A Day with Alex

Yesterday, Alex had a soccer tournament in Memphis, which is about a 4 hour drive. He wanted go to the football game and a surprise birthday party for his friend that was turning 16 on Friday night. I would have preferred to drive up and spend the night Friday, but since he had other plans, I agreed to get up early Saturday morning. I thought his first game was at 9:00, so we left a little after 4am to get him there in enough time to warm-up for 45 minutes first and grab a bite to eat.

As it turned out, his first game wasn't until 11:00. So, we had PLENTY of time. I drove all the way there so he could get rested for his games. Then since we had plenty of time, we stopped at IHOP for breakfast. It was pretty good other than the shells in my eggs, but Alex enjoyed his omelet and pancakes a lot. By the time we got to the field, we still had plenty of time, so we slept in the car for a little bit. The first game, Alex didn't get much playing time, and he didn't feel like he did very well, so he was a bit down. We talked and talked and then found a Red Robin (my favorite) and went out to lunch/dinner. We had a great time together talking and eating and talking.

Alex with his raspberry lemonade

My favorite: BLTA and steak fries

His next game was at 5:00pm, so around 4:00 we headed back.  The weather was beautiful, in fact, it was even over 80 degrees.  I had dressed warm, but was grateful for the beautiful weather and sunshine.  During the second game, Alex played very well, and he got to play a good share of the game.  He was upbeat and happy and agreed to drive all the way home.  I was happy cause I hate to drive.  So we talked all the way home and arrived at home around 11pm.  It was a long day, but I do not regret going.  It is a rare opportunity that I have that much time to spend with my oldest son.  He has had a pretty busy schedule.  He is growing up so much and becoming such a nice boy.  He has really gotten so responsible and he is enjoyable to be around now.  During his earlier teenage phase, we could hardly be together without an argument, but now, he rarely fights with me.  He is very agreeable and he sees how silly the things were that he used to get upset about.  Especially since Jesikah is now moving into that "disagreeable" stage.  He even said that he remembers knowing that he didn't have a point, but not being willing to back down.  I am so glad that he has moved past all that!  I love that boy, and I am so grateful to have him in our family.  It was an enjoyable day!!