He's Playin' Bas-ket-ball!

As a Mama who played college basketball, it was a beautiful day the day I signed Ty up for basketball.
Don't get me wrong.  I love all sports.  I played several during my glory days.  But, basketball paid for my college.  It was my job.  A fun job.  A job that took me to Europe and Florida and California and the Bahamas.  It was my life.
I think I had high expectations for my 3 year old (something that is hard to remember.  he may look like he's 5 or 6, but he's just 3.).  Dude does NOT like to dribble.  The good news is he likes to take if from me while I dribble and he also likes to pass!   He likes to shoot too, but not jump...it's a half-dunk/half-tip toe that he prefers because they play on short goals and he's the only one that can do it that way so it's "cool" to him.  It gives me anxiety.

Over under w/ the ball.  He enjoyed the games!

Prayer time before beginning the day

Ty watchin' Acey and Papaw.  My Dad spent thousands of hours in the gym with me.  Now he's working on his boys!

Brayden!

Tip-toe shot.  Gotta work on that!

Brayden, Ty, and Brock.  They LOVED their trophies!

Good form!

So proud.  So, so proud!!!

Garrett, Brayden, and Ty.  They used to all go to the same sitter!

Game faces are on!

Ty and Brayden on their way to the first game.  I love this picture.  Steph and I love being boy Mama's!

Hot Potato!

We'll do it again next year.  And, the next.  Ace may be ready to join next year...my little fiesty 2nd child!
So now we're up to 3 trophies and Tee-Ball is next.  3 days a week of sports at 3 years old.  WOW!
And, it's only just begun...

Y3W: Our New Pet

Todd's in Arkansas.  Yes, baseball travel season is officially underway.  Yesterday I had a weak moment.  We needed milk and wipes and I needed an US.  I decided to go to THE Walmart (no, I don't say "the" before it usually, but people do and every time I hear it I laugh).  I know, weak moment.  I'm a Target girl.  But, our Target doesn't have fish.
So, I threatened bribed Ty during our visit there.  If he was a good boy, he got to pick out a fish.  Besides belting out Jesus Loves Me for the majority of our shopping trip (like seriously, what kind of Mom would I be to tell him to quit praising Jesus?) he was pretty good. 
He kept asking me, "when do I get to go fishin' Mama?"
I told him we were getting a fish to take home.  Just 1.  He wanted all of them.  He also wanted a pole...to fish with.  If this fish lives for longer than a few days it'll be a miracle. 
He would not put the fish down in the cart...he HAD to hold it.  At one point I told him the fish was going to have a heart attack if he didn't hold the container still.  He has now asked me if every family member and friend of our's has had a heart attack. 
He picked out a blue Beta.  Meet Bruce:

He's kind of a big deal already. 

Bruce:  The fish looked like a shark...to Ty. Ace was just along for the ride so our "shark" is named Bruce (from Nemo).  Ace keeps looking in the bowl saying, "Meno, Meno, R youuuuuu?"

Telling Bruce goodnight. 

Ty went to bed last night, with me, and before he went to bed he said, "Mama, I hope Bruce doesn't have a heart attack and die tonight".
Thank the good Lord Bruce was alive and swimming this morning.  Ty and Ace have pecked the glass and Ty got the fish net and was "fishin" this morning.  I need a lid for the bowl...do they make those?
He also sang to the fish with his Woody harmonica this morning...

Such a nice Big Bro!  (on another note...I asked Ty if he wanted another baby at home he said "yup, another Acey.  But I want a clean Acey.  I want one that doesn't poop in his pants!".)
Happy Weekend everyone!

I know I'm not alone...

I'm a Working Mom.  We all are.  No matter what you do, if you're a Mother, your work is never done.  I don't feel like I need to explain WHY I work outside of the home, 50+ hours a week, yet I do sometimes feel like people want an explanation as to "why" I do what I do.  "How can you leave your kids with someone else all day?" and "You miss out on so much!".  Yes, people have said those things to me before.  And let me tell ya, it's not easy to hear.  Especially after a particularly rough few weeks that end with your husband being gone for several nights in a row for his job. 
My phone also brings work "home" so I work, it seem's, all the time.  I can't shut my brain off.  I need to. I pray about "shutting work off" but...I can't.
Sunday afternoon, after working 2 hours in the office, I came home for some lunch.  Todd left for practice and his parents were coming over to pick up the boys so I could go to venue to set up for ameeting we were having the next day.  Ace was napping so Ty and I were cuddling on the couch watching Good Luck Charlie (yes, he still has a crush on Teddy...my little girl crazy boy!). 
He looked at me and said, "Mama, how come you and Daddy have to work all the time?" 
He was so sincere.  He had really thought about it.  And...he wanted an answer.

Moments like this...Ty Man giving me a concert.  They're my favorite.

I paused and tried to take the dagger out of my heart that his question just "jabbed" me with.  I didn't know what to say. 
I settled with a big hug and "baby, one day you'll understand".  And, then I asked him who loved him the mostestest.  His response..."Mama and Daddy.  And Acey too.  'Cause we're all the family". 
And, that made me feel all better.
I know I'm not alone.  I know I'm not the only Mom who works outside of the home.  I'm not the only Mom that has a hard time shutting off their work brain. 
I get up at the crack of dawn (literally, it's usually 4am), to start laundry and exercise, so I can do that when everyone else is sleeping.  We may eat out more than other's because it's kind of hard to cook a real "meal" when you're not even home until 6:15pm each day and you're baby boy needs "jammies on" at 7:30pm.

But, it's QUALITY not QUANTITY.
For the record, I like work. I enjoy it. I like being creative and the feeling of being successful. I like goals. I honestly do.
But any work outside the home Mama has their days. Guilt is the devil. I've been jealous of my friend's who spend hours on end with their babies all day while I pay someone to do that.
Don't get me wrong--I have friend's that do it all. Stay at home, stay at home but volunteer their ass of while their kid's at school, work part time, work at home, work full time...and there are days I daydream of how wonderful their day-to-day schedule must be.
But, this works for us.
And, that's all that matter's.

How we spent our Superbowl

Ace was feeling like poo so after I dropped my food off to the Superbowl party we were supposed to attend, we left for convenient care.
They took one look at him and basically told me to get to the ER. Fast. 
Poor baby...

Pre IV nightmare...he was so dehydrated it took 4 nurses, 2 assistants, 2 hours, and a whole bunch of prayers to get a good IV in.  He was a trooper. He was tolerable, then agressive, and then...

He passed out. He was lifeless. Even more lifeless than at convenient care. In his hand is a horse. The sweet nurses gave him a horse to hold. He loved that horse and Ty was jealous he got a new toy. If only Ty knew what he had to do to get a new horse!

Little Boo Boo:  pouting and sweaty from putting up a hell of a fight.

And, his little hospital bracelet. 

He came home with bruises all over him from all the needle poking. They couldn't find anything wrong, thank goodness. His heart rate was really high and his white blood cell count was pretty off too. But, after a bag of fluids he was a different child. He had x-rays done to check his lungs, but he was pnemonia free!
Then Ty got it, then me, then me again.  Except in addition to the stomach bug I had strep and a sinus infection.  Let's hope all that's behind us now.  We're looking forward to warmer weather and NO MORE SICKNESS!!!

Y3W: Funny. Cute. Celebrate.

So, I picked Ty up from school yesterday and he says "Happy Grambha Day".  I'm all "dude, I'm not a freakin' Grandma (okay, so I didn't say that but seriously, Ace was calling me Big Mama the other day so you never know...)
He repeated himself while he was showing me this little cone that was colored brown and this little brown foam cutout with a face on popsicle stick.  He was so proud.  He said, "Let me show you Mama.  See my grambha hides and then he says "BOO!". 
And, of course I had to make him show me.  On video.  Because I'm that Mom.

On another note, we witnessed Ace counting cars last night.  He got up to 7 before he started over again.  I thought his 1,2.3 was just a habit.  It's not.  He was pointing to each car and counting.  So proud :)

And...today is my Papaw's Birthday. He deserves a Birthday that he can celebrate.  One that Memaw and him can really party it up.  Together.  Just how it should be.