Bend It Like Daisy

Our little athlete was excited to try out her footwork at soccer.

She had played a bit of futsal while in Korea, but this was her first year at soccer. Her position was defense, and she quickly learned that she liked to get in there and get a little physical.

Her job was to throw the ball in when it went out of bounds.

Her little brother was her biggest fan. 

Not really. He attended one game because I forced him to.

But her Daddy was a big fan.

My favorite watching partner.

She showed improvement throughout the season. I 'm proud of her for trying new things and working hard. Go Lady Cougars!

[spring 2023]

Hook 'Em Horns?

 This all happened too fast.

We took my big boy on his first college visit.😳

The University of Texas was our first up for college tours. Zeke was only allowed to bring three guests, so Eli stayed home with a friend. It was weird without him. 

Sunday afternoon we met Rosalyn, Grace and Roger at the biggest laser tag arena in Texas, Blaze.

We topped off cousin time with some ice cream.

Next up was bat watching at Congress Avenue Bridge. We waited on a little grassy hill called Statesman Bat Observation Center.

We waited patiently for sundown, when the Mexican Free-tailed bats come out of the bridge for their nightly hunt of insects.

The bridge was renovated in 1980. Apparently it is an ideal bat cave, because they soon set up shop. The bats migrate from central Mexico each spring; we were a few weeks early to catch the big show. At the end of the season there are roughly 1.5 million bats who call Congress Avenue Bridge home. By peak season, the bats eat anywhere from 10,000 to 30,000 pounds of insects nightly.

Most of the bats in Austin are females. They each give birth to one pup, which they are able to find and identify as their own amongst thousands. The mommies nurse them until about 5 weeks, when the babies are able to fly and hunt insects on their own. It will take me about 18 years before my baby is ready to fly and hunt on his own.

The bridge crosses Lady Bird Lake, and has a beautiful trail along it.

At the end of Congress Avenue lies the Texas State Capitol building. Completed in 1888, it is the 6th tallest capital building in the US, proudly standing 302.64 feet.

Our hotel was within walking distance to the university, so after we checked in we walked around so we knew where we were going in the morning. I was allowed (by Zeke) to take a picture because it was Sunday night and no one else was on campus.

The University of Texas first opened in 1883, where the Tower is now located. The UT Tower is 5 feet taller than the State Capitol. Constructed in 1937, it has been and is still today one of the most recognized landmarks of UT.

This interesting art piece of canoes is called Monochrome for Austin.

The campus nickname is 40 Acres due to its original size. It has grown to over 430 acres and 52,000 students call it home away from home.

Dad was pretty proud to show his boy around his alma mater.

Even though there were not many students around, they had had enough photos, as is apparent in Daisy's face.

The next day, during the actual tour, I barely took any pics. I mean, how utterly embarrassing that would be. 😫

That's the capitol in the distance.

Our tour guide suggested she take photos for families here in front of the tower. You know I took her up on it!

I found some poppies at Littlefield Fountain on our way out.

Hook 'em, Horns! Or not. We will know in several months where our Zekers will decide to spread his wings. What I know for now is that this is going to be hard to send him away.

[March 5-6]

So Dramatic

Most of my time is spent centered around Zeke and Daisy's busy schedules and I haven't been mentioning much about Eli. I would like to take a moment to brag on him. He is taking Theatre One class this year. He attended auditions for Advanced Theatre for next year. He first performed a monologue in front of the class and his teacher.

 I was fortunate enough to be able to observe. His monologue was about a boy contemplating the meaning of the Pledge of Allegiance and its impact on him.

"Don't get me wrong..."

"I've been saying this pledge since I 've been five years old."

"Doesn't that mean me, too?"

He listened intently as his classmates and teacher gave compliments and constructive criticism.

Eli then was invited for a call back. He performed again, this time in front of the current 7th and 8th grade members of this year's advanced theatre class.

He made the cut! He's in for next year. That means that he will be involved in at least 2 plays next year. 🎭Go Lijee!🎭

[February 17]

My Busy Valentines

The kids were looking forward to our annual fancy Valentine's treat, but we couldn't get it fit into our busy schedules. No one ever warned me that being a teen mom means most of my time is spent driving kids to and from places. But here we are. Valentine's Day was no exception. 

We settled on our family celebration the Sunday before. That was the only time all week that we would all be home on the same evening at the same time. It also happened to be Super Bowl Sunday, so we had to make it a lunch.

The actual day was spent at the soccer field. Zeke had winter guard practice which was supposed to be cut short for Daddy to take him to scouts. But at the last minute Zeke felt he needed to stay at practice for an upcoming performance and skip scouts. Bonus for me--Abe was able to join me for Daisy's soccer game. 

My forever Valentine.

As always, thinking of my brother on his heavenly birthday. The old geezer would have been 55 this year.

[February 14]