Stolen Moments

For a child, summer is a time full of joys, freedoms, and adventure. The simplest things make the long, hot days and warm, hazy nights so memorable- friends, fireflies, pools, ice cream, riding bikes... Bur sadly, those are some of the many pleasures that childhood cancer steals. Our sweet friend Vinny continues to battle an incurable form of cancer. He has been in treatment for over 4 years- surgeries, weeks of radiation, and hundreds of doses of chemo. His little body has endured unimaginable suffering. His current regimen of 3 drug chemo is keeping his 3 tumors (lung, eye, and pelvis) from overtaking his body. It has bought him more time than we could have ever imagined, but the price has been very high.

These two have such a sweet friendship. They share a love for Star Wars, video games, and all things LEGO. Two peas in a pod...

 

And when they're not busy playing like little boys, they both share a passion for raising money to help all the cancer kids at our hospital. They both look forward to our foundation fundraiser nights and the chance to make a difference. Working hard behind the counter at The Loop. They took orders, bused tables, swept floors, and cleaned counters.

Vinny is admitted every third weekend for chemo treatments. One of his requests was to play with Carter.  One night several weeks ago, we spent our Friday night hanging out at Camp Brenner. And for just a moment you could almost forget we were in the oncology unit. There was Wii... 

giggly sisters...

new lego sets to master...

and smiles over jokes, treats, and sushi.

As the summer sun set outside our window, I couldn't help but thank God for so many blessings. For friendship, for the gift of life, and for sweet summer moments stolen back from cancer.

Today Vinny is back in the hospital for scans, sedation, exams, labs, and chemo. His body is paying the harsh price of the years of poisons and today they are looking at the status of his 3 tumors. His family and doctors are facing the difficult decisions of what the next steps will be. Please lift up Vinny and his family tonight. They are very dear to all of us. We pray for God's healing and would love to see another miracle for this amazing boy. We love you Vinny!

Safety Town

Julia was so excited to be able to attend Safety Town this year. Carter went three years ago and still talks about it all the time and uses things that he learned there. It is a program put on for 5&6 year olds in the county and staffed by all of our school resource police officers, dozens of teen volunteers, and community helpers. Julia and Jack were eager little students who couldn't wait to go back each day and proudly completed their homework and learned their material.

The highlight for all the kids are the Kettler Car days. They have an entire town set up complete with roads, intersections, crosswalks, signs, lane markings, traffic lights, railroad crossings, and buildings. After a few days learning the rules of the road they get to put their skills to use...

Julia is a very obedient little driver who follows all the rules and gives "the look" to any kids that don't.

The teen volunteers play the role opf pedestrians and traffic cops on the course.

Though definitely the favorite, this is only one small part of what they learn. In addition to road safety they learn about 911, home safety, water safety, bike safety, emergency services, animal safety, gun safety, drug awareness, and more. Julia was so proud to graduate and receive her diploma. It's such a rite of passage for our kindergartners. I'm so happy you got a chance to go, Julia!

Thank you, Safety Town, for another summer of memories!

VBS 2012

We all look so forward to the beginning of summer each year because it means it's time for...VBS! We do VBS at a church near our home where we also participate in Awana and Upward sports during the year. Over the years they have become our "other church family" and a group that we cherish being a part of. This year was...

Dressing like tourists ready to see the sights of the world...

Gotta love pajama day! You can roll right out of bed and into the car. They now how tored this week makes us all!

I helped out in the PreK department again this year with some of my favorite team members. Was so excited to have Annmarie as my co-teacher in Rec! We had a busy, but really fun-filled week with some of our favorite kiddos. Love these two!

They kept us hoppin', but were so much fun...

Our eager preschoolers waiting for Worship Rally to start...

Julia and Giselle...

Ginny and Carter...

Julia's small group...

Carter's small group...

See you next year!!

This One Was NOT in the Parenting Manual

Carter was thrilled to make the All Star baseball team. With the big leagues comes more equipment- right up Carter's alley. This kid is a sucker for sports gear. When he found out the catchers wore full gear he was beside himself...

   

Now this part I can handle. It's what's underneath that gets complicated. All the players are also required to wear a mouthguard and cup. Guess who got to pick those out? You guessed it, Mom. 

I can't say I have ever browsed the athletic cup section of the sports store before. I had no idea there were so many choices! Where do you even begin? We decided to go with the boxers. Then it was time to choose the cup size to put inside the pouch. Size? I really have to figure this out?! The box guidelines went by age and waist size. Neither of those were at all helpful. His age has nothing to do with his size and his waist size isn't even on there. It's the same as my thigh! So what next? Maybe the names will make it obvious.... peewee junior, peewee large, youth junior.... are they serious?! I'm starting to find the whole experience embarassing. Carter on the other hand doesn't mind a bit. He is chattering away like always. Have you ever had to stand in a store and try to assess the size of your child's package inconspicuously?! There are no guidelines for this one!

We finally made our selection and he triumphantly took it up to pay. When we pulled in at home he jumped out of the car and took all his new purchases with him. While I was unloading the car, he reappeared in just his skivvies, "Okay, now do I leave my underwear on or off and what order does it all go on in?"

We figured that out, but then he wanted to try it out. After pounding on it for a while, he decided to up the ante and grabbed one of his Nerf dart guns. He handed it to Julia and said, "Here, shoot me right here." Oh my!

And just when I was wondering if this was all normal, I looked over at All Star practice and there is a dugout of 8 year old boys in a line playing on their cups like bongo drums. Apparently the novelty hasn't worn off yet and despite their talents on the field, they are still 8 year old boys.

Though I must say the mouthpieces on the other hand come with a benefit not advertised on the package. As Coach Chris likes to say, "they are big kid pacifiers". The same kids that are constantly talking, commentating, and adding their two cents are suddenly rendered speechless on the field. Maybe we're on to something here.

Ah, the life of a baseball mama... making it up as I go along. I must say I am tapping into a skill set I never knew I had. I have also found I can carry a backpack, three camp chairs, a cooler bag, and a  camera bag, while pulling a canopy tent in the brutal summer heat over gravel lots and unmowed fields- while still happily smiling.

Lovin' every minute!    

Chevy Youth Baseball Camp

Chevy has partnered with our local baseball league this year to support our kids teams. Besides their help during the season, they also offer a free baseball clinic in collaboration with our local Minor League Ball club.

The kids couldn't wait to take to the field. It made them all look so small out there!

The players were on hand to coach and work with the kids on their skills...

After fielding practice the team with fewer catches had to drop for push ups...

Thanks, Chevy and the Greensboro Grasshoppers!!

Spring Baseball Season

Carter had a great spring. He was back at it with JYL Pony League. This year playing for the Braves.

 

There were a lot of young kids on his team this year and things seemed to get off to a slow start. But just as we've seen in years past something just clicks and these kids start to amaze everyone.

 

It is one of the things I love most about youth sports and what causes me to tear up on more than one occasion watching the underdog finally get a hit or make a play, seeing all the drills finally pay off, watching a kid shock everyone... especially himself, and watching them all band together and come from behind to pull of a win or even just to narrow the gap. It amazes me what the bottom of the lineup can do with 2 outs. Carter's team was in the bottom half of their league and that actually pulled off a win to upset the undefeated leaders! Love it!!

Carter continues to develop his baseball skills. Hitting camp this winter seems to have really worked. He has become a very consistent hitter this season- batting .850. He may not have the most power, but he can get on base almost every time.

He played first baseman this year and loved the action. His broad knowledge of the game makes him such a fast thinker under pressure that he's able to make some big plays. The same kid who used to play four outs as a 3 year old in tee ball when the other kids did know what was going on, is now using that to be a great ball player. This season he made an unassisted double and an unassisted triple play!

 I wish I could say, "here's the video", but have you ever tried to tape baseball. There is way too much field to cover, the ball moves too fast, the games last over an hour and you will never have it recording at the right moment, and it becomes impossible to do while keeping the books and appeasing Julia. So if you want an instant replay you'll have to ask the little sports caster himself. He would be happy to recount it to you complete with reenactments.

And this year, we didn't face the end of the season with a long wait until the next spring because Carter was asked to try out for the All Star Tournament Team. From the 11 teams, 40 kids tried out and 13 were chosen. Carter was thrilled to be selected and we are so excited for this opportunity. Billy was also asked to help as one of the outfield coaches. It will be 'the summer of baseball' with weeknight practices and two day long tournaments every weekend. It is a great group of kids and we look forward to some awesome games. Let's Go Jamestown!!

Memorial Day Weekend with the Fam

It was a fun and full weekend of family and friends. We tried something new this year and got a sitter for all the kiddos so they could continue their backyard fun uninterrupted while the adults had a much more classy dinner. Do you know where we headed?

 

Love, Southern Roots! The food, the atmosphere, the music, the drinks, the staff...

 

 We had lots of sunshine, therefore lots of sports were played by all...

Love the time we get to spend with family...

Anderson is our resident craft guru. This child saves every little thing he gets his hand on and plans a craft around it. He will be the future host of some amazing show. I introduced him to my craft closet and he was beside himself (probably half excitement and half dismay that I've been holding out on him so long!)

And no family fun weekend would be complete with out a Feeney's run...

On Monday, everyone had gone home and Daddy had the day off so we decided to enjoy the beautiful day. We started off with a bike ride and trip to the playground.

Then we headed over to Country Park for a hike...

and visit to the Veterans Memorial. Each wall contains details of a different war. Below it are bricks with the names of those from our county who served.

The kids took it all very seriously and wanted to pay their respects. We took some time to read a lot of the history and talk about why we observe Memorial Day. We want to consciously do our part to Remember, Honor, and Teach our kids how America won its freedom and fights to protect it every day. Freedom is never free.