Saturday Scramble

As is the routine around here, we had a hectic day yesterday (Saturday). Matthew had his last soccer game and Victoria and Thomas had basketball games. In the evening, Victoria had a sleepover at a friend's house, Thomas had a date dance at school and Matthew had a babysitting gig. All-in-all a fun day, but far from relaxing...

In their season finale, Matthew's team lost to a very good team that had beaten them earlier in the season.  We played well, but were out-matched in size, speed, skill and depth. The boys played hard, but also made sure to have fun, knowing it was their last game of the season.

Positioned for a corner kick

Taking a goal kick

Celebrating with teammate Kenny after a Crush goal

We had to divide and conquer in the afternoon, as Thomas had to be at school at exactly the same time as Victoria's game started.  Matthew and I dropped T off with plans to catch the 2nd half of Victoria's game, but there was horrible traffic and it just didn't make sense.  So Karri watched Victoria's game - a loss, but fun nonetheless.

Victoria headed off to her friend's house and Karri met us up at Lakeside School (whose alumni roll includes Bill Gates and Paul Allen) for Thomas' game. This was their 3rd game of the season - the first 2 were losses, but they played much better in the 2nd game and so we were optimistic for continued improvement against a tough conference rival. They didn't disappoint. They won the opening tip-off, scored a quick basket, and never looked back - establishing an early lead and never letting Lakeside build any momentum.

Their coach teaches a very up-tempo style of play with lots of fast-breaks, full court pressure defense and constant movement. It's fun to watch (when its working) and results in a lot of boys getting playing time - because the boys are constantly running and need to take a break every few minutes. Thomas hasn't started, but he's seen a lot of playing time and made the most of his opportunities.  Yesterday he played about 10 minutes and, I think, scored 10 points with a couple rebounds and a blocked shot. It was fun for the boys (and fans) to get a win. You can tell the team is really coming together.

T calling for the ball

A decisive win

After the game, we hustled home so everyone could get ready for evening activities.  Thomas was going to the 'Tolo' dance at Prep (aka 'Sadie Hawkins') - where the girls invite the boys. It's a dress-up event and, like Homecoming, there was a pre-dance dinner hosted by a school family with about 10 'couples', with parents invited to join.  The home was on Capital Hill - an old section of town with beautiful Victorian homes. The house had a 3rd floor open room for the kids to hang out and have dinner while the parents mingled on the main floor.  It was a beautiful home and perfect for an event like this. We enjoyed meeting a few more freshman parents and seeing the kids all decked out and having fun.

Thomas and his date, Elise

T and buddies

The crowd

I volunteered to pick Thomas up after the dance. He had arranged for his buddy Axa - the tallest one in the above pictures (at 6'7" and on the freshman team) - to spend the night. Matthew was still at his babysitting gig when we got back around 11, so I waited up till he got home around midnight. A long, but fun day.