Another Year in The Books!

 

 

I LOVE MY KIDS SCHOOL!

 

I am so grateful for the community we live in and the people we have as friends.  The kids are lucky enough in Crowley, to be in the area where the kids go to the original schools that are in the heart of Crowley.  Crowley ISD is much bigger than the City of Crowley, and that is bringing some unappealing changes to the district, but so far, we love the elementary our kids attend and we couldn't be happier.

 

Brooks and Bosten graduated from 2nd grade with Honor Roll and lot's of awards for participation in extracurricular activities.  They have excellent citizenship, freaking miracle for the twinadoes I know, and excel in Math. 

 

Parker graduated from the 1st grade and is one of the most well loved students in her class. She is incredibly well rounded and kind to everyone.   She made all A's all year and had great citizenship and participated in Running Eagles, the running club.  I'm very proud of her as well.

 

 

 

Parker and some of her best buddies from 1st grade.  

 

Sweet Brooks

 

Serious Bosten.  Poor lady in the back, her tired!

 

Brooks, McKinley, and Nick, the Photo Bomber.  Well played Nicholas.

 

Parker and the best group of girls ever! 

 Parker and her friend Austen, and the photobombers. 

 

The CUMP crew.  These 5 have been in school together since they were 2.  Love them and their special bond.

 

And their silliness and closeness.

 

Mrs. Barnes and P.

 

Mrs. Super and the Boys

 

The boys class!  Plus some annoying little sisters, ahem.....Parker!

 

Boys class being silly!

 

 

I'm very proud of my babies and thankful that we made it through another year.  The boys will be separated next year and P will have to take it up a level in the second grade, so I'm excited to see where it takes them.

 

Brooks, Bosten, and Parker......We are very proud of your grades, your behavior, and your kindness to others.  We couldn't be more proud of all of our babies.



The Royal Ball!

The Royal Ball is a fundraiser for the kids school.  I really had no intention of going because it was on a Friday night and ours are so very precious to us, I just wasn't sure that this is where we wanted to spend it.  However, Brooks and Bosten had other plans.........

 

The story goes like this.....

 

Brooks and Bosten have a friend in class, McKinley, she is a beautiful little girl.  McKinley got an iphone for Christmas last year and she periodically will call to speak to either Brooks or Bosten, depending on the month etc. ; )

 

So, I have McKinley's number saved in my phone so we know it is her when she is calling.  I hadn't had my phone in several hours, which feels amazing by the way, and when I got it back, there was a message on it to McKinley.  It said this.......

 

"Will you go to the Royal Ball with me, this is Brooks"

 

OMG!  Are we there? We are there?  We probably shouldn't be there, but Brooks has brought us there.  If we are taking a girl to the ball, we better do it right. This is an opportunity to teach these boys about being gentlemen. 

 

After some discussions with the boys, it became apparent that Bosten had a lady he wanted to invite as well.  Chloe, one of Parker's best friends. 

 

So, I honestly wasn't comfortable with the idea of an actual date for the 8 year olds.  I talked with the parents and we agreed to just meet the girls there. That felt all right.  However, I still wanted to teach the gentlemen lesson. So, we went out and bought a nice shirt that coordinated with the ladies dresses and we made corsages for their little wrist to give to them once we saw them at the dance.

 

It was all very innocent and cute.  Parker was asked by a few boys and remained strong and said NO to each of them. Her response, I want to go with my Daddy!  atagirl!

 

So we went as a family. Met up with our friends, and danced the night away.  It was all super cute and everyone had a wonderful time.  It was a night the kids will remember forever because they felt so special.  Brooks and Bosten spent the night getting chased by approximately 100 little girls and Parker had fun dancing with Daddy and showing off her attire to all the little girls.  They loved every minute of it and I was pleasantly surprised at how much fun it was. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Holy Baseball, We've been Abducted!

Tis the season at Casa de Dwinell to be taken over, literally, by baseball.  I'm happy to do it albeit, but it does leave little time for anything else around here. 

I've got some catch up to do on the ole blog this week.  Lot's of special stuff has been going on around this humble abode of mine and I have GOT to get it documented. 

The boys have officially entered the world of Select/Elite baseball.  We held it off as long as we could, but they love the sport and are good at the sport, and so support it we must!

We have gotten the routine down of hauling the kids, washing the uniforms, making arrangements for P during days of sun up to sun down ball, and packing a cooler with lots of snacks and ice cold Gatorade to make it through our weekends away from home.  Its a different world, this tournament ball, but man the Mama's involved have it down to a science, and I am just trying to follow suit. 

I'm reminded often of all the games I used to watch in high school for their Dad.  I'd spend entire weekends either sweating or freezing just to watch him "possibly" pitch in a game.  I loved watching him so much it was an easy choice.  When the games were over, I hung on every word he said to me because I just adored him THAT much.  Sometimes he was sweet and would give me the ever public side hug, and sometimes, depending on how the game went, he was way too intense and would head straight to the locker room breaking my heart and crushing my expectations.  It was always a roller coaster and I loved every minute of it. 

Fast forward 18 years, HOLY COW, and we have two twin boys that put me right back into that seat.  I'm MUCH more mature now, so I don't allow my entire days happiness to ride on their acknowledgement during or after a game.  However, I do get a warm proud feeling every time they look back and smile at me with their sweet dimples to say without saying....."Did you see that Mom?"
Of course I did baby, and I'm so proud of you is what I try to convey with my token thumbs up from the bleachers. 

We do this weekend after weekend and we love every minute of it.  Parker on the other hand, not so much, but she can usually find Nana around somewhere to entertain her for at least a bit.  After years of doing cartwheels with sweet Kiley in the fields beside Dustin's games as a teenager, I don't feel all that bad when P pesters Nana.  Its just the circle of life and maybe a little payback ; )
Before we know it, we will be running around town to gymnastics meets or cheer competitions for P.  She just had to take an extended time out this year because of the broken arm.  She starts back at it next week.  I can't wait to see what she does.

Bosten is a first baseman and very very good at it.  He consistently makes the outs happen  no matter how the ball is thrown at him.  That baby does the splits practically to keep the foot on the bag and make the catch. I am very proud of him.  He hits too, which is awesome.  He pitched his first game a few weeks ago in a kid pitch scrimmage and struck the batter out by throwing actual strikes.  I'm excited about the potential of this Lefty as a pitcher in the future.  I can tell you now, that his head will be his biggest obstacle.  He is incredibly intense and expects a lot of himself.  He will have to learn to "Clear the Mechanism" so to speak.  Movie quote trivia........For the Love of the Game!
On a side note, Isn't Kevin Costner the best Actor/Baseball player ever?  He nails those roles.  Love watching him in all his baseball flicks.

Brooks is powerful and has made several sports center highlight reel catches as an outfielder this season.  You know, the kind where they catch and roll and the ball actually stays in the glove.  Its been fun to see his dimples clear across the field when he makes a good catch.  He also plays a lot of Catcher and does really well there too. He is great at catching and turning quick to face the runner head on and make the out. I love watching the intensity of this situation and I love watching him succeed in that way.  He hits hard anytime he gets hold of the ball.  He lead the team off in the line up due to his consistent hitting. Very proud Mama!

Its so fun!  I'll stop bragging on these sweet little monkey's now, but man I sure am grateful they found this outlet and that they enjoy it the way they do.  It is exhausting at times, but the twinadoes are tame and focused when they are on the baseball field, and that is a sight to see for anyone that knows them.

Getting Crafty!

It's time for a fun project to kick off Friday!

 

When Dustin travels a lot, I get a little stressed! 

 

Getting crafty is therapeutic for me. 

 

So, craft I must!

 

I have had several comments on this project so I thought I would share the how to with you......

 

It truly is a piece of cake....

 

I started by purchasing 3 large Mason jars.  I have a case of these at home because I use them for everything from utensil holders on my kitchen table, pencil holders at the homework station (again, my kitchen table), flower pots, teacher gifts, detergent canisters for my homeade detergent....(post on that coming soon), and just about anything.  I have very cottage/vintage decor in my home so these fit right in.

Next I gathered some acrylic paint that I had purchased to paint bird houses with the kids.  I only had these two shades of blue and I knew I wanted three that made an ombre effect, so I just mixed white with the darker color blue to make one in between.  It was a piece of cake and turned out great. 

Next, I took a small paint sponge and started painting the insides of the jars.  I realized really quickly that the coverage with the sponges wasn't going to cut it, so I switched to a small paint brush, about an inch in width, and this worked much better at covering so that the glass didn't show through.  I stole the brush from my kids painting kit.  Nothing fancy. 

 

I loathe fake flowers, but I also love color in my home, so I went to Hobby Lobby and found these and thought they looked pretty legit.  I was happy with them.  I just cut them to size so that the flowers billowed just over the top of the jar as to not show the imperfections in my painting job. I'm a sneaky little crafter I tell  ya. 

 

And......the finished product, with a little Instagram love added for the effect of the filter.  They look beautiful on my dining room table.  It's the perfect pop of color without being obnoxious.  They make me happy!  

This project took all of 10 minutes if you don't count paint drying time and could be done with any colors.  I'd just add white to get a little differentiation from one jar to the next.  I did find this project idea on the beloved Pinterest and I'm sure if you search it they have a better way of doing it, but this way worked just fine for me.

 

 

Happy Crafting and Happy Spring! 

Take me Out to the Ballpark!

 

It's officially Spring, even though the weather isn't cooperating, and at our home that means BASEBALL! 

 

I absolutely LOVE this time of year.  As I sit here and type I've sneezed approximately 100 times already this morning and my nose is running profusely despite the Sudafed I took an hour ago.  So, you would think I'd be run down or becoming a hermit to avoid the pollen and mountain cedar in the air. However, I have baseball games to attend.  This year I have my own two little super stars to watch on the field. 

 

Gone are the days of the 3 second delay between catching the ball and knowing what to do with it.  Gone are the days where they play in the dirt as a fly ball literally flies right past them.  Gone are the days where we strike out when we are hitting off a tee.  Brooks and Bosten have officially become little "Ballers" so to speak and are quite the little baseball players.

 

Don't get me wrong, I love to brag on my kids, and I do see them through a Mother's eyes no matter what they do.  However, truly from an unbiased look at them, they are quite good little ball players. They are just a joy to watch and I absolutely love every minute of it and can't get enough of it. 

 

This weekend they had a two day tournament in Coppell with their Elite 8u team, The Crushers!

We spent the entire weekend driving back and forth from Coppell, an hour for us Country Folk, and eating from the concession stand anything and everything that sounded good.  We braved freezing temperatures and strong winds.  And can I just say, I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT! 

 

I would happily do it again today if it weren't for that darn thing called school.  I love watching my boys and all of their friends get better and better each week and play hard 6 different games this week. 

 

I'm  sure that sounds like a lot, but for me and my family, we just can't get enough.  We love it!  Brooks is the Catcher for the Crushers and does a great job of being ready and taking people down at home just as they think they've got the run.  Bam, they hit a wall aka Brooks, and their out.  Bosten plays First Base and consistently makes the plays game after game after game. He is truly a thinker and in the game of baseball, his forward thinking serves him very well.  When I watch him, I feel like I'm watching someone truly live out their gifts and it is just an amazing feeling as his Mom. 

 

Both boys can and do hit the baseball pretty consistently.  They show up for their team each and every game and I am truly proud of their efforts.  I cannot wait for the years to come of watching this in this great sport.

 

I'd like to also note, that we are VERY intentional about not putting pressure on them to play baseball, even though we love the sport.  Their love has been a very natural progression and that makes it even more special to watch. I can't wait to see what they do with their talent in the years to come. 

 

 

 

Bosten, getting ready to rip it. 

 

Brooks, right after he mowed someone down at home plate to make a crucial out. 

 

 

Both boys after their tournament, and a 3rd place finish out of 11 teams!  Go Crushers!  We were thrilled with this given the level of competition. 

 

Their fan club!  These girls braved the cold to watch the boys play this weekend and were super supportive fans. 

 

 

We also made a little time for fun this weekend around the tournament.  We took the kids bowling on Friday night with some good friends of ours.  They had a great time and each got to bring a friend along. 

 

 

Mackenzie and P! 

 

 The Three Amigos!  These three are truly the best of friends.  We sure do love our Grant!



 

We also got to enjoy some time with our family celebrating Easter with Ryan and Lisa and the Cousins while they were in town from Kansas City.  I truly miss seeing them more often and was very grateful for the wonderful dinner that Cheryl put on so that we could all celebrate Easter together a little bit early.  It was  great evening of Cousin fun!

We had a wonderful weekend as a family and woke up Monday morning feeling like we needed another weekend to recover from this weekend, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 

 

-B-



For the Love of So Cal!

 Dustin and I had the joy of celebrating our 10 year wedding Anniversary in my favorite place, Southern California, this month.   Dustin had only been for work a few times and had never toured the area like I grew up doing.  I wanted so badly to show him that side of me and why I love it there so much.  I just knew he would love it too, and boy did he!

 

I think if family weren't our absolute number one most important thing in our lives, we would move there in a heartbeat.  WE LOVED IT!   I'm pretty sure most of my family would try to follow us out there if there was a reason to go, but if not, we would just miss them all way too much. 

 

So, why is So. California our favorite place on earth?  Well besides the beaches and beautiful year round weather, its just the laid back attitude and love of the outdoors and fitness and all things natural.  Dustin loves the dog love and how everyone seems to have a Golden Retriever, the best dogs on the planet.  I think if Dustin could walk his dogs on the beach every day for the rest of his life, he would be content. 

 

I just love the active lifestyle and the chill vibe that goes along with life there.  Everything is so casual and surprisingly not pretentious.  I feel relaxed and at home when I'm there. 

 

Unfortunately our weather wasn't great that weekend.  We started the Friday off by going to the hotel and checking out our room and then eating the most delicious pizza every in the lobby.  I drank a glass of wine and ate this amazing pizza and talked with my honey, and all was right with the world. 

 

After this, we went up and got ready for dinner.  I desperately wanted Dustin to see Coronado and to fall in love with that island the way that I had a few years ago.  Unfortunately, it was cold and rainy and just not a great day or night for dinner overlooking the water.  We cancelled our reservation and ended up eating at a cute and yummy little tapas restaurant right in the middle of town.  Since it was pouring rain, we went to see a movie after dinner.  It wasn't really what I dreamed of traveling all the way to California to do, see a movie, but it was a cute and quaint little theatre and we didn't have kids to quiet down, and we ate popcorn and held hands and had a great time. 

 

Saturday, we woke up and had the most amazing breakfast buffet at our hotel.  They had absolutely everything you could imagine to eat.  I had so much fun trying new stuff because I love food adventures.  I ate more that weekend than I had in a long time. We left our hotel and took a drive up the PCH towards Huntington Beach to meet up with Dustin's work friend and her Husband for lunch. 

 

We had a great day with Hillary and Rob.  They took us on a nice bike ride into town and we ate at a great little restaurant and drank wine and watched beach volleyball.  After lunch, we went riding for a bit longer and then said our good bye's. Dustin and I walked the Huntington Pier together and watched the surfers do their thing.  Then we went to a few gift shops to buy the kids some souvenirs. 

 

Next, we drove up the coast back towards San Diego stopping at every little beach town along the way for a new experience.  We accidentally drove our car right onto a fairy at one point in Newport and took a little ride across the ocean a bit to Balboa while still in our car.  That was fun and random, but worked out wonderfully.  Then we ate appetizers and drank margaritas overlooking the most beautiful view in Laguna Beach. 

 

The next morning, we got up and headed out to La Jolla, another one of my favorite places.  We walked the streets full of incredible art galleries and made our way down the steep streets to the public park where the seal beach is.  We walked down on the beach and observed hundreds of seals on the beach just resting from the high tides caused by the weather.  It was so fascinating.  Dustin loved this part, as I knew his animal loving heart would.  We walked around the whole park enjoying the view of the cliffs, the seals, and Torrey Pines golf course in the distance.  We had a great morning, and the sun was finally shining, and we longed for just one more day.

 

However, we missed our babies and had checked all of our to do's off of our check list and headed home that afternoon around 2pm.  It was a wonderful trip and we truly enjoyed taking a little time to celebrate our marriage and all that we have accomplished together in the past 10 years of marriage. Our greatest achievement is obviously our 3 beautiful and perfect children.  In addition to that I am lucky enough to be married to my very best friend and a man that I can truly be myself around and who will support me through anything at all. I will do the same for him and I am his biggest fan.  We work hard at our marriage and the reward is so incredibly worth it.  I feel safe with Dustin and like I have a true partner in my life that will be there in all the highs and all the lows to share in all of it with me.  I love that man.  Happy 10 years to my sweet Dustin Dwinell!

 

 

Chasing a Cow in the Cowtown 10K!

So, last year, I wrote about the amazing God experience I had running the Cowtown 10K with my Sister, Micah, and how God himself carried me over the finish line.  I still remember the cold chills I got that day and the rush of adrenalin as I crossed the finish line and amazed even myself by running the whole race.  It was a great day that changed how I depend on God now.

This year, I had several friends training for the half Marathon.  I wanted so badly to do it, but knew that I had only SURVIVED the 10K the year before.  I found it a rather lofty goal to imagine that I could double that achievement this year.  So, I vowed back in October to train appropriately for the 10K and not just survive it this year, but to run it and feel like I could actually function afterwards.  So, this is what I've been doing.  I did my normal routine of training hard for 3+ months and just about the time that I got to where I needed to be, I got distracted and it got really cold and I got busier and training kind of came to a screeching halt. 

Race week came and I hadn't run at all in a while.  I was a little worried, but I do feel like I have come a long way in my training and I felt confident that I could run 4 miles ok and then use that adrenaline to get through the last two. 

Race day came and that is exactly how that went.  I got up and dressed warm for the 30 degree temps that morning and loaded my iphone with a great play list.  I was running a little late, so by the time I got there and parked, I ran myself straight from my car to the start line and just kept running right into the race.  So, I do believe I should get an extra half mile for that little jaunt as well.

I had a few friends running the 10K this year and they had all suggested that we meet up that morning beforehand and run together.  Not to take anything away from their support and amazing friendships, but I am rather antisocial when it comes to my run time.  It is a very personal thing for me because I'm not a runner by nature and it hurts a little and pushes me in ways that I normally don't push myself.  I'm not in my comfort zone running and a 10K requires and involves a constant conversation between God and I to get through.  So, talking it up with a friend is a distraction for me, as much as I enjoy that, and I need to stay focused to achieve this goal.  Running a 10K is all about the breathing and the bathroom in my opinion.  As long as I don't stop running, I know my legs will do the whole thing.  If I don't breathe in twice and out once throughout the race, I start to struggle.  I also have a very nervous tummy, and this seems to get me year after year in any race I do.  I'm constantly battling waves of sickness throughout the entire race and it has almost halted me in my tracks more than once.  For me, controlling my tummy is the most difficult part.  So sad, and gross!

I did exactly what I expected this year, I ran the first four in the zone and did really well.  On mile 5 I almost lost it a few times due to tummy fun and really wanted to walk.  Last year, at the beginning of the race a gorgeous woman with a prosthetic leg ran by me at the beginning of the race and really motivated me that if she can do it, I better not have one single excuse as to why I can't.  Well low and behold if at mile 5, that same woman didn't run right past me again this year.  I was so grateful for that little push and it carried me through that mile.  At mile 6 you feel like you are in the countdown and so I was able to motivate myself to keep running then.  I was even able to speed up for the last 100 yards this year.  This was a big accomplishment to me that showed that I had come far from last year where I basically flung myself over the finish line and then cried immediately because it hurt so bad and I was so worn out.  This year, I ran it all, by myself, and more than survived it.  I ran it and enjoyed it.  I do wish I had continued my training appropriately so that I could have been proud of my speed, but for me slow and steady was the way to complete this year's Cowtown 10K. 

I did chase a Cow too.  He was very helpful. Again, if a man in a Cow suit can run a 10K, I'll be darned if I can't run it too. 

So, I'm grateful for the accomplishment and I'd like to thank those that supported me though it.  God, Micah, Mom, my babies, and don't forget Drake, Beyonce, Bieber, Paramore, Bruno Mars, and JT for the musical soundtrack support.  There is definitely a lot about the music that leads to my success.  Anne Hathaway in Les Miserables, On My Own, somehow snuck its way onto my 10K play list and about stopped me in  my tracks it was so depressing.  So, much love to the others for carrying me through!

Now, if you'll excuse me while I go and ice down my throbbing legs! ; )