August 2010

August started out with a sigh of relief that baseball and softball had come to an end and the weekends were free. Or so was thought!

8/9 – Ang, Kels and Lil’ TK went to the Vikings Training Camp with the cousins from SD and WI and super-awesome Aunt Sharon. It was way too hot to be comfortable but everyone had fun checking out practice, checking out the *hot* players and watching the younger boys have fun at the activities and autograph sessions. The cousins were able to get some cool Vikings gear so that they can cheer on the purple and gold with pride back home!

8/11 – Abby Lou’s birthday. 6 years old!

Kels has pitching tryouts for the 14U Peppers 2011 teams. First year trying out at that age level…said the older girls (16U and 18U) made her nervous but she did her best and even got to tryout with BFF MM.

8/14 – Andy and Jenny’s wedding in St. Paul. St. Thomas More church – incredible!! Again, too hot to be comfortable but a good time was had by all. Adopted Kopp Crew member, JM, gave an awesome Best Man speech. We laughed; we cried…it became a part of us. Oh – and the Vikings won the first pre-season game!

8/15 – Kels has fielding/batting tryouts for 14U Peppers 2011 teams. Weather was a little nicer, which was good since tryouts took over 2 hours! Gets a call a week later that she made the B team and will have the same coach she had her very first year in Peppers. Very exciting! Will also have her other BFF's from summer softball, KE and AL, on the team again!

8/16 – Lil’ TK starts Football practices. Is placed on the MNMYF West - Hickorytech Rams. Ang cannot wait to start cheering on #33. Pain heals, chicks dig scars…Glory lasts forever!

8/20-8/22 – VACATION at Mound Lake. Truly God’s country. Located by Burtrum/Upsala/Long Prairie/Grey Eagle. Lil’ TK’s adopted family – The Marshes – have a lake home there. Invited the whole Crew up. So blessed to have such great friends. No internet, no cell phone, no plans. Just relaxed riding the waves on the pontoon all weekend. Very sad to have to come home to reality but the Crew did miss Abby Lou - who was overjoyed to see us return. Although a quiet house and Gramma Nita to herself all weekend could not have been bad….

8/25-9/6 – Big TK is working at the Great MN Get-Together…the State Fair for the Vikings Locker Room. Blessed again with a great friend –JM – who offered to let him stay at his place in Bloomington the whole time he is working at the fair.

8/30 – Kels starts school volleyball practices. First match is 9/9.

9/9 – Kels and Lil’ TK start Dakota Meadows Middle School. As 7th graders. Ang is going to need to start buying a lot more hair coloring kits to fend off the gray hairs that will be coming…Holy Cow – 7th graders! Where has the time gone?

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(¸.•´ (¸.•' Peace and Love

Summer's Flying By...

Happy 6th Birthday Abby Lou!

Summer storms featuring wind and hail hit in July and now the homestead needs new siding and a new roof. Celebrating no more yellow house! Now onto the fun part – picking new colors.

Lil’ TK and Kels are gearing up for Middle School – 7th grade. They are placed on “trails” in 7th and 8th grade here on the WEST side. They are assigned a certain section of the school, with certain teachers and half the total 7th grade class. They are assigned a home room/teacher and will be moving to different rooms within the trail for classes. Gives them a taste of what high school will be like without all the upper classmen to worry about.

New school, new rules and the opportunity to play school sports. Kels starts volleyball at the end of August. Should be an exciting year.

Kels has tryouts for the 2011 14U Peppers summer traveling softball program today. Because she will be 13 by the end of the year, she has to “move up” to the next age group for softball. It’s a big step but Big TK and Ang are confident she is ready. She had such a great summer and grew so much as a player...she’s got this…;o)

Big TK is enjoying working for the Vikings Locker Room at training camp and was asked to work the State Fair at the end of August for them as well. The discount it nice, it’s air-conditioned and he will get to spend 2 weeks with his buddy, Jeff, who lives in Bloomington. Jeff has graciously offered to let Big TK stay with hm while he is working the fair. Great friends make life so much more fun! Ang is just hoping she isn’t certified insane by the end of Big TK’s extended stay in Bloomington from trying to keep the tweens from killing each other at home. Hopefully the excitement of a new school will pre-occupy them enough!

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(¸.•´ (¸.•' Peace and Love