Soccer: Fall 2014

Just wrapped up a season of soccer. The journey came with more bumps in the road than we anticipated, but in the end it's been a memorable experience. At the end of summer we asked the boys if they wanted to play football and I was surprised when they seemed uninterested. Mote asked me if I could sign him up for soccer and I pretty much dismissed his request thinking he would forget about it. He didn't. He was so persistent and continued to ask me if I could register him. I called the league and the team he wanted to sign up for was full. Thinking this would persuade him not to play I told him and to my surprise he was still determined to sign up. Since he would be playing I convinced the other 2 boys to join and it was settled... all 3 would be playing Fall soccer. It's been years since they've last played and I didn't expect them be as great as they were. Mote absolutely blew me away. He is a natural and I was hesitant to say this at first, but he reminds me of Fatu on the field. The other 2 don't have the "average" physique for soccer, but they did amazing. I am so proud of their growth this past season and their discipline to learn this game. It was so fun to watch them play! It was definitely hard to work things out with my schedule and I lost A LOT of sleep, but it was totally worth it. I'm so glad we took this journey. I feel like the conditioning they got will only help them in any other sport they decide to take on. It was hard for Ti not being able to be here for every game. I would text him throughout both games to keep  him updated on scores and plays. There were days that we would spend 9+ hours at the park. On those days I would wake up before the sun was out to pack our cooler full of sandwiches, snacks, and drinks. We would load our cooler, blankets, pillows, and chairs in the back of the truck. Between games we would hang out under the shade of trees and eat or take naps.

These were the days - the days that we had double headers, that were probably most memorable. These days and days that I had to run the boys to 2 different parks to practices that overlapped made me appreciate my parents... and it gave me a lot of respect for Fatu. I remember him having the busiest schedule as a kid. I don't know how he was able to handle all of the chaos at such a young age. On Ti's last week off he actually flew out early to watch the boy's games. It was seriously the best surprise for them.

 

We ended the season yesterday at a duel for the championship. Mote & Nic's team actually made it all the way to the end. And what better way to go out than a shootout. The game was tied 2-2 which resulted in a shootout. Thank goodness it wasn't Mote's first shootout. He came through for his team to sink his goal. To make things more intense we were tied after the first round of shots, so we had to push things into a 2nd round. This time whichever team missed first, lost. Nic was the first one to shoot from our team and I seriously think I gained an ulcer from the stress. But he made his goal! In the end we won and came out champs!

It was such a sweet way to end the season. Not sure what sport is next, but I'm sure it'll be just as much fun.

Vegas Holiday Activities 2013

We've been able to do a lot of fun holiday activities while Ti's been here. I'm grateful for that! On our annual Family Day we went to Town Square to watch Frozen with the kids. Afterwards, we gathered around the giant Christmas tree in the Square for their evening snowfall. We drove home to Christmas music and made hot cocoa at home to end the night. I'm so glad the kids started this family tradition. Didn't do any Black Friday shopping, but had a special day with my family instead.

This weekend we went to Ethel M Chocolate Factory for the first time. It was awesome!!! They have a cactus garden out back that was completely decorated in Christmas lights. I have been complaining about Vegas not having a worthy display of Christmas lights since we've moved here and I finally found a spot that's amazing!!! And it's free! Before leaving we went to look around inside the factory and were pleasantly surprised to find a walk through of the factory. We got to see how the chocolate was made and received free samples as well. The kids loved it. I loved it!

Yesterday we spent the day at home. We had pizza for lunch and listened to Christmas music while we hung up the stockings and decorated the tree.

Although we have to say goodbye to Ti Tonga today I am grateful for the holiday memories we were able to build with him. This is so much more time than we had with him last year. For that I am grateful.

-kiki

Visitors in Vegas... Part 1

It's been tough being away from Ti, so we've been grateful to have visitors out here to keep the boys company.... and there's no better company than family.
Last week we got to have fun with our Falatea boys

 

 

We surprised Ti by driving out last weekend to visit him. We dropped off Vince and brought home 2 more boys with us. So I am going on week 2 of being a single working mother of 5... and doing a lot better than I thought I could. More pics to come of us and our new visitors...