Upwards Soccer

So what could be more of an indication that fall is on its way than the introduction to soccer season?  Ok - football season...but soccer is right up there on the list. I cannot express how excited I am that the boys will be involved in this sport. Growing up in the Midwest (apparently Ohio is still considered as such - go figure), soccer was the sport of choice for alot of kids. We spent our fall months crunching through leaves to the fields, often bundling up to weather the rain and the occasional snow, cheering our team on to victory. Ah the memories... Almost 20 years later, I have the pleasure of reliving those memories as I follow my boys around, Tarheel foldup chair in tow...proud mama cheering my athletes on to victory (minus the snow :).

This is Xander's first time playing soccer. He has played baseball for several years but never really got the hang of it...nor did he really care to. So you can imagine my surprise when he jumped feet first into soccer with an intensity I did not know existed within my academic ten-year-old. Watching him hustle like I've never seen him do, picking himself up and diving right back in when knocked to the ground, this proud mama's heart swelled with pride.

If he is THIS intense for his first game, I can only imagine what an exciting season this will be...
And then we have my sweet Cade...

This is actually Cade's second season playing soccer; however, the first time he played was two springs ago, and the organization in which he played was disorganized to the least. I sincerely doubt he learned very much. Cade is a natural athlete and takes whatever sport is at hand quite seriously. It was no surprise that he did the same with soccer, even to the point of extreme frustration when he made a simple mistake. We have alot of work to do harnessing Cade's emotions, but I believe with all my heart that sports will help tremendously.

As you can see, Shane was somehow "roped" into coaching Cade's team; but I assure you, very little coercing was involved. He is an amazing coach and loves nothing more than being a part of his boys' athletic endeavors. I have no doubt we will see this trend throughout their athletic careers.

And lastly, we have the soccer moms... My dear friend Angelina and I found some precious moments to catch up on the sidelines while cheering our blondies on. You just can't put a pricetag on good friends, and she is among the best.

I am so grateful for this opportunity for our boys to be a part of such an awesome sports program that will allow them to learn the fundamentals of soccer and character building principles, all based on a Christian foundation. It's going to be a great fall...

Extreme Home Makeover...the Cheap Edition...

Ok - so I hate the word "cheap" too. I don't know why. Maybe because it has such a negative connotation...or because it makes me feel "cheap," which for some reason I equate to "white trash" (or in our part of the country - "redneck"). Whatever the case may be, our home needs a complete upgrade, and we can't really afford it. So while "cheap" may be a swear word in my house...I need to make our home renovations just that..."cheap"! So I have been asking some of my more creative friends and searching the web for good, inexpensive (much nicer word!) ways to take what I have and make it new. I will be recording our progress here and on my other blog "The Simple Things" over the next few months...ok, who am I kidding...year(s). Neither of is are extremely crafty, but I am determined to do this ourselves. We may need marital counseling by the time we are through (kidding...kinda), but I am hoping this will be an enjoyable project that we can work on together and look back with satisfaction at all we learned and accomplished as a team. Wish us luck! (cuz we're definitely gonna need it! :)

Blessed

Needless to say, I never imagined our pictures would turn out as great as they did! Somehow Byron was able to capture sweet expressions somewhere in the sea of sour ones. For this alone, I commend him. However, he went above and beyond even that. Now to figure out what sizes to order and where to put them...because it is obvious I will not just be able to pick a few. My walls are about to be covered in these priceless jems. Here is just a small sample...

Family Pictures

Please excuse the new "autumn" background and colors. They are only temporary. I simply needed to update the picture, and this was the best updated one I had of the boys. However, today we woke up at the crack of dawn (and I do mean that literally) to get our family pictures made. Mind you, the last Golden Family pictures that were taken occcured when Cade was a baby...over 6 years ago. So this was a BIG deal! Because North Carolina is so freaking HOT and we wanted outdoor pictures, we had to do this at 7am on a Saturday. Yippee. Hayes was in bed by 7pm and the other two by 9pm last night, but they all woke up bright and cheery so it was well worth it. Of course mama was up at 5am so that she was ready in time to get everyone ELSE ready...but we won't dwell on that fact. :) We took off at 7am-ish, coffee in tow. Two and a half hours later - and a milkshake bribe, we have what we hope will be a nice collection of family pictures to decorate our walls and send out at Christmas. No telling if this actually HAPPENED...given the coaxing and threatening we had to endure with the youngest of the bunch, but we remain optimistic. We used a former student of ours, Byron Aynes, an up and coming photographer. Awesome kid, and talented. I first saw his pictures on his Facebook page and instantly loved his style. We wanted "unique" and he was unique. I am excited to see where he ends up - kid is crazy smart and gifted. Five locations in two and a half hours - can't wait to see them! But when all is said and done...pictures are just pictures. Yes, I stressed. I fretted. I agonized over outfits, hair, and bedtimes...but at the end of the day, these are pictures of my husband, my children, my life. The things I hold dear are in these pictures. So they will be Amazing. Breathtaking. Mine.

Xander: A Good Influence On His Mama

So it's been awhile since I even looked at this blog...obviously, right?! So long that it took me an hour just to rememer enough information to get a password reset sent to my current email address (which was NOT the email address I had several years ago...clearly). And what, may you ask, promted this sudden interest in my ever so forgotten and neglected blog?!? That's right...my 10 year old son. Leave it to Xander to help his poor mother find her way back. Not that I have a great deal of faith in my ability to maintain this blog a second time around, but maybe the fact that he and I are currently sitting side by side blogging away on our respective sites...quality time sharing something we both love and enjoying doing...will encourage me to post more frequently than before. We will see...