So we celebrated Isaac's birthday by purchasing four tickets to a Sounders 2 game in Tukwila.  Isaac, John and two of Isaac's buddies drove down to attend the game while we stayed home and decorated the house for him.  They had a blast and the Sounders won so that was a bonus.  The next day we celebrated low key with homemade fudge and opening presents.  Job and Lona gave him a video game and as a joke we gave him a hula doll for his car and a white board for him to do him math on.  He has been using Lona's white board and it bugs her.
At 17 he stands at 5'11" and 138 lbs.  He is in his third quarter at the community college and is doing decent.  This year he played tennis for the varsity team, played chess as was the first team fifth board ( that's good) and played on the school JV soccer team.  He refereed a game or two most (not all) weekends.  It's been a growing year for all of us. Isaac is learning what it takes to perform in a college setting while still being a productive member of the house hold.  I'm learning to stop parenting and letting him fail at things around the house. John is working with him on diabetes and being diligent.  Seems like we all have a project with Isaac.  Sometimes it sucks to grow up and become responsible.  Sometimes its great especially when you can spend an afternoon and evening watching a soccer game. This is the brink of adulthood.  The last moment to have "swag" or what we would have called the coolness factor and no real responsibilities of caring for others that are totally dependent upon him. Enjoy this time.

Another soccer season has come to an end. It seems like I say that all year long but our family is involved in various seasons of soccer or tennis or chess or wrestling but mostly soccer.  We decided to have Lona involved in middle school soccer.  This way she would get to know some girls from the school before she attend there next fall. It also helped to keep her skills up before tryouts. I think that she developed a lot over the course of a year playing with a team of like minded players.  Players that wanted to be there for the competition and the social aspect and who were respectful, being willing to listen and learn. School soccer was social hour. I think what I enjoyed most was watching her when she would play against her former teammates.  I loved watching them talk to each other before the game and laugh with each other during the game trying to compete with each other. I love the bantering and good nature d teasing.  I loved watching the girls bounce toward each other with smiles and recognition, laughing and giving each other hugs. School soccer well I see that as social hour. A time to hang out with kids from the same school and maybe see a teacher in a different setting. I see school soccer as a time for her to play with and encourage kids from all skill levels instead of being with girls on the same plane with variations. School soccer has taught her that being on a team with three good players isn't going to win the game.  These players can work their buts off but if everyone else has given up at half time they are going to lose even if they were ahead at half!

He's a tinkerer.  He keeps a junk box or two or three in the closet of his bedroom.  Recently he pulled out his dad's small screw driver set and his own screw driver set and tore apart this broken digital camera.  He looked, analyzed and mentally cataloged each piece trying to determine what it's function was.  In order to truly have the knack though I think he would have needed to put it all back together and made it work.  All kidding aside, he really does have a bent towards how things work and his mind just intuitively picks up on how it all goes together. One day John was in the car driving back from who knows where with Job and he asked how kinetic energy worked with heat transfer of molecules.  John said that he talked for almost two hours about it and Job just drank it all in.

When I grew up we played board games or card games.  I came to hate Monopoly.  Something about that game is so darn frustrating. We occasionally play board games such as Sequence or Settlers of Catan.  We play Rummy, Golf or Cribbage.  We are trying to teach them to play Pinochle but lately the game of choice isn't around a table.  It centers on the TV.  I have to say that listening to them smack talk, scream, cheer, groan and encourage each other is hilarious.  Some of them will be groaning and others will be cheering but they are all laughing. I love it.  This Xbox thing can bring families together and I guess like all things game night has changed to gaming night.

A fleeting moment, passing swifter each day. The bridge between girlhood and womanhood quickly drawing smaller. The time of innocence and naivety that is reflected in her face will suddenly one day begone.  I will only have the photos to remind me that they even existed. In this moment I see confidence, assurance, and comfortableness in herself. I see a young girl learning about herself. I also see the fear and insecurities that I can not slay for her only support her so she can slay them herself.

About two years ago I didn't even know this park existed.  I would drive past it on my way through town but really never had the occasion to go. Then Lona started piano lessons in town.  At first I used the time to run errands such as going to the grocery store.  Then I realized the gift I was given with her taking piano in town.  I had a half hour to 45 minutes to run.  I started dropping her off and running with the dog. It happened that I naturally headed toward the river so the dog could go for a swim.  Being large, dark, furry, he needed time to cool off on our runs.  That's how I "discovered" this dog park. Now I drive to the park just so I don't have to put him on a leash and he loves it. I bring a tennis ball and he runs.  There are ducks but he really doesn't pay them any attention, he's too busy running.  I am amazed at how much satisfaction I get just watching his shear joy of going for this kind of run.  He gets nervous around other dogs and gives them a wide berth preferring to chase his ball instead.  At one side of the park he insists on laying down in the muddiest spot and he comes out dripping brown rather than black.  The other side of the river is where he gets to "wash" off that mud by retrieving his ball from the water.  It's so funny when we get to river access spots.  He often stops and looks at me as if to say "Can I?".  If I say go ahead he barrels down the bank towards the water and lays down. If I say no then he runs along the trail to the next river access.  We usually stop each time we go around the park to play in the water for 5 to 10 minutes. How can I deny a lab/retriever mix the opportunity to play like that?