Back to the Lax

This past weekend was a pretty good one, all things considered.  We had a weekend at home and it ended up being a good mix of productivity, fun, and just enough restfulness (I guess--is it ever really enough?).  Craig went to his cousin's stag on Friday in Buffalo, so it was just me and the boys for the evening and next morning.  Once Craig came home, I was determined to do some running around.  I wanted to stop at a couple roadside stands and the Farmer's Market outside the mall.  I was craving some fresh produce and also wanted to scope out some plants for our yard.  For at least three summers I've been on the hunt for a new bush to replace an out-of-control one that I hacked down, and for a couple years I've needed to fill a hole in our back flower bed that originally housed an annual I bought accidentally when I put in some boxwoods and phlox.  Although the bush is still elusive (though I'm thinking I might be able to pull off a smaller hydrangea there), I did find a pretty plant for the other spot.  I originally wanted something that flowers this time of year (since this is when we're out there most), but instead ended up with a really pretty plant that is a good fit for the limited sun there and has the most gorgeous purple under the leaves (which are a more muted green).  I think it will be a really nice addition--and it will bloom a bit in the spring, too.

After lunch and a little bit of rest time, we headed out to Canandaigua, which is about 45 minutes away.  Last year Craig played lacrosse late at night in a 24-hour lacrosse game called Shootout for Soldiers.  It's a full 24 hours of essentially one game (cumulative score, Stars vs. Stripes) where the teams change out every hour or two.  This year he was called upon to help emcee the opening ceremonies.  I figured maybe we could do something else while we were out there, like visit the lake or something, but after days on end of crazy heat, we finally had an overcast afternoon.  By the time we got there, the weather had turned almost cool, which has definitely not been an issue most of this summer.  It was actually still a pleasant afternoon and evening, though, and we ended up having a very nice time.

Craig standing by during the opening ceremonies

Lots of groups on the field for the ceremonies honoring various veterans and the family of a deceased soldier

Afterward, we wandered over to the food trucks and other activities.  The boys played this game called Spikeball where you use the palm of your hand to bounce the ball off this little trampoline net to the other person.

Carter and I took on a game of giant Jenga!  He doesn't quite have the technique down, though.  Countless times he tried to take out a piece right next to a missing one, which would have immediately sent it tumbling.  Physics class in a few years, buddy...

They also had a few awesome bounce houses with slides, which Carter loved!  He actually went in with one of Jacob's teammates who we ran into there, and he had a blast!

It turned out a couple families from Jacob's team were there, and as everyone got talking, it led to Jacob getting recruited to play with their team (though their local house program) the following morning in a three-game round robin event.  So, we grabbed some dinner on the way home, got the boys in bed, and made a return trip the next morning!

It was a drizzly morning, which has been a rarity this summer, but luckily it pretty much cleared up and we only had to deal with a few drops while we were there.  It even got sunny later on.  It was great to reconnect with a couple team families while we were there, and the games were fun to watch!

Jacob's in the silver helmet, and moments after he received this pass, he went in and scored an awesome goal, mid-fall!

No goal here, but close!  Too much pressure...literally!  The goalie is another one of his FCA teammates, playing for the other team!

It was a lot of fun to watch the games, and soon enough we were done!  Carter wanted to go play in the bounce houses again, and we scoped out lunch options.  In the meantime, one of the FCA families bought a box of cupcakes at the cake raffle booth, and guess who got to eat one? ;-)

We grabbed some lunch on the way home (then got caught up playing cool video games for free at the tech-savvy Burger King we ate at), and I finished up the day by planting my new plant and going crazy clearing out baby trees and other random greenery from the way back of our yard.  In the process I also picked about a cup of blackberries from the wild vines in our yard!  I think that's the most I've ever gotten, and there are a lot more still ripening if I can get them before the birds!  Oh, and despite eating out half the weekend already, we had frozen yogurt for dinner because our favorite place had a BOGO day.  So, not a bad weekend at all.

After a great lacrosse weekend, we had high hopes for Monday's FCA tryouts.  That story is still in process, though, so stay tuned...