Back to School!!

Well folks, I'm all alone today. We dropped off our beautiful children off at school and I had to laugh because they all chose the same outfits. Their choices are limited so the chances of that happening were quite high. Morgan was adorable last night as she tried on about 100 bows. She kept on saying with each one, "That's not bad" and then on to the next. Her teacher has to the sweetest person alive. I think we lucked out this year. She was so brave and sat right down at her desk. There is no sign of fear on this girl. The boys were sent to the playground and they actually let me give them a kiss on the check with kids swarming the hallways. Joel and I walked out of the school empty handed. Are we really old enough to be empty nesters? I thought I was okay until I walked into our quiet house and then the tears came down. I'm sad....

I won't be sad for long though. I get to pick Morgan up from school in an hour. Half day kindergarten will fly by!

Bright and Early

5:50 a.m. (waiting for Grandpa)

Seth was up and ready for golfing with Grandpa Larry at 5:30 this morning. I woke up to noises in the kitchen and found him completely dressed and making his breakfast.
I love having an independent son. I did have to remind him about the sunscreen though.

6:00 a.m.

10:00 a.m.

He had a great time but was pretty tired when he arrived home. He's sleeping on my bed right now trying to catch up on his sleep. Thanks Grandpa for taking him.

Seth will always be a willing golf companion!

California Cousins

We love it when Layken and Levi come to visit. It's becoming a little tradition for them to hang out in the hot desert each summer without their parents and younger siblings. Yesterday we joined them at Aunt Michelle's house and had a yummy dinner and then the kids cooled off in the best baby pool around. We just need a bit of water and a lot of imagination and we can have fun just about anywhere! We're off to a fun week with cousins.

Joel made it back safely from Utah this morning. Jessica is officially married! Congratulations!

Boy's Room

After living in this house for almost three years, I have finally painted and decorated the boy's room. With my limited talents and abilities, this is what I came up with. Their bedroom looks much better in person so if you want to see the full effect please head on over. But just beware, the room could look much different with clothes and junk in every corner.

I started this project the weekend of the Fathers and Sons Camp out. I surprised the boys and Joel with this new color. My sister Michelle and niece Cortney came and pitched in as well to make it all happen. The next morning I decided that their brown furniture just didn't match so I grabbed some black paint I had in the cupboard and just slapped it on. I added new knobs to the dressers and the room looked 100 percent better.

I plan on putting pictures in these frames but need to enlarge some fun prints I have of the boys playing baseball.

Overall I think it turned out okay. Morgan's bedroom is next.

One Bad Day

Lilly our dog, passed away today right before Seth's baseball game. She was injured and had to be put down by the Veterinarian. So, with a very heavy heart, Seth played baseball and things went predictably horrific. Seth started at third, pitched 1 inning and struck out in his only at bat as his team struggled to throw strikes and the other team hit the ball really well. With this loss they are out of the tournament, but Seth had a lot of fun and learned a lot about playing baseball with other kids who are really good players. It's a tough day for a kid to lose his dog and then lose a baseball game. We will all miss Lilly. She was a very special dog, but we are grateful for the time that she was part of the family.

All-Stars Game #3

The game started rather ignominiously. The pitcher for the other team was throwing very hard in warm ups. It looked like this was going to be a long night. Unfortunately, he hit our first batter in the face (huge bruise), walked our second batter and then hit our third batter in the helmet. Things became worse for their pitcher as he had little idea where he was throwing the ball, and before we knew it the score was 6-0 in the first inning and their starting pitcher was replaced before he was able to get a single out. Their next three pitchers threw strikes, but the pitches were considerably slower. Unlike Saturday night where we seemed to hit everything right at the fielders, tonight the team was hitting the ball hard and we scored lots of runs. The game was called in the 4th inning--Mercy Rule (16-0).

Seth started at 3rd base. His first at bat he hit a line drive off the chest of the pitcher. He hit it so hard the pitcher didn't have time to get his glove up, but the pitcher gathered himself, retrieved the ball and threw Seth out by a half a step. After the pitcher was hit, he was a little gun shy and had a hard time throwing strikes. So I guess you could say Seth knocked him out of the game! Seth came up the next inning and walked.

A special thanks to Coach Steve (Seth's little league coach), Grandpa Larry, Jim Power (home teacher), Uncle Cort and the Monroe cousins for coming to support Seth and cheer him on! The team made it to the semi-finals and will play Gilbert National for a chance to play in the championship.

All Star Game #2

The Queen Creek Little League All-Stars lost game number two 4-1. Both teams were evenly matched and Queen Creek led for the first 3 innings 1-0. For whatever reason, whenever the kids hit the ball, it seemed to find its way to one of their fielders. The other team threw strikes and fielded the ball really well. What is amazing about Seth' team is that in two games they have played they have not had a single error. They just couldn't buy a hit today and that happens sometimes in baseball. Seth played well, he was 1-1 with a solid hit between shortstop and third base. He pitched the 6th inning again and held the other team scoreless. He made a nice play to end the inning. The boy at bat hit a comebacker to Seth and he slipped fielding the ball and made a nice recovery to throw the boy out at first. The next game is tomorrow. If they win, they are in the semi-finals! If they lose they go home!