I Love Summer

We have had such a fun time over the last week! I was thinking one day, man I never get anything done and I am home all day, so when the weather got a little warmer and more reliable I decided I would change that. Now I don't get anything done and we are GONE all day :) My friend Mandy filled me in on the summer reading program down at the library and reminded me about the free lunch in the park so we have kept ourselves very busy. It is nice because the house actually stays a little cleaner because they aren't home all day to make messes, and who can argue with free lunch. My favorite part would most likely be having another adult around, it is just nice to be able to talk to a friend. Mandy has been my friend since I was in third grade, you just don't have many friends like that in your life. I am so glad that she and Kevin made the choice to move to Billings when he graduated. We have had some late, but wonderful nights. We have recently been into the Construction Game. But we also play cards, wa-hoo, apples-to-apples, Partini, or whatever strikes our fancy. And laughter is almost guarenteed!!!

This last weekend another friend of mine since third grade came up to Billings for a few days to visit. Mandy, Megan, and I had such a fun time talking, laughing, and just enjoying one another's company. Isn't it the best when you get together with a friend that you haven't seen in years and it is just like nothing ever changed. That is how this weekend was. I moved away from Sheridan at the start of my sophmore year so I missed out on a lot of great memories but the friendships that I had there are some that will last a lifetime. LOVE YOU GUYS! Oh yeah, the picture is of Aubrey and Isabelle, who is Mandy's youngest, they are three months apart. She also has a son that is within a year of Ethan and another one that is within a year of Preston so our kiddos LOVE going to see Kevin and Mandy.

Spiderman

This is Kendra's ready stance. Someday she will kill me for this I am sure. I don't know who taught this one to her but when she busts this out I die laughing. I guess for once I can be happy that she ushually isn't paying attention so we don't see this one too often. The ball almost hit her in the head so she did a good job getting out of the way. With minors softball the girls are always getting hit with the ball. Maybe that is good to teach them not to be afraid of it

She gets a little stiff when she goes up to bat, but I think it is mostly nerves. The last two times she has hit the ball she ran to first base with the bat in her hand. And once she started taking off her helmet. She told me after the game that she had forgotten what to do it had been so long since she hit the ball.

It's over!

We are all done with softball! WOO HOO!!! Back to normal life, and I can't wait to have a good dinner. Oh wait, we have the pizza party tonight, so not quite there yet. The best part is that this week has been wonderful outside and would be great to sit at a baseball or softball game. Maybe next year the weather will cooperate a little better. On Saturday we went to the batting cages and Josh worked with Kendra and Ethan. What a difference, it is amazing to me what a little direction and coaching can do. Ethan had fun swinging at balls that were actually being pitched to him even if they did come a little too fast. Kendra got her confidence back and then hit an awesome double at her game Monday. It was the tournament of champions tournament so it was sort of a big deal. But her team didn't have enough people show up so they had to borrow players, which means that they couldn't advance no matter what. Kendra was actually bummed out about it. Go figure!

Ewww

See this super happy face? I will give you three guesses as to why she was so happy.... Yup, she had taken care of business. I couldn't help but snap this picture just to have documented one of the many blow-outs that Aubrey likes to bless me with. The sad thing is that I usually know when they are coming and I am getting pretty good about planning her outfits accordingly.

June 13, huh???

I am not quite sure how we got to June 13th. My only theory is that I fell into a coma two weeks ago and just now came out of it. Seriously, where does the time go!!! We have been busy with tee-ball and softball but are so close to being done that I can taste it. Ethan finished up about a week or so ago and the highlight of the entire season was that he got a trophy, WOO HOO! I meant to take a picture of him with it but haven't quite gotten there yet. I have never seen a child get so excited over something like a trophy, but hey who am I to complain, when the kids are happy, momma is happy. The team mom organized it so that the kids could have something special. I am thinking that for $9 I will be getting trophies for many more occasions, like when Preston gets potty trained or maybe when Kendra finally gets in the shower without complaining. Whatever works right? Here is Ethan waiting for the ball. He did a pretty good job at paying attention throughout his games. They couldn't let one of the boys on his team be in the outfield because the moment that no one was looking he would run off and start climbing the trees. So we were just proud that Ethan paid attention. As you can see, the other little boy in the picture is playing in the grass.

Preston doesn't seem to have a problem sitting on his potty chair, it is making it happen WHILE he is sitting on the potty that seems to be the issue. Some days he will only sit on it completely clothed while other days he prefers to be naked!

In Tee-ball every kid gets to hit each inning. There are never any outs, they just go through the batting order and then switch. His games are nail-biters let me tell ya! His favorite thing was to play first base and then after the game he would tell me how many outs he would have gotten if they were playing coach-pitch. He actually did pretty good. He has big plans for next year.

I made Josh smile for some silly pictures. He has lost a lot of weight this summer since he has been working outside, but you can't tell in any of the pictures I took because of the funny angle, oh well.

I didn't have a whole lot of clothes from when Kendra was a baby. Eight years was just too long to hold on to most things, and after two boys I had given up hope. But this little outfit was one that I had held on to. Some times you just need some pink with a little bit of frills thrown in. Aubrey loved it!

Once in a while I will be looking at Aubrey and it is just like I am looking at Kendra as a baby. The other day it really struck me and took me back to when she was a new little baby. I even teared up. Can you imagine being able to hold your oldest child in your arms as a little baby again. Holding Aubrey is like I am doing just that. But then Aubrey smiles and coos and I realize it isn't Kendra because she wouldn't be this happy :) I am so blessed, raising my children is my greatest joy and I know that no matter what they will always be the center of my world. (Cheesy, I know) But I love them so much! Josh and I are always telling people that we are done having kids and I know that most people are thinking, "Yeah right." And I don't blame them because we are super young. But now that Aubrey is here I feel that our family is complete, that everyone that is supposed to be here is here. It is a comforting feeling and I love just being able to think about my kids and each of their personalities and to see what each of them brings to our family. A friend of mine told me that when her youngest started school she had a hard time and really wanted another baby. Her husband told her that they were going to have to move out of that stage at some point and move into the next. I know that day will come for me, when my babies are no longer babies, when I have them all potty trained and can understand what they are asking for, when they can bathe themselves and make their own bed. Children are always changing and growing and we, as mothers, are here to help them along their way. We are also always growing and changing, even as I watch my mother I realize that it is often because of her role as a mother that she grows and changes. What a wonderful and eternal role, I couldn't ask for anything more.