Tennis and Unicorns

* One Cool Thing about Being Mom to Sporty Kids is that I get to Learn Sporty Things

Who knew that this drama/choir geek sterling scholar (thankyouverymuch) would one day grow up to know all the rules of tennis? And volleyball. And basketball. And soccer. And tell you some of the differences in the rules between traditional football and flag football. I feel very well rounded. Until you put me on the court. Turns out knowledge doesn't translate into skill. Ahem.

Anyway, in tennis, these boys are competing at a team level and at an individual level. Their team won the regional title and here you can see Carson and Chandler vying for position as an individual doubles team. They finished third (!) in regionals and qualified for state. Not bad for a couple of guys who just learned how to hold a racket this year.

Their last game was a little intense because they were playing against their best friends, Luke and Sean, where Luke fought like a lion and Sean played with an injured tailbone (that he definitely injured jumping off the rocks in our pool. Yeah...).

Carson and Chandler came out the victors of that match, but it wasn't a very sweet victory. It's hard to play against friends.

Boulder City's doubles took second, third, and fourth places... they're strong.

And now we're on our way to state!

* Monopoly is the Worst Game Ever. Unlesssssss you can be a Unicorn.

I'm just wondering... when I don't have little kids around, can I still play this game?

Teek is a great big brother. He makes smoothies, toasts bread, helps with homework, coaches through problems, and plays unicorn monopoly. 

Eliza is lucky to have him.

*She's Also Lucky to Have Miles. 

 And she knows it.

Things of the Week

 *You know you're compatible teammates when his partner can't smile, and his partner can't stop smiling.

Seriously, though, Chandler wanted a tough-guy picture so badly, and Carson couldn't stop smiling. But, hey, I wouldn't have been able to stop smiling if I'd just won the AAA Team Regional Championship, either.

Chandler and Carson walked onto the varsity tennis team as juniors this year without ever having played a game of tennis in their lives. Somehow they worked their way up to being an integral part of the team and were responsible for many key wins that led to this title. 

It's one of the greatest things about Boulder City that I've not heard about many other small towns. The competition to make the teams is at the Include-Everyone-Who-Wants-to-Play level, and yet they somehow keep winning championships.

It helps that these boys are naturally athletic. Miles walked onto the team as a freshman this year and impressed his coach right away.

"I absolutely love your boys," she said. She coached Carson last year in volleyball and ended up giving him the Coaches award at the end of the season because he was just such a great kid. "You already know how much I love Carson," she continued, "but Miles! That kid. He has a hunger about him and I just love it." She pumped her fist in the air and walked away, leaving me proud all over of my amazing sons.

*While my boys are dressing in jerseys, Eliza is dressing as a Princess-Unicorn-Rider

And can you blame her? This year she told me she wanted to be a 'girl riding a unicorn' for Halloween, and - surprise of all surprises - someone else had already thought of that costume, created it, and put it on Amazon for me to get on my doorstep in less than two days. People are amazing.

I don't have a good picture of Timothy's costume yet, but here's a sneak peek of his rock, paper, scissors motif. He was delighted to find Professor Lupin at the school's Halloween Spook-tacular this year.

*Sometimes I wish I would have taken my high school geology class a little more seriously...

Instead of sitting in the back as the lone junior in a class of freshmen, feeling too superior to listen. What the heck is up with hot springs anyway? They're amazing! 

Heidi, Adam, and Livvy came to visit last weekend to go to a concert, and we decided to take the Goldstrike Canyon hike together the following morning. With two six-year-olds. It was an adventure. Climbing up and down giant boulders, using ropes to lower ourselves and pull ourselves up, repelling, scrambling, falling, climbing... and after 3 miles we made it to the freezing river and the warm hot springs.

Eliza was so brave - this water was freezing, and she got all the way in. Not for long, but long enough to earn bragging rights.

Timothy was our exploring partner, and we found caves of wonder.

Interestingly, the hike back out of the canyon was much easier than the hike into it.

The girls were like mountain goats, and I didn't even see Carson, Miles or Maisy. You may have noticed that I have no pictures of them here... it's because they were way too fast.

*Think Win-Win

The cutest little leader leading the world.