First Practice

Andrew had his first soccer practice last week. Considering he was in a totally new environment, with totally new people, doing a totally new activity, he did pretty good. We had to move inside the gym, with another team of 3s and 4s. It was pretty loud and chaotic. Hopefully this week we'll be able to get on the field. Here are the highlights.

waiting for practice to begin

kicking the ball around

Coach Chris (aka Job) was giving directions to the group about their next activity.

Andrew was giving a few pointers himself.

Playing red light, green light. Andrew didn't really get the concept.

By the end, Andrew was done. For his very first ever practice of this kind with other children and a totally new adult, he did really well. I think he'll get the hang of it the more we go.

Monkeying Around

Before the rains came, we were in the habit of playing outside each afternoon. Andrew has wanted to climb a tree for a while. This particular day, he discovered one he could climb.

Coleman Update

We had Cole's 18 month check up last week. He is 33 1/2 inches tall and weighs 29lbs 1 oz. He is a big boy! He got two shots and hardly cried at all. He just kind of looked at the nurse like, "What in the world was that for?!" He was very forgiving and smiled at her while he got dressed, then happily waved and told her "bye bye". He is learning new things all the time, and as I've said before, he has no idea Andrew is older than he is. This week, he started "jumping". Here's a cute video of his new skill.

Wordless Wednesday

Sunday Morning Excitement

Sunday mornings are a busy time, expecially when Brent is at work. After the boys eat their breakfast, they get to watch Thomas or Clifford on PBS while I get my shower and get ready. Then I dress them and we're out the door as soon as possible. Coleman usually gets bored with the TV and comes to find me while I'm drying my hair. Andrew, on the other hand, pays close attention to the TV.

PBS is in the middle of their fundraising campaign right now. During the shows, they come on and do the telethon thing where they solicit funds from viewers. You may remember that for contributing, you receive various tee-shirts, koozies, and ball hats. Or you may not, if you, as most everyone else, tune out the telethon people.

So, Andrew is watching Clifford and the telethon comes on. I have just finished drying my hair, and I hear him running down the hall. The following conversation ensued:

Andrew: "I'm so excited!"

Mommy: "Why are you excited Andrew?"

Andrew: "Because that man on TV said he's sending me a special prize!!"

That man was the guy doing the telethon for PBS. Andrew, apparently, was listening to every word he said.

Soccer Clinic

On Saturday, Andrew had a soccer clinic. We did the activities with our friends and teammates, the Evanses and the Moores.

Mrs. Conner, Carly, and Andrew

The players rotated through stations and were coached on the activities by high school kids. Andrew liked to stop periodically and ponder and discuss what was going on. You can see him doing just that in this picture. He was talking about how he was going to kick the ball into the goal. We don't have a practice goal yet, so this was a new concept for Andrew.

The coach helped him understand what he was supposed to do, and he made a goal!

At his last center, he was supposed to run with the ball and kick it in the goal. He did great!

His coach was very excited!

Here's the video.

Our team is the Golden Knights. We have our first team practice Thursday, so check back in for an update!

A First

Well, today we did another "first". We went to a sports store and actually bought some sporting equipment for Andrew. We got his first shin guards for soccer. He has a skills camp in the morning (which should be hilarious). He is very excited and wanted to try out his shin guards when we got home. I know he is not wearing them correctly, but he will be tomorrow. We're going to get shoes and socks after nap today.

Here's a little video of our little kicker.

St. Patrick's Day - Part 2

Andrew understands that he's supposed to look at the camera first, then we'll eat the cake.

Coleman hasn't gotten that concept yet. He reached in right as I snapped the camera.
He loved the icing and kept saying, "Chee" while I took his picture.

***NOTE ABOUT WORDLESS WEDNESDAY: Brent has requested that I mention that the potty seat he is wearing in the second picture was clean. However, it was his idea to put it on in the first place.

Wordless Wednesday

St. Patrick's - Part 1

This morning, Andrew started out with a few St. Patrick's Day projects. We are calling them projects because he won't do "crafts". So anyway, here are the pictures.


Sorting the marshmallows from Lucky Charms

Gluing green Froot Loops onto a shamrock

We have a few other things planned for tonight, so I'll post them tomorrow.

The Circus

On Valentine's Day, we took the boys to the circus. It was their first trip, and our first trip since childhood. We all had a lot of fun.


Before the show started, we went downstairs to the animal open house. All the animals were out and we could see them up close.

Then, we went down on the floor of the arena for the pre-show. This elephant was painting a picture.

Andrew did not want his picture made with anyone, but Cole was a little more cooperative.

In our seats waiting for the show to begin.

Spring Days

Earlier this week, we were able to spend lots of time outside. We even had a couple of picnics. Here are a few photos from our week.

Surprise!

Brent called this morning and said he was coming home for the rest of the day! His new rotation will give him a few days off, and this was one. So we loaded up and headed to the original Krispy Kreme. For those of you that don't know, KK was founded in Winston Salem, and this is THE original location.

You can see the hot now sign reflected in the window. The very best time for a donut!

The boys were very interested in the process this time. The manager even brought out two uncooked donuts for them to touch.

Of course, their favorite part was the eating!

And in case you didn't know, it is March in the Carolinas and that means only one thing - March Madness and the ACC Tournament! Everyone around here (except us, we're football people) really gets into the basketball thing. You can even take home donuts that will coordinate with your team's colors.

For you non-ACCers, the color-key is as follows:

Yellow and Black - Wake Forest

Red and White - NC State

Blue and White - Duke

Carolina Blue - UNC


Or, you can take home the party pack. One of the workers saw me take a picture of the tray in the display case and she wanted me to be sure to get a picture of the party pack too.

Batting Practice

We have been enjoying our nice weather! The last two nights, we've gone outside after supper for a little batting practice. As you can see, everyone's skills are improving over last year.

Coleman has the general idea. . .

Signs of Spring

So today, we were in the car and we were talking about spring. All week, Andrew has been a little sad that the snow melted away. But we tell him that that's the sun's job, to melt the snow, so that spring can come. Then we talk about all the fun things about spring - we get to play outside, there are pretty flowers to see, the trees have buds and blooms on them, etc. We've also been encouraging him to look for these signs of spring as we are out and about. He has gotten really good at finding daffodils, and today the pear trees started to bloom in Winston.

This afternoon, we were on the way to pick up our groceries, and we were looking at all the pear trees and daffodils. We were talking about the signs of spring we were seeing. On our way home, we drove by a church with a cemetery. From the backseat, I hear Andrew say, "OH LOOK! See all the flowers Mommy? That's a sign of spring! That means spring is coming!" He had spotted the artificial flowers on the graves.

How precious to be able to look at a place that we see as a place of sadness, and to see hope instead. I know his statement wasn't a deep theological one, rather it's because of his age and that he has no concept of death. However, I can't wait for the day that he and Cole are old enough to understand the significance of Andrew's statement. That for believers in Christ, there is hope in a cemetery. That even when everything around us seems dark, Spring is coming. And one day, it will never end!

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life." John 3:16.

Birthday Fun

Last weekend we went to a birthday party for Addison. Her party was at Salem Gymnastics. We all had a ton of fun.

The first activity was the parachute. You will see that Coleman LOVED it!

I love this picture of him running out the other side.

Andrew liked the parachute too.

Cole climbed the slide all by himself.

Andrew on the rings

Andrew slid down the bigger slide into the foam pit. Loved it!

mid-air shot of a jump into the pit

At the end of the party, before the cake, they had a "Medal Ceremony" for all the kids. It was such a fun party.