As I sit here, housebound due to snow and icy conditions while the boys play (and aggravate each other after 3 weeks out of school for track out), I realize that I have been only delaying the inevitable. I needed to sit down and try to recap the last 6 months as best I can. I think part of the issue was the fact that I always feel like I will have all the time during the day now that the boys are in school full-time, together, at the same place, with the same drop-off and pick-up times - for the rest of this year at least - but somehow, I drop them off, and the next thing I know it is time to get back in carpool. After school, it is the flurry or homework, packing lunches, playing, dinner, bath and bed before I wake up and do it all over again. Last time I blogged, Chase had turned 8 and everyone, Jack, Graham and Anthony included, had started school. So, here is the last half of 2016 in the Liner family, as best as I can remember....
August 2016 found us starting soccer at the YMCA with Jason coaching Chase's team and me coaching Jack, Graham and Anthony's team. Tennis season also started for both Jason and I. We took the boys to watch UNC Men's soccer play at Fetzer Field.
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| Rooting for the Heels Men's soccer team at Fetzer Field |
Chase participated in his first kids' Tri-athalon at the YMCA and we were there to cheer him on.
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| The final leg of the Tri-athalon for Chase |
September 2016
College football started (and that is all I am going to mention about this sport this year) and the boys finished their first quarter of school which meant a 3-week break (track out). We had visits from Meme and Popi while Jason and I took a trip to South Bend.
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| South Bend |
Of course, soccer was still in season for everyone.
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| Chase |
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| Anthony |
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| Jack |
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| Graham |
I took the boys to Great Wolf Lodge water park in Concord for a little Mom/boy trip.
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| Great Wolf Lodge |
October 2016
We took a quick trip to the beach before the end of track out.
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| Oak Island - October 2016 |
We looked forward to the start of basketball season with Late Night with Roy in Chapel Hill.
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| Late Night with Roy - 2016 |
We ended yet another great soccer season.
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| Anthony, Jack, Graham |
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| Chase |
The highlight of the month was Halloween.
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| Anthony - the Carolina Hurricane hockey player |
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| Spider-Jack |
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| Quarterback Graham |
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| Baseball player Chase |
November 2016
You would think that with the end of soccer and tennis seasons, that things would lighten up for us on the weekends - but nope, we rolled right into basketball season and got ready for Thanksgiving break but before that, we rooted for UNC football at Kenan Stadium.
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| Pulling for the Tarheels in Keenan Stadium |
We celebrated the 89th birthday of my Grandma with everyone there together.
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| Celebrating Grandma's 89th birthday |
And we got a dog! Yep, after a 2 year break with no dogs in the house, the time came for one more addition. Chase had been asking for a while but I wasn't quite ready until now. We adopted a little over 1 year old Lab mix who came to us with the name Alfie. He is the perfect addition to our family. He came to us housebroken, crate trained and with basic manners. Chase and Graham were over the moon about him, while Jack was excited. Anthony wasn't too sure when he first came to see us for our home trial but has now decided he is pretty cool. He and I are enrolled in a Canine Good Citizen Behavior class through the AKC to reinforce his good behavior. He loves being around people and is great on a leash and around other dogs which means we can take him places when we go for walks or to outdoor arenas which is nice. As the boys are fond of saying, he found his "Forever Home" with us.
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| Alfie |
and that brings me to
December 2016
The end of the boys 2nd Quarter of school (hard to believe we are halfway through the year already!) and lots of Christmas activities and visits with family and friends.
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| YMCA Reindeer Run 2016 |
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| Huskies Basketball YMCA 2016 - Kindergarten |
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| Wizards Basketball at YMCA 2nd/3rd grade boys |
We started visits with family on December 21st with the arrival of my brother, wife and nephew and niece. They stayed through the 26th with my Mom but in between we added visits from Nana (who stayed through the 26th)....
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| Nana with Chase, Anthony, Graham, Jack before Christmas Eve Mass |
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| before Christmas Eve Mass |
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| Christmas Eve 2016 (Anthony, Jack, Graham, Chase and Alfie) |
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| Christmas Eve with the Austins's making Reindeer food (Anthony, Graham, Jack, Reese, Chase and Jack) |
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| Christmas with cousins (Anthony, Meredith, Chase, Graham Bise and Jack) |
Then we added Jason's brother, wife and their 2 boys on the 25th (they stayed through the 27th).
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| Christmas with cousins (Chase, Anthony, Milo, Graham, Seve and Jack) |
Nana left early afternoon on the 26th and Meme Popi arrived shortly after that to celebrate Christmas with everyone. Marc and crew left on the 27th while Meme and Popi stayed through the 28th. My Aunt and Uncle, cousin and her husband and their teenage daughter from California came for a day visit while they were in Charlotte visiting my cousin (their daughter/sister) and her family. It was great to see everyone and we were lucky to have the time, space and ability to have everyone come to us this year. Last year we did all the trips and traveling so it was nice to be stationed here at home and let others come to us. The weather cooperated and we had a great holiday season with everyone.
We are now into the early part of January, the 9th to be exact, and the boys were supposed to return to school today. Instead, the area got hit over the weekend with a snow/ice storm and school was cancelled due to icy road conditions. We are not sure what tomorrow holds because our temperatures have not been above freezing since Friday night. We have been able to sled down the driveway, through the cul-de-sac and down the neighbor's driveway because of the conditions as well as backyard football and soccer. The irony of course is that the weather is predicted to be above 70 degrees 3 days from now - North Carolina weather at it's finest.....but we love it.
Hopefully, this will get everyone caught up on our lives the last 6 months and force me to document it for the future. I know that one day, I will look back at each of these entries and create my own version of what really happened but for now I have the bare bones and can work from there. Who knows, maybe the boys will fill in with their version of events and they will be better than I can remember myself!
Here's to 2017 being amazing for everyone......
