Cross Country Begins & Ends

It seemed that as soon as Cross Country started this year - IT ENDED! With two weeks of snow and school cancellations, the five week program came to an end last week. Track has started and Ben is off on another adventure!





In this cross-country race he ran the 2-miler in a 14:27. Not Bad - especially for missing the first week of practice. (He/we forgot to register in time.)

I asked Ben if he enjoys running; he didn't have much of a reply. (I think he'd rather be reading a book.)

The New Stake Center

Last Sunday evening we had the opportunity to gather together with other members of our faith for the dedication of our new Stake Center. The Stake Center is located in Frisco, about 6 miles from our home.

The groundbreaking ceremony was held a year and 5 months ago. It went up very quickly and of course is just BIG and beautiful inside (gotta' be the church in Texas)!

Hand-dipped DELIGHT

If you've never had a Costco Hand-Dipped Ice Cream Bar... than you need to! They are wonderful! Happy Valentine's Day!

A Busy Saturday

Today was a busy day. It started with a long run - we haven't been running with all the snow and ice for the past 2 weeks. It was a nice break (snow & ice) - but it was a rough start this morning to get back in to the swing of things. I have a girlfriend who is thinking about a marathon in April in Houston and I would kinda' like to train with her but don't really have the "ambition" to train for a full marathon at this time. (I feel like the Frankenthon (26.2) was just the other day.) So... wait and see.

We got back in time to get over to Nick's gym meet in Allen. It was the yearly Friendship Invitational. It was very very "friendly" to Nick this year! :) Below is his routine on pommel. He received 1st on pommel (15.2), high bar (15.0), vault (14.7) and rings (14.6). He took the All-Around with an 87.4. Team Eagle (Level 6) took 1st place! Nice Job boys!

He sure was enjoying himself at this meet - you could tell on his face. He ended his high-bar routine with a very enthusiastic double-arm pump, before the customary salute. He was excited!

After we came home from the gym meet we ate a quick dinner and loaded everyone up to head to a Texas Tornados hockey game - EXCITING, FUN, FAST-PACED (oh yeah)! (I am so very glad that none of our boys have asked to play hockey - talk about a rough sport!) Christopher had a b-day party invitation to the hockey game and we all "tagged along" for an enjoyable evening. The game went into overtime with 2 apiece, but the TT ended up losing when Amarillo scored the winning 3rd point. Oh well, still fun! (And no one has asked YET to join any hockey team... shew!)

Day 4

Bart Conner Invitational

Bart Conner (1984 Olympic Champion) is married to Nadia Comaneci (3x Olympic Gold Medal Winner) and they own a gym in Norman Oklahoma... who would have thought!?!?

Nicholas had a gym meet last weekend down in Norman (that's Sooner Country for some of us Cornhusker fans). He and Glenn did the roadtrip on Friday night and I stayed back with the rest of the gang. We did basketball with Zachary and soccer with Christopher. During the off time we watched TV and laid around! YES! As for Nick, he worked hard and played hard too.

He received 3rd in the All-Around. (Harrison Kaster, a fellow team mate, received 2nd in the All-Around. Great Job Harrison!) This is the first meet ever that Nicholas did not receive a 1st place medal; that's not like Nick... but let's just say that this was a very good "learning" meet. Eagle Gymnastics Level 6 Team (comprised of Harrison, Zach and Nick) received 1st place!

Rings was looking AWESOME till he lost his handstand position and fell. Though he was able to get back in to his routine, it lowered his points significantly and he walked away with 4th place (13.8). He received 2nd in the high bar (14.5), vault (14.6) and p-bars (14.4).

Following is his high bar routine:





In the evening, after the invitational, the Oklahoma Men's Gymnastics Team hosted the Minnesota Gymnastics Team. Two of the Oklahoma team members are from Mesa Arizona; they are brothers. Coach Anthony was Nick's coach when we lived in Mesa; it was a fun time for them both!