Birthday Weekend

Dearest Jax,

Your birthday weekend continued when we woke up and made treats for you and your baseball team.  These are the same treats I made to share for your birthday last year but I had Grandma's help this year and that made a big difference!

Oddly enough, it was pretty chilly and very windy for your game on Saturday morning but you still seemed to have a good time.  Here you are on second base getting ready to take off for third:

After the game, your team sang Happy Birthday to you before gobbling up the oreo pops.

Having Grandpa & Grandma there was especially nice!

Later that day, you opened all the presents from your birthday party.

We saved our presents for your actual birthday - Sunday.  Before presents, we had a special birthday "lunch" at the ice cream store...but I forgot to take a picture : (

First, you opened a bag of baseballs from Mommy, Daddy, and Colton.

Then you unwrapped some cool accessories from Grandma and Grandpa.

Lastly, you found a hidden Pogo stick and you were ready to try it out right away!

After bouncing around, you moved on to batting practice.

We ended your 5th birthday by taking Grandma and Grandpa to the airport and returning home for cake.  You told us you couldn't even pick a favorite part from your birthday weekend - you loved it all!

5th Birthday Party

Dearest Jackson David,

We celebrated 5 years of YOU this past weekend!  The festivities began on Friday when I picked you up early from school.  We went to the airport to pick up Grandpa & Grandma who flew in from Indiana for your special weekend.  We had your party at Paradise Pond this year and almost every friend you invited came to your shindig!  We kind of went with a Superhero theme, so this was the hero-pose you gave me to get things started:

After playing for a while, it was time for singing, wishing, and eating!

(When we walked into the baker's house to pick up your cake, your face lit up!  You loved your cake and that made it worth it, even if your brother's diapers were totally weird for the next few days...)

Chocolate cake, buttercream filling, and your 2 current favorite super heroes.

We packed that room with friends and y'all munched on pizza and grapes before devouring the cake!

The "big kids" were quick to return to the gym - but I had to snap this picture when I saw the only two left behind.  Your brother and his favorite girlfriend remained side-by-side as they finished every last bite of their treats.  Young love : )

There were tea parties....

and dress up...

and tons of wrestling  jumping!

There were even a few tears when the carpet gave you a rug burn for your birthday.  You were exceptionally unappreciative of the gift since I picked you up from school before rest time (I guess it's more imperative for you than I thought.?.)!

Before long, it was time to call it a night.

A great night - full of 5-year-old fun!

Moving right along...

Dearest Jackson and Colt,

Our house....is a very, very, very fine house....and we've now lived here for 2 weeks.

(Did you sing that as you read it?)

We officially made the move - 6 whole miles away - all the way from Lewisville to Flower Mound ; )

And we're all enjoying the new house, getting settled in, and steadily unpacking -- but moving was the pits!

I learned a ton over the course of that 3 day weekend.  Lessons such as 'don't be too proud to ask for help from reliable people', 'hire a stinkin' moving company regardless of the cost', 'have the packing 99% done by moving day' (instead of only 79% done as that last "little" bit can suddenly become not-so-little), and 'keep markers away from children' are now ingrained in my brain!  While I wanted to scream a few weeks ago, I can now say that I'm glad we moved and this beauty was worth it:

(Some photo their realtor used to sell the home although the landscaping looks quite different now)

It all started on Good Friday when Josh took off of work and The Harycki's opened their home for you boys to play all morning.  Then Daddy and I we went over to our new place to meet the furniture delivery guys and the cleaning crew.  We worked all by ourselves on Friday morning and moved things over little by little.  

After lunch, you boys joined the efforts and "helped" us in the backyard.  I stood by the back fence for this shot just to show the major selling features of this new place.  Our yard is big enough that you two can hardly be seen without the zoom lens (For any Hoosiers reading this - this is practically unheard of in our area - and it's only .5 acre!)!

Then a sweet friend - and new neighbor - dropped off Sonic treats and cheesecake bites.  Taking a break to enjoy them together by our new pool has been one of my favorite moments from living here so far.

The Lakes arrived soon after and then Justin joined the team after he got off of work.  Their help was invaluable and I'm convinced that we'd still be making trips back and forth if it weren't for them!  We slept at Wake Forest Drive that night for the very last time.

The 3 man crew was back at it on Saturday morning.  I had to take this picture for proof that we moved 1,800 square feet of stuff with a simple U-haul and an F-150.  I joked that we looked like we were moving into a 1-bedroom apartment driving down the road with this thing but it truly was comical to me!

We could fit all sorts of things into the back of the U-haul but it still took about 10 trips!

We had until Sunday at midnight to be moved out but we were trying to get as much done on Saturday as possible because the new owner was coming over for his final walk-through of the house.  Jax, you went with me to run some errands that morning and we discovered this when we got back:

Colt, it seems that you got a hold of a sharpie marker and made designs on all 4 window sills in the family room!!!  We tried unsuccessfully to repair the damage before resorting to buying paint and painting them all! That's a story that we'll remember forever!

Justin, Andy, and your daddy kept working all day long!

But we all took breaks every now and then to watch Reggie fight with the hot tub's fountain!

Things seemed real as I drove Viper over to the new house that evening.  

And there was no turning back as we slept in our new bedrooms that night.

Sunday was Easter and all 3 kiddos were up early to find baskets full of goodies.

And then we ran outside to find even more surprises in the front yard!

(Three sweet friends forked our new yard with marshmallow peeps!)

The rest of the day was spent with Daddy, Andy, and Suzanne finishing things up at the other house while I stayed home with you kids and tried to let things settle in.

And now it's two weeks later.  

Things are coming together nicely and our house is becoming our home.  

A very, very, very fine home : )

Opening Day

Dearest Jackson,

Thursday, March 28th, was Opening Day for you and the other Astros.  You're in 5U this year and things are a bit different.  For starters, the ball is now pitched to you.  Outs are also possible now although not tallied.  And less coaches are allowed out on the field to assist you.  After hearing all of that, Colt thought a "Good Luck" hug was in order!

You started on 1st base and did pretty well.  

You looked so little and yet grown at the same time as you went up to bat!

You made contact with the ball both times that you batted that day!

And I could tell that you were proud when you made it back to the dugout : )

We were all proud too!  

Your brother shows his pride by chilling against the fence, I guess ; )  

Stick with the status quo!

Dearest Boys,

I am so behind.  Excuse me while I play catch up and rewind things just a bit....

As the big move was approaching, I tried to keep life as normal as possible.

First up, there was Jacob's 5th birthday party at the Indoor Safari Park.

Colt, you were invited too & you gave me this great smile every time I asked to take your picture:

Then there was Cole's 2nd birthday party at his house.  

He gave y'all these super whistles and you kiddos put on quite a concert there on the steps with those things! ; )

We also went to the Harycki's house for an Easter celebration where there was egg decorating and even a glow-in-the-dark egg hunt!  

There was even a special afternoon at the race track for you, Jax.  You've been asking to go back ever since!

As hard as we tried to stick with the status quo, things were noticeably different.  On one particularly rough morning, Colt, you walked into Steph's house all teary.  She asked you what was wrong and you said, "My house is all boxes!"  

There's a light at the end of this tunnel, boys!