Anna showing off her new haircut

This week was another full week of camps for the kids. Jude had another Challenger Sports soccer camp, this time it was all day and the coaches were all visiting from Brazil. Anna had a half day soccer camp and then art camp in the afternoon. I asked Jude after two full weeks of soccer camps if he was sick of soccer and he said no. He would happily do it all summer long I think. Anna really enjoyed both her camps as well.

On Saturday, Anna got a haircut that you can see above, she just loved it and we did too. While Marcy and Anna were at the hairdressers Jude and I were wandering around Cherry Creek. We went to the farmers market and also checked out Restoration Hardware where Jude took a liking to some of the stuffy chairs.

Jude relaxing at Restoration Hardware

Today was Father’s Day and I had a wonderful day. The kids gave me the sweetest cards at breakfast this morning and Anna made a special Happy Father’s Day banner at the bottom of the stairs. Then we went off to play some golf. We played the 9-hole course at CommonGround, where kids golf free. It was nice to enjoy the morning with everyone on the golf course. Jude is so competitive but Anna can hold her own for the most part.

Playing golf at CommonGround on Father’s Day

For the last year or so Jude and Anna have had a strained relationship at times. We are all working on it but it can be tough going some times. So, when they agreed to hold hands for a photo on Father’s Day I had to take them up on it.

Jude and Anna in the back yard on Father’s Day morning

At Jude’s first ever World Cup Qualifying game featuring the US team

The highlight of the week, at least for Jude and I, was seeing the US men’s soccer team play a World Cup Qualifying match in Denver. A couple of weeks ago Jude was looking at the USA team schedule and noticed they were playing in Denver. So, we looked online for tickets and there was some for sale. We purchased two tickets and headed to the game on Thursday night.

I don’t think I have ever seen Jude more excited to see a game. We parked about a quarter mile away from the stadium and Jude wanted us to sprint to get to the stadium in time (we were running a little late). We made it to our seats in five minutes, just as the US team was coming out on to the field. It was a great game with the US winning 2-0 over Trinidad and Tobago and obviously Jude was thrilled. I think it will be an evening he remembers for a long, long time.

This weekend began a little early with Anna’s gymnastic performance. After a week of camp Anna’s group did a performance for parents. Anna did really well, especially considering that for much of the week she was injured with her hand and knee.

Anna playing the bean bag toss at the farm

Yesterday Anna had a birthday party with a school friend and last night we went out to a farm south of Denver. It was Zuma’s Rescue Ranch and they were doing a fundraiser. This is a farm that Anna’s friend Reed has been going to for some time and they invited us along. It was a beautiful ranch and we saw the sun set over the fields and foothills. And we played quite the game of bean bag toss.

Anna giving it a swing as Jude looks on

Today we had a quiet morning but this afternoon I took Jude and Anna to the local par 3 course which is right by their school. We had a surprisingly good time. They both enjoyed it and each had some good hits. Jude, ever the competitive one, won the day but Anna held her own throughout. Anna wants some new clubs now which is fair enough – she only has a putter and a seven iron.

Searching for crawdads in Harvard Gulch

Right next to the golf course is a creek that the kids have been to a few times. Jude really wanted to go looking for crawdads and so they brought their nets and waded through the creek. It is only a five minute walk from school so they have been here a few times with their class. They didn’t find much although did manage to bring home a dead crab.

School’s out for summer! Anna with some classmates on the last day of school

The kids have been literally counting down the days until school got out for over a month. And this past Friday the day finally arrived. Jude and Anna are both very excited about the summer and are happy to be done with school. Anna celebrated with a class party at a neighborhood and Jude’s class had a picnic in the park.

Jude with the team trophy and his medal after winning their soccer tournament

This weekend was mostly about soccer. Jude’s soccer team had a tournament to close their season. They have been improving steadily throughout the year and they really put it together for this tournament. They went through undefeated and dominated their opponent in the final winning 11-0. Jude scored three goals over the weekend including a good penalty kick in the final.

Jude’s team and coaches after their final win

On Saturday afternoon/evening we had a block party. We blocked off the street and everyone contributed food and drink. While we have met a few of the neighbors over the last six months it was good to meet many more. What is good is that pretty much all the kids on our block are between the ages of 5 and 12 so there is a lot of potential for playmates, although there are more boys than girls.

Anna and Jude in a scooter race – they are actually going quite fast

Part of the evening was an impromptu scooter race with some of the neighbor kids. It started off as just a friendly race and became quite competitive as the afternoon wore on. After literally a couple of hours of races, we were about to call it quits and then Anna has a pretty bad fall. She scraped her knee and hand pretty badly and was in considerable pain. It was a bummer of an end to a great day.

Anna wearing the new dress she made in sewing class

Anna has been taking sewing classes for several months now and she loves it. She can operate a sewing machine quite well now and she has made all kinds of great things in her classes. This past week she was very excited because she made her very first dress – she designed and sewed it together. Of course, she showed it off on the second last day of school this week.