Happy Birthday C!

Birthday Week has begun!

Today, C turns 10 years old. We started the morning with his traditional birthday pancake breakfast complete with candle.

Birthday Breakfast

I put the candle in the pancake HOT off the grill...it melted candle wax into his pancake. He had to cut out the middle of the pancake stack to get all the melted wax out. Oops.

Tonight, we had steak and mashed potatoes for a birthday dinner.

Between dinner and dessert, the kids and I went off the the Cub Scout Bike Rodeo. 

We returned home for cupcakes and presents. C had to wear the birthday hat.

MK and S photobombed all the pictures. 

Birthday Silliness

C got his present from Mom and Dad 

Birthday Boy

He was SO excited! He has wanted a guitar for SO long.

Following Directions

Yesterday morning, I told MK to "go downstairs and get dressed."

She came back upstairs wearing this:

Getting Dressed

She was wearing her "Heigh-Ho" dance costume.

Conversations

The following conversation happened yesterday in our car after we passed a Little Caesars Pizza.

MK: I know why they call it "Little Caesars" because he has scissors.
Me: I know Caesar and scissor sound the same. But actually, Caesar is a name used many years ago in Rome for their Emperor, Ruler, or King.
MK: Oh.
S: I wouldn't use "Caesar." I would call them "Your Majesty," or "Your Hinny-ness."
Me: *cracking up*

WIP Wednesday #12 - Flower Block

I finished my second flower.

Flower Quilt Block

I love how it turned out. The colors really blend and build on each other. 

Even though the pattern is called "3 Layered Star" it just looks like a flower to me. 

Even MK shouted "flower!" when I took a picture of it.

The pattern can be found at mommysnaptime.blogspot.ca

Kid Day at Adobe

R's work had a "Kid Day" Friday morning. They provided t-shirts for everyone, employee badges, lots of fun, and food. They had several exhibits from the Leonardo in SLC. Then we got balloon "animals." 

S had a MONSTROUS  hat that attacked anyone near him.

C had a "fishing" hat.

MK wanted a sword.

S, C, MK

The kids all got their faces painted.

MK wanted a butterfly eye. Is anyone really surprised by this?

MK

S did Harry Potter--he got glasses and a lightning bolt scar.

C wanted a 'U' and football.

While waiting in line for the photo booth, S climbed on R's shoulders.

S and Dad

We had  a great time. 

Last Baseball Game

Wednesday was C's last baseball game this season. He was very sad and upset that the season is over.

His team played very well this season. They went on to State Championships. They won their first 2 games, but lost their last 2 knocking them out of the bracket.

After the game, the team huddled up for their usual post-game chat with coach. No one wanted it to end. The kids were all asking if they could have practice tomorrow. 

Oriole Team - C is second from left 

Last Baseball Game

We presented both Coach and Assistant Coach with these plaques. 

I got the idea off of Pinterest. I cut open a baseball, soaked it in hot water so it would lie flat, then took it to a game so all the boys could sign it with their numbers. Then, I tacked the ball down on the plaque. I got official Orioles badges and glued them on. 

Baseball Coach Gift

Both coaches were very happy with the gift. One coach mentioned he had wanted to bring a ball for all the boys to sign as a souvenir. Well, we did one better.

They always finish up with a huddle. This is their last huddle-up.

C is number 6.

Last Team Huddle

C had a great season. He wasn't even sure he wanted to play this year, as last year he didn't have much fun. Now, this year he has decided that baseball is is favorite sport.  Last year, his coach never held practices, kept him in the outfield or on the bench, and never offered any type of help. This year, his coach was amazing: they had practices several times a week, which the kids all LOVED and never wanted to leave; they played several different positions, rotating around the field; they were given lots of help and advice to improve. And they never wanted to leave.  C was visibly upset once the last game was over, coach saw him crying in a corner. He was trying to hide his tears at the post-game huddle. 

But it isn't over entirely.

Coach is planning a Kids vs. Parents game next week. That should be interesting. 

WIP Wednesday #11 - Flower Block

I finished sewing all the individual pieces for my 3 Layered Flower block. 

I need to pull out my iron and properly iron it before I sew all the strips together. But, I couldn't resist snapping a picture of this stage. It always makes it so much more real and exciting when I can see it coming together and almost done. 

Flower Quilt Block In Progress

I'm really close to being done, just another 30 minutes should do it. I just haven't had much time to sew with all the summer activities, baseball, soccer, etc. 

Melon Boats

Monday, S asked me to cut up a watermelon at lunch. They ate several wedges before they started to play with their food. S thought the rind looked like boats. He filled up the kitchen sink with water to see if his "Melon Boat" would float. 

Soon, they had the entire sink filled with melon boats. 

Melon Boats

C wanted to add his scout regatta boat.

S, MK, & C

Melon Boats

I love summer time!

The Prisoner of Alcatraz

C was disappointed last night when I explained to him that Alcatraz is NOT where the wizard prison Azkaban is located.

Soccer Camp

This past week, S has been participating in a RSL Soccer Camp. He absolutely loved it.  He was always so excited to go and then eager to tell us or show us what he learned that day. 

S with Coach Jake

RSL Soccer Camp

S showing off his new camp t-shirt

RSL Soccer Camp

S loves soccer. When it was time for baseball signups, I asked him if he wanted to play baseball and he said "No, I want to play soccer." I had to talk him into playing baseball because it wasn't soccer season. I've looked into getting him involved in some of the local soccer clubs, but he is still too young: The age cut off for the youngest group was 2 days before his birthday. 

Baseball Tournament

Today, we spent all day at a baseball tournament. C's baseball team signed up for a fundraiser tournament and had 3 games all in one day. It was supposed to be a 2 day tournament, but they were rained out yesterday. C plays on a city league team, and all the other teams at this tournament were accelerated teams that play year round. His team still held their own against these skilled teams, learned a lot, and had a great time.

C's coach used this time as a fun learning experience for them. He made sure they were all having a good time; he moved them around the field; and he praised their accomplishments.

C has been wanting to play pitcher and shortstop all year. He's had several opportunities to play shortstop, and today he had his first chance to pitch. He actually did rather well, and had a great time. 

Pitching

He also played center field, right field, second base and third base. There was a lot of plays in the outfield, so he was happy with everywhere he played. He was exhausted by the end of the day, but all smiles. He loved being able to play baseball all day long. 

Happy 7-11 Day

Today, we celebrated 7-11 day with free slurpees from 7-Eleven.

MK, C, S 7-11 Day

WIP Wednesday #10 - Flower Block

Because one can never have too many projects in their WIP pile, I thought I'd just add one more. =)

I found this block while browsing Pinterest today:

The pattern and information can be found at Mommysnaptime.blogspot.ca.

I know it is supposedly a star, but it really looks like a flower to me. 

So, I started thinking about doing this as another challenge block for QuiltFest. 

I went through all my fabric (so much fun) and finally settled on some oranges to go with the fuchsia pink. 

I had several false starts, but finally got the hang of it. This is what I've done so far. 

Flower Quilt Block in Progress

All the pieces are cut; I have all the paper patterns printed out; I'm ready to continue.

I just think it will look so pretty. 

A Kind Brother

Tonight at dinner we were talking about our day and our plans for tomorrow. R is out of the office all week, so he gets to play with us every day. The kids want to go to Seven Peaks Water Park tomorrow. MK started to tell us all how she is so excited and how she knows how to swim now because S taught her last summer.

C: S also taught MK to swing.
Me: *looking at S* What a great big brother you are. You really do a lot of nice things for your little sister.
S: *big smile while chowing down on his hamburger*
Me: Yeah, sometimes he's nice and sometimes he's a jerk.

*Silence around the table as everyone looks at MK, then we all burst out laughing.*