THREE!!!!!

I HAVE A THREE YEAR OLD!!

How did this happen?  

We were so lucky to have my brother and sister visit for a few days last week to get the house ready for Nola's party (and eat wings).  They decided to take Nola to a pumpkin patch outside of Lincoln on Thursday.  Nola got to go on a hayride, play on a pirate ship (her favorite), and pick out a pumpkin.  

 Aren't they a cute little family?

On Friday, we went up to Columbus and met my parents for dinner then went to the CHS homecoming  game.  We had a fun, late, late, late night.  

Saturday was the party!  Nola requested a pink party and I was happy to make that happen for her.  She was at the park with Boca while we decorated so she was pretty surprised when she came into the house and pink was e.v.e.r.y.w.h.e.r.e.

Robert's family came up and we snacked, ate cupcakes, and watched Nola open presents.

Nola got a lot of great gifts and we are so thankful that her closet is now stocked for cooler weather.  One of her favorite gifts was a dress/costume from Frozen.  She put it on immediately and wore it for the rest of the weekend.  

She was pretty wore out when everybody left.  The next day she woke up and asked if it was still her birthday.

A big THANK YOU goes out to our families for helping us celebrate.  It was a great day!!

Softball 2014

Softball starts the week before school and pretty much takes over my life for 9 weeks straight.  Robert turns into a single Dad as I have games every Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday.  This year was even more crazy because it rained soooo much.  We had a few games canceled due to rain.  All but one of them got rescheduled so we ended up playing 16 games in 15 days.  It was nuts.  

I coach JV and had a great group of girls this year.  Mostly freshmen with a few returning from last year that I truly enjoyed working with.  We had a solid team with a lot of talent, but unfortunately our record doesn't reflect that.  You might call us the "Comeback Kids," except we always waited too long to start our comeback :(  The highlight for me was losing the first game of a doubleheader by 16 then coming back to win the next game by 2 runs.  How is that even possible?!?!?  We also had a great game where we scored 10 runs in the last inning -we still lost by 2- but they never gave up!  

Four of my returners and one freshman that ended up with 7 home runs this year, two in that 10-run inning.

I enjoyed working with all of the girls and the other 3 coaches.  The coaching staff this year was so much fun.  Working with people you like makes everything easier.  

Jeff- the coach I worked with most and basically my brother's long-lost twin.  They are EXACTLY the same.

The other two coaches.  I made them take this picture... they were thrilled.

Since this is my third year, I've coached a lot of the girls on Varsity.  Out of the three teams, they had the best year.  About half-way through the season something clicked and they started playing with this "won't lose" attitude that made their games really excited to watch.  They beat a few tough teams and even won a tournament.  They went into Districts as a second seed and had to play against the best team in the state.  They fought hard and ended up getting 2nd.  We are graduating 5 seniors, but most of the starters will be back next year.  If they have the same attitude next year, we are going to be tough to beat!

Our five seniors

District runner ups!

The season always goes so fast.  Now I'm left with a bunch of extra time that I'm already filling up with other things.  This week I'm getting ready for a very special little girl's third birthday party!  Speaking of time going fast...

I can't believe this was 3 years ago!  Stay tuned for a very pink birthday post!

Go Big Red!

It was only a matter of time before I painted a Nebraska chair!  This one went to some friends who are huge Nebraska fans.

If you are interested in getting something custom painted, visit www.swirlsandstripes.com for details and pricing. 

Summer To Didn't List

School is in full swing and summer feels like it was forever ago.  When summer ended, I couldn't help but feel like I didn't do enough.  I didn't do enough projects, I didn't do enough work on the house and I didn't do enough activities with Nola.  Then I decided that I will never feel like I've done enough, so I got over it.  Let's take a look at my summer to do list and see what was (and wasn't) accomplished during my 9 weeks of freedom...

1. POTTY TRAIN NOLA
Accomplished: Sort of.  The other day our daycare provider told Robert that we were doing a really good job training her at home because she was always dry at daycare.  We haven't really done anything so... thanks?   I bought a potty training kit and Nola really got a kick out of the party horns.  I also used some peer pressure.

I think we are getting pretty close.  Maybe she will be potty trained before her senior prom.

2. PAINT
Accomplished: Kinda.  I got the three that needed to be done painted.  I also painted a few pairs of shoes and taught an art class for adults.  Lots of art!

3. BE HEALTHY
Accomplished:  Eh.  I did boot camp 3 days a week.  I skipped a few days.

4.  CURB APPEAL (DOOR, LANDSCAPE, PATIO)
Accomplished: 1 out of 3!  I  couldn't get Robert on board with the patio.  Or the blue door, but I painted the door anyway.  Maybe one day he will come home and there will be a new patio in the front yard?!

5.  WATCH ORANGE IS THE NEW BLACK
Accomplished: YES!!!!!  I also watched all 8 seasons of Weeds, 5 seasons of Parenthood and a couple of seasons of The New Girl.  Have you guys heard of Netflix?  I think I'm late to this party, but it's definitely the best money I never spent (thanks Sara).

6.  BIG PROJECTS
Accomplished: No.  No no no no.  Maybe next summer....

Ruby Sun

A cute chair for a cute little girl named Ruby Sun.

If you are interested in getting something custom painted, visit www.swirlsandstripes.com for details and pricing.