Let's Play Ball!!

It's that time of year again here in Northern California. With spring in the air and the rainy season behind us, its time for both softball and basketball. Colin and Maddie have greatly enjoyed getting involved with several of the community sports programs. Between the two of them we have participated in baseball, fast pitch softball, soccer and basketball. This season Maddie has decided to play softball for the second time. She has made some huge improvements in her game from last year and is even playing catcher! She loves being part of a team and works very hard to improve her skills. Last game Maddie hit a double to score the winning run in the bottom of the ninth. Go Maddie Girl!!!!

As for Colin, if X-Box live were considered a sport, we're pretty sure he'd be heading for the 2008 Olympics. You can imagine how we were thrilled when Colin signed up for basketball. (Love that power of peer pressure!!) He has really taken to the sport and being one of the tallest kids on the team means he gets to play center. It has proven challenging, but rewarding. He is looking forward to developing his skills on the court throughout this season. Here are some of the pictures we've taken so far of both the kids demonstrating their abilities!

It's a boy thing.............

While moving away from our beloved Maple Valley was difficult, we have been greatly blessed here in Lincoln. One of the benefits we discovered early on, is the fantastic group of boys Colin's age that are in our ward. Colin was ecstatic to say the least, when he found out that all of them are dirt bike enthusiasts. Last summer, he fulfilled his life long dream of owning a dirt bike when he and Dave (aided by my step father, Howard) finally selected a shiny new red Honda. (Needless to say it hasn't been shiny since). For nine years, a group of men and their sons from our ward have gone to Pyramid Lake, somewhere way out in the middle of nowhere, to enjoy several days of dirt-biking, hiking, target practice, and all other sorts of male type bonding activities. Colin, Dave and our dog Truman just returned from their second trip with the group and here are some of the pictures from their all out "Boy's only" weekend.

Hello Friends and Family.....

Thought I would kick off our opening blog with a cute picture of the kids from Christmas with their Washington cousins, Fiona and Shane. (Evelyn this one is primarily for you and the fam so you can see how the kids have grown). Lexi is now 16.5 and driving...SCARY. She is hopelessly addicted to texting and you will never find her with out her phone. She is on boyfriend number 10 or 11, I lost count months ago, and is leaving a trail of broken hearts behind her. Colin is 11.5 and totally into dirt biking. Yes he finally got a dirt bike and loves to go riding with all his friends here in lincoln. Most of the people we know here live out in the country on property, so most have dirt bike tracks built in to their landscape. He also is an Xbox live junkie and if he's not out riding, he's sure to be online with the many, many friends he has made throughout the world. Maddie is now 7 and loving life. She is our resident Einstein, reading at a 6th grade level and pushing her teacher to keep her challenged in class. She has a true love for learning and we hope this continues throughout her school career. I also added pictures of our other kids :-) We added to our canine family with the addition of Truman, a pure blood Siberien Husky whose grandfather "Demon" starred in the disney movie "Snowdogs" with Cuba Gooding Jr. He is a handful to say the least, and keeps us on our toes. He loves to wrestle with the kids and pester Skye whenever given the opportunity, oh and yes........rip up our entire irrigation system. Fun times!!! Our old man Skye is now 11 and slowing down although Truman has definately kept him young. As for me, I have finally taking the plunge and applied to graduate school for clinical psychology. I am waiting to find out if I have been accepted. You know me...always have to be going a mile a minute! Dave is also extremely busy with his job. This past summer is was given the additional territories of Washington, Oregon and Japan. Yes Japan. Whoo hoo. Dave is learning Japanese. So there you have the quick update. I promise to keep this site updated so we all can stay connected. Looking forward to hearing from you guys.

Lots of love

Shauna

Just Getting Started

Hello all!

So please be patient while we try to get our site up and running properly. I promise to have pictures here soon!!!

Shauna