Cross Country is a Killer!

Cross Country season has begun and our family is begining to feel the crunch. I always look forward to back to school, largely because it means the start of another XC season. Our family is very involved in XC largely because, Sarah and I first met each other (in the post-mission era any way....before I left on my mission she was too young) at a University XC race in our first year of University.

Since we no longer compete ourselves in XC we are both involved in coaching, myself at my school (Glebe CI) and Sarah with the Ottawa Lions Fall Camps. This year, Sarah has hooked me into the camps as well so that I can take over the group Saturday mornings after I finish coaching my school kids, so she can train with the Lions groups herself. She has the itch to get back into racing, although I think those days are long gone for me.

Both Adara and Darion are also involved in the camps so it's a whole family affair. Geran loves coming to Mooney's Bay aka "the track" to play on the "track-tor" (the fourwheeler used by the City employees at the track to haul equipment around...they all know us very well and think Geran is pretty cute) or playing in the park by the beach. Tonight I brought Koko with us and she spent 40 minutes chasing the ducks and playing in the water, so it really is something the whole family gets involved in.

I hosted my Glebe Open XC meet this past week at Mooney's Bay and we had good results. Our school won the meet, defeating Renfrew CI by a single point in the overall aggregate. My midget boys won their second meet of the season, after having won the Trinity Invite the previous week in Port Hope. What really excites me about this group, is that unlike all my XC teams from the past, this one is comprised of kids who like to run! Not simply soccer or basketball players looking for some other school sport to get them out of more classes. The meet does take a lot out of me though and I was pretty tired by the time it was over. The week leading up to the meet I hardly slept at all (I'm a bit of a worry wart and a perfectionist and if I think something has the chance of going wrong.....I worry). I kept waking up in the middle of the night thinking about things I had to do and then not being able to fall back to sleep. I imagine this is only going to get worse as my children grow older and I start worrying about them.

Back To School

Well the kids are back to school. Adara is now in grade 6, Darion in grade 4 and Geran attends a pre-school, one morning a week at the Sawmill Creek Pool Community Centre. When walking to school with mommy, he told her, "I want to go to 'Dara and Darion's school." We think he'll be good and ready for JK next year.

I'm back at Glebe for another exciting year. Sarah is doing occasional work again and has already been called in one day to Fisher Park.

Darion had his third birthday party this week. Last weekend we went on a Thousand Islands boat tour on Gilles and Nancee's boat. Adara, Darion and the pirate "Geran the Jolly" went on a treasure hunt and found some sweet sticky goodness. We had a fun time looking at all the beautiful homes amongst the islands. Of all the trials I haven't been faced with, if I had to pick on, I think it would be wealth. It'd be tough, but I'd try to persevere as best I could.

Soccer season is wrapping up. Adara's team (OSU Power) is in a 4-way play-off, fighting for 2 spots in the Premier Division next year. They lost their first game 3-2 on penalty kicks this week and have two more next weekend. Darion's team (the IMPALA), with me as the coach, lost to the #1 ranked Gazelles in the semi-finals, but ended up winning the bronze medal match on Saturday after Darion's (second) party. Darion found himself in the right spot on a free kick and managed to knee-in the game winning goal in a 2-0 victory. I was surprised he had the energy to do anything after his party in which 7 boys decended on our house for a sleep over which featured ball hockey matches (see video for award winning camera action), a campout in the tree fort, and a rock fight at about 10:10 pm! Mommy put a quick end to the rock fight once we found out that was going on.

Welcome to Dillablogh!

Well, we are finally getting around to creating our family blog. If it's anything like my journal, there will be several posts in a short time followed by years of nothing. Summer 2007 was eventful with both Adara and Darion playing soccer, as well as Mommy and I. We were at the soccer pitch every single night of the week.

We had a student from Spain (Bea) stay with us for four weeks, ran our summer sports camp for one week, built ourselves a "tree"fort (it's not really in a tree, but hidden up in 'em), spent 6 days canoing with the Wiwchars up north of Sudbury on the Wolfe Lake system, and another week at Carine's cottage in Muskoka.

We ended the summer with a Labour Day BBQ in which we all got together to celebrate the sending of our kids back to school. I'm sure glad they are going back.....if it weren't for school, I wouldn't have a job!