Swinging in the Rain

Every evening after dinner, Tate begs us to go outside to hit some baseballs.  Tonight was no different.  As we were clearing off the table, he was on his way to find his flipflops and batting helmet and was heading out the backdoor.  I warned him that it was getting a little dark and windy outside, but he didn't seem to mind.

After all, a little rain doesn't bother a real ballplayer, now does it?
Click here to watch a little video...

After all that excitement, Brad and the boys went in the garage to watch the rain.
Check out Tate in the rain...

Love to y'all,
Tracy

BLASTball!

I think today is a day that Brad has been waiting for since the moment in the hosipital when it was announced, "It's a boy!"  Tate had his very first T-ball game this morning! 

Their team is called, what else?  The Texas Rangers.  And there are only three other teams in the league.  Brad and two of his friends are the coaches and two of Tate's best buddies are on the team as well.  They call it BLASTball, but it's basically T-ball with a couple minor modifications to make it easier for four year olds.

Tate has been soooooo excited since Thursday when he brought home his "uniform" (T-shirt and hat).  He is convinced the front says "Texas Rangers" (its says BLASTball) and is thrilled he gets to be number 5, just like his daddy.  So Thursday night, he put on his shirt after his bath and wore it to bed and then kept it on for school yesterday.  I know, I know... We pick our battles around here, okay?  Anyway, my mom convinced him to let her wash it last night so he could wear it again today. 

So how'd it go?  Basically, he didn't want to field anything.  Just stood there looking cute.  When it was time for him to hit, he'd run out to the batter's box and swing like a little left-handed champ!  He knew exactly how to drop the bat and run to first base.  But he had trouble getting himself to run to second after the next kid hit the ball.  He'd act all shy and not want to run.  By the last inning, he finally got the guts up to run the bases, with a little coaxing from me. 

Overall, all the kids did a great job!  It was just so sweet to watch them out their playing like the big boys.  I couldn't be a prouder mama. 

Love to y'all,

Tracy

One more thing... after the game, I found Tate walking towards the other team while everyone was packing up.  I asked him what he was doing.  He said he was going over "to tell the green team they didn't win."  Guess we're gonna have to do a little bit more teaching on the subject of sportsmanship... Oops.

Breakfast of Champions...

GO RANGERS!!!

Simple Is Never Simple

We're having such a nice, relaxing Labor Day weekend.  No big plans.  Nowhere we have to be.  Just enjoying our family.  It all seems so simple. 

And yet, it's in these moments that Nash's absence becomes all too apparent.  Minutes ago, I was outside enjoying the beautiful September weather.  Tate and I were playing a game, while Brad was cleaning out the garage.  Knox is upstairs asleep.  It's times like these that I can't help but wonder where Nash would fit in to all of this.  Would he be bothering us while we tried to play, taking our ball and frustrating his older brother?  Would he be playing on the slide, happy to be such a big boy now?  Would he be sprawled on the couch with a sippy cup of juice as watched the Disney Channel in his jammies? 

I don't know. 

I wish I could get just a glimpse of what it would be like with all three of my little ones running around my feet.  I can't even imagine the peace that would come into my heart and fill my soul.  It's tough to accept that this will never be the way it is for me or for my family.

Our lives will never be simple.  I do have hope that they will become less complicated as the years go by.  But I know that simple will never be the way it is around here.

Love to y'all,
Tracy

Go Rough Riders!

Brad and I took the boys to a Rough Riders game in Frisco tonight.  Thanks for the tickets, Kelly!!!  The game didn't start until 7:00 so we knew we'd be pushing it with Knox.  He's usually in bed around 7:30.  For a little guy who rarely makes a fuss, within a few minutes of sitting down to watch the first inning, he got upset and could NOT get himself under control.  Poor baby!  We thought we had him settled down once he ate his bottle...boy, was that wishful thinking!  By the middle of the fifth inning, we were packing up and heading home. 

Despite, his little brother, Tate had a BLAST and was cheering on all the players as he devoured TWO hotdogs, some peanuts, and waaaay too much 7-Up... Maybe that was why he was having so many gas problems once we got home.  (Mommy, I tooted FOUR times in the tub!!!)

After our adventure, it feels nice to have a little down time on the couch with our sweet boys safely in their beds, dreaming of homeruns, I'm sure...

Love to y'all,
Tracy

School Days

My sweet four year went back to school today.  I was so, so sad that I couldn't be there to take him because it was also my first day back at school.  But Brad got to do the honors, so I'm happy about that. 

I will say that this is most likely the only day this year, where my son will be in a polo and khakis... most days I'm sure it'll be Adidas shorts and T-shirts. What can I say... that's just the way we roll!   Actually, he wanted to wear a "muscle shirt" today, but we convinced him otherwise.  See, this family has standards!!!

Best story for the first day of school?  It happened over dinner and goes something like this:
Me: "What are some of your new friends' names?"
Tate: "Michael.  And Taylor."
Me: "Drink your milk.  Is Taylor a boy or a girl?"
Tate: "A girl.  And there's Kaitlyn."
Me: "Oh, so she's a girl too."
Tate: "Nope.  Kaitlyn's a boy."
Me: "No, I think Kaitlyn's a girl."
Tate: "No.  He's a boy.  Can I have more potatoes?  I love butter."

Love to y'all,
Tracy

The Missing Pizza

Just a fun little "Tate Story" for y'all to enjoy...


This morning, I decided I would be good and go on the eliptical for a half hour.  I was on my way up the stairs with my arms full of stuff, including an 18 pound baby, and realized I'd forgotten a bottle of water.  I called down to Tate,  who was on his way up, and asked him to please bring me one from our fridge in the laundry room.  He said sure and I continued up the stairs. 


Minutes later, he came into the spare room where I had begrudgingly started my thirty minute work-out.  Tate handed me the water I had asked for and continued on his way to save the world in his Spider-Man costume. 


Now fast forward four hours... The boys and I went on a "fun" adventure to Hobby Lobby and Tom Thumb for groceries - I really need to get better at pushing a cart with a carrier in it and a four year old hanging on the side, putting groceries in it, and feeding a baby his bottle all at once.  I really stink at that!  We got home and sat down to a nice, nutrious lunch of McDonald's drive through... What?  I worked out, so it's okay... right?  As I was putting away groceries and eating my chicken sandwich, I remembered I had some things in the washer.  I grabbed a few of the wet clothes and began throwing them into the dryer... that's when I noticed something...


Here's what I saw:

I guess the leftover pizza from supper last night (yeah, yeah, so we're not the healthiest of eaters around here lately) was in Tate's way when he went to get me water this morning.  So what better place to put that pizza, than the dryer, right?  Why not?


Love to y'all,
Tracy  

Mustang Island

We got back yesterday afternoon from our week long adventure on the beach!  Overall, the boys were sooooo good... looking back, it seems a little crazy that my mom and I took on this endeavor.  With Knox just turning six months old, and not being able to sit by himself, it was a bit of a challenge to keep him occupied on a beach or at the pool.  But Tate and Knox were both troopers and I think all four of us had a really memorable trip...

Not-So-Favorite Memories...
1. Looooong car rides
2. Crying baby in the car
3. Hour long delays on interstate (to go THREE measley miles)
4. Road Construction
... Are you sensing a pattern here???  Let's just say the car rides weren't so fun for any of us!!!

Favorite Memories...
1. Little toes in the sand
2. Tan lines
3. Shopping for souveniers... we had to bring Daddy back a coozie, right???
4. Dairy Queen
5. Tate learning how to do cannon balls and belly flops
6. Knox's little fishing hat
7. Watching the Bachelorette Finale with Mom
8. Sunday brunch - Tate met the people at the next table and proceeded to tell them his life story... "This is my brother, Knox.  It's spelled K-N-O-X... I have lots of Monster Trucks...  I have two Cades - Kade Yochim and Cade Miller... I'm four... "
9. Seeing a dead fish and Tate asking, "Who shot it?"
10. Laying out by the pool while the boys napped
11. Fish Tacos
12. Tate building Monster Truck ramps in the sand
13. Knox sitting in the shallow waves of the Gulf of Mexico, and then putting a fistful of sand in his mouth
14. Walking on the boardwalk
15. Running back down the boardwalk when Tate had to pee, only to find we couldn't get through the gate because we had no key... so Tate peed over the edge of the boardwalk... Oops.

Ahhhh... there's nothing better than sweet boys and sweet memories.

Love to y'all,
Tracy