Born just three weeks apart, five-year-old cousins Aidan and Sofie show a bit of what they were up to over the weekend. Self-taught swimmer Aidan completes his first 25-meter backstroke in competition. He won a ribbon in both the backstroke and the freestyle. And Sofie knows what’s important at the ballpark — the concessions! — and the Rockies winning their 11th straight.
Click photos for larger versions.
The season ended for cousin teammates Kiley and Aidan last night, but this evening Mack tossed a TD and two PATs, picked off an interception, and his team advanced 14-6.
Jill reports:
Reid tried to pick up a bee at the playground today.
The bee gave him immediate, negative feedback.
Six-year-old Kiley has quarterbacked her co-ed flag football team this spring. I thought we needed some photos (hard to get, so many games have been rained out). Click on the image below for a larger version and two other photos of our very own Quarterback Princess (eat your heart out Tami Maida/Helen Hunt).
Photo 2
Photo 3
Kiley is wearing — and apparently chewing — a mouthguard. Photos taken yesterday by Auntie Jill.
Those that follow this blog know of my continued praise of The Sweeties athletic success, mostly Mack of course because he’s the oldest and more into it. Kiley (6) and Aidan (5) both completed a mile run Saturday, but Mack ran the event in a personal best 6:42 and took first place in the 8-9 age group.
Later in the day Mack also played soccer and gave us this great sequence. You see him here lined up for a direct kick (the kicking player and Mack’s teammates are cropped out of the photo — I don’t post photos of other children without permission, etc., etc.) but you can see the ball. Pay special attention to the determined, downright fierce look on Mack’s face.
Now click here.
For one reason or another I haven’t posted anything on May 31st since Sweetie Number 5 was born four years ago today. I see no reason to break the chain except to say Happy Birthday Alex.
Oh, and Happy Birthday Clint Eastwood, 79 today.
News is, Sofie lost the tooth — then lost the tooth. It’s somewhere on the playground at school.
So, what’s a tooth fairy to do?
I publish this story from Jill every year. The first time was five years ago today.
[Three-year-old] Mack and I picked out some lovely ripe cherries at the market today. We’re going to chop them up put them in homemade ice cream.
At lunch I diced some of them and gave them to [8-month-old] Aidan.
He grabbed a couple and stuffed them in his mouth. Immediately, his eyes shot to me with an expression that perfectly conveyed two thoughts:
“My God, but I do love you, woman.”
and
“Exactly what else have you been keeping from me?”
Mack ran a new personal best mile yesterday of 7:05.3. He ran in the Loudoun Street Mile in Winchester, Virginia.
Mack’s age group (boys 6-8) was won by a 7-year-old who ran 6:28. Mack was third in the group. Trophy!
The adult male winner did the mile in 4:11. The race is one mile directly down Loudoun Street in the historic town.
The photos are still in Mack’s mom’s camera, which itself is in the hands of some thief at the Charles Town (WVa) Races.
Official daughter-in-law Veronica reports:
Carpool conversation between Sofie and her good friend, A.
Sofie: What should we play at school today?
A: Dunno.
Sofie: How about “Cold, Lost Girls?”
A: Nah. How about “Puppy Protector?”
Sofie: Nah.
Cold, Lost Girls? Puppy Protector? What’s wrong with Kick the Can and Mother, May I?
Meanwhile, Sofie doesn’t need to protect her aunt and uncle’s puppy, Barkley (123 pounds).
Click image for larger version.
… that Mack excels in sports. In addition to being tough and competitive, he is rather big for his age.
That’s him in the middle of these three boys, all eight-year-olds.
Five-year-old Sofie: Mommy – BIG problem.
Mommy: What?
Sofie: We don’t even have a dog house.
Mommy: We don’t even have a dog.
Sofie: That’s a much bigger problem.
Official Older Daughter Jill reports:
Mack had his return visit to the dentist today. He had his filling replaced and, apparently, while she was in there, the dentist saw something on the tooth next to the filling that she didn’t like. So she “opened” that one and put a little filling or coating in there, too.
Mack was very concerned with being numbed up. Last time he chewed up the inside of his cheek while numb, and hurt for days. So, according to the dentist, he asked to skip the numbing agent. She told him she was dubious, but would give it a try. But if he moved around she would numb it up.
Apparently he held perfectly still. Even the dentist, a kind of grumpy person, was impressed that he had two fillings with no numbing.
Nothing like a little pioneer dentistry.
Afterward Mack competed in a track meet, taking 18 seconds off his previous best in the mile (1600 meters actually), down to 7:13. He also had a personal record 7-6 in the long jump.
Aidan and Kiley also competed in the 100, and Aidan in the 400 and long jump (he made it to the pit!).
Saturday 9:15AM, leave for the soccer complex for 9:45 game. Any delay in traffic will mean that 5-year-old Aidan runs directly from the car to the kickoff. He scored four goals — down from six the previous week, but one chance was taken off his toe as he was about to shoot — by a teammate.
Saturday Noon, 3-year-old Alex’s game begins. His socks and his shorts meet, so it’s not clear Alex even has knees, but he scores a spectacular goal.
Saturday 1:45PM, 8-year-old Mack’s soccer match. He scores and plays some fantastic D in a losing effort.
Sunday 8AM, Mack runs a mile cross country race and takes first overall despite having to do the limbo along the way. Not quite sure why they thought the limbo added anything to a mile run, but it was a fun event. (Two types of people show up for rainy, cool, Sunday morning runs — those that run and socialize and those that just run. The two groups often appear to be of an entirely different species.)
Sunday 10AM, 6-year-old quarterback Kiley and defender Aidan play flag football. The team wins its third game (no losses) despite having basically just one play, Ethan down the sidelines. Ethan performs this play very, very well.
Sunday 1:45PM, Mack plays flag football, at quarterback and on defense. Not having an Ethan-like runner, this team relies mostly on passes, several of which are intercepted as smaller quicker defenders snag the ball as it’s dropped by the receiver. Highlight of game — other than the pure joy of watching kids learn and perform — is having the other team penalized two or three times for guarding their flags on long runs.
Meanwhile, Aidan and Kiley are at the pool where Aidan, who is a self-taught swimmer, swims 25 meters in under 40 seconds. Kiley also makes this summer’s club swim team on the strength of her kick.
Mack’s swim practice comes later — he spent the time after football and before swimming shooting hoops across the street.
Grandpa was exhausted.
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Sweetie Sofie relaxes with the Sunday New York Times Magazine after her swim lessons.
This is from a year ago, but I still think it’s cute.
Buy kids all the video games and Disney princess paraphernalia in the world — or let them drop stones down a storm drain grate at the soccer field. Which to you think they’ll choose?
Five of The Sweeties® demonstrate. Click image for larger version.
Reid, who just turned three in late March, competed in his first run today. He ran a quarter-mile and finished without slowing to a walk. His five-year-old brother Aidan competed and finished as well. Their mom reports:
“Aidan had never [not walked part of the way] before, so he was super proud of himself. He also broke out his race color (royal blue) for the first time. Reid was panting and breathing and made it across that finish line, to lots of cheers. He is greatly enamored of his very first medal.”
Mack won the mile run for his age group. Yesterday he won a 5K for his age group. Both the mile and the 5K were his best times ever.
None of the three boys know it, but they are headed to DisneyWorld later today. No, not because of their running. It’s just time. They haven’t been since September (and Reid a lot longer than that). I think their parents just like DisneyWorld.
Football rained out today. Photos of our very own Quarterback Princess in action have to wait.
If 8-year-old Mack does well in this morning’s 5K, perhaps it’s because he had some Mephistophelean help.
Or has his mother said, “Whoever assigned the bib numbers for this race obviously knows Mack.”
Emily, official co-daughter of NewMexiKen, reports:
As you probably know, February is Black History Month. At our school, the principal organized a voluntary extra essay contest. The kids were asked to research about famous African Americans and write essays on how these people influenced the students’ lives today. The essay was due today [Monday]. Then on Friday, they have to dress up and act like they are in a wax museum.
Well, out of a school with 1,085 students, only two students completed the essay contest . . . Kiley and Mack.
It’s kind of sad for the principal, but I can’t tell you how proud of Kiley and Mack I am. They both took the activity very seriously and produced great essays. I typed up Kiley’s essay below so you could see what she came up with. She is very excited about getting the chance to act like Ruby on Friday. Mack researched Chuck Berry and is all set to play his electric guitar on Friday. We’re not sure exactly who the audience will be for the performances, but it should be a great show.
Here is six-year-old kindergartner Kiley’s essay:
Ruby Bridges
Ruby Bridges is a brave little girl just like me. Ruby was not to upset that she has to eat lunch by her self. Ruby has to eat by her self because her techer ate elsewhere and no one was in her class. No one was in her class because the kids are wite and their folks are not happy with a black girl in the school. Ruby prayed for the pepole in the loud crowd. That teaches me not to be hurtful to others. Ruby did this too . . . she was so brave she could walk being silent. She ignored the pepole that were in the crowd. I would do that to. I have a brother and I sometimes ignore him when he is not nice. Ruby and me are the same in some ways.
Ruby Bridges was a six-year-old girl who attended school alone in 1960 in New Orleans when white parents withdrew their children in opposition to integration. She was depicted in a famous Norman Rockwell illustration.
Originally posted here three years ago:
Mack, official oldest grandchild of NewMexiKen, watched much of the Rose Bowl with his mother Wednesday night. Here’s the story as told by his mother, Jill:
The honorary marshal came onto the field, before the game, to flip the coin. I saw that it was Sandra Day O’Connor.
I said, “Oh, Mack, that is one of my heroes.”
“Why?”
I referenced conversations we’ve had in the past, “You know how we’ve talked about how, for thousands of years, men got to be in charge of everything and women didn’t get to do lots of things?” (Mack has a fairly solid background knowledge in this stuff, at least for a five-year-old boy.)
“Yes, like how they couldn’t vote or have a house or do lots of jobs?”
“Right. Well one job they didn’t get to do was be a judge. A judge gets to decide the laws for all the people to follow. It’s a really important job. Well, that lady was the first woman who got to be a judge. So she is one of Mommy’s heroes.” (Not strictly accurate, I know.)
Mack looked at me for a minute, then said, “Then she is one of my heroes, too.”
My heart melted. I put my arms out for a hug, so proud of my brilliant, sensitive child.
He continued, “Yes. Also Batman.”
Saturday, six-year-old Kiley, the second oldest of The Sweeties, was decidedly unhappy about being separated from her mother even for three hours to attend a play with her grandma.
Her grandma asked, “Kiley, I’ve been thinking about going to Denver and that you could go along and visit Sofie.” (Sofie is Kiley’s five-year-old cousin.) “If you’re six and can’t leave your mom long enough to go to a play, how old would you have to be to go to Denver and leave your mom for five days?”
Kiley thought about it for a moment and replied, “Thirty-six.”
Sweetie Mack, as noted elsewhere, will be 8 tomorrow. Last Saturday he ran his last distance race as a 7-year-old, a 5K with 4,473 other runners, the Reindeer Romp. He finished 252nd overall (that is, he finished ahead of 4,222 runners).
Even better, he took first place among all boys and girls in his age group (7 and under).
Indeed he finished better than any of the 8-year-olds in the race. He ran the 3.1 miles in 29:10.
That’s him in the photo a few blocks from the finish. Click image for larger version.
Second-grader Mack, who’ll be eight in a few weeks, ran in the Regional Junior Olympics cross country meet Saturday morning against kids his age (born in 2000 or later) from Georgia, the Carolinas, Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia. Mack had been home from school two days during the week, sick with the flu, and unable to work out. The temperature was in the 30s.
Jill, Mack’s mom, sent this report on the 2K race:
[Mack] struggled during the race and ran about 25 seconds slower than last week, and both times I saw him on the course he just didn’t look himself. He just looked tired and like he couldn’t pick his feet up like normal. Usually I love to watch him run. But today I actually felt like hopping the rope and pulling him off the course. He did have a pretty good finish where he was seesawing with another boy on the way in and he beat him to the line.
Jill sent this report a little later:
I was looking at the race photos with Mack and showing him how he just didn’t look like he was having fun except when he was battling that kid at the end. Turns out that, as that kid passed him earlier in the race, [the kid] said, “See ya!” as he went by. So Mack came after him and found him and beat him by .25 second.
Mack ran 10:27.73. That’s him in the photo as he was passing the “See ya!” kid (not shown). Mack passed eight kids on the way to find him.
The winner, from South Carolina, ran a phenomenal 7:59.89.
