Friday, September 11, 2020

High Five for Friday (9.11.20)

"The real differences around the world today are not between Jews and Arabs; Protestants and Catholics; Muslims, Croats, and Serbs. The real differences are between those who embrace peace and those who would destroy it; between those who look to the future and those who cling to the past; between those who open their arms and those who are determined to clench their fists."

~ William J. Clinton, 1997

I honestly believe that the truest way for us - as individuals and as a country - to remember and honor those who lost their lives on September 11th is to embrace peace, look to the future, and open our arms.


And now, our regularly scheduled programming...


One
Since he grew out of "youth" soccer, Will has wanted to coach youth soccer. He loves kids, and coaching is both a dream of his and one of his strengths as a player, as he sees and understands (and attempts to manipulate) the entire field like he would his pieces on a giant chess board. 

Two weeks ago Will was finally given the stamp of approval to help with Cavalry Soccer Club's Junior and Youth Academies. Rain cancelled practice his first night on the job, but last Wednesday he was able to start helping. I snuck out to the fields to watch for a little while, and though I couldn't get a read on how Will felt about his new volunteer role from my seat in the air conditioned car, when he got home that night he asked if he could help at two practices a week instead of one. I love that he's enjoying this new endeavor, and that I get to drive to the soccer fields four nights a week instead of three. 😉



The kiddo whose face I didn't blur out is our friend Cullen, who is SO thrilled to have Will as one of his coaches and would definitely want me to keep him in these pictures.

Two
Hallie received an Amish Friendship Bread starter from a friend (yes, we've reached the bread-making stage of quarantine), and after 10 days of nurturing, last Thursday afternoon she turned that starter into starters for three of her friends, one starter for us to keep, and two loaves of bread. We kept one of the loaves for ourselves, and shared the other with a friend of mine. The starter ended up being such a fun gift to receive, project to complete, and gift to share!

Three
What an incredibly welcome holiday Labor Day turned out to be this year. (Well, for the three of us whose schools observed Labor Day...TAMU never does, so Tom still had to work.) We always enjoy a three-day weekend, but after the last three weeks of virtual school we desperately needed a day without an early morning wake-up call, multiple athletic practices, and 718 different attendance check-ins, discussion boards, Loom videos, Zoom meetings, Nearpod lessons, virtual worksheets, and online tests. Tuesday dawned brighter and felt considerably less laborious thanks to Labor Day!

Four
This little buddy had some eye issues at the end of last week and through the weekend (his eyes were fine when he laid down for a nap one afternoon, and by the time he woke up they were A MESS), but he seems to be on the mend and for that, we're grateful.


In other news, the kittens still love school!

All three cats are on the bed at the same time! (Not for long...)



Five
Last but certainly not least, these sweet girl - our niece, River (who we haven't seen in forever because she lives in Vancouver and because COVID-19 kept us all from gathering at the Lodge this summer) - just turned ONE. Happy birthday, baby big girl!


Happy weekend, friends!

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