Just Like Old Times

Baseball and softball with Lindsey and Caleb were such a big part of our lives for many years!  We made so many great friends and memories from those days.  I am pretty sure that if we lived closer Reed would love to help coach the girls!  Since that's not going to happen, he recently got to do the next best thing - he got to be on the field and help her during one of her games! 

A little pregame fun and encouragement from Mom!

Pregame warmups with Pop!  She's making an x with her foot in the sand, so she'll know where to stand.

Swing batter swing!

 The first picture below is a little blurry, but she's looking back at Lindsey and me as she heads to first! Precious!

I love this!  She crosses homeplate and then decides to slide!

A little help from Pop in the field-

While running to the dugout between innings, she decided to help smooth out the chalk lines!

Now we're off to get ice cream!

Her last game is this Thursday, and Pop and Nana can't wait!

Go Rockies!!

Thomas the Train

This is the third year we have ventured to spend the day with Thomas.  It's a quick, fun trip that Maddie really enjoys.  Lillian seemed to like it too!  It only takes a couple of hours at the most to enjoy all the activities and to ride Thomas.

Hello Thomas!

 Other activities include Putt Putt, a maze, sand box, a smaller train, a lego play station, and another play area!  Fun times!

Sweet, sweet girls!

This is the first year that we have been in an enclosed car.  We were late ordering our tickets, so the open air cars were booked.  That turned out to be a  blessing, since it was in the upper 40's!  We were nice and cozy inside and the girls had a ball! The girls were able to go back and forth between seats and entertain themselves and each other.

I may get in trouble for this picture, but man do things change in a year's time! This was taken last year when we visited Thomas. Lindsey was 8 months pregnant! Maddie was still such a little girl, and it's already hard for me to remember what life was like before Lillian!  I might also add that Caleb looks older (and I mean that in a good way) now! 

Little Piggies

Sometimes a car ride can seem like it's taking forever.  So when everything else fails to entertain including a bottle, Nana, a movie on the DVD player, and even playing with Big Sis, you just have to resort to desperate measures!

You just grab your toes and hang on!

And maybe take just a little nibble!

Next up, Thomas the Train!

The Birthday Girl

Maddie loved everything about her fourth birthday party!  It is so very hard for me to believe that 4 years have already gone by.  She is such a big girl now!  This was a jam packed weekend of fun!  We had 2 TBall games, a baby dedication, Maddie singing at church, then we wrapped up the weekend with her birthday party.

Ariel and Flounder joined in the birthday fun!

Precious cake and a Dora Mermaid jumper!

Little Bit joined in the celebration!

Family and friends both big and small helped her celebrate.

Mom and Dad help with blowing out the candles and then we all enjoyed cake and ice cream!

She had lots of help opening presents!

She might not have wanted to sing at church, but we got our own personal concert after her party! 

And because I am feeling rather sentimental, I wanted to include this picture of her first birthday!  It's hard to believe how much she has changed!

Happy, Happy Birthday!

Lillian's Special Day

As the droplets of water are placed upon you,
You are wrapped in God's precious love,
May He bless, guide and protect you,
Keeping you safe, healthy and happy from above.
God bless our little angel!

Lillian's Infant Baptism service was held recently.  She was an absolute angel.  I am constantly humbled by the love we feel for these two blessings.  It is every parent and grandparent's dream come true to see your children and grandchildren in a loving, secure home.  We are truly blessed and thankful.

Family and friends gathered for Lillian's special day. Surrounded by love!

Such a sweet, precious family! We feel so blessed!

She was perfect with their Pastor.  She actually kept her head on his shoulder part of the time.

Maddie and Lillian have both worn this beautiful gown that Aunt Sandra made.

If you look closely, you can see the water droplets.
We are so thankful for this angel!

Maddie's Preschool opened up the church service with special songs and poems.  Maddie simply wasn't feeling it!  No singing for her today, as Lillian watched patiently and waited for her turn!

Such a special occasion!

Go Rockies!!

Well, it has officially begun.  I am going to give a brief description of T-Ball in words, and then let the pictures speak for themselves.  T-Ball with three and four year olds looks something like this-lots of parents and grandparents -EVERYWHERE, happy kids, sad kids, mad kids, organized and unorganized chaos, bats flying, hitting the ball and running to first (or second or to the pitcher), occasional tears, lots of smiles, and tons of fun!! 

Lillian was her usual precious self!!  This sweet smile was just for Nana!

These two are best buddies!!! They actually played against each other in Maddie's second game. 

Maddie is ready to play as Pop and Lillian wait from the sideline!

Batting and running the bases is lots of fun! Nana may need to talk to those two coaches from the other team.  Obviously they were in her way, so she arrived at second base by way of the outfield!

I predict lots of fun family times at ballparks over many years for these guys!  Bless Josh!  He will forever be surrounded in pink (and purple)!

Uncle C had special baby duties during the game.  Lillian wanted a nap, but it just didn't happen!

 She's fast just like her mom was!

Getting advice from Mom and the other coaches.  Also, Lillian meets Chat Chat, showing good sportsmanship, and a precious little teammate!

Sometimes, you have to take a little break from things and smell the flowers - or play in the grass! This was during the second game, which was naptime!  That's when things got interesting.  A couple of our players refused to go back on the field.  Instead they chose sippy cups and naps.  One little guy from the other team, chose to kick and scream!  I am not sure who thought naptime was a good time to schedule a game for 3 and 4 year olds!

Never a dull moment between innings!

These sisters love each other!

I can't wait until the next game!

Easter 2013

We woke to a wet, rather cool Easter.  However, it was still a beautiful day!  We had planned to attend sunrise services at Hebron, but the thunder and lightening kept us away.  We have really enjoyed that the past 2 years. Following services at our church, we joined the family at Sandra and Tony's cabin for a wonderful lunch and time with the family. Here's a little recap of this special day.

He might be 23, but he's still the baby!  He refused to look at me for the pictures as he checked out his Easter basket!

Everyone brought flowers to decorate the cross at our church service.  Beautiful!

On to the cabin - I love these special get togethers!  When we left, Caleb said that we really needed to do this more often.  I couldn't agree more!

There was no Easter egg hunt this year, but there was still lots of fun!

Aunt Sandra organized a scavenger hunt for the kids.  The girls were the butterflies, and the boys were the frogs.  Each team had a list of things to find and place in a zip loc bag!  They loved it!

Getting instructions from Aunt Sandra

And they are off!

Congratulations to Team Butterfly on their victory!!

 I think this is the first Easter ever that I haven't gotten a family picture in front of the azaleas, due to the weather.  But inspite of the rain, it was still a wonderful day!  One of God's greatest gifts is family!


Also, during Spring Break the girls came back for another visit.  Believe it or not, I barely got my camera out!  Jessi came over a couple of days and helped out with the girls.  We had a great time dying eggs and making cookies.  Lillian was close by ready to help out if needed.

It's easier to dye eggs if you sit on the table!

Thanks Jessi!!

This weekend will be filled with many fun events -  Two T-ball games, Maddie singing at church, Lillian's dedication and Maddie's birthday party!  We can't wait!