Three Strikes Your Out!

As we do every summer, we loaded up with Dad and Karen and went to catch a few Braves games!! It just so happened that they were playing the Texas Rangers in Interleague play this year, so we headed out to Arlington on Tuesday. As much as I wanted to see them play in Atlanta this year, it just made sense with a one year old in a carseat to drive 4 1/2 hours instead of 10.

I ended up having to work until noon on Tuesday, so we got kind of a late start, but we made it to Dallas by 5:30 or so, checked in our room, and headed to the ballpark.

**Sidenote** Yes, I bought Brody a "leash" before we made this trip. I have always laughed to myself when I saw little kids strapped in those things, but that was before I had a toddler. This thing was a LIFESAVER! And he loved having the little monkey on his back. He was able to get down and walk around with me constantly having to chase him or keep him from running toward oncoming traffic - which I guess all one year olds think is just hilarious.

But of course, after walking half a mile toward the stadium, Pa's shoulder seemed like a much better idea.

I was a little concerned (I think we all were) about how he would do having to sit through a 3 hour ballgame, but as usual, he was just a little angel. We came prepared with snacks, drinks, and all kinds of goodies to entertain him, but he never put up a fuss. We had grat seats (only about 4 rows back) so he was actually entertained by the game itself. He would throw his hands up and cheer anytime the rest of the crowd did. Although I did have to restrain him from cheering for the Rangers a few times. He will learn, He will learn. I also think the fact the he had only had one nap all day helped in his ability to sit still. He was pretty sleepy by the end of the game. (As you can see, he hair was a little sweaty, and I had been playing with it during the game...hehe) Oh, and the Braves got beat....BOOOO.


We had all day Wednesday to do something fun b/c our game didnt start until 7 again, so we took Brody to the Ft. Worth Zoo. If you are ever in that part of Texas and want to go to the zoo, definately make the trip the one in Ft. Worth. It was a really great zoo. Tons and tons of animals (even penguins!) and plenty of shade! It even had one section that reminded me of Silver Dollar City or something. It had a train ride, carousel, and lots of the old timey storefront shops. We were at the zoo from 10:00 - 2:30 and we probably only saw about 2/3 of it. It is HUGE.

A friend of mine from Dallas also met us at the zoo. Kindra has a 2 little girls - McKynlee is 3 and Madisyn is Brody's age. They really had a good time playing together.


I think Brody thought McKynlee was cute. He pulled out his moves and slid into the wagon beside her. I must say, he has good taste!!

Brody and Madisyn were so cute talking to each other on this "phone". They stood there and had a conversation for at least 5 minutes. Everyone that walked by had to stop and watch them and ooh and ahh at how cute they were.

I think one of Brody's favorites was the bears. It was two young bears and they were rolling around and playing in the water. They really were cute. Almost made me forget that they were bears for a sec....almost.

Here we are on the carousel. As much as this kid likes to ride on four wheelers and in boats and even on airplanes....he was afraid of the little horsey that slowly goes up and down. Don't ask, b/c I have no clue. He kept his arms wrapped around my neck until I finally got him off and just sat on the little bench with him for the rest of the ride.

Me and McKynlee

We enjoyed Wednesday nights game even more b/c the Braves won!!! WhooHoo!! Brody did awesome again. By this night he had the tomahawk chop down pat. Must be in his blood or something...lol. He spent the evening chatting with everyone around us, and showing off his new sunglasses.

On Thursday, we woke up to thunder and lightening and a drenching rain, so we were afraid the game would be canceled. But by the time we left IHOP the rain was gone, and by gametime at 1:00, it was clear and sunny!! And HOT, I might add, very HOT. We had seats right behind home plate, about 20 rows up. Great seats, but they were right in the sun. Even though Brody was slathered in sunscreen, and looking mighty good in his cap and glasses, we eventually moved back to some seats that were under the awning. After a few bites of hot dog and a taste of cotton candy, Brody fell asleep sipping on some yummy cool lemonade. Sounds nice, doesn't it? It was.

It was a pretty good game too! Atlanta was down 4-2 at the top of the 9th . I can't remember exactly who did what, but they got their act together and tied it 4-4. I was sure that we would be able to hold them, and we would go into extra innings.......but that wasn't the case. Texas scored and won 5-4. Oh well, at least we made it a little more interesting.



After the game, we headed back home. But of course had to make an almost 3 hour pit stop at the Bass Pro Shop in Garland. We ate at the seafood restraunt there, and it was very tastey!

Brody had his first taste of calamari (squid), but as you can tell by the look on his face, he wasn't too impressed.

So, he moved on to crackers dipped in cocktail sauce. This is his new thing - he LOVES to dip. He would have dipped those crackers in tea if nothing else had been available, so cocktail sauce it was.
But he decided that he liked the sauce more than the crackers, so he moved right on to a handful of cocktail sauce. Blech. He thought it was much better than than yucky squid we tried to feed him. You should have seen him smacking those fingers!

Here, Dad had been playing with Brodys hair. As you can tell, his hair does a mohowk so well!

Dad and Brody and I were testing out dive boats at the Bass Pro Shop. We think we found one we liked!

Okay, well that about does it for our trip to Arlington. We had a great time, even if the Braves only won one game. One is better than none, huh?

The Biggest Bathtub Ever!!

We just got home from Gulf Shores last night, where Brody discovered the biggest bathtub of his life - the ocean! When he saw it for the first time, he kept yelling "Bath! Bath!" It was too cute!

We went on a Dolphin Cruise in Orange Beach. Brody slept through most of it, but we enjoyed it anyway. I have been on these before, but usually you might spot a dolphin half a mile away, maybe. This time there were groups of them jumping in the wake right beside our boat. I would have given anything for Brody to have seen them. But he snoozed right though it. Here we are with my grandparents and Brooke and Caleb, waiting to board our boat.
All suited up and on the lookout for dolphins!! ..........if only I weren't sooo sleepy.......


Of course, we took some beach pictures one evening. Some of them turned out pretty good.

Brooke and Noni


The Condo had an awesome kiddie pool with palm tree sprinklers and water sprayers and all kinds of fun things. We spent just as much time there as we did at the beach!

It was "high tide" while we were there, and we got to see some pretty amazing waves. Check out what happened one day when the tide rolled in right up past the chairs and umbrellas. It created a neat little river of water between the chairs and the condo that was perfect for Brody to sit and play in while I sunbathed. You can see Brody playing in the water below.



Brody and Brooke catching some rays....

And so it begins....

Well, our month long list of June vacations started last week. Brody and I practically have somewhere to be nearly every week this month. Which is totally okay with me. I could be gone somewhere every weekend of the year, and I would be just fine. We are even letting Brent come along on one of our trips! (Poor guy usually gets stuck at home working.) Thank goodness I have a child that loves to travel and doesnt mind being in a carseat, or maybe its just that he hasnt had much choice yet. He is 15 months old and has already been to AR (duh), LA, TX, CO, MO, MS, AL, and FL. He has been on 2 trips on an airplane, and he survived an 8 hour drive when he was only 5 months old. I'd say I have an expert traveler on my hands!

Our most recent adventure was to Lake Claiborne for a few days. My mom rented us a cabin on the lake, and we were there Wednesday to Saturday. The cabin was great, the weather was perfect, and we had a wonderful week of playing in the sand and riding in the boat!


Here are some pics from our week!

Brooke and Brody helping Noni make a chocalate cake - YUM!
We had a little playground right near the cabin that Brooke and Brody had a blast playing on.
Brody surprised the heck out of me and was climbing everything there! And I'm not just talking about the little steps - he climbed this ladder thing in like 5 seconds flat! I swear he is going to give me a nervous breakdown.
He was a huge fan of the sand and water. He dug and piled and filled buckets and made mud pies and splashed until he wore himself flat out.

He also did much better in Uncle Ryan's boat this year. Last year, his life jacket swallowed him whole, and the wind blowing in his face took his breath away. He laughed the whole time this year!

Uncle Ryan and Aunt Tara
Brent came down on Friday when he got off work. I thought these pictures of him and Brody turned out so sweet.

We came home, washed our clothes, and re-packed them. We leave for Gulf Shores Wednesday morning! See ya' then!