Welcome to Our House Trace Parker

This weekend Annah and Jefforey brought Trace Parker to our house.   We were so excited that they were coming!  Andrew couldn't wait for them to get here, so he spent the night on the living room floor, "camping" until they arrived.  First thing Saturday morning, Trace Parker got his first taste of Star Wars.  Andrew introduced him to Episode IV.

Trace and Aubrey had fun playing on her playmat.  

 After a few errands, a little shopping, and some lunch we came back to the house to take some pictures of the kiddos.  This little photo session was so funny.  Aubrey and Trace kept holding hands.  It was so sweet.  Even though TP was very sleepy and not really in a picture taking mood, they are SUPER cute. 

 Aubrey was very excited.

 It's like she was telling him secrets...

 And Trace was really bored with all the girl talk.

Look at this little stud muffin...he's too cool for school!

 Later that afternoon, we put the kids in the pool.  It was a first for both of them.  Aubrey looks a little unsure.

 The water was still a little chilly.

 She wasn't too sure about the float.

 We didn't stay in the water too long that day.  Let's just call it a "trial run" of the pool.  Aubrey loves her bath and I'm sure she'll love the pool when it warms up a little.

We got cleaned up and then had to say goodbye to Gracie, Uncle, and Trace Parker.  They headed out and on to Orange Beach to visit some more friends.  It was great having them at the house, even if it was for such a short visit!  We're already looking forward to them coming back!

Goodbye Tee Ball

Well, we've wrapped up another tee-ball season and I'm happy to report that this one went a little better than last season.  Ok, a LOT better.  We finished 1st in our division and 2nd in the league!  To celebrate, I made a cake and another mom brought ice cream.  

Andrew enjoyed playing this year; probably because his Daddy was the assistant coach and he got to play infield from time to time.  *The other night he played first base and got an out! #proudmama  Here are a few action shots from his last game.

Safe!  It was a close one!

This was taken on awards night. (This year's trophy is much bigger than our "participation" trophy from last year!

"Coach Drew" got a trophy and certificate too!

He does such a good job with the kids.  They really learned a lot from him!

Way to go Rams!

Andrew says he doesn't want to play next year.  (But he also said that about this year at the end of the season last year, so we'll see.)  He moves up to machine pitch next season.  Hopefully he'll want to play.  Drew wants to coach again and I'm looking forward to real baseball!  

Happy Birthday Logan

Whew!  What a busy weekend.  After Andrew's sleepover, he had a birthday party to attend.  His friend and our neighbor, Logan, turned 6 and to celebrate he had a fun water party!

We love the blow up water slides!

 Splash!

 So much fun!

 Logan had a cammo themed party.  He loves hunting with his dad and army men!

(I made his cake)

 The gang!

They played hard all day!  Needless to say, Andrew was WORN OUT!  So worn out from his busy weekend in fact, that he took a 4 1/2 hour nap Sunday afternoon!

Kindergarten Field Day

On May 10th, Andrew's school had their annual Field Day.  (Can I just tell you how much I loved field day as a kid...good times.)  What a fun day!  And Uncle Adam just so happened to be in town so he got to go too!

pool floaty relay

 Water cup relay (My favorite) 

Then my camera died and I had to switch to cell phone photos.

Andrew was first in line for the "over under relay."  He didn't like reaching into the shaving cream!

He had a little trouble grabbing the "rubber chicken" in this relay.

After the games were over, Mrs. Harris handed out ribbons.

And as I was roaming the halls, I saw this silly picture on a bulletin board:

Military Appreciation Picnic

We went on base this afternoon for the Military Appreciation Picnic.  The whole community comes together and puts on this great event for all active duty military and their families.  There were tons of businesses with booths set up, live music, fun for the kids, food, and door prizes.  It's all totally FREE! 

When we got there, Andrew had to go straight for the bouncy houses.  

 Wheee!

 Then there was face painting.  (Not Andrew...he's just supporting his friend Riley.)

 And after some much needed, yet kind peer pressure, he finally rode a horse!

 There was also a petting zoo.

 I loved the pigs!  Andrew liked their curly tails.

 Despite the fact that this was the hottest day we've had so far, Aubrey was a happy girl in her stroller.

 We ran into some friends from church and Finnley had to hold the baby.  Isn't he a sweetie!

We had a great time.  We ate some food, listened to some music, and let the kids enjoy themselves.  Andrew went home with some friends of ours for his first sleepover!  We've had kids spend the night with us, but Andrew had never stayed away from home before.  Riley had been asking him for a while and I guess Andrew decided it was finally time.  So off he went.  Crystal sent me this picture before they went to bed:

Success!  So proud of my big boy.  These dear friends of ours are moving to northern California next month.  (Alas, the life of a military family).  We'll miss them so!

Aubrey: 4 Months

Today, Aubrey had her 4 month check up.  She weighs 11 lbs and 12 ounces and she's 25 inches long. She had quite the growth spurt, growing 3.25 inches in 2 months.  (Andrew had a similar growth spurt. He grew 3 inches from December to mid-February!)  She had to get 2 shots and drink the rota virus stuff.  The doc measured her birthmark, and it is growing, so we'll just continue to keep an eye on it.  All in all, she's a healthy growing girl!  And in other exciting news, she's starting to tolerate the car!  Woo Hoo!  And she's still sleeping 11-13 hours a night, which makes Mommy very happy.

So what else has Aubrey been up to lately?  Well, she now grabs for her toys.

And of course, they go straight to the mouth.

 She can roll from her back to her sides.  I think she deliberately doesn't roll to her tummy because she hates tummy time!

 She enjoys watching The O'Reilly Factor with Daddy.

 She still loves bath time...even when she's sleepy.

She literally fell asleep in the tub that night..until I yelled for Drew to grab the camera.

 She loves her thumb.

 She loves her changing table.

There's nothing cuter than a clean baby in a hooded towel!

She thinks her Mommy is funny!

I love her laugh!

 Me and my babies on Mother's Day.

Aubrey is such a happy baby, unless she's sleepy.  Every night around 6:30 she starts demanding her bath.  When she gets ready to go to bed, she doesn't let anything stop her.  (She gets that from her Daddy).  She has to have that bedtime routine, though.  She wakes up with a smile on her face that melts my heart.  She brings such joy to our little family of four!