Heinz Family Part 2!

There’s something about the crisp air and changing temperatures that makes me want to spend every minute outside! Leo has been spending more time playing in the yard, cross country meets and soccer games have become a little more bearable, and all the fun fall activities are back.

One of our favorite traditions is a trip to Back Forty Adventure Park and the corn maze. We took a bunch of friends with us on Saturday and had the best time making memories on a chilly autumn day!

Bodhi’s fall season took an unexpected turn.

After trying out for soccer and not making the team because of his age, he decided the day before the season started to join cross country instead. He hadn’t run all summer, so he showed up to his first practice a little behind—but determined to catch up.

He quickly surprised himself with how well he could run.

When his coach asked him to compete at the Grand Forks Border Battle, Bodhi was ready. Thousands of runners from Canada, Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota competed, and Bodhi lined up with the 8th graders as a 7th grader.

It was cold and rainy, but he ran another PR. Blake and I spent the race sprinting from one spot to the next to catch him at each turn, and we couldn’t have been more proud.

Bodhi finished in the Top 50 out of nearly 200 8th grade boys, far exceeding what he expected from himself just a few weeks earlier.

After the race, we celebrated with brunch at Bernie’s, a Food Network favorite, then met up with Grandma, Grandpa and Leo, who were in town for one of Blake’s cousin’s weddings.

We finished the weekend with a quick stop at our local pumpkin patch on the way back into town.

Not a bad outcome for a kid who decided to join cross country the day before the season started.

Something happened when Noah decided in January that he was going to play winter soccer. He was 14. He was a beginner. And instead of getting discouraged by being behind the kids who had been playing for years, he decided he wasn’t going to give up.

He chose soccer over cross country and set his sights on trying out for the high school team. Then he got to work. Speed and strength sessions. Hours at the dome. Hours at the soccer fields. Hours in the backyard, just working toward a goal he had decided was worth chasing. It has been pretty amazing to watch.

Noah is normally a pretty passive kid. He’s not usually the one who decides he’s going after something and refuses to let go. But when he set his mind to soccer, something clicked. This season was incredible, and it was so much fun to watch him playing with his cousin, too.

The touches Noah developed. The plays he created on the pitch. The speed he could use to cross the field and deliver the ball. Watching him grow from a kid who was just learning the game to a high school soccer player was something we won’t forget.

And somehow, through all of it, he balanced traveling, practices, games, speed and strength sessions, and homework—and made it look easy.

We are so incredibly proud of Noah—not just for what he accomplished on the field, but for the determination he found in himself along the way.

Cue the waterworks. It’s really truly hard to believe that we’ve reached this point. I remember the day we drove to the hospital, and were in complete shock when our doctor asked us if we were ready to have a baby. If I would have known how fast these seventeen years have flown by, I would have asked Dr. Graham if we could keep her in just a little bit longer.

I think something that has always blown me away about our kids is how totally different and unique they each are. Willow has never been afraid to march to the beat of her own drum. She’s fiercely independent, strong-willed, and knows what she likes. She works hard, determined to be financially strong, but loves her bed and is a home-body like no other.

It’s pretty great that she’s found Will, someone who is so similar to her in spirit but can also complement all of her attributes (like her height!) It’s been fun to watch these two grow up togerher.

So thankful for our family that joined us at 322 for a birthday dinner on Sunday, and for a quiet evening at home after a day filled with early morning dance and a full day at school. We enjoyed spaghetti and chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting for her birthday dinner. I love our family.

I fell victim to a “courtesy post” put out by the Aberdeen Humane Society. Meet Fred! He is a six-year-old Aussie, and a really really good boy. Fred was in and out of a few foster homes after his original elderly owners could no longer take care of him.

Quincy and Freddie walk really well together, lay really nice together, and do well…until its time for a treat! That’s the only time we’ve had a little bit of a disagreement between the two dogs. Fred loves to sit on laps, and has a few quirks…like not being able to go down the stairs. The reason why his last foster home couldn’t keep him….he really liked to eat their pet chickens!

Fred loves all the neighbor dogs and comes home whenever we call him. He’s super curious, afraid of pretty much anything that moves unexpectedly, but so stinkin’ sweet! These past few weeks have flown by with Fred in our home, and except for a ton more hair on our pants and floor, it’s like he’s always been around.

Quincy still gets lots of love and got to go on an adventure with us to the Hills…without his new brother.

From soccer, dance, and cross country, our first two weeks of fall sports are done. Willow’s team hosted their only home competition and finished well. It’s not as high scoring of a season as we hoped, but the girls are working hard each and every competition.

Bodhi’s working hard at cross country, just to stay in shape for soccer. He’s dedicated to the nightly cross country practices, takes a quick break with dinner and then heads to the soccer fields.

Noah is just making us so proud with his work on the JV team. He’s been starting most games, had a goal in Huron, and is working hard to earn his spot on the team! When he’s not practicing, he goes to the practice fields with his teammates and continues to put in the work! He really enjoys being part of a team and has made new friends in the process.

We’ve traveled to Pierre, Yankton, Mitchell, Pierre again, and even though Blake and I have had to split up a few times to watch the kids, one of us has been able to cheer them on at each event. We even managed to squeeze in a Northwestern Football game when Will’s team played at Dacotah Bank Stadium! His team won for the first time in 33 games (and Will scored two touchdowns!)

And Leo hasn’t been to far behind. He’s enjoyed lots of playdates with Theo while we’re with the older three, and when we’ve had downtime, we’ve done some Leo-friendly things! His choice: hitting a bucket of balls at the golf course!

First day of school pictures were a full-on rat race this year! With every kid starting on a different day, at a different time, and with a different schedule, getting everyone dressed, where they needed to be, and in front of the camera felt like an accomplishment all on its own—but we did it!

Leo was the last to start, heading off for his first day of second grade at RES. Bodhi kicked off 7th grade at Holgate, Noah started 9th grade, and somehow we now have a junior in the house with Willow!

And one of my favorite parts? Having Willow, Sawyer, Sam and Noah all at the same school again.

It’s going to be a great year, even if our fall schedule is already looking positively CRAZY with competitive dance, soccer x2, and cross country.

Another trip back to one of our favorite places: Custer!

This time, we got to bring the extended family along again, making it even more fun. We stayed at Buffalo Ridge Camp Resort and spent our days exploring the grounds on nightly walks, swimming in the pool, hiking the Sunday Gulch Trail, enjoying time at Stockade and Sylvan Lake, and, of course, eating lots of amazing food.

The Eissingers definitely know how to cook… and eat!

Another Custer trip in the books, and another one full of memories we’ll be talking about for a long time.

After committing himself to working hard late last fall, Noah set a goal for himself: make the high school soccer team. He trained all winter and all summer, and after two weeks of preseason camp and a week of tryouts, I’m so happy to announce that he did it!

His first challenge was a weekend of games in Sturgis and Spearfish, South Dakota. Our team finished the weekend with a win and a tie, and I couldn’t be prouder of Noah. He started for JV and played his heart out all weekend!

Blake, Rachael, Holly, Bodhi and I traveled west to cheer him on. Bodhi even got to cheer for some of his SDU teammates who were playing for the Spearfish team, so it was a pretty fun weekend for everyone.

And then, just to make the weekend even better, we played in Huron on Tuesday—and Noah scored his first high school goal!

I’m officially starting to love this sport almost as much as the boys do. Watching the amount of work they’re putting in and seeing it start to pay off is pretty incredible. I’m so proud of both of them.

We had a great last “side quest” day trip with the kids on Saturday. Willow had to work a double, so Blake and I loaded up the boys and headed into Minnesota for a day at A’MAZ’n Farm.

There was SO much to do — huge tube slides, a giant petting zoo, black light mini golf, a koi pond and bird house where the birds would land on your head and eat right out of your hand. Bodhi loved that part. There was also a giant wooden maze with towers to climb, a ropes course, shooting gallery and places to practice kicking and hitting all kinds of sports balls.

Leo conquered his fear and climbed the tower to take on the four-story slide, and he spent plenty of time petting the tortoises. We saw turkeys, kangaroos and peacocks, bounced around in the indoor bounce houses and just had a really fun day together.

On the drive home, I told Blake that if we had stayed home, we probably wouldn’t have had nearly as many of the important conversations with the boys that we did that day. And honestly, that might have been my favorite part.

Sometimes the best side quests aren’t really about where you go, but the conversations and memories you make along the way. It was a day well worth the drive — and a pretty perfect way to spend one of our last summer Saturdays before the August chaos begins.