Baseball boy and a hike

Leo's game wasn't canceled so we were on the field at 8:30 for warm ups.  He told the coach he wanted to catch, so the coach wanted him to bat first so he had time to get into the gear.  He asked Leo if he was okay with that because some kids get nervous being the lead off hitter.  Leo said, "I don't mind.  I can bat first, second, whatever you want".  Oh lord, if he wasn't only that agreeable and cooperative for me, my life would be so much easier.  Anyway, I didn't get his first hit on camera, but he made good contact and got on base.  

Then he got suited up to be catcher.  

 He did better in the catcher position than past games.  More alert and moving around better.

 Second time up to bat he also got on base with a solid hit.

 Here's his cheering section keeping warm in the morning chill.

 Ready to run home.

I caught at least one hit on video.  

 During his final turn at bat Tom called me on FaceTime right as he stepped in the batter's box.  I answered the call and turn the camera around so his dad could watch his kid smash it and run to first.  It was pretty cool.

The final inning Leo played 3rd base and he did a great job.  He was showing hustle and trying to make plays.  There was one ground ball to him that he grabbed and tagged the base.  I think he got there before the runner and the kid should have been out, but he was called safe and since there is no keeping score at this level, it didn't matter too much.  I was still proud of him for playing well.

 It didn't go unnoticed by the coach.  At the end of game wrap up, he mentioned how great Leo did as the lead off batter by getting on base every time he was up to bat and that he did well in the field also.

 Then he gave Leo the Spirit Award!

 Picture with Coach Dan.  Leo would normally hold on to the award until next game and then it moves on to the next award winner, but since next week is a bye week and then we'll be in Tahoe we'll bring the award back at the next practice.   It's so much more enjoyable to watch Leo play baseball than soccer.  So. Much. Better.

 Here he is showing the award to Auntie Sheila.  He's so very proud of it.  He was able to show Tom on FaceTime tonight (which was Tom's tomorrow morning).

After lunch, we went to Rancho San Antonio.  We went there with Uncle Mike and Grandma Ruth during their last visit.  

 It looks like a tiny sheep is sniffing Serafina's ear.

Tom is in the southern part of India and won't get a chance to see the Taj Mahal during this visit.  When I went to pick up some Thai food for dinner I noticed there was a Taj Mahal right next door.  Problem solved!

Dual Haircuts

The school district had a teacher inservice day, so Leo didn't have school.  But Serafina did, so we walked to school this morning in a little drizzle.  

 Since it was pretty dreary out and there wasn't much happening in the afternoon, I decided to take the kids for some dual haircuts.

It was a lot easier for Serafina this time.  It still took some time, but she was a good sport during it.  

The salon always have a movie showing and today it was "Frozen".  Of course, when Serafina's favorite song ("Let It Go") came on, she had to sing along even if she was in the middle of a haircut.  

Tom usually cuts Leo's hair and I knew he would strongly object to me taking him to the salon and paying someone to do his hair, but since he's half way around the world in India, he doesn't have a say. 

 The rain stopped in the afternoon and we went outside for some baseball practice.  Serafina was feeling pretty sassy with her new haircut.

 While waiting for dinner, Leo made this creepy mask.  He was pretty thrilled with it.

 Leo's baseball game is scheduled for 9am tomorrow, but since it's been raining so much, the fields may be closed.  I hope he plays since he missed last weekend because he was skiing.  We were able to FaceTime (video chat) with Tom this evening.  He was getting ready to start his day and we had just finished up dinner.  It was nice to check in with him and he gave us a tour of his hotel room, which was quite plush.

Serafina's Preschool Open House

It was our first full day with Tom gone.  I received a text from him that he's arrived at his destination okay, but was exhausted.  I can't even imagine.  My aunt Sheila arrived this afternoon to give me a hand with my two lunatics.  

Here's Serafina helping me clean up in anticipation of her arrival.  

 It wasn't all work.  We got in some park time too.

Of course, she had to do the monkey bars.  

 And back again.

It was also a swimming lesson day.  She made it through the lesson with no crying!  I was so proud of her.

 Leo was feeling the humidity in the swim school "bubble".  He's eager to swim too, so I checked with the office and he's first on the wait list for his class level.

After swim, Aunt Sheila arrived and we headed over to baseball practice.  And straight from baseball was over to Serafina's preschool Open House.  The board members hosted a dessert table.  

 I made a brown butter snickerdoodle bar.  They turned out okay.  They were more like a blondie than a cookie bar, and it had a bit of orange zest in addition to the browned butter and cinnamon.

 Then we went inside to see Serafina's school work.

 She has the longest name in the class.

 Here's her special plate.  Now I have one from each kid.

 These are her drawings of Abraham Lincoln and George Washington.

With her teacher, Mrs. Mouritsen.

Hanging in the classroom were little school houses with self-portraits in the doorway.

 On the back, the kids had said what their favorite part of preschool.  Serafina said she likes playing princesses.

Her friend Mia wrote she likes to play with Serafina and color pictures.  Pretty cute.  

Tomorrow should be less hectic, so we can just hang with Aunt Sheila. 

Bye Daddy

Tom left this morning for an 11 day trip to India for work, but not before he helped me take the kids to school.    

I'm going to try to blog every day he's gone so he can see what we are up to and know we are missing him.

Ready for bed.   

Very special weekend

It's been a very dry winter.  California is in a drought and the snow levels are drastically below normal.  Every year we've had a ski lease, the snow has been "not great", but there is always a weekend in March when there is a ton of snow.  This was that weekend.  In addition to having good snow, Grandma Carrie and Aunt Maggie came from Denver to spend some time at the ski house.  But the snow and the visitors weren't the only reasons this weekend was special.  About an hour before we were due to leave for Tahoe, Tom and I decided I would stay home.  By myself.  All weekend.  I struggled with the decision and felt very guilty.  I knew Carrie and Maggie would help Tom, but that's a lot of driving by himself.  But he knows I've been really overwhelmed recently and that I would really enjoy the time to myself.  So Friday night, I kissed them all and waved goodbye as they drove away.  For the first 24 hours or so, I was completely freaked out by how quiet it was at home.  I was also uneasy not doing anything for other people.  Instead, I got to focus on me: I went to yoga every day; I got a mani pedi; I organized closets and drawers.  Don't get me wrong, I missed my family, but a little solitude was absolutely amazing.  I told Tom I'd like to do this at least once a year.  

They were gone all the way until this afternoon.  They had fun skiing and spending time with Carrie and Maggie (who were very understanding and supportive of my absence).  

Tom didn't take too many pictures, but here's one of the kids ready to go out on Saturday with some parkas on because of the rainy/snowy conditions. 

 Maggie and Leo (sporting some snow in his hair).

 Getting some grandma hugs.

The whole crew on the slopes on Sunday.  

 At brunch this morning.

One thing I didn't do while they were gone was grocery shop, so we went out to dinner tonight.  

 I missed these goofballs, but the break was great for me.  I think I forgot what silence sounds like.