first chess tournament

while mason and daddy were surviving in the wilderness, the rest of us loaded up early in the morning and went to madelyn's (and mason's) first chess tournament. of course, mason was missing out, but madelyn was SUPER pumped to be there! i was pretty nervous about keeping the little boys quiet, sitting and entertained for more than 5 hours. 

i was relieved to discover that the room where we would be waiting was a least a little noisy and not too close to the rooms where the chess would be taking place. we aren't allowed to watch the kids play chess. the kids were called by age/ability for each of four rounds while we all waited. when the kids finished each round, they came out to wait with us for the next round. surprisingly, they played chess while they waited too!

and i was ready for the waiting - i hoped. i threw together a few crafts for the boys (lots of glue sticks, scissors and paper). our first one was making a "squirrel tree." the craft was very simple and the boys really liked it. we were sitting under the only fan in the room and were having trouble keeping our tissue paper squares on the table. this turned out to be a good thing though because apparently the room was really warm; we never noticed.

madelyn lost her first match. then she won the second! she was SO excited. then she said that she beat a really little kid. "like, i think he was a kindergartener." it was so sweet how she was a little embarrassed to have beaten someone younger. but i told her that it was her first year and his first year so they were a good match. her coach put it this way, "a win is a win, you can't underestimate the kindergarteners."

we had a little packed lunch (i treated the kids to purchased pizza from concessions) and then got back to sitting.

manning working on a scratch Halloween craft that nana and papa sent the kids.

madelyn came out with a loss in the third round. several ipads and other tech devices came out around the room. you could tell where they were by the hoard of kids clustered around them. except for ours.

i told the boys that they could use the ipad after lunch (after all, they had already sat at the table for a little over three hours but that point). one little boy felt the pull of an uncrowded screen. he was super sweet. he asked if he could have a turn and then let maddux pick which game he would play.

madelyn ended the tournament with a draw. she was really excited because she played against someone from her team and that meant that her team earned the point no matter the outcome.

mason's school came in first place in their division.

and madelyn's school finished second in their division.

the little boys sat still and quiet for five and a half hours. yes, five and a half hours. they were AMAZING! several parents came over to complement them as we were all heading out. not that i ever want to have to chance that again. love.