Our Favorite Pastime

If you know my husband, you know that he is a baseball nut. And that's a bit of an understatement. Since we've had Nick, Scott has been anxiously awaiting the moment he could take Nick to his first baseball game. We got a new minor league team last year, the Naturals. So Scott thought he'd take Nick to his first official ballgame last July. They lasted only a couple of innings, w/ very little baseball watching to be had. Nicholas did get his first taste of cotton candy. I was so very happy I was not there to clean up the mess.

First baseball game last July

All decked out courtesy of daddy after the first game this year

Well, we tried again this year, and Nick loves going to the games. It's such a beautiful ballpark, super family friendly, and kids get in free. There are big bouncy things and a playground for the kids. My favorite night is Monday night with dollar dogs, a light crowd and great seating. Throw a few friends in the mix and it doesn't get any better than that. Scott loves the giveaways. We've managed to hit a couple of them. A particular favorite was the mini bat giveaway. Much to Scott's chagrin we were only able to snag 2 of these highly desirable objects. The versatility of these bats, decoratively speaking, is mind boggling. That's why it's still sitting in a corner of our office.

We are undecided on a place of honor for this wonderful work of art.

One of our favorite moments from the games this year included Scott snagging a foul ball. He only had to knock over a couple of kids and an old man, all that while holding Nick. To be fair though, that old guy was pretty agile. But our favorite moment has been Nick running the bases. Every Sunday after the game, they allow the kids to run the bases. He absolutely loves this. The first time he ran the bases, he ran the opposite direction. It was so awesome to watch. Although he's gotten hang of it, we still get a kick out of watching him do it. It's just one of the best things ever.

Dog Days of Summer

Nick has been out of MDO since mid-May. I jokingly complain about it, but this summer is really special b/c it's our last one together before Biscuit arrives. Here are a few things we've done to pass the time this summer... playing on his new swing set, doing arts and crafts, swimming, casting a few spells, helping daddy do manly stuff, drinking cream soda for the first time and running around naked. I won't post a picture of him in the buff, but let me assure you, this last one is a particular favorite of his. Notice that a lot of the pictures are taken inside. He gets outside, but it's too hot for my pregnant self to go chasing him around w/ a camera. Sit and shoot (in the A/C) is more my style. I have noticed after looking at these pictures that there are no pictures of me and Nick. I'm gonna have to remedy that.

Playing on his new swing set ...

He's waiting patiently while his swingset is being put together

Doing arts and crafts...

Swimming...

With his little buddies, Eli and Uriah

Casting a few spells...

Seriously, how cute his he?

Doing manly stuff around the house like helping daddy and chugging cream soda...

He got tired of helping w/ the toolbox, so decided to draw instead

Seven Dollar City

Scott took a day off work to take Nicholas to Seven Dollar City aka Silver Dollar City in Branson. They took off early in the morning w/out me. Normally, I would have joined in their adventure, but it was one of the hottest days so far. There was no way I was even going to attempt it. So I was able to run some errands and then relax at home. Although based on what Scott told me about Nick's reaction to everything, I wish I had been there to witness it myself.

When they arrived in Branson, Nick could hardly contain his excitement. Branson has often been described as Las Vegas w/out the gambling. That's what I've heard anyway. Scott did manage to make a wrong turn and was reminded of that the entire day. Looks like Mommy was there in spirit after all.

Here's a picture of Nick as they pulled into Branson...

Majority of the kiddie rides were pretty tame, so Nick was able to ride them by himself. Although he did go on the "big swing", "giant boat" and roller coaster w/ his daddy. Since they went during the middle of the week, it wasn't as crowded and they often had their pick of rides. They also had a huge indoor area w/ several large tables set up with all the crafts a child could want. Nick enjoyed the crafts, Scott enjoyed the a/c.

I think this moment best described how much fun he had spending time w/ his daddy. They were sitting down sharing a sno cone and out of the blue he looks at Scott and says, "daddy's the best daddy in world!" It was so sweet, though I'm sure the sugar rush might have had a little to do with it. All in all a fantastic day. He played so hard that he passed out in his car seat before they even pulled out of the parking lot.

Did You Miss Me???

Hi! I can't believe I haven't blogged in over a month. I thought about it, but it was not meant to be. Let me just say you never know what you've got till it's gone. In this case it was our computer. How in the world did we manage before the internet came along? I actually had use a regular phonebook a few times. I know, bless my little heart. I've lots of posts to catch up on, and I'll be putting them in chronological order. So you'll have to scroll down from time to time to see if I've added anything new. Sorry about that, but that's the way it's got to be. I'm off to organize my thoughts and photos, but will leave you with this nifty graph I created during my "free" time. Toodles.

***Update***
So I've decided to add to my sidebar when I have a "new" post, since most are backdated. That way you'll know where to find it.

July 4th Weekend

It was nice having the 4th fall on a Saturday this year, Scott was able to have a long 3 day weekend. My family came up to celebrate w/ us. We hung out at my brother Steve's house Friday evening. We took Nick to the fireworks stand and bought a few things, just to see if he had any interest in them. He loved the little snaps that you throw on the ground. Those kept him entertained for at least 45 mins. Then my family took turns playing chase w/ Nick. Yet another good reason having my family around. Scott and I can just sit back while they entertain Nick. He especially loved the all the colorful fountains. It was funny, every time we set one off, he'd make a fist and point it in that direction. Not really sure what that was all about, but it was amusing. He also got to hold his first sparkler. Nothing says good parenting like handing your child a flaming stick, right?

We left Nick to stay the night over there and caught a late movie, "The Hangover". We didn't get home until almost midnight! The movie was hilarious, btw. Sleeping in with no middle of the night shenanigans from our little man... yet another plus having my family visit. We got a pleasant treat that afternoon when our good friends, the Dormans, stopped by for a visit. Their little 3 mo old son, Joshua, is just the cutest little fellow. He has chunked up since the last time we saw him. I just love him, he's so squeezable. He loves to eat and doesn't like to be interrupted when doing so. A man after my own heart!

Later that afternoon, we stopped by our neighborhood block party to check out the festivities. We didn't stay long as it was hotter than hades. It was neat though, got to meet a few of our neighbors and Nick got to play in the bouncy house. We pulled Nick out there in his wagon. On the way back, my sweet hubby told me to hop in and pulled both of us back. I got a few stares, and a chuckle from another pregnant lady, but it was worth it.

We cooked out that evening w/ my family and then watched the fireworks show our neighborhood put on from our backyard. Nick was not too enthused this time around. It was late and he was tired. About 10 mins into the show he said, "I'm tired of watching fireworks." I don't blame the kid. After a while, it all looks the same, especially after a long couple of days.

Isn't Joshua the cutest little booger?