Friday, April 3, 2015

T-Ball Starts for BOTH Boys :D

Last Saturday was a big day for my boys as it was the start of t-ball season!!!  AJ was especially excited as he finally got to play!  He had sat by all last year and watched Jake play...itching to get onto the field himself and now he could finally play as well.  So both boys spent the day before throwing a plush ball back and forth in the living room getting ready.  :)  I got a ton of pictures of AJ's practice and game but not as many of Jake's...unfortunately we started the two son's playing sports game and they overlapped a bit.  But it was AJ's very first game and practice...so I think Jake will understand 10 years down the line when he looks at this.  :D
AJ already that morning for his first game
AJ was beyond excited to get his own jersey and hat...as a matter of fact he jumped up and down and ran in circles when he put them on.  :D
He was so excited to catch ground balls and throw them back that he got first in line...he has a pretty good arm for throwing flat footed.  :)  But he has a great time!
"Put me in coach, I'm ready to play"
Listening to his coach talk to his team...The Giants :D
Team cheer
AJ, number 8, running onto the field
So where was Jake during this first game...in the field playing with his friend.  :D 
AJ is ready to go
He wanted to get every ground ball in the game.  :)
Ready for his first at bat, right next to his best buddy who is also on his team!
A hit!!!!
Taking off for first
Running to 3rd
Second at bat....yes he likes to hit the tee
Jake and his friend are ready to play
Jake was also super excited for the season to start again.  He had a bunch of friends on his team and even a buddy from school on the team they played.
Jake at bat...looks like a baseball player doesn't he :)
A hit!
Taking off for first
Piece of Cake :)
Our baseball players!  :)
Jake and his buddy from his Kindergarten class!  They were super excited to play each other!!!


Fun Times at Home

Its funny, I have a few really great blog posts to do...but some of these pics were so good that I had to throw in an in-betweener post.  :)  But stay tuned for t-ball pics for both boys, a trip to the OKC Dodger's Open House, and pictures from Jake's little 6th Birthday party.  Hard to believe all these pics are just from the last week and a half...we are one busy family!!! :)
Poor Piper, she hates the thunderstorms her new home has.  So we bought her this Thunder Shirt to see if it could help.  She wore in for a couple of storms and while it does not completely take away her concern it cuts down on some of the crazy behavior.  So plus there...even though as you can see...she is not a big fan. :)
This was from a storm we had and the kids wanted to play in their fort...aka, the storm shelter.  They had a blast down there watching movies on their Kindles :)
God's promise...after a big storm that brought a couple tornadoes to our state we saw this outside.  :)
These trees are beautiful when they are blooming but what makes them better is this story.  AJ and I were running errands and when he saw one he yelled out "Mommy look, a popcorn tree!!!"  He was so excited and proud of himself that I did not have the heart to correct him.  :D
Jake loves to get the Scholastic Book Orders from school and this one was special as he had some Birthday money to spend.. 
...made for a very difficult decision making process
This was so sweet, AJ had been making up his own games all day with these little cards...
...but when big brother came home he taught AJ to play Go Fish.  :)


Spring Break Vacation with Friends :)

Let me start with the fact that we are incredibly blessed.  When we first moved to Oklahoma we had some friends that live an hour and a half away and some work friends of Ryan's.  But aside from them we did not know anyone else here.  God quickly changed that.  One such family was the Risley's.  Jake met his buddy Grant at school and they soon became close friends.  In time our families got to know each other and they are now dear friends of ours, some of our Oklahoma family.  They are the ones who told us about Big Cedar in Branson MO and once we had an opportunity to all go on a trip together there we all jumped on it.  We planned almost a year in advance to go on this Spring Break trip and boy was it worth it.  So many wonderful memories and a truly great trip.  Jake tells anyone that will listen that is was really his Birthday trip, which was a wonderful bonus!!!  I mean, how many kids get to go on vacation with their best friend.  :)
Getting up there on the first day we were met with this beautiful view!  Can't beat it
As it was warmer this trip (at least in the beginning) we got to take advantage of one of the outdoor pools.  Beautiful!!!
This was basically the look Jake had on his face the whole time...a dream vacation for him.  :)
The boys getting comfortable in our room.
The Lodge across the way from us...so magical to have this view
Happy Birthday Jake.  Amazingly he did not wake up super early as we were expecting...maybe staying up till 10pm the night before swimming helped with that.  :)
Opening gifts :)
A book, coloring book and puzzle...does it get any better than that!
Not sure who was more excited about this gift.  Jake got his own scooter!!!  AJ got one for Christmas and Jake really liked it and had asked for one for his birthday.  Now they can ride together.
Happy 6th Birthday Jake!
A happy Mommy with her boys
Jake Grant and Baymax
As Jake's birthday also hits on Saint Patrick's Day (or Hexagon Day as Jake calls it...not really sure) we always get them their shirts.  They are out Irish Ninjas :)
Jake testing out his scooter.  They kids had so much fun with scooters on this trip, I think they rode them every day.  They had a blast and it helped us keep them busy while we got meals and other things ready.  :)
Jake really wanted to go and visit the horses at the Stables.  First they visited this cute little pony
The kids all had fun feeding him hay
Then they checked out this much bigger horse
But these were their favorite, tied along some trees on the side
Horsing around :)
Then it was a short hike along this trail.  The kids loved it and could have hiked all day!!!
We saw a ton of turtles, they were very cute.
Hanging out on the Lake
Brown Family Vacation Spring 2015
Then it was mini golf which was then followed by the pool....did I mention that Jake had a ton of things he wanted to do on his birthday :)
The boys hanging out on the patio
If you would have told me 3 or 4 years ago that Jake would ask for Taco Salad as his birthday dinner I would have laughed at you.  But he did...of course it had to be Miss Natalie's as she makes it better than I do.  lol
Even while on vacation we had to get the boy a birthday cake!
Happy Birthday Jakey Bear!!!  And this concludes his birthday...these pictures were the same way.  We got it all in and we had one happy Birthday boy.  I am still deeply thankful to the Risley's for coming along with us on every adventure.  It made Jake a very happy boy and this will always be a Birthday that he will always remember!!!
The next day was a rainy one and so we did some indoor things.  We went into Branson and all went to Steak and Shake for lunch (Something Jake had asked that we do on his birthday trip) which also included yummy shakes and cardboard race cars...it was a hit.  And then a trip to Bass Pro Shop, the kids mostly liked climbing on the boats.  :)
Then it was back to the indoor pool for a swim.  And hey while you are already wet why not go in the hot tub in the rain.  :D
Our happy kids, so blessed that they all get along so well.
Our dear friends Natalie and Darren
A very special lunch at the restaurant at Top of the Rock!  The view was amazing and it was just fun to do!
The boys loved it as they served the kids the largest kids meal of nachos any of us had ever seen in our lives :)
While they did not come close to finishing them they had a really good time trying :)
Our last morning as we were clearing out.  Why not work at finishing up the ice cream...it can't come home with us.  :)
The kids of the Lodge
Brown Risley Spring Break Vacation 2015...Thanks for the memories :)
The last stop was a great playground that the kids wanted to play at before we left.  They all love this basket swing
And the forts...this was a restaurant with an order window 
The boys rock shop.  :D
Thank you again to our dear friends for sharing such a great vacation with us!!!  We are so thankful for your friendship!!!  And I will never forget our Walmart parking lot picnic on the way home...that pie!!!! ;)