And the Lightning came to Play

This week was a complete turn around from last week for the Lightning!  Maybe it was the Lightning bolts that each team member was sporting on his cheek (compliments of another team mom).

Or maybe it is just that the boys all showed up ready to play...and more importantly, play like a team!  It totally paid off for them.  Their coach has said several times already this season, "The team who shows up and plays like a team, is the team who will be the most successful in this league."  I do believe Coach Spears is right. The Lightning ended up winning 22-12. 






Again, Caleb was all over his opponent on defense.  He totally smothered his guy and kept him from being too effective. Go Biz!  Eric said that he was going to get him a shirt that says, "Defense is my Biz-ness".  Oh my!

 

The Cheering section
 

 

 

Way to go Biz!!

 

Go Lightning!!

 

Note:  This is day #3 of Seth wearing the Kentucky jersey (he snuck it in under his shirt yesterday, so he could wear it to school two days in a row).  Yes, I will pry it off of him and get it washed...soon.  For today, we will enjoy watching him enjoy wearing it so much.

Leaves!

One good thing about having a little slacker yard care this fall was that for the first time in a LONG time we had some leaves to jump into.

And we made the most of it!

Kindergarten Christmas Breakfast

 

Yesterday was the Kindergarten Christmas breakfast for Seth. 

And I got to be his date.

 

Seth has such a sweet class and it was fun to hang out and chat with them and their parents/grandparents over some biscuits and juice.

 

 



Life is so Sweet...

...when Granny is around!

Basketball Players in the House

It was only a matter of time before our boys strapped on their high tops and hit the basketball courts.  After all, they have spent their entire lives watching Kentucky basketball.  Go Cats!

Last year, Caleb was still not interested in playing the sport, but this fall he asked if he could.  So, were like, UH HUH!!! 

At the first practice, we knew we had some work to do, so we have been taking the boys over the courts to learn and work on some mad basketball skills. Caleb has improved immensely over the past month and really enjoys it.  He is putting in the work practicing each day. And the work is definitely paying off. His dribbling is more coordinated, and he is understanding the plays now.  He is still overpowering his shot a bit, but he will get it. He is definitely one fine defensive player!  His first game was Saturday and he had three big steals.   Not bad for a rookie. Although the other team won with a score of 10-4, he had a lot of fun out there.

The coach asked each team member to suggest a team name at the last practice.  Caleb's suggestion of the Lightning won out!  His reason was due to their reversible jerseys.  Sometimes they are blue and sometime white, just like lighning. 

So, GO LIGHTNING!!

Seth has also taken a big interest in basketball.  You can find him dribbling any ball in sight at almost any given time.  We found this Kentucky jersey that Granny gave him a while back and he DOES NOT want to take it off. He wore it to school yesterday and actually snuck it under his shirt today for school. I think I will have to pry it off of him to get it in the wash.  He is not playing on a team this time, but I am sure he will be more than ready next season. 

Dates and Digs

My guys took me out to dinner last night to celebrate my 35th birthday.  We had a really great time and yes, I did have the most handsome guys in the restaurant on my arm. 

And in my lap at times.

And in my face.

When we finished, they had a little after dinner surprise for me. The boys have such a hard time keeping a secret and kept letting little hints slip out like, "We have still got something in store for you," and "I wonder what is for dessert."  I played it cool and tried to change the subject so that my eager boys would not accidentally spill the beans.

When we got home, Dada surprised me with a Culver's frozen custard cake!  YUM!!  He knows me so well.  It was definitely the perfect birthday treat.

But the surprises did not end there.  Last weekend, Caleb came to me and asked if he could use one of my shirts to create something special.  He told me had that he had a big idea and wanted to make a big surprise for me.  Who can turn that down?  So, I found a shirt for him, he made his creation, put it in a shoebox, and put it on the steps until it was my birthday.  I was very curious to see my surprise, but I fought the temptation and did not open the box all week.  Actually, when we got home from our dinner date, I could not wait any longer and asked if I could open my gift.  He brought it to me and I opened up this little jewel:

Fashionista for sure!

It is hard to see in the picture, but it says "Mom Coming."  (Eric told me later that it was actually suppose to say, "Here Comes Mom," but I think he ran out of letters.  Or maybe he just didn't have any Es.)

Then on the back it says, "Bye."

I am not sure if it is a warning to others or what, but I love it!  I am encouraged that he is still proud enough of me that he thinks my arrival is worthy of being announced.

What a great birthday!!

Happy Birthday to....Biz!

In honor of my birthday, I thought I would post about Caleb's birthday.  Yes, I know that he is already eight years and THREE months old, but somehow I skipped right over posting about his birthday festivities, which somehow went from us not having a big party to having a bunch of little celebrations that spanned a couple of weeks. 

On his birthday morning, he awakened to ballooons in his room and his chair decorated.  That is one tradition that Biz totally eats up. 

His birthday was on a school day, so the celebrating would come later, but we went ahead and let him open his gifts with breakfast before heading out.

And what does every eight-year-old boy need?  Tools and Legos!

Granny has a strict policy that the birthday sibling also receives a gift.  Seth simply could not contain himself when he opened the Green Ninja.  Yes,if you have a child, know a child, or have simply walked past a child between the ages of 5 and 10, then you probably understand the sheer joy said child has over this prized little Ninjago character.

I stopped by school to have lunch with the boys and bring Oreo balls for Biz's class.

Right after school, we headed straight up to Nashville for a birthday evening out.  Since the Lego store has moved to town, we decided that would be a fun birthday treat for Biz, especially since he had some Lego loot to cash in, thanks to Granny and Meem and Peep!

Enroute to the Lego Store, though, we stopped into Bass Pro for a bit.

 

 

Then it was on to the main event!

 

It didn't take him long to pick out exactly what he wanted.

 

 

 

Afterward, we headed over to the Rainforest Cafe for birthday dinner.  Thankfully, it went much better than our last visit there. 

 

 

When we got there, we were sat in the gorilla section.  I think Seth had a few flashbacks from his first traumatizing exciting visit there. It didn't take him too long, though, to start enjoying himself.

 

 

 

 

 

The following Saturday, he got to invite some friends over for swimming, pizza, cupcakes and Laser Chase.  Jack got to spent the night for a birthday sleepover.  The next Saturday was his birthday campout with Elliott and the Mclaughlins and the weekend before his birthday, he got to celebrate with Meem, Peep, Granny, and Aunt B.  It was a birthday extravaganza marathon.

 

Yeah, turning eight was pretty great!!!
(and a tad bit exhausting)

 

 

 

And Hooray for some good friends who helped us keep all of the energy packed boys wrangled during the party.