Center Point Urbana Free Throw Shooting Contest

On Saturday, Center Point Urbana Elementary School held their annual free throw shooting contest. This was Dylanne's first year to participate. The object was to make as many free throws in one minutes time. For the younger kids, they lowered the basket, moved them closer and had them shoot with a smaller ball. Dylanne practiced a couple times throughout the week and it was very frustrating for her, but she decided to go through with the contest anyway. Much to our surprise, Dylanne got first place for her grade, making 4 baskets in one minute. She got a trophy and was so proud of herself. Heather and I were very proud of her as well and hoped that she learned a lesson in trying things she's never done before. Thanks to John and Denise Harris for helping out as well with practicing. Both of their kids, Dylan and Jay got first place in their grade level as well.Here is Dylanne with her trophy.
All three of the kids with their trophies. Dylanne, Dylan and Jay. Good job kiddos!

Urbana Independent Bags League (UIBL)

Hello friends and family. With the weather starting to change on us, I have been getting things ready for the second year of the Urbana Independent Bags League (UIBL). For more information on the UIBL, you can vist the blog that I have set up for the league at www.UIBL.blogspot.com or just click on the link on the right. If anyone is interested, please let me know. It is by all means, not a commitment, you play when you can. It is set up to give families another option for Saturday evenings.

Happy Valentine's Day!

I just wanted to take a moment and say Happy Valentine's Day to the love of my life!

2009 Winn'ter Kickball Tournament

Team Frozen Tea Bags: back row (l-r) Greg, John Harris, Mike Schrock, Chad Hansen. Front row (l-r) Erica Leidtke, Donna, Denise Harris, Heather Schrock, Deb Hansen. Being held, Jason Leidtke.

On January 31, we played in a Winter Kickball Tournament put on by the local bar, Winn's Alley. It was a lot of fun as we went 2-2 on the day and got 4th place out of 7 teams. We were all very sore many days after the tournament, but will definitely do it again. The field was completely covered in snow, accept for the path that was plowed from the pitcher's mound to home plate. It was a great day and we had a lot of fun with all of our friends.

Update

Sorry, I've been "off the wagon" with this blog and I apologize to everyone. I thought that I would take a few minutes to update all of you on the Schrock family.

Micheala: I figured I would start with the potential "bad" news. Micheala is starting to have her episodes again. I guess Heather and I thought we were in the clear, but there is a possibility that we are not. We have noticed that Micheala hasn't been sleeping well lately, so Heather had her sleep with us one night and hooked her up to her monitor. Sure enough, our worst fears were confirmed and she had alarms throughout the night. What does this mean? This means that we have an appointment at the U of I hospitals on February 18th and we'll know more then. To say that Heather and I are struggling emotionally with this is an understatement. Heather is specifically taking it hard and I'm trying to be the rock. we talk about it until we're blue in the face, hoping that our simple discussions will make it go away. All we can do is hope and pray. It is very disappointing to know that there is a high possibility of our daughter going under the knife again. I wish it was me. As always, we will keep all of you updated. Otherwise, she is doing well. She loves going to school, her and Dylanne are starting to become good friends and playmates, and she loves to dance.

Dylanne: We hit up most of you to buy Girl Scout cookies, as Dylanne is trying out Girl Scouts this year. So far, she likes scouts. She did an awesome job of selling cookies. Her goal was to sell 150 boxes of cookies, she ended up selling 222 boxes, which makes her one of the top sellers in her troop. Thank you to all that helped her cause. Dylanne's attitude has been a bit of a challenge for Heather and I. She is so sweet at times and just a terror other times. Heather and I searched for answers and we think that we unintentionally placed Dylanne on the back burner while going through Micheala's medical situation; resulting in Dylanne thinking that we don't care about her as much. So to try and reverse her thinking, we have been doing a lot of one-on-one things with her and trying to really reward the positive behavior. We are happy to report that we have seen results, but I am fearful of falling back into that rut with Dylanne if Micheala's medical situation resurfaces. It's been a real challenge relay to Dylanne that Mommy and Daddy love her very much and that Micheala just needs so extra attention right now. I think she gets it a little bit, but I understand her anger.

Heather: She just celebrated her 7 year anniversary working for Linn County! She is hard at work and has a schedule that has been full of travel. She's spent time in Washington DC, Minneapolis and soon will be in Michigan. Her focus has been a bit foggy lately, as she can't get Micheala off her mind and has been without a lot of sleep lately. I know that I am the sounding board for her, therefore get a lot of her frustrations directed at me. She's trying to get back into grad school, but will not be able to until we find out Micheala's results. She really has relied on her great friends to help take her mind off of things, as she worries a lot. I have been trying to encourage her to be more optimistic about things in life and try to laugh a little more, a job that is easier said than done. She is tough and will grab the bull by the horns when she needs to.

Mike: What's to write about me. I have been ice fishing, because it is my therapy. I can sit out in the freezing weather all day, not catch a thing and still be having a good time. I have been addicted to facebook lately because I have been talking to people that I have not talked to in a long time. I try to enjoy life as much as I can. I love to laugh, but would much rather make other people laugh. I like hanging out with friends, but also like nights at home with my family. I am excited to be an uncle and my sister is getting close (April). I currently have a very busy schedule so I sometimes feel as if I don't have enough time for everything that I would like to do.

That's us in a nutshell. I wish that I could have just wrote, "Everything is great", but life doesn't always deal us the best poker hand. So we will play the cards we've been dealt and hope for the best.

Girl Scout Cookie Time

Dylanne is a girl scout! Can you believe it? Actually she is a daisy which is the youngest group of girl scouts, but still. She is having fun. She is very shy in the group of 40+ girls. They meet once a month and do little activities about serving God and our Country. I think it's great.

Well with all of that being said it is cookie time. I know this is a shameless plug, but in case we don't get to your house if you want to order cookies just give Mike or I a call or leave a message here and I will check it. She really wants to sell 135 boxes for a chance to win a wii and ultimately 200 boxes for a really neat girl scout camping chair. We are trying to make it to everyone's house, but we apologize if we don't. We can mail the boxes to you too if you live a ways away.

Conversations with Grandma Brenda

Today would have been my mom's 55th birthday. The day has actually been more difficult than I had thought. I have been thinking a lot about my mom today. Micheala must have been thinking a lot about her too. Tonight while doing dishes Micheala was talking about my mom a lot and said, "Grandma Brenda told me that I don't have to pick up my toys and I can still get a bunch of new ones." I asked Micheala when Grandma Brenda told her this and Micheala said, "today." Micheala seems very sure of this and who am I to argue with her about her conversations with Grandma Brenda? I can argue with her about picking up her toys though and I am sure I will.