Hi!

Hey! Quite awhile since I've posted! Life has been busy as usual. It has been quite a wet and wild spring! We have flooding all around, and another storm possibly on the way!

Last night we went to the BH Clash of Classes. I swear RJ supplied half his class with jerseys. He has always loved dressing up for the event. Tomorrow he is playing in a 3 on 3 and at night will play in an All-Star Game in Sisseton. I am getting ready for Dakota STEP testing at school, and RJ only has about 36 days of school left. Doesn't seem possible!!

Wendell is pretty busy trucking, especially for this time of year, and Cecilia is growing and learning every day. She is quite a character!

Well that's a short recap!

Ceci having fun splashing in the spring water!

The Class of 2009 hamming it up!

RJ and Ceci at the Clash

Believe

The following article appeared in today's Aberdeen American news. Our girls lost to an EXCELLENT Dell Rapids team in the first round at State A's in Watertown today, but hopefully they can win tomorrow! Good luck, girls! I am proud of you!!

**Pics taken from the Aberdeen American News and the Marshall County Journal

Britton-Hecla custodian inspired state-bound basketball girls
BY Deb Smith, dsmith@aberdeennews.com
Published on Thursday, March 12, 2009

A note left on a chalkboard by a school custodian has served as the inspiration for the Britton-Hecla girls' basketball team's run through the post season and a state tournament appearance.The Braves beat Tiospa Zina 45-37 in the opening round of District 1A two weeks ago, but faced perennial district and Northeast Conference powerhouse Sisseton in the district final. Sisseton was ranked among the top 10 teams in the state, had only three losses all season and had beaten Britton-Hecla by 28 points earlier in the season.“Not a person in the gym thought we had a chance against Sisseton - except for us,” said Britton-Hecla coach Dan Olson. “A school custodian (Treva Oland) left a note for the girls on the blackboard in the locker room about believing in themselves and the only ones that needed to believe was them. When I showed the team the note, Morgan Storley (eighth-grade player) said, 'I believe, Coach.' Treva had watched us all year and knew we had talent.”Britton-Hecla won the district game 39-34 over highly favored Sisseton.“Every girl off the bench made plays, and we stuck around and made plays at the end of the game. We gained a lot of confidence,” Olson said.The Braves' next opponent was Groton, a team that beat them twice during the regular season. The winner of the Region 1A game would advance to the state tournament. Britton-Hecla kept the dream alive with a close 42-41 win over Groton and the second trip to state in school history. The other time was 2005.“Every year, I talk to the girls about going to the state tournament and winning a state tournament,” said Olson. “The dream goal of every team that starts practice in November is a chance to win the state title. We're happy to be going to the state tournament. It's been a whirlwind. We've won some close ones and exciting ones.”The girls' team, which has no seniors on the roster, started the season with two wins and five losses. The Braves' lineup is jam packed with juniors and sophomores, and a handful of eighth-graders. The young Braves even lost the last two games of the regular season to finish at 10-10.The momentum changed in the post season as Britton-Hecla won district and region titles and a berth in the State A tournament today through Saturday at the Watertown Civic Arena. Britton-Hecla (13-10) plays the number one seed Dell Rapids (23-0) at 1 this afternoon.“Now, they have the confidence to go out and play hard,” said Olson, who is in his third season as the girls' basketball coach. “They do what they're told and execute everything they can. We (coaches) threw a lot of things at them and weeded out the things that didn't work and perfected the things that did work. The first 20 games are practice. You start playing games that count at the district tournament.”

NEC All-Conference Team

High School Boys' Basketball: NEC honorees
Published on Tuesday, March 03, 2009
The Northeast Conference has announced its boys' basketball all-conference teams.Named to the first team were seniors Michael Gjernes of Aberdeen Roncalli and the Sisseton duo of Trey Frederick and Dustin Lotzer. Juniors were Gabe Kjellsen of Groton and Derek Brown of Clark-Willow Lake.On the second team were Jared Kuehn of Redfield, R.J. Thompson of Britton-Hecla, Kyle Kunde of Milbank and Travis Vanhofwegen and Chance Olerud of Deuel. On the third team were Logan Wherry of Roncalli, Luke Holt of Redfield, Tylor Struckman of Hamlin and Brady Welk and Jacob Lindgren of Clark-Willow Lake.

What a great honor!!

The Braves Lost

More later, but unfortunately we lost to Sisseton 50-56. It was a great, hard fought game. Congrats to the Redmen. RJ had about 11 points. I am eerily calm. RJ took it pretty hard. I was VERY PROUD of the way he played. On to the next chapter!

District Finals

The Braves beat TZ 67-53 (I think) and RJ had 11 points, plus a 3 at the buzzer that didn't count. TZ had a great 3rd quarter- six threes I think. Sisseton beat Florence-Henry so that stage is set for Thursday night! RJ's dad, granny and uncle were at the game and are staying for Thursdays game.

I am feeling nostalgic, so here are some old photos of RJ. Good luck to the Braves. You CAN DO IT!!!!!!!!

Mat, RJ, Luke and Jake at a 3 on 3 in Groton

RJ and his cousins in STL

Below is RJ and his dad with one of the Cardinal's players

RJ at Headstart Graduation

Interesting Week!

Yes, it has been an interesting week! Cecilia is finally over her sickness, so of course, I caught it! I went home early from school on Wednesday because I felt just awful! It ended up being an interesting day at school, and then a snow day on Thursday!!

Girls BB Districts were postponed until Friday evening. Sisseton was a strong favorite but Cecilia and I decided to go anyway. Shock of all shocks, WE WON! Nothing against our girls, but Sisseton had such a successful season that I took for granted they would win. Moral of the story: Take nothing for granted! Boy, that really puts some pressure on our boys to do well! The girls will take on either Groton or Ipswich on Friday in Aberdeen in the Region game.

The best I could do from long range--

Coach Dan Olson and his District Champion Braves!

The State B Wrestling Tourney is also going on in Aberdeen. Our nephew, Parker, is wrestling for Redfield. He one two and lost one match Friday. Grant Renner of Britton-Hecla is ranked #1 in the state and won all three of his matches on Friday. Below is a pic of Grant, courtesy of the SDPBS website. We hope to go and watch both of them on Saturday.

BEST OF LUCK TO ALL THE ATHLETES!!!!!

Final Regular Season Game

Monday night RJ and his senior teammates played their final regular season game in Britton-Hecla Arena. They beat Groton by a score of 70-56. RJ led with 18 points (11 free throws) and 7 rebounds. It was sad, but a very awesome night, as we had four players in double figures. The crowd gave the boys a standing ovation when they finished. The 2008-2009 regular season was awesome! Now we have Districts in Sisseton on Tuesday. I think we will play TZ.

Here are some pics we took after the game.

The SENIORS

Thanks for all of your support, Grandma and Grandpa!!

Ceci had the run of the gym after the game, and she took advantage of it!!

Ceci and the Computer

Ceci got a computer keyboard for her birthday. She is still trying to figure it out, but especially enjoys the Dora the Explorer software!

Maggie Mae

Yes, we have a weird dog. This is Maggie Mae's favorite pose. Bizarre........

Then, Cecilia tries to replicate the pose!!

BH Sports

Yes, unfortunately the Braves BB team lost to Clark-Willow Lake by a score of 79-53 (I think). RJ had 13 points, according to Aunt Rochelle. Bummer. They were hot and we weren't. It would be great to win our last home game against Groton, but it is certainly no gimmie.

I didn't take any pics tonight, but here are a few from the TZ game.

Taking the ball out has been RJ's job this year. He definitely looks for the best pass which sometimes gives his mother heart attacks!!

DEFENSE, DEFENSE, DEFENSE!!

The Britton-Hecla gymnastics team took 3rd at state this evening in Rapid. That is fabulous, although I'm sure the girls are disappointed that they got beat by Deuel, who they beat in regions. Madison won, again. Here is a pic of the AWESOME, BEAUTIFUL girls. They should be very proud of their accomplishments!!!!!!

Only Two Games Left at Home.......

Goodness, gracious, who would have thought that time would fly this fast! RJ has only two home games left, including Clark-Willow Lake Friday evening and Groton Monday night. Wow. I am a little bit emotional right now.

The Braves beat Tiospa Zina on Tuesday evening by a score of 67-46. RJ had 10 points. "Kruddy" aka Cody K. scored the first dunk of the year which was pretty exciting. RJ also had a sweet behind the back pass. He has accumulated 111 assists this season, which I think is awesome.

Once again, wish us luck against a tough Clark-Willow Lake team. RJ went a-scouting to Sisseton again. I think he really wants to beat them if we face them again.

Check out this BLAST from the PAST! RJ's team took first in a 7th grade tourney in Britton. Don't they look cute??

Ceci is feeling better but I caught her cold. Ugh. School has been very busy with NAEP testing, the state writing test and Dakota STEP looming just around the corner!!

RJ's Final Parents' Night

Saturday night was RJ's final parents' night. I won't say it was mine last one because hopefully Cecilia plays sports. Ceci actually had to stay home because she is battling an ear infection and possibly strep.

The Braves came back from a 17 point deficit to beat Warner by one point by a score of 61-60! It feels great to win, even though my throat hurts from yelling! Darn refs and opposing team players! RJ had 13 points. I celebrated the win out on the town in Britton with friends Terri and Troy who came up from Sioux Falls to watch the game. We were joined by Kris and Kirk and Coach Storley and his wife. We had a good time reminiscing about old times in Eden and Roslyn. Gotta do that once in a while. Next is a home game with TZ. Should be interesting!

Ceci loves playing in the detergent!

Taking it easy!

Losing is Not Nearly as Much Fun as Winning!

We lost to Redfield last night by 6 points. RJ had 24 points so that was pretty cool. After the game, RJ and I stopped in Aberdeen to watch the end of the Sisseton-Roncalli game which ended with Sisseton winning in double overtime by 1 point--wow what a game!! Tonight we play Warner who is also 12-4. Wish us luck! My friends Terri and Troy are coming to the game and we had planned to get together at my house afterwards, but Cecilia has ear infection and a bad throat, possibly strep. We will play it by ear!

The Braves Fall

We lost to Milbank by a score of 43-39 ( I think). As fanatical as I am, you would think I would keep track of the score/points, but I don't, I like to get up and read it in the Aberdeen American News (most days). Anyway, Milbank played well and it was a good, close game. Thank God we don't have to play them again in Districts or Regions! RJ had some AWESOME passes and held out f0r the last shot at the end, but it didn't work out. Oh well. Losing makes winning so much more AWESOME!

We travel to Redfield next week for a doubleheader and host Warner for a doubleheader on Valentine's Day! Enjoy your weekend and week. Watch out for the ICE!!!

Yoga

Carrie and I had a fabulous time doing yoga at The Dharma Room in downtown Sioux Falls. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to find peace and chill out. Here is a picture of the facility and Carrie at her best!

The Dharma Room in fabulous downtown SooFoo.

Carrie-who knew you were so flexible!!

A Busy Start to February

We beat Wilmot 83-43! Next we have Milbank on Friday night. RJ went to visit a college in St. Louis this weekend and Carrie Azure and I took him to Sioux Falls and stayed the weekend at her sister Kristi's. We did a lot of shopping and meditating! We had massages, had our chokra's cleaned, and did yoga. It was a pretty amazing experience! After becoming peaceful, I watched the superbowl and much to my dismay, the Steelers won. We also ate lots of interesting food. It was hard to be away from the family so long, but I enjoyed the break.

Lunch at Mama Lada's Enchiladas!!

Lunch at Sanaa's. "Mr. Sanaa" took out picture!

RJ playing defense!

Game Info

I am behind in blogging! The Braves beat Hamlin 56-40 on Friday night. RJ had 5 points. RJ, Carrie and I left for Sioux Falls right after the game. I will post later with updates about the weekend. I've got to get going to the BH-Wilmot game that starts in 1 1/2 hours. Wish us luck!!

Big Win in OT!!

I AM SO HAPPY!! After a totally cruddy first half, Britton-Hecla Braves came back to beat the 10-1 Ipswich Tigers in OT!!! We were down by about 11 with 3 minutes left. We tied it up and won 58-53 in OT.

RJ didn't shoot real well the first half, but came back to hit three 3 pointers (Two in OT) and a 15 free throws (six in a row in OT).

Ipswich had only been beaten by Parkston who is ranked #3 in the state. I am savoring every win because I know how tough Districts might be. I thank God for this wonderful basketball season!!

Here is the story that was in the Aberdeen American News today.

High School Boys' Basketball: Britton-Hecla stops Ipswich 58-53 in overtime thriller
Published on Wednesday, January 28, 2009

BRITTON - R.J. Thompson scored 12 of his team's 14 points in overtime to lift Britton-Hecla past Ipswich 58-53 in non-conference boys' basketball action Tuesday night.Thompson, who finished with a game-high 26 points, made two three-point field goals and six straight free throws in the extra session.Clayton Warner added 10 points for Britton-Hecla, which trailed by nine points heading into the fourth quarter. Mat Kirkegaard and Cody Krutsinger each finished with eight. Britton-Hecla improved to 10-2 on the season.

IPSWICH: Taylor Weigel 2 6-9 11, Shaun Davis 1 2-2 4, Chad Dutenhoffer 1 2-2 4, Jayson Geditz 7 1-3 16, Wyatt Geditz 3 1-3 8, Barry Davis 4 2-4 10. Totals 18 14-23 53.

BRITTON-HECLA: Mat Kirkegaard 3 1-2 8, R.J. Thompson 4 15-18 26, Cody Krutsinger 2 3-3 8, Clayton Warner 5 0-0 10, Isaac Lyngaas 3 0-2 6.

3-point field goals - Weigel, J. Geditz, W. Geditz, Kirkegaard, Thompson 3, Krutsinger. Fouled out - Warner. Total fouls - Ipswich 19; Britton-Hecla 20. Rebounds - Ipswich 22 (Davis 8); Britton-Hecla 28 (Krutsinger 8). Turnovers - Ipswich 10; Britton-Hecla 14. B Game - Britton-Hecla 48-15.

A Weekend Full of Birthdays!!

Yes, it was a busy, birthday weekend. I celebrated mine on Friday and Cecilia's was on Saturday. We actually celebrated hers on Sunday, since there was a 90th birthday party for my great-uncle Walt in Lake City on Saturday night. It was good to see all the relatives. Cecilia got to play with her cousin Josephine, who is just 10 days younger than her and who lives in Austin, Texas.

Here are some pics. Have a great week! Ispwich tomorrow night!!

Cecilia and Josephine playing the jukebox at the birthday party!

Grandpa Rudy eating ice cream cake?? Never seen THAT happen before!

Daddy and Cecilia

Opening presents-Ceci loves doing that!

Another Win!!

Tonight the Braves beat Webster 59-43. Scoring was evenly spread between many of our players. It was fun to have a more relaxing game instead of a nail-biter!!

That ref looks kinda familiar. Patrick???