On the town

Amber and I attended a reception for an art gallery exhibit featuring artwork done by kids with autism. Good times were had and we even got a picture together.

Note: the piece of art behind us was not part of the exhibit.

4th of July, cont'd

South-central Missouri is beautiful. It's not quite as beautiful as northern Arkansas but the people have phones and speaky the English so it balances out.

4th of July

These are a bit old. But we had much fun over the Independence Day weekend. Beckett, as usual, was a goofball on the car-packed drive down.


Once we got down there the dads got busy starting smoky fires out of the sodden branches strewn about the campsite. And in a creepy Koontz moment they realized they were the only people on this beautiful blufftop campground.

I'm pretty sure this (below) is why we go camping.

Soccer madness

Beckett participated in the Show Me State Games this weekend with a team from the indoor soccer place where he plays normally. They had a good time but lost two games going away and a third on a coin toss after time ran out (who came up with that rule?).

Beckett wore number four, accentuating the two-year age difference that existed between him and the other players in the tournament. They were all faster and bigger but he hustled, mixed it up with the big kids and showed some great dribbling and passing moves. Best of all, he had a great time, though his favorite feature may have been the presence of a referee -- he thought that was the coolest thing ever.

One other highlight came when Beckett was knocked to the ground while pursuing the ball and came up with a bloody nose. He kept playing with blood on his hand from wiping his dripping nose and the game had to be stopped so he could come out - he wasn't concerned in the least. The assembled cheering section of parents was impressed when only minutes later - after being cleaned up and having the flow of blood staunched - he went back in and played the rest of the game. Stud.

Clothes

Today Ayla discovered a new game. Sitting beneath the coffee table she would duck her head beyond my field of vision for a moment - and then dart back in, playfully laughing at the irony of me "reappearing" out of nowhere. The game lasted a minute or two before she was done. But there is no doubt in my mind that we could have replayed that ad infinitum and I would have remained just as amused at the end as the beginning.

If Heaven exists, then it's got to have a dad's 11 month-old daughter discovering Peek-a-Boo in it.