Football Fever

Yes, I finally gave in and let Robbie sign up for football.  He is playing in the local youth football league and has finally found his calling (much to my chagrin.)  He plays on both offense and defense. The coach is still moving kids around to see where they fit best, but it looks like Rob will play tight end on offense and defensive end on defense.  

I'm sure it will come as NO surprise to anyone to hear that Robbie enjoys plowing through the lines to get to the quarterback... and is successful almost always.  Unfortunately, in this league the quarterback hardly ever passes so by the time Rob gets to the QB, the ball has been handed off to a running back....  

Robbie actually hangs on to his coach's every word... Literally!

1. When his coach told him to "take down" his oponent, Robbie physically picked up the kid in front him (who was taller than Rob), threw him to the floor, and then went after the QB. The kid on the floor was so mad, he got up, ran after Robbie and pushed him from behind.  Robbie (much to my surprise, relief, and pride) did not retaliate, and thus, the play resulted in a penalty for the other team.  :)
   
2. When playing offense, and his coach told him to push the kid in front of him back away from the quarterback, Robbie pushed the kid back about 25 yards before the play ended. The crowd erupted in laughter and cheers and yelled, "Go Robbie!"

Coach told me that he fervently hopes we like football A LOT, because he predicts plenty of it in our family's future.  He says that Robbie listens ("Robbie Yanko?", I asked.  " Yes", he assured me.), follows directions (ditto), and learns fast (with that, at least, I could readily agree!). Below, you see Robbie all in black during a practice scrimmage against another team.  If you look carefully, his right hand is about to strip the football from the oponents arms.  This ultimately resulted in a fumble which Robbie's team recovered. :)

Jack can't wait until he's old enough to play football himself, and is drinking LOTS of milk in hopes of soon growing into Robbie's shoulder pads! LOL!  (I just looove those chunky little legs!)

Back to School!

Well, the first week of school has come to an end....  The kids both like their teachers and have friends in their classes so everyone is happy.  You know the kids are getting older when you not only have to remind them brush their teeth in the morning but to also put on deodorant!! Sniff, sniff....

One Cool Baby...

Jack and I spent some "mommy & me" time together playing one Saturday. One of our stops was what we now refer to as the "peek-a-boo" fountain at Market Street. It was a typical Texas hot summer day, so Jack loved cooling down by running from one water geyser to another.

I just loved watching the myriad of expressions on his face...

Yes, he even tried drinking the water! He was so cute to watch. I love seeing life through his eyes. It gives me a new appreciation for the simple little pleasures life has to offer and we adults overlook in our rush to get the next thing done....

As I chased him around the fountain, I noticed his baby foot prints and couldn't resist taking a picture of the "pitter-patter" of his little feet.

While at Market Street, we ran into baby Annemarie. She was a "shleepy-angel" and thus, not in the mood for frolicking in the water with Jack. However, she looked like a little princess in an outfit we got for her, so of course, we couldn't get away without snapping a picture. She's quite the light sleeper, though. Just the sound of the shutter going off roused her enough to open her eyes. Luckily, she dozed off again shortly thereafter...Katie looked ready to draw blood otherwise!

Lazy Days of Summer

Happy Birthday Grandpa!!!!!!! Grandpa Bill celebrated his latest birthday surrounded by all his grandchildren (minus Jack who was sleeping at the time) at the Yatch Club in Walden. It was a great evening, and all the kids got to boogie with the birthday boy! (Sorry the picture is so small....low resolution, blah, blah, blah....)

Well, my kids are taking the saying "lazy days of summer" to heart! That is, when they're not at some summer camp or another. Robbie loves reading the new graphic novels for kids. Snitch loves to cuddle with whoever is lounging about.

When she's not on the court playing volleyball, Katja can be found swimming or finding more appetizing ways to cool off. Bluebell chocolate chip was a favorite treat while visiting Nana & Grandpa in Oklahoma!  Now that we're back home, they are having to adjust to fresh fruit instead for snacking.... (Can you believe Katja's tan??? Robbie, who spends the same time in the sun as she does, looks pale in comparison.  She, of course, takes her olive skin complexion and easy tanning quite for granted!)

Jack got to bond with Grandpa Bill in Oklahoma for about a week. He was EVERYWHERE and into EVERYTHING! It will probably take Nana a week to De-Jack-Proof the house now that we're gone!  The "touch" lamp was the only casualty of the week...sighh..............

Where the baby go???????
Peek-a-boo!!!!!!

Jack loves playing with his older siblings. He is so spoiled with attention from all of us. He has NO idea how good he's got it!  I love to hear all three giggling and having fun, which happens quite a lot these summer days. It just makes my heart sigh with delight....