Anderson-1st grade Basketball

Another year, another basketball season in the books. 

This year Anderson was on the Bulls team & he loved it because he had some friends on the team, his rec specs & shoes matched his uniform, he had fun and they were good!

One of the differences this year is that Anderson really had to work hard to earn his starting spot on the team. I know it sounds crazy that a 1st grader has this level of competition, but in case you have not met Anderson, he actually thrives on competition. And, we believe in preparing him for the real world which is, as it turns out, a competition. 

With that being said, it was a little bit of a struggle for him because he is honestly not used to having to work in sports. We practiced A LOT at GG's house over the last few months. I might never actually work out, but I still far surpass my daily goal of steps thanks to raising Anderson. 

It was a good thing we had all of that extra practice time because at most practices/games, I was just trying to keep up with this guy. 

Seriously, so.much.entertaining.Max. 

Some weeks Anderson had 2 games and 2 different practices in a 3 day period and there are just so many fruit snacks, YouTube videos on my phone and random junk in my purse that will keep Max occupied. I am looking forward to outside sports again. 

Another Mom sent me these shots because she was not entertaining her 3 year old in the corner/bathroom. 

Aunt LoLo gave him a gift card for his birthday and he knew exactly what he wanted: a mouthguard. 

"Mama, you know I only get one set of permanent teeth, so I need to protect them. I am doing so many saves at our games; this will help."

Like most kids, he just loves to win and he LOVED being a part of a winning team this season.

I love his seriousness. 

I do also love the after game snacks. This is something I will miss when they are older. I know that is weird, but it is true. 

Seriously, a lot of practicing. 

Also.....SO much of this. I really think I will enjoy the days of not having to entertain this one at practices/games. The moments where he was sitting were not too bad, but they were not that common. Max loves to watch YouTube videos and gets so mad when he cannot find the exact one that he wants. Plus, I do not want him just sitting and watching my phone for an hour, so there is a struggle. #FirstWorldProblems

As I mentioned, his team was really good! They actually ended up undefeated and won their league championship!! 

So proud. 

Anderson made the All Star Team again this year & we were, of course, so proud of him. The top kids out of the 100 or so in the league made it and he worked so hard to be one of those kids. As always, he was the ONLY kid in the entire league in rec specs, which means he had to work just a little harder to overcome the lack of complete peripheral vision (and, you know, that whole lack of complete vision thing). I am always so proud to say, "My kid is the one in the rec specs."  

The flip side was....more basketball games. 

In a random twist, we went to Chattanooga to play a game against some other teams. We won even though it did not really go as planned*. In other news, how cute are the kids just goofing off before the game?

*Not as planned= the other team was crazy, their coach couldn't stop cussing, there was almost a fight and we had to leave before the second game.

Warming up in their way too big shooter shirts. 

Then, after 4 nights of driving across town (literally- we drove from one county line to the other,) his All Star team won the entire championship!

His cheering section was just a little proud. 

The team. 

I was there, driving from West Knoxville to East Knoxville back to West Knoxville and back to East Knoxville.....

True story: I literally yell the entire game. It is such a real thing, this parenting business. My mind knows that I should be calm, but my kid is out there and, well, logic is just not in control at that point. 

And, of course, Lily was able to join us for the championship game!

Some videos:

A basketball

Another one

Bulls receiving medals (lots of me yelling in the background....)

A random one

All Star plaques 

He ain't afraid of no ghosts.

If you know anything about Max, you know that in his short life he has already lived as the following:

1. Ninja Turtle

2. Fireman

3. SWAT guy

4. Army soldier

5. Police man

Well, now you can add Ghostbuster to the list. 

If there's something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call?

MAX GLOVER. 

He loves, loves Show & Tell but has a hard time identifying the actual letter because he usually just wants to bring what he wants to talk about that week. So, we sort of snuck in this book for the letter F. 

On a random whim, I bought the old school "Ghostbusters" movie for the boys for Christmas. It was a part of some kind of Amazon $1 deal, I think. Anyway, Max became obsessed with it. Please remember that this kid does not actually sit still during movies, but for some reason, the 1980's has won him over. 

This outfit was his original creation. It was complete with his snow overalls, dog lanyard thing as a belt, Ninja Turtle mask, gloves and Anderson's Halloween scuba tank as his proton pack. 

He takes the whole thing every seriously and traps "ghostes" in his ghost trap/marker maker. 

I mean....he even took it to school. 

And, because I cannot resist anything related to telling his face no, I ordered him a costume. He couldn't wait to get home everyday and check the mail for it and one day I found him sitting on the porch at 6:20am "waiting for the mailman to bring my Ghostbuster uniform." It finally came in & he was literally giddy. 

In the spirit of Slimer, we had to make actual slime one day. 

Of course he LOVES being a ghostbuster at school. 

Some videos:

Max Ghostbuster

Max getting ready as a Ghostbuster

Max singing ghostbusters

Random Update.

This guy really is still my favorite. I mean, that cute little beard is just too much.  

The other day someone I work with made a comment about how I "do it all" and I literally had to choke back a laugh. I am not sure if maybe I brushed my hair that day & I gave off the impression that I was getting something done, but I made sure to send her this picture later that evening because it captures what all I am really doing: simultaneously cooking a variety of already made meals/frozen chicken nuggets, trying to not step on Chloe who is superglued to the bottom of my feet all of the time, unpacking the day's backpacks & lunches while making the next day's lunches, ignoring the dirty dishes and, most importantly, counting* ketchup as a vegetable for my kids' dinner. 

*There is no "counting" of vegetables in my house. They get vitamins**-that counts for all of it, right?

**Possibly sour gummy vitamins. #winning

Speaking of doing all of the things, HOW IS IT STILL BASKETBALL SEASON?????

Seriously, Jan & Feb try to kill me every year with their 17 games each week, but there is always popcorn for dinner, so it somehow all evens out. 

Also, Anderson has so much passion for the Roadrunners & taking him to games is so much fun. He actually started crying when we lost one game, which was precious & alarming all at once. His favorite part of the game is when he gets to shoot baskets at halftime. 

This boy sleeps with more things than really are necessary. Also, how "boy" is he in this pic?? Construction sheets (S/O to Clare for those!), all kinds of vehicles, random animals, Monster blanket, camo jammies and, best of all, a black eye from running into someone at school that will never, ever go away. 

The top things that the boys do to annoy me involve the car: Max hides behind all things and, despite his normal presence which is similar to that of an bounding Golden Retriever puppy, he is quite Ninja-like in his ability to effortlessly hide in the car. 

Balloons with Bop at IHOP!

Swimming at Lucy's birthday party at the Y! Max is doing such an amazing job at swimming. He cannot go very far or deep, but he is very confident in being able to jump in and swim to the side of the pool. 

Look at this cutie, just hanging out at Lucy's party! I am constantly amazed at the fact that Clare has 3 kids and keeps them all alive and happy and fed and clothed.

We celebrated out favorite Uncle Curtis with delicious cake and lots of high quality pictures. 

I say it all the time, but I just hope my adult boys love me as much as the Glover boys love Toni. Right now Anderson tells me he wants to run away when he is mad at me and Max keeps count of the number of hugs he is going to take from me, but I have hope for our future. 

One night I convinced Anderson to read to Max at bedtime. 

It was super sweet & lasted about 2 minutes. 

Anderson used his Dick's gift card from Clare to buy this tank top and he is OBSESSED with it. Also, you might recognize the elevator from the Children's doctor offices downtown and that is because we went there 4 different times in a 1 month period. This does not sound like a lot, but trying to fit in driving from West Knoxville to East Knoxville for work then back to West to get A then back to East for the glasses, parking in the garage & making it to the place-all between the hours of 9am-3pm on a weekday because they have the worst hours ever is really just a nightmare. 

I know-first world problems. But, still. 

Brandon brought us TWELVE delicious pieces of heaven from Duck Donuts and we enjoyed every sprinkle/bacon piece. Yes, that is right-they have donuts with bacon!

Max has become obsessed with the 1980's "Ghostbusters" movie & it is hilarious. He normally does not like movies and has not really say through an entire one, but he LOVES this one. He tells us all about each character & is really into all of the different tools to collect the "ghostes." 

He has worn police, army or SWAT over his clothes to school every day for at least a year. Honestly, I have invested very little in clothing for him because I know it is just going to be covered up by his uniforms. 

I finally threw SWAT away and it was very bittersweet. On one hand, it smelled gross no matter how many times I washed it, the velcro was totally worn so it just hung open awkwardly and the letters were all faded on the back. On the other hand, he genuinely thought he was a SWAT guy for a really long time and it is sad to kill that dream. He is very mad that "I cannot find it" and I have a feeling that I am going to lose some hugs.

I have never seen a child eat/destroy a cupcake like Max. I mean, it is a very intense situation to have to witness. 

Thanks to Noni for bringing dinner over for the Superbowl! 

Also, things that did not make my Monday tolerable: Anderson waking up to realize that the Patriots had pulled off a huge upset over the Falcons.