Well, we have just started trying to eat vegetables and as you can see, Marykate got them all over herself! This is where the eating gets fun...rice cereal was a battle most times, but once we introduced sweet potatoes last week (which is what she has on her face in the sleeping picture) it has become an enjoyable experience! We have since tried peas (which is what is on her face, thanks to a well timed swat of my hand by her) and today we just began squash. I think so far the sweet potatoes are the winner.
Another first today - Marykate leaned towards us when we held out our hands for her. What a great feeling! - Kari
Well, it has been awhile! No excuse really - just busy! Its funny, I usually think of my schedule getting easier when basketball season ends, and in some respects it does because Jimmy is around more. But, I think I just find different ways to stay as busy!
We spent this weekend working on our flower beds out front. They have had this decorative stone cover and this metal border that we have never liked so we ripped it all out and then put down black mulch covering the stone. I must say it looks pretty good! We sat Marykate in the yard in the shade of a tree and watched her kick happily and play with the animals hanging above her bouncy chair for over an hour while we worked. Maybe I should say, while she LET us work - because we all know that the 5 month old rules the schedule these days.
I can't hardly believe Marykate is already five months old! Our babysitter (who we love) noticed on Friday that MK is cutting her first tooth! Its so funny to feel the ridge on her gums and know that it won't be long until she has a full mouth of teeth. Because she is short, I have been able to keep her in 3 month clothes but even those are getting to be too small lately. I guess its on to 6 months!
We went to Eastern Ohio for Easter and spent a great long weekend with Jimmy's parents at their cabin and at their new condo in Hartville. Gus loved it there and for the first time we were able to give him more freedom since he doesn't run anymore. He even ventured into the water after Zonka (Jimmy's parents' dog) and Gus hates water! We took Marykate on her first hike and had fun just relaxing. It was a short trip though thanks to losing three of our days for spring break to snow.
We will try to be better about posting! Its like I said, the 5 month old rules the roost these days, but I have a feeling we will have lots of things to say about her with all the changing she is doing!
Well, a goal of ours all year was to make it to Richmond, play at the Siegel Center (VCU) and be in the Final Four. We accomplished that goal. Another goal was to win the State Championship and for the second year in a row, we were unable to accomplish that one. We ended the year 21-5. Our senior class had the best 2 year run (45-7) of any senior class in the history of our school. Yet we still were unable to make it to the title game. I guess it was another very good season. But you realize (especially when you make it as far as we have the past two seasons) how hard it really is to win the whole thing. That realization only makes it more painful when you get so close and do not achieve it. We will keep working, though, and maybe one of these years, that work will pay off. It was a very good season that ended, once again, with a disappointing loss. -Jimmy
Last night we clinched the regular season Massanutten District championship. For those non-Virginia readers, this is very big because it gives us an automatic bid to the Regional tournament and a first round bye in Regionals. Which means we only have to win one game to make it to the state quarterfinals once we finish with our District tournament. Our record is now 17-2 and we're ranked #4 in the AP Poll. Hopefully we can play like we did last night and keep it rolling (maybe all the way to Richmond???). No other new news other than we're getting a lot of snow. I haven't been to work in almost a week because of the weather. While I'm going a little stir-crazy, it has been nice to hang out at home with my wife and daughter for awhile. So I'm not complaining at all! Marykate is growing up fast. She's in what I call the "fun" stage- where she's smiling, cooing and beginning to interact with us. I cannot believe how quick 3 months has gone, though. -Jimmy
The latest AP Virginia high school boys basketball rankings came out this week and we are sitting at #5. I'm not sure if we're really the 5th best team in the state or not, but like last year, it is nice for our boys to be recognized for their efforts. We're currently 11-2 and 2-0 in our District (with both District wins coming by double figures). It's been a good start to the season. On another note, Kari left today with Marykate for Kansas. Marykate will get to meet her aunt, uncle, and cousin for the first time. I wish I could have made the trip with them. I missed seeing Jon and Emily over Christmas. And while I've been "Uncle Jimmy" many times to many kids, it's kind of cool to actually be a REAL uncle and I still haven't met Ella. I guess that will come sometime. So it's just me, Gus, and leftover food for a week. Hopefully we can manage. -Jimmy
It's always a pleasure to write about beating the Leemen of RE Lee HS. Last night we did so pretty handily. It was close for a half but in the second half our kids made shots, rebounded, and we slowly pulled away. The final score was 50-33. It may be one of the lowest scoring outputs of a Lee team in Paul Hatcher's 40+ years manning their sideline. Our team improved to 7-2 and we're beginning to gain confidence in one another as we head into District play this Friday night. All else is good. The females of the household are doing great and the other male is hanging in there too (he's actually adjusting quite well to having a "sister").
Well, to the reader's delight, I am not doing nearly as good a job updating basketball on the blog. Going into the holidays, we had a loss to Lee at Lee. Those of you who remember my blog from last year about Lee at Lee would remember how rare wins are in Hatcher Gymnasium. We almost got a second win this season, losing 62-60. It was a very good effort by our boys. Last night (on my birthday of all nights) we played a very good Covenant bunch. But we absolutely played the most miserable, lackluster game that I've coached at Spotswood in my 6 years there. It was AWFUL and because of our lack of effort and intensity and the level of our opponent, we got blown out 76-61. We bounced back today though with an awesome performance. While our opponent (Heritage) was not the level of Covenant, they weren't bad either. And we literally dismantled them 67-41. It was a good way to bounce back and takes the sour taste left in my mouth from back-to-back losses and lessens it somewhat. We play Waynesboro tomorrow for 5th place in the Holiday Tournament we won last year. Our record currently stands at 5-2, hopefully tomorrow we will be 6-2.
