Jake's Birthday

On April 25th, we had Jake's birthday party. All the kids seemed to have had a blast! I think the parents enjoyed themselves, too! We had his party at the Birmingham Barons baseball game. Before the game, there was an event hosted by Principal Financial Group. There were so many activities to do. They even got to meet two of the baseball players! You can see for yourself in the pictures how much fun everyone had. Even Jace loved it! Thanks to all who came and made Jake's party so memorable for him! Happy Birthday, Buddy!! We love you!!

Well, I have been so busy that you would think I have something to blog about everyday! Having five kids in your home, I could blog about something everyday. It is finding the time that is the tricky part. The kids had another weekend of ball games. I'm so proud of all of them! They all do so well! Highlights of games: Cailey ran all the way from outfield to tag the last batter right before he crossed home plate! That made us win the game! Kota played first base and got plowed over by a big ol' boy! She was trying to make the catch that the third baseman threw to her. Poor thing she didn't even know what hit her! But believe it or not, she stayed in the play and chased the boy down to home plate! Then she cried! She has a bruise on her left cheek, but she stayed in the game. What a little skrapper! Taylor caught her first outfield popfly! It was an awesome catch!! Now I have to cough up $20! We told Taylor and Jake last year that for the first popfly they catch in the outfield, we would give them $20! Taylor didn't forget about that promise! Great catch, Tay! Jake had a double-header. Won the first game and lost the second. He played outfield most of the time. Not alot of action for him this time.

Way to go, Tay!!

Taylor had her first ballgame Thursday night. She was the lead off batter and was very nervous. Her position was left field. She didn't get any hits her way but she did get to bat. She walked on her first at bat and then stole second and third. On her second at bat, you will have to watch the clip provided to see what happened. I'm so proud of you, Taylor!

Happy Birthday, Dana and Dusty!

Sunday, a week ago, was my sister's birthday. We all went out for Chinese after church. This is the family chowing down. After lunch, Dana and I enjoyed a trip to the GAP. My sister is my best friend! We don't spend as much time together as I would like, but we make time as often as possible. Thanks, Dana, for always being there! Love Ya!

THE BIG 30!!!

As for Dusty, his birthday got caught up in the mix of everything. His birthday was the Monday after we got back from Nashville. The kids and I didn't forget about him, though. We got together a couple of gifts and a birthday cake. He worked late that night, so the kids wanted to surprise him. When he got home, we had all the lights out and the kids were hiding under the kitchen table. When he came in, the kids jumped out and screamed, "Surprise!" He was truly surprised. Thank you Dusty for all the hours you put in for this family! You may not realize how much we notice and appreciate all that you do. You have become such a good husband, father and most importantly, Christian these past few years! I'm proud of you! I love you with all of my heart! Happy Birthday, Honey!

Take Me out to the Ballgame!!

First off let me start by saying, "Whew, I'm tired!!" The ball season has kicked off and I mean it is in full swing (no pun intended!). Between the four that are playing, we have practice every night of the week except Wednesday. This past weekend was the Kickoff Tournament for Jake, Cailey, and Kota. However, their tournaments were not in the same places. Cailey and Kota played on Thursday at Sumiton Park. Jake played Thursday at Union Chapel in Jasper. Cailey plays shortstop and made a homerun on her first at bat of the year!! Awesome!! Kota played third base. Her first at bat, she got on base and just laughed. They are planning on moving her to outfield because they want someone out there who can throw. Unfortunately, they lost their first game, but had a wonderful time. Jake played right center and "behind" catcher. They played the best team in the tournament on their first night. He lost, too. Jake was to play on Friday, but of course if you had planned to play on Friday, you could forget about it! What a storm!! His game was rescheduled for Saturday at 9am. Cailey and Kota had their second game at 11am. Let's see if I can shorten the rest of this story. Jake won his first game, so had to stay for a second. Rushed Mom and the girls to their game in Sumiton. Rushed back to Jake's game. They won again!! Rushed to get Mom and the girls from their game(they lost). Rushed back to Jake's third game. He won again! So we are all at Jake's fourth game of the day. The winner plays the championship game and the loser gets third place. Jake played catcher the whole game. First inning, with two outs, a brutus of a boy hit one to the outfield. Jake throws his helmet off waiting....the outfielder throws to second, second relays to home, Jake makes the catch! He's standing his ground as the boy has already rounded third base and WHAM!! The boy lays Jake out on his back. Jake sticks his arm up with the ball in hand and the umpire yells, "OUT!!" What a play!! I was sure he was going to be hurt but he ran to the dugout with everyone cheering!! They were winning the whole game but it came down to the bottom of the last inning. They were exhausted and just couldn't close the deal. What an effort, FOUR straight games! We left the ballpark around 5pm. Needless to say, we were all exhausted. It is worth it, though. I love to watch my children in anything they do! The twins and Jake have another game on Saturday and Taylor kicks her season off on Saturday, too. Makes for another busy weekend!!