Emi's First Cougar Chase

That's a fifth grader (Rahim), a fourth grader (Carter), and a third grader (Emi). Emilio reported that he and Carter encouraged Rahim to keep up with them during much of the race--and then, with some finish-line encouragement, Rahim brought it home. This was Emilio's first 5K, and he finished in just under 45 minutes.  He was soaked!

Emilio finished third in his age group and 52nd overall.

The Green Beans' Ada Debut

Twelve seconds into the Green Beans' Ada debut, Emi sneaks one in.


Sixteen seconds after play resumes, Emi fires a second into the corner.


Sporsmanship on display: "Are you OK?" Emilio asks the big guy whose feet got tangled with his.


Four minutes into the game, Emi gets the hat trick.


One minute later, Emi gets number four, and Coach Robbie takes him out of the game and congratulates him. On the sideline, he tells him not to score anymore when he goes back in, but to work on his passing instead .


After sitting for a long while, Emi comes back in, does a great job of keeping his head up, and delivers a sweet assist to Tristan.


A swipe, some weaving and another pass to Tristan.


Good pass to Zac--who celebrates the score.

Now Playing: The Green Beans

It's a whole new world. We now have away games, there are seven players on the field instead of four, the field is much larger and so is the goal. There is also a goalie. Emi is our captain in the first game and is assigned to play center forward. It is HOT and humid.

Emi weaves by two defenders, loses the handle, circles back and prevents a goal.


Emi weaves by three but is stopped by a fourth.


Nice backdoor pass by Emilio deep in the defensive end. Though assigned to play center forward, as the game wore on, Emilio plays a lot of this game deep in the defensive end, where much of the action is.


Emi called this one, "The Launcharoo." It was the closest anyone on our team came to scoring in this game.


The center forward feels compelled to rush toward his own goal to stop a run.
After this game, Emilio is exhausted.

On the Pontotoc County Fair Ferris Wheel

First game of the Backyard Pre-Season

That's the Dez Bryant "X."

Meeting Emilio's third grade teachers

We are very happy that Emilio is going to have a return engagement with Miss Melinda . . .eh . . . Mrs. Hubble, who will be his home room and math teacher this year. Miss Melinda was Emilio's Head Start teacher five years ago at Monte Vista Academy. Loved her then, love her now.

Emilio's reading teacher, Ms. Ruiz-Blanco, looks like a winner, too. Apparently, she's quite a hugger.

According to the white board, this year in Ms. Ruiz-Blanco's class, Emilio will: "1. Build with Legos; 2. Plant a garden; 3. Learn some Spanish, Chinese; 4. Study other cultures; 5. Conduct chemistry experiments; 6. Read, write, and talk about books; 7. Learn how to become healthier, stronger, and kinder; 8. Create online presentations; and more!" Sounds good. Especially the Spanish part!

At the Chickasaw National Recreation Area