Human garbage disposal

Our boy has officially turned into a bottomless pit. We're going on two weeks now of him having a constant appetite.

I'd received fair warning as the mom of a boy that this is something that doesn't go away until, say they move out of the house, but I wasn't fully prepared for all that he can put away as a four-year-old.

One morning alone he ate a bowl of cereal, an entire apple, gummy fruit snacks, a huge bowl of strawberries, large cups of OJ and milk and then was hungry for more. By this time it was nearly 11 a.m. so I told him we needed to hold off for lunch in an hour.

I didn't really think he'd be hungry enough for a full lunch after all that he had eaten, but he proved me wrong and ate an entire sandwich, plus goldfish crackers, milk and dessert.

He also recently informed us that he no longer wants to eat oatmeal before school. This is a kid who has eaten some various flavor of oatmeal nearly every day for his entire life. I can't say that I blame him for wanting to change it up a bit, but he was so mature and matter-of-fact in the way he delivered his new request that it caught us by surprise.

We happened to be going to the grocery store that evening, so he got to pick out his own cereal which is now his breakfast of choice every morning.

Our little boy is changing and it's not just his appetite or the pants and shirts that are now too short. I'm trying to stop and pay attention more in the daily rush of life and remember these somewhat ordinary and often fleeting moments.

Kiddie rock concert

A couple of Sundays ago we attended our last of the OKC Philharmonic's Discovery Series concerts. This one had a rock theme and featured the Sugar Free Allstars along with the orchestra.

Along with grandmama, our friends Liam and Cora also joined us with their parents. We danced, wiggled and clapped through the whole show. At one point I looked over at our friends and realized how different this concert was than the ones we used to attend together. While times have changed since our college or early marriage days, I don't think any of us would change that moment for anything.

They had a child-sized drum set set up in the lobby for kids to try and Gray stood in line twice to play it. He also tried the piano, playing back-up for another kid who was trying out the drum. He's mentioned the drum set several times since that day, so I have a feeling one may be in our future. 

Cora & Gray checking out the water feature outside the theater

Cowboy Liam with Gray watching the water dance

This was our attempt at a group pic. Gray and Cora are nearly getting blown away by the wind while Liam dances in the background. 

I've loved attending these with Gray, Michael and my mom. It's definitely something I hope we can do again next year.

Meet Nora Wren

Last Wednesday I became an auntie again! Emily and Levi's baby girl, Nora Wren, told us all who was boss and came into this world seven weeks early.

She was 3 lbs. 9 oz. and 17 inches long. Remarkably, she was off oxygen the next day but will likely remain in the NICU several weeks to make sure she's tolerating food well.

You'd think a preemie would be the stressful part of this story, but Em gave us the biggest scare with extremely high blood pressure and low platelets. I'm sure she'll give you the full story on her blog when she gets home from the hospital, so for now I'll just say how thankful I am for my beautiful sister and feisty niece.

P.S. 

We've also been keeping their dog Molly for a few days until they come home. She's the most relaxed dog ever and we've enjoyed taking her all around and watching her romp and play. Roxy isn't quite sure if this is a temporary situation or not, but she's tolerated the change very well. 

Holt, Molly & Gray ready for soccer practice

Soccer Stud

What a difference a week makes! At our first soccer game, the team barely managed to get the ball over on their half of the field much less come close to scoring any goals.

This week was a totally different story. The boys were so much better keeping up with the ball, blocking it, redirecting it back to their end of the field and even scoring! Gray scored three goals and grinned from ear-to-ear each time, then ran over to me for a celebratory hug.

After the first one, he looked over and shouted to us from midfield, "Now I'm going to score a bunch more goals!" And he did.

All of the team did a much better job staying focused and working really hard the whole game. It's amazing how fast things have clicked for them and I think having a little success (and scoring) has helped them understand what their coach has been teaching them.

In related news, Michael has also been recruited to be the assistant coach. He helps shag balls and sits with the boys on the side of the field so they don't wander off if they aren't in the game. When I looked over at him during the game, there was always at least one boy in his lap, and one had to have a hug from Mike every time he re-entered the game. Adorable.

Gray is #2 in the white jersey taking control of the ball

Everyday Moments

Nothing makes me happier than spontaneous play dates that start at the park and then roll into lunch and end up being a morning of unplanned fun.

We had just that kind of morning on Saturday when we met up with Cora and Claire at a nearby park. The weather was gorgeous and we could have stayed all day (except we started getting hungry after a few hours).

I didn't take my camera, but did snap a few shots of the sweet friends. They are starting to develop vivid imaginations and like to make up games to play. They spent a while playing restaurant and took turns playing customer and waiter.

I feel like we'll blink and these kids will be 16 and driving off together to meet up with friends at a football game or something.  If only we could push pause.

Cora and Gray

Claire and Gray getting their order served by waitress Cora

Cheeeeeese!

And so it begins...

Gray has officially joined the world of organized sports. He's playing soccer and his team held one practice last week and had their first game on Saturday. They chose their team name (the Sooners, very original) and numbers (Gray picked 2) and suited up to take the field.

He's most excited about wearing his new shin guards and cleats. The practice and game were very chaotic and entertaining to say the least. There are no refs at this age and the coaches stay on the field to help get the players going in the right direction.

We don't keep score or really follow any other rules except boundary lines and taking turns. There's also no goalie yet, and of course, that's the position Gray is obsessed with so it's been a challenge making him understand that he can help defend the goal, but he can't be the goalie yet.

Our team was short one boy which gave Holten a chance to sign up late so he and Gray can play together. The way the age bracket goes, Gray is on the older end and Holt is on the young end, but they can be on the same team.

This was at their first practice which had to be inside because of the recent rain and mud. It was so crazy and hilarious. The coach is really patient, but it's going to take a village to keep these kids on task. Michael jumped in to help herd the players, but they were still running in all directions. 

Here are a few shots from the first game:

Here's the team "warming up." Their jerseys are reversible and we were the home team in white with red socks. Gray's in the middle with #2 on his back. 

Hudson and Holt strategizing about who knows what.

Gray about to inbound the ball. 

Gray and Holt did really well for their first game. We don't officially keep score in this league, but our team didn't score and the other team had a boy whose dad played semi-pro, so you can guess the outcome. Our boys still had fun and learned a lot. 

Holtie and Gray enjoying a post-game snack. This is the good life. 

I'm so excited to see how the team progresses as they get more practice under their belt. None of them have played before and it's fun to see them learning and getting better each time. I'm also very thankful that none of the other parents on our team are crazy intense or acting like this is the World Cup. 

We have five more games over the next month, so I'm sure there are more stories to come.

Easter Recap

So I'm finally getting around to downloading our Easter pictures. It was a really great weekend that started with a party at Gray's school on Good Friday.

Gray and I made sugar cookies for the party and he was in charge of our custom food coloring shades for the icing and was also assigned to sprinkle detail. Here's a sampling of the cookies in progress. Daddy had the fun job of getting three plates full to class without messing up the icing.

On Saturday, we dyed eggs with Holten. They were into dunking the eggs in the color cups for about three minutes and then lost interest until it was time to put on stickers. Holten's attention span lasted longer than Gray's and he enjoyed dropping in a new egg each time one came out of a color. 

This photo cracks me up. Holt is so excited he looks possessed. He was trying to say cheese for the camera but wouldn't take his eyes off the orange dye cup I was putting vinegar into. 

There was a lot of sticker strategy to work out. It was serious business as you can see. 

On Sunday, Amy, Ben and Holten came to church with us. Gray loves being dressed up and refused to change his clothes later when we went to hunt eggs and eat at Amy's house. Meanwhile, Holt was not a fan of being in khakis and protested by refusing to look at the camera. 

After church we all met up at Amy and Ben's for a cookout. It was muddy from raining the day before, but that didn't stop the boys from tromping around and doing an egg hunt.

Grandmama blowing bubbles for the boys as they run around catching them.

Ben and Michael hid the eggs which meant the boys had to brave leaf piles and bushes to get to them.