Celebrating Eight

It is so hard to believe, but our sweet Ben has already turned eight years old!  He started his big day with a few presents first thing.  The little office supply junkie was excited to get his own label maker, or "hand-held printer" if you ask him.

 

 Next, he was headlong into the big set of snap circuits (with a little help from Casey and Alex).

The boys rigged up their own creation with two fans!

The birthday boy got to share cookies with his class at school, then welcome Daddy home from his business trip and open a few more gifts.  The build-your-own robot kit was a big hit.

Ben got a ripstick and got some lessons on how to use it.  He said, "I never would have expected that."  I think that's his polite way of saying "that's not what I wanted" but he's already doing pretty well on it.

That evening, we took him to Smashburger at his request and went to what would be his final game with the Astros.  The boys lost in their semi-final game but took third place out of 10 teams, so the boys were proud of their season.

Because of baseball season and the unpredictable playoffs, the party had to wait until Saturday, but Ben got to spend time with all his grandparents before the party and open more gifts.  He and Grumpy dug right into the newest snap circuits add-ons and built their own FM radio.

Then we were off to Frozen Ropes, a baseball facility where Ben got his hitting lessons, for some dodgeball fun.  Ben and 21 of his friends got to throw balls at their parents and we got to throw balls back!  I wish I'd taken more pictures but it was too much fun playing and I didn't want to miss any of the action.

 

Then it was time for pizza and cake.

We kept up the baseball theme with his cake, too.

 Everyone sang happy birthday to our very happy 8-year old and he loved every minute of it!

Words cannot express how much we love this little guy or how thankful we are that God entrusted us with him.  Happy, happy birthday, Ben, and we hope 8 is a wonderful year for you!

School Fun

We've enjoyed some fun times at school recently.  First, Ben had his second grade Authorama event.  Each kid researched a children's author, decorated a posterboard of him/her, and then taught the parents about the author's life and works.  Ben chose Laura Ingalls Wilder and was very proud of his little lady.

 

The kids spread out around the conference room and the parents got to go from child to child and hear about each author.  It was a lot of fun!  Ben's class posed for a group photo.

The next day I got to enjoy the event I'd been anticipating for weeks - Kinder Mommy Makeover!  Alex was really excited as well and couldn't wait to show me the things he'd made.  First, I got my Mom poem:

Mom

beautiful, pretty

texting*, baking, cleaning,

Mom is pretty

Mom

(*I was a little worried that this was first, but I noticed that several other kids at his table had used it, too, so I'm not the only texting mom!  At least he noticed that I cook and clean, too...ha!)

Next, it was time to get my hair done.  Alex was so careful about combing it just so and kept asking if that's how I liked it.

I got a gorgeous manicure.  I wore it for almost 18 hours before I had to scrub it off let my nails breathe.

The (almost) finished product.  Alex had asked me to wear a pretty dress and bring my water bottle because he would even hold it for me when I needed a drink.

He decided I didn't look nice enough so he tried out a few more eyeshadow colors...on my cheeks....

I got some cookies and punch, a sweet song, lots of hugs and kisses, and another priceless creation from Alex.  It was such a fun afternoon with my sweetheart!

 The trait of the month was endurance and I had to laugh at Alex's response to why he shows endurance - because he plays lego star wars and the levels are hard but he wins.  This kid always cracks me up!

He's going to kill me for this picture one day, but I love this shot of Ben!  He was asking about the hair clips that came home from mommy makeover and I showed them how they're used. 

Baseball Season

We have been regulars at the little league fields again this year...seems like we spend most of our free time there!  It's a fun family outing (3-4 times a week!) and even Casey loves joining in the action when we bring her along.  Except for all the attention and petting.  That she could live without.

 

Alex has done really well on his 4-5 year old t-ball team this year.  He's caught a ball at first base (a big feat at this age because it also means another 5-year old made a good throw!) and made several outs.

His throwing has gotten much stronger as well.  Love the windup and the "point, step, throw", although he doesn't say it quite as much these days.

This boy earned his game ball by making three outs against the other team and he was EXCITED!!  We were so proud of his hard work.

 

Ben has been working hard as well in his coach pitch league.  He had several batting lessons at a local baseball center and it's given him the skills and confidence to go out and hit the ball.  It's hard to watch your kid struggle at something but so sweet to see him succeed!

The boys were blessed with a huge cheering section one week when Mr. Scott and Miss Lou Anne were in town.  The kids played overlapping games on adjacent fields so we sat in the middle and cheered for everyone.

Just a week later, Ben scored his first points for the Astros team and started a late-game rally.  The team didn't come back to win, but Ben earned his game ball and he was a winner that night.  We couldn't have been happier for him!

All these trips to the fields and practices do take their toll on little boys that need to get to bed earlier, but Alex catches up on his sleep wherever he can.  Some days he falls asleep on the bus coming home, too!

 

We took the kids to the real Astros game one weekend so they could see how the big boys play and they loved the whole experience.

A little cotton candy makes everything more fun, too!

While Alex and I were in the bathroom washing all that cotton candy off, Matt and Ben got a foul ball!  It had bounced under a chair nearby and Matt grabbed it.  By the time Alex and I got back just a few minutes later, all was calm again so I had trouble believing they really got it.  What a great experience.

It was a fun game and stayed tied up going into the 9th inning.

We moved down for better seats only to watch the Astros implode in the last inning and lose by 7 runs, but it was a fun night out.

Not baseball related, but I had to share the best note ever.  Alex came up with this at Sunday school!  Melt my heart...

Kindergarten Field Trip

Alex was thrilled to go on his first school field trip to George Ranch Historical Park, which began in 1824 and is still a working ranch today.  Overall, it was fun but I'd say they were unprepared for the number of kids (almost 300 in 12 classes) so there was a lot of down time.  Alex's group had a picnic lunch first and then a lively game of duck duck goose while they waited for their turn to see the sights.

 

Next, they were off to the farm session to see how to plant crops with Farmer Jane.

Farmer Joe taught the kids how to feed the chickens and pigs.

Alex took his turn throwing some feed to the hogs.  The classes were split into three big groups, but with almost 100 kids in the group, the kids got tired of waiting in lines to try things.  I couldn't blame them!

Alex with his official girlfriend (of the week), Reese.  She's a cutie!

 

Next, the kids got to watch the blacksmith in his shop and learn about his trade.

A look at the beautiful ranch house and land.

By far, the most exciting moment of the day was walking across the bridge and spotting alligators.  The kids and adults were loving it.

One big gator was slowly cruising down the river toward the bridge.  I was happy to watch safely from the shore!  A low wooden railing and lots of kindergartners made me very nervous but we returned with the same number of kids that afternoon so all was good.

 

The last stop was with the cowboy talking about the longhorn cattle on the property.  What did the kids take away from this lesson?  That the longhorn had to pee while the cowboy was talking.

It was a fun day with my little man, but he ended up in tears because he didn't want to say goodbye and parents couldn't ride on the buses.  I love my little teddy bear and his big heart!

Turkey Hunting

We made a quick weekend trip to Alabama so Matt and the boys could do some turkey hunting.  The weather wasn't particularly cooperative, but everyone still got to go out in the woods.

The kids and I enjoyed a little confetti egg hunt, which is particularly fun there because the cleanup is so easy out in the country!

 A little throwing practice with the confetti eggs against the house.

Confetti rain!

Casey "helped" as much as possible.  She was really good in the car for the long ride and loved exploring once she got over her anxiety of a new place.

Little city dog turned out to be quite the country dog and loved running in the mud.  She was tired at night!

Alex found lots of ladybug friends to entertain.

On our last morning, Matt hit the jackpot!  It was a fun trip all around.