chair snacking on some chips with her leg kicked up on the chair.

UA Football

And just like that, football starts.  There are lots of mixed feelings about this sport and the competitive spirit that is all around us in Southlake.  We are hoping this will be a fun opportunity for Ryland to learn about the sport and have a great time.

Ryland's first game was on a dreary day that quickly turned wet and muddy, which he loved.  Any excuse to get dirty is an awesome opportunity for Ry.  The game was a total mush of kids running all over the place and missing catch after catch.  It was much like herding cats.

Mini Huddler Skills Showcase

Ryland has really enjoyed the Mini Huddle camp.  He has learned some technical football skills, and he shows interest in playing.  In fact, we noticed how engaged and competitive Ryland has become. The final day was a skills showcase, and Ryland really shined.  He was picked to be the last kiddo to run the drill.  He nailed it!  He knew all the parts and did a fantastic job.

Ryland likes to be in the action, and Reed is running to occupy his time.  He will be so happy when he is 4.  He will finally be able to participate in the camps.

Mini Huddler

Ryland is learning the fundamentals of football at Mini Huddler.  He looks forward to going twice a week, and he has met some new buddies.  He is very engaged and always the first one to lineup or raise his hand to answer a question.  We noticed that he has gotten more and more competitive, which is a nice surprise.

Date Day

It was a gloomy day with a sky full of rain clouds, but we still thought we would venture to Dallas for a little football.  Lizee stayed home to play with the boys, while Emily, Jeffery, John Chris, and myself headed out for a little bit of fun.  We knew we were going to get wet, so we stopped in to purchase ponchos.  Even though it poured, we had a great time laughing, visiting, and watching football.  LaTech lost to Army, but it was fun to have a day with grown ups. 

Last day of flag football

This was the last Saturday for flag football.  Ryland and his teammates had a great time running around, catching, and throwing.  Reed even tried to get in on the action.  He looked pretty official with a flag buckled around his waist.

 

 

Ryland was sure to bring Brown Bear to football, so he could have another fun adventure to add to his journal.

 

Just as football was wrapping up, the Northwest Bobcat showed up.  The kids were amazed and practice was over.  Good times!

Football

It was a cold Saturday morning, but we bundled up for Ryland's football.  The boys ran drills and played a little bit of scrimmage before losing interest to the playset.

 

 

Reed wanted to play football with the big boys, so we tried to distract him with the swings. It worked until it was snack time.  He loves being right there in the middle of things, and we can tell he is more interested in football than Ryland.

Thanksgiving 2010

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year, but it was definitely different. We started with working on the house then a delicious lunch of turkey sandwiches. We then loaded up and headed to Cowboys stadium to watch the Saints and Cowboys. The Owens invited us to join their family in a private suite, and it was absolutely awesome.

Ryland loves football, and he liked to be close to the glass to see the action. It made me nervous, because I know how much he loves to climb. He did great and kept both feet on the floor most of the time.

What a view! This is the best way to watch a game. The game was action packed, and the fans really got into the game. It was funny to see the suites on both sides of us yelling for the Cowboys, and we were yelling for the Saints. Who dat!

A fun moment with my boy.

Ryland and Jackson played with the trucks when they took a break from the game.

When John Chris and I stopped to think about everything we are thankful for, we were overwhelmed with the numerous blessings in our lives. We are forever thankful for every moment.

Boys being boys

Uncle Brad and Aunt Chanda came over to watch the football game and grill out. The boys kicked back on the sofa and watched the game while snacking and drinking. Ryland was loving the guy time.

Super Bowl Sunday

GO SAINTS!
We gathered for our annual Super Bowl party to cheer on the Saints. We were hoping they would win, but we had doubts since they were playing the Peyton Mannings. I mean the Colts.

The majority of the party bunch are from Louisiana, so we had gumbo instead of grilled food. It was delicious, and it must have been a lucky charm. Who Dat!

Football is fun!

You can tell Ryland is an only child. He doesn't really want in his walker. He just doesn't want Harker to be in his walker. I try to teach him to share and play nice, but sometimes he just melts down. I love that Harker is oblivious to his screaming! Get over it, dude.

Just a little later, we gave both of them Baylor cups with bendable straws. We thought that this would occupy them and they would have a little silly fun. Harker wanted both straws, so she took the other one from Ryland. What do you think he did? He started screaming and crying again. It is hilarious because with anyone else he would just yank the straw right back. If I take something away from him, he tries to get it back from me. If Cooper has a ball, Ryland will snatch it away over and over. I guess he doesn't know how to take it from his sweetie.

Here they both are having some fun staring and slapping the wine cooler. I think they are creating a plan to one day break in and drink it all.

Looks like Team Whiskey's captain was down for the count. Lindsey, Robert, and Harker decided to have a little fun and take goofy pictures with John Chris. We woke him up, but not for long.

Gosh John Chris, it sucks to get old!

Auburn weekend

John Chris and I went to Auburn with Brad and Chanda to cheer on the Tigers. We had a great weekend even in the pouring rain. Brad is a hardcore fan, so we started tailgating very early. I was shocked at the cult following of Auburn, and I even wore a War Eagle shirt!

The weather was pretty nice during the day while we were tailgating, but just as we were walking up the ramp to our seats the rain started. It poured! The majority of people huddled underneath to wait out the rain. I am so glad Chanda thought to pick up some ponchos.
The rain let up, and the crowd started filling the seats.

Don't you love our ponchos? They rock! We stayed dry and happy.

The game started out a little rough for Auburn, but they got it together and beat West Virginia.

Thanks to BJ and Laura for letting us crash at their apartment!

Trip to LSU game

We made a last minute trip to see LSU play Ole Miss. We had great seats, but it was a terrible game. The Tigers lost to the Rebels.

We had a great time visiting with Cory and LeAnn. It was so nice to spend time with them and catch up.

GRRRRRR. What a hot Tiger!

We passed this fine car during our journey. Gotta love Louisiana!