Birthday Tradition

Aunt Leslie is continuing her birthday treat for the kids and they love it!  Drew had to wait a few weeks to find some free time, but they were finally able to spend some time together.  The best part of Aunt Leslie's day was when Drew told her this:

"This has been the best day.  I got to go to Texas Roadhouse and get lemonade.  I went to Toys-R-Us and got a Nerf bow, Legos and Hot Wheels and I got to spend time with you." 

I'm pretty sure that sealed the deal on Aunt Leslie doing this for years to come. ;)

He was so excited to pick these out himself!

He's quite possibly the cheapest date you'll ever find.  They together spent a total of $3.26!

Grandpa Turns 93!

He's done it again!  It's so hard to believe Grandpa is 93 years old.  He's still driving, caring for himself and getting to ball games.  I remember hearing him tell us he hoped to see our kids born.  Now we're so thankful they'll always have memories with him.  He absolutely adores his great grandchildren and we think he's pretty special, too.  Happy Birthday, Grandpa/Great Papaw!  We Love You!

Peyton's 1st Soccer Game

We finally found a Saturday free to go watch Peyton play ball.  He's playing his first season of Upward soccer with Michelle as his coach.  I don't remember much of the early seasons with Drew and Alivia, but I do know it's a win if the kids stay on the field and there are no tears.  He did just that!  Way to go, Peyton!

Before game stretches with mom.

Warming up

Team prayer before the game

There were lots of kids!  A few too many on the field at once.

Checking out his cheering section. ;)

It was a beautiful, sunny day.

I can never catch this little one smiling!

A few of Peyton's fans.

Alivia and Ayla

I asked Peyton why he was sitting like this.  He said "because my mom made me sit there".  He preferred playing over watching from the sideline!

Indiana State Fair

We finally made it to the fair one night last week.  There was just enough time to walk through the livestock barns, Pioneer Village and get some fair food.  Drew and Alivia loved their elephant ear, while Brad and I enjoyed the mozzarella sticks from the Dairy Barn.  We all ended with some delicious ice cream, too.  Yum!

Celebrating Drew

Drew enjoyed his party with family last weekend.  He was blessed with lots of gifts and love from everyone.  A special thank you to all for making time to be here.  We know how busy everyone gets, but this kid was so excited to have everyone over.  He helped clean and decorate (Cubs theme) and insisted on us playing "Go Cubs Go" after singing "Happy Birthday".  After the party he asked if we could keep the Cubs banners up (in the dining room) all month long.  If they keep winning, we'll leave them up through October! ;)

Happy Birthday, Drew!

Opening lots of presents.

Uncle Stephen made him smile by bringing a bag of rolls from O'Charley's!

The only cake this kid will eat - Devil's food chocolate.

An extra special gift from Papaw.  When we were walking out of a tournament a few weeks ago, they had a tent up selling these framed pictures.  Papaw couldn't pass it up!  Drew is so excited to hang these in his room.

Conner Prairie

Richard and Debby treated the kids to Conner Prairie for birthday gifts this year and they had a blast!  The kids have gone here on field trips, but haven't been able to explore all that it offers until now.  They were able to go up in the hot air balloon, attend a funeral, play in the four-story treehouse, watch a woman use a loom, and explore so much more.  I'm so thankful Richard took his camera, too.  There were so many great pics and these are just a few! 

Thank you so much, Richard and Debby.  This will definitely be a gift the kids will never forget.  We are so blessed to have you in our family.

A rare pic of the photographer. :)

Boys of Summer

This is by far my favorite picture of our baseball boys. We have loved every minute of this busy season.  It's just the beginning for this group and we can't wait to see what's next!

#8

Another birthday comes and goes for this guy and he got to enjoy it at the ballpark.  We are still struggling to wrap our minds around the fact that our baby is eight.  A year doesn't seem like that long ago until I look back at pictures and see how much he's changed.  Thankfully he's still a momma's boy, but wants to do guy stuff with dad constantly.  He loves looking at old cars with Brad and takes advantage of every opportunity to play baseball and basketball.  We are so proud of you, Drew, and love you to the moon and back!

3 for 3 at the plate today.

Receiving his runner-up trouphy.

We've loved watching the Mini-Marauders! 

7U Speed Pitching Champ - He threw fastest at 45 mph!

700 baseball cards!  We've already got them sorted and placed in the binder. :)

A new Cubs pullover from Alivia.

This cookie was a hit!  We'll celebrate with cake and family next week.