12 and Counting

I always have good intentions of doing a birthday post on my kids actual birthday, but who are we kidding, I'm not as spry as I once was.  In my defense, I do have three kids playing basketball but two seasons came to a close this week (see updates below - is "updates below" an oxymoron, I don't know?).  I have a feeling turning 40 in March is going to slow me down even more.  I'm thinking it might be time to join a gym, Jazzercise, or something to get my energy level back up.  This dark gray weather doesn't help either.  My sweet boy Isaac celebrated his 12th birthday Wednesday!  Like most kids his age, he always has big plans for his birthday.  He kicked around a lot of different ideas.  I simply told him that while I know he'd like to have a huge party with lots of friends, we probably wouldn't be doing that this time.  I invited family over to Azzip Pizza (his favorite place) for dinner complete with cookie cake on his birthday.  I told him once basketball is over or maybe even in the warmer months, he might be able to have some close friends over to hang out (not necessarily a birthday party) and spend the night.  I know, I know, I'm boring!  Can I get an amen that it's a little harder to plan a party during winter months (especially with boys) unless you have the space, a basement or can rent out a gym/church?  Our house is small!  Miles had boys over for his birthday, and there were only a few of them.  It sounded like there were 100 of them.  Fortunately it was warm and nice outside that I was able to "push the party" in that direction.  They were all really good, just crazy amounts of energy and very loud.

How have we survived without Azzip Pizza this long?  It's Isaac's favorite.  He always gets an 11 inch with extra cheese and bacon.  I have ordered the exact same pizza every time I've been there - Tater Head.  It's basically a loaded baked potato on a pizza.  I love it!  Matt has branched out and tried a lot of different things but was lucky enough to bite into Andrew's Evil Pig pizza and broke his back molar.  He had to make a quick run to the dentist Thursday morning.  Fortunately, Dr. Frye thinks a filling will solve the problem and not require a crown.

Who needs a big party when you have all your family?  We've got a pretty great one who spoil our kids rotten!

Cookie Store Cakes are Isaac's favorite, and I thought it would be fun to have one decorated like a pizza.  I had a different idea in mind for the design, but it sort of resembled a pizza.  Who cares, right?  We devoured it.

I mean REALLY how did I get this lucky?  My family of 5!

We took over Azzip with our crowd.  These times are special!  Happy 12th Isaac!  We can't wait to see where life takes you.

(Basketball Update - had to piggy back on this post because there's a good chance it won't ever happen at my rate of writing)
Basketball with three kids is non-stop - fortunately Karson's season is over.  SWMS finished 2nd in the district tournament.

We had to play Moss Middle in the first round.  Karson had 17 points but was pretty worn out when it was over.  The team only had an hour to rest.  She didn't have enough stamina for the Championship game but played her best.  We ended up losing by quite a bit.  I think all the girls played hard, but BG had our number and played awesome as usual.

I thought the trophy was pretty awesome this year.  And, to be honest, I kind of liked the silver one better than the gold (first place) one =).  It was an exciting season, and we are thankful for Coach Manion and Coach Graves for their hard work.  Matt is the high school golf coach, and I know the amount of time and energy he puts into coaching, planning, emailing, meeting(s) and trust me, the pay is minimal.  You have to be devoted and care about what you're doing and love the kids.  Our coaches (both volleyball and basketball) LOVE our girls and spend tons of time in the gym making sure they have a wonderful experience.  Be sure to let your coaches know they are appreciated (whether paid or not)!

Miles sweet little team, the Mavs, won enough games to make it into the gold bracket in their conference which also was sort of a "fate sealer."  You don't want to make the statement - wish we had lost more - but his team might still be playing if they had lost more games - hah!  He's a good little player and has grown a lot this season.  He missed playing with his buddy Brady - they've been on the same team the last few years.  But, he made some new friends and had a great experience.

Miles had a buddy over to play on Saturday (after Karson's tournament).  They literally shot hoops in his bedroom for about 5 straight hours.  I went in his room, and it felt like 1,000 degrees.  His little friend asked if we could turn off the heat =).  He had sweat pouring from his head.  I said, why don't we open the window?  That might help.

Isaac's team is still undefeated and won the first game of the tournament. Our next game is tonight!  Go THUNDER!

I have NO idea why Warren County Parks decided to have team pictures the same week the games started, but Isaac had already committed to Plano's Governor's Cup competition (that Saturday).  He not only had to miss his first game but also team pictures.  I asked his coach if we could get a team picture before one of the games.  I'm not a photographer, but it makes me happy to have a picture for my sports scrapbook.  Apparently a few other kids on the team missed the picture too because there were a few of us snapping pics.

Isaac looks like a fierce basketball player, right?  Hoping the Thunder will win it all!