Running Routes

If the weather is even remotely tolerable, there's a good chance you'll find Drew & Jackson somewhere in the neighborhood tossing around a ball.  This fall it was all about football.  The boys were almost always in the front yard, across the street in the green belt or next door at the swimming pool playing football.

On this particular day, Drew was teaching Jackson a three-step drop and I'll be darned if the little dude didn't have it mastered.  Since this video was taken he's perfected his passing skills and throws a perfect spiral nearly every time, but I still love this video of a typical day in the life of the boys in my house.  And I especially love Jack's little "hut" as he snaps the ball.

Jackson Rides a Bike

Sometime last summer, back when we were still living in Castle Rock, Jackson requested that we take the training wheels off Travis.  Travis Michaelson that is.  Because every child gives his bike a first and last name right?  We obliged, took a few obligatory photos and  a video or two and let him roll.

It was a valiant effort, but not particularly successful.  It was only a few days before he wanted the wheels back, but we insisted that they were off for good and he needed to learn to ride without them.  As a result, the bike sat untouched for nearly three months.

On occasion Drew or I would suggest that he give the bike another try but Jack was completely uninterested.

One day in late October while taking Ruby for a quick walk after school Jackson asked if he could ride Travis.  He was worried that Travis was getting a little lonely hanging in the garage all by himself.  (And I imagine the twin 6-year-old girls next door who rode their bikes - without training wheels - had a little to do with it as well.)  It was the first time Jack had expressed an unprompted interest in his bike since the training wheels came off so I seized the moment.  I spent the rest of our walk explaining to him how easy it was going to be for him to ride on two wheels.  I told him it was all about keeping your balance and looking straight ahead while your legs did all the work.  I reminded him what a good athlete he is and that he is very strong so it was going to be a piece of cake for him.  By the time we got back to the house he was pumped up and ready to go.

Drew was still at work, but I decided to keep going while we had this momentum.  We walked across the street where there is a nice wide sidewalk through a green belt area.  I held on to the back of his seat while Jack got his balance.  Then I gave him a little push and let go.

I'm not sure which of us was more surprised when he pedaled away as though he'd been riding forever.

No running behind and holding the seat.  No crashes and skinned knees.  No lesson from Dad, a former cyclist himself.  I like to think my pep talk had a little to do with his instant success, but more than anything I think he was just ready.  We were both pretty proud to show off his new skills when Drew pulled down the street and witnessed the little cyclist in action.

Since then Travis has been replaced with Travis 2 thanks to Grump, the avid cyclist who always seems to have the next size bike ready and waiting for the grandchildren.  Jackson has been on countless bike rides, including a 6 mile trek on the river trails when Gram & Grump visited over Thanksgiving.  There were also a couple of helmets under the Christmas tree this year so now the whole family is ready to hit the trails once the weather warms up.

And just like that, Jackson Rides a Bike!

It's Official...I'm a Soccer Mom

First, let it be known that my husband hates soccer.  I'm not sure when or why this hatred developed, but it may very well be his least favorite sport of all time.  I could go on, but suffice it to say, he's not a fan.

Jackson, on the other hand, loves anything and everything that involves balls and sticks - including soccer - and has been playing sports (from golf to basketball to baseball to football) with his Dad since he learned to walk.  This is his mother talking, but the kid is athletic.  He can throw a spiral, hit a golf ball, run faster than most his age and has pretty awesome hand-eye coordination.  But we've never had him participate in any organized sports. We neglected to put him in soccer while living in Lawrence (see above). Tee Ball would have been an option this summer but since we were temporarily in Castle Rock, and somewhat unsure how long we would be there, we didn't pursue that either.  Once we got settled in Fort Collins getting him enrolled in some sort of fall sports was a top priority.

After some research, we decided that the programs the Parks & Rec Department offered were probably not the best fit.  They were mostly basic skills classes which we thought would be a little boring for Jack.  He's still a bit young for any football or basketball leagues and with tee ball season behind us the only real option at Jacks' age, much to his father's chagrin, is soccer.  Enter the Fort Collins Soccer Club.  

I discovered FCSC less than 1 week before the season's first game.  Based on the registration policies (teams are formed by geographic location on a first-come, first-served basis beginning in June and based on date and time of application, etc.) getting a spot less than a week before the season seemed like a long shot to say the least.  I'm pretty sure that's why Drew went along with it and we agreed to give them a call.  Long story short, while Jack's elementary school team was full there was one other team with a spot left (a private Catholic school in town) that happened to be using our neighborhood school as their practice facility.  He was in!

Reluctantly, Drew agreed that it would be great for Jack (although I think he secretly hopes that after playing it for a bit Jack will decide it's not his favorite either) and that very day we hit up the sporting goods store to buy shin guards, socks and a soccer ball.  

When Jackson learned we had found him a team he was absolutely overjoyed.

First Soccer Practice

Warming Up

Dribbling Drills

Flirting?  There's no flirting in soccer!

Go team!

I have to admit, soccer at this age is absolutely adorable.  One little girl declared, about 1.5 minutes into practice, "Coach...I think I'm done with soccer now."  A few minutes later 2 kids disappeared from the field to go pet a dog that was being walked in the park.  It's like herding cats.  And to top it off, Coach Chris let the kids vote on their team name this year.  The winner...Giraffes.

And so it begins.  Our calendar is now booked with soccer practice on Wednesdays and soccer games on Saturdays.  Jackson absolutely loves it.  He practices almost every night (at his own request) and despite knowing absolutely nothing about the game until last week, he's already getting the hang of it.

Drew and I laughed our way through the first game.  I should have kept a tally of how many times a coach or parent yelled "Wrong way!  Go the other way!"  There was a giant stuffed unicorn (or as Drew thought, a giant My Little Pony) in one of the goals to help the kids remember which was theirs.  There were snack breaks at halftime and following the game.  And while we were chuckling at being called Team Giraffes, our opponent was Team Mickey Mouse Club.  So there's that.

Pre-Game Warm Ups

Game Time!

Getting some pointers from Coach Chris.

Who knows if Jack will stick with it or not, but for now it's fun for all of us.  

Here's a video (from my phone - sorry for the poor quality) of the Giraffe's in action.  And yes, that's Drew, Mr. Anti-Soccer himself, you hear cheering in the background!

House Tour, Part II

Here is Part II of our house tour - the upstairs.

I have to mention, there is a LOT of work to do upstairs.  The walls are essentially bare.  While blinds have been ordered, the windows are currently covered in temporary paper shades and in desperate need of some fabric and color.  All of the bathrooms need accessorizing and new towels.  So, things will (hopefully) change quite a bit over the coming weeks and months, but at least this will give you the lay of the land.

Special shout out to my "tech girl" friend who clued me in on how to get videos to play on the iPad.  Thanks Laura!

House Tour, Part I

As promised, I finally got around to taking a quick video of the house, or half of it anyway.  My apologies for the shaky camera.  Hopefully you won't get motion sickness trying to keep up with me.

And without further adieu...welcome to our home!

Princeton's Winter Program

We got to check another first off the list this year...Jackson's first winter program.  The kids at Princeton put on a little show for their parents followed by hot cocoa and cookies in the multi-purpose room.

A four-year-old Christmas Concert?  That's right up my alley!

Warning:  The video below is nearly 5 minutes long.  Unless you answer to the names Nana or Gram it could be a painful 5 minutes.  No hard feelings if you can't quite make it to the end!

 

Sing. Sing a Song.

Jackson and I are currently on a short hiatus visiting family in Iowa.  Yay!

To tide you over until we return, here's a short video of the little guy in concert.  The song list includes:

Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.  Jack has been singing it to me at bedtime every night lately.  It's a stall tactic, I'm certain, but I find it cute so I allow it.  (Clearly, he's a master manipulator.)

The ABC's.  No idea why.  It was the artist's choice.

We AreYoung by Fun.  Jack's current favorite song.  We listen to it on the way to school.  We listen to it on the way home from school.  We listen to it every time we are in the car.  Have I mentioned how much I've grown to hate We Are Young by Fun.?

And without further adieu, I give you Jackson Elser...Live and in Concert!

Final Four, Baby!

What a ride!

Our beloved Kansas Jayhawks, who many claimed would be resigned to a rebuilding year for the 2011-2012 season, made it all the way to the National Championship.  Needless to say, this family of Jayhawks enjoyed every minute of that ride!

Jackson is a Jayhawk fan (he really has no choice at this point in his life) but even he took things up a notch as March Madness continued to heat up.   He insisted on wearing a Jayhawk shirt daily and even requested that I do laundry when he discovered that his jersey was not clean on the eve of the Final Four.  Needless to say, I did the laundry.

Like most superstitious sports fans, we tried to keep our routine consistent as the team progressed throughout he tournament.  We wore the same clothes, sat in the same chairs and drank out of the same glasses (washed first, of course).  By the end, we had ordered a whole lot of Italian take out - rotating between pizza and spaghetti for every game of the tournament.

It was such an exciting time to live in Lawrence, KS.  Not only was I proud of the team, I was proud of our community.  Every where you went people were covered in Crimson & Blue.  Perfect strangers were high-fiving and striking up conversations.  Red and blue balloons lined the aisles in the grocery stores.  Even the celebrations remained under control.  An estimated 40,000-50,000 fans flooded Massachusetts St. after we made it to the championship game yet everything remained orderly and peaceful.

Even though we lost in the final game, this team was anything but losers.  And as emotional as things can get in our house during sporting events (the North Carolina and Ohio State games nearly gave me heart failure!), it was eerily calm during the Championship game.  Kentucky was clearly the better team - but we made a valiant run at them toward the end.

I said it on facebook that night and I'll say it again: One helluva ride, KU!  Still proud to be a Jayhawk!

We decorated the front steps after beating North Carolina to advance to the Final Four.

On our way to Mass St. to celebrate with the masses after the North Carolina victory. 
Unfortunately, Jack missed the party.

Jackson posing with the (lucky perhaps?) Jayhawk Grump made Drew for his birthday. 
The Jayhawk was proudly displayed all season long.



J-A-C-K-S-O-N

Upon picking Jack up from school Tuesday night, his teacher was really excited to share some news.  Miss Amy has been working with the kids on learning the letters of their name.  For the first time this week, everyone in class mastered the task!  In order for the kids to share their new skill with Mom & Dad, Amy laminated name cards for each of the kiddos to bring home and demonstrate what they had been practicing.

Here's Jackson reciting the letters in his name (you might have to crank up the volume, he's speaking pretty quietly).

He sure it turning into a big kid!

An Interview with Andrew Jackson Elser - Attempt #2

Update:  Sorry about the technical difficulties.  I think I have it fixed now.  If not, leave me a comment and I'll try again!

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Jackson is full of questions - and answers - these days.  In fact, sometimes we have a hard time getting him to stop talking.  So I decided to document this stage and get him on camera in a little mock interview session.

Without further adieu, here is our little man about 6 weeks shy of his 3rd birthday.

Rock Chalk Jayhawk Go KU!

I'm afraid my plans to organize photos and get you caught up on The Elser 411 might have been thwarted.  Upon starting up the laptop last night I was greeted with a blank screen and the words:  Disk Read Error.

Not good.

I've called in IT reinforcement and am hoping for a fairly painless resurrection.  So not in the mood to go computer shopping just 3 months before being slammed with birthday/christmas palooza!  So...fingers crossed.

But all is not lost.  Enter random video on Flip camera.

With college football season now in full force (hooray!) our little Jayhawk fan has a message to share.

Go Hawks!

Happy Birthday Nana!

Sending wishes for a wonderful day.  Wish we could celebrate with you in person, but here's the next best thing:

Superstar in the Making

Jackson loves music.

Currently, he's into country.  Specifically, the Zac Brown Band (who he knows by name when any of their songs come on the radio) and Jason Aldean.  I can't count the number of times a day he asks to listen to "As She's Walking Away" or "Big Green Tractor". 

He's already quite the entertainer, complete with his microphone and cowboy hat.

So when Uncle Matt pulled out his guitar and let Jackson strum a few chords, you can only imagine his excitement. 

Jack is still talking about Uncle Matt's guitar nearly a week later.

Do we have a superstar in the making? 

Only time will tell!

Story Time

Jackson & I read a lot.  Lately, after I finish a story, he likes to read it back to me.  Most of the time he just turns pages and points out a picture or describes a scene.

A couple of nights ago I read a book we haven't read together in several weeks.  True to form, he requested a turn when I was done.  Only this time, to my surprise, he actually did "read" it (and by read I mean have every single page memorized).  Word for word.

I manged to recreate the scene last night.  Please excuse the poor quality.  I had to keep the camera out of sight.  Once the kids spots our Flip he refuses to do anything video-worthy and instead wants to watch himself on the screen.  Weird.  Wonder where he gets that.

Here is Jackson "reading" his first book.  (For the record, he's not quite 2 1/2.)

Testing the Flip

Tonight, I've been busy playing with our new Flip video camera - an early x-mas gift courtesy of the Bartel clan. 

Lucky us! 

And lucky you, too.  Now in addition to the stories and photos on The Elser 411, you'll have much more live and in color footage as well.

For attempt number 1 at trimming and posting a video...here is a quick little performance of Jackson's favorite Christmas song.  Enjoy!

Don't Know

This evening when I picked Jackson up from school, Miss Keirra asked if he had shown me "Don't Know" yet.  Somewhere (I'm guessing at school because I don't think Drew or I do this at home), he learned how to shrug his shoulders and reply "don't know".  Both Keirra and I find it completely hilarious. 

I'll let Jack show you himself.

Stay tuned for more video later this week.  We've been working on facial expressions!

The Itsy Bitsy Spider

This one's for you Aunt Mary!

Jackson was first introduced to the Itsy Bitsy Spider by my Aunt Mary during our summer vacation in Okoboji.  She was attempting to get Jackson (who was smack in the middle of a major mama's boy phase) to warm up to her.  Well, it stuck with him and he now performs the song for us regularly.

This isn't a perfect rendition (naturally...it never is when the camera is rolling) but you'll get the gist!

Say What?

Here's a little video of Jackson "reading" his new favorite book with Drew before bed tonight.

You're going to like this one, Papa.

Duck and Cow

Jackson has been learning animal sounds. He has the duck and the cow mastered; although his quack is more like "kack" and his moo is more like "mmmm".

He never seems to perform as well for the camera, but I did capture a little bit of it after dinner tonight.

Tickle, Tickle, Tickle

Apparently we do a lot of tickling around here.

Jackson doesn't have a lot of words, but he says the usual "mama", "dada", "uh-oh" and an occasional "dat". While he uses those words correctly in context, any other words we may think we've heard are probably just accidents. Until recently. He has now added "tickle" to his repertoire.

Earlier this week he was sliding down the stairs. (Interruption: I'm not sure if I've mentioned on the blog that for several weeks now he has had the stairs mastered. He knows to stop, turn to his belly and slide down them. If ever he gets too close to the edge, we simply say "Belly Jack" and he will turn over and decend properly. He's a smarty pants.) So anyway, he was sliding down the stairs. I happened to be standing in the landing with bare feet. As he scooted past me, he suddenly shot his arm out, reached for my toes and shouted "tickle, tickle, tickle!" without even stopping as he sped by. I nearly fell down the stairs from laughter.

Later that evening I tried to capture his "tickle, tickle, tickle" on video. His performances are never quite as good when the camera is rolling, but you'll get the general idea.

So there you have it. Aside from "mama" and "dada", Jackson's first real word is none other than "tickle".