Max

I am so far behind on posting "little things" that have been going on around here that it would be a mile long if I tried to post it all together, so this week I'm breaking it up into increments...one post on each of my five children.

Here goes Max.

Be prepared because this is going to feel like a volleyball post.

Because that's pretty much what he has been doing 24-7 around here.

That and eating us out of house and home.  Teenage boys eat a lot.  Especially 6'5" ones.  Have I mentioned that?

Have I also mentioned how much I love watching Max and Elle play high school sports?  It has been a crazy season since boys' volleyball and girls' tennis are at the exact same time.  I feel like I am sprinting every day after school to get everyone where they need to be and catch snippets of the tournaments here and there.

This is how they look heading out to school each morning with their sports paraphernalia:
On game days Max has to dress up in crazy outfits.  This was a "tie" day, but you can imagine how "swim suit day" and "Hawaiian shirt days" look...

Max is a "swing" player on the volleyball team this year so he plays JV and also gets to practice with the Varsity team.  Which means that boy howdy, he practices a LOT and he has learned more than I can say.

Being part of the Varsity team also means he also gets to have the experience to go to tournaments with them, which hasn't been a shabby experience.  I mean, when your team goes to Hawaii for a tournament, no one is going to complain about that little perk.

I wish I had the pictures they took on the beach with palm trees swaying behind them...and pictures of Max in awe of those very nice great example Seniors he's spent so much of the season with, but I only have these pictures I took when my heart was worrying itself knowing I would miss him when he was getting ready to leave with a gigantic smile stretched across his face:
 (Too bad you can't see the smile...or my mushy heart...)

That's it.  All we got.  Luckily my friend and her husband were there so they kept us up to date on what was going on.

He obviously enjoys himself out there.  I love to watch his smile on the court:

 And "kills" like this:
 I know it looks like his hand hit the net but he's pretty good at maneuvering around that thing.


Love that smile:

My Dad was so worried about missing all the sports hoopla he flew in for a day just to jump from one sport to another to be their biggest fan.  Love him.



Dave and I sat there in awe on the sidelines...it is so fun to watch.  Max didn't play (we are stacked pretty senior-heavy this year) but he lost his voice cheering on the sidelines and was pretty excited for that team...especially since they won the whole thing.

Dave is starting to look shrimpy with his "mini-me."
Lest I make this sound like it's all sweetness and light around here, all this volleyball is sure teaching this kid about the importance of finding a balance.  All these tournaments have caused more missed school than we would like and and he is working his tail off (fueled by his parents) to keep those grades up.  It's a lot of pressure for a fifteen-year-old.  Volleyball is awesome, but grades and education have to come first.  He's learning that slowly but surely.  

In other news, when he is home Max is adored by his sisters:
And did I mention he eats a lot??

Here's a text Dave forwarded to me he and Max wrote back and forth.  I thought it was funny:

Love that boy more than I can ever express.