SCORE Jared!!

I can't even tell you how excited I am today! Jared has been saying every day that he is going to score a goal on the last day of soccer and he did just that! The past few games have just been killing Brett and me because he has come so close to kicking that darn ball into the net. He had been the only one on his team that hadn't scored and had been feeling a little sad so I was just praying that it would happen.

The coach, Shannon, was cracking me up. Every pre-game drill was focused on getting the ball to Jared who then was supposed to kick it in the net. She told all of the kids to let Jared kick the ball a lot. (We felt bad because some of the kids took that literally and were scared to even touch the ball!) All of the parents were cheering him on and wanted him to play extra minutes. (They probably just wanted to silence the psycho soccer mom!)

The very last play of the game he booted it in! As you can see from the video, I was very excited! I captured the goal but then my memory card was full. So went crazy and then it ends. The cutest part took place after he made the goal. All of the kids ran over and hugged him and were jumping up and down. (I swear it was straight out of a movie!) As I was wiping tears away I looked over to see another mom and the coach crying too. It was just great to see how everyone helped my little boy achieve his goal!

The greatest part of all was that Grandma and Grandpa Gardiner were there to see both boys play! They both earned little trophies and got some cool visors to keep the rain, oh I mean sun, out of their eyes!

After the big game, the kids enjoyed pizza and yummy cupcakes. We really had fun this year and will miss going to soccer.

Fish On!

In Alaska when you have a fish on your line you yell, "Fish On!" to let everyone around you know to get out of your way so you can land your fish. Well let me just tell you that Brett and I had some massive fish on this weekend!

Brett's parents, brother and 7 other guys (Bart's brothers-in-law plus one of Brett's friends) came to town to fish and enjoy Alaska. We fished the Kenai from 6:00 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. and here are the facts.... (It's late, I'm tired so I'm trying to keep this short!)
**I out-fished my husband again! (3 for 3)
**I caught the biggest fish! (50 pounds)
**I'm really humble about it!

Actually, Brett and I were really glad that we both caught fish, but were bummed for everyone else. (Another guy caught a 30 pounder, but everyone else got skunked. Because it rained in the mountains three days earlier, the water was really murky so the fish couldn't see the bait. There weren't many fish being caught in other boats either.)


Okay, I love my triple chin here, but this fish was so heavy! I couldn't even lift it off the ground!

Out of the goodness of my heart I let everyone pose with my fish. (I am such a brat, aren't I?!) These are Brett's parents, Errol and LeiMomi Gardiner. We had a lot of fun with them in our boat.

My stud of a husband pulled in this 40 pounder. He is actually strong enough to lift his up!

Here's the gang! Although we only landed 3 fish for 12 people, (five other people had bites but were unsuccessful hooking and landing the fish.) everyone still had lots of fun!

Happy Birthday Dallin!

I can't believe I have a 6 year old now! (I guess many people my age have teenagers, but it's still a shock to me!) Dallin wanted a sports party this year. The kids had fun out in the yard playing, "Soccer Ball, Soccer Ball, Baseball" (Duck, Duck, Goose), frisbee, soccer and a tag game. After we wore them out the kids ate pizza, opened presents and played with the things he received.

Dallin was so excited to receive his very own pastels and drawing pad from Grandma and Grandpa Lacey. He also received a tennis racket, some sticky ball paddles, lots of art supplies, a Webkinz, a dino cave, some dinosaurs and some other fun things.

Dallins' friends were very generous! He's a very spoiled and lucky boy!

Can you tell I said, "Say cheese!" Here's the soccer cake that took way too long to decorate. Dallin made my day when he said, "Mom, that cake is awesome!" It was all worth it!

Happy Fourth of July!

Ever since moving from Utah, I've struggled with the way we celebrate the 4th of July in Alaska. It's just not the same watching fireworks in broad daylight! This year we decided to go downtown to the parade. Wow, talk about exciting! (Okay I was kidding! It was the most boring parade I've ever experienced.) I do have to say that the chubby rollerskaters and the belly dancers with bellies like mine were the big hit! Pathetic huh?!

What's more American than a hotdog bun? Jenna enjoyed watching peoples' doggies and liked waving her flag.
It's pretty sad when the most exciting part of the parade is cheering on the pooper scooper who follows the reindeer. (I bet you've never seen a reindeer in your parade, have you?!)

Since good 'ol mom and dad were too cheap to buy tickets for rides, the kids sat on the front of the fire truck instead. Woo hoo!

I love my little patriotic family! (Nice sweatshirts and jackets in the middle of the summer huh?!)