Soccer balls, ramps and dog tricks

Soccer has officially started. This is Reed's first season playing, Evyn's second. The club they are playing for had their kick off last Saturday and held little training camps. We got lucky and Evyn and Reed's age groups were lumped together so he got to be with his sister during his introduction to soccer. We are not so lucky when it comes to their games - different fields (located 5-10 miles apart) and similar games times most weeks, so that stinks because I was selfishly hoping Holly could be the soccer mom.

Holly has also taken bike riding to a whole new level. She constructed a ramp (a rather ghetto-looking ramp, I might add) and the kids are now begging to go out and "catch some air." Falling off the bike is now referred to as "crashing and burning." If you do not use the phrases correctly, you will be corrected by a four year old. These guys are daredevils....definitely my children.

Our boy Troy has also learned a couple of new tricks. This month marks a year since we rescued our spotted goofball. In the last few months, we have noticed that when Troy is outside and would like to come back in, he knocks on the door. The first time it happened, I had to peek out and look around the back yard - I expected to see a person waiting, not a dog.

He also hates it when we are out front playing and he is not included. During his anxious pacing, going from window to window to try to catch a better view of what we are doing, he has discovered that if the door is not pulled tight, he can grab the knob with his mouth, give it a quick tug and bolt. He does not run away but he does tear around the yard like a maniac, as you can see in the picture below. Holly was outside taking pictures of the biking daredevils and just happened to catch Troy in the background as he was running as fast as he can in circles around the yard. He's pretty clever, being as goofy as he is.