War By The Shore Fan Club

I couldn't resist sharing these pictures of the cutest little fan club.  Tonight was 8th grade War by the Shore, where Landon's team faced off against his buddies from the St. Joe Bears.  Its always hard playing against friends!  (Good thing we wupped 'em!!)

Also, I can't get enough of that sweet baby.  I could kiss those chunky cheeks and thighs all day long.  He makes life so good!  And it warmed my heart to watch Baylor play with the other little siblings while we were there.  He found a few Kindergarten friends who were happy to see him!  As a mom, you always worry, but it appears that he's popular with the Kindy crowd!  (And also with his Poppy, who has a special love for his little buddy!)

We love being Lancers!  Can't wait to cheer on Tanner tonight as he performs at the Varsity Football Game!!  

QB One

 Last night was Landon's first 8th grade football game.

What a privilege to watch him do what he loves, under the lights, in a beautiful facility, with so many people I love watching and cheering.  

It was a VERY close game, coming down to the final minute of play, where Landon threw an amazing throw to Jonah, who had an equally amazing catch and run into the end zone.

My boy spent HOURS upon HOURS up at the fields this summer.  Throwing routes to his friends, perfecting his technique, working on getting stronger and faster.  I'm so glad he was able to experience the fruits of his labor.  Most of all, I was proud of how composed he was as a leader out on the field.  He got sacked more times than I can count, but got up and moved on to the next play without getting rattled each time.  And when things got tight and all looked hopeless, he was able to keep his head in the game, rely on his technique, and get the job done.  I could not have been more proud.

We are so fortunate to have an amazing photographer, Steve Ficke, take pictures from the sidelines and share them with all of us.  These are his photos!

Time Flies

 Remember that sweet baby from my last post? 

My goodness.  I hoped maybe I could keep him my baby forever.  

This week he turned six.  SIX!  How in the world did that happen?  

And last week he started Kindergarten.  

Gosh, I have loved being his mom.  Thinking he was my last, I made it a point to enjoy every moment with him -- read ALLLL the books, play all the games, literally stop and smell the roses, find the caterpillars, look for beach glass.  This boy is smart and funny and kind and stubborn.  God made him so special ... he notices so many details about His creation that others miss.  

He LOVES to garden.  He also loves checking out other people's gardens.  Last week he checked out the Schau's garden when we went to pick up Landon.  They were so generous in letting him harvest all of these veggies!

I've made it my goal this year to start up my blog again.  I have soooo many things to fill you in on.  But for now, I'll just stick to celebrating my birthday boy.  

He was obsessed with checking out his wrapped presents ALL THE TIME.  There were so many tears in the paper from all the handling before he finally got to open them!

We started the weekend off with a trip to Captain Mike's with his new friend from school, Maxwell.  Mini golf, go karts, bumper cars, and an ice cream treat to cap it off.

Then it was on to Grammy and Poppy's for a family celebration!

Finally, we ended the weekend by going for a walk on the beach, where Baylor just happened to discover a treasure map and dig for treasure with Kellen!

First Days Home

Our first days home looked a lot like this.  Kellen started Preschool the morning after Baylor was born, so all three boys were in school for at least part of the day.  Getting everyone ready for school and out of the house by a certain time was pretty challenging at first (and still is lots of mornings!!).  Kellen basically arrived 15 minutes late every day.  Poor Baylor kind of got the short end of the stick.  He usually got his morning feeding in car right after I finally dropped off Kellen.  Kellen had a hard time leaving Baylor at first.  He would go back to Baylor's infant seat at least 5 times for a goodbye kiss and hug at drop off each morning.  

I was determined to relax and cuddle this new baby as much as possible those first few weeks.  I spent most mornings on the couch with Baylor, napping and just enjoying his newness.  After preschool was over, I would pick up Kellen and we would come home and take turns snuggling the little love.  :) 

My OB friend and neighbor, Alissa, gifted me with the most glorious gift -- she hired someone to make dinners for our family for an entire month -- 4 weeks of 5 meals/week.  I will never forget her kindness and thoughtfulness.  Jon was working a ton, coaching football, and teaching a graduate class at Notre Dame.  The boys had activities EVERY NIGHT at 6:00.  To not have to plan, shop for, prepare, or cook meals those first few weeks was truly a lifesaver and helped make the transition to 4 kids so much easier.  It's funny ... the whole time I was pregnant I just figured our life would go on after this baby.  We would be doing all the same things, he would just have to come right along with us.  Boy, was I right!  As soon as I got home it was business as usual!  Someone said "you have your 4th baby, strap him on your back, and head back out to the fields like nothing ever happened."  Isn't that the truth?!!

Weekend mornings looked a little like this before heading off to whatever sporting event the day held: