Daniel was in the elementary school band this year, which consists of students from multiple schools. The band is directed by the junior high school director (pictured with Daniel) and classes are early in the morning two days per week. We are so proud of his progress as a musician and performer. His skills as a drummer make us think of Janel often.
Click the picture to see more. Watch the video.
This is the first year that David, as a 4th grader, could participate in the district-wide elementary school track meet. It was Daniel’s third (and final) such meet. The meet is structured such that 6th graders compete against only 6th graders, while 4th and 5th graders compete against each other. This allowed Daniel and David to compete in the same events and not compete against each other. They both ran the 4×100 relay; David ran the first leg in his race while Daniel anchored his.
They each ran the 800 meter (two laps around the track). Since distance running comes so naturally to them, they were the big attraction at the end of the meet. Even the superintendent remarked to Daniel that he was late for a meeting, but wouldn’t leave until he saw Daniel run. Neither of the boys disappointed – Daniel took first in his race with a time of 2:26 and David was only 8 seconds slower as he took first in the 4th and 5th grade race. The younger kids, as you might expect, have a great variation between the fastest and the slower runners. When David finishes, there are kids stretched all the way around the track.
My (Randy’s) favorite aspect of the track meet is watching the kids have fun and supporting each other. For each of the four 800 meter races (two for boys and two for girls), for instance, the crowd cheered mightily until the last student crossed the finish line.
Click the picture above to see more. Enjoy the video.
Pat Averill
Randy’s mother recently turned 80. Consistent with her low-key ways, she wanted a small gathering to celebrate. Mike and Mary hosted a fantastic dinner at their home in Gig Harbor. All four kids and spouses were there, as well as the closest of friends. It was so nice to actually have some time to talk and connect. The weather was perfect so we started the evening on the back deck. We took some good pictures (and got a bit goofy in some of them). Click the picture shown to see the others.
Our boys show talent in so many areas, including school and multiple sports. In addition to that, Daniel has been very impressive in his musicianship. He has been playing drums for nearly two years now and his skill and rhythm is excellent (prompting memories of another drummer in the family – Janel). He was selected for the Elementary Honor Band, which is made up of select musicians throughout the school district (9th largest in the state). One of the directors, Robin Blumenthal, was one of Janel’s percussion teachers.
The concert was outstanding! It included the Honor Chorus and Honor Orchestra. Grammy and Grandpa were there, and it was a thoroughly enjoyable event.
Click the photo above to see more pictures. Watch the video – they sounded great!
David, Sary-Jo, Daniel (yes, David is taller than his older brother)
Our traditional picture spot, the Van Lierop bulb farm, is now just a memory, so our Mother’s Day pictures had to be taken in our back yard. Fortunately, the yard looked pretty good. So did Sary-Jo and the boys.
Although we don’t have direct contact with Daniel & David’s older sister (1/2 sister technically) in Ethiopia, we are blessed with occasional updates about her – sometimes with pictures. Last year, for instance, we learned that she is in good health and is now married. This year, we learned that she has a baby boy. And we did, indeed, get pictures. We are comforted by knowledge that she is doing well, and truly thrilled to receive these updates. Since the boys were older when we adopted them, they have clear memories of life in Ethiopia and, specifically, time spent with their sister. In the picture shown here, she is looking at pictures of the boys that we were able to send to her.
As an added bonus, if we ever need a baby picture of Daniel, his nephew’s pictures could be used and nobody would be able to tell that it’s not him!
Relaxing
We had an awesome Spring Break! We drove to Mike and Sandi’s home in Nampa, Idaho. Their home is fantastic and sits on quite a bit of land. In addition, they have animals & toys and they share. They were incredible hosts and we had an absolute blast. The boys learned to ride dirt bikes and ATV’s; they brought in eggs from the chickens; they kicked a soccer ball (you didn’t think they could last five days without that, did you?). We went on a hike and we spent an entire day riding on the trails in the mountains. On top of that, we got a decent amount of visiting time in with Mike, Sandi, and some of the grand-kids (plus Kyle and Amy).
We only had one minor motorcycle mishap – David crashed. It was just a good bruise and a little blood – no broken bones (so Mike didn’t have to go to work). David was back riding the next day.
On the drive out, we took the scenic route through the Columbia River Basin. Last year, Daniel had done a report on the Basin, so he paid attention during the drive.
Photos albums below are:
What a glorious day we had for Easter, which is truly fitting the celebration that Easter is. Our Lord is risen and He deserves all glory! We started the day with the boys opening their baskets and searching for eggs. We left a bunch of video in here because the boys were just being themselves. We had fun with them. After church, we went to Julie’s house and there was a fairly major party happening. The kids kicked a soccer ball around (I know – this is a shock to all), and we generally just enjoyed the perfect weather and great company.
Daniel & David
Last year, Daniel ran the St. Paddy’s Day race in Tacoma for his first ever 5K. We thought David was probably too young to run that far so he ran the 1K. We had told Daniel to take it easy and not to feel bad if he had to pause or walk for a while. Then he went out and amazed us, even though the weather was horrible (slushy snow & rain mixture). This year, we signed both boys up for the 5K with confidence that they’d run (and run hard) the whole way. The weather was much better than last year, although still typical for March in the beautiful Pacific Northwest (cold and wet).
The race always draws a huge crowd – this year there were 1,582 people in the 5K. The boys started up front with the rest of the fairly-serious runners. They took off strong and kept going. Daniel’s goal was to finish faster than last year’s 19:43. David wanted to finish within two minutes of Daniel’s time. Both boys achieved their goals as Daniel took a full minute off his previous time on the same course. He finished in 18:43 and in first place in the 14 and under age group. David came in at 20:26 and third in the age group. Overall, Daniel was the 12th finisher and David the 31st. We continue to be amazed.
Daniel and David
David played up a couple years because of his size and athleticism. After tryouts, both boys ended up on the same team. We could sure get used to the idea of taking both kids to the same practices and the same games! Not only that, but they also played very well and won their league. They were undefeated until the last game (Daniel missed the last game to play a soccer game; the basketball team had already clinched first place).
During the course of the season, individual and team progress was very apparent. Both of our boys learned to see the court and pass the ball well, and they were relentless on defense. They also learned to make shots. Early on, almost all shots were an adventure; but by the end of the season, lay-ups were a sure thing and other field goals had a good chance of going in! We had a lot of fun watching and cheering on the whole team. Special thanks to the coaches for keeping the kids well grounded and emphasizing sportsmanship and teamwork.
We were disappointed with most of the pictures, but you can see the best of them by clicking the one above. We also put together a 3-minute montage of video highlights, below. David is number 11; Daniel is number 15 (and left-handed).
