Thrill Seekers

Cody has ALWAYS loved riding the four wheeler, but now Carleigh enjoys rides as well. It was quite un-nerving at times since every kid on the street wanted a turn and Cody REALLY doesn't understand the "waiting your turn" concept. *sigh* However, it really did improve his mood this afternoon.

Our New Additions

Here are a few photos I have of Momma cat. The kittens are VERY elusive and I am hoping to get a pic of all FOUR of them sometime soon. I have a plan to get all four near our carport and if it works out, I will snap a pic of them.

Enjoying the day

We finally had a nice day. It seems like we get one nice day a week and weekends are usually NOT one of those days! We went to a park with Matt's family and had a picnic and let the kids play on the playground. Prior to that, the kids enjoyed playing on their swing set. When we arrived home, we visited with my sister and my parents on my sister's porch. The kiddos enjoyed playing in the backyard until dinner and bath time.

The biggest moment of the day was the discovery of a cat. Matt was opening our side door, when he noticed a black and white cat on our doorstep. It was meowing rather loudly so Matt gave it some milk ( I know! I know! I know that we shouldn't feed strays but we felt called to do so.) And boy was it a treat because she left after a few slurps to get her BABIES! Yes, she is a Momma cat and her two little kittens came to drink the milk as well.)

Matt discovered that they are making their home under our blue shed. A ground hog dug a hole underneath it and once it disappeared, the cats have now made it their home as well as exploring the inside of the shed. The kittens are adorable and I did get a pic of the Momma cat. Cody stroked the cat before we had a chance to tell him not to since it was a stray. The momma cat let him pet her so I was so surprised! Cody is such an animal lover and would LOVE to have a pet (we can't have any pets because we rent). Poor boy will have to wait a few more years until we buy a new house. We might compromise with a gerbil or two. It may be a good behavior bargaining chip.

Overall, it was such a nice and a promise of a wonderful summer yet to come!

Second Game

We were highly doubting that Cody's 4th scheduled game would happen because of the gloomy clouds and the drizzle. However, it did not stop the game. The drizzle periodically was a pain, but they got the game in! Yay! I was touched by a little boy on the other team who was blind. When he went up to bat, he had his seeing eye dog attached to him with a leash tied to his waist. After he batted, the dog guided him on the bases. It was so sweet! And of course Cody LOVED that dog and it was my favorite breed of all time: a golden retriever! How awesome that this boy has an opportunity to play the game!!

My girl

I am just amazed sometimes at quickly children grow up. Carleigh has been growing up WAY to fast! She is becoming such a sweet girl and a Daddy's girl. Last night, she and Matt were on the couch and she declared "Daddy, I love you!" Oh what a "melt your heart moment!" And when I was getting her settled for bedtime, she told me that she wanted "her daddy" and looked forlorn. Once Matt came in and gave her a hug and a kiss, she was a happy girl and ready to go to bed.

Today, she went on her first ever field trip without Matt or I attending. She visited Niedermann Farm with her preschool class. That farm should be very familar since we go there a couple of times a year. She told Matt in an excited voice, "I SAW HORSES!"

Oh, sweet Carleigh, what a little treasure you are to us!

Another Milestone

Tonight, Cody and I visited his new elementary school. He will attend his new elementary school for 1st - 4th grades. So, basically, Cody will be there for a LONG time! We had a tour of the school, met with some of the teachers, principals and checked out the school. I LOVE the school layout with a commons area in which they share a kitchen area and lots of tables for pulling children out and book sharing. Cody loved that all the classrooms had guppies and many had turtles. His favorite part was the really nice playground. I still am trying to fathom that Cody will be a first grader. It seems like yesterday he was a 5lb 2 oz premie that we brought home from the hospital. I totally agree with the country song "Don't Blink." That song has been going in my mind all day. *sigh*

Saturday Fun

We enjoyed the beautiful weather on Friday by hanging out in the backyard, cleaning out our van, and enjoying the swing set. Cody also got his new glasses on Saturday. Isn't he handsome?

Computer Troubles

My laptop crashed on Saturday evening. It's so frustrating when technology lets you down!! Ugh! My files were restored as well as all of my photos, but now I have to set up my wireless internet again and start making new internet bookmarks. What a pain!! It's amazing that we are so dependent on it and when it goes down, we are helpless. Sad!! I have been meaning to post but will do this week. I have some cute pics of the kiddos.

Another rain out

Cody's scheduled third game of the season, but his second game attempted was rained out. It rained too much during the day for the outfield to be dry. So, his next game is scheduled a week from tonight.

Another school year is winding down. We have 14.5 school days left for my school and about the same for my children. I cannot WAIT for the laziness of summer and enjoying the outdoors with my kiddos.

This year has been the most challenging year by FAR and I am ready for some r and r.

Happy Mother's Day!

I hope everyone had a wonderful time being honored or honoring your mother. This is always a sensitive day for me. Prior to the last six years, this day was very hard for me. I will always sympathize with ladies who are not mothers or who are still waiting to become mothers. When you go through infertility, you gain a sense of sympathy that no one else can fathom. You also gain sensitivity to the needs of others.

I still have mixed feelings about this day, however, I did have a good day. Listening to my children laugh and squeal on their new swing set was the BEST gift that they could ever give me. I am so incredibly blessed to be their mommy!

Happy Mother's Day!

Mother's Day Tea

e
On Friday, I visited Cody's classroom for "Mother's Day Tea." We sat with our children and the kids had cookies and lemonade. Then, the kids sang several songs. We read a book together and then watched a slide show that contained pictures of the entire school year. Yes, I had tears in my eyes seeing Cody on the first day of school and then the last pic was of Cody holding flowers for Mother's Day. Childhood goes alarmingly fast and I think it really hit me at that moment. He is my firstborn and every milestone we hit is exciting yet sad. It was a special time for just Cody and I. And next year, I will do it again when Carleigh is in the same class.

Pure joy

This is just a glimpse of what happened when they saw their much-awaited summer gift! PRICELESS!

The early stages

Dad arrived around 9:30 am and he and I worked on the base of the set by ourselves for the first 3 hours, our friends Shannon and Niki arrived as well as my brother-in-law Jerry. I had to come in a couple of times to warm up, but did not sit down for more than 5 minutes all day. Well, who know that it would be in the 40s in May? Crazy and of course, wouldn't you know it the wind was blowing so hard that I think my cheeks will be permanently pink from wind burn. The kids drove us CRAZY and did not want to stay inside. However, once it was complete, the joy on their faces was priceless!

The finished product

It took almost 8 hours to complete, but seeing the look on the kids' faces when it was complete was WELL worth the day being dominated by the swing set. The giggles and smiles made it so worth it! In fact, Carleigh didn't want to eat because she wanted to play instead of eating pizza. I do believe that the swing is her favorite part. Cody enjoys the glider and the fort/clubhouse the best. Cody would climb up and ask "Knock, Knock." Then I would say "Who's there?" And he would reply "Dora" or someone else. It was a game he LOVES to play.

Game 1 - Angels vs. Cardinals

The game started by an official of the Challenger League announcing the team and the team players. When the announcer spoke in the microphone and said each player's name, the player could go up to the microphone and speak. Cody RAN to the microphone and said "Hi!" Plus another paragraph of words. It was HILARIOUS. I laughed so hard I had tears in my eyes! His helper had to hold him until all the announcements were made because he wanted that microphone again! (Yes, he is a true musician and entertainer at heart!)

Each team player batted EVERY inning and it was so cute to see them run the bases. Most of them were pitched to by a team helper.

It was so cute, funny, and emotional to see all the Angels and Cardinals play. All of them were uniquely different, one in a wheelchair due to cerebal palsy (Cardinal), three or four with Down Syndrom (Cardinal), some Autistic children (Angels), many with leg stabilizers (both teams), and I knew that they were such a blessing to their family. God created them different for a special reason and it just over joyed my heart to watch them play.

Cody and Papaw

Cody has a special relationship with my dad. He is just crazy about him! He was more excited about his Papaw being there than playing the game. A couple of times, he ran to see his Papaw in the middle of the game.

Cheering Section

In the outfield

It was so cute and the most hilarious sight to behold! Cody played in the dirt, ran the entire yellow length of the outfield with either his coach or the helper. Several other players were distracted as well. These helpers and coaches have such an incredible amount of patience!!

Batter up!

n

On the way to his first at-bat of the game, he had to come over and see his cheering section which included, Matt, Carleigh, Aunt Connie, Brittany, Jeremy, Brenda, Mamaw & Papaw Schmidt, Mamaw & Papaw Hibbard any myself. I think he had the biggest cheering section.

Good game!

All the players go back out on to the field to shake hands. Cody was in the arms of his team helper. Of course the highlight was getting a treat from his coach.

The latest

Here's what going on in our world these days....

Carleigh - Her newest obsession is gum and pop. Yes, thank you Matt! He introduced Carleigh to diet pop and gum. Now she likes to start searching my purse for gum. She even told Matt to go to the store to get her more gum! Maybe the coin craze will NOW be over. Next week, she will be going a field trip WITHOUT a parent. Yes, I am getting braver and cutting the Mommy strings. She will be visiting a farm with her class. I am sure she will have fun.

Cody - His first game will be tomorrow and we are hoping he has fun and participates. It's very cute to watch kids his age playing baseball. Let's just say the dirt and rocks entertain them most of the time. He is also waiting for his new glasses to arrive.

Matt - He is actively searching for a permanent position which means that I am actively searching for him. Hopefully we will find something soon.

Me - I have a quarter sized blister (from walking) and now it has prevented me from my jump training. Ugh! Ugh! Ugh! I am enjoying my new cell phone and counting the days down until June 3rd at noon.

Family - We are gearing up for the big swing set set up on Saturday. I do not care that it will only be in the 50s. As long as a raindrop doesn't fall from the sky, it WILL be installed!!

Now THAT's service!

I ordered my new cell phone Saturday evening. I check the website to see if it had been shipped and it said that it had been delivered Monday morning before noon. Wow! That's my kind of service! It would be so nice if EVERYTHING was that fast! I did enjoy playing with it and it was so nice not to have spent an hour with someone from India to activate it! Can ya tell I haven't bought a new phone in a couple of years?!! AND it only takes an hour to be fully charged! Wooohoo! It doesn't take much to excite me!!

Less than 5 weeks....

Yesterday, I counted how many days of school left and how many weeks...Well, we have less than 5 full weeks of school left! Hurray! I cannot WAIT for summer to begin. I love the lazy mornings, outdoorsy activities, swimming in the lake, ballgames (both Cody's and Matt's) and spending time with my children ALONE. Yes, I soooooo need this vacation this year, what a year it has been on many different levels.

There are (counting today) 22.5 school days, 4.5 weeks of school! Yay! My two will be disappointed at first, but I have a LOT of things planned...including a possible trip to Indy to meet up with some bffs and a trip to the Indy zoo. We are also going to explore more Ohio adventures as we are not taking a "real" vacation this summer due to many factors. It's going to be great no matter what! As long as I am HOME that is all that matters!

Rainout

Unfortunately Opening Day did not happen! I think it has rained NONSTOP today! Ugh! So, Cody's first game will be Thursday evening at 6:30pm. The weather is SUPPOSED to be nice and we are looking forward to it. And IF Saturday is fine, we will be installing the kids' swing set starting at 10am. Those who wish to come, feel free to come anytime after 10am. I cannot wait to see their faces when it is complete and they can play on it! I plan on laying out the pieces of wood, marking them and setting out all the other pieces the hour before hand so we can get rolling at 10am. Hopefully it won't take us too long to get it assembled.

Moving up in the world

I just ordered this beauty. As some of you may know, I killed another phone again. This time, this gem will NOT ever be put into my pocket! (It will be too wide anyway!) It's a Sanyo 2700. I have Sprint service so with rebates and buying it online, I will get this phone for FREE! I was debating on buying a Blackberry, but I would have had to pay and why not get this for free?!! And it does about everything a Blackberry does and I love this color!! And I have........UNLIMITED texting! You heard that right!! I am officially going to move to the texting world that I have fought for many years.

Now I cannot WAIT for it to arrive!!!