8 is enough

Although I am 100% ready for baseball season, I will admit that this last weekend of Cooper's basketball season was pretty amazing. It has been a long, but good season for his team. They moved up to a more competitive division this year and it was a bit of a struggle in the beginning, but they really came around. After losing their first game 54-8 (not a typo), they ended up with a 5-10 record, winning 5 of their last 6 games. And, we found out from the coach that this was the most successful 6th grade team Frederick has had at this level.

The tournament over the weekend was in Littleton and only the winner of the 4 teams in their bracket would advance. They lost the first game and won the second game, so their season is over, BUT Coop finally got a huge monkey off his back. He had not scored a single point in their first 13 games and he didn't complain. He knew defense was his job and he was causing turnovers and getting steals, but he would by lying if he said he didn't want at least one bucket. Well, he got his wish and then some. Of course, Doug was in the bathroom when the game started. First play of the game, Coop got open under the hoop, got the pass and drained it. I made a huge fool of myself standing up and cheering. Doug walked in about 30 seconds too late. So, to make his dad happy, Coop did it again. Got open, got the pass and drained another one. He then went on to score twice more and had 8 of the team's 19 total points by the time the game was over. He tried so hard not to smile, but the grin on his face was priceless as was the reaction from his teammates and coaches. Unfortunately, they lost the game, but then they went on to win the 2nd game and Coop got to the free throw line and made 1/2 free throws. Nice way to end the season!

Thank you, Kris, for the awesome pics!

Pretty good form

On its way in the hoop!

Playing some D

Birthday Sweetheart

I am the first to admit that I love that Kinley's birthday is on a fun holiday. In fact, I had the option of being induced on Feb. 13th, but I talked the doc into waiting one more day. It helps, too, that Kinley's personality fits the holiday. She really is a sweetheart! She is also our comic relief, our peacemaker and our snuggle bug. She made me a card for Valentine's Day that said, "Dear mom, later do you want to snuggle with me. put your answer here _____."

I spent the day in her classroom on Friday helping with their Valentine's Day party and having lunch with her, etc. I brought a healthy snack for her birthday treat since they had so much junk already. She felt the need to explain to the class that she was really sorry it was healthy food, but her mom is a nurse and there was a little piece of fudge if they ate their healthy stuff first. Her teacher, the lunch lady and the librarian all pulled me aside at one point and told me what a crack up she is and how much they enjoy her personality. I was afraid to ask for any more details. :)

Getting sung to in class

Queen for the day

She decided she wanted a pajama party this year and it was a huge hit. I was nervous about having 10 little girls in my house by myself, but it turned out so good. Doug was gone helping take care of his mom who was recovering from major surgery, so I was the only adult there. Kaiya and her friends did an amazing job helping me and I think they had fun being the big kids in charge. They had heart-shaped pizza and then it was craft time. They painted some little boxes, made candy necklaces, and got manicures and pedicures. They were all so well behaved and I think they really enjoyed themselves. After everyone left, Kinley gave me a huge bear hug and said it was the best day ever. That made it all worth it!

Pizza!

These girls were focused!

Window pane cookies were a hit

The home spa

Present time!

Cake time!

On Saturday, Coop had two basketball games in Denver and they won them both! Coop played his best ball of the season. Still no points, but several good shots, a couple of steals and he played hard. His coach e-mailed me the nicest comments about him, which made my day. After the game, we went out to dinner with friends and without me even realizing it, Kinley told our server it was her birthday. The girl really knows how to make a birthday into entire weekend celebration.

On Sunday night, we had my whole family over for dinner and she impressed everyone by reading all of her birthday cards with no help. Her reading has really taken off. She got some great gifts and has been busy playing with them every spare second she has.

Six candles

Getting some help on a really hard word--such concentration!

Sporting a new suitcase

Her fav gift--her own Snuggie

It was a bit of an exhausting weekend, but so worth it. We love our Kinley Girl!

Most Improved

Kaiya had her big end of season gymnastics banquet this last weekend. It was a very nice evening and one of the dads did an amazing job putting together a slide show and even made every girl a collage that was poster-size.

Most Improved Gymnast

Kinley was pretty proud of her sis

Being a goofball

Kaiya was awarded Most Improved Gymnast and she was pretty pleased with that. Her coaches talked about how amazed they were at how quickly she progressed from a girl who fell on beam all the time to a girl who made it to state. She was all smiles listening to them. After the parents put away all the tables when it was over, the girls were having handstand contests. You would think they would enjoy a night off, but they are a bunch of addicts! I got talked into joining them and was pleased that I can still hold a handstand for quite a while--the difference is that my wrists were sore for days. Ugh!

These girls can't get enough

She has been working so hard on the new skills she needs to move up to Level 5 and it's looking pretty promising. Her hands have been ripped to shreds lately from bars. The video is bad, but you can see her progression on this new bar routine. This is about half of the routine. She keeps adding on each week.

Cooper's basketball team continues to fit the title "Most Improved" as well lately. They lost two heartbreakers this last weekend, but they are so competitive in this league now. Cooper got to start the first game, so he was pumped. He is not a scoring machine, but he hustles and his coach loves his attitude and hard work in practice. He got a clean steal from a huge kid in the first game, so he was quite pleased. He admits, though, that he is very ready for golf and baseball season to start!