Holly Armstrong Named Twisters MVP

Holly Armstrong Named Twisters MVP! Holly has been playing soccer this season, but I’ve neglected to mention it on the site until now. I can’t keep quiet any longer, because in this Saturday’s game, Holly was named MVP! This is her first season to play, but she has been improving rapidly, particularly on defense. In this game, she didn’t let the other team near the goal for the first 58 minutes of the 60 minute game. Yes, the other team finally scored when the game was almost over, but it was The Twisters’ first tie (and first non-loss). Several of the girls nominated Holly as MVP, and the coach said she would have overridden them and given it to Holly no matter what.

Holly’s Oklahoma grandmother (Mamaw) was visiting us and also got to see Holly’s great performance.

Baby Bunny Rabbit

Baby Bunny Rabbit. During my first lawn mowing of the year (and it’s still officially Winter!), I frightened a tiny rabbit and it  ran across the road. As small as it was, I was surprised it could run so fast. Strangely, once it got across the road, it just stopped. I went over to check on it, and even as I approached closely, it stayed right where it was. To my amazement, I was able to pick it up. At that point it got lively again, kicking and scratching. It was so small though, that I was in no danger. I knew Holly wouldn’t be satisfied just to hear this story, and that I would have to show her the rabbit in person. Since Holly was out shopping with Michelle, I put the little critter in a container with lots of grass to keep it comfortable until she got home. I thought it would thrash too much for Holly to be able to hold it herself, but it remained calm long enough for her to ooh and ah, and coo and cuddle it. After this, we let it go in some tall grass behind our property.  Hold your mouse over the small images to read a description. Click to see a larger version.

Andrew’s First Track Meet

Andrew’s First Track Meet. Andrew is running track this year, and it turns out he is best at running distance. He has become one of the best milers in the 7th grade at MMS, and the mile was the race he ran in his first track meet. There were 8 schools competing and with events taking place for 7th grade girls, 7th grade boys, 8th grade girls, and 8th grade boys, the meet went well into the night. Andrew’s mile run was the next to the last event, not starting until around 10pm. Since he’d been standing around and goofing off since the meet’s start at around 3pm, he had had quite a wait. After some instructions from the judges, about nineteen 7th grade boys stepped up to the starting line. Andrew says he had butterflies the size of Thanksgiving turkeys in his stomach, but that didn’t last long once the starter’s gun went off. We think he did pretty well for his first race. He came in right in the middle of the pack, but expects to improve rapidly in coming races.

Getting instructions before the race. (Andrew is on the far left)

Lined up at the starting line and waiting for the gun.

Andrew streaks past during his third lap.

(Unfortunately, my camera battery went dead, so I didn’t get photos of the end of the race.)

New Member of the Family

New Member of the Family. I wanted to say “household”, but Holly insists that our new cat is a member of the family. “Simon” (he’s Siamese, get it?) had been hanging around outside for over a week, sometimes disappearing for a short time, but always turning back up on our doorstep. Well, it looks like we’re going to take him in for good. I would never have guessed that Michelle would accept a stray cat into the house, but this guy is so handsome and has such a fun personality that she just couldn’t resist.

At first, it seemed like Simon’s biggest personality trait would be how affectionate he is, but it soon became apparent that he loves to play. His favorite solo toys are Holly’s elastic ponytail holders. He can flip one of these things into the air with either his mouth or paws, and remain entertained by it for a surprisingly long time. He also likes to play hide and seek, with an emphasis on chasing and being chased. He used to enjoy staring at the mouse pointer moving around on the big movie screen as I would browse the web and read emails. That was until he actually jumped to grab the mouse pointer and tore a few holes in the fabric! He’s not allowed anywhere near the screen now.

Holly’s Website Finally Updated

Holly’s Website Finally Updated! After over a year of stagnation, Holly has finally updated HollysNotebook.com. Andrew has also done some work on AcesBase.com recently. Check ’em out.