"head it, kick it, knee it, boot it,"

"but don't use your hands."

these are the words from one of jay's new books from his grandma and grandpa for his birthday.  it was all in anticipation for his next adventure on a soccer team.  garrett and i have always played on some type of sports team growing up, so it is no surprise that we have found a team for jay be on.  what's funny is that it is for a sport we never played as kids.  we signed up through mint hill athletic association for fun on friday nights.  this past friday was to be the first night, but long and behold a storm right before practice postponed it until saturday morning at 9:00.  the kids were all ready with socks, shinguards, cleats, and balls.

the coaches explained to all of us that the parents would be the assistant coaches and would help as well.  this could get interesting.

they set up two different stations and did drills with the kids.

we have tons of friends playing as well.  this is hannah smith.

don't forget to always listen!!

livvie's playing too.

chandler not getting the ball is to be on the ground.

noah, baer, and jay all lined up.

jay loved playing

and can't wait until next friday.

some action shots.

baer, gavin, and jay listening to the coach.  this can be a bit different at daycare where they all get in trouble together.

for the first two weeks, it is a drill/practice session where the kids are learning the basics.  after labor day, the fridays turn into 30 min practice and 30 min 3 vs. 3 games.  i'm interested in the games with a bunch of 3 and 4 year olds.

so our big boy is 4 years old.  i can't believe that he has reached this point.  one more year and he will be headed to kindergarden.  crazy how time flies.  jay will miss this sweet lady next year.  this is ms. sue.  she was jay's teacher as an infant and is mason's teacher now.  he goes to see her each morning.  sometimes she has goodies for him, but on friday for his birthday, she had a cake and gifts for him.  she is such a sweet lady and has a big place in our hearts.

today was the day that jay had his 4 year old appointment at the doctor.  he was checked out head to toe.  he weighed in at 30.2 pounds (10%) and 39 inches tall (25%).  He has gained 4 pounds and 3 inches from last year.  the nurse told us that they have just now started to mark bmi on a chart for the kids.  this was the first time that she marked it below the chart.  the doctor just keeps telling us, he is just a lean fellow and that he is on track to be about 5'8" or a little bit taller.

the doctor also said that normally they immunize at 5 years old, but it was up to us whether he was given shots today or next time.  there are normally 4 vaccines given at by 5 years old with two given as a combo.  i opted to have the combo given today.  i don't want to give all the shots at once because i don't know how jay will react to a shot.  i was pleasantly surprised that he just sat there and watched her give him a shot.  he just said it hurt and just moaned and groaned a little.  no crying!!  we've got a really big boy here.

this little guy came to jay's appointment as well.

in just a few short days, jay is going to start playing soccer in a micro-soccer league in mint hill.  this should be interesting.  we've gone out a couple of times to play in the yard and jay seems to listen and want to play.  we will see when we add more kids in the mix.  we think he will be pretty competitive and will want to play.  we can't wait to watch him play.

4 years and growing

yesterday was jay's 4th birthday.  i can't believe that he is getting so big and has already hit the 4 year mark.  i think we have perfected this birthday party thing.  since his birthday is during the summer months, we just blow up some pools and have water fun in the backyard.  this year we focused on kids his age so we didn't have so many people as we did last year.  we also decided we would try to do the party around lunch instead of the late afternoon, which worked out perfectly.  our theme this year was superheroes.  jay loves any type of superhero from the avengers to the marvel characters.

jay diving in the water

 water fun

grandpa and cousin carson

mackenzie swimming

jay being jay

superhero shirts were the party favors.  everyone seemed to like the idea.

bethany and parker

dylan, kevin, chandler

love me some mason

batman cupcakes

the parents joined in the fun with a water balloon toss

nana and mason

carson

blowing out candles with the help of noah

matt, jake and others

yum, yum

i think seth liked the cake

so did brooklyn

dylan and jay really wanted to open the presents

cooper and jay 

jay loves books

thanks chandler

handsome mason

gavin loving his shirt

so does livvie and lyla

and noah and mackenzie

thanks to all who came out to celebrate.  the rain held off and was a great day.

beach babes

finally we were able to make it to the beach this year.  it was postponed from mid-June since i broke my foot and was in a boot for six weeks.  that would not have been fun to have a boot in the sand and carrying mason up and down.  we left after church on sunday and drove to garrett's grandmother's house in loris, sc.  we stayed the night there and were able to spend some time with her as well as garrett's aunt, uncle, and cousins.

monday morning, we left garrett's grandmother's house and went to shop before the hotel would let us in.  the usual check-in time is 4:00, but i called to see when we would be able to get in, hoping to get in early.  great call, because we were able to check in at 11:30.  just in time to get some lunch and get the kids down for a nap.  after naps we headed out to the pool.

the next two days, we spent on the beach and at the pool.  it did rain some, but it wasn't too bad and normally during lunch and nap time.  the weather was wonderful and not too hot.  this was mason's first trip to the beach and i believe he loved it.  and yes, he did eat some sand!!

we were also able to get a few family shots.  can't wait to go back next year with the family.