April and May 2014

April 

Emma had a rash on her legs and a slight fever...so off to the ER we went

After tests and lots of waiting...they determine she had the same thing I did at her age. It is a version of strep that sounds like "potpurri" but of course I can't find the name of it now 😕
Just kinda funny we both had the same random rash at about the same age.

Goofy Girl!

Ms. Nikki at Daycare enjoyed braiding Emma's hair during the day. Here is the crimped hair after I took out her braid. She loved it! 

Emma's Gymnastics award ceremony

Ryan playing catcher for this season's team - he really enjoyed the position. So did we! A lot more action to watch then when he's out in the out field! 

Daycare project - Cracked us up that she listed Connor Regester as her cousin. Note that at age 5 she wanted to be a chef and loves macaroni. At least her love of cheesy things hasn't changed much!

May

Boating with Tim and Karen on Lake Monroe

Memorial Weekend at Memaw and Papaw Bill's House

 

Ryan's Random Thoughts

Ryan: "Cavemen lived around the time of Dinosaurs." 

Matt: "Yeah, but they died along time ago."

Ryan: "Now we have hobos." 

Matt: "What?!?

One last trip to florida

In February, I decided to take Ryan on a last minute trip to Florida to visit my grandparents at the their place in La Belle. Ryan was 2 the last time we were in Florida to visit them, so I really wanted to get down there one last time, since we were not sure if my grandparents would be able to go back at the end of this year. 

Mom, Bill, Loretta, John, Dodie, and George were going to be there visiting as well, so I thought it would be a great time to go. I wanted it to be a surprise, so I made sure everyone didn't say anything to Grandma or Grandpa. I asked Matthew if he wanted to come with us and fortunately he was able to come as well. 

The downside of planning a trip on short notice was that we had to fly into Tampa, but the silver lining was I had a chance to spend a couple of hours in the car with my brother. It's not very often I get to sit down and talk to him for very long =) I really enjoyed our car rides to and from the airport. 

I called my grandma right before we pulled into the drive way to tell her how much we missed her and really wished there was a way we could come and visit. As I hung up the phone, Matthew, Ryan, and I walked through the door. I will never forget the look of surprise on her face. Nor, will I forget her looking around for "that little booger". Unfortunately, Emma was unable to come too. 

Since Ryan was much older this time, he was big enough to ride the three-wheel bikes. 

My aunt Dodie and Uncle George have a pontoon boat down there, so they took us out for an afternoon outing. Unfortunately  the weather was pretty chilly, but we still enjoyed the day and the water

Tuesday night, Dodie fixed a lovely dinner for Valentine's Day. Apparently Bill and Ryan had their fill =) 

The Aqua Isles Boulevard - 

The pool - many fond memories of noodle fights with Matthew in this pool =D 

My grandparents, John and Katie, in front of their winter home for 20+ years. 

We had a wonderful visit. As it turns out that was their last trip to stay in Florida for the winter. I'm so glad that it worked out for Matthew, Ryan, and I to see them. 

Do you feel lucky???

Well do you??

Ryan's 9th Birthday Party

My baby boy turned 9 this year! Hard to believe 9 years have come and gone...and technically we only have 9 more years until he's off to college. Ahhhh!!! 

He asked for a Tampa Bay Rays team party. Gotta love Party City, who has MLB-themed party supplies. Whew! April made the cake and cupcakes. She did a great job decorating it!

He had several friends over and they had a blast. It was too hot and muggy outside, so the stayed inside. Wow, didn't realize how loud five 9 years olds can be! At least they had a lot of fun together. 

Ryan has enjoyed his gifts this year...

Batter Up!

This summer Ryan participated in his 3rd season of baseball, which is also his last year of coach-pitch. He had the same coach and many of the same players from last year. 

As you can see Emma enjoyed this year's season too...just in her own way =)

Ryan had lots of support from his family too, including his Grammy, Memaw, Papaw Bill, his uncle Matthew, and my dad. I think this is a great photo of Emma and my dad =) 

After one of their tougher games that was won with a walk-off home run, Ryan walked up to his dad and started crying. He said "They are tears of joy dad! We were going to lose the game and then we won because of Jackson's home run." Matt was proud of him for getting into the game and showing that competitive spirit :)


They played a great season and won the Championship game for their league! 

Matt and Ryan decided to start following baseball, so they picked the Tampa Bay Rays as their favorites. To support their team, the boys each got a Rays' jersey for their birthdays

This summer we took a trip to Victory Field in Indy to catch the Indians vs. Detroit Mudhens game. The Indianapolis Indians are affiliates with the Rays, so we had an opportunity to watch a couple of their players at the game. Ryan and his friend had a fun time, even though it was scorching hot out in the sun - fortunately we found some shade higher up in the stands. 

We're really looking forward to next year. We hope to follow Coach Rusty again, but if not, I'm sure Ryan will still have a great time playing!!

Attack of the Flying Monkeys

November 5th, Ryan and his 3rd grade class performed the Wizard of Oz. It was based off of the original book, so the story line was a little bit different than the movie. Ryan didn't want to audition for a speaking part, so he was a crow and a flying monkey. The flying monkeys had a step routine and Ryan worked hard to be sure to have all the steps memorized. It was fun watching him practice (even Emma memorized some of the steps, we got a kick out of watching her mimick Ryan's moves). He makes a really cute flying monkey!!

Ryan's Style

I love the fact that my son enjoys dressing up, whether it be in a suit and tie for a wedding or cowboy boots and hat. He's such a handsome guy =) 

Emma's gymnastics recital

Emma has been taking gymnastics lessons for a couple of months now. For the first 4 weeks, she cried through the stretches. After that she was excited to work on the circuits and in the bouncy train. Eventually she got over her dislike of stretches and now she has a blast through the whole lesson. 

At the end of each lesson the class works on a routine. Emma has been practicing at home and I think she does a pretty good job! Last night they performed for all the parents, both as a class and individually. Afterwards they each received a metal. 

Ryan really wants to go to gymnastics too. So for Christmas this year, mom is giving Ryan lessons for a couple months this winter. I think he'll really enjoy it and it will help keep him active during the cold winter. He's already so strong and loves to climb and tumble, so I know this will be a good fit for him.