Monthly Archives: August 2011

Legends Baseball Clinic

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On Friday, August 19, the boys attended a baseball clinic sponsored by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni association.  We learned of this event because Randy’s dad is one of the alumni asked to participate.  The clinic included various stations, such as fielding, base-running, hitting & throwing.  The boys had a great time meeting and learning from former MLB players, even though the only one they’d heard of is their grandpa.  Their cousin Mason was also there, and it was great to see all the boys having fun.  Click the photo above to see more pictures; watch the 5 minute video montage below.

Radio Control Cars

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While we were at Disneyland, Sarah & Kyle took Daniel & David to Ridermakerz for an early birthday present.  They were able to build their own cars.  Daniel chose to build Mater, from Cars.  It is an awesome model.  David built a green Dodge Viper and tricked it out (within reasonable limits imposed by Kyle).

As busy as these boys are, they find plenty of time to play with their cars.  As you can see in the video, they are quite capable of multi-tasking (notice David’s skates).

Zoo with Karla & Boys

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Sary-Jo and the boys met up with good friends Karla and boys. Randy and Joe were both working. The kids love being with each other, and they all enjoy the Point Defiance Zoo. Enjoy the pictures.

Summer 2011

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It is quite a shock to be talking about school starting up, but here we are – it starts in less than two weeks.  I realize we say this every summer, but it has gone way faster than usual.  School did not end until the last week in June.  A couple days later we left for Arizona and from there we went to Disneyland.  It was great having all six kids together.

We returned and kept to a fairly structured schedule.  Mornings were typically reserved for “Mom School,” with swim lessons, open swim, water polo, swim team, birthday parties, counseling, soccer and track consuming afternoon and/or evenings from Monday through Thursday.  The boys’ free time was spent mostly outdoors and frequently with their remote control cars (thanks again, Sarah & Kyle).  Fridays were reserved for outings such as the zoo, Wild Waves or Seattle.

We also had some great adult-type socializing, including catching up with friends from way-back and getting to know some relatively new friends.  There are several friends that we didn’t see much at all – let’s reconnect this fall (you know who you are; coffee is on).

Mid-July included a visit from Holly, a former Karshner co-worker now teaching in Thailand.  Vacation Bible School was the same week (on top of – not instead of – the other activities).  And Randy was horribly ill that week.  We are grateful for Holly’s willingness to step in and help.

While Sary-Jo and the boys were doing all that, Randy has had a busy summer at work.  His team has accomplished quite a lot and there have been some surprises that keep work interesting.  His job is a true blessing.

The first Sunday in August, we went to Al & Pam’s beautiful home & property for the 5th annual Edgewood Community Church reunion.  We attended Edgewood our first 16 years as believers, so it’s great to get together and share stories about how God is working in each of our lives today.  Steve & Cindy, who moved to Montana years ago, were able to join us this year.  This was the first time our Edgewood friends got to meet the boys because we were out of town last year (Janel’s wedding).  We had awesome weather and a wonderful time.

Last week Daniel played as a guest in a soccer tournament.  This weekend, David’s team has a tournament.  Labor Day weekend, Daniel’s team is playing in a tournament.  This soccer mom desperately needs a mini-van!  It wasn’t as essential when she was a dance mom.

Next weekend we’re celebrating Randy’s parents’ 60th wedding anniversary, and his dad’s 80th birthday.  The four siblings are hosting an Averill family reunion and it promises to be a lot of fun!  After that, we have just a few days to get in the routine for school.

I guess we’ll have to find another time to clean the garage, switch the boys into the larger bedroom, paint the deck, finish the landscaping, etc.

Water Polo & Swim Team

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Daniel & David got to participate in the Puyallup H.S. water polo camp – four weeks on Mondays and Wednesdays to learn a new sport.  The camp was structured with basics of the game, drills, practice and scrimmage.  The last day was a full scrimmage with Daniel’s team edging out David’s for the win.  They both had a lot of fun, but we think David is a bit more serious about scoring than Daniel.  David can be quite aggressive for a little guy.  They are already asking to do it again next summer.  Click the photo to see a few more; watch the video.

On Tuesdays and Thursdays for the same four weeks, they had swim team camp.  Here they learned – first – that swimming can kick your tail even if you’re in good shape.  They received very good teaching and became much better swimmers in all aspects.  A swim meet was held on the last day of this camp, including individual and relay events in all strokes.  The electronic timing system was used, and they got the feel of swimming competitively.  Although the first week was rough, they’d like to do this one again next summer also.  Click the photo to see a few more and, of course, watch the video.

Swimming With Cousins

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Mason & Kenzie came for a visit, and the four cousins went to open swim at the PHS pool (one of Daniel & David’s favorite activities this summer).  Sary-Jo was there, with the camera of course, and got some good pictures and video.  We selected the best pictures and edited the video down to provide just a sampling.  Click on the picture above to see more, and watch the video below.

Fourth of July

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We returned from our vacation to Phoenix and Disneyland on July 3rd, so we weren’t really ready for a “big” 4th of July.  We didn’t make it out to our friends’ home on Lake Tapps, as we typically do.  Instead, we stayed home and had a relatively peaceful celebration of our wonderful country’s independence.  The boys spent a good portion of the day playing with their new remote-control cars, courtesy of Sarah and Kyle.

That night, we spent time with our neighbors.  They had enough explosives to defeat the British again, so we enjoyed the show.  Here are a few pictures.

Disneyland

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After our trip to Phoenix, we went to Disneyland for four days.  It was so good to spend time with all of us together: Kyle & Sarah, with their exchange student Diana, and Ryan & Janel.  Daniel & David got a bit of bonding time with the rest of the family.  And, of course, it was Disneyland so you know we had to have a good time!

As far as the rides are concerned, Daniel is always ready and eager to head to the biggest, the fastest and the scariest!  David takes a bit of time to warm up to some of the rides, but then he jumps right on board as well.  At times, the stimulus-overload introduced some challenges as the whole experience can be a bit overwhelming.  Keep in mind that these boys are less than two years removed from their situation in Ethiopia.  But, all in all, we had a great time.

Click the photo above to see some of the favorites from our cameras.  Click the one below to see the photos taken by Disney photographers on Photopass.