T-Ball!

N has started playing instructional t-ball through Upward sports and it has been so much fun! Watching 4 and 5 year olds play t-ball is about the cutest thing I have ever seen! Thankfully, the games are at 9 a.m. or else this prego Mommy would probably not be able to stand it! This Texas heat is brutal! Anyway, little boys do not seem to care!...

N absolutely loves it and is doing very well. He has a great coach who really understands how to work with 4 and 5 year olds and makes the practices and games so much fun. Upwards is Bible based, so the kids learn how to play the sport while focusing on good sportsmanship at the same time. They do not keep score, do not have outs, everyone gets a chance at bat and they swing until they hit the ball.

N is a great hitter and is doing really well at fielding the ball also. In the first game, the first time he hit the ball he started to run to 3rd base... It was really cute! He has boys and girls on his team and seems to really enjoy himself. He loves his real baseball hat and jersey and his batting helmet and real bat. You know N, always into his clothes (just like his Daddy!) M is N's #1 fan and cheers for him the whole game. He claps his hands and yells, "Go Ne!" The cutest thing was after N hit the ball and ran all of the bases this morning, M went over to the dugout and said, "Goo Job, Ne!" They are the best of buddies and it is so precious to watch them!

VBS and Cousins

The boys and I had a busy, fun filled week of Vacation Bible School this week. I volunteered to help out and was assigned the 5th graders. I have to admit I was a little scared at first since I really do not know much about the age group and some of the kids are bigger than me! However, my friends at church kept assuring me that it would be a better fit for me than working with the little ones since I am so ginormous! I have to agree they were right... it was a fun week and I enjoyed working with the "big kids." The boys had a great time too and learned a lot and made a lot of cute crafts. They got to play in bounce houses, have lots of great snacks, N got to see April and the story barn, and they learned a lot of Bible stories and songs.

We decided to cap off the weekend with a trip to Orange to see Clay and the family. J had a business trip, so I thought it might be a good opportunity to drive down there and visit with our cousins since I probably will not be able to make the drive again for a few months.

We had a great time. The night we got there, Daniel was in a championship baseball game. The boys had fun watching our big cousin play ball and even pitch. They were a little tired and cranky at first after such a busy week and long drive, but eventually settled in. The game went into overtime and was pretty exciting!

We spent the rest of the weekend swimming and spending time with our family. We love being with Clay and his family and the kids are so good with my boys. It is so nice to have some family close by and it has been so special to me for my boys to get to know their cousins.

Clay's parents, my grandparents, both passed away by the time he was 11. My grandfather died before I was born and my grandmother (whom I am named after) passed before my first birthday. Clay lived with my family or my Aunt Judy's family until he went off to college and therefore is really more like a big brother to me. He is only 11 years older than me which makes us closer in age than he is to my mother who is 16 years older than him.

I have a lot of fun memories growing up with Clay in the house. He used to take us out in his mustang (which was super cool!) He would let us stay up late to watch Braves baseball and I remember celebrating with him when Dale Murphy hit a grand slam! We wrestled all of the time and I have a very clear memory of Clay and I breaking my bed and blaming it on Jamie :-)! Beth took me to her college one weekend and I had a great time. I remember the college girls all putting makeup on us and fixing my very curly hair into the perfect 80's "big hairdo." I was a junior bridesmaid in their wedding which was like a princess dream at the time... I was 10! I also remember Clay and his friend Tom trying to sleep in late and Jamie and I going in their room and singing the wake up song to them in our loudest voices. I thought this was hilarious until I was a teenager and Clay had some payback many years later.

I never would have dreamed that we would have children around the same age and that we would get the opportunity to spend so much time together. His wife, Beth, has been wonderful to me and I really look up to both of them like the older siblings I never had. His kids who are 13, 12, almost 10, and 4 are great kids and my boys love them too death. Thank you Beth and Clay for letting us come invade your home and taking such good care of us. We love you all!

Great Friends!

Our best friends from home, the Harris', came to visit us this week. What great friends to drive all this way! We had a great time and it was so fun to see them and get the opportunity to spend so much time with them. We took them to eat Tex-Mex, the boys got to play golf, we girls got to shop, we took the kiddos to the zoo and played in the pool quite a bit. Their daughter, L, is 5 months older than N and their son, D, is 2 months older than M. They all had fun playing together. It was a nice relaxing couple of days. We miss them terribly and it meant so much to us that they took time off to come visit us!

Our Branson Trip

J and I got to get away for a long weekend on an Aflac trip to Branson, MO. We had a fun time with friends and got to relax. We went to a show, shopped, sat by the pool, J got to play a little golf, and I got to sleep in! One day, we spent the day at the amusement parks and I watched J ride go carts, get kicked off the track with his boss (like teenagers!) and do a bungee ride. It was fun to watch. We got to eat at some neat places and had great food. We had a nice time!

All the Cousins!

J qualified for a trip to Branson, MO for a long weekend, so we had invited Jean Mommy to come keep the boys. Ironically, Aunt Julie and Uncle Lee were scheduled to go on another Aflac trip the same weekend so Jean Mommy brought in reinforcements: Aunt Jill! The 2 of them were brave enough to keep all of the cousins for a long weekend at our house.... 5 boys ages 9 and under and my 1 wonderful neice, Annie Jacob who is 12 and I know was a huge help! Unfortunately, J and I did not get to spend much time with them, but the boys had a blast! Jean Mommy and Aunt Jill took the kids swimming a lot, shopping a little, and even out to eat. ( I am not sure if they are brave or crazy!)

Thank you so much Jean Mommy and Aunt Jill for keeping the boys for us to have a relaxing weekend. Also, thank you SO much for leaving me with a perfectly clean house! (How blessed am I?)