stick horse rodeo champion

This past weekend was the Western Heritage Classic Rodeo here in Abilene and our little cowboy competed in the bull riding event. (Okay, so it was the "stick horse" rodeo they hold for kids that Beckham "rode" in... but to him it was definitely the real deal!!!)

JT signed Beckham up weeks ago for this event. Beckham has been practicing some with JT, but mostly he has just been talking about it. He has been really excited! When his day to ride finally came, he was ready to go. He looked mighty fine in his cowboy attire!

Berkley and Beckham were both excited to get to the arena where the stick horse rodeo would take place. They had checked things out the night before with Marmie and JT, so they knew exactly where to take us.We definitely had some excited little cowpokes to say the least.Once we got inside, JT took care of business and got Beckham registered.Beckham got his number on and took off with his faithful horse in hand to get warmed up.I got one last hug from my little cowboy before I had to be seated.Matt got to stay with Beckham in the arena.He was even able to give him a few tips before the bull riding event began.Beckham seemed to be taking this rodeo very seriously. He did a great job warming up.He and Daddy took a break to check out some of the competition.However, these other little cowpokes had nothing on Beckham. He scored a 54 in his bull riding event which landed him in first place! That's right... Beckham is the new stick horse rodeo champion. He even has the belt buckle to prove it!

Beckham was all smiles when he saw his new buckle.

Daddy helped him put it on his belt right away. He couldn't seem to get it on fast enough for Beckham.Soon enough, however, Beckham was proudly showing off his shiny new buckle!JT was pretty proud of this little cowboy too!It takes a tough cowboy to ride a bull. Here is the crew showing me their cowboy (or cowgirl) faces!Once we got outside of the arena, Beckham had to make a few phone calls to his fans who couldn't make the rodeo. He really enjoyed sharing the exciting news!

He couldn't walk farther than a few steps without stopping to check out his buckle. Too cute!It was definitely a big morning for Beckham.
And I'm pretty sure it is a morning he will never forget!!!

game 7 for # 7

This past Saturday was game number 7 for the Wildcats, and our little number 7 was ready to take on the world! (He was pretty excited from the stick horse rodeo! We actually thought he might not want to ditch his cowboy "duds" for his soccer uniform, but he seemed to be ready for his next challenge of the day!) Due to it being close to the end of our season, the Wildcat team had dwindled somewhat; but that didn't seem to discourage the cats that were still left. They were ready for the game to begin!

Beckham scored quick, adding to his excitement!
He never seems to grow tired of celebrating either. He loves to flash his big grin and hand out some high-fives to the crowd when he comes back to the sidelines.His number one fan helped him take a nice little break too by sharing her seat.

As the game went by quickly, I began to realize how much Beckham really has learned during his first season in soccer. He has learned to be aggressive and take the ball away from the other team. (Okay, maybe he has had some practice in taking things away from others before soccer. But at least in this game that is encouraged, which is a positive note!)

He has learned to run as fast as his little legs can carry him to chase after that ball! And he seems to do it with such concentration. (Look at that face!)

He has even picked up some fancy footwork along the way... even if it has been by mistake!

Most importantly, however, he has learned good sportsmanship. He has embraced it with enthusiasm!
And of course, it has also been great for Beckham to simply be part of a team as he has begun to learn the importance of working together with others. I'm sure we'll be working on this for several more seasons to come!
The greatest thing though is that Beckham truly has fun during every game. I think he is already developing a great passion for sports which brings a smile to his daddy's face!

ouch!

This morning I was reminded of just how bad a "boo boo" can hurt. And how it can hurt in so many ways too... not just physically, but it seems to bruise your pride a little bit too!

It was a beautiful morning, a little overcast with a slight breeze blowing. I dropped the kids off at Mother's Day Out ready for a work-out, but instead of heading to the gym I decided I would ditch the treadmill and enjoy some open air! (I'm now wishing I'd stuck to my old faithful treadmill!) I headed up to a local park with a great track for running, walking, strolling, etc.

I began running and quickly begin feeling out of breath and really tired, so I turned up my iTunes and got a rhythm going. Before long I was running smoothly, enjoying my beautiful surroundings (as opposed to staring at the same thing on a treadmill) and praising the Lord as songs of worship flowed from my iPod. It was such an unbelievable feeling... and then I decided to cut over to another path. Bad decision. This short crossover path wasn't paved nice and smooth like the other paths had been. Still in my groove, I didn't notice the huge hole just ahead of me! My foot fell into the hole, my ankle twisted, and my body was taken to the ground.

Ouch! That one is going to leave a mark! And yes it did.
And even worse, I tore a hole through my favorite pair of workout pants!!!
Not to mention the embarrassment I felt as several people slowed down or stopped to check on me as I sat on the ground trying to determine if and how I was going to be able to even stand up, let alone make it back to my car! Although I felt pain, it didn't totally seem to set in until I did in fact stand up and slowly tried to make it back to my car. As I began to slowly put weight on my bad ankle, it hurt, but the pain was definitely manageable. The pain I then began to notice was my knee and its fiery stinging. I looked down and then realized my favorite pants had torn and my knee had taken a slight beating.

As I got into my car and drove home, very aware of my aching ankle and stinging knee, I was reminded how bad "boo boos" really do hurt. And I was also realizing that sometimes the pain even got worse before it got better! I also seemed to come to the conclusion that even after the pain faded a little, the memory was still there of those people who watched the entire thing happen. And although none of them were laughing at me by any means, I was telling myself they were. My pride had been "bruised" a little. Most importantly, however, I became aware of how often my little b's get "boo boos" and how often I try to toughen them up quickly and even get frustrated with them sometimes when the drama seems to go on longer than I think it should. Wow! Tough lesson for me today. "Boo boos" hurt... physically and emotionally; and sometimes we just want to be comforted, even when the physical pain goes away.

It is funny, but as I come to the end of this I am now typing with a smile, realizing how everything really does happen for a reason. Thank you Lord for this gentle reminder. There are going to be many more "boo boos" along the way. Some will be small and some will be big. And some of them are even going to hurt, but we will always find comfort in you. May I always come to you for that comfort.

I also had a harsh reminder as a mommy. My little b's need comforting when they are hurt, and sometimes even more than I think they really need. (Because I now have been reminded how bad a skinned knee really does hurt!) I know there will come a day sooner than later that they won't need my comforting as much, so why don't I just enjoy it now... drama and all!

playing soccer... rain or shine

This morning the Wildcats played game 6 of their season and it was chilly and wet! Although the parents were pretty cold and miserable, luckily it didn't seem to bother the kids much. Once again, we got to the field a little early, so Beckham warmed up a little by himself. He was pretty cold at this point, but the "coach" kept telling him he would warm up once he got moving.Soon he was warmed up, ready to go, and had his eyes on the other team.Game time had finally arrived. Our team lined up to meet their opponents... the grasshoppers!!! (Our team was pretty small today due to the yucky weather I think!)Berkley was such a great big sister. She cheered on her brother's team despite being cold and wet. She is no fair weather fan!Brenner hung in there too... especially since he had a snack to pass the time.

The grasshoppers were pretty good, and made the first two goals of the game. It wasn't long, however, before the wildcats got their game on. Beckham and his buddy Luke worked together to make a goal.

Beckham and Jack celebrating another score!
We didn't take a half-time break simply because we were just trying to get the game finished! By the end of the 2nd quarter, Beckham needed a little "pep talk" to get him through the game. The grasshoppers were definitely giving us a run for our money and I think our little man was somewhat discouraged. He came over and told me, "I can't run as fast as them! It is too hard!" Yep... handling some competition is a little tough. Time to learn what true sportsmanship is!

Luckily the "pep-talk" helped and the wildcats were ready to push through to the end of the game. These guys were really good sports considering how miserable the weather was for them.
And although we were missing some of our players, the ones we had at the game made a great team by working together and cheering each other on. Both teams did a really good job cheering each other on too. And, of course, they all shared some high fives at the end of the game.

The parents were definitely glad to see that game come to an end. I think a few of us might have been fair weather fans!!! Those wildcats are tough! We'll see what kind of weather we have next week. Some sunshine with no wind would be great.

game 5

Beckham missed his soccer game last Saturday, because we were out of town. Needless to say, he was excited about his game this past Saturday. We got there early, so Beckham had some time to watch the game ahead of his.
The wind, once again, was blowing with great speed; but it didn't seem to bother Beckham. He was intrigued by the other players. (Maybe watching for some new techniques?)
It was finally time for the game to begin. The players were lined up and ready to meet their competition!Beckham is really enjoying soccer, and he is learning a lot along the way too. He has learned to dribble the ball quite well, and can even quickly get it turned around in the direction he needs to go.And he has definitely learned to take it down the field towards the goal! (In fact, this game was the first time he showed disappointment when his ball didn't make it in the goal! Could he be a little competitive like his daddy? Possibly!)Celebrating a goal with his daddy! The look on his face is priceless!Halftime is always fun for the kids. They love getting water from the water jug... very refreshing!These guys lined up after half, ready to secure a victory!Matt has done such a great job coaching, and the kids all love him! He has taught them quite a bit too. I love this picture of the players lined up, Beckham even standing on guard, awaiting the other team to throw in the ball. (It truly is impressive that these 3-year-olds can focus on something this long!)

This time after the game, there were more than just handshakes and high fives shared with the other players. The opponents' fans made a tunnel for their team to go through, and our team helped themselves through as well!

Beckham's cheering squad was small for this game. Just mommy, Berkley, Brenner and of course the coach. That didn't stop him from finding someone to celebrate with after the game! I guess this might be their victory swing!
We're once again looking forward to the game next week. Gotta love those Wildcats!

berkley the babysitter

Berkley seems to be growing up before my eyes. She has always loved to be a little "mommy" to her younger brothers, but she seems to gain more and more "mothering" instincts as she gets bigger.

Last week I had to run a quick errand. Marmie came over to stay with the kids so that my "quick" errand could be just that... "quick!" We were getting ready to leave town, and I was trying to have everything ready to go for our estimated time of departure. Brenner was getting really tired and a little fussy, but I was holding him off from a nap so that he would sleep in the car. When I left Marmie and the kids, Brenner was crying. Evidently, he was sad for a while, so Marmie rocked him for a little while until he calmed down. He later decided to get up and play for a while. After a little while, he decided he was too tired to play. He began to get upset again. Berkley suggested to Marmie that she could take a "turn" rocking Brenner. My mom said Brenner seemed to understand what Berkley had offered, and he stretched his arms up to Berkley. Very satisfied, Berkley picked up Brenner and got situated.

I returned home to find this...
My mom told me that within just a few minutes of Berkley rocking her baby brother, he crashed. So sweet!Berkley was one proud big sister... with much reason to be!
This weekend we spent a night at the lake. Marmie and JT were there too, along with Aunt Amy and baby Dane. Uncle Chris is out of town for work, so Amy & Dane have decided to hang out at the lake for a few days. Chris usually gives Dane a bottle each night around dinner. Since he was gone, Amy was looking for someone to help out with that feeding. My little "mommy" stepped right up to the challenge. She was very focused in the beginning, keeping her eye on Dane and watching him very carefully.

Dane didn't seem to mind that Berkley had "stepped in" for his daddy.
Soon Berkley was feeling pretty confident of her bottle-feeding skills.Towards the end I think she considered herself a pro. I'm pretty sure I have a babysitter in training!