Summer 2017 (Gone Too Soon)

Brody and South Chief

     Brody was too old to try out for the minor all-star team this summer, so he had to tryout for the major all-star team this summer. This was going to be tough because he did not play majors in house league this season. We were nervous that he was not going to be able to play summer baseball this season, but he had two great tryouts with the team and made it.

     It was a bit different for him though. He was the "big dog" on his minor team and pitched and played the infield all the time. He was one of the younger kids on the team so he had to play the outfield, something that he was not used to doing. The thing about all-stars at this age group is that they can all hit into the outfield, so everyone defensively was important to the team.



     They had a good little team this season and it was a blast watching Brody improve his game during the summer. We travelled to Medicine Hat a few times, Calgary and Lethbridge to play our seeding games. I was so proud of Brody and they way he played! Our final tournament was the big "Prairie" tournament in Regina, Saskatchewan the first weekend in August.

     The drive to Regina was LOOOOOONNNNNGGGGG!! Im actually embarrassed as a Canadian to say that I had never been in Saskatchewan before. Kristi was still recovering from her back surgery, so we had to stop every now and then to let her stand up and stretch out. We had the van absolutely packed with everything we could.


     The kids were excited because we stayed in a hotel with a pool and waterslide for 5 days. Nothing like being cooped up in a hotel room with everyone for 5 days. hahaha. The kids had a blast playing and swimming in the pool. Brody had two of his teammates staying in the same hotel so that was fun for him to have them to hang out with. Poor Tyson had to celebrate his birthday on the road and in the hotel, but we made sure he felt special with some birthday cupcakes haha.


     Brody and his team had a great tournament but came up short in the semifinal to a team from Calgary that they had already beat in the round robin part of the tournament. The boys bats just seemed to fall asleep that game. Brody had a good tournament. He had some great hits and made a great catch in the outfield in the 3rd place game.

     It was a great season for Brody. I love seeing him become friends with the kids he competes against all during house league. Its a great way to form friendships.

     Brody hit his first (Over the Fence) home run this year in Magrath at one of their practices. He was so excited!!!

Bridge Jumping 

     This quickly became one of our favourite summer activities. With Kristi just recovering from back surgery, we couldn't go to far away for summer. We found a bridge out by spring coulee that the kids loved to jump off of. They boys had a lot of fun jumping off the bridge and floating down the canal. It was one of the most asked for things this summer.

Other Summer Adventures

     Well we didn't have too many summer adventures this year, but here are a few of the ones that we did go on. I tried to do something fun with the boys before summer was over, so I took them to Calaway Park. Haydn had been there once before for his grade 8 trip, but Brody and Tyson had never been there before. We arrived at the park at noon and we stayed until 8pm. We were going to make sure that we got every penny worth of our entrance ticket. Haydn is a little more adventurous on rides than the rest of us. I stuck mostly to the log ride.haha. Tyson had a blast and could go on almost every ride that he wanted to go on. I am sure the boys will want to do that again next summer.

 


















     I took Haydn and Brody to their first concert this summer. Gojira, Avenged Sevenfold and Metallica. Haydn is a huge Avenged Sevenfold fan and I told him that the next time they come around we would go. It just so happened that they were opening for Metallica at commonwealth stadium in Edmonton. This was a huge concert for these boys to have as their first ever concert. The boys were a little worried because they were not sure what to expect from the other people that would be at the concert. Luckily we were in the seated section of the concert so nobody was getting too out of control. It was a great concert and the boys loved it!!

     While we were in Edmonton we decided to take the kids to the West Edmonton Mall indoor Waterpark. The kids absolutely had a Blast!!!!! Barry's girls came with us as well. The boys have a fun time hanging out with them. It was great. We stayed at the waterpark until in was closed, again we were gonna make sure that we got our money's worth.

     We took a quick weekend trip to Calgary with Ryan and Brandi. We stayed in a hotel 2 nights and the kids got to swim and ride the watersides. Of course it wouldn't be a trip to Calgary during the summer without hitting up the Zoo.

   





















    To end the summer we spent a couple of days down at Echo Lake with Ryan and Brandi. The kids had a great time swimming and hanging out with friends and cousins. It was a great way to end the summer.

Another School Year

     Well another school year is upon us and we have some big changes in our family. Haydn is starting high school because grade 9 is now part of the high school. He just finished volleyball tryouts and made the grade 9 volleyball team. It is crazy that we are old enough to have a kid that is in high school.

     Brody moved up to the junior high and now he is in school with me. He is playing football right now and he loves it. He has just had a couple of games, but he loves to play.

     Tyson is in grade 1 and has to go to school all day everyday. This is a big change for him, but he was so excited to start grade 1. He is super smart and will be a great student.



Fires

     Well today is September 12 and we probably haven't had a real good rain since June. The summer was super hot and dry and forest fires have been burning like crazy and getting closer and closer to Cardston. Right now, Waterton National Park has been evacuated because the fire is right near the town site. Grass fires have started in Leavitt and the Blood Reserve. Today the Schools in Mt. View, Hill Spring and Glenwood were all cancelled because of their proximity to the fires. the air quality is very poor right now and many sporting events and practices have been cancelled because of this.

 


      Brody played football last night in lethbridge and the field looked like something out of a movie with all the haze surrounding the football field.

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