I had to add this...

I don't why, but baby bottoms always make me laugh. So before I changed his diaper that morning I had to snap this picture. I'm sure he'll appreciate it down the road.

Baby Grace

The boys and I went over to Joe and Erin's to visit the lovely Miss Grace the other day.

For whatever reason, Benny didn't want to be a happy part of the picture.

It might have something to do with his T-shirt. Kids these days wear shirts that have supposedly funny sayings, but tend to be smart-alecky. Although, in this case, it does fit him pretty well (it reads: It's my brother's fault.)

Then Moses decided that if Benny didn't want to be in it, he'd take his spot. And Charlie is just preparing himself. Moses has taken a liking to Mr. Charlie and shows it by licking his face. Nonstop.

The boys love their baby cousin. Even if she is a girl. Although, Lou's convinced that she will one day be a boy. (Because she has a "boy" haircut. We've haven't covered anatomy yet.)

Smells good!

I've finally started washing the clothes, bedding and other items for the baby today. Our windows are open on this beautiful day and I can smell the special baby detergent wafting in from the dryer outlet (?) outside.

What a great smell! It's amazing that I can so quickly forget how good everything smells connected with babies. Well, maybe not everything, but most things!

And so it begins?

Last night Lou slept walk last night. I guess I should say, technically it was a 3am. This is something that runs in my family. My brother and sister did, and my dad before them, and I can only wonder how far back it goes. We have some pretty good stories about my brother sleep walking. One that sticks out is the time that he tried to hurl football helmets at me. Luckily they missed, but the good thing is that he wasn't mad at me while doing it.

(I just realized what I typed for my first sentence, but I'm going to keep it because it emphasizes the state of delirium I am in.)

I awoke to Louie screaming at the top of his lungs at the top of the steps, which Benny slept through and Charlie woke up to, joining in the screamfest. It's enough to put one in labor! I ran up the steps, and fortunately was able to put Louie to bed fairly easily, but Charlie was another story. That kid was wide awake and any time he did lie his head on my chest, make any gesture that seemed to me he was sleeping, I'd take him up the steps only to get up five of them before he starting screaming. It was a long night.

So, we may be in for some really good stories for now on with Louie's taking of the torch o' sleepwalking, and Charlie is certainly doing a great job in preparing me for the coming of Child4. What great kids!

We're missing some words here

Louie has gotten to the point where he sings a song--words completely made up--and the only reason I know what it is supposed to be is because the tune isn't too bad. He sings the National Anthem and I have no idea what the words are, or where they came from. I can recognize them, they just make no sense when put together. He stands there, ball cap against his chest, singing at the top of his lungs.

I wonder if that's what it must be like for little kids whose vocabulary is still so small. Big people saying all these words and it doesn't make a lick of sense to them.

Two words I always recognize, however, are the last two: PLAY BALL!

Louie's Number One!

Playing the Yankees was a big game for Louie last night. The Dodgers were visitors and so the first thing I notice is that they have my super-fast son in the one-spot. I guess there's not a whole lot of strategy that goes into the lineup at this level. He did great and led the game off with a hard-hit single to right field.

Then, when the Dodgers took the field Louie was playing first base! Joey Votto and Daddy are the first basemen in Louie's mind and he wants to be just like them. So when the opportunity came to play he was pretty excited. At one point, the pitcher tossed him the ball, he made the out, looked where Daddy was standing in the outfield and gave him the "thumbs up" sign. Without smiling, of course.

His next at-bat he crushed it into the outfield, getting a double! It was his second of the season and probably the highlight of his night. The thing about batting first is that you do get more opportunities at the plate and he ended up going 4 for 4. Not too bad!

So, for batting first and playing first, this was a pretty special night for Lou. They have two games scheduled left, but they'll make up a rainout from earlier this season, and at one of those games they play the Orioles, so they'll tack on the innings they didn't finish from the game that was interupted earlier this week. If you need information on any of these games please let me know!

Thank you to Grandma R, Grandpa M and Elizabeth for not being scared off by the rain and seeing this great game!

The inning hasn't begun yet, but this guy is waiting intensely.

Charlie is just biding his time...

Louie on first

Louie fielding at first

The Dodger Team

We think it's good for our kids' development for them to play under powerlines.

Creamed the ball and got a double!

At second

Moved out to right field

Go Dodgers!

The 1st Baseman in action!

Weekly Appointments

I had my weekly appointment yesterday and I didn't expect a whole lot to happen, but the news he told me was quite shocking:

I am already three centimeters dilated!

I've never been this far along before getting to the hospital! With Charlie, I was only 1 centimeter the day before he was born. I'm not a doctor, but this seems like big news. Especially to someone who is swollen from head to toe, overheated, and sore! I need to get this baby out just so I stop complaining so much!

The doctor also said that the baby is "measuring small" meaning that when he measures my belly the result is a smaller number than in appointments past, so that means the baby is dropping...who knows. Grace might have a buddy a lot sooner than we think!

Here comes the rain

The kid in the foreground may be predicting what's to come. These are pictures of Louie's one and only at-bat (a single) versus the Orioles.

Halfway through the game dark clouds rolled in and then a large bolt of lightning split the sky.

The game was over. The boys ran off the field, shook hands with their opponents, but didn't leave the premises without making sure they got their snack and drink!

The funniest part about the game was that even though the skies were dark almost the whole time we were there, Louie had to show off how "big time" he was by wearing his Hollywood sunglasses. What a goober ;)

Thanks so much to Aunt Jill and Uncle Nick, Grandma and Grandpa H, Uncle Jeff, and Grandma R for coming out for the abbreviated game!

Heat Stroke

Right now, Ben has on an undershirt, a long-sleeve shirt, and a Reds button-down jersey with long pants and socks. The long-sleeve shirt he has on is one of those dealies where it appears as two shirts, one short-sleeved and then there are long sleeves underneath. He takes pride in dressing himself.

I do not know where he comes from. Granted, I'm twelve days away from my due date and it's natural for pregnant people to be overly hot during this time, but in general Kevin and I don't get cold very easily. We like our ceiling fans and, when we stay in hotels the room can get quite arctic-like. I'm not sure where this kid came from. Louie and Charlie seem to be more like us, in that they tend to be on the warmer end of the spectrum, and I'm sure if Charlie could talk he'd say that he'd like to run around in just his diaper.

Just looking at Ben is giving me a heat stroke.

Memorial Day

Anticipation. Benny and Charlie are waiting for the parade to start. They had quite a bit of time before the parade got to the spot where they were positioned and I guess they took it upon themselves to be the entertainment for those around them. Kevin told me that a woman slowly crossed the street, assisting her 92-year-old mother over to them. The older woman told Kev and the boys how much she enjoyed watching them, that it made her so happy to see the boys playing. Just glad to hear that there are people out there who enjoy them and aren't annoyed by their antics!

Here it comes!

The Dodgers arrive

In honor of Uncle Jeff

In honor of Grandpa M.

Happy Memorial Day!

Thank you to Kevin who took the boys early in the morning to the parade so that I could rest after a night of battling a toddler and a not-yet-born baby. I am spoiled!

Kevin tried to translate to the boys what "Memorial Day" means, but how do you explain what "veterans" are, and will they understand what "war" means? I guess for this age group you talk about having pride in being an American, thankful to all of those who came before us. I think they liked to see the big vehicles and having bits of candy thrown at them.

Later, we headed over to Grandma and Grandpa's where they were able to swim for a little bit, even though no one else wanted to join them in the pool. Too much rain and not enough sun. The bright spot in the day was that after a 2 1/2 hour rain delay the Reds got a win against the Indians, leading the Ohio Cup 2-1!

Festival Antics

A weekend with early mornings, no naps, and late night will bring this on.

Parents of players had to volunteer a couple of hours at the festival and we headed down there after a day of swimming at Grandma and Grandpa's. I worked the shift while Kevin had the double stroller so Charlie and Benny could finish sleeping.

Soon, Charlie woke up and he and Louie played games to win prizes. We came home with an ice pop that shoots a foam ball in your face; two bendy flamingos; a snake that moves when you hold the end of its tail; two paddle ball games (Mine's warped!); a bouncy ball; some squeezable dinosaurs; and a pinwheel, among other treasures. Most have since lost their purpose.

The night ended by the boys getting out their ball stuff to start up a game on a bare stretch of grass. And then they went to bed.

Those dreaded Indians

Uncle Jay bought tickets a while back to one of the biggest series of the summer--one half of the "Ohio Cup" where the Reds battle the Indians. Daddy took the boys to the game while I stayed home to rest because I have a not-good history of being at games toward the end of my pregnancy.

The boys love Christina, but not when she lets her "inner-Indian" show. She's from up around Cleveland and the boys don't want to help her cheer on the enemy!

Charlie, being his usual goofy self.

Uncle Jay and Louie cheering on the Reds.

The boys get so pumped for the game. This is not Louie stretching, this is a full-body hooray! for the Reds.

The Reds have a great sound guy that knows exactly what song to play or line from a movie to put over the sound system to emphasize a point he's trying to make. When it gets too quiet at a game he plays a line from one of the wedding line dances, "Everybody clap your hands..." and all the fans do as it says. Apparently, there was a lull in the game and Benny decides that he needs to get the crowd riled up. He yells out, "EVERYBODY CLAP YOUR HANDS" and all the fans sitting in that section do as they're told. Ben, in turn, buries his head in Kevin's chest out of sheer embarrassment. He forgot for a moment where he was.

Kevin's so funny with the kids. You can tell he's trying to Charlie to say "cheese" really enthusiastically, even though Char can't see him. What's even better is watching him try to get the boys to eat baby food when they were little. He'd "eat" right along with them, moving his mouth so that they'd learn from his motions. So funny.

One of our favorites, Joey Votto, came back after being out sick for about two weeks and hit two home runs! Unfortunately, this was not enough for our beloved Reds to win.

Primetime Game

It wasn't a night game, but the Dodgers definitely had a "prime" time for playing Memorial Day weekend. The festival was filled with folks who came over to watch them beat up on the Reds.

Louie went 3-4 this game, and started out playing third, then moved to right field half way through. The experience playing third wasn't his best, as he pulled a Dorn a couple of times and then did his job half-right when he went to cover third to get the force out, but let the ball roll right past where he was just positioned.


The thing the kids were most thrilled with was that they were able to sit in a real dugout!

This lasted a few minutes before they realized it was too hot to be in this close proximity.

Of course, after the game Charlie had to go out on the field and show the big boys how it's done. Thanks to Uncle Jay and Christina for coming out to support the Dodgers!

Fun Festival

We met up with some friends Friday night at the festival that raises money for Louie's baseball league (they also have softball and basketball leagues). Our friends have a boy who was in first grade this year, a girl in Louie's preschool class, another girl who is three and their mom is expecting in July. Our kids get along really well and Kevin and I always have a good time with their mommy and daddy.

We got tickets and figured out that they don't last too long. The two that Lou and Ben picked lasted all of of about two minutes each. And not that I'm promoting being scaredy cats, but I think we're fortunate that the boys didn't want to get on certain rides at the festival. I don't know if I would have been able to handle watching them on the super-spin-y, pin-you-up-against-the-wall ride or the flipping-shuttle-way-too-high-in-the-sky ride. I just get nervous.

Charlie had a great time riding with the girls. He smiling so hard the whole time I thought his cheeks would burst!



I guess the it was a bit too "childish" for the older boy, but the rest of the kids loved riding the train!


But the hit of the night was the sand volleyball court. We don't have any pictures of it, but you should have seen these kids! They dug holes, made piles, chased each other through it, had races, and (their favorite!) made sand angels. Needless to say, we ended the evening at home taking baths!

The Orioles

We finally got to play the Orioles, the only team in the league that the Dodgers have yet to face.

Louie went 3 for 4 this game.
I'm guessing that this may be the last time we go on an outing before a game. He was pretty lackadaisical out in the field, even though they did pull off a win. I'm not saying there's such a thing as too much baseball in a day, but a day without a nap in the hot sun can definitely put a strain on the situation!