The 1st Annual Summer Olympics

Inspired by the greatest athletes in the world, our family hosted the 1st Annual Rogers Olympiad...yesterday...in our backyard.

The nations of the world gathered to compete in swimming, track, and soccer events.

Represented by the most physically trained athletic specimens in our home, the following countries competed:
United States, featuring our lone American citizen Caeden
Canada, the Canuck cheerleader Jackson
France, the oh-so-French Cameron
Australia, the hockey playing John
Great Britain, me, because I kind-of have relatives from there!

First events - swimming. The 44 foot freestyle was a hard fought, to the wire, one-one hundreth of a second photo finish...won by FRANCE! But the 40 something mother of three was the story of this race, taking the silver medal!



Next event - football discus. The U.S. fought a hard battle but the gold medal went to...France!



Next up - the track qualifying events. The top qualifier...France!

And finally soccer qualifying won by....................france....




These Olympics will continue when the U.S., Canada, Australia and Great Britain return from an international goodwill visit to CANADA! France has to stay behind and do more training...

Aren't These The Lazy Days of Summer?!

I came home from Caeden's first soccer clinic last night, just as John got home from the football Gridiron meeting and Cameron was dropped off from a two hour baseball practice...

"Cameron has a busy day tomorrow", he said. "He has two hours of lifting for football in the morning, a couple hours of work with Ken, a baseball practice at 3, and his first practice with the Varsity football team at 6".

I responded, "...and don't forget that I have an important business meeting until five and then I need to have Caeden back at his soccer clinic at 7".

And he responded, "and I think Cameron's in a baseball tournament starting on Thursday".

And I responded, "what's Jackson doing?..."

Jackson said, "Enjoying my summer!"

We're Back To Insanity!

The silly season began with a vengeance at 4pm today...that's when all the sports and chaos converged into one...long...track meet, baseball practice (x2), booster club meeting...

It started with Cameron's first track meet of the year. He ran three races - the 1600 (or mile)...he came in third (impressive). Then the 400 - which incidentally took place about five minutes after the mile...he came in fifth (still impressive given his exhaustion). Then the 4 X 400 relay - his team SMOKED the competition - in fact, these boys were only 15 seconds off the school record WITH NO PRACTICE! They literally assembled the team while at the meet!

As Cameron was running amok; two baseball practices began - his and Jackson's - but he was an hour late for his and Jackson had to leave and find another place to practice as every field was full. So our best laid plan of being able to attend the Gridiron Booster Club meeting while two were at practice was fouled up!

As it was, I left with Caeden to find Jackson and his team - somewhere south of our town...Cameron walked to his practice at the south end of the school...and John went to the Gridiron alone!

We all converged back here at 8:10 for a late night pizza and homework.

And so it begins...

Ughh...Be Careful What You Wish For!

I disappeared again.

Not that I haven't been inspired to write. Quite the contrary...I have been writing for everyone but me!

I have been writing proposals, marketing plans, brochures, press releases, website pages and mission statements. All part of my grand plan to start my own marketing firm.

Be careful what you wish for because it could come true!

When I come up for air, I promise I will re-connect the world to the SportsMum clan!

As a teaser...Caeden and Jackson had baseball try-outs last weekend...Cameron is still recovering from his injured knee (one more week!)...Jackson entered a wrestling tournament and was eliminated in two rounds...Caeden was asked to consider joining a competitive soccer team for next fall...and John's team is out of the hockey play-offs and he is now polishing his golf clubs for the Ohio PPGA (Pretty Pathetic Golf Association)tour...

Theme Thursday - Focus

Welcome to the world of OCD where FOCUS is taken to the extreme.

Jackson finds flaws in his sports jerseys that no one else can see. I have become the master of "fixing" holes and lose threads - or simply reassuring him that the flaw is a design element within the shirt.

If only he would focus this much during math class! :))

And So It Begins...Again!

Our brief reprieve from sports is over...Here is the schedule for this Saturday...

6:30 a.m. - Cameron catches the bus for an ALL DAY wrestling tournament about an hour and a half from here

8:00 a.m. - John leaves to go to Cameron's tournament

8:30 - 10:00 a.m - Jackson has wrestling practice

9:00 a.m. - Caeden has basketball practice

10:00 a.m. - Jackson has baseball conditioning

11:00 a.m. - Jackson, Caeden and I leave for Cameron's tournament

Sometime Saturday Night - We crawl in the door and crash!

And Sunday? It begins again with Jackson's regular Sunday wrestling matches.
So much for a day of rest...This IS the sporting life...

To Sleep, To Dream

As I write this it is 8:50 on a Monday morning - I've been up since seven; got the kids dressed, prepared breakfast, made lunches, and sent them out the door to catch the bus. It is 8:50 in the morning - my husband is still asleep...

Now I do have to say that since he has been out of work, he has been pretty fair about getting up on alternate mornings, or on mornings when I have a meeting, to get them off to school. Not that it helps me, as I usually get up too - once I'm awake, I'm awake - and they are incredibly noisy in the morning! But, even after he gets them off to school, he lies back down on the couch and sleeps for another hour or so...

Why is he so sleep deprived? Because he stays up and watches Sports Center until 1:00 in the morning!!!!

Frankly, I don't get it...as soon as the boys come downstairs in the morning they turn on ESPN and in the evening they catch up on the day with ESPN. Then, of course, whenever there is a game - weekend football, weeknight hockey - it is on our television.

He has seen virtually every game available to watch or caught up on the pre and post game shows, and yet, he still needs to watch Sports Center at midnight!!!

The only answer, the only way he will stop this madness?! HE NEEDS TO GET A JOB!!! Pray for me people...

By the way - it's now 9:10 and my husband is still asleep!

Homework and Aspergers Part Deux

We had math homework again tonight - this time for Jackson and Caeden.
The new deal is - John will continue with the 5th grade version (God be with them both!), but I have to handle the 3rd grade!
I had to believe I could handle that - until...the word problems! The minute I see sentences with numbers in the middle I immediately go into seizures. Last week it took me 20 minutes to figure out if Johnny had 20 cards and he gave Joey 4 then Sam gave him eight, how many did he have?
Tonight's gem? Jill baked cookies in the morning. (I can bake cookies but from here on out, I was lost...) Her brother ate 4 of the cookies. In the afternoon, Jill baked 24 more cookies. She now has 44 cookies. How many cookies did Jill bake in the morning?
Feel free to amuse yourself with this little riddle...
I will go back to being SportsMum and writing about the things I know for sure...3 Boys + 3 football practices + 2 hour time frame = Dinner at McDonalds!

Having John Home...

Until June of this year, John very seldom watched his boys play sports.
We moved to this area four years ago this week - not by choice, but by necessity. John was one of the unlucky "victims" of the fall-out from 9/11...a senior consultant in the computer industry. Along with several of his fellow consultants, he lost his job late in 2002.
The complete story is too long and still too painful to give in full detail, but we ended up moving across the country, for a job offer that turned out to be a scam. Fortunately, we moved from the MOST expensive area of the U.S. (California) to the least expensive (Check out any survey in Forbes and our area will be listed at the bottom...).
While we are fortunate to live in our dream home, John was not able to find a dream job, or ANY job for that matter. As a result - he did contract work, out of state, for several years.
The worst was 18 months in Madison, Wisconsin. He was paid his expenses for his time there but he had to cover his travel home. So...he came home every two or three weeks...
I really tried to do it all while he was gone - school, work, house, sports...Bottom line - it was killing us all...I wanted help, he wanted to be here, and the boys just wanted their Dad!
So he came home...he took a job with a significant pay drop - an hour commute each way. In hindsight, not the greatest move financially but he made a knee jerk reaction. At the time - Cameron was playing on his final All-Star team for Little League. He just wanted to see his son play...

So today being Saturday, we watched our boys play...
And I watched him...I watched as he saw Jackson win his game 41 to 12. I watched as he saw Caeden score a touchdown (bobbling the hand-off the entire time but still making it in...) I watched as he saw Cameron practice with his new Pony baseball team - batting with one hand (still in a cast...) and hitting into the outfield.
I watched him watch his boys...and realized that he really is the best Dad in the world!

4:30 to 6:00 (or later...)

It seems everyday, beginning around 4:30pm, life as we know it becomes the Ringling Brothers Circus. That is generally the time I begin running children to three different locations; practices, games, lessons etc., finishing up sometime after 6pm. The sometime after 6 is the variance in this scenario...
Last night, we thought we had everything under control. Cameron started his practice right after school (no worries about him until pick-up at 6), Jackson began at 4:30 at one school, Caeden began at 5:00 at another. John and I perfectly coordinated who would pick up each child, while still allowing me time to get to the grocery store and buy some sort of dessert for our new bible study class that began at 7pm.
I knew I was in trouble when no one was at the field for Caeden at 5pm.
As I sat in my kidmobile, waiting, my cell phone rang...it was a guy from church who works for some sort of lobbying group that I had agreed to join and he needed a check from me within the half hour so he could make his quota for the month. I needed to find a window of time to meet him...
Quick change of plans - John would pick up Jackson at 6, Caeden at 6:30, I will get Cameron at the middle school. In between, I will run home and write my lobbying check...why do I need lobbying again?! I'm Canadian!
When I get to the middle school, Cameron and his team are still on the field. At 6:10 John calls to say Jackson is ALSO still on the field. Time to call the bible study leader...
"Don't worry - show up late...", but I'm scheduled for dessert!...The panic rises in my throat...It's our first night with this new group!
When I get home with Cameron I need to put some sort of dinner together for the boys. John and I?...Guess we'll be starting our first Tuesday of the month prayer and fasting 12 hours early...
John gets home with the other two - runs up the stairs to change - some sort of fish and chicken nugget pasta thing gets put on the table for the boys - and we run out the door (I think it's 6:50 at this point)
Next stop - Giant Eagle for the dessert thing...as we look for something that tastes homemade, John wonders if I know where the Hawkins live? Down the street by the Lutheran church and it's the only house with a white picket fence...
Three streets and two picket fences later (7:20pm) - we land at our destination - completely calm and ready for an enlightening and wonderous evening of bible study!
Not sure about John, but I am completely glazed over by this point - I think I heard a story about Phillip and Spartans and Jews (no, wait a minute...the Spartans are Cameron's football team!)
Oh well - I got it half right. I think God gives bonus points...

The Season Has Begun!

Yesterday we had three football practices, at the same time, in three different locations. That is typical of this sporting life we have created in our family. "We" being The Rogers Family - Dad John, Mum Cynthia, and three sons, Cameron, Jackson and Caeden.
I guess I should have expected sports would become our life - I fell in love with my husband the day I met him; after he had quarterbacked his Sunday football team to victory!
I love testosterone...it oozes from every corner of our house. From the cleats, pads and helmets lying all over the floor of our mud-room;
to the bats, gloves and catching gear on the floor of the garage (notice the pattern of things on the floor?!)
Oh yeah - and my 50 year old husband's ice hockey goalie pads hanging from the bicycles in the shed!
I hope this blog will chronicle our sporting adventures, successes and many, many failures. If only to simply help me to find a release from the madness - I can vent and decompress through these writings!
Of course - it's also a way to talk about my children - the good, bad and the so very, very ugly! Like this morning (and this has absolutely nothing to do with sports...) Jackson has come down with a nasty cold. Jackson also has Asperger's Syndrome (more on that in future posts...) He was sniffling and coughing and generally an open faucet of yuck! He sneezed and I knew from the sound that it was ugly -- sure enough, there was oobleck all over his shorts and he didn't really care that he had five minutes to get out to the bus! As I gagged and choked over the sink, I spit out to him that he is just gross - WRONG! His cold is gross! Not my son!! I think he got it though - he actually let me comb his hair right after, without screaming for me to stop!
So tonight we only have two practices - one involving the oobleck oozing Jackson! Think he'll want to stay home for one night?!
yeah...right...