Opening Ceremonies

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We spent a chilly, cloudy, rainy day at the park today. It started with Opening Ceremonies this morning & then Daniel's game this afternoon. The Rangers did a great job again today, but still didn't come out with a win. I'm not sure Daniel has even noticed that they've lost......he's just happy to play! :)

Easter with Mrs. Ann / Mystery Date

Daniel & Laura Ann had a blast as always at church tonight with Mrs. Ann. They made some Easter crafts, ate pizza & bounced their hearts out in an inflatable. While they were having all that fun at church, Dan & I enjoyed a 'Mystery Date' with our Sunday School class. Leah 'set us all up' & let each couple know what restaurant to be at for their date. Dan & I went to Munoz & were surprised to get to eat with the Daniels & the Erwins. The whole group met at the Erwins for dessert after dinner & it was fun to see who ended up where & with whom. And 'Krispy Kreme White Chocolate Bread Pudding' needs no explanation....:) Fun times with a fabulous group!!

Daniel's First Baseball Game

 
Ready for their first game!
 
First Bat
 
Playing 3rd base
 
Waiting to bat (my FAV!!!)

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Well, after a few weeks of practice and MUCH anticipation, Daniel's first ever baseball game finally arrived. He was super excited about it & looked super cute in his uniform. In fact, there just about isn't anything cuter!! He played an overall great game. His one big mistake happened on his first time to bat. He got a great hit that ended up being a triple. The only problem was that he missed tagging second base & was called out. He had no idea & was so, so pitiful when the umpire called him out. Such heartbreak!! He recovered quickly though & didn't miss another base......probably never will again! Ha! Big Daddy & Nanna came to cheer him on and I failed to get a picture of them....sorry! And I have to say how proud I am of 'Coach Dan' too, who is so great with the boys. He has the gift of being able to instruct and encourage at the same time. I also love that he understands that he is dealing with 5/6 year olds and wants above all elso for them to have fun while learning the game of baseball (unlike lots of other coaches). The Rangers didn't get a win this game, but played great none the less. This was just the first of many games. We will definitely be living at the ball park for the next several weeks!

Love Notes

 
My note to Daniel
 
His note to me

Daniel has been taking his lunch to school lately & I always write a note on the back of his plate. To be such a rough & tough little boy, he definitely has a soft side too because he LOVES my notes. Today when he got home, he said, "Mom, check my lunchbox.....there's something in there for YOU today!" with the sweetest grin on his face. He had written back to me on the other side of his plate. And yes, I pretty much melted right at that moment.

Good Bye Training Wheels!

 
Watching Daddy take off the training wheels
 
Daniel & Jeb cheered her on!
 
Daddy thought it was best to practice on the grass first
 
When Dan would let go of her, she would take her feet off of the pedals & just glide! Ha!

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Dan has been telling Laura Ann all winter that when summer came, she was going to learn to ride her bike without training wheels. Well, this afternoon, she decided summer was too far away & asked to go ahead and try. Dan took the training wheels off and they practiced for quite a while. Daniel & Jeb were just as excited as she was & cheered her on the whole time. If they took a break, she would remind them when it was time to cheer for her! :) Daddy thought it would be best for our clumsy girl to practice on the grass first which turned out to be a great idea since she had lots of falls. She did quickly improve, but for some reason would not pedal (only glide) when Dan let go of her. She hasn't completely mastered riding a bike yet, but is well on her way! YAY Laura Ann!

"Kind of" Excited

 

Ok, those of you who know me well, know that I have been less than excited about Daniel playing baseball this year. I won't get into all of the reasons why..... Anyway, Daniel's coach, Jake, stopped by this afternoon to drop off his jersey & it is SOOOOO cute, especially the "James" on the back with his number. Seeing that made me 'kind of', 'sort of', 'a little bit' excited! :)

Date Night

 
Dan & I planned a date night while the kids were in Douglasville & ended up eating at one of our favorite spots, Bottegas. It was divine as always, but the highlight of the night for me was meeting famous chef, Frank Stitt, owner of Bottegas (as well as a few other Birmingham restaurants). He is the featured chef in at least one of my magazines almost every month & is well known all over the country. Yes, I know I'm a nerd, but super exciting none the less! :) Since I got a thrill at the restaurant, I let Dan have a turn too & we had dessert at Yogurt Mountain (which is FINALLY coming to Trussville- woo hoo!!) And no date is complete for us without stopping on the way home at the grocery store and so we did that too. FUN TIMES!

 
By the time we got home, the SUPER MOON was glowing in the sky. Absolutely stunning!

Spring Break Adventures Part 2

The end of our Spring Break week consisted of some down time at home. Daniel enjoyed playing outside with Jeb. As always, they were busy fighting bad guys & keeping our neighborhood safe. At some point, they were both shot in the face (thus the red marker all over the face), but thankfully recovered quickly & were able to continue their battle! :) We enjoyed some playtime & a picnic lunch with Natalie, Lee & Davis too.

We headed to Douglasville to visit with Nanna & Big Daddy for the weekend. Nanna made us a delicious supper that we got to enjoy along with Aunt Beth, Granny & Pop. Leigh Anne & Hayes came by for a visit too. Daniel 'taught' Hayes how to play basketball & he is well on his way now! :) Laura Ann picked lots of flowers & loved swinging on Big Daddy's swing.

Dan & I left Daniel & Laura Ann there & came back to Birmingham to spend some QUIET time at home by ourselves. Daniel & Laura Ann enjoyed lots more playtime at Nanna & Big Daddy's while we lived it up being kid free! See next post!

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Spring Break Adventures Part 1

We kicked off our Spring Break with dinner at Konomi. The food was delicious & the whole experience was highly entertaining for Daniel & Laura Ann! I didn't get any pictures, but my favorite part of the night was Daniel & Laura Ann turning up the bowls to drink the onion soup, yes ONION soup! They loved it! :)

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After a quick baseball practice Saturday morning for Dan & Daniel, we headed to Moulton for a visit with Gran & Papa. We got to enjoy dinner with all of the great grandparents on Saturday night, church Sunday morning, then Steakhouse for lunch, and playing outside ALL afternoon Sunday afternoon. Monday we went to Huntsville to the Space & Rocket Center & had SO MUCH fun! I really thought Daniel wasn't old enough for it yet, but he LOVED it..... all of it! He wanted me to read everything to him & was so interested in everything there. He & Laura Ann had lots of fun on the playground too. The highlight of the trip for Laura Ann was the little ride in the kids area....she did it over & over & over.....screaming & squealing! It was so funny! Be sure to see the video. We made a day of it and didn't head home until almost 4:00. We all had a great day! Of course, by the time we left, Daniel was all about going to the moon & has traveled there many times this week already!! :)

On Tuesday, we spent the day at home.....lots of pj time for Laura Ann and me.....lots of outside time for Daniel. The Bryants came over for an early dinner. We got lots of laughs when Daniel called Alan his 'side kick' & said they couldn't go to the fair yet because they were heading to the moon (yes, he's still on his space travel kick)! After we ate, we headed into town for the Trussville Fair. I'm not sure why, (maybe because it was cold & very muddy?? or maybe because we are the only rednecks in Trussville??), but it was a very slim crowd. Not so great for the workers, but great for us. All of the kids (except Alan) were big enough to ride everything this year. Laura Ann & Daniel were both completely fearless & had a blast!! Because I had a moment of fear myself, I'll keep quiet about Chris's experience on Moby Dick!! Ha!! I do think Amy captured some of it on video though, so I'm just hoping he doesn't give her any reason for blackmail in the near future!! Lookout facebook! :)

We had a lazy Wednesday morning & then met the Courtenays for lunch at Davenports- Y.U.M.! After lunch, it was time for some fun at the zoo. We got to there about 12:15, along with the rest of the state of Alabama & a few out of staters too, seriously! I have never seen the parking lot so full! We met up with the Lombardos there & Daniel was beyond thrilled to see Sara Kate (she was pretty pumped to see him too- I guess they've missed each other this week!). Despite the crowd, we had so much fun. The kids all got along great and Abigail was such a huge help with all of the little ones. It is uncool to hold mom's hand, but very cool to hold Abigail's (that is a mind read from Laura Ann....yes, I am talented!). I think the key to our successful trip was lots of playground and snack times......at least it was key in keeping my 2 happy. The gorgeous weather was helpful too. As hard as I tried to keep Daniel & Laura Ann out of the splash pad, they both ended up with soaked feet anyway! It was just too tempting! We made a day of the zoo too and actually got kicked out. About 5:05, we were leisurely strolling through the backside of the zoo on our way to see the snakes & talking about how nice it was the crowd was gone when a zoo employee walked up to us & said, "Are you on your way out because the zoo is closed!" Ha!!! We thought it was open until 6:00! Oh well, the snakes will just have to wait until our next visit! :) We had a super fun day with the Courtenay cousins & the sweet Lombardo girls!

Guess Who.......

......can write her WHOLE name???
 
She says, "Mom, everybody else in my class only has one name. Why do I have TWO names??" Sorry Laura Ann! :)
 

Silly Socks & Sunglasses Day

 
 

Mardi Gras

 
Layton went to New Orleans over the weekend to some parades & came back with lots of treasures for Daniel & Jeb.....
 
We enjoyed a yummy gumbo dinner with the Willoughby's for Mardi Gras (big thanks to Janeena!). She also served king cake & guess who found the baby??

32 Degrees

The fun didn't end at the bowling alley. We left there & headed to Chuy's for dinner & then on to 32 Degrees for dessert. Next time, we'll just skip dinner & head straight for the yogurt shop. Yes, it is THAT GOOD!!!!

What Are the Odds?

Daniel & Nigel getting ready to bowl


Laura Ann & Abby watching Jacob open his gifts


Laura Ann with her favorite school buddy, Katherine

Asher & Laura Ann really enjoyed the popcorn!


Jenna & Asher watching Laura Ann bowl

So, what are the odds that Daniel & Laura Ann would both have friends having birthday parties at the bowling alley on the same day at the same time?? I have no idea, but it happened. Daniel celebrated with his basketball buddy, Nigel & Laura Ann celebrated with her school buddy, Jacob. Dan stayed with Daniel at Nigel's party, so I didn't get but one pic. Word is they had lots of fun, but it was the Daddys.....Dan & Ronaldo who had a blast trying to out do each other......hate I missed that! I stayed with Laura Ann & she had so much fun with all of her school friends. They were so sweet together & surprisingly did a great job bowling! It was a fun afternoon for the James family!!

Upward Celebration

 
Daniel with his Upward award.....a new basketball!

Our church hosted an Upward Celebration tonight to celebrate the end of basketball season. All of the teams were introduced & then we were all entertained by an AMAZING juggler.......he juggled huge knives atop a 6 foot unicycle.......wow! And of course, Daniel came home attempting to juggle everything in sight! The juggler also reminded us that even though sports are great & lots of fun, we must keep our main focus on Christ- such a good message! Thank you FBCT for sponsoring Upward sports! Daniel had a great basketball season!