More sports fun

I promised I would post photos from Eli's basketball league...unfortunately it's difficult to get good pictures because of the lighting in the gym. Eli is having a great time and learning a lot.He and his friend Tyler signed are in the league together. Even though they're on different teams, they still enjoy seeing each other each week and shooting together after practice while their parents hang around to chat!This is the only activity of Eli's that is on the weekend, and it has been nice for Ryan to be able to attend. Fun for the whole family!Another sport Eli is really enjoying is golf. He occasionally gets to go to the golf course with Dada and Pa, and has always really enjoyed it. This weekend I scored an awesome deal on a set of childrens golf clubs at a garage sale...it made Eli's day!
He and Dada promptly headed to the backyard for some golf lessons and practice.Even Abby got in on the fun since her sweet big brother gave her his old toy golf club.

Back-blogging

Yes, I realize it has been a rediculously long time since I've blogged! I still haven't had the energy or motivation to blog our trip to California in August (I will get to that!), but I have at least gone back and filled in a few highlights from the past couple of weeks. Enjoy! :)

Let the games begin...

In addition to preschool, Eli has started two sports this fall: soccer & basketball. This post will focus on soccer since my camera battery died at the beginning of his first basketball practice. Basketball photos to come next week!

Eli loves soccer! And I think he looks awfully cute in all his soccer gear!

I love the look of glee on his face in this next one!

I am officially a Northwest soccer mom now that I've spent some time standing out in the pouring rain watching my son play...and Abby was such a trooper!

It's going to be a fun soccer season!

Benny

One of the many fun things about Red Gate Preschool is all of the animals. The kids get to take turns bringing home the small animals over the weekends. Eli was very excited to bring Benny the guinea pig home, and both of the kids absolutely adored having this little guy (okay, nevermind, he's seriously huge!) at our house. They're already looking forward to getting to take care of Cinnamon, the class hamster. :)

Rainy day fun

What do you do on a rainy afternoon when you have almost three hours to kill before Dada comes home? Well, first you make oatmeal cookies. Continue this activity until the cookies are baked, the kids are eating raw oats by the handful, and there are oats covering the kitchen counter and floor.Instead of cleaning up the kitchen, strip the kids and head into the bathroom for some naked painting! I have the cutest photos of this fun little adventure, but I can't post them since the kids are covered only by paint! The finished product will be beautiful, and since you're already in the bathroom, clean-up is a breeze! It was really fun watching my incredibly happy kids enjoy their adventure!!

First day of school!

My little boy started school today!

Eli is thrilled to be attending a fabulous preschool called Red Gate that is located on a cute little farm a mere seven minute walk from our house! Red Gate has an amazing play-based learning program that is so great for Eli. As you can see, he was very excited to head to school...And yes, he even gets to ride his bike to school, one of the many things Eli loves about Red Gate. The first hour of class each day is free exploration of the day's activities. The kids can paint, build, dig, color, play games, read, do art, eat snack, play with the animals, and a multitude of other awesome activities. Eli loves it! The first day he went straight to painting...and had no trouble at all waving goodbye.

I am so excited to see the leaps and bounds I know Eli is going to make this year with the help of Red Gate.