Father's Day Celebration...

My family loves soccer!  You can't read to many of my posts before you know that little detail.  Both my boys play soccer, I coach the youngest's team, and my husband plays soccer too.  They also play soccer video games, soccer in the backyard and they watch a lot of games.  Soccer is a pretty big deal in our house.

This summer Manchester United is on tour in the United States.  Man United is the team for my boys...all of them!  We have extra channels so that we can see all the Man United games. We have multiple jerseys and scarves, soccer balls and beer steins emblazoned with the Man United logo. There's a huge flag flying outside my house in honor of Manchester United...they're a pretty big deal!

Imagine the excitement in our house when we learned that Manchester United would be playing the Seattle Sounders in an International Friendly game.  The Sounders are our 2nd favorite team, and we cross the state a couple times each summer to watch a game.  This week we traveled to Seattle to see Manchester United and the Seattle Sounders.

 This was an amazing adventure for our family.  We enjoyed ourselves in Seattle a bit before the game, including a stop for more Manchester United gear!

 Man United won the Barclay's Premier League last season, and they are traveling with the cup.  Why not?  It's pretty impressive.

 We love the Sounders too, so it was exciting to watch them play.  But, the thrill of seeing athletes you've only seen on TV in person...it was phenomenal!

 #10 is Wayne Rooney...a family favorite {we even have a cat named Rooney}...

 ...the thrill of the game was watching Rooney score not one, not two, but three goals in the second half.  A Rooney Hat Trick!

 Happy Father's Day to the most amazing Daddy in the whole world!

Summer Adventure List...

So...here I am on summer vacation! 

This was last summer...but it just evokes summer!

The days spilling out in front of me like...well...like days just waiting to be filled up with fun and entertainment.  Sitting here at the beginning of summer, I thought it would be fun to write my...

Summer Adventure List

becuase there are some things I want to make sure happen! They may not all sound like adventures, but they'll all be fun!

In no particular order...
* Complete two sprint and one Olympic triathlons
* Attend the soccer match of the year...Manchester United v  
  Seattle Sounders!
* Spend as much time as possible creating & crafting
* Update and revise my blog
* Read, read and then read some more
* Visit a local pool at least once each week with my kids...
  Summer Pool Tour 2011
* Take my husband on a mini-vacation for our 16th anniversary
* Host my friends kids for a day of science fun
* Update my 2011 Family scrapbook
* Go somewhere we've never been before

There you have it, my Summer Adventure List! I am looking forward to an amazing summer, and looking forward to sharing adventures with you.

What's on your Summer Adventure List?

Ode to my Mom Bag...

You all know how much I love my Mom Bags!  I wrote about them here and here... I just love having a cute way to be organized, carry what I need while I have fun with my family.

This is the bag I found for our most recent family adventure to Disney World.  I love this bag!  I popped in to my local Eddie Bauer outlet literally the afternoon before we left, hoping I could find something new that would be comfortable to carry, look cute and accommodate my camera bag.  This is it!

Of course it's a mom bag so, not only was it comfortable, looked cute and held the camera bag it also...
* held both boys wallets...and they needed easy access
* held Aiden's retainer case...in and out every time he ate something
* stored sunglasses and sunscreen
* held a packet of wipes and a first aid kit
* quick access to our "Keys to the World" for fast passes, dining and opening the hotel room
*  held my own wallet
* and...managed to carry the various souveniers and trinkets we accumulated throughout the day

It just wouldn't be a Family Adventure without the perfect Mom Bag!

Irresponsibility was WONDERFUL...

The Great Family Adventure was amazing...

 

More pictures and a few memorable moments coming up next week...

Have a fantastic weekend!

Family Adventures...

Have you ever done something really fun and a little irresponsible?

Have you ever pulled your kids into the adventure?

Have you ever wished you could walk away from every day life...for just a few minutes to refresh?

Have you ever needed to reconnect with your husband...your kids...your family and just play & have fun?

We're doing just that...Chasing the Dream and having a family adventure!

I'll be back in the blogging world in a few days and I'll share all the fun and irresponsible details :)

Water Fight Initiation...

Every year my in-laws initiate the boys into summer with a surprise water fight.  They try really hard to surprise the boys, even though it's a tradition, so the boys are never quite sure when it's coming. 

This year the initiation coincided with a party we were having to watch an arena football game, so all the boys grandparents were on hand to douse them with water. 

 Buckets of water, squirters and water balloons are strategically placed around the backyard to it's easy to reload. 

All in all the water fight lasts about 15 minutes, but the memories and the tradition, last forever!

What traditions mark the beginning of summer for your family?

Adventures in Nature (and a Middle School field trip!)...

Visit The Science Mommy to read all about a great adventure Aiden and I had yesterday!

Family Fun…

My family has had season tickets to the Spokane Shock (local arena football) for the past four years.  Recently, I was talking with a friend who was surprised that we took our kids with us to the games.  Four years ago, when Aiden was two, he often fell asleep at the games.  Connar had a hard time sitting through a game, he was bouncy and we took frequent walks around the arena concourse.  We kept taking them to the games with us and now Aiden knows the game and the team better than I do!  If I don’t understand one of the plays, Connar can easily explain what happened.  They are huge fans of the game!  (Can you see the autographs on their jersey’s?)

There’s another reason we take them to the games, and this gets at a deeper parenting belief.  I believe that the only way kids learn the behavior that is appropriate in different settings, is to experience those different settings.  We take our kids as many places as we can and they understand the difference between behavior at a play and behavior at a Shock game!  There have definitely been times we’ve left places and times we’ve wished we hadn’t brought the kids, but now we can go almost anywhere as a family and our kids are usually fantastic.  Investing the time to teach them has been well worth the effort.

I have one more reason we take them to the games, and everywhere else in town (we have lots of adventures)!  I want my kids to recognize the value of family and I want them to choose to spend time with their family as they get older.  I believe that you have to build in the quality family time when they are young, to carry into their teens.  Build the habit, so that as they get older and have more choices, they will be more likely to choose the Shock Game (or whatever Family Fun is offered).  In my mind, this is the same thing as a family dinner.  Spending time together, laughing together, and understanding each other is the way we are building our family.  The best thing about our Shock season tickets, is the number of people we attend with…grandparents and family friends make up our group of 18 and each game is Family Fun!