Opening Day

Yesterday was opening day for Sam's first year of baseball. I must say just how handsome our little slugger looked in his uniform! It was cold and wet and while they did eventually get to finish out their scrimmage (against the 6 year-old girls softball team), the rest of the day's festivities were cancelled.

Our little family

This is this year's Easter picture. Man, looking at last year's picture makes me so sad at how fast the kids are growing!

Easter

Our Easter week/weekend was definitely full! Our first Easter egg hunt was last Thursday at the gym. The nursery workers there did a great job. Our next hunt was Saturday morning at 7am at Publix. They split the kids up by age and then gave them a specific area to look through. We ran into Mary Jones (my girlfriend from church)and she had Jacob and Emma with here. Jack and Emma were two of the four small kids that they put up near the registers. I guess they knew the little kids would need a little help, so they not only made most of the eggs easy to find, they made a ton of them! Sam and Jake were back in the produce department and we let them run on their own. Hindsight 20/20, Mary or I should have stayed with them because there was evidently one little girl with them whose Mother was grabbing up all the eggs. Good grief! The each got only a few, so we gave them some of Jack and Emma's to even things out. Still lots of fun, though! Our next Easter egg hunt was Saturday afternoon at Poppy and Nana's house. The kids had a great time, got lots of candy, and even got to have their picture taken. You'll see alot of their cousins hunting with them. Our final Easter egg hunt was Sunday afternoon after having Easter dinner at my Mom's house. I think Jack found more eggs than Sam and Alex even without a head start! Needless to say, we had a great weekend and now have so much candy, we've decided to add some of it to our year-supply of food storage! The best part - the boys both really understood the importance of Easter and Christ's atonement for us - Sam even figured out for himself that there was a connection/comparison between Jesus and the lion in "Chronicles of Narnia." Darn smart kid we've got!

Huntsville Train Depot

Our next stop during spring break was the Huntsville Train Depot. We met one of Sam's friends from school, Colleen, along with her mother and little sister, Kaitlin. It was our first time and their's too and we had lots of fun. Of course, Sam and Colleen have both agreed that they will one day be married, live on the beach, and own a motor boat. We've warned Sam against redheads, but he's still determined! I guess as long he can take her to the temple and do it after his mission, I'll be okay with it!

The Zoo!

Aaron got to take off a day during spring break and we took the kids to the Birmingham Zoo. The weather was great that day and the kids had a blast. Aaron got to ride the carousel with the boys and I got my first ride on a camel. Boy - that was bumpy! We all had a wonderful time and hope to go back soon.

Our Little Pirate

Sam got to pick one of his favorite storybook characters for costume day at their school. It helped celebrate "Read Across America" and Dr. Seuss' birthday. We're in the middle of "Treasure Island," so he decided to be Long John Silver. His favorite part - the tattoos! This, of course, led to a long discussion about how tattoos are only okay if they wash off!

Mr. Baseball

Sam's playing t-ball this year for the first time. While he enjoyed soccer and basketball, he's always had some kind of love for baseball and anybody whose been around since he was say 3 months old knows the kid has an arm. You might as well duck if you see him raring back to throw! So, we were pretty hopeful that he would find his stride quickly with baseball. He started last week and is doing SO well! Yes, I know I'm the bragadocious mother, but if I don't brag, who will! I'll post some pictures soon, but look out - #1, Sam Hammons, of the Young Bucks is coming through!

The Biggest Loser

Okay - so some of you may know that Aaron gave me a membership to The Biggest Loser Club online for Christmas. I got started just after the first of the year - about the 10th of January. Today, I officially reached my first 20 pound mark! I'm so excited to finally be back to my "before any babies" weight! I feel so much better already and I've really only just begun. My goal is to eventually lose about 65 lbs., but I'll take whatever I can get! Watch out though, I'm becoming a health freak, so if you eat at my house anytime soon, it may rub off on you! Good luck to others of my family members that have started the diet too. Aaron has really slimmed down, but he refuses to get on a scale. Suffice it to say that he wore a pair of pants to church yesterday that he hasn't been able to wear in a LONG time! I'm so proud of you, baby - I couldn't do this without your love and support.

Another update - Aaron's little sister Betsy is pregnant with her third child and due in September. Happy Birthday (the 15th) and congratulations, Bets!