Sharks & Soccer

Jake and Jadyn had their soccer team pictures made a couple weeks ago. I didn't have my camera for Jadyn's pictures (because Ed & Jake had it on the camp out). But, here are the Sharks (minus one player)! Serious pose:And, being silly: This is the 3rd season for 3 of the boys to play together and the second for another two boys - and it shows on the field! They are so fun to watch! Jake loves it more every week. He has become a pretty good defensive player. Its really fun to watch him develop and work hard. We've talked about him doing some exercises at home to prepare for Spring soccer so that he has more endurance when he gets the chance to play offense. Which totally cracks me up. I mean, he's SEVEN! The kid has some serious focus for sure! He just showed up that way.

As for Jadyn, let's just say that it doesn't look like soccer is her thing! She's cute as she can be out there, but, seriously, her season cannot end soon enough for me! For such a feisty little thang, she turns to mush on the soccer field. She runs (sort of) up and down the field, but mainly because she's following/chasing the other kids. She barely notices the ball! One week, in the middle of the game, she was at one end of the field comparing shoes with a little girl from the other team while the ball (and other players) were at the opposite end of the field! It was hilarious!

Fall Soccer Begins

Saturday was the first soccer game of the season!
Jadyn's very first game ever! I'm totally frustrated that after taking some seriously cute pictures of her, I promptly deleted them off my camera!!!! I took this one after the game and I'm not sure why she looks so goofy, but trust me when I say (with no bias whatsoever) that she was THE Cutest Soccer-girl. EVER.

I took this picture because Jake was #3 last year and kept the same number this year. Jadyn wanted to be #3, just like her big brother! So sweet! Sometimes he gets frustrated with her copying him, but I explained the phrase "Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery" to him and now he thinks its pretty cool. Even in spite of the accompanying responsibility it entails!

I deleted a close-up of Jadyn's cute hair bow ... again, no bias whatsoever.

Jake's team includes 5 players from last season and the skill level of each of them has jumped tremendously over the summer! Its so fun to watch them grow, not only physically, but also in their skills and their love of the game. Ed is helping coach Jake's team this season, which thrills Jake to no end.

The only drawback to Saturday was the muddy fields and drizzling rain. The Sharks and the Flyers both won by very wide margins, so it more than made up for the conditions! The season is off to a great start!

Soccer, MayFest & More

You might want to grab a tall glass of sweet tea or a cup of coffee before we get started. This is a long one. And should be. Its been a while since I've updated things here. I would say that I'm going to do better, but you've heard that before ...

Anyway, here are the highlights of the past couple months. Enjoy!

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Spring Soccer ended with a bang. The boys played in a tournament - which meant we were at the soccer field from 7:30am until 3 or 4pm. It was a looong day, but loads of fun! We had a canopy and cooler of food and drinks. Ed brought his hammock and horseshoes to enjoy between games. And, the weather even cooperated. It was a beautiful day (by Houston standards, anyway!)


5 of the 8 boys on the team (2 couldn't make it to the tournament & one was injured in the last game)

My proud boy ... AKA "The Scientist" ... showing off another trophy to add to the collection!Proud Sharks!!!Hangin' in the back of the van between games. Jace is crawling around in there. That didn't last long!Ed's first attempt at getting into the hammock didn't work out so well!

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Jadyn also had a fun end-of-the-year event to show off her gymnastics skills - called MayFest. She's made a lot of progress since she started and really loves it. She's moved up with each evaluation and thinks she's hot stuff. I didn't think she would notice or care about the evaluations, but it turns out, she cares very much and makes it her goal to move to the next level each time. Cracks me up. Who would have thought THAT child would have such FOCUS??? We love her gym - and her coaches!!
Balance beam

Backward rollRingsTrampoline (her favorite - go figure!)Forward roll off the springboardHammin' it up for Daddy!Getting her trophy Not that you can tell by her face (this is her camera-smile) - but sooo excited!!
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Jordan will have her end of the year program for ballet next week. I'm sure I'll have a picture or two of that to share! :-)

The rest of the pics are of random stuff of late ...

Fun with Uncle Eric

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Jace's first spaghetti dinner. Think he liked it? I'm sure I've mentioned how much the boy likes to eat!! He eats more than Jadyn most of the time! And better - we haven't found anything he doesn't like! His first birthday is this weekend - so more pix of this cute guy to come!

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Grandma brought Kylie over to play one afternoon and the kids had a blast in the backyard! She loved riding the glider with Jakey!

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Jadyn's booboo. She was running in the house (Despite the fact that I'm certain I say "No running in the house!" about 400 times per day) - and she fell in the entry hall. As she went down, she nailed her head on the front door - right on the edge where the leaded glass insert and door meet. OUCH! As you can tell by her face, she was NOT a happy camper. But, thanks to Arnica, it was almost gone within a couple hours. Good stuff, man!***********************************************************************
My cute boy in a box. You know what they always say ... just give 'em a box to play with! This is the box our new curriculum came in and he had a ball!

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BOTH of my Magnolia trees bloomed!!! We had so many beautiful blooms ... and I wasn't convinced the trees were even going to survive, much less produce these beauties! Right outside our study and dining room windows. Love it!

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A baby bird in our backyard. Jordan chased off the mom before we could stop her! Fortunately, the momma came back and got this cute little thing. Another birdie in our yard was not so lucky after it flew into our window - that one didn't make it.

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After 7 weeks of waiting, we got new curtains in the den. The ceilings are 18 foot and Ed is afraid of heights, so this was no DIY project! They are just side panels, but look beautiful. I said to Ed that they just look like they belong. Well, I must be right, because both our moms came over and neither one of them even noticed the curtains! You can't really see the fabric, so here's a close up. Its not something I would have picked out without help, but I love it!

That's all for now. I have a few more pictures to upload - later.

Go Fly a Kite!

I know I've been totally MIA in blogosphere. Sorry about that. Always hoping to do better!

I've missed it!!

Lots going on around here, as you can imagine. I have to say, though, that having 4 kids has been a lot of fun. It is busy - really busy - the first year with any baby always is - and we decided to add to that fun with two moves as well. But, I am enjoying it. And, now that Jace is 9 months old, things are beginning to settle down a bit. He's gotten himself into a predictable routine and is quite the social little man. He LOVES to go. Anywhere. He's the happiest in public and around people. DEFINITELY got that from his dad! lol. Although my mom says I was a social bug as a little one. Apparently, I exchanged my personality somewhere along the way!

Anyway, in addition to the busyness and goings-on of everyday life, I've been working on being better at noticing the "interruptions" of all the little people (don't tell Jake I said that) as appointments to be WITH them. Of course, I'm literally with them all the time, but I mean, really be WITH them ... in the moment ... enjoying and noticing their (never-ending list of) questions, ideas, interests, etc. And, stopping to say "YES!" when they ask me if I want to color, read a book, play a game or watch them do something. I'm trying to remember that there will be plenty of time to wash clothes, clean bathrooms, scrub floors, play on the computer and watch the news. But these days to see a caterpillar or butterfly through their eyes or play Sorry or Chess or Parcheesi or Life (for the 4,000th time) or re-read the same book 10,000 times are limited.

So, my house doesn't look the way it did in days past. And, I'm (becoming) OK with that. Its clean "enough" for now. I knew God had brought me a looong way on Friday. The older 3 kids were playing outside during Jace's naptime. Jake asked if he could get the kite out. I joined them and had a BLAST flying a kite with my kids. When I walked back into the house a while later and realized all I had "missed" doing during the coveted nap time, I smiled. I didn't MISS anything for a change! It feels good to know that the small steps are turning into progress! And, my kids are reaping the benefits.

I've gotten back into making cards and hair bows, which keeps me sane! I don't have a lot of time to devote to it, but I enjoy the minutes I get! One of my favorite things in our new house is that, even though Ed was looking forward to having a study for him, he has graciously allowed me to turn it into a craft room! (a mess of one at the moment!)

I made the girls hairbows for soccer - soccer ball ribbon with Jake's team colors. Go Great White Hungry Vicious Sharks! (now that's a team name, isn't it?) Our coach from last season has returned to help coach this season and he's hilarious. He nicknames all the kids - Jake's is the 'mad scientist' because of the way he analyzes the game. He doesn't have the most impressive skills, but he does have one heck of a grasp on the mental aspect of the game. Those of you who know him aren't surprised! Spending Saturdays at soccer games are really fun for us. As silly as it sounds, its one of those little things Ed and I both dreamed of and looked forward to before having kids. It always makes me smile when I recognize the way God gives us the desires of our hearts.

Obviously there is not time (mine or yours!) to write about everything to the point of "catching up" - so I'll just post some random pics of late and call it good!! Having fun in the back of Granpa's truckWhat a cute boy - playing with the food boxes at our favorite place!Grandpa and Jace

Jace loves his sippy cupMy beautiful girls ...

One of our best weeks ever.

Right up front, Ed is typing this blog, so don't expect the same quality that you are use to.

Thursday Jacob had his final soccer game. Gummie was here from TX and Jakey could not wait to show off his stuff on the soccer field. He scored two goals and has been on cloud nine every since the.

Saturday was Jordan's Ballet Recital at 5:00 pm. We have waited 18 months for this day (Jordan did not start ballet early enough last year to be in the 2007 recital). Both Grandma and Gummie were her for this event. It was such an event that even Uncle Erin came to Iowa to see it. The morning of the recital, at 4:30 am, Angela went into labor with our 4th. She was able to keep it under control and we all went to the Ballet Recital. Jordan was simply amazing, she did not miss a single step and performed flawlessly (at least in the eyes of her dad).

Saturday May 31, 2008, 8:25 pm, the Midwife showed up at our house, by 8:52 pm and few simple pushes (again perspective from the dad and not the mom) Jace Eric Sustala was here. He weighed 10 lbs, not our biggest baby every, but a close second. He was 21 1/4 to 21 1/2 inches. We are not sure on the length as we have two different lengths recorded. It was absolutely amazing. Jakey helped me cut the umbilical cord, he thought that was cool. We had a sleepless night, but all is well. Mom and baby are resting and we can now make plans for our final move to Houston, TX.