Nothing like cramming it all together! The Pigman Sunday morning, Lauren's soccer tournament that afternoon, softball practice Sunday night and then VBS started on Monday morning... whew! Luckily we had a great crew decorate and get ready on Saturday, and Lisa does an amazing job with all the teachings :)
We had adorable crafts again this year...
And a record number of kids! 75+, it was awesome!
Maggie taught games again for us this year :)
Andrea was a group leader
And new this year we invited parents/friends to come and celebrate with us the last 15-minutes on the last day in addition to our Sunday program.
It was a success! And notice, Elle & Carson were here for the last day too :D
Here we are on Sunday... there was a good turn-out for this too!
Songs on video from Sunday - it was a great week!!
Again this year Maggie & I signed up for the Pigman Sprint Triathlon at Palo. When a busy April rolled into a crazy, jam-packed May... it started to feel just a touch over-whelming :) And 'training' felt like a chore, though I did (and still do!) enjoy all 3 sports, it's time consuming and when there is a million other things to do (including laundry) I was questioning my decision, even thought about quitting all together. But the important part was I didn't, and fast forward to running during the race, and I was already telling Maggie that I definitely wanted to do it again next year! ;) We kicked training into gear towards the end of May, practiced doing all 3 back to back 2 or 3 times (which always makes me feel better) and we crossed the finish line with more gas in the tank and smiling. (which was my ultimate goal... to be over-prepared of course ;)
This was also the weekend of the final Cedar Valley Soccer tournament, the CUP. Which was so exciting to watch (pictures below) We drove to Cedar Falls on Friday night, she had 2 games on Saturday, and then again on Sunday... but we fit it all in, the whole fam was even able to come and watch at Palo. :)
But it started out like this!! A huge storm!
I met Maggie & Fred in Center Point at 6am, and all was well when we arrived in Palo at 6:20. Here we are in our rock star wet suits ;))) I was fortunate enough to be able to borrow Dawn Gericke's... thank you Dawn!
Our fan club!
Love, love... even if I do have a swim cap on ;)
I love these pics! Taken by Lauren or Lindsay...
I was more confident in the swim this year... notice my goggles?? I went out on a limb and used kid goggles, and it worked out perfectly! When practicing, they were my favorite, didn't fog up, and you can see everything. And the same thing happened in the lake! I could see everything! It was great...I did take off a little fast and got a little panicky before getting to the 1/2 way mark, but I trusted in my training and kept going :) Increased my time by 29-seconds!
Going in...
Coming out :)
the bike!
Again, very fortunate, I was able to borrow Shannon Lake's Trek bike, much lighter and has skinnier tires than mine.
I tried my hardest on the bike, but it was really scary as I saw 2 different crashes right in front of me... it just happens in a blink of an eye.
The finale...
No problems... see, all smiles ;)
And we finished!
2015 2014
Overall: 1:40:44 1:43:02
Swim: 10:15 10:44
T1: 7:28 6:59 not sure what happened here?
Bike: 55:21 57:30 would have been faster, I slipped off pavement onto grass, after I worked so hard to pass people! :(
T2: 1:31 1:39
Run: 26:07 26:08 crazy this was the exact same! but I think it would have been a touch faster, Maggie tied her shoe :)
No worries.. it was crazy fun and I do want to do it again! I'll talk my friend into it, I have no doubt. Again, thank you Maggie for being that person who comes up with crazy ideas, makes them happen, and stays positive through thick and thin... you are an inspiration to me!!
Snacks and food for everyone :)
And then we left Palo, and drove straight to Cedar Falls for Lauren's final game! My phone died, and I didn't have my camera :( so I got these pics from Kathy Kehrli
And they won! Hard fought battle, and they did awesome! I jumped out of my seat a couple times... I've never done that before ;) The team was so supportive of each other, and really worked together. The parents were great... it was just an awesome experience for our first time with soccer.
Kreighton's team did too!
1st place for a great team... excited for next year :) Thanks so much to coach Garry Anderson & Brian Miller. Just found out that there are 2 Independence teams for next year and they might even practice together and scrimmage against each other. Would be such a great experience for them, a great ending to a fun season!
So these are the rest :) I'm guessing this was Wednesday, 5/27.. obviously we were happy there was no rain ;)
Also new this year (in addition to a garden) Jayme stepped outside and was determined to take care of the landscaping! Lindsay and I started in on the bushes... much to Chris' dismay... but in end, they turned out great!
The girls hung out in my classroom while I had a meeting to hear my options for next year :) Which turned into being in charge of all internships at Independence high school and adding one more day/week to work... I'm excited and nervous all at the same time.
And Lindsay had her last soccer game! What a great season! So much fun, she definitely wants to do it again... and as you an see, the weather was all over the place. Hot one day, cold & windy the next...
Kills me... wish I knew where that picture was of Lauren & Lindsay in the same get-up!
