Wow, I've been gone a while!
To say that things have been busy around here would be the understatement of the decade!
But back before things got so busy, we took an impromptu weekend trip to Oxford, Alabama to watch Mikey play in Alabama Power's annual softball tournament!
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We knew we were going (without Charlie b/c it was 96 degrees that day) all day Saturday, but late in the evening Friday, we decided to head on down and spend the night! Mikey's first game was at 8:30 the next morning which meant we would've had to have been on the road at 4:30 AM which we were not looking forward to, so this solved that problem!
The boys (and their parents) were so excited! There is just something about spending the night in a hotel room that we LOVE!
So, the next morning, the games were delayed two hours due to rain so we got to sleep in and take the boys swimming at the hotel pool before we checked out and headed to the games!Aren't they truly their father's sons?? I sent Mikey to Hibbett's on his way home from work that week to pick up Sam a new pair of "basketball shoes" (that's what Sam was requesting) because his shoes were too little, and he comes home with all new outfits for him and the boys so they could have matching Jordan shorts, shirts, and he even bought Huett another new pair of shoes. Let me just say that I learned a valuable lesson the day he came home with all of that (expensive) merchandise. Don't send him to a sporting goods store alone, especially when it comes to shopping for the boys. The man has no restraint. He would've bought something for Charlie but he said he just couldn't find anything in his size.
So here they are at the park, bright and early! Aren't they handsome?? I can't wait until Charlie can walk so that I can take them all with me! We don't do very many activities by ourselves ( we travel with some part of our families for almost everything we do) and this is one thing I love to take my boys to! Can't wait 'til it's all three ( or four) of them!
Aren't they all handsome! And grown-looking! Sam's shoes are Under Armor but if you ask him, he says they are Under Arm shoes! That's funny! I laugh every time!
Mikey's on third, about to score!
He played first base all day and he was really good at it. I guess being 6 foot 4 inches helps him stretch out and catch those wild balls! There was a monster of a guy playing short stop, and when he would throw that ball at Mikey like a rocket, his life flashed before my very eyes. Seriously, the speed at which he was throwing the ball, it would KILL someone if it hit them in the head! Luckily, Mikey caught it most of the time!
Pop-up!!
Throughout the course of the day, he hit four home runs, like over the fence home runs!! That was exciting for me and the boys!
Glazer was the coach of the team, and he is so funny. We all went to eat lunch at The Olive Garden between games and Glazer and the Perkins Brothers and another set of twin brothers that were playing kept me laughing the entire time! And yes, I was the only girl there, which is just fine with me! I could totally call myself their "Team Mom" because I spent a good part of the day getting them bottles of water, but I guess it's the least I could do!
In between games, Mikey would take the boys out to play and run the bases! They loved that, of course!
They still don't quite get the concept of how the game is played, but they are getting better at it. They continually ask to play, but after Mikey coached them in ragball last year, we promised ourselves that we wouldn't let them play again until they were old enough to go out onto the field by themselves and bat as well as field the ball without crying to come off the field to sit with us. It was so stressful, for us and them. Also, the 5, 6, 7 year old teams where we live practice FIVE nights a week and have games on the weekend. That is insanity to me! Can you say BURNOUT?? I mean seriously, how many professional baseball players do you think started playing baseball at five years old six days a week? Anyway, we'll let them play, maybe when they're seven, or six if they really beg. I don't think it will be Huett begging, anyway. So that gives us another year to wait for Sam to play.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I don't want them to play. Not at all. I just don't want to push them into playing. Some of my fondest memories are of spending all day at the ballpark when my brother played every summer when we were growing up. He probably started playing around seven years old and he was pretty good so maybe my boys will follow in his footsteps (except the part where he hurt his back playing his senior year and still has back trouble today)
I love baseball y'all! I am super competitive and I just don't get it when people say that baseball is a slow sport. I mean every pitch is exciting to me! Oh I hope one of my boys (or Archer) plays! My whole family would be obsessed, I think
This field looks like wet red dirt, but it is really crushed brick. It left Mikey with a pretty significant strawberry (that's the giant skinned place on his shin that looks like someone filleted his outer layer off).
Aren't they all handsome! And grown-looking! Sam's shoes are Under Armor but if you ask him, he says they are Under Arm shoes! That's funny! I laugh every time!
Mikey's on third, about to score!
He played first base all day and he was really good at it. I guess being 6 foot 4 inches helps him stretch out and catch those wild balls! There was a monster of a guy playing short stop, and when he would throw that ball at Mikey like a rocket, his life flashed before my very eyes. Seriously, the speed at which he was throwing the ball, it would KILL someone if it hit them in the head! Luckily, Mikey caught it most of the time!
Pop-up!!
Throughout the course of the day, he hit four home runs, like over the fence home runs!! That was exciting for me and the boys!
Glazer was the coach of the team, and he is so funny. We all went to eat lunch at The Olive Garden between games and Glazer and the Perkins Brothers and another set of twin brothers that were playing kept me laughing the entire time! And yes, I was the only girl there, which is just fine with me! I could totally call myself their "Team Mom" because I spent a good part of the day getting them bottles of water, but I guess it's the least I could do!
In between games, Mikey would take the boys out to play and run the bases! They loved that, of course!
They still don't quite get the concept of how the game is played, but they are getting better at it. They continually ask to play, but after Mikey coached them in ragball last year, we promised ourselves that we wouldn't let them play again until they were old enough to go out onto the field by themselves and bat as well as field the ball without crying to come off the field to sit with us. It was so stressful, for us and them. Also, the 5, 6, 7 year old teams where we live practice FIVE nights a week and have games on the weekend. That is insanity to me! Can you say BURNOUT?? I mean seriously, how many professional baseball players do you think started playing baseball at five years old six days a week? Anyway, we'll let them play, maybe when they're seven, or six if they really beg. I don't think it will be Huett begging, anyway. So that gives us another year to wait for Sam to play.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying I don't want them to play. Not at all. I just don't want to push them into playing. Some of my fondest memories are of spending all day at the ballpark when my brother played every summer when we were growing up. He probably started playing around seven years old and he was pretty good so maybe my boys will follow in his footsteps (except the part where he hurt his back playing his senior year and still has back trouble today)wimp
I love baseball y'all! I am super competitive and I just don't get it when people say that baseball is a slow sport. I mean every pitch is exciting to me! Oh I hope one of my boys (or Archer) plays! My whole family would be obsessed, I think
This field looks like wet red dirt, but it is really crushed brick. It left Mikey with a pretty significant strawberry (that's the giant skinned place on his shin that looks like someone filleted his outer layer off).
It was filled with dirt and when he went to the trainer's tent, they rinsed it with normal saline and proceeded to scrub it clean, and I have not seen Mikey in that much pain since he got his last name tattooed on his upper back when we were dating in '04.
If you notice, the ground outside the fence is wet. It came a fast and furious Alabama thunderstorm, there one minute with lightning and thunder, gone the next leaving sunshine and cloudless skies. For some reason, Huett was terrified of the storm. We were outside under a shelter, but it was raining sideways so there really was no escaping the rain. He calmed down eventually but he was near hysterics for the majority of that storm. Thankfully it came and went pretty quickly.
This picture gives you a pretty good look at his strawberry. He got that on his very first trip around the bases. And just to be honest, he would've been safe without sliding, but that's just between me and you.
Here he is, putting his 78 inches to good use.
At the APCO tournament, they had a moonwalk (or bounce house, whatever you call it in your neck of the woods) and a giant slide. They also had a train that went around the ball fields.
Riding the trains provided us with a nice breeze in between ballgames. The boys were enamored with the train, and I think I busted their bubble when I told them that it was just a lawnmower with a train-painted box sitting on top. I can only imagine their disappointment when they find out Santa Clause isn't real.
Here they come, down the slide!
Sam looks a little apprehensive. That isn't an expression that crosses his face very often.
There was a playground just down from one of the ball fields. The boys had a great time running back and forth and telling me what they were doing "all by themselves" at the playground. I don't think they realized I was watching them the entire time! You can see the playground fenced in behind the bounce house and the only exit was that gate you can see. So it was pretty perfect!
They are so competitive with one another. It's becoming an issue lately, but I guess a little healthy competition can't hurt?
I caught myself at the pool yesterday telling them that they couldn't be brothers anymore if they couldn't stop arguing with each other. Oh, the things we say when we're frustrated and tired. I'm sure I'll come to regret saying that when they start telling me they don't want to be brothers anymore. Can you say backfire?!?
When they started deflating the slide, the boys were mesmerized. They could not wrap their little heads around the fact that those things could fold up so small. It's funny to watch them mull things over in their heads. It's like you can almost see the wheels turning.
Now, back to the game. Mikey hit two... count 'em, TWO grand slams during the game!! I've watched him play a lot of softball in our seven years together and he was playing better on this day than I think I've ever seen. This was the first time he's played in over a year so I was pretty impressed!
I kept meaning to catch one of the big hits on video camera, but I never did :-(
If you notice, the ground outside the fence is wet. It came a fast and furious Alabama thunderstorm, there one minute with lightning and thunder, gone the next leaving sunshine and cloudless skies. For some reason, Huett was terrified of the storm. We were outside under a shelter, but it was raining sideways so there really was no escaping the rain. He calmed down eventually but he was near hysterics for the majority of that storm. Thankfully it came and went pretty quickly.
This picture gives you a pretty good look at his strawberry. He got that on his very first trip around the bases. And just to be honest, he would've been safe without sliding, but that's just between me and you.
Here he is, putting his 78 inches to good use.
At the APCO tournament, they had a moonwalk (or bounce house, whatever you call it in your neck of the woods) and a giant slide. They also had a train that went around the ball fields.
Riding the trains provided us with a nice breeze in between ballgames. The boys were enamored with the train, and I think I busted their bubble when I told them that it was just a lawnmower with a train-painted box sitting on top. I can only imagine their disappointment when they find out Santa Clause isn't real.
Here they come, down the slide!
Sam looks a little apprehensive. That isn't an expression that crosses his face very often.
There was a playground just down from one of the ball fields. The boys had a great time running back and forth and telling me what they were doing "all by themselves" at the playground. I don't think they realized I was watching them the entire time! You can see the playground fenced in behind the bounce house and the only exit was that gate you can see. So it was pretty perfect!
They are so competitive with one another. It's becoming an issue lately, but I guess a little healthy competition can't hurt? 
I caught myself at the pool yesterday telling them that they couldn't be brothers anymore if they couldn't stop arguing with each other. Oh, the things we say when we're frustrated and tired. I'm sure I'll come to regret saying that when they start telling me they don't want to be brothers anymore. Can you say backfire?!?
When they started deflating the slide, the boys were mesmerized. They could not wrap their little heads around the fact that those things could fold up so small. It's funny to watch them mull things over in their heads. It's like you can almost see the wheels turning.
Now, back to the game. Mikey hit two... count 'em, TWO grand slams during the game!! I've watched him play a lot of softball in our seven years together and he was playing better on this day than I think I've ever seen. This was the first time he's played in over a year so I was pretty impressed!
I kept meaning to catch one of the big hits on video camera, but I never did :-(It was very exciting, though!
Celebratory gathering at home plate!!
This man has the most seniority over all the guys in the whole Birmingham Division. He's been with the Power company forty something years. He plays travel softball and his wife was there with him. She was so cool and she liked talking to the boys a lot. I can just picture Mikey and I in our sixties, still going to softball games. At least I hope we're still kickin' it by then.
This is the monster rain cloud that ended all the fun. We watched it slowly creep towards us from MILES away as everyone kept getting phone calls about how bad it was (not tornadic, just super-rainy). We all ran to our cars (which freaked Huett out all over again) and then it hit. We waited for about thirty minutes, hoping it would pass. All the coaches met to decide whether to postpone it until the morning or cancel it all together.
Ultimately they decided to cancel it all together because the majority of the teams (which came from all over Alabama and parts of Georgia) weren't prepared to stay another night, including us! We had to get back home to our Charlie, after all! It was quite the bummer, because we were all tortured with the fact that we abandoned that tournament with no clear winner and there was an entire table FULL of trophies that no one received. Also I'm pretty sure that they were going to go on to win the whole thing, but that is neither here nor there.
Celebratory gathering at home plate!!
Obligatory man-hug!
For a 28 year old with a wife and three kids (which would be enough stress to age most men) I think he is working it pretty nicely, don't you agree?
This man has the most seniority over all the guys in the whole Birmingham Division. He's been with the Power company forty something years. He plays travel softball and his wife was there with him. She was so cool and she liked talking to the boys a lot. I can just picture Mikey and I in our sixties, still going to softball games. At least I hope we're still kickin' it by then. 
This is the monster rain cloud that ended all the fun. We watched it slowly creep towards us from MILES away as everyone kept getting phone calls about how bad it was (not tornadic, just super-rainy). We all ran to our cars (which freaked Huett out all over again) and then it hit. We waited for about thirty minutes, hoping it would pass. All the coaches met to decide whether to postpone it until the morning or cancel it all together.
Ultimately they decided to cancel it all together because the majority of the teams (which came from all over Alabama and parts of Georgia) weren't prepared to stay another night, including us! We had to get back home to our Charlie, after all! It was quite the bummer, because we were all tortured with the fact that we abandoned that tournament with no clear winner and there was an entire table FULL of trophies that no one received. Also I'm pretty sure that they were going to go on to win the whole thing, but that is neither here nor there. No worries, The Cutters (that's their team name. It is some kind of lingo for hard workers in the power company...) will return next year, with a vengeance!
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We are officially moving this weekend, so wish us luck on that and feel free to show up and help if you so desire (I'm kidding, no really).
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Also, to Mikey's sweet relatives in Florida, whom I've never had the priveledge of meeting, I know this is belated, but I wanted to say thank you so much for the card and gift you sent us last month. It came on the day of Huett's fifth birthday party, so while I'm not sure that is what you intended us to spend it on, you can be glad to know that your gift went directly toward furnishing his party. We'll just pretend that we didn't use some of it to buy the balloons that Sam let go before the party even started ;-)
I've been meaning to send you a thank you card in the mail, but somewhere in the packing of our house, I've misplaced the envelope. Not the card, just the envelope, go figure. Anyway, we really do appreciate it.
We are tentatively planning a trip to Disney World for next Summer/Fall and I'm sure we'll be making a detour to Lakeland as Mikey and I both have relatives there (go figure) so we would be delighted to plan a visit so we can meet. I know you guys would be proud to see the man Mikey has grown into. I wish his Paw Paw were still around because he would still be beaming with pride. Also, you must meet our boys! They are Mikey's sons, no doubt about that!
So, thanks again!
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House pictures soon, everyone else, I promise!
