Jackson's first baseball practice was last night. He was so excited! Brandon and I practiced some questionable parenting and let him go even though he'd had a fever earlier in the day. He used his own bat and didn't get too close to the other boys, so I think we're pretty safe as far as spreading any germs goes. They practiced hitting in four different stations...the batting cage was my favorite to watch. One of the coaches pitched to each boy 10-15 times and gave them pointers on stance, how to hold the bat, swing, etc. It was nice to hear the coach compliment Jackson on his swing/contact with ball. We have practice again on Saturday...the boys will spend 45 minutes on the field and 45 minutes in the cage. I'm interested to see how he is on the field, since we've really practiced more on hitting that catching the ball. The fun has begun!
My family was in town for the 4th of July. Mom, Kim and Megan stayed at a new hotel right around the corner from us and Brian, Jen, Morgan and Matthew stayed with our cousins Trey, Steph and Lily. It was fun to hang out with everyone at the beach and the kids had a great time in the pool together. The kids slept great and were really good the whole trip. There were only a couple days that we didn't have any family with us. On those days we'd get up in the morning, load the kids in strollers and take a walk through Carillon Beach. When the babies went down for a morning nap, Brandon and Jackson would head to the pool while I stayed in the condo. During their afternoon naps, I would get to lay out by the pool. So even with 3 young kids, we had a very relaxing and fun beach trip.
Jackson especially loved the pool and is now quite the little swimmer. It took him a couple days to get over his fear, but by the end of the trip he was swimming to the deep end by himself (with swimmies and an adult close by). It was fun to see him emerge from his shell. Maggie and William loved swimming in the pool, too, though Mag thought she'd like to drink the pool as well as play in it. We had to be extra vigilant with her because she put her face in the water every chance she got.
Mimi and Doff spent the last 4 days with us which was really nice because it gave Brandon and me some hands-on help with the kids. We were able to meet Julie and Lane at Bud & Alley's in Seaside one night. It was fun to have some adult time and hang out with friends.
The weather was beautiful, except for the last Saturday we were there, which worked out well...we spent most of that day at the outlets shopping. :)
All in all it was a fantastic trip!!
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iHealth Family Picnic
Brian and Dad both work at iHealth Technologies and we were excited to be included in their 1st annual family picnic at Stone Mountain. It was a fun (hot) day! We rode up to the top of the mountain which the big kids loved. I'm sure Jackson and Morgan felt like they were on top of the world. I could have done without riding through the air in a little box, with only a small wire holding us up, but that's just me! The company rented a hilltop pavilion and served dinner, played game (think: school field day), raffled stuff off and had an inflatable for the kids. When it got dark we went to the Laser Light Show. I hadn't been since I was a kid. It was very crowded but we were able to find a spot to spread blankets and watch. Jackson hated the fireworks (too loud), but enjoyed the rest of the laser show. Maggie and William both seemed to enjoy the show also. All 3 were asleep before we pulled out of the part. Ahh...silence! :)
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Sick Kids
The twins both had a nasty stomach bug, which resulted in the need to replace the carpet in the family room (aw, shucks!). The carpet has needed to go for a long time, but we were trying to get through the kids messy years before replacing it. We're planning to put in hardwoods, though, so whatever messes they make in the future can just be wiped up.
Then came the colds...all three had runny noses, but we noticed that William was being pretty fussy and pulling his ears. I made a 2:30 appointment for him at the doctor and arranged for Jenny to come watch the other two kids. I fed them lunch around 11:30...scrambled eggs (which they've had before). After William was finished I noticed his chin was red. He was so fussy that I was snuggling him in the chair while counting the minutes until I could leave for the doc. Around 1pm, I noticed that his face, head, arms, back and chest were completely red and it was spreading to his legs. Obviously an allergic reaction. Jenny rushed over and gave him benadryl while I got our things in the car. There were two times that I thought he was wheezing and it looked like his tongue was swelling. It was a very scary drive to the doctor. Thank goodness I had mom, Jen and Brandon on the phone so I wasn't so "alone." The color/rash didn't present like a typical allergic reaction to food, so we're having William tested for an egg allergy, but the reaction could have also been caused by the pain he was in due to the double ear infection. Thankfully, the antibiotics have done their thing and William is back to normal!
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Lake Martin
We took the kids to Lake Martin last weekend and stayed at an amazing lake house with Mom and Kim. As an added treat, Nana came up on Saturday and hung out with us for the afternoon. Jackson learned to fish with Kim and Brandon, which was great fun! By the end of Saturday he was even touching the bait (worms). They caught several brim and a bass (?) and threw them back into the lake. I love being out on the water and it was lots of fun taking the boat out for little trips around the lake. Jackson loved the hot tub which he called the "big bath". It was a relaxing and fun weekend.
