Mother Nature is such a tease!

Crappy weather again! Last night at the ball fields we froze! By the time we got home my weather station read 48 degrees outside :(. Things here are pretty slow. We don't have much going on aside from baseball! So today's blog will just be fluff...
Let's see...Jon first: His last day at Chase is tomorrow. I think he cannot be done there soon enough. It's kind of bittersweet for him, because he hates his job with a passion...however, he has many friends/co-workers that I think he will genuinely miss. He's been going around this week telling everyone goodbye and getting home around noon. We had planned on just the two of us going to the zoo tomorrow to celebrate his last day, but of COURSE it's supposed to rain AGAIN!! :(( yes, that's a DOUBLE FROWN ~ I'm doubly unhappy with all the stinkin' rain!!
Sam: Sam has discovered his competitive bone. I'm not sure yet if this development is a good thing or a bad thing. On the one hand it's nice to see him give a darn about playing this year. He's been asking Jon to go out with him to play catch almost everyday lately and is doing a much better job trying to apply instruction. He's getting snarky with some of his teammates though and Sunday I think he would have beat one of them in particular up if he'd met him in an alley! The team mate in question missed quite a few EASILY catchable pop flies and Sam was totally disgusted with him. So, I'm going to have to keep my eye on him...taking it seriously is a good thing only so far. At some point you have to remind yourself people ARE more important than winning the game. Yesterday, he practiced a good bit on 1st base...his coach told me Saturday at the tournament that he does want to work Sam in there this year. He has a C in math right now, but I'm hopeful that will come up before school let's out - which is coming far too quickly if you ask me! He knows if he wants to play football in the fall he has to bring home what I CONSIDER a good report card.
Liam: Liam is not up to anything but baseball and his practices lately could only be described as tedious. He is on a VERY young coach pitch team and after watching a few prac Jon is afraid we will regress this year. The coaches are good, but the team is TERRIBLE! He does have all B's right now, which I'm very proud of! Getting through homework with him every night is getting more and more difficult...I think he's ready to be done with school for the summer.
Mags: She got her staples out Tuesday and they said it was healing great! She doesn't complain of it hurting anymore at all. She has a loose tooth in the front and is really excited about it. We're having problems with her school work...she writes AWFUL!! Just sloppy, sloppy, sloppy! Everytime I try to correct her though she gets all sensitive and cries because I think it's messy, it's a nightmare really. She is still cute though!
Me: Still working out, but feeling a bit discouraged about it. Found out cuurtesy of the WiiFit that despite my faithfulness since the beginning of January I've only lost like 4 lbs OVER ALL. No, I'm not eating right, but darnit...you'd think that working out would have accomplished more than that!! I have to keep reminding myself that I do FEEL better...and that shoudl be enough. I'm peeling all over ~ the last two weekends have taken their toll on my skin!! My nose is raw!!
Well ~ I think that's enough for now...I love you all!!

Oh What A Beautiful Morning....

Oh what a beautiful day!! We have had some unbelievably gorgeous weather lately. Thank you Lord!! Yesterday was 87 and windy, which is ideal for clothesline drying. On days like that, I can get the clothes dry on the line faster than in the dryer!! So, I washed clothes and sheets and hung them. It's one of those tasks that I LOVE in May, June and even July. By August, I'll start getting tired of it and lazy, but for now I enjoy doing it AND we have found that during months when I use the line exclusively we can shave as much as $30 off our electric bill! Liam had practice last night. During batting practice he did AWESOME! He was cracking that ball bigtime!! He looked great!

This evening Mag's and Sam both have practice. Maggie is going right after school to get the staples removed. Not much news other than that! We love you all!

Oh yeah! And a GREAT BIG HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO AUSTIN LAFEVER! We love you Austin!!

GO HIGHLAND BLUE!!!

Sam's little league team had a pre-season tournament this last weekend. They have the same coach as last year and most of the same boys with only 3 new kids. Last year they won ONE game ALL YEAR ~ including their end of year tournament ~ so we didn't have real high expectations of them this year, despite being hopeful that this year would be better. On day one they won their 1st game 21-3!!! I know that sounds brutal and rude, but there was a good reason they ran the score up. Last week, during their first game they were up by 5 in the 4th inning and ended up losing by 1. You just never know when the other team is going to hit their groove and smoke you! So...in spite of the pain it caused Coach Jason ( he has a big heart for the kids and could not bear doing to those teams what every team did to our boys last year) ...our boys ran it UP!! They were playing under different rules than our league has...Morrow Co. ball does not allow them to lead off, or to run on 3rd strike if the catcher drops the ball...here they could do those things. So Thursday and Friday they had pretty intensive practices working exclusively on that. They did awesome. Really took to the "new" rules great, they were stealing fools!! Here's Sam dodging a close one, or so he thought! In the pic I'm doubtful that it was as close as he thought!

Several of the parents brought tons of food and Jon brought his little kettle grill and between games we ate like Kings! Hot dogs and potato salad, chips, fresh fruit and veggies with dip and chocolate chip cookie bars. It was a lot of fun!

Then it was back to the ball field for game 2...which they won 21-4!!!! The reason they again ran the score up was because the dummies that arranged this tournament set things up so that the teams were seeded based on total runs and we wanted to go home. We were fortunate ~ our boys were 1st place...so we had a bye for the 6pm game Saturday and were able to head home.

After we got home, cell phones LIT UP! Marengo went to the tournament as well and found out while playing their 3rd game on Saturday that the team they were playing was a travel ball team. The whole thing ended up being so unfair. I'm proud of our boys because they did an awesome job playing the 2 rec ball teams they played, but everyone on day one who played the travel teams (yes, there were 2 of them :( ) kind of got screwed. The coaches were told it would be rec ball only on our end...but it wasn't! Marengo forfeited in the top of the second inning, at that point the score was 28-0. WHY you would bring a travel team to a rec ball tournament is totally beyond me. It's not like a rec team in most instances could give you a good game, they humiliated Marengo and I feel so sorry for them. Sam has quite a few friends on that team and they got beat up on bad, it was ugly. Anyway, we went back Sunday and played our last game...we lost 12-3 and found out after the game that the team we played was travel as well. So, I think they did pretty well all things considered! The team we lost to advanced to play the last game, so in our rec ball tournament this weekend the championship game came down to 2 travel teams, duh!?!?

Because my family can never get enough baseball, yesterday evening Jon and the kids spent some time playing hotbox...check out the hot socks!! Yes sirree, those are socks!

This week, we have ball practice every night except for Wednesday, multiple practices on several of those nights! This weekend though, we have a free weekend, no tournaments! So far anyway! Jon's last day at Chase is Thursday. Hopefully then we'll have time to cut the lawn, it's quite unruly!! We just have had no time!! Well, I love you all and will keep you posted!

Baseball, Baseball and MORE Baseball!

Oh what a beautiful morning! The sun has come to Ohio...we are forecasted in the upper 70's and lower 80's for at least 5 days! Which is fortunate because we are headed into a SERIOUS baseball weekend. Sam has a VERY dedicated coach ~ when we're aren't slightly miffed at him for taking up ALL of our time during baseball season, we are VERY grateful to him for giving our kids ALL of his time!! The boys have entered into a big tournament this weekend at the Richwood Lake Park up in North Union High School country. So, in addition to a LONG drive tomorrow morning (early, grr) the boys are playing at 10am and 2pm. After that, if they're in the top 5 they begin a single elimination tournament at 6pm running into Sunday. At the risk of wishing my whole weekend away, everybody please pray they do well. It's going to maybe be a little confusing for them because the tournament is in a different county so the rules will be different as well! They have a scrimmage tonight against a local team that is also going to the tourney so all the boys can try to accustom themselves to the changes. I'lll keep you all posted about how it goes...the team they are scrimmaging tonight is the SAME team that they got beat by last weekend by 1 run. Sam desperately wants to beat that team...several of his classmates are on the team and they've been ragging him for months that they were going to crush our team!
Liam also has a practice tonight. I think many of you knew that I had concerns about his team this year...they are all very young. There is a silver lining though. I found out Tuesday that his assistant coach is the high school baseball coach. So, hopefully, he will have a learning year despite being a ahead of the curve!
Maggie is doing very well. Her head is healing nicely...I shouldn't be surprised if she doesn't even have a scar in a few years...not that you'd be able to see it anyway under all her hair. At this point cleaning it isn't even that bad.
I best get cleaning...I figure I need to get the house clean and ALL laundry done since I'll be gone all weekend! I also need to clean out the cooler and figure out what we're giong to take besides the kitchen sink tomorrow! Love you all!!!!

In Which Mag's Gets Staples In Her HEAD!

We have had quite the morning at the Garrett house. Actually, we just got to the Garret House ~ We've been at Urgent Care this morning! About 45 minutes after Mag's and Liam got on the bus this morn I got a phone call from the school secretary telling me that Maggie fell on the bus and had a cut on the back of her head. Deb said she seemed like she was doing ok, but they'd feel better if I came and checked it. She was fairly calm, so I did not freak out. I put on some clothes and brushed my teeth...didn't even bother putting the dog up because I figured I'd be right back to the house in a few minutes. Boy, was I wrong.

Liam deserves Brother of the Year. She fell off her seat on the bus when they were almost to the school and hit the back of her head on the wheel well. Her best friend Darcie was the first o realize she was blleding. When they got to school, Darcie and Liam told the bus driver and walked her to the office. It's good to have good friends and brothers!!

He never left her side according to the principal - he stayed with her holding her hand until I got there. When I saw it I didn't think it was bad per se...only about an inch maybe an inch and a half long, but it was gaping open...so, I made the tough decision (you always wonder if you're overreactiong when you're a parent) and called Jon at work to tell him to meet us at Urgent Care. After cleaning her head and looking at the cut (which looked quite a bit worse once it was clean :( ) they went with staples. When Maggie was still at school waiting for me her teacher from last year (Mrs Lovely) was trying to keep her distracted and amused ~ when I got there she was asking Maggie if they should attach a pillow to her head or just staple it shut maybe, which made Maggie laugh. Little did we know...!
So, now she will set off metal detectors for a week! My sweet princess has 3 staples in the back of her head. She did not shed one single tear when they did it. She was SO BRAVE AND STRONG! I'm very proud of her. She chose to have Burger King for lunch and then we went to Kroger and got her some Ice Cream Sandwiches. She's laying on the couch watching Bedtime Stories. I'm REALLY not looking forward to cleaning it a few times a day :(... We'll keep you all posted!

Oh and Dad, we got the fit board skin in the mail yesterday ~ Thank You!!

Ahhh...Baseball!

We had a great day today...well, a good day anyway. I guess great would have been winning three out of three. All in all though I think we were all just happy to be there! Sam had a good day. He had quite a few good hits and at least one AWESOME catch! This was not it obviously :)

The boys lost their first game (vs. Cardington Grey) by 1 run in the 6th inning. They really should have won that game!

Maggie went to her birthday party, I was able to drop her off beforehand and she rode to the party with the birthday girl. She had loads of fun, got to swim and eat pizza and had a wonderful day!

The gang WON their second game against Marengo Red...8-5. They were VERY excited, please keep in mind that they won 1 game ALL YEAR last year! So a little celebrating was in order!

Great sportsmanship all around ~ all these boys go to school together, so there were good natured "You guys sucked" flying after the game ;)

We all held up remarkably well considering that we were at the ball fields for 8 1/2 hours today...better than Katie, she was in a van that whole time (and still is ~ on her way home from Disney!).

Unfortunately, they lost their last game as well, by 1 run AGAIN! It was against one of the best teams in the league though and they played a great game against them so we have high hopes for a winning season ~ it is still very early after all!!

I am red like a lobsta!! I kicked off the baseball "tan" in a BIG way today! Love to you all ~ I'm POOPED!

Caution: BUSY Weekend Ahead!

Well ~ we have quite the busy weekend planned. Actually, today my primary goal is to figure out HOW we're going to manage to do it all without disappointing any of the kids! After I work out today I need to head to Mt Vernon to do some shopping. Tonight we have Liam's ball practice in Chesterville 5:30PM and Mag's has practice in Sparta @ 6:30pm. Jon and I will split up for that, it gets hectic but is not the cause of my problem. The problem comes Saturday...Jon is leaving early to go to Springfield to pick Mason up, however they will not be back here until late, because Mason is walking dogs for a couple hours at a local dog shelter first. He has decided he wants to do something along the lines of zoologist/vet when he grows up and has been volunteering walking dogs. At noon, I have to have Sam in Marengo for his first baseball tournament of the season, it's just a round robin, but will probably last most of the day. At 3pm Maggie has a birthday party (for one of her FAVORITE friends) at the Apple Valley Pool...I don't know where that is, but I can't imagine it's close being Apple Valley and all :(. Jon will definitely not be back by then, so?????? Crap! Right now the only thing busier than my body is my mind, I'm sure it will all work out though.
Yesterday, after I did my regular workout I spent 42 minutes on the WiiFit. I took the body test again and got my age down to 42...improving!! I was SORE when I went to bed last night. A little too much hula hooping! Love to you all!!! I'll take pics this weekend and get them posted of Sam's tournament! BTW, Steve, Sam used his new batting gloves at practice last night and told me on the way home that he loves them...and so did everyone else, he's the envy of the entire team ;) ~ thanks again!

Wii are SO not Fit!

Well, first off let me say "Thank you Thank you Thank you" to Dad and Anne ~ we have a new version of family game night! We got the Wii Fit last night and let me tell you, if laughter is a form of exercise you don't even have to get on the board to get a work out!!
Sam set his guy up first...he was healthy weight and the only person in our family who's Fit age was close to his real age ~ it actually was right on, it said he's 12.
Maggie on the other hand was healthy weight, but TOTALLY uncoordinated and came out of the test 18 yrs old.
She loves the yoga and went immediately to that section. She really impresses me with it, she's actually a yoga natural!




Liam's assesment made me doubt the validity of the whole thing. He was rated at the very high end of normal ~ just a hair away from in danger of being overwight. Any of you who know Liam know that he is no where near that! He IS extremely muscled ~ so I'm thinking perhaps the Wii does not account for possible muscle mass. Anyhoo, his Wii Fit age was 32!! Obviously, he did very poorly on the balance test as well!
I was assesed as 47! and Jon was 49 ~ so we have our work cut out for us...
Here's a few shots of the kids having some fun. There isn't one of Sam, he took his turn last and I was making supper by then, so I'll get a pic of him up here soon!

Liam started out REALLY strong with the soccor ball balance activity. But, ...

Then he started having problems and as you can see...


he got hit by so many cleats and panda bears that he tried to shield his head when he saw this head flying at him. It was SO FUNNY!

Again, thank you to Dad and Anne! We are having so much fun with it!!

Love to you all!!

Wrap It Up

Well ~ vacation is over...time for me to wrap up the blogs about it. Here's a pic of the kids at Kings Mtn Military Park. Liam told me he was excited to go there because there were a bunch of dead British guys buried there. That comment cracked me up...between that and him trying to burn bugs and leaves with the magnifying glass Dad got him, I've decided Liam and Anne make a dangerous, though amusing, combination! LOL \
From left to right: Maggie(bottom), Sam, Liam, Sarah and Matthew~ We spent all day Saturday with Dad and Anne. The kids played with their WiiFit and supplied us with MANY laughs while entertaining themselves. Let me tell you something ~ watching Liam attempt to hula hoop can make you pee your pants! It's hilarious! It was wonderful to have some time with them...Dad grilled steaks for dinner and Anne made twice baked potatoes and broccoli w/cheese sauce, DELICIOUS!
Sunday the kids hunted for their Easter baskets then we got ready to split the day. We headed over to Dad and Anne's first for a little more time with them on our last day in NC. Then, we packed the kids up and went back to Mom's. Got all our laundry done (thanks Mom and James for doing some of it while we were gone!) and started packing. A very good friend of mine from high school stopped by on his way back to Raleigh from his families Easter, Jason Williams. I got to meet 2 of his children, Samuel and Cora and they were adorable. It was great to see Jason again! After he and his children left we ate supper and the kids watched Bolt. We also spent a little quality family time in the hot tub...

Of course yesterday we drove home ~ that drive is bittersweet. Maggie was very homesick by the last night...so she was very excited to be driving home. We had to stop at Walmart to pick up milk and eggs ~ we had really planned just right for the perishables to last only until we left...therefore there was nothing left at home in the fridge when we left!

So, we're home! AND LET ME TELL YOU, IT SUCKS!!!!! It's 40 degrees and raining and will be all day. I missed my "home" while we were gone, but I don't think I'll ever be able to accept the nature of Ohio in the spring. Spring is the only time of year that I don't LOVE Ohio. I just have to remind myself that I wouldn't want to be anywhere else come summer, fall and winter!

Today, I have to go with Jon to return the rental and get us completely unpacked. We are eagerly awaiting the WiiFit Dad bought and had shipped to us (THANK YOU DAD AND ANNE) ~ we are really excited to get it! Love to you all!!!

Thursday and Friday Fun

No pics , no time to download them. I will update you on what we've been up to though.
On Thursday, we spent the day with Mom, James, Steve and Carolina. We went to Concord Mills Mall and shopped and attended a movie. While shopping we were able to attend a wedding dress try on for Carolina. She looked beautiful! Jon, Maggie and I saw The Hannah Montana Movie and the rest of our group saw Race to Witch Mtn. The Hannah movie was cute and Maggie really enjoyed it. Mom bought Bedtime Stories while we were out and we headed back to her house to watch it and eat pizza. It rained that day; it was still warm early, but by the time we got out of the movie it was quite cool and almost felt like Ohio!
Friday when we got up the weather had much improved. Yesterday was gorgeous! Warm and sunny and we met Carolina and Steve at Dad's house. Then we all met Tracy, Sarah and Matthew at Kings Mtn State Park and learned a bit about the revolutionary war as it pertains to the Carolinas. It was great to see Tracy and Kings Mtn was very interesting. The kids had fun walking the trail. Our nerves were shot by the time we left there but I think we wore all the kids out! Marley did exceptionally well. I do believe she's been on her best behavior this week out of gratitude!
Well that's all for now...Happy Easter everybody!!! We will be going to Dad's house this morning and then coming back to Mom's this afternoon, in an effort to spend some time with everyone before we head back to Ohio tomorrow. Love you all!

Day #1

Here's a few pics of what's been goin' on in NC ~
Marley LOVES the sidewalks in Moms subdivision...she wants to walk constantly and she's peed all over the neighborhood! Mom and her girlfriend Chris threw a Easter Party for the kids yesterday afternoon.

They had lots of fun with it. They had an egg hunt, a pinata and an egg race (in which the eggs were uncooked!). I don't know who won the actual race but I can tell you Sam was the only one who didn't break his egg.

After the Easter Party, we all lazed around the house. Actually behind it on the patio. It was absolutely GORGEOUS and we soaked in the sun. It felt glorious!

Then we headed to Lincolnton to Steve's house. We had a great visit with Carolina waiting for Dad and Anne to arrive and once they did we took pics and...

got BarBQ King...mmmmmmm.

Sam stayed at Steve's house when we headed back to Mom and James' for the night.

Today we plan on going to Concord Mills Mall and possibly catching a movie...the forecast is calling for rain, but I'm not buying it ~ it's GORGEOUS out again right now.

Carolina on my Mind

Well, we have arrived safely...and it's GORGEOUS! There are leaves on the trees and the grass is SO GREEN! No pics yet, I''ll update again later with those. Just wanted to let you all know we made it! Maggie talked incessantly from the time we hit NC to the time we hit Mom's front door, Liam ate an entire 1lb bag of licorice stealthily in the back of the van...but other than those small annoyances it was fairly uneventful. Marley did very well on the trip. At one point I looked back at her sitting on Sam's lap and I promise you she was grinning. Big toothy grin...she's ecstatic to have not beeb left behind. I'll keep ya posted! Love to all!

That's IT!!!

Ok ~ I've had it ! It is snowing and I have to go NOW!!! This is WHY I have to leave Ohio every spring for a few days! The drive is completely wet and freexing as you read...I don't see how the kids won't be on a 2 hr delay tomorrow morning! Sam says Michigan State are Losers...

Maggie says...Moms taking my picture Dad!! She also told me Sunday morning that she wished she could just sleep until Wednesday...

WE LOVE YOU ALL ~ 2 MORE DAYS!!

Palm Sunday ~ Children's Church

Prior to church this morning Liam and Maggie stepped outside to practice baseball for a few minutes...when I looked out I saw my princess winding up in a flower girl dress... Kind of cracked me up anyway.
So, after our lesson in which the children and I discussed palm Sunday and how easy it is to praise Jesus one day and figuratively speaking throw him under the bus the next day :( we moved on to craft...this week they made bookmarks to use in their Bibles.
Here's Maggie...

...and Sam and Mason (and Josh and Austin)...

...and of course Liam.

After craft we all headed outside to hunt for Easter Eggs!!

I'm thinkin' this was their favorite part!

We are counting down the days! We have ball Monday and Tuesday night and Liam has a spring concert Tuesday. In the nidst of that, I will be cleaning and packing. We only have 3 more days!!!

Sorry I'm Such a Slacker!

Well, the BIG news is that road crews came out 2 days ago and smoothed out our road. Doesn't seem like it should be a big deal, huh? Well, if you've ever been to our house you KNOW...we are always delighted to see the township guys come out. Literally, the last time they came out and fixed the miserable compilation of ruts and potholes we call a "road" was when Dad and Anne were here in September. It was REAL bad... it's all better now :)...but it won't last long. In the spring all the rain ruts it up double quick!

I know some kids who are almost (but not quite) as excited as their parents to come to NC!! We've actually gotten pretty busy again, so I'll tell you what's goin on with whom...

Sam ~

Sam is doing very well...so well in fact that he was on Merit Roll (All A's and B's) in the 3rd grading period. Don't get me wrong, I STILL think he's completely capable of Honor Roll (straight A's), but Sam and I have travelled a long hard path when it comes to school and how important it is to me (and how not important it's been to him)...many of you have commiserated with me through the years, so you'll understand when I say, "I was absolutely THRILLED!!" I made a big fuss and a peanut butter milkshake (at his request). He has also started baseball. I have to admit, I go as much to socialize as to see him play, so you'll have to trust Jon and Katie's word that he's doing well so far. He's batting well and it seems he will likely play first base due to his height. For those of you who have not seen him in awhile, his tennis shoes and cleats are size 12 ~ yes, you read that right! A flipping size 12!!! Sam has been playing basketball a lot in his free time to practice for a March Madness tournament they've had going in fitness...they lost their game today, which was a bummer, but he did really enjoy it while it lasted.


Liam ~

He's still wild and crazy, what can I say? He is reading at a 3.3 now (3rd month of 3rd grade) which is excellent for him!!! We are so proud of how hard he's worked, I do believe reading has finally clicked for him. I don't think he'll ever LOVE to read like Maggie, but he is doing it well for his age/grade and that's all I ask of him. He, too, is playing baseball again (of course). I'm a little worried about his team. Last year he moved from t-ball to coach pitch a year early for his age...this year, technically he's a first year coach pitch player...or I'd ask them to move him up again. His coach is the high school principal, who seems like a very nice guy. The problem is that 75% of the boys on that team don't appear to know a baseball from a cantaloupe... Honestly, after watching one practice I've decided those boys are either going to improve QUICKLY, or they're going to get hurt playing with Liam. He's still quick and accurate and I wish desperately that we could afford to put him on a travel team. Maybe someday...

Maggie ~

What can I say about Maggie? She is, of course, doing well in school. She is, of course, playing softball badly :)! She's so funny and such a girl! Her coach is practicing with tennis balls right now (good thing) to break the girls of fear of the ball. At the first practice Maggie got smacked square in the forhead with the ball. She didn't cry about it until I laughed at her on the way home though. Her favorite thing to do right now is READ. She is her mother's daughter through and through! She's currently into the Magic TreeHouse Series. We've been discussing getting her a booster seat. Much to her chagrin she still is in her infant seat (she's been 38 lbs for 2 years!) Yesterday I found out that Ohio passed a law that she will have to stay in the booster until she's 80 lbs or 8 years old...I guess it'll be til she's 8 as she's likely to not weigh 80 lbs until she is in high school!






I am still working out everyday...using my pedometer to ensure at least 10,000 steps per day. I will say, while I'm still faithful to it, I've started changing a couple things out of sheer boredom. The routine is getting OLD! This week I scrapped the cruches and started doing pilates moves that focus on the core in their place. I'm tired of doing 500 crunches every stinkin' day! The pilates this week have helped a little to make it fresh. I'm kind of looking forward to the break while we're on vacation. I still plan on getting 10,000 steps a day, but it won't be routine.

Jon only has one more month at Chase ~ I think he's excited. He really hates working for Chase...everyone pray with me that he finds a new job that he ENJOYS!!

The only other news we have right now is a new neighbor...

Maggie is very taken with him. We love you all! 5 MORE DAYS!!