Man City Cup

I mentioned how Sadie joined a new soccer team in July, well, they had their first out of town trip this past weekend & it sure was a lot of fun! I picked up the girls from school on Friday at lunchtime & we flew to San Diego. We have actually traveled here twice for soccer already but both times we stayed in Oceanside & this time we stayed in La Jolla so it was fun for something different. As soon as we got there, we checked in, went to dinner & met up with friends. I took a few of the girls to the outdoor shopping area & got ice cream that night:

They didn't play until 1:00 on Saturday so we were able to get up & go do something that morning. We headed to Seal Rock to walk along the coast:

It was a perfect morning & we had so much fun walking around watching the seals put on a show for us:

We even saw a group of baby seals that were so cute:

Sadie actually got up early & came here with a few of her teammates, so we just came with Sophie. Bryan & I had been here before, but we had never brought the girls, so it was fun to just spend the morning with her:

Meanwhile, after the beach, a few of the girls went shopping again:

and then headed to the field. It was such a big tournament parking was horrible. Apparently, the girls were afraid they would be late for warm up, so they literally jumped out of the car on the side of the road & ran to the field:

It was a really well-organized tournament & it was fun walking through the entrance tunnel & finding Sadie's name:

The weather was perfect & they were beautiful soccer fields. Not a bad place to sit & watch some soccer with these girls:

We even saw a hot air balloon around sunset Saturday night:

The girls played awesome this weekend & got 2nd in their bracket. We joked they came home without a loss because they won or tied all of their games but most importantly, it was such a fun weekend of bonding between the girls & their families. A few of us met up for breakfast in the mornings:

We had a team dinner Saturday night:

And lots of downtime between games with the girls hanging out together:

We have traveled quite a bit the past couple of years for soccer & I can easily say, this was our favorite team trip so far! The only downside was Sadie pulled her quad muscle Saturday night & she really exasperated it by playing again on Sunday. She was ok when she saw the trainer & he massaged it & stretched it out, but the minute she stopped moving & sat around at the airport, it started cramping again. 

Other than that, it was a great weekend & makes me even more excited for the year ahead with this new team!

Back to School Fall Activites

And we are off! School started last Wednesday & our fall activities started before that. Sophie is well into cheer. A few weeks ago, she had FFL cheerleading camp:

They had fun learning a few chants, a quick dance & getting to practice their jumps & stunts:

FFL goes from kindergarten to 6th grade so at the end of camp they recognized all of the girls who have participated since the beginning - all 7 years. There are a lot of cheerleaders but only a few made it every year, including Sophie:

This past weekend her squad had their first Cowboys camp to prep for the upcoming football season:

and they are already meeting weekly for practices:

She will be playing volleyball with her club team this fall, but they took the month of August off & don't start back up until September. But she is following in her sister's footsteps & is doing cotillion this year:

They had their first meeting yesterday & as much as she says she didn't like it, secretly, I know she had fun getting dressed up & going with her friends:

I am so glad so many of her friends from school are doing it too! I organized a happy hour for the moms while they were meeting so we had fun too:

Another big highlight for Sophie this year - Blue! That is the name of our youth group at church & she officially graduated from First Kids & gets to meet with the youth group with Sadie now:

Sadie is equally busy with her own schedule. Obviously, soccer. That takes up most of her time. She is continuing with NCL so not only did we volunteer all summer, but she also went to their grade level retreat last week:

She also plans on playing all 5 sports at Griffin again, starting with volleyball. They had tryouts last week & they made cuts on Friday afternoon. She definitely made the cut, we just don't know which team yet. We had her friends over to help us get ready for the season by painting banners to hang up when we decorate the locker room:

I am team mom for 8th grade athletics so I have been busy working on game day meals, snack bags, locker room decor, spirit wear, etc. Their first game is this week & she is ready! It's going to be a busy but fun fall season & we are ready for all of it- Go Gators!

First Day of School - 6th & 8th Grade

Summer was fun but the girls actually went back to school this morning! It's only August 13th & they are already back - doesn't that seem so early? The girls were excited & I am even more excited because they are both at middle school together! Sophie is officially in 6th grade:

And Sadie is in 8th grade:

They are going to have so much fun at school together this year:

We went early to meet with all of Sophie's friends:

We met at the gazebo at the park first & then they all walked over to the fence with the Griffin sign, which is usually where everyone meets for pictures:

This is the group of girls from their elementary school:

but they have already met a ton of friends from the other school too:

I was lucky just to catch a quick pic with Sadie's friends:

These 3 have taken the same selfie every year:

I can't believe how much they have grown up! I tried not to take any pictures of me this morning but I did take one with a few of the moms I love doing life with. Most of us have kids the same age:

I have a feeling it's going to be a great year at Griffin! Go Gators!