A Day at the Zoo

We had quite a few fun excursions over Spring Break!  One of my favorites was a day at the Memphis Zoo with some of my friends and their cute little kiddies!  I didn't get a shot with all faces pointed towards me, but this was at the beginning of the big day!  It was COOOOOLD!  I had to wrap John Stephen in a blanket!

We saw lots of animals! 

Climbed up on statues that we were not supposed to sit on!

Ate a few snacks!

Saw tons of people we knew...and some we didn't know!

And napped in the stroller!

At the end of the day we were all still having fun!  I am so glad that we got to spend a fun day with these friends!  I am even more glad that I got to stay up until 1:30 in the morning laughing with their Mommas!!

Let's get this party started...

YooHoo!  Just checking in to let you know that it's SPRING BREAK!  We have been so busy that I haven't gotten my camera out much.  On Friday night Pax had a pitching lesson, so Saturday morning we headed to the FEMA Dreama for the first time since fall!  We made it there in time for breakfast with the family on the porch- delish!  It was kind of chilly up there.  We had had a few days hovering around 80*, but Saturday was overcast and cool.  The kids played wiffle ball while I tried to rig up very sophisticated window treatments out of beach towels for the camper.  We spent the night and loaded up on Sunday morning to head on home.  Sunday night we cooked a little at the house...

Sydney helped me make a Key Lime Pie!  Normally I do not squeeze the juice myself, but WalMart didn't have Key Lime juice in a bottle, and I wasn't up for an extra stop at another store.  After squeezing those little suckers I realized I should have run in Hay's to get the bottled stuff!

Don wanted me to take a pic of the table.  I hadn't even put out the silverware yet, but you get the idea...Shrimp Boil.  We boil the shrimp outside on the burner on our grill.  No smell.  But, John Stephen wanted to go see what Daddy was doing! 

After dinner the kids collasped on the couch.  It is rare to see John Stephen relaxin' like this.  And Sydney doesn't suck her thumb- not sure what she's doing...

  I

Fun Weekend!

In other news...

Diet Coke has now replaced Pepsi as the number 2 soft drink in America (or something like that)! 

Here I am enjoying a DC while John Stephen simultaniously empties my potato bin and the drawer of bakeware in my kitchen!  This is not an uncommon early morning activity for us...

I'll check back in soon we have some fun things planned for the rest of the week.  Hope you are having a fun Spring Break wherever you are!

America's Favorite Pastime

Hello Blogosphere!  Are any of you holding your eyelids open with toothpicks like I am?  Daylight Savings Time Kicks My Booty!!  Well, Daylight Savings Time compounded by an EARLY morning baseball game in Memphis!  We were crossing the "new bridge" this morning as the sun was rising! 

This weekend was our first competitive baseball tournament!  Great, but lots of work/commitment from the ENTIRE family!  5 games in three days, hour and a half drive to the field, snack bar meals, and an active toddler strapped into his stroller for WAY TOO LONG!  The good news is that I think we have learned a few things after this weekend that will make future tournaments easier. 

Sydney spent part of the day on Saturday at a fashion expo where someone put lovely ringlets into her hair, and she also scored a pair of PINK SUNGLASSES!  Cutie.  Her future is so bright she's gotta wear shades :)! 

John Stephen was dressed for the occasion in his new Target "Faux-bees"! 

The team won 3 games and lost 2!  Pretty good for our first weekend competing!  And I must say that the competitive tournaments are run like a well-oiled machine, which is good if you are spending your whole weekend at the ballpark! 

Here is our boy, BIG'N.  I am mortified.I am so happy that the new team has accepted Pax as one of their own, and bestowed upon him a nickname!  This team has been together a while so we are thrilled that Pax seems to fit in and has made friends so easily.  As he stepped up to the plate on Friday night I heard the boys in the dugout calling out, "Go get 'um, BIG'N"  "Knock it out, BIG'N"  "Allright, BIG'N".  Hopefully this nickname will not stick.  Because I cannot have a husband named "Big Daddy" and a stepson named "Big'N"!!  I seriously can't! 

Hope the Springing Forward hasn't been too hard on you! 

The Methodists vs. The Baptists

No, this post is not about weighing the doctrines of the Baptist Church against those of the Methodist Church!  Sorry to disappoint, but this is WAY more fun!  Church League Basketball!!  Both Pax and Syd have been playing on the Methodist teams this winter, and this past weekend was the HIGHLY COMPETITIVE tournament! This event brings out droves of people- even if they don't have children competing! 

Sydney was the only girl on her team this year, and she was so good!  Sadly, Sydney's team lost on Friday night.  But, they had improved so much from the first few games.  Sydney is highly competitive, and she did tune up and cry over the defeat.  What do you say?  I told her it was supposed to be fun and that she had done her best.  That is when she began to cry harder and said that "we NEVER won a game all year!"  OK, so maybe she has a point.  I let her chose where we would have dinner and we managed to move on.

Telling the Ref and the Coach all about it!!

MeMe didn't miss a game!  She was so proud to see Sydney's trophy, and she EVEN cheered for the Methodist's if they were playing against her own Baptist Church team! 

John Stephen was a trooper on Saturday night!  Paxton's team won after SIX OVERTIMES!  It was so exciting!  Everyone was cheering- you would have thought we were in Barnhill Arena cheering on the Hogs! 
So here they are- the CHAMPIONS!

Last year we lost the tournament to the Baptist's so this year the boys were going in to win!  What a fun way for the churches to come together. 

Now it is time for the REALLY competitive stuff!  Baseball.  Paxton LOVES baseball!  And it is gearing up right now!  There was a tournament this past weekend that got rained out, but the weather looks like it is going to cooperate for the coming weekend.  And we will be ready!  Paxton has been going to regular practices, as well as taking a few private lessons from a pitching coach.  This family takes their sports SERIOUSLY!  It has surprised me how much I love these sporting events- especially the baseball games! Who would've thunk it? 

I'll be back soon with signs of spring around here!! Hope you feel like a Champion today!!