Take Me Out to the Ball Park….

Today was Dalton’s first T-Ball game ever!  We woke up early, got him all decked out in his cute little baseball uniform, ate breakfast, and headed out to the ball fields for opening ceremony.  After joining the team late and only getting to go to one practice before the big game, he did an awesome job.  There were quite a few tears shed on the field by the team, but Dalton stuck it out the entire time even though the temperature barely reached 50 with the wind chill by the time the game was over.

Dalton is on the bottom row, far right.  For some reason, he thinks it is cool to wear his hat down over his eyes.

Getting ready to bat and then stepping up to the plate.

In the dugout with the team.

Entertaining himself in the dugout.

The season just wouldn’t be complete without a picture of Dalton playing in the dirt.

A Day of Firsts….

Today was a day full of firsts.  Addie had her first haircut ever.  Grandma came up for a few days visit, so before she left, she gave Addie her very first trim.  (She also trimmed Dalton’s for the very first time when he was a baby.)  Addie has quite a bit of hair and it’s starting to grow, but by trimming it, we are hoping to get rid of some of the baby fuzz and have long, beautiful, dark hair just like her daddy.

                      Before                                                  After

Thanks Grandma for my beautiful new haircut.

The other first for the day was Dalton’s very first day of T-Ball practice.  The team actually starting practicing a few weeks ago but we missed the sign-ups and got a late start.  Thanks to the neighbors, they were able to call the coach and get us in before it was too late.  He is on a team with kids 6 and under, so some of the boys (and one girl) are quite a bit bigger.  He got out there tonight and played with the best of them though.  He had a great time and made us so proud.  We have a little work to do, like teaching him the names of the bases, but he seemed to catch on quick and enjoyed the practice.  Did I mention how great the coach is?  I’m not sure how he remains so patient with 12 little ones, but I think he is going to be just the coach to really get Dalton going in sports.  That first coach can really make or break an experience for the little ones.  His team is called the Cibolo Reds and he sure does look cute in his baseball uniform.  We can’t wait until his first game this Saturday!

Let the fun times begin!

Daddy’s Little Helper…

Blake and Dalton decided to do something a little special for Mommy this weekend and surprised me by washing my car.  Dalton loves to help wash the cars.  He practically begs to help any time he sees the bucket and soap emerging from the garage.  Year after year, he never seems to tire of being the best little helper ever.

                      2008                                                    2009

Birthday Parties Galore

Well, it’s finally happened.  Our children’s social calendars now have taken over our own.  This past weekend was jam packed.  We started out the day with a birthday party for a friend of Dalton’s from church at 11.  She was turning three.  The party was at a very fun and family friendly restaurant  in San Antonio called Beefy’s.  They serve great “backyard” food which you can enjoy on the huge back patio.  The parents were able to relax and visit while the kids wore themselves out on the play equipment and soccer field.

At one, we were off to birthday party number two for our next door neighbor.  He was turning four.  Him and Dalton are just about two weeks apart and love to play together as often as possible.  His birthday party just so happened to be at one of our favorite neighborhood parks.  Dalton filled his tummy with his second helping of birthday treats for the day and was off to run out some more energy.  They had a grand time playing on the slides and swinging as high as the sky.

After our second party, we headed home for a quick nap and then it was off to Clayton’s (Dalton’s cousin) first baseball game of the season.  Unfortunately, his team ran out of time and the game was called when it got to dark to see the ball.  We didn’t make it to his second game on Tuesday, but heard the team was much improved.

Fun in the sun….

It may only be March and the first official day of spring, but the kids were able to enjoy some summertime weather today.  We got out the little blue pool for Dalton so he and a neighbor could swim.  Addie was watching the two boys with such envy, we decided to dig through a box and find the little ring pool someone had recently given us for her.  I’m pretty sure today might have just been the best day of her life thus far.  She was having so much fun splashing in her own little pool, playing with the dog (Rusty has decided he is Addie’s dog) and trying to keep up with the big boys.  I think we may have a second little water bug in the family.

Even though Addie looks as if she has been posed for the camera, this happened by pure coincidence.  She is such a little ham.

What pool is complete without a few rubber duckies?

Getting a smooch from the pooch.

Rusty keeps pretty close tabs on Addie when she is playing outside.

He may still be scarred to death of me and Blake at times, but he sure does love the kids.

I’m pretty sure if Rusty could talk, he would be saying “Don’t worry, I got your back.”  If that is not a face of protection, I’m not sure what is.

Dalton and our next door neighbor playing with toys in the pool.

Having a great time running through the sprinkler.

I’m so glad the bright blue skies are here again.  We are looking forward to spending many hours in the pool this summer.  I’m pretty sure that playing outside will encourage Addie to start walking even sooner (not that we are in any hurry).  As you can see from the pictures, she mastered the spider crawl in just one day after she discovered the brown, crunchy grass is hard on the knees.

Enjoying the wildlife…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

      in second grade….

 

 

 

 

 

 

      and now.

Apparently Blake has the magic touch when it comes to getting squirrels to eat straight from your hand.  Dalton was very impressed by his daddy’s ability to get the squirrel to come right up to him.  Dalton tried to hold some bread out for our new little friend, but couldn’t quite manage to be still or quiet enough to earn the little guy’s trust.

Here his is enjoying his third piece of bread.

The chickens were not as friendly as the squirrels.

The starting point of the Comal River in Landa Park.

The family enjoying the hiking trails at Landa Park.

Just another day at the park.

This week is my nephew’s, Clayton, spring break.  He is staying with us a few days this week which Dalton loves.  They get along great (for the most part) and it gives me a little time to spend with Addie and not worry that Dalton is feeling left out.  So on Tuesday, we took advantage of the warm weather and visited one of our favorite parks.  Addie and I had fun exploring some new places around the park, while the boys dizzied themselves on the tire swing and raced cars and planes down the slides.

Choo Choo!

     Having fun on the tire swing!                             All grown up!

  Racing cars down the slide.                     Playing in the mulch.

 

I know we need the rain, but we really missed getting to play outside today.  There is something about sunshine and bright blue skies that just makes my day.  Perhaps tomorrow I’ll have to be brave and pull out the finger paints so we can create our own sunshine.

Day at the zoo

One day last week the kids and I packed up and headed out to the zoo.  The weather was just too nice to stay inside and I figured it would be a while before we could get back due to the next few weeks of spring break and how busy everyone claims the zoo becomes.  They have been working to renovate the zoo since before we moved to San Antonio, so each time we go, it seems like something new awaits us.  This weeks new addition was a black leopard.

Dalton liked his green eyes.

The real leopard is in the background of the picture.  We had to take this picture on the way out because of how many kids were hanging around the window when we first got there that morning.  Apparently we happened to go on field trip day.  Dalton didn’t seem to mind though.  He thought all the kids were there so he could have friends to enjoy the animals with.

This week we also discovered a new bridge.  The zoo is easy to get “lost” in, so each time we go we feel like we discover new things.  Dalton wasn’t quite sure of the bridge at the start, be he kept with it and managed to get all the way across and back.

 

Here he is studying the bridge with great attention to detail.  You can’t tell from the pictures, but water is running in between each stone and there are alligators on each side.  Of course the alligators can’t get to the bridge, but Dalton still wasn’t convinced.

 

Carefully calculating each step and then proudly waving from the other side.  It only took him about ten minutes to cross, but he kept with it.

We make sure to visit the grizzly bear every time we go to the zoo.  This guy always puts on a great show for everyone around.  He’s probably my favorite at the zoo.  Aside from the claws, I’m pretty sure he’s just a big cuddly teddy bear.  One of these days he’s going to wave back.