Last day of camp. It was only a ha;f day for the coaches and there was no afternoon session. The coaches were playing in a match against the Forza U18 team, and we were heading out there to watch it at 3:00. Cody took the whole day off from work. He hadn't had a chance to just "hang out" with Paul like I had, except for in the evening when we went to play. He dropped us off at camp that morning, I hung around in the heat (which I was grateful for) and Cody took the van to get estimates at body shops for some paint damage on the hood. He came back a little before noon and got to see the last part of camp, which was very fun. I took several pictures of the kids and their coaches with the World Cup national flags they made, but somewhere along the line I lost the memory card for that camera. I was so mad!
Cody and Paul had planned on going to the shooting range in between camp and the match at 3:00. Apparently shooting a handgun is a novelty in most of Europe, and Paul had never used one. It's a pretty big deal for a guy. Kevin decided it sounded like fun so he went along too. The guys left us and took off in Kevin's car and we headed home. They went and got lunch at a Hawaiian restaurant, which was also a first for the UK kids. I didn't go shooting, but it sounds like it was a very cool experience for those guys and it made their friends and families back home pretty jealous!
Right as camp was ending, my brother Matt called to let me know he and his little boy were on the road about 45 minutes from our house. They had been planning a road trip for a while and I knew they would come our way later in the week. We knew that with him and Paul there at the same time, it would be crowded, but would also be a PAR-TAY. Anytime Matt's around with his son and his doggie, it's awesome. So we raced home and got there only a few minutes before they did.
(Funny side note- Devin is the ultimate stripper. In fact, when his soccer session was over that day and we were waiting on the big kids to finish, he stripped down from everything but his underwear and soccer shorts. He ran around like that chasing kids and bugs and he looked like such a frat boy. When we got home, he stripped even further down to only his undies. When he saw Matt and Orion pull into the driveway, he almost ran outside, then stopped at the stairs. He looked down at himself and said "Wait. Gotta put 'ma pants on first!" So he put his soccer shorts on half way and backwards. He's classy that way!)
After the crazy meet'n'greet with Matt and Orion and Hank the doggie, I left Devin and Garrett at home with their uncle and cousin (thank goodness I didn't have to take them!) and we left to go watch the game.
The poor UK coaches were dying out there. None of them were really acclimated to the elevation yet, and NONE of them were accustomed to the climate. Hot, dry, and no oxygen. The coach team lost by two, but Paully Boy actually made one of the goals and one assist to Kevin. Nice job! But Cody made a bet with Paul that the U18 team would NOT score, and that UK wouldn't let them win. Wrong! Cody had to pay Paul $10.
We had plans to hit the water park, Seven Peaks, after the game was over. When Paul was about dead at the end, dumping water all over himself, he said how good the water was going to feel. Yup! The Water park was so fun. It was short because we only had two hours before they closed, but we used the time well. It was like Christmas for Paul. That boy is a fish!! Cody isn't big into swimming, so he opted to hang out with the little kids in the wave pool while Paul the Brave wanted to do the biggest and scariest water slide first. I have been going to this water park for a long time, but had never gone on that slide. Good thing I had an 18 year old to give me courage because I actually did it! Later we grabbed Devin and Ethan and did several of the big tube slides. Devin is a fearless daredevil and didn't want to stop. Such a fun time!
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| The monster slides that Paul was fearless to do. |
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| Matt and Orion. Check out that Duck Dynasty beard!! |
We got back to the house and no one wanted to call it a night. It was our last night with Paul so we ended up sitting on the front porch, eating ice cream, doing sparklers, and talking until well after dark. Needless to say, no one got a lot of sleep this week. He and Matt really hit if off and it was just a FUN night.
After we FINALLY got kids in bed and my brother and nephew retired downstairs, the kitchen was in dire dire dire need of a thorough cleaning. The poor house had been very neglected all week since we had been so busy. I was doing the dishes while Paul hung out and chatted with me, and Cody said he needed to run to the grocery store to get Paul a few snacks for the road in the morning. It was midnight! He got a few requests from Paul, and then left. Paul and I talked for another hour or so while Cody was gone. Seriously, I was feeling sadder and sadder that he would be gone the next morning! As we talked, it hit me that he reminded me sooooooo much of my late brother, Joseph. Not the 27 year old Joseph when he died, but the 17 or 18 year old Joseph from years before. I can't even put my finger on it about how Paul reminded me of him, but it was something significant. He has been gone for exactly five years ago in July and I miss him like crazy and sometimes my heart is so heavy when I think about him. And maybe something in Paul helped to ease that ache. Something in his mannerisms and personality just shouted of "Joseph". Funny that it took me a week to figure that out.
When Cody finally got home, he had bags of groceries and a styrofoam cooler to send the guys away with in the morning. Along with a truckload of food, he had several prepaid international calling cards. He had one domestic card that he said was for calling us if he needed to. The others were for his family back home. Paul sat there looking at them for a while and then said "Would it be gay if I hugged you??" That was funny. Cody gave him a big hug.
They spent the next half hour trying to figure out how to use the international one. Long story short, something was funky with the international calling code and when they finally got it figured out, Paul called his house in Belfast. It was about 8:30 in the morning there, and it was priceless when his mum answered the phone. Paul had it on speaker and it was the biggest treat getting to listen to them talk. Because international mobile calls are so outrageously expensive, he hadn't been using his cell phone to make calls- only use messaging apps and Facebook to communicate with his family. As a mom, that doesn't cut it.
We spent the next hour talking back and forth between his parents and sister. It was pretty dang awesome. Unfortunately, I had popped a sleeping pill and it started working about the time I was talking to his mom. I know I sounded like a drunk! I know I laughed a lot and said his dad had a sexy voice, which now mortifies me to think about! Sometime during the phone call, Seana snapped a picture of THEM in Belfast talking to US in Utah and sent it to me right then. It was so cool! Technology is amazing at times!!
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| Paul's family in Belfast during our phone call. |
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