Play ball!

Easton moved up from tee ball this year and played on the Rookie league of the Cheyenne Junior Baseball League. In his league, they get three pitches off the pitching machine (45 mph, I think) and then they bring out the tee if they don't hit those pitches.  There are still no outs, everyone hits, etc.

Easton was devastated that he STILL didn't get to have a game with a score.

Cutest Rattler around.

Playing catcher.  The kids loved the idea of this position, but when you have balls coming at you at 45 mph, the newness wears off quickly.  By the end of the season, Easton's team only had two kids that would even agree to go out there (Easton was not one of those two).

His favorite position was "pitcher" as you see the most action there, but followed closely by first base.

Here's a video of him hitting.



And one where he fouls and then hits off the tee.  I love this one because it shows how serious he is about getting to first base as soon as the ball and bat make contact.

Easton loses a tooth!

Easton finally got his first loose tooth about mid-June. As time went on, the permanent tooth came up behind the baby one and wasn't helping get that baby one out. [note the Jamberry nails, my new obsession]

Every few days, Ron would yank on it with dental floss to help things loosen. Easton was very brave through all of this.

Finally, on June 26th, Ron pulled and the tooth came out!  Easton was THRILLED and couldn't wait to show anyone who would listen.

That night, he wrote the following note (spelling help from mama).

The next morning, the tooth fairy left him a dollar bill, a "gold coin" dollar and a note to remind him to keep brushing!

June 2014 Random Catch Up

We hung out with our good friends for the day.  Our kids line up nicely and as they get older, they start to actually play together! Devynee and Grady enjoyed chasing each other in circles around the tramp.

and Damian and Kendree created masterpieces in their sand kitchen.

Devynee started potty training.  She did surprisingly well, but as with most kids that potty train, we are working on long-term consistency.

This summer we joined a private pool and the kids get "free" swim lessons as part of our membership. We are loving it so far!

Easton ready for school. For the last month of school, he took a basketball to school everyday.

We had a tornado warning at the end of June, and Ron had a prime view of the forming funnel cloud from his office.  (Nothing ever came of this).

Ronnie's co-worker got a free jersey at at Rockies game and gave it to Easton.  He was so excited and he wanted to document it so that Dad could show the picture to Billy. 

Some cute kids...

The hard stuff...

I love this little blog of mine.  I love that I can document my life with my kids and share it with friends and family.  I love that I am creating a family record in a way that my parents and grandparents didn't have available.  Stories with the pictures? Amazing.

Sometimes though, things happen in life that don't seem so "bloggable." Things that you want to remember and to have your posterity know about, but things that are hard to share.

It seems easier to just get them out. Quick. Like ripping off a band-aid.

In 2013, I had two miscarriages.

I didn't see it coming. At all.

I had three healthy, beautiful children that were the products of three normal, uneventful pregnancies. I knew many people who had miscarriages and struggled with how to convey my feelings of sorrow for them.  I also felt like none of them could really talk to me because I honestly had no idea what they were going through. And no matter how "open" we are as a society, miscarriages are one thing that is just hard to talk about.  Hard for the ones who have gone through it and hard for those that feel that they have nothing to contribute.

When I learned I was pregnant in May 2013, it was as if Heavenly Father wanted to give me a warning.  From the moment I found out, I had a feeling that the pregnancy wasn't going to last long. I was right.  A little over three weeks later, I miscarried. Even though I was prompted, I was not prepared for how it would feel.  How I would feel.  The weeks of crying myself to sleep and crazy hormones. The sorrow. The disappointment. I obviously talked a lot with Ron and I needed an empathetic, crying shoulder, so I talked to my sister as well. Other than that, I kept my mouth shut.  Overall (despite what you might think due to this blog), I'm fairly private about things that I consider, well, private.  A few months passed and the pain eased.

I was excited to find out I was pregnant again in September 2013. This time, I thought that everything would be fine.  I didn't have any of the promptings I did the first time and took that as a good sign. Surely, given my history, this pregnancy would be just fine. But, again four weeks later, I miscarried.  All of the feelings came flooding back, but seemed to be intensified.  I again leaned on Ron and my sister and a few weeks later shared with my mom and dad.  I'm so grateful for my faith in Jesus Christ, as that faith, my study of the scriptures and prayer helped me greatly as I worked through the emotions.

After the second miscarriage, my doctor started doing tests.  Apparently, it is pretty rare for someone to have three healthy pregnancies followed by two miscarriages.  She determined that my progesterone levels are very low naturally and wanted to put me on progesterone supplements as soon as I was pregnant again. It wasn't a proven fix, but it would hurt anything either.

So, in February 2014, I received exciting news again and immediately began taking progesterone supplements.  Whether the supplements were the reason or not, this pregnancy has progressed just as it should and we feel so blessed.

June Trip to Aspen

The first weekend in June brought Mama's work trip that we had prepped for back in April. Mama was stuck in meetings for the majority of the time, but had a break when the fam was at the pool and caught these classics.

Devynee had a scare with falling in when we were in April, so she never got wetter than this.

Later, Dad took the kids to the park for a picnic lunch.  Here are a few of their playground adventures.

Every time Easton climbed this rope web, he got a little braver.  Finally he made it all the way to the top!

Kendree's version of what we do with q-tips.

Mom had a busy but good weekend and dad was a superman and took care of all of the kids in a hotel room for two full days.  Mom knows exactly how hard that is and he really is amazing.

When a child speaks...

I've got to do better about keeping up on these, as Kendree says something quotable pretty much everyday.  I'll go back in my journal and gather some more...

Nov 2013 - Kendree was missing Grandma and Grandpa Cali and Dad offered to call them.  Kendree then told him, "Dad, you made my dreams come true!"

Nov 2013 - Kendree: hock-chock = handcuff

Nov 2013 - Kendree: neck-o-nize = recognize

July 2014 - Kendree listens to EVERYTHING that anyone says.  She hears phrases and then tries to work them into her daily vocabulary.  On the way to our family reunion, she says to me, "Mom, it's with a heavy heart that if I got lost in the woods, I would find my way back to you."

July 2014 - Kendree to her tee ball coach: "I'm not going to be here next time, I'm going to a cabin.  They have ponies and unicorns." Her coach asked for a picture of the unicorns.

July 2014 - Kendree sees a cow-crossing sign as we are driving.  She asked me what would happen if we hit a cow with our van and I told her that the van would get really hurt.  She then says, "I know what would happen!  We would be COVERED in milk!!!" Easton piped up and added, "We wouldn't have to go to the store for milk for a loooooong time!"

July 2014 - Devynee's current phrases: "I don't care about that" (this is used in the most odd situations). If I ask her if she has to use the restroom, she has three responses, "Yes!" "No, thank you!" or "No, I'm fine."

24 weeks

As much as I hate to sound like a broken record about this, I'm really happy to sound like a broken record, you know?

Things continue to go well.  Baby is moving all of the time and so much that there is no way to forget that I am pregnant anymore. I continue to be able to move fairly easily, but getting off the couch or out of bed are a little slower than normal.  With Devynee potty trained (for the most part), I'm not down on the floor nearly as much, and that is very nice.  This marks the first time since December 2007 that I have not had diapers in my house.  It's not much of a break, but it is something! Bending over is not my favorite and I informed Ronnie that he may be the main weeder pretty soon.  He was super excited about that. I am still not craving anything specific, but food in general is good!

I haven't even begun a single baby project and as I thought about my life the next few months, that stressed me out a little bit.  I may need to make a trip to the fabric store a priority at the beginning of next week.

With this pregnancy, I've been surprised at the comments I get.  There is a big difference between your 3rd and 4th child as far as the "world" is concerned.  I get a lot of, "Was it a surprise?" (no, thank you for asking), or "You do know how babies are made, right?" (yes, obviously, thank you), or "You sure are going to have your hands full!" (I always say "We have a lot of fun at our house!" to this one) or "How many are you going to have?!?!?" (we take it one at a time, and you are a complete stranger, so I don't care to tell you anyway). Sometime, someone is going to get me on a bad day and I'm going to come back and ask them about their family planning and how they came about deciding how many children to have and how their religion played into that decision.  Do you think that would shut a few people up? :)

Sorry for that rant.  I'm done. :)

Other baby4 updates: 22 weeks, 20 weeks, 16 weeks

Wanna compare?
Devynee at 24 weeks
Kendree at 24 weeks
Easton [not documented]

The end of the school year

So, I blinked and Easton's Kindergarten year was over.

A few days before school was out, they held the last assembly recognizing those students who reached their goals.  Easton received an Orange award (5 out of 5 goals met).

He's the half hidden kid right behind the teacher in orange.  Gotta love assemblies.

Easton actually missed the "technical" last day of school, because mama had a work meeting so we pretended that June 5th was the last day.

The girls needed a picture as well.

Then Easton suggested that we take one all together.  Sweet boy.

The Kindergarten graduation was pretty standard.  Sing a song. Have kids walk across stage. etc. (Easton is just to the left of the teacher in black).

Again, to the left of the teacher, second row up.

And here we are shaking the teacher's hand...

...and getting something from his "reading buddy" (each Kindergartener has a 6th grader that helps them with their reading throughout the year)

Easton with Ms. Lesh.  She was great.  I just love teachers.  I could never do it and know they work SO hard!

And as an addition, here is Easton with his art from the art show at the end of the year.  It was titled "Sonic."

Instagram: June 2014

Two 2 year olds on the tramp (they just walk around in bouncy circles) and the older ones in the sand. A perfect summer day!

I can't believe it, but the year is over justlikethat! He even made it through without loosing any teeth (much to his dismay)!

Easton and his teacher after Kindergarten "Graduation." (Does anyone else find the whole thing ridiculous?) However, Easton's teacher was fantastic for him this year. We love our school!

This boy is getting to be the spectator for a sibling for the first time. He thinks mom's snacks aren't such a bad deal.

Kendree hits! (Tee ball is my favorite)

Easton, Kendree and Devynee are getting a...

This is how we are spending the next few days. I forget how tedious it is every time!

Easton finally lost his first tooth. That pesky permanent tooth was coming up behind it and not really helping the baby one get out.  He is THRILLED!