Future Soccer Star

A couple of months ago we signed Ben up for the Fearless Soccer Mini Camp for kids 3 and a half to 5 and a half years old. Ben has been interested in soccer since Nan and Teddy gave him a soccer ball last summer. But it's only been recently that his coordination has begun to catch up with his desire.

Though he was the youngest out of all the kids in his class, the coaches (Gigi and Trenton) told me that he was not only rather skilled but also a good listener and very good at expressing his thoughts. Of the four days the camp took place, Sam and I usually stuck around for the first 20 minutes or so then went off to enjoy time together. One morning Coach Gigi asked the kids to dribble the ball around in an area marked off by cones to warm up. Ben looked right up and said, "You have to warm up in baseball too!"

The experience was a success and as Sam and I watched the entire two hour session on the final day, I knew that I would soon be counting myself in with hundreds of thousands of moms across the country who call themselves "Soccer Moms."

Check out that kick!

With a certificate of completion in hand the look says it all.....he's not ready for soccer camp to be over :(

Ben approaching the action.

After a short stint as goalie, Ben was not willing to part with the position.

Zachary is probably the sweetest, gentlest five year-old I have ever known but apparently he takes his duties as goalie VERY seriously!

"Take that!"

I think Ben liked being goalie simply because he knew he could pick up the ball and not just kick it.

Ben and Joseph: buddies since infancy, buddies for life.

A fun game called soccer bowling.

Occasionally Ben's strategy was to simply fall down with the ball to keep it from the other players.

Ben completely adored Coach Trenton!

The chase is on!

It looks like a mama duck with a string of ducklings.

Red, White, and Tahoe Blue - The Weekend

Sam wishes everyone a Happy Fourth of July! (Or as he pronounces it, Appy Orth Ooly!)

Stopping for a quick snack on our hike in the meadows.


Ben loved the granite slabs cut into benches for weary hikers.

Sam trying out the hiking stick.

The boys crossing a bridge on the meadow trail.

Ben getting a little rest at the vista point on the trail.

A pitiful attempt at a family hiking photo.

The view of the meadow from the vista point.

For the third year we walked with a decorated stroller with TCF in the parade.

Many moms and kids getting ready for the parade.

My friend's little boy, Dominic, was quite relaxed during the parade!
(All the parade images were taken by fellow mom, Kelly Sparks)

The Fourth of July is a big deal in Tahoe. Many people consider it to be the real start to the summer. For the locals, we see it as a fun time but overly crowded with out-of-towners. We even go so far as to NOT go to the store for necessities like milk and bread because of the crowds.

There are obviously so many high points to the holiday that it is easy to overlook the crowds and enjoy the area for all it has to offer.....

Thursday, July 2nd - The boys and I began our day bright and early at the fire station for a pancake breakfast. The boys love pancakes and having them cooked by REAL firemen is just about as good as it gets! Wait, eating the pancakes cooked by REAL firemen in a REAL fire station, next to REAL fire trucks is about as good as it gets!

From there we made our way up the hill to the Episcopal church parking lot where we met up with a couple dozen other young families from TCF to decorate our strollers, wagons, and kids for the parade. We walked the 1.5 miles course with huge smiles on our faces knowing how unbelievably lucky we are to live here!

After the parade we snacked in the shade at the Village Green for the opening ceremonies to Red, White, and Tahoe Blue 2009.

After a brief nap at home we headed back to the green for an ice cream social where the boys got a very uncommon treat of ice cream before dinner.

Friday, July 3rd - Again, our day began bright and early (when doesn't it with toddlers who wake as early as 5:30 A.M.?) and we were up to the Tahoe Meadows Interpretive Trail for a family hike before 9:30. Brian lugged Sam in the back pack while Ben and I hiked alongside. Ben hiked the 1.2 miles all on his own and even Sam walked close to a quarter mile out of the pack.

A quick stop at home for snacks and a wardrobe change into swim trunks for the boys and we headed to Incline Beach to play for a while then watch the rubber duck race. I had never been to the beaches during the fourth of July weekend and was blown away at how many people could crowd onto the sand! Amazingly, we bumped into a handful of families that we knew so we weren't lost in the sea of human flesh. We only watched three heats of the duck race before the boys were ready for a rest so we said our farewells and happily came home.

That evening we met up with my college friend, Tabitha, for dinner in Kings Beach where she was with a group to watch the fireworks that night. Both boys love Tabby and were great in the crowded restaurant where we ate a delicious Mexican meal. They were also happy to hear that though Tabitha couldn't come home with us that night, she will be coming to visit for several days in early August!

Saturday, July 4th - We stayed home!!!! Actually Brian went into the office to get some work done and the boys and I spent the day outside playing wiffle ball and riding bikes. Then we broke the rule about going to the grocery store during the holiday weekend because we ran out of Ben's allergy medicine. If it weren't for the layer of pine pollen covering everything I would have let the kid go without a couple of doses. But the itchy, puffy, red eyes kind of got to me....

The kids went to bed at their normal time and when the fireworks started booming at 9:30 P.M., Brian and I simply looked at each other and said, "Maybe next year."

A Modge Podge of June Events

On Sunday, June 21st we celebrated Daddy's third Father's Day. We also welcomed Grandma and Grandpa into town for a week long stay.

Ben and Sam made a Father's Day craft at the library during story hour for Daddy. But because of Ben's past reactions to peanut butter we did not bring home the rest of the gift which was a small paper sack filled with peanuts and a couple more peanuts glued to the front of the card. The card on it's own is still cute reading, "Dad, I'm nuts over you! Happy Father's Day!" The boys were very excited to glue on googly eyes too.


Another gift for Daddy was a photo taken recently in Modesto with four generations of the Browder men.

Last summer I met a young couple at the pool who live full time in Atlanta but bought a fixer-upper here in Incline. Jill and Joe Laster have two daughters, Annie (5 1/2) and Virginia (4), and I got to know them when Ben and Virginia were Tiny Tunas last year in swim lessons. I had completely forgotten that when they headed back to Atlanta at the end of the summer Jill was a few weeks into her third pregnancy. I had gotten their address from them last summer with the intent of adding them to my Christmas card list. But somewhere in our remodeling fiasco I misplaced their information and thought they would eventually come back to Incline.
So, I was very excited to bump into Jill at Raley's the weekend before swim lessons were to begin. We spent the first week of swim lessons talking a little but never seeming to have enough time since their girls were in the time frame before Ben and Sam. But we were able to visit while all the kids played in the sand at the beach a couple of days. We decided that because their visit to Incline this summer was only for a couple of weeks we should get together and have a barbecue with all the family. We settled on Father's Day at one of the picnic areas at Burnt Cedar beach. Brian and I and the boys, as well as Grandma and Grandpa joined Joe and Jill, Annie and Virginia and new baby Jerry with Joe's cousin John for a great meal.
The kids had a great time playing soccer and going to the playground. Ben even figured out how to build a fort with the beach umbrella!

Here's Ben peeking out of his umbrella fort.

Joe and Jill with 5 month-old Jerry (the girls were too busy playing to hold still for a photo).

The biggest event for me in June was the Golf Fore Education tournament. As the Tahoe Children's Foundation board president a lot of the organizing fell on my shoulders. Four non-profits were collaborators for the weekend. It was a tremendous amount of work to get the two-day golf tournament, community barbecue, and auctions put together. All in all it turned out well with a few bumps in the road. Our little family had a great time with Grandma and Grandpa here to golf and go to the barbecue with us. The food was good, the entertainment was upbeat and the auction prizes were one-of-a-kind. With the green light from Brian's parents to go for it, we even ended up being the highest bidders on a week stay at a home in a Mayan village in Belize owned by another non-profit director in the community. So, it sounds like 2010 will be the year the Browders go to South America!

The boys enjoying the barbecue at the Diamond Peak Ski Lodge overlooking the lake.

Ben enjoyed singing with Grandpa and playing the guitar that Grandpa found in one of our local thrift stores.

Here's a question for you....what do you do when you find your snow boots in the middle of the summer?

Ben's reply.....WEAR THEM!

Ben spent an entire afternoon clunking around the house in his snow boots which he found in the laundry room while helping me put clothes in the dryer.

Obviously if you wear snow boots with shorts you have to kick up your heels and dance!

Washing dishes in snow boots is a good idea too....keep those feet dry!

And after all that excitement, you may need to curl up in the clean laundry for a rest!

Let's go Swimming!

The boys and I spent the last two weeks of June braving the chilly waters of the outdoor pools at Burnt Cedar beach for the first swim lessons of the summer. For Ben it's old hat as he's taken part in swim lessons since the summer of 2007. But it's a whole new experience for Sam.

Ben was in the Tiny Tunas class which worked on skills in the small wading pool (known by many moms of toddlers as the pee pee pool), and also introduced the platform in the big pool.
All the kids prefer the little pool because it is usually right around ninety degrees.

Sam and I were in the Sea Stars class (AKA Parent Tot). We worked on entering and exiting the water safely, blowing bubbles, kicking, arm splashing, as well as front and back floats. Sam liked being in the water until the cool temperatures caused his teeth to chatter. Luckily our instructor would always finish up in the little pool to warm the kids back up.

As you can see from the photos, both boys are at home in the water and we'll be looking forward to another session of swim later in July.

Sam and I enjoying the warmth of the little pool after a cool dip in the big pool.

Singing Humpty Dumpty before the "jump" into the water.


Ben with a borrowed float.

Practicing his splashing and kicks.

Ben waiting patiently for his teachers for some work on the platform in the big pool.

It's always fun to splash your brother!

A Day Out in Tahoe City

Ben has decided to help me with this post so I will simply type as he dictates.....

"It was Grandma and Grandpa and me and Sam standing together. And it was not a very good picture because Sam was turning the other way."

"That's the river coming out of the lake and the bridge. And look at the trees!"

"I was hugging Sam. Sam and I were in the bushes and the monkey flowers were yellow. But the purple ones were not monkey flowers."


" And that's Grandma hugging Grandpa."

" That's the lake with the parasailer up in the air."

And now, Ben will type his own story....

oooo8kkk8'\\\[';u,, fhyrfvfderhvchjhnbv ttkgbbbbmib nnnnnnbbb333dddddddddddddddddvtmt84m he fnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn nn8373nfqn8rrttv5yn bbbc ben

"This is my Curious George story."

And now my take on things....

We took Friday morning to visit Tahoe City's Gatekeeper's Museum and the famous Fanny Bridge which received its name from all of the fannies that can be seen from the road as gawkers stare over the edge into the cool waters. The bridge is located over the only outlet of Lake Tahoe. The Gatekeeper's Museum features the history of Lake Tahoe including Indian artifacts, natural history displays, stories of our pioneers, and the Ellen Attardi Library - a research library which includes books, oral histories, newspapers and photographs. It also houses the Marion Steinbach Indian Basket Collection which was not only beautiful but HUGE!

After our sight-seeing we went to a well-known Tahoe City Mexican restaurant called Blue Agave - Mexican Food with Altitude! Sam was a big fan of the chips and salsa even going as far as to reach into the salsa bowl sans chip to get a handful of the good stuff!

Anniversary Celebration!

To celebrate our fourth wedding anniversary, Brian and I made reservations for dinner at the Lone Eagle Grille. My parents were kind enough to give the boys dinner and put them to bed so we could have an evening off. I took full advantage of the offer and even went to far as to wear a sun dress and even a little makeup....startling, I know.

When we arrived at the restaurant we were led to a table on the patio that was basically as close to the lake as you could get without actually touching the sand. I love the Lone Eagle for many reasons - the view, the food, the kind wait staff, and the entertainment in the lounge area (remember my mention of "Tahoe Luke" in the Married Bliss post?). Our server asked us if we were enjoying our vacation and I told her that we actually live in town. She asked if it was a special occasion and we told her it was our fourth anniversary.

As usual, our food was wonderful. For an appetizer we shared the seared Ahi tuna with a crispy shrimp, Napa cabbage dumpling, micro cilantro, mango salsa, and Teriyaki wasabi drizzle. For dinner I had the grilled beef tenderloin with a potato, gorgonzola tart smothered in a ciopollini onion sauce and steamed asparagus. Brian had the evening special of elk tenderloin with garlic mashed potatoes in a red wine sauce and steamed asparagus.

I was planning on ordering dessert despite the fact that I really didn't need it. But before I could even look at the menu, our waiter, Manny, brought over a beautiful plate with a huge piece of cake on it and told us it was from he and our other server, Jana. The cake had a base layer of a cookie/candy bar creation and had more layers of different kinds of ice cream. It was all topped off with a small white chocolate piece with Happy Anniversary printed on it, fresh berries, and a dusting of powdered sugar. I was so impressed by the beauty of the cake that I didn't even notice the dark chocolate drizzled out to spell Happy 4th. These are the moments I wish I had an IPhone to take pictures and immediately upload them to the blog for the world to see because of course I didn't have a camera with me.

As we were finishing up our dessert and expressing thanks to our servers for their thoughtfulness, we heard familiar music from the bar....Tahoe Luke! Could the night be more perfect?!

We found seats in the bar and sat back to enjoy the music. When Luke paused between songs he said he was happy to take requests. I wandered his way and told him that exactly four years ago to the day, he sang to me on my wedding night. He asked what the song was and promised to sing it for us. After just one other song Luke came to our table and told the other patrons that he was happy to sing a song for a couple celebrating their wedding anniversary that he had sung on their wedding day four years before. As he strummed the opening notes on his guitar he thanked us for coming back then sang....

I'll Be - Edwin McCain

The strands in your eyes that color them wonderful
Stop me and steal my breath
And emeralds from mountains thrust towards the sky
Never revealing their depth

And tell me that we belong together
Dress it up with the trappings of love
I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above

And I'll be your cryin' shoulder
I'll be love suicide
And I'll be better when I'm older
I'll be the greatest fan of your life

And rain falls angry on the tin roof
As we lie awake in my bed
And you're my survival, you're my living proof
My love is alive, and not dead

And tell me that we belong together
Dress it up with the trappings of love.
I'll be captivated, I'll hang from your lips
Instead of the gallows of heartache that hang from above

And I'll be your cryin' shoulder
I`ll be love suicide
And I'll be better when I'm older
I'll be the greatest fan of your life

And I dropped out, I burned up, I fought my way back from the dead,
I tuned in, I turned on, remembered the thing that you said.

And I'll be your cryin' shoulder
I'll be love suicide
And I'll be better when I'm older
I'll be the greatest fan of your life

The greatest fan of your life

What a wonderful evening....time alone for just Brian and I, no babysitter to pay, kids sleeping when we got home, and many happy memories! Thanks to Grandma and Grandpa and everyone else for an amazing anniversary.

Married Bliss

A little privacy, please!

The wedding party.

Together at the Butchart Gardens in Victoria, B.C.

Four years ago today Brian and I said our wedding vows right here in Incline Village. Many friends and family members joined us at the Chateau on the Championship Golf Course where we had a beautiful outdoor wedding followed by a reception on the deck and in the grand ballroom. We waltzed for our first dance and tasted a heavenly raspberry-filled cake decorated with my favorite flowers, Dutch irises.

After the festivities we joined friends for an evening of drinks and music at the Lone Eagle Grille where "Tahoe" Luke Stevenson (http://www.tahoeluke.com/) serenaded us with a song and a perfect stranger bought us dinner. The following morning we returned to the Lone Eagle for Sunday brunch where the earth literally moved with a 4.8 earthquake centered about 8 miles east of Truckee, CA. What a way to begin our lives together!

We stayed in Tahoe for a few more days and visited with both of our families who had rented homes to enjoy more time at the lake. Then we headed out for our honeymoon in Victoria, B.C. where we stayed at a hotel overlooking the harbor, visited the Butchart Gardens (www.butchartgardens.com) and had high tea at the Empress Hotel.

It's hard to believe how quickly four years have passed!

Happy Anniversary to my amazing husband and best friend!

Oh, So Busy

I really am not avoiding my blogging duties I have just been VERY busy lately. I am actually quite embarrassed that the month of June is nearly over and I have only made four posts prior to this one! Once this weekend passes I will be spending more of my child-free time (AKA nap time) catching the world up on life in Tahoe.

As the current president of the Tahoe Children's Foundation, I have been drowning in meetings, phone calls, and everything else that goes with running a two-day charity golf tournament complete with auctions, barbecues, and awards ceremonies.

Lucky for me, my mom and dad are in town to golf on Saturday (which also happens to be their thirty-eighth anniversary) so I have had extra help with the boys while I am stuck doing all the last minute organizing. Along with all the golf tournament stuff we still have our daily swim lessons, the usual appointments, and the never-ending task of entertaining two little boys with wiffle ball games in the driveway, playing with the train set, etc. So, needless to say, blogging is pretty low on my list of priorities lately. My apologies.

The Boys They are a Changin'

Ben's new glide bike.

Sam is still a little uncertain about riding the tricycle.

"When I'm a daddy I will take care of my babies."

It is really unbelievable how much the boys have changed in the past couple of months. Ben is very articulate and inquisitive and often catches me off guard with his insight. Sam is doing his best to keep up with Ben and is not only a chatterbox but also a daredevil.

We recently removed the safety rails from Ben's bed and woke last night to him crying out for Mommy. When I got out of bed Brian said he had heard a thump from the boys' room. When I entered I found Ben on a pile of pillows, blankets, his baby doll, and a couple of stuffed animals. He was not hurt but shaken up a bit.

We also purchased a big boy bed for Sam last month. He is interested in being in it but hasn't quite gotten the idea that it's for sleeping. So, until he stops doing yoga on it and bailing over the safety rails, he is confined to his crib.

Swim lessons have started back up with the arrival of summer so Ben, Sam and I are all enjoying four mornings a week playing at the pool. Ben is in the Tiny Tunas class this session while Sam and I are taking part in the Parent-Tot class. Ben's skills are quickly improving and Sam is turning out to be quite a water baby too.

I remember last summer sitting by the side of the pool with little bitty baby Sam. I watched Ben kick and splash and become more comfortable in the water. Going to the pool was fun but also a headache as I lugged a toddler, a baby in a stroller, towels, changes of clothes, diapers, and toys to and from the car every day. I purposely avoided the beach because it was such a pain to keep Sam out of the sun while also making sure Ben was safe near the water. I kept telling myself that next summer would be better. Now that next summer is now, I couldn't be happier. Ben is so happy in the pool, at the playground, or the beach. And Sam is happy that Ben is happy. Sam is so determined to be a big kid that he is doing things I never thought an 18 month-old could do. I still have to be on my toes while the boys are playing by the lake shore or climbing the structures at the park but at least now I don't have to be holding one or both of them all the time!

Speaking of being a big kid, Ben has graduated from his tricycle, and is now the proud owner of a glide bike, also known as a balance bike. He starts by walking and pushing while seated, trusting his own abilities while quickly graduating to gliding on two wheels. This type of bike allows kids to learn to ride a two-wheeled bike without ever having to use training wheels! Amazing, huh?
And, now that Sam is a little taller, he is the proud owner of a gently used red tricycle!
Ben often tells Brian, "When I am bigger I will ride my bike up the mountain with you, Dad."

One morning I was trying to procure a hug from Ben, and as he wiggled out of my arms I told him that he never hugs me anymore. His response was, "That's because I'm not a baby anymore, Mom. But that's okay because you still have Sam and he'll hug you."

Ben also tells us of all the things he'll do when he's a daddy - let's get these in print so he can't balk in the future.
"When I'm a daddy I'll cook all the food."
"When I'm a daddy I will reach the sink to wash the dishes."
"When I'm a daddy I will make my own breakfast."
"When I'm a daddy I will go to work with Sue." (Sue is the office administrator at Brian's office)
"When I'm a daddy I will be tall and touch the ceiling."
"When I'm a daddy I will take care of my babies."
"When I'm a daddy I can shuffle the cards by myself."
"When I'm a daddy I can build a new house with my tools."

Out of Retirement

My big sis, Beth, and I.

Look at Mt. Shasta in the background!

Robin McCormick, Margaret Seaman, and Sarah Moffitt

The Screamin' Eagles 1997.

Putting down a perfect bunt at Siskiyous

I first began playing softball when I was eight years-old, in 1985. I was the youngest on my team, the Ladybugs, and played alongside my big sister, Beth. I continued with little league softball through eighth grade - still playing with my sister. And in my four years on the high school team I was lucky to have two of them with Beth. She and I spent hours in our backyard playing catch, batting, and annoying each other with wild throws into the blackberry bushes. In our back yard Beth perfected her fast-pitch wind-up while I caught for her. Our coaches soon realized that if she was pitching, I should catch for her, and if she was catching, I should play second base. We seemed to anticipate each others actions - knowing where a pitch would be or exactly where to make the tag on a throw down to second base. Beth and I also played on a summer softball team during high school.

My positions varied from second base to shortstop to catcher to outfield. I was never a strong batter but Beth could crank the ball out of the infield at nearly every at-bat. In high school, our dad always said that if Beth hit a home run over the fence he would buy her a new car. During practice one day she did just that during a scrimmage. Dad was not there to see if for himself and it took another year but he did get her a used little pick up truck when she left for college where she ended up playing two years on the College of the Siskiyous team.

After high school I became a walk-on to the College of the Siskiyous softball team, just like my big sis, where I became teammates with a number of girls I am still in touch with today. I played year-round with the Screamin' Eagles from the fall of 1995 to the spring of 1997. My coaches at Siskiyous saw some potential in me to become a left-handed bunter/slap bunter due to my speed on the base paths and my poor right-handed batting. Starting out fresh as a leftie proved to be just the thing I needed to become a successful batter. I soon became the designated hitter sent out to the plate to bunt my teammates around the bases and into scoring position. The one downfall was that I was often a sacrifice batter :(

I transferred to Humboldt State University in the fall of 1997 and considered trying to walk-on to their team for less than a nano-second. I was not only positive that I wasn't good enough, but I was also ready to be free of the daily practices I had been enduring for the previous two years.

Lucky for me, my big sister, Beth, was involved in the co-ed intramural league at the university and was happy to have me join her team. We played our games in a big barn-type structure known on campus as the Field House. It was dark, damp, with a hard-packed dirt floor but provided shelter from the rainy Humboldt weather. It was the perfect place to continue enjoying competitive softball.

Once I graduated from Humboldt in 2000, I got my first job teaching and the only time I played softball was if we had a teacher versus student game at the end of the school year. When Brian and I got married and I began living in Tahoe in 2005 I was aware that there were men's and coed leagues here in Incline. Unfortunately, the season was halfway over by the time we were settled and I didn't even know where to start looking for a team. Then in the summer of 2006, I had a brand new baby, Ben, to take care of so softball was once again out of my reach. In the summer of 2007, I had just gotten pregnant with Sam, so again - no softball. And in the summer of 2008, Sam was just a baby. Repetitive, huh?

This last April, Brian and I were attending a 40th birthday party for one of our friend's and softball came up at dinnertime. A couple of my book club girlfriends asked Brian if he wanted to join a softball team that their husbands were on. Brian quickly said he wasn't much of a player but I would probably like to join.

So after a ten year hiatus, here we are, two games (undefeated) into the 2009 season, and I am thrilled to be part of the game I love so much. I certainly don't have the spring in my step that I did ten years ago but I am holding my own. As was true in my earlier softball career, I am not the star of the team nor am I riding the pine. I have managed to get a couple of hits, a couple RBI's and even helped make a couple of plays. If my body can hold up I hope to be part of the Crosby's team for many seasons to come!