Benich Family: School is Back in Session!

This is pretty much how both kids felt; the summer just goes by so fast. I can't say that the rest of us were that excited either -- schedules amp up, homework starts back up, and the kids and I have to start remembering what day it is again. We thoroughly enjoyed sleeping in late occasionally, having free time to read and craft and play video games, and just having time to relax. We also read some great books; one of our favorite new authors is Brandon Sanderson. We just can't get enough of his books, thankfully he is a very prolific author. We still keep track of all our books on Goodreads, if you'd like to follow us.

It is so lovely that Delaney can drive herself -- especially to all her early morning CP soccer practices. Practice started basically right after school, and then moved up to practices Mon. - Sat. and two-a-days! Kyle had a pretty laid back summer, but he did help out at the CP library with their Summer Reading Program once a week. He was thrilled to discover that the library is a PokeStop. Both kids have really been enjoying catching Pokemon all summer; they even went out on walks together to catch more -- surreal! The library also started a Pokemon Club that Kyle was enjoying attending with a couple of his friends; they changed the meeting dates to the weekends to accommodate school.

We celebrated July 4th at Danah's. Even though it was unseasonably cold, everyone still had fun. Definitely no swimming in the pool (but most of the teenagers took advantage of the hot tub), but we played ladder golf, bean bag toss, and Kenny even set the kids up to play Mario Kart outside. They had the screen filling the side of the barn; it was quite impressive.

Delaney and Kenny had been doing a lot to get ready for their England trip, and it was finally time for take off. So begins their 8 hour flight...

They had a wonderful time. They visited many historical sites, exploring London and Manchester, and of course... playing soccer!

She kept a blog of their entire trip; if you'd like to see more pictures and see their daily activities -- make sure to check it out: DreamSoccerTrip.

While Delaney and Kenny were across the pond, the new Star Trek movie came out! Kyle and I decided we did NOT want to wait for them, and we saw it on the first night available -- Thursday evening, July 21st. We loved it! Delaney finally got to see it right before school started; she talked Phoenix into going with her.

This August 7th, Kenny's dad had a milestone birthday this year -- 70! He's been doing great -- trying to eat healthy and has lost a lot of weight too. He's been participating in a Times weight-loss contest (down over 40 pounds!), and Kathe has been eating well right along with him and losing weight too. Awesome!

The weekend before school started, we got to go to a great concert! We won some tickets to see Dierks Bentley (my favorite) in Noblesville at the Klipsch Music Center (originally Deer Creek Music Center). Kyle had a sleepover with a friend, so he didn't go with us. Delaney wasn't upset; she was able to have Phoenix go with us. We all donned our Dierks' shirts and away we went.

Cam opened up; Delaney really loves one of her songs, Burning House, so she was very excited to see her. Then Randy Houser was next; he has such a powerful voice. We knew more of his songs than we realized; he also sang one of his signature songs, Like a Cowboy. Next, of course, the headliner... Dierks Bentley! He sang plenty of his hits and quite a few from his new album Black: What the Hell Did I Say, Somewhere on a Beach, Different for Girls, Freedom and Black. As Rusty McAllister in The Incredibles says:

Then the day the kids were dreading came: Thursday, August 18th. This is Kyle's last year in middle school, and Delaney's last year in high school. So hard to believe!!! Kyle literally won't stop growing; he is now taller than everyone in the family (Delaney peaked at 5'2" just for perspective). And it seems like about every 6 months he needs a new pair of shoes, currently he is in size 12!

I found these pictures of when Dee was in kindergarten; it is so hard to believe they were that little!

Before school even started actually, Delaney had her first soccer game with her second game after the first day of school. Her soccer senior year! They've had four games so far, 3 wins and 1 tie.

Their first game was a 1-0 win; great for their season opener. Delaney had the assist. Their next game was a frustrating 0-0 tie. The third game was a final score of 9-0, with Delaney getting a powerful shot off for one goal that my dad counted as his birthday goal (since he came on his birthday to watch her game). Their last game was a close one, going back and forth, finishing with CP winning 3-2. Delaney had a goal and two assists -- what an exciting game! Their 5th game on Saturday was rained out, with their upcoming game away at LaPorte.

Check out some highlights in this VIDEO !

This past weekend, the guys took a weekend off before the weather turns and enjoyed some beach time up in Michigan.