Before the concert they were rehearsing in the back room in the basement. I've turned the room into a "Man Cave" for the kids to do their music in. It just needs a little more insulation;) It has been neat getting to know the boys and watching them grow from a lyric in a notebook to a song sung in front of a 100 kids. They are not shy and they definitely have a knack for performing.
"Black Express"
front row: Tyler(Flamez), Jaman(Mazar), Pel(P.Y.D)
back row: Yach, Trey(TO3), Moses(Mo), Faheem(Prodigy), Aihlee(Poppe), Tor(T.P.G), Paul(Yak)
Saturday night a dance was held at the Elks lodge. The kids know the guy that puts them on and they asked if they could perform some of their songs. They got a 45 minute time slot and sang 8 songs. They did such an fantastic job. Tyler is the technical producer for the group. They wrote their own music, recorded, and turned it into a CD. Some of their songs can be heard on Youtube. I warn everyone though some lyrics are not suitable for young ears.
Today was Tyler's first day of his Sophomore year of high school. It is also the first day of school that he got to drive himself. I love that he has his school permit. He is becoming such an independent young man.

Tyler and Steve celebrating his birthday. The jello cake I baked. It was delicious.

Tyler and Chloe taking a break from playing outside while tailgating.
Tyler and Rich with his 50/50 tickets at the race. Unfortunately, Rich wasn't the winner of the $32,000 purse.

Saturday morning we headed to Ankeny to hitch a ride with the Smith's to the Nationwide race. We saw an awesome finish which I have yet to see a replay. Afterwards, we spent the night in the RV. Sunday morning we headed back to Rich and Andrea's. Before heading home Rich treated us to Mexican. It is always so fun for Tyler and I to be with all of you. Thank you for a great time!

Part of the fun was decorating Steve's car for the ride down. These are the flags that Steve hand sewn and painted. Pretty sweet Tyler said.
At 6:30am we got to the school parking lot to wait for the bus. The kids were greeted with donations of donuts, Chocolate milk, gatorade and Subway subs for the ride down to Des Moines. The businesses have been so generous. Thank you.
The 2011 Storm Lake State bound baseball team.
Trey giving the bus a warm up rap.
Citizens Bank rented this charter bus for the kids to ride down in. Super comfortable Tyler said.
Tyler warming up the pitcher, Carsen Anderson. He said it was so cool to be on the field.
Rachel and I in our "flashdance" outfits. Only at State can you revert to your childhood and not feel old.
The Reserves for the Varsity baseball team.
After their heartbreaking 0-3 loss to Cedar Rapids Marion the team received their State participant trophy.
It's so neat to see Chloe running to Tyler after the game to give him a hug. They are so precious.
Thank you Steve, Grandma and Hollie for coming to the game and supporting the team.

It's been a great run for the boys. The underclassmen are already talking about making it back next year to Principal Park. Go Tornadoes!!!

Head Coach, Bill McCabe, introducing the team.
After the pep rally a picture on home plate.

It's been such a fun year to follow these young men on their journey to the state tournament. Tomorrow they play at Principal Park, where the I-Cubs play, in Des Moines at noon. They will face Cedar Rapids Marion in the quarter final game.

The team receiving their substate winner medals from Athletic Driector, Rick Anderson. We're going to State!!!!!

This weekend "the girls" headed to Minnesota to attend our cousin, Krista's baby shower. We also went to visit Gramma C. It was so nice to see her. Her stroke has left her having difficulty speaking. She did say "Fun...Good...Times." I know she remembers all our good times together when she smiled at me. Me too. I will never forget them either.
The team receiving their district winner medals from Athletic Director, Rick Anderson.
Tyler and Chloe with his District winner medal. It was so fun to have Gramma, Hollie, and Chloe here to see the game with us tonight.

One of Tyler's many "jobs" on Varsity is helping the starting pitcher warm up. Here he is with Nic Seaman.

Today was the last game of the Varsity regular season. The team went 23-8. Friday starts District play.

Tyler crossing home plate to score the first run of the game.
Tyler got his third "W" of the season pitching the first 4 innings of the game. Blake came in the 5th inning to pitch and get the save. Tyler went 0 for 1 (HBP, 2 walks). This ends the season for the JV team. Varsity continues on their season and Tyler will continue to suit up and keep the stats.

Chloe had just gotten up before we arrived and was still a little tired. She wanted to snuggle with her cousin Tyler before the big parade.
What a wonderful 4th of July weekend with our family and friends! Sunday we had everyone over for a backyard picnic, trampoline fun, and roasting marshmallows for s'mores. Then off to King's Pointe to watch the fireworks. Monday we watched the parade, swam at waterpark, and of course ate more delicious food.
Tuesday Tyler had 2 games. First he played in the Freshman game at 1p. They lost 12-4 to LeMars. When that game was over he hopped on the bus to play a JV game in Spirit Lake. They won that game 13-2.
Grandma has been staying with us while Grandpa is on the road trucking. Even though she has 4 broken bones in her foot and is on crutches it is so wonderful to have her with us. The silver lining to the whole ordeal is we get to spend extra time with her and she gets to see all Tyler's ballgames.

Tyler's batting at Hull was 0 for 3 (fielder's choice.) Tyler played short stop. He had lots of good plays for outs but the best play was a catch from Jack(catcher) to get the kid out stealing second. Thank you Grandpa for Driving Miss Daisy (aka grandma) to the game.

Wednesday night the team played in Cherokee. Storm Lake lost 3-4. Tyler only played short stop for one inning. He arm was still a little sore from throwing 137 pitches for the win against Pocahontas the other night.

Tyler pitched all 7 innings of the JV game. He had 7 strikeouts to help lead the team to a victory. Tyler's batting was 1 for 3 (fielder's choice, double.) The game tonight was his second full game victory for the JV season.
In the Varsity game Tyler made his debut as a courteousy runner for his good friend, Trey, who pitched a no hitter tonight.
Tyler crossing home plate and scoring a run for the Varsity who won 15-0 in the 4th inning. Tyler is officially on quik stats for 1 game played and 1 run. The website is: www.quikstatsiowa.com
To cap off the night Grandma treated us to our new favorite treat, a F'real, at One Stop Shop. Thank you Grandma for celebrating Tyler's success with us. His smile says it all.

Last night the 3 freshman at the bottom of the lineup (7,8,9) came through to score the first points for the jv team. Tyler got on base by walk, Chase hit a single to advance Tyler and Mitchell drove him in with a hit. Tyler's batting was 0 for 1 (strikeout, walk.) He played shortstop the whole game.

Tyler scoring the first teams run on an overthrow.

Tyler was 1 for 2 (double,walk) batting last night. He started out as pitcher and had a rough go of it. He walked 10 batters and struck out 1 in 2 1/3 innings. At shortstop he had 3 good plays for outs.

With grandma and grandpa on vacation in the Dells and Steve in Pennsylvania on a business trip I headed to Emmetsburg with only myself and Tyler's baseball shoe. He had only packed one along with his black running shoe. Tyler went 0-2(walk) batting. He played shortstop and had 2 really good plays. One was a catch from Blake at catcher and got the runner out attempting to steal second. The other was a sharp throw to Jay at first. the Varsity kids were sitting in the stands and called out "Jeter" when he made the throw. Sounded like a compliment to me;)

Tyler crossing home plate.
Since the JV schedule was "light" this week (he only had 2 games) Tyler was asked by his friends on the freshman team to come pitch for them. He pitched the whole first game of 5 innings. He went 2 for 3 on batting.
Since it's been a while since Tyler has caught I thought I'd take a pic of him. During the second game of the doubleheader he caught for 2 innings. They won that game 10-6.

I also want to say Happy 39th wedding Anniversarey to my parents. They came up to Storm Lake and took me out for lunch and came to watch Tyler play his ballgames. They are such great parents and grandparents to share their special day with us.

Tyler keeps the stats for the Varsity team. Here he is with the ump making sure the books are correct.

Tyler played short stop in the JV game. He had 3 good plays for outs in the game. In batting he went 1 for 4.

On another note, this morning the baseball and softball teams helped Jim and Salli Nichols try to clean what was left of their house after an arson fire a few weeks ago. They lost everything. I was so touched as I dropped Tyler off this am to see a yard full of kids willing to help out their teachers. They learned a real lesson in the differrence between the value of helping your fellow mankind and the value of possessions...possessions can be replaced...friends and family are priceless.

Tyler was the starting pitcher for todays game. Through 6 1/3 innings the score was tied 1-1. Then came a few walks and errors. Blake came in to relieve. The team didn't have their bats going tonight. Tyler was 0-2. Tyler definitely had his best night of pitching so far.

Tyler started at the short stop position and had some great plays on defense. Tyler's offense was the name of the game last night though. He went 2 for 2 (single, double) and a walk. He says that he's focusing more and keeping his head down. Coach Kevin Cone has been a big help with helping Tyler improve his batting.

Tyler on first after his base hit.

Tyler gets his first "W" for the team as the starting pitcher. He pitched all 4 innings. He also helped the cause by having a sweet hit (single) and making it home by stealing the bases. He allowed 4 hits, gave up 4 walks, and hit no batters. He pitched a very solid game. It was so great to see the team come together tonight on offense and defense. Thank you to Grandma for making the 2 hour drive to support Tyler. You are the best!

The Varstity team lined up for the National Anthem.

Tyler started at short stop in the JV game. He had a couple of good plays for outs. I'm so proud of his hard work, practice, and dedication to the team.

Tyler started pitching 2/3 of the way into the first inning. He pitched a great second inning. His speeds have been right around 75mph with his fastball. In the third he had his first hit of the year. It was a sweet hit on the ground between the third basemen and shortstop. He was stealing second and as he was sliding into second base he got nailed by the ball...you know where. Long story short, with Tyler's history of torsions we made a quick trip to the Spencer ER. He was fine and returned in time to keep stats for the Varsity game. The lessoned learned from the night??? He'll be wearing his cup from now on;)

I missed Tyler's game:( Luckily Tyler still had Grandma and Steve in the stands to cheer him on. (silently of course.) He had a great throw to home plate to get the out. He was 0-2 with a walk on batting.

The Varsity had a tournament in Peterson today. Here is Tyler in the dugout keeping the stats.

The start of a new era happened yesterday. We now have to pay to see Tyler play a sport. It's sort of weird. For 10 years I've been bringing him to games and watching him play. Yesterday, he drove the car to school to catch the team bus and I hopped in with Steve. When we arrived at Carroll I had to pay to get in to watch my own son. He was the starting pitcher for the JV baseball squad. He pitched the first 3 innings. He did a great job getting the corners for strikes. For the last 3 innings he played shortstop. The varsity coach told me he did a great job for the team. He sure did! He also is in the dugout for the Varsity game. He's the official stat keeper. Tyler said its harder than it looks. Thank you Grandma and Grandpa for making the 2 hour trip to see Tyler play his first JV game. We all abided by the "rules." He didn't hear a thing. Good job to us all!

For 93 years, 2 months, and 1 week Lorraine Kneifl, better known as Grandma K, lived on this earth. Today, at her funeral, she brought together 5 generations of family to mourn her death. She brought us together to revisit the old neighborhood. She brought us together to recall the good old days. She brought us together to remember the past. So as I sit here and think of all the old familiar faces I seen today and all the catching up I go to do of days gone by, I'm not mourning for the loss of my grandma, I'm really celebrating her life and what was important to her and that was us family. So here's to you Grandma K...you may have left us from this earth but your relationship with your family will never die. I love you.

Today, at graduation, Mr Tollefson gave his last performance as the director for the SLHS concert choir. He is taking the Assistant Principal job at SLHS. Although, it is bitter sweet to see him leave the choir it will be exciting to see him bring his hardwork, dedication, respectful nature and good work ethic to the entire school. The concert choir performed 2 songs today: Battle Hymn of the Republic and Gaelic Blessing. They sounded beautifully on this most special occasion.

Tonight we celebrated the SLHS tennis program at a banquet. The team received Distinguished Academic Achievement for maintaining a 3.25-4.0 gpa for the season. The kids really did a good job on and off the court. Coach Kuker commented on Tyler's ability as a player and said even though he mostly played doubles matches he is a very strong singles player. He covers the court well and likes to be the one to hit the ball. Good job on your first season as a tennis player. It was fun to watch you grow as a player.

Last night Steve got to the gym early so Grandma, Hollie, Joyce and I could enjoy a front row seat at Tyler's Spring concert. The music was fantastic! It was so special for Tyler to have a row of family and friends there to support him. Thank you for coming. It means alot to both of us.
After the concert Tyler was eating goulash for supper and Chloe wanted some too. She ate onions, tomatoes, and sauce! It was too cute.

Tyler serving

Today was Tyler's last tennis match of the season. He had a different partner, Trey Sliefert, this time. They lost their doubles match 2-6. Tennis has been a new sport for both of us. Tyler to play and me to watch. There are a few "tennis parent rules" I plan on taking with me to other sports: cheer when your son does something good, encourage don't discourage, and remember he has a tennis pro and it's not you;)I have definitely enjoyed watching Tyler learn, enjoy, and grow as a player of the game.

Tyler standing next to Grandma and Grandpa's "Hooter Tree."

Happy Mother's Day! We had a fabulous day celebrating in Sioux City. First, Grandpa treated us to brunch at Bev's on the River. Then we headed to the mall where I got some shopping time. Afterwards, on our drive home, Tyler handed me a gift certificate to our favorite place to eat. I felt like a real "Queen for a day." Then we came home. That's when I saw I have dirty breakfast dishes in the sink, piles of laundry waiting to be washed, and vacuuming to do. That's ok though...for today it's Mother's Day. I'm going to sit back, relax, and count all the blessings I have: my grandmother's, my mother and being a mother.

The Storm Lake Bass Choir, aka all men's group, received a 2 rating on "Prayer of the Children."
The Storm Lake Mixed Choir 1, aka jv choir, received a 2 rating on "A Gaelic Blessing" and "Where Your Bare Foot Walks."

Friday night the Storm Lake Band, Orchestra, and Choir groups competed in the State Large Group Music Contest in LeMars.

Tyler and Darren's doubles match vs. LeMars ended in a tie, 6-6. They did such a good job volleying. They have improved sooo much. I'm so proud of Tyler for trying a new sport, having fun with it, and enjoying it with his teammates.

The tennis team had a home meet today. They lost their doubles match 4-6. One of the players for ELC was a #5 varsity player. The boys got good experience hitting some harder serves. Tyler also played a singles match against the #4 Varsity player and beat him 6-1. Great job!!!
Thanks to the "team moms" for supplying the snacks for the boys after they play. This is Mr. Netten's last year of coaching and teaching at SLHS. He is retiring. Tyler will miss him greatly but is glad he got the oppurtunity to have him as a coach for his Freshman year.