Monster Jam 2015

We surprised the boys with seats at the Monster Jam show this past October.   We had told them one Saturday morning that we needed to run into the city (Philadelphia) and swing by Paul's office to pick something up and then we would just drive back home.  They were so confused when we pulled up at the Wells Fargo Center and stood in a line for quite some time.  Soon, they began to wonder why the other people in the line were carrying Monster Jam paraphernalia and signs.  It didn't take too long for them to realize that there was a monster truck show going on, but they could not figure out why we were standing in this line just to pick up something for Dad's work.  When we finally got thru the line and inside where all the monster trucks were revving their engines and glimpses of the huge machines could be seen through the entrances to the arena, the boys began to complain a little at how lucky everyone else there was that they got to see the Monster Jam show and we didn't.  At this point, we finally had to clue them in to their surprise.  It was kinda funny that they didn't realize what we were doing sooner.  Gullible little guys.  They were beyond ecstatic to hear the news that they would be watching this awesome show.  It was exciting, to say the least, and we all had a remarkable time in the pits before the show, meeting the drivers and seeing the famous trucks up close, and then watching these massive trucks do their races and stunts.  

Max and Sam's Fall Soccer Season

In addition to both playing fall baseball (on different teams), Sam and Max each played soccer.  So, counting Jack's soccer and peewee soccer that both Sam and Jack played after school twice a week, we were very busy this fall, to say the least.  It was so stressful--the craziness of getting back into the school schedule combined with 3 soccer games on Saturdays, 2 baseball games every Sunday, soccer practice on Tuesdays and Wednesdays in the evening, baseball practice on Wednesdays and Thursdays in the evening, and PeeWee soccer every Monday and Friday at 1:00.   It went by in a blur, and I vowed to never over-schedule us like that again.  From now on each kid needs to choose one sport to play at a time.  It is so hard, though, because they are all so athletic and they love to play sports.  I love that they are active, but the time commitment is too much to handle!  That being said, watching my boys play sports is always so enjoyable.  Soccer is one of my favorites to watch and one that each of my boys are really good at.  In fact, Sam and Max both got invited to try out for the travel soccer team.  This was quite an honor and a compliment as the league only selects a few of the top players to try out.  After much discussion and consideration, we declined the offer since the travel soccer league is a huge commitment both in time and money.  I don't think either boy is ready to just play soccer (they love baseball too much--and I am not doing both again!)  Here are some highlights of Max and Sam's fall 2015 soccer season...